title: Religious violence in India

text: Large-scale religious violence and riots have periodically occurred in India since its independence from British colonial rule. The aftermath of the Partition of India in 1947 to create a separate Islamic state of Pakistan for Muslims, saw large scale sectarian strife and bloodshed throughout the nation. Since then, India has witnessed sporadic large-scale violence sparked by underlying tensions between sections of the Hindu and Muslim communities. These conflicts also stem from the ideologies of hardline right-wing groups versus Islamic Fundamentalists and prevalent in certain sections of the population. Since independence, India has always maintained a constitutional commitment to secularism. The major incidences include the 1969 Gujarat riots, 1984 anti-Sikh riots, the 1989 Bhagalpur riots, 1989 Kashmir violence, Godhra train burning, 2002 Gujarat riots, 2013 Muzaffarnagar riots and 2020 Delhi riots.


title: Religious violence in India

text: Religious violence broke out between Hindus and Muslims during September–October 1969, in Gujarat. It was the most deadly Hindu-Muslim violence since the 1947 partition of India.


title: Religious violence in India

text: The violence included attacks on Muslim chawls by their Dalit neighbours. The violence continued over a week, then the rioting restarted a month later. Some 660 people were killed (430 Muslims, 230 Hindus), 1074 people were injured and over 48,000 lost their property.


title: Religious violence in India

text: In the 1970s, Sikhs in Punjab had sought autonomy and complained about domination by the Hindu. Indira Gandhi government arrested thousands of Sikhs for their opposition and demands particularly during Indian Emergency. In Indira Gandhi's attempt to "save democracy" through the Emergency, India's constitution was suspended, 140,000 people were arrested without due process, of which 40,000 were Sikhs.


title: Religious violence in India

text: After the Emergency was lifted, during elections, she supported Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale, a Sikh leader, in an effort to undermine the Akali Dal, the largest Sikh political party. However, Bhindranwale began to oppose the central government and moved his political base to the Darbar Sahib (Golden temple) in Amritsar, demanding creation on Punjab as a new country. In June 1984, under orders from Indira Gandhi, the Indian army attacked the Golden temple with tanks and armoured vehicles, due to the presence of Sikh Khalistanis armed with weapons inside. Thousands of Sikhs died during the attack. In retaliation for the storming of the Golden temple, Indira Gandhi was assassinated on 31 October 1984 by two Sikh bodyguards.


title: Religious violence in India

text: The assassination provoked mass rioting against Sikh. During the 1984 anti-Sikh pogroms in Delhi, government and police officials aided Indian National Congress party worker gangs in "methodically and systematically" targeting Sikhs and Sikh homes. As a result of the pogroms 10,000–17,000 were burned alive or otherwise killed, Sikh people suffered massive property damage, and at least 50,000 Sikhs were displaced.


title: Religious violence in India

text: The 1984 riots fueled the Sikh insurgency movement. In the peak years of the insurgency, religious violence by separatists, government-sponsored groups, and the paramilitary arms of the government was endemic on all sides. Human Rights Watch reports that separatists were responsible for "massacre of civilians, attacks upon Hindu minorities in the state, indiscriminate bomb attacks in crowded places, and the assassination of a number of political leaders". Human Rights Watch also stated that the Indian Government's response "led to the arbitrary detention, torture, extrajudicial execution, and enforced disappearance of thousands of Sikhs". The insurgency paralyzed Punjab's economy until peace initiatives and elections were held in the 1990s. Allegations of coverup and shielding of political leaders of Indian National Congress over their role in 1984 riot crimes, have been widespread.


title: Religious violence in India

text: In the Kashmir region, approximately 300 Kashmiri Pandits were killed between September 1989 to 1990 in various incidents. In early 1990, local Urdu newspapers "Aftab" and "Al Safa" called upon Kashmiris to wage jihad against India and ordered the expulsion of all Hindus choosing to remain in Kashmir. In the following days masked men ran in the streets with AK-47 shooting to kill Hindus who would not leave. Notices were placed on the houses of all Hindus, telling them to leave within 24 hours or die.


title: Religious violence in India

text: Since March 1990, estimates of between 300,000 and 500,000 pandits have migrated outside Kashmir due to persecution by Islamic fundamentalists in the largest case of ethnic cleansing since the partition of India.


title: Religious violence in India

text: Many Kashmiri Pandits have been killed by Islamist militants in incidents such as the Wandhama massacre and the 2000 Amarnath pilgrimage massacre. The incidents of massacring and forced eviction have been termed ethnic cleansing by some observers.


title: Religious violence in India

text: Religion has begun to play an increasing role in reinforcing ethnic divides among the decades-old militant separatist movements in north-east India.


title: Religious violence in India

text: The Christian separatist group National Liberation Front of Tripura (NLFT) has proclaimed bans on Hindu worship and has attacked animist Reangs and Hindu Jamatia tribesmen in the state of Tripura. Some resisting tribal leaders have been killed and some tribal women raped.


title: Religious violence in India

text: According to The Government of Tripura, the Baptist Church of Tripura is involved in supporting the NLFT and arrested two church officials in 2000, one of them for possessing explosives. In late 2004, the National Liberation Front of Tripura banned all Hindu celebrations of Durga Puja and Saraswati Puja. The Naga insurgency, militants have largely depended on their Christian ideological base for their cause.


title: Religious violence in India

text: There have been a number of attacks on Hindu temples and Hindus by Muslim militants and Christian evangelists. Prominent among them are the 1998 Chamba massacre, the 2002 fidayeen attacks on Raghunath temple, the 2002 Akshardham Temple attack by Islamic terrorist outfit Lashkar-e-Taiba and the 2006 Varanasi bombings (also by Lashkar-e-Toiba), resulting in many deaths and injuries. Recent attacks on Hindus by Muslim mobs include Marad massacre and the Godhra train burning.


title: Religious violence in India

text: In August 2000, Swami Shanti Kali, a popular Hindu priest, was shot to death inside his ashram in the Indian state of Tripura. Police reports regarding the incident identified ten members of the Christian terrorist organisation, NLFT, as being responsible for the murder. On 4 Dec 2000, nearly three months after his death, an ashram set up by Shanti Kali at Chachu Bazar near the Sidhai police station was raided by Christian militants belonging to the NLFT. Eleven of the priest's ashrams, schools, and orphanages around the state were burned down by the NLFT.


title: Religious violence in India

text: In September 2008, Swami Laxmanananda, a popular regional Hindu Guru was murdered along with four of his disciples by unknown assailants (though a Maoist organisation later claimed responsibility for that). Later the police arrested three Christians in connection with the murder. Congress MP Radhakant Nayak has also been named as a suspected person in the murder, with some Hindu leaders calling for his arrest.


title: Religious violence in India

text: Lesser incidents of religious violence happen in many towns and villages in India. In October 2005, five people were killed in Mau in Uttar Pradesh during Muslim rioting, which was triggered by the proposed celebration of a Hindu festival.


title: Religious violence in India

text: On 3 and 4 January 2002, eight Hindus were killed in Marad, near Kozhikode due to scuffles between two groups that began after a dispute over drinking water.


title: Religious violence in India

text: On 2 May 2003, eight Hindus were killed by a Muslim mob, in what is believed to be a sequel to the earlier incident. One of the attackers, Mohammed Ashker was killed during the chaos. The National Development Front (NDF), a right-wing militant Islamist organisation, was suspected as the perpetrator of the Marad massacre.


title: Religious violence in India

text: In the 2010 Deganga riots after hundreds of Hindu business establishments and residences were looted, destroyed and burnt, dozens of Hindus were killed or severely injured and several Hindu temples desecrated and vandalised by the Islamist mobs allegedly led by Trinamul Congress MP Haji Nurul Islam. Three years later, during the 2013 Canning riots, several hundred Hindu businesses were targeted and destroyed by Islamist mobs in the Indian state of West Bengal.


title: Religious violence in India

text: Religious violence has led to the death, injuries and damage to numerous Hindus. For example, 254 Hindus were killed in 2002 Gujarat riots out of which half were killed in police firing and rest by rioters. During 1992 Bombay riots, 275 Hindus died.


title: Religious violence in India

text: In October, 2018, a Christian personal security officer of an additional sessions judge assassinated his 38-year-old wife and his 18-year-old son for not converting to Christianity.


title: Religious violence in India

text: In October 2020, a 20-year old Nikita Tomar was shot by Tausif, a Muslim, for not converting to Islam and marrying to him. Tausif was imprisoned for life.


title: Religious violence in India

text: Some cases of murder because of blasphemy have also taken place. Kamlesh Tiwari was murdered for his allegedly blasphemous comments on Muhammad in October 2019. A similar case took place in Gujrat in January 2022 where Kishan Bharvad was murdered for making an allegedly blasphemous social media post on Muhammad on the directive of a Muslim cleric. A Hindu man named Nagaraju was murdered by a Muslim man for marrying a Muslim woman.


title: Religious violence in India

text: The history of modern India has many incidents of communal violence. During the 1947 partition there was religious violence between Muslim-Hindu, Muslim-Sikhs and Muslim-Jains on a gigantic scale. Hundreds of religious riots have been recorded since then, in every decade of independent India. In these riots, the victims have included many Muslims, Hindus, Sikhs, Jains, Christians and Buddhists.


title: Religious violence in India

text: On 6 December 1992, members of the Vishva Hindu Parishad and the Bajrang Dal destroyed the 430-year-old Babri Mosque in Ayodhya—it was claimed by the Hindus that the mosque was built over the birthplace of the ancient deity Rama (and a 2010 Allahabad court ruled that the site was indeed a Hindu monument before the mosque was built there, based on evidence submitted by the Archaeological Survey of India). The resulting religious riots caused at least 1200 deaths. Since then the Government of India has blocked off or heavily increased security at these disputed sites while encouraging attempts to resolve these disputes through court cases and negotiations.


title: Religious violence in India

text: In the aftermath of the destruction of the Babri Mosque in Ayodhya by Hindu nationalists on 6 December 1992, riots took place between Hindus and Muslims in the city of Mumbai. Four people died in a fire in the Asalpha timber mart at Ghatkopar, five were killed in the burning of Bainganwadi; shacks along the harbour line track between Sewri and Cotton Green stations were gutted; and a couple was pulled out of a rickshaw in Asalpha village and burnt to death. The riots changed the demographics of Mumbai greatly, as Hindus moved to Hindu-majority areas and Muslims moved to Muslim-majority areas.


title: Religious violence in India

text: The Godhra train burning incident in which Hindus were burned alive allegedly by Muslims by closing door of train, led to the 2002 Gujarat riots in which mostly Muslims were killed. According to the death toll given to the parliament on 11 May 2005 by the United Progressive Alliance government, 790 Muslims and 254 Hindus were killed, and another 2,548 injured. 223 people are missing. The report placed the number of riot widows at 919 and 606 children were declared orphaned. According to hone advocacy group, the death tolls were up to 2000. According to the Congressional Research Service, up to 2000 people were killed in the violence.


title: Religious violence in India

text: Tens of thousands were displaced from their homes because of the violence. According to "New York Times" reporter Celia Williams Dugger, witnesses were dismayed by the lack of intervention from local police, who often watched the events taking place and took no action against the attacks on Muslims and their property. Sangh leaders as well as the Gujarat government maintain that the violence was rioting or inter-communal clashes—spontaneous and uncontrollable reaction to the Godhra train burning.


title: Religious violence in India

text: The Government of India has implemented almost all the recommendations of the Sachar Committee to help Muslims.


title: Religious violence in India

text: The February 2020 North East Delhi riots, which left more than 40 dead and hundreds injured, were triggered by protests against a citizenship law seen by many critics as anti-Muslim and part of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Hindu nationalist agenda.


title: Religious violence in India

text: A 1999 Human Rights Watch report states increasing levels of religious violence on Christians in India, perpetrated by Hindu organizations. In 2000, acts of religious violence against Christians included forcible reconversion of converted Christians to Hinduism, distribution of threatening literature and destruction of Christian cemeteries.


title: Religious violence in India

text: According to a 2008 report by Hudson Institute, "extremist Hindus have increased their attacks on Christians, until there are now several hundred per year. But this did not make news in the U.S. until a foreigner was attacked."


title: Religious violence in India

text: In Orissa, starting December 2007, Christians have been attacked in Kandhamal and other districts, resulting in the deaths of two Hindus and one Christian, and the destruction of houses and churches. Hindus claim that Christians killed a Hindu saint Laxmananand, and the attacks on Christians were in retaliation. However, there was no conclusive proof to support this claim. Twenty people were arrested following the attacks on churches.


title: Religious violence in India

text: Similarly, starting 14 September 2008, there were numerous incidents of violence against the Christian community in Karnataka.


title: Religious violence in India

text: Graham Stuart Staines (1941 – 23 January 1999) an Australian Christian missionary who, along with his two sons Philip (aged 10) and Timothy (aged 6), was burnt to death by a gang of Hindu Bajrang Dal fundamentalists while sleeping in his station wagon at Manoharpur village in Kendujhar district in Odisha, India on 23 January 1999. In 2003, a Bajrang Dal activist, Dara Singh, was convicted of leading the gang that murdered Graham Staines and his sons, and was sentenced to life in prison.


title: Religious violence in India

text: In its annual human rights reports for 1999, the United States Department of State criticised India for "increasing societal violence against Christians." The report listed over 90 incidents of anti-Christian violence, ranging from damage of religious property to violence against Christian pilgrims.


title: Religious violence in India

text: In Madhya Pradesh, unidentified persons set two statues inside St Peter and Paul Church in Jabalpur on fire. In Karnataka, religious violence was targeted against Christians in 2008.


title: Religious violence in India

text: From 2005 to 2009, an average of 130 people died every year from communal riots, and 2,200 were injured. In pre-partitioned India, over the 1920–1940 period, numerous communal violence incidents were recorded, an average of 381 people died per year during religious violence, and thousands were injured.


title: Religious violence in India

text: According to PRS India, 24 out of 35 states and union territories of India reported instances of religious riots over the five years from 2005 to 2009. However, most religious riots resulted in property damage but no injuries or fatalities. The highest incidences of communal violence in the five-year period were reported from Maharashtra (700). The other three states with high counts of communal violence over the same five-year period were Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Orissa. Together, these four states accounted for 64% of all deaths from communal violence. Adjusted for widely different population per state, the highest rate of communal violence fatalities were reported by Madhya Pradesh, at 0.14 death per 100,000 people over five years, or 0.03 deaths per 100,000 people per year. There was a wide regional variation in rate of death caused by communal violence per 100,000 people. The India-wide average communal violence fatality rate per year was 0.01 person per 100,000 people per year. The world's average annual death rate from intentional violence, in recent years, has been 7.9 per 100,000 people.


title: Religious violence in India

text: For 2012, there were 93 deaths in India from many incidences of communal violence (or 0.007 fatalities per 100,000 people). Of these, 48 were Muslims, 44 Hindus and one police official. The riots also injured 2,067 people, of which 1,010 were Hindus, 787 Muslims, 222 police officials and 48 others. Over 2013, 107 people were killed during religious riots (or 0.008 total fatalities per 100,000 people), of which 66 were Muslims, 41 were Hindus. The various riots in 2013 also injured 1,647 people including 794 Hindus, 703 Muslims and 200 policemen.


title: Religious violence in India

text: "In India, I am increasingly disturbed by discrimination and violence directed at minorities, including Dalits and other scheduled castes, and religious minorities such as Muslims. In some cases this injustice appears actively endorsed by local or religious officials. I am concerned that criticism of government policies is frequently met by claims that it constitutes sedition or a threat to national security. I am deeply concerned by efforts to limit critical voices through the cancellation or suspension of registration of thousands of NGOs, including groups advocating for human rights and even public health groups."


title: Occipital lobe

text: The occipital lobe is one of the four major lobes of the cerebral cortex in the brain of mammals. The name derives from its position at the back of the head, from the Latin "ob", "behind", and "caput", "head".


title: Occipital lobe

text: The occipital lobe is the visual processing center of the mammalian brain containing most of the anatomical region of the visual cortex. The primary visual cortex is Brodmann area 17, commonly called V1 (visual one). Human V1 is located on the medial side of the occipital lobe within the calcarine sulcus; the full extent of V1 often continues onto the occipital pole. V1 is often also called striate cortex because it can be identified by a large stripe of myelin, the Stria of Gennari. Visually driven regions outside V1 are called extrastriate cortex. There are many extrastriate regions, and these are specialized for different visual tasks, such as visuospatial processing, color differentiation, and motion perception. Bilateral lesions of the occipital lobe can lead to cortical blindness (see Anton's syndrome).


title: Occipital lobe

text: The two occipital lobes are the smallest of four paired lobes in the human brain. Located in the rearmost portion of the skull, the occipital lobes are part of the posterior cerebrum. The lobes of the brain are named from the overlying bone and the occipital bone overlies the occipital lobes.


title: Occipital lobe

text: The lobes rest on the tentorium cerebelli, a process of dura mater that separates the cerebrum from the cerebellum. They are structurally isolated in their respective cerebral hemispheres by the separation of the cerebral fissure. At the front edge of the occipital lobe are several occipital gyri, which are separated by lateral occipital sulcus.


title: Occipital lobe

text: The occipital aspects along the inside face of each hemisphere are divided by the calcarine sulcus. Above the medial, Y-shaped sulcus lies the cuneus, and the area below the sulcus is the lingual gyrus.


title: Occipital lobe

text: The occipital lobe is divided into several functional visual areas. Each visual area contains a full map of the visual world. Although there are no anatomical markers distinguishing these areas (except for the prominent striations in the striate cortex), physiologists have used electrode recordings to divide the cortex into different functional regions.


title: Occipital lobe

text: The first functional area is the primary visual cortex. It contains a low-level description of the local orientation, spatial-frequency and color properties within small receptive fields. Primary visual cortex projects to the occipital areas of the ventral stream (visual area V2 and visual area V4), and the occipital areas of the dorsal stream—visual area V3, visual area MT (V5), and the dorsomedial area (DM).


title: Occipital lobe

text: The ventral stream is known for processing the "what" in vision, while the dorsal stream handles the "where/how". This is because the ventral stream provides important information for the identification of stimuli that are stored in memory. With this information in memory, the dorsal stream is able to focus on motor actions in response to the outside stimuli.


title: Occipital lobe

text: Although numerous studies have shown that the two systems are independent and structured separately from another, there is also evidence that both are essential for successful perception, especially as the stimuli take on more complex forms. For example, a case study using fMRI was done on shape and location. The first procedure consisted of location tasks. The second procedure was in a lit-room where participants were shown stimuli on a screen for 600 ms. They found that the two pathways play a role in shape perception even though location processing continues to lie within the dorsal stream.


title: Occipital lobe

text: The dorsomedial (DM) is not as thoroughly studied. However, there is some evidence that suggests that this stream interacts with other visual areas. A case study on monkeys revealed that information from V1 and V2 areas make up half the inputs in the DM. The remaining inputs are from multiple sources that have to do with any sort of visual processing


title: Occipital lobe

text: Retinal sensors convey stimuli through the optic tracts to the lateral geniculate bodies, where optic radiations continue to the visual cortex. Each visual cortex receives raw sensory information from the outside half of the retina on the same side of the head and from the inside half of the retina on the other side of the head. The cuneus (Brodmann's area 17) receives visual information from the contralateral superior retina representing the inferior visual field. The lingula receives information from the contralateral inferior retina representing the superior visual field. The retinal inputs pass through a "way station" in the lateral geniculate nucleus of the thalamus before projecting to the cortex. Cells on the posterior aspect of the occipital lobes' gray matter are arranged as a spatial map of the retinal field. Functional neuroimaging reveals similar patterns of response in cortical tissue of the lobes when the retinal fields are exposed to a strong pattern.


title: Occipital lobe

text: If one occipital lobe is damaged, the result can be homonymous hemianopsia vision loss from similarly positioned "field cuts" in each eye. Occipital lesions can cause visual hallucinations. Lesions in the parietal-temporal-occipital association area are associated with color agnosia, movement agnosia, and agraphia. Lesions near the left occipital lobe can result in pure alexia (alexia without agraphia). Damage to the primary visual cortex, which is located on the surface of the posterior occipital lobe, can cause blindness due to the holes in the visual map on the surface of the visual cortex that resulted from the lesions.


title: Occipital lobe

text: Recent studies have shown that specific neurological findings have affected idiopathic occipital lobe epilepsies. Occipital lobe seizures are triggered by a flash, or a visual image that contains multiple colors. These are called flicker stimulation (usually through TV) these seizures are referred to as photo-sensitivity seizures. Patients having experienced occipital seizures described their seizures as featuring bright colors, and severely blurring their vision (vomiting was also apparent in some patients). Occipital seizures are triggered mainly during the day, through television, video games or any flicker stimulatory system. Occipital seizures originate from an epileptic focus confined within the occipital lobes. They may be spontaneous or triggered by external visual stimuli. Occipital lobe epilepsies are etiologically idiopathic, symptomatic, or cryptogenic. Symptomatic occipital seizures can start at any age, as well as any stage after or during the course of the underlying causative disorder. Idiopathic occipital epilepsy usually starts in childhood. Occipital epilepsies account for approximately 5% to 10% of all epilepsies.


title: On (company)

text: On, sometimes referred to as On Running is an athletic shoe and performance sportswear company originating in Switzerland that designs and markets sports clothing and running shoes.


title: On (company)

text: As of 2019 the company held 40% of the running shoe market in Switzerland and 10% in Germany. As of mid year 2020, On sports footwear was reported to be available in 6,000 retailers in 55 countries worldwide with the United States being its biggest single market. According to market research firm NPD, On owns 6.6% of the performance running shoe category in the United States.


title: On (company)

text: On was first incorporated as sporting goods company in 2010. The company was founded by former Swiss Ironman champion Olivier Bernhard in partnership with David Allemann and Caspar Coppetti. In 2012, On released the Cloudracer, a performance footwear product favoured by Swiss professional triathlete and London 2012 Olympic gold medal winner Nicola Spirig. The company claims a proprietary cushioning technology in its shoes as its unique selling point; a patented design called Cloudtec.


title: On (company)

text: CloudTec began life with Bernhard experimenting with a garden hose, exploring how that shape could offer a brand new type of cushioning. In short, the series of “clouds” that run underneath all On silhouettes offer cushioning as the foot lands on the floor, before locking together to create a solid foundation for pushing off on the next step. "The benefit of it is basically that playing with the structure of it helps you to tune the cushioning for softer landings. As the clouds are compressed in the forefoot it creates a firm and stable platform to push off," explained Edouard Coyon, On’s head of footwear product management in an interview with HYPEBEAST.


title: On (company)

text: Swiss Tennis professional Roger Federer became a shareholder in On AG in November 2019. A limited edition lifestyle shoe named “The Roger” was subsequently released by the company in July 2020. Based on recent sales growth the company is reported to be exploring IPO options for the later half of 2021. The company's IPO raised approximately $746 million.


title: On (company)

text: On also founded and sponsors the professional running group, On Athletics Club, coached by Dathan Ritzenhein with a roster than contains multiple Olympic finalists. The company also built bobsleigh shoes that were used in the 2022 Winter Olympics.


title: On (company)

text: Currently, David Kilgore, an American professional runner and record holder, competes and works for On-running.


title: On (company)

text: On March 31, 2022, On launched the Cloudmonster. It deviates from the company's previous designs by having a larger sole. Jacob Gallagher of "The Wall Street Journal" described it as "a maximalist sneaker" and claimed that this design is largely associated with Hoka One One, and called Hoka One One "one of On’s main competitors in the specialized running market".


title: UTC−08:00

text: "Principal cities: Los Angeles, San Francisco Bay Area, San Diego, Sacramento, Las Vegas, Portland, Seattle, Vancouver, Victoria, Tijuana"


title: Methylsulfonylmethane

text: Methylsulfonylmethane (MSM) is an organosulfur compound with the formula (CH)SO. It is also known by several other names including methyl sulfone and dimethyl sulfone (DMSO). This colorless solid features the sulfonyl functional group and is the simplest of the sulfones. It is considered relatively inert chemically and is able to resist decomposition at elevated temperatures. It occurs naturally in some primitive plants, is present in small amounts in many foods and beverages, and is marketed as a dietary supplement. It is sometimes used as a cutting agent for illicitly manufactured methamphetamine. It is also commonly found in the atmosphere above marine areas, where it is used as a carbon source by the airborne bacteria "Afipia". Oxidation of dimethyl sulfoxide produces the sulfone, both under laboratory conditions and metabolically.


title: Methylsulfonylmethane

text: Because of its polarity and thermal stability, MSM has been used industrially as a high-temperature solvent. For example, displacement of aryl chlorides by potassium fluoride has been conducted in molten MSM.


title: Methylsulfonylmethane

text: With a pK of 31, MSM can be deprotonated with sodium amide. The conjugate base has been used as a nucleophile.


title: Methylsulfonylmethane

text: Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) studies have demonstrated that oral doses of MSM are absorbed into the blood and cross the blood/brain barrier. An NMR study has also found detectable levels of MSM normally present in the blood and cerebrospinal fluid, suggesting that it derives from dietary sources, intestinal bacterial metabolism, and the body's endogenous methanethiol metabolism.


title: Methylsulfonylmethane

text: Although no medical uses for MSM have been approved, a variety of health benefits have been claimed and studied. Stanley W. Jacob reported having administered MSM to over 18,000 patients with a variety of ailments; he co-authored a book promoting MSM with a variety of claims, including a utility as a natural source of "biologically active sulfur," suggesting that people are deficient in such forms of sulfur in their dietary intake. There is no Dietary Reference Intake (DRI) or Daily Value established for sulfur but notable dietary sources include cruciferous vegetables, garlic, onions, asafoetida, legumes, nuts, seeds, plant milk, animal milk and eggs (whites and yolks).


title: Methylsulfonylmethane

text: The claims for the need for sulfur supplementation originate with Robert Herschler, a biochemist who patented "Dietary and pharmaceutical uses of methylsulfonylmethane and compositions comprising it" in 1982. He claimed that MSM was useful in stress, mucous-membrane inflammation, allergies and gastrointestinal conditions.


title: Methylsulfonylmethane

text: Moreover, in cases involving topical therapeutics, the role of MSM as an active agent, per se, versus its having a role in promoting skin permeation (in manner, akin to its solvent relative DMSO) must be characterized/controlled.


title: Methylsulfonylmethane

text: The biochemical effects of supplemental methylsulfonylmethane are poorly understood. Some researchers have suggested that MSM has anti-inflammatory effects.


title: Methylsulfonylmethane

text: The spectrum of biological effects of dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) and MSM differ, but those of DMSO may be mediated, at least in part, by MSM.


title: Methylsulfonylmethane

text: In July 2007 a manufacturer of MSM submitted a notification to the U.S. FDA claiming generally recognized as safe (GRAS) status. GRAS status is for safety, and has no evaluation of efficacy. The FDA responded in February 2008 with a letter of non-objection, functionally designating OptiMSM, the branded form of MSM, as GRAS. The designation allows MSM to be added to meal supplement and meal replacement foods, fruit smoothie-type drinks, fruit-flavored thirst quencher-type beverages, and food bars such as granola bars and energy-type bars.


title: Methylsulfonylmethane

text: Small-scale studies of possible treatments with MSM have been conducted on both animals and humans. These studies of MSM have suggested some benefits, particularly for treatment of oxidative stress and osteoarthritis, but evidence for other uses is lacking. Natural Medicines Comprehensive Database contains a continually updated list of health-related MSM studies.


title: Methylsulfonylmethane

text: A South Korean study focussing on the role of MSM affecting growth factors associated with breast cancer identifies MSM to have multiple targets, both in vitro and in vivo, including STAT3, STAT5b, IGF-1R and VEGF, confirming the ability of MSM to suppress tumor initiation, growth and metastasis in a dose dependent manner. The expression of triple negative hormone receptors is also down regulated by MSM. In a xenograft model the mice showed inhibited tumor cell migration and suppressed tumor growth in a dose dependent manner when receiving MSM as part of their drinking water at nul, three or five percent MSM weight over volume. The authors strongly recommend MSM as a trial drug for treating breast cancers because of its multi-targeting mechanism.


title: Methylsulfonylmethane

text: A small 2021 Randomized Controlled Trial on cardiometabolic markers found a possible relationship between a daily dose of 3 g of MSM and High-density lipoprotein (HDL) levels on overweight and obese people. The MSM group demonstrated higher HDL levels after 16 weeks (51.8 ± 2.8 mg/dL) when compared to the baseline (44.9 ± 3.7 mg/dL) and also versus the placebo group (42.7 ± 2.5 mg/dL at baseline vs 48.0 ± 4.9 mg/DL at 16 weeks). Other markers (inflammation, fasting glucose, resting heart rate, etc.) showed no significant changes between baseline and 16 weeks on either the placebo or the MSM groups with the exception of C-reactive protein levels, which were higher on the placebo group than on the MSM group at baseline and continued to increase up to the 16 weeks mark while showing a very slight decrease on the MSM group. However, the authors state they cannot explain why CRP levels were higher on the placebo group nor whether MSM may play a stabilizing role on CRP. The authors also state more and larger studies are required to establish the relationship between MSM and HDL.


title: Methylsulfonylmethane

text: The of MSM is greater than 17.5 grams per kilogram of body weight. In rats, no adverse events were observed after daily doses of 2 g MSM per kg of body weight. In a 90-day follow-up study, rats received daily MSM doses of 1.5 g/kg, and no changes were observed in terms of symptoms, blood chemistry or gross pathology.


title: Methylsulfonylmethane

text: Extensive research in animal models indicates MSM has a very low toxicity when administered both orally and topically.


title: Methylsulfonylmethane

text: In clinical trials, several studies reported minimal or absence of side effects after 12 weeks of dosing. Reported side effects from these studies included mild gastrointestinal issues, fatigue, and headache, although they did not appear to differ from placebo. A more recent 26-week study on large joint osteoarthritis observed no adverse events or abnormal changes in lab monitoring when taking 6 grams MSM per day. MSM is considered 'Possibly Safe' at therapeutic doses, although further research is still needed to assess its safety for long-term use.


title: Methylsulfonylmethane

text: A review of two small randomized controlled trials of methylsulfonylmethane in osteoarthritis (OA) knee pain relief "reported significant improvement in pain outcomes in the treatment group compared to comparator treatments; however, methodological issues and concerns over optimal dosage and treatment period were highlighted." The two trials included 168 people, of whom 52 received MSM, either 1.5 g/day or 6.0 g/day. The review authors stated: "No definitive conclusion can currently be drawn" and there is "no definitive evidence that MSM is superior to placebo in the treatment of mild to moderate osteoarthritis of the knee."


title: Methylsulfonylmethane

text: There are findings from Indian researchers that show an improvement of symptoms like pain, inflammation and swelling in patients by a combined intake of MSM and glucosamine. Two other studies investigated the effects of MSM in combination with glucosamine and chondroitin (GC) on joint function. In the first study, the GC+MSM group saw significant benefits sooner than the GC group. This suggests that the addition of MSM reduces the time to benefit. In another, the GC+MSM group saw significant improvements in both WOMAC and VAS pain scores when compared to both the placebo group and GC group. This suggests that the addition of MSM increases the magnitude of benefits.


title: Methylsulfonylmethane

text: The first scientific investigation of MSM for skin health was published in 2015. The RCT used a 3g per day dose and included only 20 women. Results showed significant improvements in the number and severity of facial wrinkles, firmness, tone and texture. Another study evaluated doses of 1g and 3g and showed improvements in wrinkles, firmness, and hydration at both dose levels in 20 persons. The same author published a study on MSM for hair and nails from the same clinical trial. The results showed improvements in hair shine, volume, and appearance, and nail shine and appearance. An Italian study evaluated the effects of a nutraceutical composed of MSM, hyaluronic acid, and L-carnosine. The results from RCT showed broad improvements in facial skin hydration and elasticity, as well as decreased sebaceous secretions.


title: Methylsulfonylmethane

text: Multiple human and animal trials indicate MSM may reduce oxidative stress and inflammation. In one small human trial, MSM has been shown to protect muscles from damage by reducing the amount of oxidative stress damage incurred through exercise. In a second small trial the total antioxidant capacity was significantly increased after taking MSM. Studies in animals indicate a hepatoprotective effect of MSM against several toxins including acetaminophen, paraquat, and carbon tetrachloride. Animal models of experimental colitis and pulmonary hypertension indicate a protective effect as well.


title: Methylsulfonylmethane

text: Two studies have evaluated the effects of MSM on allergic rhinitis. A 2004 multi-centered, open-label clinical trial found that MSM reduced both upper and lower respiratory symptoms associated with seasonal allergic rhinitis (SAR), and increased energy levels. It found no significant changes in IgE levels, although the duration of the study was not likely long enough to see changes. An RCT evaluated three doses of MSM and found that a 3g daily dose was most effective compared to 1g or 6g per day. Daily use at 3g decreased allergy-associated symptoms, including itchy eyes, itchy nose, watery eyes, rhinorrhea, sneezing, and nasal obstruction. The 3g dose also improved peak nasal inspiratory flow (PNIF) indicating improved breathing. The study also evaluated an acute 12g dose and found significant improvements in all symptoms except itching eyes and sneezing, but not for PNIF.


title: Methylsulfonylmethane

text: MSM has been shown to improve immune function markers. RCT found that in blood samples taken after bouts of exhaustive exercise, there was a reduced response to an infectious stimulus in the placebo group, but the MSM group maintained a robust response, indicating that MSM protected against stress-induced immunosuppression. The authors postulate that MSM’s anti-inflammatory properties reduce the overstimulation of inflammatory cells during exercise, thus conserving their ability to respond to infections threats. This is supported by "in vitro" research showing MSM inhibits over-activation of white blood cells and has an anti-apoptotic effect.


title: René Elizondo Jr.

text: René Elizondo Jr. (born July 16, 1962) is a Mexican dancer, songwriter and music video director. He was married to American singer Janet Jackson from 1991 to 2003.


title: René Elizondo Jr.

text: Born in Durango, Mexico, Elizondo and Jackson met in the early 1980s and later was a backup dancer to Janet's older sister La Toya Jackson. Elizondo and Jackson married in 1991. Elizondo directed her videos for "That's the Way Love Goes", "Again", and "Together Again" (Deeper Remix) and was a songwriter on "The Velvet Rope". It is his hands that cover Jackson's breasts on the cover of the September 1993 issue of "Rolling Stone" magazine, the expanded cover art of her "janet." album. René also appeared in Jackson's "Come Back to Me" video in 1990 from her album "Rhythm Nation" (1989). Elizondo was heavily involved in Jackson's business affairs, but the two fell out as marital partners. They divorced in 2003.


title: René Elizondo Jr.

text: In August 2010, Elizondo married Britt Coelho, his longtime girlfriend, in a small beach ceremony. The couple had a baby girl on October 9, 2011.


Visa requirements for Philippine citizens are administrative entry restrictions imposed on citizens of the Philippines by the authorities of other territories. As of July 19, 2022, Philippine citizens had visa-free or visa on arrival access to 67 countries and territories, ranking the Philippine passport 80th in terms of travel freedom according to the Henley Passport Index.


title: Visa requirements for Philippine citizens

text: Certain countries allow Filipino citizens to enter without a visa if they are in a possession of a valid visa or resident permit for Canada, Ireland, the Schengen area, the United States or the United Kingdom.


text: Visa requirements for Filipino citizens for entry to various territories, disputed areas, partially recognized countries and restricted zones:


text: Holders of an APEC Business Travel Card (ABTC) travelling on business do not require a visa to the following countries:


text: The card must be used in conjunction with a passport and has the following advantages for the holder:


title: Tenali Rama

text: Tenali Ramakrishna (born Garlapati Ramakrishna; also known as Tenali Rama) was an Indian poet, scholar, thinker and a special advisor in the court of the Vijayanagar king Krishnadevaraya, who ruled from C.E. 1509 to 1529. He was a Telugu poet who hailed from a village called Tenali located at what is now the Andhra Pradesh region, generally known for the folk tales which focus on his wit. He was one of the Ashtadiggajas or the eight poets at the court of Krishnadevaraya.


title: Tenali Rama

text: His father died when he was a child. To overcome the depression that Rama faced, his mother Lakṣamma took him to Vijayanagar where he became an advisor to Sri Krishnadevaraya and the 8th scholar in his court. He was a great scholar and poet of Telugu language. Tenali Ramakrishna was also a minister of the court.


title: Tenali Rama

text: Tenali Rama was born in a Telugu speaking Niyogi Hindu Brahmin family as Garlapati Ramakrishna, in a village called Thumuluru or Tenali (currently a part of Tenali Maṇḍalam) during the late part of the fifteenth century. His father was Garlapathi Rama, who served as a priest in the Ramalingesvara Swami temple in Santharavuru.


title: Tenali Rama

text: Rama died when Ramakrishna was young. His mother Lakṣamma returned to her native place in Tenāli to live with her brother. Ramakrishna grew up in his uncle's town and so came to be known as Tenali Ramakrishna.


title: Tenali Rama

text: Tenāli Rāmakr̥ṣṇa did not receive any formal education during his childhood, but became a great scholar, due to his thirst for knowledge. As per a well-known tale, the Vaishnava (devotees of Vishnu) scholars rejected to accept him as a disciple, as he was a Śaiva. Ramakrishna was still determined to get educated so he went to many paṇḍits and begged them humbly to accept him as his disciple but they called him names and threw him out. After that day he thought he will never beg anyone for his education. The next day Ramakrishna went out to secure education but he did not approach any teacher. The village school wall was his teacher! Every day he would stand by the wall and attentively listen to the lessons taught in the classroom and go back home and recite what he learned to his mother. This became his daily practice. But one unfortunate day Rāmakr̥ṣṇa got caught and was accused of being a thief so he narrated his story to the school teacher. After listening to Rāmakr̥ṣṇa's story the teacher felt proud but he could do nothing about it because of the stringent norms of the school administration so he was sent away. Later while roaming aimlessly, he met a sage, who advised him to worship the Goddess Kali. He worshipped and invoked the Goddess with his devotion. Legends say that Maa Kali appeared before him and admired his sense of humor and blessed him that one day, he would be acclaimed as a great poet in the imperial court of emperor Krishnadevaraya of Vijayanagara. The Goddess also gave him the title "Vikaṭakavi", impressed by his wit and humor. His wife was Saarada and son was Bhaskara sarma.


title: Tenali Rama

text: Ramakrishna held an important position in Krishnadevaraya's court. He was one of the Ashtadiggajas and chief adviser appointed by the emperor.


title: Tenali Rama

text: A year before the death of Krishnadevaraya, in 1528 Tenali Ramakrishna died from a snakebite. The records also state that Ramakrishna was instrumental in protecting the emperor many times, coming to his rescue in critical situations, doing court cases, and he was his best friend.


title: Tenali Rama

text: Tenali Rama was noted for his brilliance and wit. Tenali Ramakrishna's great work "Panduranga Mahatmyam" is a Kāvya of high merit, remarkable for its sonorous dignity of phrasing, and is counted as one of the Pañcha Mahā Kāvyas (the Five Great Kavyas) of Telugu literature. It contains a legendary account of a shrine of Vishnu as Panduranga, at Pandharpur consecrated by the ministration of Saint Pundarika. A brahmin named Nigama Sharma, who wasted his life in dissipation and debauchery, died in Pandharpur. A controversy ensures between servants of Yama and servants of Vishnu. The former were anxious to carry him to hell as he lived a wicked life and the latter claimed him for heaven, as he died in that sacred place. Indeed, the verdict is in favour of the servants of Vishnu


title: Tenali Rama

text: Tenali took the theme for "Panduranga Mahatmyam" from the "Skanda Purana" and enhanced it with many stories about the devotees of Panduranga. An imaginary character named 'Nigama Sarma Akka' was created by Tenali Ramakrishna and he built a story around her without giving her a name. He also composed many extempore poems called 'Chatuvu'.


title: Tenali Rama

text: Tenali Ramakrishna attained the status of a folk hero when he was the court poet of Krishnadevaraya, but at the same time, he composed serious works on religion. Three of his narrative poems are available today. His first poem, Udbhataradhya Charitamu about the Shaiva teacher Udbhata which is based on Palakuriki Somanatha's "Basava Puranam". "Udbhataradhya Charitamu" also deals with the sanctity of Varanasi. Because of Tenali Ramakrishna's affinity towards Shaivite religion, he was also known as Tenali Ramalinga Kavi.


title: Tenali Rama

text: Tenali Rama was called a Vikata Kavi (a palindrome in Telugu script) means clown-jester-poet. He was also entitled by "Kumara Bharathi", for his works.


title: Google Store

text: Google Store is a hardware retail store operated by Google that sells Google Pixel devices, Google Nest products, Chromecast dongles, Fitbit devices, and accessories such as earbuds, phone cases, chargers, and keyboards. It also sold Nexus, Daydream, Stadia and Cardboard devices until their discontinuations. Google Store sells products made by Google or made in collaboration with that company. It was introduced on March 11, 2015, and replaced the Devices section of Google Play as Google's hardware retailer. It is overseen by Ana Corrales, who is also the COO of Google's Devices & Services division.


title: Google Store

text: Google has experimented with physical locations as well. In October 2016, it opened a pop-up shop in New York City to display its then-recently announced hardware products, and the following month it opened "Google Shops", store-within-a-store locations at select Best Buy stores in Canada. In 2021, Google announced that they would be opening a physical Google Store as part of its Chelsea Market campus in New York City, which opened on June 17.


title: Google Store

text: In March 2015, Google opened a store-within-a-store within a branch of British electrical retailer Currys, at Tottenham Court Road, London.


title: Google Store

text: In October 2016, Google opened Made by Google, a temporary pop-up showroom in the SoHo neighborhood of New York City. The space offered a glimpse at hardware products the company had recently developed, including the Pixel smartphone, Google Home smart speaker, and Daydream View virtual reality headset.


title: Google Store

text: In November 2016, Google opened "Google Shop", a store-within-a-store where Google displays its hardware products. The Google Shops, available at select Best Buy locations in Canada, gives Google a retail presence that's "been key to building a premium mobile device customer base that’s sizable and loyal, and it’s not something Google has really had with its previous Nexus program". The Shops are "distinctly Google", with visual aesthetics featuring "light wood grain and gray fabric pairing up with playful hints of bright colors", along with "custom-created modular furniture that nests when standing room is limited, but can easily accommodate, say, a small group of students with stool seating in a pinch". In a comment to "TechCrunch", Janell Fischer, Google's Director of Retail Marketing, said that "We love it when people can come in, discover, play and have fun and it just happens to be with technology. So we’ve really tried to layer on lots of different immersive sorts of experiences, some that are direct demonstrations of the product and product features, but some that are more exploratory and fun". Each Google Shop "could have unique digital content tailored to the city wherein it resides".


title: Google Store

text: In May 2021, Google announced that it would be opening a physical retail store as part of its Chelsea Market campus in New York City, next to its New York offices. Similar to the Apple Store, the Google Store Chelsea showcases Google's hardware products including Pixel, Nest, Chromecast, Fitbit, and Pixelbook devices, subscription services such as Google Stadia and Google Fi, software products such as Google Translate and Google Duo, as well as exclusive merchandise. It opened on June 17, 2021.


title: Google Store

text: In May 2022, Google announced during the 2022 Google I/O keynote that a second physical Google Store would open in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. It opened on June 16, 2022.


title: Askar Askarov

text: Askar Askarov (; born 9 October 1992) is a Russian mixed martial artist and freestyle wrestler who competes in the Flyweight division. A professional mixed martial artist since 2013, Askarov previously competed in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) and Absolute Championship Berkut (ACB), where he has won the ACB Flyweight Championship and 2017 Summer Deaflympics 61 kg freestyle wrestling gold medalist.


title: Askar Askarov

text: Askarov was born to an Akhvakh family on 9 October 1992, in the village of Kamysh-Kutan in the Akhvakhsky District of Dagestan, an autonomous republic within the Russian Federation.


title: Askar Askarov

text: Askarov was born deaf, and though his hearing has improved, he can only hear approximately 20% of the sounds most people can, meaning he cannot hear instructions from his team during a fight. Askarov has represented Russia as part of the national deaf wrestling team, including at the Summer Deaflympics in Samsun, Turkey in 2017, where he won a gold medal.


title: Askar Askarov

text: Askarov made his professional MMA debut in Russia in July 2013, against a fellow debutante in Shamil Amirov. He won the fight by a rear naked choke in the second round. In his second fight, he fought another debuting fighter, Kvanzhakov Kantemir, and won by a first round TKO. Askarov extended his winning streak to four, with stoppage wins against Elvin Abbasov and Vakha Kadyrov.


title: Askar Askarov

text: Following these two victories, Askarov signed with the Russian based promotion Absolute Championship Berkut. In his first fight with ACB, Askarov defeated Vyacheslav Gagiev by a second round TKO. During , Askarov fought and submitted the undefeated Kirill Medvedovski. He was then scheduled to fight Marcin Lasota during . Askarov won the fight by a second round TKO. In his fourth with the organization, Askarov was scheduled to fight Ruslan Abiltarov during . He won the fight by rear naked choke, and was awarded a $5,000 bonus for the submission of the night.


title: Askar Askarov

text: These victories earned Askar the chance to fight José Maria Tomé for the vacant ACB Flyweight Championship. He beat José Maria Tomé by submission in the fifth round to become the first ACB flyweight champion. Askarov additionally earned a $5,000 bonus for the "Fight of the Night".


title: Askar Askarov

text: Askarov was scheduled to have his first title defense during , when he was fought Anthony Leone. Askarov won the fight mid-way through the third round, by a body triangle neck crank.


title: Askar Askarov

text: Askarov was scheduled to defend his title for the second time against Rasul Albaskhanov, during . He defeated Albaskhanov by a second round guillotine choke.


title: Askar Askarov

text: Askarov made his UFC debut against Brandon Moreno on the main card of . Though Moreno was competing in front of his home fans in Mexico, they fought to a split draw after three rounds.


title: Askar Askarov

text: For his second fight in the Octagon, Askarov was booked to face former UFC flyweight title challenger Tim Elliott at on January 18, 2020 at UFC 246. Askarov won the bout via unanimous decision.


title: Askar Askarov

text: In his third fight for the promotion, Askarov faced Alexandre Pantoja at UFC Fight Night 172 on July 19, 2020. He won the fight via unanimous decision.


title: Askar Askarov

text: Askarov faced Joseph Benavidez on March 6, 2021 at UFC 259. At the weigh-ins, Askar weighed in at 127 pounds, one pound over the flyweight non-title fight limit. His bout proceeded at a catchweight and he was fined 20 percent of his individual purse, which went to Benavidez. Askarov won the fight via unanimous decision.


title: Askar Askarov

text: Askarov was scheduled to face Alex Perez on July 31, 2021 on UFC on ESPN 28. However, Askarov pulled out of the fight in early July citing injury. In turn, Perez was removed from the card entirely and rescheduled to face Matt Schnell four weeks later on August 28, 2021 at UFC Fight Night 192.


title: Askar Askarov

text: Askarov faced Kai Kara-France on March 26, 2022 at UFC on ESPN 33. He lost the first bout of his professional career via unanimous decision.


title: Askar Askarov

text: The bout between Askarov and Perez was rescheduled and they are expected to meet on July 16, 2022 at UFC on ABC 3. Askarov pulled out once again in early June due to undisclosed reasons and Perez was rescheduled against Alexandre Pantoja at UFC 277.


title: Askar Askarov

text: Askarov was scheduled to face Brandon Royval on October 15, 2022 at UFC Fight Night 212. However the bout was cancelled the day before the event due to weight management issues.


title: Paula Jai Parker

text: Paula Jai Parker is an American actress. She is best known for her supporting roles in the films "Friday" (1995), "Sprung" (1997), "Why Do Fools Fall in Love" (1998), "Phone Booth" (2002), "Hustle & Flow" (2005), and "Idlewild" (2006), and for her roles on television sitcoms "The Wayans Bros." (1995-1996), "Family Time" (2012-2019), "Hollywood Divas" (2014-2016), "Ray Donovan" (2016), "Black Jesus" (2019), "A House Divided" (2019-2022), and "Queen Sugar" (2021). Parker is also known for her voice of Trudy Proud in the Disney Channel animated comedy series, "The Proud Family" (2001-2005), and also in the 2005 TV Movie "The Proud Family Movie", and even its 2022 reboot, "".


title: Paula Jai Parker

text: Parker was born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio, but moved to Washington, D.C. in 1987 to study at Howard University. After graduating with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree, she moved to New York City and played a number of clubs. From 1992 to 1993, she performed on the FOX comedy program "The Apollo Comedy Hour", filmed live at the legendary Apollo Theater, and later was cast member on the short-lived sketch show, "Townsend Television".


title: Paula Jai Parker

text: In 1995, Parker made her film debut in the F. Gary Gray urban comedy "Friday". In the same year, she earned a Cable ACE Award for her role in the HBO anthology presentation, "Cosmic Slop". Later that year, Parker returned to television in the WB sitcom, "The Wayans Bros." opposite Shawn and Marlon Wayans. Throughout the 1990s, she appeared in several short-lived shows, including CBS sitcom "The Weird Al Show" (1997), and David E. Kelley's ABC comedy-drama, "Snoops" (1999).


title: Paula Jai Parker

text: During the 1990s, Parker had supporting roles in a number of films. She has appeared in the 1995 horror anthology "Tales from the Hood", Spike Lee's Million Man March drama "Get on the Bus" (1996), the urban comedy "Sprung" (1997), Jada Pinkett Smith starring romantic comedy "Woo" (1997), the Frankie Lymon biography, "Why Do Fools Fall in Love" (1998). In the early 2000s, Parker co-starred in "30 Years to Life", "High Crimes", "Phone Booth", and "My Baby's Daddy". In 2004, she played the lesbian woman in the LGBT comedy-drama, "She Hate Me", and appeared as Ruth Brown in biographical film "Ray". Her breakthrough was in the 2005 independent drama "Hustle & Flow" starring Terrence Howard. She later was cast opposite Howard in musical film "Idlewild" (2006).


title: Paula Jai Parker

text: From 2001 to 2005, Parker voiced the matriarch Trudy Proud in the Disney Channel animated comedy series, "The Proud Family" and its 2005 film "The Proud Family Movie". She also played the role of Billie Holiday on the episode of "Touched by an Angel" in 2000, and later guest starred on "The Shield", "", "My Name Is Earl", and "The Mentalist". She co-starred in the 2007 thriller film "Cover" starring Aunjanue Ellis, and in later years worked in low-profile independent movies.


title: Paula Jai Parker

text: From 2013 to 2014, Parker had the recurring role in the HBO series, "True Blood" during show' seventh and final season. In 2014, she was cast as one of five leads on the TV One reality series, "Hollywood Divas". In 2015, Parker was cast in the recurring roles on the Amazon drama "Hand of God", and Freeform series, "Recovery Road". In August 2016, she released an extended play entitled "Paula Jai & Friends", which featured the single "Going Down".


title: Paula Jai Parker

text: Parker married Forrest Martin in 2004. The couple met on the set of "Hustle & Flow", where Forrest, who had just graduated with a Master of Fine Arts, was working as an intern. She almost passed on shooting the critically acclaimed movie and only took the part at the urging of her manager. They have one son.


title: Cat Zingano

text: Cathilee Deborah "Cat" Zingano (née Albert; born July 1, 1982) is an American mixed martial artist, currently signed to Bellator MMA, competing in the Women's Featherweight division. Zingano also competed for the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), and on April 13, 2013, she became the first woman to win a UFC fight by technical knockout (TKO). At the time of her departure from the UFC, she was No. 7 in the official UFC bantamweight rankings. As of June 28, 2022, she is #4 in the Bellator Women's pound-for-pound Rankings and #1 in the Bellator Women's Featherweight Rankings.


title: Cat Zingano

text: Zingano began her career in combat sports with wrestling at age 12. She attended Fairview High School in Boulder, Colorado, where she got involved with combat sports after joining the wrestling team. She eventually became part of both the University of the Cumberlands (2001) and MacMurray College women's wrestling teams and became a 4-time All-American and National Champion.


title: Cat Zingano

text: In 2007 Zingano discovered Brazilian jiu-jitsu (BJJ), shortly after she started to compete and won many tournaments including the World Championships (Mundials) in Los Angeles, and the Rio de Janeiro State Championships in Brazil, along with several State titles in Colorado.


title: Cat Zingano

text: In October 2007, after doing a few months of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Zingano competed in her first amateur Mixed Martial Arts fight and instantly knew that MMA was something she wanted to compete in.


title: Cat Zingano

text: Zingano made her pro MMA debut on June 13, 2008, at Ring of Fire 32, and submitted Karina Taylor with an armbar in the first round.


title: Cat Zingano

text: On December 10, 2010, Zingano faced Carina Damm at Crowbar MMA: Winter Brawl in Grand Forks, North Dakota. She defeated Damm by TKO in the second round.


title: Cat Zingano

text: Zingano next faced Takayo Hashi at Fight To Win: Outlaws on May 14, 2011. She defeated Hashi via knockout from a slam in the third round.


title: Cat Zingano

text: Zingano was scheduled to face Anita Rodriguez at Invicta Fighting Championships 1, but she was forced to withdraw from the card due to an injury.


title: Cat Zingano

text: Zingano had signed on to face Amanda Nunes at on September 29, 2012, but the event was cancelled when Gilbert Melendez, who was set to defend his title against Pat Healy, sustained a knee injury in training that forced his withdrawal from the card.


title: Cat Zingano

text: Zingano instead faced Raquel Pennington at on October 6, 2012. She defeated Pennington by submission due to a rear-naked choke in the second round.


title: Cat Zingano

text: In February 2013, it was revealed that Zingano would participate in the second women's match in Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) history. She fought Miesha Tate on April 13, 2013, at . Zingano defeated Tate by TKO in the third round. The bout was named Fight of the Night.


title: Cat Zingano

text: As the winner of the bout, Zingano was set to become a coach on against Ronda Rousey and be the next challenger for the UFC Women's Bantamweight Championship. However, on May 28, it was announced that Zingano was out as coach/opponent for Rousey after she had suffered a knee injury earlier in the month which required surgery and had been replaced by Tate. On October 3, 2013, Zingano underwent PRP (Platelet-rich plasma) and stem cell treatment on both of her knees.


title: Cat Zingano

text: After nearly a year and a half away from the sport due to injury, Zingano returned to the Octagon in the fall of 2014. She faced Amanda Nunes on September 27, 2014, at UFC 178. After losing the first round, Zingano came back in the two subsequent rounds to win via TKO in the third round. After the fight she said "That whole first round, I just got my head caved in, I was dizzy; I couldn't be in light for a month. I put on like 30 pounds because my pituitary gland got knocked around and my hormones were all screwed up. I had never been hit like that in a fight.


title: Cat Zingano

text: You know, it really freaked me out because it was like, man, I am my son's only parent. If I'm all screwed up and I can't drive and I can't work and say this injury is so bad I can't fight anymore...what if I'm incapable of doing that? I can't get to the point where my brain is mush and I can barely talk, because my son's life depends on my health."


title: Cat Zingano

text: A matchup between Ronda Rousey and Zingano took place at UFC 184 for the women's bantamweight title. Zingano was quickly submitted in the fight's opening seconds.


title: Cat Zingano

text: Zingano returned to face Julianna Peña at UFC 200 on July 9, 2016. She lost the match by decision, with judges all returning 29-28 scores in favor of Peña.


title: Cat Zingano

text: She then faced Marion Reneau at UFC Fight Night 133 on July 14, 2018. She won the fight by unanimous decision.


title: Cat Zingano

text: Zingano faced Megan Anderson in a featherweight fight on December 29, 2018, at UFC 232. She lost the fight in a bizarre way, via technical knock out in round one after an eye injury from an Anderson kick that didn't allow her to continue. Anderson's toe grazed Zingano's eyeball, rendering her unable to continue due to blurred vision. Although the injury looked like it could potentially be serious, Zingano later reported that the condition of her eye was getting better. On January 14, 2019, it was revealed that Zingano appealed the loss on the grounds of Unified Rules of MMA's definition of eye gouging. CSAC upheld Anderson's win at the commission meeting on February 19, 2019.


title: Cat Zingano

text: In her promotional debut, Zingano faced Gabby Holloway at Bellator 245 on September 11, 2020. She won the fight via unanimous decision.


title: Cat Zingano

text: Zingano faced Olivia Parker on April 9, 2021 at Bellator 256. She won the bout via first round armbar submission.


title: Cat Zingano

text: Zingano was scheduled to face Pam Sorenson on March 11, 2022 at Bellator 276. However, Zingano was forced to pull out due to injury and the bout was cancelled. The bout was rebooked for Bellator 282 on June 24, 2022. She won the bout via unanimous decision.


title: Cat Zingano

text: Zingano married Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt Mauricio Zingano in 2010. Her husband committed suicide on January 13, 2014. She has a son named Brayden (born 2006), making her the first mother to compete in the UFC. Ahead of her second Bellator MMA fight, she set up a scholarship fund to help students who have been recently bereaved with $10,000.


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: This article summarizes the phonology (the sound system, or in more general terms, the pronunciation) of Standard Chinese (Standard Mandarin).


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: Standard Chinese phonology is based on the Beijing dialect of Mandarin. Actual production varies widely among speakers, as they introduce elements of their native varieties (although television and radio announcers are chosen for their ability to produce the standard variety). Elements of the sound system include not only the segments – the vowels and consonants – of the language but also the tones that are applied to each syllable. Standard Chinese has four main tones, in addition to a neutral tone used on weak syllables.


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: This article represents phonetic values using the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA), noting correspondences chiefly with the Pinyin system for transcription of Chinese text. For correspondences with other systems, see the relevant articles, such as Wade–Giles, Bopomofo (Zhuyin), Gwoyeu Romatzyh, etc., and Romanization of Chinese.


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: The following table shows the consonant sounds of Standard Chinese, transcribed using the International Phonetic Alphabet. The sounds shown in parentheses are sometimes not analyzed as separate phonemes; for more on these, see below. Excluding these, and excluding the glides , , and (for which see below), there are 19 consonant phonemes in the inventory.


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: Between pairs of stops or affricates having the same place of articulation and manner of articulation, the primary distinction is not voiced vs. voiceless (as in French or Russian), but unaspirated vs. aspirated (as in Scottish Gaelic or Icelandic). The unaspirated stops and affricates may however become voiced in weak syllables (see below). Such pairs are represented in the pinyin system mostly using letters which in Romance languages generally denote voiceless/voiced pairs (for example and ), or in Germanic languages often denotes fortis/lenis pairs (for example initial aspirated voiceless/unaspirated voiced pairs such as and ). However, in pinyin they denote aspirated/unaspirated pairs, for example and are represented with "p" and "b" respectively.


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: All of the consonants may occur as the initial sound of a syllable, with the exception of (unless the zero initial is assigned to this phoneme; see below). Excepting the rhotic coda, the only consonants that can appear in syllable coda (final) position are and (although may occur as an allophone of before labial consonants in fast speech). Final , may be pronounced without complete oral closure, resulting in a syllable that in fact ends with a long nasalized vowel. See also , below.


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: The consonants listed in the first table above as denti-alveolar are sometimes described as alveolars, and sometimes as dentals. The affricates and the fricative are particularly often described as dentals; these are generally pronounced with the tongue on the lower teeth.


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: The retroflex consonants (like those of Polish) are actually apical rather than subapical, and so are considered by some authors not to be truly retroflex; they may be more accurately called post-alveolar. Some speakers not from Beijing may lack the retroflexes in their native dialects, and may thus replace them with dentals.


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: The alveolo-palatal consonants (pinyin "j", "q", "x") are standardly pronounced . Some speakers realize them as palatalized dentals , , ; this is claimed to be especially common among children and women, although officially it is regarded as substandard and as a feature specific to the Beijing dialect.


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: In phonological analysis, it is often assumed that, when not followed by one of the high front vowels or , the alveolo-palatals consist of a consonant followed by a palatal glide ( or ). That is, syllables represented in pinyin as beginning , , , , , (followed by a vowel) are taken to begin , , , , , . The actual pronunciations are more like , , , , , (or for speakers using the dental variants, , , , , , ). This is consistent with the general observation (see under ) that medial glides are realized as palatalization and/or labialization of the preceding consonant (palatalization already being inherent in the case of the palatals).


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: On the above analysis, the alveolo-palatals are in complementary distribution with the dentals , with the velars , and with the retroflexes , as none of these can occur before high front vowels or palatal glides, whereas the alveolo-palatals occur "only" before high front vowels or palatal glides. Therefore, linguists often prefer to classify not as independent phonemes, but as allophones of one of the other three series. The existence of the above-mentioned dental variants inclines some to prefer to identify the alveolo-palatals with the dentals, but identification with any of the three series is possible (unless the empty rime is identified with , in which case the velars become the only candidate; see below). The Yale and Wade–Giles systems mostly treat the alveolo-palatals as allophones of the retroflexes; Tongyong Pinyin mostly treats them as allophones of the dentals; and Mainland Chinese Braille treats them as allophones of the velars. In standard pinyin and bopomofo, however, they are represented as a separate sequence.


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: The alveolo-palatals arose historically from a merger of the dentals and velars before high front vowels and glides. Previously, some instances of modern were instead , and others were . The change took place in the last two or three centuries at different times in different areas. This explains why some European transcriptions of Chinese names (especially in postal romanization) contain , , , where an alveolo-palatal might be expected in modern Chinese. Examples are "Peking" for Beijing (), "Chungking" for Chongqing (), "Fukien" for Fujian (cf. "Hokkien"), "Tientsin" for Tianjin (); Sinkiang" for Xinjiang (, and Sian" for Xi'an (). The complementary distribution with the retroflex series arose when syllables that had a retroflex consonant followed by a medial glide lost the medial glide.


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: A full syllable such as "ai", in which the vowel is not preceded by any of the standard initial consonants or glides, is said to have a "null initial" or "zero onset". This may be realized as a consonant sound: and are possibilities, as are and in some non-standard varieties. It has been suggested by San Duanmu that such an onset be regarded as a special phoneme, or as an instance of the phoneme , although it can also be treated as no phoneme (absence of onset). By contrast, in the case of the particle "a", which is a weak onsetless syllable, linking occurs with the previous syllable (as described under , below).


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: When a stressed vowel-initial Chinese syllable follows a consonant-final syllable, the consonant does not directly link with the vowel. Instead, the zero onset seems to intervene in between. ("cotton jacket") becomes , . However, in connected speech none of these output forms is natural. Instead, when the words are spoken together the most natural pronunciation is rather similar to , in which there is no nasal closure or any version of the zero onset, and instead nasalization of the vowel occurs.


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: The glides , , and sound respectively like the "y" in English "yes", the "(h)u" in French "huit", and the "w" in English "we". (Beijing speakers often replace initial with a labiodental , except when it is followed by .) The glides are commonly analyzed not as independent phonemes, but as consonantal allophones of the high vowels: . This is possible because there is no ambiguity in interpreting a sequence like "yao/-iao" as , and potentially problematic sequences such as do not occur.


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: The glides may occur in initial position in a syllable. This occurs with in the syllables written "yu", "yuan", "yue", and "yun" in pinyin; with in other syllables written with initial "y" in pinyin ("ya", "yi", etc.); and with in syllables written with initial "w" in pinyin ("wa", "wu", etc.). When a glide is followed by the vowel of which that glide is considered an allophone, the glide may be regarded as epenthetic (automatically inserted), and not as a separate realization of the phoneme. Hence the syllable "yi", pronounced , may be analyzed as consisting of the single phoneme , and similarly "yin" may be analyzed as , "yu" as , and "wu" as . It is also possible to hear both from the same speaker, even in the same conversation. For example, one may hear the number "one" as either or .


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: The glides can also occur in medial position, that is, after the initial consonant but before the main vowel. Here they are represented in pinyin as vowels: for example, the "i" in "bie" represents , and the "u" in "duan" represents . There are some restrictions on the possible consonant-glide combinations: does not occur after labials (except for some speakers in "bo", "po", "mo", "fo"); does not occur after retroflexes and velars (or after ); and occurs medially only in "lüe" and "nüe" and after alveolo-palatals (for which see above). A consonant-glide combination at the start of a syllable is articulated as a single sound – the glide is not in fact pronounced after the consonant, but is realized as palatalization , labialization , or both , of the consonant. (The same modifications of initial consonants occur in syllables where they are followed by a high vowel, although normally no glide is considered to be present there. Hence a consonant is generally palatalized when followed by , labialized when followed by , and both when followed by .)


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: The glides and are also found as the final element in some syllables. These are commonly analyzed as diphthongs rather than vowel-glide sequences. For example, the syllable "bai" is assigned the underlying representation . (In pinyin, the second element is generally written or , but is written as .)


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: The syllables written in pinyin as "zi", "ci", "si", "zhi", "chi", "shi", "ri" may be described as a sibilant consonant ("z, c, s, zh, ch, sh, r" in pinyin) followed by a syllabic consonant (also known as apical vowel in classic literature):


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: Phonologically, these syllables may be analyzed as having their own vowel phoneme, . However, it is possible to merge this with the phoneme (to which it is historically related), since the two are in complementary distribution – provided that the is either left unmerged, or is merged with the velars rather than the retroflex or alveolar series. (That is, , , and all exist, but and do not exist, so there is no problem merging both and at the same time.)


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: Another approach is to regard the syllables assigned above to as having an (underlying) empty nuclear slot ("empty rhyme", Chinese ), i.e. as not containing a vowel phoneme at all. This is more consistent with the syllabic consonant description of these syllables, and is consistent with the view that phonological representations are minimal (underspecified). When this is the case, sometimes the phoneme is described as shifting from voiceless to voiced, e.g. "sī" becoming .


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: Syllabic consonants may also arise as a result of weak syllable reduction; see below. Syllabic nasal consonants are also heard in certain interjections; pronunciations of such words include , , , , .


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: Standard Chinese can be analyzed as having between two to six vowel phonemes. (which may also be analyzed as underlying glides) are high (close) vowels, is mid whereas is low (open).


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: The precise realization of each vowel depends on its phonetic environment. In particular, the vowel has two broad allophones and (corresponding respectively to pinyin "e" and "o" in most cases). These sounds can be treated as a single underlying phoneme because they are in complementary distribution. The mid vowel phoneme may also be treated as an underspecified vowel, attracting features either from the adjacent sounds or from default rules resulting in . (Apparent counterexamples are provided by certain interjections, such as , , , and , but these are normally treated as special cases operating outside the normal phonemic system.)


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: Transcriptions of the vowels' allophones (the ways they are pronounced in particular phonetic environments) differ somewhat between sources. More details about the individual vowel allophones are given in the following table (not including the values that occur with the rhotic coda).


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: Zhuyin represents vowels differently from normal romanisation schemes, and as such is not displayed in the above table.


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: The vowel nuclei may be preceded by a glide , and may be followed by a coda . The various combinations of glide, vowel, and coda have different surface manifestations, as shown in the tables below. Any of the three positions may be empty, i.e. occupied by a null meta-phoneme .


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: The following table provides a typical five vowel analysis according to and . In this analysis, the high vowels are fully phonemic and may form sequences with the nasal codas .


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: Some linguists prefer to reduce the number of vowel phonemes further (at the expense of including underlying glides in their systems). Edwin G. Pulleyblank has proposed a system which includes underlying glides, but no vowels at all. More common are systems with two vowels; for example, in Mantaro Hashimoto's system, there are just two vowel nuclei, . In this analysis, the high vowels are analyzed as glides which surface as vowels before or .


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: As a general rule, vowels in open syllables (those which have no coda following the main vowel) are pronounced long, while others are pronounced short. This does not apply to weak syllables, in which all vowels are short.


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: In Standard Chinese, the vowels and harmonize in backness with the coda. For , it is fronted before and backed before . For , it is fronted before and backed before .


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: Some native Mandarin speakers may pronounce , , and as , , and respectively in the first or second tone.


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: Standard Chinese features syllables that end with a rhotic coda . This feature, known in Chinese as "erhua", is particularly characteristic of the Beijing dialect; many other dialects do not use it as much, and some not at all. It occurs in two cases:


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: The "r" final is pronounced with a relatively lax tongue, and has been described as a "retroflex vowel".


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: In dialects that do not make use of the rhotic coda, it may be omitted in pronunciation, or in some cases a different word may be selected: for example, Beijing "zhèr" "here" and "nàr" "there" may be replaced by the synonyms "zhèli" and "nàli".


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: Syllables in Standard Chinese have the maximal form (CG)V(X), traditionally analysed as an "initial" consonant C, a "final", and a tone T. The final consists of a "medial" G (which may be one of the glides ), a vowel V, and a coda X, which may be one of . The vowel and coda may also be grouped as the "rhyme", sometimes spelled "rime". Any of C, G, and X (and V, in some analyses) may be absent. However, in some analyses, C cannot be absent, due to the zero initial being considered a consonant.


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: Many of the possible combinations under the above scheme do not actually occur. There are only some 35 final combinations (medial+rime) in actual syllables (see pinyin finals). In all, there are only about 400 different syllables when tone is ignored, and about 1300 when tone is included. This is a far smaller number of distinct syllables than in a language such as English. Since Chinese syllables usually constitute whole words, or at least morphemes, the smallness of the syllable inventory results in large numbers of homophones. However, in Standard Chinese, the average word length is actually almost exactly two syllables, practically eliminating most homophony issues even when tone is disregarded, especially when context is taken into account as well. (Still, due to the limited phonetic inventory, homophonic puns in Mandarin Chinese are very common and important in Chinese culture.)


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: For a list of all Standard Chinese syllables (excluding tone and rhotic coda) see the pinyin table or zhuyin table.


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: Syllables can be classified as "full" (or "strong"), and "weak". Weak syllables are usually grammatical markers such as "le", or the second syllables of some compound words (although many other compounds consist of two or more full syllables).


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: A full syllable carries one of the four main tones, and some degree of stress. Weak syllables are unstressed, and have neutral tone. The contrast between full and weak syllables is distinctive; there are many minimal pairs such as "yàoshì" "important matter" and "yàoshi" "key", or "dàyì" "main idea" and (with the same characters) "dàyi" "careless", the second word in each case having a weak second syllable. Some linguists consider this contrast to be primarily one of stress, while others regard it as one of tone. For further discussion, see under Neutral tone and Stress, below.


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: There is also a difference in syllable length. Full syllables can be analyzed as having two morae ("heavy"), the vowel being lengthened if there is no coda. Weak syllables, however, have a single mora ("light"), and are pronounced approximately 50% shorter than full syllables. Any weak syllable will usually be an instance of the same morpheme (and written with the same character) as some corresponding strong syllable; the weak form will often have a modified pronunciation, however, as detailed in the following section.


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: Apart from differences in tone, length, and stress, weak syllables are subject to certain other pronunciation changes (reduction).


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: The example of "shénme → shém" also involves assimilation, which is heard even in unreduced syllables in quick speech (for example, in "guǎmbō" for "guǎngbō" "broadcast"). A particular case of assimilation is that of the sentence-final exclamatory particle "a", a weak syllable, which has different characters for its assimilated forms:


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: Standard Chinese, like all varieties of Chinese, is tonal. This means that in addition to consonants and vowels, the pitch contour of a syllable is used to distinguish words from each other. Many non-native Chinese speakers have difficulties mastering the tones of each character, but correct tonal pronunciation is essential for intelligibility because of the vast number of words in the language that only differ by tone (i.e. are minimal pairs with respect to tone). Statistically, tones are as important as vowels in Standard Chinese.


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: The following table shows the four main tones of Standard Chinese, together with the neutral (or fifth) tone. To describe the pitch of the tones, its representation on a five-level scale is used, visualized with Chao tone letters. The values of the pitch for each tone described by Chao are traditionally considered standard, however slight regional and idiolectal variations in tone pronunciation also occur.


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: The Chinese names of the main four tones are respectively "yīnpíng" ("dark level"), "yángpíng" ("light level"), "shǎng" or "shàng" ("rising"), and "qù" ("departing"). As descriptions, they apply rather to the predecessor Middle Chinese tones than to the modern tones; see below.


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: Most romanization systems, including pinyin, represent the tones as diacritics on the vowels (as does zhuyin), although some, like Wade–Giles, use superscript numbers at the end of each syllable. The tone marks and numbers are rarely used outside of language textbooks: in particular, they are usually absent in public signs, company logos, and so forth. Gwoyeu Romatzyh is a rare example of a system where tones are represented using normal letters of the alphabet (although without a one-to-one correspondence).


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: First tone is a high-level tone. It is a steady high sound, produced as if it were being sung instead of spoken. Its pitch is usually 55 or 44, at the same level where the fourth tone starts, or a little lower. Occasionally, slightly rising or falling high pitch ( 54 or 45) is also possible.


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: In a few syllables, the quality of the vowel is changed when it carries first tone; see the vowel table above.


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: Second tone is a rising tone. It is usually described as a high-rising ( 35), with the sound that rises from middle to high pitch (like in the English "What?!"). It starts at around 3 or 2 pitch level, and then rises towards the level of the first tone pitch (5 or 4).


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: It may also start with a falling or flat segment, which is quite short in male speakers (a quarter of the total second tone length), but longer in female speakers, reaching nearly half of the total length of the second tone. This initial dip is more apparent in Southern China Mandarin accent, including Standard Taiwanese Mandarin, where the second tone is also lower and alternatively described as dipping or low-rising with overall contour of 323 (its start is still slightly lower than its final pitch).


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: This tone is usually one of the most difficult to master for Mandarin learners, as well as the speakers of non-Mandarin Chinese varieties, who often pronounce their second tone close to (full) third tone, especially in the word-final position before a pause.


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: This tone is often demonstrated as having a rise in pitch after the low fall; however, third tone syllables that include the rise are significantly longer than other syllables. When a third-tone syllable is not said in isolation, this rise is normally heard only if it appears at the end of a sentence or before a pause, and then usually only on stressed monosyllables. The third tone without the rise is sometimes called "half third tone".


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: The overall pitch contour of the third tone is traditionally described as 214, but for modern Standard Chinese speakers, the rise, if present, is not that high. The third tone starts lower or around the starting point for the second tone. In Beijing, its value inclines to 213 or 212, while in Taiwan it is usually 312 (Taiwanese Standard Chinese speakers also tend to never pronounce the rising part in any context). Unlike the other tones, third tone is pronounced with breathiness or murmur.


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: Fourth tone is a falling tone. It features a sharp fall from high to lower pitch (as is heard in curt commands in English, such as "Stop!").


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: It starts at the same pitch level or higher than the first tone, and then drops to the pitch 1 or 2. In connected speech, when followed by syllables with other full tones, it tends to fall only from high to mid-level. Similarly to the third tone, the final part is only pronounced before a pause or an unstressed syllable. Two consecutive fourth tones are pronounced in a zigzag pattern, with the first one higher, and the second one lower (˥˧ 53 - ˦˩ 41).


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: Also called fifth tone or zeroth tone (in Chinese , literal meaning: "light tone"), the neutral tone is sometimes thought of as a lack of tone. It is associated with weak syllables, which are generally somewhat shorter than tonic syllables.


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: In Standard Chinese, about 15-20% of the syllables in written texts are considered unstressed, including certain suffixes, clitics, and particles. Second syllables of some disyllabic words are also unstressed in Northern Mandarin accents, but many Mandarin speakers in Southern China tend to preserve their inherent tone.


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: The pitch of a syllable with neutral tone is determined by the tone of the preceding syllable. Chao (1968) considered the neutral tone syllables to not have pitch contour. He introduced special dotted tone letters to denote its pitch. Later studies, however, found that the neutral tone syllables do have pitch contour. The following table shows the pitch at which the neutral tone is pronounced in Standard Chinese after each of the four main tones. For contoured pitch analysis, first column shows the pitch contour directly after the full tone syllable, and second column shows the pitch contour after another neutral tone syllable.


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: Although the contrast between weak and full syllables is often distinctive, the neutral tone is often not described as a full-fledged tone; some linguists feel that it results from a "spreading out" of the tone on the preceding syllable. This idea is appealing because without it, the neutral tone needs relatively complex tone sandhi rules to be made sense of; indeed, it would have to have four allotones, one for each of the four tones that could precede it. However, the "spreading" theory incompletely characterizes the neutral tone, especially in sequences where more than one neutral-tone syllable is found adjacent. In Modern Standard Mandarin as applied in "A Dictionary of Current Chinese", the second syllable of words with a 'toneless final syllable variant' (重·次輕詞語) can be read with either a neutral tone or with the normal tone.


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: The four tones of Middle Chinese are not in one-to-one correspondence with the modern tones. The following table shows the development of the traditional tones as reflected in modern Standard Chinese. The development of each tone depends on the initial consonant of the syllable: whether it was a voiceless consonant (denoted in the table by v−), a voiced obstruent (v+), or a sonorant (s). (The voiced–voiceless distinction has been lost in modern Standard Chinese.)


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: Pronunciation also varies with context according to the rules of tone sandhi. Some such changes have been noted above in the descriptions of the individual tones; however, the most prominent phenomena of this kind relate to consecutive sequences of third-tone syllables. There are also a few common words that have variable tone.


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: For example, "lǎoshǔ" 老鼠 ("mouse") is pronounced as if it were "láoshǔ". It has been investigated whether the rising contour () on the prior syllable is in fact identical to a normal second tone. It has been concluded that it is identical at least in terms of auditory perception.


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: When there are three or more third tones in a row, the situation becomes more complicated since a third tone that precedes a second tone resulting from third tone sandhi may or may not be subject to sandhi itself. The results may depend on word boundaries, stress, and dialectal variations. General rules for three-syllable third-tone combinations can be formulated as follows:


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: Some linguists have put forward more comprehensive systems of sandhi rules for multiple third tone sequences. For example, it has been proposed that modifications are applied cyclically, initially within rhythmic feet (trochees; see below) and that sandhi "need not apply between two cyclic branches".


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: The numbers "qī" ("seven") and "bā" ("eight") sometimes display similar tonal behavior as "yī", but for most modern speakers they are always pronounced with first tone. (All of these numbers, and "bù", were historically Ru tones, and as noted above, that tone does not have predictable reflexes in modern Chinese; this may account for the variation in tone on these words.)


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: Stress within words ("word stress") is not felt strongly by Chinese speakers, although "contrastive stress" is perceived easily (and functions much the same as in other languages). One of the reasons for the weaker perception of stress in Chinese may be that variations in the fundamental frequency of speech, which in many other languages serve as a cue for stress, are used in Chinese primarily to realize the tones. Nonetheless, there is still a link between stress and pitch – the "range" of pitch variation (for a given tone) has been observed to be greater on syllables that carry more stress.


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: As discussed above, weak syllables have neutral tone and are unstressed. Although this property can be contrastive, the contrast is interpreted by some as being primarily one of tone rather than stress. (Some linguists analyze Chinese as lacking word stress entirely.)


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: Apart from this contrast between full and weak syllables, some linguists have also identified differences in levels of stress among full syllables. In some descriptions, a multi-syllable word or compound is said to have the strongest stress on the final syllable, and the next strongest generally on the first syllable. Others, however, reject this analysis, noting that the apparent final-syllable stress can be ascribed purely to natural lengthening of the final syllable of a phrase, and disappears when a word is pronounced within a sentence rather than in isolation. San Duanmu takes this view, and concludes that it is the first syllable that is most strongly stressed. He also notes a tendency for Chinese to produce trochees – feet consisting of a stressed syllable followed by one (or in this case sometimes more) unstressed syllables. On this view, if the effect of "final-lengthening" is factored out:


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: The positions described here as lacking stress are the positions in which weak (neutral-tone) syllables may occur, although full syllables frequently occur in these positions also.


title: Standard Chinese phonology

text: There is a strong tendency for Chinese prose to employ four-syllable 'prosodic words' consisting of alternating stressed and unstressed syllables which are further subdivided into two trochaic feet. This structure, sometimes known as a 'four-character template' (四字格), is particularly prevalent in "chengyu", which are classical idioms that are usually four characters in length. Statistical analysis of "chengyu" and other idiomatic phrases in vernacular texts indicates that the four-syllable prosodic word had become an important metrical consideration by the Wei/Jin dynasties (4th century CE).