title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: The Islamic Society of Greater Houston operates two mosques in the area, Masjid Maryam (New Territory Islamic Center) and Masjid At-Taqwa (Synott Islamic Center).


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: As in the rest of the Greater Houston area, the energy industry presence is large, specifically petroleum exploration and refining. Sugar Land holds the headquarters to "Fortune" 500 company CVR Energy, Inc. (), Western Airways, and NalcoChampion's Energy Services division. CVR Energy was listed as the city's only resident 2012 Fortune 500 company and the "Houston Chronicle" ranked it the No. 5 public company in the Houston area. Sugar Land also has a large number of international energy, software, engineering, and product firms.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: Sugar Land is home to the headquarters of the Imperial Sugar Company. It was once the home of the company's main (and sole) refinery and distribution center. The refinery and distribution center have been closed since 2003.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: Schlumberger, an oil services company, moved its Houston-area offices from 5000 Gulf Freeway in Houston to a campus in Sugar Land in 1995. This campus is at the northeast corner of U.S. Highway 90A and Gillingham Lane. (The former Gulf Freeway headquarters was repurposed as the University of Houston Energy Research Park after 2009.)


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: As of 2015, Schlumberger was the second-largest employer in Sugar Land. In 2015, Schlumberger announced that it was moving its U.S. corporate headquarters to the Sugar Land facility from a Houston office building. The company plans to build new buildings with a scheduled completion time of late 2017. They include a total of of class A office space and an "amenities" building with of space.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: Minute Maid opened its headquarters in Sugar Land Town Square in First Colony on February 16, 2009; previously, it was headquartered in 2000 St. James Place in Houston.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: In 1991, BMC Software leased about at the Sugar Creek National Bank Building and about in the Fluor Daniel Building, both in Sugar Land. BMC planned to vacate both Sugar Land facilities when its current headquarters, located in Westchase, opened; BMC's headquarters were scheduled to open in 1993.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: According to the city's 2019 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, the largest employers in the city are:


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: Sugar Land operates under the Council-Manager form of government. Under this system, Council appoints the city manager, who acts as the chief executive officer of the government. The city manager carries out policy and administers city programs. All department heads, including the city attorney, police chief and fire chief, are ultimately responsible to the city manager.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: Some of the strengths of the council-manager form of government as opposed to a strong-mayor form of government include - all councilmembers have equal rights, obligations and opportunities, the power is assigned to the council as a whole, and the city manager must be responsive in providing day-to-day services to citizens.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: Sugar Land has had four city managers since instituting the council-manager form of government in 1986:


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: The average tenure nationwide for municipal and county managers is 7.4 years. The City of Sugar Land's last two city managers have an average tenure of over 13 years. The longevity of Sugar Land's city managers indicates stability in this form of government.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: Sugar Land's composition of the city council consists of a mayor, four councilmembers to be elected by single-member districts in odd-numbered years and two councilmembers by at-large positions in even-numbered years with the mayor.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: The city hall was built as part of the Sugar Land Town Square development in First Colony. Prior to the opening of the current city hall, city hall was located at 10405 Corporate Drive. That space was converted for use by the offices of the Sugar Land Fire Department.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: At the start of the 21st century, Sugar Land was well-known as a Republican stronghold. More recently, the city has been trending Democratic in presidential elections; after voting Republican in 2012 and 2016, Sugar Land was won by Joe Biden in 2020.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: Sugar Land is located in Texas's 22nd congressional district. It is represented in the US House of Representatives by Republican Troy Nehls, a former Fort Bend county sheriff. The district had long elected former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, who served from here from 1985 until his 2006 resignation. Previously in 1976, Republicans ran a write-in campaign and gained election of Republican Ron Paul, who served briefly in 1976. He ran for a full term in 1978, serving from 1979 until 1985.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: In the Texas Legislature, most of Sugar Land is represented in District 17 of the Texas Senate, which is represented by Republican Joan Huffman. Some western segments of the city and its extraterritorial jurisdiction, including the master-planned communities of New Territory, Greatwood, River Park and Telfair, are situated in District 18, represented by Republican Lois Kolkhorst. She succeeded Glenn Hegar in a 2014 special election following the latter's election as Texas State Comptroller earlier that year.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: In the Texas House of Representatives, most of Sugar Land is located in District 26, which is represented by Republican Rick Miller, a retired United States Navy officer and current Sugar Land businessman. Some parts of the city are also represented by Democrat Ron Reynolds (the Sugar Land Business Park) in District 27 and Republican Phil Stephenson in District 85 (the River Park, Commonwealth and Riverstone communities).


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: Fort Bend County does not have a hospital district. OakBend Medical Center serves as the county's charity hospital which the county contracts with.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: The Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) operates the Jester State Prison Farm complex (Jester I, Vance, Jester III, and Jester IV) in an unincorporated area near Sugar Land.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: The TDCJ operated the Central Unit in Sugar Land. The Central Unit was the only state prison within the city limits of Sugar Land. The Sugar Land Distribution Center, a TDCJ men's correctional supply warehouse, was inside the Central Unit compound. In 2011 the TDCJ announced that the prison was closing and would be vacant by the end of August of that year. With the prison's closing, Sugar Land became the first Texas city to have its state prison close without a replacement facility.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: The United States Postal Service operates the Sugar Land Post Office at 225 Matlage Way and the First Colony Post Office at 3130 Grants Lake Boulevard.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: Sugar Land has a largely white-collar, university-educated workforce employed in Houston's energy industry.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: In 2004, the city was named one of the top 100 places to live, according to HomeRoute, a national real estate marketing company which identifies top American cities each year through its Relocate-America program. Cities are selected based on educational opportunities, crime rates, employment and housing data. The magazine started with statistics on 271 U.S. cities provided by "OnBoard LLC", a real estate information company.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: Sugar Land was awarded the title of "Fittest City in Texas" for the population range 50,000–100,000 in 2004, 2005 (in a tie with Round Rock) and 2006. The "Fittest City in Texas" program is a part of the Texas Roundup program, a statewide fitness initiative.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: Local sports are popular both at the recreational and competitive levels. Sugar Land formed its first community swim team, the Sugar Land Sharks, in 1967, and it is still competing as of 2016.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: Sugar Land is home to the Smart Financial Centre, an indoor concert hall that is the only such venue of its kind in Greater Houston, and can seat 6,400 seats for multiple events including concerts, cultural events and graduations. An outdoor arts plaza is also being constructed around the concert hall, and will be incorporated with a new mixed-use development that will include two hotels, a conference center, office and ground-level retail, and an age-restricted senior living multifamily complex.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: Sugar Land is the home of the Sugar Land Space Cowboys Minor League Baseball team, founded in 2012, who play at Constellation Field in the Imperial master-planned community, located between the Sugar Land Regional Airport and the former Imperial Sugar property. Originally known as the Sugar Land Skeeters, they won the 2016 and 2018 championship in the independent Atlantic League of Professional Baseball. In 2021, the Skeeters joined the Triple-A West as the Triple-A affiliate of the Houston Astros. After the 2021 season, the team rebranded as the Sugar Land Space Cowboys.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: In 2014 the Sugar Land Youth Cricket Club, a children's cricket club, was established. In 2016 it played its home games at Everest Academy in Stafford.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: Sugar Land Town Square serves as the primary entertainment district in Sugar Land and Fort Bend County. The district offers an array of restaurants, sidewalk cafes, shopping venues, a Marriott Hotel and conference center, mid-rise offices and homes, a public plaza, and Sugar Land City Hall. Festivals and important events take place in the plaza. The new city hall and public plaza, a cornerstone of Sugar Land Town Square, received the "Best Community Impact" award from the "Houston Business Journal" at the fifth annual Landmark Awards ceremony.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: Next door to the district is First Colony Mall, a major regional shopping mall that recently expanded from its original indoor design to include an outdoor lifestyle component, several parking garages, and new signage that blends in with the surrounding area. The mall is anchored by two Dillard's stores, Macy's, JCPenney, and Barnes & Noble, along with over 130 stores.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: Sugar Land also hosts the Sugar Land Ice and Sports Center (formerly Sugar Land Aerodrome), offers ice skating and hockey lessons. It is open to the public as an ice skating facility. Previously, it served as the practice facility for the Houston Aeros of the American Hockey League. Also Olympic medalist Tara Lipinski trained at the Sugar Land Ice and Sports Center.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: In May 2016, two sculptures in the Town Square's public plaza were installed as part of a 10-piece collection donated by a Sugar Land resident to the city through the Sugar Land Legacy Foundation. One of the statues, which depicts two girls taking a selfie, has received criticism and acclaim from the media and general public.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: Future developments in the city include new mixed-use developments on the grounds of the former Imperial Sugar refinery, Imperial Market, which will incorporate the property's 1920s-era char house as a boutique hotel, as well as in the southern part of the Telfair master-planned community with the Smart Financial Centre as an anchor.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: Sugar Land has the most master-planned communities in Fort Bend County, which is home to the largest number of master-planned communities in the nation—including First Colony, Greatwood, New Territory, Telfair, Sugar Creek, River Park, Imperial, Riverstone and many others. Many of the communities feature golf courses, country clubs, and lakes. The first master-planned community to be developed in Sugar Land was Sugar Creek. There are now a total of thirteen master-planned communities located in Sugar Land's city limits and its extraterritorial jurisdiction combined.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: The northern portion of Sugar Land, sometimes referred to by residents and government officials as "Old Sugar Land", comprises all the communities north of U.S. Highway 90A, but it also includes the subdivisions/areas of Venetian Estates, and Belknap/Brookside, which is just south of U.S. 90A. Most of this area was the original city limits of Sugar Land when it was incorporated in 1959. Located in this part of town is the former Imperial Sugar Company refinery and distribution center that was shut down in 2003, even though the company's headquarters are still located within the city. To the east of northern Sugar Land is the Sugar Land Business Park, the largest business and industrial area in the city. Many of the city's electronic and energy companies are located here, including the future North American headquarters of Schlumberger. The Imperial master-planned community, including Constellation Field and the future Imperial Market development, is also located in north Sugar Land.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: The largest economic and entertainment activities are in the areas of south and southeastern Sugar Land. Most of the population in the city limits are concentrated here. This area is all master-planned communities and it includes nearly all of First Colony, the largest in Sugar Land encompassing . Other master-planned communities in this area are Sugar Creek, Sugar Lakes, Commonwealth, Avalon, Telfair, and Riverstone. This area is the location of First Colony Mall, Sugar Land Town Square, the new Sugar Land City Hall, and other major commercial areas. This area boasts a wide range of recreational activities including three golf courses and country clubs, including Sweetwater Country Club (the former home of the LPGA), as well as the Sugar Land Ice & Sports Center (formerly Sugar Land Aerodrome).


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: The southwestern area of Sugar Land was recently annexed into the city limits, and is sometimes referred to as the "other side of the river". This is due to this area being separated from the rest of Sugar Land by the Brazos River, as well as being served by the Lamar Consolidated Independent School District. The southwest side has two master-planned communities, Greatwood and River Park. Other communities in this area are Canyon Gate on the Brazos and Tara Colony, the latter an older large subdivision which has a Richmond address but is actually in the extraterritorial jurisdiction of Sugar Land and up for future annexation.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: The western portion of Sugar Land was also fully incorporated into the city limits in 2017. It is home to two master-planned communities, New Territory and Telfair, the latter of which was previously prison farm land owned by the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. It was sold in 2003 and annexed to the city limits by Sugar Land in 2004. A new highway, State Highway 99 (more commonly known as the "Grand Parkway"), opened in 1994 as a major arterial in this area. North of this area and U.S. Highway 90A is the Sugar Land Regional Airport and the recently decommissioned Texas Department of Corrections Central Unit, which in 2011 became the first Texas prison to be closed without a replacement facility and is being targeted by the city for future light industrial development.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: Lakeview Auditorium, located on the campus of Lakeview Elementary School, is the oldest public building still standing in the area. Originally one of eleven buildings that composed the campus of the old Sugar Land Independent School District, the auditorium was a focal point for a vibrant and growing community. The stately auditorium still stands today and is a Recorded Texas Historic Landmark, as of 2002.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: In 1912, Imperial Sugar Company built a small building at the corner of Wood Street and Lakeview Drive (then known as Third Street) to serve as a school. The original campus consisted of 11 buildings arranged in a semicircle with the large, airy auditorium in the center. The buildings were connected by a covered walkway supported by large, white columns. There was a circular driveway for buses and automobiles. All the buildings were finished in white stucco on the outside and had large windows that allowed fresh air to circulate and cool the buildings. The auditorium was a hub of community activity.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: A branch campus of Wharton County Junior College and a branch campus of University of Houston are both located in Sugar Land.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: Sugar Land is under state law in the service area of Wharton County Junior College, as its extraterritorial jurisdiction. Wharton County College is a comprehensive community college offering a wide range of postsecondary educational programs and services including associate degrees, certificates, and continuing-education courses. The college prepares students interested in transferring to baccalaureate-granting institutions.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: All public school systems in Texas are administered by the Texas Education Agency (TEA). The Fort Bend Independent School District (FBISD) is the school district that serves almost all of the city of Sugar Land; it formed in 1959 by the consolidation of Missouri City Independent School District and the Sugar Land Independent School District. The southwest portion of Sugar Land and some very small areas within its extraterritorial jurisdiction (ETJ) are in the Lamar Consolidated Independent School District (LCISD).


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: High schools serving Sugar Land residents in Fort Bend ISD include Clements High School, Dulles High School and Kempner High School, as well as Austin High School and Travis High School north of the city, which both serve students in New Territory, while Lamar Consolidated ISD's Lamar Consolidated High School and George Ranch High School, respectively, serve the River Park and Greatwood master-planned communities in Sugar Land.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: Dulles, Clements, and Austin have been recognized by "Texas Monthly" magazine in its list of the top high schools in Texas. In addition, Dulles, Clements, and Austin high schools were also ranked among the top 1000 schools in the United States by "Newsweek"'s 2009 report.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: Prior to 1959 Sugar Land High School, which merged into Dulles that year, served the city. At the time FBISD formed, white students attended an elementary school in Sugar Land, a junior high school in Sugar Land, and a high school site in Missouri City. The elementary and junior high campus now houses Lakeview Elementary School and the high school site now houses Missouri City Middle School. Dulles High School became the zoned high school for white students in FBISD. Black students in Sugar Land for grades 1–12 were served by M.R. Wood School, one of FBISD's three schools for black children. Following racial desegregation in 1965, Dulles became the only zoned high school for students of all races in FBISD until Willowridge High School opened in 1979.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: In addition, the Harmony Public Schools operates three charter schools in the city, the grades K–5 Harmony Science Academy, 6–8 Harmony School of Excellence, and grades 9–12 Harmony School of Innovation.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: Many private schools in Sugar Land and the surrounding area are of all types: nonreligious, nonsectarian, Catholic, and Protestant. The Texas Education Agency has no authority over private-school operations; private schools may or may not be accredited and achievement tests are not required for private school graduating seniors.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston operates two Catholic K–8 schools in Sugar Land: St. Theresa Catholic School and St. Laurence School, both named for two of the city's Catholic parishes. St. Laurence, established in 1992, received additions in 1996 and 2002. St. Theresa was established in 2008. The city government approved the permit for the St. Theresa school building in 2007, and it was dedicated on August 13, 2009. Some high school students attend Pope John XXIII High School in Greater Katy.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: The Fort Bend Christian Academy, formerly known as Fort Bend Baptist Academy, and Logos Preparatory Academy are also located in Sugar Land. The Darul Arqam Schools Southwest Campus is located in Alief, Houston, with a Sugar Land postal address.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: Residents of Sugar Land are served by the Fort Bend County Libraries system, which has 11 libraries. Three branches are within the city: Sugar Land Branch, First Colony Branch, and University Branch on the University of Houston Sugar Land branch campus.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: A portion of the 1974 movie, "The Sugarland Express", takes place in Sugar Land. Many of the movie's earliest scenes were filmed at the nearby Beauford H. Jester prison pre-release center. Other parts of the set were filmed in and around Sugar Land. The movie's title parses the name of the city as one word rather than two. It was among Steven Spielberg's first films before he became famous. The film was the first theatrical feature film directed by Spielberg.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: In 2010, "The Legend of Action Man" was filmed in Sugar Land. The film was produced by Dingoman Productions, a sketch comedy group formed by Sugar Land residents Andy Young, Derek Papa & James McEnelly that got their start attending Austin High School together. The story takes place in the Sugar Land area and makes use of many of the landmarks there. Action Man is famous for being one of the least expensive films ever made, made on a budget of $200. Director Andy Young has written about the experience for "Moviemaker" magazine.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: Folk musician Lead Belly's song "Midnight Special" discusses his arrest in Houston and his stay at the Sugar Land Prison (now the Beauford H. Jester pre-release Center) in 1925.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: Country music band Sugarland gets its name from the city. They reference it in their song "Sugarland".


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: Bruce Springsteen recorded but did not release a song called "Sugar Land", about the economic crisis facing American agriculture in the 1980s.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: The primary newspaper serving Sugar Land residents is the "Houston Chronicle", which is the only major newspaper in the Greater Houston region. On Thursdays, the "Houston Chronicle" offers a localized segment covering the Sugar Land area under its "Fort Bend" section. An alternative newspaper, the "Houston Press", is also offered in this area.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: Additionally, Sugar Land residents receive local area news coverage via "Covering Fort Bend", which covers local news and political happenings in the Sugar Land area. Residents also are served by three free weekly newspapers, the "Fort Bend Independent", the "Fort Bend Star", and the "Sugar Land Sun". The "Fort Bend Herald and Texas Coaster", a daily newspaper covering primarily the Richmond-Rosenberg area west of Sugar Land, also covers news stories in Sugar Land.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: Over-the-air television in Sugar Land is broadcast in the Houston television market, which is the seventh-largest market in the United States according to Nielsen Media Research.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: The city is also served by a citywide public-access television on cable channel 16, which covers city council meetings, planning and zoning meetings, community events, FBISD board meetings, and Fort Bend County Commissioners' Court meetings.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: The vast majority of cable subscribers in the Sugar Land area are served by Comcast-owned Xfinity, which took over the Houston area's dominant cable franchise from Time Warner in 2006. Other cable options in Sugar Land include AT&T U-verse, En-Touch Systems (which covers the River Park West and Telfair areas of the city), Phonoscope, TVMAX, and Ygnition (the latter two of which cover cable subscribers in multifamily housing developments).


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: Sugar Land is the setting in the new Lifetime series, "The Client List" starring Jennifer Love Hewitt. Hewitt's character lives in Beaumont, but commutes to Sugar Land to work at a scandalous massage parlor.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: Sugar Land currently does not have a mass transit system. However, this could change as it has been a possible candidate for expansion of Houston's METRORail system by means of a planned commuter rail along U.S. Highway 90A. The city is not a participant in the Houston area's METRO transit authority; Sugar Land's merchants do not collect the sales tax that partially funds that agency. Fort Bend County Public Transit provides commuter service from Sugar Land to Houston.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: Interstate 69/U.S. Highway 59, the major freeway running diagonally through the city, has undergone a major widening project in recent years to accommodate the region's daily commuters. The finished portion of the freeway from east of State Highway 6 to just west of State Highway 99 currently has eight main lanes, with two diamond lanes and six continuous frontage road lanes. The freeway is currently undergoing a major expansion west of the city to accommodate growth in the nearby Richmond/Rosenberg area and western Fort Bend County, as well as upgrading it to federal highway standards to reflect its newfound status as an interstate highway.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: U.S. Highway 90 Alternate is another major highway running through Sugar Land from west to east and traverses a historic area of the city, known as "Old Sugar Land". Originally the main highway in Sugar Land prior to the construction of what is now Interstate 69, U.S. Highway 90A is currently widened to an eight-lane highway with a median between State Highway 6 and Interstate 69/U.S. Highway 59.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: State Highway 6 is a major highway running from north to southeast Sugar Land and traverses through the master-planned community of First Colony. There is a freeway section that opened in 2008 from just west of Brooks Street/First Colony Blvd all the way to 3/4 miles north of U.S. Highway 90A.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: A segment of State Highway 99/Grand Parkway currently traverses the New Territory and River Park master-planned communities. The original highway opened in 1994, with toll lanes added in 2014. Construction will start soon south of its current terminus at Interstate 69/US 59, which is expected to extend the highway east to Alvin in Brazoria County.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: Texas F.M. 1876, widely known as Copenhaver Road, is a north-south state highway in north Sugar Land. It traverses through many established areas and acts as the western border of the Sugar Land Business Park.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: Sugar Land Regional Airport (formerly Hull Field, later Sugar Land Municipal Airport) was purchased from a private interest in 1990 by the city of Sugar Land. It is the fourth largest airport within the Greater Houston metropolitan area. The airport handles approximately 250 aircraft operations per day. The airport has an on-field United States Customs office, making this airport attractive to energy companies based in the Houston metropolitan area as this allows flights directly to and from countries wherein overseas operations are located, allowing fliers to avoid the delays inherent in high traffic airports such as George Bush Intercontinental.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: The airport today serves the area's general aviation (GA) aircraft serving corporate, governmental, and private clientele. A new terminal and a GA complex opened in 2006. Sugar Land Regional briefly handled commercial passenger service during the mid-1990s via a now-defunct Texas carrier known as Conquest Airlines. For scheduled commercial service, Sugar Landers rely on Houston's two commercial airports, George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH), northeast, and William P. Hobby Airport (HOU), east.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: The city of Houston maintains a park that occupies of land directly north of the Sugar Land Regional Airport, and developers have built master-planned communities (Telfair, and the future development of TX DOT Tract 3 immediately east of the airport) around the airport, both factors that block airport expansion.


title: Sugar Land, Texas

text: China Airlines operated private bus shuttle services from Wel-Farm Super Market/Metro Bank on State Highway 6 in Sugar Land to George Bush Intercontinental Airport to feed the flight from Bush Intercontinental to Taipei, Taiwan. The service ended when China Airlines pulled out of Houston on January 29, 2008.


title: Smother (TV series)

text: Smother is an Irish thriller drama series written by Kate O'Riordan and directed by Dathaí Keane. It stars Dervla Kirwan as Val Ahern, a mother who is determined to protect her family at any cost. The series is produced by BBC Studios and Treasure Entertainment for Raidió Teilifís Éireann, and premiered on 7 March 2021 on RTÉ One. A second series was announced in April 2021 and had its premiere on RTÉ One on 9 January 2022. It aired in the UK by Alibi in June 2021. The series airs in Norway on TV2. A third series, to air in 2023, was announced after the second series finale in February 2022.


title: Smother (TV series)

text: Set in a small town on the wild and rugged coast of County Clare, Val Ahern, a devoted mother, is determined to protect her family and particularly her three daughters—Jenny, Anna and Grace—at any cost. When Val's husband Denis is found dead at the foot of a cliff near their home the morning after a family party, Val attempts to investigate the events that unfolded the night before.


title: Smother (TV series)

text: Filming began in February 2020 in and around Lahinch. On the series' way of writing and storytelling, lead actress Dervla Kirwan said that "it's been a long time since anything this well written about an Irish family has come my way. In "Smother", [Kate O'Riordan] has created a riveting thriller that will wake the world up to contemporary Ireland and rewrite an outdated narrative that has been peddled about the Irish for years." She also relates the series' setting to the character in the series, in particular to the Ahern family:


title: Smother (TV series)

text: In March 2020, production was halted due to social restrictions being imposed nationwide to combat the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic. On the filming halt, cast member Niamh Walsh states:


title: Smother (TV series)

text: On 4 April 2021, it was revealed that comedian Kevin McGahern has joined the cast in episode 5, portraying Michael Foley.


title: Smother (TV series)

text: On 26 December 2021, it was announced that former "Coronation Street" star Dean Fagan will be starring as Denis Ahern's estranged son in the show's second series.


title: Deviant (comics)

text: The Changing People, dubbed the Deviants by the Eternals, are a fictional race of humanoids appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics.


title: Deviant (comics)

text: In the Marvel Universe, the Deviants are the end product of a series of DNA tests known as Homo descendus, created by the enigmatic alien Celestials. Their race is largely insensitive and they view all other species as a threat. They even distrust each other and often get in their own way.


title: Deviant (comics)

text: They are an offshoot of the evolutionary process that created sentient life on Earth instigated by the alien Celestials, and wage war against their counterparts, the Eternals.


title: Deviant (comics)

text: While the Eternals possess godlike power and are generally physically beautiful, the Deviants (who sometimes refer to themselves as 'the changing people') are for the most part hideous, with each member of their race possessing some random physical and/or cosmetic mutation that is by Celestial design never repeated within the sub-species. Extremely mutated or deformed Deviants are referred to as "mutates" and some of the monsters of myth and legend have in fact been identified as Deviant mutates. Some of these mutations can provide superhuman abilities, but their powers are usually not as great as those of the Eternals.


title: Deviant (comics)

text: According to the account of one Deviant in the 2006 comic book mini-series, the Deviants were created as a delicacy to be consumed "en masse" by Celestials at periodic intervals once they multiplied sufficiently. The veracity of this has been revealed untrue as the Deviants and the Eternals were actually created because the Celestials saw the human population as a useful pathogen to act as antibodies against the Horde, so the Deviants and the Eternals were to defend the process under the false impression that they were actually protecting the human race.


title: Deviant (comics)

text: The Deviants are religious, revering the Dreaming Celestial ("He Who Sleeps in Darkness"). They credit him with their creation and claim that he granted them dominion over the Earth, an agreement they believe was later broken by the treachery of the other Celestials. They have one or more holy books—the only one named thus far being the "Book of Krask".


title: Deviant (comics)

text: The Deviants had already developed advanced technology such as genetic engineering when humans were still living in caves.


title: Deviant (comics)

text: At some point in prehistoric times, some Deviants chased after Vnn and his lover Brrkk. When Brrkk died, Vnn found the corpse of a Tyrannosaurus that previously possessed the Star Brand. Vnn absorbed the Star Brand powers and used them to defeat the Deviants.


title: Deviant (comics)

text: In the advent of the heroic age, Brother Tode was leading the Deviants, with his capital in the city of the Toads in the sunken continent of Lemuria. When the Fourth Celestial Host arrived on Earth, Deviants soldiers led by Warlord Kro attacked New York City in an attempt to provoke fear in the humans and trick them into attacking the Celestials. When this attempt failed, the Deviants sent an attack team to the Celestial spaceship, which failed too.


title: Deviant (comics)

text: Later, the Deviants' aristocracy, led by Brother Tode, attacked Olympia and kidnapped the Eternals with the intent to disintegrate them. However, the hero Iron Man (James Rhodes) rescued the Eternals and helped them in the defeat of the Deviants. The Eternals transformed the Deviants' aristocracy into a synthetic cube, killing them. Only Warlord Kro escaped with the help of his old lover Thena of the Eternals.


title: Deviant (comics)

text: Without the aristocracy, the Deviants' priests seized power, led by Priestlord Ghaur, who killed the son of Tode, Ranar. Kro returned to Lemuria and was crowned as a figurehead monarch, with the real power in the hands of Ghaur. With their new leader, the Deviants battled the Eternals again. Ghaur absorbed the power of the Dreaming Celestial and tried to ascend to godhood, but was defeated by the Eternals and the Avengers and was disintegrated. Kro was left as king of the Deviants.


title: Deviant (comics)

text: Ghaur returned to corporeal form and tried to obtain the Serpent Crown with help of the Atlantean Lemurians, led by Llyra, in an attempt to invoke the Old God Set. The Avengers and Fantastic Four put an end to their mad plan and Ghaur was disintegrated once more. Without Ghaur, and with the abdication of Kro, the Deviants' society fall into anarchy and revolution. First, a warlord called Brutus tried to conquer the different races of the subterrain, but was killed when the Deviants discovered his "mutate" origin. Later Brother Visara led the Deviants in killing all the "leaders" and their followers. He was ultimately killed as well.


title: Deviant (comics)

text: Later, Kro led a group of heroic Deviants, the Delta Network to rescue the Avengers from a resurrected Ghaur, who used his powers to control the Deviants once more. Ghaur (in a form of a giant statue) and the Deviants fought the Eternals and the Heroes for Hire, when the mad priest created an "Anti-Mind" in his plan to rule the world.


title: Deviant (comics)

text: Kro and Ghaur formed bickering factions and kept the struggle for power for Deviant Lemuria. The external world did not know who was in charge. Ghaur risked a war with Wakanda after he discovered that his "rejected" (human-like) daughter was alive in that country. The Wakandan forces sieged Lemuria and the tension grew. Finally, the daughter was declared officially dead and Ghaur saved face.


title: Deviant (comics)

text: Much later, the Deviant males were rendered sterile by a plague, the anarchy reigned, and a power contest between Ereshkigal and Ghaur happened. Ghaur won when he promised the Deviants the return of the fertility with the help of the kidnapped Eternal Phastos and the Eternal's resurrection machine. The Asgardian god Thor rescued Phastos and battled Ghaur. When the Unbiding Stone (a doomsday artifact stolen by Erishkigal) was destroyed, Ghaur and Erishkigal disappeared and Kro was left leading the Deviants.


title: Deviant (comics)

text: The "Delta Network", also referred to as the Delta Force (no relation to the real life Delta Force), was the name of a group of Deviants. The Delta Network was a group of Deviant warriors who were organized by Warlord Kro. When the Avengers were captured by the Deviant priesthood, Kro called the members into action to rescue them. Delta Network members included: Ransak the Reject, Karkas, Enigmo, and Donald and Deborah Ritter (the twin children of Thena and Kro). The Delta Network appeared only in "Avengers" #370–371. The group was created out of pre-existing characters by Glenn Herdling and Geof Isherwood.


title: Deviant (comics)

text: The Skrulls are nearly all Deviants who eliminated the other offshoots of their species, leaving only one of the original race (Prime Skrull) and a Skrull Eternal (Kly'bn).


title: Deviant (comics)

text: The Deviants made their film debut in "Eternals", set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Kro appears in the film as well, serving as the Deviants' leader. They are a monstrous race of near-immortal beings genetically engineered by the Celestials and are the historical enemies of the Eternals, their racial cousins. They were engineered to progress and ensure the development of life in the universe by wiping out apex predators on various planets, until they evolved to hunt down and wipe out all life, leading to the creation of the Eternals to stop them.


title: National personification

text: A national personification is an anthropomorphic personification of a state or the people(s) it inhabits. It may appear in political cartoons and propaganda.


title: National personification

text: Some early personifications in the Western world tended to be national manifestations of the majestic wisdom and war goddess Minerva/Athena, and often took the Latin name of the ancient Roman province. Examples of this type include Britannia, Germania, Hibernia, Hispania, Helvetia and Polonia. Examples of personifications of the Goddess of Liberty include Marianne, the Statue of Liberty ("Liberty Enlightening the World"), and many examples of United States coinage. Another ancient model was Roma, a female deity who personified the city of Rome and more broadly, the Roman state, and who was revived in the 20th Century as the personification of Mussolini's "New Roman Empire". Examples of representations of the everyman or citizenry in addition to the nation itself are Deutscher Michel, John Bull and Uncle Sam.


title: Scientific law

text: Scientific laws or laws of science are statements, based on repeated experiments or observations, that describe or predict a range of natural phenomena. The term "law" has diverse usage in many cases (approximate, accurate, broad, or narrow) across all fields of natural science (physics, chemistry, astronomy, geoscience, biology). Laws are developed from data and can be further developed through mathematics; in all cases they are directly or indirectly based on empirical evidence. It is generally understood that they implicitly reflect, though they do not explicitly assert, causal relationships fundamental to reality, and are discovered rather than invented.


title: Scientific law

text: Scientific laws summarize the results of experiments or observations, usually within a certain range of application. In general, the accuracy of a law does not change when a new theory of the relevant phenomenon is worked out, but rather the scope of the law's application, since the mathematics or statement representing the law does not change. As with other kinds of scientific knowledge, scientific laws do not express absolute certainty, as mathematical theorems or identities do. A scientific law may be contradicted, restricted, or extended by future observations.


title: Scientific law

text: A law can often be formulated as one or several statements or equations, so that it can predict the outcome of an experiment. Laws differ from hypotheses and postulates, which are proposed during the scientific process before and during validation by experiment and observation. Hypotheses and postulates are not laws, since they have not been verified to the same degree, although they may lead to the formulation of laws. Laws are narrower in scope than scientific theories, which may entail one or several laws. Science distinguishes a law or theory from facts. Calling a law a fact is ambiguous, an overstatement, or an equivocation. The nature of scientific laws has been much discussed in philosophy, but in essence scientific laws are simply empirical conclusions reached by scientific method; they are intended to be neither laden with ontological commitments nor statements of logical absolutes.


title: Scientific law

text: A scientific law always applies to a physical system under repeated conditions, and it implies that there is a causal relationship involving the elements of the system. Factual and well-confirmed statements like "Mercury is liquid at standard temperature and pressure" are considered too specific to qualify as scientific laws. A central problem in the philosophy of science, going back to David Hume, is that of distinguishing causal relationships (such as those implied by laws) from principles that arise due to constant conjunction.


title: Scientific law

text: Laws differ from scientific theories in that they do not posit a mechanism or explanation of phenomena: they are merely distillations of the results of repeated observation. As such, the applicability of a law is limited to circumstances resembling those already observed, and the law may be found to be false when extrapolated. Ohm's law only applies to linear networks; Newton's law of universal gravitation only applies in weak gravitational fields; the early laws of aerodynamics, such as Bernoulli's principle, do not apply in the case of compressible flow such as occurs in transonic and supersonic flight; Hooke's law only applies to strain below the elastic limit; Boyle's law applies with perfect accuracy only to the ideal gas, etc. These laws remain useful, but only under the specified conditions where they apply.


title: Scientific law

text: Many laws take mathematical forms, and thus can be stated as an equation; for example, the law of conservation of energy can be written as formula_1, where formula_2 is the total amount of energy in the universe. Similarly, the first law of thermodynamics can be written as formula_3, and Newton's second law can be written as formula_4 . While these scientific laws explain what our senses perceive, they are still empirical (acquired by observation or scientific experiment) and so are not like mathematical theorems which can be proved purely by mathematics.


title: Scientific law

text: Like theories and hypotheses, laws make predictions; specifically, they predict that new observations will conform to the given law. Laws can be falsified if they are found in contradiction with new data.


title: Scientific law

text: Some laws are only approximations of other more general laws, and are good approximations with a restricted domain of applicability. For example, Newtonian dynamics (which is based on Galilean transformations) is the low-speed limit of special relativity (since the Galilean transformation is the low-speed approximation to the Lorentz transformation). Similarly, the Newtonian gravitation law is a low-mass approximation of general relativity, and Coulomb's law is an approximation to quantum electrodynamics at large distances (compared to the range of weak interactions). In such cases it is common to use the simpler, approximate versions of the laws, instead of the more accurate general laws.


title: Scientific law

text: Laws are constantly being tested experimentally to increasing degrees of precision, which is one of the main goals of science. The fact that laws have never been observed to be violated does not preclude testing them at increased accuracy or in new kinds of conditions to confirm whether they continue to hold, or whether they break, and what can be discovered in the process. It is always possible for laws to be invalidated or proven to have limitations, by repeatable experimental evidence, should any be observed. Well-established laws have indeed been invalidated in some special cases, but the new formulations created to explain the discrepancies generalize upon, rather than overthrow, the originals. That is, the invalidated laws have been found to be only close approximations, to which other terms or factors must be added to cover previously unaccounted-for conditions, e.g. very large or very small scales of time or space, enormous speeds or masses, etc. Thus, rather than unchanging knowledge, physical laws are better viewed as a series of improving and more precise generalizations.


title: Scientific law

text: Scientific laws are typically conclusions based on repeated scientific experiments and observations over many years and which have become accepted universally within the scientific community. A scientific law is "inferred from particular facts, applicable to a defined group or class of phenomena, and expressible by the statement that a particular phenomenon always occurs if certain conditions be present." The production of a summary description of our environment in the form of such laws is a fundamental aim of science.


title: Scientific law

text: Several general properties of scientific laws, particularly when referring to laws in physics, have been identified. Scientific laws are:


title: Scientific law

text: The term "scientific law" is traditionally associated with the natural sciences, though the social sciences also contain laws. For example, Zipf's law is a law in the social sciences which is based on mathematical statistics. In these cases, laws may describe general trends or expected behaviors rather than being absolutes.


title: Scientific law

text: In natural science, impossibility assertions come to be widely accepted as overwhelmingly probable rather than considered proved to the point of being unchallengeable. The basis for this strong acceptance is a combination of extensive evidence of something not occurring, combined with an underlying theory, very successful in making predictions, whose assumptions lead logically to the conclusion that something is impossible. While an impossibility assertion in natural science can never be absolutely proved, it could be refuted by the observation of a single counterexample. Such a counterexample would require that the assumptions underlying the theory that implied the impossibility be re-examined.


title: Scientific law

text: Some examples of widely accepted impossibilities in physics are perpetual motion machines, which violate the law of conservation of energy, exceeding the speed of light, which violates the implications of special relativity, the uncertainty principle of quantum mechanics, which asserts the impossibility of simultaneously knowing both the position and the momentum of a particle, and Bell's theorem: no physical theory of local hidden variables can ever reproduce all of the predictions of quantum mechanics.


title: Scientific law

text: Some laws reflect mathematical symmetries found in Nature (e.g. the Pauli exclusion principle reflects identity of electrons, conservation laws reflect homogeneity of space, time, and Lorentz transformations reflect rotational symmetry of spacetime). Many fundamental physical laws are mathematical consequences of various symmetries of space, time, or other aspects of nature. Specifically, Noether's theorem connects some conservation laws to certain symmetries. For example, conservation of energy is a consequence of the shift symmetry of time (no moment of time is different from any other), while conservation of momentum is a consequence of the symmetry (homogeneity) of space (no place in space is special, or different than any other). The indistinguishability of all particles of each fundamental type (say, electrons, or photons) results in the Dirac and Bose quantum statistics which in turn result in the Pauli exclusion principle for fermions and in Bose–Einstein condensation for bosons. The rotational symmetry between time and space coordinate axes (when one is taken as imaginary, another as real) results in Lorentz transformations which in turn result in special relativity theory. Symmetry between inertial and gravitational mass results in general relativity.


title: Scientific law

text: The inverse square law of interactions mediated by massless bosons is the mathematical consequence of the 3-dimensionality of space.


title: Scientific law

text: One strategy in the search for the most fundamental laws of nature is to search for the most general mathematical symmetry group that can be applied to the fundamental interactions.


title: Scientific law

text: Conservation laws are fundamental laws that follow from the homogeneity of space, time and phase, in other words "symmetry".


title: Scientific law

text: Conservation laws can be expressed using the general continuity equation (for a conserved quantity) can be written in differential form as:


title: Scientific law

text: where ρ is some quantity per unit volume, J is the flux of that quantity (change in quantity per unit time per unit area). Intuitively, the divergence (denoted ∇•) of a vector field is a measure of flux diverging radially outwards from a point, so the negative is the amount piling up at a point; hence the rate of change of density in a region of space must be the amount of flux leaving or collecting in some region (see the main article for details). In the table below, the fluxes flows for various physical quantities in transport, and their associated continuity equations, are collected for comparison.


title: Scientific law

text: More general equations are the convection–diffusion equation and Boltzmann transport equation, which have their roots in the continuity equation.


title: Scientific law

text: Classical mechanics, including Newton's laws, Lagrange's equations, Hamilton's equations, etc., can be derived from the following principle:


title: Scientific law

text: of the physical system between two times "t" and "t". The kinetic energy of the system is "T" (a function of the rate of change of the configuration of the system), and potential energy is "V" (a function of the configuration and its rate of change). The configuration of a system which has "N" degrees of freedom is defined by generalized coordinates q = ("q", "q", ... "q").


title: Scientific law

text: The action and Lagrangian both contain the dynamics of the system for all times. The term "path" simply refers to a curve traced out by the system in terms of the generalized coordinates in the configuration space, i.e. the curve q("t"), parameterized by time (see also parametric equation for this concept).


title: Scientific law

text: The action is a "functional" rather than a "function", since it depends on the Lagrangian, and the Lagrangian depends on the path q("t"), so the action depends on the "entire" "shape" of the path for all times (in the time interval from "t" to "t"). Between two instants of time, there are infinitely many paths, but one for which the action is stationary (to the first order) is the true path. The stationary value for the "entire continuum" of Lagrangian values corresponding to some path, "not just one value" of the Lagrangian, is required (in other words it is "not" as simple as "differentiating a function and setting it to zero, then solving the equations to find the points of maxima and minima etc", rather this idea is applied to the entire "shape" of the function, see calculus of variations for more details on this procedure).


title: Scientific law

text: The following general approaches to classical mechanics are summarized below in the order of establishment. They are equivalent formulations. Newton's is commonly used due to simplicity, but Hamilton's and Lagrange's equations are more general, and their range can extend into other branches of physics with suitable modifications.


title: Scientific law

text: Equations describing fluid flow in various situations can be derived, using the above classical equations of motion and often conservation of mass, energy and momentum. Some elementary examples follow.


title: Scientific law

text: Some of the more famous laws of nature are found in Isaac Newton's theories of (now) classical mechanics, presented in his "Philosophiae Naturalis Principia Mathematica", and in Albert Einstein's theory of relativity.


title: Scientific law

text: The two postulates of special relativity are not "laws" in themselves, but assumptions of their nature in terms of "relative motion".


title: Scientific law

text: They can be stated as "the laws of physics are the same in all inertial frames" and "the speed of light is constant and has the same value in all inertial frames".


title: Scientific law

text: The said postulates lead to the Lorentz transformations – the transformation law between two frame of references moving relative to each other. For any 4-vector


title: Scientific law

text: this replaces the Galilean transformation law from classical mechanics. The Lorentz transformations reduce to the Galilean transformations for low velocities much less than the speed of light "c".


title: Scientific law

text: The magnitudes of 4-vectors are invariants - "not" "conserved", but the same for all inertial frames (i.e. every observer in an inertial frame will agree on the same value), in particular if "A" is the four-momentum, the magnitude can derive the famous invariant equation for mass-energy and momentum conservation (see invariant mass):


title: Scientific law

text: General relativity is governed by the Einstein field equations, which describe the curvature of space-time due to mass-energy equivalent to the gravitational field. Solving the equation for the geometry of space warped due to the mass distribution gives the metric tensor. Using the geodesic equation, the motion of masses falling along the geodesics can be calculated.


title: Scientific law

text: In a relatively flat spacetime due to weak gravitational fields, gravitational analogues of Maxwell's equations can be found; the GEM equations, to describe an analogous "gravitomagnetic field". They are well established by the theory, and experimental tests form ongoing research.


title: Scientific law

text: These equations can be modified to include magnetic monopoles, and are consistent with our observations of monopoles either existing or not existing; if they do not exist, the generalized equations reduce to the ones above, if they do, the equations become fully symmetric in electric and magnetic charges and currents. Indeed, there is a duality transformation where electric and magnetic charges can be "rotated into one another", and still satisfy Maxwell's equations.


title: Scientific law

text: These laws were found before the formulation of Maxwell's equations. They are not fundamental, since they can be derived from Maxwell's Equations. Coulomb's Law can be found from Gauss' Law (electrostatic form) and the Biot–Savart Law can be deduced from Ampere's Law (magnetostatic form). Lenz' Law and Faraday's Law can be incorporated into the Maxwell-Faraday equation. Nonetheless they are still very effective for simple calculations.


title: Scientific law

text: Classically, optics is based on a variational principle: light travels from one point in space to another in the shortest time.


title: Scientific law

text: In geometric optics laws are based on approximations in Euclidean geometry (such as the paraxial approximation).


title: Scientific law

text: In actuality, optical properties of matter are significantly more complex and require quantum mechanics.


title: Scientific law

text: Quantum mechanics has its roots in postulates. This leads to results which are not usually called "laws", but hold the same status, in that all of quantum mechanics follows from them.


title: Scientific law

text: One postulate that a particle (or a system of many particles) is described by a wavefunction, and this satisfies a quantum wave equation: namely the Schrödinger equation (which can be written as a non-relativistic wave equation, or a relativistic wave equation). Solving this wave equation predicts the time-evolution of the system's behaviour, analogous to solving Newton's laws in classical mechanics.


title: Scientific law

text: Other postulates change the idea of physical observables; using quantum operators; some measurements can't be made at the same instant of time (Uncertainty principles), particles are fundamentally indistinguishable. Another postulate; the wavefunction collapse postulate, counters the usual idea of a measurement in science.


title: Scientific law

text: Applying electromagnetism, thermodynamics, and quantum mechanics, to atoms and molecules, some laws of electromagnetic radiation and light are as follows.


title: Scientific law

text: Chemical laws are those laws of nature relevant to chemistry. Historically, observations led to many empirical laws, though now it is known that chemistry has its foundations in quantum mechanics.


title: Scientific law

text: The most fundamental concept in chemistry is the law of conservation of mass, which states that there is no detectable change in the quantity of matter during an ordinary chemical reaction. Modern physics shows that it is actually energy that is conserved, and that energy and mass are related; a concept which becomes important in nuclear chemistry. Conservation of energy leads to the important concepts of equilibrium, thermodynamics, and kinetics.


title: Scientific law

text: Additional laws of chemistry elaborate on the law of conservation of mass. Joseph Proust's law of definite composition says that pure chemicals are composed of elements in a definite formulation; we now know that the structural arrangement of these elements is also important.


title: Scientific law

text: Dalton's law of multiple proportions says that these chemicals will present themselves in proportions that are small whole numbers; although in many systems (notably biomacromolecules and minerals) the ratios tend to require large numbers, and are frequently represented as a fraction.


title: Scientific law

text: The law of definite composition and the law of multiple proportions are the first two of the three laws of stoichiometry, the proportions by which the chemical elements combine to form chemical compounds. The third law of stoichiometry is the law of reciprocal proportions, which provides the basis for establishing equivalent weights for each chemical element. Elemental equivalent weights can then be used to derive atomic weights for each element.


title: Scientific law

text: Whether or not Natural Selection is a “law of nature” is controversial among biologists. Henry Byerly, an American philosopher known for his work on evolutionary theory, discussed the problem of interpreting a principle of natural selection as a law. He suggested a formulation of natural selection as a framework principle that can contribute to a better understanding of evolutionary theory. His approach was to express relative fitness, the propensity of a genotype to increase in proportionate representation in a competitive environment, as a function of adaptedness (adaptive design) of the organism.


title: Scientific law

text: Some mathematical theorems and axioms are referred to as laws because they provide logical foundation to empirical laws.


title: Scientific law

text: Examples of other observed phenomena sometimes described as laws include the Titius–Bode law of planetary positions, Zipf's law of linguistics, and Moore's law of technological growth. Many of these laws fall within the scope of uncomfortable science. Other laws are pragmatic and observational, such as the law of unintended consequences. By analogy, principles in other fields of study are sometimes loosely referred to as "laws". These include Occam's razor as a principle of philosophy and the Pareto principle of economics.


title: Scientific law

text: The observation and detection of underlying regularities in nature date from prehistoric times - the recognition of cause-and-effect relationships implicitly recognises the existence of laws of nature. The recognition of such regularities as independent scientific laws "per se", though, was limited by their entanglement in animism, and by the attribution of many effects that do not have readily obvious causes—such as physical phenomena—to the actions of gods, spirits, supernatural beings, etc. Observation and speculation about nature were intimately bound up with metaphysics and morality.


title: Scientific law

text: In Europe, systematic theorizing about nature ("physis") began with the early Greek philosophers and scientists and continued into the Hellenistic and Roman imperial periods, during which times the intellectual influence of Roman law increasingly became paramount.The formula "law of nature" first appears as "a live metaphor" favored by Latin poets Lucretius, Virgil, Ovid, Manilius, in time gaining a firm theoretical presence in the prose treatises of Seneca and Pliny. Why this Roman origin? According to [historian and classicist Daryn] Lehoux's persuasive narrative, the idea was made possible by the pivotal role of codified law and forensic argument in Roman life and culture.


title: Scientific law

text: For the Romans . . . the place par excellence where ethics, law, nature, religion and politics overlap is the law court. When we read Seneca's "Natural Questions", and watch again and again just how he applies standards of evidence, witness evaluation, argument and proof, we can recognize that we are reading one of the great Roman rhetoricians of the age, thoroughly immersed in forensic method. And not Seneca alone. Legal models of scientific judgment turn up all over the place, and for example prove equally integral to Ptolemy's approach to verification, where the mind is assigned the role of magistrate, the senses that of disclosure of evidence, and dialectical reason that of the law itself.


title: Scientific law

text: The precise formulation of what are now recognized as modern and valid statements of the laws of nature dates from the 17th century in Europe, with the beginning of accurate experimentation and the development of advanced forms of mathematics. During this period, natural philosophers such as Isaac Newton (1642-1727) were influenced by a religious view - stemming from medieval concepts of divine law - which held that God had instituted absolute, universal and immutable physical laws. In chapter 7 of "The World", René Descartes (1596-1650) described "nature" as matter itself, unchanging as created by God, thus changes in parts "are to be attributed to nature. The rules according to which these changes take place I call the 'laws of nature'." The modern scientific method which took shape at this time (with Francis Bacon (1561-1626) and Galileo (1564-1642)) contributed to a trend of separating science from theology, with minimal speculation about metaphysics and ethics. (Natural law in the political sense, conceived as universal (i.e., divorced from sectarian religion and accidents of place), was also elaborated in this period by scholars such as Grotius (1583-1645), Spinoza (1632-1677), and Hobbes (1588-1679).)


title: Scientific law

text: The distinction between natural law in the political-legal sense and law of nature or physical law in the scientific sense is a modern one, both concepts being equally derived from "physis", the Greek word (translated into Latin as "natura") for "nature".


title: The Kid (1921 film)

text: The Kid is a 1921 American silent comedy-drama film written, produced, directed by and starring Charlie Chaplin, and features Jackie Coogan as his foundling baby, adopted son and sidekick. This was Chaplin's first full-length film as a director (he had been a co-star in 1914's "Tillie's Punctured Romance"). It was a huge success, and was the second-highest-grossing film in 1921, behind "The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse". In 2011, "The Kid" was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant."


title: The Kid (1921 film)

text: With much anguish, an unwed Mother abandons her child, placing him in an expensive automobile with a handwritten note: "Please love and care for this orphan child". Two thieves steal the car and leave the baby in an alley, where he is found by The Tramp. After some attempts to hand off the child on to various passers-by, he finds the note and his heart melts. He takes the boy home, names him John and adjusts his household furniture for him. Meanwhile, the Mother has a change of heart and returns for her baby; when she learns that the car has been stolen, she faints.


title: The Kid (1921 film)

text: Five years pass. The Kid and the Tramp live in the same tiny room; they have little money but much love. They support themselves in a minor scheme: the Kid throws stones to break windows so that the Tramp, working as a glazier, can be paid to repair them. Meanwhile, the Mother has become a wealthy actress and does charity by giving presents to poor children. By chance, as she does so, the Mother and the Kid unknowingly cross paths.


title: The Kid (1921 film)

text: The Kid later gets into a fight with another local boy as people in the area gather to watch the spectacle. The Kid wins, drawing the ire of the other boy's older brother, who attacks the Tramp as a result. The Mother breaks up the fight, but it starts again after she leaves and the Tramp keeps beating the "Big Brother" over the head with a brick between swings until he totters away.


title: The Kid (1921 film)

text: Shortly afterward, the Mother advises the Tramp to call a doctor after the Kid falls ill. The doctor discovers that the Tramp is not the Kid's father and notifies authorities. Two men come to take the boy to an orphanage, but after a fight and a chase, the Tramp and the boy remain side by side. When the Mother comes back to see how the boy is doing she encounters the doctor, who shows her the note (which he had taken from the Tramp); she recognizes it as the one she left with her baby years ago.


title: The Kid (1921 film)

text: Now fugitives, the Tramp and the boy spend the night in a flophouse. Its proprietor learns of a $1,000 reward offered by the authorities and takes the Kid to the police station, while the Tramp is asleep. As the tearful Mother is reunited with her long-lost child, the Tramp searches frantically for the missing boy. Unsuccessful, he returns to the doorway of their humble lodgings, where he falls asleep, entering a "Dreamland" where his neighbors have turned into angels and devils. A policeman awakes him and drives him off to a mansion. There the door is opened by the Mother and the Kid, who jumps into the Tramp's arms, and he is welcomed in.


title: The Kid (1921 film)

text: Chaplin wrote, produced, directed, edited, and starred in "The Kid", and later composed a score. Innovative in its combination of comedic and dramatic elements, "The Kid" is widely considered one of the greatest films of the silent era. Chaplin biographer Jeffrey Vance maintains, “The film is a perfect blend of comedy and drama and is arguably Chaplin’s most personal and autobiographical work.”


title: The Kid (1921 film)

text: The film made Coogan, then a vaudeville performer, into the first major child star of the movies. It has been speculated that the depth of the relationship portrayed in the film may have been connected with the death of Chaplin's firstborn infant son just ten days before the production began.


title: The Kid (1921 film)

text: After production was completed in 1920, the film was caught up in the divorce actions of Chaplin's first wife Mildred Harris, who sought to attach Chaplin's assets. Chaplin and his associates smuggled the raw negative to Salt Lake City (reportedly packed in coffee cans) and edited the film in a room at the Hotel Utah. Before releasing the film Chaplin negotiated for and received an enhanced financial deal for the film with his distributor, First National Corporation, based on the success of the final film.


title: The Kid (1921 film)

text: Chaplin eventually removed scenes he believed too sentimental for modern audiences and composed and recorded a new musical score for the film’s theatrical reissue. This re-edited version of "The Kid" had its world premiere as the Film Society of Lincoln Center gala tribute to Chaplin held on April 4, 1972 at Philharmonic Hall, New York City, with Chaplin in attendance.


title: The Kid (1921 film)

text: "The Kid" premiered on January 21, 1921 at Carnegie Hall in New York City as a benefit for the Children’s Fund of the National Board of Review of Motion Pictures.


title: The Kid (1921 film)

text: "The Kid" was acclaimed by film critics upon its release. The February 5, 1921 issue of "Exhibitor's Herald", contained a full-spread advertisement for the film playing at the Randolph Theatre. The advertisement from First National Pictures featured high praise from Chicago-based newspapers including this review from "The Chicago Herald and Examiner:"""The Kid" settles once and for all the question as to who is the greatest theatrical artist in the world. Chaplin does some of the finest, most delicately shaded acting you ever saw anywhere, and for every slapstick furore in it there is a classic, exquisite scene. His action are riotous, convulsive, irresistible. The gentlest grandmother will bust a midriff. He's the best Hamlet alive today. Jackie Coogan is the best child actor you ever saw. Women wept just to see him. "The Kid" is two fisted. It's right glove is packed with the pearls of tears, its left with the horseshoe of laughter. The picture is perfection. Six reels that seem like one; six reels that are funnier than the work of any other human being; six reels that are sadder and simpler than anything in pictures; six reels that will atone for anything the movies have ever done."A reviewer from "Theatre Magazine" glowingly wrote, "[Chaplin's] new picture, "The Kid", certainly outdoes in humor and the special brand of Chaplin pathos anything this popular film star has yet produced. There are almost as many tears as laughs in the new First National release--which proves the contention that Chaplin as almost as good a tragedian as he is a comedian. "The Kid" may be counted as a screen masterpiece."


title: The Kid (1921 film)

text: The reviewer for "The New York Times" had more of a mixed reception of the film writing, "Charlie Chaplin is himself again - at his best, in some ways better than his previous best, and also, it is to be regretted, at his worst, only not with so much of his worst as has spoiled some of his earlier pictures." The reviewer praises the plot, the comedy, the characters, and the "balance of sadness" with Chaplin being "more of a comedian than a clown," but writes that "the blemish on "The Kid" is the same that has marred many of Chaplin's other pictures - vulgarity, or coarseness. There is only a little of it in the present work, just two scenes that will be found particularly offensive by some. They are funny. That cannot be denied. One laughs at them, but many try not to, and are provoked with themselves and Chaplin for their laughing. This is not good. The laugh that offends good taste doesn't win. And these scenes would never be missed from "The Kid". It has plenty of unadulterated fun to go far and long without them. Why can't Chaplin leave out such stuff? Why don't the exhibitors delete it?"


title: The Kid (1921 film)

text: Chaplin biographer Jeffrey Vance writes of the legacy of Chaplin's "The Kid": ""The Kid" remains an important contribution to the art of film, not only because of Chaplin’s innovative use of dramatic sequences within a feature-length comedy, but also because of the revelations "The Kid" provides about its creator. Undoubtedly, when Chaplin penned the preface to "The Kid", “A picture with a smile--and perhaps, a tear,” he had his own artistic credo—and life—in mind." Mary Pickford said of the film, ""The Kid" is one of the finest examples of the screen language, depending upon its actions rather than upon subtitles".


title: The Kid (1921 film)

text: In December 2011, "The Kid" was chosen to be preserved in the Library of Congress' National Film Registry. The registry stated that the film is "an artful melding of touching drama, social commentary and inventive comedy" and praised Chaplin's ability to "sustain his artistry beyond the length of his usual short subjects and could deftly elicit a variety of emotions from his audiences by skillfully blending slapstick and pathos."


title: The Kid (1921 film)

text: As of January 2021, "The Kid" has earned a 100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, based on 50 reviews, with a weighted average of 8.6/10. The website’s critical consensus says: “Charles Chaplin' irascible Tramp is given able support from Jackie Coogan as The Kid in this slapstick masterpiece, balancing the guffaws with moments of disarming poignancy”.


title: Declaration of war

text: A declaration of war is a formal act by which one state announces existing or impending war activity against another. The declaration is a performative speech act (or the signing of a document) by an authorized party of a national government, in order to create a state of war between two or more states.


title: Declaration of war

text: The legality of who is competent to declare war varies between nations and forms of government. In many nations, that power is given to the head of state or sovereign. In other cases, something short of a full declaration of war, such as a letter of marque or a covert operation, may authorise war-like acts by privateers or mercenaries. The official international protocol for declaring war was defined in the Hague Convention (III) of 1907 on the Opening of Hostilities.


title: Declaration of war

text: Since 1945, developments in international law such as the United Nations Charter, which prohibits both the threat and the use of force in international conflicts, have made declarations of war largely obsolete in international relations, though such declarations may have relevance within the domestic law of the belligerents or of neutral nations. The UN Security Council, under powers granted in articles 24 and 25, and Chapter VII of the Charter, may authorize collective action to maintain or enforce international peace and security. Article 51 of the United Nations Charter also states that: "Nothing in the present Charter shall impair the inherent right to individual or collective self-defence if an armed attack occurs against a state."


title: Declaration of war

text: Few nations have formally declared war upon another since then. In addition to this, non-state or terrorist organizations may claim to or be described as "declaring war" when engaging in violent acts. These declarations may have no legal standing in themselves, but they may still act as a call to arms for supporters of these organizations.


title: Declaration of war

text: The practice of declaring war has a long history. The ancient Sumerian Epic of Gilgamesh gives an account of it, as does the Old Testament. The Roman Republic formalized the declaration of war by a special ceremony, the ritual of the Fetials, though the practice started to decline into the Imperial era.


title: Declaration of war

text: However, the practice of declaring war was not always strictly followed. In his study "Hostilities without Declaration of War" (1883), the British scholar John Frederick Maurice showed that between 1700 and 1870 war was declared in only 10 cases, while in another 107 cases war was waged without such declaration (these figures include only wars waged in Europe and between European states and the United States, not including colonial wars in Africa and Asia).


title: Declaration of war

text: In modern public international law, a declaration of war entails the recognition between countries of a state of hostilities between these countries, and such declaration has acted to regulate the conduct between the military engagements between the forces of the respective countries. The primary multilateral treaties governing such declarations are the Hague Conventions.


title: Declaration of war

text: The League of Nations, formed in 1919 in the wake of the First World War, and the General Treaty for the Renunciation of War of 1928 signed in Paris, France, demonstrated that world powers were seriously seeking a means to prevent the carnage of another world war. Nevertheless, these powers were unable to stop the outbreak of the Second World War, so the United Nations was established following that war in a renewed attempt to prevent international aggression through declarations of war.


title: Declaration of war

text: In classical times, Thucydides condemned the Thebans, allies of Sparta, for launching a surprise attack without a declaration of war against Plataea, Athens' ally – an event that began the Peloponnesian War.


title: Declaration of war

text: The utility of formal declarations of war has always been questioned, either as sentimental remnants of a long-gone age of chivalry or as imprudent warnings to the enemy. For example, writing in 1737, Cornelius van Bynkershoek judged that "nations and princes endowed with some pride are not generally willing to wage war without a previous declaration, for they wish by an open attack to render victory more honourable and glorious." Writing in 1880, William Edward Hall judged that "any sort of previous declaration therefore is an empty formality unless the enemy must be given time and opportunity to put himself in a state of defence, and it is needless to say that no one asserts such a quixotism to be obligatory."


title: Declaration of war

text: Declarations of war, while uncommon in the traditional sense, have mainly been limited to the conflict areas of the Western Asia and East Africa since 1945. Additionally, some small states have unilaterally declared war on major world powers such as the United States, United Kingdom, or Russia when faced with a hostile invasion and/or occupation. The following is a list of declarations of war (or the existence of war) by one sovereign state against another since the end of World War II in 1945. Only declarations that occurred in the context of a direct military conflict are included.


title: Declaration of war

text: No formal declaration of war has been issued in the ongoing Russo-Ukrainian War. When Russia's president Vladimir Putin announced the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, he claimed to commence a "special military operation", side-stepping a formal declaration of war. The statement was, however, regarded as a declaration of war by the Ukrainian government and reported as such by numerous international news sources. While the Ukrainian parliament refers to Russia as a "terrorist state" in regards to its military actions in Ukraine, it has not issued a formal declaration of war on its behalf, therefore establishing the de facto state of war.


title: Declaration of war

text: In the first Hague Convention of 1899, the signatory states agreed that at least one other nation be used to mediate disputes between states before engaging in hostilities:


title: Declaration of war

text: In case of serious disagreement or conflict, before an appeal to arms, the signatory Powers agree to have recourse, as far as circumstances allow, to the good offices or mediation of one or more friendly Powers.


title: Declaration of war

text: The Hague Convention (III) of 1907 called "Convention Relative to the Opening of Hostilities" gives the international actions a country should perform when opening hostilities. The first two Articles say:


title: Declaration of war

text: In an effort to force nations to resolve issues without warfare, framers of the United Nations Charter attempted to commit member nations to using warfare only under limited circumstances, particularly for defensive purposes.


title: Declaration of war

text: The UN became a combatant itself after North Korea invaded South Korea on 25 June 1950, which begun the Korean War. The UN Security Council condemned the North Korean action by a 9–0 resolution (with the Soviet Union absent) and called upon its member nations to come to the aid of South Korea. The United States and 15 other nations formed a "UN force" to pursue this action. In a press conference on 29 June 1950, US President Harry S. Truman characterized these hostilities as not being a "war" but a "police action".


title: Declaration of war

text: The United Nations has issued Security Council Resolutions that declared some wars to be legal actions under international law, most notably Resolution 678, authorizing the 1991 Gulf War which was triggered by Iraq's invasion of Kuwait. UN Resolutions authorise the use of "force" or "all necessary means".


title: Declaration of war

text: The legality of who is competent to declare war varies between nations and forms of government. In many nations, that power is given to the head of state or sovereign. The official international protocol for declaring war was defined in the Hague Convention (III) of 1907 on the Opening of Hostilities.


title: Declaration of war

text: Since 1945, developments in international law such as the United Nations Charter, which prohibits both the threat and the use of force in international conflicts, have made declarations of war largely obsolete in international relations, though such declarations may have relevance within the domestic law of the belligerents or of neutral nations. The UN Security Council, under powers granted in articles 24 and 25, and Chapter VII of the Charter, may authorize collective action to maintain or enforce international peace and security. Article 51 of the United Nations Charter also states that: "Nothing in the present Charter shall impair the inherent right to individual or collective self-defence if an armed attack occurs against a state."


title: Declaration of war

text: Declaring war is usually done through a process that involves prior approval before a formal announcement is made. This differs by country as some do not have a pre-approved process, and a given head of government can declare war with no pre-conditions. Countries on the opposite side of the spectrum have either taken a neutral stance, and/or have no process in the matter.


title: Ricardo Medina Jr.

text: Ricardo Medina Jr. (often referred to as Rick Medina) is an American former actor. He is best known for his role as Cole Evans, the Red Wild Force Ranger on the TV series "Power Rangers Wild Force", and later as Deker, the half-human cursed Nighlok in "Power Rangers Samurai". He was in prison for over three years for the voluntary manslaughter of his roommate.


title: Ricardo Medina Jr.

text: Ricardo Medina Jr. was born in Kern County, California, and raised in Downey, California. He is of Puerto Rican descent.


title: Ricardo Medina Jr.

text: On February 1, 2015, Medina was arrested after he allegedly stabbed to death his 38-year-old roommate, Joshua Sutter, on January 31. Sutter had been stabbed in the abdomen with a medieval "Conan the Barbarian" sword at a home in Green Valley, west of Palmdale, California. Medina called emergency services, and Sutter was pronounced dead upon arrival at a hospital. Medina was initially held on $1 million bail, but no charges were filed against him from the district attorney due to requests on further investigation so he was released on February 3, 2015. Medina claimed that he stabbed Sutter in self-defense after Sutter forced open the door of Medina's bedroom, into which Medina and his girlfriend had retreated after an argument between Medina and Sutter. Medina had lived in the home in Green Valley for approximately two months.


title: Ricardo Medina Jr.

text: On January 14, 2016, he was arrested again on murder charges in connection with Sutter's death. At that time, Medina faced a possible sentence of life imprisonment with a chance of parole after 26 years with prosecutors planning to ask that Medina be held on $1 million bail. On March 16, 2017, Medina pled guilty to one felony count of voluntary manslaughter. On March 30, 2017, Medina was sentenced to the maximum 6 years in prison. As of 2020 Medina Jr. has been released from prison as revealed in an interview with Jack Guzman.


title: Tongzhi Emperor

text: The Tongzhi Emperor (27 April 1856 – 12 January 1875), born Zaichun of the Aisin Gioro clan, was the ninth Emperor of the Qing dynasty, and the eighth Qing emperor to rule over China proper. His reign, from 1861 to 1875, which effectively lasted through his adolescence, was largely overshadowed by the rule of his mother, Empress Dowager Cixi. Although he had little influence over state affairs, the events of his reign gave rise to what historians call the "Tongzhi Restoration", an unsuccessful modernization program.


title: Tongzhi Emperor

text: The only surviving son of the Xianfeng Emperor and Empress Dowager Cixi, the Tongzhi Emperor was namesake to the attempted political reform initiated by his mother, called the Tongzhi Restoration. His first regnal name was Qixiang (祺祥; Manchu: "Fengšengge sabingga"), but this name was later changed, as per tradition upon his succession, to "Tongzhi". The regnal name means 'order and prosperity' coming from the Confucian teaching that "there are many ways of being a good government, and they can all be summarized as order and prosperity".


title: Tongzhi Emperor

text: The Tongzhi Emperor became emperor at the age of five upon the death of his father, the Xianfeng Emperor. His father's choice of a regent, Sushun, was removed in favor of a partnership between his mother Empress Dowager Cixi and Empress Dowager Ci'an.


title: Tongzhi Emperor

text: While there had most likely been hopes that the Tongzhi Emperor would become a successful leader like the Kangxi Emperor (who ascended the throne as a child in 1661), those hopes would soon be disappointed, as the Tongzhi Emperor grew up to become an obstinate and dissolute young man who also expressed his dissatisfaction with his mother Empress Cixi.


title: Tongzhi Emperor

text: In the fall of 1872, the teenage emperor married Empress Xiaozheyi and two official concubines. The Tongzhi Emperor apparently had wanted to take up power immediately, prompting a quarrel at court regarding the dismantling of the regency and the timing of it. However, the two empresses dowager stuck by the intended date of February 23, 1873.


title: Tongzhi Emperor

text: The day after the Tongzhi Emperor took up the reins of power, the foreign powers requested an audience with the teenage emperor. The request precipitated a sharp disagreement between the ministers at the foreign legations, who made it clear that they would not perform the ritual kowtow to the emperor, and the Zongli Yamen (foreign affairs ministry), regarding the protocol to be observed. The Qing government was also loath to hold the audience within the confines of the Forbidden City, eventually settling on the "Pavilion of Purple Light" at one of the lakeside palaces to the west of the Forbidden City, which is now part of Zhongnanhai. The audience was finally held on 29 June 1873. After the audience, however, the foreign representatives made clear their annoyance at being received in a hall initially used by the Qing emperors to receive envoys of tributary states.


title: Tongzhi Emperor

text: In the fall of 1874, the Tongzhi Emperor got into a clash with his ministers, which included his two uncles, Prince Gong and Prince Chun, largely over the emperor's plans to rebuild the Old Summer Palace at a time in which the empire was bankrupt, and over his dissolute behavior. The emperor reacted by firing the ministers, but Empresses Dowager Ci'an and Cixi intervened, and he had them reinstated. That December, it was announced that he was ill with smallpox, and the Empress Dowagers resumed the regency. He died on 12 January 1875, leaving no sons to succeed him.


title: Tongzhi Emperor

text: The Tongzhi Emperor's death left the court in a succession crisis as he was childless. Eventually, the empresses dowager designated the Tongzhi Emperor's three-year-old cousin, Zaitian, as the heir to the throne. Zaitian was biologically Prince Chun's son, but was symbolically adopted as the Xianfeng Emperor's son to make him eligible to succeed the Tongzhi Emperor. Zaitian was thus enthroned as the Guangxu Emperor, with Empresses Dowager Ci'an and Cixi resuming their roles as regents. Empress Alute, Tongzhi's wife, refused to eat after his death and died seventy days after he did in an act of marital piety.


title: Tongzhi Emperor

text: The inspiration for the future Self-Strengthening Movement arose from the notion that China's defense in the face of war and rebellion must come from within, as the superior man strengthens himself under imperative of Heaven's robust action. The costs of war and rebellion dictated that the Qing dynasty undertake vigorous measures to ensure its survival. Moreover, the very survival of China itself was now at stake.


title: Tongzhi Emperor

text: Self-strengthening efforts evolved in a succession of stages over a period of almost half a century. In 1840 Imperial Commissioner Lin Zexu, impressed by the power of British warships in the initial battles of the Opium War, advocated adoption of Western naval technology. The paddle-wheel steamer "Nemsis" had run circles around cumbersome Chinese war junks. Some Chinese at first believed the paddle-wheels were powered by men inside the ship, but soon came to appreciate the power of steam, Commissioner Lin was the first self-strengthener.


title: Tongzhi Emperor

text: Self-strengthening enterprises, including arsenals, shipyards, and technical schools, were now established in the principal treaty ports where access to Western technology was most direct. By 1860, the overwhelming bulk of the Chinese scholarly class had become cognizant of the enormity of changes that were taking place due to the increasingly prevalent Western presence in China. They now proclaimed that change was irresistible and advocated for deeper studies of Western technology. Many reforms were proposed and implemented such as the Self-Strengthening Movement, but ultimately the failure of reforms was due to multiple factors such as political machinations.


title: Victorian fashion

text: Victorian fashion consists of the various fashions and trends in British culture that emerged and developed in the United Kingdom and the British Empire throughout the Victorian era, roughly from the 1830s through the 1890s. The period saw many changes in fashion, including changes in styles, fashion technology and the methods of distribution. Various movement in architecture, literature, and the decorative and visual arts as well as a changing perception of gender roles also influenced fashion.


title: Victorian fashion

text: Under Queen Victoria's reign, England enjoyed a period of growth along with technological advancement. Mass production of sewing machines in the 1850s as well as the advent of synthetic dyes introduced major changes in fashion. Clothing could be made more quickly and cheaply. Advancement in printing and proliferation of fashion magazines allowed the masses to participate in the evolving trends of high fashion, opening the market of mass consumption and advertising. By 1905, clothing was increasingly factory made and often sold in large, fixed-price department stores, spurring a new age of consumerism with the rising middle class who benefited from the industrial revolution.


title: Victorian fashion

text: During the Victorian Era, women generally worked in the private, domestic sphere. Unlike in earlier centuries when women would often help their husbands and brothers in family businesses and in labour, during the nineteenth century, gender roles became more defined. The requirement for farm labourers was no longer in such a high demand after the Industrial Revolution, and women were more likely to perform domestic work or, if married, give up work entirely. Dress reflected this new, increasingly sedentary lifestyle, and was not intended to be utilitarian.


title: Victorian fashion

text: Clothes were seen as an expression of women's place in society, hence were differentiated in terms of social class. Upper-class women, who did not need to work, often wore a tightly laced corset over a bodice or chemisette, and paired them with a skirt adorned with numerous embroideries and trims; over layers of petticoats. Middle-class women exhibited similar dress styles; however, the decorations were not as extravagant. The layering of these garments make them very heavy. Corsets were also stiff and restricted movement. Although the clothes were not comfortable, the type of fabrics and the numerous layers were worn as a symbol of wealth.


title: Victorian fashion

text: Victorian-era cosmetics were typically minimal, as makeup was associated with promiscuity. Many cosmetics contained toxic or caustic ingredients like lead, mercury, ammonia, and arsenic.


title: Victorian fashion

text: During the start of Queen Victoria's reign in 1837, the ideal shape of the Victorian woman was a long slim torso emphasised by wide hips. To achieve a low and slim waist, corsets were tightly laced and extended over the abdomen and down towards the hips. A chemise was commonly worn under the corset, and cut relatively low in order to prevent exposure. Over the corset, was the tight-fitting bodice featuring a low waistline. Along with the bodice was a long skirt, featuring layers of horsehair petticoats worn underneath to create fullness; while placing emphasis on the small waist. To contrast the narrow waist, low and straight necklines were thus used.


title: Victorian fashion

text: In the 1840s, collapsed sleeves, low necklines, elongated V-shaped bodices, and fuller skirts characterised the dress styles of women.


title: Victorian fashion

text: At the start of the decade, the sides of bodices stopped at the natural waistline, and met at a point in the front. In accordance with the heavily boned corset and seam lines on the bodice as well, the popular low and narrow waist was thus accentuated.


title: Victorian fashion

text: Sleeves of bodices were tight at the top, because of the Mancheron, but expanded around the area between the elbow and before the wrist. It was also initially placed below the shoulder, however; this restricted the movements of the arm.


title: Victorian fashion

text: As a result, the middle of the decade saw sleeves flaring out from the elbow into a funnel shape; requiring undersleeves to be worn in order to cover the lower arms.


title: Victorian fashion

text: Skirts lengthened, while widths increased due to the introduction of the horsehair crinoline in 1847; becoming a status symbol of wealth.


title: Victorian fashion

text: Extra layers of flounces and petticoats, also further emphasised the fullness of these wide skirts. In compliance with the narrow waist though, skirts were therefore attached to bodices using very tight organ pleats secured at each fold. This served as a decorative element for a relatively plain skirt. The 1840s style was perceived as conservative and "Gothic" compared to the flamboyance of the 1830s.


title: Victorian fashion

text: A similar silhouette remained in the 1850s, while certain elements of garments changed. Necklines of day dresses dropped even lower into a V-shape, causing a need to cover the bust area with a chemisette. In contrast, evening dresses featured a Bertha, which completely exposed the shoulder area instead. Bodices began to extend over the hips, while the sleeves opened further and increased in fullness. The volume and width of the skirt continued to increase, especially during 1853, when rows of flounces were added.


title: Victorian fashion

text: Nevertheless, in 1856, skirts expanded even further; creating a dome shape, due to the invention of the first artificial cage crinoline. The purpose of the crinoline was to create an artificial hourglass silhouette by accentuating the hips, and fashioning an illusion of a small waist; along with the corset. The cage crinoline was constructed by joining thin metal strips together to form a circular structure that could solely support the large width of the skirt. This was made possible by technology which allowed iron to be turned into steel, which could then be drawn into fine wires. Although often ridiculed by journalists and cartoonists of the time as the crinoline swelled in size, this innovation freed women from the heavy weight of petticoats and was a much more hygienic option.


title: Victorian fashion

text: Meanwhile, the invention of synthetic dyes added new colours to garments and women experimented with gaudy and bright colours. Technological innovation of 1860s provided women with freedom and choices.