1.
Consumer electronics
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Consumer electronics or home electronics are electronic or digital equipment intended for everyday use, typically in private homes. Consumer electronics include devices used for entertainment, communications, and home-office activities, in British English, they are often called brown goods by producers and sellers, to distinguish them from white goods such as washing machines and refrigerators. Radio broadcasting in the early 20th century brought the first major consumer product, later products included telephones, personal computers, MP3 players, audio equipment, televisions and calculators. In the 2010s, consumer electronics stores often sell GPS, automotive electronics, video game consoles, electronic instruments, karaoke machines, digital cameras. Stores also sell digital cameras, camcorders, cell phones, some consumer electronics stores, such as Best Buy have also begun selling office and baby furniture. Consumer electronics stores may be bricks and mortar retail stores, online stores. The CEA estimated the value of 2015 consumer electronics sales at US$220 billion, for its first fifty years the phonograph turntable did not use electronics, the needle and soundhorn were purely mechanical technologies. However, in the 1920s radio broadcasting became the basis of production of radio receivers. The vacuum tubes that had made radios practical were used with record players as well, television was soon invented, but remained insignificant in the consumer market until the 1950s. The transistor, invented in 1947 by Bell Laboratories, led to significant research in the field of semiconductors in the early 1950s. The transistors advantages revolutionized that industry along with other electronics, by 1959 Fairchild Semiconductor had introduced the first planar transistor from which come the origins of Moores Law. Integrated circuits followed when manufacturers built circuits on a substrate using electrical connections between circuits within the chip itself. One overriding characteristic of consumer products is the trend of ever-falling prices. This is driven by gains in manufacturing efficiency and automation, lower costs as manufacturing has moved to lower-wage countries. Semiconductor components benefit from Moores Law, a principle which states that, for a given price. While consumer electronics continues in its trend of convergence, combining elements of many products, there is an ever increasing need to keep product information updated and comparable, for the consumer to make an informed choice. Style, price, specification, and performance are all relevant, there is a gradual shift towards e-commerce web-storefronts. Many products include Internet connectivity using technologies such as Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, products not traditionally associated with computer use now provide options to connect to the Internet or to a computer using a home network to provide access to digital content
2.
Amar Bose
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Amar Gopal Bose, was an American academic and entrepreneur of Bengali descent. An electrical engineer and sound engineer, he was a professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology for over 45 years and he was also the founder and chairman of Bose Corporation. In 2011, he donated a majority of the company to MIT in the form of non-voting shares to sustain and advance MIT’s education, Bose was born in a Bengali Hindu family and raised in Philadelphia to a Bengali father, Noni Gopal Bose and an American mother, Charlotte. His father was an Indian freedom revolutionary who, having been imprisoned for his political activities and his mother, Charlotte, is described as an American schoolteacher of French and German ancestry, but Bose described her as more Bengali than me. She was a vegetarian and deeply interested in Vedanta and Hindu philosophy. Bose spent a year in Eindhoven, Netherlands, in the labs at NV Philips Electronics, and a year as a Fulbright research student in New Delhi, India. He completed his PhD in Electrical Engineering from MIT, writing a thesis on non-linear systems under the supervision of Norbert Wiener, following graduation, Amar Bose became an assistant professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. This would eventually motivate his extensive speaker technology research, concentrating on key weaknesses in the speaker systems available at the time. His focus on later became a hallmark of his companys audio products. For initial capital to fund his company in 1964, Bose turned to angel investors, including his MIT thesis advisor and professor, Bose was awarded significant patents in two fields that continue to be important to the Bose Corporation. These patents were in the area of design and non-linear, two-state modulated. The company Bose founded employed 11,700 people worldwide as of 2016 and produces products for home, car, Bose never took his company public, and since the company was privately held Bose was able to pursue risky long-term research. In a 2004 interview in Popular Science magazine, he said, but I never went into business to make money. I went into business so that I could do interesting things that hadnt been done before, Bose said that his best ideas usually came to him in a flash. These innovations are not the result of rational thought, its an intuitive idea, in 2007, he was listed in Forbes 400 as the 271st richest man in the world, with a net worth of $1.8 billion. In 2009, he was no longer on the billionaire list and he married Prema Bose but they later divorced. They had two children, Vanu and Maya, Amar Bose did not practice any religion but did meditate for a short while every day. Vanu Bose is the founder and CEO of a radio technology company
3.
Framingham, Massachusetts
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Framingham is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 68,318 as of the United States 2010 Census, founded in 1700, Framingham was placed at #36 on Best Places to Live in US by CNN Money magazine in 2012. Framingham, sited on the ancient trail known as the Old Connecticut Path, was first settled when John Stone settled on the west bank of the Sudbury River in 1647. In 1660, Thomas Danforth, an official of the Bay Colony, formerly of Framlingham, Suffolk, received a grant of land at Danforths Farms and he strenuously resisted petitions for incorporation of the town, which was officially incorporated in 1700, following his death the previous year. Why the L was dropped from the new name is not known. The first church was organized in 1701, the first teacher was hired in 1706, on February 22,1775, the British general Thomas Gage sent two officers and an enlisted man out of Boston to survey the route to Worcester, Massachusetts. In Framingham, those spies stopped at Buckminsters Tavern and they watched the town militia muster outside the building, impressed with the mens numbers but not their discipline. Though the whole company came into the tavern after their drill, Gage did not order a march along that route, instead ordering troops to Concord, Massachusetts, on April 18–19. Framingham sent two companies totaling about 130 men into the Battles of Lexington and Concord that followed. In the years prior to the American Civil War, Framingham was an annual gathering-spot for members of the abolitionist movement, each Independence Day from 1854 to 1865, the Massachusetts Anti-Slavery Society held a rally in a picnic area called Harmony Grove near what is now downtown Framingham. At the 1854 rally, William Lloyd Garrison burned copies of the Fugitive Slave Law of 1850, judicial decisions enforcing it, other prominent abolitionists present that day included William Cooper Nell, Sojourner Truth, Wendell Phillips, Lucy Stone, and Henry David Thoreau. During the post–World War II baby boom, Framingham, like many suburban areas, experienced a large increase in population. Much of the housing constructed during that time consisted of split-level, in 2000, Framingham celebrated its Tercentennial. Framingham is located at 42°17′59″N 71°25′35″W, according to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 26.4 square miles. 25.1 square miles of it is land and 1.3 square miles of it is water, Framingham is located in eastern Massachusetts,20 miles west of Boston, midway between Boston and Worcester. It is bordered by Southborough and Marlborough on the west, Sherborn and Ashland on the south, Natick on the east, Wayland on the northeast, the town of Framingham is divided by Route 9, which passes east-to-west through the middle of the town. South Framingham includes Downtown Framingham, and the villages of Coburnville, Lokerville, North Framingham includes the villages of Nobscot, Pinefield, Ridgefield, and Saxonville plus Framingham Center. As of the census of 2010, there were 68,318 people,27,529 households, the population density was 2,663.6 people per square mile
4.
Loudspeaker
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A loudspeaker is an electroacoustic transducer, which converts an electrical audio signal into a corresponding sound. The most widely used type of speaker in the 2010s is the speaker, invented in 1925 by Edward W. Kellogg. The dynamic speaker operates on the basic principle as a dynamic microphone. Besides this most common method, there are several technologies that can be used to convert an electrical signal into sound. The sound source must be amplified or strengthened with a power amplifier before the signal is sent to the speaker. Speakers are typically housed in an enclosure or speaker cabinet which is often a rectangular or square box made of wood or sometimes plastic. The enclosures materials and design play an important role in the quality of the sound, where high fidelity reproduction of sound is required, multiple loudspeaker transducers are often mounted in the same enclosure, each reproducing a part of the audible frequency range. In this case the individual speakers are referred to as drivers, drivers made for reproducing high audio frequencies are called tweeters, those for middle frequencies are called mid-range drivers, and those for low frequencies are called woofers. Smaller loudspeakers are found in such as radios, televisions, portable audio players, computers. Larger loudspeaker systems are used for music, sound reinforcement in theatres and concerts, the term loudspeaker may refer to individual transducers or to complete speaker systems consisting of an enclosure including one or more drivers. To adequately reproduce a range of frequencies with even coverage, most loudspeaker systems employ more than one driver. Individual drivers are used to different frequency ranges. The drivers are named subwoofers, woofers, mid-range speakers, tweeters, the terms for different speaker drivers differ, depending on the application. In two-way systems there is no mid-range driver, so the task of reproducing the mid-range sounds falls upon the woofer and tweeter, home stereos use the designation tweeter for the high frequency driver, while professional concert systems may designate them as HF or highs. When multiple drivers are used in a system, a network, called a crossover. Loudspeaker driver of the type pictured are termed dynamic to distinguish them from earlier drivers, or speakers using piezoelectric or electrostatic systems, or any of several other sorts. Johann Philipp Reis installed an electric loudspeaker in his telephone in 1861, it was capable of reproducing clear tones, alexander Graham Bell patented his first electric loudspeaker as part of his telephone in 1876, which was followed in 1877 by an improved version from Ernst Siemens. In 1898, Horace Short patented a design for a loudspeaker driven by compressed air, he sold the rights to Charles Parsons
5.
Headphones
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Headphones are a pair of small electronic or electric listening devices that are designed to be worn on or around the head over a users ears. They are electroacoustic transducers, which convert a signal to a corresponding sound in the users ear. Headphones are designed to allow a user to listen to an audio source privately, in contrast to a loudspeaker. Headphones are also known as earspeakers, earphones or, colloquially, circumaural and supra-aural headphones use a band over the top of the head to hold the speakers in place. The other type, known as earbuds or earphones consist of units that plug into the users ear canal. In the context of telecommunication, a headset is a combination of headphone and microphone, the first headphones were developed in the late 1800s for use by telephone operators, to keep their hands free. Initially the audio quality was mediocre and a forward was the invention of high fidelity headphones. Headphones are made in a range of different audio reproduction quality capabilities, headsets designed for telephone use typically cannot reproduce sound with the high fidelity of expensive units designed for music listening by audiophiles. Headphones that use cables typically have either a 1/4 inch or 1/8 inch phone jack for plugging the headphones into the audio source, some stereo earbuds are wireless, using Bluetooth connectivity to transmit the audio signal by radio waves from source devices like cellphones and digital players. Due to the spread of wireless devices in recent years headphones are used by people in public places such as sidewalks, grocery stores. The latter two types of employees use headphones with an integrated microphone, Headphones originated from the earpiece, and were the only way to listen to electrical audio signals before amplifiers were developed. The first truly successful set was developed in 1910 by Nathaniel Baldwin, some very sensitive headphones, such as those manufactured by Brandes around 1919, were commonly used for early radio work. These early headphones used moving iron drivers, with either single ended or balanced armatures, the requirement for high sensitivity meant that no damping was used, thus the sound quality was crude. These early models lacked padding, and often produced excessive clamping forces on the wearers head and their impedance varied, headphones used in telegraph and telephone work had an impedance of 75 ohms. Those used with wireless radio had to be more sensitive and were made with more turns of finer wire. Impedance of 1000 to 2000 ohms was common, which suited both crystal sets and triode receivers, in early powered radios, the headphone was part of the vacuum tubes plate circuit and carried dangerous voltages. It was normally connected directly to the high voltage battery terminal. The use of electrical connections meant that users could be shocked if they touched the bare headphone connections while adjusting an uncomfortable headset
6.
Vehicle audio
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Vehicle audio is equipment installed in a car or other vehicle to provide in-car entertainment and information for the vehicle occupants. Until the 1950s it consisted of a simple AM radio, additions since then have included FM radio, CD players, navigation systems, Bluetooth telephone integration, and smartphone controllers like CarPlay and Android Auto. Once controlled from the dashboard with a few buttons, they can now be controlled by steering wheel controls and it is also used to create fake engine noise. For the 2015 Ford Mustang EcoBoost, an Active Noise Control system was developed that amplifies the sound through the car speakers. A similar system is used in the F-150 pickup truck, volkswagen uses a Soundaktor, a special speaker to play sounds in cars such as the Golf GTi and Beetle Turbo. BMW plays a sample of its motors through the car speakers, using a different samples according to the engine’s load. Around 1920, vacuum tube technology had matured to the point where the availability of receivers made radio broadcasting viable. A technical challenge was that the tubes in the radio receivers required 50 to 250 volt direct current. Voltage was stepped up with a vibrator that provided a pulsating DC which could be converted to a higher voltage with a transformer, rectified, in 1930, the American Galvin Manufacturing Corporation marketed a Motorola branded radio receiver for $130. It was expensive, the contemporary Ford Model A cost $540, a Plymouth sedan, wired for Philco Transistone radio without extra cost, is advertised in Ladies Home Journal in 1931. In 1932 in Germany the Blaupunkt AS5 medium wave and longwave radio was marketed for 465 Reichsmark, because it took nearly 10 litres of space, it could not be located near the driver, and was operated via a steering wheel remote control. In 1933 Crossley Motors offer a factory fitted car radio, by the late 1930s, push button AM radios were considered a standard feature. In 1946 there were an estimated 9 million AM car radios in use, an FM receiver was offered by Blaupunkt in 1952. In 1953, Becker introduced the AM/FM Becker Mexico with a Variometer tuner, in April 1955, the Chrysler Corporation had announced that it was offering a Mopar model 914HR branded Philco all transistor car radio, as a $150 option for its 1956 Chrysler and Imperial car models. In 1963 Becker introduced the Monte Carlo, a solid state radio. In 1964 Philips launched the Compact Cassette, and in 1965 Ford, in subsequent years cassettes supplanted the 8-track, and improved with longer play times, better tape quality, auto-reverse, and Dolby noise reduction. They were popular throughout the 1970s and 80s, while the CD had been on the market since 1982, it was in 1984 that Pioneer introduced the CDX-1, the worlds first car CD player. It was known for its sound quality, instant track skipping
7.
Professional audio
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Professional audio, occasionally abbreviated as pro audio, refers to both an activity and a type of high quality audio equipment. In contrast, consumer equipment is usually confined to the reproduction of sound in a private home on a home stereo or home cinema system. g. XLR balanced audio cables and Speakon speaker connectors Designed for touring, some pro audio stores also sell video equipment, such as video projectors, as this equipment is commonly used in live audio settings. Some pro audio stores also sell and/or rent DJ gear and the lighting equipment used in rock concerts, dance clubs, raves. Institute of Professional Sound Sound design
8.
United States dollar
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The United States dollar is the official currency of the United States and its insular territories per the United States Constitution. It is divided into 100 smaller cent units, the circulating paper money consists of Federal Reserve Notes that are denominated in United States dollars. The U. S. dollar was originally commodity money of silver as enacted by the Coinage Act of 1792 which determined the dollar to be 371 4/16 grain pure or 416 grain standard silver, the currency most used in international transactions, it is the worlds primary reserve currency. Several countries use it as their currency, and in many others it is the de facto currency. Besides the United States, it is used as the sole currency in two British Overseas Territories in the Caribbean, the British Virgin Islands and Turks and Caicos Islands. A few countries use the Federal Reserve Notes for paper money, while the country mints its own coins, or also accepts U. S. coins that can be used as payment in U. S. dollars. After Nixon shock of 1971, USD became fiat currency, Article I, Section 8 of the U. S. Constitution provides that the Congress has the power To coin money, laws implementing this power are currently codified at 31 U. S. C. Section 5112 prescribes the forms in which the United States dollars should be issued and these coins are both designated in Section 5112 as legal tender in payment of debts. The Sacagawea dollar is one example of the copper alloy dollar, the pure silver dollar is known as the American Silver Eagle. Section 5112 also provides for the minting and issuance of other coins and these other coins are more fully described in Coins of the United States dollar. The Constitution provides that a regular Statement and Account of the Receipts and that provision of the Constitution is made specific by Section 331 of Title 31 of the United States Code. The sums of money reported in the Statements are currently being expressed in U. S. dollars, the U. S. dollar may therefore be described as the unit of account of the United States. The word dollar is one of the words in the first paragraph of Section 9 of Article I of the Constitution, there, dollars is a reference to the Spanish milled dollar, a coin that had a monetary value of 8 Spanish units of currency, or reales. In 1792 the U. S. Congress passed a Coinage Act, Section 20 of the act provided, That the money of account of the United States shall be expressed in dollars, or units. And that all accounts in the offices and all proceedings in the courts of the United States shall be kept and had in conformity to this regulation. In other words, this act designated the United States dollar as the unit of currency of the United States, unlike the Spanish milled dollar the U. S. dollar is based upon a decimal system of values. Both one-dollar coins and notes are produced today, although the form is significantly more common
9.
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
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The Massachusetts Institute of Technology is a private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, often cited as one of the worlds most prestigious universities. Researchers worked on computers, radar, and inertial guidance during World War II, post-war defense research contributed to the rapid expansion of the faculty and campus under James Killian. The current 168-acre campus opened in 1916 and extends over 1 mile along the bank of the Charles River basin. The Institute is traditionally known for its research and education in the sciences and engineering, and more recently in biology, economics, linguistics. Air Force and 6 Fields Medalists have been affiliated with MIT, the school has a strong entrepreneurial culture, and the aggregated revenues of companies founded by MIT alumni would rank as the eleventh-largest economy in the world. In 1859, a proposal was submitted to the Massachusetts General Court to use newly filled lands in Back Bay, Boston for a Conservatory of Art and Science, but the proposal failed. A charter for the incorporation of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Rogers, a professor from the University of Virginia, wanted to establish an institution to address rapid scientific and technological advances. The Rogers Plan reflected the German research university model, emphasizing an independent faculty engaged in research, as well as instruction oriented around seminars, two days after the charter was issued, the first battle of the Civil War broke out. After a long delay through the war years, MITs first classes were held in the Mercantile Building in Boston in 1865, in 1863 under the same act, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts founded the Massachusetts Agricultural College, which developed as the University of Massachusetts Amherst. In 1866, the proceeds from sales went toward new buildings in the Back Bay. MIT was informally called Boston Tech, the institute adopted the European polytechnic university model and emphasized laboratory instruction from an early date. Despite chronic financial problems, the institute saw growth in the last two decades of the 19th century under President Francis Amasa Walker. Programs in electrical, chemical, marine, and sanitary engineering were introduced, new buildings were built, the curriculum drifted to a vocational emphasis, with less focus on theoretical science. The fledgling school still suffered from chronic financial shortages which diverted the attention of the MIT leadership, during these Boston Tech years, MIT faculty and alumni rebuffed Harvard University president Charles W. Eliots repeated attempts to merge MIT with Harvard Colleges Lawrence Scientific School. There would be at least six attempts to absorb MIT into Harvard, in its cramped Back Bay location, MIT could not afford to expand its overcrowded facilities, driving a desperate search for a new campus and funding. Eventually the MIT Corporation approved an agreement to merge with Harvard, over the vehement objections of MIT faculty, students. However, a 1917 decision by the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court effectively put an end to the merger scheme, the neoclassical New Technology campus was designed by William W. Bosworth and had been funded largely by anonymous donations from a mysterious Mr. Smith, starting in 1912. In January 1920, the donor was revealed to be the industrialist George Eastman of Rochester, New York, who had invented methods of production and processing
10.
Reverberation
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Reverberation, in psychoacoustics and acoustics, is the persistence of sound after a sound is produced. This is most noticeable when the sound source stops but the reflections continue, decreasing in amplitude, until they reach zero amplitude. In comparison to an echo that is a minimum of 50 to 100 ms after the initial sound. As time passes, the amplitude of the reflections is reduced until it is reduced to zero, Reverberation is not limited to indoor spaces as it exists in forests and other outdoor environments where reflection exists. Reverberation occurs naturally when a person sings, talks or plays an instrument acoustically in a hall or performance space with sound-reflective surfaces. The sound of reverberation is often added to the vocals of singers in live sound systems. The time it takes for a signal to drop by 60 dB is the reverberation time, RT60 is the time required for reflections of a direct sound to decay 60 dB. Reverberation time is stated as a single value, if measured as a wide band signal, however, being frequency dependent. Being frequency dependent, the time measured in narrow bands will differ depending on the frequency band being measured. For precision, it is important to know what ranges of frequencies are being described by a time measurement. In the late 19th century, Wallace Clement Sabine started experiments at Harvard University to investigate the impact of absorption on the reverberation time. Using a portable wind chest and organ pipes as a sound source and he found that the reverberation time is proportional to room dimensions and inversely proportional to the amount of absorption present. The optimum reverberation time for a space in which music is played depends on the type of music that is to be played in the space, rooms used for speech typically need a shorter reverberation time so that speech can be understood more clearly. If the reflected sound from one syllable is still heard when the syllable is spoken. Cat, Cab, and Cap may all sound very similar, if on the other hand the reverberation time is too short, tonal balance and loudness may suffer. Reverberation effects are used in studios to add depth to sounds. Reverberation changes the perceived spectral structure of a sound, but does not alter the pitch, basic factors that affect a rooms reverberation time include the size and shape of the enclosure as well as the materials used in the construction of the room. Every object placed within the enclosure can also affect this time, including people
11.
Psychoacoustics
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Psychoacoustics is the scientific study of sound perception. More specifically, it is the branch of science studying the psychological and physiological responses associated with sound and it can be further categorized as a branch of psychophysics. Psychoacoustics received its name from a field within psychology—i. e, recognition science—which deals with all kinds of human perceptions. It is a field of many areas, including psychology, acoustics, electronic engineering, physics, biology, physiology. These nerve pulses then travel to the brain where they are perceived, the inner ear, for example, does significant signal processing in converting sound waveforms into neural stimuli, so certain differences between waveforms may be imperceptible. Data compression techniques, such as MP3, make use of this fact, in addition, the ear has a nonlinear response to sounds of different intensity levels, this nonlinear response is called loudness. Telephone networks and audio noise reduction systems make use of this fact by nonlinearly compressing data samples before transmission, another effect of the ears nonlinear response is that sounds that are close in frequency produce phantom beat notes, or intermodulation distortion products. The expression that one hears what one wants to hear may pertain in such discussions, the human ear can nominally hear sounds in the range 20 Hz to 20,000 Hz. The upper limit tends to decrease with age, most adults are unable to hear above 16 kHz, the lowest frequency that has been identified as a musical tone is 12 Hz under ideal laboratory conditions. Tones between 4 and 16 Hz can be perceived via the sense of touch. Frequency resolution of the ear is 3.6 Hz within the octave of 1000 –2000 Hz and that is, changes in pitch larger than 3.6 Hz can be perceived in a clinical setting. However, even smaller pitch differences can be perceived through other means, for example, the interference of two pitches can often be heard as a repetitive variation in volume of the tone. This amplitude modulation occurs with a equal to the difference in frequencies of the two tones and is known as beating. The semitone scale used in Western musical notation is not a frequency scale. The intensity range of sounds is enormous. Human ear drums are sensitive to variations in the sound pressure, for this reason, sound pressure level is also measured logarithmically, with all pressures referenced to 20 µPa. The lower limit of audibility is defined as 0 dB. The upper limit is more a question of the limit where the ear will be harmed or with the potential to cause noise-induced hearing loss
12.
Equalization (audio)
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Equalization is the process of adjusting the balance between frequency components within an electronic signal. The most well known use of equalization is in recording and reproduction but there are many other applications in electronics. The circuit or equipment used to achieve equalization is called an equalizer and these devices strengthen or weaken the energy of specific frequency bands or frequency ranges. In sound recording and reproduction, equalization is the commonly used to alter the frequency response of an audio system using linear filters. Most hi-fi equipment uses relatively simple filters to make bass and treble adjustments, graphic and parametric equalizers have much more flexibility in tailoring the frequency content of an audio signal. An equalizer is the circuit or equipment used to achieve equalization, since equalizers, adjust the amplitude of audio signals at particular frequencies, they are, in other words, frequency-specific volume knobs. The term EQ specifically refers to this variant of the term, stereos and basic guitar amplifiers typically have adjustable equalizers which boost or cut bass or treble frequencies. Mid- to high-priced guitar and bass amplifiers usually have more bands of frequency control, such as bass, mid-range and treble or bass, low-mid, high-mid, some amps have an additional knob for controlling very high frequencies. Broadcast and recording studios use sophisticated equalizers capable of more detailed adjustments. The most common equalizers in music production are parametric, semi-parametric, graphic, peak, graphic equalizers are often included in consumer audio equipment and software which plays music on home computers. Parametric equalizers require more expertise than graphic equalizers, and they can provide more specific compensation or alteration around a chosen frequency and this may be used in order to remove unwanted resonances or boost certain frequencies. An acoustic guitarist who finds that her instrument sounds too boomy may ask the engineer to reduce the low frequency range response. A guitarist who finds that the instrument sound in the PA has too much finger noise may ask the engineer to reduce the frequency range response. The concept of equalization was first applied in correcting the frequency response of telephone lines using passive networks, a plot of the systems net frequency response would be flat, as its response to all frequencies would literally be equal. Much later the concept was applied in engineering to adjust the frequency response in recording, reproduction. Audio amplifiers have long had filters or controls to modify their frequency response and these are most often in the form of variable bass and treble controls, and switches to apply low-cut or high-cut filters for elimination of low frequency rumble and high frequency hiss respectively. Graphic equalizers and other equipment developed for improving fidelity have since used by recording engineers to modify frequency responses for aesthetic reasons. Hence in the field of audio electronics the term equalization is now used to describe the application of such filters regardless of intent
13.
Distortion
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Distortion is the alteration of the original shape of something, such as an object, image, sound or waveform. Distortion is usually unwanted, and so engineers strive to eliminate distortion, in some situations, however, distortion may be desirable. The important signal processing operation of heterodyning is based on nonlinear mixing of signals to cause intermodulation, Distortion is also used as a musical effect, particularly with electric guitars. The addition of noise or other outside signals is not deemed distortion, a quality measure that explicitly reflects both the noise and the distortion is the Signal-to-noise-and-distortion ratio. Distortion occurs when the transfer function F is more complicated than this, if F is a linear function, for instance a filter whose gain and/or delay varies with frequency, the signal suffers linear distortion. Linear distortion does not introduce new frequency components to a signal and this diagram shows the behaviour of a signal as it is passed through various distorting functions. The first trace shows the input and it also shows the output from a non-distorting transfer function. A high-pass filter distorts the shape of a wave by reducing its low frequency components. This is the cause of the droop seen on the top of the pulses and this pulse distortion can be very significant when a train of pulses must pass through an AC-coupled amplifier. As the sine wave contains only one frequency, its shape is unaltered, a low-pass filter rounds the pulses by removing the high frequency components. All systems are low pass to some extent, note that the phase of the sine wave is different for the lowpass and the highpass cases, due to the phase distortion of the filters. A slightly non-linear transfer function, this one gently compresses the peaks of the sine wave and this generates small amounts of low order harmonics. A hard-clipping transfer function generates high order harmonics, parts of the transfer function are flat, which indicates that all information about the input signal has been lost in this region. The transfer function of an amplifier, with perfect gain. The true behavior of the system is usually different, amplitude distortion is distortion occurring in a system, subsystem, or device when the output amplitude is not a linear function of the input amplitude under specified conditions. Harmonic distortion adds overtones that are whole number multiples of a sound waves frequencies, nonlinearities that give rise to amplitude distortion in audio systems are most often measured in terms of the harmonics added to a pure sinewave fed to the system. The level at which harmonic distortion becomes audible depends on the nature of the distortion. Different types of distortion are more audible than others if the THD measurements are identical
14.
Klipsch Audio Technologies
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Klipsch Audio Technologies /ˈklɪpʃ/ is an American loudspeaker company based in Indianapolis, Indiana. On January 6,2011, Audiovox announced that the company had signed a term sheet to purchase all the shares of Klipsch Group Inc, the sale was completed March 1,2011. The company advocates the superiority of horns for the aforementioned properties, the exact causes of this coloration are still being researched, but one cause is vibration of the horn material itself. Early Klipsch designs utilizing metal-throated horns whose material could be energized by the sound within, Klipsch subsequently introduced horns of braced fiberglass which were said to alleviate resonances that colored the earlier, metal designs. Another cause of honkiness is acoustic resonances and reflections when the horn shape causes poor transitions in the acoustic wave expanding from the horn driver. In addition to the acoustic effects, these resonances and reflections transform into peaks and dips in the electrical impedance. In 1989 Klipsch introduced a midrange horn with a flare which was said to reduce honkiness and create a more open sound quality. Klipsch also moved away from silk diaphragms to different driver-diaphragm materials like phenolic, aluminum and titanium, midrange horns made entirely of formed wood were used into the 1950s. Historically, Klipsch speakers were designed based on principles originating at Bell Labs in the 1930s, objectives included wide soundstage and frequency range from about 30 Hz to 15 kHz, and the speakers were designed to be placed in a room with no single dimension a multiple of another. For competitors who disregarded this old research, Klipsch made a special Bullshit button, the Klipschorn, or K-Horn, loudspeaker is the flagship product of Klipsch Audio Technologies. It was patented by founder Paul W. Klipsch in 1946, although the Klipschorns basic design is more than sixty years old, it has received periodic minor modifications. It was offered for years in kit form through Seattle kit manufacturer, the Klipschorns large enclosure houses a three-way design, separate drivers—the woofer, the squawker, and the tweeter, respectively—handle the bass, midrange, and treble portions of the sound signal. Two rectangular horn lenses coupled to compression drivers handle the midrange, the body of the speaker cabinet forms a horn. The “K-Horn” shape is like a diamond, the pointy rear is open and exposed, the flat front covered with a wood panel. The speaker sits in the corner of two adjoining walls, using the walls and floor boundaries as extensions of the horn, technically speaking, the K-Horns folded bass corner horn can be described as a bifurcated trihedral exponential wave transmission line. This design results in high efficiency. One watt RMS produces a 105 decibel per meter sound pressure level, such sensitivity requires less amplifier power to achieve the same loudness. The K-Horn encourages the use of low powered amplifiers, the growing popularity in the audiophile community of single-ended valve amplifiers has sparked renewed interest in the Klipschorn and other highly sensitive Klipsch models
15.
Wayland, Massachusetts
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Wayland is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 13,444 at the 2010 census, for geographic and demographic information on Cochituate, which is part of Wayland, please see the article Cochituate, Massachusetts. Wayland was the first settlement of Sudbury Plantation in 1639, the Town of East Sudbury was incorporated on April 10,1780, on land which had formerly been part of Sudbury. Both Wayland and Mellen became benefactors of the library, the first free public library in the state. The Wayland Free Public Library was established in 1848 and is arguably the first in Massachusetts The building was rebuilt in 1900, in 2010, Boston Duck Tours was asked to help transport flood victims in Wayland. Torrential rains had left Pelham Island area of Wayland isolated and the Ducks were brought in to ferry people in, the Wayland display server protocol is named after the town. According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has an area of 15.9 square miles, of which 15.2 square miles is land and 0.7 square miles. Wayland borders Lincoln, Sudbury, Weston, Framingham, and Natick, as of the census of 2010, there were 13,444 people,4,808 households, and 3,676 families residing in the town. The population density was 859.9 people per square mile, there were 5,021 housing units at an average density of 310.8 per square mile. The racial makeup of the town was 87. 2% White,0. 9% African American,0. 0% Native American,9. 9% Asian,0. 0% Pacific Islander,0. 4% from other races, and 1. 6% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2. 4% of the population,16. 1% of all households were made up of individuals and 7. 6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.80 and the family size was 3.15. In the town, the population was out with 28. 7% under the age of 18,3. 4% from 18 to 24,24. 7% from 25 to 44,29. 0% from 45 to 64. The median age was 41 years, for every 100 females there were 93.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.6 males, the median income for a household in the town was $121,036, and the median income for a family was $204,033.47. Males had an income of $136,344 versus $60,875 for females. The per capita income for the town was $75,144, about 2. 1% of families and 2. 5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 1. 9% of those under age 18 and 2. 7% of those age 65 or over. Tom Scholz, guitarist for 1970s rock group Boston, their album was recorded in his basement in Wayland. by Wall & Gray
16.
Century City, Los Angeles
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Century City is a 176-acre neighborhood and business district in Los Angeles Westside. Outside of Downtown Los Angeles, Century City is one of the areas most prominent employment centers. The district was developed on the backlot of film studio 20th Century Fox. There are two schools, but no public schools in the neighborhood. Important to the economy are the Westfield Century City shopping center, business towers, the land of Century City belonged to cowboy actor Tom Mix, who used it as a ranch. It later became a backlot of 20th Century Fox, which still has its headquarters just to the southwest. The following year, in 1957, they commissioned a development from Welton Becket Associates. Of America, also known as Alcoa, for US$300 million, herrscher had encouraged his uncle-in-law to borrow money instead, but once Skouras refused, he was out of the picture. The new owners conceived Century City as a city within a city, in 1963, the first building, Gateway West Building, was completed. The next year, in 1964, Minoru Yamasaki designed the Century Plaza Hotel, five years later, in 1969, architects Anthony J. Lumsden and César Pelli designed the Century City Medical Plaza. Century Citys plaza as it appeared in the early 1970s can be viewed in several scenes of still another Fox film, Conquest of the Planet of the Apes. The 2000 U. S. census counted 5,513 residents in the 0. 70-square-mile Century City neighborhood—or 7,869 people per square mile, the Southern California Association of Governments estimates that the daytime population amounts to 48,343 on a working day. In 2008, the city estimated that the resident population had increased to 5,934, in 2008, the median age for residents was 46, older than average for the city and the county. The percentage of residents aged 65 and older was the highest for any neighborhood in Los Angeles County, the percentages of widowed men and women and of divorced men were among the countys highest. Military veterans accounted for 11. 9% of the population, a rate for the city. The neighborhood was considered not especially diverse ethnically, with a percentage of white residents. The breakdown was whites,82. 5%, Asians,8. 6%, Latinos,4. 4%, blacks,1. 4%, and others,3, 0%. Iran and Canada were the most common places of birth for the 25. 5% of the residents who were born abroad—a low percentage, the median yearly income in 2014 was $95,135, a high figure for Los Angeles
17.
Kittery, Maine
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Kittery is a town in York County, Maine, United States. Home to the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard on Seaveys Island, Kittery includes Badgers Island, the district of Kittery Point. The town is a tourist destination known for its outlet stores. Kittery is part of the Portland–South Portland–Biddeford, Maine metropolitan statistical area, the towns population was 9,490 at the 2010 census. English settlement around the harbor of the Piscataqua River estuary began about 1623. Kittery was incorporated in 1647, staking a claim as the oldest incorporated town in Maine. Though the municipalities of Portland and it was named after the birthplace of a founder, Alexander Shapleigh, from his manor of Kittery Court at Kingswear in Devon, England. Shapleigh arrived in 1635 aboard the ship Benediction, which he co-owned with another prominent settler, Captain Francis Champernowne, together with the Pepperrell family, they established fisheries offshore at the Isles of Shoals, where fish were caught, salted, and exported back to Europe. Other pioneers were hunters, trappers, and workers of the abundant timber. The settlement at the mouth of the Piscataqua River was protected by Fort McClary, thomas Spencer, Esquire, immigrant from Gloucestershire, England, is also a notable settler of Kittery with his wife Patience Chadbourne. Their story is included in, The Maine Spencers, a history and genealogy, Kittery originally extended from the Atlantic Ocean inland up the Salmon Falls River, including the present-day towns of Eliot, South Berwick, Berwick and North Berwick. Located opposite Portsmouth, New Hampshire, the town developed into a center for trade, after the death of Gorges, Maine in 1652 became part of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. Francis Small was a resident of Kittery, and operated a trading post near the confluence of the Ossipee River. Small became the largest property owner in the history of Maine, in 1663, John Josselyn would write, Towns there are, are not many in this province. Kittery, situated not far from Passacataway, is the most populous, in 1705, during Queen Annes War tribes of the Wabanaki Confederacy raided the town killing six citizens and taking five prisoners. During the Revolution, the first vessels of the U. S. Navy were constructed on Badgers Island, the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard, the nations first federal navy yard, was established in 1800 on Fernalds Island. It connects to the mainland by two bridges, the facility rebuilt the USS Constitution, and built the Civil War USS Kearsarge. Seaveys Island was annexed and became site of the now defunct Portsmouth Naval Prison, Kittery has some fine early architecture, including the Sir William Pepperrell House, built in 1733, and the Lady Pepperrell House, built in 1760. The John Bray House, built in 1662, is believed to be the oldest surviving house in Maine, located at the John Paul Jones State Historic Site on U. S.1 is the Maine Sailors and Soldiers Memorial by Bashka Paeff
18.
Regent Street
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Regent Street is a major shopping street in the West End of London. It is named after George, the Prince Regent and was built under the direction of the architect John Nash, the street runs from Waterloo Place in St Jamess at the southern end, through Piccadilly Circus and Oxford Circus, to All Souls Church. From there Langham Place and Portland Place continue the route to Regents Park, the street was completed in 1825 and was an early example of town planning in England, replacing a number of earlier roads including Swallow Street. Nashs street layout has survived, although all the buildings except All Souls Church have been replaced following reconstruction in the late 19th century. The street is known for its retail stores, including Liberty, Hamleys, Jaeger. The Royal Polytechnic Institution, now the University of Westminster, has based on Regent Street since 1838. Regent Street is approximately 0.8 miles long and begins at a junction with Charles II Street as a continuation of Waterloo Place. It runs north to Piccadilly Circus, where it left before curving round the Quadrant to head north again. It ends at a junction with Cavendish Place and Mortimer Street near the BBC Broadcasting House, with the road ahead being Langham Place, the southern section of the road is one-way northbound and part of the A4, a major road through West London. From Piccadilly Circus northwards, it is numbered A4201, though in common with roads inside the London congestion charging zone, the number does not appear on signs. Nearby tube stations are Charing Cross, Piccadilly Circus and Oxford Circus, the lattermost being one of the busiest underground stations in London, numerous bus routes, such as 6,12, and 13, run along Regent Street. Regent Street was one of the first planned developments of London and it was hoped the road could link Pall Mall and the Haymarket, of which has since declined in quality. A further problem was increased congestion around Charing Cross, which would benefit from road improvements, the street was designed by John Nash, who had been appointed to the Office of Woods and Forests in 1806 and previously served as an adviser to the Prince Regent. He put forward his own plans for the street in 1810 following the death of Fordyce, envisioning broad, architecturally distinguished thoroughfares and public spaces. Nash originally wanted to construct a straight boulevard in the style seen in French cities. The northern section involved demolishing most of the existing Swallow Street, the road was designed to curve east between Oxford Street and Piccadilly so that it did not meet St Jamess Square, and the circuses allowed visual continuity down the street. The central section, known as the Quadrant, was designed for shops appropriated to articles of fashion and taste and it was built with a colonnade made out of cast-iron columns, allowing commuters to walk along the street without having to face bad weather. The road was planned to end outside Carlton House in Pall Mall, Nash insisted that businesses on the new street would be of high-quality, rivalling that of the nearby Bond Street, common trades such as butchers or greengrocers were not allowed
19.
Westborough, Massachusetts
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For geographic and demographic information on the census-designated place Westborough, please see the article Westborough, Massachusetts. Westborough is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States, the population was 18,272 at the 2010 Census, in nearly 6,900 households. Before recorded time, the now known as Westborough was a well-travelled crossroads. As early as 7,000 BC, prehistoric people in dugout canoes followed the Sudbury and Assabet Rivers to their headwaters in search of quartzite for tools, from 1200 to 1600 AD, seasonal migrations brought Nipmuc Indians to hunt and fish near Cedar Swamp and Lake Hoccomocco. The early English explorer John Oldham followed these trails through Westborough in 1633, by late 1675, a few families had settled near Lake Chauncy, in the west borough of Marlborough. Soon large farms were carved out, mills built along the Assabet River and Jackstraw Brook, Westboroughs first minister, Reverend Ebenezer Parkman, shepherded the growing town of colonists through the years toward independence from Great Britain. Forty-six minutemen from Westborough fought under Captain Edmund Brigham in the Revolutionary War, in 1775, Northborough split off as the north borough of Westborough, much as Westborough split off from Marlborough some 58 years before. However, the two shared a meetinghouse for some time more. The center of commerce shifted downtown in 1824 with the arrival of the train through Westboroughs center. Westborough dairies supplied cities with milk and local greenhouses shipped out carnations, in 1848 the State Reform School for Boys, the first publicly funded reform school in the United States, was opened on Lake Chauncy. It operated as a State reform school until 1884 at which time the newly established Westborough State Hospital took over the property, in the same year, the reform school was relocated nearby on Chauncy Street and renamed The Lyman School for Boys. The industrial progress of the country is indebted to Westboroughs most famous native son Eli Whitney Jr. Born in 1765, Whitney invented the cotton gin in 1795 after graduating from Yale, In 1798 he introduced mass production to the United States at his Whitney Arms Company in New Haven, Connecticut. Westborough is home to several listings on the National Register of Historic Places, Nathan Fisher House, East of Shrewsbury on MA9 Joseph Lothrop House, On the corner of Route 9, Westborough is drained by the Sudbury and Assabet rivers. The town contains numerous bodies of water, including Lake Chauncy, Mill Pond, Lake Hoccomocco, Lake Chauncy is open to swimming, boating, and fishing, and has a public beach open to residents of Westborough and Northborough during the summer months. The average elevation of the town is approximately 300 feet, Westborough is located in east/central Massachusetts, located about 28 miles west of Boston and 12 miles east of Worcester. It is bordered by six towns, data from the U. S. Census of 2010 shows there were 18,272 people,6,924 households, and 4,763 families residing in the town. The population density was 891.3 people per square mile, the latest 2010–2014 American Community Survey estimated the towns total population slightly higher, at 18,481, residing in 7,551 households
20.
Stow, Massachusetts
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Stow is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. The town is located 21 miles west of Boston, in the MetroWest region of Massachusetts, the population was 6,590 at the 2010 census. Stow was officially incorporated in 1683,1660, were Matthew Boon and John Kettell. Coming from Gloucester and Charlestown, Massachusetts, these two men settled the land of the Tantamous Native Americans, called Pompocitticut, Boon settled by a large body of water, upon a hill, with a vast tract of land surrounding him. It is said that he traded all this for a single jackknife and he lived on what is now known as Barton Road. A monument bearing his name is located on the plot of land he formerly resided on, both families were involved in King Philips War in 1676. Boon sent his family to the Sudbury Garrison House, then proceeded to return home one of his sons. Little, if anything, is known about the remaining Boon family, John Kettell sent his family to the Lancaster Garrison, which was also attacked and burned. The natives took twenty captives, including Mary Rowlandson, Mrs. Rowlandson’s sister, Mrs. Elizabeth Kettell, all twenty were ransomed by John Hoar of Concord for £20 after several months of the native life style. The Kettell family, once reunited, moved back to Salem, as with many colonial era Massachusetts towns, Stow started with a large area and gave up land as newer, smaller towns were created. Stow ceded land to Harvard, Shirley, Boxborough, Hudson, Stow lost 1300 acres and close to half its population to the creation of Maynard. Prior to that, what became Maynard was known as Assabet Village but was still part of the towns of Stow. There were some exploratory town-founding rumblings in 1870, followed by a petition to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, both parent towns opposed this effort, but state approval was granted April 19,1871. In return, the new town paid Sudbury and Stow about $23,600, Sudbury got more money because it owned shares in the railroad, plus the wool mill and paper mill were in Sudbury, and more land came from Sudbury. The population of the newly formed town - at 1,820 - was larger than either of its parent towns. According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has an area of 18.1 square miles. It is located in eastern/central Massachusetts, Stow borders the towns of Harvard, Boxborough, Acton, Maynard, Sudbury, Hudson, and Bolton. Major bodies of water are Assabet River, Elizabeth Brook, Lake Boon and Delaney Flood Control Project, the Assabet River flows through Stow from west to east, spanned by three bridges
21.
Massachusetts
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It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the east, the states of Connecticut and Rhode Island to the south, New Hampshire and Vermont to the north, and New York to the west. The state is named for the Massachusett tribe, which inhabited the area. The capital of Massachusetts and the most populous city in New England is Boston, over 80% of Massachusetts population lives in the Greater Boston metropolitan area, a region influential upon American history, academia, and industry. Originally dependent on agriculture, fishing and trade, Massachusetts was transformed into a manufacturing center during the Industrial Revolution, during the 20th century, Massachusetts economy shifted from manufacturing to services. Modern Massachusetts is a leader in biotechnology, engineering, higher education, finance. Plymouth was the site of the first colony in New England, founded in 1620 by the Pilgrims, in 1692, the town of Salem and surrounding areas experienced one of Americas most infamous cases of mass hysteria, the Salem witch trials. In 1777, General Henry Knox founded the Springfield Armory, which during the Industrial Revolution catalyzed numerous important technological advances, in 1786, Shays Rebellion, a populist revolt led by disaffected American Revolutionary War veterans, influenced the United States Constitutional Convention. In the 18th century, the Protestant First Great Awakening, which swept the Atlantic World, in the late 18th century, Boston became known as the Cradle of Liberty for the agitation there that led to the American Revolution. The entire Commonwealth of Massachusetts has played a commercial and cultural role in the history of the United States. Before the American Civil War, Massachusetts was a center for the abolitionist, temperance, in the late 19th century, the sports of basketball and volleyball were invented in the western Massachusetts cities of Springfield and Holyoke, respectively. Many prominent American political dynasties have hailed from the state, including the Adams, both Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, also in Cambridge, have been ranked among the most highly regarded academic institutions in the world. Massachusetts public school students place among the top nations in the world in academic performance, the official name of the state is the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. While this designation is part of the official name, it has no practical implications. Massachusetts has the position and powers within the United States as other states. Massachusetts was originally inhabited by tribes of the Algonquian language family such as the Wampanoag, Narragansett, Nipmuc, Pocomtuc, Mahican, and Massachusett. While cultivation of crops like squash and corn supplemented their diets, villages consisted of lodges called wigwams as well as longhouses, and tribes were led by male or female elders known as sachems. Between 1617 and 1619, smallpox killed approximately 90% of the Massachusetts Bay Native Americans, the first English settlers in Massachusetts, the Pilgrims, arrived via the Mayflower at Plymouth in 1620, and developed friendly relations with the native Wampanoag people. This was the second successful permanent English colony in the part of North America that later became the United States, the event known as the First Thanksgiving was celebrated by the Pilgrims after their first harvest in the New World which lasted for three days
22.
Tijuana
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Tijuana is the largest city in Baja California and on the Baja California Peninsula and center of the Tijuana metropolitan area, part of the international San Diego–Tijuana metropolitan area. As an industrial and financial center of Mexico, Tijuana exerts an influence on economics, education, culture, art. As the city has become a center in the country, so has the surrounding metropolitan area. Currently one of the fastest growing areas in Mexico, Tijuana maintains global city status. As of 2015, the city of Tijuana had a population of 1,696,923, Tijuana is located on the Gold Coast of Baja California, and is the municipal seat and cultural and commercial center of Tijuana Municipality. Tijuana covers 70% of the municipality but contains over 80% of its population, a dominant manufacturing center of the North American continent, the city maintains facilities of many multinational conglomerate companies. In the early 21st century, Tijuana became the medical-device manufacturing capital of North America, Tijuana is also a growing cultural center and has been recognized as an important new cultural mecca. The city is the most visited city in the globe. More than fifty million people cross the border between two cities every year. This metropolitan crossing makes the San Ysidro Port of Entry the busiest land-border crossing in the world and it is estimated that the two border crossing stations between the cities proper of San Diego and Tijuana account for 300,000 daily border crossings alone. Tijuana is the 40th largest city in the Americas and is the westernmost city in Mexico, Tijuana traces its modern history to the arrival of Spanish explorers in the 16th century who were mapping the coast of the Californias. As the American conquest of northern Mexico ended with the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, Tijuanas new international position on the border gave rise to a new economic, the city was founded in July 11,1889 as urban development began. Often known by its initials, T. J. and nicknamed Gateway to Mexico, Tijuana derives from the Kumeyaay word Tiwan, meaning by-the-sea. Common in regional folklore, a myth exists purporting that the name is a conjunction of Tia Juana, Tia Juana would provide food and a resting place to travelers on their journeys. The story has become a myth with residents of the city and has particular resonance among those who like to imagine the city as a place of hospitality. In Spanish, the name is pronounced /tiˈxwana/ – with three syllables, and a fricative as represented by the sound written as j. In California, and particularly in Southern California, it is referred to as T. J. Baja Californians have adopted this pronunciation as Tiyei, in Spanish the demonym for someone from Tijuana is Tijuanense, while in English the demonym is Tijuanan
23.
Mexico
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Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a federal republic in the southern half of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States, to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean, to the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea, and to the east by the Gulf of Mexico. Covering almost two million square kilometers, Mexico is the sixth largest country in the Americas by total area, Mexico is a federation comprising 31 states and a federal district that is also its capital and most populous city. Other metropolises include Guadalajara, Monterrey, Puebla, Toluca, Tijuana, pre-Columbian Mexico was home to many advanced Mesoamerican civilizations, such as the Olmec, Toltec, Teotihuacan, Zapotec, Maya and Aztec before first contact with Europeans. In 1521, the Spanish Empire conquered and colonized the territory from its base in Mexico-Tenochtitlan, Three centuries later, this territory became Mexico following recognition in 1821 after the colonys Mexican War of Independence. The tumultuous post-independence period was characterized by instability and many political changes. The Mexican–American War led to the cession of the extensive northern borderlands, one-third of its territory. The Pastry War, the Franco-Mexican War, a civil war, the dictatorship was overthrown in the Mexican Revolution of 1910, which culminated with the promulgation of the 1917 Constitution and the emergence of the countrys current political system. Mexico has the fifteenth largest nominal GDP and the eleventh largest by purchasing power parity, the Mexican economy is strongly linked to those of its North American Free Trade Agreement partners, especially the United States. Mexico was the first Latin American member of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development and it is classified as an upper-middle income country by the World Bank and a newly industrialized country by several analysts. By 2050, Mexico could become the fifth or seventh largest economy. The country is considered both a power and middle power, and is often identified as an emerging global power. Due to its culture and history, Mexico ranks first in the Americas. Mexico is a country, ranking fourth in the world by biodiversity. In 2015 it was the 9th most visited country in the world, Mexico is a member of the United Nations, the World Trade Organization, the G8+5, the G20, the Uniting for Consensus and the Pacific Alliance. Mēxihco is the Nahuatl term for the heartland of the Aztec Empire, namely, the Valley of Mexico, and its people, the Mexica and this became the future State of Mexico as a division of New Spain prior to independence. It is generally considered to be a toponym for the valley became the primary ethnonym for the Aztec Triple Alliance as a result. After New Spain won independence from Spain, representatives decided to name the new country after its capital and this was founded in 1524 on top of the ancient Mexica capital of Mexico-Tenochtitlan
24.
Batu Kawan
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Batu Kawan is an island and a town in the area of Penang, Malaysia. The island is situated off Seberang Perai, which is on the mainland, the island is separated from the mainland by Sungai Jejawi and Sungai Tengah. It was among the oldest towns in Penang, accessible only by ferry from Bukit Tambun, new industrial sites, commercial areas and residential schemes are expected to be developed in Batu Kawan town. Besides that, Batu Kawan is heading towards an industrial hub just like the Bayan Lepas Free Industrial Park. Three big companies — Robert Bosch, Boon Siew Honda and VAT Manufacturing Malaysia — have pledged investments totalling about RM10bil to site their manufacturing plants in this town. This area has become a strategic location for the Penang Second Bridge which links Batu Kawan. The bridge has sparked various economic activities including the mushrooming of new housing projects, many people from Penang island are buying properties in Batu Kawan since the price is believed to be cheaper than that of the island. The island is also the location for the Batu Kawan Stadium, the stadium project and the setting up of an industrial estate were one of the early stages for the development of Batu Kawan. This tiny island also has many hidden gems, dating back to the days of the British colonial masters. Locals in Batu Kawan would have heard about Tangga Seribu which charted a path up Bukit Batu Kawan, the steps continued to the top of the hill and down the other side. They were believed to have built by a rich quarry owner about 200 years ago. At the summit of the 776 ft-high hill there once sat a village, the waterfall near the summit has dried up since the plantation of rubber trees. The Batu Musang jetty was used by tongkang to transport quarry stones from nearby hills to build George Town. A new jetty was built around 2004, connecting a boat service to Pulau Aman, the short strip of beach at Batu Kawan was once popularly known as the Club beach. There was a clubhouse frequented by Europeans who worked and lived on the island, the clubhouse is long gone, and locals refer to it as Batu Musang beach. The only structure now in the vicinity of this beach is the newly built Batu Musang jetty. Around the kampung, there are several age-old bullock-powered stone grinders that were used in the past to crush sugar cane to extract the juice, though the grinding stones are missing, the granite bases of the contraptions remain intact. Sekolah Kebangsaan Batu Kawan Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Batu Kawan University of Hull is proposing to set up its campus in Batu Kawan
25.
Penang
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Penang is a Malaysian state located on the northwest coast of Peninsular Malaysia, by the Malacca Strait. It has two parts, Penang Island, where the city, George Town, is located. Penang is bordered by Kedah to the north and the east, known as the Silicon Valley of the East for its industries, Penang is also one of the most urbanised and economically-important states in the country. George Town, which was founded by the British in 1786, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, Penang has the third highest Human Development Index in Malaysia, after the State of Selangor and the Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur. Its heterogeneous population is diverse in ethnicity, culture, language. A resident of Penang is colloquially known as a Penangite, Penang Lang or Penangkaran, the name of Penang comes from the modern Malay name Pulau Pinang, which means the island of the areca nut palm. The name Penang may refer either to Penang Island or the state of Penang, Penang is also known as the Pearl of the Orient, 东方之珠 and Pulau Pinang Pulau Mutiara. Penang is shortened as PG in English, or PP in Malay, early Malays called Penang Island Pulau Ka-Satu, meaning The First Island, because it was the largest island encountered on the trading sea-route between Lingga and Kedah. The Siamese, then the overlord of the Kedah Sultanate, referred to the island as Koh Maak, in the 15th century, Penang Island was referred to as Bīnláng Yù in the navigational drawings used by Admiral Zheng He of Ming China in his expeditions to the South Seas. The 16th-century Portuguese historian Emanuel Godinho de Eredias map of the Malay Peninsula in his Description of Malacca in 1613 referred to the island as Pulo Pinaom, archaeological evidence shows that Penang was inhabited by the Semang-Pangan of the Juru and Yen lineage. Both of these are now considered extinct cultures and they were hunter-gatherers of the Negrito stock having short stature and dark complexion, and were dispersed by the Malays as far back as 900 years ago. The last recorded aboriginal settlement in Penang was in the 1920s in Kubang Semang, the first evidence of prehistoric human settlement in what is now Penang were found in Guar Kepah, a cave in Seberang Perai in 1860. Based on mounds of sea shells with human skeletons, stone implements, broken ceramics, and food leftovers inside, other stone tools found in various places on Penang Island pointed to the existence of Neolithic settlements dating to 5,000 years ago. One of the first Englishmen to reach Penang was the navigator, sailing from Plymouth for the East Indies, James reached Batu Ferringhi in June 1592, remaining on Penang Island until September of the same year and pillaging every vessel he encountered. In the early 18th century, ethnic Minangkabaus from Sumatra opened up a settlement on Penang Island, Haji Muhammad Salleh, known as Nakhoda Intan, anchored at Batu Uban and built a seaside settlement in 1734. Later, the Arabs arrived and settled mainly at Jelutong, the Arabs then intermarried with the Minangkabau, this gave rise to the Arab-Minangkabau admixture now described as Malay, as they have assimilated into the local Malay community. However, the history of Penang only began in 1786. On 17 July that year, Captain Francis Light, an English trader-adventurer of the British East India Company, landed on Penang Island, Fort Cornwallis was later built at the site where he first set foot
26.
Malaysia
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Malaysia is a federal constitutional monarchy located in Southeast Asia. Peninsular Malaysia shares a land and maritime border with Thailand and maritime borders with Singapore, Vietnam, East Malaysia shares land and maritime borders with Brunei and Indonesia and a maritime border with the Philippines and Vietnam. The capital city is Kuala Lumpur, while Putrajaya is the seat of the federal government, with a population of over 30 million, Malaysia is the 44th most populous country. The southernmost point of continental Eurasia, Tanjung Piai, is in Malaysia, located in the tropics, Malaysia is one of 17 megadiverse countries on earth, with large numbers of endemic species. Malaysia has its origins in the Malay kingdoms present in the area which, from the 18th century, the first British territories were known as the Straits Settlements, whose establishment was followed by the Malay kingdoms becoming British protectorates. The territories on Peninsular Malaysia were first unified as the Malayan Union in 1946, Malaya was restructured as the Federation of Malaya in 1948, and achieved independence on 31 August 1957. Malaya united with North Borneo, Sarawak, and Singapore on 16 September 1963 to become Malaysia, less than two years later in 1965, Singapore was expelled from the federation. The country is multi-ethnic and multi-cultural, which plays a role in politics. About half the population is ethnically Malay, with minorities of Malaysian Chinese, Malaysian Indians. The constitution declares Islam the state religion while allowing freedom of religion for non-Muslims, the government system is closely modelled on the Westminster parliamentary system and the legal system is based on common law. The head of state is the king, known as the Yang di-Pertuan Agong and he is an elected monarch chosen from the hereditary rulers of the nine Malay states every five years. The head of government is the prime minister, since its independence, Malaysia has had one of the best economic records in Asia, with its GDP growing at an average of 6. 5% per annum for almost 50 years. The economy has traditionally been fuelled by its resources, but is expanding in the sectors of science, tourism, commerce. Today, Malaysia has a newly industrialised market economy, ranked third largest in Southeast Asia, the name Malaysia is a combination of the word Malay and the Latin-Greek suffix -sia/-σία. The word melayu in Malay may derive from the Tamil words malai and ur meaning mountain and city, land, malayadvipa was the word used by ancient Indian traders when referring to the Malay Peninsula. Whether or not it originated from these roots, the word melayu or mlayu may have used in early Malay/Javanese to mean to steadily accelerate or run. This term was applied to describe the current of the river Melayu in Sumatra. The name was adopted by the Melayu Kingdom that existed in the seventh century on Sumatra
27.
Flextronics
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Flex Ltd. is an American multinational technological manufacturer. It is the second largest global electronics manufacturing services, original design manufacturer company by revenue, Flex is headquartered in Singapore and has manufacturing operations in over 40 countries, totaling approximately 200,000 employees. In 1969, the company was founded in Silicon Valley as Flextronics, in 1980, the company was sold to Bob Todd, Joe Sullivan and Jack Watts. In 1981, Flextronics became a publicly held company, in 1990, the company returned to being a private company in a leveraged buyout and was renamed as Flextronics International, Ltd. with Singapore as its new base. In 1993, the company received venture capital funding through Sequoia Capital, the company closed its contract electronic manufacturing plant in Richardson, Texas in 1996. The company acquired two companies in Hong Kong, Astron Group and FICO Plastics Ltd. and a Swedish-based company, in 2000, the company ranked third on 100 Best-Managed Companies by IndustryWeek. In 2005, the company purchased the division of Nortel Networks. In 2006 Flextronics took over a part of the production of Lego, on June 4,2007, Flextronics offered to purchase Solectron for US$3.6 billion and thus making Solectron a subsidiary of Flextronics. The acquisition of Solectron was completed by end of October 2007, on March 18,2009, Flextronics was invited to ring the NASDAQ stock market opening bell, signifying the day’s start of trading and celebrated 15-year NASDAQ-listed anniversary. Mike McNamara and a group of top executives represented the company at the ringing of the bell, on September 2,2009, Flextronics announced that Multek received Danaher Test and Measurements 2009 Outstanding Supplier Award. The award was based on quality, delivery performance, engineering support. In 2010, the signed an agreement with Lenovo to provide manufacturing for Europe. That same year, Flextronics also signed an agreement with Brammo to provide acquisition and manufacturing in North America, Asia, in 2012, Flextronics incubated Elementum, a start-up supply chain management company based in Mountain View, California. In 2014, Elementum was spun off from Flextronics as its own separate entity, in 2014, Flextronics was named as the manufacturer of the Fitbit Force by the U. S. Consumer Product Safety Commission in the context of a recall of the product due to rashes developing on the wrists of its users. In July 2015 the company announced that it change the company name from Flextronics to just Flex. In November 2015, Flex, acquired Wink smart home platform to bring the Intelligence of Things Home, the 17,000 square feet facility will employ 25 people and be located in a former military storehouse in the Seaport, now called the Innovation and Design Building. In 2013, Flextronics launched Lab IX, a program based out of Milpitas
28.
Columbia, South Carolina
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Columbia is the capital and largest city of the U. S. state of South Carolina, with a population of 133,803 as of 2015. The city serves as the county seat of Richland County, the name Columbia is a poetic term used for the United States, originating from the name of Christopher Columbus. The city is located approximately 13 miles northwest of the center of South Carolina. It lies at the confluence of the Saluda River and the Broad River, in 1860, the city was the location of the South Carolina Secession Convention, which marked the departure of the first state from the Union in the events leading up to the Civil War. At the time of European encounter, the inhabitants of the area that became Columbia were a people called the Congaree, in May 1540, a Spanish expedition led by Hernando de Soto traversed what is now Columbia while moving northward. The expedition produced the earliest written records of the area. From the creation of Columbia by the South Carolina General Assembly in 1786, the Congarees, a frontier fort on the west bank of the Congaree River, was the head of navigation in the Santee River system. A ferry was established by the government in 1754 to connect the fort with the growing settlements on the higher ground on the east bank. Like many other significant early settlements in colonial America, Columbia is on the line from the Piedmont region. The fall line is the spot where a river becomes unnavigable when sailing upstream, State Senator John Lewis Gervais of the town of Ninety Six introduced a bill that was approved by the legislature on March 22,1786, to create a new state capital. There was considerable argument over the name for the new city, according to published accounts, Senator Gervais said he hoped that in this town we should find refuge under the wings of COLUMBIA, for that was the name which he wished it to be called. One legislator insisted on the name Washington, but Columbia won by a vote of 11–7 in the state senate, the site was chosen as the new state capital in 1786, due to its central location in the state. The State Legislature first met there in 1790, after remaining under the direct government of the legislature for the first two decades of its existence, Columbia was incorporated as a village in 1805 and then as a city in 1854. Columbia received a stimulus to development when it was connected in a direct water route to Charleston by the Santee Canal. This canal connected the Santee and Cooper rivers in a 22-mile-long section and it was first chartered in 1786 and completed in 1800, making it one of the earliest canals in the United States. With increased railroad traffic, it ceased operation around 1850, the commissioners designed a town of 400 blocks in a 2-mile square along the river. The blocks were divided into lots of 0.5 acres and sold to speculators, buyers had to build a house at least 30 feet long and 18 feet wide within three years or face an annual 5% penalty. The perimeter streets and two streets were 150 feet wide
29.
Carrickmacross
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Carrickmacross is a town in County Monaghan, Ireland. The town and environs had a population of 4,925 according to the 2011 census, the town won the prestigious European Entente Florale Silver Medal Award. It is a town which developed around a Castle built by the Earl of Essex in 1630. The Convent of the St. Louis Nuns now stands on the castle site. The local Gaelic football and hurling club is Carrickmacross Emmets. The local soccer team is Carrick Rovers Carrickmacross is well known for the lace bearing its name. Carrickmacross lace is worked in a style, devised by Mrs Grey Porter, wife of the rector of Donaghmoyne. Although the outbreak of the 1914–18 war marked the end of commercial production of hand-made lace in Europe. In 1984 the St Louis Sisters assisted in the formation of The Carrickmacross Lace Co-operative and its lace may be purchased at The Gallery Centre, where demonstrations of lacemaking may also be seen if arranged in advance. One of the most imposing buildings in the town is the Roman Catholic church which was completed in 1866, of particular significance in the church are the ten beautiful stained-glass windows which were designed by the renowned artist Harry Clarke in 1925. Local tours of the town are organised every Saturday at 11, Carrickmacross railway station opened on 31 July 1886, closed for passenger traffic on 10 March 1947, and finally closed altogether on 1 January 1960. The town was situated on the N2 Dublin-Derry National Route. It is situated approximately 1 hour from both Dublin and Belfast, there are three primary schools in Carrickmacross. St. Josephs, which is situated near St. Macartans Villas is a school, it was run by the Patrician Brothers. Bunscoil Lughaidh Naofa which is in Cloughvalley is a school, was run by the St. Louis nuns who came to Carrickmacross in 1888. Scoil Rois is the Gaelscoil in Carrickmacross and it is a mixed school who recently had a new school built situated across from Bunscoil Lughaidh Naofa having moved from the Convent Avenue. The Patrician High School is one of three schools in Carrickmacross. It was set up by the Patrician Brothers and it was situated next to the Church on ONeills street, the building is now the Scout Hall. In 1970 they moved to Rockdaniel Rd but have recently had a €4,000,000 extension
30.
Ireland
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Ireland is an island in the North Atlantic. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel, the Irish Sea, Ireland is the second-largest island of the British Isles, the third-largest in Europe, and the twentieth-largest on Earth. Politically, Ireland is divided between the Republic of Ireland, which covers five-sixths of the island, and Northern Ireland, in 2011, the population of Ireland was about 6.4 million, ranking it the second-most populous island in Europe after Great Britain. Just under 4.6 million live in the Republic of Ireland, the islands geography comprises relatively low-lying mountains surrounding a central plain, with several navigable rivers extending inland. The island has lush vegetation, a product of its mild, thick woodlands covered the island until the Middle Ages. As of 2013, the amount of land that is wooded in Ireland is about 11% of the total, there are twenty-six extant mammal species native to Ireland. The Irish climate is moderate and classified as oceanic. As a result, winters are milder than expected for such a northerly area, however, summers are cooler than those in Continental Europe. Rainfall and cloud cover are abundant, the earliest evidence of human presence in Ireland is dated at 10,500 BC. Gaelic Ireland had emerged by the 1st century CE, the island was Christianised from the 5th century onward. Following the Norman invasion in the 12th century, England claimed sovereignty over Ireland, however, English rule did not extend over the whole island until the 16th–17th century Tudor conquest, which led to colonisation by settlers from Britain. In the 1690s, a system of Protestant English rule was designed to materially disadvantage the Catholic majority and Protestant dissenters, with the Acts of Union in 1801, Ireland became a part of the United Kingdom. Northern Ireland saw much civil unrest from the late 1960s until the 1990s and this subsided following a political agreement in 1998. In 1973 the Republic of Ireland joined the European Economic Community while the United Kingdom, Irish culture has had a significant influence on other cultures, especially in the fields of literature. Alongside mainstream Western culture, an indigenous culture exists, as expressed through Gaelic games, Irish music. The culture of the island shares many features with that of Great Britain, including the English language, and sports such as association football, rugby, horse racing. The name Ireland derives from Old Irish Eriu and this in turn derives from Proto-Celtic *Iveriu, which is also the source of Latin Hibernia. Iveriu derives from a root meaning fat, prosperous, during the last glacial period, and up until about 9000 years ago, most of Ireland was covered with ice, most of the time
31.
Frequency response
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Frequency response is the quantitative measure of the output spectrum of a system or device in response to a stimulus, and is used to characterize the dynamics of the system. It is a measure of magnitude and phase of the output as a function of frequency, also for a linear system, doubling the amplitude of the input will double the amplitude of the output. In addition, if the system is time-invariant, then the frequency response also will not vary with time, thus for LTI systems, the frequency response can be seen as applying the systems transfer function to a purely imaginary number argument representing the frequency of the sinusoidal excitation. Two applications of frequency response analysis are related but have different objectives, for an audio system, the objective may be to reproduce the input signal with no distortion. That would require a uniform magnitude of response up to the limitation of the system. That amount of time could be seconds, or weeks or months in the case of recorded media, in contrast, for a feedback apparatus used to control a dynamic system, the objective is to give the closed-loop system improved response as compared to the uncompensated system. The feedback generally needs to respond to system dynamics within a small number of cycles of oscillation. For feedback of sufficient amplification, getting the phase angle wrong can lead to instability for a stable system. For audio systems with nearly uniform time delay at all frequencies, if the system under investigation is nonlinear then applying purely linear frequency domain analysis will not reveal all the nonlinear characteristics. In electronics this stimulus would be an input signal, in the audible range it is usually referred to in connection with electronic amplifiers, microphones and loudspeakers. Radio spectrum frequency response can refer to measurements of coaxial cable, twisted-pair cable, video switching equipment, wireless communications devices, infrasonic frequency response measurements include earthquakes and electroencephalography. Frequency response requirements differ depending on the application, frequency response curves are often used to indicate the accuracy of electronic components or systems. Once a frequency response has been measured, provided the system is linear and time-invariant, similarly, if a system is demonstrated to have a poor frequency response, a digital or analog filter can be applied to the signals prior to their reproduction to compensate for these deficiencies. Impulse response Bode plot Bandwidth Audio system measurements Transient response & steady-state response Spectral sensitivity Notes Bibliography Luther, live Sound Reinforcement, Vallejo, California, Artistpro. com, 1996–2002
32.
Geneva
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Geneva is the second most populous city in Switzerland and is the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaking part of Switzerland. Situated where the Rhône exits Lake Geneva, it is the capital of the Republic, the municipality has a population of 198,072, and the canton has 484,736 residents. In 2014, the compact agglomération du Grand Genève had 946,000 inhabitants in 212 communities in both Switzerland and France, within Swiss territory, the commuter area named Métropole lémanique contains a population of 1.25 million. This area is essentially spread east from Geneva towards the Riviera area and north-east towards Yverdon-les-Bains, Geneva is the city that hosts the highest number of international organizations in the world. It is also the place where the Geneva Conventions were signed, Geneva was ranked as the worlds ninth most important financial centre for competitiveness by the Global Financial Centres Index, ahead of Frankfurt, and third in Europe behind London and Zürich. A2009 survey by Mercer found that Geneva has the third-highest quality of life of any city in the world, the city has been referred to as the worlds most compact metropolis and the Peace Capital. In 2009 and 2011, Geneva was ranked as, respectively, the city was mentioned in Latin texts, by Caesar, with the spelling Genava, probably from a Celtic toponym *genawa- from the stem *genu-, in the sense of a bending river or estuary. The medieval county of Geneva in Middle Latin was known as pagus major Genevensis or Comitatus Genevensis, the name takes various forms in modern languages, Geneva /dʒᵻˈniːvə/ in English, French, Genève, German, Genf, Italian, Ginevra, and Romansh, Genevra. The city in origin shares its name, *genawa estuary, with the Italian port city of Genoa, Geneva was an Allobrogian border town, fortified against the Helvetii tribe, when the Romans took it in 121 BC. It became Christian under the Late Roman Empire, and acquired its first bishop in the 5th century, having been connected to the bishopric of Vienne in the 4th. In the Middle Ages, Geneva was ruled by a count under the Holy Roman Empire until the late 14th century, around this time the House of Savoy came to dominate the city. In the 15th century, a republican government emerged with the creation of the Grand Council. In 1541, with Protestantism in the ascendancy, John Calvin, by the 18th century, however, Geneva had come under the influence of Catholic France, which cultivated the city as its own. France also tended to be at odds with the ordinary townsfolk, in 1798, revolutionary France under the Directory annexed Geneva. At the end of the Napoleonic Wars, on 1 June 1814, in 1907, the separation of Church and State was adopted. Geneva flourished in the 19th and 20th centuries, becoming the seat of international organizations. Geneva is located at 46°12 North, 6°09 East, at the end of Lake Geneva. It is surrounded by two chains, the Alps and the Jura
33.
Switzerland
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Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a federal republic in Europe. It consists of 26 cantons, and the city of Bern is the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in western-Central Europe, and is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland is a country geographically divided between the Alps, the Swiss Plateau and the Jura, spanning an area of 41,285 km2. The establishment of the Old Swiss Confederacy dates to the medieval period, resulting from a series of military successes against Austria. Swiss independence from the Holy Roman Empire was formally recognized in the Peace of Westphalia in 1648. The country has a history of armed neutrality going back to the Reformation, it has not been in a state of war internationally since 1815, nevertheless, it pursues an active foreign policy and is frequently involved in peace-building processes around the world. In addition to being the birthplace of the Red Cross, Switzerland is home to international organisations. On the European level, it is a member of the European Free Trade Association. However, it participates in the Schengen Area and the European Single Market through bilateral treaties, spanning the intersection of Germanic and Romance Europe, Switzerland comprises four main linguistic and cultural regions, German, French, Italian and Romansh. Due to its diversity, Switzerland is known by a variety of native names, Schweiz, Suisse, Svizzera. On coins and stamps, Latin is used instead of the four living languages, Switzerland is one of the most developed countries in the world, with the highest nominal wealth per adult and the eighth-highest per capita gross domestic product according to the IMF. Zürich and Geneva have each been ranked among the top cities in the world in terms of quality of life, with the former ranked second globally, according to Mercer. The English name Switzerland is a compound containing Switzer, a term for the Swiss. The English adjective Swiss is a loan from French Suisse, also in use since the 16th century. The name Switzer is from the Alemannic Schwiizer, in origin an inhabitant of Schwyz and its associated territory, the Swiss began to adopt the name for themselves after the Swabian War of 1499, used alongside the term for Confederates, Eidgenossen, used since the 14th century. The data code for Switzerland, CH, is derived from Latin Confoederatio Helvetica. The toponym Schwyz itself was first attested in 972, as Old High German Suittes, ultimately related to swedan ‘to burn’
34.
Ferrari 612 Scaglietti
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The Ferrari 612 Scaglietti is a 2+2 coupé grand tourer produced by Ferrari between 2004 and 2010. The 612 Scaglietti was designed to replace the smaller 456 M, the design, especially the large side scallops and the headlights, pays homage to the custom 1954 Ferrari 375 MM that director Roberto Rossellini had commissioned for his wife, Ingrid Bergman. The 612 is Ferraris second all-aluminium vehicle, the first being the 360 Modena and its space frame, developed with Alcoa, is made from extrusions and castings of the material, and the aluminium body is welded on. The chassis of the 612 forms the basis of the 599 GTB, the 612 Scaglietti shares its engine with the Ferrari 575 Superamerica. The engine has compression ratio of 11,1 and it has a top speed of 320 km/h and has a 0–100 km/h acceleration time of 4.2 seconds. The 612 comes with 6-speed manual or the 6-speed F1A semi-automatic paddle shift system, the 612 was produced at Ferraris Carrozzeria Scaglietti plant, the former home of the cars namesake coachbuilder in Modena, Italy. It was then taken down the road to the Maranello factory, the Ferrari 612 was replaced by the Ferrari FF in 2011. This may render the vehicle inoperable and possibly result in a crash, the 612 Sessanta is a limited version commemorating 60th anniversary of the company. It includes HGTC package, Blu Cornes coloured body, a carbon fiber filler cap and it has a MSRP of 33,980,000 Yen. The 612 Kappa is a built for Peter S. Kalikow. The GG50 was a car developed by Italdesign-Giugiaro S. P. A design studio. The vehicle was unveiled in 2006 NAIAS and it has a MSRP of £200,411 including a four-year warranty. The vehicle began its relay at the UK on 18 May 2007,612 OTO F1- Mid 2008 to 2010 demonstrated a revised second generation 612 similar to revisions Ferrari typically makes during their product life cycles. The HGT2 package option gave the 612 a sport and suspension package similar to the HGTE package later offered on 599s and its said that less than 50 are circulating within the U. S. market. Total production,3025 Ferrari 612 Scaglietti in police livery for Ferraris 60th Anniversary relay Special 30th Anniversary edition for Japan Ferrari 60th Anniversary Version
35.
Acura
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Acura is the luxury vehicle marque of Japanese automaker Honda. The brand was launched in the United States and Canada in March 1986, marketing luxury, performance and it was introduced to Hong Kong in 1991, Mexico in 2004, China in 2006, Russia in 2014 and Kuwait in 2015. Hondas plan to introduce Acura to the Japanese domestic market in 2008 was delayed, due to economic reasons, Acura holds the distinction of being the first Japanese automotive luxury brand. In its first few years of existence, Acura was among the luxury marques in the US. Though sales were down in the mid-to-late 1990s, the experienced a revival in the early 2000s, due to drastic redesigns. The 1993 Legend coupé featured Hondas first use of a manual transmission. In the late 1990s, Acura produced a Type R version of its compact Integra coupé, which featured a reduced weight, a stiffer and lower suspension. In the early 2000s, Acura introduced new models, including the companys first all-original SUV, the MDX, Type-S versions of the RSX, CL, and TL were added to the brands lineup during that decade. Acuras 2005 RL flagship introduced SH-AWD, a torque-vectoring all-wheel drive system, the 2007 RDX, a crossover SUV, featured the first North American use of a turbocharged Honda engine. In the 2010s, Acura debuted more new models, including the ILX, TLX, and RLX, a second generation NSX was launched in 2015 and features a twin-turbocharged mid-engine, a nine-speed dual-clutch transmission, and Sport Hybrid SH-AWD. Following a decade of research, Honda opened 60 new dealerships in North America by 1986, Acura was the first Japanese luxury brand, introduced under the slogan, Acura. Its initial offering consisted of two models, the executive class Legend and the compact class Integra, available as a five-door and three-door hatchback, the Legend was the result of Project XX, a joint venture Honda entered into with the UKs Austin Rover Group. It was mechanically related to the Rover 800 series, while the Integra was an improvement of the Honda Quint hatchback, the success of these models, particularly the Legend, led to competing Japanese luxury brand ventures. Toyota introduced the Lexus ES, Nissan introduced the Infiniti J30 and Ford utilized the Taurus platform and named their new sedan the Lincoln Continental. In 1987, Acuras first full year of sales, they sold 109,000 cars with the flagship Legend sedan accounting for 55,000 sales and the rest were of the smaller Integra. By 1990, Acura was selling 138,000 vehicles, including 54,000 Legends, compared to Mercedes-Benzs 78,000 cars and 64,000 each for BMW and Lexus. In 1990, five years after the debut of the Legend and Integra, Acura introduced the NSX, the NSX, an acronym for New Sports eXperimental, was billed as the first Japanese car capable of competing with Ferrari and Porsche. This vehicle served as a car for both the Honda and Acura brands, heralding the introduction of Hondas VTEC technology
36.
Alfa Romeo
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Alfa Romeo Automobiles S. p. A. is an Italian car manufacturer, founded as A. L. F. A. on 24 June 1910, in Milan. The brand is known for sporty vehicles and has involved in car racing since 1911. The company was owned by Italian state holding company Istituto per la Ricostruzione Industriale between 1932 and 1986, when it became a part of the Fiat group, in February 2007, the Alfa Romeo brand became Alfa Romeo Automobiles S. p. A. A subsidiary of Fiat Group Automobiles, now Fiat Chrysler Automobiles Italy, the company that became Alfa Romeo was founded as Società Anonima Italiana Darracq in 1906 by the French automobile firm of Alexandre Darracq, with Italian investors. In late 1909, the Italian Darracq cars were selling slowly, on 24 June 1910, a new company was founded named A. L. F. A. Initially still in partnership with Darracq, the first non-Darracq car produced by the company was the 191024 HP, designed by Merosi. Ventured into motor racing, with drivers Franchini and Ronzoni competing in the 1911 Targa Florio with two 24-hp models. In August 1915, the company came under the direction of Neapolitan entrepreneur Nicola Romeo, in 1920, the name of the company was changed to Alfa Romeo with the Torpedo 20-30 HP the first car to be so badged. In 1921, the Banca Italiana di Sconto, which backed the Ing, Nicola Romeo & Co, went broke and the government needed to support the industrial companies involved, among which was Alfa Romeo, through the Consorzio per Sovvenzioni sui Valori Industriali. In 1925, the activities were separated from the Romeo company. In 1933, the ownership was reorganized under the banner of the Istituto per la Ricostruzione Industriale by Benito Mussolinis government. The company struggled to return to profitability after the Second World War, in 1954, it developed the Alfa Romeo Twin Cam engine, which would remain in production until 1994. Alfa Romeo has competed successfully in Grand Prix motor racing, Formula One, sportscar racing, touring car racing and it has competed both as a constructor and an engine supplier, via works entries, and private entries. The first racing car was made in 1913, three years after the foundation of the company, and Alfa Romeo won the world championship for Grand Prix cars in 1925. The company gained a name in motorsport, which gave a sporty image to the whole marque. Enzo Ferrari founded the Scuderia Ferrari racing team in 1929 as an Alfa Romeo racing team and it holds the worlds title of the most wins of any marque in the world. The companys name is a combination of the name, A. L. F. A. and the last name of entrepreneur Nicola Romeo. The company that became Alfa Romeo was founded as Società Anonima Italiana Darracq in 1906 by the French automobile firm of Alexandre Darracq, One of them, Cavaliere Ugo Stella, an aristocrat from Milan, became chairman of the SAID in 1909
37.
Audi
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Audi is a German automobile manufacturer that designs, engineers, produces, markets and distributes luxury vehicles. Audi is a member of the Volkswagen Group and has its roots at Ingolstadt, Bavaria, audi-branded vehicles are produced in nine production facilities worldwide. The modern era of Audi essentially began in the 1960s when Auto Union was acquired by Volkswagen from Daimler-Benz. After relaunching the Audi brand with the 1965 introduction of the Audi F103 series, Volkswagen merged Auto Union with NSU Motorenwerke in 1969, the company name is based on the Latin translation of the surname of the founder, August Horch. Horch, meaning listen in German, becomes audi in Latin, the four rings of the Audi logo each represent one of four car companies that banded together to create Audis predecessor company, Auto Union. Audis slogan is Vorsprung durch Technik, meaning Advancement through Technology, however, since 2007 Audi USA has used the slogan Truth in Engineering. Audi, along with BMW and Mercedes are among the luxury automobile brands in the world. Originally in 1885, automobile company Wanderer was established, later becoming a branch of Audi AG, another company, NSU, which also later merged into Audi, was founded during this time, and later supplied the chassis for Gottlieb Daimlers four-wheeler. On 14 November 1899, August Horch established the company A. Horch & Cie. in the Ehrenfeld district of Cologne, three years later in 1902 he moved with his company to Reichenbach im Vogtland. On May, 10th,1904 he founded the August Horch & Cie. Motorwagenwerke AG, after troubles with Horch chief financial officer, August Horch left Motorwagenwerke and founded in Zwickau on 16 July 1909, his second company, the August Horch Automobilwerke GmbH. His former partners sued him for trademark infringement, the German Reichsgericht in Leipzig, eventually determined that the Horch brand belonged to his former company. Since August Horch was prohibited from using Horch as a name in his new car business, he called a meeting with close business friends, Paul and Franz Fikentscher from Zwickau. At the apartment of Franz Fikentscher, they discussed how to come up with a new name for the company, during this meeting, Franzs son was quietly studying Latin in a corner of the room. Horch. in German means Hark. or hear, which is Audi in the imperative form of audire – to listen – in Latin. The idea was accepted by everyone attending the meeting. On 25 April 1910 the Audi Automobilwerke GmbH Zwickau was entered in the register of Zwickau registration court. The first Audi automobile, the Audi Type A 10/22 hp Sport-Phaeton, was produced in the same year, followed by the successor Type B 10/28PS in the same year. Audi started with a 2,612 cc inline-four engine model Type A, followed by a 3,564 cc model and these cars were successful even in sporting events
38.
Buick
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Buick, formally the Buick Motor Division, is an upscale automobile brand of the American manufacturer General Motors. Buick-branded vehicles are known for reliability, ranking high for reliability in Consumer Reports brand reliability rankings. Buick has the distinction of being the oldest active American marque of automobile, before the establishment of General Motors, GM founder William C. Durant had served as Buicks general manager and major investor. Buick also has the distinction of being the first automobile maker in the world to equip its cars with overhead valve engines, in 2015, Buick sold 1,231,941 vehicles, a record for the brand. The main market is in China, where 80% of Buick-branded automobiles are sold, Buicks are also sold in the United States, Canada, and Mexico. Since restructuring in 2009, GM has also started to share technology, vehicles, Buick was founded in 1899 in Jackson, Michigan by David Dunbar Buick as the Buick Auto-Vim and Power Company, an internal combustion engine manufacturer. Buick is one of the oldest automobile brands in the world and his replacement was Eugene Richard, who applied for a patent in 1902 for Marrs valve-in-head engine, which patent, number 771,095, was awarded to Richard in the name of Buick in 1904. This was the worlds first overhead valve internal combustion engine, although it was called valve-in-head because the cylinders were horizontal so the valves were not actually overhead. In 1903, the third Buick automobile was made, this time by Richard, but in 1904 Buick moved to Flint, Michigan, Marr was rehired in Flint as chief engineer, to begin making automobiles in production. David Dunbar Buick incorporated his company as the Buick Motor Company on May 19,1903, in Detroit, Michigan. In March,1904, the company was purchased by Benjamin Briscoe, Whiting moved Buick to Flint that summer, to a location across the street from his factory, with the idea of adding Buicks engines to his wagons. David Buick stayed on as a manager, and re-hired Walter Marr as chief engineer, the engine Buick and Marr developed for this automobile was a 2-cyinder valve-in-head engine of 159 cubic inches, with each cylinder horizontal and opposed to each other by 180 degrees. Durant that year as controlling investor, Durant was co-owner, also in Flint, of the Durant-Dort Carriage Company, which was the largest carriage-making company in the country. Durant spent the next 4 years turning Buick into the automobile brand in the US. David Buick sold his stock upon departure in 1906, and died in modest circumstances 25 years later, in 1907, Durant agreed to supply motors to R. S. McLaughlin in Canada, an auto maker, and in 1908 he founded General Motors. Between 1899 and 1902, two vehicles were built in Detroit, Michigan by Walter Lorenzo Marr. Some documentation exists of the 1901 or 1902 prototype with tiller steering similar to the Oldsmobile Curved Dash, in mid-1904, another prototype was constructed for an endurance run, which convinced James H. Whiting to authorize production of the first models offered to the public. The architecture of this prototype was the basis for the Model B, the first Buick made for sale, the 1904 Model B, was built in Flint, Michigan at a re-purposed factory that was known as the Flint Wagon Works
39.
Cadillac
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Cadillac /ˈkædᵻlæk/, formally the Cadillac Motor Car Division, is a division of the U. S. -based General Motors that markets luxury vehicles worldwide. Its primary markets are the United States, Canada, and China, historically, Cadillac automobiles have always held a place at the top of the luxury field within the United States. In 2016, Cadillacs U. S. sales were 170,006 vehicles, Cadillac is among the oldest automobile brands in the world, second in America only to fellow GM marque Buick. The firm was founded from the remnants of the Henry Ford Company in 1902 and it was named after Antoine de la Mothe Cadillac, who founded Detroit, Michigan. The Cadillac crest is based on his coat of arms, by the time General Motors purchased the company in 1909, Cadillac had already established itself as one of Americas premier luxury carmakers. The complete interchangeability of its parts had allowed it to lay the foundation for the modern mass production of automobiles. It was at the forefront of advances, introducing full electrical systems, the clashless manual transmission. The brand developed three engines, with its V8 setting the standard for the American automotive industry and it won the trophy again in 1912 for incorporating electric starting and lighting in a production automobile. Cadillac was formed from the remnants of the Henry Ford Company, after a dispute between Henry Ford and his investors, Ford left the company along with several of his key partners in March 1902. Instead, Leland persuaded the pair to continue manufacturing automobiles using Lelands proven single-cylinder engine, a new company called the Cadillac Automobile Company was established on 22 August 1902, re-purposing the Henry Ford Company factory at Cass Street and Amsterdam Avenue. It was named after French explorer Antoine Laumet de La Mothe, sieur de Cadillac, Cadillacs first automobiles, the Runabout and Tonneau, were completed in October 1902. They were two-seat horseless carriages powered by a 10 hp single-cylinder engine and they were practically identical to the 1903 Ford Model A. Cadillac displayed the new vehicles at the New York Auto Show in January 1903, Cadillacs biggest selling point was precision manufacturing, and therefore, reliability, a Cadillac was simply a better-made vehicle than its competitors. Runabout Rear-entrance tonneau Special bodies The Cadillac Automobile Company merged with Leland & Faulconer Manufacturing, forming The Cadillac Motor Company in 1905. From its earliest years, Cadillac aimed for precision engineering and stylish luxury finishes, Cadillac was the first volume manufacturer of a fully enclosed car in 1906. Cadillac participated in the 1908 interchangeability test in the United Kingdom, in 1912, Cadillac was the first automobile manufacturer to incorporate an electrical system enabling starting, ignition, and lighting. Cadillac was purchased by the General Motors conglomerate in 1909, Cadillac became General Motors prestige division, devoted to the production of large luxury vehicles. It was positioned at the top of GMs vehicle hierarchy, above Buick, Oldsmobile, Oakland, in 1915, Cadillac introduced a 90-degree flathead V8 engine with 70 horsepower at 2400 rpm and 180 pound force-feet of torque, allowing its cars to attain 65 miles per hour
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Chevrolet
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Chevrolet, colloquially referred to as Chevy and formally the Chevrolet Division of General Motors Company, is an American automobile division of the American manufacturer General Motors. Louis Chevrolet and ousted General Motors founder William C. Durant started the company on November 3,1911 as the Chevrolet Motor Car Company. Durant used the Chevrolet Motor Car Company to acquire a stake in General Motors with a reverse merger occurring on May 2,1918. Chevrolet-branded vehicles are sold in most automotive markets worldwide, with the exception of Oceania. However, GM reversed this move in late 2013, announcing that the brand would be withdrawn from Europe, with the exception of the Camaro, Chevrolet vehicles will continue to be marketed in the CIS states, including Russia. After General Motors fully acquired GM Daewoo in 2011 to create GM Korea, in North America, Chevrolet produces and sells a wide range of vehicles, from subcompact automobiles to medium-duty commercial trucks. Durant was cast out from the management of General Motors in 1910 for five years and he took over the Flint Wagon Works, incorporating the Mason and Little companies. As head of Buick Motor Company prior to founding GM, Durant had hired Louis Chevrolet to drive Buicks in promotional races, Durant planned to use Chevrolets reputation as a racer as the foundation for his new automobile company. Actual design work for the first Chevy, the costly Series C Classic Six, was drawn up by Etienne Planche, the first C prototype was ready months before Chevrolet was actually incorporated. However the first actual production wasnt until the 1913 model, so in essence there were no 1911 or 1912 production models, only the 1 pre-production model was made and fine tuned throughout the early part of 1912. Then in the fall of that year the new 1913 model was introduced at the New York auto show, Chevrolet first used the bowtie emblem logo in 1914 on the H series models and The L Series Model. It may have been designed from wallpaper Durant once saw in a French hotel room, more recent research by historian Ken Kaufmann presents a case that the logo is based on a logo of the Coalettes coal company. An example of this logo as it appeared in an advertisement for Coalettes appeared in the Atlanta Constitution on November 12,1911, others claim that the design was a stylized Swiss cross, in tribute to the homeland of Chevrolets parents. Chevrolet eventually unified all vehicle models with the gold bowtie in 2004, Louis Chevrolet had differences with Durant over design and in 1914 sold Durant his share in the company. By 1916, Chevrolet was profitable enough with successful sales of the cheaper Series 490 to allow Durant to repurchase a controlling interest in General Motors. After the deal was completed in 1917, Durant became president of General Motors, in 1919, Chevrolets factories were located at Flint, Michigan, branch assembly locations were located in Tarrytown, N. Y. Norwood, Ohio, St. Louis, Missouri, Oakland, California, Ft. Worth, Texas, mcLaughlins were given GM Corporation stock for the proprietorship of their Company article Sept.23,1933 Financial Post page 9. In the 1918 model year, Chevrolet introduced the Series D, Sales were poor and it was dropped in 1919
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Ferrari
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Ferrari N. V. is an Italian sports car manufacturer based in Maranello. Founded by Enzo Ferrari in 1939 as Auto Avio Costruzioni, the company built its first car in 1940, however the companys inception as an auto manufacturer is usually recognized in 1947, when the first Ferrari-badged car was completed. Ferrari is the worlds most powerful according to Brand Finance. In May 2012 the 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO became the most expensive car in history, Fiat S. p. A. acquired 50 percent of Ferrari in 1969 and expanded its stake to 90 percent in 1988. In October 2014 Fiat Chrysler Automobiles announced its intentions to separate Ferrari S. p. A. from FCA, through the remaining steps of the separation, FCAs interest in Ferraris business was distributed to shareholders of FCA, with 10 percent continuing to be owned by Piero Ferrari. The spin-off was completed on 3 January 2016, Ferrari road cars are generally seen as a symbol of speed, luxury and wealth. Enzo Ferrari was not initially interested in the idea of producing road cars when he formed Scuderia Ferrari in 1929, Scuderia Ferrari literally means Ferrari Stable and is usually used to mean Team Ferrari. Ferrari bought, prepared and fielded Alfa Romeo racing cars for gentlemen drivers, in September 1939 Enzo Ferrari left Alfa Romeo under the provision that he would not use the Ferrari name in association with races or racing cars for at least four years. A few days later he founded Auto Avio Costruzioni, headquartered in the facilities of the old Scuderia Ferrari, the new company ostensibly produced machine tools and aircraft accessories. In 1940 Ferrari did in fact produce a race car – the Tipo 815 and it was the first Ferrari car and debuted at the 1940 Mille Miglia, but due to World War II it saw little competition. In 1943 the Ferrari factory moved to Maranello, where it has remained ever since, the factory was bombed by the Allies and subsequently rebuilt including a works for road car production. The first Ferrari-badged car was the 1947125 S, powered by a 1.5 L V12 engine, Enzo Ferrari reluctantly built, the Scuderia Ferrari name was resurrected to denote the factory racing cars and distinguish them from those fielded by customer teams. In 1960 the company was restructured as a corporation under the name SEFAC S. p. A. Early in 1969, Fiat took a 50 percent stake in Ferrari, new model investment further up in the Ferrari range also received a boost. In 1988, Enzo Ferrari oversaw the launch of the Ferrari F40, the last new Ferrari to be launched before his death later that year, in 1989 the company was renamed as Ferrari S. p. A. From 2002 to 2004, Ferrari produced the Enzo, their fastest model at the time and it was to be called the F60, continuing on from the F40 and F50, but Ferrari was so pleased with it, they called it the Enzo instead. It was initially offered to loyal and reoccurring customers, each of the 399 made had a tag of $650,000 apiece. On 15 September 2012,964 Ferrari cars (worth over $162 million attended the Ferrari Driving Days event at Silverstone Circuit, on 29 October 2014, the FCA group, resulting from the merger between manufacturers Fiat and Chrysler, announced the split of its luxury brand, Ferrari
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Fiat Automobiles
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Fiat Automobiles S. p. A. is the largest automobile manufacturer in Italy, a subsidiary of FCA Italy S. p. A. which is part of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles. Fiat Automobiles S. p. A. was formed in January 2007 when Fiat reorganized its automobile business, Fiats main market is Europe, mainly focused in Italy. Historically successful in citycars and supermini sector, currently Fiat has a range of models focused on two segments. Fiat does not currently offer any large family car, nor an executive car - these market segments have, to some extent been covered by the Lancia and Alfa Romeo brands, which Fiat also owns. Fiats share of the European market shrank from 9.4 per cent in 2000 to 5.8 per cent in the summer of 2004, at this point Sergio Marchionne was appointed as Fiats chief executive. By March 2009 their market share had expanded to 9.1 per cent, Fiats built their five-story Lingotto plant in 1915 through 1918, at the time it was Europes largest car manufacturing plant. Later the Mirafiori plant was built, also in Turin, to prepare for production of the all-new Fiat 128, Fiat opened their Rivalta plant in October 1968. Until the 128 entered production, the plant was used to build versions of the 850 and 124 as well as parts for the Fiat Dino. Fiats 2014 range of car engines comprised eleven units, eight petrols. The second generation Punto was a seller in the UK after its October 1999 launch. The original Fiat 500 had been one of the few competitors for the iconic Mini during its 1960s heyday. Fiat has invested for a time in South America, mainly in Brazil. They built their first Brazilian car plant in the Greater Belo Horizonte city of Betim in 1973, recently a brand new model developed in Brazil has been launched, the Fiat Uno. Other European models are imported to Brazil, Fiat 500. Some others are still in production, Punto, Idea, Bravo, Fiat has a long history in the United States. In 1908, the Fiat Automobile Co. was established in the country and a plant in Poughkeepsie, N. Y. began producing Fiats a year later, like the Fiat 60 HP and the Fiat 16-20 HP. These luxury cars were produced long before Chrysler Corp. was formed in 1925 from older manufacturers that were acquired by Walter P. Chrysler, the New Jersey factory was closed when the U. S. entered World War I in 1917. Fiat returned to North America in the 1950s, selling the original 500, Fiat 600 Multipla, Fiat 1100, Fiat 1200, for example the Fiat 124 Sport Spider and the Fiat X1/9
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GMC (automobile)
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GMC, formally the GMC Division of General Motors LLC, is a division of the American automobile manufacturer General Motors that primarily focuses on trucks and utility vehicles. GMC sells pickup and commercial trucks, buses, vans, military vehicles, General Motors was founded by William C. Durant on September 16,1908, as a holding company for Buick. In 1909, GM purchased the Rapid Motor Vehicle Company of Pontiac, Michigan, forming the basis of the General Motors Truck Company, the Reliance Motor Car Company was also purchased that same year by GM. Rapid and Reliance were merged in 1911, and in 1912 the marque GMC Truck first appeared on vehicles exhibited at the New York International Auto Show, some 22,000 trucks were produced that year, though GMCs contribution to that total was a mere 372 units. GMC had some currency within GM referring to the parent in general. Later GMC would become distinct as a brand within the corporation, branding trucks and coaches, in contrast. GMC maintained three manufacturing locations in Pontiac, Michigan, Oakland, California, and Saint Louis, Missouri. In 1916, a GMC Truck crossed the country from Seattle to New York City in thirty days, and in 1926, during the Second World War, GMC Truck produced 600,000 trucks for use by the United States Armed Forces. In 1925, GM purchased a controlling interest in Yellow Coach, after purchasing the remaining portion in 1943, GM renamed it GM Truck and Coach Division. The Division manufactured interurban coaches until 1980, transit bus production ended in May 1987. The Canadian plant produced buses from 1962 until July 1987, GM withdrew from the bus and coach market because of increased competition in the late 1970s and 1980s. Rights to the RTS model were sold to Transportation Manufacturing Corporation, in 1998, GMCs official branding on vehicles was shortened from GMC Truck to simply GMC. In 2002, GMC released a book entitled, GMC, The First 100 Years, GMC currently manufactures SUVs, pickup trucks, vans, light-duty trucks, and medium duty trucks. In the past, GMC also produced trucks, ambulances, heavy-duty trucks, military vehicles, motorhomes. Starting in 1920, GMC and Chevrolet trucks are identical except for the grilles and nameplates. From 1955 through 1959 small GMC trucks with gasoline V8s were equipped with Pontiac, Buick, GMC had its own line of inline 6 cylinder engines, known as Jimmys from 1939-1959, and their own V6 from 1960-1974. Chevrolet trucks were marketed towards private ownership, while GMC was focused towards commercial uses and this crossover allowed GM dealers that did not sell Chevrolets to offer full lineups of both cars and trucks by offering GMCs trucks alongside non-truck divisions. Between 1962 and 1972, most GMC vehicles were equipped with quad-headlights, in 1971, GMC marketed their version of the Chevrolet El Camino, which was based on the Chevrolet Chevelle
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Holden
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General Motors Holden, generally known as Holden, has been an Australian automobile manufacturer that operated in Australia with its headquarters in Port Melbourne, Victoria. The company was founded in 1856 as a manufacturer in South Australia. In 1908 it moved into the field, before becoming a subsidiary of the United States-based General Motors in 1931. After becoming a subsidiary of GM, the company was named General Motors-Holdens Ltd, becoming Holden Ltd in 1998, by 2018 it will have ceased manufacturing vehicles in Australia. Holden has offered the locally produced range of Commodore vehicles, supplemented by imported GM models, Holden has offered badge engineered models in sharing arrangements with Chevrolet, Isuzu, Nissan, Opel, Suzuki, Toyota and Vauxhall Motors. In 2013 the vehicle lineup consisted of models from GM Korea, GM Thailand, GM in the US, and self-developed Commodore, Caprice, Holden also distributed the European Opel brand in Australia in 2012 until the Opel brands Australian demise in mid-2013. Since 1994, all Australian-built Holden vehicles were manufactured at Elizabeth, South Australia, historically, production or assembly plants were operated in all mainland states of Australia, with GMs New Zealand subsidiary Holden New Zealand operating a plant until 1990. The consolidation of car production at Elizabeth was completed in 1988, although Holdens involvement in exports has fluctuated since the 1950s, the declining sales of large cars in Australia led the company to look to international markets to increase profitability. Holden will retain their design centre, but with reduced staffing, since 2010 Holden has incurred losses due to the strong Australian dollar, and government grants have been reduced. In May 2014 GM reversed their decision to abandon the Lang Lang Proving Ground, in 1852, James Alexander Holden emigrated to South Australia from Walsall, England and in 1856 established J. A. Holden & Co, a business in Adelaide. Frost joined the business as a partner and J. A. Holden & Co became Holden & Frost Ltd. Edward Holden, James grandson, from there, the firm evolved through various partnerships and, in 1908, Holden & Frost moved into the business of minor repairs to car upholstery. The company began to produce complete motorcycle sidecar bodies in 1913, after 1917, wartime trade restrictions led the company to start full-scale production of vehicle body shells. Holden founded a new company in 1919, Holdens Motor Body Builders Ltd specialising in car bodies, by 1923, HMBB were producing 12,000 units per year. During this time, HMBB was the first company to assemble bodies for Ford Australia until their Geelong plant was completed, from 1924, HMBB became the exclusive supplier of car bodies for GM in Australia, with manufacturing taking place at the new Woodville, South Australia, plant. These bodies were made to suit a number of imported from manufacturers such as Chevrolet. In 1930 alone, the still independent Woodville plant built bodies for Austin, Chrysler, DeSoto, Morris, Hillman, Humber, Hupmobile, the last of this line of business was the assembly of Hillman Minx sedans in 1948
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Honda
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Honda Motor Co. Ltd. is a Japanese public multinational conglomerate corporation primarily known as a manufacturer of automobiles, aircraft, motorcycles, and power equipment. Honda became the second-largest Japanese automobile manufacturer in 2001, Honda was the eighth largest automobile manufacturer in the world behind General Motors, Volkswagen Group, Toyota, Hyundai Motor Group, Ford, Nissan, and PSA Peugeot Citroën in 2011. Honda was the first Japanese automobile manufacturer to release a luxury brand, Acura. Aside from their automobile and motorcycle businesses, Honda also manufactures garden equipment, marine engines, personal watercraft and power generators. Since 1986, Honda has been involved with artificial intelligence/robotics research and they have also ventured into aerospace with the establishment of GE Honda Aero Engines in 2004 and the Honda HA-420 HondaJet, which began production in 2012. Honda has three joint-ventures in China, in 2013, Honda invested about 5. 7% of its revenues in research and development. Also in 2013, Honda became the first Japanese automaker to be a net exporter from the United States, exporting 108,705 Honda and Acura models, throughout his life, Hondas founder, Soichiro Honda had an interest in automobiles. He worked as a mechanic at the Art Shokai garage, where he tuned cars, in 1937, with financing from his acquaintance Kato Shichirō, Honda founded Tōkai Seiki to make piston rings working out of the Art Shokai garage. After initial failures, Tōkai Seiki won a contract to supply piston rings to Toyota, Honda also aided the war effort by assisting other companies in automating the production of military aircraft propellers. The relationships Honda cultivated with personnel at Toyota, Nakajima Aircraft Company, with a staff of 12 men working in a 16 m2 shack, they built and sold improvised motorized bicycles, using a supply of 500 two-stroke 50 cc Tohatsu war surplus radio generator engines. When the engines ran out, Honda began building their own copy of the Tohatsu engine and this was the Honda A-Type, nicknamed the Bata Bata for the sound the engine made. In 1949, the Honda Technical Research Institute was liquidated for ¥1,000,000, or about US$5,000 today, at about the same time Honda hired engineer Kihachiro Kawashima, and Takeo Fujisawa who provided indispensable business and marketing expertise to complement Soichiro Hondas technical bent. The close partnership between Soichiro Honda and Fujisawa lasted until they stepped down together in October 1973, the first complete motorcycle, with both the frame and engine made by Honda, was the 1949 D-Type, the first Honda to go by the name Dream. Honda Motor Company grew in a time to become the worlds largest manufacturer of motorcycles by 1964. The first production automobile from Honda was the T360 mini pick-up truck, powered by a small 356-cc straight-4 gasoline engine, it was classified under the cheaper Kei car tax bracket. The first production car from Honda was the S500 sports car and its chain-driven rear wheels pointed to Hondas motorcycle origins. Over the next few decades, Honda worked to expand its line and expanded operations. In 1986, Honda introduced the successful Acura brand to the American market in an attempt to ground in the luxury vehicle market
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Infiniti
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Infiniti is the luxury vehicle division of Japanese automaker Nissan. Infiniti officially started selling vehicles on November 8,1989 in North America, the marketing network for Infiniti-branded vehicles now includes over 230 dealers in over 15 countries. The Infiniti marque is not used in Japan, however, the Infiniti Q50 is sold as a Nissan Skyline in Japan and retains Infiniti badging, though without the Infiniti brand or name. Also, the original Q45 was sold as the Nissan Infiniti Q45 in Japan from November 1989 until 1996, Infiniti models have direct equivalents in the Japanese domestic market Nissan lineup. The Infiniti FX has no Nissan equivalent and is not sold in Japan, johan de Nysschen was appointed to head the Infiniti division in 2012. De Nysschen left the company as of August 2014 to become CEO of Cadillac, Infiniti Chairman Andy Palmer assumed de Nysschens responsibilities. Nissan appointed Roland Krüger, former head of BMWs Asian division, as president of Infiniti after the chairman of the marque, Andy Palmer, resigned to join Aston Martin in September 2014. In 2013, Infinitis model designation will change to the coupes and sedans starting with the letter Q and a number reflecting the models place in the brand lineup. For instance, the M sedan will become the Q70 while the G sedan will be replaced with the Q50, meanwhile, with its QX60 crossover Infiniti began to produce vehicle outside Japan. In 2014, it is expected to producing two models in Xiangyang, China, a plant operated by Nissans joint venture with Dongfeng Motor. It is also expanding in Sunderland, England, to produce a new car named Q30 in 2015. The Infiniti brand was introduced in the United States in 1989, the brand was created around the same time as Japanese rivals Toyota and Honda developed their Lexus and Acura premium brands. The Japanese government imposed voluntary export restraints for the U. S. market, the Infiniti marque was launched with two models, the Q45, and the M30 that were previously sold at Japanese Nissan Motor Store dealership networks. The Q45 was based on the all new second generation JDM Nissan President on a five millimeter shorter wheelbase platform at 2,875 mm, starting with model year 1992, the wheelbase matched the Presidents wheelbase at 2880 mm. The Q45 included a 278 hp V8 engine, four wheel steering, the cars features would have made it competitive in the full-sized luxury segment against the Mercedes S-Class, BMW7 Series, Jaguar XJ and Cadillac Fleetwood. A second model was introduced in 1990, the 2-door M30 and it remained in production for three years as an alternative to the Lexus SC. The powertrain was the VG30E162 hp engine and an automatic transmission, the M30 coupe was underpowered for its stock weight of 3,333 lb. The M30 convertible weighed even more, due to the required body, the appearance of the M30 had almost no resemblance to the larger Q45, and the interior was almost completely different
US$ 3.8 billion (2017)[2]
