Rowing is the act of propelling a boat using the motion of oars in the water by displacing water to propel the boat forward. Rowing and paddling are similar but the difference is that rowing requires oars to have a mechanical connection with the boat, while paddles are hand-held and have no mechanical connection; this article focuses on the general types of rowing, such as the recreation and the transport rather than the sport of competitive rowing, a specialized case of racing using regulated equipment and a refined technique. In the Ancient World, all major ancient civilizations used rowing for transportation and war, it was considered a way to advance their civilization during peace. The beginning of rowing is clouded in history but the use of oars in the way they are used today can be traced back to ancient Egypt. Whether it was invented in Egypt or something learned from Mesopotamia via trade is not known. However, archaeologists have recovered a model of a rowing vessel in a tomb dating back to the 18-19th century BC.
From Egypt, rowing vessels galleys, were extensively used in naval warfare and trade in the Mediterranean from classical antiquity onward. Galleys had advantages over sailing ships: they were easier to maneuver, capable of short bursts of speed, able to move independently of the wind. During the classical age of oared galleys, the Greeks dominated the Mediterranean while the Athenians dominated the other Greeks, they used thousands of lower-class citizens to serve as rowers in the fleet. The Classical trireme used 170 rowers. Trireme oarsmen used leather cushions to slide over their seats, which allowed them to use their leg strength as a modern oarsman does with a sliding seat. Galleys had masts and sails, but would lower them at the approach of combat. Greek fleets would leave their sails and masts on shore if possible; the use of oars in rowing instead of paddling came rather late to northern Europe, sometime between 500 BC-1 AD. This change might have been hastened by the Roman conquest of Northern Gaul.
However, between 500-1100 AD, combined sailing and rowing vessels dominated trade and warfare in northern Europe in the time that has come to be known as the Viking Age. Galleys continued to be used in the Mediterranean until the advent of steam propulsion. In some localities, rear-facing systems prevail. In other localities, forward-facing systems prevail in crowded areas such as in Venice, Italy and in Asian and Indonesian rivers and harbors; this is not an "either-or", because in different situations it's useful to be able to row a boat facing either way. The current emphasis on the health aspects of rowing has resulted in some new mechanical systems being developed, some different from the traditional rowing systems of the past; this is the oldest system used in Europe and North America. A seated rower pulls on two oars, which lever the boat through the water; the pivot point of the oars is the fulcrum. The motive force is applied through the rower's feet. In traditional rowing craft, the pivot point of the oars is located on the boat's gunwale.
The actual fitting that holds the oar may be as simple as one or two pegs or a metal oarlock. In performance rowing craft, the rowlock is extended outboard on a "rigger" to allow the use of a longer oar for increased power. Sculling involves a seated rower who pulls on two oars or sculls, attached to the boat, thereby moving the boat in the direction opposite that which the rower faces. In some multiple-seat boats seated rowers each pull on a single "sweep" oar with both hands. Boats in which the rowers are coordinated by a coxswain are referred to as a "coxed" pair/four/eight. Sometimes sliding seats are used to enable the rower to use the leg muscles increasing the power available. An alternative to the sliding seat, called a sliding rigger, uses a stationary seat and the rower moves the oarlocks with his feet. On a craft used in Italy, the catamaran moscone, the rower stands and takes advantage of his body weight to increase leverage while sculling. Articulated or bow facing oars have two-piece oars and use a mechanical transmission to reverse the direction of the oar blade, enabling a seated rower to row facing forward with a pulling motion.
Push rowing called back-watering if used in a boat not designed for forward motion, uses regular oars with a pushing motion to achieve forward-facing travel, sometimes seated and sometimes standing. This is a convenient method of manoeuvring through a busy harbour; the "Rantilla" system of frontrowing oars uses inboard mounted oarlocks rather than a reversing transmission to achieve forward motion of the boat with a pulling motion on the oars. Another system involves using a single oar extending from the stern of the boat, moved side to side underwater somewhat like a fish tail, such as the Chinese yuloh, by which quite large boats can be moved. Sampans are rowed by foot in Ninh Bình Province of northern Vietnam; the Intha people of Burma row forwards using their legs. The pletna of Slovenia is rowed forward in the standing position with two oars. In Venice and other similar flat-bottomed boats are popular forms of transport propelled by oars which are held in place by an open wooden fórcola.
The Voga alla Veneta technique of rowing is different from the style used in international sport rowing, due to the oarsman facing forward in a standing position. This allows the boat to maneuver quickly and with agility - useful in the narrow an
The term Wee Free was an epithet used to distinguish two Scottish Presbyterian Churches after the union of 1900: The Free Kirk and The United Free Kirk. Since the United Free were 25 times larger, but hard to distinguish without some knowledge of Scottish history and theology, the rhyming Scottish diminutive became used as an epithet of the post 1900 Free Kirk; the epithet Wee Free was applied to a small group in the 1918 Liberal Party who on principle did not want to go into coalition with the Conservative Party. The Wee Free Liberals either did not get, or refused, the coupon signed by David Lloyd George of the Liberals and Bonar Law of the Conservatives; the Wee Free in modern usage is used in a pejorative way, of any small group who because of their, arguably obscure, religious principles choose to remain outside or separate from a larger body. A Wee Free attitude might show as a preference for being part of a smaller but ideologically sound group rather than a larger compromised one. Terry Pratchet’s Wee Free Men is an epithet for his Nac Mac Feegle who appear in some of his Discworld novels.
He denied. There is no Scotland on Discworld, they may, in subtle ways, suggest some aspects of the Scottish character as filtered through the media, but that's because of quantum.". In 1900 the Free Church was the second largest Presbyterian church in Scotland after its exit from the Auld Kirk in 1843 known as the Disruption. In the years leading up to 1900 the Free Kirk and the more theologically liberal United Presbyterian Church aligned themselves with each other with full union as the goal; this led to Declaratory Articles being passed by their General Assemblies, changing or clarifying their doctrine so that there would be no barrier to union. The Free Kirk’s Declaratory Act of 1892 was objected to by a minority some of whom formed the Free Presbyterian Church of Scotland, which continues to this day. Eight years when Scotland’s second and third largest Presbyterian denominations formally unified, a small group chose to stay outside the union, they were given the epithet the Wee Free Church and, since they appealed to Caesar through the Scottish Courts and right up to the House of Lords, they became well known and the phrase passed into common usage.
The Lords decision in the case of Bannatyne v Overtoun was in favour of the small body, a decision which surprised many. A pair of rhyming jibes remain from the time of the heated split of the Disruption in 1843 when about a third of the Auld Kirk of Scotland left to form the Free Kirk; the Free Kirkers who had sometimes given up homes as well as church buildings and started financially from scratch were taunted with the rhyme: “The Free Kirk, the wee kirk the kirk without the steeple.” This rhyme linking the Free Kirk with the derogatory diminutive "wee" was offensive and a reply was devised in: “The Auld Kirk, the cauld kirk, the kirk without the people.” It may have been known in America. The Wee Free Liberals included Donald Maclean who were Liberals but did not go into the coalition of David Lloyd George with the Conservatives of Bonar Law when he took over from H. H. Asquith as leader of the Liberals. There were around 31 Wee Free MPs although political boundaries were not white. Terry Pratchet’s Wee Free Men or Nac Mac Feegles are about 6 inches tall, have blue skin being tattooed and all have red hair.
The Feegles are drunkards, who are niggardly and enjoy fighting and stealing. The immense strength and rowdiness of these pictsies means that they will fight anything, they have a fondness for headbutting creatures far larger than themselves; the Wee Free Men is being adapted into a film by Terry’s daughter Rhianna along with The Jim Henson Company famous for their muppets. Denominations other than the Free Church are regularly called Wee Frees in the press. For example the Free Presbyterians, the United Free are called by the epithet; the Free Church has publicly tried to distance itself from the name calling it a "derogatory and offensive slur". However some people inside the denomination and outside don’t mind if it causes some to cringe. David Robertson, a Free Church minister, uses a version of it in his blog after being called a flea by a well known atheist. There is no group known as the Wee Wee Frees. Groups coming out of the Free Church include the Free Presbyterian Church in 1893 from which the Associated Presbyterian Churches split in 1989.
The Free Church sometimes is labelled with the derogatory Wee Wee Free or Wee Wee Wee Free term. Ecclesiastical separatism Protestantism Schism Sectarianism
None of the Above is the 26th studio album by Peter Hammill, released on his Fie! Label in 2000. Hammill recorded None of the Above in his home studio, Terra Incognita, between January 1999 and February 2000, playing and arranging nearly all instruments and singing nearly all voices; some contributions were made by Stuart Gordon on three tracks and Manny Elias on one track. Peter Hammill's daughters Holly and Beatrice Hammill sing backing soprano voices on two tracks; the instrumentation is dominated by guitars and some strings. The long recording time is due to Hammill's parallel work on a remastered 4-CD compilation of Van der Graaf Generator called The Box; the title of the album is the English phrase "None of the above", meaning none of the other choices are appropriate. The expression can be seen here as a metaphor for "people in earthy and/or earthly circumstances", i.e. as the opposite to heavenly conditions. The mood of the album is calm and melancholic. A typical song is "Naming the Rose", a chamber music-like arrangement for lead vocals, keyboards and background choirs.
It is about a gardener who names his last creation – a damask rose – after his wife who died on the day the best blossom opened. The rose breeder fertilizes the seeds of the variety with the ashes of his wife, thus the couple that had no children both live on in the new rose. The first seven tracks all have the same topic as "Naming the Rose": people coming to an end of a phase in their life, in different circumstances, but the eighth song says: every end can be a new start. In his newsletter from April 2000, Hammill comments: The cover shows a serious-looking Hammill photographed by Dinu and the back cover – again alluding to the title of the album – a section of the star-spangled sky; the booklet was designed by Paul Ridout. Each double page shows a washed-out photo presenting a staircase or a ladder ending nowhere or against a bricked entrance or upon an empty floor with black garbage bags lying around. Only the last double page for the song "Astart" shows busy people on an elevator rolling into some kind of shop scene.
The music press did not take much notice of None of the Above. In allmusic.com Simon Cantlon gave 3 out of 5 stars for "poignant musical snapshots" and "atmosphere" but found "points on this release when things become a bit too monotonous". With 3 out of 5 stars the same rating is given on the fan site Progarchives. All songs written by Peter Hammill. "Touch and Go" – 4:05 "Naming the Rose" – 5:16 "How Far I Fell" – 5:55 "Somebody Bad Enough" – 4:03 "Tango for One" – 6:43 "Like Veronica" – 5:54 "In a Bottle" – 8:01 "Astart" – 4:17 All tracks are played and sung by Peter Hammill with the following contributions: Stuart Gordon – violin, viola Manny Elias – drums, percussion Holly Hammill – vocals Beatrice Hammill – vocals Peter Hammill - recording engineer, mixing Paul Ridout - design Peter Hammill's comments on the album
Ziziphus nummularia is a species of Ziziphus native to the Thar Desert of western India and southeastern Pakistan and south Iran. Ziziphus nummularia is more high, branching to form a thicket; the leaves are rounded like those of Ziziphus jujuba but differ from these in having a pubescence on the adaxial surface. The plant is found in agricultural fields; this species is native to parts of the Persian Gulf Qatar, where it occurs in natural depressions. The fruit is either eaten fresh, dried or made into confectionery; the juice can be made into a refreshing drink. In India, the fruit, when ripe and less than one centimeter in diameter, is gathered in the beginning of the winter months, dried and sieved; the powder formed is eaten either alone, or mixed with Bajra flour. The leaves of Z. nummularia provide excellent fodder for livestock. In India, the average total yield of forage was about 1000 kg ha-1; the leaves are collected stored. It is a source of high calorific value fuel and charcoal Timber: The heartwood is yellow to dark brown, hard, 738 kg/m3 and it is used in farm implements and for house construction.
Dried fruit used medicinally as astringent in bilious affliction in India. The leaves are used to treat other skin diseases. Poison: The fruits are greedily eaten by gerbils and rats and are used as baits for poisoning these rodents. Ziziphus nummularia shrubs are intercropped with millet and oil seeds The shrubs have been shown to check wind erosion, help in deposition of soil, bring about a change in the microhabitat, causing favourable conditions for the appearance of successional species such asperennial grasses In India, it is erected as ‘brush-wood barriers’ together with Crotalaria burhia, it has proved successful in sand dune stabilization in India. It produces copious coppice shoots and roots suckers forming dense thorny thickets collecting moulds of leaves and dust. Seed storage behaviour is orthodox. There are 1800-2000 seeds/Kg This species is a host of larvae of butterfly Tarucus balkanica Freyer in Africa, Iran, Asia Minor and Mauritania
Newton, Massachusetts, USA-based Barrett Technology was incorporated by William T. Townsend in 1990. Barrett manufactures robotic hands installed in 20 countries on 6 continents. Barrett is credited in The Guinness Book of World Records, Millennium Edition, as maker of the world’s “most advanced robotic arm.” Its 7-axis robotic arm, named the WAM arm for Whole Arm Manipulation is based on Puck electronics and mechanical drive technologies and designed to interact directly with people. One application of an early version of the technology has been the arm manufactured and sold by MAKO Surgical Corp. which enables haptically-guided minimally-invasive knee surgery. The Puck powered BarrettHand BH8-series product is based on technology licensed from the University of Pennsylvania and developed by Gill Pratt, Yoky Matsuoka, William Townsend into its present form. Rooks, Brian, "The harmonious robot", Industrial Robot, archived from the original on 2010-11-19, retrieved 2010-06-07Smith, Julian, "Can Robots Be Programmed to Learn from Their Own Experiences?", Scientific American
Engro Corporation known as Esso Fertilizers, is a Pakistani multinational conglomerate company with subsidiaries involved in production of fertilizers, chemicals and petrochemicals. Its major subsidiaries, Engro Fertilizers, one of the largest fertilizer manufacturers of the world. Other major subsidiaries include Sindh Engro Coal Mining Company, Engro Powergen, Engro Polymer, it was 1957 when in search for oil by Pak Stanvac, an Esso/Mobil joint venture led to the discovery of the Mari Gas field near Daharki, Sindh. Esso proposed the establishment of a urea plant in that area which led to a fertilizer plant agreement signed in 1964. In the subsequent year, Esso Pakistan Fertilizer Company Limited was incorporated, with 75% of the shares owned by Esso and 25% by the general public; the construction of a urea plant commenced at Daharki in 1966 and production began in 1968. At US $43 million with an annual production capacity of 173,000 tons, it was the single largest foreign investment by a multinational corporation in Pakistan at the time.
In 1978, it was decided to rename the company from Esso Fertilizer Company Limited to Exxon Chemical Pakistan Limited. In 1991, Exxon decided to divest its fertilizer business on a global basis; the employees of Exxon Chemical Pakistan Limited, in partnership with leading international and local financial institutions, bought out Exxon’s 75% equity. This was at the time and still is the most successful employee buy-out in the corporate history of Pakistan. Renamed as Engro Chemical Pakistan Limited, the Company has gone from strength to strength, reflected in its consistent financial performance, growth of the core fertilizer business, diversification into other businesses, it was year 1997 when Engro Chemical Pakistan limited decided to establish Engro Vopak Terminal Limited on 50/50 partnership basis between Engro and Royal Vopak of Netherlands, for handling bulk liquid chemical storage at Port Qasim Karachi. In that same year Engro Asahi polymer Chemicals limited was established in a result of joint venture between Mitsubishi Corporation and Asahi for the manufacturing and marketing of PVC resin.
Engro company was established in 2003, after which in 2005 Engro decided to diversify their business more by venturing into the food business by establishing Engro Foods. Engro ventured into the power generation business by setting up Engro Energy Limited in 2006, which on was renamed as Engro Powergen Limited' in 2008, it was established with the basic aim to play Engro's part to tackle the energy crisis in the country. In year 2007, Engro Asahi polymer divested its share in joint venture with Mitsubishi and the company renamed as Engro Polymer and Chemicals Limited. In 2010, keeping in view the immense diversification of Engro Chemical Pakistan Limited, it was decided to rename the company as Engro Corporation as the holding company. Engro sold 22% of its shares in Engro Fertilizer in 2016 to local and international investors via an accelerated book build; the partial disposal reduces Engro Corporation's holding to 57%, with the money raised being allocated to its energy business. In 2011, Engro Corporation had a major global diversification with the acquisition of US-based company, Al-Safa Halal.
This new business venture comes under Engro Foods Canada Ltd and its subsidiary Engro Foods USA, LLC. Al Safa Halal targets 7 million population of Muslims in North America