title: Ralph Northam

text: Later that year, Northam responded to the murder of George Floyd by convening a special legislative session largely devoted to criminal justice reform. During that session, Northam signed several bills enacting police reform in Virginia. These bills banned the use of chokeholds by officers in all situations except for when it is "immediately necessary to protect the law-enforcement officer or another person", introduced a requirement that officers must intervene when witnessing other officers engaged in excessive force, made Virginia the third state–and the first since the killing of Breonna Taylor–to ban no-knock search warrants, introduced requirements that officers be in uniform when serving search warrants and that most search warrants served at night receive authorization from a judge or magistrate, banned officers from making traffic stops for various minor infractions or from conducting searches solely on the basis of smelling marijuana, limited the forms of military equipment attainable by police departments, banned officers from having sexual relations with anyone in their custody, established Virginia's first statewide code of conduct for officers and a statewide, standardized training curriculum for officers, provided for the state-level decertification of officers who engage in misconduct, granted the state Attorney General the power to conduct investigations of local police departments, granted localities the right to establish civilian review boards with subpoena and disciplinary powers, and created what is known as the MARCUS Alert system, which provides for mental health professionals to accompany police officers who are responding to mental health crises.


title: Ralph Northam

text: The restrictions placed on warrants apply only to search warrants and not to arrest warrants. The restrictions on traffic stops were enacted to reduce pretextual stops. The state's standardized training curriculum includes a focus on racial bias, mental illness, de-escalation, and crisis intervention. The civilian review boards are optional for localities and have oversight of police departments but do not have oversight of sheriff's departments.


title: Ralph Northam

text: On March 4, 2020, Northam signed legislation repealing three Virginia laws that courts had already ruled to be unconstitutional: a law prohibiting the possession, consumption, or purchase of alcohol by anyone that a court rules to be a "habitual drunkard"; a law prohibiting premarital sex; and a law prohibiting the public use of profanity. Although none of these laws were enforced with regularity by 2020, each of them continued to be enforced to some extent either until or nearly until they were repealed. In the same year that Northam repealed these laws, he also repealed Virginia's unconstitutional Jim Crow laws, which by that time, had already been long unenforced.


title: Ralph Northam

text: Virginia's law regulating "habitual drunkards", first introduced in the 1870s, was enforced until 2019, when it was ruled unconstitutional by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit. Prior to that ruling, Virginia had been the only state aside from Utah suspending the drinking rights of people designated "habitual drunkards". Virginia law still allows courts to suspend the drinking rights of individuals convicted of drunk driving. The "habitual drunkard" designation had often been used to jail homeless people in Virginia. Those who received this designation in Virginia and subsequently violated the associated restrictions placed upon them could face up to a year in jail and a maximum fine of $2,500. These same penalties applied to anyone with the aforementioned designation who appeared publicly intoxicated. In the final years before this law was overturned, it had been enforced primarily in Virginia Beach. The only other Virginia city that made significant use of the law in its final years had been Roanoke.


title: Ralph Northam

text: Virginia's law banning fornication was ruled unconstitutional by the Virginia Supreme Court in 2005. At that time, CNN reported that the law "had not been enforced criminally against a consenting adult since the middle of the 19th century", although in 2014, "The Virginian-Pilot" reported that small numbers of people continued to be convicted of fornication in Virginia even after the aforementioned 2005 ruling. In 2020, Mark Levine, who introduced the bill to repeal the law, explained that 21st-century fornication charges generally resulted from plea deals or from instances in which the defendants were already charged with other crimes.


title: Ralph Northam

text: According to "The Washington Post", Virginia's law banning public profanity dates back to at least 1860. CNN dates the law even earlier, to the late eighteenth century. Although the U.S. Supreme Court ruled such laws unconstitutional in 1971, Virginia's ban on public profanity continued to be enforced in rare instances up until the law was repealed in 2020. Before this law was repealed, public profanity had been a misdemeanor in Virginia and carried a maximum fine of $250. The same classification and penalty had applied to Virginia's ban on fornication.


title: Ralph Northam

text: Northam supports increasing Virginia's minimum wage, which at $7.25 an hour, has not surpassed the federally mandated level set in 2009. While serving as lieutenant governor in 2014, Northam broke a tie in the Virginia state Senate, passing a bill that would have increased the state's minimum wage by increments. Under the bill, the state's minimum wage would have settled at $9.25 an hour, after two years. The measure was never enacted due to failing in the Virginia House of Delegates. Three years later, as a gubernatorial candidate, Northam proposed that Virginia set its minimum wage at $15 an hour and expressed plans to campaign as governor against Republican state legislators who continued to oppose a higher minimum wage. Northam has pointed to the costliness of transportation in rural parts of the state to dispute the notion that a $15 minimum wage is too high for those areas. During Northam's first year as governor, he vetoed a bill passed by the Republican-controlled legislature that would have banned localized minimum wages for government contractors.


title: Ralph Northam

text: During his 2017 campaign for governor, Northam was endorsed by the Laborers' International Union of North America; the union praised Northam for his opposition to a "right-to-work" amendment to the Virginia state constitution. Northam criticized the partial repeal of the car tax under former Governor Jim Gilmore because of its impact on both K-12 and higher education, saying Virginia still has not recovered.


title: Ralph Northam

text: Northam "has called for phasing out the grocery tax on low-income people and ending business taxes in struggling rural areas." He has called for a bipartisan reform commission to make recommendations on state tax policy.


title: Ralph Northam

text: In August 2019, Northam established a commission to develop new guidelines for teaching African American history in Virginia. Explaining that his primary goal for the commission is to help Virginia students understand the ways that black oppression continued in America after slavery, Northam said, "I think a lot of us need to understand that concept a lot better and this needs to start with the education of our children. Black oppression is alive and well today, it's just in a different form."


title: Ralph Northam

text: While campaigning for governor, Northam proposed a plan for Virginia to offer free community college and workforce training to students in high-demand fields who commit to a period of public service. Northam has called this plan "Get Skilled, Get a Job, Give Back", or "G3" for short, and as governor, he has included G3 as part of his two-year budget proposal, which will be considered in the 2020 legislative session.


title: Ralph Northam

text: For students participating in G3, the state of Virginia would cover educational expenses that remain after other forms of financial aid have been used; as such, G3 has been described as a "last-dollar" program. It would only be available to students from low-income and middle-income households; the estimated cut-off would be about 400% of the federal poverty level, although this could vary depending upon a household's overall ability to afford costs. While participating in G3, students would have to maintain at least a 2.0 GPA and would be required to have a three-year graduation plan. Only students eligible for in-state tuition would qualify for the program. According to "Inside Higher Ed" and "The Free Lance-Star", G3 is one of the few free tuition programs in the United States available to students of all ages. Returning students, part-time students, and dual enrollment students are all allowed to participate in the program.


title: Ralph Northam

text: Under G3, the cost of tuition, fees, and books would all be covered, and students receiving Pell Grants would qualify for additional aid. Community colleges would earn a $500 financial incentive for each of their G3-participating students receiving a full Pell Grant who completes 30 credits, and an additional $400 financial incentive would be earned by the community college once each of those same students completes an associate degree.


title: Ralph Northam

text: There are no fixed fields of study that would be included within the G3 program; rather, different fields of study could be included on a changing basis, as determined by economic projections and employer needs. Cybersecurity, coding, clean energy, early childhood education, health care, public safety, and skilled trades are some of the fields of study identified for inclusion.


title: Ralph Northam

text: Students participating in G3 would be required to fulfill two hours of public service, community service, or work experience for each of their academic credit hours. This requirement could be fulfilled through taking a position with local or state government, joining a nonprofit organization, or working in one of Virginia's economically depressed regions.


title: Ralph Northam

text: Northam accepts the scientific consensus on climate change and as a candidate for governor vowed to lead efforts to fight climate change. He pledged, if elected, to bring Virginia into the United States Climate Alliance, a multi-state agreement to uphold greenhouse gas emissions standards. Northam has emphasized the negative effects of climate-change-induced sea level rise on Virginia's Tidewater region.


title: Ralph Northam

text: During his 2017 campaign for governor, Northam pledged if elected to continue implementing the total maximum daily load limits for nitrogen and phosphorus discharges into Chesapeake Bay, a policy that had reduced harmful algal blooms. Northam said he would continue this policy even if the federal government under Donald Trump cut or eliminated funding for the program. During his campaign, Northam was endorsed by the Virginia League of Conservation Voters and the Virginia Sierra Club.


title: Ralph Northam

text: Northam has offered conditional support for the proposed Atlantic Coast Pipeline, provided that the pipeline's construction is deemed to be environmentally safe. He has avoided taking a firm stance on other pipelines such as the Mountain Valley Pipeline. He opposes both offshore drilling and fracking.


title: Ralph Northam

text: Northam has supported the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI). In 2019, he vetoed a bill that would have prohibited Virginia from entering into the initiative, but in May 2019, he chose not to veto language in the state budget that prohibits spending related to the initiative, because under Virginia law, governors are generally not allowed to issue line-item vetoes of the state budget. According to "The Washington Post", had Northam issued the veto, it could have been challenged in court by the Republican-controlled legislature, and Northam wanted to avoid a long legal confrontation. Northam has said that he will seek to implement RGGI spending in future budgets.


title: Ralph Northam

text: In September 2019, Northam signed an executive order establishing a goal for the commonwealth to produce at least 30 percent of its energy from renewable sources in 10 years, a 23 percent improvement on the amount produced at the time he signed the order. In addition to this, Northam set the goal for the state of Virginia to produce 100 percent of its electricity from carbon-free sources by 2050.


title: Ralph Northam

text: When Northam was inaugurated as governor, the family leave policy for executive branch employees in the state of Virginia applied exclusively to employees who had given birth and offered only partial pay. In June 2018, Northam signed an executive order extending the policy to apply to both mothers and fathers, including not only biological parents but also adoptive and foster parents. Under the new policy, employees receive eight weeks off at full pay. Earlier in the year, then-Speaker of the House of Delegates Republican Kirk Cox had established a similar policy offering legislative branch employees twelve weeks of paid leave.


title: Ralph Northam

text: With regards to private sector employees, Northam has said that he wants to implement tax credits for small businesses that offer paid family leave.


title: Ralph Northam

text: In 2018, Northam formed a commission to study the possibility of offering child care to state employees in Richmond. Northam's wife, Pam, serves on the panel.


title: Ralph Northam

text: While campaigning for governor, Northam called for new gun control measures in Virginia and often spoke about the issue within the context of his experience treating gunshot victims. He then made gun control a priority during his administration. In the 2019 legislative session, Northam introduced gun control measures that failed in the Republican-controlled General Assembly. After a mass shooting in Virginia Beach that killed 12 people, Northam convened a special legislative session to reconsider gun control legislation, but the General Assembly adjourned after 90 minutes without considering any bills.


title: Ralph Northam

text: Gun-control measures were then central to the Democratic platform during Virginia's 2019 legislative midterm elections. Democrats won control of both chambers in the state legislature during those elections, and in April 2020, Northam signed a package of five gun control measures into law. The package included universal background checks for gun sales in Virginia; a limit of one-per-month on the purchase of handguns; a requirement for the loss or theft of a firearm to be reported within 48 hours (with a civil penalty of up to $250 for failure to report); an increase in penalties for reckless storage of loaded and unsecured firearms in a way that endangers children under 14 years of age; and an extreme risk protection order (red flag) bill, which provides for a procedure for the temporary removal of guns from people at high risk of self-harm or harm to others. Two additional gun-control bills signed that year include amendments proposed by Northam: one of those bills requires evidence that anyone subject to a protective order has surrendered their firearms within twenty-four hours and was amended so that those who fail to comply would be found in contempt of court; the other bill, which allows for municipal regulations of firearms in public buildings, parks, recreation centers, and during public events, was amended to create an exemption for institutions of higher learning.


title: Ralph Northam

text: The package of gun control legislation supported by Northam in 2020 included an eighth bill that did not pass: it would have banned assault weapons, high-capacity magazines, trigger activators, and silencers. The ban on assault weapons would not have applied to firearms already owned in Virginia.


title: Ralph Northam

text: The bill limiting handgun purchases to one-a-month reinstates a law that had been repealed in 2012 under then-governor Bob McDonnell; it had originally been passed in 1993 under then-governor Douglas Wilder. Virginia was the nineteenth state to pass a red flag law.


title: Ralph Northam

text: Northam supports the Affordable Care Act ("Obamacare"), although he has argued that it is in need of improvement. After Republican attempts to repeal the law, Northam called for members of Congress to "put a stop to the uncertainty and work on stabilizing and building on the Affordable Care Act's progress."


title: Ralph Northam

text: Northam opposes a single-payer healthcare system in Virginia, preferring that such a plan be run by the federal government, but supports the creation of a state-run public health insurance option.


title: Ralph Northam

text: On February 21, 2019, Northam signed a bipartisan bill raising the smoking age in Virginia from 18 to 21.


title: Ralph Northam

text: As governor, Northam has proposed a state budget that would direct $22 million towards closing the racial disparity in Virginia's maternal mortality rate. The plan developed by Northam would aim to eliminate the disparity by 2025. It would also aim to reduce infant mortality in Virginia. Northam's proposed funding would allow women who qualify for Medicaid solely because of pregnancy to remain covered for a full year after childbirth – Virginia's current policy allows such coverage to last for sixty days after childbirth – and would allow Medicaid to cover home visitation services for new mothers. Other initiatives that would be covered by the funding include expanding access to contraceptives for poor women in Virginia and expanding access to addiction treatment for mothers in the state. Northam has also suggested allowing doulas to be covered by Medicaid in Virginia.


title: Ralph Northam

text: On June 7, 2018, Northam signed a bipartisan bill expanding Medicaid in Virginia. This fulfilled one of his central campaign promises. Northam's predecessor, Terry McAuliffe, had tried to implement Medicaid expansion throughout his term, but was blocked by Republicans, who controlled the state legislature at the time and opposed the expansion. Following the 2017 election, which brought significant gains for Democrats in the Virginia House of Delegates, Republicans still held a narrow legislative majority, but opposition to Medicaid expansion had diminished among Republicans, and several crossed over in support of the bill. Once the bill was enacted on January 1, 2019, Virginia became the 33rd state to expand Medicaid and the first to do so since Louisiana in 2016. Enrollment in the expanded program began on November 1, 2018. By the beginning of 2019, more than 200,000 Virginians had enrolled in Medicaid as part of the expansion.


title: Ralph Northam

text: As part of a compromise with Republican legislators, Northam agreed to a Medicaid expansion plan that would include a work requirement for most able-bodied, childless adults. The work requirement has not taken effect, as it cannot be implemented without a waiver from the federal government. Northam's administration initially sought such a waiver, but following Virginia's 2019 midterm elections, in which Democrats took control of the state legislature, Northam paused Virginia's request for the waiver, which at the time was still pending.


title: Ralph Northam

text: In his 2007 campaign for state Senate, Northam "advocated for Virginia being 'even more stringent than we are now in fighting illegal immigration,' and said the state should act as 'strong partners' with federal law enforcement." Northam's rhetoric shifted in his 2017 gubernatorial campaign. In 2017 Northam pledged to "stand up against ICE" so that "people, especially immigrants, in Virginia aren't living in fear," saying: "Something that we are very proud of in Virginia is that we are inclusive." He continued by saying "We will do everything we can to make sure immigrants are comfortable living here." Northam opposed President Trump's decision to rescind Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), which offered temporary stay for unauthorized immigrants who came to the United States as minors. Northam said Trump's decision "lacks compassion, lacks moral sense, and lacks economic sense." Northam supports granting state driver's licenses and in-state tuition to undocumented immigrants.


title: Ralph Northam

text: In February 2017, while serving as lieutenant governor, Northam cast a tie-breaking vote in the state Senate against a bill to ban sanctuary cities in Virginia. Northam said he was "proud to break a tie when Republicans tried to scapegoat immigrants for political gain" and that he was "glad to put a stop to" the bill. In an October 2017 gubernatorial debate, Northam said he did not support sanctuary cities, stating that there currently were none in Virginia, but Northam declined to say whether he would sign a bill as governor that was similar to the one he voted against in the Senate. In November 2017, Northam clarified that while he would veto any bill pre-emptively banning sanctuary cities in Virginia, he would support a ban, if sanctuary cities began appearing in the state. In April 2018, as governor, Northam vetoed a law that would have pre-emptively banned sanctuary cities in Virginia. He vetoed the same legislation again the following year.


title: Ralph Northam

text: In November 2019, after President Donald Trump issued an executive order allowing states and localities to abstain from refugee resettlement programs, Northam affirmed Virginia's commitment to accepting refugees, writing to Trump's Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, "Virginia's lights are on and our doors are open, and we welcome new Virginians to make their homes here...The United States has long presented itself as a haven, a place of stability and economic prosperity. We promote the ideals upon which this country was founded, of liberty and freedom. But to uphold those ideals abroad, we must allow access to them here at home. We must practice what we preach."


title: Ralph Northam

text: Northam has supported LGBT rights throughout his political career. While running for lieutenant governor in 2013, he criticized his Republican opponent, E. W. Jackson, for making what were widely considered to be divisive statements about LGBT individuals. During a debate with Jackson, who is a minister, Northam said, "What I do in church translates to what I do in everyday life. Whether it's said in my church or whether it's said in my medical clinic or whether it's said before the Senate, it's on me and it's what I believe in." That summer, when the United States Defense Department began offering marriage benefits to military personnel in same-sex relationships, Northam and Jackson disagreed with each other on the issue. Jackson said that because gay marriage was illegal in Virginia at the time, the state should withhold benefits from gay couples serving in its National Guard, while Northam supported the federal policy. Northam said that equalizing benefits for gay couples in the United States military is about "being fair with those who have served our country."


title: Ralph Northam

text: During the 2013 campaign, Northam said that opposition to LGBT rights would create an unwelcoming business environment in Virginia. In 2015, he used his tie-breaking abilities as lieutenant governor to defeat a bill in the state Senate that would have forced Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring to defend the state's gay marriage ban; Herring had argued that the ban was unconstitutional.


title: Ralph Northam

text: In 2017, while running for governor, Northam spoke against the Physical Privacy Act, a bill proposed that year in Virginia, which if passed, would have required people in government facilities to use restrooms corresponding to the gender specified on their original birth certificates. Northam called the Physical Privacy Act a "job-killing, prejudicial bill". Later that same year, before Northam was elected governor, the Physical Privacy Act was defeated in the state legislature.


title: Ralph Northam

text: Northam condemned the decision by President Donald Trump to ban transgender service members from the United States military. Shortly after Trump announced this policy, Northam tweeted, "Anyone who wants to serve our country in the military should be welcomed. They're patriots and should be treated as such."


title: Ralph Northam

text: Northam's first official action as governor was to sign an executive order banning the executive branch of the state government from discriminating against LGBTQ employees. At the time of Northam's inauguration, the state of Virginia did not have any legislation protecting LGBTQ individuals from employment discrimination. Protections on the bases of sexual orientation and gender identity that had been established through an executive order issued by Northam's gubernatorial predecessor, Terry McAuliffe, were maintained by Northam's own executive order, which went further, introducing, for the first time in Virginia, protection on the basis of gender expression.


title: Ralph Northam

text: While serving as lieutenant governor, Northam broke a tie in the state Senate, supporting a bill that would have codified into state law the protections included in McAuliffe's aforementioned executive order. This bill was defeated in the House of Delegates. Legislation that would have codified Northam's own executive order into state law passed with bipartisan support in the state Senate during 2018 and 2019, but was denied a vote both years by Republican leadership in the House of Delegates. If passed, these bills would have applied to all state and local government employees in Virginia, unlike the aforementioned executive orders, which applied only to employees under the governor's personal authority.


title: Ralph Northam

text: An even more expansive anti-discrimination law, the Virginia Values Act, was passed in Virginia with bipartisan support, after the state's 2019 legislative elections flipped control of both the state Senate and the House of Delegates from Republicans to Democrats. Northam signed the Virginia Values Act into law on April 11, 2020. The bill, which bans discrimination throughout Virginia on the bases of sexual orientation and gender identity in both public sector and private sector employment, housing, public accommodations, and credit transactions, is the first legislation in any southern state to extend anti-discrimination protections to LGBTQ individuals.


title: Ralph Northam

text: In 2020, Northam signed legislation expanding gender identity-related rights and protections in Virginia. Northam approved bills barring health insurance companies in the state from discriminating on the basis of gender identity; establishing a statewide standard for the treatment of transgender students in Virginia schools; introducing a non-binary gender option on Virginia driver's licenses and IDs; and removing gender reassignment surgery as a prerequisite in Virginia for those seeking to change the sex listed on their birth certificates.


title: Ralph Northam

text: In March 2020, Northam signed a bipartisan bill that made Virginia the twentieth state and first southern state to ban conversion therapy for minors. Upon signing the bill, Northam issued a statement saying, "This issue is personal for me, as a pediatric neurologist who has cared for thousands of children. Conversion therapy is not only based in discriminatory junk-science, it is dangerous and causes lasting harm to our youth. No one should be made to feel wrong for who they are - especially not a child." Days later, Northam signed a bill classifying crimes targeting a victim on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity as hate crimes. That same year, Northam signed bills repealing the state legal code of Virginia's unenforceable ban on same-sex marriage; adopting gender-neutral language for spouses throughout state law; and allowing municipalities in Virginia to pass their own laws banning discrimination on the bases of sexual orientation and gender identity.


title: Ralph Northam

text: In May 2020, when Democrats had fresh control of Virginia's state legislature, Northam signed a law decriminalizing marijuana for adult use. Democrats had attempted to pass legislation legalizing it in years past, but had failed every time. It was decriminalized in July 2020, but by then, the state's Democratic Party and Northam had explained that it was not enough–that racial disparities would continue to deepen with just a $25 fine. Following this revelation, he voiced his intent to introduce a bill to legalize it fully. It initially passed with an effective date of July 2024, which Northam and the Virginia ACLU quickly said was not enough. He sent the bill back to the General Assembly, asking for amendments to move the date up to July 2021. The bill was amended and signed by Northam in April 2021, including a provision requested by him making underage possession a civil fine with a substance abuse class. Dispensaries will open on the original date in 2024, while up to four plants can be grown inside the home in 2021.


title: Ralph Northam

text: In a political ad run during the 2017 Virginia Democratic primary, Northam said, "I've been listening carefully to Donald Trump, and I think he's a narcissistic maniac." As the general election drew near Northam said, "[I]f Donald Trump is helping Virginia, I'll work with him." Northam explained the "softer tone": "I think people already know [their opinions of Trump] and they are judging for themselves. What we are talking about as we move forward are the policies that are coming out of Washington that are so detrimental to Virginia".


title: Ralph Northam

text: During his 2017 campaign for governor, Northam said that if elected, he would approve a map of new Virginia legislative and congressional boundaries in the post-2020 redistricting only if it is drawn by a nonpartisan commission.


title: Ralph Northam

text: In January 2019, Northam introduced legislation including bills to end Virginia's photo ID law and a bill to allow absentee "no-excuse" voting to replace the current law which contains limits. He is also proposing new campaign finance limits that would block direct donations from corporations, cap donations at $10,000, and prohibit the personal use of campaign funds by lawmakers.


title: Ralph Northam

text: In October 2019, Northam announced that he had restored the voting rights and other civil rights of more than 22,000 felons who had completed their sentences.


title: Ralph Northam

text: Northam and his wife Pam have two adult children, Wes and Aubrey. Northam's brother, Thomas Northam, is a lawyer and the law partner of Virginia State Senate member Lynwood Lewis, who was elected to the State Senate to replace Northam when he resigned his State Senate seat to assume the position of lieutenant governor. Their father, Wescott Northam, is a retired Accomack County judge, former Commonwealth's Attorney, and Navy veteran.


title: Ralph Northam

text: Northam belongs to a predominately black Baptist church in Capeville, Virginia and serves as the vice chair of the Fort Monroe Authority, which oversees Fort Monroe, a Civil War historic site where Union General Benjamin Butler sheltered freed slaves. In his free time, Northam enjoys working on classic cars. He owns a 1953 Oldsmobile and a 1971 Chevrolet Corvette.


title: Ralph Northam

text: Northam is a recreational runner and a competitor in races including the Richmond Road Runners' First Day 5k and the Monument Avenue 10K race.


title: Platanus

text: Platanus is a genus consisting of a small number of tree species native to the Northern Hemisphere. They are the sole living members of the family Platanaceae.


title: Platanus

text: All mature members of "Platanus" are tall, reaching in height. All except for "P. kerrii" are deciduous, and most are found in riparian or other wetland habitats in the wild, though proving drought-tolerant in cultivation. The hybrid London plane ("Platanus "×" acerifolia") has proved particularly tolerant of urban conditions, and has been widely planted in London and elsewhere in the United Kingdom.


title: Platanus

text: They are often known in English as planes or plane trees. A formerly used name that is now rare is "plantain tree" (not to be confused with other, unrelated, species with the name). Some North American species are called "sycamores" (especially "Platanus occidentalis"), although the term is also used for several unrelated species of trees. The genus name "Platanus" comes from Ancient Greek , which referred to "Platanus orientalis".


title: Platanus

text: The flowers are reduced and are borne in balls (globose heads); 3–7 hairy sepals may be fused at the base, and the petals are 3–7 and are spatulate. Male and female flowers are separate, but borne on the same plant (monoecious). The number of heads in one cluster (inflorescence) is indicative of the species (see table below). The male flower has 3–8 stamens; the female has a superior ovary with 3–7 carpels. Plane trees are wind-pollinated. Male flower-heads fall off after shedding their pollen.


title: Platanus

text: After being pollinated, the female flowers become achenes that form an aggregate ball. The fruit is a multiple of achenes (plant systematics, Simpson M. G., 2006). Typically, the core of the ball is 1 cm in diameter and is covered with a net of mesh 1 mm, which can be peeled off. The ball is 2.5–4 cm in diameter and contains several hundred achenes, each of which has a single seed and is conical, with the point attached downward to the net at the surface of the ball. There is also a tuft of many thin stiff yellow-green bristle fibers attached to the base of each achene. These bristles help in wind dispersion of the fruits as in the dandelion.


title: Platanus

text: The leaves are simple and alternate. In the subgenus "Platanus" they have a palmate outline. The base of the leaf stalk (petiole) is enlarged and completely wraps around the young stem bud in its axil. The axillary bud is exposed only after the leaf falls off.


title: Platanus

text: The mature bark peels off or exfoliates easily in irregularly shaped patches, producing a mottled, scaly appearance. On old trunks, bark may not flake off, but thickens and cracks instead.


title: Platanus

text: There are two subgenera, subgenus "Castaneophyllum" containing the anomalous "P. kerrii", and subgenus "Platanus", with all the others; recent studies in Mexico have increased the number of accepted species in this subgenus. Within subgenus "Platanus", evidence from both chloroplast and nuclear gene sequences suggests that the "P. racemosa" species complex in Western North America (including "P. racemosa, P. gentryi , P. wrigthii") is more closely related to the Western Eurasian "P. orientalis" than it is to the other North American species ("P. mexicana" sensu lato, including up to four species: "P. chiapaensis, P. lindeniana, P. [×] mexicana" sensu stricto, "P. oaxacana; P. occidentalis" s.l. with two [sub]species: "P. occidentalis, P. palmeri"; "P. rzedowskii"). The two groups form genetically and morphologically distinct evolutionary lineages (sister clades), informally called the “ANA clade” (Atlantic North American lineage) and “PNA-E clade” (Pacific North American-European lineage). Both lineages have been affected by reticulate evolutionary processes in the past (ancient or recent hybridization and introgression):


title: Platanus

text: The genus "Platanus" exemplarily illustrates the concept of a Coral of Life, a species network. Its modern-day species are not only the product of evolutionary dichotomies (cladogenesis), the splitting of an ancestral lineage into two (Tree of Life metaphor) but also evolutionary anastomoses: hybridization and introgression.


title: Platanus

text: The fossil record of leaves and fruit identifiable to "Platanus" begins in the Paleocene. Despite the geographic separation between North America and Old World, species from these continents will cross readily resulting in fertile hybrids such as the London plane, which is an anthropogenic hybrid (cultivar) between the North American "P. occidentalis" sensu stricto (ANA clade) and the Mediterranean "P. orientalis" (PNA-E clade). Widely used as a park tree across Europe, it frequently backcrosses with its native parent.


title: Platanus

text: Planes are susceptible to plane anthracnose ("Apiognomonia veneta"), a fungal disease that can defoliate the trees in some years. The most severe infections are associated with cold, wet spring weather. "P. occidentalis" and the other American species are the most susceptible, with "P. orientalis" the most resistant. The hybrid London plane is intermediate in resistance.


title: Platanus

text: "Ceratocystis platani", a wilt disease, has become a significant problem in recent years in much of Europe. The North American species are mostly resistant to the disease, with which they probably coevolved, while the old world species are highly sensitive.


title: Platanus

text: "Platanus" species are used as food plants by the larvae of some Lepidoptera species including "Phyllonorycter platani" and Setaceous Hebrew Character.


title: Platanus

text: In the 21st century a disease, commonly known as Massaria disease, has attacked plane trees across Europe. It is caused by the fungus "Splanchnonema platani", and causes large lesions on the upper sides of branches.


title: Platanus

text: The principal use of these trees is as ornamental trees, especially in urban areas and by roadsides. The London plane is particularly popular for this purpose. The American plane is cultivated sometimes for timber and investigations have been made into its use as a biomass crop. The oriental plane is widely used as an ornamental and also has a number of minor medicinal uses.


title: Platanus

text: Most significant aspects of cultural history apply to "Platanus orientalis" in the Old World. The tree is an important part of the literary scenery of Plato's dialogue Phaedrus. Because of Plato, the tree also played an important role in the scenery of Cicero's De Oratore. The trees also provided the shade under which Aristotle and Plato’s famed philosophical schools were held. Handel's opera Serse features a famous aria, "Ombra mai fu," which the title character sings in praise of his favorite plane tree.


title: Platanus

text: The plane tree has been a frequent motif featured in Classical Chinese poetry as an embodiment of sorrowful sentiments due to its autumnal shedding of leaves.


title: Platanus

text: The legendary Dry tree first recorded by Marco Polo was possibly a platanus. According to the legend, it marked the site of the battle between Alexander the Great and Darius III.


title: Platanus

text: The German camouflage pattern "Platanenmuster" ("plane tree pattern"), designed in 1937–1942 by Johann Georg Otto Schick, was the first dotted camouflage pattern.


title: Municipal corporation (India)

text: A municipal corporation is a type of local government in India that administers urban areas with a population of more than one million. The growing population and urbanization of various Indian cities highlighted the need for a type of local governing body that could provide services such as healthcare, education, housing and transport by collecting property taxes and administering grants from the state government.


title: Municipal corporation (India)

text: The Municipal corporation carries out its function through well organized divisions or departments. For example water supply and sewage disposal Undertaking, Housing Board, Education Department and Electricity Department. Each of these Departments are looked after by experienced and qualified persons.


title: Rescued by Ruby

text: Rescued by Ruby is a 2022 American biographical drama film directed by Katt Shea. Its story follows a state trooper named Dan, who dreams of joining the K-9 search and rescue team of the state police, however has been unsuccessful in doing so until he befriends a shelter dog named Ruby. The film is based on a true story. The film was released on March 17, 2022, by Netflix.


title: Rescued by Ruby

text: Ruby is an extremely hyperactive half border collie that has been adopted seven times from the shelter she has been in over the last six months, but always later returned due to an inability to train or control her.


title: Rescued by Ruby

text: Rhode Island state trooper Daniel O'Neil has dreamed of joining the K-9 search and rescue team of the state police. However, he has been rejected seven times and he only has one last chance to qualify before he turns 30, as all applicants have to be under 30.


title: Rescued by Ruby

text: Daniel learns that the K-9 unit has no funds to import any more German Shepherds, the breed usually used in search and rescue teams, and therefore he would not be able to join the program. He finds out his wife Melissa is pregnant with their second child, making him even more determined to go for it because the promotion would also improve his pay and benefits.


title: Rescued by Ruby

text: Pat, an advocate at the shelter, begs her workmate Rick to give Ruby a little more time. He announces that in the evening they will put her down. Dan discovers a K-9 dog doesn't have to be a German Shepherd, but is curious, agile and spirited. Then he visits the shelter, and Pat convinces him to adopt Ruby to train her and join the program.


title: Rescued by Ruby

text: The story then follows Dan's attempts to train Ruby, their failures and their successes. They both are high-energy, enthusiastic and have to discover how to work together effectively.


title: Rescued by Ruby

text: Sergeant Zarella explains that after an entry exam, those accepted do six weeks of intensive training. To enter, the dog and the owner must have the right temperament, focus, calmness and compassion. Ruby does well until finally, impatient, she wiggles free, disturbing a bee's nest. Out of the official training, Mel reminds Dan he got through the police academy with dyslexia and hyperactivity, so maybe he should try homeschooling Ruby.


title: Rescued by Ruby

text: At the exam at six weeks, Ruby passes. They wait for months on their junior team, until finally they are needed. Sent to a home where a murder victim is meant to be, Ruby senses human remains, but Dan can't find them. Disappointed, he ignores her, dejected. She runs off during the night, only to have Zarella tell him the remains were found at the scene where Ruby indicated, but buried beneath concrete. Zarella tells Dan it was amazing that Ruby caught the scent, and he should have trusted his K9 partner. Dan frantically searches for Ruby, finally finding her.


title: Rescued by Ruby

text: Dan and Ruby join the search teams seeking Michael, a boy who got lost while hiking. They find him in the rain and dark, and the boy turns out to be Pat's son. Pat thanks Dan and Ruby and Dan is promoted to full K-9 officer.


title: Rescued by Ruby

text: On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 100% based on 5 reviews, with an average rating of 6.9/10.


title: Rescued by Ruby

text: On the week from 21 to 28 of March, the film had 311 million viewing minutes, ranking fourth on Nielsen’s top movie chart of that week, and on Netflix's Top 10 English-language films, it placed second.


title: Chocolate chip cookie

text: A chocolate chip cookie is a drop cookie that features chocolate chips or chocolate morsels as its distinguishing ingredient. Chocolate chip cookies originated in the United States around 1938, when Ruth Graves Wakefield chopped up a Nestlé semi-sweet chocolate bar and added the chopped chocolate to a cookie recipe.


title: Chocolate chip cookie

text: Generally, the recipe starts with a dough composed of flour, butter, both brown and white sugar, semi-sweet chocolate chips, eggs, and vanilla. Variations on the recipe may add other types of chocolate, as well as additional ingredients such as nuts or oatmeal. There are also vegan versions with the necessary ingredient substitutions, such as vegan chocolate chips, vegan margarine, and egg substitutes. A "chocolate chocolate chip cookie" uses a dough flavored with chocolate or cocoa powder, before chocolate chips are mixed in. These variations of the recipe are also referred to as ‘"double"’ or ‘"triple"’ chocolate chip cookies, depending on the combination of dough and chocolate types.


title: Chocolate chip cookie

text: The chocolate chip cookie was invented by American chefs Ruth Graves Wakefield and Sue Brides in 1938. They invented the recipe during the period when she owned the Toll House Inn, in Whitman, Massachusetts. In this era, the Toll House Inn was a popular restaurant that featured home cooking. A myth holds that she accidentally developed the cookie, and that she expected the chocolate chunks would melt, making chocolate cookies. That is not the case; Wakefield stated that she deliberately invented the cookie. She said, "We had been serving a thin butterscotch nut cookie with ice cream. Everybody seemed to love it, but I was trying to give them something different. So I came up with Toll House cookie." She added chopped up bits from a Nestlé semi-sweet chocolate bar into a cookie. The original recipe in "Toll House Tried and True Recipes" is called "Toll House Chocolate Crunch Cookies". Wakefield gave Nestle the recipe for her cookies and was paid with a lifetime supply of chocolate from the company.


title: Chocolate chip cookie

text: Wakefield's cookbook, "Toll House Tried and True Recipes", was first published in 1936 by M. Barrows & Company, New York. The 1938 edition of the cookbook was the first to include the recipe "Toll House Chocolate Crunch Cookie" which rapidly became a favorite cookie in American homes.


title: Chocolate chip cookie

text: During World War II, soldiers from Massachusetts who were stationed overseas shared the cookies they received in care packages from home with soldiers from other parts of the United States. Hundreds of soldiers wrote home asking their families to send them Toll House cookies, and Wakefield received letters from around the world requesting her recipe, helping spread their popularity beyond the east coast. Chocolate chip cookies were first sold in the UK in 1956 by Maryland Cookies.


title: Chocolate chip cookie

text: There are at least three national (U.S./North America) chains that sell freshly baked chocolate chip cookies in shopping malls and standalone retail locations. Several businesses—including Doubletree hotels—offer freshly baked cookies to their patrons to differentiate themselves from their competition.


title: Chocolate chip cookie

text: To honor the cookie's creation in the state, on July 9, 1997, Massachusetts designated the chocolate chip cookie as the Official State Cookie, after it was proposed by a third-grade class from Somerset, Massachusetts.


title: Chocolate chip cookie

text: Chocolate chip cookies are commonly made with white sugar; brown sugar; flour; salt; eggs; a leavening agent such as baking soda; a fat, typically butter or shortening; vanilla extract; and chocolate pieces. Some recipes also include milk or nuts (such as chopped walnuts) in the dough.


title: Chocolate chip cookie

text: Depending on the ratio of ingredients and mixing and cooking times, some recipes produce a soft, chewy cookie while others will produce a crunchy, crispy cookie. Regardless of ingredients, the procedure for making the cookie is fairly consistent in all recipes: First, the sugars and fat are creamed, usually with a wooden spoon or electric mixer. Next, the eggs and vanilla extract are added followed by the flour and leavening agent. Depending on the additional flavoring, its addition to the mix will be determined by the type used: peanut butter will be added with the wet ingredients while cocoa powder would be added with the dry ingredients. The titular ingredient, chocolate chips, as well as nuts are typically mixed in towards the end of the process to minimize breakage, just before the cookies are scooped and positioned on a cookie sheet. Most cookie dough is baked, although some eat the dough as is, or use it as an addition to vanilla ice cream to make chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream.


title: Chocolate chip cookie

text: The texture of a chocolate chip cookie is largely dependent on its fat composition and the type of fat used. A study done by Kansas State University showed that carbohydrate-based fat substitutes tend to bind more water, leaving less water available to aid in the spread of the cookie while baking and resulting in softer, cakelike cookies with less spread.


title: The Lords of Flatbush

text: The Lords of Flatbush (stylized on-screen as The Lord's of Flatbush) is a 1974 American drama film directed by Martin Davidson and Stephen F. Verona. The film stars Perry King, Sylvester Stallone, Paul Mace and Henry Winkler. Stallone was also credited with writing additional dialogue. The plot is about street teenagers in leather jackets from the Flatbush neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York. The movie, along with the television hit "Happy Days", "Grease" in its Broadway and film versions, and novelty rock act “Sha-Na-Na’’ was part of a resurgence in popular interest in the '50s greaser culture in the 1970s. Indeed, Henry Winkler went on to play a similar character as "The Fonz" in "Happy Days."


title: The Lords of Flatbush

text: Set in 1958, the coming of age story follows four lower middle-class Brooklyn teenagers known as The Lords of Flatbush. The Lords chase girls, steal cars, shoot pool, get into street fights, and hang out at a local malt shop. Chico attempts to win over hard-to-get, waspy Jane while throwing over easier-to-get Annie. Stanley seemingly impregnates his girlfriend Frannie, who pressures him to marry her. Stanley eventually agrees to marry even after finding out before the wedding that Frannie was never pregnant. Butchey Weinstein is highly intelligent but hides his brains behind a clownish front in order to fit in with the gang. Wimpy Murgalo is a loyal follower in awe of Stanley, eventually becoming best man at his wedding. All four boys seem to discover maturity and responsibility at the end of the film as we witness them bonding during the wedding in their dress suits, eschewing their typical leather jackets.


title: The Lords of Flatbush

text: In addition, other notable names amongst the supporting and background performers include co-director Martin Davidson in a cameo as Mr. Birnbaum, future Academy Award–winner and disco superstar Paul Jabara as Crazy Cohen, future Golden Globe–winner Ray Sharkey as a random student and future Emmy Award–winner Armand Assante as an anonymous wedding guest.


title: The Lords of Flatbush

text: Richard Gere was originally cast as Chico but was fired due to conflicts with Stallone during rehearsals. In a 2006 interview Stallone explained:


title: The Lords of Flatbush

text: On Metacritic it has a score of 53 out of 100 based on reviews from 6 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".


title: The Lords of Flatbush

text: Quentin Tarantino calls it "a pretty good film...the first time I was introduced to the New York independent low-budget film aesthetic."


title: Conflict theories

text: Conflict theories are perspectives in sociology and social psychology that emphasize a materialist interpretation of history, dialectical method of analysis, a critical stance toward existing social arrangements, and political program of revolution or, at least, reform. Conflict theories draw attention to power differentials, such as class conflict, and generally contrast historically dominant ideologies. It is therefore a macro-level analysis of society.


title: Conflict theories

text: Karl Marx is regarded as the father of social conflict theory, which is a component of the four major paradigms of sociology. Certain conflict theories set out to highlight the ideological aspects inherent in traditional thought. While many of these perspectives hold parallels, conflict theory "does not" refer to a unified school of thought, and should not be confused with, for instance, peace and conflict studies, or any other specific theory of social conflict.


title: Conflict theories

text: Of the classical founders of social science, conflict theory is most commonly associated with Karl Marx (1818–1883). Based on a dialectical materialist account of history, Marxism posited that capitalism, like previous socioeconomic systems, would inevitably produce internal tensions leading to its own destruction. Marx ushered in radical change, advocating proletarian revolution and freedom from the ruling classes, as well as critiqued political economy. At the same time, Karl Marx was aware that most of the people living in capitalist societies did not see how the system shaped the entire operation of society. Just as modern individuals see private property (and the right to pass that property on to their children) as natural, many of the members in capitalistic societies see the rich as having earned their wealth through hard work and education, while seeing the poor as lacking in skill and initiative. Marx rejected this type of thinking, viewing it as something Friedrich Engels termed "false consciousness", the use of misdirection by the ruling class to obfuscate the exploitation intrinsic to the relationship between the proletariat and the ruling class. Marx wanted to replace this false consciousness with something Friedrich Engels termed "class consciousness", the workers' recognition of themselves as a class unified in opposition to capitalists and ultimately to the capitalist system itself. In general, Marx wanted the proletarians to rise up against the capitalists and overthrow the capitalist system.


title: Conflict theories

text: Two early conflict theorists were the Polish-Austrian sociologist and political theorist Ludwig Gumplowicz (1838–1909) and the American sociologist and paleontologist Lester F. Ward (1841–1913). Although Ward and Gumplowicz developed their theories independently they had much in common and approached conflict from a comprehensive anthropological and evolutionary point-of-view as opposed to Marx's rather exclusive focus on economic factors.


title: Conflict theories

text: Gumplowicz, in "Grundriss der Soziologie" ("Outlines of Sociology", 1884), describes how civilization has been shaped by conflict between cultures and ethnic groups. Gumplowicz theorized that large complex human societies evolved from war and conquest. The winner of a war would enslave the losers; eventually a complex caste system develops. Horowitz says that Gumplowicz understood conflict in all its forms: "class conflict, race conflict, and ethnic conflict", and calls him one of the fathers of conflict theory.


title: Conflict theories

text: Ward directly attacked and attempted to systematically refute the elite business class' laissez-faire philosophy as espoused by the hugely popular social philosopher Herbert Spencer. Ward's "Dynamic Sociology" (1883) was an extended thesis on how to reduce conflict and competition in society and thus optimize human progress. At the most basic level, Ward saw human nature itself to be deeply conflicted between self- and altruism, between emotion and intellect, and between male and female. These conflicts would be then reflected in society and Ward assumed there had been a "perpetual and vigorous struggle" among various "social forces" that shaped civilization. Ward was more optimistic than Marx and Gumplowicz and believed that it was possible to build on and reform present social structures with the help of sociological analysis.


title: Conflict theories

text: Émile Durkheim (1858–1917) saw society as a functioning organism. Functionalism concerns "the effort to impute, as rigorously as possible, to each feature, custom, or practice, its effect on the functioning of a supposedly stable, cohesive system," The chief form of social conflict that Durkheim addressed was crime. Durkheim saw crime as "a factor in public health, an integral part of all healthy societies." The collective conscience defines certain acts as "criminal." Crime thus plays a role in the evolution of morality and law: "[it] implies not only that the way remains open to necessary changes but that in certain cases it directly prepares these changes."


title: Conflict theories

text: Max Weber's (1864–1920) approach to conflict is contrasted with that of Marx. While Marx focused on the way individual behavior is conditioned by social structure, Weber emphasized the importance of "social action," i.e., the ability of individuals to affect their social relationships.


title: Conflict theories

text: C. Wright Mills has been called the founder of "modern conflict theory". In Mills's view, social structures are created through conflict between people with differing interests and resources. Individuals and resources, in turn, are influenced by these structures and by the "unequal distribution of power and resources in the society." The power elite of American society, (i.e., the military–industrial complex) had "emerged from the fusion of the corporate elite, the Pentagon, and the executive branch of government." Mills argued that the interests of this elite were opposed to those of the people. He theorized that the policies of the power elite would result in "increased escalation of conflict, production of weapons of mass destruction, and possibly the annihilation of the human race."


title: Conflict theories

text: Gene Sharp (1928-2018) was a professor emeritus of political science at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth. He is known for his extensive writings on nonviolent struggle, which have influenced numerous anti-government resistance movements around the world. In 1983 he founded the Albert Einstein Institution, a non-profit organization devoted to studies and promotion of the use of nonviolent action in conflicts worldwide. Sharp's key theme is that power is not monolithic; that is, it does not derive from some intrinsic quality of those who are in power. For Sharp, political power, the power of any state—regardless of its particular structural organization—ultimately derives from the subjects of the state. His fundamental belief is that any power structure relies upon the subjects' obedience to the orders of the ruler or rulers. If subjects do not obey, leaders have no power. Sharp has been called both the "Machiavelli of nonviolence" and the "Clausewitz of nonviolent warfare." Sharp's scholarship has influenced resistance organizations around the world. More recently, the protest movement that toppled President Mubarak of Egypt drew extensively on his ideas, as well as the youth movement in Tunisia, and the earlier ones in the Eastern European colour revolutions that had previously been inspired by Sharp's work.


title: Conflict theories

text: A recent articulation of conflict theory is found in Canadian sociologist Alan Sears' book "A Good Book, in Theory: A Guide to Theoretical Thinking" (2008):


title: Conflict theories

text: Although Sears associates the conflict theory approach with Marxism, he argues that it is the foundation for much "feminist, post-modernist, anti-racist, and lesbian-gay liberationist theories."


title: Conflict theories

text: Conflict theory is most commonly associated with Marxism, but as a reaction to functionalism and the positivist method, it may also be associated with a number of other perspectives, including:


title: Conflict theories

text: Conflict theory has been criticised for being too politicised by its association with Marx and its widespread use by advocates in numerous causes and movements. Critics also argue it downplays unity in society while taking a negative view of society.


title: Deborah Pratt

text: Pratt was born and raised in Chicago, Illinois, the daughter of Geraldine ("née" Bryant) and Col. Bertram Roberson Pratt, a vice president of Pullman Heritage Bank. Her parents were both of African-American and Creole descent.


title: Deborah Pratt

text: Pratt was a co-executive producer and a writer on the "Quantum Leap" TV series, which was created by her then-husband, Donald Bellisario. Pratt also frequently starred in the show as both the narrator and the voice of Ziggy.


title: Deborah Pratt

text: Pratt also acted in various television series, including "Magnum, P.I.", "Happy Days", "The New Odd Couple", "Benson", and "Airwolf". In 2000, she directed "Cora Unashamed" for "Masterpiece Theatre"s "The American Collection". In 2009, she reprised her role as Ziggy for the "Quantum Leap" fan film, "A Leap to Di For". Pratt has also published two books.


title: Sablefish

text: The sablefish (Anoplopoma fimbria) is one of two members of the fish family Anoplopomatidae and the only species in the genus Anoplopoma.


title: Remy Hii

text: Remy Hii (born 24 July 1986) is an Malaysian-Australian actor. Hii attended the National Institute of Dramatic Art for three years, and appeared in various theatre productions, before being cast in his first television role. Hii starred as Van Tuong Nguyen in the four-part miniseries "Better Man" and was cast as Hudson Walsh in the soap opera "Neighbours" in 2013. He is also known as Prince Jingim from the Netflix original series "Marco Polo". From 2018 to 2019, Hii played Simon Van Reyk in the Australian television crime drama "Harrow". Hii has also appeared in the series "Sisters", the romantic comedy film "Crazy Rich Asians", and Marvel's "".


title: Remy Hii

text: Hii was born in Malaysia to a Chinese-Malaysian father and a British mother from Manchester. His father's family left China during the Cultural Revolution and settled in Malaysia like many others. He moved with his parents to Townsville, Queensland when he was eight. He attended the Queensland University of Technology. His early theatre work was with "The Emerge Project", an arm of Switchboard Arts. There he performed in a number of original productions in Brisbane by local playwrights between 2005 and 2007. From 2009 to 2011 he attended the National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA) in Sydney where he graduated in 2011. During his time at NIDA, Hii played in the Sydney indie-rock group RAPIDS, alongside Will Shepherd, and fellow actors Angus McLaren and Jamie Timony. The band released a self-titled EP in 2010.


title: Remy Hii

text: Hii's professional theatre debut was with the Queensland Theatre Company's production of "The Estimator" in 2007, after he was noticed by its playwright David Brown performing in a play reading with "The Emerge Project". He was later cast in guest roles in the television series "East of Everything" and "". In 2011, Hii appeared as Tom in the short film "Kiss". Hii appeared in the lead role of Van Tuong Nguyen in SBS's four-part miniseries "Better Man", which began airing from 25 July 2013. The series is based on a true story. The role led to Hii receiving a nomination for Best Lead Actor in a Television Drama at the 2014 AACTA Awards and the Most Outstanding Newcomer accolade the 2014 Logie Awards.


title: Remy Hii

text: On 12 June 2013, Hii joined the cast of "Neighbours" as Hudson Walsh. Hudson was introduced as a love interest for established character Chris Pappas (James Mason). On 20 June, Hii told Daniel Kilkelly from Digital Spy that he had been asked back to continue filming the following month. After leaving "Neighbours", Hii was cast as Prince Jingim in the Netflix drama "Marco Polo". The series was cancelled after two seasons in 2016. Hii went on to appear in Paul Currie's 2017 thriller film "", and he has a recurring role as Sam in the Australian television drama "Sisters". Hii portrays Alistair Cheng in the 2018 romantic comedy film "Crazy Rich Asians", based on the novel of the same name by Kevin Kwan.


title: Remy Hii

text: From 2018 to 2019, he played Simon Van Reyk, a forensic pathologist, in the crime drama "Harrow". He appeared in every episode of the first series. In 2019, Hii played Brad Davis in "". He was set to have the lead role of Luen in "Jane the Novela", a spin-off from "Jane the Virgin", but the series was not picked up by The CW. In February 2021, Hii starred as Ben Zhao in the ABC comedy-drama series "Aftertaste". Later that year, Hii joined the ensemble cast of "".


title: Cupra Formentor

text: The Cupra Formentor is a compact crossover SUV (C-segment) manufactured by the Spanish car manufacturer SEAT under their Cupra performance-oriented sub-brand. Marketed as a coupé SUV, it is the first car designed specifically for the sub-brand. The production version was revealed in March 2020, after its unveiling was postponed when the COVID-19 pandemic led to the cancellation of the 2020 Geneva Motor Show. It was previewed as a near-production concept vehicle at the 2019 Geneva Motor Show. It is named after the Formentor peninsula on the Spanish island of Majorca. Production of the Formentor started in late September 2020.


title: Cupra Formentor

text: The Formentor is available with a 1.4-litre plug-in hybrid, a 2.0-litre turbo generating available for VZ models (derived from the Spanish word "veloz", meaning "fast"), and a range-topping VZ5 model with 2.5-litre turbo generating . The plug-in hybrid combination delivers an approximate range of with a full-electric mode. All versions come with a 7-speed DSG transmission.


title: Solid-propellant rocket

text: A solid-propellant rocket or solid rocket is a rocket with a rocket engine that uses solid propellants (fuel/oxidizer). The earliest rockets were solid-fuel rockets powered by gunpowder; they were used in warfare by the Arabs, Chinese, Persians, Mongols, and Indians as early as the 13th century.


title: Solid-propellant rocket

text: All rockets used some form of solid or powdered propellant up until the 20th century, when liquid-propellant rockets offered more efficient and controllable alternatives. Solid rockets are still used today in military armaments worldwide, model rockets, solid rocket boosters and on larger applications for their simplicity and reliability.


title: Solid-propellant rocket

text: Since solid-fuel rockets can remain in storage for an extended period without much propellant degradation and because they almost always launch reliably, they have been frequently used in military applications such as missiles. The lower performance of solid propellants (as compared to liquids) does not favor their use as primary propulsion in modern medium-to-large launch vehicles customarily used to orbit commercial satellites and launch major space probes. Solids are, however, frequently used as strap-on boosters to increase payload capacity or as spin-stabilized add-on upper stages when higher-than-normal velocities are required. Solid rockets are used as light launch vehicles for low Earth orbit (LEO) payloads under 2 tons or escape payloads up to .


title: Solid-propellant rocket

text: The solid grain mass burns in a predictable fashion to produce exhaust gases, the flow of which is described by Taylor–Culick flow. The nozzle dimensions are calculated to maintain a design chamber pressure, while producing thrust from the exhaust gases.


title: Solid-propellant rocket

text: Once ignited, a simple solid rocket motor cannot be shut off, because it contains all the ingredients necessary for combustion within the chamber in which they are burned. More advanced solid rocket motors can be throttled, and also be extinguished, and then re-ignited by control of the nozzle geometry, or through the use of vent ports. Further, pulsed rocket motors that burn in segments, and that can be ignited upon command are available.


title: Solid-propellant rocket

text: Modern designs may also include a steerable nozzle for guidance, avionics, recovery hardware (parachutes), self-destruct mechanisms, APUs, controllable tactical motors, controllable divert and attitude control motors, and thermal management materials.


title: Solid-propellant rocket

text: The medieval Song dynasty Chinese invented a very primitive form of solid-propellant rocket. Illustrations and descriptions in the 14th century Chinese military treatise "Huolongjing" by the Ming dynasty military writer and philosopher Jiao Yu confirm that the Chinese in 1232 used proto solid propellant rockets then known as "fire arrows" to drive back the Mongols during the Mongol siege of Kaifeng. Each arrow took a primitive form of a simple, solid-propellant rocket tube that was filled with gunpowder. One open end allowed the gas to escape and was attached to a long stick that acted as a guidance system for flight direction control.


title: Solid-propellant rocket

text: The first rockets with tubes of cast iron were used by the Kingdom of Mysore under Hyder Ali and Tipu Sultan in the 1750s. These rockets had a reach of targets up to a mile and a half away. These were extremely effective in the Second Anglo-Mysore War that ended in a humiliating defeat for the British Empire. Word of the success of the Mysore rockets against the British Imperial power triggered research in England, France, Ireland and elsewhere. When the British finally conquered the fort of Srirangapatana in 1799, hundreds of rockets were shipped off to the Royal Arsenal near London to be reverse-engineered. This led to the first industrial manufacture of military rockets with the Congreve rocket in 1804.


title: Solid-propellant rocket

text: In 1921 the Soviet research and development laboratory Gas Dynamics Laboratory began developing solid-propellant rockets, which resulted in the first launch in 1928, that flew for approximately 1,300 metres. These rockets were used in 1931 for the world's first successful use of rockets to assist take-off of aircraft. The research continued from 1933 by the Reactive Scientific Research Institute (RNII) with the development of the RS-82 and RS-132 rockets, including designing several variations for ground-to-air, ground-to-ground, air-to-ground and air-to-air combat. The earliest known use by the Soviet Air Force of aircraft-launched unguided anti-aircraft rockets in combat against heavier-than-air aircraft took place in August 1939, during the Battle of Khalkhin Gol. In June 1938, the RNII began developing a multiple rocket launcher based on the RS-132 rocket. In August 1939, the completed product was the BM-13 / Katyusha rocket launcher. Towards the end of 1938 the first significant large scale testing of the rocket launchers took place, 233 rockets of various types were used. A salvo of rockets could completely straddle a target at a range of . By the end of World War II total production of rocket launchers reached about 10,000. with 12 million rockets of the RS type produced for the Soviet armed forces.


title: Solid-propellant rocket

text: In the United States modern castable composite solid rocket motors were invented by the American aerospace engineer Jack Parsons at Caltech in 1942 when he replaced double base propellant with roofing asphalt and potassium perchlorate. This made possible slow-burning rocket motors of adequate size and with sufficient shelf-life for jet-assisted take off applications. Charles Bartley, employed at JPL (Caltech), substituted curable synthetic rubber for the gooey asphalt, creating a flexible but geometrically stable load-bearing propellant grain that bonded securely to the motor casing. This made possible much larger solid rocket motors. Atlantic Research Corporation significantly boosted composite propellant I in 1954 by increasing the amount of powdered aluminium in the propellant to as much as 20%.


title: Solid-propellant rocket

text: Solid-propellant rocket technology got its largest boost in technical innovation, size and capability with the various mid-20th century government initiatives to develop increasingly capable military missiles. After initial designs of ballistic missile military technology designed with liquid-propellant rockets in the 1940s and 1950s, both the Soviet Union and the United States embarked on major initiatives to develop solid-propellant local, regional, and intercontinental ballistic missiles, including solid-propellant missiles that could be launched from air or sea. Many other governments also developed these military technologies over the next 50 years.


title: Solid-propellant rocket

text: By the later 1980s and continuing to 2020, these government-developed highly-capable solid rocket technologies have been applied to orbital spaceflight by many government-directed programs, most often as booster rockets to add extra thrust during the early ascent of their primarily liquid rocket launch vehicles. Some designs have had solid rocket upper stages as well. Examples flying in the 2010s include the European Ariane 5, US Atlas V and Space Shuttle, and Japan's H-II.


title: Solid-propellant rocket

text: The largest solid rocket motors ever built were Aerojet's three monolithic solid motors cast in Florida. Motors 260 SL-1 and SL-2 were in diameter, long, weighed , and had a maximum thrust of . Burn duration was two minutes. The nozzle throat was large enough to walk through standing up. The motor was capable of serving as a 1-to-1 replacement for the 8-engine Saturn I liquid-propellant first stage but was never used as such. Motor 260 SL-3 was of similar length and weight but had a maximum thrust of and a shorter duration.


title: Solid-propellant rocket

text: Design begins with the total impulse required, which determines the fuel and oxidizer mass. Grain geometry and chemistry are then chosen to satisfy the required motor characteristics.


title: Solid-propellant rocket

text: The following are chosen or solved simultaneously. The results are exact dimensions for grain, nozzle, and case geometries:


title: Solid-propellant rocket

text: The grain may or may not be bonded to the casing. Case-bonded motors are more difficult to design, since the deformation of the case and the grain under flight must be compatible.


title: Solid-propellant rocket

text: Common modes of failure in solid rocket motors include fracture of the grain, failure of case bonding, and air pockets in the grain. All of these produce an instantaneous increase in burn surface area and a corresponding increase in exhaust gas production rate and pressure, which may rupture the casing.


title: Solid-propellant rocket

text: Another failure mode is casing seal failure. Seals are required in casings that have to be opened to load the grain. Once a seal fails, hot gas will erode the escape path and result in failure. This was the cause of the Space Shuttle "Challenger" disaster.


title: Solid-propellant rocket

text: Solid rocket fuel deflagrates from the surface of exposed propellant in the combustion chamber. In this fashion, the geometry of the propellant inside the rocket motor plays an important role in the overall motor performance. As the surface of the propellant burns, the shape evolves (a subject of study in internal ballistics), most often changing the propellant surface area exposed to the combustion gases. Since the propellant volume is equal to the cross sectional area formula_1 times the fuel length, the volumetric propellant consumption rate is the cross section area times the linear burn rate formula_2, and the instantaneous mass flow rate of combustion gases generated is equal to the volumetric rate times the fuel density formula_3:


title: Solid-propellant rocket

text: Several geometric configurations are often used depending on the application and desired thrust curve:


title: Solid-propellant rocket

text: The casing may be constructed from a range of materials. Cardboard is used for small black powder model motors, whereas aluminium is used for larger composite-fuel hobby motors. Steel was used for the space shuttle boosters. Filament-wound graphite epoxy casings are used for high-performance motors.


title: Solid-propellant rocket

text: The casing must be designed to withstand the pressure and resulting stresses of the rocket motor, possibly at elevated temperature. For design, the casing is considered a pressure vessel.


title: Solid-propellant rocket

text: To protect the casing from corrosive hot gases, a sacrificial thermal liner on the inside of the casing is often implemented, which ablates to prolong the life of the motor casing.


title: Solid-propellant rocket

text: A convergent-divergent design accelerates the exhaust gas out of the nozzle to produce thrust. The nozzle must be constructed from a material that can withstand the heat of the combustion gas flow. Often, heat-resistant carbon-based materials are used, such as amorphous graphite or carbon-carbon.


title: Solid-propellant rocket

text: Some designs include directional control of the exhaust. This can be accomplished by gimballing the nozzle, as in the Space Shuttle SRBs, by the use of jet vanes in the exhaust as in the V-2 rocket, or by liquid injection thrust vectoring (LITV).


title: Solid-propellant rocket

text: LITV consists of injecting a liquid into the exhaust stream after the nozzle throat. The liquid then vaporizes, and in most cases chemically reacts, adding mass flow to one side of the exhaust stream and thus providing a control moment. For example, the Titan IIIC solid boosters injected nitrogen tetroxide for LITV; the tanks can be seen on the sides of the rocket between the main center stage and the boosters.


title: Solid-propellant rocket

text: An early Minuteman first stage used a single motor with four gimballed nozzles to provide pitch, yaw, and roll control.


title: Solid-propellant rocket

text: A typical, well-designed ammonium perchlorate composite propellant (APCP) first-stage motor may have a vacuum specific impulse ("I") as high as (Titan IVB SRMU). This compares to for RP1/LOX (RD-180) and for LH/LOX (Block II RS-25) bipropellant engines. Upper stage specific impulses are somewhat greater: as much as for APCP (Orbus 6E), for RP1/LOX (RD-0124) and for LH/LOX (RL10B-2).


title: Solid-propellant rocket

text: Propellant fractions are usually somewhat higher for (non-segmented) solid propellant first stages than for upper stages. The Castor 120 first stage has a propellant mass fraction of 92.23% while the Castor 30 upper stage developed for Orbital Science's Taurus II COTS(Commercial Off The Shelf) (International Space Station resupply) launch vehicle has a 91.3% propellant fraction with 2.9% graphite epoxy motor casing, 2.4% nozzle, igniter and thrust vector actuator, and 3.4% non-motor hardware including such things as payload mount, interstage adapter, cable raceway, instrumentation, etc. Castor 120 and Castor 30 are in diameter, respectively, and serve as stages on the Athena IC and IIC commercial launch vehicles. A four-stage Athena II using Castor 120s as both first and second stages became the first commercially developed launch vehicle to launch a lunar probe ("Lunar Prospector") in 1998.


title: Solid-propellant rocket

text: Solid rockets can provide high thrust for relatively low cost. For this reason, solids have been used as initial stages in rockets (for example the Space Shuttle), while reserving high specific impulse engines, especially less massive hydrogen-fueled engines, for higher stages. In addition, solid rockets have a long history as the final boost stage for satellites due to their simplicity, reliability, compactness and reasonably high mass fraction. A spin-stabilized solid rocket motor is sometimes added when extra velocity is required, such as for a mission to a comet or the outer solar system, because a spinner does not require a guidance system (on the newly added stage). Thiokol's extensive family of mostly titanium-cased "Star" space motors has been widely used, especially on Delta launch vehicles and as spin-stabilized upper stages to launch satellites from the cargo bay of the Space Shuttle. "Star" motors have propellant fractions as high as 94.6% but add-on structures and equipment reduce the operating mass fraction by 2% or more.


title: Solid-propellant rocket

text: Higher performing solid rocket propellants are used in large strategic missiles (as opposed to commercial launch vehicles). HMX, CHN(NO), a nitramine with greater energy than ammonium perchlorate, was used in the propellant of the Peacekeeper ICBM and is the main ingredient in NEPE-75 propellant used in the Trident II D-5 Fleet Ballistic Missile. It is because of explosive hazard that the higher energy military solid propellants containing HMX are not used in commercial launch vehicles except when the LV is an adapted ballistic missile already containing HMX propellant (Minotaur IV and V based on the retired Peacekeeper ICBMs). The Naval Air Weapons Station at China Lake, California, developed a new compound, CHN(NO), called simply CL-20 (China Lake compound 20). Compared to HMX, CL-20 has 14% more energy per mass, 20% more energy per volume, and a higher oxygen-to-fuel ratio. One of the motivations for development of these very high energy density military solid propellants is to achieve mid-course exo-atmospheric ABM capability from missiles small enough to fit in existing ship-based below-deck vertical launch tubes and air-mobile truck-mounted launch tubes. CL-20 propellant compliant with Congress' 2004 insensitive munitions (IM) law has been demonstrated and may, as its cost comes down, be suitable for use in commercial launch vehicles, with a very significant increase in performance compared with the currently favored APCP solid propellants. With a specific impulse of 309 s already demonstrated by Peacekeeper's second stage using HMX propellant, the higher energy of CL-20 propellant can be expected to increase specific impulse to around 320 s in similar ICBM or launch vehicle upper stage applications, without the explosive hazard of HMX.


title: Solid-propellant rocket

text: An attractive attribute for military use is the ability for solid rocket propellant to remain loaded in the rocket for long durations and then be reliably launched at a moment's notice.


title: Solid-propellant rocket

text: Black powder (gunpowder) is composed of charcoal (fuel), potassium nitrate (oxidizer), and sulfur (fuel and catalyst). It is one of the oldest pyrotechnic compositions with application to rocketry. In modern times, black powder finds use in low-power model rockets (such as Estes and Quest rockets), as it is cheap and fairly easy to produce. The fuel grain is typically a mixture of pressed fine powder (into a solid, hard slug), with a burn rate that is highly dependent upon exact composition and operating conditions. The specific impulse of black powder is low, around . The grain is sensitive to fracture and, therefore, catastrophic failure. Black powder does not typically find use in motors above thrust.


title: Solid-propellant rocket

text: Composed of powdered zinc metal and powdered sulfur (oxidizer), ZS or "micrograin" is another pressed propellant that does not find any practical application outside specialized amateur rocketry circles due to its poor performance (as most ZS burns outside the combustion chamber) and fast linear burn rates on the order of 2 m/s. ZS is most often employed as a novelty propellant as the rocket accelerates extremely quickly leaving a spectacular large orange fireball behind it.


title: Solid-propellant rocket

text: In general, rocket candy propellants are an oxidizer (typically potassium nitrate) and a sugar fuel (typically dextrose, sorbitol, or sucrose) that are cast into shape by gently melting the propellant constituents together and pouring or packing the amorphous colloid into a mold. Candy propellants generate a low-medium specific impulse of roughly and, thus, are used primarily by amateur and experimental rocketeers.


title: Solid-propellant rocket

text: DB propellants are composed of two monopropellant fuel components where one typically acts as a high-energy (yet unstable) monopropellant and the other acts as a lower-energy stabilizing (and gelling) monopropellant. In typical circumstances, nitroglycerin is dissolved in a nitrocellulose gel and solidified with additives. DB propellants are implemented in applications where minimal smoke is required yet a medium-high I of roughly is required. The addition of metal fuels (such as aluminium) can increase performance to around , though metal oxide nucleation in the exhaust can turn the smoke opaque.


title: Solid-propellant rocket

text: A powdered oxidizer and powdered metal fuel are intimately mixed and immobilized with a rubbery binder (that also acts as a fuel). Composite propellants are often either ammonium nitrate-based (ANCP) or ammonium perchlorate-based (APCP). Ammonium nitrate composite propellant often uses magnesium and/or aluminium as fuel and delivers medium performance (I of about ) whereas ammonium perchlorate composite propellant often uses aluminium fuel and delivers high performance: vacuum I up to with a single piece nozzle or with a high area ratio telescoping nozzle. Aluminium is used as fuel because it has a reasonable specific energy density, a high volumetric energy density, and is difficult to ignite accidentally. Composite propellants are cast, and retain their shape after the rubber binder, such as Hydroxyl-terminated polybutadiene (HTPB), cross-links (solidifies) with the aid of a curative additive. Because of its high performance, moderate ease of manufacturing, and moderate cost, APCP finds widespread use in space rockets, military rockets, hobby and amateur rockets, whereas cheaper and less efficient ANCP finds use in amateur rocketry and gas generators. Ammonium dinitramide, NHN(NO), is being considered as a 1-to-1 chlorine-free substitute for ammonium perchlorate in composite propellants. Unlike ammonium nitrate, ADN can be substituted for AP without a loss in motor performance.


title: Solid-propellant rocket

text: Polyurethane-bound aluminium-APCP solid fuel was used in the submarine launched Polaris missiles. APCP used in the space shuttle Solid Rocket Boosters consisted of ammonium perchlorate (oxidizer, 69.6% by weight), aluminium (fuel, 16%), iron oxide (a catalyst, 0.4%), polybutadiene acrylonitrile (PBAN) polymer (a non-urethane rubber binder that held the mixture together and acted as secondary fuel, 12.04%), and an epoxy curing agent (1.96%). It developed a specific impulse of 242 seconds (2.37 km/s) at sea level or 268 seconds (2.63 km/s) in a vacuum. The 2005-2009 Constellation Program was to use a similar PBAN-bound APCP.


title: Solid-propellant rocket

text: Typical HEC propellants start with a standard composite propellant mixture (such as APCP) and add a high-energy explosive to the mix. This extra component usually is in the form of small crystals of RDX or HMX, both of which have higher energy than ammonium perchlorate. Despite a modest increase in specific impulse, implementation is limited due to the increased hazards of the high-explosive additives.


title: Solid-propellant rocket

text: Composite modified double base propellants start with a nitrocellulose/nitroglycerin double base propellant as a binder and add solids (typically ammonium perchlorate (AP) and powdered aluminium) normally used in composite propellants. The ammonium perchlorate makes up the oxygen deficit introduced by using nitrocellulose, improving the overall specific impulse. The aluminium improves specific impulse as well as combustion stability. High performing propellants such as NEPE-75 used to fuel the Trident II D-5, SLBM replace most of the AP with polyethylene glycol-bound HMX, further increasing specific impulse. The mixing of composite and double base propellant ingredients has become so common as to blur the functional definition of double base propellants.


title: Solid-propellant rocket

text: One of the most active areas of solid propellant research is the development of high-energy, minimum-signature propellant using CHN(NO) CL-20 nitroamine (China Lake compound #20), which has 14% higher energy per mass and 20% higher energy density than HMX. The new propellant has been successfully developed and tested in tactical rocket motors. The propellant is non-polluting: acid-free, solid particulates-free, and lead-free. It is also smokeless and has only a faint shock diamond pattern that is visible in the otherwise transparent exhaust. Without the bright flame and dense smoke trail produced by the burning of aluminized propellants, these smokeless propellants all but eliminate the risk of giving away the positions from which the missiles are fired. The new CL-20 propellant is shock-insensitive (hazard class 1.3) as opposed to current HMX smokeless propellants which are highly detonable (hazard class 1.1). CL-20 is considered a major breakthrough in solid rocket propellant technology but has yet to see widespread use because costs remain high.


title: Solid-propellant rocket

text: Electric solid propellants (ESPs) are a family of high performance plastisol solid propellants that can be ignited and throttled by the application of electric current. Unlike conventional rocket motor propellants that are difficult to control and extinguish, ESPs can be ignited reliably at precise intervals and durations. It requires no moving parts and the propellant is insensitive to flames or electrical sparks.


title: Solid-propellant rocket

text: Solid propellant rocket motors can be bought for use in model rocketry; they are normally small cylinders of black powder fuel with an integral nozzle and optionally a small charge that is set off when the propellant is exhausted after a time delay. This charge can be used to trigger a camera, or deploy a parachute. Without this charge and delay, the motor may ignite a second stage (black powder only).


title: Solid-propellant rocket

text: In mid- and high-power rocketry, commercially made APCP motors are widely used. They can be designed as either single-use or reloadables. These motors are available in impulse ranges from "A" (1.26 Ns– 2.50 Ns) to "O" (20.48 kNs – 40.96 kNs), from several manufacturers. They are manufactured in standardized diameters and varying lengths depending on required impulse. Standard motor diameters are 13, 18, 24, 29, 38, 54, 75, 98, and 150 millimeters. Different propellant formulations are available to produce different thrust profiles, as well as special effects such as colored flames, smoke trails, or large quantities of sparks (produced by adding titanium sponge to the mix).


title: Solid-propellant rocket

text: Solid rockets are suitable for launching small payloads to orbital velocities, especially if three or more stages are used. Many of these are based on repurposed ICBMs.


title: Solid-propellant rocket

text: Larger liquid-fueled orbital rockets often use solid rocket boosters to gain enough initial thrust to launch the fully fueled rocket.


title: Solid-propellant rocket

text: Solid fuel is also used for some upper stages, particularly the Star 37 (sometimes referred to as the "Burner" upper stage) and the Star 48 (sometimes referred to as the "Payload Assist Module", or PAM), both manufactured originally by Thiokol, and today by Northrop Grumman. They are used to lift large payloads to intended orbits (such as the Global Positioning System satellites), or smaller payloads to interplanetary—or even interstellar—trajectories. Another solid-fuel upper stage, used by the Space Shuttle and the Titan IV, was the Boeing-manufactured Inertial Upper Stage (IUS).


title: Solid-propellant rocket

text: Some rockets, like the Antares (manufactured by Northrop Grumman), have mandatory solid-fuel upper stages. The Antares rocket uses the Northrop Grumman-manufactured Castor 30 as an upper stage.


title: Shanghai Pudong International Airport

text: Shanghai Pudong International Airport is one of two international airports serving Shanghai and a major aviation hub of East Asia. Pudong Airport serves both international flights and a smaller number of domestic fights, while the city's other major airport, Shanghai–Hongqiao, mainly serves domestic and regional flights in East Asia. Located about east of the city center, Pudong Airport occupies a site adjacent to the coastline in eastern Pudong. The airport is operated by Shanghai Airport Authority ().


title: Shanghai Pudong International Airport

text: The airport is the main hub for China Eastern Airlines and Shanghai Airlines, and a major international hub for Air China, as well as a secondary hub for China Southern Airlines. It is also the hub for privately owned Juneyao Airlines and Spring Airlines, and an Asia-Pacific cargo hub for FedEx, UPS and DHL. The DHL hub, opened in July 2012, is reportedly the largest express hub in Asia.


title: Shanghai Pudong International Airport

text: Pudong Airport had two main passenger terminals, flanked on both sides by four operational parallel runways. A third passenger terminal was opened in 2021, in addition to a satellite terminal and two additional runways, which will raise its annual capacity from 60 million passengers to 80 million, along with the ability to handle six million tons of freight.


title: Shanghai Pudong International Airport

text: Pudong Airport is a fast-growing hub for both passenger and cargo traffic. With 3,703,431 metric tons handled in 2017, the airport is the world's third-busiest airport by cargo traffic. Pudong Airport also served a total of 74,006,331 passengers in 2018, making it the third-busiest airport in China after Beijing–Capital and Hong Kong, fifth-busiest in Asia, and the eighth-busiest in the world. It is also the busiest international gateway of mainland China, with 35.25 million international passengers. By the end of 2016, Pudong Airport hosted 104 airlines serving more than 210 destinations.


title: Shanghai Pudong International Airport

text: Shanghai Pudong is the busiest international hub in China, and about half of its total passenger traffic is international. Pudong Airport is connected to Shanghai Hongqiao Airport by Shanghai Metro Line 2 and the Shanghai Maglev Train via Pudong International Airport Station. There are also airport buses connecting it with the rest of the city.


title: Shanghai Pudong International Airport

text: Prior to the establishment of Pudong International Airport, Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport was the only primary airport of Shanghai. During the 1990s, the expansion of Hongqiao Airport to meet growing demand became impossible as the surrounding urban area was developing significantly, and an alternative to assume all international flights had to be sought.


title: Shanghai Pudong International Airport

text: After deliberation, the municipal government decided to adopt the suggestion from Professor Chen Jiyu of East China Normal University, who wrote a letter to the Mayor of Shanghai Xu Kuangdi suggesting that the new airport should be constructed on the tidal flats of the south bank of the Yangtze River estuary, on the coast of the Pudong development zone to the east of Shanghai.


title: Shanghai Pudong International Airport

text: Construction of the first phase of the new Shanghai Pudong International Airport began in October 1997, took two years to build at a cost of RMB 12 billion (US$1.67 billion), and was opened on 16 September 1999. It covers an area of and is from downtown Shanghai. The first phase of the airport has one 4E category runway (4000 m x 60 m) along with two parallel taxiways, an apron, seventy-six aircraft positions and a cargo warehouse.


title: Shanghai Pudong International Airport

text: A second runway was opened on 17 March 2005, and construction of phase two (including a second terminal, a third runway and a cargo terminal) began in December 2005 and started operation on 26 March 2008, in time for the Beijing 2008 Summer Olympics.


title: Shanghai Pudong International Airport

text: In November 2011, Pudong Airport received approval from the national government for a new round of expansion which includes two runways. The 3,800-metre fourth runway, along with an auxiliary taxiway and traffic control facilities, is projected to cost 2.58 billion yuan (US$403 million). The 3,400-metre fifth runway, along with a new traffic tower, will cost 4.65 billion yuan (US$726.6 million). Construction was completed in 2015 and has doubled the capacity of the airport.


title: Shanghai Pudong International Airport

text: Pudong International Airport officially started the third phase of the Pudong International Airport expansion with the construction on a new south satellite terminal on 29 December 2015. The new satellite terminal will be the world's largest single satellite terminal with a total construction area of 622,000 square meters, which is larger than the Pudong International Airport T2 terminal building (485,500 square meters). The satellite terminal is composed of two halls, S1 and S2, forming an H-shaped structure. It will have an annual design capacity of 38 million passengers, The total cost of the project is estimated to be about 20.6 billion yuan. Halls S1 and S2 will have 83 gates. A high capacity people mover connecting T1 to SI and T2 to S2 will be constructed. After the completion of the satellite terminal in 2019, Pudong International Airport will have an annual passenger capacity of 80 million passengers, ranking among the top ten airports in the world.


title: Shanghai Pudong International Airport

text: The airport has 162 boarding bridges (T1-31 T2-41 Satellite terminal-90) along with 189 remote gates. Four runways are parallel to the terminals (four operational): one runway with 4E rating (capable of accommodating aircraft up to Boeing 747-400), two runways with 4F rating (capable of accommodating aircraft up to Airbus A380, Boeing 747-8, and Antonov An-225), and two runways with 4F rating .


title: Shanghai Pudong International Airport

text: Pudong airport currently has four runways. Rwy 35L/17R and Rwy 34R/16L are mostly used for landing while Rwy 35R/17L and Rwy 34L/16R are mostly used for takeoff. Runway 15/33 is not in operation.


title: Shanghai Pudong International Airport

text: Terminal 1 was opened on 1 October 1999 along with a 4000-metre runway and a cargo hub. It was built to handle the demand for traffic and to relieve Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport's traffic. The exterior of Terminal 1 is shaped like a seagull, and has 28 gates, 13 of which are double-decker gates. The capacity of Terminal 1 is 20 million passengers. It currently has 204 check-in counters, thirteen luggage conveying belts and covers an area of 280,000 square metres.


title: Shanghai Pudong International Airport

text: The gates for Terminal 1 is 1–12, 14–32 (linked with jetway), while the remote gates are 200–203, 251–258 (Domestic), 208–212, 213–216 (International).