title: Demographics of Iraq

text: in addition, the estimate claims that other minorities form 5% of the country's population, including the Turkmen, Kaka'i, Bedouins, Roma, Assyrians/Chaldeans/Syriacs, Circassians, Mandaeans, and Persians. However, the International Crisis Group points out that figures from the 1987 census, as well as the 1967, 1977, and 1997 censuses, "are all considered highly problematic, due to suspicions of regime manipulation" because Iraqi citizens were only allowed to indicate belonging to either the Arab or Kurdish ethnic groups; consequently, this skewed the number of other ethnic minorities, such as Iraq's third largest ethnic group – the Turkmen.


title: Demographics of Iraq

text: Arabic and Kurdish are the two official languages of Iraq. Arabic is taught across all schools in Iraq, however in the north the Kurdish language is the most spoken. Eastern Aramaic languages, such as Syriac and Mandaic are spoken, as well as the Iraqi Turkmen language, and various other indigenous languages.


title: Demographics of Iraq

text: Kurdish, including several dialects, is the second largest language and has regional language status in the north of the country. Aramaic, in antiquity spoken throughout the whole country, is now only spoken by the Assyrian Chaldean minority. The Iraqi Turkmen dialect is spoken in parts of northern iraq, numerous languages of the Caucasus are also spoken by minorities, notably the Chechen community.


title: Demographics of Iraq

text: According to the CIA World Factbook, 98-99% of Iraqis follow Islam: 61-64% Shia and 29-34% Sunni. Christianity accounts for 1–2%, and the rest practice Yazidis, Mandaeism, and other religions.


title: Demographics of Iraq

text: While there has been voluntary relocation of many Christian families to northern Iraq, recent reporting indicates that the overall Christian population may have dropped by as much as 50 percent since the fall of Saddam Hussein in 2003, with many fleeing to Syria, Jordan, and Lebanon (2010 estimate). The percentage of Christians has fallen from 6% in 1991 or 1.5 million to about one third of this. Estimates say there are 500,000 Christians in Iraq.


title: Demographics of Iraq

text: Nearly all Iraqi Kurds identify as Sunni Muslims. A survey in Iraq concluded that "98% of Kurds in Iraq identified themselves as Sunnis and only 2% identified as Shias". The religious differences between Sunni Arabs and Sunni Kurds are small. While 98 percent of Shia Arabs believe that visiting the shrines of saints is acceptable, 71 percent of Sunni Arabs did and 59 percent of Sunni Kurds support this practice. About 94 percent of the population in Iraqi Kurdistan is Muslim.


title: Basketball Bundesliga

text: The Basketball Bundesliga (BBL) (English language: "Federal Basketball League"), for sponsorship reasons named easyCredit BBL, is the highest level league of professional club basketball in Germany. The league comprises 18 teams. A BBL season is split into a league stage and a playoff stage. At the end of the league stage, the top eight teams qualify for the playoff stage, and the teams positioned in the 17th and 18th places are relegated to a lower-tier league. The playoffs are played in a "Best of five" format. The winning team of the final round are crowned the German Champions of that season.


title: Basketball Bundesliga

text: In addition to the league competition, all BBL teams compete for the German Basketball Cup. Teams playing in the second league (ProA or ProB), or in a lower level Regionalliga, are also eligible to participate in the BBL-Cup. There are always 3 knock-out rounds that are played for the BBL-Cup. If more teams from the leagues below the BBL level apply for participation, then available places, and additional qualification rounds are added for them. The final four remaining teams determine the rankings for bronze, silver, and gold medals, in knock-out matches that are termed the BBL-TOP4. The gold winning team is the German Basketball Cup winner.


title: Basketball Bundesliga

text: The Basketball Bundesliga is run by the Basketball Bundesliga GmbH. 74% of BBL GmbH is owned by the AG BBL e.V. (which is composed of the clubs), and 26% by the German Basketball Federation (DBB).


title: Basketball Bundesliga

text: In Germany, a national domestic basketball championship was first organised in 1939, and it was won by "LSV Spandau". By 1944, almost all basketball activity in the country was forced to an end, due to the Second World War. In 1947, "MTSV Schwabing München" became the first champion of post-war divided Germany.


title: Basketball Bundesliga

text: The creation of a split West German federal-league, consisting of one northern division and one southern division, each comprising 10 teams, was decided on by the German Basketball Federation (DBB) in 1964. On October 1, 1966, the first season of the so-called Basketball Bundesliga started. Starting with the 1971–72 season, the size of each division was reduced to 8 teams.


title: Basketball Bundesliga

text: With the 1975–76 season, the league structure was changed into a ten team first league (1. Basketball Bundesliga), and a 20 team second league (2. Basketball Bundesliga). Only the second league was split into a northern and a southern division, of 10 teams each. In 1985, the top league was enlarged to a size of 12 teams, and two years later, each division of the second league was also enlarged to 12 teams.


title: Basketball Bundesliga

text: In 1988, the championship mode "Best of five" was applied for the first time. Starting with the 1995–96 season, the first league consisted of 14 teams. The Basketball Bundesliga GmbH (BBL) was founded in October 1996.


title: Basketball Bundesliga

text: The federal leagues received their own administration within the framework of the German Basketball Federation in 1997. Since then, the second league divisions have been administered by the "AG 2. Bundesliga", while the BBL has been responsible for the first league. Two years later, a contract was signed between the BBL and the German Basketball Federation, in which the federation transferred its marketing/events rights to the BBL, for a 10-year duration, and in return, the BBL agreed to pay an annual "amateur support fee" of DM 600,000 (€ 306,775).


title: Basketball Bundesliga

text: Starting with the 2003–04 season, the top league was increased to 16 teams, and in 2006–07, it was further increased to its present size of 18 teams. For the following 2007–08 season, the structure of the second league was reshaped from its northern/southern divisions, into a ProA division, and a ProB division. These divisions remained under the administration by "AG 2. Bundesliga".


title: Basketball Bundesliga

text: Between 1994 and 2001, the highest level German basketball league was called "Veltins Basketball Bundesliga", and from 2001, until 2003, the league was known as "s.Oliver Basketball Bundesliga". Bayer Giants Leverkusen hold the league titles won record, being the winner of 14 German Basketball Championships. However, since 1997, Alba Berlin has dominated the league, winning their 8th title in 2008. Twenty-one teams have won the championship, since its inception.


title: Basketball Bundesliga

text: Since 2009, Brose Bamberg dominated the competition and won the title in four straight seasons (2009-2013). In 2012, Bayern Munich, the basketball team of the same-named football club, entered the league. Bayern became one of the wealthiest team in German basketball and won the championship in 2014.


title: Basketball Bundesliga

text: In 2016, the BBL joined forces with Tipbet, a Malta-based betting company. This made Tipbet the Official Betting and Premium Sponsor of the league; the sponsorship agreement results in advertising activities throughout the arenas and online, and runs until 2018.


title: Rosebud Baker

text: Rosemary Baker, known professionally as Rosebud Baker, (born March 16, 1985) is an American comedian, actress, and writer. Based in New York City, she is known for her dark humor based on personal, often satirical stories.


title: Rosebud Baker

text: In 2010, while working as an actress in independent films and off-Broadway, she appeared on the first season of the Sundance Channel reality television series "Girls Who Like Boys Who Like Boys". She later began appearing in a recurring role on the Hulu series "Life & Beth" (2022–present). Baker started her career in stand-up in 2014 by performing at open mics throughout New York City. In 2021, her debut comedy special, "Whiskey Fists", premiered on Comedy Central. She became a writer for the HBO Max television series "That Damn Michael Che" in 2021 and a writer for "Saturday Night Live" in 2022. She hosts the podcasts "Devil's Advocate" and "Find Your Beach", the latter of which she hosts with her husband, Andy Haynes.


title: Rosebud Baker

text: Rosemary Baker was born in Alexandria, Virginia to a wealthy Protestant family, and grew up in McLean, Virginia. She has three surviving younger sisters as well as one deceased sister. One of her sisters, Mary Stuart Baker, is a digital media editor at an art gallery, and Hallie, a nurse. Her father is James "Jamie" Baker IV, a retired senior partner at Baker Botts L.L.P. in Washington, D.C. and the son of James Addison Baker III, the former Secretary of Treasury of President Ronald Reagan and the Secretary of State under President George H. W. Bush, and her mother is Nancy, a painter born in Texas. As a child, she was given the nickname Bud due to her being a tomboy and refusing to wear dresses, which gave her the name Rosebud. Because of her family's connections to the Bush family, she would often visit the White House and spend time with George H. W. Bush's grandchildren. Baker's father was mostly absent in her life and emotionally distant due to his work, while her mother was an alcoholic. She also developed an eating disorder at a young age.


title: Rosebud Baker

text: Baker attended Langley High School, where she received mostly poor grades and was briefly a cheerleader before getting suspended from the squad. In June 2002, her 7-year-old sister, Graeme, drowned after becoming caught in a hot tub drain during Baker's outdoor graduation party in McLean. In the wake of Graeme's death, Nancy successfully had the Virginia Graeme Baker Pool and Spa Safety Act passed in her name advocating for safer pool drains. Baker received a Bachelor of Arts in acting at Emerson College in 2006, where she also became severely alcoholic and depressed as a result of grief from the death of her sister, which she compared to "getting very old quickly". After going on a trip throughout Europe with Hallie and spending most of it intoxicated, she told her family she would come home to check herself into rehab, but instead moved to Brooklyn and moved in with her then-boyfriend. While in Brooklyn, she attended group therapy sessions, where she would often lie about herself, and later started seeing a grief counselor. She began attending Alcoholics Anonymous meetings, which helped her to become sober in 2007.


title: Rosebud Baker

text: While working as an actress in independent films and off-Broadway, Baker also worked on the side as a nanny and a waitress. She also wrote horoscopes for "Elite Daily" as Rosey Baker. In 2010, Baker appeared as a castmember on "Girls Who Like Boys Who Like Boys", a Sundance Channel reality television series based on the lives of four gay men and their female best friends.


title: Rosebud Baker

text: Baker's father later encouraged her to pursue stand-up comedy as a career. In 2014, Baker did stand-up for the first time during an open-mic night at a comedy club in Austin, Texas while on a cross-country road trip with a childhood friend. Her first performance in New York took place at the Metropolitan Room in Chelsea. Early in her comedy career, Baker performed four to five times a night at the LOL Comedy Club in Midtown Manhattan, also frequenting open-mics at various comedy clubs around the city. In 2018, she appeared on Just for Laughs's New Faces list, and was featured in the Amazon Prime Video television series "Inside Jokes", which showed her journey to the New Faces festival.


title: Rosebud Baker

text: In March 2020, at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, she began hosting "Find Your Beach", a biweekly podcast hosted alongside her husband, fellow comedian Andy Haynes. Baker's debut comedy special, "Whiskey Fists", was produced by All Things Comedy and premiered on Comedy Central's YouTube channel in August 2021, while an album of the special was released through 800 Pound Gorilla Records. Also in 2021, Baker became a writer for the HBO Max sketch comedy television series "That Damn Michael Che", which earned her nominations for the Writers Guild of America Award for and the Black Reel Award for Outstanding Writing in a Comedy Series for the episode "Policin'".


title: Rosebud Baker

text: Baker became a writer for "Saturday Night Live" during its 47th season in February 2022, and appeared in a recurring role on Hulu's comedy-drama series "Life & Beth" in March 2022. She also appeared in the Roku Channel's Will Smith-helmed series "This Joka" in 2022. As of 2022, Baker hosts "Devil's Advocate", an All Things Comedy podcast.


title: Rosebud Baker

text: Baker's comedy has been described as dark comedy, and many of her jokes revolve around personal stories or anecdotes, such as the death of her sister or her domestic abuse at the hands of her alcoholic ex-boyfriend. Her jokes are often satirical and have twists. Baker learned how to write jokes after watching comedy specials by Dave Attell, Amy Schumer, Dave Chappelle, and others, and transcribing the jokes to find the set up and the punchline.


title: Rosebud Baker

text: Baker identifies as liberal. In March 2020, Baker got engaged to Andy Haynes, and the two got married in September 2020.


title: Roar: Tigers of the Sundarbans

text: Roar is a 2014 Indian Hindi-language film written and directed by Kamal Sadanah. The film was premiered by Salman Khan at an event in Mumbai on 31 July 2014, ahead of a 31 October release. It is an epic tale of a team trying to outsmart the acute senses of the infamous white tiger who is looking for her cub.


title: Roar: Tigers of the Sundarbans

text: "Roar" was shot in the dense mangrove forest, showcasing the animal-man conflict, and the film has aerial visuals of the Sundarbans and over 800 shots with special effects. Director Kamal Sadanah said, "We spent four months doing the test shoots and we shot with trained tigers from Los Angeles and Thailand and composited these sequences with the ones taken at Sundarbans with VFX". He concluded by saying that he had to take up an online course in visual effects along with his producer Abis Rizvi.


title: Roar: Tigers of the Sundarbans

text: LA-based Michael Watson, whose resume has "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button", was hired as the director of photography, and a special team from Scandinavia was signed to film the aerial shots using helicams. Producer Rizvi said, "With an international crew of 150 on board and a 300-member VFX team, it took us 12 months to edit the film and put our audacious dream out on celluloid. Academy Award winner Resul Pookutty was signed for Sound design."


title: Roar: Tigers of the Sundarbans

text: "Roar" gathered mixed reviews. Hindustan Times mentioned it as, Novelty of the concept makes it an interesting film and appreciated its editing and computer graphics and said the film would show you something that you didn't even know existed in India, concluding it as a smartly executed film which deserves attention. While ABPLIVE criticised it as a film only for brain dead. Subhash K Jha wrote that, Roar is a visual swagger and splendour with stunning shots of the natural beauty of the Sunderbans, if you're the sort who grants leeway to movies for stretching its neck out beyond the domain of the conventional. He observed its photography as 'brilliant'. Rediff gave 2 and a half stars and mentioned Roar would not disappoint you and the film's strengths are the novelty of the concept, and the judicious use of Computer Graphics. Filmfare mentioned it as entertaining, shot like a Hollywood film which has some genuinely great Computer Graphics. It also wrote that the camera work is at par with any big-budget Hollywood film, and the cinematography showcases the flora and fauna of the Sundarbans on a grand scale, and the special effects are superlative. Movie talkies gave it 3 stars saying Technical brilliance and the film's stage & setting – This is what makes Roar stand out from the crowd in a major way.


title: Roar: Tigers of the Sundarbans

text: As per Box Office India, Roar collected 15 million on its first day of release, and a total of 4.75–5.0 million net as weekend collection. While movieglamour website reported that Roar is doing moderate business and collected 70.0 million from its first 4 days, Bollywood Hungama reported that Roar collected 83.8 million at the end of its 1st week run.


title: Lincoln MKZ

text: The Lincoln MKZ, is a four-door, five-passenger mid-size luxury sedan manufactured by Ford and marketed as the Zephyr (MY 2006) and as the MKZ (MY 2007–2020) by Ford's Lincoln brand across two generations in both gasoline and hybrid gas/electric models.


title: Lincoln MKZ

text: The MKZ was manufactured at Ford's Hermosillo Stamping & Assembly plant in Mexico. Production ended in 2020 to make way for new Ford vehicles.


title: Lincoln MKZ

text: The 2006 Lincoln Zephyr was initially unveiled in concept form at the 2004 New York International Auto Show, previewing a new entry-level luxury sedan. The front featured Lincoln's signature waterfall grille and jeweled quad projector beam headlights (HID headlights were available). Chrome trim extends along the Zephyr's beltline while the car's rear fascia features LED taillights and dual chrome exhaust tips. All Zephyrs featured low-profile tires on 17x7.5-inch wheels with painted aluminum versions standard and chrome versions optional.


title: Lincoln MKZ

text: Lincoln officially revived the Zephyr name in the fall of 2005; the vehicles were based on the CD3 platform, which was derived from the Mazda 6. Lincoln had previously used the Zephyr name in the late 1930s for the smaller Lincoln-Zephyr line of mid-size vehicles. The "Zephyr" name had also previously been used by Mercury during the late 1970s and early 1980s, for several vehicles built on the Fox Platform.


title: Lincoln MKZ

text: The Zephyr's sole powertrain was a 3.0 L DOHC Duratec V6 mated to an Aisin 6-speed automatic transmission; identical to the V6 powertrain that was optional in the Fusion and Milan. The interior is largely unique to the Lincoln, along with different equipment packaging. The 2006 Zephyr started at a base MSRP of $28,995 USD, ranging up to $35,340 USD when fully optioned.


title: Lincoln MKZ

text: Though slightly smaller and front-wheel drive, the Zephyr was marketed as a replacement for Lincoln's previous entry level mid-size, the rear-wheel drive Lincoln LS. To facilitate a smooth transition, the Zephyr and LS were sold parallel to each other during the 2006 model year, the first model year of the Zephyr and the last for the LS. For 2007 the model was renamed MKZ, and took over the LS' market with sales beginning in September 2006. Lincoln's decision to resurrect the Zephyr name refers to the very early days of Lincoln before World War II. At that time, the only Lincoln manufactured was the Lincoln K-series which was a full-size sedan, and Lincoln, under the direction of Edsel Ford, Henry Ford's only son, hoped to introduce a smaller product to compete with the Packard One-Twenty, and the LaSalle, a smaller sibling offered at Cadillac dealerships.


title: Lincoln MKZ

text: The Zephyr featured a revised interior from the Fusion and Milan. The design featured shapes with real ebony or maple wood inserts (depending on desired trim) in metallic frames. These surfaces were contrasted with chrome-bezeled gauges, circular, chrome-finished vents and a metallic center stack where the radio and climate controls are housed. The Zephyr's steering wheel was leather-wrapped with real wood grips and satin-nickel audio, climate, and cruise control buttons. White LED backlighting was used for the Zephyr's controls and instrumentation. Leather seating surfaces were standard in all models.


title: Lincoln MKZ

text: Some of these standard features in the Zephyr included: cruise control, automatic headlights, fog lights, power door locks, "global" power windows (all windows can lower simultaneously at the push of a button), power adjustable and heated mirrors with puddle lamps, remote keyless entry, a tilt and telescoping steering wheel with redundant audio and climate controls, dual-zone automatic climate control, a universal garage door opener, 10-way power driver and front passenger seats, rear-seat reading lamps, and a six-speaker audio system with an AM/FM stereo radio and a six-disc, MP3-compatible CD changer. Optional in the Zephyr was a power moonroof, a DVD-based satellite navigation system, HID headlights, heated and cooled front seats, and an industry-first THX II-Certified audio system with a six-disc, MP3-compatible CD changer and ten speakers. Safety features included standard dual front-side airbags, front seat-deployed side airbags, and curtain airbags that extend from the front to rear seats.


title: Lincoln MKZ

text: Mechanically the Zephyr was closely related to the Fusion and Milan. As mentioned, all three cars were based on Ford's CD3 platform, which was in turn derived from the Mazda 6. Like these cars the Zephyr is natively front-wheel drive (FWD). The Zephyr uses a coil-over damper, short- and long-arm (SLA) front suspension with double-ball-joint control arms while the rear suspension is an independent multi-link design with lower control arms and a stabilizer bar. Spring rates, bushings, and dampers have been specially tuned for the Zephyr to provide excellent ride comfort without compromising handling. All Zephyrs feature standard four-wheel anti-lock disc brakes with traction control. The sole engine offered in the Zephyr was an all-aluminum 3.0 L DOHC Duratec V6 producing 221 hp (165 kW) at 6250 rpm and 205 lb·ft (278 N·m) of torque at 4800 rpm. This engine was mated to an Aisin 6-speed automatic transmission and had a final drive ratio of 3.46:1. This powertrain was identical to the V6 powertrain available in the Fusion and Milan from 2006 to 2009. With this powertrain the Zephyr could accelerate from zero to in 7.5 seconds. The FWD Zephyr came with a fuel tank and is rated to deliver in city driving and on the highway based on the revised 2008 EPA fuel efficiency measurement standards.


title: Lincoln MKZ

text: For 2007, the Zephyr was refreshed and renamed MKZ to follow a new nomenclature developed by Lincoln that mimics the alphanumeric naming schemes used by other luxury automakers like Mercedes-Benz. Management at Lincoln originally announced the MKZ with a "mark-zee" pronunciation during the 2006 auto show circuit, but eventually changed it to the phonetic "em-kay-zee" due to confusion observed among focus groups and dealership personnel.


title: Lincoln MKZ

text: The 2007 MKZ was first shown at the Chicago Auto Show in February 2006. In addition to its new name, the MKZ gained a number of changes over its predecessor. The standard and optional versions of the MKZ's 17 x 7.5-inch wheels were restyled. An intelligent all-wheel-drive system was now available, seamlessly distributing power to each wheel for optimum traction. Powering the MKZ, and taking a large step toward further differentiating the car from the Fusion and Milan, was Ford's new, all-aluminum 3.5-L DOHC Duratec 35 V6. The engine was tuned to produce 265 hp (196 kW) at 6250 rpm and 249 lb·ft (337 N·m) of torque at 4500 rpm. Significantly, the new engine needed only 87-octane regular-grade gasoline to achieve its output. Also, in spite of the MKZ's power advantage over the 3.0-L DOHC V6-equipped Zephyr, the fuel economy of the MKZ rivals that of the Zephyr at in city driving and on the highway in front-wheel-drive models. A road test by "Motor Trend" found that an MKZ equipped with all-wheel-drive could accelerate from zero to in 6.8 seconds and complete a quarter mile in 15.2 seconds at due to the more powerful engine and extra traction. One of the few other changes applied to the 2007 MKZ was a revision to the available THX II-certified audio system to increase speakers to 14 and its peak output to 600 watts. Beyond the MKZ's changes, the car remained positioned as an entry-level luxury sedan with base models still starting at just under US$30,000 and fully optioned models remaining below $40,000.


title: Lincoln MKZ

text: For 2008, the MKZ received new standard features as a part of Lincoln's continued effort to refine the car. Sirius satellite radio, perforated leather seats, a reverse sensing system, a tire pressure-monitoring system, and Lincoln SYNC (late availability) were all newly standard. For 2009, Ford's 'AdvanceTrac' stability control system became standard, while a special edition "Midnight Black" package was available, featuring black leather seating surfaces and panels contrasted with maple wood and satin nickel inserts.


title: Lincoln MKZ

text: The 2010 MKZ was unveiled at the 2008 Los Angeles International Auto Show, revealing an extensive update with a revised interior and exterior in addition to new features. The MKZ's exterior featured revised front and rear fascias. The MKZ's headlights were new, while its fascia and split-wing grille closely resembled that of the Lincoln MKR concept. In the rear, the taillights have been revised to be longer and thinner, similar to the original Zephyr concept. The MKZ's standard and optional 17-inch wheels were restyled and featured an 18-inch wheel option. Inside, the MKZ's interior was revised, using real wood accents and metal surfaces. Bridge of Weir leather seating surfaces were standard. Other features new for 2010 included a reverse camera system, Sirius Travel Link, a DVD-based satellite navigation system updated to accept voice commands, rain-sensing windshield wipers, a cabin air filter, and adaptive HID headlights. Mechanically, the MKZ featured suspension revised to improve ride quality and handling and a new 'SelectShift' six-speed automatic transmission. The 2010 MKZ was released during the spring of 2009.


title: Lincoln MKZ

text: The 2011 MKZ Hybrid was unveiled at the 2010 New York International Auto Show, and sales began in September 2010. It is the first Lincoln hybrid electric vehicle and the first Lincoln model with a four-cylinder engine; it delivers an EPA city rating of and a highway rating of , which made it the most fuel-efficient luxury sedan in the U.S. until the release of the 2011 Lexus CT 200h in March 2011. The Lincoln MKZ Hybrid carries over the hybrid powertrain from the Ford Fusion and Mercury Milan hybrids, including the 2.5-L Duratec I4 with the electric motor producing a total of .


title: Lincoln MKZ

text: The Lincoln MKZ Hybrid has an EV mode that allows the car to travel short distances on electricity alone, at speeds up to . The MKZ Hybrid offers an improvement of Ford's Smart Gauge with EcoGuide, first introduced in the 2010 Fusion Hybrid. The MKZ Smart Gauge version offered a new "Flower" design compared to the "Leaf" design of the Fusion. In essence, the car rewards the driver with flower blossoms for economical driving/driving habits.


title: Lincoln MKZ

text: The Lincoln MKZ Hybrid is marketed by Ford as a competitor to the Lexus HS 250h and Lexus ES Hybrid. As of July 2011, the MKZ Hybrid was the only hybrid in the market with the same price as its conventional gasoline-engine version. Ford reported that until June 2011, about 20% of 2011 MKZ sales have been hybrids, and the market share is even higher in markets where hybrids in general sell well, such as the Los Angeles region, where sales of the hybrid model represent 44%, and the San Francisco area, with a market share of 66%. The MKZ Hybrid base price is , and with popular options including a sunroof, navigation system, blind spot monitors, a THX surround-sound stereo, and a backup camera, the price rises to .


title: Lincoln MKZ

text: A complete redesign of the Ford Fusion line-up was scheduled for the 2013 model year. Both the Lincoln MKZ and the Fusion Hybrid are expected to use a new compact lithium-ion battery pack and an updated powertrain that is expected to deliver a higher fuel economy up to 48 mpg (4.9 to 5.0 L/100 km; 56 to 58 mpg) highway. The next-generation Lincoln MKZ Hybrid was expected to be launched by mid-2012. The 2013 MKZ concept car was unveiled at the 2012 North American International Auto Show.


title: Lincoln MKZ

text: The MKZ Hybrid was one of the five finalists for the 2011 Green Car of the Year awarded by the "Green Car Journal" in November 2010, which was won by the Chevrolet Volt. In its 2011 Hybrid Scorecard, the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) ranked the MKZ Hybrid, together with the Lexus CT200h, as the top luxury hybrid models in the scorecard's environmental improvement category, an achievement the UCS attributed to their relatively small gasoline engines. Nevertheless, the Lincoln MKZ Hybrid ranked higher than the Lexus on all factors: consumer value, hybrid technology, fuel efficiency, and pollution reduction. Also, the UCS praised the MKZ Hybrid, together with the Hyundai Sonata Hybrid, because both hybrids were available with few or no forced features that inflated the cost without adding to fuel savings or reducing emissions. The UCS's Hybrid Scorecard ratings for the MKZ Hybrid are higher than the nonluxury Toyota Prius for environmental performance, and hybrid value; both are rated the same for forced features; and the Prius scores higher in fuel economy.


title: Lincoln MKZ

text: Ford redesigned the Lincoln MKZ for the 2013 model year, sharing the company's CD4 platform with Fusion and Mondeo. The concept model debuted at the 2012 North American International Auto Show. The production version of the second-generation MKZ was unveiled at the 2012 New York Auto Show. It followed the general concept idea released in the model displayed at the 2012 Detroit Auto Show.


title: Lincoln MKZ

text: The MKZ was originally set to be released in November 2012, but this was set back to January after Fusion production was delayed, which is produced at the same plant. Its release date was again pushed back after Ford looked to iron out any possible quality issues. Some MKZs were even shipped from the Mexican facility to Ford's Flat Rock plant to be reassured and inspected that they were ready to be sent to dealerships. This was an unprecedented move for such a big product launch, but Ford felt it would be profitable in the long run. Cars finally started to reach dealerships in sufficient quantities by mid-March 2013.


title: Lincoln MKZ

text: Ford offered the 2013 MKZ with three powertrains: a 240-horsepower EcoBoost 2-liter four-cylinder (FWD or AWD), a 300-horsepower 3.7-liter V6 (FWD or AWD), and a hybrid system based on the 2-liter power plant. The hybrid, like the previous-generation MKZ Hybrid, was available for the same price as the non-hybrid model.


title: Lincoln MKZ

text: Given the model's significant redesign for 2013, changes to the 2014 MKZ were primarily limited to color choices. For 2015, automatic headlights, rear parking sensors and rear view camera became standard.


title: Lincoln MKZ

text: The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rated the 2013 MKZ Hybrid at with the same rating for combined/city/highway cycles. The 2013 model year 2.0-liter, 4-cylinder FWD automatic MKZ rating is combined, in the city, and on the highway.


title: Lincoln MKZ

text: These ratings allowed the 2013 MKZ Hybrid to become the most fuel-efficient luxury vehicle in the U.S. and improve the fuel economy of the Lexus ES 300h hybrid by 5 mpg on the combined cycle. Despite sharing the same powertrain, the 2013 MKZ Hybrid rated 2 mpg combined less than its sibling, the second-generation Ford Fusion Hybrid at .


title: Lincoln MKZ

text: The MKZ received a facelift for the 2017 model year. Revealed on November 18, 2015, at the LA Auto Show, the MKZ is the first to adopt Lincoln's new design language previewed earlier on the Lincoln Continental concept car, featuring redesigned front grille and headlights. The 3.7 L V6 will be dropped in favor of an all-new 3.0 L twin-turbo V6 engine unique to Lincoln, producing between 350 and 400 horsepower depending on the drive-train. Trim levels include the standard model, plus Premiere, Select, Reserve and top level Black Label, which is three special appearance packages, a tradition started with the Designer Editions in 1976. The MKZ offers the "Vineyard" (unique to the MKZ), "Chalet", and "Thoroughbred" theme appearance packages. In continuing with Lincoln tradition, Bridge of Weir "Deepsoft" leather is used for the Select and Reserve trim packages.


title: Lincoln MKZ

text: The transmission is no longer activated with a center console installed transmission selector; the computer controlled transmission uses buttons installed to the left of the MyLincoln Touch infotainment touch screen labeled "P, R, N, D, S", a revival of an approach used in the 1950s by the Chrysler push button PowerFlite and the . The "S" transmission selection represents "Sport" mode, where the Continuously Controlled Damping suspension, electric power steering and transmission shift points take on a different posture.


title: Lincoln MKZ

text: The MKZ received no more major changes, with the new model years bringing new colors and a gradual diminishing of the lineup. For 2020, the car's final year on the market, only the Base and Reserve trims remained, with either Hybrid, Turbo, or V6 powertrains.


title: John Catsimatidis

text: John A. Catsimatidis (born September 7, 1948) is an American billionaire businessman and radio talk show host. He is the owner, president, chairman, and CEO of Gristedes Foods, a grocery chain in Manhattan, and the Red Apple Group, a real estate and aviation company with about $2 billion in holdings in New York, Florida and Pennsylvania. He is also the chairman and CEO of the Red Apple Group subsidiary United Refining Company.


title: John Catsimatidis

text: Every Sunday morning Catsimatidis hosts the talk-radio show "The Cats Roundtable", on WABC radio. He also hosts the "Cats at Night" podcast on the same radio; from Monday to Friday. In 2019 he acquired WABC.


title: John Catsimatidis

text: Catsimatidis was the runner-up to the Republican nomination for mayor of New York City in the 2013 election. He and his family run the Manhattan Republican Party.


title: John Catsimatidis

text: Catsimatidis was born on the Greek island of Nisyros on September 7, 1948. He came to the United States with his parents when he was six months old. The family moved to West Harlem, where Catsimatidis grew up. Catsimatidis' father had been a lighthouse operator in Greece but worked as a busboy in New York. Catsimatidis graduated from Brooklyn Technical High School in 1966. He received a congressional nomination to West Point, but chose to study electrical engineering at New York University instead.


title: John Catsimatidis

text: While in college, Catsimatidis worked for the uncle of a friend, Tony, in a small supermarket on 137th Street which Tony and his uncle owned. While Catsimatidis was still in college, Tony sold his half of the store to Catsimatidis. Catsimatidis completed four years of college, but dropped out eight credits short of graduating.


title: John Catsimatidis

text: In 1971, Catsimatidis opened his first business in Manhattan's Upper West Side; it was the first Red Apple grocery store. Shortly thereafter, he purchased another grocery store on 87th street just west of Broadway, naming it Red Apple. Among his business innovations were staying open late seven days a week, offering free delivery, and cashing checks for customers.


title: John Catsimatidis

text: Catsimatidis has said that by the time he was 24, "I built up ten stores and the business was doing $25 million a year, and I was personally earning a million dollars a year." By the summer of 1981, Red Apple had 27 stores in the Bronx and Manhattan, with annual sales of around $40 million. These grew to $110 million in sales in 1985.


title: John Catsimatidis

text: In 1986, Red Apple purchased 36 Gristedes supermarkets and 11 affiliated Charles & Co. specialty-food stores from the Southland Corporation. In 2009, it was reported that Catsimatidis's main holdings included 50 Gristedes supermarkets, 371 gas stations in three states, $500 million in real estate, and an expanding oil business.


title: John Catsimatidis

text: In 1986, Catsimatidis acquired United Refining Co., the owner of gasoline refineries in Pennsylvania and Alabama. In October 2009, "Forbes" magazine reported that United Refining Energy Corp., a publicly-traded special-purpose acquisition company sponsored by United Refining Company, was purchasing "privately held Chaparral Energy in a deal worth roughly $1.6 billion." However, United Refining Energy Corp. shareholders did not approve the deal and it was terminated in December 2009.


title: John Catsimatidis

text: In 2008, Catsimatidis became engaged in efforts to take over SemGroup LP, a bankrupt oil, gas, and asphalt trading, storage and transportation company, headquartered in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Catsimatidis gained control over a majority of the company's management committee, but his efforts were met by opposition from the company's existing management, who argued for selling off at least some of the company's assets, while Catsimatidis wanted to keep the company together. In February 2009, Catsimatidis was sued by a group of SemGroup executives, who sought the removal of Catsimatidis and his allies from the committee. In July Catsimatidis reached a settlement with SemGroup, pursuant to which he acquired a piece of SemGroup's asphalt business and dropped his competing plan for the company's proposed reorganization.


title: John Catsimatidis

text: In 2015, the Red Apple Group ranked 156th on "Forbes" magazine's list of "America's largest private companies", with revenue of $3 billion and 8,000 employees. (This compares to its 2008 and 2009 rank, both at #100, 2010 at #78, 2011 at 98th, and 2012 at 97th).


title: John Catsimatidis

text: On June 26, 2019, Catsimatidis entered into an agreement to purchase radio station WABC (AM) from Cumulus Media for $12.5 million in cash under the "Red Apple Media" name; Catsimatidis also indicated with the purchase his intention to acquire additional stations in the New York City market to complement the conservative talk radio formatted station. The WABC sale was approved by the FCC on March 2, 2020.


title: John Catsimatidis

text: Catsimatidis is a minority investor in the political newspaper and website The Hill as referenced on the website's articles which mention him.


title: John Catsimatidis

text: Catsimatidis and his wife have made contributions to a variety of both Republican and Democratic campaigns. Among Republicans, the Catsimatidises contributed over $60,000 to the Republican National Committee, and have also made significant contributions to the National Republican Congressional Committee, National Republican Senatorial Committee, Mitt Romney, Eric Cantor, Olympia Snowe, Richard Lugar, and others. Among Democrats handful of Democratic campaigns, including to Carolyn B. Maloney, Charlie Rangel, and Jerrold Nadler. In local New York City races, Catsimatidis has given to Bill de Blasio (while he was a city councilman), Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz, Cyrus Vance Jr., and Staten Island borough president James Molinaro. In the 1992 Democratic presidential primaries, Catsimatidis contributed $150,000 to the campaign of fellow Greek American Paul Tsongas.


title: John Catsimatidis

text: Catsimatidis put on a fundraiser in 2006 with Michael Bloomberg for Senator Joe Lieberman of Connecticut to support his third party run as an independent after Lieberman lost the Democratic primary nomination for reelection to the Senate.


title: John Catsimatidis

text: Catsimatidis has been described as a "longtime", "loyal", and "high-level Clinton donor". Catsimatidis donated a significant sum to the Clinton Presidential Center, thought to be between $100,000 and $500,000. Catsimatidis was a member of Hillary Clinton's finance team during her 2008 campaign for the Democratic presidential nomination, saying in February 2007 of Clinton, "She's unstoppable. She's got such a machine." Catsimatidis hosted a number of fundraising dinners with Bill Clinton at his home in New York that in total raised well in excess of $750,000 for Hillary Clinton's campaign. Catsimatidis has said that he is friends with Bill Clinton and that the former president "often" has flown in one of Catsimatidis' two airplanes. Hillary Clinton attended Catsimatidis' daughter's wedding.


title: John Catsimatidis

text: In 2015, press reports indicated that Catsimatidis donated the use of a chartered jet valued at $70,000 to the Republican primary campaign of Scott Walker.


title: John Catsimatidis

text: A donor to Bill Clinton during the Clinton years, Catsimatidis, while still enrolled as a Democrat, considered becoming a candidate in the 2009 mayoral election as a Republican. In May 2007, he was reported to be "systematically wooing local Republicans", attending various Republican fundraisers in Queens and Staten Island and stating that he would "probably have a press conference" to announce his intentions "sooner rather than later" and would consider spending between $30 million and $40 million if he ran.


title: John Catsimatidis

text: In 2008, Catsimatidis was viewed as a potential mayoral candidate. By July 2008, Catsimatidis formed an exploratory committee. In 2009, Catsimatidis spent nearly $300,000, much of it on polls and consultants, to explore a candidacy. He said he only agreed to drop out after Bloomberg informed him of his plans to seek a third term. Once the city term limits law was changed to allow Bloomberg to run for a third term, Catsimatidis quietly withdrew.


title: John Catsimatidis

text: During the spring of 2012, Catsimatidis described his dismay over the quality of the announced as well as the presumed candidates. He suggested that he would support New York City Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly, but when Kelly repeatedly denied any intention to run, Catsimatidis expressed his own interest.


title: John Catsimatidis

text: In December 2012, Catsimatidis established an exploratory committee to consider running for mayor. On January 3, 2013, he filed paperwork with the New York City Campaign Finance Board . Shortly afterward, he told the "New York Post" that he had just written his own check for one million dollars to seed his campaign.


title: John Catsimatidis

text: Catsimatidis made his official announcement on January 29, 2013, vowing to be "a leader for Harlem and Wall Street." He stated "I'm not a Mike Bloomberg billionaire. I'm not wearing a $5,000 suit." Through May 15, Catsimatidis (a self-financed candidate) had spent $880,000 on the campaign, mostly on television and radio ads, but also on billboards and items including lip balm and groceries. He hired a campaign consulting firm, Millennial Strategies LLC, that mostly works on Democratic campaigns.


title: John Catsimatidis

text: On a December 13 appearance on "Inside City Hall", Catsimatidis compared raising taxes on the wealthy to how "Hitler punished the Jews".


title: John Catsimatidis

text: Catsimatidis expressed support for the New York City stop-and-frisk program, and two weeks after the Boston Marathon bombing, his campaign ran a radio ad attacking "career politicians want to end stop and frisk and cut the NYPD's powers of surveillance." At a candidates' forum Catsimatidis suggested that "a robot" or other future technology would make the stop-and-frisk program unnecessary in the future, but stated that until that time the program should continue.


title: John Catsimatidis

text: At campaign events in April 2013, Catsimatidis claimed that he could have beaten Barack Obama in the 2012 presidential election and got into a contentious exchange with various Republican audience members, telling one to "go bullshit yourself if you want!"


title: John Catsimatidis

text: On May 13, the "New York Post" ran a story on Catsimatidis' comment in a 1989 "Crain's New York Business" profile in which he stated "I'm a Manhattanite. I feel sorry for those people who aren't." Catsimatidis's remark was criticized by Republican Guy Molinari, the former Staten Island borough president and congressman, and Brooklyn Democratic councilman Lew Fidler, who called Catsimatidis a "Manhattan elitist".


title: John Catsimatidis

text: Among the "off-the-cuff—and off-beat—policy proposals" that Catsimatidis suggested during the campaign included giving police tricycles to improve mobility, allowing casinos in hotels, and launching a program to give free pet food to people who adopt homeless animals. Catsimatidis's economic proposals include a revival of the 1964 New York World's Fair. "The New York Times" reported that Catsimatidis "struck an odd note when discussing education policy, expressing unease about the makeup of his daughter's graduating class from New York University's Stern School of Business," stating that "I think close to 480 of the 580 were Asian — Asian including India. And, it was scary. And then when you think about it, we’re going to deport most of these kids."


title: John Catsimatidis

text: Catsimatidis called for street vendors to be limited to certain areas, and prohibiting setting up within 300–500 feet of stores selling the same products, complaining at a candidates' forum that "We have cart people right in front of our doorstep. They're selling bananas for half price in front of my own stores. That is wrong."


title: John Catsimatidis

text: In the September 2013 Republican primary, Catsimatidis lost to Joseph J. Lhota, receiving 24,864 votes to Lhota's 32,236 votes. Catsimatidis did carry the borough of Staten Island.


title: John Catsimatidis

text: Catsimatidis could have chosen to contest the general election on two other ballot lines, either that of the Liberal Party of New York and of a third-party line he created in summer 2013, but two days after his primary, he announced that he would withdraw from the race.


title: John Catsimatidis

text: "The New York Times" reported in October 2020 that Catsimatidis and his family run the Manhattan Republican Party; his daughter Andrea is the chairwoman, and Catsimatidis, his wife Margo Catsimatidis, and his son John Catsimatidis Jr. are vice-presidents. Between February and July 2020, Catsimatidis contributed $50,000 of the party's $52,000 of income.


title: John Catsimatidis

text: Catsimatidis said he considered running in the 2021 New York City mayoral election. He originally suggested he'd run as a Democrat, but retracted that and suggested he'd either run again as a Republican or as a member of the Liberal Party.


title: John Catsimatidis

text: Following a slew of scandals plaguing New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, such as sexual harassment allegations (a contributing factor that has led to his resignation) and a federal investigation into COVID-19 deaths within nursing homes, Catsimatidis pivoted toward a potential gubernatorial run in 2022. If he was to run, Catsimatidis said he would do it on both the Republican and Liberal tickets; however, he did not end up running.


title: John Catsimatidis

text: On October 2, 1988, Catsimatidis married Margaret "Margo" Vondersaar at the Greek Orthodox Archdiocesan Cathedral of the Holy Trinity in New York; the two had met when she became his secretary in 1972. His first marriage ended in divorce; he has stated that he was "sometimes" together with Margo while still married to his first wife. At the time of their marriage, Margo led her own advertising agency, MCV Advertising Associates in New York, and was president of "The Hellenic Times".


title: John Catsimatidis

text: Catsimatidis and Margo have two children, Andrea and John Jr. Andrea married Christopher Cox, grandson of former President Richard Nixon, on June 4, 2011, at the Greek Orthodox Archdiocesan Cathedral of the Holy Trinity, "before a church packed with family members and political powerhouses." Catsimatidis said that he spent "in excess of $1 million" on the wedding. Andrea Catsimatidis and Cox divorced in 2014.


title: John Catsimatidis

text: In the 2015 Forbes 400 "richest people in America" list, Catsimatidis ranked 182nd, with a personal net worth estimated at $3.4 billion; in the "Forbes" list of global billionaires, he ranked No. 577.


title: John Catsimatidis

text: He is one of the largest donors to the G&P Foundation for Cancer Research He founded and was co-chairman of Brooklyn Tech Endowment Foundation, benefiting his alma mater. Catsimatidis funds the John Catsimatidis Scholarship Fund at the New York University Stern School of Business, which has since 1988 awarded two scholarships each year. Catsimatidis was for five years president of the Manhattan Council of the Boy Scouts of America. He has been on the board of directors of the Police Athletic League of New York City, and the Drum Major Institute.


title: John Catsimatidis

text: Other organizations with which Catsimatidis has been active are the National Kidney Foundation, Juvenile Diabetes Foundation, Young Men's Philanthropic League, and Alzheimer's Foundation of America. Catsimatidis was the vice-chairman of the Ellis Island Awards Foundation of the National Ethnic Coalition Organization (NECO), and received an Ellis Island Medal of Honor from that organization.


title: John Catsimatidis

text: In light of the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, Catsimatidis created the WABC Radio Foundation to provide humanitarian relief for Ukrainians in need.


title: Jake Delhomme

text: Jake Christopher Delhomme (; born January 10, 1975) is a former American football quarterback who played professionally in the National Football League (NFL). Delhomme played college football at Louisiana, then known as the University of Southwestern Louisiana, before being signed by the New Orleans Saints as an undrafted free agent after the 1997 NFL Draft. Delhomme began his professional career as a practice squad player with the Saints in 1997 and 1998 and played in the NFL Europe for two years in between NFL seasons. Returning to the Saints, Delhomme played his first NFL games in 1999. Delhomme played as the Carolina Panthers starting quarterback from 2003 to 2009. Delhomme held many of Carolina's quarterback records until Cam Newton broke most of them. Delhomme led the team to Super Bowl XXXVIII in his first season with Carolina. After his departure from Carolina, Delhomme also played for the Cleveland Browns in 2010 and Houston Texans in 2011.


title: Jake Delhomme

text: Delhomme was born to Jerry and Marcia Delhomme, both Cajuns. Delhomme's grandfather bred horses, and his father was a jockey who began racing at eight years old. Delhomme has called horses his "first love", and he, his father, and his brother own and train thoroughbreds. Delhomme played both quarterback and defensive back for Teurlings Catholic; he made the all-state team in high school not as quarterback, but on defense. In addition, Delhomme was a scholar serving as Senior Beta Club president of his chapter in Louisiana.


title: Jake Delhomme

text: Delhomme played college football for the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, then named the University of Southwestern Louisiana, his mother's alma mater. The only true freshman quarterback to start for a Division I school in 1993, his passer efficiency rating ranked second among NCAA freshmen quarterbacks. Playing on a team with future NFL wide receiver Brandon Stokley and offensive lineman Anthony Clement, the Ragin' Cajuns won the Big West Conference twice, and finished with three winning seasons. During his senior year, he led the Ragin' Cajuns to an improbable win over highly favored Texas A&M 29–22.


title: Jake Delhomme

text: Delhomme finished his career as the school's all-time passing leader in yards and touchdowns. He started the last 43 games of his career, which was the longest among active quarterbacks at the time. Upon graduating, he was ranked 22nd in NCAA history for passing yards and 28th in total offense. He was inducted into the school's Athletic Hall of Fame in 2006.


title: Jake Delhomme

text: Delhomme went undrafted in the 1997 NFL Draft, but was later signed by the New Orleans Saints as an undrafted free agent. After spending the first season on the practice squad, he was assigned to the Amsterdam Admirals of NFL Europe as a backup quarterback to future NFL and Super Bowl MVP, Kurt Warner; Delhomme later said that "Being around someone as mature as Kurt was, that really inspired me". After another stint on the Saints' practice squad, he was sent back to NFL Europe, this time as a member of the Frankfurt Galaxy. The Galaxy operated under a rare two-quarterback strategy, utilizing both Delhomme and Pat Barnes; the pair was known as the "Double-Headed Quarterback Monster". The unorthodox strategy worked, as the Galaxy won World Bowl '99 over the Barcelona Dragons. Delhomme would later say about his time in Europe:


title: Jake Delhomme

text: Following his success in Europe, he was brought back to the New Orleans Saints as the full-time third-string quarterback. In his first NFL start against the Dallas Cowboys, he threw two touchdowns en route to a Saints victory, the team's third.


title: Jake Delhomme

text: Delhomme continued to see limited playing time the following three seasons, as he was the backup to Aaron Brooks and Jeff Blake. He managed to lead all NFC quarterbacks in overall passer rating during the 2001 and 2002 preseasons. His success, coupled with the team's struggles, led fans to chant "We Want Jake, We Want Jake".


title: Jake Delhomme

text: With Aaron Brooks cemented as the starter in New Orleans, Delhomme was interested in fighting for a starting spot in the NFL. In the 2003 offseason, he met with representatives from both the Carolina Panthers and the Dallas Cowboys. He eventually signed with Carolina as a free agent. It was his performance against Dallas in 1999 that made new Panthers coach John Fox take notice.


title: Jake Delhomme

text: The Panthers had been struggling, and were just one season removed from a dismal 1–15 season, during which they set a then-NFL record for consecutive losses in a single season. Although Rodney Peete was the Panthers' starter, Delhomme was looked at to be the future of the franchise. It did not take long for him to take over.


title: Jake Delhomme

text: At halftime of the 2003 season opener against the Jacksonville Jaguars, the Panthers were down 14–0. Delhomme took over for Peete and threw three touchdowns, the last coming in a fourth-down situation with just 16 seconds left in the game, to lead the Panthers to a comeback victory. He started the following week against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and proceeded to start every remaining game during the 2003 season. Including the playoffs, Delhomme led the Panthers on eight game-winning drives in the fourth quarter or overtime in the 2003 season, the most game-winning drives any QB has ever had in a single season. Delhomme led the Panthers on a Cinderella run through the playoffs, including a double-overtime victory against the St. Louis Rams. After beating the top-seeded Philadelphia Eagles in the NFC Championship game, the Panthers made it through to Super Bowl XXXVIII to face the New England Patriots. Despite his personal success in the game (16-of-33 for 323 yards, 3 passing touchdowns, no interceptions, and a 113.6 passer rating), as well as setting a record for longest offensive play from scrimmage in Super Bowl history (an 85-yard pass to Muhsin Muhammad), the Panthers fell on a last-minute field goal by Adam Vinatieri. Delhomme was seen standing on the field during the Patriots' post-game celebration; he later commented:


title: Jake Delhomme

text: The 2004 season proved bittersweet for Delhomme, as he posted career highs in pass attempts, completions, overall yardage, and touchdowns. The team was stricken with injuries, fielding five different combinations in their offensive line alone. Starting the season 1–7 after the early losses of running backs Stephen Davis and DeShaun Foster, as well as Steve Smith, their leading wide receiver, the Panthers rallied for a strong second half of the season. Delhomme finished the final eight games of the season with a passer rating of 102.8, fourth best in the league during that period. He also threw 17 touchdowns and just 4 interceptions en route to winning six of their last eight games. They ultimately positioned themselves for a playoff berth, but lost that chance with a final game loss to Delhomme's former team, the New Orleans Saints.


title: Jake Delhomme

text: In 2005, Delhomme helped return the Panthers to the playoffs. In addition to the team's success, Delhomme had one of his most productive seasons as a quarterback. His 11 victories as a starting quarterback set a team record, which he later broke in 2008, and was later broken again by Cam Newton in 2015. He set career highs in completion percentage (60.2) and passer rating (88.1). In addition, his success led to Steve Smith leading the league in receptions, receiving yards, and receiving touchdowns, becoming only the third wide receiver to accomplish the "triple crown" in league history. Once again, he led the Panthers through the playoffs, including a shutout of the New York Giants, although the team ultimately fell to the Seattle Seahawks in the NFC Championship game.


title: Jake Delhomme

text: Delhomme started the 2006 season as the Panthers' quarterback, the first time in franchise history that the same quarterback was the starter for three straight seasons. He set records during the season by making 150 consecutive pass attempts without an interception, bettering Steve Beuerlein's previous team record. The following week against the Washington Redskins, he continued his assault on the team record books by breaking Beuerlein's records for completions and passing yards. Unfortunately, he injured his thumb in a game against the Philadelphia Eagles, and missed three games. During his time off, Chris Weinke started for the first time since the 2002 season, and in his first game shattered the team record for passing yards in a single game with 423 yards, but his three interceptions were costly as the Panthers lost the game to the New York Giants. Weinke could only manage a single victory in Delhomme's absence (against the rival Atlanta Falcons, only his second victory as an NFL starter), and Delhomme returned for the season finale against the New Orleans Saints.


title: Jake Delhomme

text: The 2007 season started with a win against the St. Louis Rams and a loss to the Houston Texans. However, in the third game of the season (against division rival Atlanta Falcons), Delhomme suffered an elbow injury that would set off a series of changes for the Panthers at the quarterback position. David Carr, who signed with Carolina in the off-season, took over as the Panthers' starting quarterback. After Carr injured his back in a defeat of the New Orleans Saints, the Panthers signed Vinny Testaverde, who started the next game against the Arizona Cardinals just four days later, and in the process became the oldest starting quarterback to win a game in the NFL. However, an injury to Testaverde coupled with Carr's spinal cord injury led to rookie Matt Moore starting in week 15 against the Seattle Seahawks, a game he won. Meanwhile, Delhomme opted for season ending Tommy John surgery on the elbow after two weeks of testing his arm.


title: Jake Delhomme

text: Delhomme returned to the starting position for the 2008 season. In the first game of the 2008 season, Delhomme restarted his career by coming back on the San Diego Chargers with a touchdown pass on fourth down as time expired to win the game. This is similar to his debut game in 2003. After finishing the regular season 12–4, tying the Panthers' 2nd best record in franchise history, the Panthers were eliminated from the playoffs when on January 10, 2009, on his 34th birthday, Delhomme threw for a career worst five interceptions (and lost one fumble) against the Arizona Cardinals in the , ending the season with an overall record of 12–5 including the loss in the playoffs.


title: Jake Delhomme

text: On April 23, 2009, the Panthers signed Delhomme to a 5-year extension worth $42.5 million, with a $20 million guarantee, putting him under contract through 2014. In the season opener loss against the Philadelphia Eagles, Delhomme went 7 of 17 for 73 yards with four interceptions and a lost fumble, before getting benched for journeyman Josh McCown. Delhomme threw game-ending interceptions the next 2 games, and despite throwing for 2 touchdowns and 7 interceptions with a 54.3 rating through the first 3 games, coach John Fox kept Delhomme as the Panthers' starting quarterback. Steve Smith jokingly told Delhomme after their loss against the Eagles "I never liked you as a quarterback." After the team's bye week, Delhomme still struggled. In his next three games, he had 2 more touchdowns to 6 more interceptions. In the next four games however, Delhomme only threw 1 interception. In spite of this improved performance, the team went 2–2 in those 4 games. Delhomme's bad performance continued with a 0 TD, 4 INT game against the New York Jets. During the loss to the Jets, Delhomme broke a finger on his throwing hand and was replaced by backup Matt Moore for the next two games, a 16–6 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and a 20–10 loss to the New England Patriots. After those games, Moore started to heat up. He beat the Minnesota Vikings 26–7, then beat the Giants in their final game at Giants Stadium with a 41–9 win, and went on to beat the New Orleans Saints 23–10.


title: Jake Delhomme

text: Delhomme was placed on season-ending injured reserve on December 24, 2009, and was released by the Panthers on March 5, 2010.


title: Jake Delhomme

text: On March 13, 2010, Delhomme signed a two-year deal with the Cleveland Browns. Delhomme won the starting quarterback job over Seneca Wallace after competing with him during training camp. However, he suffered a high ankle sprain during the second quarter of the Browns' first game of the season, a loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (Delhomme had been notably grounded and thrown to the ground by Lions defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh, in a preseason game.) Delhomme saw action again midway through the team's Week 5 game after Wallace also injured his ankle. However, he was noticeably not 100% while playing and ultimately re-injured his ankle. Delhomme started against his former team the Carolina Panthers, after Colt McCoy suffered a high ankle sprain. It was Delhomme's first start since Week 1. For the season, he threw two touchdowns and seven interceptions while going 2-3 as a starter.


title: Jake Delhomme

text: Delhomme signed with the Houston Texans on November 29, 2011, after quarterbacks Matt Schaub and Matt Leinart went down with season-ending injuries. Despite his experience, Delhomme was signed to back up rookie fifth-round draft pick T. J. Yates, as Yates had been with the team the entire season.


title: Jake Delhomme

text: Delhomme entered the Texans' season finale against the Titans after Yates suffered a bruised throwing shoulder. He would go on to lead his team on a potential game-winning drive, completing 18 of 28 passes for 211 yards and a touchdown. But the Texans would lose 23–22 after a botched snap on a two-point attempt play. After the season ended, Delhomme told media that he would most likely retire.


title: Jake Delhomme

text: Delhomme married Keri Melancon in 2000; the two were childhood sweethearts, and were "Junior Sweethearts" at Teurlings Catholic. They have two daughters: Lauren Elizabeth, who was born on December 17, 2001, and Lindsey Marie, who was born on February 25, 2007. The Delhommes are devout Roman Catholics. Delhomme wears #17 because it is the date of his first daughter's birthday, and she was born after 17 hours of labor. He and his family are Panthers fans.


title: Jake Delhomme

text: Delhomme has garnered popularity as a pitch-man for the fast food restaurant Bojangles', where he is often depicted as a single-minded fried-chicken addict who audibles Bojangles' "fixin's" at the line of scrimmage. One commercial parodies the film "Jerry Maguire" and the line "Show me the money!"; former teammate with the Panthers Steve Smith is featured in a cameo. Another commercial with Smith portrays the duo as the Dukes of Hazzard, driving The General Lee with a large chicken head on the roof.


title: Jake Delhomme

text: Delhomme has also done SunCom Wireless limited edition cell phone commercials that feature a Panthers logo and his signature, and he has appeared in public service announcements for Civitan International. Delhomme is noted for licking his fingers before every play, and sticking his tongue out as part of his focus.


title: Jake Delhomme

text: The official Panthers website featured a regular discussion with Delhomme during the regular season, known as "Cajun Up with Jake".


title: Jake Delhomme

text: Since retiring from football in 2011, Delhomme returned to his hometown of Breaux Bridge, Louisiana and worked in banking while also breeding racehorses. His best, a mare named Forest Lake who won several stakes races, retired in 2017 and was sent to be bred in Kentucky.


title: Jake Delhomme

text: On July 9, 2019, the Panthers announced that Delhomme would be inducted into the team's Hall of Honor along with Jordan Gross, Wesley Walls, and Steve Smith Sr. On August 14, 2019, he was named to the Panthers' radio team as a color analyst.


title: Battle Ground (The Dresden Files)

text: Battle Ground is a novel by Jim Butcher and is the 17th novel in "The Dresden Files". "Battle Ground" was published on September 29, 2020 by Little, Brown Book Group. In it Harry Dresden, the protagonist, attempts to stop the Titan Ethniu from destroying Chicago. It will be followed by an 18th and 19th novel: "Twelve Months" and "Mirror Mirror."


title: Battle Ground (The Dresden Files)

text: In the aftermath of the Titan Ethniu's declaration of war against humanity, Harry Dresden returns from Demonreach with his lover Karrin Murphy and temporary allies, Lara Raith and Freydis, when their ship gets attacked by a kraken, which they manage to kill with the help of Molly Carpenter before reaching Chicago. Harry and Murphy rush to warn their local friends in the Paranet about the upcoming war, and Harry charges Murphy with keeping the group out of trouble while he meets with the rest of the Accorded Nations, including John Marcone, who are ready to defend the city from the Titan and her Fomor army.


title: Battle Ground (The Dresden Files)

text: When the Fomor scouts attack, Harry goes out to fight them off with the support of the sasquatch River Shoulders. Joined by several Wardens and Listens-to-Wind, Harry reaches Graceland Cemetery, where they find Drakul and several Black Court vampires, Mavra among them, trying to carry out a necromantic ritual, and they engage in a fight. While the vampires leave, they do so on their own accord after killing Wardens Yoshino and Wild Bill and sending Chandler somewhere unknown. Harry is attacked by the Fomor, but is saved by the appearance of the Knights of the Cross and Murphy.


title: Battle Ground (The Dresden Files)

text: Taking refuge in a building, the group meets with Ebenezer McCoy and several Einherjar, as Ethniu enters the battle and uses the Eye of Balor to destroy a building. Several Jotun attack, and the Einherjar fight them, killing many of them at the cost of their own lives, as the group retreats towards Cloud Gate, where Mab is gathering her forces and acting as bait for Ethniu to attack. Harry leads a group of Fae to a nearby childcare to help evacuate the people inside, among them Internal Affairs agent Rudolph. Fomor and Jotun attack the childcare, with one of the Jotun facing off against Harry until Murphy uses a bazooka to kill him. Rudolph becomes hysterical and murders Murphy by accident; Harry almost kills him in revenge, but Sanya and Butters stop him in time.


title: Battle Ground (The Dresden Files)

text: Returning to The Bean, the Fomor begin to attack as an army, with Harry fighting and leading groups of both Fae and normal Chicagoans into the fight, suffering hundreds of deaths while inflicting high losses on the attacking Fomor, until Ethniu arrives. Harry joins Queen Mab and helps in the fight against the Titan while Molly and Marcone bring in reinforcements and several powerful individuals keep fighting against Ethniu in order to weaken her. Lara manages to strike Ethniu in the back of the head, causing her to lose the Eye of Balor, which Marcone grabs and takes towards the lake, with Harry following to carry out his part of the plan. Ethniu follows and nearly kills Marcone (who turns out to have been a Denarian since the events of "Small Favor"), but Harry manages to ensnare her and defeat her in a battle of wills, imprisoning the Titan within Demonreach. The Fomor retreat after Ethniu's defeat.


title: Battle Ground (The Dresden Files)

text: As calm begins to return, Goodman Grey brings Justine (Thomas's lover), who asks to be allowed to see Thomas. Harry takes her to the "Water Beetle", but while trying to rest realizes that Thomas had tried to warn him that Justine was the one who caused him to attack Etri; when Harry confronts her, she reveals that she has been possessed by Nemesis, who wanted to access Demonreach so it could free all of the island's prisoners. Harry jumps out of the ship and lets Demonreach attack it, preventing Nemesis from reaching its target, but it manages to escape, taking Justine away.


title: Battle Ground (The Dresden Files)

text: A wake is held for the people deceased in the battle. Carlos Ramirez tells Harry that the White Council has decreed to expel him and that he is no longer allowed to act as a wizard, but he replies that he will continue to act as Chicago's protector, no matter what others say. He later crashes a meeting of the Accorded Nations, stating that they owe the people of Chicago compensation for how the supernatural war has affected their lives, and manages to get Marcone to give up the Better Future Society castle to him, as it was built over the ruins of Harry's former apartment; Harry plans to use it as a fortress for himself and his allies. Mab announces that Harry and Lara will be married in one year's time to cement an alliance between the Winter Court and the White Court and forces Molly to oversee preparations.


title: Battle Ground (The Dresden Files)

text: Publishers Weekly wrote that "with this urban fantasy blockbuster, Butcher swiftly pays off on the major cliffhanger from Peace Talks, launching wizard Harry Dresden and the city of Chicago into a no-holds-barred battle."


title: Leela (Futurama)

text: Turanga Leela is a fictional character from the animated television series "Futurama". Leela is spaceship captain, pilot, and head of all aviation services on board the "Planet Express Ship". Throughout the series, she has an on-again, off-again relationship with Philip J. Fry, the central character in the series. The character, voiced by Katey Sagal, is named after the "Turangalîla-Symphonie" by Olivier Messiaen. She is one of the few characters in the cast to routinely display competence and the ability to command, and routinely saves the rest of the cast from disaster. However, she suffers extreme self-doubt because she has only one eye and grew up as a bullied orphan. She first believes herself an alien, but later finds out she is the least-mutated sewer mutant in the history of 31st-century Earth. Her family (particularly her parents' accent and "outcast" status) parodies aspects of pollution and undesirability associated with industrial New Jersey when compared with New York City.


title: Leela (Futurama)

text: Turanga Leela was born to Morris and Munda, two mutants who live in the sewer deep under New New York City. The mutant doctor who delivered Leela remarked that she was "the least mutated mutant ever born". When Leela was still an infant, her parents gave her up to the Cookieville Minimum Security Orphanarium with a note written in mysterious symbols to suggest that Leela was an alien, so that she would have a better life than a typical mutant.


title: Leela (Futurama)

text: For the first three seasons of the series, Leela hopes to meet another member of her race of one-eyed aliens. In the episode "A Bicyclops Built for Two", Leela meets Alcazar, a cyclops who convinces her that he and she are the last two members of their extinct race, only to discover that he is a shapeshifting impostor who just wanted to marry her so she would be his maid. Leela's parents' plan for concealing her origins works well until an industrial accident caused by environmentally irresponsible Bender brings Leela and her friends into the New New York City's sewer system where for the first time Leela meets her parents and discovers that she is not a cyclopean alien, but is actually a sewer mutant.


title: Leela (Futurama)

text: In the episode "The Problem with Popplers", Leela's family name, Turanga, was used for the first time. The episode "Less Than Hero" establishes that among Leela and her parents, their family name is placed before the given name.


title: Leela (Futurama)

text: Leela's orphan upbringing and mysterious origins are helpful to fuel the development of her character over the course of the series.


title: Leela (Futurama)

text: Despite her strong-willed nature, she often feels self-conscious about her distinctive appearance, and at one point elects to have surgery to give her the appearance of having two normal-sized eyes, though she later has this reversed. Leela's single eye hampers her depth perception and is sometimes exploited for comic effect, for instance, in the episode "The Problem with Popplers" it is suggested that she actually "is" crashing into billboards every time in the opening credits, though it typically does not interfere with her ability to pilot the "Planet Express Ship" (beyond crashing into the odd billboard) or her mastery of martial arts.


title: Leela (Futurama)

text: Originally a career placement officer for new defrostees at a cryogenics lab in the year 2999, Leela quit her job after meeting Philip J. Fry, a defrostee from 1999, and Bender, a high-tech, job-deserting, girder bending robot. Together they are employed as the crew for Planet Express, an intergalactic delivery business run by Fry's distant relative, Professor Hubert J. Farnsworth. Leela serves as captain of the "Planet Express Ship", proving herself to be a skilled officer and often rescuing her less-talented coworkers from peril.


title: Leela (Futurama)

text: Leela is an avid environmentalist. In "Love's Labour Lost in Space", Leela and crew are sent to Vergon 6, a planet that is about collapse because of mining. Her mission is to save the animal inhabitants of the planet. The mission winds up unsuccessful because of a small animal Leela finds only one of because he ate the rest of the animals. This animal, who she names Nibbler, becomes her pet for the remainder of the series. Her environmentalist beliefs resurface again in "". Despite her love of animals and nature, she embarks on an Ahab-like quest to kill a space whale in the episode "Möbius Dick".


title: Leela (Futurama)

text: Leela is a skilled martial artist and adept weapons expert and survivalist. In the episode "The Raging Bender" , a flashback revealed that she had earned a red belt in Kung Fu as a teenager, but despite her besting all the other students, she quit due to her sexist instructor, of whom she beat up years later. She is very athletic and in great physical condition, with most males (of any species) unable to match her in physical combat.


title: Leela (Futurama)

text: Though the series described Turanga Leela as a one-eyed alien in its first episodes, "Futurama" creator Matt Groening and executive producer David X. Cohen had in mind that she would turn out to be the child of sewer-dwelling mutants before the series was pitched to executives. The mutants later revealed to be Leela's parents appear as background characters in the season 2 episode "I Second That Emotion", providing an early hint at her origin. Later in the series it is revealed that her parents had given her up to an orphanage (styled an 'orphanarium') in order to give her a chance at living a normal life on the surface, passing her off as an alien due to her relative lack of distinguishing mutant features. According to Groening, the cyclopean but otherwise comely Leela subverts the science-fiction cliché of glamorously perfect female heroines.


title: Leela (Futurama)

text: An early file Groening compiled on Leela lists some of her intended qualities: "strong-willed, opinionated, gentle (when not fighting), gives orders, unlucky in love, loves weapons, loves animals". Katey Sagal describes her as a "tough, strong career girl who just can't get it together in the rest of her life...she's vulnerable and hard at the same time".


title: Leela (Futurama)

text: Her family name plays on "Turangalîla", the Sanskrit title of the 1948 "Turangalîla-Symphonie" by French composer Olivier Messiaen. The "Turangalîla-Symphonie" has four cyclical themes; its title can be roughly translated as "love song". Her given name, Leela (/ˈli.laː/), is the word for lilac in many Indo-European languages (such as French, German, Italian, Dutch and Swedish). Leela (same spelling) was also the name of a companion of the fourth Doctor from "Doctor Who" (played by Tom Baker), who makes cameo appearances in episode 103 ("Mobius Dick") and episode 111 ("All the presidents' Heads").


title: Leela (Futurama)

text: Besides her oversized single eye, Leela's other distinctive features include her purple hair tied in a ponytail by a black hair tie and relatively small nose. The ponytail was included so that Leela, like the other main characters in "Futurama" and Groening's other cartoon "The Simpsons", would be recognizable in silhouette. During the many stages of character design, Groening decided to give Leela a large nose just for fun, but the animators resisted the idea, believing that it was unnatural. The animators ended up drawing Leela with a small nose based on Groening's original drawing of Leela, which he references as his "idea of a sexy babe". Animator Gregg Vanzo notes that the artists also had initial difficulties drawing facial expressions and moods for Leela because of her single eye. Leela's usual clothing consists of a low-cut white tank top, leggings and boots. Groening intended Leela to be portrayed as attractive and sexy, but had to instruct the animators to de-emphasize exaggerated aspects of their original design that were too "racy". However, Leela is still considered attractive and sexy, even beautiful by several such as Fry and Zapp Brannigan. What Leela calls "this thing I wear on my wrist" (referred to in another episode as a "Wrist Lojackimator") is capable of minor plot conveniences as needed.


title: Leela (Futurama)

text: Katey Sagal provides the voice of Leela. Sagal immediately wanted the role when she was asked to audition for Groening. She is one of the few primarily live-action actors in the "Futurama" cast. In an interview, Sagal said: "This is acting, but a different type of acting. You're not using your whole tool here—your body and physicality—but it's challenging that way. The animation work is really unusual. I don't have the same experience doing it as the people I work with." Sagal notes that she found out years after accepting the part that someone else (comedian Nicole Sullivan) had previously been cast as Leela but the creators had decided to replace her. She also notes that she does not change Leela's voice much from her own natural voice but she does try to make it a little higher-pitched.


title: Sarcopenia

text: Sarcopenia is a type of muscle loss (muscle atrophy) that occurs with aging and/or immobility. It is characterized by the degenerative loss of skeletal muscle mass, quality, and strength. The rate of muscle loss is dependent on exercise level, co-morbidities, nutrition and other factors. The muscle loss is related to changes in muscle synthesis signalling pathways. It is distinct from cachexia, in which muscle is degraded through cytokine-mediated degradation, although both conditions may co-exist. Sarcopenia is considered a component of frailty syndrome. Sarcopenia can lead to reduced quality of life, falls, fracture, and disability.


title: Sarcopenia

text: Sarcopenia is a factor in changing body composition associated with aging populations; and certain muscle regions are expected to be affected first, specifically the anterior thigh and abdominal muscles. In population studies, body mass index (BMI) is seen to decrease in aging populations while bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) shows body fat proportion rising.


title: Sarcopenia

text: The term sarcopenia is from Greek σάρξ "sarx", "flesh" and πενία "penia", "poverty". This was first proposed by Rosenberg in 1989, who wrote that "there may be no single feature of age-related decline that could more dramatically affect ambulation, mobility, calorie intake, and overall nutrient intake and status, independence, breathing, etc."


title: Sarcopenia

text: The hallmark sign of sarcopenia is loss of lean muscle mass, or muscle atrophy. The change in body composition may be difficult to detect due to obesity, changes in fat mass, or edema. Changes in weight, limb or waist circumference are not reliable indicators of muscle mass changes. Sarcopenia may also cause reduced strength, functional decline and increased risk of falling. Sarcopenia may also have no symptoms until it is severe and is often unrecognized. Research has shown, however, that hypertrophy may occur in the upper parts of the body to compensate for this loss of lean muscle mass Therefore, one early indicator of the onset of sarcopenia can be significant loss of muscle mass in the anterior thigh and abdominal muscles.


title: Sarcopenia

text: There are many proposed causes of sarcopenia and it is likely the result of multiple interacting factors. Understanding of the causes of sarcopenia is incomplete, however changes in hormones, immobility, age-related muscle changes, nutrition and neurodegenerative changes have all been recognized as potential causative factors.


title: Sarcopenia

text: The degree of sarcopenia is determined by two factors: initial amount of muscle mass and rate at which muscle mass declines. Due to variations in these factors across the population, the rate of progression and the threshold at which muscle loss becomes apparent is variable. Immobility dramatically increases the rate of muscle loss, even in younger people. Other factors that can increase rate of progression of sarcopenia include decreased nutrient intake, low physical activity, or chronic disease. Additionally, epidemiological research has indicated that early environmental influences may have long-term effects on muscle health. For example, low birth weight, a marker of a poor early environment, is associated with reduced muscle mass and strength in adult life.


title: Sarcopenia

text: There are multiple theories proposed to explain the mechanisms of muscle changes of sarcopenia including changes in satellite cell recruitment, changes in anabolic signalling, protein oxidation, inflammation, and developmental factors. The pathologic changes of sarcopenia include a reduction in muscle tissue quality as reflected in the replacement of muscle fibers with fat, an increase in fibrosis, changes in muscle metabolism, oxidative stress, and degeneration of the neuromuscular junction.


title: Sarcopenia

text: The distribution of muscle fibers types also changes in sarcopenic muscle causing a decrease in type II muscle fibers, or "fast twitch," with little to no decrease in type I muscle fibers, or "slow-twitch" muscle fibers. Deinervated type II fibers are often converted to type I fibers by reinnervation by slow type I fiber motor nerves.


title: Sarcopenia

text: The failure to activate satellite cells upon injury or exercise is also thought to contribute to the pathophysiology of sarcopenia. Additionally, oxidized proteins can lead to a buildup of lipofuscin and cross-linked proteins causing an accumulation of non-contractile material in the skeletal muscle and contribute to sarcopenic muscle.


title: Sarcopenia

text: An apparent protective factor is sufficient levels of the protein BNIP3, which prevents cells' buildup of damaged mitochondria. Deficiency of BNIP3 leads to muscle inflammation and atrophy.


title: Sarcopenia

text: Multiple diagnostic criteria have been proposed by various expert groups and continues to be an area of research and debate. Despite the lack of a widely accepted definition, sarcopenia was assigned an ICD-10 code (M62.84) in 2016, recognizing it as a disease state.


title: Sarcopenia

text: Sarcopenia can be diagnosed when a patient has muscle mass that is at least two standard deviations below the relevant population mean and has a slow walking speed. The European Working Group on Sarcopenia in Older People (EWGSOP) developed a broad clinical definition for sarcopenia, designated as the presence of low muscle mass and either low muscular strength or low physical performance. Other international groups have proposed criteria that include metrics on walking speed, distance walked in 6 minutes, or grip strength. Hand grip strength alone has also been advocated as a clinical marker of sarcopenia that is simple and cost effective and has good predictive power, although it does not provide comprehensive information.


title: Sarcopenia

text: There are screening tools for sarcopenia that assess patient reported difficulty in doing daily activities such as walking, climbing stairs or standing from a chair and have been shown to predict sarcopenia and poor functional outcomes.


title: Sarcopenia

text: Exercise remains the intervention of choice for sarcopenia, but translation of research findings into clinical practice is challenging. The type, duration and intensity of exercise are variable between studies, preventing a standardized exercise prescription for sarcopenia. Lack of exercise is a significant risk factor for sarcopenia and exercise can dramatically slow the rate of muscle loss. Exercise can be an effective intervention because aging skeletal muscle retains ability to synthesize proteins in response to short-term resistance exercise. Progressive resistance training in older adults can improve physical performance (gait speed) and muscular strength.


title: Sarcopenia

text: There are currently no approved medications for the treatment of sarcopenia. Testosterone or other anabolic steroids have also been investigated for treatment of sarcopenia, and seem to have some positive effects on muscle strength and mass, but cause several side effects and raise concerns of prostate cancer in men and virilization in women. Additionally, recent studies suggest testosterone treatments may induce adverse cardiovascular events.


title: Sarcopenia

text: DHEA and human growth hormone have been shown to have little to no effect in this setting. Growth hormone increases muscle protein synthesis and increases muscle mass, but does not lead to gains in strength and function in most studies. This, and the similar lack of efficacy of its effector insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1), may be due to local resistance to IGF-1 in aging muscle, resulting from inflammation and other age changes.


title: Sarcopenia

text: Other medications under investigation as possible treatments for sarcopenia include ghrelin, vitamin D, angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors, and eicosapentaenoic acid.


title: Sarcopenia

text: Intake of calories and protein are important stimuli for muscle protein synthesis. Older adults may not utilize protein so efficiently as younger people and may require higher amounts to prevent muscle atrophy. A number of expert groups have proposed an increase in dietary protein recommendations for older age groups to 1.0-1.2 g/kg body weight per day.


title: Sarcopenia

text: Ensuring adequate nutrition in older adults is of interest in the prevention of sarcopenia and frailty, since it is a simple, low-cost treatment approach without major side effects.


title: Sarcopenia

text: A component of sarcopenia is the loss of ability for aging skeletal muscle to respond to anabolic stimuli such as amino acids, especially at lower concentrations. However, aging muscle retains the ability of an anabolic response to protein or amino acids at larger doses. Supplementation with larger doses of amino acids, particularly leucine has been reported to counteract muscle loss with aging. Exercise may work synergistically with amino acid supplementation.


title: Sarcopenia

text: β-hydroxy β-methylbutyrate (HMB) is a metabolite of leucine that acts as a signalling molecule to stimulate protein synthesis. It is reported to have multiple targets, including stimulating mTOR and decreasing proteasome expression. Its use to prevent the loss of lean body mass in older adults is consistently supported in clinical trials. More research is needed to determine the precise effects of HMB on muscle strength and function in this age group.


title: Sarcopenia

text: The prevalence of sarcopenia depends on the definition used in each epidemiological study. Estimated prevalence in people between the ages of 60-70 is 5-13% and increases to 11-50% in people more than 80 years of age. This equates to >50 million people and is projected to affect >200 million in the next 40 years given the rising population of older adults.


title: Sarcopenia

text: Sarcopenia is emerging as a major public health concern given the increased longevity of industrialized populations and growing geriatric population. Sarcopenia is a predictor of many adverse outcomes including increased disability, falls and mortality. Immobility or bed rest in populations predisposed to sarcopenia can cause dramatic impact on functional outcomes. In the elderly, this often leads to decreased biological reserve and increased vulnerability to stressors known as the "frailty syndrome". Loss of lean body mass is also associated with increased risk of infection, decreased immunity, and poor wound healing. The weakness that accompanies muscle atrophy leads to higher risk of falls, fractures, physical disability, need for institutional care, reduced quality of life, increased mortality, and increased healthcare costs. This represents a significant personal and societal burden and its public health impact is increasingly recognized.


title: Sarcopenia

text: There are significant opportunities to better understand the causes and consequences of sarcopenia and help guide clinical care. This includes elucidation of the molecular and cellular mechanisms of sarcopenia, further refinement of reference populations by ethnic groups, validation of diagnostic criteria and clinical tools, as well as tracking of incidence of hospitalization admissions, morbidity, and mortality. Identification and research on potential therapeutic approaches and timing of interventions is also needed.


title: Sarcopenia

text: New pharmaceutical therapies in clinical development include myostatin and the selective androgen receptor modulators (SARMs). Nonsteriodal SARMs are of particular interest, given they exhibit significant selectivity between the anabolic effects of testosterone on muscle, but with little to no evidence of androgenic effects (such as prostate stimulation in men).


title: Martin Luther King Jr. assassination conspiracy theories

text: Conspiracy theories about the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr., a prominent leader of the civil rights movement, relate to different accounts of the incident that took place on April 4, 1968, in Memphis, Tennessee. King was assassinated on the balcony of the Lorraine Motel, the day after giving his final speech "I've Been to the Mountaintop". Claims soon arose over suspect aspects of King's assassination and the controversial role of the alleged assassin, James Earl Ray. Although his guilty plea eliminated the possibility of a trial before a jury, within days, Ray had recanted and claimed his confession was forced. Suspicions were further raised by the confirmation of illegal surveillance of King by the FBI and the CIA.


text: In 1979, the United States House Select Committee on Assassinations (HSCA) concluded that there was a likelihood of conspiracy in the assassination of King and that Ray was a scapegoat. In 1999, a mixed-race jury at a Memphis civil suit reached a unanimous verdict that King was assassinated as a result of a conspiracy involving the U.S. government, a person named Raoul, among others. After the verdict, Coretta King said: "There is abundant evidence of a major, high-level conspiracy in the assassination of my husband." The jury found the mafia and various local, state, and federal government agencies were "deeply involved in the assassination. ... Mr. Ray was set up to take the blame."


text: Martin Luther King Jr. arrived in Memphis, Tennessee to support a strike by black sanitation workers in April 1968. On April 4, one day after delivering his "I've Been to the Mountaintop" speech, King was assassinated on the balcony outside room 306 at the Lorraine Motel. At the time of the shooting, he was standing on the second floor balcony. King's last words were to musician Ben Branch, who was scheduled to perform that night at a planned event. King said: "Ben, make sure you play 'Take My Hand, Precious Lord' in the meeting tonight. Play it real pretty."


text: Soloman Jones was a volunteer who often drove King around town when he was in Memphis. After he heard the shots, he ran into the street. He related what he saw to the police that night, "I could see a person in the thicket on the west side of Mulberry with his back to me, looked like he had a hood over his head." The next day, Memphis public work employees removed the bushes, destroying the crime scene.


text: James Earl Ray was born into poverty in 1928 outside St. Louis. He served in West Germany after World War II, before he was dishonorably discharged. He traveled to Los Angeles where he robbed a cafe and was sentenced to 90 days. In 1955, after a series of small bungled crimes, from robbing a taxi-driver for 11 dollars to robbing a post office, he was sentenced to 45 months at the Federal penitentiary in Leavenworth, Kansas. He was paroled in 1959. But on October 10, 1959, Ray and James Owens, another ex-convict, robbed a Kroger store in St. Louis. Ray was given a 20-year sentence at Missouri State Penitentiary. On April 23, 1967, Ray escaped from the prison in a bakery delivery truck. Ray claimed that he then became a gunrunner with a blond Cuban handler named "Raoul". Ray stated that Raoul directed him to purchase the rifle used in the assassination and to stay at the Lorraine Hotel.


text: On the afternoon of April 4, Ray checked into a boardinghouse in Memphis, with a bar called Jim's Grill on the first floor. He paid $8.50 for a week's stay. The rear of the boardinghouse faced the Lorraine Motel across Mulberry Street. Ray was identified from fingerprints on the gun he left behind. Regarding Ray's alleged gun, Martin Luther King III said, "That weapon was not the weapon. You're going to kill somebody and then drop the gun right there?"


text: On April 24, Ray obtained a Canadian passport and purchased plane tickets from Toronto to London, where he was apprehended by the FBI on June 8. He was allegedly trying to reach the white-minority ruled Rhodesia. On March 10, 1969, Ray plead guilty to murdering King, received a 99-year prison sentence without trial. His plea saved him from the likelihood of the death penalty. During his short sentencing trial, Ray "leapt to his feet" when the prosecution and his defense lawyer, Percy Foreman, agreed that there was no conspiracy. Ray explained that his guilty plea did not necessarily mean others weren't involved. But a few days after his plea, Ray recanted his confession and claimed he was innocent.


text: In 1998, Ray died in prison of complications due to a chronic hepatitis C infection. Ray's cremated remains were distributed in Ireland because he did not want his final resting place to be in the United States due to "the way the government [had] treated him".


text: Ray's claims of innocence attracted William Pepper, who had been a friend of King and would spend much of his later life fighting for Ray's release. The SCLC has applauded Pepper for his "unceasing commitment in the pursuit of justice". Pepper's appeals to higher courts, and even the Supreme Court, failed. According to Pepper, "It looked like we were at the end of the road and then I came up with an idea, 'Well, look, why don't we try to have a real trial on television?" A mock trial was broadcast on HBO. The television jury found Ray not guilty.


text: In June 1997, Pepper appeared on ABC's "Turning Point". He discussed the theory from his book "Orders to Kill: The Truth Behind the Murder of Martin Luther King Jr". This theory held that a hit team from the 20th Special Forces Group was to kill King if a police sharpshooter failed. This group was supposedly led by a man named Billy Eidson, whom Pepper claimed had since been killed in a cover up. Eidson was then brought on camera and refused to shake Pepper's hand. Eidson brought a $15 million lawsuit against Pepper's publisher which was later settled for an undisclosed amount.


text: Mark Lane, who was famous for JFK assassination conspiracy theories, was Ray's lawyer for a time. He alleged that Ray was an innocent pawn in a government plot. Lane wrote "Murder In Memphis" with Dick Gregory (previously titled "Code Name Zorro", after the Central Intelligence Agency's name for King) about the assassination of King, in which he alleged a conspiracy and government coverup. Lane represented James Earl Ray, King's alleged assassin, before the House Select Committee on Assassinations (HSCA) inquiry in 1978. The HSCA said of Lane in its report, "Many of the allegations of conspiracy that the committee investigated were first raised by Mark Lane". Lane wrote an audio docu-drama "Trial of James Earl Ray" that was broadcast on KPFK on April 3, 1978,