title: Stevenage F.C.

text: Stevenage Borough was formed in 1976 following the bankruptcy of Stevenage Athletic. Chairman Keith Berners, and "a number of like-minded volunteers" were tasked with arranging a team to play Hitchin Town Youth at Broadhall Way in November 1976, as a "curtain-raiser" for the new club. However, the Broadhall Way pitch was subsequently dug up for non-footballing purposes after Stevenage Borough Council sold the land to a local businessman, who dug a trench across the full length of the pitch to ensure no football was played. Consequently, the new club started out playing in the Chiltern Youth league on a roped-off pitch at the town's King George V playing fields, and moved up to intermediate status, joining the Wallspan Southern Combination shortly after. Stevenage Borough Council granted consent for the club to incorporate the name "Borough" in their title and to adopt the town's civic emblem as the club badge. In 1980, the council reacquired the lease for Broadhall Way and allowed the football club to become its tenant. With the council as their landlords and a refurbished stadium, Stevenage Borough took on senior status, under the management of Derek Montgomery, and joined the United Counties Football League in the same year. The club's first competitive league match was a 3–1 victory against ON Chenecks on 16 August 1980, played in front of 421 people. In their first season as a senior club, the team won the United Counties League Division One championship, scoring over a hundred goals. The club also won the United Counties League Cup during the same season.


title: Stevenage F.C.

text: After three successive seasons in the United Counties Premier Division, the club joined Division Two North of the Isthmian League in 1984, and the following season earned promotion to Isthmian League Division One after finishing the season as champions. Two years later, the club were relegated back to the Division Two North, having finished second bottom of the division. Brian Williams was tasked with steadying the club following the relegation; appointed as manager in July 1988. He spent two full seasons in charge, guiding Stevenage to two fourth-place finishes. Paul Fairclough was appointed as the club's manager in June 1990 and he would ultimately guide the team to four league titles in eight years. The club won promotion during the 1990–91 season, Fairclough's first season in charge, winning 34 of their 42 games. The league triumph included winning every match played at home, scoring 122 goals and amassing 107 points. The following season, Stevenage won the Isthmian League Division One title, remaining unbeaten at home for the second consecutive season, and were promoted to the Isthmian League Premier Division. A third promotion in four years followed at the end of the 1993–94 season, as Stevenage were promoted to the Football Conference after winning the Isthmian League Premier Division. Two seasons later, Stevenage won the Conference, but were denied promotion to the Football League, due to insufficient ground facilities, thus reprieving Torquay United, who had finished in last place of Division Three. During the same season, the club reached the First Round of the FA Cup for the first time, losing 2–1 to Hereford United of the Third Division at Edgar Street.


title: Stevenage F.C.

text: The 1996–97 season saw the club progress to the Third Round of the FA Cup for the first time after a 2–1 victory against Leyton Orient at Brisbane Road. They were drawn against Birmingham City at Broadhall Way, but ground issues saw the tie switched to St Andrew's; Birmingham won the match 2–0. The following season, the club reached the Fourth Round where they drew Premier League club Newcastle United at Broadhall Way. A temporary stand was erected behind the South Stand, allocated to the Newcastle supporters, which increased the stadium capacity to 9,000, enough to satisfy The FA. Stevenage held Newcastle to a 1–1 draw, with Giuliano Grazioli equalising after Alan Shearer had given Newcastle an early lead. Stevenage lost 2–1 in the replay at St James' Park, a goal from Alan Shearer that "appeared to not cross the line" proved the difference. Despite earning a large amount of revenue from the two respective cup runs, news emerged that the club were in financial difficulties and that the chairman, Victor Green, was going to close the club down if no buyer was found. Phil Wallace purchased the club and set about rebuilding the finances and the relationship with the local council.


title: Stevenage F.C.

text: During the 2001–02 season, the club reached the FA Trophy final for the first time, losing 2–0 to Yeovil Town at Villa Park. The following season, Stevenage were positioned in last place of the Conference National in January, seven points from safety. The club appointed Graham Westley as manager in January 2003. Westley guided the club to 12th position, winning eight games out of a possible 12 in the league. During the 2004–05 season, Stevenage made the play–offs after finishing fifth under the guidance of Westley. The team lost 1–0 to Carlisle United at the Britannia Stadium in the play-off final. The following year, the team finished sixth, outside of the play-off places, and Westley's contract was not renewed, ending his three-and-a-half-year spell as manager. The club appointed Mark Stimson as their new manager and the team finished in eighth position in Stimson's first season as manager. That season, the club reached the FA Trophy final again, where they came back from 2–0 down to beat Kidderminster Harriers 3–2 in front of a record FA Trophy crowd of 53,262. The victory meant that Stevenage were the first team to win a competitive final at the new Wembley Stadium.


title: Stevenage F.C.

text: After the FA Trophy success in 2007, as well as keeping the majority of the first-team at the club, Stevenage started the 2007–08 season by breaking a new club record when the defence kept eight consecutive clean sheets. Stimson was offered a new contract by Stevenage in October 2007, but resigned the following day and subsequently joined Football League club Gillingham. In November 2007, he was replaced by Peter Taylor. After failing to make the play-offs, Taylor resigned at the end of the season and was replaced by former manager Graham Westley. On Westley's return, Stevenage started the season slowly before going on a 27–game unbeaten run from December to March and reached the play-offs, where they lost in the semi-finals to Cambridge United, 4–3 on aggregate. During the same season, Stevenage enjoyed success in cup competitions; winning the Herts Senior Cup for the first time, beating Cheshunt 2–1 in the final, and the FA Trophy, where they beat York City 2–0 in the final.


title: Stevenage F.C.

text: The following season, Westley retained the majority of the squad and Stevenage were positioned in first place by New Year's Day. The squad won eight consecutive games through February and March 2010, and Stevenage were promoted to the Football League for the first time in the club's history with two games to spare. Promotion was secured thanks to a 2–0 victory at Kidderminster Harriers, as Stevenage finished the season 11 points clear at the top of the table. The club reached the final of the FA Trophy again, losing to Barrow 2–1 after extra-time. Shortly after the end of the season, chairman Phil Wallace stated that the club will start its life in the Football League as Stevenage Football Club, dropping the word 'Borough' from its name as of June 2010.


title: Stevenage F.C.

text: Stevenage's first Football League fixture was against Macclesfield Town in August 2010, ending in a 2–2 draw at Broadhall Way. Following four defeats in six games in December 2010 and January 2011, the club were in 18th position, just four points above the relegation zone. During a congested period throughout February and March 2011, Stevenage won nine games out of eleven, propelling the club up the league table and into the play-off positions. Stevenage subsequently reached the League Two play-offs, finishing in sixth place. They faced Torquay United in the 2011 Football League Two play-off Final on 28 May 2011 at Old Trafford. Stevenage won the game 1–0, securing a place in League One for the first time in the club's history, meaning the club had also earned back-to-back promotions. During the same season, Stevenage equalled their previous best performance in the FA Cup, reaching the Fourth Round of the competition before losing 2–1 to Reading. In the previous round, Stevenage were drawn against Premier League club Newcastle United, whom they had previously met, and lost over two "bitter" games, during the 1997–98 season. Stevenage subsequently beat Newcastle 3–1 at Broadhall Way, the first time the club had ever beaten first tier opposition.


title: Stevenage F.C.

text: In their first season in the third tier of English football, Stevenage were positioned in the League One play-off places following a fourteen-game unbeaten run that lasted for three months. In January 2012, Westley opted to leave Stevenage in order to take up the vacant managerial position at Preston North End. Former Colorado Rapids manager Gary Smith replaced Westley. A run of four wins in their last five games meant that Stevenage finished in sixth, thus taking the final play-off place, losing 1–0 on aggregate to Sheffield United in the semi-final. Stevenage also reached the Fifth Round of the FA Cup for the first time in their history during the season, losing 3–1 to Premier League club Tottenham Hotspur in a replay at White Hart Lane, after the two teams drew 0–0 at Broadhall Way.


title: Stevenage F.C.

text: The majority of the squad that had helped the club win back-to-back promotions into League One departed at the end of the season. New management under Smith, alongside a change in transfer policy, resulted in a complete squad overhaul. Stevenage were positioned within the top six places midway through the 2012–13 season, but a run of 14 losses from 18 matches from December 2012 meant the club were closer to the relegation places three months later. Smith was subsequently sacked in March 2013 and replaced by Westley, returning for his third spell at the club. The team finished in 18th place that season. A further squad overhaul took place ahead of the 2013–14 season and Stevenage were ultimately relegated back to League Two after finishing in last place in the League One standings that season. The team made the play-off semi-finals in their first season back in League Two, losing to Southend United.


title: Stevenage F.C.

text: The club opted against offering Westley a new contract and replaced him with Teddy Sheringham in May 2015, taking on his first managerial role. Sheringham was sacked in February 2016 with the club positioned in 19th. First-team coach Darren Sarll took caretaker charge for the remainder of the season and was given the role on a permanent basis after helping the club secure League Two safety. During Sarll's first full season in the charge, the club finished three points from the play-off positions. With Stevenage in 16th place during the 2017–18 season, Sarll was sacked in March 2018; Wallace stating the club "had not seen the progress expected" since making a number of signings during the January transfer window. Former player and first-team coach, Dino Maamria, replaced Sarll as manager. During the 2018–19 season, Maamria's first full season in charge, the club finished 10th, one point from the play-off places. In May 2019, Wallace announced a 12% public equity offering, through sports investment platform Tifosy, with the aim of raising funds to invest in player wages and increase the transfer budget. The offer closed on 31 July 2019, at which time the club stated a total of £300,000 worth of shares had been purchased.


title: Stevenage F.C.

text: The club started the 2019–20 season without a win in the opening month of the season and Maamria was subsequently sacked in September 2019. First-team coach Mark Sampson took caretaker charge, but with the club in 23rd-place after several months under his management, Graham Westley returned for a fourth spell in December 2019. Two months later, Westley resigned, and was replaced by Alex Revell, who had previously assumed the role of player-coach at the club. The club were in last place of League Two when the season was suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020. EFL clubs formally agreed to end the season during an EFL meeting on 9 June 2020, although "ongoing disciplinary matters" involving 23rd-placed Macclesfield Town, who had not paid their players on six separate occasions during the season, meant Stevenage might be reprieved. Stevenage were initially relegated from League Two after an independent disciplinary panel opted to deduct Macclesfield two points on 19 June, with a further four suspended, the maximum number they could deduct without relegating them, highlighting this as a key factor in the sanctions they had chosen to impose. The EFL successfully appealed against the panel's sanctions on Macclesfield, winning on 11 August; the four suspended points were applied to the 2019–20 season, meaning Stevenage finished 23rd and so remained in League Two.


title: Stevenage F.C.

text: Under Revell's management, the club finished the 2020–21 season in 14th position in League Two. After three victories in the first 16 matches of the 2021–22 season, Revell left his position as first-team manager and was replaced by Paul Tisdale in November 2021. Tisdale left the club in March 2022, with Stevenage having won three of his 21 matches as manager. With the club positioned in 22nd place in League Two after a nine-match winless run, three points above the relegation places, Steve Evans was appointed as manager. The club won four of their final nine matches to avoid relegation and finish in 21st position.


title: Stevenage F.C.

text: The club have had five crests since its formation in 1976. The first club crest was created in 1980 when Stevenage took on senior status, adopting the town's civic emblem as the basis of the crest. When the club were promoted to the Conference National in 1994, the crest was changed to the Stevenage Borough Council 'tick' in recognition of the help the club had received from the council in its rise through the leagues. Shortly after former chairman Victor Green took over the club, in 1996, a new crest was introduced, modelled on the town's coat of arms; incorporating the club's colours of red and white, as well as a hart – which features on both the Stevenage and Hertfordshire coat of arms. This crest was adjusted slightly in 2010 to remove the word 'Borough', in-line with the club's name change prior to playing in the Football League. The crest was modified ahead of the 2011–12 season by being placed in a shield, but reverted to the former version two years later. A new crest was created in June 2019; the hart being "brought to the forefront of the new design". The club stated that the previous crest "presented modern-day challenges due to its complex and detailed design" and therefore the new crest, circular in design, enabled the club to create a more visible identity on both a commercial and social level.


title: Stevenage F.C.

text: The club have always played in red and white colours. Prior to taking on senior status, the team wore red and white stripes. This changed from 1980 to 1988 when the club adopted plain red shirts and white shorts, although did wear an all red strip during the 1982–83 season. The club reverted to stripes from 1988, and the strip design has varied considerably over the years. To mark the 40th anniversary of the club during the 2016–17 season, supporters were consulted about their favourite strip and the result was a re-creation of the diagonal stripes worn from 1996 to 1998.


title: Stevenage F.C.

text: The club plays at Broadhall Way, previously home to Stevenage Town and Stevenage Athletic. Following the bankruptcy of the town's former club, the stadium was not used for three years. The newly formed Stevenage Borough moved into Broadhall Way in 1980 as a result of the council re-purchasing the stadium. Following Stevenage's successful 1995–96 Football Conference campaign, the Hertfordshire club were denied promotion to the Football League because of insufficient ground capacity and facilities. In the early 2000s, the ground was upgraded, with a new £600,000 stand opening, including an executive suite underneath. In January 2009, Stevenage signed a seven-figure sponsorship deal with the Lamex Food Group, resulting in the renaming of Broadhall Way to The Lamex Stadium. As a result of the club securing promotion as league champions during the club's 2009–10 season, Broadhall Way hosted League football for the first time during the 2010–11 season.


title: Stevenage F.C.

text: The ground's pitch includes four stands – the East Terrace, the North Stand, the West Stand, and South Stand. The West Stand is all-seated and covered, and covers the length of the pitch, although it has open corners to either side of the stand. At the back of the stand there are a number of glass-fronted areas to various club offices and executive boxes. The club shop is situated next to the West Stand, opposite to the club's official car-park. Opposite to the West Stand is the East Terrace, which is a covered terrace for home supporters. The terrace has a gable with a clock sitting on its roof above the half-way line, as well as holding a television gantry on its roof.


title: Stevenage F.C.

text: The North Terrace was situated behind the goal at the north end of the ground and was just seven steps deep. Three-quarters of the terrace was covered, whilst one-quarter was open and without cover. The stand held a capacity of 700 people, and offered facilities for disabled fans. In January 2013, the club announced they were due to present plans to replace the existing North Terrace with a new £1.2 million 1,700 seat stand, although these did not materialise due to "numerous obstacles put in the way". In July 2017, the club asked fans to contribute towards a mini-bond investment scheme, through sports investment platform Tifosy, in an attempt to fund the remaining £500,000 needed to go towards developing the new North Stand. Five weeks after the campaign started, the £500,000 target was met after investment from over 200 fans. The North Terrace was demolished in January 2018. The 1,428 all-seater stand was officially opened in December 2019.


title: Stevenage F.C.

text: Opposite the North Stand is the South Stand, which is a single tiered, all-seated covered stand. The stand was built in 2001, costing £600,000. The South Stand is reserved for away supporters and can hold a capacity of 1,400. The stand also has an electronic scoreboard in the centre of the roof, which was installed in 2001, making it visible to home supporters. The scoreboard was replaced in October 2011. Behind the stand is the supporters' club. A new set of floodlights were installed before the start of the club's 2007–08 season.


title: Stevenage F.C.

text: The club opened a £5million training facility in nearby Shephalbury Park in the Autumn of 2002. In June 2011, the club announced it had secured a 42-acre former sports ground in Bragbury End – with the intention of developing the site into a new training complex. Work began on the development in the summer of 2011, and the staff began to use the complex towards the latter stages of the 2012–13 season.


title: Stevenage F.C.

text: Stevenage's highest Football League finish was sixth place in League One during the 2011–12 season. The same season, the club recorded their best run in the FA Cup when they reached the fifth round of the competition. Stevenage's largest victory in a league match came courtesy of an 11–1 win over British Timken Athletic in the United Counties League in December 1980, whilst their heaviest defeat is an 8–0 loss to Charlton Athletic in an EFL Trophy match in October 2018.


title: Stevenage F.C.

text: The record for the most number of appearances for Stevenage is held by Ronnie Henry, who played 502 matches in all competitions over two spells with the club. Martin Gittings is the club's top goalscorer with 217 goals in all competitions. He is the only player to have scored over 100 goals for the club.


title: Sprite (lightning)

text: Sprites or red sprites are large-scale electric discharges that occur high above thunderstorm clouds, or cumulonimbus, giving rise to a varied range of visual shapes flickering in the night sky. They are usually triggered by the discharges of positive lightning between an underlying thundercloud and the ground.


title: Sprite (lightning)

text: Sprites appear as luminous red-orange flashes. They often occur in clusters above the troposphere at an altitude range of . Sporadic visual reports of sprites go back at least to 1886 but they were first photographed on July 4, 1989, by scientists from the University of Minnesota and have subsequently been captured in video recordings many thousands of times.


title: Sprite (lightning)

text: Sprites are sometimes inaccurately called upper-atmospheric lightning. However, sprites are cold plasma phenomena that lack the hot channel temperatures of tropospheric lightning, so they are more akin to fluorescent tube discharges than to lightning discharges. Sprites are associated with various other upper-atmospheric optical phenomena including blue jets and ELVES.


title: Sprite (lightning)

text: The earliest known report of transient optical phenomena above thunderclouds is from Johann Georg Estor in 1730. Another early report is by Toynbee and Mackenzie in 1886. Nobel laureate C. T. R. Wilson had suggested in 1925, on theoretical grounds, that electrical breakdown could occur in the upper atmosphere, and in 1956 he witnessed what possibly could have been a sprite. They were first documented photographically on July 6, 1989, when scientists from the University of Minnesota, using a low-light video camera, accidentally captured the first image of what would subsequently become known as a sprite.


title: Sprite (lightning)

text: Several years after their discovery they were named sprites (air spirits) after their elusive nature. Since the 1989 video capture, sprites have been imaged from the ground, from aircraft and from space, and have become the subject of intensive investigations. A featured high speed video that was captured by Thomas Ashcraft, Jacob L Harley, Matthew G McHarg, and Hans Nielsen in 2019 at about 100,000 frames per second is fast enough to provide better detailing of how sprites develop. However, according to NASA's APOD blog, despite being recorded in photographs and videos for the more than 30 years, the "root cause" of sprite lightning remains unknown, "apart from a general association with positive cloud-to-ground lightning." NASA also notes that not all storms exhibit sprite lightning.


title: Sprite (lightning)

text: In 2016, sprites were observed during Hurricane Matthew's passage through the Caribbean. The role of sprites in the tropical cyclones is presently unknown.


title: Sprite (lightning)

text: Sprites have been observed over North America, Central America, South America, Europe, Central Africa (Zaire), Australia, the Sea of Japan and Asia and are believed to occur during most large thunderstorm systems.


title: Sprite (lightning)

text: Sprites are colored reddish-orange in their upper regions, with bluish hanging tendrils below, and can be preceded by a reddish halo. They last longer than normal lower stratospheric discharges, which last typically a few milliseconds, and are usually triggered by the discharges of positive lightning between the thundercloud and the ground, although sprites generated by negative ground flashes have also been observed. They often occur in clusters of two or more, and typically span the altitude range , with what appear to be tendrils hanging below, and branches reaching above.


title: Sprite (lightning)

text: Optical imaging using a 10,000 frame-per-second high speed camera showed that sprites are actually clusters of small, decameter-sized () balls of ionization that are launched at an altitude of about and then move downward at speeds of up to ten percent the speed of light, followed a few milliseconds later by a separate set of upward moving balls of ionization. Sprites may be horizontally displaced by up to from the location of the underlying lightning strike, with a time delay following the lightning that is typically a few milliseconds, but on rare occasions may be up to 100 milliseconds.


title: Sprite (lightning)

text: In order to film sprites from Earth, special conditions must be present: of clear view to a powerful thunderstorm with positive lightning between cloud and ground, red-sensitive recording equipment, and a black unlit sky.


title: Sprite (lightning)

text: Sprites are sometimes preceded, by about 1 millisecond, by a sprite "halo", a pancake-shaped region of weak, transient optical emissions approximately across and thick. The halo is centered at about altitude above the initiating lightning strike. These halos are thought to be produced by the same physical process that produces sprites, but for which the ionization is too weak to cross the threshold required for streamer formation. They are sometimes mistaken for ELVES, due to their visual similarity and short duration.


title: Sprite (lightning)

text: Research carried out at Stanford University in 2000 indicates that, unlike sprites with bright vertical columnar structure, occurrence of sprite halos is not unusual in association with normal (negative) lightning discharges.


title: Sprite (lightning)

text: Research in 2004 by scientists from Tohoku University found that very low frequency emissions occur at the same time as the sprite, indicating that a discharge within the cloud may generate the sprites.


title: Sprite (lightning)

text: Sprites have been blamed for otherwise unexplained accidents involving high altitude vehicular operations above thunderstorms. One example of this is the malfunction of a NASA stratospheric balloon launched on June 6, 1989, from Palestine, Texas. The balloon suffered an uncommanded payload release while flying at over a thunderstorm near Graham, Texas. Months after the accident, an investigation concluded that a "bolt of lightning" traveling upward from the clouds provoked the incident. The attribution of the accident to a sprite was made retroactively, since this term was not coined until late 1993.


title: 2008 Russian presidential election

text: Presidential elections were held in Russia on 2 March 2008, and resulted in the election of Dmitry Medvedev as the third President of Russia. Medvedev was elected for a four-year term, whose candidacy was supported by incumbent president Vladimir Putin and five political parties (United Russia, Fair Russia, Agrarian Party, Civilian Power, and Russian Ecological Party "The Greens"), received 71% of the vote, and defeated Gennady Zyuganov of the Communist Party of the Russian Federation, and Vladimir Zhirinovsky of the Liberal Democratic Party of Russia.


title: 2008 Russian presidential election

text: The fairness of the election was disputed, with official monitoring groups giving conflicting reports. Some reported that the election was free and fair, while others reported that not all candidates had equal media coverage and that the opposition to the Kremlin was treated unfairly. Monitoring groups found a number of other irregularities. The European election monitoring group PACE characterized the election as "neither free nor fair."


title: 2008 Russian presidential election

text: The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) election monitoring group refused to monitor the election because of what it called "severe restrictions on its observers by the Russian government", a charge Russia vehemently rejected, calling the decision "unacceptable".


title: 2008 Russian presidential election

text: Following his appointment as First Deputy Prime Minister, many political observers expected Medvedev to be nominated as Putin's successor for the 2008 presidential elections. There were other potential candidates, such as Sergey Ivanov and Viktor Zubkov, but on December 10, 2007, President Putin announced that Medvedev was his preferred successor. Four parties supporting Putin also declared Medvedev to be their candidate to the post – United Russia, A Just Russia, Agrarian Party of Russia and Civilian Power. United Russia held its party congress on December 17, 2007, where by secret ballot of the delegates, Medvedev was officially endorsed as their candidate in the 2008 presidential election. He formally registered his candidacy with the Central Election Commission on December 20, 2007, and said he would step down as chairman of Gazprom, since under the current laws, the president was not permitted to hold another post. Sources close to Gazprom and Medvedev told the Vedomosti newspaper that Medvedev might be replaced by Putin at Gazprom. His registration was formally accepted as valid by the Russian Central Election Commission on January 21, 2008.


title: 2008 Russian presidential election

text: In his first speech since he was endorsed, Medvedev announced that, as president, he would appoint Vladimir Putin to the post of prime minister to head the Russian government. Although constitutionally barred from a third consecutive presidential term, such a role would allow Putin to continue as an influential figure in Russian politics Putin pledged that he would accept the position of prime minister should Medvedev be elected president. Election posters portrayed the pair side by side with the slogan "Together we will win" ("").


title: 2008 Russian presidential election

text: During the pre-election debates on the Star TV on February 20, Nikolai Gotsa, a representative of Bogdanov, accused Vladimir Zhirinovsky and his party of lying to and betraying their supporters. He accused them of voting in favor of government initiatives they criticize when in public. Zhirinovsky replied fiercely, insulting Gotsa and calling him a "sick man, a schizoid", "bastard", and punched him when they went off the cameras. Bogdanov and Gotsa launched a legal issue against Zhirinovsky. On February 28, in another debate, Bogdanov claimed he had a personal talk with Zhirinovsky, and that the latter had threatened his life and demanded to withdraw the issue.


title: 2008 Russian presidential election

text: According to opinion polls taken prior to the election, up to 82% of people said that they would vote for Dmitry Medvedev, the candidate endorsed by Vladimir Putin as his preferred successor. The second most popular candidate was Gennady Zuganov, Leader of the Communist Party of Russia, who was expected to receive between 6% and 15% of the vote.


title: 2008 Russian presidential election

text: An opinion poll by the Yury Levada Analytical Center, taken in September after Vladimir Putin announced he would head the electoral list of United Russia in the 2007 Parliamentary elections, showed a commanding lead for Sergei Ivanov and Dmitry Medvedev, with 34% and 30% of the vote respectively. Viktor Zubkov and Sergei Glazyev received only 4% of the vote each.


title: 2008 Russian presidential election

text: The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, in its capacity as an international election standards watchdog, refused to monitor the election because of what it called severe restrictions on its observers by the Russian government. After weeks of negotiations, Russia agreed to increase the observer numbers for the ODIHR mission and extend the time frame for its visit, but the ODIHR claimed that the offer still didn't meet their requirements, insisting that it needed to send at least 50 of its observers to Russia on February 15, five days before the date proposed by Moscow, in order effectively monitor the election campaign.


title: 2008 Russian presidential election

text: Russia responded by insisting that it was complying fully with its international obligations and that its invitation for 400 monitors meets international standards. It accused the OSCE of attempting to politicize the dispute and that it suspected ODIHR's intention from the outset was to boycott the election, saying that the ODIHR had displayed "contempt for basic ethical norms ... which, it seems, indicates that ODIHR from the start was not even trying to agree on mutually acceptable conditions for monitoring."


title: 2008 Russian presidential election

text: Russia's Foreign Ministry spokesman, Mikhail Kamynin, said "The ODIHR flatly rejected a compromise without providing any clear explanations for its position. We believe such actions are unacceptable." Kamynin added that Moscow "deeply regretted" the OSCE refusal, accusing the organization, which he said generally sends 10-20 experts to observe election campaigns one or two weeks ahead of polls, of political bias against Russia.


title: 2008 Russian presidential election

text: An incident arose during the election when three out of nine members of the Biysk Electoral Commission refused to sign the protocols citing widespread falsifications in their "Priobsky Division". The rest of commission decided to approve the protocols as the alleged abuse was not reported during the election.


title: 2008 Russian presidential election

text: Representatives from the GOLOS monitoring group stated that "the Election Day was held in a relatively quiet atmosphere in contrast to the State Duma election day. Such large-scale violations observed then as campaigning next to polling stations, transporting of voters, intimidation of voters and others were practically non-existent." They did however report irregularities in the election.


title: 2008 Russian presidential election

text: The Commonwealth of Independent States observer mission said the election was free, fair and in line with international standards. "The CIS observer mission states that the election is a major factor in the further democratization of public life in the Russian Federation, and recognizes it as free, open and transparent," said Nauryz Aidarov, head of the CIS mission.


title: 2008 Russian presidential election

text: Observers from the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation said the election was free, fair and in line with international standards.


title: 2008 Russian presidential election

text: An observing group from Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe stated that the result of the election was a "reflection of the will of an electorate whose democratic potential was, unfortunately, not tapped". They said "In the elections, which had more the character of a plebiscite on the last eight years in this country, the people of Russia voted for the stability and continuity associated with the incumbent President and the candidate promoted by him. The President-elect will have a solid mandate given to him by the majority of Russians."


title: 2008 Russian presidential election

text: The head of Russia's electoral commission Vladimir Churov said that media coverage for the presidential election had been "fair but not equal".


title: 2008 Russian presidential election

text: "The Economist" reported that Medvedev has been mentioned over six times more often than his three rivals in 1,000 different news sources, according to figures from SCAN, a media database owned by Interfax, but stated that this could be due to Medvedev's high-profile job as chairman of the state-owned gas monopoly, Gazprom.


title: 2008 Russian presidential election

text: A report by the "International Herald Tribune" described Medvedev's election as "the culmination of Putin's efforts to consolidate control over the government, business and the news media since taking office eight years ago."


title: 2008 Russian presidential election

text: Russian "Novaya Gazeta" claimed that there were forged election protocols and cases when independent observers were not allowed to monitor the election process. Journalist Victor Shenderovich claims that only 3.5% of voters came to the elections in certain North Caucasus regions according to independent observers, whereas the Central Election committee reports more than 90% turnaround.


title: 2008 Russian presidential election

text: Medvedev was also endorsed by Agrarian Party, Fair Russia, Russian Ecological Party - "The Greens" and Civilian Power, but was officially nominated as a United Russia candidate.


title: 2008 Russian presidential election

text: According to Russia Today, many in the Western media portrayed Russia's presidential election as nothing but a farce. It reported that the claims of rigging the election were not supported by the various international election monitoring organizations in attendance.


title: 2008 Russian presidential election

text: Political analyst and United Russia member, Sergei Markov, said that the outcome of this poll was predetermined because of how much support the Russian people show for Vladimir Putin's policies. "The Russian people have seen how successful these policies have been, and they want them to continue", he says. Markov cited fears that the West would interfere and change the course of the election, like they did in Ukraine and Georgia.


title: Milan Borjan

text: Milan Borjan (; born 23 October 1987) is a professional soccer player who plays as a goalkeeper for Red Star Belgrade. Born in former Yugoslavia, he represents the Canadian national team.


title: Milan Borjan

text: Borjan was born on 23 October 1987 in Knin, SR Croatia, SFR Yugoslavia, to ethnic Serb parents Mirjana () and Boško Borjan. Through his paternal grandmother, he is also of Croat descent. Borjan got his first taste of organized football in the town, playing with the Dinara Knin youth side. Borjan's family lived in Knin until Operation Storm in 1995, at which point his family fled to Belgrade, and Borjan began playing soccer with FK Radnički Beograd. In 2000, the family emigrated to Canada, first living in Winnipeg, Manitoba for a few months, before settling in Hamilton, Ontario where his parents still reside. He attended Glendale Secondary School. He played youth soccer in Canada with East Hamilton SC for six months, before joining Mount Hamilton SC.


title: Milan Borjan

text: Borjan went on trial with Boca Juniors in 2005, but failed to sign a contract with the club. In 2006, he joined Club Nacional de Football in Montevideo, Uruguay, playing for their youth team, and in July 2007, he went on trial with the Argentine club Club Atlético River Plate. His final South American stint was with Quilmes, with whom he played from January 2008 through the end of the 2007–08 Primera B Nacional season.


title: Milan Borjan

text: Borjan returned to Serbia in January 2009, signing with the Belgrade Serbian SuperLiga club FK Rad. He initially had difficulty breaking into the team, signed as the third-string goalkeeper. However, due to trouble with the starting keeper's work permits, and an injury from the second string, Borjan soon became the only available goalkeeper on the club roster. He made his debut on 16 August 2009 in a 3–2 victory over FK Smederevo. By fall 2010, he was the starting keeper, with a nine-game winning streak. Under his tenure, FK Rad became fourth in the league, gaining them a berth in the 2011–12 UEFA Europa League qualifying rounds.


title: Milan Borjan

text: Following an appearance in the 2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup, Borjan joined the Turkish club Sivasspor, and made his debut on 11 September 2011 in a 2–1 loss against Karabükspor.


title: Milan Borjan

text: Due to a lack of playing time in Turkey, Borjan was loaned to Romanian club SC Vaslui in a deal that would keep him in Romania through the end of the season, with an option to purchase the player for an undisclosed transfer fee. Borjan joined the club as the starting goalkeeper and played seven clean sheet games in 16 starts, securing Vaslui a spot in the UEFA Champions League.


title: Milan Borjan

text: After returning from a successful stint in Romania, Borjan returned to the starting lineup in the third match of the 2012–13 season in a 0–0 draw against Fenerbahçe on 2 September 2012. In February 2014, following a decrease in playing time under new manager Roberto Carlos, Borjan's contract with Sivasspor was terminated. Speculation arose, after the termination, that a deal had been put in place for Borjan to join Napoli in June, as the Turkish Football Association blocked a January move.


title: Milan Borjan

text: Following reports that he had signed for Bosnian Premier League club Sarajevo as a free agent, Borjan accepted an offer from Bulgarian club PFC Ludogorets Razgrad on 12 September 2014. The club had already qualified for the 2014–15 UEFA Champions League group stage, and four days after signing, Borjan made his club debut in a 2–1 Champions League away defeat to Liverpool F.C. That game marked the first time that a Canadian international played in the group stage since Lars Hirschfeld played with Rosenborg BK in 2007. Razgrad released Borjan shortly thereafter, having secured first-choice goalkeeper Vladislav Stoyanov through the summer of 2015.


title: Milan Borjan

text: Spurning interest from Sarajevo, Borjan signed a one-year contract with SuperLiga club FK Radnički Niš on 15 February 2015. Due to his Serbian passport, Borjan did not count as a foreigner while playing at Radnički. He debuted in a 0–0 draw against Red Star Belgrade on 23 February, the first of three clean sheets in a row.


title: Milan Borjan

text: Borjan turned down a contract to return to Radnički, instead returning to the Bulgarian A Football Group of Ludogorets, where he signed a three-year deal on 2 June 2015. Although he was signed as the second-string goalkeeper, Borjan began to start after Stoyanov sustained a major injury.


title: Milan Borjan

text: On 15 February 2017, Borjan was loaned to the Ekstraklasa club Korona Kielce through the end of the season, where he made 14 league appearances and five clean sheets.


title: Milan Borjan

text: Three years after rumors of a transfer to Red Star Belgrade, Borjan made the transfer official, replacing Filip Manojlović on 24 July 2017. Borjan signed a three-year contract with the club and chose the jersey number 82. He made his debut in the first leg of the third qualifying round for the 2017–18 UEFA Europa League, keeping a clean sheet in a home victory against Sparta Prague on 27 July 2017. He played his first eternal derby with the club a month later.


title: Milan Borjan

text: In his second season with the club, Borjan would help Red Star qualify for the 2018–19 UEFA Champions League, and would earn two clean sheets: once in the group stage opener against Napoli, and again in a 2–0 home win against Liverpool. In February 2019, Zvezdan Terzić announced that Borjan would sign a contract extension until 2023, and would finish his career after that. He was honoured by Red Star shortly after as the club athlete of the year.


title: Milan Borjan

text: On 23 May 2022 Borjan notably scored a penalty for Red Star in their final game of the 2021–22 Serbian SuperLiga against Voždovac, as the club clinched their fifth-straight title. In July 2022, despite earlier talk of retirement after his current deal ended, Borjan signed a contract extension until 2026.


title: Milan Borjan

text: Borjan was called to join the Canada national team in 2010, following strong performances with FK Rad. He was called up to the Canadian senior team on 3 February 2011, and made his team debut in an exhibition game against Greece a week later. That summer, Borjan was called up to the 2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup roster, making his Gold Cup debut on 11 June 2011 in a 1–0 victory over Guadeloupe at Raymond James Stadium. He also recorded his first national team game on home soil at BMO Field on 1 June 2011 in an exhibition against Ecuador that ended in a 2–2 draw.


title: Milan Borjan

text: Due to the suspension of first choice goalkeeper Lars Hirschfeld, Borjan started in the 0:0 home draw against Honduras in a 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifier on 12 June 2012. Since the end of 2012, Borjan has been Canada's starting goalkeeper, named to the final squad in the 2013, 2017, and 2019 CONCACAF Gold Cup. He earned his first red card for Canada on 11 June 2015 in a 2018 World Cup qualifying match, handling the ball outside the box after a mistake from Julian de Guzman.


title: Milan Borjan

text: Borjan remained Canada's starting goalkeeper for the 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifiers. During this campaign, he played a crucial role in one of Canada's best ever results, making a goal-line save to keep Canada in the lead during stoppage time in a 2-1 victory over Mexico in Edmonton, Canada's first win against Mexico in 21 years. He also kept a clean sheet against the United States in a 2–0 victory in Hamilton, Ontario, after which he was named by Canada Soccer as Canada's player of the month for January. On November 13, 2022, Borjan was named to Canada's squad for the 2022 FIFA World Cup.


title: Milan Borjan

text: Borjan is married to Snežana Filipović, a former marketing director of FK Partizan and sister of Nenad Filipović. He has a younger brother, Nikola, who is also a goalkeeper in the Red Star system.


title: Xuande Emperor

text: The Xuande Emperor (16 March 1399 31 January 1435), personal name Zhu Zhanji (朱瞻基), was the fifth Emperor of the Ming dynasty, reigned from 1425 to 1435. His era name "Xuande" means "proclamation of virtue". Ruling over a relatively peaceful period within Ming history, he was also personally fond of painting and literature. The Emperor ordered tax reductions on burdened farmers and attempted to purge corruption from the revenue collectors. His attempts to reform meritocracy within the military was unsuccessful, and he was forced to declare independence to Vietnam when his invasion failed.


title: Xuande Emperor

text: Zhu Zhanji was the eldest son of the Hongxi Emperor and Empress Chengxiaozhao. He was described as a crown prince who was endowed with the quality of an excellent monarch in a section of his biography surrounded by superstition. His grandfather, the Yongle Emperor, had high hopes that he might play an important part to assist his father.


title: Xuande Emperor

text: He was fond of poetry and literature. Although he continued to refer to Beijing as the secondary capital on all official documents, he maintained it as his residence and continued to rule there in the style of his grandfather, the Yongle Emperor. He permitted Zheng He to lead the seventh and last of his maritime expeditions.


title: Xuande Emperor

text: The Xuande Emperor's uncle, Zhu Gaoxu, Prince of Han had been a favorite of the Yongle Emperor for his military successes, but he disobeyed imperial instructions and in 1417 had been exiled to the small fief of Le'an in Shandong. When Zhu Gaoxu revolted, the Xuande Emperor took 20,000 soldiers and attacked him at Le'an. Zhu Gaoxu surrendered soon afterward, was reduced to the status of a commoner. Six hundred rebelling officials were executed, and 2,200 were banished. The emperor did not wish to execute his uncle at the start, but later events angered the emperor so much that Zhu Gaoxu was executed through fire torture. All his sons were executed as well. It is very likely that Zhu Gaoxu's arrogance, well detailed in many historic texts, offended the emperor. A theory states that when the emperor went to visit his uncle, Zhu Gaoxu intentionally tripped him.


title: Xuande Emperor

text: In 1428, the Xuande Emperor granted King Hashi of Chūzan the family name Shang (尚, Shō in Japanese), gave him the title of "Liuqiu Wang" (琉球王, "Ryūkyū-Ō" in Japanese, lit. 'King of Ryūkyū'), and gifted him a red lacquered tablet with "Chung Shan" (中山, "Chūzan" in Japanese) inscribed in gold, which was then placed on the Chūzonmon gate near Shuri Castle.


title: Xuande Emperor

text: The Xuande Emperor wanted to withdraw his troops from Việt Nam, but some of his advisors disagreed. After Ming garrisons suffered heavy casualties, the emperor sent Liu Sheng with an army. These were badly defeated by the Vietnamese. The Ming forces withdrew and the Xuande Emperor eventually recognized the independence of Việt Nam. In the north, the Xuande Emperor was inspecting the border with 3,000 cavalry troops in 1428 and was able to retaliate against a raid by the Mongols of the Northern Yuan. The Ming government let Arughtai's Eastern Mongols battle with Toghon's Oirat tribes of the west. The Ming imperial court received horses annually from Arughtai, but he was defeated by the Oirats in 1431 and was killed in 1434 when Toghon took over eastern Mongolia. The Ming government then maintained friendly relations with the Oirats. China's diplomatic relations with Japan improved in 1432. Relations with Korea were generally good with the exception of the Koreans resenting having to send virgins occasionally to the Xuande Emperor's imperial harem.


title: Xuande Emperor

text: A privy council of eunuchs strengthened centralized power by controlling the Jinyiwei (secret police), and their influence continued to grow. In 1428, the notorious censor Liu Guan was sentenced to penal servitude and was replaced by the incorruptible Gu Zuo (d. 1446), who dismissed 43 members of the Beijing and Nanjing censorates for incompetence. Some censors were demoted, imprisoned, and banished, but none were executed. Replacements were put on probation as the censorate investigated the entire Ming administration including the military. The same year the emperor reformed the rules governing military conscription and the treatment of deserters. Yet the hereditary military continued to be inefficient and to suffer from poor morale. Huge inequalities in tax burdens had caused many farmers in some areas to leave their farms in the past forty years. In 1430, the Xuande Emperor ordered tax reductions on all imperial lands and sent out "touring pacifiers" to coordinate provincial administration, exercising civilian control over the military. They attempted to eliminate the irregularities and the corruption of the revenue collectors. The emperor often ordered retrials that allowed thousands of innocent people to be released.


title: Xuande Emperor

text: The Xuande Emperor died of illness in 1435 after ruling for ten years. He ruled over a remarkably peaceful period with no significant external or internal problems. Later historians have considered his reign to be the height of the Ming dynasty's golden age.


title: Xuande Emperor

text: The Xuande Emperor was known as an accomplished painter, particularly skilled at painting animals. Some of his art work is preserved in the National Palace Museum, Taipei and formerly in the Arthur M. Sackler Museum (a division of Harvard Art Museum) in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Robert D. Mowry, the curator of Chinese art at the Arthur M. Sackler Museum, described him as "the only Ming emperor who displayed genuine artistic talent and interest."


title: Xuande Emperor

text: The period of the Xuande Emperor (1426–1435) is often considered one of the most sophisticated periods in the history of Chinese Blue and White porcelain crafts.


title: Badminton World Federation

text: The Badminton World Federation (BWF) is the international governing body for the sport of badminton recognised by the International Olympic Committee (IOC). It was founded in 1934 as the International Badminton Federation (IBF) with nine member nations (Canada, Denmark, England, France, Ireland, Netherlands, New Zealand, Scotland and Wales). In 1981 the IBF merged with the World Badminton Federation, and on 24 September 2006, at the Extraordinary General Meeting in Madrid, the name of the organization was changed to Badminton World Federation (BWF).


title: Badminton World Federation

text: When the BWF was founded (as the IBF), its head office was located in Cheltenham, UK. The head office was relocated to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on October 1, 2005. Poul-Erik Høyer Larsen is the current president. The BWF currently has 176 member nations around the world, organized into 5 continental confederations.


title: Badminton World Federation

text: The BWF works in co-operation with regional governing bodies to promote and develop the sport of badminton around the world, they are:


title: Badminton World Federation

text: The BWF World Ranking and BWF World Junior Ranking are introduced to determine the strength of the players. BWF World Ranking is used for determining the qualification for entry and seeding for the BWF-sanctioned tournament. The points awarded is based on the final results of each tournament participated for the past 52 weeks. Junior Ranking consists of players under 19 years old.


title: Badminton World Federation

text: The BWF regularly organises seven major international badminton events and two events for para-badminton:


title: Badminton World Federation

text: Grade 2 tournaments, known as BWF World Tour was sanctioned into six levels with different world ranking points awarded, as order they are:


title: Badminton World Federation

text: Grade 3 tournaments, known as Continental Circuit was sanctioned into three levels with different world ranking points awarded, as order they are:


title: Badminton World Federation

text: The BWF bestows special honours onto players, umpires, sponsors, and other individuals for their achievement in badminton or for their contributions to badminton.


title: Badminton World Federation

text: Over the years, the organization has had several logos. Originally it used the IBF logo. As the BWF, a new logo was adopted in 2007. In 2012 it adopted a new, streamlined logo.


title: Border Terrier

text: The Border Terrier is a British breed of small, rough-coated terrier. It originates from the area of the Anglo-Scottish border, and shares ancestry with the Dandie Dinmont Terrier and the Bedlington Terrier from the same area. The dogs were traditionally used in fox-hunting, and worked with the Border Hunt in Northumberland.


title: Border Terrier

text: The breed was officially recognised by The Kennel Club in Great Britain in 1920, and by the American Kennel Club in 1930.


title: Border Terrier

text: Originally the Border Terrier was referred to as the Coquetdale Terrier or Redesdale Terrier from the area in which it evolved, but by the late 1800s it was generally known as the Border Terrier, probably because of its long history with the Border Hunt in Northumberland. It shares its ancestry with that of the Bedlington Terrier and the Dandie Dinmont Terrier. It was recognised as a breed by the Kennel Club in 1920, the same year The Border Terrier Club was formed. Their original purpose was to bolt foxes which had gone to ground. They were also used to kill rodents, but they have been used to hunt otters and badgers too.


title: Border Terrier

text: The first Kennel Club Border Terrier ever registered was The Moss Trooper, a dog sired by Jacob Robson's Chip in 1912 and registered in the Kennel Club's Any Other Variety listing in 1913. The Border Terrier was rejected for formal Kennel Club recognition in 1914, but won its slot in 1920, with the first standard being written by Jacob Robson and John Dodd. Jasper Dodd was made first President of the club.


title: Border Terrier

text: In 2006, the Border Terrier ranked 81st in number of registrations by the AKC, while it ranked tenth in the United Kingdom.


title: Border Terrier

text: The Border Terrier was bred to have long enough legs to keep up with the horses and other foxhounds, which travelled with them, and small enough bodies to crawl in the burrows of foxes and chase them out so the hunters had a blank shot. The foxhounds that travelled with them were not small enough to do the Border Terrier's job.


title: Border Terrier

text: Border Terriers have a broad skull and moderately short muzzle, and strong teeth. The V-shaped ears are on the sides of the head and fall towards the cheeks. Common coat colours are grizzle-and-tan, blue-and-tan, red, or wheaten. Whiskers are few and short. The tail is naturally moderately short, thick at the base and tapering.


title: Border Terrier

text: The Border Terrier has a double coat consisting of a short, dense, soft undercoat and harsh, wiry weather- and dirt-resistant, close-lying outer coat with no curl or wave.


title: Border Terrier

text: Borders are a generally hardy breed, though there are certain genetic health problems associated with them, including:


title: Border Terrier

text: A UK Kennel Club survey puts their median lifespan at 14 years and listed a maximum age of 22 years, one month.


title: Yupik peoples

text: The Yupik (plural: Yupiit) (; ) are a group of indigenous or aboriginal peoples of western, southwestern, and southcentral Alaska and the Russian Far East. They are related to the Inuit and Iñupiat. Yupik peoples include the following:


title: Yupik peoples

text: The Yup'ik are by far the most numerous of the various Alaska Native groups. They speak the Central Alaskan Yup'ik language, a member of the Eskimo–Aleut family of languages.


title: Yupik peoples

text: As of the 2002 United States Census, the Yupik population in the United States numbered more than 24,000, of whom more than 22,000 lived in Alaska, the vast majority in the seventy or so communities in the traditional Yup'ik territory of western and southwestern Alaska. United States census data for Yupik include 2,355 Sugpiat; there are also 1,700 Yupik living in Russia. According to 2019-based United States Census Bureau data, there are 700 Alaskan Natives in Seattle, many of whom are Inuit and Yupik, and almost 7,000 in the state of Washington.


title: Yupik peoples

text: "Yup'ik" (plural "Yupiit") comes from the Yup'ik word "yuk" meaning "person" plus the post-base "-pik" meaning "real" or "genuine". Thus, it literally means "real people." The ethnographic literature sometimes refers to the Yup'ik people or their language as "Yuk" or "Yuit". In the Hooper Bay-Chevak and Nunivak dialects of Yup'ik, both the language and the people are known as "Cup'ik".


title: Yupik peoples

text: The use of an apostrophe in the name "Yup’ik", compared to Siberian "Yupik", exemplifies the Central Alaskan Yup’ik's orthography, where "the apostrophe represents gemination [or lengthening] of the ‘p’ sound".


title: Yupik peoples

text: The common ancestors of the Eskimo and Aleut (as well as various Paleo-Siberian groups) are believed by anthropologists to have their origin in eastern Siberia, arriving in the Bering Sea area approximately 10,000 years ago. Research on blood types, supported by later linguistic and DNA findings, suggests that the ancestors of other indigenous peoples of the Americas reached North America before the ancestors of the Eskimo and Aleut. There appear to have been several waves of migration from Siberia to the Americas by way of the Bering land bridge, which became exposed between 20,000 and 8,000 years ago during periods of glaciation. By about 3,000 years ago, the progenitors of the Yupiit had settled along the coastal areas of what would become western Alaska, with migrations up the coastal rivers—notably the Yukon and Kuskokwim—around 1400 AD, eventually reaching as far upriver as Paimiut on the Yukon and Crow Village on the Kuskokwim.


title: Yupik peoples

text: Traditionally, families spent the spring and summer at fish camp, then joined with others at village sites for the winter. Many families still harvest the traditional subsistence resources, especially Pacific salmon and seal.


title: Yupik peoples

text: The men's communal house, the "qasgiq", was the community center for ceremonies and festivals that included singing, dancing, and storytelling. The qasgiq was used mainly during the winter months, because people would travel in family groups following food sources throughout the spring, summer, and fall months. Aside from ceremonies and festivals, the qasgiq was also where the men taught the young boys survival and hunting skills, as well as other life lessons. The young boys were also taught how to make tools and "qayaq" (kayaks) during the winter months in the qasgiq. The ceremonies involve a shaman.


title: Yupik peoples

text: The women's house, the "ena", was traditionally right next door. In some areas the two communal houses were connected by a tunnel. Women taught the young girls how to tan hides and sew, process and cook game and fish, and weave. Boys would live with their mothers until they were approximately five years old, then they would join the men in the qasgiq.


title: Yupik peoples

text: For a period varying between three and six weeks, the boys and girls would switch cultural educational situations, with the men teaching the girls survival, hunting skills, and toolmaking, and the women teaching the boys the skills they taught to the girls.


title: Yupik peoples

text: In Yup'ik group dances, individuals often remain stationary while moving their upper body and arms rhythmically, their gestures accentuated by handheld dance fans, very similar in design to Cherokee dance fans. The limited motion by no means limits the expressiveness of the dances, which can be gracefully flowing, bursting with energy, or wryly humorous.


title: Yupik peoples

text: The Yup'ik are unique among native peoples of the Americas in that they name children after the most recent person in the community to have died.


title: Yupik peoples

text: The "kuspuk" ("qaspeq") is a traditional Yup'ik garment worn by both genders. In Alaska, it is worn in both casual and formal settings.


title: Yupik peoples

text: Five Yupik languages (related to Inuktitut) are still very widely spoken; more than 75% of the Yupik/Yup'ik population are fluent in the language.


title: Yupik peoples

text: Like the Alaskan Iñupiat, the Alaskan and Siberian Yupik adopted the system of writing developed by Moravian Church missionaries during the 1760s in Greenland. The Alaskan Yupik and Iñupiat are the only northern indigenous peoples to have developed their own system of picture writing, but this system died with its creators. Late 19th century Moravian missionaries to the Yupik in southwestern Alaska used Yupik in church services, and translated the scriptures into the people's language.


title: Yupik peoples

text: Russian explorers in the 1800s erroneously identified the Yupik people bordering the territory of the somewhat unrelated Aleut as also Aleut, or "Alutiiq", in Yupik. By tradition, this term has remained in use, as well as "Sugpiaq", both of which refer to the Yupik of Southcentral Alaska and Kodiak.


title: Philosophical skepticism

text: Philosophical skepticism (UK spelling: scepticism; from Greek σκέψις "skepsis", "inquiry") is a family of philosophical views that question the possibility of knowledge. It differs from other forms of skepticism in that it even rejects very plausible knowledge claims that belong to basic common sense. Philosophical skeptics are often classified into two general categories: Those who deny all possibility of knowledge, and those who advocate for the suspension of judgment due to the inadequacy of evidence. This distinction is modeled after the differences between the Academic skeptics and the Pyrrhonian skeptics in ancient Greek philosophy. In the latter sense, skepticism is understood as a way of life that helps the practitioner achieve inner peace. Some types of philosophical skepticism reject all forms of knowledge while others limit this rejection to certain fields, for example, to knowledge about moral doctrines or about the external world. Some theorists criticize philosophical skepticism based on the claim that it is a self-refuting idea since its proponents seem to claim to "know" that there is no knowledge. Other objections focus on its implausibility and distance from regular life.


title: Philosophical skepticism

text: Philosophical skepticism is a doubtful attitude toward commonly accepted knowledge claims. It is an important form of skepticism. Skepticism in general is a questioning attitude toward all kinds of knowledge claims. In this wide sense, it is quite common in everyday life: many people are ordinary skeptics about parapsychology or about astrology because they doubt the claims made by proponents of these fields. But the same people are not skeptical about other knowledge claims like the ones found in regular school books. Philosophical skepticism differs from ordinary skepticism in that it even rejects knowledge claims that belong to basic common sense and seem to be very certain. For this reason, it is sometimes referred to as "radical doubt". In some cases, it is even proclaimed that one does not know that "I have two hands" or that "the sun will come out tomorrow". In this regard, philosophical skepticism is not a position commonly adopted by regular people in everyday life. This denial of knowledge is usually associated with the demand that one should suspend one's beliefs about the doubted proposition. This means that one should neither believe nor disbelieve it but keep an open mind without committing oneself one way or the other. Philosophical skepticism is often based on the idea that no matter how certain one is about a given belief, one could still be wrong about it. From this observation, it is argued that the belief does not amount to knowledge. Philosophical skepticism follows from the consideration that this might be the case for most or all beliefs. Because of its wide-ranging consequences, it is of central interest to theories of knowledge since it questions their very foundations.


title: Philosophical skepticism

text: According to some definitions, philosophical skepticism is not just the rejection of some forms of commonly accepted knowledge but the rejection of all forms of knowledge. In this regard, we may have relatively secure beliefs in some cases but these beliefs never amount to knowledge. Weaker forms of philosophical skepticism restrict this rejection to specific fields, like the external world or moral doctrines. In some cases, knowledge per se is not rejected but it is still denied that one can ever be absolutely certain.


title: Philosophical skepticism

text: There are only few defenders of philosophical skepticism in the strong sense. In this regard, it is much more commonly used as a theoretical tool to test theories. On this view, it is a philosophical methodology that can be utilized to probe a theory to find its weak points, either to expose it or to modify it in order to arrive at a better version of it. However, some theorists distinguish philosophical skepticism from methodological skepticism in that philosophical skepticism is an approach that questions the possibility of certainty in knowledge, whereas methodological skepticism is an approach that subjects all knowledge claims to scrutiny with the goal of sorting out true from false claims. Similarly, scientific skepticism differs from philosophical skepticism in that scientific skepticism is an epistemological position in which one questions the veracity of claims lacking empirical evidence. In practice, the term most commonly references the examination of claims and theories that appear to be pseudoscience, rather than the routine discussions and challenges among scientists.


title: Philosophical skepticism

text: In ancient philosophy, skepticism was seen not just as a theory about the existence of knowledge but as a way of life. This outlook is motivated by the idea that suspending one's judgment on all kinds of issues brings with it inner peace and thereby contributes to the skeptic's happiness.


title: Philosophical skepticism

text: Skepticism can be classified according to its scope. Local skepticism involves being skeptical about particular areas of knowledge (e.g. moral skepticism, skepticism about the external world, or skepticism about other minds), whereas radical skepticism claims that one cannot know anything—including that one cannot know about knowing anything.


title: Philosophical skepticism

text: Skepticism can also be classified according to its method. Western philosophy has two basic approaches to skepticism. Cartesian skepticism—named somewhat misleadingly after René Descartes, who was not a skeptic but used some traditional skeptical arguments in his Meditations to help establish his rationalist approach to knowledge—attempts to show that any proposed knowledge claim can be doubted. Agrippan skepticism focuses on justification rather than the possibility of doubt. According to this view, none of the ways in which one might attempt to justify a claim are adequate. One can justify a claim based on other claims, but this leads to an infinite regress of justifications. One can use a dogmatic assertion, but this is not a justification. One can use circular reasoning, but this fails to justify the conclusion.


title: Philosophical skepticism

text: A skeptical scenario is a hypothetical situation which can be used in an argument for skepticism about a particular claim or class of claims. Usually the scenario posits the existence of a deceptive power that deceives our senses and undermines the justification of knowledge otherwise accepted as justified, and is proposed in order to call into question our ordinary claims to knowledge on the grounds that we cannot exclude the possibility of skeptical scenarios being true. Skeptical scenarios have received a great deal of attention in modern Western philosophy.


title: Philosophical skepticism

text: The first major skeptical scenario in modern Western philosophy appears in René Descartes' "Meditations on First Philosophy". At the end of the first Meditation Descartes writes: "I will suppose... that some evil demon of the utmost power and cunning has employed all his energies to deceive me."


title: Philosophical skepticism

text: Skepticism, as an epistemological view, calls into question whether knowledge is possible at all. This is distinct from other known skeptical practices, including Cartesian skepticism, as it targets knowledge in general instead of individual types of knowledge.


title: Philosophical skepticism

text: Skeptics argue that belief in something does not justify an assertion of knowledge of it. In this, skeptics oppose foundationalism, which states that there are basic positions that are self-justified or beyond justification, without reference to others. (One example of such foundationalism may be found in Spinoza's "Ethics".) The skeptical response to this can take several approaches. First, claiming that "basic positions" must exist amounts to the logical fallacy of argument from ignorance combined with the slippery slope.


title: Philosophical skepticism

text: Among other arguments, skeptics use the Münchhausen trilemma and the problem of the criterion to claim that no certain belief can be achieved. This position is known as "global skepticism" or "radical skepticism." Foundationalists have used the same as a justification for demanding the validity of basic beliefs. Epistemological nihilism rejects the possibility of human knowledge, but not necessarily knowledge in general.


title: Philosophical skepticism

text: There are two different categories of epistemological skepticism, which can be referred to as mitigated and unmitigated skepticism. The two forms are contrasting but are still true forms of skepticism. Mitigated skepticism does not accept "strong" or "strict" knowledge claims but does, however, approve specific weaker ones. These weaker claims can be assigned the title of "virtual knowledge", but must be to justified belief. Some mitigated skeptics are also fallibilists, arguing that knowledge does not require certainty. Mitigated skeptics hold that knowledge does not require certainty and that many beliefs are, in practice, certain to the point that they can be safely acted upon in order to live significant and meaningful lives. Unmitigated skepticism rejects both claims of virtual knowledge and strong knowledge. Characterising knowledge as strong, weak, virtual or genuine can be determined differently depending on a person's viewpoint as well as their characterisation of knowledge. Unmitigated skeptics believe that objective truths are unknowable and that man should live in an isolated environment in order to win mental peace. This is because everything, according to them, is changing and relative. The refusal to make judgments is of uttermost importance since there is no knowledge; only probable opinions.


title: Philosophical skepticism

text: Philosophical skepticism has been criticized in various ways. Some criticisms see it as a self-refuting idea while others point out that it is implausible, psychologically impossible, or a pointless intellectual game. One of the strongest criticisms claims that philosophical skepticism is contradictory or self-refuting. This position is based on the idea that it not only rejects the existence of knowledge but seems to make knowledge claims itself at the same time. For example, to claim that there is no knowledge seems to be itself a knowledge claim. This problem is particularly relevant for versions of philosophical skepticism that deny any form of knowledge. So the global skeptic denies that any claim is rationally justified but then goes on to provide arguments in an attempt to rationally justify their denial. Some philosophical skeptics have responded to this objection by restricting the denial of knowledge to certain fields without denying the existence of knowledge in general. Another defense consists in understanding philosophical skepticism not as a theory but as a tool or a methodology. In this case, it may be used fruitfully to reject and improve philosophical systems despite its shortcomings as a theory.


title: Philosophical skepticism

text: Another criticism holds that philosophical skepticism is highly counterintuitive by pointing out how far removed it is from regular life. For example, it seems very impractical, if not psychologically impossible, to suspend all beliefs at the same time. And even if it was possible, it would not be advisable since "the complete skeptic would wind up starving to death or walking into walls or out of windows". This criticism can allow that there are some arguments that support philosophical skepticism. However, it has been claimed that they are not nearly strong enough to support such a radical conclusion. Common-sense philosophers follow this line of thought by arguing that regular common-sense beliefs are much more reliable than the skeptics' intricate arguments. George Edward Moore, for example, tried to refute skepticism about the existence of the external world, not by engaging with its complex arguments, but by using a simple observation: that he has two hands. For Moore, this observation is a reliable source of knowledge incompatible with external world skepticism since it entails that at least two physical objects exist.


title: Philosophical skepticism

text: A closely related objection sees philosophical skepticism as an "idle academic exercise" or a "waste of time". This is often based on the idea that, because of its initial implausibility and distance from everyday life, it has little or no practical value. In this regard, Arthur Schopenhauer compares the position of radical skepticism to a border fortress that is best ignored: it is impregnable but its garrison does not pose any threat since it never sets foot outside the fortress. One defense of philosophical skepticism is that it has had important impacts on the history of philosophy at large and not just among skeptical philosophers. This is due to its critical attitude, which remains a constant challenge to the epistemic foundations of various philosophical theories. It has often provoked creative responses from other philosophers when trying to modify the affected theory to avoid the problem of skepticism.


title: Philosophical skepticism

text: According to Pierre Le Morvan, there are two very common negative responses to philosophical skepticism. The first understands it as a threat to all kinds of philosophical theories and strives to disprove it. According to the second, philosophical skepticism is a useless distraction and should better be avoided altogether. Le Morvan himself proposes a positive third alternative: to use it as a philosophical tool in a few selected cases to overcome prejudices and foster practical wisdom.


title: Philosophical skepticism

text: Ancient Greek skeptics were not "skeptics" in the contemporary sense of selective, localized doubt. Their concerns were epistemological, noting that truth claims could not be adequately supported, and psychotherapeutic, noting that beliefs caused mental perturbation.


title: Philosophical skepticism

text: The Western tradition of systematic skepticism goes back at least as far as Pyrrho of Elis (b. ) and arguably to Xenophanes (b. ). Parts of skepticism also appear among the "5th century sophists [who] develop forms of debate which are ancestors of skeptical argumentation. They take pride in arguing in a persuasive fashion for both sides of an issue."


title: Philosophical skepticism

text: In Hellenistic philosophy, Pyrrhonism and Academic Skepticism were the two schools of skeptical philosophy. Subsequently, the words "Academic" and "Pyrrhonist" were often be used to mean "skeptic."


title: Philosophical skepticism

text: Like other Hellenistic philosophies, the goal of Pyrrhonism was eudaimonia, which the Pyrrhonists sought through achieving ataraxia (an untroubled state of mind), which they found could be induced by producing a state of epoché (suspension of judgment) regarding non-evident matters. Epoché could be produced by pitting one dogma against another to undermine belief, and by questioning whether a belief could be justified. In support of this questioning Pyrrhonists developed the skeptical arguments cited above (the Ten Modes of Aenesidemus and the Five Modes of Agrippa) demonstrating that beliefs cannot be justified:


title: Philosophical skepticism

text: According to an account of Pyrrho's life by his student Timon of Phlius, Pyrrho extolled a way to become happy and tranquil:


title: Philosophical skepticism

text: "Whoever wants to live well (eudaimonia) must consider these three questions: First, how are "pragmata" (ethical matters, affairs, topics) by nature? Secondly, what attitude should we adopt towards them? Thirdly, what will be the outcome for those who have this attitude?" Pyrrho's answer is that "As for "pragmata" they are all adiaphora (undifferentiated by a logical differentia), "astathmēta" (unstable, unbalanced, not measurable), and "anepikrita" (unjudged, unfixed, undecidable). Therefore, neither our sense-perceptions nor our "doxai" (views, theories, beliefs) tell us the truth or lie; so we certainly should not rely on them. Rather, we should be "adoxastous" (without views), "aklineis" (uninclined toward this side or that), and "akradantous" (unwavering in our refusal to choose), saying about every single one that it no more is than it is not or it both is and is not or it neither is nor is not.


title: Philosophical skepticism

text: Pyrrhonism faded as a movement following the death of Pyrrho's student Timon. The Academy became slowly more dogmatic such that in the first century BCE Aenesidemus denounced the Academics as "Stoics fighting against Stoics," breaking with the Academy to revive Pyrrhonism. Aenesidemus's best known contribution to skepticism was his now-lost book, "Pyrrhonian Discourses", which is only known to us through Photius, Sextus Empiricus, and to a lesser extent Diogenes Laërtius. The skeptical arguments most closely associated with Aenesidemus are the ten modes described above designed to induce "epoche."


title: Philosophical skepticism

text: The works of Sextus Empiricus (c. 200 CE) are the main surviving account of ancient Pyrrhonism. Long before Sextus' time, the Academy had abandoned skepticism and had been destroyed as a formal institution. Sextus compiled and further developed the Pyrrhonists' skeptical arguments, most of which were directed against the Stoics but included arguments against all of the schools of Hellenistic philosophy, including the Academic skeptics.


title: Philosophical skepticism

text: Sextus, as the most systematic author of the works by Hellenistic skeptics which have survived, noted that there are at least "ten modes" of skepticism. These modes may be broken down into three categories: one may be skeptical of "the subjective perceiver, of the objective world", and "the relation between perceiver and the world". His arguments are as follows.


title: Philosophical skepticism

text: "Subjectively", both the powers of the senses and of reasoning may vary among different people. And since knowledge is a product of one or the other, and since neither are reliable, knowledge would seem to be in trouble. For instance, a color-blind person sees the world quite differently from everyone else. Moreover, one cannot even give preference on the basis of the power of reason, i.e., by treating the rational animal as a carrier of greater knowledge than the irrational animal, since the irrational animal is still adept at navigating their environment, which suggests the ability to "know" about some aspects of the environment.


title: Philosophical skepticism

text: Secondly, the personality of the individual might also influence what they observe, since (it is argued) preferences are based on sense-impressions, differences in preferences can be attributed to differences in the way that people are affected by the object. (Empiricus:56)


title: Philosophical skepticism

text: Third, the perceptions of each individual sense seemingly have nothing in common with the other senses: i.e., the color "red" has little to do with the feeling of touching a red object. This is manifest when our senses "disagree" with each other: for example, a mirage presents certain visible features, but is not responsive to any other kind of sense. In that case, our other senses defeat the impressions of sight. But one may also be lacking enough powers of sense to understand the world in its entirety: if one had an extra sense, then one might know of things in a way that the present five senses are unable to advise us of. Given that our senses can be shown to be unreliable by appealing to other senses, and so our senses may be incomplete (relative to some more perfect sense that one lacks), then it follows that all of our senses may be unreliable. (Empiricus:58)


title: Philosophical skepticism

text: Fourth, our circumstances when one perceives anything may be either natural or unnatural, i.e., one may be either in a state of wakefulness or sleep. But it is entirely possible that things in the world really are exactly as they appear to be to those in unnatural states (i.e., if everything were an elaborate dream). (Empiricus:59)


title: Philosophical skepticism

text: One can have reasons for doubt that are based on the "relationship between objective "facts" and subjective experience". The positions, distances, and places of objects would seem to affect how they are perceived by the person: for instance, the portico may appear tapered when viewed from one end, but symmetrical when viewed at the other; and these features are different. Because they are different features, to believe the object has both properties at the same time is to believe it has two contradictory properties. Since this is absurd, one must suspend judgment about what properties it possesses due to the contradictory experiences. (Empiricus:63)


title: Philosophical skepticism

text: One may also observe that the things one perceives are, in a sense, polluted by experience. Any given perception—say, of a chair—will always be perceived within some context or other (i.e., next to a table, on a mat, etc.) Since this is the case, one often only speaks of ideas as they occur in the context of the other things that are paired with it, and therefore, one can never know of the true nature of the thing, but only how it appears to us in context. (Empiricus: 64)


title: Philosophical skepticism

text: Finally, one has reason to disbelieve that one knows anything by looking at problems in understanding objects by themselves. Things, when taken individually, may appear to be very different from when they are in mass quantities: for instance, the shavings of a goat's horn are white when taken alone, yet the horn intact is black.


title: Philosophical skepticism

text: The ancient Greek Pyrrhonists developed sets of arguments to demonstrate that claims about reality cannot be adequately justified. Two sets of these arguments are well known. The oldest set is known as the ten tropes of Aenesidemus—although whether he invented the tropes or just systematized them from prior Pyrrhonist works is unknown. The tropes represent reasons for epoché (suspension of judgment). These are as follows:


title: Philosophical skepticism

text: According to Victor Brochard "the five tropes can be regarded as the most radical and most precise formulation of philosophical skepticism that has ever been given. In a sense, they are still irresistible today."


title: Philosophical skepticism

text: Pyrrho's thinking subsequently influenced the Platonic Academy, arising first in the Academic skepticism of the Middle Academy under Arcesilaus (c. 315 – 241 BCE) and then the New Academy under Carneades (c. 213–129 BCE). Clitomachus, a student of Carneades, interpreted his teacher's philosophy as suggesting an account of knowledge based on truth-likeness. The Roman politician and philosopher, Cicero, was also an adherent of the skepticism of the New Academy, even though a return to a more dogmatic orientation of the school was already beginning to take place.


title: Philosophical skepticism

text: In 386 CE, Augustine published "Contra Academicos" (Against the Academic Skeptics), which argued against claims made by the Academic Skeptics (266–90 BCE) on the following grounds:


title: Philosophical skepticism

text: Francisco Sanches's "That Nothing is Known" (published in 1581 as "Quod nihil scitur") is one of the crucial texts of Renaissance skepticism.


title: Philosophical skepticism

text: The most notable figure of the Skepticism revival in the 1500s, Michel de Montaigne wrote about his studies of Academic Skepticism and Pyrrhonism through his Essais.


title: Philosophical skepticism

text: His most notable writings on skepticism occurred in an essay written mostly in 1575–1576, "Apologie de Raimond Sebond," when he was reading Sextus Empiricus and trying to translate Raimond Sebond's writing, including his proof of Christianity's natural existence. The reception to Montaigne's translations included some criticisms of Sebond's proof. Montaigne responded to some of them in "Apologie," including a defense for Sebond's logic that is skeptical in nature and similar to Pyrrhonism. His refutation is as follows:


title: Philosophical skepticism

text: Marin Mersenne was an author, mathematician, scientist, and philosopher. He wrote in defense of science and Christianity against atheists and Pyrrhonists before retiring to encourage development of science and the "new philosophy," which includes philosophers like Gassendi, Descartes, Galileo, and Hobbes. A major work of his in relation to Skepticism is "La Verité des Sciences", in which he argues that although we may not be able to know the true nature of things, we can still formulate certain laws and rules for sense-perceptions through science.


title: Philosophical skepticism

text: A Pyrrhonist might refute these points by saying that senses deceive, and thus knowledge turns into infinite regress or circular logic. Thus Mersenne argues that this cannot be the case, since commonly agreed upon rules of thumb can be hypothesized and tested over time to ensure that they continue to hold.


title: Philosophical skepticism

text: Furthermore, if everything can be doubted, the doubt can also be doubted, so on and so forth. Thus, according to Mersenne, something has to be true. Finally, Mersenne writes about all the mathematical, physical, and other scientific knowledge that is true by repeated testing, and has practical use value. Notably, Mersenne was one of the few philosophers who accepted Hobbes' radical ideology—he saw it as a new science of man.


title: Philosophical skepticism

text: During his long stay in Paris, Thomas Hobbes was actively involved in the circle of major skeptics like Gassendi and Mersenne who focus on the study of skepticism and epistemology. Unlike his fellow skeptic friends, Hobbes never treated skepticism as a main topic for discussion in his works. Nonetheless, Hobbes was still labeled as a religious skeptic by his contemporaries for raising doubts about Mosaic authorship of the Pentateuch and his political and psychological explanation of the religions. Although Hobbes himself did not go further to challenge other religious principles, his suspicion for the Mosaic authorship did significant damage to the religious traditions and paved the way for later religious skeptics like Spinoza and Isaac La Peyrère to further question some of the fundamental beliefs of the Judeo-Christian religious system. Hobbes' answer to skepticism and epistemology was innovatively political: he believed that moral knowledge and religious knowledge were in their nature relative, and there was no absolute standard of truth governing them. As a result, it was out of political reasons that certain truth standards about religions and ethics were devised and established in order to form a functioning government and stable society.


title: Philosophical skepticism

text: Baruch Spinoza was among the first European philosophers who were religious skeptics. He was quite familiar with the philosophy of Descartes and unprecedentedly extended the application of the Cartesian method to the religious context by analyzing religious texts with it. Spinoza sought to dispute the knowledge-claims of the Judeo-Christian-Islamic religious system by examining its two foundations: the Scripture and the Miracles. He claimed that all Cartesian knowledge, or the rational knowledge should be accessible to the entire population. Therefore, the Scriptures, aside from those by Jesus, should not be considered the secret knowledge attained from God but just the imagination of the prophets. The Scriptures, as a result of this claim, could not serve as a base for knowledge and were reduced to simple ancient historical texts. Moreover, Spinoza also rejected the possibility for the Miracles by simply asserting that people only considered them miraculous due to their lack of understanding of the nature. By rejecting the validity of the Scriptures and the Miracles, Spinoza demolished the foundation for religious knowledge-claim and established his understanding of the Cartesian knowledge as the sole authority of knowledge-claims. Despite being deeply skeptical of the religions, Spinoza was in fact exceedingly anti-skeptical towards reason and rationality. He steadfastly confirmed the legitimacy of reason by associating it with the acknowledgement of God, and thereby skepticism with the rational approach to knowledge was not due to problems with the rational knowledge but from the fundamental lack of understanding of God. Spinoza's religious skepticism and anti-skepticism with reason thus helped him transform epistemology by separating the theological knowledge-claims and the rational knowledge-claims.


title: Philosophical skepticism

text: Pierre Bayle was a French philosopher in the late 17th century that was described by Richard Popkin to be a "supersceptic" who carried out the sceptic tradition to the extreme. Bayle was born in a Calvinist family in Carla-Bayle, and during the early stage of his life, he converted into Catholicism before returning to Calvinism. This conversion between religions caused him to leave France for the more religiously tolerant Holland where he stayed and worked for the rest of his life.


title: Philosophical skepticism

text: Bayle believed that truth cannot be obtained through reason and that all human endeavor to acquire absolute knowledge would inevitably lead to failure. Bayle's main approach was highly skeptical and destructive: he sought to examine and analyze all existing theories in all fields of human knowledge in order to show the faults in their reasoning and thus the absurdity of the theories themselves. In his "magnum opus, Dictionnaire Historique et Critique" "(Historical and Critical Dictionary)," Bayle painstakingly identified the logical flaws in several works throughout the history in order to emphasize the absolute futility of rationality. Bayle's complete nullification of reason led him to conclude that faith is the final and only way to truth.


title: Philosophical skepticism

text: Bayle's real intention behind his extremely destructive works remained controversial. Some described him to be a Fideist, while others speculated him to be a secret Atheist. However, no matter what his original intention was, Bayle did cast significant influence on the upcoming Age of Enlightenment with his destruction of some of the most essential theological ideas and his justification of religious tolerance Atheism in his works.


title: Philosophical skepticism

text: David Hume was among the most influential proponents of philosophical skepticism during the Age of Enlightenment and one of the most notable voices of the Scottish Enlightenment and British Empiricism. He especially espoused skepticism regarding inductive reasoning, and questioned what the foundation of morality was, creating the is–ought problem. His approach to skepticism is considered even more radical than that of Descartes.


title: Philosophical skepticism

text: Hume argued that any coherent idea must be either a mental copy of an impression (a direct sensory perception) or copies of multiple impressions innovatively combined. Since certain human activities like religion, superstition, and metaphysics are not premised on any actual sense-impressions, their claims to knowledge are logically unjustified. Furthermore, Hume even demonstrates that science is merely a psychological phenomenon based on the association of ideas: often, specifically, an assumption of cause-and-effect relationships that is itself not grounded in any sense-impressions. Thus, even scientific knowledge is logically unjustified, being not actually objective or provable but, rather, mere conjecture flimsily based on our minds perceiving regular correlations between distinct events. Hume thus falls into extreme skepticism regarding the possibility of any certain knowledge. Ultimately, he offers that, at best, a science of human nature is the "only solid foundation for the other sciences".


title: Philosophical skepticism

text: Immanuel Kant (1724–1804) tried to provide a ground for empirical science against David Hume's skeptical treatment of the notion of cause and effect. Hume (1711–1776) argued that for the notion of cause and effect no analysis is possible which is also acceptable to the empiricist program primarily outlined by John Locke (1632–1704). But, Kant's attempt to give a ground to knowledge in the empirical sciences at the same time cut off the possibility of knowledge of any other knowledge, especially what Kant called "metaphysical knowledge". So, for Kant, empirical science was legitimate, but metaphysics and philosophy was mostly illegitimate. The most important exception to this demarcation of the legitimate from the illegitimate was ethics, the principles of which Kant argued can be known by pure reason without appeal to the principles required for empirical knowledge. Thus, with respect to metaphysics and philosophy in general (ethics being the exception), Kant was a skeptic. This skepticism as well as the explicit skepticism of G. E. Schulze gave rise to a robust discussion of skepticism in German idealistic philosophy, especially by Hegel. Kant's idea was that the real world (the "noumenon" or thing-in-itself) was inaccessible to human reason (though the empirical world of nature can be known to human understanding) and therefore we can never know anything about the ultimate reality of the world. Hegel argued against Kant that although Kant was right that using what Hegel called "finite" concepts of "the understanding" precluded knowledge of reality, we were not constrained to use only "finite" concepts and could actually acquire knowledge of reality using "infinite concepts" that arise from self-consciousness.


title: Philosophical skepticism

text: G. E. Moore famously presented the "Here is one hand" argument against skepticism in his 1925 paper, "A Defence of Common Sense". Moore claimed that he could prove that the external world exists by simply presenting the following argument while holding up his hands: "Here is one hand; here is another hand; therefore, there are at least two objects; therefore, external-world skepticism fails". His argument was developed for the purpose of vindicating common sense and refuting skepticism. Ludwig Wittgenstein later argued in his "On Certainty" (posthumously published in 1969) that Moore's argument rested on the way that ordinary language is used, rather than on anything about knowledge.


title: Philosophical skepticism

text: In contemporary philosophy, Richard Popkin was a particularly influential scholar on the topic of skepticism. His account of the history of skepticism given in "The History of Scepticism from Savonarola to Bayle" (first edition published as "The History of Scepticism From Erasmus to Descartes") was accepted as the standard for contemporary scholarship in the area for decades after its release in 1960. Barry Stroud also published a number of works on philosophical skepticism, most notably his 1984 monograph, "The Significance of Philosophical Scepticism". From the mid-1990s, Stroud, alongside Richard Fumerton, put forward influential anti-externalist arguments in favour of a position called "metaepistemological scepticism". Other contemporary philosophers known for their work on skepticism include James Pryor, Keith DeRose, and Peter Klein.


title: Philosophical skepticism

text: Ajñana (literally 'non-knowledge') were the skeptical school of ancient Indian philosophy. It was a śramaṇa movement and a major rival of early Buddhism and Jainism. They have been recorded in Buddhist and Jain texts. They held that it was impossible to obtain knowledge of metaphysical nature or ascertain the truth value of philosophical propositions; and even if knowledge was possible, it was useless and disadvantageous for final salvation.