title: Drew Pinsky

text: Pinsky lives in Pasadena, California. Interested in fitness since his early teens, he goes running and does weight training regularly. In addition to his hobby of traveling, he also enjoys singing opera, as his mother was a professional singer. Pinsky stated on the June 24, 2009, episode of "Loveline" that at one point, he was torn between practicing medicine and becoming a professional opera singer. Pinsky stated that he auditioned for a celebrity singing show, but that the show passed on his appearance when he made it clear to producers that he could not sing pop songs but did perform an aria on "Turn Ben Stein On".


title: Drew Pinsky

text: Pinsky's father, Morton, died suddenly of a cerebral hemorrhage on October 27, 2009. A title card at the end of the season 3 finale of "Celebrity Rehab" dedicated the episode to him. Pinsky's mother, Helene, died on June 7, 2017, at age 91.


title: Drew Pinsky

text: Pinsky is a nonobservant Jew; he admits to abandoning most Jewish practices but claims to retain a continued desire to learn about the religion. He explains that religious as well as philosophical studies affect his medical practice and his speeches, and that his background places "an indirect coloring on every answer."


title: Drew Pinsky

text: In September 2013, Pinsky stated that he had recovered from prostate cancer surgery performed earlier that June and July, after which Pinsky did not require chemotherapy or radiation. During episode 119 of his podcast Dr. Drew After Dark, aired on June 10, 2021, Pinsky said that his prostate cancer has recurred after it was discovered during routine bloodwork that his PSA (Prostate-specific antigen) level is elevated. He will go through Stereotactic Body Radiation Therapy (SBRT) in July 2021.


title: Drew Pinsky

text: In a 2011 interview on "Kevin and Bean", Pinsky stated he would speak to any media outlet including TMZ and "The National Enquirer" but would not speak to the "Los Angeles Times", explaining "They distort, and they mislead, and they take things out of context. I really am stunned at how shoddy their journalism is, so I stopped talking to them."


title: Drew Pinsky

text: Politically, Pinsky has increasingly spoken of the 'tyranny' of governmental overreach and the need for a “Liberty Party”.


title: Drew Pinsky

text: Pinsky told Ryan Holiday he was studying philosopher Epictetus and recommended it to him. Holiday says this sparked his interest in stoic philosophy, later becoming a New York Times best-selling author on the subject.


title: Ōdachi

text: The (large/great sword) or nodachi (野太刀, field sword) is a type of traditionally made Japanese sword (日本刀, nihontō) used by the samurai class of feudal Japan. The Chinese equivalent of this type of sword in terms of weight and length is the "miaodao" or the earlier "zhanmadao", and the Western battlefield equivalent (though less similar) is the "Zweihänder" or claymore.


title: Ōdachi

text: To qualify as an "ōdachi", the sword in question would have a blade length of around 3 "shaku" (). However, as with most terms in Japanese sword arts, there is no exact definition of the size of an "ōdachi".


title: Ōdachi

text: The character for "ō" (大) means "big" or "great". The "dachi" here is simply the voiced compounding version of the term , the older style of sword that predates the "katana". The second character in "tachi", , is the Chinese character for "blade" (see also "dāo"), and is also the same character used to spell "katana" (刀) and the "tō" in "nihontō" (日本刀 "Japanese sword").


title: Ōdachi

text: The word "tachi" itself is derived as the stem or noun form of verb . The kanji spelling is an example of jukujikun, applying a semantically based kanji spelling without regard to the usual phonetic values of the characters.


title: Ōdachi

text: "Ōdachi" became popular in Kamakura period (1185－1333). Until the middle of the Kamakura period, high-ranking samurai mainly fought on horseback with "yumi" (bows), but as group battles by foot soldiers increased from the late Kamakura period, the importance of weapons possessed by those who did not have horses and did not have sufficient training in bows increased. Until then, they mainly used "naginata" with a long handle, but they also started to use "ōdachi". The Kamakura period was the first time that samurai ruled Japan, and powerful men were valued, and those who wanted to show off the honor of being a warrior preferred to use "ōdachi".


title: Ōdachi

text: In the Nanboku-chō period in the 14th century, huge Japanese swords such as "ōdachi" were at their peak. The reason for this is thought to be that the conditions for making a practical large-sized sword were established due to the nationwide spread of strong and sharp swords of the Sōshū school. In the case of "ōdachi" whose blade was 150 cm long, it was impossible to draw a sword from the scabbard on the waist, so people carried it on their back or had their servants carry it. Large naginata and kanabō were also popular in this period. However, infantry units gradually came to be equipped with "yari" (spears) in addition to "naginata", and because "ōdachi" was disadvantageous for mountain battles and surprise attacks, and only a few powerful men could use it effectively, this trend ended for a short time. Furthermore, from the Sengoku period in the latter part of the Muromachi period to the Azuchi-Momoyama period, as tactics shifted to fighting with "yari" and "tanegashima" (guns) by a large group of infantry, "ōdachi" became even more obsolete. As "ōdachi" became useless, it was often replaced with a "tachi" and "katana".


title: Ōdachi

text: Even so, sengoku-daimyo in the Sengoku period dared to equip their own troops with "ōdachi" in order to show off their strength and bravery. Uesugi Kenshin had men more than six "shaku" (approx. ) tall equipped with an "ōdachi" guard around his horse. The Asakura clan made a troop called "Rikishizei (力士勢)" equip with an ōdachi with a blade length of 5 "shaku" (approx. ), and fought well against the troop of Oda Nobunaga in the Battle of Anegawa.


title: Ōdachi

text: The ōdachi was used as a weapon, but because of its magnificent appearance, it was often used as an offering to kami, a Shinto shrine. For example, Ōyamazumi Shrine, which is said to be a treasure house of Japanese swords and armor, is dedicated to the national treasure Ōdachi, which was dedicated by Emperor Go-Murakami, and ōdachi, which was dedicated by Ōmori Naoharu and killed Kusunoki Masashige.


title: Ōdachi

text: In the peaceful Edo period, "ōdachi" was no longer regarded as a practical weapon and came to be recognized only as an offering to the kami of Shinto shrines.


title: Ōdachi

text: According to the historical book "Wakan Shuyo" (), the had a blade length of 3 "shaku" (traditional Japanese feet) and 9 "sun" (traditional Japanese inches; totaling approx. ) and "ōdachi" had a blade length of 3 "shaku" 3 "sun" (approx. ), but in fact, they were not strictly distinguished between "nodachi" and "ōdachi", and it is thought that the term "ōdachi" indicated a long "tachi", and the term "nodachi" indicated an "ōdachi" used in field battles (in keeping with the name, since the initial literally means "field").


title: Ōdachi

text: "Ōdachi" are difficult to produce because their length makes traditional heat treatment more complicated: The longer a blade is, the more difficult (and expensive) it is to heat the whole blade to a homogeneous temperature, both for annealing and to reach the hardening temperature. The quenching process then needs a bigger quenching medium because uneven quenching might lead to warping the blade.


title: Ōdachi

text: The method of polishing is also different. Because of their size, ōdachi are usually hung from the ceiling or placed in a stationary position to be polished, unlike normal swords which are moved over polishing stones.


title: Ōdachi

text: As battlefield weapons, ōdachi were too long for samurai to carry on their waists like normal swords. There were two main methods in which they could be carried.


title: Ōdachi

text: One was to carry it on one's back and unsheathe before battle starts. The other method was simply to carry the sheathed ōdachi by hand. The trend during the Muromachi era was for the samurai carrying the ōdachi to have a follower to help draw it.


title: Ōdachi

text: An exception does exist, though. The "Kōden Enshin-ryū" taught by Fumon Tanaka use a special drawing technique for "short" ōdachi allowing it to be carried on the waist. The technique is to pull out the sheath rather than drawing the blade. While this move is also used in other schools, for example, Yagyū Shinkage-ryū, Shin musō Hayashizaki-ryū and Iaidō, only Enshin-ryū seems to have used it to improve the drawing speed of an ōdachi, the other schools having used it with classical katana. The Kage-ryū style is also used to draw from the belt, using blades of approximately 2.8 shaku.


title: Ōdachi

text: One possible use of ōdachi is as large anti-cavalry weapons, to strike down the horse as it approaches. Alternatively, it could be used as a cavalry-on-cavalry weapon comparable to the Chinese zhanmadao, with the long reach, increased weight and slashing area of the blade offering some advantages over spears, lances and smaller swords.


title: Ōdachi

text: One of the longest ōdachi is the Odachi Norimitsu with a total length of . It was forged by the Japanese master bladesmith Norimitsu Osafune in the former Bishū province in August 1446. It is kept in the Yahiko jinja (弥彦神社) in the village of Yahiko, Nishikanbara District, Niigata Prefecture, Japan. A special attribute is that this blade was forged from one piece, similarly to the conventional Japanese katana; it was not forged from multiple pieces or sections. This required the skill of a master bladesmith. The blade, hada and hamon are authentic. This odachi has a bo-hi (fuller or "blood groove"). Norimitsu was a famous line of swordsmiths that began in the Oei Bizen school (1394) and continued until the end of Bizen. Around 2000, it was polished and named "Kibitsu maru" by the priest of Kibitsu Shrine in Okayama Prefecture.


title: Ōdachi

text: The longest known ōdachi is the Haja-no-Ontachi (Great Evil-Crushing Blade). Its length is with an overall weight of . In 1859, this ōdachi was donated to the Hanaoka Hachiman Shrine in Yamaguchi during an imperial memorial ceremony by parishioners who sympathized with imperial patriots. It is kept in the Treasure House which is not open to the public.


title: Bakhmut

text: Bakhmut (, ) is a city and the administrative centre of Bakhmut Raion in Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine. It is located on the Bakhmutovka River, about 89 km north of Donetsk city, the administrative center of the oblast. Population:


title: Bakhmut

text: From 1924 to 2016, the city was called Artemivsk () or Artyomovsk (). On 4 February 2016 the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine confirmed the name change of the city by returning to the original one. Prior to 2020, when the designation was abolished, Bakhmut was designated a "city of regional significance" (, "misto oblasnoho znachennya").


title: Bakhmut

text: Bakhmut was the capital of Slavo-Serbia, which was established by Serbian migrants from Austria. In 1920–1924, the city was an administrative center of Donets Governorate of the Ukrainian SSR.


title: Bakhmut

text: There is a theory that the origin of the word "Bakhmut" is a distorted version of the word "Muhammad"/"Mahmud" in Turkish/Tatar. Another theory is that a similar variant of the same word means "salt water". In both cases, the name of the city is considered to be associated with the former Turkish/Tatar possession of the surrounding lands.


title: Bakhmut

text: There is evidence of prior settlement in 1556, but the first official mention of Bakhmut dates from 1571. The settlement was described then as a guard-fort (storozha) named after the nearby Bakhmutovka River, a tributary of the Seversky Donets River, and located at the mouth of a stream called the Chornyi Zherebets. The origin of the name "Bakhmut" is uncertain, but it may come from the Tatar name "Mahmud" or "Mahmet".


title: Bakhmut

text: The history of Bakhmut before the 18th century is sparse. It was initially a border post that later became a fortified town. In 1701, Peter I ordered the fort at Bakhmut to be upgraded and the adjacent sloboda (free village) of Bakhmut be designated a city. The new fort was completed in 1703 and housed 170 people. In 1704 Peter commanded some Cossacks to settle at the Bakhmutovka river and mine salt. The population of Bakhmut doubled, and the town was assigned to the Izium Regiment, a province of Sloboda Ukraine.


title: Bakhmut

text: In the autumn of 1705, Bakhmut became one of the centers of the Bulavin Rebellion. A detachment of Cossacks headed by Ataman Kondraty Bulavin captured the Bakhmut salt mines and occupied the city until March 7, 1708, when it was retaken by government troops.


title: Bakhmut

text: From 1708 to 22 April 1725, Bakhmut was assigned to the Azov Governorate. On 29 May 1719, it became the administrative center of Bakhmut Province within the Azov Governorate. From 1753 to 1764, it was a major city of Slavo-Serbia, a territory inhabited by colonists from Serbia and elsewhere.


title: Bakhmut

text: In 1783, Bakhmut became a city within the Yekaterinoslav province (Novorossiysk Governorate). At this time the city contained 49 great houses and five factories that produced bricks, candles, and soap. The city had about 150 shops, a hospital, and three schools: two private boarding schools for children of wealthy parents, and a Sunday school for children of workers. Bakhmut had a large city center where fairs were held twice a year, on 12 July (Day of the Apostles Peter and Paul) and 21 September (Day of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary). The city's annual turnover was about 1 million rubles.


title: Bakhmut

text: On 25 January 1851, the city became a municipality, with Vasily I. Pershin as mayor. In 1875, a municipal water system was installed. Streets were paved in 1900.


title: Bakhmut

text: In 1876, large deposits of rock salt were discovered in the Bakhmut Basin, leading to a rapid increase in the number of salt mines. Bakhmut soon produced 12% of the total Russian output of salt.


title: Bakhmut

text: The construction of the Kharkov-Bakhmut-Popasnaya railroad encouraged production of alabaster, plaster, brick, tile, and soda ash in Bakhmut. At the beginning of the twentieth century, the city developed a metal-working industry. By 1900, the city had 76 small industrial enterprises, which employed 1,078 workers, as well as four salt mines, which employed 874 workers.


title: Bakhmut

text: By 1913, the population consisted of 28,000 people. There were two hospitals with 210 beds, four secondary and two vocational schools, six single-class schools, four parish schools, and a private library.


title: Bakhmut

text: In April 1918, troops loyal to the Ukrainian People's Republic took control of Bakhmut. On 27 December 1919, Soviet control over the city was established.


title: Bakhmut

text: In 1923, there were 36 enterprises in Bakhmut, including a "Victory of Labor" factory that formerly made nails and spikes, a "Lightning" factory that produced castings for agriculture, as well as brick, tile, and alabaster factories, and one shoe factory. Local mines were renamed "Karl Liebknecht and Sverdlov", "Shevchenko", and "Bakhmut salt". From 16 April 1920 to 1 August 1925, Bakhmut was the administrative center of the Donetsk province.


title: Bakhmut

text: In 1924, the city's name was changed from Bakhmut to Artemivsk, in honour of a Russian Bolshevik (Communist) revolutionary figure known as Artyom who lived and worked in the city in the early years of the revolution. In 1938, a man named Moskalenko was the First Secretary of the Municipal Committee of the Communist Party of Ukraine in Artemivsk. In 1941, Vasily Panteleevich Prokopenko was First Secretary of the City Committee of the Communist Party.


title: Bakhmut

text: During the Second World War, German troops occupied Artemivsk from 31 October 1941 to 5 September 1943. Nikolai Mikhailovich Zhorov was the secretary of the underground City Party Committee during occupation from 1941.


title: Bakhmut

text: In early 1942, German "Einsatzgruppe C" took some 3,000 Jews from Artemivsk to a mine shaft two kilometres outside of town and shot into the crowd, killing several people and driving the rest into a tunnel. The soldiers then bricked up the entrance to the tunnel, suffocating the thousands of people trapped inside.


title: Bakhmut

text: In 1961, Kuzma Petrovich Golovko became First Secretary of the City Party Committee, followed by Ivan Malyukin in 1966, Nikolai S. Tagan in 1976, and Yuri K. Smirnov from 1980 to 1983. From April 1990 to 1994, during the dissolution of the Soviet Union, Alexei Reva was Chairman of the Artemivsk City Council and was elected mayor in 1994, three years after Ukraine regained its independence.


title: Bakhmut

text: In January 1999, a charitable Jewish foundation in Bakhmut, the Artemivsk city council, and a winery that had opened on the site in 1952, inaugurated a memorial to commemorate the victims of the 1942 mass murder. The memorial was built into a rock face in the old mine where water collects and was named the "Wailing Wall" for the murdered Jews of Bakhmut.


title: Bakhmut

text: During the 2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine, the pro-Russian separatists of the Donetsk People's Republic claimed the city of Artemivsk as part of their territory. Ukrainian forces recaptured the city, along with Druzhkivka, on 7 July 2014.


title: Bakhmut

text: On 15 May 2015, President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko signed a bill into law that started a six-month period for the removal of communist monuments and the mandatory renaming of settlements with names related to Communism. On 23 September 2015, the city council voted to restore the city's former name of Bakhmut. The final decision was made by the Verkhovna Rada (Ukraine's national parliament) on 4 February 2016.


title: Bakhmut

text: During the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, Bakhmut became a frontline city in May, and is regularly shelled by the Russian army. According to the Associated Press, "taking Bakhmut would rupture Ukraine’s supply lines and open a route for Russian forces to press on toward Kramatorsk and Sloviansk, key Ukrainian strongholds in Donetsk province."


title: Bakhmut

text: , according to local authorities about 20,000 people remained in the city. Russia prioritised Bakhmut as its main offensive effort through August 2022. In a December analysis of the offensive, the UK Ministry of Defence said "The capture of the town would have limited operational value although it would potentially allow Russia to threaten the larger urban areas of Kramatorsk and Sloviansk."


title: Bakhmut

text: On 11 December 2022, Ukraine President Zelenskyy said that Russian forces have turned the city of Bakhmut into "burned ruins".


title: Bakhmut

text: According to the Ukrainian Census of 2001, the majority of residents are ethnic Ukrainians and speak Russian as a first language:


title: Bakhmut

text: Since 1951, the European Bakhmut Winery is located in the city. The Artyomsol salt mine is located in the suburb of Soledar, which contains the world's largest underground room. It is large enough that a hot air balloon has been floated inside, symphonies have been played before, and two professional football matches have been held at the same time. It is large enough to fit Notre Dame inside with room to spare.


title: Bakhmut

text: The highways of Kharkiv-Rostov and Donetsk-Kyiv run through Bakhmut. The towns of Chasiv Yar and Soledar are included in the Bakhmut municipality. The city has a public transport system consisting of a network of trolleybuses and buses.


title: Bakhmut

text: There are 20 schools (11,600 students), 29 kindergartens (3500 children), 4 vocational schools (2,000 students), 2 technical schools (6,000 students), and several music schools. Some include:


title: Bakhmut

text: After the 2014 outbreak of the War in Donbas the Horlivka Institute for Foreign Languages was evacuated and is now operating in Bakhmut.


title: Death Parade

text: Whenever someone dies, they are sent to one of many mysterious bars run by bartenders serving as arbiters inside a tower in the afterlife. There, they must compete in Death Games with their souls on the line, the results of which reveal what secrets led them to their situation and what their fate will be afterwards, with the arbiters judging if their souls will either be sent for reincarnation or banished into the void. The series follows Decim, the lone bartender of the bar where people who died at the same time are sent to, known as the Quindecim bar, and his assistant.


title: Death Parade

text: was produced by Madhouse as part of the Young Animator Training Project's Anime Mirai 2013 project, which funds young animators, alongside other short films by Trigger, Zexcs and Gonzo. "Death Billiards" and the other shorts each received 38 million yen from the Japanese Animation Creators Association, who receives funding from the Japanese government's Agency for Cultural Affairs. The short was created, directed and written by Yuzuru Tachikawa. The short, along with the other Anime Mirai shorts, opened in 14 Japanese theatres on March 2, 2013.


title: Death Parade

text: An anime television series based on the short, titled "Death Parade", aired in Japan on Nippon TV between January 9, 2015, and March 27, 2015. Produced by NTV, VAP and Madhouse, the series is created, written and directed by Yuzuru Tachikawa, with Shinichi Kurita designing the characters and Yuki Hayashi composing the music. The opening theme is "Flyers" by Bradio while the ending theme is "Last Theater" by NoisyCell. The anime is licensed in North America by Funimation, who simulcast the series as it aired. It was also acquired in the United Kingdom by Anime Limited, however, it was later announced that the release was cancelled and delisted. A broadcast dub version began streaming from February 18, 2015, both on Funimation's website and a Dubbletalk programming block which is streamed on Twitch.


title: Death Parade

text: "Death Parade" won the 2016 Anime Trending Awards in the "Best Original Anime" category and was nominated for their "Anime of the Year", "Supernatural Anime of the Year", "Mystery or Psychological Anime of the Year" and "Opening Theme Song of the Year" categories. A poll done on the Japanese video-sharing service Niconico at the end of the Winter 2015 airing anime season, ranked "Death Parade" 9th as the users favorite anime of that season. The English dubbed version of the anime had nominations for "Best male lead vocal performance in an anime television series/OVA" and "Best female lead vocal performance in an anime television series/OVA" and it won the "Best vocal ensemble in an anime television series/OVA" for the BTVA Anime Dub Television/OVA Voice Acting Awards. IGN listed "Death Parade" among the best anime series of the 2010s.


title: Kelowna

text: Kelowna ( ) is a city on Okanagan Lake in the Okanagan Valley in the southern interior of British Columbia, Canada. It serves as the head office of the Regional District of Central Okanagan. The name Kelowna derives from the Okanagan word "kiʔláwnaʔ", referring to a male grizzly bear.


title: Kelowna

text: Kelowna is the province's third-largest metropolitan area (after Vancouver and Victoria), while it is the seventh-largest city overall and the largest in the Interior. It is the 20th-largest metropolitan area in Canada. The city proper encompasses , and the census metropolitan area . Kelowna's estimated population in 2020 is 222,748 in the metropolitan area and 142,146 in the city proper. After many years of suburban expansion into the surrounding mountain slopes, the city council adopted a long-term plan intended to increase density instead - particularly in the downtown core. This has resulted in the construction of taller buildings, including One Water Street - a 36-storey building that is the tallest in Kelowna. Other highrise developments have already broken ground or been approved since then, including a 42-storey tower on Leon Avenue which will be the tallest building in the city, and among the tallest in B.C.


title: Kelowna

text: Nearby communities include the City of West Kelowna (also referred to as Westbank and Westside) to the west, across Okanagan Lake; Lake Country and Vernon to the north; Peachland to the southwest; and Summerland and Penticton to the south.


title: Kelowna

text: The exact dates of first settlement in the Okanagan Valley are unknown, but a northern migration led to the habitation of this area some 9,000 years ago. The Indigenous Syilx people are the first known inhabitants of the region, where they continue to live today.


title: Kelowna

text: In 1811, David Stuart travelled to the Okanagan Valley, becoming the first European to do so. Despite this, it was not until 1859 that Father Pandosy, a French Roman Catholic Oblate missionary, became the first European to settle there. Pandosy's settlement was located at "l'Anse au Sable" (Bay of Sand), which he named in reference to the sandy shoreline. Although the population remained small for the rest of the 19th century, sustenance fruit growing expanded in Kelowna during the 1870s, and by the 1890s, commercial agriculture had become firmly established.


title: Kelowna

text: Kelowna was officially incorporated on May 4, 1905, with a population of 600. The town's first mayor was Henry Raymer.


title: Kelowna

text: Although agriculture had become an important mark of Kelowna on the surrounding region, the town was entirely reliant on transportation over Okanagan Lake until 1925. In 1893 the Canadian Pacific Railway constructed the steamer SS "Aberdeen" on the lake, which served as the first significant transportation link between Kelowna and Penticton, greatly increasing the speed of Kelowna's growth. On September 11, 1925, the Canadian Pacific Railway was finally extended to Kelowna, ending the town's reliance on Okanagan Lake for transportation and trade.


title: Kelowna

text: In 1911, Chinese revolutionary Sun Yat-sen visited Kelowna for fundraising. At that time, around 15% of the population was ethnically Chinese.


title: Kelowna

text: On August 6, 1969, a sonic boom from a nearby air show broke a quarter million dollars worth of glass, injuring six people. The destruction was caused by a member of the United States' Blue Angels during a practice routine for the Kelowna Regatta festival when the pilot accidentally broke the sound barrier while flying too low.


title: Kelowna

text: On November 25, 2005, the First Ministers and National Aboriginal Leaders signed the Kelowna Accord, which sought to improve the lives of Indigenous peoples.


title: Kelowna

text: Kelowna celebrated its centennial in May 2005. The same year, construction began on the new five-lane William R. Bennett Bridge to replace the three-lane Okanagan Lake Bridge, as part of a plan to alleviate traffic problems during summer tourist season. The new bridge was completed in 2008.


title: Kelowna

text: On July 12, 2021, a crane suffered a catastrophic failure while being dismantled at a construction site located at St. Paul Street near Bernard Avenue in downtown Kelowna. Part of the crane struck a nearby office building and seniors home. The city declared a local state of emergency and area residents were evacuated. Five people were killed in the collapse: four construction workers and one person in the office building.


title: Kelowna

text: In Kelowna many seasonal wildfires have occurred over the years. Some significant fires warranting evacuations and/or causing damage are listed below:


title: Kelowna

text: Kelowna is classified as a humid continental climate or an inland oceanic climate per the Köppen climate classification system due to its coldest month having an average temperature slightly above and below , with dry, hot, sunny summers and cool, cloudy winters, and four seasons. The official climate station for Kelowna is at the Kelowna International Airport, which is at a higher elevation than the city core, with slightly higher precipitation and cooler nighttime temperatures. Kelowna has the second mildest winter of any non-coastal city in Canada, after neighbouring Penticton. This is caused by the moderating effects of Okanagan Lake combined with mountains separating most of BC from the prairies; however Arctic air masses do occasionally penetrate the valley during winter, usually for very short periods. The coldest recorded temperature in the city was recorded on 30 December 1968.


title: Kelowna

text: Weather conditions during December and January are the cloudiest in Canada outside of Newfoundland due to persistent valley cloud. As Okanagan Lake hardly ever freezes, warmer air rising from the lake climbs above colder atmospheric air, creating a temperature inversion which can cause the valley to be socked in by cloud. The last time the lake completely froze over was in the winter of 1969. It may have frozen over in the winter of 1986. This valley cloud has a low ceiling, however, and often bright sunshine can be experienced by driving only 20 minutes or so up into the nearby mountains, above the cloud. Summers in Kelowna are very warm (sometimes hot) and sunny, with daytime temperatures often exceeding . Not unusually, heat waves occur in July, August, and even June and September on occasion, where temperatures above persist for weeks. Temperatures usually reach the high 30's °C or above for at least a few days each summer. The hottest temperature ever recorded in Kelowna was on June 29, 2021. During summer, clear, dry air allows night-time temperatures to fall rapidly, however nights are somewhat warm by Canadian standards. The city averages about of precipitation per year, with about a fifth of the precipitation falling as snow, the bulk in December and January; however, June is the wettest month of the year.


title: Kelowna

text: While some smaller communities such as Blue River and Golden get less wind, Kelowna has the greatest percentage of "calm" wind observations for any major city in Canada (39% of the time). The four-year average wind measured at the airport has been less than on average 10 to 12 months of the year between 2008 and 2011. As shown in the climate chart below, Kelowna has an average high temperature that is above freezing every month of the year - an exceptionally rare phenomenon for an inland Canadian city. In fact, average high temperatures in January surpass those of the most southern areas in Canada, such as Windsor, Ontario. Kelowna's average year-round high temperature of about is also one of the highest in Canada - largely due to the rare combination of high summer temperatures typical of continental climates, along with relatively mild winters - a very rare feature of a continental climate.


title: Kelowna

text: Central City is a linear commercial sector along Harvey Avenue, from downtown to Highway 33. Major commercial developments include the Capri Centre mall, the Landmark buildings, and the Orchard Park Shopping Centre. Commercial activity is particularly concentrated along or near Highway 97 (Harvey).


title: Kelowna

text: Dilworth Mountain is a relatively low, isolated mountain of just over 2000 feet, near the city's geographic center. Adjoining Knox Mountain to the west, it is part of the eastern heights that form Glenmore Valley, and rises about one thousand feet above the rest of the Okanagan Valley. It has been extensively developed in recent years with scenic neighbourhoods with suburban character that are only minutes from Central City. Like many other Kelowna residential districts, Dilworth has gone from relative isolation and wilderness to hosting hundreds of homes, many of which are considered fairly high-end.


title: Kelowna

text: Central Kelowna is a tourist district alongside Okanagan Lake. It is officially defined as all land north of Highway 97, south of Clement Avenue, east of Okanagan Lake, and west of Richter Street. There are two main routes through the downtown core along which attractions and commerce are concentrated, including several parks and beaches, boardwalks and other walking trails, Kelowna Marina and Yacht Club, the Delta Grand Hotel and Casino, and Prospera Place arena. The other main route through downtown is Bernard Avenue from Richter street to the lake, with more shops and restaurants designed for both locals and tourists. Although Bernard Avenue continues east well past downtown, it is not part of downtown and is zoned residential. The commercial segment lies within its downtown section between Richter and Abbott streets, the latter of which is lake-adjacent.


title: Kelowna

text: Kelowna has declared a downtown area a "red zone" of prolific drug trafficking, assaults and robberies. The red zone extends from Okanagan Lake to the west, Lake Avenue, Rowcliffe to Ethel and Ethel to Stockwell, Doyle and back to the lake. The red zone was identified in 1992 to reduce street crime. The RCMP conducts annual "spring sweeps" there, arresting low-level drug dealers. Kelowna was the second British Columbia city to declare a red zone.


title: Kelowna

text: Glenmore is a relatively affluent suburb mostly within Glenmore Valley, a subsection of the Okanagan Valley in the Kelowna area. It has been extensively developed in the past two decades, transformed from a small suburb with a rural character to large suburban neighbourhoods, including several elementary schools and a rapidly growing commercial hub. While most of its homes are on the relatively flat valley bottom, several large and more recent neighbourhoods are being built into the adjacent mountains, including the community of Wilden.


title: Kelowna

text: The Midtown area, bordered by Enterprise Way on the north and Springfield and Baron Road at the south, is a popular shopping destination for locals. Orchard Park, the shopping complex in BC's interior, is here. Since most of Midtown consists of large, car-oriented big-box stores, it is often criticized for its plainness; its contributions to urban sprawl and the decline of the pedestrian-oriented Downtown; and its lack of green space, as the area was formerly a linear park and golf course.


title: Kelowna

text: Known locally as "the Mission" (or "Okanagan Mission") to differentiate it from the Lower Mainland city of Mission, this area was a separate jurisdiction before being amalgamated with Kelowna in the mid- to late-20th century. It features a vibrant secondary commercial centre separate from that of Downtown, with low- to moderate-density residential areas between them. Its northern border is K.L.O. Road. It is often differentiated as Lower Mission and Upper Mission.


title: Kelowna

text: The Lower Mission contains most of the aforementioned commercial areas such as shopping malls, grocery stores, coffee shops, and boutiques. Lower Mission also has extensive recreational facilities, Mission Recreation Park has 6 softball diamonds as well as soccer fields, community gardens, playgrounds and trails, while neighbouring H2O is Kelowna's largest indoor recreation facility with a 50 m pool, water slides, diving boards and surfing wave. Gyro Beach and Rotary Beach, two of Kelowna's most popular beaches, are also located in the Lower Mission.


title: Kelowna

text: The Upper Mission begins to extend into the foothills and higher terrain, and many parts of this area boast magnificent views of the city, mountains and Okanagan Lake. As a result, this part of town is widely regarded as luxurious and is indeed one of the most expensive neighbourhoods of Kelowna. It is not unusual to see homes worth one million dollars or more, the most expensive of which can reach 5 million or even slightly above.


title: Kelowna

text: Rutland is Kelowna's largest neighbourhood by far. Although the majority of the area sits on the valley bottom and is therefore relatively flat, the fringes continue up into the hills and are therefore built at higher elevations and possess more expansive views than the rest of the neighbourhood; these homes are correspondingly more expensive. This is the exception, however, as the majority of Rutland is among the most affordable of Kelowna housing. There are also several low-rise apartment buildings which increase the population density relative to most other parts of town. Rutland was a town until it amalgamated with Kelowna in 1973, and this union has resulted in Rutland having a distinct commercial centre with many shops and restaurants. An improvement and gentrification effort has been ongoing for the past decade, with new parks, widened sidewalks, bike lanes, a renovated YMCA, a rebuilt high school, many new shops and condominiums are being added.


title: Kelowna

text: The service industry employs the most people in Kelowna, the largest city in the tourist-oriented Okanagan Valley. In summer, boating, golf, hiking and biking are popular, and in winter, both skiing and snowboarding are favourite activities at the nearby Big White and Silver Star ski resorts. Tourism in the Greater Kelowna Area has now become a $1-billion a year industry, as of 2016.


title: Kelowna

text: Kelowna produces wines that have received international recognition. Vineyards are common around and south of the city where the climate is ideal for the many wineries. At least two major wineries were damaged or destroyed (now rebuilt) in 2003 due to the Okanagan Mountain Park Fire. Kelowna is also the home of Sun-Rype, a popular manufacturer of fruit bars and juices.


title: Kelowna

text: Okanagan College and University of British Columbia are the predominant centres for post-secondary education. Over 8,745 students attend Okanagan College and 8,718 students attend the University of British Columbia. In addition to vocational training and adult basic education, the college offers a highly regarded university transfer program. University of British Columbia's Okanagan campus has a student population of over 8,000 full-time students enrolled in diverse undergraduate and graduate programs.


title: Kelowna

text: Kelowna is the seat of the Regional District of the Central Okanagan, the third-largest metropolitan area in British Columbia after Vancouver and Victoria and the largest in the British Columbia Interior. With scenic lake vistas and a dry, mild climate, Kelowna has become one of the fastest-growing cities in North America. The appropriate management of such rapid development (and its attendant consequences) is a source of significant debate within the community. Kelowna is the fourth least affordable housing market in Canada, currently maintaining the classification of "Severely Unaffordable". Because of the Okanagan's climate and vineyard-filled scenery, it is often compared to Napa Valley, California.


title: Kelowna

text: Due to its moderate population, Kelowna is often used as a market trial area where national businesses and organizations can test a new product. Examples include:


title: Kelowna

text: In the 2021 Canadian census conducted by Statistics Canada, Kelowna had a population of 144,576 living in 62,209 of its 67,115 total private dwellings, a change of from its 2016 population of 127,390. With a land area of , it had a population density of in 2021.


title: Kelowna

text: At the census metropolitan area (CMA) level in the 2021 census, the Kelowna CMA had a population of living in of its total private dwellings, a change of from its 2016 population of . With a land area of , it had a population density of in 2021.


title: Kelowna

text: In 2011, 48.4% of residents were male and 51.6% were female. The predominant language spoken in Kelowna is English.


title: Kelowna

text: Children under five accounted for approximately 4.8% of the resident population of Kelowna. This compares with 5.2% in British Columbia, and 5.6% for Canada overall. In mid-2001, 18.4% of the resident population in Kelowna were of retirement age (65 and over for males and females) compared with 13.2% in Canada; the average age is 41.1 years of age, compared to an average age of 37.6 years in Canada.


title: Kelowna

text: As per the 2021 census, visible minorities make up about 14% of the population of Kelowna. The largest group of visible minorities are, in order of size, South Asian (4.4%), Chinese (1.9%), Filipino (1.7%), Black (1.3%), Latin American (0.9%) Japanese (0.9%), Southeast Asian (0.7%), Korean (0.5%), West Asian (0.5%), and Arab (0.4%).


title: Kelowna

text: Kelowna's population growth has been driven primarily by the movement of Canadians from BC and other provinces into this region, not by international immigration. Only 15.1% of the population is foreign born. On 10 February 2016, Statistics Canada declared the 3.1% Kelowna census metropolitan area growth rate as being the highest in Canada.


title: Kelowna

text: Kelowna had a historic Chinatown in the area between Harvey Avenue and Leon Avenue, east of Abbott and west of Highway 97 / Harvey Avenue. Historically most residents of this Chinatown were males. In 1909, 15% of Kelowna's population was ethnic Chinese. In 1911, the percentage was the same. That year, Sun Yat-sen visited Kelowna for fundraising purposes. In 1978, the final remaining traditional Chinese business ceased operations. By 2010, less than 1% of Kelowna's population was ethnic Chinese. A section of the façade of the rebuilt "Chinese Store" that was in Chinatown is now housed at the Kelowna Museum.


title: Kelowna

text: Women make up nearly half of Kelowna's homeless. In other Canadian cities, the overwhelming majority of homeless are males.


title: Kelowna

text: On 12 May 2003, the Kelowna Homelessness Networking Group conducted a limited census, and enumerated 198 people: 54 individuals from the street and 144 individuals in shelters.


title: Kelowna

text: On 24 February 2016, as part of the Government of Canada's Homelessness Partnering Strategy, the Central Okanagan Foundation conducted a coordinated Point-in-Time (PiT) Count of Kelowna's homeless population. The survey found at least 233 people were homeless, and another 273 were living in temporary housing.


title: Kelowna

text: Kelowna faces severe suburbanization and urban sprawl promoted by the popularity of low-density car-oriented developments. As of 2007, Kelowna has the highest car dependency rate in Canada and has the second highest per-capita road transportation carbon footprint in British Columbia. Despite having a metro population of about 230,000, the greater Kelowna area is slightly bigger than that of Metro Vancouver. Road transportation accounts for more than 65% of total greenhouse gas emission in the city.


title: Kelowna

text: Kelowna Regional Transit System is operated by FirstGroup, providing public bus transportation services in Kelowna and its vicinity. Funding for the transit system is shared between the City of Kelowna, Central Okanagan Regional District, District of Lake Country and BC Transit.


title: Kelowna

text: Kelowna International Airport (IATA: YLW), north of the city core, is one of the busiest airports in Canada. There are regular flights to and from Calgary, Edmonton, Toronto, Vancouver, Victoria, Cranbrook, Whitehorse, and Seattle, as well as seasonal service to Las Vegas, Phoenix, Montréal, Cuba and Mexico. Three major passenger airlines serve the airport; Air Canada, Alaska Airlines, and WestJet. The airport is also the main hub of cargo airline KF Cargo.


title: Kelowna

text: Emergency services are provided by the Kelowna General Hospital, the British Columbia Ambulance Service, Kelowna Fire Department, Central Okanagan Search and Rescue and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.


title: Kelowna

text: Public schools in the Kelowna area are part of School District 23 Central Okanagan. (For a list of primary and middle schools, see the School District 23 Central Okanagan article)


title: Kelowna

text: The Conseil scolaire francophone de la Colombie-Britannique operates one Francophone school: école de l'Anse-au-sable primary and secondary school.


title: Kelowna

text: Most crime in Kelowna is non-violent property crime. In 2012, Kelowna had the highest reported crime rate in Canada: 8,875 per 100,000. Police focused on crime in 2014, and Kelowna moved into the number four position across the country.


title: Kelowna

text: In 2015, RCMP Supt. Nick Romanchuk stated, "I am absolutely convinced that as our drug enforcement numbers increase, our overall crime rate will decrease." As of 2016, the crime rate had returned to second highest in Canada. In 2017, the property crime in Kelowna rate went up six per cent, once again the highest rate in Canada, while the drug crime rate fell two per cent.


title: Kelowna

text: In 2013, 446 victims of domestic violence were reported in Kelowna, earning the city the highest per-capita rate of domestic violence in British Columbia and the tenth-highest across Canada. This was a slight drop compared to 2011, when Kelowna reported the fourth-highest rate nationally and led the province in family violence.


title: Kelowna

text: In 2014, Kelowna, there were 251 marijuana charges per 100,000 population, the highest per capita rate in Canada.


title: Kelowna

text: In 2012, Kelowna had the highest crime rate of any metropolitan area in Canada, mainly because of its property crime. This increase has, however, been attributed mainly to the actions of a relative few known, prolific offenders. Illicit Drug use is high in the region. Between 2012 and 2016, Kelowna led the country in cannabis, cocaine, and heroin possession. As of 2016, the crime rate has declined to second highest. In 2017, Kelowna had the highest opioid overdose rate in Canada.


title: Borderlands 2

text: Borderlands 2 is a 2012 first-person shooter video game developed by Gearbox Software and published by 2K Games. Taking place five years following the events of "Borderlands" (2009), the game is again set on the planet of Pandora. The story follows a new group of Vault Hunters who must ally with the Crimson Raiders, a resistance group made up of civilian survivors and guerrilla fighters, to defeat the tyrannical Handsome Jack before he can unlock the power of a new Vault. The game features the ability to explore the in-game world and complete main missions and optional side quests, either in offline splitscreen, single-player or online cooperative gameplay. Like its predecessor, the game features a procedurally generated loot system which is capable of generating numerous combinations of weapons and other gear.


title: Borderlands 2

text: With the unexpected success of the first game, Gearbox was able to secure a budget of $30–35 million to develop the sequel. Like its predecessor, the game adopted the "concept art style", which features graphics inspired by both photorealistic imagery and comic-book-inspired visuals. The team attempted to address players' feedback from the first game, and recruited Anthony Burch who wrote the game's script which is seven times longer than that of the original game. Among the game's diverse cast of characters, Handsome Jack, the central antagonist, was created to be a charismatic "douche" that mirrors Burch's own personality. "Borderlands 2" was released for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 in September 2012, and it was ported to PlayStation 4 and Xbox One as part of "" in March 2015.


title: Borderlands 2

text: The game received universal acclaim upon release. Critics generally praised the game's visuals, writing, gameplay, and online multiplayer, as well as its variety of guns, while criticising its mission design and content fillers. The handheld and the virtual reality versions of the game were regarded to be inferior to the console and PC versions. More than 20 million units were shipped upon release and the game became 2K's most successful release. It was nominated for multiple year-end accolades by several gaming publications. Gearbox supported the game with four add-on campaigns, new characters and five content packs. The game was followed by "" in October 2014, and "Borderlands 3" in September 2019.


title: Borderlands 2

text: Similar to its predecessor, "Borderlands 2" is a first-person shooter with elements drawn from role-playing video games. Four playable character classes are available in the base game, each with their own unique Action Skill: Axton, "the Commando", can summon a turret to provide offensive support. Maya, "the Siren", can "phaselock" enemies by trapping them in a sphere of energy for a few seconds. Zer0, "the Assassin", can temporarily become invisible and spawn a hologram decoy to distract enemies. Salvador, "the Gunzerker", can use his titular ability to temporarily dual-wield weapons. Action Skills have a cooldown time during which the player must wait before they can use the skill again. Similarly to the original, completing the main story campaign unlocks "True Vault Hunter Mode", a New Game Plus which increases the difficulty of the game by making enemies stronger, improves the probability of finding rare and higher-quality items, and allows the player's character to reach level 50.


title: Borderlands 2

text: Weapons can be bought from vendors, picked up from fallen enemies, and found inside containers. The game features six weapon types—pistols, submachine guns, assault rifles, shotguns, sniper rifles, and rocket launchers—with a procedurally generated loot system capable of generating numerous variations of these and other gear. The in-game manufacturers of the weapons provide them with distinct characteristics. Each weapon also has different stats and properties, such as producing different damage and having varying accuracy, fire rate, reload speed, and magazine size. A color-coded scale is used to indicate the rarity of the weapon or item. Some weapons are infused with additional elemental effects that deal extra damage to enemies. In addition, players can collect mods which would alter the stats of grenades and Action Skill, and Relics, which are rare items that can change any gameplay aspect. Players need to manage their inventory regularly as they cannot equip all the weapons they have collected.


title: Borderlands 2

text: The player is protected by a shield, which can automatically regenerate from damage. If the shield is destroyed, the player's health would start to deplete. Insta-Health vials can be picked up to restore health. If they lose all their health, they enter a downed state and must either wait to be revived by another player or attempt to kill an enemy to achieve a "second wind". Otherwise, they will be regenerated back at the last "New-U" station that they passed. As the player completes missions and kills enemies, they gain corresponding rewards such as experience points (XP) and new weapons. Once they gain enough XPs, they level up, which unlocks new skill points to upgrade abilities. Each Vault Hunter can progress in three different skill trees after unlocking the basic class-specific Action Skill. In addition, levelling up increases the maximum health capacity and unlocks new weapons, some of which cannot be used until the player reaches a certain level.


title: Borderlands 2

text: As the player explores and completes missions, new areas of the game world are unlocked. The game has a semi open world structure, as the world is divided into several sections which can be freely explored. In each area, different non-playable characters are encountered who provide side missions for the players. Players can spawn vehicles in order to quickly traverse some areas. The in-game currency can be collected from loot drops, loot containers, completing missions, and selling unwanted equipment, and can be used to purchase items from vending machines. Players can also gather Eridium bars, a new currency for purchasing storage upgrades and other premium items. A major addition to the game is the "Badass Rank" system; completing various in-game challenges award points, which convert into tokens that can be redeemed to increase the base stats of the player's characters. When exploring the world, players can access certain New-U stations in order to fast travel, and Quick-Change machines allow players to customize their avatar's look, clothing and name.


title: Borderlands 2

text: The game supports four-player cooperative multiplayer, though the PlayStation Vita version only supports two players. As more players join a session, the game's difficulty increases along with the loot rewards. Players can trade items and cash, or can duel for the agreed-upon stakes. The game also features split-screen multiplayer.


title: Borderlands 2

text: Five years have passed since the events of "Borderlands", when four Vault Hunters—Roland, Mordecai, Lilith, and Brick—were guided by a mysterious entity known as "The Guardian Angel" to the Vault, an ancient alien structure that was rumored to hold exotic technology and riches. On entering the Vault, they were instead confronted by an alien abomination known as "The Destroyer". After defeating The Destroyer, a valuable mineral called "Eridium" started flourishing through Pandora's crust. Handsome Jack, president of the Hyperion Corporation, secures this new resource and makes use of it to attempt to "bring peace" to the planet. Now, Handsome Jack rules over the inhabitants of Pandora with an iron fist from his massive space station, Helios. Meanwhile, rumors spread of an even larger Vault, drawing a new group of Vault Hunters who search for it.


title: Borderlands 2

text: Like its predecessor, "Borderlands 2" features four playable characters: Axton the Commando, Maya the Siren, Salvador the Gunzerker, and the Assassin. Two additional characters are available as downloadable content (DLC): Gaige the Mechromancer and Krieg the Psycho. The four player characters from the first game, Roland, Lilith, Brick, and Mordecai, return in the form of non-player characters (NPCs). Other NPCs originating from the first game (and its DLCs) include the Guardian Angel, Claptrap, Scooter the mechanic, Dr. Zed, Marcus the arms merchant, Mad Moxxi, Crazy Earl, and the insane archaeologist Patricia Tannis; new NPCs include the cyborg hunter Sir Hammerlock, Scooter's sister Ellie, and explosives-obsessed girl Tiny Tina.


title: Borderlands 2

text: The game opens with the Vault Hunters aboard a Hyperion train on Pandora. Their employer, Handsome Jack, suddenly sabotages the train and leaves the Vault Hunters for dead in a frozen wasteland. The Vault Hunters are found by the last remaining CL4P-TP ("Claptrap") unit. The Guardian Angel contacts the Vault Hunters and instructs them to accompany Claptrap to the city of Sanctuary, and to join the Crimson Raiders, an anti-Hyperion resistance movement, in order to defeat Handsome Jack.


title: Borderlands 2

text: Upon arriving at Sanctuary, the Vault Hunters are asked to rescue Roland, leader of the Crimson Raiders, who has been captured by a bounty hunter called the Firehawk. The Vault Hunters meet the Firehawk, who turns out to be Lilith, whose Siren powers have been enhanced by the new supply of Eridium. Lilith informs the Vault Hunters that Roland was actually captured by a group of bandits. After fighting through the bandits' territory, the Vault Hunters rescue Roland and return to Sanctuary.


title: Borderlands 2

text: Roland and Lilith learn that the Vault Key stolen from Tannis is being transported aboard a Hyperion train, and ask the Vault Hunters to retrieve it. The Vault Hunters derail the train, but instead of finding the Vault Key they encounter Wilhelm, a Hyperion cyborg and one of Handsome Jack's enforcers. The Vault Hunters kill Wilhelm and recover his power core, which Roland recommends be used as the power source for Sanctuary's shields. The power core turns out to be a trap; it allows the Guardian Angel, who is revealed to be working for Jack, to lower the city's shields, leaving it vulnerable to an orbital bombardment. Lilith saves Sanctuary, which was originally a large spacecraft, by activating its engines and teleporting it away.


title: Borderlands 2

text: Handsome Jack's plan is to open Pandora's second Vault and unleash the "Warrior", a powerful Eridian monster controlled by whoever releases it; as the Vault Key only charges itself every 200 years, he is using Eridium to forcefully charge it. Angel communicates with the group in Sanctuary, and divulges that the Vault Key is kept with her in a heavily guarded Hyperion facility. The Vault Hunters prepare an attack on the facility, enlisting former Vault Hunters Brick and Mordecai. Roland and the Vault Hunters assault the Hyperion compound and meet Angel, who is a Siren and Jack's daughter. She reveals Jack is using her to charge the Vault Key, and requests to be killed in order to stop her father. Against Jack's efforts to defend her, Roland, Lilith, and the Vault Hunters destroy Angel's life support, killing her. An enraged Jack kills Roland and captures Lilith, forcing her to obey him, as he had done to Angel. Before Jack can make Lilith kill the Vault Hunters, she teleports them back to Sanctuary. Jack then uses her to continue charging the Vault Key in Angel's place.


title: Borderlands 2

text: While Mordecai and Brick prepare an attack on the Vault, the Vault Hunters travel to the Hyperion Information Annex and obtain the Vault's location. After mounting an attack, the Vault Hunters find and defeat Jack, but fail to prevent him from opening the Vault and unleashing the Warrior. The Vault Hunters manage to kill it, and, depending on player choice, either execute Jack or let Lilith do it. As Lilith then attempts to destroy the Vault Key, she accidentally activates an information bank which contains a map of the galaxy, indicating the locations of several Vaults. Lilith remarks that "there ain't no rest for the wicked" before the screen cuts to black. During the credits, various scenes are shown of the Pandorans celebrating Handsome Jack's defeat and taking back their planet from the remaining Hyperion forces.


title: Borderlands 2

text: Following the release of the first "Borderlands", developer Gearbox Software was simultaneously working on three distinct projects: finishing "Duke Nukem Forever", creating "", and working on a sequel to the original "Borderlands". The initial goal was to create a sequel similar in scale to the first game, but "Borderlands" unexpected success enabled the team to expand their budget during the development of "Borderlands 2", allowing them to expand their scope and create more content. The development budget ultimately grew to $30–$35 million. Paul Hellquist served as the game's creative director, Jeramy Cooke as its art director, and Anthony Burch as its writer. Sascha Dikiciyan, Cris Velasco, and Jesper Kyd worked together to craft the game's original soundtracks, while Gearbox's Raison Varner provided additional music. The game's development was completed on August 20, 2012, with Gearbox confirming that it was being prepared for duplication and release.


title: Borderlands 2

text: Similar to the first game, "Borderlands 2" adopted the "concept art style", which features graphics inspired by both photorealistic imagery and comic-book-inspired visuals. This was difficult to replicate, because the first game was "artfully unfinished"—its artstyle had been switched at the last stage of development with some older visual designs present in the final product. To recreate the sense of "imperfection" and allow for innovation, the art team were given creative freedom while management avoided frequent requests for design revisions. Cooke was responsible for creating a loose "style guide" for the game, and the team accepted work which deviated from these standards. Team members were also encouraged to submit creations that "break boundaries". The design for Zer0, a faceless assassin, faced scrutiny from upper management for deviating too much from what was expected from "Borderlands", but Cooke refused to have the character redesigned as he felt that his design would be something new for the franchise. To add more color to the game, a diverse set of environments were modeled, from glaciers to grasslands, as opposed to the first game which is set entirely in a desert. With a more colorful world, the team believed that it would encourage players to explore each area. Through having more vibrant colors and creating various landmarks, the team also thought that it helped to make each area distinct.


title: Borderlands 2

text: One of the early objectives for Hellquist was to improve the original game's shortcomings while creating an experience that felt new. A September 2011 survey asked players what they wanted in the new game, and DLCs for the first game were used to experiment and test what players might enjoy in the sequel. One of the early goals was to create a new set of characters, as the team felt that the original cast was too "limiting". The team also made various quality-of-life improvements, such as improving the user interface to make navigating the game's menus easier. Menu layout was refined and the team introduced additional environmental clues to better inform players how different areas are connected. Effort was also placed on making each area more "dense" and "alive". They also wanted to improve the game's cooperative multiplayer, from incorporating private trading of weapons between players to introducing a four-passenger vehicle so that a cooperative team could stick together. A "shared loot" system was incorporated in order to facilitate a collaborative relationship between players.


title: Borderlands 2

text: Gearbox also wanted to make unique weapons. The first game utilizes procedural generation to generate different guns but the differences were not always distinguishable. To solve this problem, the team ensured that each gun manufacturer would have its own distinct gameplay and visual characteristics. To achieve this, each weapon manufacturer has a "trademark style" that would appeal to different players. For instance, the Maliwan brand features weapons inspired by sci-fi technology, while the Dahl brand was for players who preferred weapons that were more grounded in reality. The differences in the weapon manufacturers mean that players can easily identify the weapons they want to use. The Bandit brand was inspired by "Mad Max" and "Death Race" and featured a "very home-built look". The Torgue brand was influenced by engine blocks and aircraft designs from the 1940s and the 1950s. In contrast, Tediore was the "throwaway brand", and the team took inspirations from disposable razors and lighters, and "cheap Go phone".


title: Borderlands 2

text: As many players complained about the forgettable story for the first game. Burch strived to make the narrative compelling and unique by subverting players' expectations and including a plotline so ridiculous that it cannot be found in any other triple-A games. Despite the script being seven times longer than the original's, the story was not too overbearing on players as the team believed that the essence of the game was about "finding progressively more ridiculous guns to blow up psychotic midgets" instead of the story. To achieve this, the team minimised the use of cutscenes and focused on environmental storytelling. While the game features a humorous tone, the story retains dark moments to keep players invested. One of the darker moments was Angel's death, which went through multiple revisions as the team tried to refine the tone. Roland's death in the later part of the game was also a deliberate decision as it makes the story more relevant and impactful.


title: Borderlands 2

text: According to Hellquist, a diverse cast of characters played a huge role in defining "Borderlands" identity. The story is delivered via interactions between these characters rather than text, unlike the first game. Burch's script introduced a large number of new characters, with Burch singling out Tiny Tina and Ellie as the best additions. The team crafted three to five side missions for these characters so that players could better understand their backstories and personalities. Returning characters, especially the playable Vault Hunters from the first game, became major characters in the game's main narrative, so that players get to learn more about them and see how they interact with each other. Series mainstay Claptrap returned in "Borderlands 2". He was initially envisioned to be "arrogant, insulting, profane", similar to his depiction in its web series. However, he was later rewritten so that "fans who hadn't seen the shorts wouldn't be shocked at Claptrap's sudden doucheitude in BL2". Burch, in hindsight, stated that one of his biggest regrets was the inclusion of silenced protagonists, since they felt "out-of-place" in a game that features a large cast of eccentric characters and an over-the-top world. However, when playtesters complained about this, it was already too late for Burch to introduce dialogue for the playable characters because mission scripting had already been finished. To remedy the problem, he added character-specific audio logs to the game, allowing the Vault Hunters to narrate their backstory to the players. Burch initially wrote banter dialogue between the Vault Hunters which would be triggered when the player left their controllers idle for a while, though this idea was scrapped.


title: Borderlands 2

text: To create players' agency and motivation, the team attempted to incorporate a concrete goal and a central villain into the story. Handsome Jack served the purpose and helped remind players that he is a constant threat, "the point of the game" and that one of the ultimate goals is to kill him. Jack was envisioned to be a charismatic "douche", mirroring Burch's own personality. He was a funny, likable antagonist who is "hard to outright hate but nonetheless deserves everything he has coming to him". Burch was inspired by classic villains including GLaDOS from "Portal" and SHODAN from "System Shock", and stated that he would have been the protagonist if the story was told from a different perspective. While Jack has a dismissive attitude in the early section, he becomes more aggressive after the death of his daughter Angel. This was to create a revenge arc to make him more memorable. The game is set five years after the first game, in order to show how Jack, who rose to power following the events of the first game, influenced Pandora during this period.


title: Borderlands 2

text: Following the unexpected success of the first "Borderlands", creative director Mikey Neumann stated that there was a chance of a follow-up being created. In August 2011, the game was confirmed and titled "Borderlands 2". The game was released on September 18, 2012, in North America and on September 21, 2012, internationally. Players who pre-ordered the game gained access to the "Premier Club", which granted the players additional in-game items, weapons and access to the fifth character. Publisher 2K Games and Gearbox Software marketed the game heavily prior to its official release. They released a 16-bit demake of the original game on web browser in August 2012. Another browser-based spin-off game, named "Mount Jackmore", was released for European players in September 2012. Players who completed the spin-off, which involves shooting at a mountain carved with Handsome Jack's face, would have a chance to win prizes such as pin badges, figurines and copies of the game. Gearbox also launched a scheme for players of the original game, who could unlock exclusive cosmetic items when they purchased "Borderlands 2". Gearbox revealed that they would be honoring a late fan of the game, cancer victim Michael John Mamaril, with the addition of an NPC named after him.


title: Borderlands 2

text: The game was ported to various platforms. Aspyr Media published the game on November 20, 2012, for MacOS systems. Gearbox partnered with Iron Galaxy Studios to release a PlayStation Vita version in May 2014. Vita's cross-save allows PlayStation 3 players to transfer their progress to the Vita. On January 20, 2015, Gearbox announced that it would release ""—a port of "Borderlands 2" and "" for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, on March 24, 2015. Both games in "The Handsome Collection" feature remastered graphics, and are capable of running at 1080p resolution at 60 frames per second when playing with one or two local players. The games are also capable of local split-screen multiplayer with up to four players. A virtual reality version was released for the PlayStation VR on December 14, 2018. This version does not have any multiplayer, but instead features the "BAMF" (Bad Ass Mega Fun) system which allows players to temporarily slow game time in order to plan their attack, and new voice lines from the current voice of Claptrap, Jim Foronda. The PC version of the VR port was released on October 24, 2020. On March 26, 2020, Gearbox announced that it would release "The Handsome Collection", plus the original "Borderlands", for Nintendo Switch as "Borderlands Legendary Collection" on May 29, 2020. The team, however, did not port the game to the Wii U because the team "couldn't come up with an 'OMG' feature that makes use of the Wii U's uniqueness".


title: Borderlands 2

text: On August 20, 2012, it was announced that a four-issue "Borderlands" comic would be released in November 2012 to tie in with "Borderlands 2". The miniseries was written by Mikey Neumann and published by IDW. It tells the story of how the original four Vault Hunters came to be together at the beginning of "Borderlands", filling in their backstory and setting up the events of both games. Claptrap appears as an opponent in the crossover title "Poker Night 2", with players able to unlock new "Borderlands 2" content upon the completion of certain objectives. A new season of the web series, also featuring Claptrap, was released in November 2012. In 2013, 2K partnered with merchandise maker National Entertainment Collectibles Association to create real-life masks based on Handsome Jack and Psycho Bandit.


title: Borderlands 2

text: Gearbox hoped to continue engagement with the community following the game's release. It introduced the SHiFT rewards program. Codes are released on various social media sites and forums that can be redeemed in the "Borderlands 2" main menu for Golden Keys, which can be used to open the special Golden Chest that is located in the travel station in Sanctuary. When opened, the chest randomly produces rare equipment of the redeeming player's level. SHiFT codes can also be used to redeem special skins. A loot-hunt community event was launched in October 2013, in which players completed daily community goals to unlock special guns for a chance to win a $50,000 grand prize. Gearbox also released two companion apps. The "Official Map App" displays the map layout and reveals the locations of various hidden chests, while "LootTheWorld" gives players a QR code which can be scanned to unlock in-game loots.


title: Borderlands 2

text: Gearbox supported the game with downloadable content (DLC). The fifth character, Gaige the Mechromancer, was available for purchase on October 16, 2012. The character was designed for people who are unfamiliar with the shooter genre. On March 23, 2013, Gearbox announced two new downloadable content packs. The first pack, "Ultimate Vault Hunter Upgrade Pack", raised the level cap from 50 to 61 and added new playthrough called the Ultimate Vault Hunter Mode. The second pack, the "Psycho Pack", contains a sixth playable character—a Psycho named Krieg. Psychos are psychotic bandit enemies fought during the main campaign. He is a primarily melee focused character with an action skill called "Buzz Axe Rampage", which boosts his melee damage and causes him to regain health whenever he kills an enemy. It was released on May 14, 2013, and is not included in the Season Pass. "Ultimate Vault Hunter Upgrade Pack 2: Digistruct Peak Challenge" was released on September 3, 2013. The DLC increases the level cap from 61 to 72 and introduces the "Digistruct Peak Challenge", a new map where Patricia Tannis will let players fight high-level enemies to earn new loot. The game's Game of the Year edition and the season pass also bundled the base game with 4 add-on campaigns, which include the following:


title: Borderlands 2

text: Following the release of the four add-on campaigns, Gearbox announced plans to release the "Headhunter" series of DLCs. These packs generally cost less than the add-on campaigns and feature less content. Gearbox originally intended to make three "Headhunter" packs but ultimately created five.


title: Borderlands 2

text: The game's last DLC, "Commander Lilith and the Fight for Sanctuary" was announced and released on June 9, 2019. The DLC was released for PC, and for "The Handsome Collection" version of the game on Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and Nintendo Switch. It was available as a free download for the first month after release. The story of the DLC picks up after the events of "Borderlands 2" and acts as a bridge to the story of "Borderlands 3", setting up the transition to the new Sanctuary 3 base ship and bringing characters from 2014's "Tales from the Borderlands" into the bigger story. In the DLC, after Helios station has crashed on the surface of Pandora, Lilith and the other Vault Hunters struggle with what they have learned from the Vault map, of potentially many more Vaults on other planets. As they try to figure out some way to make a space-worthy ship, Sanctuary is attacked by Dahl's Colonel Hector, who has created a powerful mutant army using a strange floral spore. The group abandons Sanctuary and takes shelter at a former bandit camp, now empty except for its leader, Vaughn, as Hector mutated his followers. The Vault Hunters work with Vaughn and other allies to take back Sanctuary and the Vault map from Hector.


title: Borderlands 2

text: The game received generally positive reviews upon release, according to review aggregator Metacritic. Many reviewers agreed that the game is a notable improvement over the original.


title: Borderlands 2

text: Allistair Pinsof, writing for "Destructoid", praised the gunplay and the variety of guns, which can change the gameplay experience as different weapons force players to approach combat differently. However, he was disappointed by the conservative mission design, especially for a game that features over-the-top characters. Christian Donlan from "Eurogamer" liked how distinct the gun manufacturers are, and felt that they have successfully modified the pace of play. He also lauded the extensive customisation options, and the enemy variety. "PC Gamer"s Tom Francis agreed, adding that the enemy designs keep the combat interesting and engaging. Chris Watters from GameSpot praised the gunplay, describing it as "solid" and "satisfying", though he was disappointed that combat seemed largely similar across the four classes. He also praised the world of Pandora for being a "vibrant, living place", as opposed to "Borderlands" desolate desert. Both Donland and Dan Ryckert from "Game Informer" appreciated the quality-of-life adjustments Gearbox implemented, with Ryckert saying that they made the game a "noticeably superior experience" when compared with the first game. Mike Minotti from "VentureBeat" described "Borderlands 2" as an excellent blend of FPS and RPG, and praised Gearbox for perfecting the looter-shooter genre. However, he criticised the game for reusing dungeons and the presence of some overpowered enemies. The game's driving component was considered to be a missed opportunity.


title: Borderlands 2

text: Pinsof praised the game's story and writing, calling it "the funniest, cleverest script to grace a game since "Portal 2" ". He applauded Gearbox for expanding the lore and the characters, and added that every character has their own "golden line of comedic dialogue". He also liked how the humor in the game elevated the main campaign and the side missions. Ryckert also liked the humorous goals of the side missions, and stated that they have a lot of "entertainment value". He added that the sense of humor displayed in the game was one of the best in the industry. Anthony Gallegos from "IGN" called the story "predictable", but still regarded it as an improvement over the original. However, he enjoyed completing the side-quests due to their presentation, writing and action, despite their conventional design. Minotti, however, felt that the game's heavy focus on humor undermined the game's more serious moments. Minotti praised the colorful cast of characters, singling out the humorous writing for Claptrap, Tiny Tina, and Ellie. Handsome Jack also received a lot of praise. Ryckert called him "entertaining", while Pinsof added that he was "lovable". Sterling McGarvey, writing for "GamesRadar", noted that the campaign is bloated with filler content, but the narrative remains compelling due to the presence of Jack as a strong central villain. "Polygon"s Arthur Gies also added that the game had "MMORPG quest design of the worst kind", and felt that Gearbox intentionally lengthened the game by adding unnecessary fillers and content. Both Francis and Arthur Gies from "Polygon" noted their disappointment with the game's opening segment, with Francis saying that it "strips the game of everything that makes it good".


title: Borderlands 2

text: The game's multiplayer received praise. Donlan and Ryckert liked how the abilities of the four classes complement each other. Ryckert added that the cooperative multiplayer further elevated the experience. Minotti felt that the multiplayer was as fun as the original, and praised Gearbox for streamlining the process for other players to join a session. Watters believed playing with friends contributes to a more rewarding experience due to the presence of item trading, difficulty scaling and better loots. Pinsof critisied the multiplayer for being imbalanced because the shared loot system means veteran players would get low-tier loots when they played with new players. McGarvey also noted that respawn stations are few and far between and that players need to backtrack a lot in order to reunite with their teammates after their player avatar dies.


title: Borderlands 2

text: The PlayStation Vita port received mixed reviews. While complimented for offering the entire game and additional content on a handheld console, the port was generally panned for its decreased graphics and sound quality, lag issues and inconsistent frame rates, and that it only offered two-player multiplayer rather than four. "IGN" gave the port a 5.4 out of 10, concluding that "its compromised visuals rob it of much of its bombastic charm, while its erratic performance and unreliable touch controls keep the gameplay from shining like it has in the past." Steven Petite from "IGN", reviewing the PlayStation VR version, called it a "decent adaptation" and one of the "deepest shooter experiences" available on VR platforms. However, he lamented at the lack of multiplayer and expressed his dislike for the game's adoption of motion control. The PC release for the VR version was plagued with technical problems, and only 45% of the players gave the game positive reviews on Steam.


title: Borderlands 2

text: "Borderlands 2" is a major commercial success. It was the most pre-ordered game in 2K's history. It was the best-selling retail game in the UK in its week of release, outselling competitors including "F1 2012" and "Pro Evolution Soccer 2013". It secured the biggest launch for a game in the UK in 2012, surpassing the record previously held by "Mass Effect 3" and quadrupled the first game's sales in the same period of time. More than 70% of the sales were generated from the Xbox 360 version. In the US, it was the second best-selling retail game of the month, selling more than 1.82 million units. It was the seventh best-selling game in the UK and the tenth best-selling game in the US in 2012.


title: Borderlands 2

text: On November 1, 2012, Take-Two Interactive announced that they had shipped 5 million copies. The revenue and earnings for Take-Two in the second quarter surpassed the company's expectation, with the success of "Borderlands 2" being cited as one of the contributing factors. In February 2014, 2K Games announced that the game had sold more than 8.5 million copies, making it the most successful commercial release for the publisher. It sold more than 12 million as of March 2015. In 2019, Take-Two announced that the game had shipped more than 20 million units, and added that the game managed to maintain 1 million monthly users nearly eight years following its release.


title: Borderlands 2

text: Controversy regarding sexism hit a month before the game's scheduled release after Gearbox designer John Hemingway told "Eurogamer" that the Mechromancer mode would feature "the girlfriend skill tree" for people who "suck at first-person shooters". CEO Randy Pitchford later clarified by saying that the name for the skill tree is "Best Friends Forever" and that Hemingway's description was only a "personal anecdote". Upon release, some fans critisied the character of Tiny Tina for "conveying racism" since she is a white girl who uses African-American Vernacular English. Burch responded by saying that he may change her character in subsequent DLCs.


title: Borderlands 2

text: Gearbox's other project, "", developed in partnership with Sega, was in development troubles during the production of "Borderlands 2". Insider sources claimed that following the success of the first "Borderlands", Gearbox allocated nearly all of its resources and manpower into developing the sequel and "Duke Nukem Forever" and neglected the development of "Colonial Marines", outsourcing its development to external developers. "Colonial Marines" was released in 2013 and received negative reviews.


title: Borderlands 2

text: Wade Callender, who worked at Gearbox as a lawyer from 2010 to 2018, sued Pitchford in January 2019 and alleged that he had taken $12 million royalties from Take-Two intending to fund the game's development for himself through his personal company, Pitchford Entertainment. The lawsuit was dismissed without prejudice by the court on October 2 of the same year.


title: Borderlands 2

text: In April 2014, Gearbox announced that 2K Australia was developing a game set in between the events of the first two "Borderlands" games, "". Released on October 14, 2014, the game focuses on the rise of Handsome Jack, and features four of his henchmen—Athena (from "The Secret Armory of General Knoxx" DLC), Claptrap, Nisha (Lynchwood's sheriff from "Borderlands 2"), and Wilhelm (a Hyperion cyborg who was a boss in "Borderlands 2")—as playable characters.


title: Borderlands 2

text: At a panel during PAX South in January 2015, Pitchford announced that the studio was preparing to begin work on a new "Borderlands" game—which he described as "the big one", and began to offer a number of new staff openings related to the game. The game would be developed specifically for the eighth-generation consoles Xbox One and PlayStation 4. "Borderlands 3" was released on September 13, 2019.


title: Flag of Egypt

text: The national flag of Egypt (Arabic: ) is a tricolour consisting of the three equal horizontal red, white, and black bands of the Egyptian revolutionary flag that dates back to the 1952 Egyptian Revolution. The flag bears Egypt's national emblem, the Egyptian eagle of Saladin, centred in the white band.


title: Flag of Egypt

text: In 1952, the Egyptian Free Officers who toppled King Farouk in the 23 July Revolution assigned specific symbolism to each of the three bands of the revolutionary and liberation flag. The red band symbolizes the Egyptians’ bloods in the war against colonization. The white band symbolizes the purity of the Egyptians’ hearts. The black band below the white symbolizes the manner in which darkness is overcome.


title: Flag of Egypt

text: Egypt's Revolutionary and Liberation flag, which was designed on 23 July 1952, was then an inspiration to several Arab countries and was adopted by many Arab states. The same horizontal tricolour is used by Iraq, Syria, Sudan and Yemen (and formerly Libya), the only difference being the presence (or absence) of distinguishing national emblems in the white band.


title: Flag of Egypt

text: The development of the modern Egyptian flag was determined first by the Muhammad Ali Dynasty, under whom Egypt was united with Sudan, and later by the rise of Egyptian nationalism and revolutionary ideas among the Egyptian Army.


title: Flag of Egypt

text: When Muhammad Ali successfully seized power in Egypt, at that time the country was officially an Eyalet (Egypt Eyalet) of the Ottoman Empire. However, throughout his reign, and that of his sons and grandsons, Egypt enjoyed virtual independence as an own Khedivate. The meaning of the three stars and crescents has been suggested that this was to symbolise the victory of his armies in three continents (Africa, Asia, and Europe), and his own sovereignty over Egypt, Sudan, and Hejaz. The similarity with the flag of the Ottoman Empire was deliberate, as Muhammad Ali harbored grandiose ambitions of deposing the Ottoman dynasty, and seizing the sultanic throne himself.


title: Flag of Egypt

text: Egypt retained this flag even after formal Ottoman sovereignty was terminated in 1914, when Egypt was declared to be a sultanate, and a British protectorate.


title: Flag of Egypt

text: After the Urabi Revolt in 1882, British forces occupied the country, igniting ever greater nationalist resentment. This reached a peak in the Revolution of 1919, when both the red flag introduced by Muhammad Ali, and a special green banner bearing a crescent and cross were used in protests against the British (the latter symbolizing that both Egypt's Muslim and Christian communities supported the Egyptian nationalist movement against the occupation).


title: Flag of Egypt

text: In 1922, the UK agreed to formally recognize Egyptian independence, but only on the condition that the Sultan of Egypt, Fuad I, change his title to King. Upon so doing, the now King Fuad issued a Royal Decree formally adopting a new national flag of a white crescent with three white stars on a green background in it.


title: Flag of Egypt

text: The three stars symbolised the three component territories of the Kingdom, namely Egypt, Nubia, and Sudan, whilst the green signifies the agricultural nature of the country, other sources suggest that it symbolised the predominant religion of the country, Islam. It has also been suggested that the three stars represented the three religious communities of the country: Muslims, Christians and Jews.


title: Flag of Egypt

text: Following the Revolution of 1952, the Egyptian free officers retained the flag of the Kingdom, but also introduced the Revolutionary and Liberation flag of red, white, and black horizontal bands, with the emblem of the Revolution, the Eagle of Saladin, in the center band. This earlier version of the eagle differs somewhat from the one later adopted. Even when the Kingdom was formally abolished by the declaration of the Republic on July 18, 1953, the flag of the Kingdom remained in official use, until Gamal Abdel Nasser announced the formation of a new regional political union and changed the name to United Arab Republic in 1958. The new flag symbolised a break from the Ottoman-inspired flags of the monarchical period, placing emphasis on the Arab nationalism then espoused by the Nasser government.


title: Flag of Egypt

text: In 1958, Egypt and Syria united as the United Arab Republic (UAR) and adopted a national flag based on the original Egyptian Liberation flag after the revolution, but with two green stars (representing the two countries of the union) replacing the former Egyptian Eagle in the white band. A modified version of that eagle was then adopted as the UAR's coat of arms. The flag with the 2 green stars, representing the two nations is now still used as the national flag of Syria. This flag was briefly used by the Yemen Arab Republic for two months.


title: Flag of Egypt

text: Though Syria withdrew from the UAR in 1961, Egypt continued to use the official name of the United Arab Republic until 1971, when the country was renamed officially as the Arab Republic of Egypt. In 1972, when Egypt formed the Federation of Arab Republics along with Syria, and Libya, the UAR's flag (whose design Syria would reuse for their own flag, eight years later) was replaced by a common flag for the Federation, once again based on the Arab Liberation flag. The two green stars in the white band were replaced by the Hawk of Qureish, which had been the coat of arms of Syria prior to the formation of the UAR in 1958. The Hawk of Qureish was also adopted as the Federation's coat of arms.


title: Flag of Egypt

text: Whilst the Federation of Arab Republics was dissolved in 1977, Egypt retained the Federation's flag until October 4, 1984, when the black Hawk of Qureish was replaced in the white band (and on the coat of arms) by the Eagle of Saladin (the 1958 version as opposed to the 1952 version). The shield held by the eagle is coloured entirely gold and white, as opposed to the colours seen on the shield on Egypt's coat of arms.


title: Flag of Egypt

text: The flag is hoisted on all Egyptian governmental buildings on Fridays, national holidays, the opening session of the House of Representatives, and any other occasions as determined by the Minister of the Interior. The flag is hoisted daily on border posts, customs buildings, Egyptian consulates and embassies overseas on Revolution Day (July 23), and other national holidays, as well as during the visit of the Egyptian President to the country hosting the diplomatic mission.


title: Flag of Egypt

text: Abusing the flag in any way is a criminal offense and is punishable under law as it implies the contempt of the power of the state. Penal provisions also govern abuse of foreign flags or national emblems of other countries.


title: NP-completeness

text: The name "NP-complete" is short for "nondeterministic polynomial-time complete". In this name, "nondeterministic" refers to nondeterministic Turing machines, a way of mathematically formalizing the idea of a brute-force search algorithm. Polynomial time refers to an amount of time that is considered "quick" for a deterministic algorithm to check a single solution, or for a nondeterministic Turing machine to perform the whole search. "Complete" refers to the property of being able to simulate everything in the same complexity class.


title: NP-completeness

text: More precisely, each input to the problem should be associated with a set of solutions of polynomial length, whose validity can be tested quickly (in polynomial time), such that the output for any input is "yes" if the solution set is non-empty and "no" if it is empty. The complexity class of problems of this form is called NP, an abbreviation for "nondeterministic polynomial time". A problem is said to be NP-hard if everything in NP can be transformed in polynomial time into it even though it may not be in NP. Conversely, a problem is NP-complete if it is both in NP and NP-hard. The NP-complete problems represent the hardest problems in NP. If some NP-complete problem has a polynomial time algorithm, all problems in NP do. The set of NP-complete problems is often denoted by NP-C or NPC.


title: NP-completeness

text: Although a solution to an NP-complete problem can be "verified" "quickly", there is no known way to "find" a solution quickly. That is, the time required to solve the problem using any currently known algorithm increases rapidly as the size of the problem grows. As a consequence, determining whether it is possible to solve these problems quickly, called the P versus NP problem, is one of the fundamental unsolved problems in computer science today.


title: NP-completeness

text: While a method for computing the solutions to NP-complete problems quickly remains undiscovered, computer scientists and programmers still frequently encounter NP-complete problems. NP-complete problems are often addressed by using heuristic methods and approximation algorithms.


title: NP-completeness

text: NP-complete problems are in NP, the set of all decision problems whose solutions can be verified in polynomial time; "NP" may be equivalently defined as the set of decision problems that can be solved in polynomial time on a non-deterministic Turing machine. A problem "p" in NP is NP-complete if every other problem in NP can be transformed (or reduced) into "p" in polynomial time.


title: NP-completeness

text: It is not known whether every problem in NP can be quickly solved—this is called the P versus NP problem. But if "any NP-complete problem" can be solved quickly, then "every problem in NP" can, because the definition of an NP-complete problem states that every problem in NP must be quickly reducible to every NP-complete problem (that is, it can be reduced in polynomial time). Because of this, it is often said that NP-complete problems are "harder" or "more difficult" than NP problems in general.


title: NP-completeness

text: formula_1 can be shown to be in NP by demonstrating that a candidate solution to formula_1 can be verified in polynomial time.


title: NP-completeness

text: Note that a problem satisfying condition 2 is said to be NP-hard, whether or not it satisfies condition 1.


title: NP-completeness

text: A consequence of this definition is that if we had a polynomial time algorithm (on a UTM, or any other Turing-equivalent abstract machine) for formula_1, we could solve all problems in NP in polynomial time.


title: NP-completeness

text: The concept of NP-completeness was introduced in 1971 (see Cook–Levin theorem), though the term "NP-complete" was introduced later. At the 1971 STOC conference, there was a fierce debate between the computer scientists about whether NP-complete problems could be solved in polynomial time on a deterministic Turing machine. John Hopcroft brought everyone at the conference to a consensus that the question of whether NP-complete problems are solvable in polynomial time should be put off to be solved at some later date, since nobody had any formal proofs for their claims one way or the other. This is known as "the question of whether P=NP".


title: NP-completeness

text: Nobody has yet been able to determine conclusively whether NP-complete problems are in fact solvable in polynomial time, making this one of the great unsolved problems of mathematics. The Clay Mathematics Institute is offering a US$1 million reward to anyone who has a formal proof that P=NP or that P≠NP.


title: NP-completeness

text: The existence of NP-complete problems is not obvious. The Cook–Levin theorem states that the Boolean satisfiability problem is NP-complete, thus establishing that such problems do exist. In 1972, Richard Karp proved that several other problems were also NP-complete (see Karp's 21 NP-complete problems); thus, there is a class of NP-complete problems (besides the Boolean satisfiability problem). Since the original results, thousands of other problems have been shown to be NP-complete by reductions from other problems previously shown to be NP-complete; many of these problems are collected in Garey and Johnson's 1979 book "".


title: NP-completeness

text: The easiest way to prove that some new problem is NP-complete is first to prove that it is in NP, and then to reduce some known NP-complete problem to it. Therefore, it is useful to know a variety of NP-complete problems. The list below contains some well-known problems that are NP-complete when expressed as decision problems.


title: NP-completeness

text: To the right is a diagram of some of the problems and the reductions typically used to prove their NP-completeness. In this diagram, problems are reduced from bottom to top. Note that this diagram is misleading as a description of the mathematical relationship between these problems, as there exists a polynomial-time reduction between any two NP-complete problems; but it indicates where demonstrating this polynomial-time reduction has been easiest.


title: NP-completeness

text: There is often only a small difference between a problem in P and an NP-complete problem. For example, the 3-satisfiability problem, a restriction of the Boolean satisfiability problem, remains NP-complete, whereas the slightly more restricted 2-satisfiability problem is in P (specifically, it is NL-complete), but the slightly more general max. 2-sat. problem is again NP-complete. Determining whether a graph can be colored with 2 colors is in P, but with 3 colors is NP-complete, even when restricted to planar graphs. Determining if a graph is a cycle or is bipartite is very easy (in L), but finding a maximum bipartite or a maximum cycle subgraph is NP-complete. A solution of the knapsack problem within any fixed percentage of the optimal solution can be computed in polynomial time, but finding the optimal solution is NP-complete.


title: NP-completeness

text: An interesting example is the graph isomorphism problem, the graph theory problem of determining whether a graph isomorphism exists between two graphs. Two graphs are isomorphic if one can be transformed into the other simply by renaming vertices. Consider these two problems:


title: NP-completeness

text: The Subgraph Isomorphism problem is NP-complete. The graph isomorphism problem is suspected to be neither in P nor NP-complete, though it is in NP. This is an example of a problem that is thought to be "hard", but is not thought to be NP-complete. This class is called "NP-Intermediate problems" and exists if and only if P≠NP.


title: NP-completeness

text: At present, all known algorithms for NP-complete problems require time that is superpolynomial in the input size, in fact for some formula_7 and it is unknown whether there are any faster algorithms.


title: NP-completeness

text: The following techniques can be applied to solve computational problems in general, and they often give rise to substantially faster algorithms:


title: NP-completeness

text: One example of a heuristic algorithm is a suboptimal formula_8 greedy coloring algorithm used for graph coloring during the register allocation phase of some compilers, a technique called graph-coloring global register allocation. Each vertex is a variable, edges are drawn between variables which are being used at the same time, and colors indicate the register assigned to each variable. Because most RISC machines have a fairly large number of general-purpose registers, even a heuristic approach is effective for this application.


title: NP-completeness

text: In the definition of NP-complete given above, the term "reduction" was used in the technical meaning of a polynomial-time many-one reduction.