title: Welland Canal

text: In 1839 the government of Upper Canada approved the purchase of shares in the private canal company in response to the company's continuing financial problems in the face of the continental financial panic of 1837. The public buyout was completed in 1841, and work began to deepen the canal and to reduce the number of locks to 27, each . By 1846, a deep path was completed through the Welland Canal, and by 1848 that depth was extended the rest of the way to the Atlantic Ocean via the future path of the St. Lawrence Seaway.


title: Welland Canal

text: Competition came in 1854 with the opening of the Erie and Ontario Railway, running parallel to the original portage road. In 1859, the Welland Railway opened, parallel to the canal and with the same endpoints. But this railway was affiliated with the canal, and was actually used to help transfer cargoes from the lake ships, which were too large for the small canal locks, to the other end of the canal (The Trillium Railway owns the railway's remnants and Port Colborne Harbour Railway). Smaller ships called "canallers" also took a part of these loads. Due to this problem, it was soon apparent the canal would have to be enlarged again.


title: Welland Canal

text: In 1887, a new shorter alignment was completed between St. Catharines and Port Dalhousie. One of the most interesting features of this third Welland Canal was the Merritton Tunnel, built in 1876 on the Grand Trunk Railway line that ran under the canal between Locks 18 and 19. Another nearby tunnel carried the canal over a sunken section of the St David's Road. The new route had a minimum depth of with 26 stone locks, each long by wide. Even so, the canal was still too small for many boats.


title: Welland Canal

text: Construction on the current canal began in 1913, but work was put on hold from 1916 to 1919 due to a shortage of men and workers during World War I (1914–18) and was completed and officially opened on August 6, 1932. Dredging to the planned 25 foot depth was not completed until 1935. The route was again changed north of St. Catharines, now running directly north to Port Weller. In this configuration, there are eight locks, seven at the Niagara Escarpment and the eighth, a guard lock, at Port Colborne to adjust with the varying water depth in Lake Erie. The depth was now , with locks long by wide. This canal is officially known now as the Welland Ship Canal. The Welland Canal's first "hands-free" vacuum mooring was tested in Lock 7 prior to 2014. Installation of the updated systems for Locks 1 through 7 will be completed in 2017.


title: Welland Canal

text: In the 1950s, with the building of the present St. Lawrence Seaway, a standard depth of was adopted. The long Welland By-Pass, built between 1967 and 1972, opened for the 1973 shipping season, providing a new and shorter alignment between Port Robinson and Port Colborne and by-passing downtown Welland. All three crossings of the new alignment—one an aqueduct for the Welland River—were built as tunnels. Around the same time, the Thorold Tunnel was built at Thorold and several bridges were removed.


title: Welland Canal

text: These projects were to be tied into a proposed new canal, titled the Fifth Welland Canal, which was planned to by-pass most of the existing canal to the east and to cross the Niagara Escarpment in 4 twinned "Panamax" locks. While land for the project was expropriated and early designs initiated, the project never got past early planning or construction stages and has since been shelved.


title: Welland Canal

text: The present Welland Ship Canal was originally designed to only last until 2030, almost 100 years after it first opened, and 200 years since the first full shipping season, in 1830, of the original canal. Subsequent improvements to the canal infrastructure mean that it may last much longer before it needs to be replaced.


title: Welland Canal

text: On June 20, 1912, the government survey steamer "La Canadienne" lost control due to mechanical problems in the engine room and smashed into the upstream gates of Lock No. 22 of the 3rd Welland Canal, forcing them open by six inches. The resulting surge of water flooded downstream, cresting the upstream gates of Lock No. 21 where five boys were fishing. One boy ran to safety and one of the boys was saved by a government surveyor. But the remaining three were knocked into the water, drowning in the surge.


title: Welland Canal

text: On August 25, 1974, the northbound ore-carrier "Steelton" struck Bridge 12 in Port Robinson. The bridge was rising and the impact knocked the bridge over, destroying it. No one was killed. The bridge master, Albert Beaver, and a watchman on the ship suffered minor injuries. The bridge has not been replaced and the inhabitants of Port Robinson have been served by a ferry for many years. The Welland Public Library archive has images of the aftermath.


title: Welland Canal

text: On August 11, 2001, the lake freighter "Windoc" collided with Bridge 11 in Allanburg, closing vessel traffic on the Welland Canal for two days. The accident destroyed the ship's wheelhouse and funnel (chimney), ignited a large fire on board, and caused minor damage to the vertical-lift bridge. The accident and portions of its aftermath were captured on amateur video. The vessel was a total loss, but there were no reported injuries, and no pollution to the waterway. The damage to the bridge was focused on the centre of the vertical-lift span. It was repaired over a number of weeks and reopened to vehicular traffic on November 16, 2001. The Marine Investigation Report concluded, "it is likely that the [vertical-lift bridge] operator's performance was impaired while the bridge span was lowered onto the Windoc."


title: Welland Canal

text: At around noon on Wednesday September 30, 2015, the Lena J cargo ship collided with Bridge 19 in Port Colborne, closing the bridge to all vehicle and pedestrian traffic until an assessment could be made on the condition of the bridge. The vessel had sustained damage to its bridge, but was still able to continue on its voyage to Burns Harbour, Indiana. Pictures of the damage sustained to the vessel and Bridge 19 were captured. On Friday October 1, 2015, Chris Lee, an acting direct engineer for the City of Port Colborne, said that the St. Lawrence Seaway Management Corporation (SLSMC) will likely close the bridge to all vehicle traffic until the end of the year. However, pedestrians will be able to cross the bridge, and emergency services will be able to cross the bridge on a limited basis. On Tuesday October 6, 2015, the City of Port Colborne released a media statement, which stated that Bridge 19, "will remain closed to vehicular traffic until after the close of the shipping season in December. Repairs will begin in early January." Detour routes have been planned and mapped by the City of Port Colborne and the City of Welland in order to ease the flow of traffic over Bridge 19A.


title: Welland Canal

text: The Welland Canal Fallen Workers Memorial at Lock 3 was unveiled on November 12, 2017. This commemorates the 137 workers who died while building the canal.


title: Welland Canal

text: On July 11, 2020 two cargo ships, the "Alanis" and the "Florence Spirit", struck each other while executing a passing manoeuvre near Port Robinson. According to the St. Lawrence Seaway Management Corporation, no one was injured, no cargo was spilled, and an investigation would be undertaken.


title: Welland Canal

text: The Welland Canal has been the focus of plots on a number of occasions throughout its existence. However, only two have ever been carried out. The earliest and potentially most devastating attack occurred on September 9, 1841, at Lock No. 37 (Allanburg) of the First Welland Canal () (approximately 180 m north of today's Allanburg bridge), when an explosive charge destroyed one of the lock gates. However, a catastrophic flood was prevented when a guard gate located upstream of the lock closed into place preventing the upstream waters from careening down the route of the Canal and causing further damage and possible injury or loss of life. It was suspected that Benjamin Lett was responsible for the explosion.


title: Welland Canal

text: On April 21, 1900, about 6:30 in the evening, a dynamite charge was set off against the hinges of Lock No. 24 of the Third Welland Canal (just to the east of Lock No. 7 of today's canal ()), doing minor damage. This time, the saboteurs were caught in nearby Thorold. John Walsh, John Nolan and the ringleader "Dynamite" Luke Dillon (a member of Clan-na-Gael) were tried at the Welland Courthouse and found guilty, receiving life sentences at Kingston Penitentiary. The "star witness" at the trial was a 16-year-old Thorold girl named Euphemia Constable, who caught a good look at the bombers before being knocked unconscious by the blast. While waiting to testify, the girl received death threats, but, they turned out to be a hoax. As for the prisoners, Nolan lost his sanity while incarcerated, John Walsh was eventually released while Luke Dillon remained in custody until July 12, 1914.


title: Welland Canal

text: The First World War brought with it plots against the canal and the most notable of them came to be known as "The Von Papen Plot". In April 1916, a United States federal grand jury issued an indictment against Franz von Papen, Captain Hans Tauscher, Captain Karl Boy-Ed, Constantine Covani and Franz von Rintelen on charges of a plot to blow up the Welland Canal. However, Papen was at the time safely on German soil, having been expelled from the US several months previously for alleged earlier acts of espionage and attempted sabotage.


title: Welland Canal

text: Von Papen remained under indictment on these charges until he became Chancellor of Germany in 1932, at which time the charges were dropped.


title: Welland Canal

text: The canal regularly opens late March through December, with closure in the winter due to hazardous weather. On March 20, 2007, the record for the earliest season opening was broken, and matched the following year.


title: Welland Canal

text: The following illustration depicts the profile of the Welland Canal. The horizontal axis is the length of the canal. The vertical axis is the elevation of the canal segments above mean sea level.


title: Welland Canal

text: If assigned by the St. Lawrence Seaway Authority. The original bridges across the fourth canal were numbered in order. Numbering was not changed as bridges were removed.


title: Freedom to roam

text: The freedom to roam, or "everyman's right", is the general public's right to access certain public or privately owned land, lakes, and rivers for recreation and exercise. The right is sometimes called the right of public access to the wilderness or the "right to roam".


title: Freedom to roam

text: In Scotland, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Belarus, Austria, Czech Republic and Switzerland, the freedom to roam takes the form of general public rights which are sometimes codified in law. The access is ancient in parts of Northern Europe and has been regarded as sufficiently basic that it was not formalised in law until modern times. However, the right usually does not include any substantial economic exploitation, such as hunting or logging, or disruptive activities, such as making fires and driving offroad vehicles.


title: Freedom to roam

text: In countries without such general rights, there may be a network of rights of way, or some nature reserves with footpaths.


title: Freedom to roam

text: Ancient traces provide evidence of the freedom to roam in many European countries, suggesting such a freedom was once a common norm. Today, the right to roam has survived in perhaps its purest form in Estonia, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden. Here the right has been won through practice over hundreds of years and it is not known when it changed from mere 'common practice' to become a commonly recognised right.


title: Freedom to roam

text: Today these rights underpin opportunities for outdoor recreation in several of the Nordic countries, providing the opportunity to hike across or camp on another's land (e.g. in Sweden for one or two nights), boating on someone else's waters, and picking wildflowers, mushrooms and berries. However, with these rights come responsibilities; that is, an obligation neither to harm, disturb, litter, nor to damage wildlife or crops.


title: Freedom to roam

text: Access rights are most often for travel on foot. Rights to fish, hunt or take any other product are usually constrained by other customs or laws. Building a fire is often prohibited (though in Sweden and Norway fires are allowed with proper safety precautions). Making noise is discouraged. In some countries, putting up a tent in the forest for one night is allowed, but not the use of a caravan. Access does not extend to built up or developed land (such as houses, gardens) and does not necessarily include commercial exploitation of the land. For example, workers picking berries may be legal only with the landowner's permission.


title: Freedom to roam

text: There are some significant differences in the rules of different countries. In Denmark, there is a more restricted freedom to roam on privately held land. All dunes and beaches and all publicly owned forests are open to roaming. Uncultivated, unfenced areas are open to daytime roaming irrespective of ownership status. Privately owned forest have access by roads and tracks only.


title: Freedom to roam

text: In Finland, the freedom to roam and related rights are called """" in Finnish and """" in Swedish (lit. "the everyman's right"), similar to other Nordic countries. Everyone may walk, ski, ride a horse or cycle freely in the countryside where this does not harm the natural environment or the landowner, except in gardens or in the immediate vicinity of people's homes (yards). Fields and plantations, which may easily be harmed, may usually not be crossed except in the winter. It is also possible to establish outdoor recreation routes on private land, based on an agreement on the rights of use or by official proceedings in accordance with the Outdoor Recreation Act, for example.


title: Freedom to roam

text: One may stay or set up camp temporarily in the countryside, a reasonable distance from homes, pick mineral samples, wild berries, mushrooms and flowers (as long as they are not protected species). One may fish with a rod and line (only still waters), row, sail or use a motorboat on waterways (with certain restrictions), and swim or bathe in both inland waters and the sea. One can walk, ski and ice fish on frozen lakes, rivers and the sea. Income from selling picked berries or mushrooms is tax-free. Picking cloudberry may be temporarily restricted to local residents in parts of Lapland. In the autonomous province of Åland the right to camp's inclusion in the right to roam was disputed, but since 2013 this is no longer the case.


title: Freedom to roam

text: One may not disturb others or damage property, disturb breeding birds (or their nests or young), or disturb reindeer or game animals. One may not cut down or damage living trees, or collect wood, moss or lichen on other people's property, nor may one light open fires without the landowner's permission (except in an emergency). It is acceptable, however, to use an alcohol burner, wood stove or similar device that has no hot parts touching the ground. One may not disturb the privacy of people's homes by camping too near to them or making too much noise, nor litter, drive motor vehicles off-road without the landowner's permission, or fish (excluding angling) or hunt without the relevant permits. If horse riding causes more than a minor inconvenience or disturbance, an agreement for the long term use of the route must be made with the landowner. A horse may also be taken to swim in a water body without the consent of the owner of the water area (excluding public beaches).


title: Freedom to roam

text: The right is a positive right in the respect that only the government is allowed to restrict it as in the case of strict nature reserves. However, the exact definition remains mostly uncodified and based on the principle of "nulla poena sine lege" (what is not illegal cannot be punished).


title: Freedom to roam

text: Everyone in Norway enjoys the right of access to, and passage through, uncultivated land in the countryside. The right is an old consuetudinary law called the "allemannsrett" (lit. the everyman's right), that was codified in 1957 with the implementation of the Outdoor Recreation Act. It is based on respect for the countryside, and all visitors are expected to show consideration for farmers and landowners, other users and the environment. In Norway the terms "utmark" and "innmark" divide areas where the right to roam is valid ("utmark", literally something like "land outside [the boundaries]"/"[Out Field]") and where it is invalid or restricted ("innmark", "land inside [the boundaries]"/"[In Field]"). The law specifies "innmark" thoroughly, and all areas not covered by this definition are defined as "utmark", generally speaking uninhabited and uncultivated areas. Cultivated land may only be crossed when frozen and covered in snow.


title: Freedom to roam

text: In later years the right has come under pressure particularly around the Oslo Fjord and in popular areas of Southern Norway. These areas are popular sites for holiday homes and many owners of coastal land want to restrict public access to their property. As a general rule, building and partitioning of property is prohibited in a 100-metre zone closest to the sea, but local authorities in many areas have made liberal use of their ability to grant exemptions from this rule. However, even if a land owner has been permitted to build closer to the shore, he may not restrict people from walking along the shore. Fences and other barriers to prevent public access are not permitted (but yet sometimes erected, resulting in heavy fines).


title: Freedom to roam

text: Canoeing, kayaking, rowing and sailing in rivers, lakes, and ocean are allowed. Motorised boats are only permitted in salt water. All waters are open for swimming – with the exception of lakes that are drinking water reservoirs (see for instance Maridalsvannet).


title: Freedom to roam

text: Wild berry foraging is part of the right. Picking cloudberries may, however, be restricted on privately owned land in northern parts of Norway.


title: Freedom to roam

text: Hunting rights belong to the landowner, and thus hunting is not included in the right of free access. In freshwater areas such as rivers and lakes, the fishing rights belong to the landowner. Freshwater fishing may only be conducted with the permission of the landowner and by those in possession of a fishing licence. Different rules apply for children under the age of 16. Children under the age of 16 have the right to fish without a licence, a right codified in 1992. This right was tried and upheld in a ruling from the Norwegian Supreme Court in 2004.


title: Freedom to roam

text: In salt water areas there is free access to sports fishing using boats or from the shoreline. All fishing is subject to legislation to, among other things, protect biological diversity, and this legislation stipulates rules regarding the use of gear, seasons, bag or size limits and more.


title: Freedom to roam

text: In Sweden (lit. "the everyman's right") is a freedom granted by the Constitution of Sweden. Since 1994 the Instrument of Government says that notwithstanding the right to own property "everyone shall have access to nature in accordance with "allemansrätten"". What this means is not further explicated on in the constitution, and only sparsely in other legislation. In practice, "allemansrätten" is defined as actions that are not crimes, will not make a person liable to pay damages, nor can be prohibited by any authority. As in other Nordic countries, the Swedish right to roam comes with an equal emphasis being placed upon the responsibility to look after the countryside; the maxim is "do not disturb, do not destroy". Many Swedish people consider this to be a form of legacy or human right.


title: Freedom to roam

text: "Allemansrätten" gives a person the right to access, walk, cycle, ride, ski, and camp on any land—with the exception of private gardens, the immediate vicinity of a dwelling house and land under cultivation. Restrictions apply for nature reserves and other protected areas. It also gives the right to pick wild flowers, mushrooms and berries (provided they are not legally protected), but not to hunt in any way. Swimming in any lake and putting an unpowered boat on any water is permitted unless explicitly forbidden. Visiting beaches and walking by a shoreline is permitted, providing it is not a part of a garden or within the immediate vicinity of a residence (legally defined as the "hemfridszon"). The "hemfridszon's" size depends on conditions but can be as large as 70 metres from an ordinary dwelling house. To better protect access to water and the right to walk along beaches, it is since 1975 generally not permitted to build a new house near (generally 100 m) from a beach and/or shoreline.


title: Freedom to roam

text: Fishing remains essentially private—apart from on the biggest five lakes and the coast of the Baltic Sea, the Sound, Kattegat and Skagerrak. It is permitted to drive a car on a private road unless explicitly signposted otherwise. Small camp fires are generally permitted, but in some periods banned by local authorities due to wild fire risk. It is allowed to put up a tent on any uncultivated land for a night or two. There has been some controversy on commercial use of the berry picking rights, when companies legally contract people to pick berries in the forests.


title: Freedom to roam

text: Building a fire is generally permitted except on bare rock faces where it can lead to cracking. Municipalities can issue fire bans during dry periods.


title: Freedom to roam

text: Exercise of the rights is overseen by the County Administrative Boards—which can, for example, force the removal of a fence if it obstructs access to areas that are important to the "allemansrätt".


title: Freedom to roam

text: Like other Nordic countries Icelandic law contains a version of the freedom to roam, the right to access uncultivated land and pick berries. "It is permissible to cross uncultivated private property without seeking any special permission, but landowners may limit routes with signs or other marks. State-owned land such as conservation areas and forestry areas are open to everyone with few exceptions. These exceptions include – but are not limited to – access during breeding seasons or during sensitive growth periods".


title: Freedom to roam

text: Hikers should, however, "avoid taking shortcuts over fenced areas, pastures and private plots", and follow the rules in conservation areas. Footpaths should also be followed, if they exist, to help protect the landscape. Furthermore, "landowners may not hinder passage of walkers alongside rivers, lakes and ocean, or on tracks and paths'. Cycling may be restricted on some paths. Equestrians must keep to bridleways where they exist and in other places show "consideration for the land".


title: Freedom to roam

text: In many areas, like South and East Iceland, only in uninhabited areas that are not protected maximum 3 Tents maybe pitched up for one night, if there is no camp-site in vicinity.


title: Freedom to roam

text: Motorized travellers with motorhomes (RV), camping cars (campers) and trailers must always stay on an official campsite.


title: Freedom to roam

text: In national parks, it is forbidden to stay overnight outside an official camp-site, both for motorized and non-motorized travellers.


title: Freedom to roam

text: Fishing requires a license but collecting "berries, mushrooms, seaweed and other plants for immediate consumption" is permitted on "public lands and highland pastures".


title: Freedom to roam

text: In Estonia, it is permitted to access natural and cultural landscapes on foot, by bicycle, ski, boat, or on horseback.


title: Freedom to roam

text: Private property may be accessed at any time. If the private property is fenced or posted against trespassing, the permission of the owner is required to proceed. The owner of the private property is also required to post signs stating the ownership of the land, and contact numbers, to avoid legal issues.


title: Freedom to roam

text: Land owners may not block access to land, roads or bodies of water that are public or designated for public use, including ice and shore paths.


title: Freedom to roam

text: All bodies of water that are public or designated for public use have public shore paths that are up to 4 m wide. The shore path along a navigable body of water may extend to a distance of 10 m of the water line. The owner may not close this path even if the private property is posted or marked with no-trespassing signs. Grazing areas and other enclosed areas along the shore paths must have stiles.


title: Freedom to roam

text: Ponds with no outlet located entirely on the land of one land owner and lakes smaller than five hectares located on land belonging to more than one land owner shall not be in public use. Permission from the landowner is required to access such bodies of water.


title: Freedom to roam

text: Neither do bodies of water protected as sources of drinking water or which are in use by aquaculture or are in other special use have a shore path.


title: Freedom to roam

text: All of the rights and responsibilities regarding humans’ interaction with nature are collectively termed everyman's right. Everyman's right does not pertain to the organizing of sporting events or other public events in open country. To organize these, the permission of the landowners or other possessors of land, and if necessary, of the local government, must be sought.


title: Freedom to roam

text: Article 13 of Section I of the Constitution of Belarus guarantees that all forest and farm land is publicly owned.


title: Freedom to roam

text: According to the Forest Code (Article 13) "citizens have the right to freely stay in the forest and collect wild fruits, berries, nuts, mushrooms, other food, forest resources and medicinal plants to meet their own needs."


title: Freedom to roam

text: The right to roam in Austria, particularly in forests and mountainous areas, is called Wegefreiheit. Since 1975 the right to roam in forests is guaranteed by Federal law. In particular, walking, running, hiking, and resting are automatically allowed to the public in most forest areas. However, horse riding, bike riding, and camping are not, and may only be practised with the land owner's permission. A large proportion of the forest area in Austria is owned by government bodies such as the , but the same restrictions still apply. In some circumstances forests may be closed to the public for environmental reasons. The situation in mountainous areas is less clear, and differs from state to state. Some states, such as Carinthia, Styria, and Salzburg guarantee a right to roam in mountainous areas (usually defined as above the tree line), for all recreational activities. In other states, such as Tyrol, Lower Austria, and Burgenland, no explicit right to roam exists and land owners reserve the right to deny access. In practice, however, such restrictions are rarely enforced, since mountain tourism is an important industry in Austria.


title: Freedom to roam

text: The old legal institute of "right of the way" (imbedded in the Civil Code) has its roots in Austria-Hungary law. This legal institution is applied when one land owner has a need to go through alien lands for access to his own land.


title: Freedom to roam

text: The Nature and Countryside Preservation Act, gives a legal right to roam through country ("veřejná přístupnost krajiny", public accessibility of countryside or wilderness – excluding parcels owned by a natural person). Some types of land are excluded from compulsory public accessibility: settled and building grounds, courtyards, gardens, orchards, vineyards, hop gardens, grounds destined for animal husbandry. Fields and arable land are excluded during seasons when herbage or soil would be damaged, pasture lands are excluded during cattle grazing.


title: Freedom to roam

text: In national natural preserves, national natural monuments, national parks and in the first zones of landscape protected areas, state authorities can restrict public access (ordinarily only to roads or only to marked routes). Special acts can exclude also other areas (e. g. military areas, rail tracks etc.).


title: Freedom to roam

text: According to Forest Act, forests are publicly accessible ("obecné užívání lesa", common use of forest – including private ones) and citizens have a legal right to enter the forests. The right of gathering dry twigs lying on the ground and berries for personal purpose is also guaranteed. However, biking, sledge riding, skiing and horseback riding are allowed only on forest roads. Public motor vehicle riding is prohibited (highroads going through forest are not considered as parts of the forest – because they are not considered as "forest land" in land registration). Common use of forest can be restricted by the owner in military forests, protected areas, forest nurseries, forest orchards, deer parks, pheasantries etc.


title: Freedom to roam

text: The Road Act defines "obecné užívání pozemních komunikací" (common use of roads – some road can be excluded), The Water Act defines "obecné užívání povrchových vod" (common use of surface waters).


title: Freedom to roam

text: The freedom to roam is guaranteed in Switzerland by the Swiss Civil Code. However, some cantons have more detailed regulations concerning the rights of access of otherwise not authorised people.


title: Freedom to roam

text: The Swiss Civil Code provides that forest and pasture are accessible freely for everyone, as long as there is no excessive usage. Except in special cases like the protection of young forest or biotopes it is not allowed to fence in forest areas. This also applies to private property. Certain activities related to excessive usage and the potential to cause damage, such as events in the woods, or access with cars, may be dependent on special authorisation. Similar regulations are in place for land which is not usable (e.g. stretches of water, rock, snow and ice), regardless of the land being unowned (i.e. being under the control of the canton and not able to be claimed as private property) or privately owned. The canton may also choose to restrict the freedom to roam in order to protect nature (e.g. the gathering of mushrooms, berries, wood, etc. in forests).


title: Freedom to roam

text: In Germany a limited right to roam, called "Betretungsrecht", is guaranteed by multiple federal laws. The Federal Nature Conservation Act, the Federal Forest Act and the Federal Water Management Act allow everyone access to open landscape, uncultivated land, forests and water bodies, including cycling and horse-riding on tracks and paths. The right may be further regulated through state law.


title: Freedom to roam

text: The Constitution of Bavaria guarantees everyone "the enjoyment of natural beauty and recreation in the outdoors, in particular the access to forests and mountain meadows, the use of waterways and lakes and the appropriation of wild fruits". The right is nicknamed "Schwammerlparagraph" (mushroom clause). The article also obliges "every person to treat nature and the landscape with care". "The state and the municipalities shall be entitled and obliged to maintain free access to mountains, lakes, rivers and other beautiful sceneries and to create free access by restricting property rights and to create hiking trails and recreational parks".


title: Freedom to roam

text: In the United Kingdom, outside Scotland, access to much uncultivated and unenclosed land was restricted prior the enactment of the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000. Access to land in England and Wales is still more limited than in most of Northern Europe, and some other European countries, while access is very limited in Northern Ireland. Property was formerly protected in England and Wales mostly to preserve the landowner's hunting or fishing rights. The Ramblers' Association, which works to increase the rights of walkers in the United Kingdom, was a driving force behind this legislation.


title: Freedom to roam

text: In England and Wales, after a polarised debate about the merits, rights and benefits of private landowners and public recreation, in 2000 the Government legislated to introduce a limited "right to roam", without compensation for landowners. The Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 (CROW) was gradually implemented from 2000 onwards to give the general public the conditional right to walk in certain areas of the English and Welsh countryside: principally downland, moorland, heathland and coastal land. Forests and woodlands are excluded, other than publicly owned forests, which have a similar right of access by virtue of a voluntary dedication made by the Forestry Commission. Developed land, gardens and certain other areas are specifically excluded from the right of access. Agricultural land is accessible if it falls within one of the categories described above. People exercising the right of access have certain duties to respect other people's rights to manage the land, and to protect nature.


title: Freedom to roam

text: The new rights were introduced region by region through England and Wales, with completion in 2005. Maps showing accessible areas have been produced. This added to the legal right to use established public footpaths and bridleways, some common land and access to the foreshore. Land owners may prevent access to other areas (or charge a fee for access).


title: Freedom to roam

text: Angling interests successfully lobbied for the exclusion of rivers in England and Wales from CROW, leaving other river users such as swimmers and canoeists with access restricted to less than 2% of navigable water. The British Canoe Union is running the Rivers Access Campaign, to highlight the level of restrictions the public face in gaining access to inland waterways in England and Wales.


title: Freedom to roam

text: Much of the Dartmoor National Park has been designated as 'Access Land', although it remains privately owned, since the Dartmoor Commons Act 1985, with no restrictions on where walkers can roam. Because of the 1985 Act, Dartmoor was largely unaffected by the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000, which established similar rights in other rural parts of the country, but in 2006, this Act opened up much of the remaining restricted land to walkers.


title: Freedom to roam

text: In Scotland the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003 comprehensively codified into Scots law the ancient tradition of the right to universal access to the land in Scotland. The act specifically establishes a right to be on land for recreational, educational and certain other purposes and a right to cross land. The rights exist only if they are exercised responsibly, as specified in the Scottish Outdoor Access Code.


title: Freedom to roam

text: Access rights apply to any non-motorised activities, including walking, cycling, horse-riding and wild camping. They also allow access on inland water for canoeing, rowing, sailing and swimming.


title: Freedom to roam

text: The rights confirmed in the Scottish legislation are greater than the limited rights of access created in England and Wales by the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 (CRoW).


title: Freedom to roam

text: Access rights in Northern Ireland have been described as being "the most regressive and restrictive access legislation in Europe. Most of the routes used to reach … mountains, hills, seashores, rivers and national monuments pass over private land. In almost all cases, the walker has no right to be there." The Access to the Countryside (Northern Ireland) Order 1983 gave some rights, but access is generally modelled on the restrictive 1949 English/Welsh law. The absence of a tradition of access, political influence of landowners and problems of governance have been blamed for the lack of freedom to roam.


title: Freedom to roam

text: Keep Ireland Open is a voluntary campaign organisation with the aim of improving access to the countryside. Journalist Fintan O'Toole called Irish law "perhaps the most negative and mean-minded regime for walkers in Europe". Access rights in Ireland have been described as being "the most regressive and restrictive access legislation in Europe. Most of the routes used to reach our mountains, hills, seashores, rivers and national monuments pass over private land. In almost all cases, the walker has no right to be there." The national parks are described by Keep Ireland Open as "the only places in Ireland where freedom to roam exists", but they only cover 0.9% of the country. Comhairle na Tuaithe was established by Éamon Ó Cuív, Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs in 2004 to mediate between landowners, state agencies and recreational users of the countryside.


title: Freedom to roam

text: Because American property rights include the right to exclude others, the freedom to roam does not generally exist in the United States. But under some circumstances, long-term use of a path across private property may legally establish a prescriptive easement for the public. On federally owned property, the of the U.S. Constitution states that the United States Congress "shall have Power to dispose of and make all needful Rules and Regulations respecting the Territory or other Property belonging to the United States", granting the legislative branch the authority to regulate federal property "without limitations".


title: Freedom to roam

text: In the United States, governmental entities including cities, counties, states, and the federal government all manage land which are referred to as either public lands or the public domain. The majority of public lands in the United States are administered by the United States Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management, agencies of the federal government, and include about 640 million acres of land, about 28% of the total land area of 2.27 billion acres. Any person, including non-citizens, can legally access and recreate on these lands lawfully, sometimes referred to as the North American model of land conservation. Some state and local governments enforce stricter policies on their public land, such as loitering laws and redlining practices, with some cities outright banishing certain groups of people. Here are some specific state and local policies:


title: Freedom to roam

text: Much of Canada is Crown land owned by the provinces. Some is leased for commercial activity, such as forestry or mining, but on much of it there is free access for recreational activities like hiking, cycling, canoeing, cross-country skiing, horse back riding, and licensed hunting and fishing, etc. At the same time access can be restricted or limited for various reasons (e.g., to protect public safety or resources, including the protection of wild plants and animals).


title: Freedom to roam

text: In the Canadian Territories Crown land is administered by the Canadian Federal Government. Canadian National Parks have been created from Crown land and are also administered by the Federal Government. There are also provincial parks and nature reserves that have been similarly created. The Indigenous peoples in Canada may have specific rights on Crown land established under treaties signed when Canada was a British colony, and have claimed ownership of some Crown land.


title: Freedom to roam

text: In Ontario, Canadian citizens and people who have lived in Canada for at least 7 months of the preceding 12-month period are allowed to camp for free up to 21 days on any one site in a calendar year, on crown land/conservation reserves .


title: Freedom to roam

text: Although formerly a British colony, Australians only have limited access to the land, according to "The Sydney Morning Herald". However, much of Australia's land area is Crown land, which is administered by the Australian states, and while a lot of this consists of pastoral leases, and land owned and run by Aboriginal people (e.g. APY lands), access is normally permitted for recreational purposes to “unallocated” Crown land; though motorized vehicles are required to follow roads.


title: Freedom to roam

text: There is extensive public access in New Zealand, including waterways and the coast, but it is "often fragmented and difficult to locate".


title: Freedom to roam

text: The "Queen's Chain" is a concept in New Zealand property law. It is a strip of public land, usually 20 metres (or one chain in pre-metric measure) wide along rivers, lakes and the coast line. It was designed to prevent land upriver or along a coast being inaccessible to any prospective buyers. The strips are incomplete and their exact modern location can be complex to determine. These strips exist in various forms (including road reserves, esplanade reserves, esplanade strips, marginal strips and reserves of various types) but not as extensively and consistently as is often assumed.


title: Freedom to roam

text: In 2007 the government of New Zealand reviewed the rights of public access for outdoor recreation. However, unlike the United Kingdom, "the New Zealand review recommended no increase in the public's right to access private property".


title: Freedom to roam

text: In recent years increased mobility and affluence has made previously remote areas more accessible and though significant harm or damage is unusual, endangered species are being disturbed, and litter left, by some recreational users.


title: Freedom to roam

text: Helena Jonsson, the President of the Federation of Swedish Farmers, argued in 2011 that the way land was used had changed and that the law was out of date and needed to be revised, so as "to bar commercial interests from using the law as an excuse to make a profit while they are on other people's private property".


title: Bernhard Langer

text: Bernhard Langer (; born 27 August 1957) is a German professional golfer. He is a two-time Masters champion and was one of the world's leading golfers throughout the 1980s and 1990s. In 1986, he became the sport's first official number one ranked player following the creation of the OWGR.


title: Bernhard Langer

text: Langer is one of five golfers who have won professional golf events on all six continents where golf is played. He has victories on all the premiere tours, with 42 wins on the European Tour (2nd most all-time), three on the PGA Tour, and numerous international victories; including wins on the Japan Golf Tour, Asian Tour, Australasian Tour, and the Tour de las Américas.


title: Bernhard Langer

text: The highlights of Langer's career are his two major championships. His first major win came at the 1985 Masters Tournament, where Langer won by two strokes over runners-up Seve Ballesteros, Raymond Floyd and Curtis Strange. His second major came at the 1993 Masters Tournament with a four-shot victory over Chip Beck. Langer has also finished runner-up on two occasions at The Open Championship (1981 and 1984). In 2020 Langer became the oldest player in Masters history to make the tournament cut, at age 63.


title: Bernhard Langer

text: After turning 50, Langer has established himself as the most successful player in the history of the PGA Tour Champions. He has won a record 11 senior major championships, been the money leader in a record 11 seasons and a record 7 times in a row. He has the second most PGA Tour Champions career wins and is one of only two players who have achieved the career "Senior Grand Slam" (winning each of the five major championships at least once during one's career). He has won the 2010, 2014, 2017 and 2019 Senior Open Championship, the 2010 U.S. Senior Open, the 2016 and 2017 Regions Tradition, the 2014, 2015 and 2016 Constellation Senior Players Championship, and the 2017 Senior PGA Championship.


title: Bernhard Langer

text: Langer was born on 27 August 1957 in the village of Anhausen, which today is a part of Diedorf municipality, near Augsburg, Bavaria, Germany. He turned professional in 1972 and has won many events in Europe and the United States, including The Masters in 1985 and 1993. He was the inaugural World Number 1 when the Official World Golf Rankings were introduced in 1986. He was elected to the World Golf Hall of Fame in 2001 (but deferred his induction until 2002). He ranks second in career wins on the European Tour (42) and has also played regularly on the U.S.-based PGA Tour, especially in the late 1980s and since 2000. He finished in a tie for fifth at The Open Championship the month before he turned 48, and regained a ranking in the top 100 three months before he turned 50. Along with Gary Player, David Graham, Hale Irwin and Justin Rose, Langer is one of only five players to have won official tournaments on all six continents on which golf is played. He played on ten Ryder Cup teams (1981, 1983, 1985, 1987, 1989, 1991, 1993, 1995, 1997, 2002), winning five times, and was the non-playing captain of the victorious European team in 2004.


title: Bernhard Langer

text: Langer has battled the yips, having a strong tendency to flinch or twitch during putting. He has changed his putter grip numerous times in an attempt to cure the problem. In the 1991 Ryder Cup, Langer missed a five-foot putt that would have tied the Ryder Cup and allowed the European team to retain the trophy.


title: Bernhard Langer

text: Langer has been married to his American wife Vikki Carol since 1984. They have four children: Jackie, Stefan, Christina, and Jason. They maintain homes in Langer's birthplace of Anhausen and in Boca Raton, Florida. Langer is known to be a devout Christian.


title: Bernhard Langer

text: In 2006, in recognition of his contribution to the sport of golf, Langer was appointed as an honorary Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (OBE). In his native Germany, Langer has received multiple honors, including the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany and the Silver Laurel Leaf ("Silbernes Lorbeerblatt"), which is the highest German sport award. In July 2016, he was inducted into Germany's Sport Hall of Fame.


title: Bernhard Langer

text: In 2015, Langer became the first player since Arnold Palmer (1984–85) to win the Constellation Senior Players Championship in back-to-back years. It was also the last year that Langer was allowed to anchor the long putter, a technique which the USGA banned effective 1 January 2016. At the 2016 Masters, Langer was in the second to last group in the final round only two shots back, but fell to a tie for 24th.


title: Bernhard Langer

text: In 2016, Langer claimed the Regions Tradition title for his sixth senior major championship. He won by a six-stroke margin over Olin Browne. This was his 100th professional win and the first time Langer had won the title. His capture of the 2017 Senior PGA Championship completed a career Grand Slam. The Regions Tradition title had also made him only the second golfer, after Jack Nicklaus, with wins in four different senior major championships. Later in 2016 he wrote history by becoming the first three-time winner of the Constellation Senior Players Championship and wins it for third straight year. The result also meant that only Nicklaus had won more senior majors than Langer. In November, he won his fourth Charles Schwab Cup and his third in a row.


title: Bernhard Langer

text: In January 2017, US president Donald Trump used an incorrect story about Langer's failed attempt at voting in the United States to justify an investigation of voter fraud in the 2016 US presidential election. The story was covered in several media outlets. Since Langer is a citizen only of Germany, he was not eligible to vote.


title: Bernhard Langer

text: Langer won three more senior majors in 2017 to become the most decorated player in the senior ranks of all time. In total, he won seven titles – but he did not win the season-ending Schwab Cup. Instead, Kevin Sutherland, who was fifth in the Order of Merit heading into the final event of the season, won that to lift the trophy in what was his only win of the season. Langer subsequently called the playoff process 'unfair'.


title: Bernhard Langer

text: In November 2018, Langer won his fifth Charles Schwab Cup. This brought his lifetime earnings in the Charles Schwab Cup to $7,000,000.


title: Bernhard Langer

text: In July 2019, Langer won his fourth Senior Open Championship at Royal Lytham & St. Annes Golf Club. This marked his eleventh victory in a senior major championship.


title: Bernhard Langer

text: In October 2021, Langer won the Dominion Energy Charity Classic in a playoff over Doug Barron. This made him the oldest man to win a PGA Tour Champions event at 64 years, 1 month and 27 days.


title: Bernhard Langer

text: In November 2021, Langer won his sixth Charles Schwab Cup for the combined 2020–21 season. The Cup was awarded for play over two seasons due to the COVID-19 pandemic.


title: Bernhard Langer

text: Langer's total career earnings through 2021 on the PGA Tour and PGA Tour Champions were more than US$42 million.


title: Bernhard Langer

text: In February 2022, Langer won the Chubb Classic for the fourth time. At 64 years, 5 months, 23 days he broke his own record for oldest winner on the PGA Tour Champions and won for the 16th straight season. This win left him two behind Hale Irwin for the career PGA Tour Champions record. In November 2022, Langer won the TimberTech Championship for the third time. This was his first win as a 65-year-old and his 44th win on PGA Tour Champions.


title: John J. Sullivan (diplomat)

text: John Joseph Sullivan (born November 20, 1959) is an American attorney and government official who served as the United States Ambassador to Russia from 2020 to 2022, and who previously served as the 19th United States Deputy Secretary of State from 2017 to 2019. A member of the Republican Party, Sullivan served as Acting United States Secretary of State from April 1, 2018, to April 26, 2018, following President Donald Trump's dismissal of Secretary of State Rex Tillerson on March 13, 2018, until Tillerson's official successor, Mike Pompeo, was sworn in. Tillerson did not officially leave office until March 31, 2018. Sullivan, however, was delegated all responsibilities of the Secretary of State beginning March 13.


title: John J. Sullivan (diplomat)

text: On October 11, 2019, President Trump nominated Sullivan to be the United States Ambassador to Russia. On December 12, 2019, the United States Senate confirmed his nomination by a 70–22 vote.


title: John J. Sullivan (diplomat)

text: Sullivan remained Ambassador to Russia during the presidential transition of Joe Biden. On September 4, 2022, Sullivan left Moscow and stated he would retire. The U.S. deputy chief of mission in Russia, Elizabeth Rood, replaced Sullivan as the top U.S. diplomat in Moscow until a permanent successor was named. The White House on September 20 announced the nomination of Lynne Tracy, former U.S. ambassador to Armenia, to the post.


title: John J. Sullivan (diplomat)

text: Sullivan was born and raised in Medfield, Massachusetts, and graduated from Xaverian Brothers High School in 1977. He then received a Bachelor of Arts in history and political science from Brown University in 1981 and a Juris Doctor from Columbia Law School in 1985. At Columbia, he was a Harlan Fiske Stone Scholar and Book Reviews Editor of the "Columbia Law Review". He was a law clerk for Judge John Minor Wisdom of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit and for United States Supreme Court Justice David H. Souter during the 1990 Term.


title: John J. Sullivan (diplomat)

text: In 1991, Sullivan served as Counselor to Assistant Attorney General J. Michael Luttig in the Office of Legal Counsel of the United States Department of Justice. The next year, he served as Deputy General Counsel of President George H. W. Bush's 1992 re-election campaign.


title: John J. Sullivan (diplomat)

text: In 1993, Sullivan joined the Washington, D.C. law firm of Mayer, Brown, Rowe & Maw LLP, where he practiced Supreme Court law. He was a partner in Mayer Brown's Washington, D.C. office and "co-chair of the firm's National Security practice". His firm biography read:


title: John J. Sullivan (diplomat)

text: He also has served as a senior adviser to four presidential campaigns. ... [Sullivan] has focused his practice on the growing intersection of global trade and investment and U.S. national security and foreign policies. He advises CEOs, general counsels, and other senior executives on U.S. sanctions and export controls, international trade disputes and regulation, and foreign investment in the United States, the Middle East, Russia, and other countries. His clients include major oil and gas companies, consulting, accounting, and financial services firms, petrochemical companies, and manufacturers. He has represented these clients before executive departments and agencies of the U.S. and foreign governments, as well as in litigation in the United States, where he has filed briefs and presented oral argument in courts across the country.


title: John J. Sullivan (diplomat)

text: The biography also discussed work on client business in Russia, Iran, Cuba and Iraq and "advising a multinational manufacturing company on security policies and risk issues in countries with a high threat of terrorism, violence, and political instability". In the Obama Administration, Sullivan was chairman of the U.S.-Iraq Business Dialogue, "an advisory committee on economic relations between the two countries".


title: John J. Sullivan (diplomat)

text: In February 2004, U.S. Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld appointed Sullivan as Deputy General Counsel of the United States Department of Defense. In this capacity, he was responsible for all litigation involving the department and for counsel on major criminal and congressional investigations. During his tenure, he was awarded the Secretary of Defense's Medal for Exceptional Public Service.


title: John J. Sullivan (diplomat)

text: Sullivan then moved to the U.S. Department of Commerce, where he served as General Counsel. As the department's chief legal officer and Designated Agency Ethics Official, Sullivan managed the work of over 400 lawyers in the 14 legal offices providing legal advice to all components of the department.


title: John J. Sullivan (diplomat)

text: Upon the resignation of Deputy Secretary of Commerce David Sampson, Sullivan was assigned as Acting Deputy Secretary of Commerce beginning on September 1, 2007. He was soon thereafter nominated by George W. Bush to serve in a permanent capacity and was sworn in on March 14, 2008, after confirmation by the United States Senate. As the department's chief operating officer, he managed a $6.8 billion budget and 38,000 employees in 13 operating units. He was also a member of President Bush's Management Council and a member of the Board of Directors of the Overseas Private Investment Corporation.


title: John J. Sullivan (diplomat)

text: President Donald Trump nominated Sullivan to serve as the United States Deputy Secretary of State on April 11, 2017. He was confirmed as U.S. Deputy Secretary of State by the Senate on May 24, 2017, with a vote of 94–6.


title: John J. Sullivan (diplomat)

text: In 2019, U.S. House of Representative members leading the impeachment inquiry against President Donald Trump reported that the State Department had refused to turn over documents directly relevant to that investigation, including those related to President Trump's request that Ukraine initiate political investigations. In a letter to Deputy Secretary Sullivan, House officials wrote that they considered “the refusal to comply with a duly authorized congressional subpoena as obstruction of the lawful functions of Congress and of the impeachment inquiry.”


title: John J. Sullivan (diplomat)

text: He dropped the puck at the Moscow derby between Dynamo Moscow and Spartak Moscow on February 1, 2020, while describing Alexander Ovechkin as his favorite player.


title: John J. Sullivan (diplomat)

text: After the departure of President Trump in January 2021, incoming President Joe Biden asked Sullivan, along with a small cadre of Trump-appointed ambassadors, to stay on during his term and not tender a resignation, as is custom during a transition. While it was initially reported that this request was presumed to precipitate the careful selection of a new ambassador, the Biden administration did not rule out asking Sullivan to stay on indefinitely. In April 2021, it was reported that Sullivan will remain in that role "for the foreseeable future". However, Sullivan left the post in September 2022, by which point his departure was described as "expected", but expedited by what the Associated Press said was a "family medical issue". On September 5, 2022 Sullivan stated that his wife had died from cancer, and that was the reason for his return to the U.S.


title: John J. Sullivan (diplomat)

text: In April 2021, after President Biden announced a new package of sanctions against Russia, Sullivan was summoned to a joint meeting between Vladimir Putin's North America adviser Yuri Ushakov and Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. At the meeting, the Russian side formally requested that Sullivan go under ambassadorial recall, just as Russian Ambassador to the United States Anatoly Antonov had done weeks earlier. The request was not addressed by Sullivan (diplomatic conventions do not provide for binding recall requests without declaring the diplomat "persona non grata"). Nevertheless, Sullivan departed Moscow at the end of the month, after pressure continued to be exerted for Sullivan to leave. While the cited reason for Sullivan's return was to see his family (per the State Department's recommendations, American diplomats in Russia are advised to travel without family) and engage in consultations with the incoming administration, experts posited that Sullivan may have been threatened with a declaration of "persona non grata". Following a June 2021 meeting between the countries' presidents, he returned to Russia.


title: John J. Sullivan (diplomat)

text: Sullivan and his late wife, Grace Rodriguez, have three children (Jack, Katie and Teddy) and live in Maryland. He is the nephew of former United States Ambassador to Iran William H. Sullivan, whom John called the "real Ambassador Sullivan".


title: Saudis

text: Saudis () or Saudi Arabians are the citizens and nationals of Saudi Arabia. They are mainly composed of Arabs and live in the five historical Regions: Najd, Hijaz, Asir, Tihamah and Al-Ahsa; the regions which the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia was founded on or what was formerly known as the Kingdom of Hejaz and Nejd in the Arabian Peninsula. Saudis speak one of the dialects of Peninsular Arabic, including the Hejazi, Najdi, Gulf and Southern Arabic dialects (which includes Bareqi), as a mother tongue. According to the 2010 census, Saudi nationals represented approximately 31,335,377 making up 86.1% of the total population. Saudi Arabia is a state governed by absolute monarchy, with the king as its head of state. The word Saudis refer to the name of the ruling family in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia today as an inclusive name for the inhabitants of the country.


title: Saudis

text: The Saudi population as of the 2010 official census was 19,335,377, making up 74.1% of the total population. The remaining population has 6,755,178 non-nationals, representing 25.9%.


title: Saudis

text: The first official population census of Saudi Arabia was in 1974. It had 6,218,361 Saudi nationals and 791,105 non-nationals for a total of 7,009,466. Of those, 5,147,056 people were settled and the number of nomads recorded were 1.86 million.


title: Saudis

text: Until the 1960s, much of the population was nomadic or seminomadic; due to rapid economic and urban growth, more than 95% of the population now is settled. 80% of Saudis live in three major urban centers—Riyadh, Jeddah, or Dammam. Some cities and oases have densities of more than 1,000 people per square kilometer (2,600/mile²). Despite the rapid growth in Saudi Arabia over the past decades, it is experiencing a rapid decline not only in mortality, but followed by fertility rates, which fell from about seven children on average per woman in the last century to 2.4 in 2016, based on the latest population survey conducted by the Saudi Authority for Statistics.


title: Saudis

text: Saudi Arabia has lagged far behind in increasing its population compared to its neighbors such as Iraq and Syria.


title: Saudis

text: DNA tests of Y chromosomes from representative sample of Saudis were analyzed for composition and frequencies of haplogroups, a plurality (71.02%) belong to Haplogroup J1-M267. Other frequent haplogroups divided between Haplogroup J2-M172 (2.68%), A (0.83%), B (1.67%), E1b1a (1.50%), E1b1b (11.05%), G (1.34%), H (0.33%), L (1.00%), Q (1.34%), R1a (2.34%), R1b (0.83%), T (2.51%), P (1.50%).


title: Saudis

text: The cultural setting of Saudi Arabia is Arab and Islam, and is deeply religious, conservative, traditional, and family oriented. Many attitudes and traditions are centuries-old, derived from Arab civilization. The Salafi Islamic movement, Which calls to understanding the Quran and the Hadith as understood by the Islamic prophet Muhammad and his companions, like Forbidding the establishment of a shrine on the graves of the righteous. Following the principle of "enjoining good and forbidding wrong", there are many limitations on behaviour and dress are strictly enforced both legally and socially, often more so than in other Muslim countries. Alcoholic beverages are prohibited, for example, and there is no theatre or public exhibition of films. Things are slowly changing now, as a couple of theatres opened in 2018.


title: Saudis

text: Daily life is dominated by Islamic observance and ruling. Regardless of whether the inhabitants of that city are non Muslim, this is still observed. Although they are not required to fulfil religious rituals or obligations, clothing must meet a certain standard. Five times each day, Muslims are called to prayer from the minarets of mosques scattered throughout the country. Because Friday is the holiest day for Muslims, the weekend is Friday-Saturday. In accordance with Salafi doctrine, only two religious holidays, Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha, were publicly recognized, until 2006 when a non-religious holiday, the 23 September national holiday (which commemorates the unification of the kingdom) was reintroduced.


title: Saudis

text: The largest numbers of Saudis live in Egypt (ca 1,000,000). The Map of Saudi People can be found on the right.


title: Saudis

text: Afro-Saudis, who have Black African heritage, are the largest minority in Saudi Arabia and make up 10% of its population. They have lived in Saudi Arabia for thousands of years, even before Islam, and are fully assimilated with the rest of the population. They have also contributed a lot to Saudi culture. Other than genetics and physical characteristics, they are the same as any other Saudi.


title: Saudis

text: A tiny portion of the original inhabitants of the area that is now Saudi were nomads known as Bedouin. They remain a significant and very influential minority of the indigenous Saudi population, though many who call themselves "bedou" no longer engage in "traditional tribal activities and settled ." According to authors Harvey Tripp and Peter North, Bedouin make up most of the judiciary, religious leaders and National Guard (which protects the throne) of the country. Bedouin culture is "actively" preserved by the government.


title: Saudis

text: Some of the famous cities in the past were: Jeddah, Tabuk, Al-Ula, Jubbah, Madain Saleh, Riyadh, Tayma, Dumat al-Jandal, Al-Ahsa, Thaj, Tarout Island, Qaryat al-Faw, Al-Ukhdud, Ha'il, Qatif, Al-Yamamah, Mecca, Medina, Taif, Aflaj, Manfouha, Tirmidah, Al-Qassim Region, etc.


title: Saudis

text: Greetings in Saudi Arabia have been called "formal and proscribed" and lengthy. Saudis (men) tend "to take their time and converse for a bit when meeting". Inquiries "about health and family" are customary, but never about a man's wife, as this "is considered disrespectful."


title: Saudis

text: The religion and customs of Saudi Arabia dictate not only conservative dress for men and women, but a uniformity of dress unique to most of the West Asia. Traditionally, the different regions of Saudi have had different dress, but since the re-establishment of Saudi rule these have been reserved for festive occasions, and "altered if not entirely displaced" by the dress of the homeland of their rulers (i.e. Najd).


title: Saudis

text: Until late 2019, all women were required to wear an "abaya," a long cloak that covers all, but the hands, hair, and face in public. (Modest dress is compulsory for women in Islam but the color black for women and white for men is apparently based on tradition not religious scripture.) Foreign women were required to wear an abaya, but didn't need to cover their hair. Many Saudi women also normally wear a full face veil, such as a niqāb. Women's clothes are often decorated with tribal motifs, coins, sequins, metallic thread, and appliques.


title: Saudis

text: In recent years it is common to wear Western dress underneath the "abaya". (Foreign women in Saudi Arabia are "encouraged" by the religious police to wear an "abaya", or at least cover their hair according to the New York Times. Authors Harvey Tripp and Peter North encourage women to wear an abaya in "more conservative" areas of the kingdom, i.e. in the interior.)


title: Saudis

text: Saudi men and boys, whatever their job or social status, wear the traditional dress called a "thobe" or "thawb", which has been called the "Arabic dress". During warm and hot weather, Saudi men and boys wear white thobes. During the cool weather, wool thobes in dark colors are not uncommon. At special times, men often wear a "bisht" or ' over the thobe. These are long white, brown or black cloaks trimmed in gold. A man's headdress consists of three things: the ', a small white cap that keeps the "gutra" from slipping off the head; the "gutra" itself, which is a large square of cloth; and the "igal", a doubled black cord that holds the "gutra" in place. Not wearing an igal is considered a sign of piety. The gutra is usually made of cotton and traditionally is either all white or a red and white checked. The gutra is worn folded into a triangle and centred on the head.


title: Saudis

text: More recently, Western dress, particularly T-shirts and jeans have become quite common leisure wear, particularly in Jeddah, Riyadh and Eastern Province.


title: Saudis

text: Islam is the state religion of Saudi Arabia and its law requires that all citizens be Muslims. The government does not legally protect the freedom of religion. Any overseas national attempting to acquire Saudi nationality must convert to Islam. Saudi Arabia has been criticized for its implementation of Islamic law and its poor human rights record.


title: Saudis

text: The official form of Islam is Sunni of the Hanbali school, in its Salafi version. According to official statistics, 90% of Saudi citizens are Sunni Muslims, 10% are Shia. (More than 30% of the population is made up of foreign workers who are predominantly but not entirely Muslim.) It is unknown how many Ahmadi there are in the country. The two holiest cities of Islam, Mecca and Medina, are in Saudi Arabia. For many reasons, non-Muslims are not permitted to enter the holy cities although some Western non-Muslims have been able to enter, disguised as Muslims.


title: Saudis

text: The large number of foreign workers living in Saudi Arabia (7.5 million expatriates in 2013 A.D.) includes non-Muslims. Irreligious population also exists in Saudi Arabia. Although there is no official published statistics by the Saudi government, according to a Gallup poll, 5% of Saudi Arabians are irreligious. The evidence, however, is anecdotal but persistent. They may not enter Mecca either.


title: Saudis

text: According to scholar Bernard Lewis, the Saudi Arabian policy of excluding non-Muslims from permanent residence in the country is a continuation of an old and widely accepted Muslim policy.


title: Saudis

text: The classical Arabic historians tell us that in the year 20 after the hijra (Muhammad's move from Mecca to Medina), corresponding to 641 of the Christian calendar, the Caliph Umar decreed that Jews and Christians should be removed from Arabia to fulfill an injunction the Prophet uttered on his deathbed: "Let there not be two religions in Arabia." The people in question were the Jews of the oasis of Khaybar in the north and the Christians of Najran in the south.


title: Saudis

text: [The hadith] was generally accepted as authentic, and Umar put it into effect. ... Compared with European expulsions, Umar's decree was both limited and compassionate. It did not include southern and southeastern Arabia, which were not seen as part of Islam's holy land. ... the Jews and Christians of Arabia were resettled on lands assigned to them -- the Jews in Syria, the Christians in Iraq. The process was also gradual rather than sudden, and there are reports of Jews and Christians remaining in Khaybar and Najran for some time after Umar's edict.


title: Saudis

text: But the decree was final and irreversible, and from then until now the holy land of the Hijaz has been forbidden territory for non-Muslims. According to the Hanbali school of Islamic jurisprudence, accepted by both the Saudis and the declaration's signatories, for a non-Muslim even to set foot on the sacred soil is a major offense. In the rest of the kingdom, non-Muslims, while admitted as temporary visitors, were not permitted to establish residence or practice their religion.


title: Saudis

text: While Saudi Arabia does allow non-Muslims to live in Saudi Arabia to work or do business, they may not practice religion publicly. According to the government of the United Kingdom:


title: Saudis

text: The public practice of any form of religion other than Islam is illegal; as is an intention to convert others. However, the Saudi authorities accept the private practice of religions other than Islam, and you can bring a Bible into the country as long as it is for your personal use. Importing larger quantities than this can carry severe penalties.


title: The Little Vampire (film)

text: The Little Vampire is a 2000 comedy horror film based on the children's book series of the same name by German writer Angela Sommer-Bodenburg, about a boy who tries to save a young vampire and his family from a ruthless vampire hunter. It was directed by Uli Edel and written by Karey Kirkpatrick and Larry Wilson. The film stars Jonathan Lipnicki, Rollo Weeks, Richard E. Grant, Jim Carter and Alice Krige.


title: The Little Vampire (film)

text: 9-year-old Tony Thompson moves with his family from California to Scotland, where they take up residence in a small castle while his father is employed building a golf course on the estate of Lord McAshton. In his new home Tony starts experiencing nightmares about vampires and a mysterious comet. Things are not any better for him at school, as he gets picked on by Lord McAshton's grandsons, Flint and Nigel.


title: The Little Vampire (film)

text: One night, while dressed up as a vampire, Tony is mistaken for one by the young vampire Rudolph, who is on the run from the evil vampire hunter Rookery. After realizing that Tony is not a vampire, Rudolph tries to attack him but ultimately fails due to being weakened by Rookery. After trying to leave through flying out the window, Rudolph falls from the sky due to his weakness. Tony helps Rudolph find a cow to feed from, and in return Rudolph takes Tony flying. The two boys quickly become friends, and Rudolph confides to Tony that his family only drink animal blood and wish to become human. Rudolph reveals that they are searching for a magical amulet that can be used to turn vampires into humans, but Rookery is also seeking to use the amulet against them. When Rudolph takes Tony to the cemetery where his family lives, they are confronted by Rudolph's parents Frederick and Freda, Rudolph's romantic sister Anna and rebellious teen brother Gregory. Frederick doubts Tony's loyalty to his son, but when Tony helps repel an attack from Rookery, Frederick begrudgingly allows Tony to help them, but warns him not to betray him and the rest of the vampire clan to Rookery. Tony and Rudolph then proceed to get revenge on Flint and Nigel.


title: The Little Vampire (film)

text: Rookery alerts Lord McAshton to the presence of vampires in the village. Lord McAshton reveals that his family has known about the existence of vampires for generations. Elizabeth, an ancestor of Lord McAshton, was romantically involved with Rudolph's uncle Von, who was the last known holder of the amulet, and both lovers were killed by the McAshtons. Learning this, Tony, Rudolph, and Anna seek out Elizabeth's tomb, where Tony experiences a vision pointing out the location of the amulet: Tony's own bedroom. Rudolph and Tony race Rookery to the amulet while the rest of Rudolph's family, along with Tony's parents, travel to the site of the ritual the vampires hope to perform. After a chase, Tony and Rudolph manage to escape with the amulet while Rookery inadvertently drives his truck over a cliff after getting entangled in a blimp.


title: The Little Vampire (film)

text: Tony and Rudolph succeed in bringing Frederick the amulet, but the ceremony is interrupted by Rookery, who returns riding the blimp. The vampires are unable to stand against Rookery's glowing cross, but Tony's parents defend them and defeat Rookery, pushing him off a cliff to his apparent death. Tony completes the ceremony by wishing for the vampires to become human. Rudolph and his family disappear as the comet passes, leaving Tony and his parents alone and unsure if the ceremony succeeded. Some time later, while visiting the village market, Tony spots Rudolph and his family, now human, moving into a house in the village. At first they seem not to recognize Tony, but as Tony does the whistle to them their memories return, and the friends are reunited.


title: The Little Vampire (film)

text: Parts of the film were shot in farmland near Cockburnspath in Berwickshire in the Scottish Borders, at Culross and nearby Dunimarle Castle in Fife, in Newliston House, Dalmeny House and Dundas Castle near Edinburgh, at Gosford House in East Lothian and also on roads in West Lothian around Oatridge, near Broxburn. The school to which the main character goes is Low Port primary school in Linlithgow West Lothian.


title: The Little Vampire (film)

text: A soundtrack for the film, titled "Music from and Inspired by The Little Vampire", was released on October 17, 2000, by New Line Records. Like the last soundtrack, Dutch Eurodance group Vengaboys released the song Shalala Lala as a single and it is included in the soundtrack album.


title: The Little Vampire (film)

text: The film received mixed reviews from 66 critics, with Rotten Tomatoes giving it a 55% rating. The consensus states, ""The Little Vampire" can't seem to find the right pitch, with its muddled, jumpy script and badly executed mix of cuteness and fright."


title: The Little Vampire (film)

text: Lawrence Van Gelder of "The New York Times" gave it a positive review, declaring, "Not often does a family film come along that is literate, clever, mischievous and just plain fun." Roger Ebert, however, gave the film two stars, saying "The movie has first-rate credits, from the director Uli Edel ("Last Exit to Brooklyn") to the writers Karey Kirkpatrick ("James And The Giant Peach") and Larry Wilson ("Beetlejuice"), to the cast (Lipnicki played the kid in "Jerry Maguire" and "Stuart Little"). The costumes are neat, the photography is great--all the pieces are on hand, but they don't fit."


title: The Little Vampire (film)

text: Michael Thomson for the BBC gave the film three stars, questioning the tone but remarking, "Yet the basic idea which drives this jolly film, along with Lipnicki's charm, is sometimes almost enough."


title: The Little Vampire (film)

text: Jan Stuart for "The Los Angeles Times" praised most of the cast, but criticized Lipnicki, and said, "Older kids and grown-ups looking for more sophisticated humor will have to content themselves with a running gag about vampire cows, which could have been funnier than Edel makes it here."


title: G-spot vibrator

text: A G-spot vibrator is a sex toy with female and male varieties. The female version of the device is built to massage the G-spot, described as a bean-shaped area of the vagina. Some women report that it is an erogenous zone which, when stimulated, can lead to strong sexual arousal, powerful orgasms and female ejaculation. The male version of the G-spot vibrator is used for massaging the prostate for both sexual and health-related reasons.


title: G-spot vibrator

text: The female type is of phallus-like shape and especially designed for stimulating the G-spot. It first appeared as a response to complaints that vaginal penetration alone, provided by the penis or otherwise, was generally not enough for women to reach orgasm. Women usually need direct clitoral stimulation to orgasm, and stimulating the G-spot area through sexual penetration, especially in the missionary position, is difficult to achieve because of the special angle at which penetration must occur. The curved structure of the G-spot vibrator attempts to make stimulating the G-spot area possible without awkward body positioning.


title: G-spot vibrator

text: The level of vaginal penetration when using a G-spot vibrator depends on the woman because women's physiology is not always the same. The effects of G-spot stimulation when using the penis or a G-spot vibrator may be enhanced by additionally stimulating other erogenous zones on a woman's body, such as the clitoris or vulva as a whole. When using a G-spot vibrator, this may be done by manually stimulating the clitoris, using the vibrator as a clitoral vibrator in addition to a G-spot vibrator, or, if the vibrator is designed for it, by applying it so that it stimulates the head of the clitoris, rest of the vulva and the vagina simultaneously.


title: G-spot vibrator

text: Almost all female G-spot vibrators feature the phallus shape and have a specially curved end for reaching the anterior (front-most) area of the vagina. But there can be also a group of special or exotic G-spot vibrators intended for G-spot stimulation featuring novelty shapes. Generally, G-spot vibrators have a head slightly larger than the glans penis, and are 1–1.5 in (2–3 cm) wide and 5–7 in (12.5–17.5 cm) long.


title: G-spot vibrator

text: The Prostate massager is a curved device with a round head which is inserted into the anal canal of a male and stimulates the prostate gland, which is also called the male G-spot or P-spot. This can produce a host of different and intense sensations.


title: G-spot vibrator

text: G-spot vibrators are usually manufactured from materials that provide a pleasant touch: silicone, jelly, rubber, hard-plastic, or any combination of them.


title: Katie Wright

text: Wright began her acting career in two episodes of "The Wonder Years" and later had leading roles in several network television films, in addition to appearing as a regular on two prime time soap operas, the short-lived "Malibu Shores" and the megahit "Melrose Place". She has also received some film writer and director training. Wright received the Best Actress Award at the 2000 Slamdunk Film Festival for her role in "Hairshirt", which she also co-produced.


title: Katie Wright

text: The daughter of Scott (a physician) and Mary Wright, she was born in Kansas City, Missouri, and grew up in Villanova, Pennsylvania, graduating in 1990 from Harriton High School. Wright has been married to actor/director Hank Azaria since 2007 and gave birth to a son in 2009.


title: G. Kishan Reddy

text: Gangapuram Kishan Reddy (born 15 June 1960) is an Indian politician who is currently serving as Minister of Tourism, Culture and Development of North Eastern Region of India. He is a member of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). He is an MP representing Secunderabad (Lok Sabha constituency) since 2019. He served as the floor leader of the BJP in the Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly in 2009 and gave it up after being elected as the state BJP president of erstwhile Andhra Pradesh.


title: G. Kishan Reddy

text: Gangapuram Kishan Reddy, was born in Timmapur village in Rangareddy district of Telangana to G. Swamy Reddy and Andalamma. He did a diploma in tool design from CITD.


title: G. Kishan Reddy

text: Once the BJP was formed in 1980, he joined the party full time. He became the state treasurer of the state Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha, Andhra Pradesh.


title: G. Kishan Reddy

text: From 1983 to 1984 he was Bharatiya Janata Party State Secretary, Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha, Andhra Pradesh


title: G. Kishan Reddy

text: Reddy started his career as a youth leader. He was elected as National President of Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha from 2002 to 2005. He was elected as an MLA from Himayatnagar constituency in 2004 and was elected again in 2009 & 2014 to the Amberpet assembly constituency with a majority of over 27,000 votes.


title: G. Kishan Reddy

text: From 1990 to 1992 he was the National Secretary, Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha & In-charge of the South India


title: G. Kishan Reddy

text: From 2001 to 2002 he was the State Treasurer, State Spokesperson & Head Quarter Incharge of Bharatiya Janata Party, Andhra Pradesh


title: G. Kishan Reddy

text: He was unanimously elected as the Telangana BJP president succeeding Bandaru Dattatreya. Between 2004 and 2009 he was the MLA, Himayatnagar Constituency, Floor Leader of BJP in State Assembly


title: G. Kishan Reddy

text: From 2009 to 2014 He was the MLA, Amberpet Assembly Constituency, Floor Leader of BJP in State Assembly


title: G. Kishan Reddy

text: Reddy, began the 22-day Telangana "Poru Yatra"– a journey through 986 villages and 88 assembly constituencies stressing the need for a stance on Telangana state – on 19 January.


title: G. Kishan Reddy

text: From 2014 to 2016, he was the BJP State President of the Telangana From 2014 to 2018 he was the MLA, Amberpet Assembly Constituency From 2016 to 2018 he was the Floor Leader, State Assembly Telangana


title: G. Kishan Reddy

text: On 30 May 2019, he was sworn in as Union Minister of State (MoS) for Home Affairs in the Government of India. From 2019 to 2021 Minister of State for Home Affairs, Government of India (Served along with Nityanand Rai)


title: G. Kishan Reddy

text: Considering the increase in demand for local public transport, he wrote a letter to the chief minister of Telangana, K. Chandrashekar Rao, urging him to resume MMTS services in the city.


title: G. Kishan Reddy

text: From 2021 he is the Minister of Tourism, Minister of Culture and Minister of Development of North Eastern Region, Government of India


title: G. Kishan Reddy

text: On 18 June 2022, the union Tourism Minister G Kishan Reddy explaining the training process of Agnipath Scheme at a press conference, stated that the people selected as Agniveers would be given training for the "skills of drivers, washermen, barbers, electricians and other professionals". The video clip of the remark became viral. Reddy said that there would be drivers, electricians, barbers and thousands other posts and people selected under this scheme, would be helpful in those jobs. A reporter noted that Skill Development Corporations was already established to train youth with different skills, Reddy answered that such skills would be imparted in Agnipath scheme as well.


title: F.C. Paços de Ferreira

text: Futebol Clube Paços de Ferreira () is a Portuguese football club based in Paços de Ferreira, Porto district. Founded in 1950, the club competes in the Primeira Liga, holding home games at the 9,077-seater Estádio da Mata Real, a municipal stadium where the team has been based since 1973. The club's colours are yellow and green.


title: F.C. Paços de Ferreira

text: They have won four Segunda Liga titles (now Liga Portugal 2), and in 2007 they qualified for the UEFA Cup for the first time. In the 2012–13 Primeira Liga, the team finished third and qualified for the 2013–14 UEFA Champions League play-offs for the first time in their history. They were also runners-up of the 2008–09 Taça de Portugal, the 2009 Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira and the 2010–11 Taça da Liga.


title: F.C. Paços de Ferreira

text: The origin of the club dates back to the 1930s, when it was named Sport Club Pacense. They played for two decades without any official recognition until they entered the lower divisions in 1950, under the name Futebol Clube Vasco da Gama. The club then changed their kit colours to the current ones and renamed themselves Futebol Clube Paços de Ferreira.


title: F.C. Paços de Ferreira

text: Their first match under the current name came on 19 November 1950, beating Lousada 2–1. Agostinho Alves was the first goal scorer in the history of the "Pacenses". The club then played in Portugal's third regional division until the 1956–57 season, where they were crowned champions. The club crest was created in 1961–62, and was used ever since.


title: F.C. Paços de Ferreira

text: The club was relegated and then promoted again and supporters hit the streets of the city on 17 June 1973 when they defeated Perosinho 3–0. One year later, they won the Terceira Divisão on 14 June 1974, after defeating Estrela de Portalegre. The hero of the match was the goalscorer Mascarenhas.


title: F.C. Paços de Ferreira

text: After establishing themselves in the first division during the 1990s, and suffering a relegation in 2003–04, the club finished sixth in the first division in 2006–07, thus qualifying for the UEFA Cup, their first ever European competition, under manager José Mota. They lost 1–0 on aggregate to AZ of the Netherlands in the first round.


title: F.C. Paços de Ferreira

text: Having finished last in the league in 2007–08, Paços would have normally been relegated to the second level, but were readmitted after Boavista's confirmed irregularities. In the following year, already without Mota, the team finished tenth in the league and a second Europa League qualification spot after losing the Taça de Portugal final 1–0 to eventual league champions Porto on 31 May. The two clubs met again on 9 August in the Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira, which Porto won 2–0.


title: F.C. Paços de Ferreira

text: Paços entered the 2009–10 UEFA Europa League in the second qualifying round, where they defeated Zimbru Chișinău of Moldova before being eliminated by Bnei Yehuda Tel Aviv of Israel in the third. The club reached the 2011 Taça da Liga Final under Rui Vitória, losing 2–1 to S.L. Benfica at the "Estádio Cidade de Coimbra".


title: F.C. Paços de Ferreira

text: In the 2012–13 season, Paços surprisingly qualified for the 2013–14 UEFA Champions League play-offs for the first time in their history after achieving third place in the league by passing favourites Braga and Sporting CP, making it their highest finish ever. The club were managed that season by Paulo Fonseca, who left at the end to join Porto, and was replaced by Costinha, who lost the Champions League playoff to Russians Zenit Saint Petersburg.


title: F.C. Paços de Ferreira

text: Paços' 13-year spell in the Primeira Liga ended in 2018, though they immediately returned as champions of the 2018–19 LigaPro under promotion specialist Vítor Oliveira. His successor Pepa took them to the UEFA Europa Conference League with a fifth-place finish in 2020–21, then left for Vitória de Guimarães.


title: F.C. Paços de Ferreira

text: The supporters' club, "Ultras Yellow Boys," was founded in 1996, then disbanded but returning afterwards in 2001. Two previous groups, however extinct, existed: ""Febre Amarela"" and "Yellowmania".


title: Test card

text: A test card, also known as a test pattern or start-up/closedown test, is a television test signal, typically broadcast at times when the transmitter is active but no program is being broadcast (often at sign-on and sign-off).


title: Test card

text: Used since the earliest TV broadcasts, test cards were originally physical cards at which a television camera was pointed, allowing for simple adjustments of picture quality. Such cards are still often used for calibration, alignment, and matching of cameras and camcorders. From the 1950s, test card images were built into monoscope tubes which freed up the use of TV cameras which would otherwise have to be rotated to continuously broadcast physical test cards during downtime hours.


title: Test card

text: Electronically generated test patterns, used for calibrating or troubleshooting the downstream signal path, were introduced in the late-1960s. These are generated by test signal generators, which do not depend on the correct configuration (and presence) of a camera, and can also test for additional parameters such as correct color decoding, sync, frames per second, and frequency response. These patterns are specially tailored to be used in conjunction with devices such as a vectorscope, allowing precise adjustments of image equipment.


title: Test card

text: The audio broadcast while test cards are shown is typically a sine wave tone, radio (if associated or affiliated with the television channel) or music (usually instrumental, though some also broadcast with jazz or popular music).


title: Test card

text: Digitally generated cards came later, associated with digital television, and add a few features specific of digital signals, like checking for error correction, chroma subsampling, aspect ratio signaling, surround sound, etc. More recently, the use of test cards has also expanded beyond television to other digital displays such as large LED walls and video projectors.


title: Test card

text: Test cards typically contain a set of patterns to enable television cameras and receivers to be adjusted to show the picture correctly (see SMPTE color bars). Most modern test cards include a set of calibrated color bars which will produce a characteristic pattern of "dot landings" on a vectorscope, allowing chroma and tint to be precisely adjusted between generations of videotape or network feeds. SMPTE bars—and several other test cards—include analog black (a flat waveform at 7.5 IRE, or the NTSC setup level), full white (100 IRE), and a "sub-black", or "blacker-than-black" (at 0 IRE), which represents the lowest low-frequency transmission voltage permissible in NTSC broadcasts (though the negative excursions of the colorburst signal may go below 0 IRE). Between the color bars and proper adjustment of brightness and contrast controls to the limits of perception of the first sub-black bar, an analog receiver (or other equipment such as VTRs) can be adjusted to provide impressive fidelity.


title: Test card

text: They are also used in the broader context of video displays for concerts and live events. There are a variety of different test patterns, each testing a specific technical parameter: gradient monotone bars for testing brightness and color; a crosshatch pattern for aspect ratio, alignment, focus, and convergence; and a single-pixel border for over-scanning and dimensions.


title: Test card

text: Test cards are as old as TV broadcasts, with documented use by the BBC in the United Kingdom in its early 30-line mechanical Baird transmissions from 1934 as well as in Occupied France during World War II. They evolved to include gratings for resolution testing, grids to assist with picture geometry adjustments, and grayscale for brightness and contrast adjustments. For example, all these elements can be seen in a Radiodiffusion-Télévision Française 819-line test card introduced in 1953.


title: Test card

text: In North America, most test cards such as the famous Indian-head test pattern of the 1950s and 1960s have long since been relegated to history. The SMPTE color bars occasionally turn up, but with most North American broadcasters now following a 24-hour schedule, these too have become a rare sight.


title: Test card

text: With the introduction of color TV, electronically generated test cards were introduced. They are named after their generating equipment (ex: Grundig VG1000, Philips PM5544, Telefunken FuBK, etc.), TV station (ex: BBC test card) or organization (ex: SMPTE color bars, EBU colour bars).


title: Test card

text: In developed countries such as Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom, and the United States, the financial imperatives of commercial television broadcasting mean that air-time is now typically filled with programmes and commercials (such as infomercials) 24 hours a day, and non-commercial broadcasters have to match this.


title: Test card

text: A late test card design, introduced in 2005 and fully adapted for HD, SD, 16:9 and 4:3 broadcasts, is defined on ITU-R Rec. BT.1729. It offers markings specificity design to test format conversions, chroma sampling, etc.


title: Test card

text: Formerly a common sight, test cards are now only rarely seen outside of television studios, post-production, and distribution facilities. In particular, they are no longer intended to assist viewers in calibration of television sets. Several factors have led to their demise for this purpose:


title: Test card

text: For custom-designed video installations, such as LED displays in buildings or at live events, some test images are custom-made to fit the specific size and shape of the setup in question. These custom test images can also be an opportunity for the technicians to hide inside jokes for the crew to see while installing equipment for a show.


title: Test card

text: Rather than physical test cards, which had to be televised using a camera, television stations often used a special purpose camera tube which had the test pattern painted on the inside screen of the tube. Each tube was only capable of generating the one test image, hence it was called a monoscope.


title: Test card

text: Monoscopes were similar in construction to an ordinary cathode ray tube (CRT), only instead of displaying an image on its screen it scanned a built-in image. The monoscope contained a formed metal target in place of the phosphor coating at its "screen" end and as the electron beam scanned the target, rather than displaying an image, a varying electrical signal was produced generating a video signal from the etched pattern. Monoscope tubes had the advantage over test cards that a full TV camera was not needed, and the image was always properly framed and in focus. They fell out of use in the 1960s as they were not able to produce color images.


title: Test card

text: A lesser-known kind of test pattern is used for the calibration of photocopiers. Photocopier test patterns are physical sheets that are photocopied, with the difference in the resulting photocopy revealing any telltale deviations or defects in the machine's ability to copy.


title: Test card

text: There are also test patterns kits and software developed specifically for many consumer electronics. The B&K Television Analyst was developed in the 1960s for testing monochrome TV sets in the NTSC standard and was later modified for European and Australian PAL standards. Among other uses, it consisted of a flying spot scanner on which a test pattern printed on a cellulose acetate slide was shown.


title: Test card

text: When CRT monitors were still commonly used on personal computers, specific test patterns were created for proper calibration of such monitors in the cases whereby multimedia images could not be shown properly on said monitors. Some VCD and DVD lens cleaner discs, such as the Kyowa Sonic lens cleaning kits from 1997–2001, also included test patterns as well.


title: Test card

text: More recent examples include the THX Optimizer which can be accessed in the setup menu in almost every THX-certified DVD, as well as well as the “HDR sRGB Graphics Test (400 nits)” and "Test Patterns" series available on Netflix meant to test out streaming bandwidth on Internet-enabled devices, especially on widescreen smart HDR TVs, 4K and 8K displays and also used to sync audio and video feeds, which can be affected, among other factors, by Bluetooth and Internet latency.


title: Test card

text: Test patterns are also used to calibrate medical displays for telemedicine and medical diagnostic purposes, such as the SMPTE RP-133 medical diagnostic imaging test pattern specification for medical and surgical displays, created around 1983–86; as well as a later derivative called the TG18-QC test pattern created by the AAPM in 2001. Test patterns to calibrate X-ray machines, in particular those manufactured by Leeds Test Objects in England, also exist as well.


title: Test card

text: Television has had such an impact in today's life that it has been the main motif for numerous collectors' coins and medals. One of the most recent examples is The 50 Years of Television commemorative coin minted on 9 March 2005, in Austria. The obverse of the coin shows the centre portion of the Telefunken T05 test card, while the reverse shows several milestones in the history of television.


title: Test card

text: The Philips Pattern is widely recognised as one of the iconic popular culture symbols of the 1980s and 1990s. Numerous novelty and collectible items has been patterned after the famous test card, including wall clocks, bedsheets, wristwatches, and clothing.


title: Test card

text: In Britain, music - rather than radio sound - was usually played with the test card. The music played by the BBC, and afterwards ITV, was library music, which was licensed on more favourable terms for frequent use than commercially available alternatives. Later, Channel 4 used UK library LPs from publishers like KPM, Joseph Weinberger and Ready Music.


title: Test card

text: Until September 1955, the BBC used live playing 78 RPM commercial records as an audio background to the test cards. After that date, they switched to using recorded music on tape. The following year, the BBC began to build up its own library of specially produced music for the half hour tapes - initially three tunes in similar style, followed by an identification sign (the three notes B-B-C played on celesta). ITV (which began its first trade transmissions in 1957) continued to use commercially available recordings until the late 1960s, when it also began to make specially produced tapes.