title: Rainbow Serpent

text: Stories about the Rainbow Serpent have been passed down from generation to generation. The serpent story may vary however, according to environmental differences. Peoples of the monsoonal areas depict an epic interaction of the sun, Serpent, and wind in their Dreamtime stories, whereas those of the central desert experience less drastic seasonal shifts and their stories reflect this. It is known both as a benevolent protector of its people (the groups from the country around) and as a malevolent punisher of law breakers. The Rainbow Serpent's mythology is closely linked to land, water, life, social relationships, and fertility. The Rainbow Serpent often takes part in transitions from adolescence to adulthood for young men and swallows them to vomit them up later.


title: Rainbow Serpent

text: The most common motif in Rainbow Serpent stories is the Serpent as creator, with the Serpent often bringing life to an empty space.


title: Rainbow Serpent

text: One prominent Rainbow Serpent myth is the story of the Wawalag or Wagilag sisters, from the Yolngu people of Arnhem Land. According to legend, the sisters are travelling together when the older sister gives birth, and her blood flows to a waterhole where the Rainbow Serpent lives. In another version of the tale, the sisters are travelling with their mother, Kunapipi, all of whom know ancient secrets, and the Serpent is merely angered by their presence in its area. The Rainbow Serpent then traces the scent back to the sisters sleeping in their hut, a metaphor for the uterus. The Rainbow Serpent enters, a symbolic representation of a snake entering a hole, and eats them and their children. However, the Rainbow Serpent regurgitates them after being bitten by an ant, and this act creates Arnhem Land. Now, the Serpent speaks in their voices and teaches sacred rituals to the people living there.


title: Rainbow Serpent

text: Wollunqua is the Warumungu people's version of the Rainbow Serpent, telling of an enormous snake which emerged from a watering hole called Kadjinara in the Murchison Ranges, Northern Territory.


title: Rainbow Serpent

text: Another story from the Northern Territory tells of how a great mother arrives from the sea, travelling across Australia and giving birth to the various Aboriginal peoples. In some versions, the great mother is accompanied by the Rainbow Serpent (or Lightning Snake), who brings the wet season of rains and floods.


title: Rainbow Serpent

text: From the Great Sandy Desert area in the northern part of Western Australia comes a story that explains how the Wolfe Creek Crater, or Kandimalal, was created by a star falling from heaven, creating a crater in which a Rainbow Serpent took up residence, though in some versions it is the Serpent which falls from heaven and creates the crater. The story sometimes continues telling of how an old hunter chased a dingo into the crater and got lost in a tunnel created by the Serpent, never to be found again, with the dingo being eaten and spat out by the Serpent.


title: Rainbow Serpent

text: The Noongar people of south-western Western Australia tell of how Rainbow Serpents, or Wagyls, smashed and pushed boulders around to form trails on Mount Matilda, along with creating waterways such as the Avon River. Some Aboriginal peoples in the Kimberley region believe that it was the Rainbow Serpent who deposited spirit-children throughout pools in which women become impregnated when they wade in the water. This process is sometimes referred to as "netting a fish".


title: Rainbow Serpent

text: A more child-friendly version of the Rainbow Serpent myth tells of how a serpent rose through the Earth to the surface, where she summoned frogs, tickled their bellies to release water to create pools and rivers, and is now known as the mother of life. Another tale is told in Dick Roughsey's children's book, which tells how the Rainbow Serpent creates the landscape of Australia by thrashing about and, by tricking and swallowing two boys, ends up creating the population of Australia by various animal, insect, and plant species.


title: Rainbow Serpent

text: The earliest known rock drawings of the Rainbow Serpent date back to more than 6,000 years ago. Because of its connections with fertility, the Rainbow Serpent is often illustrated as a vagina, and vice versa. Some rock art has been discovered in which the Rainbow Serpent was drawn mouth open and tongue out to represent the vaginal opening and streaming menstrual blood.


title: Rainbow Serpent

text: The Serpent has been depicted in rock art in various forms, generally snake-like but it may have heads resembling marsupials (macropods) or flying foxes, even birds. Unlike an ordinary snake in nature, it may also be depicted with additional appendages such as animal legs and feet, also manifests tails of various forms in rock art.


title: Rainbow Serpent

text: The Rainbow Serpent is also representative of Yams and water-lilies. Heavy rainfall brought an abundance of both to the land and there is rock art depicting the serpent as a "Yam Serpent". Other rock art depicts the Rainbow Serpent with a flying fox head or like attributes. On the Arnhem Plateau in Australia, there is also early art depicting the serpent as an urchin or "seaweed like." It is believed that early painting of the serpent had similar characteristics to that of a seahorse, for example, a curved body, long nose, and curved tail. All depictions of the Rainbow Serpent in rock art are very detailed and similar across Australia. The main regional differences found between the serpent rock art are in the tail of the serpent and the head of the serpent; some have 3 tails and others, a crocodile's tail.


title: Rainbow Serpent

text: Various species/taxa of snakes in the natural world have been proposed as the model for the rainbow serpent.


title: Rainbow Serpent

text: One suggestion is that it is modeled on the "rock python", regarding the rainbow serpent in the myth of the Wawilak sisters among the Yonglu people. In some tellings of the sisters myth, the encounter with the Yurlunggur serpent occurs in its water-hole called the Mirrimina well, glossed as 'rock python's back'. Specifically, the banded rock python ("aka" Children's python; "Liasis childreni" <sc>syn.</sc> "Antaresia childreni") has been identified with the Yurlunggur by one researcher. This species is of brown colour (cf. Yurlunggur described as "giant copper snake") flecked with darker patches and having a ventral side that is opalescent white.


title: Rainbow Serpent

text: Another suggestion is the Oenpelli rock python ("aka" Oenpelli python), which is called "nawaran" in the native Kunwinjku language, according to whose lore grew into the Ngalyod serpent. This snake is also brown with darker blotches with iridescent scales.


title: Rainbow Serpent

text: The carpet snake ("Morelia spilota variegata") is considered a form that the Rainbow Serpent can take by the Walmadjari people in northern Western Australia. The "Kanmare" or "Kooremah" of Queensland are also considered enormous carpet snakes, as already mentioned.


title: Rainbow Serpent

text: There are also some geologist that study and look at the Rainbow Serpent art in Australia who see many similarities between the Serpent and seahorses or pipefish. It's also been described as looking like a sea urchin or seaweed. Considering that the Aborigines are in Australia and surrounded by lush rainforest, tropical ocean, and great diversity, the origins of the Serpents form are varied.


title: Rainbow Serpent

text: In Queensland, a fossil of a snake was found, and they believe that it came from the prehistoric family of large snakes that may have inspired the original Rainbow Serpent.


title: Rainbow Serpent

text: "Wonambi" is a genus that consisted of two species of very large snakes. These species were not pythons, like Australia's other large constrictors of the genus "Morelia", and are currently classified in the extinct family Madtsoiidae that became extinct elsewhere in the world 55 million years in the past.


title: Rainbow Serpent

text: In addition to stories about the Rainbow Serpent being passed down from generation to generation, the Rainbow Serpent has been worshipped through rituals and has also inspired cultural artifacts such as artwork and songs, a tradition which continues today.


title: Rainbow Serpent

text: There are many ancient rituals associated with the Rainbow Serpent that are still practiced today. The myth of the Wawalag sisters of Arnhem Land in the Northern Territory marks the importance of the female menstruation process and led to the establishment of the Kunapipi blood ritual of the goddess, in which the Indigenous Australians allegorically recreate the Rainbow Serpent eating the Wawalag sisters through dance and pantomime, and can be regarded as a fertility ritual.


title: Rainbow Serpent

text: Female menstruation is sacred to many Indigenous Australian cultures because it distinguishes the time when a female is capable of bringing life into the world, putting a woman on the same level of creative abilities as the Rainbow Serpent. It is for this reason that men will attempt to mimic this holy process by cutting their arms and/or penises and letting their blood run over their own bodies, each other's bodies, and even into a woman's uterus. Men will sometimes mix their blood with a women's menstrual blood, letting them flow together in a ceremonial unification of the sexes.


title: Rainbow Serpent

text: The Rainbow Serpent is also identified as a healer and can pass on its properties as a healer to humans through a ritual.


title: Rainbow Serpent

text: The Rainbow Serpent, in addition to the continuation of traditional beliefs (which can be the subject of religious controversy), is often referenced in modern culture by providing inspiration for art, film, literature, music, religion, and social movements. For example, The Rainbow Serpent Festival, an annual music festival in Australia, and the Rainbow Serpent Project, a series of films which document the filmmaker's journey to various sacred sites around the Earth, are both inspired and named after the creature.


title: Rainbow Serpent

text: Many Aboriginal Australian artists continue to be inspired by the Rainbow Serpent and use it as a subject in their art. An artist by the name of Belle Parker created a painted in the year 2000 called 'The Journey'. This painting combined the Rainbow Serpent with the Christian cross. She even won the Blake prize for this piece.


title: Rainbow Serpent

text: The Rainbow Serpent has also appeared as a character in literature. The Lardil people's Dreaming story of the Rainbow Serpent was retold in Dick Roughsey's award-winning Australian children's book "The Rainbow Serpent"; the Rainbow Serpent has also appeared as a character in comic books such as Hellblazer. The Rainbow Serpent, under the name Yurlungur, has featured as a demon or persona in several titles of the Megami Tensei series of Japanese role-playing games. The Rainbow Serpent has also appeared as an antagonistic character in the novel Eyes of the Rainbow Serpent.


title: Rainbow Serpent

text: The Rainbow Serpent can still serve a religious role today, particularly for Aboriginal Australians, but some Aboriginal Australians who are Christians reject the belief and resent its identification with Aboriginal culture. This has caused some tension between those who practice the different religions as the Christian believers state that the Rainbow Serpent is not the creator of life, but that god is, and it is misrepresentative of the Aboriginal culture and beliefs. Some New Age religions and spirituality movements around the world have now also adopted the Rainbow Serpent as an icon.


title: Rainbow Serpent

text: Similarly, the Rainbow Serpent can inspire social movements. Art historian Georges Petitjean has suggested that the identification of the Rainbow Serpent with various genders and sexualities helps to explain why the rainbow flag has been adopted as the symbol of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender communities. Politically, for example, the Rainbow Serpent was adopted as the symbol of an anti-uranium mining campaign in Australia, using the notion that the mining would disturb the Serpent and cause it to seek revenge as a metaphor for environmental destruction.


title: Mentos

text: Mentos are a brand of packaged scotch mints or mint flavored candies sold in stores and vending machines. First produced in 1932, they are currently sold in more than 130 countries worldwide by the Italian-Dutch corporation Perfetti Van Melle. The mints are small oblate spheroids, with a slightly hard exterior and a soft, chewy interior.


title: Mentos

text: They are typically sold in rolls which contain 14 mint discs, although the "Sour Mix" variety contains only 11 discs per roll. Smaller versions also exist, typically containing 4 to 6 discs per roll. Certain flavors are sold in boxes in Australia, the United States, Malaysia, Indonesia, Brazil and the United Kingdom, and the rolls are available in four packs. The current slogan of Mentos is "Stay Fresh", while the line previously used extensively in the 1980s and 1990s was "The Freshmaker". Most Mentos packages describe the mints as "chewy dragées". The typical Mentos roll is approximately in diameter and weighs . "Mentos" is the singular form.


title: Mentos

text: Mint-flavored Mentos contain sugar, wheat glucose syrup, hydrogenated coconut oil, rice starch, natural flavors, gum arabic, sucrose esters of fatty acids, gellan gum, carnauba wax, and beeswax. Fruit-flavored Mentos contain sugar, wheat glucose syrup, hydrogenated coconut oil, citric acid, fruit juices from concentrate (strawberry, orange, lemon) (1%), rice starch, gum arabic, natural flavors, sucrose esters of fatty acids, gellan gum, carnauba wax, colors (beta-carotene, beetroot red), and beeswax. The formulation can vary based on country of manufacture.


title: Mentos

text: Mentos are available in several flavors including mint, mixed fruit, cola, bubble gum, and in an assortment of orange, strawberry, and lemon. Mentos first appeared as a liquorice-flavored sweet which can still be purchased in the Netherlands as "Drop Mentos". New flavors were initially test-marketed in the Netherlands and throughout Europe; however, most of the flavors have been available worldwide recently.


title: Mentos

text: Other flavors include green apple, cinnamon, strawberry, mixed fruit (which contains a mix of cherry, strawberry, orange, and lemon flavors), grape, wintergreen, grapefruit, peach, plum, spearmint, strawberry yogurt, lemon yogurt, pineapple (pine fresh), red apple, currant and two versions of black licorice flavored Mentos. Two varieties of the mint flavor, known as "Mentos Strong" and "Air action Mentos" are sold in the Netherlands. Also available in the Netherlands is the Special Mix 4 pack, containing the flavors mint, fruit, berry mix, strawberry, banana, cherry, and mango orange. Two varieties of the mint flavor are also sold in China, known as "Mint" and "Strong Mint". Grape and 'N Cream (presumably Apples and Cream), Strawberry 'N Cream, and Banana 'N Cream are also marketed in Asia. Chocolate Mentos were produced in 1989, but the flavor was discontinued. The chocolate variant is still available in some Asian countries. In 2006, the citrus mango flavor was introduced to the Japanese market. In the Philippines, a "Dalandan Fresh" variant is available. Other varieties of Mentos include: Mentos Sours, which recently became available in the United States, featuring Watermelon, Green Apple, and Lemon flavors; caffeinated "Energy" Mentos, sold mainly in Germany, where one roll equals the amount of caffeine in two cups of coffee; "Fresh Cola" flavored Mentos released in New Zealand, Australia and parts of Europe and Asia; and "AIR Mentos" containing Menthol, which are sold primarily in Belgium and the Netherlands. In India, the major flavors available are mint, lemon, strawberry, orange, watermelon and cola.


title: Mentos

text: In the Netherlands, Mentos Gum is sold in blisters and bottles in six different varieties: Pure (four flavors), Fruit (four flavors), Regular (five flavors), Bubblegum, Cubes (four flavors) and White (three flavors). Mentos Gum is also available in Australia, Greece, China, Canada, Brazil, Turkey, Poland, the Philippines, and recently, the United States in blisters and bottles, both in three different flavors.


title: Mentos

text: In August 2005, the variety of the mint which comes in "mixed berries" and "cool mint" flavors was changed to be sweetened with sucralose. In the Netherlands the flavors mint, licorice and fruit are also available in the sugar-free variety.


title: Mentos

text: In the UK, Mentos Gum is also available in stick packs (peppermint, spearmint, pure white, air action (menthol) and fruit), Bottles (spearmint, peppermint and red fruit - which retails for approximately £0.99), as well as flip top boxes. Flavours include peppermint or spearmint with green tea extract, and a pure white with white tea extract. Sugar free versions are available, but these are rarer to find, usually only found in large supermarkets. Mentos gum holds a 4% market share of the UK gum market. A new Mentos 3 was launched in January 2011, in two flavors - mint and Strawberry/Apple/Raspberry, which are similar to Wrigleys' 5 in packaging. A new blackberry/kiwi/strawberry version was released into the UK market in January 2012.


title: Mentos

text: Mini Mentos, somewhat smaller than ordinary Mentos, are available in the Netherlands in two varieties: Mini Mentos Fruitmix, which contains the flavors orange, lemon, strawberry and apple, and Mini Mentos Yoghurt, with the flavors strawberry yogurt, raspberry yogurt and blueberry yogurt. Also sold is Mentos KIDZ, a bag with 12 boxes containing 10 miniature candies, in the flavors strawberry, orange, lemon, apple and blueberry.


title: Mentos

text: "Mentos Teens" is available in Brazil and the rest of Latin America. They come in a rectangular box. The mint is basically miniature Mentos roughly the size of Skittles, and they come in mixed flavors: white grape (green), lemon (yellow), strawberry (pink), orange (orange), raspberry (blue), and cherry (red).


title: Mentos

text: During the 2014 FIFA World Cup, a Brazilian team Mentos was released in Brazil to support the national team. The mint was green apple and orange flavors.


title: Mentos

text: In some countries, the Mentos Ice candy can be bought in flavors such as, cherry (red), green apple (green) and grape (purple).


title: Mentos

text: Part of Mentos's popularity in the US and Canada can be attributed to its campy TV commercials and catchy jingle, which debuted in late 1991 on American and Canadian television. Shot in South Africa, individuals facing various day-to-day dilemmas consume Mentos and are subsequently inspired to solve their problems at hand in a creative, often-humorous fashion. For example, a job interviewee sits on a freshly painted bench, staining his suit, and then solves the problem by rolling around on the bench until his suit has pinstripes. Another features a woman whose parked car is boxed in; she calls a crew of construction workers over who lift her car onto the road for her. These unusual behaviors are typically witnessed by nearby, sometimes antagonistic characters, and a roll of Mentos is boisterously displayed by the commercial's respective protagonist to the observer as an explanation for their actions. The ad campaign was parodied in multiple television shows and music videos, including the Foo Fighters' "Big Me".


title: Mentos

text: First demonstrated by chemistry teacher Lee Marek on the "Late Show with David Letterman" on September 14, 1999, and later popularized in a June 2006 viral Internet video by Eepybird, a Mentos mint expedites a rapid release of carbon dioxide when dropped into a carbonated liquid, such as a soft drink. "MythBusters" concluded that the potassium benzoate, aspartame, and CO gas contained in the Diet Coke, in combination with the gelatin and gum arabic ingredients of the Mentos, all contribute to the formation of the foam. However, kinetic experiments with various candies have shown that the presence of gelatin and gum arabic in candies does not enhance the fountain. Rather, it is the physical structure of candies that contributes to the fountain effect.


title: Mentos

text: The structure of the Mentos is the most significant cause of the eruption due to nucleation. "MythBusters" reported that when fruit-flavored Mentos with a smooth waxy coating were tested in carbonated drink there was hardly a reaction, whereas mint-flavored Mentos (with no such coating) added to carbonated drink formed an energetic eruption, supporting the nucleation-site theory. According to "MythBusters", the surface of the mint Mentos is covered with many small holes that increase the surface area available for reaction (and thus the quantity of reagents exposed to each other at any given time), thereby allowing CO bubbles to form with the rapidity and quantity necessary for the "jet"-, "geyser"-, or "eruption"-like nature of the effusion.


title: Mentos

text: This hypothesis gained further support when rock salt was used as a "jump start" to the reaction. A paper by Tonya Coffey, a physicist at Appalachian State University in Boone, North Carolina, confirmed that the rough surface of the Mentos candy helps speed the reaction. Coffey also found that the aspartame in diet soda lowers the surface tension and causes a bigger reaction, but that caffeine does not accelerate the reaction. On the other hand, it has been shown that a wide variety of beverage additives such as sugars, citric acid, and natural flavors also enhance fountain heights. In some cases, dissolved solids that "increase" the surface tension of water (such as sugars) also increase fountain heights. These results suggest that additives serve to enhance geyser heights not by decreasing surface tension, but rather by decreasing bubble coalescence. Decreased bubble coalescence leads to smaller bubble sizes and greater foaming ability in water.


title: Mentos

text: A Guinness World Record of 2,865 simultaneous geysers was set on 17 October 2010, in an event organized by Perfetti Van Melle (Philippines) at the SM Mall of Asia Complex, in Manila, Philippines. This record was afterwards beaten in November 2014 by another event organized by Perfetti Van Melle and Chupa Chups in Leon, Guanajuato, Mexico where 4,334 Mentos and soda fountains were set off simultaneously.


title: Mentos

text: The resulting geyser can shoot as high as . The unofficial record, reached in "MythBusters", was over with the use of a nozzle.


title: Autoeroticism

text: Autoeroticism or autosexuality is a practice of sexually stimulating oneself, especially one's own body through accumulation of internal stimuli.


title: Autoeroticism

text: The term was popularized toward the end of the 19th century by British sexologist Havelock Ellis, who defined autoeroticism as "the phenomena of spontaneous sexual emotion generated in the absence of an external stimulus proceeding, directly or indirectly, from another person".


title: Autoeroticism

text: The most common autoerotic practice is masturbation. Though the terms autoeroticism and masturbation are often used interchangeably, they are not synonymous as not all autoerotic behaviors are masturbatory. Nocturnal emissions, erotic daydreams, and sexual arousal to 'sexually-neutral' stimuli (music, scenery, art, risk, spiritual reverie, etc.) are also examples of autoeroticism.


title: Autoeroticism

text: A 1977 paper titled "Asexual and Autoerotic Women: Two Invisible Groups", by Myra T. Johnson, contrasts autoerotic women with asexual women: "The asexual woman ... has no sexual desires at all [but] the autoerotic woman ... recognizes such desires but prefers to satisfy them alone." Johnson's evidence is mostly letters to the editor found in women's magazines written by autoerotic/asexual women. She portrays them as invisible, "oppressed by a consensus that they are nonexistent," and left behind by both the sexual revolution and the feminist movement. Society either ignores or denies their existence or insists they must be ascetic for religious reasons, neurotic, or asexual for political reasons.


title: Autoeroticism

text: Some people use sex toys such as dildos, vibrators, anal beads and Sybian machines while alone. Autocunnilingus remains unproved but autofellatio, the act of orally stimulating one's own penis, is thought to occur in less than 1% of the male population, possibly because of the physical flexibility required to perform it.


title: Autoeroticism

text: Some people, for religious or personal reasons, disapprove of autoeroticism on moral grounds. For example, masturbation is considered a sin by the Roman Catholic Church. Teaching adolescents about masturbation remains controversial in some parts of the world. For example, in 1994 Bill Clinton fired Surgeon General Joycelyn Elders in part because she advocated teaching about masturbation in schools as a way of preventing teenage pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases.


title: Autoeroticism

text: A few autoerotic practices are considered unsafe, and sometimes even lead to death. These include autoerotic asphyxiation and self-bondage. The potential for injury or even death that exists while engaging in these practices rather than the partnered versions (erotic asphyxiation and bondage, respectively) becomes drastically increased due to the isolation and lack of assistance in the event of a problem.


title: Autoeroticism

text: Autoerotic behavior has been observed in many species, both in the wild and in captivity. Individuals of some species, such as apes and dolphins, have been known to create tools for autoerotic purposes.


title: Autoeroticism

text: With the outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic and the subsequent worldwide lockdown starting in March 2020, most people found themselves at home. With more people staying home, there was an increase of autoerotic sexual practices. According to a study done by International Journal of Impotence Research, there was a 40% increase in people practicing autoeroticism.


title: Dunedin, Florida

text: Dunedin is a city in Pinellas County, Florida, United States. The name comes from "Dùn Èideann", the Scottish Gaelic name for Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland. Dunedin is part of the Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater metropolitan area and is the fifth largest city in Pinellas County. The population was 35,321 at the 2010 census.


title: Dunedin, Florida

text: Dunedin is home to several beaches, including Dunedin Causeway, Honeymoon Island, and Caladesi Island State Park, which is consistently rated among the best beaches in the world. Dunedin is one of the few open waterfront communities from Sarasota to Cedar Key where buildings do not completely obscure the view of the Intracoastal Waterway and the Gulf of Mexico beyond; a stretch of Edgewater Drive (also known as Alternate US 19) south of downtown offers views of St. Joseph Sound, Clearwater Beach, and Caladesi Island. Downtown Clearwater and Clearwater Beach are a drive south on Edgewater.


title: Dunedin, Florida

text: The downtown business district is notable for its absence of large commercial signage, corporate franchise restaurants or chain retail stores. The Pinellas Trail, a bicycle and pedestrian trail that traverses all of Pinellas County, bisects downtown Dunedin. A large portion of the trail lies on the former roadbed of the Orange Belt Railway, the first railroad in Pinellas County, which arrived in 1888.


title: Dunedin, Florida

text: Since 1977, Dunedin has been the spring training home of the Toronto Blue Jays, as well as the class-A Dunedin Blue Jays of the Florida State League. In April and May 2021, the Toronto Blue Jays played their regulation games at TD Ballpark in Dunedin, due to COVID-19 cross-border restrictions. Dunedin is one of the smallest communities used by Major League spring training teams, although surrounded by a large metropolitan area. TD Ballpark is situated next to the Dunedin Public Library a few blocks south of downtown on Douglas Avenue, and is just two blocks east of Edgewater Drive. The stadium was built as a replacement to Grant Field, the Blue Jays' first spring training ball park. The library was founded in 1895 and is the oldest public library in Pinellas County.


title: Dunedin, Florida

text: Until early 2005, Dunedin was the home of Nielsen Media Research's production operations. The city is home to multiple breweries including Dunedin Brewery, Florida's oldest microbrewery.


title: Dunedin, Florida

text: Dunedin is located at , which is the approximate geographic center of the city. The middle of downtown (intersection of Main Street and Douglas Avenue) is located at .


title: Dunedin, Florida

text: According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of . of it is land and of it (63.20%) is water.


title: Dunedin, Florida

text: Dunedin is bordered by the city of Clearwater to the south and east, the Gulf of Mexico to the west, and by Palm Harbor (an unincorporated community of Pinellas County) to the north.


title: Dunedin, Florida

text: As of the census of 2000, there were 35,691 people, 17,258 households, and 9,543 families residing in the city. The population density was 3,438.1 inhabitants per square mile (1,327.6 per km). There were 19,952 housing units at an average density of 1,922.0 per square mile (742.1 per km). The racial makeup of the city was 90.82% White, 2.74% African American, 0.27% Native American, 2.21% Asian, 0.26% Pacific Islander, 0.64% from other races, and 3.06% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 4.51% of the population.


title: Dunedin, Florida

text: There were 17,258 households, out of which 18.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 43.9% were married couples living together, 8.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 44.7% were non-families. 37.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 20.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.01 and the average family size was 2.63.


title: Dunedin, Florida

text: In the city, the population was spread out, with 15.6% under the age of 18, 5.4% from 18 to 24, 24.5% from 25 to 44, 24.6% from 45 to 64, and 29.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 48 years. For every 100 people, there were 45.3 males and 54.7 females.


title: Dunedin, Florida

text: The median income for a household in the city was $34,813, and the median income for a family was $47,620. Males had a median income of $31,876 versus $27,072 for females. The per capita income for the city was $23,460. About 4.8% of families and 8.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.8% of those under age 18 and 7.5% of those age 65 or over.


title: Dunedin, Florida

text: Dunedin previously hosted an office of Nielsen Media Research. In 2003 the company consolidated its employees in a new complex in Oldsmar, Florida, with workers from Dunedin and other areas in Pinellas County moving into the Oldsmar Building.


title: Dunedin, Florida

text: TD Ballpark and Englebert Complex are used by the Dunedin Blue Jays and spring training facilities for the Toronto Blue Jays since 1977. TD Ballpark was built on the former Grant Field c. 1930.


title: Dunedin, Florida

text: Dunedin has been accused of draconian fining of its residents. In one case, it sued a former resident to collect over a hundred thousand dollars for yard and swimming pool maintenance. There are cases where the city has charged tens of thousands of dollars over uncut grass or aesthetic city code violations. The city has a $250 to $500 per day accruing violation policy per city code § 22-79(d). "In 5½ years, the city has collected nearly $3.6 million in fines, sometimes tens of thousands at a time, for violating laws that prohibit grasses taller than 10 inches, recreational vehicles parked on streets at certain hours or sidings and bricks that don't match." The case was dropped about a month after it was initiated (in 2019) due to intense national scrutiny over the matter.


title: Dunedin, Florida

text: Dunedin's major highway US Route 19 Alternate connects the city with the rest of Florida, while Main Street and Pinellas County Road 1 provides local connections.


title: Dunedin, Florida

text: Richard L. Garrison was the first person given a land grant in Dunedin in 1850. The settlement was originally named Jonesboro by George Jones, the owner of the area mercantile. Two Scotsmen, J.O. Douglas and James Somerville, later named the settlement Dunedin after applying for the first post office in northern Pinellas County. The name is taken from Scottish Gaelic Dùn Èideann, the Scottish Gaelic for Edinburgh. With a dock built to accommodate larger sailing vessels, Dunedin became an important trading center and at one time it had the largest fleet of sailing vessels in the state.


title: Dunedin, Florida

text: Dunedin became incorporated as a town in 1899 in part as a response to numerous complaints about pigs running rampant in the settlement, leading to a still-standing ban on livestock within city limits. By 1913, the town had a population of only 350. It became incorporated as the City of Dunedin in 1926.


title: Dunedin, Florida

text: During and shortly before World War II the Food Machinery Corporation factory in Dunedin (now demolished) was the primary site for the production of the Landing Vehicle Tracked developed by FMC Dunedin's Engineers and Donald Roebling of Clearwater from Roebling's own Alligator.


title: Dunedin, Florida

text: Initial training on the LVTs was done at the FMC factory under the auspices of the first Amphibian Tractor School, led by Major William W. Davies. Until barracks and maintenance facilities were completed, the school and its students were housed in the Hotel Dunedin. After training, the Marines from the first Amphibian Tractor School were sent to flesh out the 1st Amphibian Tractor Battalion, which has served with distinction since. In mid-1944, the Marine unit in Dunedin was transferred to Camp Pendleton, California.


title: Dunedin, Florida

text: Located on Edgewater Drive, the Fenway Hotel is a historic hotel that saw many famous guests throughout its lifetime.


title: Dunedin, Florida

text: Sister city to Stirling, Scotland, Dunedin has maintained and embraced its Scottish roots. Once a year, Scottish clans descend upon the city for the Dunedin Highland Games. Both Dunedin High School and Dunedin Highland Middle School have competition-level pipe and drum bands. The high school's marching band is known as the Scottish Highlander Band, and both teen and adult members make up the City of Dunedin Pipe Band.


title: Dunedin, Florida

text: In addition to the Highland Games, Dunedin hosts many other annual festivals. The most popular among these is Dunedin's Mardi Gras celebration, during which thousands of visitors descend on the small town.


title: Dunedin, Florida

text: The City of Dunedin currently operates under a nonpartisan commissioner-manager form of government. The commission comprises four commissioners and a mayor, who are elected by the registered voters under a staggered system.


title: Dunedin, Florida

text: The chief executive officer, known as the city manager, oversees the ten departments and the annual budget.


title: Dunedin, Florida

text: Currently, the Dunedin City Commission is made up of Mayor Julie Ward Bujalski, Vice-mayor Jeff Gow, Commissioner Maureen "Moe" Freaney, Commissioner Deborah Kynes, and Commissioner John Tornga. The city manager is Jennifer Bramley.


title: Dunedin, Florida

text: The city government is made up of ten departments with various divisions and sections. The departments are Administration, Human Resources, Information Services, Public Works, Parks & Recreation, Fire, Library, Community Services, Economical Development, Planning/Development and Finance. The Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA) oversees downtown projects and the needs of downtown Dunedin merchants and tourism.


title: Dunedin, Florida

text: Dunedin boasts an extensive Volunteer Services section, and enables all citizens the chance to have their opinions expressed and tended to. Currently, there are 39 boards and committees that serve as advisory groups to the city manager and the City Commission.


title: Dunedin, Florida

text: Dunedin Fire Department has 48 firefighters split into 16 members over three shifts. The department has 3 fire stations proving fire protection for Dunedin.


title: Dunedin, Florida

text: The city of Dunedin contains a Parks & Recreation Department, which provides low-cost recreation programming to the city's residents. The city operates four recreation facilities, each one designed to provide resources for a specific age group.


title: Dunedin, Florida

text: In 2007, Dunedin opened its newest and largest recreation facility, the Dunedin Community Center at a cost of just over $10 million. The project was mostly paid for by the "Penny for Pinellas" tax. The St. Petersburg Times wrote that Marston "figured that since the county needs recreation programs of its own and the city needs a new community center, why not ask the county to pay for the project in exchange for access to the new facility." Marston's proposal marked a turning point for the city as it saved Dunedin taxpayers millions, and allowed Dunedin officials to replenish vital strategic reserves. The center features classrooms / multi-purpose rooms, dance and exercise rooms, fitness center, gymnasium, kids area, gaming room, library, playground, rental facility, stage.


title: Dunedin, Florida

text: The Dunedin Fine Art Center (DFAC), opened in 1975 has grown to be one of the most renowned centers for visual art instruction and exhibition in the southeastern United States. At nearly , DFAC houses five galleries, 15 studio classrooms, the Gallery Gift Shop, the Palm Cafe and the DLM Children's ART Museum. "Tampa Bay Times" writer Lennie Bennett says that DFAC is ""the artistic equivalent of a village square,"" offering quality experiences to people of all ages.


title: Dunedin, Florida

text: The city has a large athletic base, with community soccer, baseball, hockey, and softball teams. Dunedin reflected the Gaelic origins of its name by playing host to a short lived American shinty club, Dunedin Camanachd, in the mid-2000s.


title: Dunedin, Florida

text: In 2011 the City of Dunedin passed ordinance 2011-04 which authorized the street-legal use of golf carts across approximately 60% of the city.


title: Dunedin, Florida

text: Honeymoon Island State Park and Caladesi Island State Park are located in Dunedin along St. Joseph Sound on the west side.


title: Dunedin, Florida

text: The city-owned Dunedin Marina has 194 boat slips and is one of the finest municipal marinas on the West Coast of Florida. The marina is located on the Intracoastal Waterway between Dunedin Causeway and Clearwater Causeways. It is home to the Dunedin Boat Club, one of Florida's oldest Sailing Clubs.


title: Dunedin, Florida

text: The Dunedin Public Library has two branches, the Dunedin Main Library (located at 223 Douglas Ave) and the Friends Branch Library (located at 1920 Pinehurst Road), which opened in 2007. The library is considered the oldest library in Pinellas County. In 1895 Christopher B Bouton, a resident from Cleveland, gave the city of Dunedin 200 books for public use. Mr. Bouton's brother owned the town's meeting hall but gave ownership of it to the Dunedin Library Association to house the public library and a reading room. The building became known thereafter as Library Hall. In 1935, the City of Dunedin took over the Library when the collection grew to be 7,000 titles. As the population of Dunedin and the usage of the library grew, the facility was in need of more space. Two new libraries were built, one in 1956 on Louden Avenue and another in 1964 on Main Street. In 1976 the Library leased and moved into a vacant space in the Douglas Plaza Shopping Center, which was purchased by the City of Dunedin for the Library in 1986. In 1989, the estate of Franklin Chase Milliken, a retired attorney, was left to the City of Dunedin to benefit the Dunedin Public Library. After years of planning, the City Commission approved funding for a 38,000 square foot building in 1994, costing approximately $3.5 million. Soon after the Library's centennial in April 1995, the collection was moved into trailers while the old building was torn down and a new one was built in the same location. The new building opened to the public on September 3, 1996.


title: Dunedin, Florida

text: As part of their offerings and services, the Dunedin Public Library offers monthly delivery service to homebound residents of Dunedin. Other offerings include a seed library where patrons can check out seeds for gardening, a knitting and crocheting group, and genealogy assistance. The Dunedin Public Library initiated a Little Free Library movement in Pinellas County. There are currently thirteen Little Free Libraries within Dunedin. The Literacy Council of Upper Pinellas, Inc., which promotes adult literacy in North Pinellas County, serves the Dunedin Public Library.


title: Dunedin, Florida

text: Dunedin Public Library is currently a part of the Pinellas Public Library Cooperative (PPLC), a coalition of all public libraries within Pinellas County, Florida.


title: Remuneration

text: Remuneration is the pay or other financial compensation provided in exchange for an employee's "services performed" (not to be confused with giving (away), or donating, or the act of providing to). A number of complementary benefits in addition to pay are increasingly popular remuneration mechanisms. Remuneration is one component of reward management. In the UK it can also refer to the automatic division of profits attributable to members in a Limited Liability Partnership (LLP).


title: Remuneration

text: For wage withholding purposes under U.S. income tax law, the term "wage" means remuneration (with certain exceptions) for services performed by an employee for an employer.


title: Remuneration

text: Under the faithless servant doctrine, a doctrine under the laws of a number of states in the United States, and most notably New York State law, an employee who acts unfaithfully towards his or her employer must forfeit all remuneration received during the period of disloyalty.


title: John Kapelos

text: John Kapelos (born March 8, 1956) is a Canadian actor from London, Ontario. He is best known for his portrayals of janitor Carl Reed in "The Breakfast Club" and Detective Donald Schanke in "Forever Knight".


title: John Kapelos

text: An alumnus of The Second City, Chicago, John Kapelos's theatrical work spans eight years from Second City's Touring Company (1978–1982) to six revues as a member of the famed Resident Company (1982–1986), and finally Second City's critically acclaimed return to off-Broadway in "Orwell That Ends Well" at the former Village Gate in New York City.


title: John Kapelos

text: His movie highlights include 1999's "The Deep End of the Ocean", which received praise from both "The New York Times" and Roger Ebert from "The Chicago Sun Times". His appearance in three John Hughes films, "Sixteen Candles", "The Breakfast Club", and "Weird Science", earned him fame in the 1980s as a character actor.


title: John Kapelos

text: Other film works include Schepisi's "Roxanne", with Steve Martin and Daryl Hannah, and Garry Marshall's "Nothing in Common", opposite Tom Hanks, and Touchstone’s "Stick It" show his improvisational and comedic timing skills. Whereas roles in "The Boost", with James Woods, and "Internal Affairs" with Richard Gere, present his adaptability for dramatic roles.


title: John Kapelos

text: Kapelos has also worked on television in shows such as "Miami Vice" as a corrupt public defender, "Desperate Housewives", "Queer as Folk", "The X-Files", "Seinfeld", "Home Improvement", "Dead Like Me", "ER", and "Boston Legal". He also played a security guard in a 2010 episode of the television series "Nikita", filmed at the University of Toronto.


title: John Kapelos

text: Kapelos also guest teaches at the AIA Studios focusing on improv/acting workshops; produced a four-part series on YouTube featuring monologues by NPR-contributor Michael Raysses called "Greek to Me", and manages an independent record labeled called Carpuzi Records, which has produced sound recordings featuring him and some of the Second City alumni, such as Dan Castellaneta.


title: Elvis Perkins

text: Elvis Brooke Perkins (born February 9, 1976) is an American folk-rock musician. He released his debut studio album, "Ash Wednesday", in 2007. He subsequently toured in support of the album with his band Elvis Perkins in Dearland, composed of Perkins alongside multi-instrumentalists Brigham Brough, Wyndham Boylan-Garnett and Nick Kinsey. The band released its self-titled debut, "Elvis Perkins in Dearland", in 2009.


title: Elvis Perkins

text: The band formed in Providence, Rhode Island around 2004 when Perkins moved to the East Coast upon completing "Ash Wednesday", although the members have been friends and collaborators for many years.


title: Elvis Perkins

text: Perkins is the son of actor Anthony Perkins (1932–1992), and photographer and actress Berry Berenson (1948–2001) who died in the September 11 terrorist attacks. He was raised in Los Angeles and Manhattan with his older brother, actor and director Oz Perkins. Perkins is a great-grandson of the fashion designer Elsa Schiaparelli, who was a great-niece of Giovanni Schiaparelli, the Italian astronomer who believed he had discovered the supposed canals of Mars, and a nephew of the actress Marisa Berenson, Berry's sister. His paternal grandfather Osgood Perkins, was also an actor. His maternal great-grandfather was Wilhelm de Wendt de Kerlor, a theosophist and psychic medium. His mother was a great-grandniece of art expert Bernard Berenson (1865–1959), whose sister Senda (1868–1954) was an athlete and educator and one of the first two women elected to the Basketball Hall of Fame. Perkins was named after Elvis Presley, of whom his father was a fan.


title: Elvis Perkins

text: Perkins attended Brown University, in Providence, Rhode Island, after graduating from high school at the Harvard-Westlake School in 1994.


title: Elvis Perkins

text: Perkins took to music at an early age, briefly learning the saxophone before picking up the guitar in high school and taking lessons with Prescott Niles, one-time bassist for The Knack. While he played in rock bands, Perkins developed an interest in the classical guitar, and began to compose music in both idioms.


title: Elvis Perkins

text: Debut album "Ash Wednesday" was produced and arranged by recording artist and composer Ethan Gold, independently released in 2006, and subsequently released February 20, 2007, by XL Recordings.


title: Elvis Perkins

text: In 2008, Perkins in Dearland recorded a cover of the Sacred Harp song "Weeping Pilgrim" for "Awake My Soul, Help Me to Sing" the soundtrack to the movie "".


title: Elvis Perkins

text: His song "Doomsday" from the "Doomsday" EP appeared on the second-season premiere of the HBO series "Enlightened".


title: Elvis Perkins

text: In 2009, he worked with the Yellow Bird Project to create a T-shirt to raise money for the World Wildlife Fund. In the same year, on September 2, he performed an acoustic benefit concert in New York City at the Housing Works Bookstore Café to help promote the project's first publication.


title: Elvis Perkins

text: On February 24, 2015, Perkins released his third full-length album, "I Aubade", on his newly established label MIR. It was manufactured and distributed by the music division of Isolation Network, INGrooves, and available outside the US on April 20, 2015. He toured in support of "I Aubade" in 2015.


title: Elvis Perkins

text: French indie label Microcultures released a session in October 2016 that was recorded for France Musique Radio's Label Pop, hosted by music journalist Vincent Theval. The album featured the first incarnation of his I Aubade touring band, multi-instrumentalists Mitchell Robe and Danielle Aykroyd, a songwriter who goes by the pseudonym Vera Sola. Sola credits the launch of her career to Elvis' support and encouragement.


title: Elvis Perkins

text: In recent years, Perkins has been collaborating with his brother, Osgood, on scores for the latter's films. The critically acclaimed score to "Blackcoat's Daughter" was released on DeathWaltz Recordings in March 2017. The New York Times writes: The Blackcoat's Daughter' bewitches with silky-smooth camera movements and a rolling, reverberating musical score (by Elvis Perkins, the director's brother)." Matt Fagerholm wrote of it that the score set the perfect atmospheric tone for the film.


title: Drill instructor

text: A drill instructor is a non-commissioned officer in the armed forces, fire department, or police forces with specific duties that vary by country. Foot drill, military step, and marching are typically taught by drill instructors.


title: Drill instructor

text: In the Australian Army, the staff responsible for training recruits are known as Recruit Instructors. They teach recruits discipline, fieldcraft, marksmanship, service knowledge and drill.


title: Drill instructor

text: Each recruit platoon is commanded by Recruit Instructors usually consisting of a Lieutenant, a Sergeant and up to four instructors of the Corporal or Bombardier rank. A Recruit Instructor can be identified by a 1st Recruit Training Battalion colour patch on his or her slouch hat and a small Recruit Instructor badge worn on the right breast pocket, if the position has been held long enough.


title: Drill instructor

text: Members from all Corps in the Army are eligible to become Recruit Instructors, including females. Experience as a Recruit Instructor is often a prerequisite to senior non-commissioned appointments in the military.


title: Drill instructor

text: In the Royal Australian Navy, there are Instructors at HMAS Cerberus, where the Recruit School course is held, and HMAS Creswell, where the NEOC (New Entry Officer Course) is held, as well as at ADFA.


title: Drill instructor

text: In the Australian Federal Police, Drill Instructors are trained and accredited by the Recognition and Ceremonial team. Each accredited Drill Instructor wears an AFP pin with the wording "DI" positioned 5mm above their name plate or citations. Drill Instructors are also issued with a black coloured Hellweg brand leather basket weave Sam Browne belt and strap. The AFP is the only police agency to formally train and accredit police drill instructors in Australia, with a number of New South Wales Police Force members attached to the NSW Police College holding that qualification.


title: Drill instructor

text: The Australian Federal Police College at Barton has a non-commissioned officer of sergeant rank holding the position of College Sergeant. The College Sergeant carries a black pace stick as a badge of office at ceremonial functions and a swagger stick during normal duties.


title: Drill instructor

text: The New South Wales Police Force has a Drill Sergeant and a Drill Constable attached to the NSW Police College at Goulburn. Drill staff are responsible for training recruits in drill. These personnel wear a blue cord to signify being a protocol officer. The Senior Protocol Officer (formally known as Protocol and Discipline Officer) which carries the rank of Senior Sergeant is responsible for the coordination of the final week of drill, known as Attestation Week and holds the position of Parade Sergeant at all Attestation Parades. The Senior Protocol officer is responsible for dress, bearing and discipline and also is the guardian of NSWPF history, customs, traditions and symbols at the NSW Police College. The Senior Protocol Officer carries a black pace stick with silver fittings and wears a black coloured Hellweg Brand Sam Browne belt with strap as a badge of office.


title: Drill instructor

text: The Western Australian Police Force has a Drill Sergeant of the rank of sergeant who trains recruits in drill, discipline and other matters. He is also the recruit training manager responsible for overseeing the recruits training, ceremonial graduations, police funerals and other events. He meets regularly with academy executive and is responsible for removing recruits who fail parts of the course. The sergeant carries a pace stick as a badge of office during parades.


title: Drill instructor

text: In the British Army, the appointment of Drill Sergeant (DSgt) is limited to the five Foot Guards regiments, the Honourable Artillery Company (HAC), Infantry Training Centre Catterick, London District, and the All-Arms Drill Wing (part of the Army School of Ceremonial, Catterick). Drill Sergeants hold the rank of Warrant Officer Class 2. However, any senior NCO conducting drill can be colloquially referred to as a "drill sergeant".


title: Drill instructor

text: There are two Drill Sergeants per battalion (one in the HAC) and they have specific responsibilities for all duties, public or battalion (royal duties, barrack duties etc.). They support the Garrison Sergeant Major (GSM) or Regimental Sergeant Major (RSM) in the formation, practice and execution of these duties, typically running the duties roster, supervising rehearsals, and undertaking the guard mounts, both royal and barrack. They also deputise for the RSM in disciplinary matters.


title: Drill instructor

text: The London District Drill Sergeant supports the GSM in the supervision of Trooping the Colour, the State Opening of Parliament, Beating the Retreat and any state visits. He also has responsibility under the GSM for the definition of British Army foot and arms drill.


title: Drill instructor

text: They can be distinguished from other WO2s by their dress. They have the right to wear Sam Browne belts when in No.2 dress and carry swords (never drawn) on ceremonial duties.


title: Drill instructor

text: They are the third most senior Warrant Officers within a regimental structure, after the RSM and the Regimental Quartermaster Sergeant (RQMS). The HAC Drill Sergeant is thus the second most senior Army Reserve soldier in the regiment.


title: Drill instructor

text: Drill instructors in the United States armed forces have different titles in each branch of service. In the United States Air Force, they are known as "Military Training Instructors", or MTIs. The United States Navy uses Marine Corps drill instructors at their Officer Candidate School, but only Chief Petty Officers and Petty Officers (1st or 2nd Class) are called "Recruit Division Commanders", or RDCs at their recruit training. Within the United States Army, drill instructors are given the title of "Drill Sergeant". The United States Coast Guard gives the title of "Company Commander" to their drill instructors. The United States Marine Corps is the only branch of the U.S. armed forces where drill instructors are titled as "drill instructors", although the Marines were the first to call them Drill Sergeants but in 1971 changed to instructors. Drill instructors are referred to as "sir" or "ma'am" by recruits within the USAF, USMC, and USCG (for the first few weeks of basic training, until recruits are instructed to refer to their company commanders by their proper rank). Within the USN, recruits must refer to their RDCs by their proper ranks. Recruits in the United States Army must refer to their drill sergeants as "drill sergeant".


title: Drill instructor

text: The instruction and indoctrination given by the drill instructors of the various U.S. military branches includes instruction in customs and practices of military life, physical fitness, instruction in the proper execution of military drill, instilling discipline and willingness to immediately obey all lawful orders given by superiors, and oftentimes, basic armed and unarmed combat training.


title: Drill instructor

text: Drill instructors are held responsible for the welfare, behavior, and military education of the recruits assigned to them on a 24-hour basis throughout the period of initial training, of which the most well known is Basic Training or boot camp. Their responsibilities include areas such as military discipline, physical fitness, and weapons training. The title of Drill Instructor is a billet independent of rank, to be held by non-commissioned officers who successfully complete the intense training program to earn that title.


title: Drill instructor

text: The arduous nature of drill instructor duty means that such assignments are among the most prestigious carried out by enlisted personnel. Those who become drill instructors are eligible for a variety of military awards, such as the Marine Drill Instructor Ribbon, and the Army's Drill Sergeant Identification Badge.


title: Drill instructor

text: Air Force MTIs are non-commissioned officers ranging from Staff Sergeant (E-5) through Master Sergeant (E-7). They are trained at the Military Training Instructor School at Lackland AFB in San Antonio, Texas. Course length has changed several times during the last decade, but generally includes a period of assignment to a senior instructor to observe training (called "bird-dogging"). MTIs initially conduct basic training at Lackland Air Force Base as part of the 737th Training Group, but a select few conduct military training at the Officer Training School at Maxwell AFB and at the Air Force Academy during basic cadet training.


title: Drill instructor

text: Male MTIs are identified by the dark blue campaign hat and female MTIs by the dark blue Australian bush hat. Their usual duty uniform is the Operational Camouflage Pattern (OCP), with blue service uniforms worn during certain drill practices and the graduation ceremony. Upon receiving their certification as an instructor, they receive the Air Education and Training Command Instructor badge for wear on the right side of the blue uniform.


title: Drill instructor

text: MTIs usually begin their tours as "team members" - junior partners of a two-person team. Experienced MTIs becomes "team chiefs" and often work a basic training flight alone when manning shortages occur (especially during summer). MTIs refer to direct recruit training as being "on the street". At the conclusion of a tour, some MTIs are offered the chance to work in essential support training roles in the basic training course. This includes the combat training portions of the course, classroom academic instruction, and the "confidence" obstacle course.


title: Drill instructor

text: Unlike the Army, the Air Force uses a different specialist to continue military training during advanced individual or technical training. Military training leaders (MTLs) wear a blue aiguillette on the left shoulder and act in the same capacity as Army drill sergeants during technical training. The aiguillette in various colors is worn by students to indicate leadership roles - green for student flight leaders, yellow for student squadron leaders, and red for squadron student commanders. A white aiguillette is worn by chapel guides, a white and blue rope denotes they are in the Drum and Bugle Corps, and a teal rope is worn by student counselors. At some technical training centers a black aiguillette is worn by members of student honor guards or drill teams.


title: Drill instructor

text: Historically, the task of the Drill Sergeant has been intrinsic to good order and discipline and commands respect throughout the Army. Currently, soldiers of appropriate rank (usually Staff Sergeants and Sergeants First Class ) may volunteer or be centrally selected by U.S. Army Human Resources Command to attend Drill Sergeant School. Those centrally selected are known as "DA Selected" meaning Department of the Army selected. Drill Sergeant School is ten weeks long and consists of exactly the same activities as basic training; drill and ceremony, basic rifle marksmanship, obstacle/confidence courses, and field training exercises, training management, and leadership. Certain aspects of the Basic Leader Course are included. Drill Sergeant candidates are held to the highest standards while going through the school as preparation for their tours of duty. The Drill Sergeant candidates are treated with a great deal of professionalism and not like recruits. Upon graduation, male Drill Sergeants wear the World War I campaign hat (nicknamed the "Brown Round") and female Drill Sergeants wear the olive drab Australian bush cap.


title: Drill instructor

text: An Army Drill Sergeant's normal tour of duty (called being "on the trail") is two years with a possible one-year extension. Drill Sergeants may be assigned to units that conduct Basic Combat Training (BCT), reception, or One-Station Unit Training (OSUT). BCT Drill Sergeants train approximately 11 cycles during their two-year tours. OSUT Drill Sergeants train recruits for an equivalent of BCT plus an additional number of weeks depending on the Military Occupational Specialty, so their average number of cycles is less than that of a BCT Drill Sergeant. The breaks between cycles are extremely short, creating an incredibly demanding environment for Drill Sergeants. It is not unusual for a cycle to graduate on a Thursday or Friday with new recruits arriving the following Monday or Tuesday. Following several years of regular noncomissioned officers filling platoon sergeant billets in Advanced Individual Training, the Army announced in early April 2018, that Drill Sergeants will return to AIT training.


title: Drill instructor

text: Senior Drill Sergeants are the most senior NCO in a given training platoon, and are ultimately responsible for Soldiers within or under their authority. The only NCO more senior to these individuals at the company level is the company's First Sergeant, the senior enlisted leader and advisor to the company commander.


title: Drill instructor

text: Successful completion of Drill Sergeant duty greatly enhances opportunities for promotion. Many of the U.S. Army's most senior noncommissioned officers are former Drill Sergeants.


title: Drill instructor

text: The Army has had a difficult time recruiting Drill Sergeant volunteers due to recent changes in doctrine and policy, with a recent study by the Department of Defense noting that fewer than 30% of Drill Sergeant candidates are volunteers. Past Drill Sergeants enjoyed much autonomy and latitude with which to train recruits and were reputed hands-on disciplinarians. Currently, the Army's Training and Doctrine Command (TRADOC) has sought to shift this authority away and has moved closer to what is known as "Schofield's Definition of Discipline." It is now a punishable offense to use demeaning or derogatory terms to refer to recruits or trainees, and terms such as "warrior" or "Soldier" are preferable. Additionally, it is a serious offense to punish recruits or trainees with "excessive" physical exercise, now known as hazing.


title: Drill instructor

text: The United States Drill Sergeant Academy is located in Fort Jackson, South Carolina. This is where all Drill Sergeants go to complete their drill sergeant training. The Academy is led by the Commandant and Deputy Commandant of the Drill Sergeant Academy. The instructors, known as Drill Sergeant Leaders (DSL's) are previously trained, and experienced Drill Sergeants. DSL's are selected very carefully by a panel of current senior Drill Sergeant Leaders, along with the leadership from the Academy. DSL's are held to the same high Army standards that new incoming Drill Sergeants are assessed on and must remain at those standards while instructing at the Academy.


title: Drill instructor

text: It may be taken offensively by U.S. Marine Corps Drill Instructors to be referred to as 'Drill Sergeants', which is strictly an Army term in the American military, just as Marines may take offense to being called "soldiers". This is considered to be a grievous insult if done intentionally. The only acceptable address of a drill instructor by a recruit is "sir", "ma'am" or "(senior) drill instructor (Rank) (last name)". At Officer Candidates School (OCS), candidates are instructed by Drill Instructors who have already served a tour at one of the Recruit Depots. Officer candidates address their instructors as "Sergeant Instructor" (and rank and last name), or "Platoon Sergeant" (and rank and last name). The OCS Platoon sergeant is comparable to the Senior Drill Instructor in an enlisted recruit platoon. In the initial phase of training, officer candidates are trained in almost the same manner, and by the same people, as enlisted Marines, with slight differences reflecting the difference between the responsibilities the candidates will have as second lieutenants and those the recruits will have as junior Marines.


title: Drill instructor

text: In addition, Drill Instructors at either E-6 or E-7 also train naval officer candidates at the Navy's Officer Candidate School at Officer Training Command Newport, Rhode Island, a holdover from the days when they trained prospective naval aviators at the former Aviation Officer Candidate School (AOCS) at Naval Aviation Schools Command, Pensacola, FL. Class Drill Instructors train officer candidates alongside Class Chief Petty Officers who have experience training Navy recruits as Recruit Division Commanders (RDCs). Like Marine Corps recruits, Navy officer candidates must address Drill Instructors as "Sir" or "Ma'am", even though the DI is not a Commissioned Officer.


title: Drill instructor

text: In the U.S. Marine Corps, candidates for Drill Instructor school are both volunteers and designates. The Headquarters Marine Corps Special Duty Assignment Team creates a list known as the HSST List. This list has the names of Marines that have been slotted for the different B-Billets and Special Duty Assignments. Once a Marine's name comes up on this list, they must either serve the duty or prove that they are unfit for the assignment. The tour of duty is three years and demands the highest moral character and strength. It is the job of the Drill Instructor to pass these characteristics on to the future of the Corps. This duty is referred to as "Making Marines", and is one of the most important duties of a Marine's career. A drill instructor is directly involved in shaping the future of the United States Marine Corps. Marines report to either Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island in South Carolina or to Marine Corps Recruit Depot San Diego in California, where they are assigned to Drill Instructor School. Upon graduation, they are assigned to one of the Recruit Training Battalions. Female Marines may now serve on both depots as Drill Instructors. Since spring 2016, Female Drill Instructors have begun serving in limited capacity on board Marine Corps Recruit Depot San Diego. This change took place in the Spring of 2016. Service as a Drill Instructor is considered a Special Duty Assignment in the Marine Corps (or "B" billet), which is factored into consideration of a Marine's eligibility for promotion. A Marine assigned to DI School must have at least a rank of Sergeant (E-5), or have been selected for promotion to Sergeant.


title: Drill instructor

text: The school requires DI School students to complete every task recruits are required to do. The typical training day begins around 4:00 a.m. or 0400 on the 24-hour clock (often referred to as "military time" in the US) and ends around 7:30 p.m. or 1930, many times with specific training evaluations and end-of-day cleanups that require even longer days. At the end of each day, DI School students have to practice effective time management in studying for exams, practicing drill, rehearsing the teaching of drill movements verbatim and preparing uniforms all while still making time for intense physical training. The school lasts approximately three months with four classes running throughout the year.


title: Drill instructor

text: Physical training or "PT" as a unit is conducted at least three times a week, with each session lasting approximately two hours. In addition to warming up, stretching, and calisthenics, students complete the "DI Playground" a circuit course that focuses on enhancing upper body strength. Physical training also prepares the future Drill Instructors for the Marine Corps Physical Fitness Test which consists of pull-ups, abdominal crunches, and a 3-mile timed run. Since a drill instructor is often required to spend 20 hours a day or more on his or her feet and to move fast at all times, various running sessions are conducted to enhance speed and endurance. Students are led by their squad instructors in ability group runs based on speed, gradually increasing distance and speed throughout the course. Track workouts, formation runs, and fartlek runs are also a staple of the training. Drill and discipline are crucial parts of the Drill Instructor School curriculum.


title: Drill instructor

text: Every student is continuously evaluated, corrected, and mentored, with special attention paid to the smallest of details, such as the placement of a finger within 1/4 inch of its required location along a trouser seam, angle of the weapon, and positioning of the student in relation to the unit. Required knowledge is constantly taught and evaluated in the form of written exams, practical applications, and inspections. Uniforms are inspected continually, with surprise inspections conducted randomly in addition to the scheduled inspections. The drill instructor is expected to convey the best possible Marine Corps image to recruits and to America and to conduct his/herself to the highest Marine Corps leadership and integrity standards as well as to impart these standards to every recruit they train. Drill Instructors take a pledge which consists of the following words: "These recruits are entrusted to my care. I will train them to the best of my ability. I will develop them into smartly disciplined, physically fit, basically trained Marines, thoroughly indoctrinated in love of Corps and country. I will demand of them, and demonstrate by my own example, the highest standards of personal conduct, morality and professional skill."


title: Drill instructor

text: Upon completion of Drill Instructor School, Drill Instructors are assigned to Recruit Training Battalions as junior members ("fourth hats", "third hats", "kill hats", "bobby", or "bulldogs") of drill instructor teams. His or her job consists of constant corrections, dispensing punitive "Incentive Training" (IT), and keeping unremitting pressure on recruits to pay attention to details. He or she also teaches and reinforces academic knowledge to recruits. It is his or her duty to command the recruit platoon for initial drill evaluation, in which, in addition to the platoon receiving a score, the Drill Instructor is evaluated as well. These new drill instructors bear the burden of responsibility for breaking down a recruit's sense of self and selfishness, so that the more experienced drill instructors can focus the recruits on selflessness, obedience, and fraternity.


title: Drill instructor

text: After completing a few 13-week cycles, the drill instructor is moved up to the position of "Experienced Drill Instructor" (EDI), also called the "heavy", "drill hat" or "J Hat".


title: Drill instructor

text: The next step in a drill instructor career is becoming a "Senior Drill Instructor". Senior Drill Instructors hold a respected position which is distinguished by the wearing of a black highly polished (patent leather) sword belt instead of a green duty belt. A Senior Drill Instructor is ultimately accountable for the training of the platoon and for the efficiency of his or her assistant Drill Instructors. Although Senior Drill Instructors are NCOs (Sergeants) or Staff NCOs, their position in the recruit training platoon is similar to that of a commissioned officer Platoon Commander in a line platoon. As such, they are further set apart from "junior" Drill Instructors.


title: Drill instructor

text: After completing a number of cycles, drill instructors are often assigned to Support Battalion duties outside of recruit-training platoons. Such assignments are referred to as quotas, and include jobs as academic instructors, administrative duties at Recruit Processing (Receiving Barracks, also known as Receiving Company at MCRD San Diego), martial arts instructors, Medical Rehabilitation Platoon (MRP), Physical Conditioning Platoon (PCP), Combat Water Survival Instructors, Field Training Instructors (a.k.a. Black Shirts) [MCRD Parris Island only], and Instructional Training Company Instructors (ITC DI) [MCRD San Diego only].


title: Drill instructor

text: Some drill instructors choose to do a second tour of duty on the drill field. These volunteers still report to Drill Instructor School, but are referred to as course challengers, and are only required to complete a short refresher course. Multiple tour drill instructors, based on rank and experience, are usually assigned as Senior Drill Instructors, Series Chief Drill Instructors (MCRD San Diego) or Series Gunnery Sergeants (MCRD Parris Island), DI school instructors, Company First Sergeants, or Battalion Sergeants Major.


title: Drill instructor

text: While in Drill Instructor status, both male and female DIs wear a World War I campaign hat with their service and utility uniforms.


title: Drill instructor

text: For their successful service, Marine Drill Instructors are awarded the Drill Instructor Ribbon. This ribbon is also awarded to other enlisted Marines and officers assigned to the recruit training environment, although these billets are recognized as being less directly involved in actually training recruits such as Series and Company Commander/ XO, Battalion Executive Officer, S-3, and Commander, and various levels of Sergeants Major at each Depot. At OCS, the ribbon is also awarded to Officer Candidate Company First Sergeants, Company Gunnery Sergeants, and Platoon Commanders.


title: Drill instructor

text: In the United States Navy, recruit training is conducted by Recruit Division Commanders (RDCs, formerly Company Commanders or CCs) at Recruit Training Command Great Lakes, located at Naval Station Great Lakes, in North Chicago, IL. RDCs are usually E-6 (Petty Officer First Class), but may be up to a Master Chief (E-9) and have at least six years time in service and above, who are volunteers that serve a three-year tour at RTC Great Lakes.


title: Drill instructor

text: After submitting an approved package containing an endorsement from a commanding officer, prospective RDCs attend RDC "C" School located at RTC Great Lakes and are identified by the blue aiguillettes (ropes) they wear on the left shoulder of either their service, dress, or working uniforms. RDC School students typically spend thirteen weeks learning about the duties they will perform as RDCs, including drill and ceremony, classroom instruction, and uniform and compartment maintenance. They undergo routine uniform inspections, where RDC school staff (experienced RDCs) meticulously check for any deficiencies in a student's uniform. In addition, RDC School students spend three days a week undergoing physical training. Because of the intense workout periods, some RDC students find themselves unprepared; however, they must be ready to keep up with the recruits, some of them who are much younger or more athletic than they are. According to RDC "C" School staff, PT is the number one reason why some students drop out of the course.


title: Drill instructor

text: Towards the end of RDC "C" School, RDC students shadow actual RDCs currently commanding a division. At the end of thirteen weeks, they receive their red ropes and badges which set them apart as RDCs. Following graduation and entering their first divisions, senior RDCs mentor these new junior RDCs, who then go on to gain experience with every new division (commonly referred to as a "push").


title: Drill instructor

text: In the second year of their three-year tour, RDCs take a break from training divisions and perform other duties on base, including drill evaluations, practical training instruction, teaching classes at RDC "C" School, or Battle Stations 21.


title: Drill instructor

text: RDC duty is considered a highly prestigious one as it is associated with higher levels of accession into the higher petty officer rates, including Chief Petty Officer. RDC duty also allows Sailors an opportunity to earn the Master Training Specialist designator. At the end of the three-year tour, eligible RDCs receive the Recruit Training Service Ribbon, along with a choice of coast for their next duty stations.


title: Drill instructor

text: In addition to training recruits at RTC Great Lakes, RDCs at E-7 (Chief Petty Officer) or above who have experience leading recruit divisions train students at Officer Training Command in Newport, Rhode Island, either training prospective naval officers at Officer Candidate School (OCS) as Class Chief Petty Officers, alongside Marine Corps Drill Instructors, or newly commissioned junior officers in the Navy's Staff Corps (i.e. JAG, Medical Corps, Nurse Corps, etc.) at the Officer Development School (ODS).


title: Drill instructor

text: In the U.S. Coast Guard, Company Commanders are usually E-5 to E-8 and are special duty volunteers. Candidates attend Company Commander School in Cape May, New Jersey, which is collocated with recruit basic training. Upon completion, candidates then go in front of a board for final approval. Upon becoming a Company Commander (CC), the Coast Guardsman earns the right to wear the Company Commander Badge.


title: Drill instructor

text: Coast Guard recruit companies average two or three CCs per, with the newer CCs serving as Assistants to the more experienced Lead CC.


title: Drill instructor

text: During recent years, Coast Guard Company Commanders have gone to the United States Coast Guard Academy in New London, CT to train outgoing third class cadets during a week-long evolution called "100th Week", in which they are once again treated as incoming fourth class cadets by the CCs. The rationale behind this is to remind these cadets of their experiences coming into the Academy, and to reinforce the mantra that they must do the things they will eventually demand of incoming Swabs. Later in the week, CCs begin teaching the cadets lessons on leadership. The experience provides third class cadets with invaluable experience they will need in training the new incoming fourth class cadets during Swab Summer.


title: Drill instructor

text: The appointment of Drill Sergeant Major (DSM) (French: Sergent-major instructeur (SMI)), is usually held by the most Senior Master Warrant Officer of an infantry regiment; an exception being with the Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry where that position is known as the Quartermaster Sergeant Instructor or QMSI


title: Drill instructor

text: In Basic Military Qualification, the course staff member that is teaching drill for a particular drill class is the "drill instructor" for that class.


title: Drill instructor

text: Drill instructors have a reputation as unforgiving taskmasters and they are often portrayed as such in popular culture.


title: Sasha Cohen

text: Alexandra Pauline "Sasha" Cohen (born October 26, 1984) is a retired American figure skater. She is the 2006 Olympic silver medalist, a three-time World Championship medalist, the 2003 Grand Prix Final Champion, and the 2006 U.S. Champion. She is known for her artistry, flexibility and body lines, and musical interpretation. , Cohen is the most recent American woman to medal individually in figure skating at the Olympics.


title: Sasha Cohen

text: Cohen was born in Westwood, California, a neighborhood in Los Angeles. Her nickname "Sasha" is a Russian diminutive of "Alexandra". Her mother, Galina Cohen (née Feldman), is a Jewish immigrant from Odessa, Ukrainian SSR, Soviet Union and a former ballet dancer. Her father, Roger Cohen, is a graduate of the University of California, Berkeley Boalt Hall School of Law and formerly a law partner at Brobeck, Phleger & Harrison. Cohen has a younger sister, Natalia (nicknamed "Natasha"), who began college at Barnard College in August 2006. She understands and can speak Russian, but refuses to speak it in public.


title: Sasha Cohen

text: Cohen graduated from Futures High School in Mission Viejo, California in 2002. Cohen graduated from Columbia University in 2016 with a degree in political science. As a university student, she has used the name Alex rather than Sasha.


title: Sasha Cohen

text: In 2005, Cohen published her autobiography, "Fire on Ice". The autobiography was republished in 2006 adding a new chapter on the 2006 season.


title: Sasha Cohen

text: A gymnast from an early age, Cohen switched to figure skating when she was seven years old, but it wasn't until she was eleven that she began to take the sport seriously. One of her early skating coaches was Victor Yelchin, father of late actor Anton Yelchin.


title: Sasha Cohen

text: Cohen rose to prominence in the skating community during the 2000 U.S. Championships. Just up from juniors, Cohen was first in the short program and finished second overall after the free skate, provisionally qualifying for the senior World team. A loophole in the ISU's age rules at the time would have allowed her to compete at the senior World Championships if she medaled at the World Junior Championships but she finished 6th at the junior event.


title: Sasha Cohen

text: Cohen did not compete at the 2001 U.S. Nationals due to a stress fracture in her back. She resumed full training in June 2001. Cohen won the silver medal at the 2002 U.S. championships, earning her a trip to the Olympics. Cohen competed at the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, Utah, finishing 4th. She also finished 4th at the 2002 World Championships, held in Nagano. Cohen was coached by John Nicks in California.


title: Sasha Cohen

text: In the summer of 2002, Cohen moved to the East Coast to train with Tatiana Tarasova at the International Skating Center of Connecticut in Simsbury, Connecticut. She won her first ISU Grand Prix event at the 2002 Skate Canada and then won the 2002 Trophée Lalique. She won the silver medal at the 2002 Cup of Russia. These three placements earned her a spot to the 2002–03 Grand Prix Final, where she became the champion. At the 2003 U.S. championships she won the bronze medal, and at the 2003 World Championships, held in Washington, D.C., Cohen placed 4th, repeating her placement in the previous season.


title: Sasha Cohen

text: Her best season was 2003–04, when she took gold at the 2003 Skate America, at the 2003 Skate Canada (setting a world record in the short program) and at the 2003 Trophée Lalique and won silver at the 2003–04 Grand Prix Final. In late December 2003, she changed coaches and began training with Robin Wagner in Hackensack, New Jersey. She placed second at both the 2004 U.S. Championships and the 2004 World Championships, getting a medal at Worlds for the first time in her career.


title: Sasha Cohen

text: In the 2004–05 season, Cohen withdrew from her Grand Prix events due to a recurring back injury. In late December 2004, Cohen decided to return to California and train again with her first coach John Nicks. She placed 2nd at the 2005 U.S. championships in Portland and the 2005 World Championships in Moscow, Russia.


title: Sasha Cohen

text: Cohen started her Olympic season by placing first at the Campbell's International Figure Skating Challenge. Soon after she withdrew from Skate America due to a hip injury. She took second place at Trophée Eric Bompard, where she fell on a triple salchow during her free skate. In 2006, Cohen overcame the flu to capture her first U.S. championship. With this victory Cohen automatically secured her place on the U.S. Olympic team for the 2006 Winter Olympics, a spot made official on January 14 of that year by the United States Figure Skating Association.


title: Sasha Cohen

text: At the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, Cohen was in first after the short program, leading Russia's Irina Slutskaya by a mere .03 points. In the final free skate, Cohen fell on her first jump, a triple lutz, and had her hands down on her second jump, the triple flip. She completed the rest of her elements, including five triples. Cohen finished with an Olympic silver medal, 7.98 points behind gold medalist Shizuka Arakawa of Japan.


title: Sasha Cohen

text: A month later at the 2006 World Championships in Calgary, Canada, Cohen was in first place after the short program. Completing only one jump combination and falling on the triple salchow, she placed fourth in the free skate and won the bronze medal, finishing almost ten points behind her teammate, gold medalist Kimmie Meissner.


title: Sasha Cohen

text: In April 2006, Cohen started the Champions on Ice tour, participated in the second annual "Skating with the Stars, Under the Stars" gala in Central Park and performed in the Marshalls U.S. Figure Skating International Showcase. On April 15, 2006, Cohen announced that she intended to compete in the 2010 season and the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver. She said via her official website, "I will decide after the COI Tour how much skating and what events I will do next season."


title: Sasha Cohen

text: In December 2006, Cohen announced that she needed "a little downtime from competing" and that she would not defend her U.S. Figure Skating Championship title in 2007. She said that her "major goals" were the 2009 World Championships and the 2010 Olympics; "I know I want to be in Vancouver for the 2010 Olympics."


title: Sasha Cohen

text: Cohen did not compete in 2007, 2008, or 2009, although she did not give up her Olympic eligibility. She performed in exhibitions, including the Rockefeller Christmas Tree lighting and USFSA-approved events. She was a headliner in the 2007–08 and 2008–09 Stars on Ice tour.


title: Sasha Cohen

text: Cohen announced on May 6, 2009 that she planned to make a comeback for the 2010 Winter Olympics. She said she would train with Rafael Arutyunyan. Cohen received invitations to compete in the 2009 Trophée Eric Bompard and in the 2009 Skate America in the 2009–10 Grand Prix series but withdrew from both due to tendinitis in her right calf. In November 2009, she changed coaches to John Nicks, who worked closer to where she lived.


title: Sasha Cohen

text: On January 21, 2010, Cohen competed for the first time in four years at the 2010 U.S. Championships in Spokane, Washington. She debuted her program to España cañí, and skated a strong performance landing a triple lutz-double toe, a triple flip, a double Axel, along with her signature spiral sequence and spins earning 69.63 points putting her in second place, just 0.43 from first-place finisher Mirai Nagasu. However, in her free skate, set to Moonlight Sonata, she fell on a triple flip and had two-footed landings on a number of other jumps. Cohen finished fourth in the championships, behind Rachael Flatt, Mirai Nagasu and Ashley Wagner, and was not selected for the Olympic team; however, was appointed as second alternate to the 2010 U.S. Olympic team and the 2010 World Championship team. She retired from figure skating in 2010.


title: Sasha Cohen

text: In 2015, Cohen was inducted into the Southern California Jewish Sports Hall of Fame. On December 15, 2015, U.S. Figure Skating announced Cohen would be a member of the U.S. Figure Skating Hall of Fame Class of 2016. The induction ceremony was held on January 22, 2016 at the 2016 U.S. Figure Skating Championships.


title: Sasha Cohen

text: Cohen is the first skater to receive +3s for spirals under the International Skating Union Judging System (IJS) for "Grade of Execution (GOE)", and was also the first female to break the +130 barrier on a free skate under the IJS. At the beginning of her senior career she was labeled as one in the generation of "Baby Ballerinas" (alongside Naomi Nari Nam) due to her body lines and the ability to point her toes during difficult skating maneuvers such as triple jumps, spiral sequences and footwork. She is known for her 180º arabesque penchée spiral and Charlotte spiral, as well as the variety of positions in her spins. She popularized the I-spin position, which is sometimes informally referred to as the "Sasha spin", due to her exceptional execution of the move.


title: Sasha Cohen

text: Cohen has participated in the ice show Stars On Ice for several years, as well as starring in the 2010 Art On Ice alongside Stéphane Lambiel. She joined 2010 Olympic ladies champion Yuna Kim in the ice show, scheduled for July 23–25, 2010 in Goyang, South Korea, alongside other skaters including Michelle Kwan, Stéphane Lambiel and Brian Joubert.


title: Sasha Cohen

text: Cohen has appeared, as herself and as an actress playing a role, in commercials, television episodes, documentaries and feature films.


title: Sasha Cohen

text: Cohen has done commercials for Citizen Watch, Simply Saline, and Got Milk?. She appeared in Episode 7 of the second season of "Project Runway" wherein designers were challenged to design a skating dress for her. The winning dress (by Zulema Griffin) did not fit and the dress had to be resized. Cohen made a brief appearance guest starring as herself on the May 5, 2006 episode of the NBC drama, "Las Vegas". In April 2008, she appeared as a contortionist on the premiere episode of "Secret Talents of the Stars" and advanced to the semifinals, although the show was cancelled before she could perform again. She made a guest appearance as an ice skater in "" season 3 episode 12 "Silent Night". Cohen also participated in the 2013 edition of "Tornado Week" on The Weather Channel, helping break the myth that small tornadoes are not as destructive by demonstrating a tight spin.


title: Sasha Cohen

text: Cohen played Fiona Hughes, Moondance Alexander's archenemy, in the Don Johnson movie "Moondance Alexander". At the 2006 Academy Awards, Cohen served as a guest correspondent for "Inside Edition". This experience led to an encounter with Ben Stiller and a discussion about having a part in a future comedy about figure skating, which Cohen said she would enjoy. In 2007, she appeared as herself in "Blades of Glory". Later that year, she also had a role in "". In 2017, Cohen appeared as herself in the SyFy tv movie, "Sharknado 5".


title: Sasha Cohen

text: Cohen was featured in "The Weight of Gold" (2020), an HBO Sports Documentary which "explor(es) the mental health challenges that Olympic athletes often face."


title: Sasha Cohen

text: On July 5, 2015, it was announced that Cohen was engaged to hedge fund manager Tom May. On August 20, 2016, the couple married in Cape Cod, Massachusetts. In February 2018, she and May were living apart and going through divorce proceedings. Cohen now works as an associate at Morgan Stanley. In October 2019, Cohen announced her engagement to Geoffrey Lieberthal, an equity partner who is also the son of political scientist Kenneth Lieberthal. They have two children: a son born in January 2020 and a daughter born in August 2021. Cohen and Lieberthal married in September 2022 in Aspen Mountain, Colorado.


title: Tahmoh Penikett

text: Tahmoh Penikett (; ; born May 20, 1975) is a Canadian actor. He is known for playing Karl "Helo" Agathon on SyFy's 2004 television series "Battlestar Galactica". He has appeared in TV series "Supernatural", "Dollhouse", the Showcase time travel show "Continuum", and as the antagonist Darius in the 2006 racing video game "".


title: Tahmoh Penikett

text: Penikett was born in Whitehorse, Yukon. He is the son of former Yukon premier Tony Penikett, who moved to Victoria, British Columbia from England at age 12, and Lulla Sierra Johns, of the White River First Nation in the Yukon. He has two siblings, twin sisters Sarah and Stephanie. He graduated from the Victoria Motion Picture School and studied at the Lyric School of Acting in Vancouver.


title: Tahmoh Penikett

text: In 2002, he had a brief appearance as one of the first Human-Form Replicators in the season 6 episode of "Stargate SG-1", "Unnatural Selection". From 2004-2005, Penikett portrayed Ray Chase, who appeared in eleven episodes of the Canadian police drama, "Cold Squad". He played a leading role as Noah Hamilton in the 2005 made-for-TV film "Hush" alongside actress Tori Spelling. He had a role in the video game "", as a street racer named Darius. He also appeared in four episodes of the television series "Whistler" as Elias Noth. Penikett also provided voice talent for antagonist Troy Hammerschmidt on the Adult Swim show "Titan Maximum". In 2010, Penikett played the lead role of Matt Ellman on Syfy's miniseries "Riverworld" an adaption of the science fiction books written by Philip José Farmer of the same name. He starred in the first two episodes of Warner Brothers' "" as Kurtis Stryker, which debuted in April on YouTube; he was replaced by Eric Jacobus for season 2.


title: Tahmoh Penikett

text: Among his early acting work were stints on assorted Canadian TV series such as "Cold Squad". He also appeared on the TV show "Smallville", in the episode "Resurrection" in Season 3 as Vince Davis, and in the Season 6 episodes "Nemesis" and "Prototype" as Sgt. Wes Keenan. He portrayed a police officer for a predominantly gay neighbourhood in the 2004 "The L Word" episode "Losing It", which starred "Battlestar Galactica" co-star Nicki Clyne in a related storyline.


title: Tahmoh Penikett

text: In 2003, the 1978 science fiction television series "Battlestar Galactica" was "reimagined" as a three-hour miniseries on the SciFi Channel. The miniseries was filmed in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, and Penikett, a local actor, auditioned and was cast in the part of Karl "Helo" Agathon, an officer in the Colonial Fleet. The miniseries proved highly successful, and a "Battlestar Galactica" series was commissioned.


title: Tahmoh Penikett

text: The role was not based on a character in the original series, and was meant to be confined only to the miniseries; in the miniseries Helo is shown giving up a spot on a spaceship fleeing the doomed planet of Caprica, with the implication that he was left to die. However, both the producers and test audiences were sufficiently impressed with the character, and Penikett's performance, that the decision was made to make Helo a recurring character on the show. A plot that took place over much of the show's first season was that the Cylons on Caprica kept Helo alive in order to have him fall in love with, and impregnate, a Cylon (Helo was chosen because his crew partner, Sharon Valerii, was in fact a Cylon, and another copy of the same model was sent to pretend to be her). By the second season, his character had returned to the "Galactica"; as the father of the only successful human-Cylon hybrid; this character and his family became central to the show's mythology.


title: Tahmoh Penikett

text: In 2009, Penikett was cast as Paul Ballard in Joss Whedon's science fiction drama television series "Dollhouse", which aired on Fox network Friday nights at 9:00.


title: Tahmoh Penikett

text: "Dollhouse" was canceled at the end of its second season, and the series finale aired on Friday, January 29, 2010. In 2012, he guest-starred as a politician named Jim Martin in the first season of Showcase's "Continuum". He returned as a recurring character in the second season of the show. In 2013, Penikett was cast on the CW TV series "Supernatural" as a fallen angel who claimed to be Ezekiel, appearing in the show's ninth season premiere. The character's real name was revealed as Gadreel in episode nine and Penikett reprised the role in episode ten. He has since reprised the roles in episodes eighteen, twenty-one and twenty-two. He also landed another recurring role on the mid-season drama "Star-Crossed", which premiered in February 2014.


title: Tahmoh Penikett

text: In 2014, Penikett guest-starred in the 200th episode of "Criminal Minds" as Michael Hastings, an ex-CIA agent and leader of the terrorist group, The Regime Squad. Since 2014, he has also starred in the award-winning web series "Riftworld Chronicles".


title: Tahmoh Penikett

text: In support of the Babz Chula Lifeline for Artists Society, which is raising money for their friend and fellow Canadian actor Chula's cancer treatment, Penikett and his "Battlestar Galactica" colleague Kandyse McClure auctioned off the opportunity to have dinner with both of them in Vancouver in April 2008.


title: Tahmoh Penikett

text: He has taken Judo in his youth before switching to Muay Thai and has showcased his ability in various roles, including in "Battlestar Galactica" and most notably as Agent Ballard in the fight sequences in "Dollhouse", where he choreographed most of his own moves.


title: Aaron Ruell

text: Aaron Ruell (born June 23, 1976) is an American director, photographer and actor. He is most recognized for his performance as Kip Dynamite in the indie movie "Napoleon Dynamite".


title: Aaron Ruell

text: Ruell was born in Fresno, California and raised in a Mormon family in nearby Clovis. After graduation from Clovis West High School, Ruell studied film at Brigham Young University.


title: Aaron Ruell

text: Ruell is an accomplished commercial director and photographer. As a director he is represented by Sanctuary in Los Angeles. He was declared one of the most promising new directors in the world of advertising by "Shoot" magazine in 2009, and "one of the emerging directors to know now" by "Creativity". He has directed commercials for clients such as T-Mobile, Nintendo, Coke, and Burger King.


title: Aaron Ruell

text: He was the only filmmaker to have two films, "Everything's Gone Green" and "Mary", which he wrote and directed, premiere at the 2005 Sundance Film Festival.


title: Aaron Ruell

text: Ruell is best known for playing the role of Kipland Dynamite in the movie "Napoleon Dynamite". In 2007, he starred in "On the Road with Judas," which premiered in the Dramatic Competition section of the 2007 Sundance Film Festival. Ruell played a successful New York businessman who led a double life as a computer thief.


title: Aaron Ruell

text: Ruell and his wife, Yuka, were at one time members of the Los Angeles Latebirds, an official Moped Army branch. They currently reside in Portland, Oregon after having resided in Pasadena, California.