Palace
A palace is a grand residence a royal residence, or the home of a head of state or some other high-ranking dignitary, such as a bishop or archbishop. The word is derived from the Latin name Palātium, for Palatine Hill in Rome which housed the Imperial residences. Most European languages have a version of the term, many use it for a wider range of buildings than English. In many parts of Europe, the equivalent term is applied to large private houses in cities of the aristocracy. Many historic palaces are now put to other uses such as parliaments, hotels, or office buildings; the word is sometimes used to describe a lavishly ornate building used for public entertainment or exhibitions, such as a movie palace. The word palace comes from Old French palais, from Latin Palātium, the name of one of the seven hills of Rome; the original "palaces" on the Palatine Hill were the seat of the imperial power while the "capitol" on the Capitoline Hill was the religious nucleus of Rome. Long after the city grew to the seven hills the Palatine remained a desirable residential area.
Emperor Caesar Augustus lived there in a purposely modest house only set apart from his neighbours by the two laurel trees planted to flank the front door as a sign of triumph granted by the Senate. His descendants Nero, with his "Golden House", enlarged the house and grounds over and over until it took up the hill top; the word Palātium came to mean the residence of the emperor rather than the neighbourhood on top of the hill. Palace meaning "government" can be recognized in a remark of Paul the Deacon. AD 790 and describing events of the 660s: "When Grimuald set out for Beneventum, he entrusted his palace to Lupus". At the same time, Charlemagne was consciously reviving the Roman expression in his "palace" at Aachen, of which only his chapel remains. In the 9th century, the "palace" indicated the housing of the government too, the travelling Charlemagne built fourteen. In the early Middle Ages, the palas was that part of an imperial palace, that housed the Great Hall, where affairs of state were conducted.
In the Holy Roman Empire the powerful independent Electors came to be housed in palaces. This has been used as evidence that power was distributed in the Empire. In modern times, the term has been applied by archaeologists and historians to large structures that housed combined ruler and bureaucracy in "palace cultures". In informal usage, a "palace" can be extended to a grand residence of any kind; the earliest known palaces were the royal residences of the Egyptian Pharaohs at Thebes, featuring an outer wall enclosing labyrinthine buildings and courtyards. Other ancient palaces include the Assyrian palaces at Nimrud and Nineveh, the Minoan palace at Knossos, the Persian palaces at Persepolis and Susa. Palaces in East Asia, such as the imperial palaces of Japan, Vietnam, Thailand and large wooden structures in China's Forbidden City, consist of many low pavilions surrounded by vast, walled gardens, in contrast to the single building palaces of Medieval Western Europe; the Brazilian new capital, Brasília, hosts modern palaces, most designed by the city's architect Oscar Niemeyer.
The Alvorada Palace is the official residence of Brazil's president. The Planalto Palace is the official workplace; the Jaburu Palace is the official residence of Brazil's vice-president. Rio de Janeiro, the former capital of the Portuguese Empire and the Empire of Brazil, houses numerous royal and imperial palaces as the Imperial Palace of São Cristóvão, former official residence of the Brazil's Emperors, the Paço Imperial, its official workplace and the Guanabara Palace, former residence of Isabel, Princess Imperial of Brazil. Besides palaces of the nobility and aristocracy; the city of Petropolis, in the state of Rio de Janeiro, is known for its palaces of the imperial period such as the Petrópolis Palace and the Grão-Pará Palace. In Canada, Government House is a title given to the official residences of the Canadian monarchy and various viceroys. Though not universal, in most cases the title is the building's sole name; the use of the term Government House is an inherited custom from the British Empire, where there were and are many government houses.
Rideau Hall is, since 1867, the official residence in Ottawa of both the Canadian monarch and his or her representative, the Governor General of Canada, has been described as "Canada's house". It stands in Canada's capital on a 0.36 km2 estate at 1 Sussex Drive, with the main building consisting of 175 rooms across 9,500 m2, 27 outbuildings around the grounds. While the equivalent building in many countries has a prominent, central place in the national capital, Rideau Hall's site is unobtrusive within Ottawa, giving it more the character of a private home. Along with Rideau Hall, the Citadelle of Quebec known as La Citadelle, is an active military installation and official residence of both the Canadian monarch and the Governor General, it is located atop adjoining the Plains of Abraham in Quebec City, Quebec. The citadel is the oldest military building in Canada, forms part of the fortifications of Quebec City
Etiquette in Japan
The code of etiquette in Japan governs the expectations of social behavior in the country and is considered important. Like many social cultures, etiquette varies depending on one's status relative to the person in question. Many books instruct readers on its minutiae; some conventions may be regional practices, thus may not exist in all regions of Japan. Some customs have changed over the course of Japanese history; the following are accepted modern customs in Japan. Bathing is an important part of the daily routine in Japan, where bath tubs are for relaxing, not cleaning the body. Therefore, the body must be scrubbed before entering the bathtub or ofuro; this is done in the same room as the tub, while seated on a small stool and using a hand-held shower. Soap, a wash cloth, shampoo are provided, it is important that no soap residue be transferred to the ofuro because the heated water is not drained after each person's use, several hours are required to heat fresh water. Any hair or debris is scooped from the water after the bath, a lid is placed over the tub to maintain the water temperature and prevent evaporation.
Water heaters continue to maintain the temperature. In a home or small inn, a traditional tub is square and deep enough that the water covers the bather's shoulders, but its length and width are small so the bather sits with the knees drawn up. A scoop is provided; because the ofuro is meant for a relaxing private soak, yet serves numerous people, the bather needs to be careful not to indulge too long. Many ryokan close the ofuro for several hours every day so the room can be cleaned and aired, some require guests to sign up for specific soak times. In homes with small tubs, family members bathe one by one in order of seniority, traditionally starting with the oldest male or the oldest person in the household. If there are guests in the home, they will be given priority. In homes with larger tubs, it is not uncommon for family members to bathe together. One or both parents will bathe with babies and toddlers, as children grow older they may still bathe with one of their parents; some homes transfer the hot bath water to a clothes-washing machine.
Bathtubs are common in modern Japanese homes. A regular bathhouse will have tap water heated in a boiler. In all but the most rural areas, public baths are segregated by gender. Customers bathe many using a small washcloth to cover their genitals. Hotels, pachinko parlors and other venues may have on-site sentō for customer use; the same soaping, rinsing rules apply as in homes and ryokan. Onsen means hot spring; these baths use water heated by geothermal springs and are incorporated into resort-like destinations in the countryside where people stay for a day or more. They may have a variety of soaking pools and tubs, some indoors and some outdoors, some communal and some private. Larger onsen will have separate pools for men and women, visitors bathe nude. Many sentō and onsen ban customers with tattoos, which are traditionally taboo, citing concerns over yakuza activity. Bowing, is the feature of Japanese etiquette, best known outside Japan. Bowing is important: although children begin learning how to bow at a young age, companies train their employees how they are to bow.
Basic bows are performed by bending from the waist with the back and neck straight, hands at the sides or clasped at the lap, eyes looking down. The body should be composed but not rigid; the longer and deeper the bow, the stronger the emotion and respect expressed. The three main types of bows are informal and formal. Informal bows are made at about a fifteen-degree angle or just tilt over one's head to the front, more formal bows at about thirty degrees. Formal bows are deeper; the etiquette surrounding bowing, including the length and appropriate response, is exceedingly complex. For example, if one person maintains his or her bow longer than the other person expected, the person who rose first may express politeness by bowing a second time— and receive another bow in response; this leads to a long exchange of progressively lighter bows. An inferior bows longer and more than a superior. A superior addressing an inferior will only nod and some may not bow at all. An inferior will bend forward from the waist.
It is important to try to gauge the appropriate depth and duration of bows in different situations: a bow, too deep or too long for the situation can be interpreted as sarcasm. Bows of apology tend to be deeper and last longer, occurring with frequency throughout the apology at about 45 degrees with the head lowered and lasting for at least the count of three, sometimes longer; the depth and duration of the bow increases with the sincerity of the apology and severity of the offense. In the case of apology and begging, people crouch like Sujud to show absolute submission or extreme regret; this is called Dogeza. Though Dogeza was considered formal, today it is r
Yarn
Yarn is a long continuous length of interlocked fibres, suitable for use in the production of textiles, crocheting, weaving, embroidery, or ropemaking. Thread is a type of yarn intended for sewing by machine. Modern manufactured sewing threads may be finished with wax or other lubricants to withstand the stresses involved in sewing. Embroidery threads are yarns designed for needlework; the word yarn comes from Middle English, from the Old English gearn, akin to Old High German's garn yarn, Greek's chordē string, Sanskrit's hira band. Yarn can be made from a number of synthetic fibers. Many types of yarn are made differently though. There are two main types of yarn: spun and filament; the most common plant fiber is cotton, spun into fine yarn for mechanical weaving or knitting into cloth. Cotton and polyester are the most spun fibers in the world. Cotton is grown throughout the world. After harvesting it is prepared for yarn spinning. Polyester is extruded from polymers derived from natural oil. Synthetic fibers are extruded in continuous strands of gel-state materials.
These strands are drawn and cured to obtain properties desirable for processing. Synthetic fibers come in three basic forms: staple and filament. Staple is cut fibers sold in lengths up to 120mm. Tow is a continuous "rope" of fibers consisting of many filaments loosely joined side-to-side. Filament is a continuous strand consisting of anything from 1 filament to many. Synthetic fiber is most measured in a weight per linear measurement basis, along with cut length. Denier and Dtex are the most common weight to length measures. Cut-length only applies to staple fiber. Filament extrusion is sometimes referred to as "spinning" but most people equate spinning with spun yarn production; the most spun animal fiber is wool harvested from sheep. For hand knitting and hobby knitting, thick and acrylic yarns are used. Other animal fibers used include alpaca, mohair, llama and silk. More yarn may be spun from camel, possum, musk ox, dog, rabbit, or buffalo hair, turkey or ostrich feathers. Natural fibers such as these have the advantage of being elastic and breathable, while trapping a great deal of air, making for a warm fabric.
Other natural fibers that can be used for yarn include cotton. These tend to be much less elastic, retain less warmth than the animal-hair yarns, though they can be stronger in some cases; the finished product will look rather different from the woolen yarns. Other plant fibers which can be spun include bamboo, corn and soy fiber. T-shirt yarn is a yarn made directly from t-shirts, the fiber composition is determined by the material the t-shirt is made from. In general, natural fibers tend to require more careful handling than synthetics because they can shrink, stain, fade, wrinkle, or be eaten by moths more unless special treatments such as mercerization or superwashing are performed to strengthen, fix color, or otherwise enhance the fiber's own properties. Protein yarns may be irritating to some people, causing contact dermatitis, wheezing, or other reactions. Plant fibers tend to be better tolerated by people with sensitivities to the protein yarns, allergists may suggest using them or synthetics instead to prevent symptoms.
Some people find that they can tolerate organically grown and processed versions of protein fibers because organic processing standards preclude the use of chemicals that may irritate the skin. When natural hair-type fibers are burned, they tend to have a smell of burnt hair. Cotton and viscose yarns burn as a wick. Synthetic yarns tend to melt though some synthetics are inherently flame-retardant. Noting how an unidentified fiber strand burns and smells can assist in determining if it is natural or synthetic, what the fiber content is. Both synthetic and natural yarns can pill. Pilling is a function of fiber content, spinning method, contiguous staple length, fabric construction. Single ply yarns or using fibers like merino wool are known to pill more due to the fact that in the former, the single ply is not tight enough to securely retain all the fibers under abrasion, the merino wool's short staple length allows the ends of the fibers to pop out of the twist more easily. Yarns combining synthetic and natural fibers inherit the properties of each parent, according to the proportional composition.
Synthetics are added to lower cost, increase durability, add unusual color or visual effects, provide machine washability and stain resistance, reduce heat retention or lighten garment weight. Spun yarn is made by twisting staple fibres together to make a cohesive thread, or "single." Twisting fibres into yarn in the process called spinning can be dated back to the Upper Paleolithic, yarn spinning was one of the first processes to be industrialized. Spun yarns may be a blend of various types. Combining synthetic fibres with natural fibres is common; the most used blends are cotton-polyester and wool-acrylic fibre blends. Blends of different natural fibres are common too with more expensive fibres such as alpaca and cashmere. Yarn is selected for different textiles based on the characteristics of the yarn fibres, such as warmth, light weight, durability (nylo
Osaka
Osaka is a designated city in the Kansai region of Japan. It is the capital city of Osaka Prefecture and the largest component of the Keihanshin Metropolitan Area, the second largest metropolitan area in Japan and among the largest in the world with over 19 million inhabitants. Osaka will host Expo 2025; the current mayor of Osaka is Ichiro Matsui. Some of the earliest signs of human habitation in the Osaka area at the Morinomiya ruins comprise shell mounds, sea oysters and buried human skeletons from the 6th–5th centuries BC, it is believed that what is today the Uehonmachi area consisted of a peninsular land with an inland sea in the east. During the Yayoi period, permanent habitation on the plains grew. By the Kofun period, Osaka developed into a hub port connecting the region to the western part of Japan; the large numbers of larger tomb mounds found in the plains of Osaka are seen as evidence of political-power concentration, leading to the formation of a state. The Kojiki records that during 390–430 AD there was an imperial palace located at Osumi, in what is present day Higashiyodogawa ward, but it may have been a secondary imperial residence rather than a capital.
In 645, Emperor Kōtoku built his Naniwa Nagara-Toyosaki Palace in what is now Osaka, making it the capital of Japan. The city now known as Osaka was at this time referred to as Naniwa, this name and derivations of it are still in use for districts in central Osaka such as Naniwa and Namba. Although the capital was moved to Asuka in 655, Naniwa remained a vital connection, by land and sea, between Yamato and China. Naniwa was declared the capital again in 744 by order of Emperor Shōmu, remained so until 745, when the Imperial Court moved back to Heijō-kyō. By the end of the Nara period, Naniwa's seaport roles had been taken over by neighboring areas, but it remained a lively center of river and land transportation between Heian-kyō and other destinations. In 1496, Jōdo Shinshū Buddhists established their headquarters in the fortified Ishiyama Hongan-ji, located directly on the site of the old Naniwa Imperial Palace. Oda Nobunaga began a decade-long siege campaign on the temple in 1570 which resulted in the surrender of the monks and subsequent razing of the temple.
Toyotomi Hideyoshi constructed Osaka Castle in its place in 1583. Osaka was long considered Japan's primary economic center, with a large percentage of the population belonging to the merchant class. Over the course of the Edo period, Osaka grew into one of Japan's major cities and returned to its ancient role as a lively and important port, its popular culture was related to ukiyo-e depictions of life in Edo. By 1780, Osaka had cultivated a vibrant arts culture, as typified by its famous Kabuki and Bunraku theaters. In 1837, Ōshio Heihachirō, a low-ranking samurai, led a peasant insurrection in response to the city's unwillingness to support the many poor and suffering families in the area. One-quarter of the city was razed before shogunal officials put down the rebellion, after which Ōshio killed himself. Osaka was opened to foreign trade by the government of the Bakufu at the same time as Hyōgo on 1 January 1868, just before the advent of the Boshin War and the Meiji Restoration. Osaka residents were stereotyped in Edo literature from at least the 18th century.
Jippensha Ikku in 1802 depicted Osakans as stingy beyond belief. In 1809, the derogatory term "Kamigata zeeroku" was used by Edo residents to characterize inhabitants of the Osaka region in terms of calculation, lack of civic spirit, the vulgarity of Osaka dialect. Edo writers aspired to samurai culture, saw themselves as poor but generous and public spirited. Edo writers by contrast saw "zeeroku" as obsequious apprentices, greedy and lewd. To some degree, Osaka residents are still stigmatized by Tokyo observers in the same way today in terms of gluttony, evidenced in the phrase, "Residents of Osaka devour their food until they collapse"; the modern municipality was established in 1889 by government ordinance, with an initial area of 15 square kilometres, overlapping today's Chūō and Nishi wards. The city went through three major expansions to reach its current size of 223 square kilometres. Osaka was the industrial center most defined in the development of capitalism in Japan, it became known as the "Manchester of the Orient."The rapid industrialization attracted many Korean immigrants, who set up a life apart for themselves.
The political system was pluralistic, with a strong emphasis on promoting industrialization and modernization. Literacy was high and the educational system expanded producing a middle class with a taste for literature and a willingness to support the arts. In 1927, General Motors operated a factory called Osaka Assembly until 1941, manufacturing Chevrolet, Pontiac and Buick vehicles and staffed by Japanese workers and managers. In the nearby city of Ikeda in Osaka Prefecture is the headquarters office of Daihatsu, one of Japan's oldest automobile manufacturers. Like its European and American counterparts, Osaka displayed slums and poverty. In Japan it was here that municipal government first introduced a comprehensive system of poverty relief, copied in part from British models. Osaka policymakers stressed the importance of family formation and mutual assistance as the best way to combat poverty; this minimized
Honour
Honour is the idea of a bond between an individual and a society as a quality of a person, both of social teaching and of personal ethos, that manifests itself as a code of conduct, has various elements such as valor, chivalry and compassion. It is an abstract concept entailing a perceived quality of worthiness and respectability that affects both the social standing and the self-evaluation of an individual or institution such as a family, regiment or nation. Accordingly, individuals are assigned worth and stature based on the harmony of their actions with a specific code of honour, the moral code of the society at large. Samuel Johnson, in his A Dictionary of the English Language, defined honour as having several senses, the first of, "nobility of soul, a scorn of meanness"; this sort of honour derives from the perceived virtuous conduct and personal integrity of the person endowed with it. On the other hand, Johnson defined honour in relationship to "reputation" and "fame"; this sort of honour is not so much a function of moral or ethical excellence, as it is a consequence of power.
With respect to sexuality, honour has traditionally been associated with "chastity" or "virginity", or in case of married men and women, "fidelity". Some have argued that honour should be seen more as a rhetoric, or set of possible actions, than as a code. Honour as a code of behaviour defines the duties of an individual within a social group. Margaret Visser observes that in an honour-based society "a person is what he or she is in the eyes of other people". A code of honour differs from a legal code socially defined and concerned with justice, in that honour remains implicit rather than explicit and objectified. One can distinguish honour from dignity, which Wordsworth assessed as measured against an individual's conscience rather than against the judgement of a community. Compare the sociological concept of "face". In the early medieval period, a lord's or lady's honour was the group of manors or lands he or she held. "The word was first used indicating an estate which gave its holder dignity and status."
For a person to say "on my honour" was not just an affirmation of his or her integrity and rank, but the veracity behind that phrase meant he or she was willing to offer up estates as pledge and guarantee. The concept of honour appears to have declined in importance in the modern West. Popular stereotypes would have it surviving more definitively in more tradition-bound cultures in a perception akin to Orientalism. Feudal or other agrarian societies, which focus upon land use and land ownership, may tend to "honour" more than do contemporary industrial societies. Note that Saint Anselm of Canterbury in Cur Deus Homo extended the concept of honour from his own feudal society to postulate God's honour. An emphasis on the importance of honour exists in such traditional institutions as the military and in organisations with a military ethos, such as Scouting organisations. Honour in the case of sexuality relates to fidelity: preservation of "honour" equates to maintenance of the virginity of singles and to the exclusive monogamy of the remainder of the population.
Further conceptions of this type of honour vary between cultures. Western observers see these honour killings as a way of men using the culture of honour to control female sexuality. Skinners, grave-diggers, barber-surgeons, linen-weavers, sow-gelders, latrine-cleaners, bailiffs and their families were among the "dishonourable people" in early modern German society. Various sociologists and anthropologists have contrasted cultures of honour with cultures of law. A culture of law has a body of laws which all members of society must obey, with punishments for transgressors; this requires a society with the structures required to enforce laws. A culture of law incorporates a social contract: members of society give up some aspects of their freedom to defend themselves and retaliate for injuries, on the understanding that society will apprehend and punish transgressors. An alternative to government enforcement of laws is community or individual enforcement of social norms. One way that honour functions is as a major factor of reputation.
In a system where there is no court that will authorize the use of force to guarantee the execution of contracts, an honourable reputation is valuable to promote trust among transaction partners. To dishonour an agreement could be economically ruinous, because all future potential transaction partners might stop trusting the party not to lie, steal their money or goods, not repay debts, mistreat the children they marry off, have children with other people, abandon their children, or fail to provide aid when needed. A dishonourable person might be shunned by the community as a way to punish bad behavior and create an incentive for others to maintain their honour. If one's honou
Shinto architecture
Shinto architecture is the architecture of Japanese Shinto shrines. With a few exceptions, the general blueprint of a Shinto shrine is Buddhist in origin. Before Buddhism, shrines were just temporary. Buddhism brought to Japan the idea of permanent shrines and much of Shinto architecture's vocabulary; the presence of verandas, stone lanterns, elaborate gates are examples of this influence. The composition of a Shinto shrine is variable, none of its possible features are present; the honden or sanctuary, the part which houses the kami and, the centerpiece of a shrine, can be missing. However, since its grounds are sacred, they are surrounded by a fence made of stone or wood called tamagaki, while access is made possible by an approach called sandō; the entrances themselves are straddled by gates called torii, which are therefore the simplest way to identify a Shinto shrine. A shrine may include within its grounds each destined to a different purpose. Among them are the honden or sanctuary, where the kami are enshrined, the heiden, or hall of offerings, where offers and prayers are presented, the haiden or hall of worship, where there may be seats for worshipers.
The honden is the building that contains the shintai "the sacred body of the kami". Of these, only the haiden is open to the laity; the honden is located behind the haiden and is much smaller and unadorned. Other notable shrine features are the temizuya, the fountain where visitors cleanse their hands and mouth and the shamusho, the office that supervises the shrine. Shrines can be large, as for example Ise Shrine, or as small as a beehive, as in the case of the hokora, small shrines found on road sides. Before the forced separation of Shinto and Buddhism, it was not uncommon for a Buddhist temple to be built inside or next to a shrine or to the contrary for a shrine to include Buddhist subtemples. If a shrine was a Buddhist temple, it was called a jingu-ji. At the same time, temples in the entire country adopted tutelary kami (chinju and built temple shrines called chinjusha to house them. After the forcible separation of Buddhist temples and Shinto shrines ordered by the new government in the Meiji period, the connection between the two religions was severed, but continued nonetheless in practice.
The practice of marking sacred areas began in Japan as early as the Yayoi period originating from primal Shinto tenets. Features in the landscape such as rocks, waterfalls and mountains, were places believed to be capable of attracting kami, subsequently were worshiped as yorishiro. Sacred places may have been marked with a surrounding fence and an entrance gate or torii. Temporary buildings similar to present day portable shrines were constructed to welcome the gods to the sacred place. Over time the temporary structures evolved into permanent structures that were dedicated to the gods. Ancient shrines were constructed according to the style of storehouses; the buildings had gabled roofs, raised floors, plank walls, were thatched with reed or covered with hinoki cypress bark. Such early shrines did not include a space for worship. Three important forms of ancient shrine architectural styles exist: taisha-zukuri, shinmei-zukuri and sumiyoshi-zukuri They are exemplified by Izumo Taisha, Nishina Shinmei Shrine and Sumiyoshi Taisha and date to before 552.
According to the tradition of Shikinen sengū-sai, the buildings or shrines were faithfully rebuilt at regular intervals adhering to the original design. In this manner, ancient styles have been replicated through the centuries to the present day; the following is a diagram illustrating the most important elements of a Shinto shrine. Torii – Shinto gate Stone stairs Sandō – the approach to the shrine Chōzuya or temizuya – fountain to cleanse one's hands and face Tōrō – decorative stone lanterns Kagura-den – building dedicated to Noh or the sacred kagura dance Shamusho – the shrine's administrative office Ema – wooden plaques bearing prayers or wishes Sessha/massha – small auxiliary shrines Komainu – the so-called "lion dogs", guardians of the shrine Haiden – oratory Tamagaki – fence surrounding the honden Honden – main hall, enshrining the kami. On the roof of the haiden and honden are visible chigi and katsuogi, both common shrine ornamentations; the torii is a gate which marks the entrance to a sacred area but not a shrine.
A shrine may have any number of torii made of wood, metal, concrete or any other material. They can be found in different places within a shrine's precincts to signify an increased level of holiness. Torii can be found at Buddhist temples, however they are an accepted symbol of Shinto, as such are used to mark shrines on maps; the origin of the torii is unclear, no existing theory has been accepted as valid. They may for example have originated in India as a derivative of the torana gates in the monastery of Sanchi, located in central India; the sandō is the road approaching either a Buddhist temple. Its point of origin is straddled in the first case by a Shinto torii, in the second by a Buddhist sanmon, gates which mark the beginning of the shrine's or temple territory. There can be stone lanterns and other decorations at any point along its course. There can be more than one sandō, in which case the main one is called omote-sandō, or front sandō, ura-sandō, or rear sandō, etc. B
Insect
Insects or Insecta are hexapod invertebrates and the largest group within the arthropod phylum. Definitions and circumscriptions vary; as used here, the term Insecta is synonymous with Ectognatha. Insects have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body, three pairs of jointed legs, compound eyes and one pair of antennae. Insects are the most diverse group of animals; the total number of extant species is estimated at between ten million. Insects may be found in nearly all environments, although only a small number of species reside in the oceans, which are dominated by another arthropod group, crustaceans. Nearly all insects hatch from eggs. Insect growth is constrained by the inelastic exoskeleton and development involves a series of molts; the immature stages differ from the adults in structure and habitat, can include a passive pupal stage in those groups that undergo four-stage metamorphosis. Insects that undergo three-stage metamorphosis lack a pupal stage and adults develop through a series of nymphal stages.
The higher level relationship of the insects is unclear. Fossilized insects of enormous size have been found from the Paleozoic Era, including giant dragonflies with wingspans of 55 to 70 cm; the most diverse insect groups appear to have coevolved with flowering plants. Adult insects move about by walking, flying, or sometimes swimming; as it allows for rapid yet stable movement, many insects adopt a tripedal gait in which they walk with their legs touching the ground in alternating triangles, composed of the front & rear on one side with the middle on the other side. Insects are the only invertebrates to have evolved flight, all flying insects derive from one common ancestor. Many insects spend at least part of their lives under water, with larval adaptations that include gills, some adult insects are aquatic and have adaptations for swimming; some species, such as water striders, are capable of walking on the surface of water. Insects are solitary, but some, such as certain bees and termites, are social and live in large, well-organized colonies.
Some insects, such as earwigs, show maternal care, guarding their eggs and young. Insects can communicate with each other in a variety of ways. Male moths can sense the pheromones of female moths over great distances. Other species communicate with sounds: crickets stridulate, or rub their wings together, to attract a mate and repel other males. Lampyrid beetles communicate with light. Humans regard certain insects as pests, attempt to control them using insecticides, a host of other techniques; some insects damage crops by feeding on sap, fruits, or wood. Some species are parasitic, may vector diseases; some insects perform complex ecological roles. Insect pollinators are essential to the life cycle of many flowering plant species on which most organisms, including humans, are at least dependent. Many insects are considered ecologically beneficial as predators and a few provide direct economic benefit. Silkworms produce silk and honey bees produce honey and both have been domesticated by humans.
Insects are consumed as food in 80% of the world's nations, by people in 3000 ethnic groups. Human activities have effects on insect biodiversity; the word "insect" comes from the Latin word insectum, meaning "with a notched or divided body", or "cut into", from the neuter singular perfect passive participle of insectare, "to cut into, to cut up", from in- "into" and secare "to cut". A calque of Greek ἔντομον, "cut into sections", Pliny the Elder introduced the Latin designation as a loan-translation of the Greek word ἔντομος or "insect", Aristotle's term for this class of life in reference to their "notched" bodies. "Insect" first appears documented in English in 1601 in Holland's translation of Pliny. Translations of Aristotle's term form the usual word for "insect" in Welsh, Serbo-Croatian, etc; the precise definition of the taxon Insecta and the equivalent English name "insect" varies. In the broadest circumscription, Insecta sensu lato consists of all hexapods. Traditionally, insects defined in this way were divided into "Apterygota" —the wingless insects—and Pterygota—the winged insects.
However, modern phylogenetic studies have shown that "Apterygota" is not monophyletic, so does not form a good taxon. A narrower circumscription restricts insects to those hexapods with external mouthparts, comprises only the last three groups in the table. In this sense, Insecta sensu stricto is equivalent to Ectognatha. In the narrowest circumscription, insects are restricted to hexapods that are either winged or descended from winged ancestors. Insecta sensu strictissimo is equivalent to Pterygota. For the purposes of this article, the middle definition is used; the evolutionary relationship of insects to other animal groups remains unclear. Although traditionally grouped with millipedes and centiped
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