text: In the 1950s, Central High School won three national basketball high school championships. In 1983, Central High School won the WAVE-TV's High Q Championship. In 2007, when Central won the 3A State Football Championship, Head Coach Ty Scroggins became the first African-American high school coach in Kentucky history to win a state football championship. On December 12, 2008, Central's football team repeated the feat of winning the 3A State Championship, becoming the first Louisville public high school to do so in 44 years. In 2008, Central was listed by "U.S. News & World Report" as one of America's best high schools.


title: Central High School (Louisville, Kentucky)

text: Louisville Central's 2007, 2008, 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2018 football team become 3A champions and their basketball team won 2008's regional basketball championship. It one of two schools in the county attending the sweet sixteen games. Their band, featuring the "Yellow Jacket Drumline", "The Twirlettes" and the "Stingettes" majorette dance team, has become one of the most talented musical ensembles in the region; it is also the first in the county to incorporate majorettes.


text: In 2009, the Central High School basketball team (which started 0-8) repeated as regional basketball champions and advanced to the sweet sixteen championship game against Holmes High School. Central also swept the boys' and girls' 2-A Track & Field Regional Championship titles.


text: In 2010 Central made history by beating the Belfry Pirates to win the 3A Conference Championship. This is their 3rd championship in four seasons.


text: In 2011 Central again made history by beating Phillip Haywood's' Belfry Pirates in the KHSAA 3A State Championship. This was their 4th Championship in five seasons.


text: In December 2012 for the 3rd consecutive year Central High School claimed the KHSAA 3A State Championship. They defeated the Belfry Pirates with a score of 12-6. This was their 5th championship in 6 seasons.


text: On November 30, 2018, the Yellow Jackets won another KHSAA 3A State Championship, their first under coach Marvin Dantzler.


text: The Law and Government magnet is the only program like it in the JCPS school system. It is directed by Joe Gutmann. He worked as an Assistant Commonwealth attorney for more than 20 years before joining the Central staff. He has been at Central for 11 years as of the 2012-13 school year. The Law & Government Magnet has a signature partnership with the University of Louisville and Louisville Bar Association.


text: Louisville Central High School offers Kentucky's first public high school Montessori program. Dr. Montessori's vision for cosmic education, micro-economics, grace, and peace, is paired with Central's successful career themed magnet program.


text: Until 2000, all high schools in Jefferson County were required to maintain a percentage of African-American students between 15 and 50%. In 2000, a group of black parents sued after their children were denied admission to Central High School. As a result, US District Judge John Heyburn II struck down the use of race-conscious school assignment procedures for Jefferson County magnet and traditional schools such as Central.


title: Gaurav Chopra

text: Gaurav Chopra (born 4 April 1979) is an Indian television actor. He is best known for starring on Uttaran and Sadda Haq as Raghuvendra Pratap Rathore and Prof


title: Gaurav Chopra

text: Abhay Singh Ranawat respectively. He has appeared as a contestant on "Bigg Boss 10". He has also acted in the Oscar nominated Hollywood movie "Blood Diamond", and appeared on the Georgian edition of international dance reality show "Dancing with the Stars". He was last seen in ALT Balaji's web series titled Fourplay & Viu's Love Lust & Confusion. He is currently working on a theatrical adaptation of Devdas with Ashvin Gidwani Productions (AGP World).


title: Gaurav Chopra

text: Chopra studied at St. Columba's School and graduated from National Institute of Fashion Technology in 2000.


title: Gaurav Chopra

text: In 2003, Chopra appeared in the Tamil film "Ottran", and in 2004 he had an appearance in the TV serial "Saara Akaash" and "Karma" on Star Plus. In 2006, he was a contestant in the reality TV dance show "Nach Baliye 2", and in 2008 he participated in the first season of another dance show, "Zara Nachke Dikha". In 2006, he also acted in the Hollywood movie "Blood Diamond", and played Samay Khurana on "Aisa Des Hai Mera". He played the grey character of Raghuvendra Pratap Rathore on the Colors TV soap opera "Uttaran", and won the Colors Golden Petal Awards-Most Dumdar Personality in the year 2012 for this role. He was seen in the gangster film "Rangdari", which was released in April 2013.


title: Gaurav Chopra

text: In April 2016, he participated in the Georgian edition of international dance reality show "Dancing with the Stars", where he was chosen as a cultural ambassador.


title: Gaurav Chopra

text: After a sudden exit after 6 weeks, it was revealed that he left the show because of a prior commitment.


title: Gaurav Chopra

text: Chopra married his longtime girlfriend, Hitisha Cheranda, on 19 February 2018 in a private ceremony. They became parents of a boy in 2020.


title: Our Father (2022 film)

text: Our Father is an American Netflix original documentary film directed by Lucie Jourdan and produced by Michael Petrella and Jason Blum. Its story follows former Indianapolis based fertility doctor Donald Cline, who, in a case of fertility fraud, used his own sperm to impregnate dozens of unsuspecting patients. The film was released on May 11, 2022. The film was watched for 42.60 million hours between May 8, 2022, and May 29, 2022, globally.


title: Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation

text: Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation (UVGI) is a disinfection method that uses short-wavelength ultraviolet (ultraviolet C or UV-C) light to kill or inactivate microorganisms by destroying nucleic acids and disrupting their DNA, leaving them unable to perform vital cellular functions. UVGI is used in a variety of applications, such as food, surface, air, and water purification.


title: Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation

text: UV-C light is weak at the Earth's surface since the ozone layer of the atmosphere blocks it. UVGI devices can produce strong enough UV-C light in circulating air or water systems to make them inhospitable environments to microorganisms such as bacteria, viruses, molds, and other pathogens. Recent studies have proven the ability of UVC light in inactivating the novel Coronavirus (COVID-19). UVGI can be coupled with a filtration system to sanitize air and water.


title: Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation

text: The application of UVGI to disinfection has been an accepted practice since the mid-20th century. It has been used primarily in medical sanitation and sterile work facilities. Increasingly, it has been employed to sterilize drinking and wastewater since the holding facilities are enclosed and can be circulated to ensure a higher exposure to the UV. UVGI has found renewed application in air purifiers.


title: Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation

text: In 1878, Arthur Downes and Thomas P. Blunt published a paper describing the sterilization of bacteria exposed to short-wavelength light. UV has been a known mutagen at the cellular level for over 100 years. The 1903 Nobel Prize for Medicine was awarded to Niels Finsen for his use of UV against lupus vulgaris, tuberculosis of the skin.


title: Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation

text: Using UV light for disinfection of drinking water dates back to 1910 in Marseille, France. The prototype plant was shut down after a short time due to poor reliability. In 1955, UV water treatment systems were applied in Austria and Switzerland; by 1985 about 1,500 plants were employed in Europe. In 1998 it was discovered that protozoa such as cryptosporidium and giardia were more vulnerable to UV light than previously thought; this opened the way to wide-scale use of UV water treatment in North America. By 2001, over 6,000 UV water treatment plants were operating in Europe.


title: Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation

text: Over time, UV costs have declined as researchers develop and use new UV methods to disinfect water and wastewater. Several countries have published regulations and guidance for the use of UV to disinfect drinking water supplies Examples include the US. and in the UK.


title: Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation

text: UV light is electromagnetic radiation with wavelengths shorter than visible light but longer than X-rays. UV is categorised into several wavelength ranges, with short-wavelength UV (UV-C) considered "germicidal UV". Wavelengths between about 200 nm and 300 nm are strongly absorbed by nucleic acids. The absorbed energy can result in defects including pyrimidine dimers. These dimers can prevent replication or can prevent the expression of necessary proteins, resulting in the death or inactivation of the organism.


title: Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation

text: This process is similar to, but stronger than, the effect of longer wavelengths (UV-B) producing sunburn in humans. Microorganisms have less protection against UV and cannot survive prolonged exposure to it.


title: Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation

text: A UVGI system is designed to expose environments such as water tanks, sealed rooms and forced air systems to germicidal UV. Exposure comes from germicidal lamps that emit germicidal UV at the correct wavelength, thus irradiating the environment. The forced flow of air or water through this environment ensures exposure.


title: Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation

text: The effectiveness of germicidal UV depends on the duration a microorganism is exposed to UV, the intensity and wavelength of the UV radiation, the presence of particles that can protect the microorganisms from UV, and a microorganism's ability to withstand UV during its exposure.


title: Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation

text: In many systems, redundancy in exposing microorganisms to UV is achieved by circulating the air or water repeatedly. This ensures multiple passes so that the UV is effective against the highest number of microorganisms and will irradiate resistant microorganisms more than once to break them down.


title: Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation

text: "Sterilization" is often misquoted as being achievable. While it is theoretically possible in a controlled environment, it is very difficult to prove and the term "disinfection" is generally used by companies offering this service as to avoid legal reprimand. Specialist companies will often advertise a certain log reduction, e.g., 6-log reduction or 99.9999% effective, instead of sterilization. This takes into consideration a phenomenon known as light and dark repair (photoreactivation and base excision repair, respectively), in which a cell can repair DNA that has been damaged by UV light.


title: Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation

text: The effectiveness of this form of disinfection depends on line-of-sight exposure of the microorganisms to the UV light. Environments where design creates obstacles that block the UV light are not as effective. In such an environment, the effectiveness is then reliant on the placement of the UVGI system so that line of sight is optimum for disinfection.


title: Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation

text: Dust and films coating the bulb lower UV output. Therefore, bulbs require periodic cleaning and replacement to ensure effectiveness. The lifetime of germicidal UV bulbs varies depending on design. Also, the material that the bulb is made of can absorb some of the germicidal rays.


title: Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation

text: Lamp cooling under airflow can also lower UV output. Increases in effectiveness and UV intensity can be achieved by using reflection. Aluminum has the highest reflectivity rate versus other metals and is recommended when using UV.


title: Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation

text: One method for gauging UV effectiveness in water disinfection applications is to compute UV dose. EPA published UV dosage guidelines for water treatment applications in 1986. UV dose cannot be measured directly but can be inferred based on the known or estimated inputs to the process:


title: Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation

text: In air and surface disinfection applications the UV effectiveness is estimated by calculating the UV dose which will be delivered to the microbial population. The UV dose is calculated as follows:


title: Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation

text: The UV intensity is specified for each lamp at a distance of 1 meter. UV intensity is inversely proportional to the square of the distance so it decreases at longer distances. Alternatively, it rapidly increases at distances shorter than 1m. In the above formula, the UV intensity must always be adjusted for distance unless the UV dose is calculated at exactly from the lamp. Also, to ensure effectiveness, the UV dose must be calculated at the end of lamp life (EOL is specified in number of hours when the lamp is expected to reach 80% of its initial UV output) and at the furthest distance from the lamp on the periphery of the target area. Some "shatter-proof" lamps are coated with a fluorated ethylene polymer to contain glass shards and mercury in case of breakage; this coating reduces UV output by as much as 20%.


title: Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation

text: To accurately predict what UV dose will be delivered to the target, the UV intensity, adjusted for distance, coating, and end of lamp life, will be multiplied by the exposure time. In static applications the exposure time can be as long as needed for an effective UV dose to be reached. In case of rapidly moving air, in AC air ducts, for example, the exposure time is short, so the UV intensity must be increased by introducing multiple UV lamps or even banks of lamps. Also, the UV installation must be located in a long straight duct section with the lamps perpendicular to the airflow to maximize the exposure time.


title: Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation

text: These calculations actually predict the UV fluence and it is assumed that the UV fluence will be equal to the UV dose. The UV dose is the amount of germicidal UV energy absorbed by a microbial population over a period of time. If the microorganisms are planktonic (free floating) the UV fluence will be equal the UV dose. However, if the microorganisms are protected by mechanical particles, such as dust and dirt, or have formed biofilm a much higher UV fluence will be needed for an effective UV dose to be introduced to the microbial population.


title: Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation

text: The degree of inactivation by ultraviolet radiation is directly related to the UV dose applied to the water. The dosage, a product of UV light intensity and exposure time, is usually measured in microjoules per square centimeter, or equivalently as microwatt seconds per square centimeter (μW·s/cm). Dosages for a 90% kill of most bacteria and viruses range between 2,000 and 8,000 μW·s/cm. Larger parasites such as cryptosporidium require a lower dose for inactivation. As a result, US EPA has accepted UV disinfection as a method for drinking water plants to obtain cryptosporidium, giardia or virus inactivation credits. For example, for a 90% reduction of cryptosporidium, a minimum dose of 2,500 μW·s/cm is required based on EPA's 2006 guidance manual.


title: Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation

text: UV water treatment devices can be used for well water and surface water disinfection. UV treatment compares favourably with other water disinfection systems in terms of cost, labour and the need for technically trained personnel for operation. Water chlorination treats larger organisms and offers residual disinfection, but these systems are expensive because they need special operator training and a steady supply of a potentially hazardous material. Finally, boiling of water is the most reliable treatment method but it demands labour and imposes a high economic cost. UV treatment is rapid and, in terms of primary energy use, approximately 20,000 times more efficient than boiling.


title: Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation

text: UV disinfection is most effective for treating high-clarity, purified reverse osmosis distilled water. Suspended particles are a problem because microorganisms buried within particles are shielded from the UV light and pass through the unit unaffected. However, UV systems can be coupled with a pre-filter to remove those larger organisms that would otherwise pass through the UV system unaffected. The pre-filter also clarifies the water to improve light transmittance and therefore UV dose throughout the entire water column. Another key factor of UV water treatment is the flow rate—if the flow is too high, water will pass through without sufficient UV exposure. If the flow is too low, heat may build up and damage the UV lamp.


title: Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation

text: A disadvantage of UVGI is that while water treated by chlorination is resistant to reinfection (until the chlorine off-gasses), UVGI water is not resistant to reinfection. UVGI water must be transported or delivered in such a way as to avoid reinfection.


title: Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation

text: UV light is hazardous to most living things. Skin exposure to germicidal wavelengths of UV light can produce rapid sunburn and skin cancer. Exposure of the eyes to this UV radiation can produce extremely painful inflammation of the cornea and temporary or permanent vision impairment, up to and including blindness in some cases. Common precautions are:


title: Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation

text: Another potential danger is the UV production of ozone, which can be harmful when inhaled. US EPA designated 0.05 parts per million (ppm) of ozone to be a safe level. Lamps designed to release UV and higher frequencies are doped so that any UV light below 254 nm wavelengths will not be released, to minimize ozone production. A full-spectrum lamp will release all UV wavelengths and produce ozone when UV-C hits oxygen (O) molecules.


title: Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation

text: The American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists (ACGIH) Committee on Physical Agents has established a threshold limit value (TLV) for UV exposure to avoid such skin and eye injuries among those most susceptible. For 254 nm UV, this TLV is 6 mJ/cm over an eight-hour period. The TLV function differs by wavelengths because of variable energy and potential for cell damage. This TLV is supported by the International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection and is used in setting lamp safety standards by the Illuminating Engineering Society of North America. When the Tuberculosis Ultraviolet Shelter Study was planned, this TLV was interpreted as if eye exposure in rooms was continuous over eight hours and at the highest eye-level irradiance found in the room. In those highly unlikely conditions, a 6.0 mJ/cm dose is reached under the ACGIH TLV after just eight hours of continuous exposure to an irradiance of 0.2 μW/cm. Thus, 0.2 μW/cm was widely interpreted as the upper permissible limit of irradiance at eye height.


title: Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation

text: According to the FDA, a germicidal excimer lamp that emits 222 nm Far-UVC light instead of the common 254 nm light is safer to mamallian skin.


title: Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation

text: UVC radiation is able to break down chemical bonds. This leads to rapid aging of plastics, insulation, gaskets, and other materials. Note that plastics sold to be "UV-resistant" are tested only for the lower-energy UVB since UVC does not normally reach the surface of the Earth. When UV is used near plastic, rubber, or insulation, these materials may be protected by metal tape or aluminum foil.


title: Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation

text: UVGI can be used to disinfect air with prolonged exposure. In the 1930s and 40s, an experiment in public schools in Philadelphia showed that upper-room ultraviolet fixtures could significantly reduce the transmission of measles among students. In 2020, UVGI is again being researched as a possible countermeasure against COVID-19.


title: Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation

text: UV and violet light are able to neutralize the infectivity of SARS-CoV-2. Viral titers usually found in the sputum of COVID-19 patients are completely inactivated by levels of UV-A and UV-B irradiation that are similar to those levels experienced from natural sun exposure. This finding suggests that the reduced incidence of SARS-COV-2 in the summer may be, in part, due to the neutralizing activity of solar UV irradiation.


title: Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation

text: Various UV-emitting devices can be used for SARS-CoV-2 disinfection, and these devices may help in reducing the spread of infection. SARS-CoV-2 can be inactivated by a wide range of UVC wavelengths, and the wavelength of 222nm provides the most effective disinfection performance.


title: Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation

text: Disinfection is a function of UV intensity and time. For this reason, it is in theory not as effective on moving air, or when the lamp is perpendicular to the flow, as exposure times are dramatically reduced. However, numerous professional and scientific publications have indicated that the overall effectiveness of UVGI actually increases when used in conjunction with fans and HVAC ventilation, which facilitate whole-room circulation that exposes more air to the UV source. Air purification UVGI systems can be free-standing units with shielded UV lamps that use a fan to force air past the UV light. Other systems are installed in forced air systems so that the circulation for the premises moves microorganisms past the lamps. Key to this form of sterilization is placement of the UV lamps and a good filtration system to remove the dead microorganisms. For example, forced air systems by design impede line-of-sight, thus creating areas of the environment that will be shaded from the UV light. However, a UV lamp placed at the coils and drain pans of cooling systems will keep microorganisms from forming in these naturally damp places.


title: Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation

text: Ultraviolet disinfection of water is a purely physical, chemical-free process. Even parasites such as "Cryptosporidium" or "Giardia", which are extremely resistant to chemical disinfectants, are efficiently reduced. UV can also be used to remove chlorine and chloramine species from water; this process is called photolysis, and requires a higher dose than normal disinfection. The dead microorganisms are not removed from the water. UV disinfection does not remove dissolved organics, inorganic compounds or particles in the water. The world's largest water disinfection plant treats drinking water for New York City. The Catskill-Delaware Water Ultraviolet Disinfection Facility, commissioned on 8 October 2013, incorporates a total of 56 energy-efficient UV reactors treating up to a day.


title: Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation

text: Ultraviolet can also be combined with ozone or hydrogen peroxide to produce hydroxyl radicals to break down trace contaminants through an advanced oxidation process.


title: Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation

text: It used to be thought that UV disinfection was more effective for bacteria and viruses, which have more-exposed genetic material, than for larger pathogens that have outer coatings or that form cyst states (e.g., "Giardia") that shield their DNA from UV light. However, it was recently discovered that ultraviolet radiation can be somewhat effective for treating the microorganism "Cryptosporidium". The findings resulted in the use of UV radiation as a viable method to treat drinking water. "Giardia" in turn has been shown to be very susceptible to UV-C when the tests were based on infectivity rather than excystation. It has been found that protists are able to survive high UV-C doses but are sterilized at low doses.


title: Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation

text: A 2006 project at University of California, Berkeley produced a design for inexpensive water disinfection in resource deprived settings. The project was designed to produce an open source design that could be adapted to meet local conditions. In a somewhat similar proposal in 2014, Australian students designed a system using potato chip (crisp) packet foil to reflect solar UV radiation into a glass tube that disinfects water without power.


title: Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation

text: Ultraviolet in sewage treatment is commonly replacing chlorination. This is in large part because of concerns that reaction of the chlorine with organic compounds in the waste water stream could synthesize potentially toxic and long lasting chlorinated organics and also because of the environmental risks of storing chlorine gas or chlorine containing chemicals. Individual wastestreams to be treated by UVGI must be tested to ensure that the method will be effective due to potential interferences such as suspended solids, dyes, or other substances that may block or absorb the UV radiation. According to the World Health Organization, "UV units to treat small batches (1 to several liters) or low flows (1 to several liters per minute) of water at the community level are estimated to have costs of US$20 per megaliter, including the cost of electricity and consumables and the annualized capital cost of the unit."


title: Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation

text: Large-scale urban UV wastewater treatment is performed in cities such as Edmonton, Alberta. The use of ultraviolet light has now become standard practice in most municipal wastewater treatment processes. Effluent is now starting to be recognized as a valuable resource, not a problem that needs to be dumped. Many wastewater facilities are being renamed as water reclamation facilities, whether the wastewater is discharged into a river, used to irrigate crops, or injected into an aquifer for later recovery. Ultraviolet light is now being used to ensure water is free from harmful organisms.


title: Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation

text: Ultraviolet sterilizers are often used to help control unwanted microorganisms in aquaria and ponds. UV irradiation ensures that pathogens cannot reproduce, thus decreasing the likelihood of a disease outbreak in an aquarium.


title: Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation

text: Aquarium and pond sterilizers are typically small, with fittings for tubing that allows the water to flow through the sterilizer on its way from a separate external filter or water pump. Within the sterilizer, water flows as close as possible to the ultraviolet light source. Water pre-filtration is critical as water turbidity lowers UV-C penetration.


title: Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation

text: Many of the better UV sterilizers have long dwell times and limit the space between the UV-C source and the inside wall of the UV sterilizer device.


title: Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation

text: UVGI is often used to disinfect equipment such as safety goggles, instruments, pipettors, and other devices. Lab personnel also disinfect glassware and plasticware this way. Microbiology laboratories use UVGI to disinfect surfaces inside biological safety cabinets ("hoods") between uses.


title: Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation

text: Since the U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued a rule in 2001 requiring that virtually all fruit and vegetable juice producers follow HACCP controls, and mandating a 5-log reduction in pathogens, UVGI has seen some use in sterilization of juices such as fresh-pressed.


title: Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation

text: Germicidal UV for disinfection is most typically generated by a mercury-vapor lamp. Low-pressure mercury vapor has a strong emission line at 254 nm, which is within the range of wavelengths that demonstrate strong disinfection effect. The optimal wavelengths for disinfection are close to 260 nm.


title: Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation

text: Mercury vapor lamps may be categorized as either low-pressure (including amalgam) or medium-pressure lamps. Low-pressure UV lamps offer high efficiencies (approx. 35% UV-C) but lower power, typically 1 W/cm power density (power per unit of arc length). Amalgam UV lamps utilize an amalgam to control mercury pressure to allow operation at a somewhat higher temperature and power density. They operate at higher temperatures and have a lifetime of up to 16,000 hours. Their efficiency is slightly lower than that of traditional low-pressure lamps (approx. 33% UV-C output), and power density is approximately 2–3 W/cm. Medium-pressure UV lamps operate at much higher temperatures, up to about 800 degrees Celsius, and have a polychromatic output spectrum and a high radiation output but lower UV-C efficiency of 10% or less. Typical power density is 30 W/cm or greater.


title: Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation

text: Depending on the quartz glass used for the lamp body, low-pressure and amalgam UV emit radiation at 254 nm and also at 185 nm, which has chemical effects. UV radiation at 185 nm is used to generate ozone.


title: Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation

text: The UV lamps for water treatment consist of specialized low-pressure mercury-vapor lamps that produce ultraviolet radiation at 254 nm, or medium-pressure UV lamps that produce a polychromatic output from 200 nm to visible and infrared energy. The UV lamp never contacts the water; it is either housed in a quartz glass sleeve inside the water chamber or mounted externally to the water, which flows through the transparent UV tube. Water passing through the flow chamber is exposed to UV rays, which are absorbed by suspended solids, such as microorganisms and dirt, in the stream.


title: Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation

text: Recent developments in LED technology have led to commercially available UV-C LEDs. UV-C LEDs use semiconductors to emit light between 255 nm and 280 nm. The wavelength emission is tuneable by adjusting the material of the semiconductor. , the electrical-to-UV-C conversion efficiency of LEDs was lower than that of mercury lamps. The reduced size of LEDs opens up options for small reactor systems allowing for point-of-use applications and integration into medical devices. Low power consumption of semiconductors introduce UV disinfection systems that utilized small solar cells in remote or Third World applications.


title: Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation

text: UV-C LEDs don't necessarily last longer than traditional germicidal lamps in terms of hours used, instead having more-variable engineering characteristics and better tolerance for short-term operation. A UV-C LED can achieve a longer installed time than a traditional germicidal lamp in intermittent use. Likewise, LED degradation increases with heat, while filament and HID lamp output wavelength is dependent on temperature, so engineers can design LEDs of a particular size and cost to have a higher output and faster degradation or a lower output and slower decline over time.


title: Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation

text: Sizing of a UV system is affected by three variables: flow rate, lamp power, and UV transmittance in the water. Manufacturers typically developed sophisticated computational fluid dynamics (CFD) models validated with bioassay testing. This involves testing the UV reactor's disinfection performance with either MS2 or T1 bacteriophages at various flow rates, UV transmittance, and power levels in order to develop a regression model for system sizing. For example, this is a requirement for all public water systems in the United States per the EPA UV manual.


title: Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation

text: The flow profile is produced from the chamber geometry, flow rate, and particular turbulence model selected. The radiation profile is developed from inputs such as water quality, lamp type (power, germicidal efficiency, spectral output, arc length), and the transmittance and dimension of the quartz sleeve. Proprietary CFD software simulates both the flow and radiation profiles. Once the 3D model of the chamber is built, it is populated with a grid or mesh that comprises thousands of small cubes.


title: Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation

text: Points of interest—such as at a bend, on the quartz sleeve surface, or around the wiper mechanism—use a higher resolution mesh, whilst other areas within the reactor use a coarse mesh. Once the mesh is produced, hundreds of thousands of virtual particles are "fired" through the chamber. Each particle has several variables of interest associated with it, and the particles are "harvested" after the reactor. Discrete phase modeling produces delivered dose, head loss, and other chamber-specific parameters.


title: Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation

text: When the modeling phase is complete, selected systems are validated using a professional third party to provide oversight and to determine how closely the model is able to predict the reality of system performance. System validation uses non-pathogenic surrogates such as MS 2 phage or "Bacillus subtilis" to determine the Reduction Equivalent Dose (RED) ability of the reactors. Most systems are validated to deliver 40 mJ/cm within an envelope of flow and transmittance.


title: Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation

text: To validate effectiveness in drinking water systems, the method described in the EPA UV guidance manual is typically used by US water utilities, whilst Europe has adopted Germany's DVGW 294 standard. For wastewater systems, the NWRI/AwwaRF Ultraviolet Disinfection Guidelines for Drinking Water and Water Reuse protocols are typically used, especially in wastewater reuse applications.


title: Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation

text: Currently, the world is facing a food crisis due to poor agricultural practices, unfavorable weather conditions for agriculture, and natural disasters, among other forces that are beyond human control. Agricultural practices in the current times majorly rely on innovation and technology, and agricultural researchers have been so keen to study and propose the most efficient ways of production (Spindler et al., 2020). With the current rate at which the global population is increasing, there is a great need to increase food production to be able to feed the world, and one of the ways is by increasing the rate at which good is grown and harvested. Various methods have been proposed by researchers, including the use of greenhouses and genetic modification of plants and animals to be able to resist such things as diseases, increase growth rate and reduce maturity time. Some studies have suggested cross-breeding. However, most of these methods have proven to be less sufficient and have led to such things as undesired mutations (Spindler et al., 2020). Therefore, it is important to consider the safety of consumers in proposing and developing agricultural practices, and that is why it is important to grow food organically for human consumption. The use of ultraviolet light is one of the methods that have been studied and proven to be safer for the production of food for human consumption compared to the use of natural light.


title: Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation

text: Naturally, seeds need light for germination. Plants need light for photosynthesis and growth. Natural light is the light that directly comes from the sun and hits the surface of the earth, including farmlands (Spindler et al., 2020). Plants naturally use natural sunlight. Ultraviolet light constitutes about 10 percent of the total radiation output that comes from the sun (Spindler et al., 2020), and this is specifically the light that plants need to manufacture food through photosynthesis and germinate. Therefore, when plants grow naturally, they only receive about 10 percent of the total light that comes from the sun, which the seeds may use for germination (Garcia et al., 2019). However, agricultural researchers have determined that pure ultraviolet light may have catalytic characteristics for the growth and germination of seeds (Proietti et al., 2021). Therefore, experts have found ways of creating ultraviolet light using high temperatures on spectrums and by using the excitation of atoms through a discharge of gases in tubes in the spectrum of different wavelengths. Ultraviolet light has many applications, but its use in agriculture has been extensively exploited to increase food production.


title: Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation

text: Catalonia is one of the autonomous regions in Spain that is known for its rich agricultural industry, especially in the production of fruit and vegetables. The agricultural fields of Catalonia are about 60 thousand hectares, and because of its Mediterranean climate, the region is well endowed with natural resources, but the most applied agricultural practices are integrated (Spindler et al., 2020). One of the major fruit grown in the field is the tomato, and while most farming practices depend on natural light, some farmers have adopted the use of ultraviolet light to speed up the process of seed germination and growth (Proietti et al., 2021). However, more research needs to be conducted on how ultraviolet light may be more effective in the germination of tomato seeds in the region as compared to the use of natural light, while other factors are kept constant.


title: Goethe-Institut

text: The Goethe-Institut (, GI, ) is a non-profit German cultural association operational worldwide with 159 institutes, promoting the study of the German language abroad and encouraging international cultural exchange and relations. Around 246,000 people take part in these German courses per year.


title: Goethe-Institut

text: The Goethe-Institut fosters knowledge about Germany by providing information on German culture, society and politics. This includes the exchange of films, music, theatre, and literature. Goethe cultural societies, reading rooms, and examination and language centres have played a role in the cultural and educational policies of Germany for more than 60 years.


title: Goethe-Institut

text: It is named after German poet and statesman Johann Wolfgang von Goethe. The Goethe-Institut e.V. is autonomous and politically independent.


title: Goethe-Institut

text: Partners of the institute and its centres are public and private cultural institutions, the German federal states, local authorities and the world of commerce. Much of the Goethe-Institut's overall budget consists of annual grants from the German Foreign Office and the German Press Office. The relationship with the Foreign Office is governed by general agreement. Self-generated income and contributions from sponsors and patrons, partners and friends broaden the scope of the work of the Goethe-Institut.


title: Goethe-Institut

text: The Goethe-Institut is mainly financed by the national government of Germany, and has around 1,000 employees and an overall budget of approximately 366 million euros at its disposal, more than half of which is generated from language course tuition and examination fees. The Goethe-Institut offers scholarships, including tuition waiver, to students from foreign countries, who want to become teachers of German. One of the selection criteria for these scholarships is social or financial need.


title: Goethe-Institut

text: As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, when most governments imposed stay-at-home orders and/or COVID-19 lockdowns, Goethe-Institut Singapur introduced a series of "Blended Learning" courses.


title: Goethe-Institut

text: The institute has developed a series of exams for learners of German as a foreign language ("Deutsch als Fremdsprache", DaF) at all levels: A1 up to C2. These can be taken both in Germany and abroad and have been adapted to fit into the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR), the standard for European language testing. There is also one exam, the "Großes Deutsches Sprachdiplom", which is at a higher level than the highest CEFR level. Below is a table of the basic Goethe-Institut exams as they fit into the scheme:


title: Goethe-Institut

text: In 2000, the Goethe-Institut helped to found the Society for Academic Test Development ("Gesellschaft für Akademische Testentwicklung e.V."). The resulting TestDaF exams are run by the TestDaF-Institut in Hagen. The tests are supported by the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) and are aimed at people who would like to study at German universities, academics and scientists. The TestDaF can be taken in Germany as well as in 65 other countries.


title: Goethe-Institut

text: In addition there is the Green Diploma to acquire and prove German as a foreign language teaching qualifications.


title: Goethe-Institut

text: The two US-related annually granted awards for literature translations from German into English are: the renowned Helen and Kurt Wolff Translator's Prize, and the "Gutekunst Prize of the Friends of Goethe New York" which is open to college students and to all translators under the age of 35 who, at the time the prize is awarded, have not yet published.


title: Goethe-Institut

text: Once a year, the Goethe-Institut awards the Goethe Medal, an official decoration of the Federal Republic of Germany. It honours foreign personalities who have performed outstanding service for the German language and international cultural relations. The Goethe Medal was established by the executive committee of the Goethe-Institut in 1954 and acknowledged as an official decoration by the Federal Republic of Germany in 1975.


title: Goethe-Institut

text: The Society of Authors and the Goethe-Institut, London administer the biennial Goethe-Institut Award for New Translation.


title: Goethe-Institut

text: Goethe-Institut Villa Kamogawa (Japanese: ゲーテ・インスティトゥート・ヴィラ鴨川), is a German artist in residence institution in Kyoto, Japan. Established in 2011 with an opening ceremony conducted by Christian Wulff, President of Germany, it is located on the banks of the Kamo River in close vicinity to Kyoto Imperial Palace. Villa Kamogawa is the site one of the three major German arts residency programmes abroad, together with Rome's Villa Massimo and Villa Aurora in Los Angeles. It hosts three groups of four artists a year. Former fellows include Doris Dörrie, Jörg Koopmann and Stefan Goldmann.


title: Goethe-Institut

text: In 2005, along with the Alliance française, the Società Dante Alighieri, the British Council, the Instituto Cervantes, and the Instituto Camões, the Goethe-Institut was awarded the Prince of Asturias Award for achievements in communications and the humanities.


title: Alan Joyce (executive)

text: Alan Joseph Joyce, (born 30 June 1966) is an Irish-Australian businessman. He is the chief executive officer (CEO) of Qantas Airways Limited.


title: Alan Joyce (executive)

text: Joyce was born and raised in Tallaght, now a suburb of Dublin, Ireland. His mother was a cleaner, and his father worked in a tobacco factory. Joyce attended secondary school at St Mark's Community School in Springfield, Tallaght.


title: Alan Joyce (executive)

text: Joyce attended Dublin Institute of Technology and Trinity College Dublin. He graduated with Honours, receiving a Bachelor of Science degree in Applied Science (Physics and Mathematics) and a Master of Science degree in Management Science. He is a Fellow of the Royal Aeronautical Society.


title: Alan Joyce (executive)

text: In 1988, Joyce commenced work at Aer Lingus, the flag carrier of Ireland. He held various positions in sales, marketing, information technology, network planning, operations research, revenue management and fleet planning. In 1996, he resigned to join the now-defunct Ansett Australia. In 2000, Joyce joined Qantas. At both Ansett Australia and Qantas, he headed the Network Planning, Schedules Planning and Network Strategy functions. Joyce was appointed CEO of Qantas subsidiary Jetstar Airways in October 2003.


title: Alan Joyce (executive)

text: Joyce became CEO of Qantas on 28 November 2008. He is a former Director of Orangestar Investment Holdings Pte Limited (holding company of Singapore-based Jetstar Asia Airways and Valuair) and Jetstar Pacific Airlines Aviation Joint Stock Company (in Vietnam). On 29 October 2011, as a result of continuing industrial unrest following the announcement of job losses and structural changes at Qantas, Joyce grounded the entire Qantas mainline fleet.


title: Alan Joyce (executive)

text: "The Australian" named Joyce the most influential business leader in 2011. Yet a poll following his controversial 2011 grounding of the Qantas fleet showed the action has increased negative public perception of the airline. In 2011, Joyce's remuneration was increased 71 per cent from $2.92 million in 2009–10 to $5.01 million and he was granted 1.7 million Qantas shares under a long-term incentive plan. His reported comments that his salary was "conservative" were criticised by the Australian and International Pilots Association (AIPA).


title: Alan Joyce (executive)

text: In May 2019, Joyce committed to three more years as the chief executive of Qantas. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Joyce gave up his salary for the rest of the financial year.


title: Alan Joyce (executive)

text: On 9 May 2017, Joyce was delivering a speech to a business breakfast event in Perth, when a lemon meringue pie was pushed into his face by an unknown assailant, later identified as Tony Overheu, a Western Australian farmer and Christian. Overheu, aged 67, gave a false name to police after the incident, but subsequently apologised for humiliating the CEO claiming that he pied the business figure due to his own personal belief that Joyce had overstepped the line in his gay marriage advocacy and the assailant's response simply reflected community push-back. Overheu was later charged with common assault, trespass, damage and giving false details to police. Along with being banished from his church, he was also banned from flying Qantas (including Qantas' partner airlines).


title: Alan Joyce (executive)

text: Overheu appeared before Perth Magistrates Court on 7 July 2017, pleaded guilty to charges of assault and trespass, damaging the lapel microphone Joyce was wearing, and giving a false name to police after the incident. Overheu was fined $3,600, as well as ordered to pay $269 in compensation for the lapel microphone and $188 in costs. Overheu's lawyer said his client had had "physical and personal difficulties" in recent years, including mental health issues.


title: Alan Joyce (executive)

text: Joyce supports the LGBTI community and personally donated $1 million towards the campaign to legalise same-sex marriage in Australia, which facilitated his own marriage in 2019. Joyce is the patron of the Pinnacle Foundation, an organisation which works with, "disadvantaged and marginalised LGBT Australians". For his work, he has been recognised on a global list of LGBT executives. As CEO, Joyce has pledged Qantas will "continue social-justice campaigning".


title: Alan Joyce (executive)

text: Joyce identifies as being Catholic. In 2015, he became a member of the Australian Republic Movement, which argues that Australia should replace the monarchy to become a republic with an Australian head of state.


title: Alan Joyce (executive)

text: Joyce is openly gay. In 2011, he was successfully treated for prostate cancer. On 2 November 2019, he and long-term New Zealander partner, Shane Lloyd, married on the rooftop of The Museum of Contemporary Art in Circular Quay. The couple live in the Rocks, an inner suburb of Sydney.


title: Alan Joyce (executive)

text: In 2010 Independent Senator Nick Xenophon announced he was calling a Senate Inquiry on Airline Safety that focused on low-cost airline practices. He simultaneously called Alan Joyce to attend over a 2007 incident where a Jetstar A320 had accidentally come within 11-metres of the ground when Alan Joyce was Jetstar CEO.


title: Alan Joyce (executive)

text: On 17 September 2010 “The Australian” reported, "‘’INDEPENDENT senator Nick Xenophon will push for an urgent Senate inquiry into Australian aviation training and standards. This comes after a warning of a "race to the bottom" that has seen required flying experience for airline pilots plummet. Senator Xenophon also called for Qantas chief executive Alan Joyce and the airline's head of safety, John Gissing, to appear before a Senate committee to explain the circumstances behind a 2007 Jetstar incident in Melbourne...”"


title: Alan Joyce (executive)

text: On 25 February 2011, at his first hearing at the Senate Inquiry on “Pilot training and Airline safety” starting at 9am, Alan Joyce insisted safety was aligned in the Qantas Group. He closed his prepared opening statement with…. "“Let me make this clear: at Jetstar there is no compromise on safety. The budget airline model does not require it, and we would never accept it. Qantas and Jetstar have different brands, but are completely aligned on safety. We would never compromise that. Thank you.”"


title: Alan Joyce (executive)

text: and further aired that same day by general media, on a 2009 Jetstar A330 Incident, JQ Flight 12, showing ATSB had found and fixed a systemic training deficiency in Jetstar due to its low-cost training policy, which wasn’t in Qantas mainline.


title: Alan Joyce (executive)

text: That training deficiency began in 2004 when Jetstar began using Airbus aircraft, A320’s, together with a standard low-cost airline practice of using outsourced pilot-funded training in this case provided by Boeing who as a training provider couldn’t access genuine updated Airbus Pilot manuals hence Jetstar A320 & A330 Airbus pilots for many years paid over 30,000 dollars upfront for deficient pilot manuals and related deficient simulator training.


title: Alan Joyce (executive)

text: In stark contrast, ATSB found the training deficiency was not in Qantas mainline using Airbus aircraft, A330’s, since 2002 and using genuine latest edition Airbus manuals directly obtained from Airbus Industries as their airline customer, with a standard policy of providing free internal training.


title: Alan Joyce (executive)

text: ATSB also found the 2009 JQ 12 A330 Incident with 214 people aboard that exposed the deficiency, encountered “unreliable Airspeed Indication” replicating the deadliest Airbus crash, Air France 447 an A330 with 228 fatalities, only 4-months earlier, after the same inflight icing conditions. In the Jetstar JQ 12 incident Jetstar’s training deficiency left only one of the 2 pilots onboard trained for that specific emergency procedure but done by Airbus “years ago” when working for another airline, who then performed it. In the case of Air France 447 BEA later found the specific emergency procedure wasn’t performed.


title: Alan Joyce (executive)

text: On 24 June 2011, 1-day after that Senate Inquiry ended and notably 1-week before Tiger Airways was grounded on its low-cost pilot training, the Sydney Morning Herald reported, "“QANTAS and Jetstar intend to press ahead with their plans to fast-track relatively inexperienced co-pilots into airliner cockpits, despite a parliamentary inquiry yesterday finding against the practice.”"


title: Alan Joyce (executive)

text: On 15 November 2022, Simeon Boikov, the leader of the Australian Cossacks, approached Joyce on George Street in Sydney and asked him why he prevented unvaccinated staff from working during the COVID-19 pandemic, before labelling him a "grub" and a "disgrace". (Joyce famously stood down unvaccinated staff, preventing them from earning an income, during the pandemic.) Footage of their interaction, captured by Boikov and later uploaded to YouTube, shows Joyce using profanity while speaking with Boikov. Joyce can be heard repeatedly telling Boikov to "piss off" and then to "fuck off", seemingly in direct contravention of "the Qantas Group Behaviours — Responsible, Respectful, Resilient and Excellence" and the company's "Code of Conduct and Ethics". Unsurprisingly, given Joyce's high-profile and status as an Order of Australia recipient, the incident received media coverage both nationally and abroad.


title: Circle jerk

text: A circle jerk, also sometimes spelled circlejerk, is a sexual practice in which a group of men or boys form a circle and masturbate themselves or each other. In the metaphorical sense, the term is used to refer to self-congratulatory behavior or discussion among a group of people, usually in reference to a "boring or time-wasting meeting or other event".


title: Circle jerk

text: Circle jerks often feature a competitive element, with the "winner" being the participant able to ejaculate first, last, or farthest depending on the pre-established rules. They can serve as an introduction to sexual relations with other males, or as a sexual outlet at an age or situation when regular sexual activity with another person is not possible.


title: Circle jerk

text: While circle jerks feature a homoerotic element, some analysts interpret adolescent boys' group activities such as circle jerks as an effort to establish heterosexual, masculine dominance within the group. However, American sociologist Bernard Lefkowitz asserts that what actually motivates participation is the desire for friends to witness and acknowledge one's sexual prowess, helping to counter teenage feelings of inadequacy related to sexual activity.


title: Duane Chase

text: Duane Dudley Chase (born December 12, 1950) is an American software engineer and former actor best remembered as Kurt von Trapp in "The Sound of Music" (1965). He also had a small role in the family film "Follow Me, Boys!" (1966) and played Danny Matthews in "The Big Valley" for one episode.


title: Duane Chase

text: In the summer of 1969, Chase joined the United States Forest Service in Santa Barbara, California, after graduating from Rolling Hills High School of Rolling Hills, California. Chase then enrolled at the University of California, Santa Barbara and graduated in 1976 with a B.S. in geology. After working at a Chevron refinery in Denver for a year, he then enrolled at the University of Alabama and earned a master's degree in geology.


title: Duane Chase

text: He lives in Washington and is returning to wildlife and forestry work. He is married to Petra Maria, who was born in Hamburg, Germany, a registered nurse.


title: Languedoc-Roussillon

text: Languedoc-Roussillon (; ; ) is a former administrative region of France. On 1 January 2016, it joined with the region of Midi-Pyrénées to become Occitania. It comprised five departments, and bordered the other French regions of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, Rhône-Alpes, Auvergne, Midi-Pyrénées towards the north, and Spain, Andorra and the Mediterranean Sea towards the south. It was the southernmost region of mainland France.


title: Languedoc-Roussillon

text: The first part of the name of the province of Languedoc-Roussillon comes from the French ("language of "), and is also a historical region. In southern France, the word for "yes" was the Occitan language word . Prior to the 16th century, the central area of France was referred to as , there the word for "yes" was in Old French, later becoming . These old place names referred to the areas where Occitan and Old French were spoken. The Edict of Villers-Cotterets made French the official national language in 1539. Roussillon was the name of the medieval County of Roussillon.


title: Languedoc-Roussillon

text: Towards the end of the 3rd century BC, a Celtic people, the , took up residence in the region between the Rhône and the Garonne, from the Cévennes to the Pyrenees. Their capitals were Toulouse and Nîmes.


title: Languedoc-Roussillon

text: They made a pact with the Romans from the 1st century BC. Narbonne was created to pacify the province in 118 BC and became the capital of the Narbonnaise.


title: Languedoc-Roussillon

text: At the beginning of the 5th century, the Vandals invaded the province and then the Visigoths settled there. The Narbonne region, like the Iberian Peninsula, remained Visigothic until its conquest by the Moors between 719 () and 725 (fall of Carcassonne and Nîmes). Narbonne then became the capital of one of the five provinces of led by a for nearly forty years.


title: Languedoc-Roussillon

text: The region was conquered by Pépin the Short (fall of Narbonne in 759), who made it the marquisate of Gothia, included in the kingdom of Aquitaine created in 778. This vast territory encompassed all of the south of the Rhône to the Atlantic and was bequeathed by Charlemagne to his son Louis the Pious in 781. The administration was entrusted to the counts of Toulouse.


title: Languedoc-Roussillon

text: During the feudal era, a great political fragmentation took place: the counties of Roussillon and Cerdanya passed into the orbit of the kingdom of Aragon, while Bas-Languedoc passed under the domination of the house of Trencavel and their rivals the counts of Toulouse.


title: Languedoc-Roussillon

text: Raymond IV (1042-1115) achieved through marriage the objective of reunification by enlarging his state to the county of Rouergue, Nîmes, Narbonne, Gévaudan, Agde, Béziers and Uzès.


title: Languedoc-Roussillon

text: The fight against Catharism and the Albigensian Crusade led to the extinction of the dynasty of the Counts of Toulouse. The province was united to the Kingdom of France in 1271, with the exception of Montpellier, which remained under the influence of the House of Barcelona and then of Majorca, and which was not attached to the Kingdom of France until 1349. From there was born the royal Languedoc which persisted until the French Revolution.


title: Languedoc-Roussillon

text: The Treaty of Corbeil in 1258 ratified the division with the southern territories of the region. The Corbières formed the border between the kingdom of France and the kingdom of Aragon.


title: Languedoc-Roussillon

text: In 1659, the Treaty of the Pyrenees led to the annexation of Roussillon and northern Cerdanya to the kingdom of France.


title: Languedoc-Roussillon

text: The region is experiencing the strongest demographic growth in France, and could have around 3,300,000 inhabitants in 2030, an increase of 36% compared to 2000. This increase is mainly due to internal migration, natural increase being rather low.


title: Languedoc-Roussillon

text: Pyrénées-Orientales has the largest proportion of elderly people (12.10% over 75). Gard and Hérault are the "youngest" departments, but they are destined to "age" considerably in the coming years. By 2020, the number of people aged over 75 is expected to increase by 12% across the region.


title: Languedoc-Roussillon

text: Catholicism is the most represented religion in the region, particularly at the level of historical monuments and associations. The Ecclesiastical Province of Montpellier () corresponds to the administrative region. The region has 16 cathedrals (Agde, Alès, Alet, Béziers, Carcassonne, Elne, Lodève, Maguelone, Mende, Montpellier, Narbonne, Nîmes, Perpignan, Saint-Papoul, Saint-Pons-de-Thomières, Uzès).


title: Languedoc-Roussillon

text: Protestantism is well represented in the region, especially in the Huguenot stronghold of the Cévennes. The "Cévennes-Languedoc-Roussillon region" of the United Protestant Church includes Gard, Lozère, Hérault, Aude, Pyrénées-Orientales as well as the eastern part of Aveyron. It is an important region by its Protestant population (approximately 20,000 homes), but one of the least extensive of the United Protestant Church of France. In addition to this majority church, the region has since the 19th century a variety of Free, Reformed Evangelical, Baptist, Methodist and Pentecostal churches.


title: Languedoc-Roussillon

text: Judaism has been present since the Middle Ages with significant communities fleeing the Almohads, in Narbonne and Béziers. The Jews are thus cited in the will of William V of Montpellier. Islam is also present at the same time.


title: Languedoc-Roussillon

text: Llívia is a town of Cerdanya, province of Girona, Catalonia, Spain, that forms a Spanish exclave surrounded by French territory (department of Pyrénées-Orientales).


title: Languedoc-Roussillon

text: At the regional elections in March 2004, the socialist mayor of Montpellier Georges Frêche, defeated its center-right president. Since then, Georges Frêche has embarked on a complete overhaul of the region and its institutions. The flag of the region, which displayed the cross of Languedoc as well as the Flag of Roussillon (the ), was changed for a new flag with no reference to the old provinces, except in terms of the colors (red and yellow), which are the colors of both Languedoc and all the territories from the former Crown of Aragon.


title: Languedoc-Roussillon

text: Georges Frêche also wanted to change the name of the region, wishing to erase its duality (Languedoc vs. Roussillon) and strengthen its unity. Thus, he wanted to rename the region Septimanie (Septimania). was the name created by the Romans at the end of the Roman Empire for the coastal area corresponding quite well to present day Languedoc-Roussillon (including Roussillon, but not including Gévaudan), and used in the early Middle Ages for the area. This name, however, has not been in use since the 9th century, and it sounded quite odd to French people.


title: Languedoc-Roussillon

text: Strong opposition of the population led to Georges Frêche giving up on his idea. He declared that he still believed in it but could not go ahead without a mandate.


title: Languedoc-Roussillon

text: Catalan nationalists in Roussillon would like the Pyrénées-Orientales department to secede from Languedoc-Roussillon and become a region in its own right, under the proposed name of (Northern Catalonia), as part of the (Catalan Countries), a new country. This idea has minimal popular support.


title: Languedoc-Roussillon

text: On the other hand, there are some who would like to merge the Languedoc-Roussillon and Midi-Pyrénées regions, thus reunifying the old province of Languedoc, and creating a large region. It seems probable that Georges Frêche, with his idea of a "Septimanie" region, would not support such plans, although political leaders in Béziers, Narbonne, and especially Nîmes, would probably support such a merger, hostile as they are to Montpellier, which was chosen as the capital of Languedoc-Roussillon instead of their own city, and which they accuse of hegemony.


title: Languedoc-Roussillon

text: Prior to the 20th century, Occitan was the language spoken in Languedoc, and Catalan was the language spoken in Roussillon. Both have been under pressure from French. In 2004, research conducted by the Government of Catalonia showed that 65% of adults over the age of 15 in Roussillon could understand Catalan whereas 37% stated they were able to speak it.


title: Languedoc-Roussillon

text: In recent years there have been attempts at reviving of both languages, including Catalan-medium schooling through the La Bressola schools.


title: Languedoc-Roussillon

text: Occitan literature – still sometimes called Provençal literature – is a body of texts written in Occitan in what is nowadays the South of France. It originated in the poetry of the eleventh- and twelfth-century troubadours, and inspired the rise of vernacular literature throughout medieval Europe.


title: Languedoc-Roussillon

text: Aimeric de Peguilhan, Giraut de Bornelh and Bertran de Born were major influences in troubadour composition, in the High Middle Ages. The troubadour tradition is considered to have originated in the region.


title: Languedoc-Roussillon

text: The Romantic music composer Déodat de Séverac was born in the region, and, following his schooling in Paris, returned to the region to compose. He sought to incorporate the music indigenous to the area in his compositions.


title: Languedoc-Roussillon

text: The Languedoc-Roussillon region is dominated by of vineyards, three times the combined area of the vineyards in Bordeaux and the region has been an important winemaking centre for several centuries. Grapevines are said to have existed in the South of France since the Pliocene period - before the existence of "Homo sapiens". The first vineyards of Gaul developed around two towns: Béziers and Narbonne. The Mediterranean climate and plentiful land with soil ranging from rocky sand to thick clay was very suitable for the production of wine, and it is estimated that one in ten bottles of the world's wine was produced in this region during the 20th century (Robinson 1999:395). Despite this enormous quantity, the area's significance was often overlooked by scholarly publications and commercial journals, largely because very little of the wine being produced was classified under an appellation contrôlée until the 1980s (Joseph 2005:190).


title: Languedoc-Roussillon

text: Several entrepreneurs such as Robert Skalli and James Herrick drastically changed the face of the region, planting more commercially viable grape varieties and pushing for new AOC classifications. While the AOC system has origins in the 15th century, the Languedoc-Roussillon has some appellations like the Cabardès which have existed by law only since 1999 (Joseph 2005:190).


title: Languedoc-Roussillon

text: The region is the largest contributor to the European Union's glut (dominance of supply over demand) of wine known as the wine lake.


title: Languedoc-Roussillon

text: The Languedoc-Roussillon region has adopted a marque to help market its products, in particular, but not limited to, wine. The ("Southern France") marque was adopted in 2006 to help customers abroad not familiar with the Appellation system to recognise those wines that originated in the L-R area, but the marque is also used for other products, including cheeses, olive oils and pies.


title: Languedoc-Roussillon

text: Languedoc-Roussillon has been a major center of Rugby league in France since the sport was introduced to the country in the 1930s. The region is also home to the rugby union teams AS Béziers Hérault, RC Narbonne and USA Perpignan. Since the following years of the retirement of this region, the popularity has gone down.


title: Languedoc-Roussillon

text: Montpellier is home to Montpellier HSC, which was founded in 1974 and plays in the Ligue 1, the French top division. It won the French Championship after the 2011/12 season. Home matches are played at the Stade La Mosson, named after the area where it is located, with a capacity of 31,250. It was built in 1998.


title: Vacation

text: A vacation (American English) or holiday (British English) is either a leave of absence from a regular job or an instance of leisure travel away from home. People often take a vacation during specific holiday observances or for specific festivals or celebrations. Vacations are often spent with friends or family. Vacations may include a specific trip or journey, usually for the purpose of recreation or tourism.


title: Vacation

text: The concept of taking a vacation is a recent invention, and has developed through the last two centuries. Historically, the idea of travel for recreation was a luxury that only wealthy people could afford (see Grand Tour). In the Puritan culture of early America, taking a break from work for reasons other than weekly observance of the Sabbath was frowned upon. However, the modern concept of vacation was led by a later religious movement encouraging spiritual retreat and recreation. The notion of breaking from work periodically took root among the middle and working class.


title: Vacation

text: In the United Kingdom, "vacation" once specifically referred to the long summer break taken by the law courts and then later the term was applied to universities. The custom was introduced by William the Conqueror from Normandy where it facilitated the grape harvest. In the past, many upper-class families moved to a summer home for part of the year, leaving their usual home vacant.


title: Vacation

text: "Vacation", in English-speaking North America, describes recreational travel, such as a short pleasure trip, or a journey abroad. People in Commonwealth countries use the term "holiday" to describe absence from work as well as to describe a vacation or journey. Vacation can mean either staying home or going somewhere.


title: Vacation

text: Canadians often use "vacation" and "holiday" interchangeably referring to a trip away from home or time off work. In Australia and the UK, "holiday" can refer to a vacation or a public holiday.


title: Vacation

text: The Vanderbilts, Rockefellers, Carnegies, Huntingtons and other fabulously wealthy industrialists built their own spectacular "great camps" in the Adirondacks of upstate New York where they could spend time with their families in private luxury. The scions of New York City took to declaring that they would "vacate" their city homes for their lakeside summer retreats, and the term "vacation" replaced the British "holiday" in common parlance.


title: Vacation

text: In Hungarian, the word "vakáció" can mean both a recreational trip, an officially granted absence from work (generally in warmer months), and the summer (longest) school break. For absence from work, the word "szabadság" (freedom/liberty) can be used, possibly as "betegszabadság" (sickness freedom/sickness liberty) when the reason of absence is medical in nature.


title: Vacation

text: Family vacation refers to recreation taken together by the family. Family vacation can be ritual—for example, annually around the same time—or it can be a one-time event. It can involve travel to a far-flung spot or, for families on a tight budget, a stay-at-home staycation. Some examples of favorite family vacations might include family cruises, trips to popular theme parks, ski vacations, beach vacations, food vacations or similar types of family trips.


title: Vacation

text: Research on the effects of vacations on health, well-being and work performance started in the 1990s. The first meta-analysis on the effects of vacations was published in 2009. A 2013 literature review on the health and wellness benefits of travel experiences revealed beneficial effects of vacationing. More recent studies report on the positive effects of vacations as both a passive recovery process due to removal from job stress and as the active pursuit of relaxing, pleasurable and physical activities.


title: Vacation

text: Anticipation effects of vacations refer to the changes that may occur in the time leading up to a vacation. Anticipation effects can be positive and negative. They can manifest in stress from workload or homeload (house work such as cleaning) leading up to a vacation. Research shows that health and well-being levels decrease from the second last week before vacation to the last week before vacation. This is explained by a higher workload leading up to vacation. Increasing homeload before vacation also explains a decrease in health and well-being prior to vacation, but only for women.


title: Vacation

text: Moreover, research on Christmas holidays found that positive well-being effects such as enthusiasm rose in the weeks leading up to Christmas, whereas negative well-being effects such as nervousness decreased in the same time period. These effects can be explained by the pleasant expectations, called “Vorfreude” in German, that arise in the time leading up to the Christmas holidays.


title: Vacation

text: In a series of studies from 2010, 2012 and 2013, a team of researchers from the Radboud University Nijmegen analyzed the effects of vacations on subjective wellbeing in approximately 250 employees. The researchers examined vacations before, during and after their vacation. Via telephone interviews during vacation, the researchers found that self-reported health and wellbeing improved during vacation. However, within the first week of returning to work, employee’s wellbeing lapsed to pre-vacation levels, irrespective of the duration or type of vacation. The research team also found that subjective vacation experiences, such as relaxation and control over one’s activities boost vacation effects.


title: Vacation

text: According to a scientific study from 2014, vacations have an effect on an individual’s creativity. Researchers examined creativity by way of an idea-generation task (Guilford's Alternate Uses) in 46 Dutch employees before and after a three-week summer vacation. Participants had to generate creative uses for common daily things such as a brick or piece of paper. The results showed that ideas were just as original after the vacation as they were before. However, employees did produce a wider range of ideas after a vacation as opposed to before, showing greater mental flexibility as a result from taking a vacation. Specifically, it seems that after a vacation employees consider a greater range of aspects of thoughts and avoid routine solutions as opposed to before going on vacation.


title: Vacation

text: In a study from 2012, researchers found that a vacation may act as a relationship booster by offering the opportunity to increase interactions with a partner and by enhancing spouse support. This finding highlights the importance of high quality contact between partners during a vacation. Specifically, vacationers who conversed extensively and positively with one another felt more relaxed, derived more pleasure from vacation experiences and felt more detached from their work during their holiday trip. Another study found that satisfaction with vacations can explain couples’ relationship commitment and suggests that vacation may serve as a means for strengthening relationships. Another team of researchers found that shared experiences during vacations, such as effective communication, showing affection, or experiencing new things together, were positively associated with couples’ day-to-day functioning at home.


title: Vacation

text: Leisure is an important ingredient for overall well-being. It provides people with freetime and possibilities to engage in non-obligatory activities. This helps people to recover from job stress. In 2007, researchers developed four measures for assessing how people recuperate and unwind from work during leisure time. This study showed that four recovery experiences help to lower stress and aid recovery from strain: psychological detachment from work, relaxation, mastery, and control. Meaning and affiliation were later added, leading to the DRAMMA-model: Detachment, Relaxation, Autonomy, Mastery, Meaning and Affiliation.


title: Vacation

text: Each of these mechanisms serve as a mediating link between any form of leisure activities and subjective well-being. Autonomy, Mastery and Affiliation are similar to the core mechanisms in self-determination theory.


title: Vacation

text: Conducting research on vacations is challenging because vacationing concerns a process that stretches across longer time periods and people are often traveling and therefore hard to reach for research purposes. Randomized controlled trials in which people would be assigned to certain travel types are costly to realize and most people would probably not like to be assigned to a specific type of holiday. Accordingly, researchers have described a few important features of vacation research that help to generate reliable and valid results.


title: Vacation

text: In nearly all countries worldwide, there are minimum requirements as to the annual leave that must be afforded to an employee (see also List of minimum annual leave by country).


title: Vacation

text: Even in the United States, where no federal requirements as to minimum annual leave exist, many large corporations have vacation policies, some allowing employees to take weeks off and some even allowing unlimited vacation. Unlimited vacation arrangements may nonetheless come with implicit expectations, for instance, it may be implied that an employee should not take more than about the average number of vacation days taken by others. They normally also have the consequence that employees who leave the company receive no monetary compensation for leave days not taken.


title: Vacation

text: According to the U.S. Travel Association, Americans collectively did not use 662 million vacation days in 2016. More than half of all working people in the United States forfeited paid time off at the end of the year. Two-thirds of people still do work while they are on vacation.


title: Vacation

text: In order to go on a vacation in the first place, workers make use of paid time off granted by their employers. Recently, unlimited paid time off policies (UPTO) are rising in popularity. In a study from 2022, researchers propose two competing processes and boundary conditions when it comes to unlimited paid time off. These processes can at the same time “unlock the best” and “unleash the beast”. On the one hand, unlimited time paid time off can increase employees’ feeling of control, accountability, and work engagement. On the other hand, unlimited paid time off may set detrimental social processes in motion which could also lead to self-endangering work behaviors, long working hours, and exhaustion. Workers may feel discouraged from taking time off, because they lack social norms on leave taking, feel insecure about taking leave or feel guilty towards their team when taking time off during busy periods at work. Absence of formal rules may lead to newly emerging informal rules which are not communicated and can increase social conflicts. The researchers also argue that leave changes from an individual trading good into a collective good under unlimited leave policies.


title: Vacation

text: Recent developments in communication technology—such as internet, mobile, instant messaging, presence tracking—have begun to change the nature of vacation. Vacation today now could mean absence from the workplace rather than temporary cession of work. For a minority subset of workers in North America and the United Kingdom, it is now the norm to carry on working or remain on call while on vacation rather than abandon work altogether. Some people do remote work while on vacation. Antithetically, workers may take time out of the office to go on vacation, but remain plugged-in to work-related communications networks. While remaining plugged-in over vacation may generate short-term business benefits, the long-term psychological impacts of these developments are only beginning to be understood.


title: Vacation

text: Since the pandemic started and working life became more flexible, working from various locations became more common. Specifically, workcations that combine aspects of work and travel can offer periods of detachment and relaxation in the same way vacations do, although those periods are shorter than during a traditional vacation.


title: Vacation

text: A study published in 2020 regarding digital nomads explains how the borders between work and leisure disappear. Digital nomads can travel and work because they are not bound by normal work structures such as offices and 9-to-5 life. However, creating one’s own structures, routines and work communities can also be experienced as burdensome.


title: Vacation

text: Family vacation and vacation in general has become a common theme in many books and films. Writers often draw on common occurrences that take place during a vacation such as disasters and bonding.


title: Ingeborga Dapkūnaitė

text: Ingeborga Dapkūnaitė (; born 20 January 1963) is а Lithuanian theatre and cinema actress, who appears mostly in Russian films. She is a winner of the Nika Award in 1994 for Best Actress.


title: Ingeborga Dapkūnaitė

text: Dapkūnaitė was born in Vilnius, Lithuania. Her father was a diplomat and her mother was a meteorologist. For many years her parents worked in Moscow, and she saw them only on holidays. She was cared for by her grandparents and an uncle and aunt, musicians in a theatre orchestra, during her parents' long absences.


title: Ingeborga Dapkūnaitė

text: At the age of four, she first appeared on the stage in the Puccini opera "Madam Butterfly", watched by her grandmother, the administrator of the Vilnius opera theatre. After her opera debut, she at first seemed to have little interest in the dramatic arts, dance, singing, or music. For her childhood and youth, it seemed she might pursue a career in sports; she figure-skated and played basketball, popular in Lithuania. She graduated from the Lithuanian Academy of Music and Theatre under Jonas Vaitkus in 1985 and joined the Kaunas State Drama Theatre.


title: Ingeborga Dapkūnaitė

text: She has had a number of minor roles in some top Hollywood movies including "" (1996) and "Seven Years in Tibet" (1997), the latter of which featured her as the wife of Heinrich Harrer (played by Brad Pitt). She is best known for her portrayal of Maroussia, the wife of Colonel Sergei Kotov (portrayed by Nikita Mikhalkov) in Mikhalkov's Academy Award-winning film "Burnt by the Sun" (1994). In 2001 she was a member of the jury at the 23rd Moscow International Film Festival.


title: Ingeborga Dapkūnaitė

text: She also portrayed the Russian Tsaritsa Imperatritsa Aleksandra Fyodorovna Romanova in the 2003 British mini-series "The Lost Prince", and was mother to Thomas Harris's fictional cannibal and serial killer, also known to be of Lithuanian origin, Hannibal Lecter, in "Hannibal Rising" (2007).


title: Ingeborga Dapkūnaitė

text: On television, she plays the role of top Russian diplomat Irina Sidorova in the Norwegian hit show "Okkupert", broadcast in the US by Netflix. She was featured as a skating partner to Alexander Zhulin in "Ice Age". In the first season of the BBC series "Bodies", she played nurse Katya Bredova. In addition, she portrays a Bosnian refugee named Jasmina Blekic in "Prime Suspect 6", co-starring Helen Mirren and in 2012 played Kenneth Branagh's love interest in the "Wallander" TV episode "Dogs of Riga". She also starred in "Branded". She also portrayed the role of Mrs Hudson in Russia's "Sherlock Holmes".


title: Ingeborga Dapkūnaitė

text: Dapkūnaitė has been married three times. Her first husband was Lithuanian actor Arūnas Sakalauskas, her groupmate at the Vilnius Conservatory. Her second husband was British director Simon Stokes, whom she divorced in 2009. Her third husband was Russian lawyer and businessman Dmitry Yampolsky. They divorced in 2017.


title: Holiday in the Sun (film)

text: Holiday in the Sun is a 2001 American direct-to-video romantic adventure family film directed by Steve Purcell and starring Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen as two teenagers on vacation at Atlantis Paradise Island.


title: Holiday in the Sun (film)

text: Madison (Mary-Kate Olsen) and Alex (Ashley Olsen) Stewart are twin sisters from Illinois who are whisked away to Atlantis Resort in The Bahamas by their parents for winter break. Initially, the sisters are disappointed that they didn't get to go to Hawaii with their friends, but overcome it by enjoying their newly earned freedom in the form of their own suite, as well as the pristine beaches of the Caribbean.


title: Holiday in the Sun (film)

text: Alex falls for "hottie" Jordan (Ben Easter), a worker at the resort. She's not the only one with her eye on Jordan – the spoiled heiress, Brianna Wallace (Megan Fox) is also in love with him, and plays dirty to get her way. Madison, meanwhile, is being wooed by cute, but brainless, Scott (Billy Aaron Brown), who in turn is being coached behind the scenes by Griffen (Austin Nichols), a childhood friend of Madison's with a not-so-subtle crush, to talk to Madison and eventually get her under his thumb.


title: Holiday in the Sun (film)

text: The sisters' holiday of fun in the sun is interrupted when they cross paths with a man smuggling stolen artifacts. Though their parents are keeping a close eye on them, the sisters and Griffen must find a way to clear Jordan's name when their friend is wrongfully arrested for the crime. But only together, they overcome everything and understand the true meaning of sisterhood, along with having a great vacation.


title: United Nations Regional Groups

text: The United Nations Regional Groups are the geopolitical regional groups of member states of the United Nations. Originally, the UN member states were unofficially organized into five groups as an informal means of sharing the distribution of posts for General Assembly committees. Now this grouping has taken on a much more expansive and official role. Many UN bodies are allocated on the basis of geographical representation. Top leadership positions, including Secretary-General and President of the General Assembly, are rotated among the regional groups. The groups also coordinate substantive policy and form common fronts for negotiations and bloc voting.


title: United Nations Regional Groups

text: The precedent of the geographic distribution of seats was set by the United Nations' predecessor, the League of Nations. Under the League's system, a Nominations Committee was created in order to create election slates for distribution of seats in the Council of the League.


title: United Nations Regional Groups

text: This proved a difficult task as the number of seats on the Council was constantly changing. However, from 1926 to 1933 an unofficial pattern of distribution emerged where the non-permanent seats on the Council were distributed along the following lines:


title: United Nations Regional Groups

text: During the drafting of the United Nations Charter, the idea of geographic distribution of seats of the new organisation's bodies was one of the priorities of the drafters. On the United States' recommendation, the very first General Committee of the United Nations was composed of:


title: United Nations Regional Groups

text: This distribution began the precedent of using regional groups for the allocation of seats in United Nations bodies. For example, the first election to the Security Council used a similar scheme, allocating seats along the following lines:


title: United Nations Regional Groups

text: Elections to the Economic and Social Council also followed along similar lines, but instead allocated seats to "Near East states" and not "Middle Eastern states."


title: United Nations Regional Groups

text: However, these arrangements were not formal and were based on "Gentlemen’s Agreements" agreed upon by the United States and the Soviet Union regarding the distribution of seats in United Nations bodies.


title: United Nations Regional Groups

text: Following a wave of decolonization, there were multiple admissions into the United Nations from African, Asian and Pacific states. After the Bandung Conference in 1955, there was increasing solidarity among post-colonial states which led to pressure being put on the United Nations for increased representation of these states. This pressure led to the passage of Resolution 1192 (XII) of 12 December 1957, which established a formal pattern for distribution of seats on the General Committee.


title: United Nations Regional Groups

text: This was followed on 17 December 1963 by Resolutions 1990 (XVIII) and 1991 (XVIII). These resolutions further outlined the distribution of seats on the General Committee, but also outlined how seats would be geographically distributed on the Economic and Social and Security Councils. The resolutions outlined the regions as follow:


title: United Nations Regional Groups

text: On 20 December 1971 Resolution 2847 (XXVI) formally set up the present distribution system that is in place for the Economic and Social Council. It also split the African and Asian states region into two separate regions, one for Asia and one for Africa.


title: United Nations Regional Groups

text: Finally, on 19 December 1978 Resolution 33/138 was passed by the General Assembly. This resolution called for equitable geographic distribution of the presidency and vice-presidencies of the General Assembly, as well as of the chairmanship of the seven main committees.


title: United Nations Regional Groups

text: The most recent change to the regional grouping system was in 2011, when the Asia Group was renamed the Group of Asia and the Pacific Small Island Developing States, also Asia and the Pacific Group or Asia-Pacific Group, in order to recognise the growing role Pacific island nations play in the United Nations System.


title: United Nations Regional Groups

text: As of 2019, Kiribati is the only United Nations Member State that has never joined one of the regional groups.


title: United Nations Regional Groups

text: Apart from allowing member states with related international interests to liaise, discuss and coordinate their voting and other activities at the United Nations, the main function of the regional groups is to distribute membership quotas in United Nations bodies and leadership positions. According to convention, the non-permanent membership seats of the United Nations Security Council is apportioned between regional groups according to a set formula. Other bodies, such as the United Nations Economic and Social Council and the United Nations Human Rights Committee, also have set membership quotas for each regional group. The position of the President of the United Nations General Assembly rotates amongst the groups on a ten-year cycle (the current rule being that each regional group fills the position twice during the cycle, in effect it rotates on a five-year cycle).


title: United Nations Regional Groups

text: The African Group consists of 54 Member States (28% of United Nations members), and is thus the largest regional group by number of Member States. It is the only regional group that has a territory that coincides with the traditional continent of which its name originates. Its territory is composed entirely of land from Africa.


title: United Nations Regional Groups

text: The African Group has three seats on the Security Council, all non-permanent. The Group also has 14 seats on the United Nations Economic and Social Council and 13 seats on the United Nations Human Rights Council. In the rotation for the election of the President of the United Nations General Assembly, the Group is responsible for electing nationals from its Member States in years ending with 4 and 9; most recently, Tijjani Muhammad-Bande of Nigeria was elected to this position in 2019.


title: United Nations Regional Groups

text: The Group of Asia and the Pacific Small Island Developing States (formerly the Asia Group), or Asia and the Pacific Group, consists of 53 Member States (27.5% of United Nations members) and is the second largest regional group by number of member states after the African Group. Its territory is composed of much of the continents of Asia and Oceania with the exception of a few countries.


title: United Nations Regional Groups

text: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia and Russia are members of the Eastern European Group, while Australia, New Zealand and Israel are members of the Western European and Others Group. Cyprus is the only European Union state which is a member of the Asia and the Pacific Group. Additionally, Turkey participates in meetings of the Asia and the Pacific Group, but is for the purpose of elections considered part of the Western European and Others Group.


title: United Nations Regional Groups

text: The Asia and the Pacific Group has three seats on the Security Council: China's permanent seat, and two non-permanent seats. The Group also has 11 seats on the Economic and Social Council and 13 seats on the Human Rights Council. In the rotation for the election of the President of the United Nations General Assembly, the Group is responsible for electing nationals from its Member States in years ending with 1 and 6; most recently, Peter Thomson of Fiji was elected to this position in 2016.


title: United Nations Regional Groups

text: The Eastern European Group consists of 23 Member States (12% of United Nations members), and as such is the regional group with the fewest member states. Its territory is composed of land from Eastern Europe, as well as parts of Central Europe and Southeast Europe.


title: United Nations Regional Groups

text: The Eastern European Group has two seats on the Security Council: Russia's permanent seat and one non-permanent seat. The Group also has six seats on the Economic and Social Council and six seats on the Human Rights Council. In the rotation for the election of the President of the United Nations General Assembly, the Group is responsible for electing nationals from its Member States in years ending with 2 and 7; most recently, Miroslav Lajčák of Slovakia was elected to this position for 2017.


title: United Nations Regional Groups

text: The Latin American and Caribbean Group, or GRULAC, consists of 33 Member States (17% of all UN members). Its territory is composed of entirely of land from South and Central America, as well as some islands in the Caribbean and Mexico in North America. Any differences arise from the presence of dependent territories of European countries.


title: United Nations Regional Groups

text: The Latin American and Caribbean Group has two seats on the Security Council, both non-permanent. The Group also has 10 seats on the Economic and Social Council and eight seats on the Human Rights Council. In the rotation for the election of the President of the United Nations General Assembly, the Group is responsible for electing nationals from its Member States in years ending with 3 and 8; most recently, María Fernanda Espinosa of Ecuador was elected to this position in 2018.


title: United Nations Regional Groups

text: The Western European and Others Group, or WEOG, consists of 28 Member States (15% of United Nations members). Its territory is composed of land dispersed on all of the continents, but mostly centered in Western Europe and Northern America. Additionally, the United States acts as an observer, as it is not formally part of any regional group.


title: United Nations Regional Groups

text: Including the United States, the Western European and Others Group has five seats on the Security Council: three permanent seats (France, United Kingdom, United States), and two non-permanent seats. The Group also has 13 seats on the Economic and Social Council and seven seats on the Human Rights Council. In the rotation for the election of the President of the United Nations General Assembly, the Group is responsible for electing nationals from its Member States in years ending with 0 and 5; most recently, Volkan Bozkır of Turkey was elected to this position in 2020.


title: United Nations Regional Groups

text: Cyprus, an EU member state, is neither a member of WEOG or the Eastern European Group. Due to its geographical location and close ties with Russia, Cyprus decided to remain neutral between the two European Groups and thus is a member of the Asia and the Pacific Group.


title: United Nations Regional Groups

text: Israel is geographically in Asia, but it became a temporary member of the Western European and Others Group in 2000. It became a permanent member in 2014.


title: United Nations Regional Groups

text: As of 2010, Kiribati (geographically in Oceania) has never been elected to be a member of any regional group, despite other Oceania nations belonging to the Asia and the Pacific Group. Until 2017, despite its membership in the United Nations, Kiribati had never delegated a permanent representative. In September 2017, Teburoro Tito became the country's first permanent representative.


title: United Nations Regional Groups

text: The Palestine Liberation Organization has participated in the Asia and the Pacific group since 2 April 1986 as an observer.


title: United Nations Regional Groups

text: Turkey participates fully in both WEOG and Asia and the Pacific Group, but for electoral purposes is considered a member of WEOG only.


title: United Nations Regional Groups

text: The United States of America voluntarily chooses not to be a member of any group, and attends meetings of the Western European and Others Group as an observer only. However, it is considered to be a member of WEOG for putting forward candidates for electoral purposes in the United Nations General Assembly.


title: United Nations Regional Groups

text: The great variation in size (from 21 to 53) between the regional groups is problematic in that it may mean equal representation is more difficult to achieve. Additionally, some of the groups might be in need of reform due to political changes within the group. Many members of the Eastern European Group have, in recent years, gradually aligned themselves with the Western European and Others Group due to their admission into the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and the European Union. Additionally, some members of the Western European and Others Group also feel disenfranchised due to increased coordination between European Union states that are in the group.


title: United Nations Regional Groups

text: In 1995, the Australian Government proposed that the regional groups be reorganised in seven groups as follows:


title: United Nations Regional Groups

text: This proposal would create a homogenous Middle Eastern group, as well as meet the demands of South Pacific states who have called for their own region.


title: United Nations Regional Groups

text: In 1997, a Canadian study proposed that the regional groups be reorganised into nine groups as follows:


title: United Nations Regional Groups

text: This proposal would create groups of similar size, while also factoring in the local politics of the regions.<ref name="O'Brien Working Paper 6/97"></ref>


title: United Nations Regional Groups

text: In 2000, the government of Nauru, in its general debate address, called for a new regional group for Oceania. This new group would give more representation to Pacific island nations, who are at present grouped together with the Middle East, Central Asia and East Asia, limiting their opportunities. Aside from Nauru, this proposed bloc may also include Australia and New Zealand (both in the WEOG), Japan, South Korea, the ASEAN countries, and the rest of Oceania.


title: Marco's Pizza

text: Marco's Pizza, operated by Marco's Franchising, LLC, is an American restaurant chain and interstate franchise based in Toledo, Ohio, that specializes in Italian-American cuisine. The first store was opened in Oregon, Ohio on Starr Avenue. It was founded by Italian immigrant Pasquale "Pat" Giammarco in 1978.


title: Marco's Pizza

text: As of mid-2017, there were more than 800 franchised Marco's Pizza locations in 34 states and Puerto Rico, as well as the Bahamas and India. Most recently, it was announced that Marco's Pizza had doubled its size and expected to open its 1000th store by the end of 2018. Marco's Pizza credits its franchisees as well as its dough, three-cheese blend, and pizza sauce for its strong growth. Unlike most major pizza chains, Marco's dough is made from scratch everyday, and their cheese is never frozen.