three reasons responsible for water scarcity in india

The most common threat to water security is water scarcity. There can be several causes to water scarcity including low rainfall, climate change,[14] high population density, and overallocation of a water source. An example of periodic water scarcity in the United States is droughts in California. Another category of threats to water security is environmental threats.[15] These include contaminates such as biohazards (biological substances that can harm humans), climate change and natural disasters. Contaminants can enter a water source naturally through flooding. Contaminants can also be a problem if a population switches their water supply from surface water to groundwater. Natural disasters such as hurricanes, earthquakes, and wildfires can damage man-made structures such as dams and fill waterways with debris. Other threats to water security include terrorism and radiation due to a nuclear accident.[16]

Water security

Water security has been defined as "the reliable availability of an acceptable quantity and quality of water for health, livelihoods and production, coupled with an acceptable level of water-related risks".[1]

"Sustainable development will not be achieved without a water secure world. A water secure world integrates a concern for the intrinsic value of water with a concern for its use for human survival and well-being. A water secure world harnesses water's productive power and minimises its destructive force. Water security also means addressing environmental protection and the negative effects of poor management. It is also concerned with ending fragmented responsibility for water and integrating water resources management across all sectors—finance, planning, agriculture, energy, tourism, industry, education and health. A water secure world reduces poverty, advances education, and increases living standards. It is a world where there is an improved quality of life for all, especially for the most vulnerable—usually women and children—who benefit most from good water governance."[2]

The areas of the world that are most likely to have water insecurity are places with low rainfall, places with rapid population growth in a freshwater scarce area, and areas with international competition over a water source.[3]

Water security is achieved when there is enough water for everyone in a region and the water supply is not at risk of disappearing.[4] According to the Pacific Institute "While regional impacts will vary, global climate change will potentially alter agricultural productivity, freshwater availability and quality, access to vital minerals, coastal and island flooding, and more. Among the consequences of these impacts will be challenges to political relationships, realignment of energy markets and regional economies, and threats to security".[5]

It impacts regions, states and countries. Tensions exist between upstream and downstream users of water within individual jurisdictions.[6]

During history there has been much conflict over use of water from rivers such as the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers.[7] Another highly politicized example is Israel's control of water resources in the Levant region since its creation,[8] where Israel securing its water resources was one of several drivers for the 1967 Six Day War.

Water security is sometimes sought by implementing water desalination, pipelines between sources and users, water licences with different security levels and war.

Water allocation between competing users is increasingly determined by application of market-based pricing for either water licenses or actual water.[9]

Water, in absolute terms, is not in short supply planet-wide. But, according to the United Nations water organization, UN-Water, the total usable freshwater supply for ecosystems and humans is only about 200,000 km3 of water â€“ less than one percent (<1%) of all freshwater resources. Usable fresh water includes water not contaminated or degraded by water-altering chemicals, such as sewage or any other harmful chemicals from continuous previous use.[10] And, water use has been growing at more than twice the rate of the population increase in the last century. Specifically, water withdrawals are predicted to increase by 50 percent by 2025 in developing countries, and 18 per cent in developed countries.[11] One continent, for example, Africa, has been predicted to have 75 to 250 million lacking access to fresh water.[12] By 2025, 1.8 billion people will be living in countries or regions with absolute water scarcity, and two-thirds of the world population could be under stress conditions.[13]

According to Nature (2010), about 80% of the world's population (5.6 billion in 2011) live in areas with threats to water security. The water security is a shared threat to human and nature and it is pandemic. Human water-management strategies can be detrimental to wildlife, such as migrating fish. Regions with intensive agriculture and dense populations, such as the US and Europe, have a high threat of water security. Water is increasingly being used as a weapon in conflict.[17] Water insecurity is always accompanied by one or more issues such as poverty, war and conflict, low womenâ€™s development and environmental degradation.[18] Researchers estimate that during 2010-2015, ca US$800 billion will be required to cover the annual global investment in water infrastructure. Good management of water resources can jointly manage biodiversity protection and human water security. Preserving flood plains rather than constructing flood-control reservoirs would provide a cost-effective way to control floods while protecting the biodiversity of wildlife that occupies such areas.[19]

Lawrence Smith, the president of the population institute, asserts that although an overwhelming majority of the planet's surface is composed of water, 97% of this water is constituted of saltwater; the fresh water used to sustain humans is only 3% of the total amount of water on Earth.[20] Therefore, Smith believes that the competition for water in an overpopulated world would pose a major threat to human stability,[20] even going so far as to postulate apocalyptic world wars being fought over the control of thinning ice sheets and nearly desiccated reservoirs.[20] Nevertheless, 2 billion people have supposedly gained access to a safe water source since 1990 who may have earlier lacked it.[21] The proportion of people in developing countries with access to safe water is calculated to have improved from 30 percent in 1970.[22] to 71 percent in 1990, 79 percent in 2000 and 84 percent in 2004, parallel with rising population. This trend is projected to continue.[21]

The Earth has a limited though renewable supply of fresh water, stored in aquifers, surface waters and the atmosphere. Oceans are a good source of usable water, but the amount of energy needed to convert saline water to potable water is prohibitive with conventional approaches, explaining why only a very small fraction of the world's water supply is derived from desalination.[23] However, modern technologies, such as the Seawater Greenhouse, use solar energy to desalinate seawater for agriculture and drinking uses in an extremely cost-effective manner.

Based on the map published by the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR),[24] the countries and regions suffering most water stress are North Africa, the Middle East,[25] India, Central Asia, China, Chile, Colombia, South Africa and Australia. Water scarcity is also increasing in South Asia.[26]

The Israeli Holistic Approach to Water Security draws from 70 years of experience in national security and water management. Nations such as the US, UK, Spain, and others are collaborating with Israeli experts in water security standards.[27][28]

International competition over water can arise when one country starts drawing more water from a shared water source.[29] This is often the most efficient route to getting needed water, but in the long term can cause conflict if water is overdrafted.

More than 50 countries on five continents are said to be at risk of conflict over water.[30]

Turkey's Southeastern Anatolia Project (Guneydogu Anadolu Projesi, or GAP) on the Euphrates has potentially serious consequences for water supplies in Syria and Iraq.[7]

China, is constructing dams on the Mekong, leaving Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia and Thailand without same amount of water as before investment. A huge project of reversing the flow of the Brahmaputra (Chinese: Tsangpo) river, which after leaving Chinese Tibet flows through India and Bangladesh. The struggle for water in some afflicted regions has led inhabitants to hiring guards in order to protect wells. Moreover, Amu Daria River, shared by Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan and Afghanistan, which has been nearly completely dried out, so much so that it has ceased to reach the Aral Sea/Lake, which is evaporating in an alarming pace. The fact that Turkmenistan retains much of the water before it flows into Uzbekistan.[31]

In Australia there is competition for the resources of the Darling River system between Queensland, New South Wales and South Australia.

In Victoria, Australia a proposed pipeline from the Goulburn Valley to Melbourne has led to protests by farmers.[32]

In the Macquarie Marshes of NSW grazing and irrigation interests compete for water flowing to the marshes

The Snowy Mountains Scheme diverted water from the Snowy River to the Murray River and the Murrumbidgee River for the benefit of irrigators and electricity generation through hydro-electric power. During recent years government has taken action to increase environmental flows to the Snowy in spite of severe drought in the Murray Darling Basin. The Australian Government has implemented buy-backs of water allocations, or properties with water allocations, to endeavour to increase environmental flows.

In India, there is competition for water resources of all inter state rivers except the main Brahmaputra river among the riparian states of India and also with neighbouring countries which are Nepal, China, Pakistan, Bhutan, Bangladesh, etc.[33] Vast area of the Indian subcontinent is under tropical climate which is conducive for agriculture due to favourable warm and sunny conditions provided perennial water supply is available to cater to the high rate of evapotranspiration from the cultivated land. Though the overall water resources are adequate to meet all the requirements of the subcontinent, the water supply gaps due to temporal and spatial distribution of water resources among the states and countries in the subcontinent are to be bridged.

There is intense competition for the water available in the inter state rivers such as Kavery, Krishna, Godavari, Vamsadhara, Mandovi, Ravi-Beas-Sutlez, Narmada, Tapti, Mahanadi, etc. among the riparian states of India in the absence of water augmentation from the water surplus rivers such as Brahmaputra, Himalayan tributaries of Ganga and west flowing coastal rivers of western ghats. All river basins face severe water shortage even for drinking needs of people, cattle and wild life during the intense summer season when the rainfall is negligible.

Water security can be achieved along with energy security as it is going to consume electricity to link the surplus water areas with the water deficit areas by lift canals, pipe lines, etc.[34] The total water resources going waste to the sea are nearly 1200 billion cubic meters after sparing moderate environmental / salt export water requirements of all rivers.[35] Interlinking rivers of the subcontinent is possible to achieve water security in the Indian subcontinent with the active cooperation of the countries in the region.

The United States currently does not have a cohesive domestic water security policy.[36] Water security is projected to be a problem in the future since future population growth will most likely occur in areas that are currently water stressed.[4] Ensuring that the United States remains water secure will require policies that will ensure fair distribution of existing water sources, protecting water sources from becoming depleted, maintaining good wastewater disposal, and maintaining existing water infrastructure.[37][38] Currently there are no national limits for US groundwater or surface water withdrawal. If limits are imposed, the people most impacted will be the largest water withdrawers from a water source. In 2005, 31% of US water use was for irrigation, 49% was thermoelectric power, public supply 11%, public supply, industrial was 4%, aquaculture 2%, domestic 1%, and livestock less than 1%.[39]

The lack of current national water policy is effective in regions of the United States where there is a lot of water but not effective in regions of water scarcity. In the future, a national water security policy may have to be implemented to move water from regions that are water rich to regions that are water scarce. If new policies are implemented, the major stakeholders will be individual states (both water rich and water poor states), farmers, power companies, and other industries that use a substantial amount of water (such as mining and oil and gas).[36][15]

According to the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), "Improving the security of our nation's drinking water and wastewater infrastructures has become a top priority since the events of 9/11.[40] Significant actions are underway to assess and reduce vulnerabilities to potential terrorist attacks; to plan for and practice response to emergencies and incidents; and to develop new security technologies to detect and monitor contaminants and prevent security breaches."[41]

One of the most important elements of water security is early and accurate contamination detection. The EPA has issued advisory material and guidelines for contamination warning systems to be implemented in water utilities and supplies. The security challenges that utilities frequently revolve around fast detection, accuracy, and the ability to take fast action when there is a water problem. If contamination is detected early enough, it can be prevented from reaching consumers, and emergency water supplies can be put into effect.[42]

In cases where contamination might still reach consumers, fast and efficient communication systems are necessary. All these factors also point to the need for organized and practiced emergency procedures and preparedness.

Since 2002, under the Bioterrorism Act, a water utility supplying more than 3,300 people must take at least the following measures to ensure security of the water supply:[43][44][45]

More recently, under the Drinking Water Security Act of 2009, the EPA is now required to establish risk-based performance standards for community water systems serving more than 3,300 people.[44]

Cincinnati Water Works, San Francisco, and New York City are among the major water utilities that have taken water security measures at their facilities, such as planning for contamination warning systems.[46]

Security of a water supply involves a range of elements. Prevention and detection systems include some or all of the following: access to public health and customer complaint data, water quality monitoring equipment, sampling and analysis, cyber-security which includes situation management and IT systems hardware and software, and physical security. Crisis management and recovery, for when critical water events occur, includes flow control and security valves, rapid and effective communication systems, and emergency water supply equipment.

Specific technologies involved in water security are SCADA, GIS (geographic information system), online (real-time) water quality monitoring devices, contamination warning systems, intrusion detection systems (IDS), contamination detection devices, security valves, security cameras and fences, situation management/emergency management software, emergency supply tanks, manned (or human) security personnel, personal purification devices, and counter-terrorism intelligence.

The Water Information Sharing and Analysis Center (WaterISAC),[47] is the US water sector's security and emergency response information source. This nonprofit service provides US, Canadian, and Australian drinking water and wastewater utilities with the information they need to heighten the protection of water collection and delivery infrastructure. WaterISAC is also a peer-to-peer, business networking platform. Eligible members of the water sector have access to a clearinghouse of government and private documents, guides, best practices, handbooks, and contaminant databases as well as shared data including analysis of successful and failed security incidents within the water sector. These include cyber incidents, physical incidents, and other security related incidents. Many but not all of these are reported to and tracked by WaterISAC. Together, these resources are can be used by utility managers to identify risks, prepare for emergencies, and secure the nation's critical water infrastructure and the environment.[48]American Water Works Association[49]

Blue Peace is a method which seeks to transforms trans-boundary water issues into instruments for cooperation. This unique approach to turn tensions around water into opportunities for socio-economic development was developed by Strategic Foresight Group in partnership with the Governments of Switzerland and Sweden.

"The Blue Peace is an innovative approach to engage political leaders, diplomats and populations in harnessing and managing collaborative solutions for sustainable water management."

Blue Peace is part of a larger trend of viewing water as a human right rather than a market commodity.[50] When water is viewed as a human right, it empowers people in water stressed areas to manage their water sources effectively.[51] Part of having effective management of water is ensuring that all socioeconomic groups of people in a region have adequate access to water, not just certain people.

As new technological innovations continue to reduce the capital cost of desalination, more countries are building desalination plants as a small element in addressing their water crises.[52]

A January 17, 2008, article in the Wall Street Journal states, "World-wide, 13,080 desalination plants produce more than 12 billion gallons of water a day, according to the International Desalination Association." [65]

The world's largest desalination plant is the Jebel Ali Desalination Plant (Phase 2) in the United Arab Emirates. It is a dual-purpose facility that uses multi-stage flash distillation and is capable of producing 300 million cubic meters of water per year.[66]

A typical aircraft carrier in the U.S. military uses nuclear power to desalinize 400,000 US gallons (1,500,000Â L) of water per day.[67]

While desalinizing 1,000 US gallons (3,800Â L) of water can cost as much as $3, the same amount of bottled water costs $7,945.[68]

However, given the energy intensive nature of desalination, with associated economic and environmental costs, desalination is generally considered a last resort after water conservation. But this is changing as prices continue to fall.

According to MSNBC, a report by Lux Research estimated that the worldwide desalinated water supply will triple between 2008 and 2020.[69]

However, not everyone is convinced that desalination is or will be economically viable or environmentally sustainable for the foreseeable future. Debbie Cook, the former mayor of Huntington Beach, California, has been a frequent critic of desalination proposals ever since she was appointed as a member of the California Desalination Task Force. Cook claims that in addition to being energy intensive, desalination schemes are very costlyâ€”often much more costly than desalination proponents claim. In her writing on the subject, Cook points to a long list of projects that have stalled or been aborted for financial or other reasons, and suggests that water-stressed regions would do better to focus on conservation or other water supply solutions than to invest in desalination plants.[70]

A novel approach to desalination is the seawater greenhouse, which takes seawater and uses solar energy to desalinate it in conjunction with growing food crops in a specially adapted greenhouse.


what does a not proven verdict mean in scotland

The result is the modern perception that the "not proven" verdict is an acquittal used when the judge or jury does not have enough evidence to convict but is not sufficiently convinced of the accused person's innocence to bring in a "not guilty" verdict. Essentially, the judge or jury is unconvinced that the suspect is innocent, but has insufficient evidence to the contrary.

Not proven

Not proven is a verdict available to a court in Scotland. Under Scots law, a criminal trial may end in one of three verdicts: one of conviction ("guilty") and two of acquittal ("not proven" and "not guilty").[1][2]

Historically, the two verdicts available to Scots juries were that the case had been "proven" or "not proven". However, in a dramatic case in 1728 the jury asserted "its ancient right", meaning that it decided not to apply the law, despite evidence, as they believed that the death was an accident and not murder. The jury decided to bring in a "not guilty" verdict even when the facts of the case were proven.[3] As the "not guilty" verdict gained wide acceptance amongst Scots juries, Scots began to use "not guilty" in cases where the jury felt the "not proven" verdict did not adequately express the innocence of the person on trial. Shrewd defence then further encouraged this interpretation in order to persuade juries unwilling to bring in a "not guilty" verdict that the "not proven" could be brought in as a lesser or "third verdict".

Out of the country, the "not proven" verdict may be referred to as the Scottish verdict, and in Scotland itself it may be referred to colloquially as the bastard verdict,[4] which was a term coined by Sir Walter Scott, who was sheriff in the court of Selkirk.

In Scottish criminal courts, the person on trial is referred to as the accused. If the accused is convicted, he or she is thereafter referred to as the convicted.

The three verdict system was established in Scots law by 1728 (since then juries have been able to pass a not guilty verdict). For some time before this, there were just two verdicts: Proven and Not proven; scholars dispute the origins of this system.

On one account, advanced two hundred years ago by the historians Hume and Arnot, the older distinctively Scottish two verdict system was rooted in religious oppression. The Crown persecuted the Covenanters but popular support made it impossible to convict them in a jury trial. To pare the power of the jury, the Scottish judges began restricting the jury's role: no longer would the jury announce whether the accused was "guilty" or "not guilty"; instead it would decide whether specific factual allegations were "proven" or "not proven"; and the judge would then decide whether to convict. Some historians, however, such as Ian Douglas Willock, have rejected the traditional account.[citation needed]

In a notable trial in 1728, a defence lawyer (Robert Dundas) persuaded a jury to reassert its ancient right of acquitting, of finding an accused "not guilty", in spite of the facts being proven. The case involved the trial of Carnegie of Finhaven for the murder of the Earl of Strathmore. The law (as it stood) required the jury merely to look at the facts and pass a verdict of "proven" or "not proven" depending on whether they believed the evidence proved that the accused had killed the Earl. Carnegie had undoubtedly killed the Earl, but had also clearly not intended to do so (manslaughter). If the jury brought in a "proven" verdict they would in effect constrain the judge to find Carnegie guilty of murder, for which the punishment was hanging. To avert this outcome, the jury decided to assert what it believed to be their "ancient right" to judge the whole case and not just the facts, and brought in the verdict of "not guilty".

The (re)introduction of the "not guilty" verdict was part of a wider movement during the 17th and 18th century which saw a gradual increase in the power of juries, such as the trial of William Penn in 1670, in which an English jury first gained the right to pass a verdict contrary to the law (known as jury nullification), and the trial of John Peter Zenger in New York in 1735 in which jury nullification is credited with establishing freedom of the press as firm right in what would become the United States.

Although jurors continued to use both "not guilty" and "not proven", jurors tended to favour the "not guilty" verdict over the "not proven" and the interpretation changed.

In Scotland, a criminal case may be decided either "in solemn procedure" by a jury (instructed by the judge), or "in summary procedure" by the judge alone (with no jury appointed). There are various rules for when the one or the other procedure may or must be employed; in general, juries are employed for the more severe accusations, while petty crimes and offences are treated summarily. A criminal case jury consists of 15 jurors, who make their decision by a simple majority vote: eight votes are necessary and sufficient for the verdict "guilty",[1] which has replaced the older verdict "proven".

Approximately one third of all acquittal verdicts by Scottish juries use the formulation Not proven; the others use Not guilty. The verdict "Not proven" also is available for judges in the summary procedure, and is employed in about a fifth of the "summary" acquittals.[1] The proportion of Not proven acquittals in general is higher in the more severe cases; but so then are the proportion of acquittals versus convictions. This might have many different reasons, e.g., that in average it might be factually more complicated to establish guilt beyond a reasonable doubt in the more severe cases.[2]

Both in the "solemn" and the "summary" acquittals, not proven is interpreted as indicating that the jury or judge, respectively, is not convinced of the innocence of the accused; in fact, they may be morally convinced that the accused is guilty, but do not find the proofs sufficient for a conviction. One reason for this is the rule that in such cases the evidence for the prosecution must be corroborated in order to permit a conviction. Thus, there might be a single plaintiff or witness for the prosecution, which the jury or judge believes is both truthful and trustworthy, but no other witness or circumstances against the accused. By Scottish law, the accused then should be acquitted, but often will be so by the verdict "not proven".[1]

In recent years there have been repeated calls for reform, most arguing for a move to only two verdicts.[5] However, there are several issues and no consensus. Some of the arguments against the third verdict are[citation needed]

However, the perceived advantages in retaining the three verdict system have outweighed the disadvantages. Many people believe that if only "guilty" and "not guilty" were available, then some people who are currently acquitted by a "not proven" verdict would instead be convicted.[2] In cases where the public found the evidence of guilt overwhelming, but the jury returned the verdict "not proven", critics have argued that the jury probably would have given a guilty verdict if they did not have the third alternative. Proponents of retaining the third option argue that people acquitted with a "not proven" were not found guilty beyond a reasonable doubt; but with the removal of the third option, they might have been found guilty anyway. This would mean that the presumption of innocence until sufficient proof of guilt is established would be weakened.

Another argument for retaining the three verdict system was brought up by Scottish rape crisis centres, who lobbied for this among the members of the Scottish parliament. The number of "not proven" verdicts in sexual assault cases is proportionally large; about three out of ten of these cases end with an acquittal, and a third of these acquittals (a tenth of all verdicts in such cases) are judged "not proven".[2] This is related to the fact that fairly often there is not sufficient corrobating evidence, and the victim's testimony alone does not constitute a legal ground for a conviction. Now, the rape crisis centres argued, if the "not proven" verdict is removed, a smaller number of assaulted women will dare to press for a trial. If either the first trial, or a successful appeal to the High Court, ends in a "not guilty" verdict, the woman may feel stigmatised in the eyes of the public, which often treats the trial as if there were two accused: the alleged attacker and the victim. On the other hand, a "not proven" verdict is not at all considered as damaging for "the credibility, honesty and reliability of women" (footnote 65 in [2]), since it indicates that the jurors do not disbelieve them, even if the total evidence is not sufficient for a conviction.

Since 1989, in the Italian juridical system, there are five modes of acquittal available. Two of these correspond roughly to the Scottish Not guilty and Not proven, respectively.[6]

In general, the Scottish verdict has not been permanently adopted outside its home country, but it was sometimes used in colonial Canada, especially by some judges in southwestern Ontario[citation needed]. Its most famous use in the United States came when Senator Arlen Specter tried to vote "not proven" on the two articles of impeachment of Bill Clinton,[7] his votes were recorded as "not guilty"[2] and when, at the O.J. Simpson murder case, various reformers, including Fred Goldman, Ron Goldman's father, pushed for a change to "not proven" because of what they felt was an incorrect presumption of innocence on the part of Simpson.[8]

In 2005, a proposal was made in the University of Chicago Law Review to introduce the not proven verdict into the United States.[2]


when did the roof gardens above kensington open to the public

The building housed the department store Derry and Toms until 1973, and then Biba until 1975. Since the 1980s the garden has been used as a restaurant and club.[2]

Kensington Roof Gardens

The Roof Garden (formerly known as Derry and Toms Roof Gardens and Kensington Roof Gardens) is a roof garden covering 6000 m2 (1.5 acres) on top of the former Derry & Toms building on Kensington High Street, in central London, in The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. Since the 1980s the garden has been used as a restaurant and club.

The gardens are not visible from Kensington High Street.[citation needed]

Derry and Toms department store was opened in Kensington in 1933. The gardens were laid out between 1936 and 1938 by Ralph Hancock, a landscape architect, on the instructions of Trevor Bowen (then vice-president of Barkers, the department store giant that owned the site and constructed the building). They cost £25,000 to create and visitors were charged 1 shilling to enter. Money raised was donated to local hospitals and £120,000 was raised during the next 30 years.[1]

The Roof Garden was listed as a Grade II site by English Heritage in 1998.[2]

It is divided into three themed gardens:

99 Kensington High Street entrance on Derry Street. The street-level entrance to the roof gardens.

One of the windows in the walled garden.

Plaque in the garden showing Trevor Bowen, director of Barkers of Kensington

Ralph Hancock Commemorative Plaque, unveiled by members of the Hancock family on 29 January 2012

One of the pink flamingos that live in the gardens

A tent in the Spanish garden


with the help of which country iron and steel plant was set up in rourkela

Rourkela Steel Plant (RSP), in Rourkela, Odisha is the first integrated steel plant in the public sector in India. It was set up with West German[1][2] collaboration with an installed capacity of 1 million tonnes in the 1960s. It is operated by Steel Authority of India.[3]

Rourkela Steel Plant

German metallurgical firms Mannesmann, Krupp, Demag, Siemens and Austrian company Voestalpine[4] provided machinery and consultancy to the plant among others. Rourkela Steel Plant was the first steel plant in Asia to use the LD (Linz-Donawitz) process of steel-making. Rourkela Steel Plant has an associated fertilizer plant that produces nitrogeneous fertilizers using ammonia feedstock (from its coke oven plant). On 3 February 1959, then president Rajendra Prasad inaugurated RSP's first blast furnace named 'Parvati' when the company was known as Hindustan Steel Limited (HSL). Subsequently, the RSP became a unit of the Steel Authority of India Ltd (SAIL).

Recently, a Rs 12,000-crore modernisation and expansion project at the Rourkela Steel Plant was dedicated to the Nation by Prime minister Narendra Modi on 1 April 2015.[5] RSP presently has the capacity to produce 4.5 million tonnes of hot metal, 4.2 million tonnes of crude steel and 3.9 million tonnes of saleable steel.[6]
The capacity of Rourkela Steel Plant (RSP) is expected to rise to 10.8 MTPA by 2025.[7] Ashwini Kumar took over as Chief Executive Officer of Rourkela Steel Plant (RSP) in 2016.

The RSP has many firsts to its credit. It is the first plant in Asia to adopt the energy-efficient LD process of steel making and the first integrated steel plant of SAIL which adopted the cost-effective and quality-centered continuous casting route to process 100% of steel produced. The plant has also, for the first time in India, had adopted external desulphurisation of hot metal by calcium carbide injection process. RSP is one of the unique units under the SAIL umbrella with a wide variety of special purpose steels.

After RSP was set up with the help of German collaboration. Subsequently, its steel making capacity was enhanced to 2 million tonnes and added many units to the facility.

A pipe plant and special plate plant were set up during the 1970s for production of ERW pipes and steel plates for defense requirements. NSPCL,[8] a joint venture company of NTPC Limited and SAIL, set up a captive power plant of 120 MW capacity to be self-sufficient.

Rourkela Steel Plant undertook a modernization program in 1988 with an outlay of INR 4500 crores. This revamped the process of supply of raw materials, new oxygen plant, improved techniques in blast furnaces, selling of dolomite plant, cast house, slag granulation plant, supply of raw materials sintering plants and coal handling plants among others. Following the modernization RSP became the first SAIL plant to have adopted continuous casting route for all its hot metal production. It is also the first Indian steel plant to have adopted external desulfurisation of hot metal by the calcium carbide injection process.[9][10]

Steel Authority of India plans to invest for its capacity expansion in its major plants. So Rourkela Steel Plant on modernization and expansion project on process.

It is also installing other facilities for production of green energy. Two 5 KW rooftop solar PV power generation systems have already been installed and seven more such systems are in the pipeline.RSP is also in the process of setting up a 15 MW hydro power project on the downstream of Mandira Dam in collaboration with GEDCOL.

SAIL's Rourkela Steel Plant is a unique unit under SAIL with a wide variety of special purpose steels. The use of its products abound. Its HR coils find application in manufacturing LPG cylinders, automobiles, railway wagon chassis and other high-strength type steels. It is SAILâ€™s only plant that produces silicon steels for the power sector, high quality pipes for the oil and gas sector and tin plates for the packaging industry. Its wide and sophisticated product range includes flat, tubular and coated products. Special Plate Plant, Rourkela, is emerging as a major special steels centre for defence equipment. It produces armoured plate for the T-90 and Arjun (tank), and the BMP-2 infantry combat vehicle, which are built at Avadi and Medak respectively by the Ordnance Factory Board. Its annual capacity of 2,000 tonnes is being upped to 12,000 tonnes. The AB/A grade steel used in making India's first fully home made Aircraft carrier INS Vikrant (2013) were produced in Rourkela Steel Plant.[14]


who does the voice for buzz lightyear in toy story

Tim Allen voiced the character in the Toy Story film series and the Buzz Lightyear movie, while Patrick Warburton provided Buzz's voice for the TV series, and Pat Fraley voiced him for the video games and the attractions in Disney Parks.

Buzz Lightyear

Buzz Lightyear is a fictional character in the Toy Story franchise. He is a toy space ranger hero according to the movies and action figure in the Toy Story franchise. Along with Woody, he is one of the two lead characters in all three Toy Story movies. He also appeared in the movie Buzz Lightyear of Star Command: The Adventure Begins and the television series spin-off Buzz Lightyear of Star Command, as well as the two film sequels.

Buzz Lightyear's name was inspired by Apollo 11 astronaut Buzz Aldrin, the second person to walk on the Moon.[1] Aldrin acknowledged the tribute when he pulled a Buzz Lightyear doll out during a speech at NASA, to rapturous cheers. A clip of this can be found on the Toy Story 10th Anniversary DVD. Aldrin did not, however, receive any endorsement fees for the use of his first name.[2]

Regarding the design of Lightyear, his creator, John Lasseter, is on record as saying he wanted to create an action figure in the line of G.I. Joe for Toy Story and decided upon a spaceman figure.[3] He attributes his design to the influence of Apollo astronauts, in particular their clear helmets, skullcaps, communication devices and white suits.[4]

The purple and lime green color scheme were his and his wife's own favorite colors respectively. The looks of television actor Ed Kemmer are also believed to be a prototype for Lightyear. Kemmer played Commander Buzz Corry in Space Patrol, one of the first science-fiction series on US TV.[5]

In Toy Story, Buzz Lightyear is first seen when given as a gift to Andy from his mother at his birthday party. He also believes that he is a real space ranger, rather than a toy. Previously, the distinction of being Andy's favorite toy was held by Woody (a cowboy doll), but Buzz quickly becomes the new favorite; as a result, Woody is left to develop animosity toward Buzz. The effects of Woody's jealousy eventually leads them to be captured by Sid, a child who enjoys torturing toys and lives next door to Andy's house. While imprisoned in Sid's house, Buzz sees his own television ad, thus convincing him that he is a toy and not a space ranger. Upon understanding this, Buzz becomes depressed, but Woody eventually convinces him that it is a good thing. Buzz regains hope, and the two work together to escape, return to Andy, and become friends.

In Toy Story 2, After Woody is kidnapped by a greedy toy collector named Al, who is intent on selling him to a toy museum in Japan, Buzz leads Andy's toys on a daring mission to rescue him. On the journey, Buzz accidentally comes across a newer Buzz Lightyear toy with a utility belt. When he tries to take the belt, the newer Buzz (who, like Andy's Buzz in the first film, believes he is a real space ranger) attacks him, believing that he is a disobedient space ranger. The two Buzzes fight and Utility Belt Buzz traps Andy's Buzz in a cardboard rocket ship similar to the one he originally came in. Soon the other toys find Utility Belt Buzz and mistake him for Andy's Buzz, despite Buzz's cries of "You've got the wrong Buzz, YOU'VE GOT THE WRONG BUZZ!". Utility Belt Buzz joins the gang after Rex tells him that he knows how to defeat Emperor Zurg (in a video game.) Andy's Buzz eventually breaks free from his cardboard prison and tracks down Utility Belt Buzz and the rest of the toys. After arguing with Utility Belt Buzz over who the real Buzz is, he eventually convinces them that he is the real Buzz by showing them the bottom of his boot, which has Andy's name written on it. Although he manages to convince Woody to return home, Stinky Pete stops him, as the latter wants to go to Japan. After Buzz and the gang fight Zurg in the elevator shaft, they use a pizza planet truck to chase after Al to the airport (while Utility Belt Buzz stays behind to play with an amnesiac Zurg), with Buzz controlling the steering wheel as well as moving a pizza box on the driver's seat to help him reach it. Eventually, they manage to rescue Woody along with Jessie and Bullseye. At the end of the film, we see that Buzz has developed a crush on Jessie.

In Toy Story 3, Woody, Buzz, and the other toys accidentally end up in a daycare center after a mistake when Andy is packing for college. The daycare center toys are led by the teddy bear Lotso, who is later revealed as manipulative, untruthful, misunderstood, and some might say "evil". Buzz is caught spying on one of his secret meetings. To stop Buzz, Lotso switches Buzz back to "demo mode" causing him to again believe he is a space ranger and turn against his friends. When escaping, Woody and the other toys accidentally switch Buzz to "Spanish mode" causing confusion for many characters and comedic character changes and opportunities for the audience. Buzz turns back to his normal self after he nearly gets crushed by a television set in a garbage truck. After making their way back to Andy's house, Buzz, Woody, Jessie, and the other toys are given by Andy to a little girl named Bonnie. The end shows the toys embracing their new life with Bonnie.

In Toy Story 4, Buzz will return where he and the others will help Woody reunite with Bo Peep.

In Buzz Lightyear of Star Command, Buzz is a space ranger working for Star Command, protecting the universe from Evil Emperor Zurg. He works in a team alongside Mira Nova, a Tangean princess with phasing powers, Booster, a janitor from the planet Jo-Ad, and XR, a robot created by the Little Green Men (the aliens from the movies, LGM for short). This version of Buzz is completely different from the one in Toy Story, in looks and personality. Buzz also has had many love interests on the show. He once had a friend and partner named Warp Darkmatter, however, he later joined Zurg and became his primary agent. Buzz also seems to never take off the purple headwear that he has with his Space Ranger uniform. Aside from his regular catch phrase, he has a habit of telling villains that "Evil never wins!"

Buzz also appears in Pixar's 2003 film Finding Nemo.[6] He also appeared as a car in Pixar's 2006 movie, Cars, along with Woody and Hamm. He is also seen in the Toy Story Toons episodes Hawaiian Vacation (released with Cars 2), Small Fry (released with The Muppets) and Partysaurus Rex (released during the 2012 3D re-release of Finding Nemo), and the two specials: Toy Story of Terror! and Toy Story That Time Forgot. Buzz also appeared in two episodes of Family Guy both times in cutaway gags set up by Stewie Griffin. In the 2013 episode Chris Cross, after Stewie has seriated Brian Griffin with You Needed Me, he complains that he invited Buzz to watch and he did not show up. This cuts to Buzz talking with a woman at a bar. In the 2017 episode The Finer Strings, when Brain insists that Carter is his friend, Stewie says "That's what Woody thought about Buzz Lightyear." This leads to a cutaway gag where Woody catches Buzz making out with Bo Peep. Buzz has also been referenced on The Simpsons. In the 2005 episode The Italian Bob, Lisa Simpson mentions both Buzz and his voice actor Tim Allen. In The Simpsons, in the 2010 episode, The Color Yellow, probably as a promotion for the theatrical release of Toy Story 3, Ralph Wiggum holds on a picture where he is with Buzz and Elmo from Sesame Street, "saying Martin Luther King had a dream. Dreams are where Elmo and Toy Story had a party, and I went there". In the 2011 episode Flaming Moe, Bart Simpson is playing with a toy parodying Buzz. Buzz was also in the 2008 Disney film Bedtime Stories and the Disney film The Sorcerer's Apprentice which was released the same year as Toy Story 3. Buzz is slated to appear in the upcoming Kingdom Hearts III, in which Tim Allen will voice him.[citation needed]

Buzz Lightyear is known for his bravery and courage. Buzz believes that following rules is the way people should live their life. Though a great leader, at times he exhibits rather unemotional, erratic, and impulsive behaviour, a triumvirate of his biggest character flaws. Buzz is trained in several forms of martial arts and is a highly skilled warrior in hand-to-hand combat. Being in peak physical condition, Buzz makes a perfect space ranger and is an example to many. Perhaps unexpectedly, Buzz Lightyear the space ranger toy enjoys his closest personal relationships with two cowboy dolls: his best friend in the trilogy is Sheriff Woody Pride and by the end of Toy Story 2, he has developed a crush on Jessie the Cowgirl, which is actualized with their mild romance in Toy Story 3.

Buzz wears a high-tech space suit, similar to those of modern-day astronauts though more streamlined and iconic. The suit chest features a control panel. On the left hand side of the suit, a large red button activates the suit's flight system, which are two purple wings with candy cane lining, and green and red wing tips. The buttons on the right of the suit have numerous functions such as contacting Star Command, shooting grappling hooks, and activating full throttle. On the toy Buzz of movies however, all they do is make Buzz say different catch phrases. Buzz's suit also protects against the vacuum and cold of space. It can also translate all he says into any language even an outer space dialect. A retractable helmet, when activated, covers Buzz's head and allows him to breathe in space or on planets lacking a sufficient supply of oxygen. The left arm of the suit has a panel that flips open to reveal a display that contains a mission log in the wrist area to record history and provide records. The right arm contains the weapon system which projects an unusually strong and powerful red-colored laser out of the small cannon on the back of the wrist. Buzz has a utility belt as an upgrade to suit. It has various things such as anti-gravity servos, magnets for climbing purposes, and a grappling hook.

Toy figure, Buzz Lightyear, with packaging, licensed from the film Toy Story, plastic / cardboard, made for Thinkway Toys[7] in China, 1995-1999. The Buzz Lightyear figure was manufactured by Thinkway Toys, New York between 1995-1999. An enhanced, newer model was released in 2009 to coincide with the Toy Story 3-D Double Feature. Originally, Tim Allen's voice was on the action figure. The newer models feature a voice actor who sounds similar to Allen.

The Toy Story Action Figure, Buzz Lightyear was subject to mass sales in the Christmas after the film's release, mainly in the United States and United Kingdom. In 1995, Thinkway didn't think that Toy Story would be that popular hence didn't make enough dolls to meet demand, as referenced in Toy Story 2. When Toy Story 3 came out they made 2 more Buzz Lightyear action figures for the Toy Story Collection, one normal one and an extra one with the utility belt from Toy Story 2. Produced by Thinkway Toys also with the spaceship box from the movies.

In May 2008, NASA and Disney announced that an original Thinkway Toys' Buzz Lightyear action figure would fly aboard the space shuttle Discovery on mission STS-124. The 12-inch toy was to remain on the International Space Station for six months, where it would take part in an experiment and appear in a video downlink from space. The flight was arranged as part of the Toys In Space program that began in 1985.[9]

The mission launched with Buzz aboard the NASA space shuttle Discovery (STS-124) on May 31, 2008, to celebrate the opening of Toy Story Midway Mania at Disney's Hollywood Studios and Disney California Adventure Park theme parks, with the ultimate destination of the International Space Station (ISS). The action figure "ate" dinner with the 10 astronauts and cosmonauts and was seen peering out a window aboard the ISS. The action figure stayed aboard the space station for a period of six months as part of a NASA toys-in-space educational program.[10]

The Buzz Lightyear action figure returned from the space station on September 11, 2009 aboard mission STS-128.[11]

In October 2009, Thinkway Toys released a replica Buzz Lightyear figure based on the figure in the Toy Story movies as part of their Toy Story Collection series of toys. This Buzz Lightyear was much more accurately detailed than the other Buzz Lightyear figures and it has features similar to the figure seen in the movie with similar pop-out wings complete with blinking lights at the wing tips, laser, wrist communicator and the figure has over 65 phrases with original voice. However, the figure lacks the karate chop action. The figure also comes with a Certificate of Authenticity and comes packaged in the spaceship packaging as seen in the movies.

In 2010, Lego created a Buzz Lightyear action figure. The Lego set is number 7592 and has 205 pieces. When the figure is completely built it has articulating head, arms, hands, torso, legs, feet, wings and visor.[12]

In 2010 Lego created a Buzz Lightyear mini-figure it was released in two variants. Both variants featured the same molded elements with different printing both mini-figures had a total of five new molded elements for the minifigure being the head, the two winged pieces, the head cover and the torso of his spacesuit. One being the standard variant to represent the "clean" Buzz Lightyear. This minifigure was featured in 7 setsÂ : 30073, 7593, 7598, 7597, 7590, 9002700 (watch set) and a magnet set (852949) featuring Buzz, Woody and a pizza planet alien. The other variant was the "dirty" version of Buzz Lightyear as seen in Toy Story 3. This mini-figure was featured in 1 set which was 7599. This variant featured the same Buzz mini-figure with printed on dirt stains. In 2016 a new version of Buzz Lightyear was created for the Lego mini-figures Disney series. This mini-figure featured new prints for legs and arms of the minifigure and removed the Star Command logo from the chest of the torso piece. The most noticeable difference between this mini-figure and the 2010 release was the mini-figure head which is now a classic styled mini-figure head and not a molded piece.

On October 2007, readers of Empire voted him No. 1 of the Top 20 Greatest Pixar Characters.[13] They also rated him the 94th greatest movie character of all time.[14]

Buzz's classic line “To infinity… and beyond!” has seen usage not only on T-shirts, but among philosophers and mathematical theorists as well.[15] A book about the history of infinity from 1991 (4 years before Toy Story), by Eli Maor Lucia uses the phrase for its title.[16] Hall of The Humanist linked the film's plot to an interpretation of humanism. She compared the phrase to "All this and heaven, too!", indicating one who is happy with a life on Earth as well as having an afterlife.[17] The 2008 quadruple platinum song "Single Ladies" by Beyoncé includes the lyric "...and delivers me to a destiny, to infinity and beyond." Also in 2008, astronauts took an action figure of Buzz Lightyear into space on the Space Shuttle "Discovery" as part of an educational experience for students while stressing the catchphrase. The action figure was used for experiments in zero-g.[9] Also in 2008, the phrase made international news when it was reported that a father and son had continually repeated the phrase to help them keep track of each other while treading water for 15 hours in the Atlantic Ocean.[18][19]


where did the term chop chop come from

The term may have its origins in the South China Sea, as a Pidgin English version of the Cantonese term chok chok (Cantonese: 速速; jyutping: cuk1 cuk1) which in turn is similar in usage to the Mandarin term k'wâi-k'wâi (Chinese: 快快; pinyin: kuài kuài)[1] or may have originated from Malay.[citation needed]

Chop chop (phrase)

"Chop chop" or "chop-chop" is a phrase rooted in Cantonese. It spread through Chinese workers at sea and was adopted by English seamen.[1] "Chop chop" means "hurry" and suggests that something should be done now and without delay. The word "chopsticks" likely originates from this same root.[2]


where is the lena river located on a map

Originating at an elevation of 1,640 meters (5,381 ft) at its source in the Baikal Mountains south of the Central Siberian Plateau, 7 kilometres (4 mi) west of Lake Baikal, the Lena flows northeast, being joined by the Kirenga River, Vitim River and Olyokma River. From Yakutsk it enters the lowlands and flows north until joined by its right-hand tributary the Aldan River and its most important left-hand tributary, the Vilyuy River. After that, it bends westward, flowing alongside the Verkhoyansk Range and then making its way nearly due north to the Laptev Sea, a division of the Arctic Ocean, emptying south-west of the New Siberian Islands by the Lena Delta – 30,000 square kilometres (11,583 sq mi) in area,[2] and traversed by seven principal branches, the most important being the Bykovsky channel, farthest east.

Lena River

The Lena (Russian: Ле́на, IPA: [ˈlʲɛnə]; Mongolian: Зүлгэ, Zülge; Buryat: Зүлхэ, Zülxe; Yakut: Өлүөнэ, Ölwöne) is the easternmost of the three great Siberian rivers that flow into the Arctic Ocean (the other two being the Ob and the Yenisei). It is the 11th longest river in the world and has the 9th largest catchment area. It is also the 3rd largest river in Asia. It is the largest among the rivers whose catchment is entirely within the Russian territorial boundaries.

The total length of the river is estimated at 4,400 km (2,700 mi). The area of the Lena river basin is calculated at 2,490,000 square kilometres (961,394 sq mi). Gold is washed out of the sands of the Vitim and the Olyokma, and mammoth tusks have been dug out of the delta.

The Kirenga River flows north between the upper Lena River and Lake Baikal. The Vitim River drains the area northeast of Lake Baikal. The Olyokma River flows north. The Amga River makes a long curve southeast and parallel to the Lena and flows into the Aldan. The Aldan River makes similar curve southeast of the Aldan and flows into the Lena north of Yakutsk. The Maya River, a tributary of the Aldan, drains an area almost to the Sea of Okhotsk. The T-shaped Chona-Vilyuy River system drains most of the area to the west.

It is commonly believed that the Lena derives its name from the original Even-Evenk name Elyu-Ene, which means "the Large River".

According to folktales related a century later, in the years 1620–1623 a party of Russian fur hunters under the leadership of Demid Pyanda sailed up Lower Tunguska, discovered the Lena, and either carried their boats there or built new ones. In 1623 Pyanda explored some 2,400 kilometres (1,500 mi) of the river from its upper reaches to the central Yakutia.[3] In 1628 Vasily Bugor and 10 men reached the Lena, collected 'yasak' (tribute) from the natives and then founded Kirinsk in 1632. In 1631 the voyevoda of Yeniseisk sent Pyotr Beketov and 20 men to construct an ostrog at Yakutsk (founded in 1632). From Yakutsk other expeditions spread out to the south and east. The Lena delta was reached in 1633.

Baron Eduard Von Toll, accompanied by Alexander von Bunge, led an expedition that explored the Lena delta and the islands of New Siberia on behalf of the Russian Imperial Academy of Sciences in 1885. In 1886 they investigated the New Siberian Islands and the Yana River and its tributaries. During one year and two days the expedition covered 25,000 kilometres (16,000 mi), of which 4,200 kilometres (2,600 mi) were up rivers, carrying out geodesic surveys en route.

The Lena massacre was the name given to the 1912 shooting-down of striking goldminers and local citizens who protested at the working conditions in the mine near Bodaybo in northern Irkutsk. The incident was reported in the Duma (parliament) by Kerensky and is credited with stimulating revolutionary feeling in Russia.

Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov may have taken his alias, Lenin, from the river Lena, when he was exiled to the Central Siberian Plateau.

At the end of the Lena River there is a large delta that extends 100 kilometres (62 mi) into the Laptev Sea and is about 400 km (250 mi) wide. The delta is frozen tundra for about seven months of the year, but in May the region is transformed into a lush wetland for the next few months. Part of the area is protected as the Lena Delta Wildlife Reserve.

The Lena delta divides into a multitude of flat islands. The most important are (from west to east): Chychas Aryta, Petrushka, Sagastyr, Samakh Ary Diyete, Turkan Bel'keydere, Sasyllakh Ary, Kolkhoztakh Bel'keydere, Grigoriy Diyelyakh Bel'kee (Grigoriy Islands), Nerpa Uolun Aryta, Misha Bel'keydere, Atakhtay Bel'kedere, Arangastakh, Urdiuk Pastakh Bel'key, Agys Past' Aryta, Dallalakh Island, Otto Ary, Ullakhan Ary and Orto Ues Aryta.

Turukannakh-Kumaga is a long and narrow island off the Lena delta's western shore.

One of the Lena delta islands, Ostrov Amerika-Kuba-Aryta or Ostrov Kuba-Aryta, was named after the island of Cuba during Soviet times. It is on the northern edge of the delta.[4]


who sang the song beauty school dropout in the movie grease

Alan Paul, later a member of The Manhattan Transfer, originated the role on Broadway. It is not uncommon for the role of the Teen Angel to be held as a dual role by one of the other characters in the cast during stage adaptations (in Paul's case, he also appeared as bandleader Johnny Casino). It was recorded by Frankie Avalon (who, like Fabian, was a client of Bob Marcucci's during his heyday) for the 1978 film adaptation of Grease, a role he reprised on stage through the 1990s and early 2000s. The Wild Angels recorded an earlier version for Decca Records in 1972.[1][2]

Beauty School Dropout

"Beauty School Dropout" is a song from the musical Grease.

In the musical, the song is the showcase piece of the Teen Angel, who makes his only appearance in the musical to sing the song. The Teen Angel is Frenchy's guardian angel, and script notes specifically identify him as a Fabian look-alike, dressed in all-white. The Teen Angel appears to Frenchy, who has recently dropped out of beauty school out of frustration with her teachers, asks for a guardian angel in the mold of those seen in Debbie Reynolds movies. The Angel descends from the heavens, then pointedly sings to her that she lacks work ethic and suggests that she return to high school so that she might eventually qualify for a career as a stenographer later in life. Frenchy silently refuses and walks away, leading the Angel to close his number by lamenting her refusal to listen and ascending back to the heavens. (The film version does not have Frenchy refusing the advice, and the lyrics are likewise adjusted.)

In the Noddy episode "The Tooth Fairy", a parody of the song entitled "Tooth Fairy" is performed by Johnny Crawfish, Whiny, Whimper and the Ruby Reds, with the lyrics altered to be about Johnny's first childhood encounter with the Tooth Fairy.

In 2012 the song was featured in an episode of the TV musical series Glee and in the related extended play soundtrack in a version sung by Darren Criss.

In 2017, Sandy and Richard Riccardi performed a spoof of the song called "Tiki Torch Nazis", in reference to the Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, Virginia.[3]


where does us highway 27 start and end

U.S. Route 27 (US 27) is a north–south United States highway in the southern and midwestern United States. The southern terminus is at US 1 in Miami, Florida. The northern terminus is at Interstate 69 (I-69) in Fort Wayne, Indiana.[1] From Miami it goes up the center of Florida, then west to Tallahassee, Florida, and north through such cities and towns as Columbus, Georgia; Rome, Georgia; Chattanooga, Tennessee; Lexington, Kentucky; Cincinnati, Ohio; Oxford, Ohio; Richmond, Indiana; and Fort Wayne, Indiana. It once extended north through Lansing, Michigan, to Cheboygan, Mackinaw City, and for about 3 years as far as St. Ignace.

U.S. Route 27

USÂ 27 appeared in 1926, replacing what had been the western route of the Dixie Highway in many places.

In Florida, US 27 has been designated the Claude Pepper Memorial Highway by the Florida State Legislature. It was named after long-time Florida US Senator and congressman Claude Pepper. Nearly the entire length of US 27 in Florida is a divided highway.

US 27 begins as North 36th Street in Midtown Miami, heading west from US 1 for 4.4 miles (7.1 km) before turning northwest to pass under the western terminus of the Airport Expressway (State Road 112, SR 112). It then proceeds northwest for five miles (8 km) as South Okeechobee Road, parallel to the Miami Canal, forming the southwest boundary of the city of Hialeah. After an interchange with the Palmetto Expressway (SR 826), it continues northwest as North Okeechobee Road for five miles (8 km) before an interchange with the Homestead Extension of the Florida Turnpike (SR 821). After another four miles (6 km), the highway curves to the north and, after passing the northern terminus of Krome Avenue (SR 997), crosses into Broward County.

In Broward County, the highway passes protected wetlands and heavy duty power lines on the west and the outer reaches of the suburban communities of Pembroke Pines and Weston on the east. USÂ 27 then reaches an interchange with I-75 and Alligator Alley before curving to the northwest toward South Bay and Lake Okeechobee.

The highway skirts the southwestern shore of Lake Okeechobee and then heads west at Clewiston, before making a sharp turn to the north towards Moore Haven. The road then proceeds in a northerly direction toward the central Florida communities of Lake Placid, Sebring, Avon Park, and Lake Wales.

Widening of USÂ 27 to a six-lane highway continues in Polk County. The following sections have been completed and are open to six lanes of traffic:

North of I-4, US 27 contains un-numbered interchanges with US 192 and then County Road 474 (CR 474) in Citrus Ridge, SR 50 in Clermont, and SR 19 south of Howey-in-the-Hills, which also includes a southbound interchange with Florida's Turnpike. The northbound Turnpike interchange can be found further northwest. US 441 later joins US 27 in Leesburg and US 301 in Belleview, only for the road to break away from both in Ocala.

US 27 resumes its status as its own route until it reaches Williston and joins US 41. This concurrency continues northward until US 41 reaches High Springs, and joins US 441. US 27 heads west along the unsigned SR 20 towards Perry and joins US 19 until US 19 breaks away in Capps, but not before resuming a westward direction. In Tallahassee, the road becomes Apalachee Parkway, a major east–west thoroughfare. Constructed in 1957, the Apalachee Parkway starts at Monroe Street in front of the Florida State Capitol building. It has a short expressway section just east of the capitol, then is a busy four-lane surface boulevard with service roads for the next few miles, passing the Governor's Square Mall and many state office buildings. Past Tallahassee, US 27 finally resumes its northwesterly direction. The highway goes through Havana before entering Georgia.

In Georgia, US 27 has been designated the Martha Berry Highway by the Georgia State Legislature. It was named after Martha Berry, founder of Berry College in Rome. US 27 is a designated Governor's Road Improvement Program (GRIP) developmental highway corridor which will eventually be widened to four lanes (mostly divided) from the Florida state line to the Tennessee state line. All of US 27 in Georgia is concurrent with Georgia State Route 1.

In Chattanooga, a portion of US 27 was once signed as I-124. Though the designation still exists, it is no longer signed as such.[2] In and around the Chattanooga area, US 27 is sometimes referred to as Corridor J, the designation of a road in the Appalachian Development Highway System between Chattanooga and London, Kentucky, intended to follow the route of US 27.

Throughout its approximately 80-mile (130 km) stretch between Chattanooga and Harriman, US 27 traverses a valley between the Tennessee River to the east and the Cumberland Plateau to the west. The plateau's Walden Ridge escarpment is frequently visible to the west. From Chattanooga, the highway passes through Soddy-Daisy. Here, it intersects State Route 111 (SR 111), which veers northwestward across the Plateau into Middle Tennessee. US 27 continues through Sale Creek and Graysville before reaching Dayton. At Dayton, it intersects SR 30, which connects Dayton with Pikeville to the west and Decatur to the east, and SR 60, which connects Dayton with Cleveland to the southeast. US 27 continues northward through Evensville before arriving at Spring City. At Spring City, it intersects SR 68, which connects the area to Crossville, atop the plateau to the west.

From here, US 27 enters Roane County, running concurrently with US 70 going through the city of Rockwood. After US 70 splits to the east, US 27 runs concurrently with SR 61 through Harriman, where it is crossed by I-40. During this stretch, it forms part of the Harvey H. Hannah Memorial Highway, and is signed as such. Just beyond Harriman, near the DeArmond community, US 27 ascends the Cumberland Plateau, and continues northward across the plateau for its remaining 55 miles (89 km) or so in Tennessee.

In Morgan County, the highway passes through Wartburg and Sunbright. At Elgin, it intersects SR 52, which connects the area with the historic village of Rugby, Tennessee, and Fentress County to the west. Beyond Elgin, US 27 passes through Robbins, Huntsville, and Helenwood before reaching Oneida in Scott County. In Oneida, US 27 intersects SR 297, which continues westward into the Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area. A short time later, US 27 intersects with SR 456, which continues to Tennessee State Route 63. After coming to a stop, it then makes a sharp left turn to go through downtown Oneida. After a further 5 to 7 miles (8.0 to 11.3 km), it then reaches Winfield. Winfield is the last sizable town that US 27 passes through in Tennessee before it reaches the community of Isham on the Kentucky border.

US 27 enters Kentucky near Whitley City. The first major town it goes through is Somerset, followed by Stanford, Lancaster, Nicholasville, and Lexington, where it begins a concurrency with US 68 that continues to Paris. US 27 continues north from there through Cynthiana, Falmouth, Alexandria, Highland Heights, Fort Thomas, Southgate, and Newport before crossing into Ohio at Cincinnati via Taylor-Southgate Bridge. From its junction with Interstate 471 in Highland Heights through Campbell County, it is a four-lane highway with a center turn lane for both directions of traffic. Near the "welcome to Alexandria" sign at KY 536, US 27 becomes a divided four-lane highway with a grass median. It is currently being constructed as such for the rest of its length from 536 through southern Campbell county. Currently, US 27 is under-going a widening project near Garrard CR 1355 to HWY 34. The road will become a four lane into Lexington.

US 27 crosses into Ohio and Downtown Cincinnati via the Taylor–Southgate Bridge. US 27 follows Mehring Way, Central Avenue, Ezzard Charles Drive and Central Parkway through Downtown Cincinnati. US 27 briefly duplexes with I-75, exiting at I-74 for another brief duplex before exiting onto Colerain Road. US 27 then continues Northwest eventually to Oxford, and then reaches the Indiana border another 6 miles northwest at College Corner.

Overall, USÂ 27 is in Ohio for 40.6 miles: 18.5 miles in Hamilton County and another 22.1 miles in Butler County.

US 27 enters the southeastern part of Indiana south of the town of Liberty. At Liberty, US 27 turns north, paralleling the Ohio state line. It intersects I-70 at Richmond, Indiana, and continues north to Decatur. US 33 joins US 27 just south of Decatur and the two routes share a northwesterly alignment on a divided surface highway from Decatur to I-469 south of Fort Wayne. US 33 turns west and follows I-469, while US 27 continues north into downtown Fort Wayne as Clinton Street. North of downtown, US 27 follows Lima Road to its terminus at I-69/US 30 (Lima Road continues north from this point as SR 3).

Originally, the southern terminus of US 27 was in Cincinnati, Ohio. In 1928, the route was extended south to Chattanooga, Tennessee, then to Tallahassee, Florida in 1934. In 1949, it was extended to its current terminus in Miami. At its northern end, US 27 originally terminated at Cheboygan, Michigan. In 1937, the route was extended concurrently with US 23 to Mackinaw City, where it ended at the Michigan State Auto Ferry Dock along with US 23 and US 31. After the completion of the Mackinac Bridge in 1957, US 27 was extended across the bridge to the current intersection of I-75 and US 2 near St. Ignace. In 1961, what became I-75 was completed, enabling the roadway to be designated as I-75. At the same time, US 27 was truncated to an interchange with I-75 six miles (10 km) south of Grayling. In 2002, the northern terminus was moved to its current location.

From Grayling to I-69 near Lansing, the road is now designated US 127. US 27 signs were removed from I-69 between Lansing and Fort Wayne in 2001. Officially, the current northern terminus is at the junction of I-69, US 30, and SR 3, but heading north on I-69 one will still see US 27 shields on some of the older overhead signs heading to the I-469 interchange on the northern edge of Fort Wayne.[3]

On March 9, 2007, legislation was introduced in the Indiana House of Representatives to designate US 27 as historic highway. Richmond, one of the cities US 27 passes through, would have two historic highways passing through it. The original National Road (US 40) runs through Richmond.

USÂ 27 was one of the highways in Michigan to carry the TEMP I-75 designation when I-75 was being constructed along then M-76.

The at-grade routing of US 27 in Michigan has been largely superseded by I-75, which follows a roughly similar route and in some places actually replaced the older highway. From Lansing north to I-75, the former US 27 is now US 127; from Lansing south to Fort Wayne, US 27 was replaced by I-69. In many places the route markers and the highway itself serve to connect local communities bypassed by the Interstate Highway.


who played the little girl in the original exorcist

Linda Denise Blair (born January 22, 1959)[2] is an American actress.[3] Blair is best known for her role as the possessed child, Regan, in the film The Exorcist (1973), for which she was nominated for an Academy Award and won a Golden Globe. She reprised her role in Exorcist II: The Heretic (1977), for which she was nominated for a Saturn Award.

Linda Blair

After The Exorcist she remained active in film, usually lower-budget b-movies and exploitation films, as well as supporting charitable causes.

The youngest of three children, Blair was born in St. Louis, Missouri, and was raised in Westport, Connecticut. Her birthplace of St. Louis was where the exorcism of a young boy "Roland Doe" took place that later inspired the book and the film The Exorcist.[4]

She began her career as a 4-year-old child model and started acting with a regular role on the short-lived Hidden Faces (1968–69) daytime soap opera.[citation needed] Her first theatrical film appearance was in The Way We Live Now (1970).[5] Blair was selected from a field of 600 applicants for her most notable role as Regan in The Exorcist (1973). The role earned her a Golden Globe and People's Choice Award for Best Supporting Actress as well as an Academy Award nomination. She reprised her role in the sequel, Exorcist II: The Heretic (1977), garnering a Saturn Award nomination for Best Actress of 1978.[2] Between these two films, she appeared in Born Innocent (1974),[6] Airport 1975 (1974), Sarah T. – Portrait of a Teenage Alcoholic (1975)[7] and Sweet Hostage (1975) opposite Martin Sheen.

Blair's career took a new turn in the 1980s, as she starred in a film in 1980 entitled Ruckus along with actor Dirk Benedict. She also starred in a number of successful low-budget horror and exploitation films, including Hell Night (1981), Chained Heat (1983) and Savage Streets (1984).

Blair later worked in numerous films, mostly comedies, including the Exorcist send-up Repossessed in 1990,[3] and a cameo role in Scream (1996).[8] In 1997, she appeared in a Broadway revival of Grease. She was cast as a regular in the BBC television show, L.A. 7 (2000). She hosted Fox Family's Scariest Places on Earth (2000â€“06).

In 2006, she guest starred on the TV Series Supernatural playing the part of Detective Diana Ballard as she aids Sam & Dean Winchester in the Episode: "The Usual Suspects" which aired November 9th, 2006.

In 2013 Blair accepted a role in the comedy webseries Whoa! and has since appeared in the 2016 feature The Green Fairy, as well as the upcoming Surge of Power: Revenge of the Sequel.

Blair also became an animal rights activist and humanitarian, working with PETA, Feed the Children, Variety, the Children's Charity, and other organizations.[2] Blair also devotes time to a non-profit organization she organized, the Linda Blair WorldHeart Foundation, which works to rescue abused, neglected and mistreated animals. She commenced to follow a vegan diet, and was a co-author of the book Going Vegan!

Towards the end of the 1970s, Blair encountered trouble with law enforcement authorities as she was charged with drug possession and conspiracy to sell drugs. She pleaded guilty to a reduced charge of conspiracy to possess cocaine, in exchange for three years' probation. Blair was also required to make at least 12 major public appearances to tell young people about the dangers of drug abuse.[9]

In 1997, she appeared in a documentary for Channel 4 in the UK entitled "Didn't You Used to be Satan?", which served as a biography of her life to that point and how the film The Exorcist had dominated her career and life.

She also appeared in critic Mark Kermode's 1998 BBC documentary "The Fear of God" (which Kermode directed and hosted), included as a special feature on the DVD of The Exorcist. Most of Kermode's linking scenes to camera were removed from the DVD version to shorten the running time. The version shown on BBC TV in 1998 was shown intact.

In 2008, she appeared at the 18th annual Malaga Fantasy and Horror Film Festival to accept a lifetime achievement award for her work in the horror genre.

She appeared in the 2009 documentary Confessions of a Teenage Vigilante, discussing her role as Brenda in Savage Streets (1984). The documentary was included as a bonus feature on the 2009 DVD release of the film.

In 2010 she appeared as herself on the cable series Pit Boss and Jury Duty. She appeared in the 2011 Rick Springfield documentary Affair of the Heart, and was a panelist in a 2011 episode of The Joy Behar Show.

In 2012 Blair appeared at a pre-taped 84th Academy Awards ceremony honoring makeup artist Dick Smith, who had created the iconic makeup for Blair in The Exorcist.[citation needed]


who does princess maria marry in war and peace

Princess Maria's father dies during the days leading to the battle of Borodino. The peasants on her estate threaten to become violent and Maria is rescued by Nikolai Rostov. They fall in love, but several situations keep them apart and eventually they both forgo any hope of marriage. Maria's brother, Prince Andrei Bolkonsky, is seriously wounded in battle and chances to fall under the care of Natasha Rostova, with whom Princess Maria becomes close friends after witnessing Andrei Bolkonsky's death together. Maria marries the impoverished Nikolai Rostov in the winter of 1813, and eventually the couple have four children. Nikolai Rostov relies on his work and her moral support, not financial, to become a wealthy and content estate owner.

Maria Bolkonskaya

Princess Maria (or Marya, in some translations) Nikolaevna Bolkonskaya (Russian: Марья Болконская, Mar'ia Bolkonskaia) is a fictional character in Leo Tolstoy's novel War and Peace.

Princess Maria, the sister of Prince Andrei Bolkonsky, is a deeply religious young woman who has resigned herself to an unmarried life to be with her domineering father, Prince Nikolai Bolkonsky. Princess Maria is a plain woman, whose lack of beauty is offset by her large, caring eyes. Kevin Corrigan sees Maria as an example of how "a face can be ugly and yet transfigured by beautiful eyes".[1] She is overshadowed by her beautiful French companion, Mademoiselle Bourienne. An attempt to marry her off to the profligate Prince Anatole Kuragin fails.

Stephen Vizinczey suggests that Tolstoy created Maria out of his longing for his mother, Princess Maria Nikolayevna Volkonskaya, who died before Tolstoy's second birthday.[2]


what part of the rock cycle occur deep in earth's crust

When rocks are pushed deep under the Earth's surface, they may melt into magma. If the conditions no longer exist for the magma to stay in its liquid state, it cools and solidifies into an igneous rock. A rock that cools within the Earth is called intrusive or plutonic and cools very slowly, producing a coarse-grained texture such as the rock granite. As a result of volcanic activity, magma (which is called lava when it reaches Earth's surface) may cool very rapidly while being on the Earth's surface exposed to the atmosphere and are called extrusive or volcanic rocks. These rocks are fine-grained and sometimes cool so rapidly that no crystals can form and result in a natural glass, such as obsidian, however the most common fine grained rock would be known as basalt. Any of the three main types of rocks (igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic rocks) can melt into magma and cool into igneous rocks.

Rock cycle

The rock cycle is a basic concept in geology that describes the time-consuming transitions through geologic time among the three main rock types: sedimentary, metamorphic, and igneous. As the adjacent diagram illustrates, each of the types of rocks is altered or destroyed when it is forced out of its equilibrium conditions. An igneous rock such as basalt may break down and dissolve when exposed to the atmosphere, or melt as it is subducted under a continent. Due to the driving forces of the rock cycle, plate tectonics and the water cycle, rocks do not remain in equilibrium and are forced to change as they encounter new environments. The rock cycle is an illustration that explains how the three rock types are related to each other, and how processes change from one type to another over time. This cyclical aspect makes rock change a geologic cycle and, on planets containing life, a biogeochemical cycle.

The original concept of the rock cycle is usually attributed to James Hutton, from the eighteenth century Father of Geology. The rock cycle was a part of Hutton's uniformitarianism and his famous quote: no vestige of a beginning, and no prospect of an end, applied in particular to the rock cycle and the envisioned cyclical nature of geologic processes. This concept of a repetitive non-evolutionary rock cycle remained dominant until the plate tectonics revolution of the 1960s. With the developing understanding of the driving engine of plate tectonics, the rock cycle changed from endlessly repetitive to a gradually evolving process. The Wilson cycle (a plate tectonics based rock cycle) was developed by J. Tuzo Wilson during the 1950s and 1960s.

Epigenetic change (secondary processes) may be arranged under a number of headings, each of which is typical of a group of rocks or rock-forming minerals, though usually more than one of these alterations is in progress in the same rock. Silicification, the replacement of the minerals by crystalline or crypto-crystalline silica, is most common in felsic rocks, such as rhyolite, but is also found in serpentine, etc. Kaolinization is the decomposition of the feldspars, which are the most common minerals in igneous rocks, into kaolin (along with quartz and other clay minerals); it is best shown by granites and syenites. Serpentinization is the alteration of olivine to serpentine (with magnetite); it is typical of peridotites, but occurs in most of the mafic rocks. In uralitization, secondary hornblende replaces augite; chloritization is the alteration of augite (biotite or hornblende) to chlorite, and is seen in many diabases, diorites and greenstones. Epidotization occurs also in rocks of this group, and consists in the development of epidote from biotite, hornblende, augite or plagioclase feldspar.

Rocks exposed to high temperatures and pressures can be changed physically or chemically to form a different rock, called metamorphic. Regional metamorphism refers to the effects on large masses of rocks over a wide area, typically associated with mountain building events within orogenic belts. These rocks commonly exhibit distinct bands of differing mineralogy and colors, called foliation. Another main type of metamorphism is caused when a body of rock comes into contact with an igneous intrusion that heats up this surrounding country rock. This contact metamorphism results in a rock that is altered and re-crystallized by the extreme heat of the magma and/or by the addition of fluids from the magma that add chemicals to the surrounding rock (metasomatism). Any pre-existing type of rock can be modified by the processes of metamorphism.

Rocks exposed to the atmosphere are variably unstable and subject to the processes of weathering and erosion. Weathering and erosion break the original rock down into smaller fragments and carry away dissolved material. This fragmented material accumulates and is buried by additional material. While an individual grain of sand is still a member of the class of rock it was formed from, a rock made up of such grains fused together is sedimentary. Sedimentary rocks can be formed from the lithification of these buried smaller fragments (clastic sedimentary rock), the accumulation and lithification of material generated by living organisms (biogenic sedimentary rock - fossils), or lithification of chemically precipitated material from a mineral bearing solution due to evaporation (precipitate sedimentary rock). Clastic rocks can be formed from fragments broken apart from larger rocks of any type, due to processes such as erosion or from organic material, like plant remains. Biogenic and precipitate rocks form from the deposition of minerals from chemicals dissolved from all other rock types.

In 1967, J. Tuzo Wilson published an article in Nature describing the repeated opening and closing of ocean basins, in particular focusing on the current Atlantic Ocean area. This concept, a part of the plate tectonics revolution, became known as the Wilson cycle. The Wilson cycle has had profound effects on the modern interpretation of the rock cycle as plate tectonics became recognized as the driving force for the rock cycle.

At the mid-ocean divergent boundaries new magma is produced by mantle upwelling and a shallow melting zone. This juvenile basaltic magma is an early phase of the igneous portion of the cycle. As the tectonic plates on either side of the ridge move apart the new rock is carried away from the ridge, the interaction of heated circulating seawater through fractures starts the retrograde metamorphism of the new rock.

The new basaltic oceanic crust eventually meets a subduction zone as it moves away from the spreading ridge. As this crust is pulled back into the mantle, the increasing pressure and temperature conditions cause a restructuring of the mineralogy of the rock, this metamorphism alters the rock to form eclogite. As the slab of basaltic crust and some included sediments are dragged deeper, water and other more volatile materials are driven off and rise into the overlying wedge of rock above the subduction zone, which is at a lower pressure. The lower pressure, high temperature, and now volatile rich material in this wedge melts and the resulting buoyant magma rises through the overlying rock to produce island arc or continental margin volcanism. This volcanism includes more silicic lavas the further from the edge of the island arc or continental margin, indicating a deeper source and a more differentiated magma.

At times some of the metamorphosed downgoing slab may be thrust up or obducted onto the continental margin. These blocks of mantle peridotite and the metamorphic eclogites are exposed as ophiolite complexes.

The newly erupted volcanic material is subject to rapid erosion depending on the climate conditions. These sediments accumulate within the basins on either side of an island arc. As the sediments become more deeply buried lithification begins and sedimentary rock results.

On the closing phase of the classic Wilson cycle, two continental or smaller terranes meet at a convergent zone. As the two masses of continental crust meet, neither can be subducted as they are both low density silicic rock. As the two masses meet, tremendous compressional forces distort and modify the rocks involved. The result is regional metamorphism within the interior of the ensuing orogeny or mountain building event. As the two masses are compressed, folded and faulted into a mountain range by the continental collision the whole suite of pre-existing igneous, volcanic, sedimentary and earlier metamorphic rock units are subjected to this new metamorphic event.

The high mountain ranges produced by continental collisions are immediately subjected to the forces of erosion. Erosion wears down the mountains and massive piles of sediment are developed in adjacent ocean margins, shallow seas, and as continental deposits. As these sediment piles are buried deeper they become lithified into sedimentary rock. The metamorphic, igneous, and sedimentary rocks of the mountains become the new piles of sediments in the adjoining basins and eventually become sedimentary rock.

The plate tectonics rock cycle is an evolutionary process. Magma generation, both in the spreading ridge environment and within the wedge above a subduction zone, favors the eruption of the more silicic and volatile rich fraction of the crustal or upper mantle material. This lower density material tends to stay within the crust and not be subducted back into the mantle. The magmatic aspects of plate tectonics tends to gradual segregation within or between the mantle and crust. As magma forms, the initial melt is composed of the more silicic phases that have a lower melting point. This leads to partial melting and further segregation of the lithosphere. In addition the silicic continental crust is relatively buoyant and is not normally subducted back into the mantle. So over time the continental masses grow larger and larger.

The presence of abundant water on Earth is of great importance for the rock cycle. Most obvious perhaps are the water driven processes of weathering and erosion. Water in the form of precipitation and acidic soil water and groundwater is quite effective at dissolving minerals and rocks, especially those igneous and metamorphic rocks and marine sedimentary rocks that are unstable under near surface and atmospheric conditions. The water carries away the ions dissolved in solution and the broken down fragments that are the products of weathering. Running water carries vast amounts of sediment in rivers back to the ocean and inland basins. The accumulated and buried sediments are converted back into rock.

A less obvious role of water is in the metamorphism processes that occur in fresh seafloor volcanic rocks as seawater, sometimes heated, flows through the fractures and crevices in the rock. All of these processes, illustrated by serpentinization, are an important part of the destruction of volcanic rock.

The role of water and other volatiles in the melting of existing crustal rock in the wedge above a subduction zone is a most important part of the cycle. Along with water, the presence of carbon dioxide and other carbon compounds from abundant marine limestone within the sediments atop the down going slab is another source of melt inducing volatiles. This involves the carbon cycle as a part of the overall rock cycle.


what is butter pecan ice cream made out of

Butter pecan is a flavor, prominent especially in the United States, in cakes, cookies, and ice cream. Roasted pecans, butter, and vanilla flavor are used in butter pecan baked goods. Butter pecan ice cream is smooth vanilla ice cream with a slight buttery flavor, with pecans added. It is manufactured by many major ice cream brands. A variant of the recipe is butter almond, which replaces the pecans with almonds.

Butter pecan

Butter Pecan is a popular flavor of ice cream produced by many companies and is also one of the thirty-one flavors of Baskin Robbins.[1] Butter pecan is the third most popular ice cream flavor in the U.S.[2]

Butter pecan cookies

In the movie Sister Act (1992), Sister Mary Lazarus calls ice cream a "sin" and a "wicked indulgence" and then complains that they do not have any butter pecan.[3]


when were state schools introduced in the uk

Until 1870 all schools were charitable or private institutions, but in that year the Elementary Education Act 1870 permitted local governments to complement the existing elementary schools, to fill up any gaps. The Education Act 1902 allowed local authorities to create secondary schools. The Education Act 1918 abolished fees for elementary schools.

State-funded schools (England)

State-funded schools in England are schools in England which provide education to pupils between the ages of 3 and 18 without charge. Approximately 93% of English schoolchildren attend such schools.[1] These include academy schools, community schools, foundation schools, voluntary aided schools and voluntary controlled schools; a small number are state boarding schools and three are City Technology Colleges. A significant minority are faith schools, which are attached to religious groups, most often the Church of England or the Roman Catholic Church.

All of these are funded through national and local taxation. A number of state-funded secondary schools are specialist schools, receiving extra funding to develop one or more subjects in which the school specialises. State schools may request payment from parents for extracurricular activities such as swimming lessons and field trips, provided these charges are voluntary.

This table gives a simplified overview of how the compulsory provision of education by the state (yellow) and compulsory education (purple) developed since 1870, and also how the types of schools used for this purpose evolved. Use some caution with this table which gives a simplified view based on changing policies and legislation, the reality on the ground changed more slowly and is more complex.

Since 1998, there have been six main types of maintained school in England:[2][3][4]

In addition, 3 of the 15 City Technology Colleges established in the 1980s still remain, the rest having converted to academies. These are state-funded all-ability secondary schools which charge no fees but which are independent of local authority control.

There is also a small number of state-funded boarding schools, which typically charge for board but not tuition. Boarding fees are limited to Â£12,000 per annum.[7]

Children are normally placed in year groups determined by the age they will attain at their birthday during the school year.[8] In most cases progression from one year group to another is based purely on chronological age, although it is possible in some circumstances for a student to repeat or skip a year. Repetition may be due to a lack of attendance, for example from a long illness, and especially in Years requiring standard tests. A child significantly more advanced than their classmates may be forwarded one or more years.

State-funded nursery education is available from the age of 3, and may be full-time or part-time, though this is not compulsory. If registered with a state school, attendance is compulsory beginning with the term following the child's fifth birthday. Children can be enrolled in the reception year in September of that school year, thus beginning school at age 4 or 4.5. Unless the student chooses to stay within the education system, compulsory school attendance ends on the last Friday in June during the academic year in which a student attains the age of 16.[9]

In the vast majority of cases, pupils progress from primary to secondary levels at age 11; in some areas either or both of the primary and secondary levels are further subdivided. A few areas have three-tier education systems with an intermediate middle level from age 9 to 13.

Years 12 and 13 are often referred to as "lower sixth form" and "upper sixth form" respectively, reflecting their distinct, voluntary nature as the A-level years. While most secondary schools enter their pupils for A-levels, some state schools have joined the independent sector in offering the International Baccalaureate or Cambridge Pre-U qualifications instead.

Some independent schools still refer to Years 7 to 11 as "first form" to "fifth form", reflecting earlier usage. Historically, this arose from the system in public schools, where all forms were divided into Lower, Upper, and sometimes Middle sections. Year 7 is equivalent to "Upper Third Form", Year 8 would have been known as "Lower Fourth", and so on. Some independent schools still employ this method of labelling Year groups.

The table below describes the most common patterns for schooling in the state sector in England.

A-level, BTEC, International Baccalaureate, Cambridge Pre-U, etc.

All maintained schools in England are required to follow the National Curriculum, which is made up of twelve subjects.[10]

Under the National Curriculum, all pupils undergo National Curriculum Tests (NCTs, commonly still referred to by their previous name of Standard Attainment Tests, or SATs) towards the ends of Key Stage 2 in the core subjects of Literacy, Numeracy and Science, but not in the foundation subjects such as Geography, History and Information & Communication Technology where individual teacher assessment is used instead. Pupils normally take GCSE exams in the last two years of Key Stage 4, but may also choose to work towards the attainment of alternative qualifications, such as the GNVQ. Former tests at the end of Key Stage 3 were abandoned after the 2008 tests, where severe problems emerged concerning the marking procedures. Now at the end of Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 3, progress is examined via individual teacher assessment against the National Curriculum Attainment Targets for all subjects.

The core subjects—English, Mathematics and Science—are compulsory for all students aged 5 to 16. A range of other subjects, known as foundation subjects, are compulsory at one or more Key Stages:

In addition, other subjects with a non-statutory programme of study in the National Curriculum are also taught, including Religious education in all Key Stages, Sex education from Key Stage 2, and Career education and Work-related learning in Key Stages 3 and 4.[10] Religious education within community schools may be withdrawn for individual pupils with parental consent. Similarly, parents of children in community schools may choose to opt their child out of some or all sex education lessons.

All state-funded schools are regularly inspected by the Office for Standards in Education, often known simply as Ofsted. Ofsted publish reports on the quality of education at a particular school on a regular basis. Schools judged by Ofsted to be providing an inadequate standard of education may be subject to special measures, which could include replacing the governing body and senior staff.

Test results for schools are published, and are an important measure of their performance.[11][12]

English secondary schools are mostly comprehensive, except in a few areas that retain a form of the previous selective system (the Tripartite System), with students selected for grammar school by the Eleven-Plus exam. There are also a number of isolated fully selective grammar schools, and a few dozen partially selective schools. Specialist schools may also select up to 10% of their intake for aptitude in the specialism, though relatively few of them have taken up this option. The intake of comprehensive schools can vary widely, especially in urban areas with several local schools.[13]

Sir Peter Newsam, Chief Schools Adjudicator 1999â€“2002, has argued that English schools can be divided into 8 types (with some overlap), based on the ability range of their intake:[14][15]

This ranking is reflected in performance tables, and thus the schools' attractiveness to parents. Thus, although schools may use the phrase 'comprehensive' in their prospectus or name, the schools at the higher end of the spectrum are not comprehensive in intake. Indeed, the variation in the social groupings in school intake, and the differences in academic performance, are enormous.

Almost all state-funded schools in England are maintained schools, which receive their funding from local authorities, and are required to follow the National Curriculum. In such schools, all teachers are employed under the nationally agreed School Teachers' Pay and Conditions Document.