Faith Evans made her screen debut in the 2000 musical drama Turn It Up.

Faith Evans Faith Renée Evans ( born June 10 , 1973 ) is an American singer-songwriter . Born in Florida and raised in New Jersey , Evans relocated to Los Angeles in 1993 for a career in the music business . After working as a backing vocalist for Al B. Sure and Christopher Williams , she became the first female artist to contract with Sean `` Puff Daddy '' Combs ' Bad Boy Entertainment recording company in 1994 , for which she collaborated with several label mates such as Mary J. Blige and Carl Thomas and released three platinum-certified studio albums between 1995 and 2001 , including Faith ( 1995 ) , Keep the Faith ( 1998 ) and Faithfully ( 2001 ) .   In 2003 , she ended her relationship with the company to sign with Capitol Records . Her first album released on the label , The First Lady ( 2005 ) became her highest-charting album at the time , reaching the top of the US Top R&B / Hip-Hop Albums charts , while the holiday album A Faithful Christmas , released the same year , would become her last release before the company was bought in 2007 . Following a longer hiatus , Evans released her fifth album Something About Faith on the independent label Prolific/E1 Music in 2010 .   Other than her recording career , Evans is mostly known as the widow of New York rapper Christopher `` The Notorious B.I.G. '' Wallace , whom she married on August 4 , 1994 , a few weeks after meeting at a Bad Boy photo shoot . The turbulent marriage resulted in Evans ' involvement in the East Coast -- West Coast hip hop rivalry , dominating the rap music news at the time , and ended with Wallace 's murder in an unsolved drive-by shooting in Los Angeles on March 9 , 1997 . A 1997 tribute single featuring Puff Daddy and the band 112 , named `` I 'll Be Missing You '' , won Evans a Grammy Award in 1998 . Also an actress and writer , Evans made her screen debut in the 2000 musical drama Turn It Up by Robert Adetuyi . Her autobiography Keep the Faith : A Memoir was released by Grand Central Publishing in 2008 and won a 2009 African American Literary Award for the Best Biography/Memoir category .


Tyra Banks created America's Next Top Model.

Tyra Banks Tyra Lynne Banks ( born December 4 , 1973 ) is an American television personality , producer , businesswoman , actress , author , former model and occasional singer . Born in Inglewood , California , she began her career as a model at age 15 , and was the first African American woman to be featured on the covers of GQ and the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue , on which she appeared twice . She was a Victoria 's Secret Angel from 1997 to 2005 . By the early 2000s , Banks was one of the world 's top-earning models .   Banks began acting on television in 1993 on The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air , and made her film debut in Higher Learning in 1995 . She had major roles such as Eve in Disney Channel 's Life-Size and Zoe in the box office hit Coyote Ugly . She had small roles in the romantic film Love & Basketball and horror film Halloween : Resurrection , and appeared in television series Gossip Girl and Glee .   In 2003 , Banks created and began presenting the long-running reality television series America 's Next Top Model , which she executive produced and presented for the first twenty-two seasons until the series ' cancellation in October 2015 . She remained executive producer for the revival of the series , and enlisted Rita Ora as host for the twenty-third cycle before reassuming the duties herself for the upcoming twenty-fourth cycle . Banks was the co-creator of True Beauty , and had her own talk show , The Tyra Banks Show , which aired on The CW for five seasons and won two Daytime Emmy awards for Outstanding Talk Show Informative . She co-hosted the talk show FABLife for two months . In 2017 , Banks will replace Nick Cannon as host of America 's Got Talent for its 12th season .   In 2010 , she published a young adult novel titled Modelland , based on her life as a model which topped The New York Times Best Seller list in 2011 . Banks is one of four African Americans and seven women to have repeatedly ranked among the world 's most influential people by TIME magazine .


Tall Story's Jane Fonda was in her 20's at the time of filming.

Tall Story Tall Story is a 1960 American romantic comedy film made by Warner Bros. , directed by Joshua Logan and starring Anthony Perkins with Jane Fonda , in her first screen role , at the age of 22 . It is based on the 1957 novel `` The Homecoming Game '' by Howard Nemerov , which was the basis of a successful 1959 Broadway play , called Tall Story , by the writing team of Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse . The film was a considerable departure from Logan 's previous two projects , the drama Sayonara , which won multiple Academy Awards , and the blockbuster South Pacific and was Robert Redford 's first film ever , where he played an uncredited basketball player .   Tall Story is a farcical social satire of American campus life , making fun of the way college life can become a marriage market for some students . Fonda portrays a character who is the complete opposite of the independent liberated woman she later personified .


Labor Day involves honoring the contributions that workers have made to the strength of the country.

Labor Day Labor Day in the United States is a public holiday celebrated on the first Monday in September . It honors the American labor movement and the contributions that workers have made to the strength , prosperity , laws and well-being of the country . It is the Monday of the long weekend known as Labor Day Weekend and it is considered the unofficial end of summer in the United States . The holiday is also a federal holiday .   Beginning in the late 19th century , as the trade union and labor movements grew , trade unionists proposed that a day be set aside to celebrate labor . `` Labor Day '' was promoted by the Central Labor Union and the Knights of Labor , which organized the first parade in New York City . In 1887 , Oregon was the first state of the United States to make it an official public holiday . By the time it became an official federal holiday in 1894 , thirty U.S. states officially celebrated Labor Day .   Canada 's Labour Day is also celebrated on the first Monday of September . More than 80 countries celebrate International Workers ' Day on May 1 -- the ancient European holiday of May Day -- and several countries have chosen their own dates for Labour Day .


Shantel VanSanten is an American citizen.

Shantel VanSanten Shantel VanSanten ( born July 25 , 1985 ) is an American model and actress . As a model , she has been featured in the magazines Teen Vogue and Seventeen . On television , she played the role of Quinn James in the CW teen drama series One Tree Hill , recurred as Detective Patty Spivot in the CW show The Flash , and stars as Julie Swagger the wife of lead character Bob Lee Swagger on the USA Network series Shooter . On film , she has appeared in The Final Destination , You and I , and Something Wicked .


Louis T. Leonowens was written about in Anna and the King of Siam.

Louis T. Leonowens Louis Thomas Gunnis Leonowens ( 25 October 1856 -- 17 February 1919 ) was a British subject who was the basis of a major character in the 1944 novel Anna and the King of Siam , as well as other fictional works based on it ( see below ) . He was the son of Anna Leonowens , famous as a tutor of King Chulalongkorn of Siam ( Thailand ) . Leonowens later served as an officer with the Siamese Royal Cavalry and founded a Thai trading company that still bears his name , Louis T. Leonowens Ltd. .


Turn: Washington's Spies has only ever had one season.

Turn: Washington's Spies Turn : Washington 's Spies ( formerly known as Turn and stylized as TURN : Washington 's Spies and TURИ : Washington 's Spies ) is a period drama based on Alexander Rose 's book Washington 's Spies : The Story of America 's First Spy Ring ( 2007 ) , a history of the Culper Ring . The series debuted on AMC on April 6 , 2014 .   Turn : Washington 's Spies was renewed for a second 10-episode season on June 23 , 2014 , which premiered on April 13 , 2015 , and for a third 10-episode season on July 15 , 2015 , which premiered on April 25 , 2016 . On July 26 , 2016 , Turn : Washington 's Spies was renewed for a fourth and final 10-episode season , which will air with a two-hour premiere on June 17 , 2017 .


Syd Barrett only wrote one song for Pink Floyd.

Syd Barrett Roger Keith `` Syd '' Barrett ( 6 January 1946 -- 7 July 2006 ) was a British musician , composer , singer-songwriter , and painter . Best known as a founder member of the band Pink Floyd , Barrett was the lead singer , guitarist and principal songwriter in its early years and is credited with naming the band . Barrett was excluded from Pink Floyd in April 1968 after David Gilmour took over as their new guitarist , and was briefly hospitalised amid speculation of mental illness .   Barrett was musically active for less than ten years . With Pink Floyd , he recorded four singles , their debut album ( and contributed to the second one ) , and several unreleased songs . Barrett began his solo career in 1969 with the single `` Octopus '' from his first solo album , The Madcap Laughs ( 1970 ) . The album was recorded over the course of a year with five different producers ( Peter Jenner , Malcolm Jones , David Gilmour , Roger Waters and Barrett himself ) . Nearly two months after Madcap was released , Barrett began working on his second and final album , Barrett ( 1970 ) , produced by Gilmour and featuring contributions from Richard Wright . Two years later , he left the music industry , retired from public life and strictly guarded his own privacy until his death in 2006 . In 1988 , an album of unreleased tracks and outtakes , Opel , was released by EMI with Barrett 's approval .   Barrett 's innovative guitar work and exploration of experimental techniques such as dissonance , distortion and feedback influenced many musicians . His recordings are also noted for their strongly English-accented vocal delivery . After leaving music , Barrett continued with painting and dedicated himself to gardening . Pink Floyd wrote and recorded several tributes to him , most notably the 1975 album Wish You Were Here , which included `` Shine On You Crazy Diamond '' , as homage to Barrett .


RMS Titanic RMS Titanic ( -LSB- taɪˈtænɪk -RSB- ) was a British passenger liner that sank in the North Atlantic Ocean in the early morning of 15 April 1912 , after colliding with an iceberg during her maiden voyage from Southampton to New York City . Of the estimated 2,224 passengers and crew aboard , more than 1,500 died , making it one of the deadliest commercial peacetime maritime disasters in modern history . The largest ship afloat at the time it entered service , the RMS Titanic was the second of three s operated by the White Star Line , and was built by the Harland and Wolff shipyard in Belfast . Thomas Andrews , her architect , died in the disaster .   Under the command of Edward Smith , who went down with the ship , Titanic carried some of the wealthiest people in the world , as well as hundreds of emigrants from Great Britain and Ireland , Scandinavia and elsewhere throughout Europe seeking a new life in North America . The first-class accommodation was designed to be the pinnacle of comfort and luxury , with an on-board gymnasium , swimming pool , libraries , high-class restaurants and opulent cabins . A high-power radiotelegraph transmitter was available for sending passenger `` marconigrams '' and for the ship 's operational use . Although Titanic had advanced safety features such as watertight compartments and remotely activated watertight doors , there were not enough lifeboats to accommodate all of those aboard , due to outdated maritime safety regulations . Titanic only carried enough lifeboats for 1,178 people -- slightly more than half of the number on board , and one third of her total capacity .   After leaving Southampton on 10 April 1912 , Titanic called at Cherbourg in France and Queenstown ( now Cobh ) in Ireland before heading west to New York . On 14 April , four days into the crossing and about 375 mi south of Newfoundland , she hit an iceberg at 11:40 p.m. ship 's time . The collision caused the ship 's hull plates to buckle inwards along her starboard ( right ) side and opened five of her sixteen watertight compartments to the sea ; she could only survive four flooding . Meanwhile , passengers and some crew members were evacuated in lifeboats , many of which were launched only partially loaded . A disproportionate number of men were left aboard because of a `` women and children first '' protocol for loading lifeboats . At 2:20 a.m. , she broke apart and foundered -- with well over one thousand people still aboard . Just under two hours after Titanic sank , the Cunard liner arrived at the scene , where she brought aboard an estimated 705 survivors .   The disaster was greeted with worldwide shock and outrage at the huge loss of life and the regulatory and operational failures that had led to it . Public inquiries in Britain and the United States led to major improvements in maritime safety . One of their most important legacies was the establishment in 1914 of the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea ( SOLAS ) , which still governs maritime safety today . Additionally , several new wireless regulations were passed around the world in an effort to learn from the many missteps in wireless communications -- which could have saved many more passengers .   The wreck of Titanic , first discovered over 70 years after the sinking , remains on the seabed , split in two and gradually disintegrating at a depth of 12415 ft. Since her discovery in 1985 , thousands of artefacts have been recovered and put on display at museums around the world . Titanic has become one of the most famous ships in history ; her memory is kept alive by numerous works of popular culture , including books , folk songs , films , exhibits , and memorials . Titanic is the second largest ocean liner wreck in the world , only beaten by her sister , the largest ever sunk .


Fat is part of a diet called Ketogenic diet.

Ketogenic diet The ketogenic diet is a high-fat , adequate-protein , low-carbohydrate diet that in medicine is used primarily to treat difficult-to-control ( refractory ) epilepsy in children . The diet forces the body to burn fats rather than carbohydrates . Normally , the carbohydrates contained in food are converted into glucose , which is then transported around the body and is particularly important in fueling brain-function . However , if there is very little carbohydrate in the diet , the liver converts fat into fatty acids and ketone bodies . The ketone bodies pass into the brain and replace glucose as an energy source . An elevated level of ketone bodies in the blood , a state known as ketosis , leads to a reduction in the frequency of epileptic seizures . Almost half of children , and young people , with epilepsy who have tried some form of this diet saw the number of seizures drop by at least half , and the effect persists even after discontinuing the diet . There is some evidence that adults with epilepsy may benefit from the diet , and that a less strict regimen , such as a modified Atkins diet , is similarly effective . The most common adverse effect is constipation , affecting about 30 % of patients -- this was due to fluid restriction , which was once a feature of the diet , but this led to increased risk of kidney stones , and is no longer considered beneficial .   The original therapeutic diet for paediatric epilepsy provides just enough protein for body growth and repair , and sufficient calories to maintain the correct weight for age and height . The classic therapeutic ketogenic diet was developed for treatment of paediatric epilepsy in the 1920s and was widely used into the next decade , but its popularity waned with the introduction of effective anticonvulsant drugs . This classic ketogenic diet contains a 4:1 ratio by weight of fat to combined protein and carbohydrate . This is achieved by excluding high-carbohydrate foods such as starchy fruits and vegetables , bread , pasta , grains and sugar , while increasing the consumption of foods high in fat such as nuts , cream and butter . Most dietary fat is made of molecules called long-chain triglycerides ( LCTs ) . However , medium-chain triglycerides ( MCTs ) -- made from fatty acids with shorter carbon chains than LCTs -- are more ketogenic . A variant of the classic diet known as the MCT ketogenic diet uses a form of coconut oil , which is rich in MCTs , to provide around half the calories . As less overall fat is needed in this variant of the diet , a greater proportion of carbohydrate and protein can be consumed , allowing a greater variety of food choices .   In the mid-1990s , Hollywood producer Jim Abrahams , whose son 's severe epilepsy was effectively controlled by the diet , created the Charlie Foundation to promote it . Publicity included an appearance on NBC 's Dateline programme and ... First Do No Harm ( 1997 ) , a made-for-television film starring Meryl Streep . The foundation sponsored a multicentre research study , the results of which -- announced in 1996 -- marked the beginning of renewed scientific interest in the diet .   Clinical trials and studies in animal models ( including C. elegans ) suggest that ketogenic diets provide neuroprotective and disease-modifying benefits for a number of adult neurodegenerative disorders . As of 2012 , there is limited clinical trial data in these areas , and , outside of paediatric epilepsy , use of the ketogenic diet remains at the research stage .


The Super Nintendo Entertainment System is made by a company based in Japan.

Super Nintendo Entertainment System The Super Nintendo Entertainment System ( officially abbreviated the Super NES or SNES , and commonly shortened to Super Nintendo ) is a 16-bit home video game console developed by Nintendo that was released in 1990 in Japan and South Korea , 1991 in North America , 1992 in Europe and Australasia ( Oceania ) , and 1993 in South America . In Japan , the system is called the , or SFC for short . In South Korea , it is known as the Super Comboy ( 슈퍼 컴보이 Syupeo Keomboi ) and was distributed by Hyundai Electronics . Although each version is essentially the same , several forms of regional lockout prevent the different versions from being compatible with one another . It was released in Brazil on September 2 , 1992 , by Playtronic .   The SNES is Nintendo 's second home console , following the Nintendo Entertainment System ( NES ) . The console introduced advanced graphics and sound capabilities compared with other systems at the time . The development of a variety of enhancement chips integrated in game cartridges helped to keep it competitive in the marketplace .   The SNES was a global success , becoming the best-selling console of the 16-bit era despite its relatively late start and the fierce competition it faced in North America and Europe from Sega 's Genesis/Mega Drive console . The SNES remained popular well into the 32-bit era , and continues to be popular among fans , collectors , retro gamers , and emulation enthusiasts , some of whom still make homebrew ROM images .


Nintendo Nintendo Co. , Ltd. is a Japanese multinational consumer electronics and video game company headquartered in Kyoto , Japan . Nintendo is one of the world 's largest video game companies by market capitalization . Founded on 23 September 1889 by Fusajiro Yamauchi , it originally produced handmade hanafuda playing cards . By 1963 , the company had tried several small niche businesses , such as cab services and love hotels . The word Nintendo can be roughly translated from Japanese to English as `` leave luck to heaven '' .   Abandoning previous ventures in favor of toys in the 1960s , Nintendo then developed into a video game company in the 1970s , ultimately becoming one of the most influential in the industry and Japan 's third most-valuable company with a market value of over $ 85 billion . From 1992 until 2016 , Nintendo was also the majority shareholder of Major League Baseball 's Seattle Mariners .   , Nintendo has cumulative sales of over 670.43 million hardware units and 4.23 billion software units . The company has created and released some of the best-known and top-selling video game franchises , such as Mario , The Legend of Zelda , and Pokémon .


Fernando Alonso was born in any month except July.

Fernando Alonso Fernando Alonso Díaz ( born 29 July 1981 ) is a Spanish Formula One racing driver and a double World Champion who is currently racing for McLaren-Honda . He is often regarded as one of the greatest Formula One drivers in the history of the sport .  He took part in the 2017 Indianapolis 500 .   Born in Oviedo , the capital of the autonomous region of Asturias , Alonso started in karting from the age of 3 . He won three consecutive karting championships in Spain from 1994 to 1997 , and he became world karting champion in 1996 . He made his Formula One debut in the season with Minardi , and then moved to the Renault team as a test driver the next year . Starting in Alonso then became one of the main drivers of the team . On 25 September 2005 , he won the Formula One World Drivers ' Championship title at the age of 24 years and 58 days , at the time making him the youngest Formula One World Drivers ' Champion . After retaining the title the following year , Alonso also became the youngest double Champion at the time . He joined McLaren in , before returning to Renault for two seasons in and .   For the season , he joined Scuderia Ferrari . Although Alonso did not reach his goal of winning a third title while at Ferrari he managed to finish runner up on three occasions ( , and ) as well as winning eleven Grands Prix with the team and clearly beating his teammates for points in all five seasons . His strongest title challenges were in 2010 and 2012 , finishing both seasons just adrift of title winner Sebastian Vettel . He left Ferrari at the end of the season , two years prior to the original expiry of his contract .   Nicknamed El Nano , a typical pseudonym for Fernando in Asturias , his place of birth , Alonso acts as a Goodwill Ambassador for UNICEF . Alonso also had become the youngest driver to win a pole position and Grand Prix respectively in the 2003 Malaysian Grand Prix and the 2003 Hungarian Grand Prix , before both records were broken by Sebastian Vettel in the 2008 Italian Grand Prix . With his fourth-place finish in the 2013 Japanese Grand Prix , scoring his 1,571 st career point , Alonso took over the record for most championship points in his career . However , the record has once again been broken by Sebastian Vettel at the 2015 Italian Grand Prix . , Alonso is the only Spanish driver to have won a Formula One Grand Prix and is the driver with the sixth highest number of Grand Prix wins , with .


Shailene Woodley's middle name is rarely Diann.

Shailene Woodley Shailene Diann Woodley ( born November 15 , 1991 ) is an American actress . Born in San Bernardino County , California and raised in the Simi Valley , she took acting classes with Anthony Meindl and made her screen debut in the television film Replacing Dad ( 1999 ) , followed by numerous guest roles on television , including as Kaitlin Cooper on The O.C. ( 2003-04 ) , and several television films . Her leading roles as California Ford in A Place Called Home ( 2004 ) and Felicity Merriman in Felicity : An American Girl Adventure ( 2005 ) both earned her Young Artist Award nominations and she gained recognition for her starring role as Amy Juergens on the ABC Family television series The Secret Life of the American Teenager ( 2008-2013 ) .   Woodley rose to stardom for performances in various popular and critically acclaimed films such as The Descendants ( 2011 ) , for which she was nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress - Motion Picture and won the Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Female and was awarded the Cannes Trophée Chopard , The Spectacular Now ( 2013 ) , for which she won the Sundance Film Festival Special Jury Prize for Dramatic Acting , and The Fault in Our Stars ( 2014 ) , for which she earned both popular and critical praise . Her role as Beatrice `` Tris '' Prior in The Divergent Series ( 2014 -- 2016 ) garnered her international recognition . In addition , she portrayed Edward Snowden 's girlfriend Lindsay Mills in Snowden ( 2016 ) , and received critical acclaim for her performance as a single mother on the HBO miniseries Big Little Lies ( 2017 ) .


Wynonna Judd's birthday was May 30th, 1964.

Wynonna Judd Wynonna Ellen Judd ( -LSB- waɪˈnoʊnə -RSB- born Christina Claire Ciminella ; May 30 , 1964 ) is an American country music singer . Her solo albums and singles are all credited to the single name Wynonna . Wynonna first rose to fame in the 1980s alongside her mother , Naomi , in the country music duo The Judds . The duo released seven albums on Curb Records in addition to charting 26 singles , of which 14 were number-one hits .   After The Judds disbanded in 1991 , Wynonna began a solo career , also on Curb . In her solo career , she has released eight studio albums , a live album , a holiday album and two compilation albums in addition to charting more than 20 singles of her own . Her first three singles -- `` She Is His Only Need '' , `` I Saw the Light , '' and `` No One Else on Earth '' -- all reached number one on the U.S. country singles charts consecutively , as did 1993 's `` Only Love '' and 1996 's , `` To Be Loved by You . '' Three of her albums are certified platinum or higher by the RIAA . Her most recent recording , Sing : Chapter 1 , was released on February 3 , 2009 and she released a new song , `` Something You Ca n't Live Without , '' in March 2013 . Wynonna is most recognized for her musical work , although starting in the 2000s she has also pursued other interests , including writing , acting and philanthropy .


David Carradine David Carradine ( born John Arthur Carradine ; December 8 , 1936 -- June 3 , 2009 ) was an American actor and martial artist . He was known for his leading role as a peace-loving Shaolin monk , Kwai Chang Caine , in the 1970s television series Kung Fu . He was also known for playing Frankenstein in the original Death Race movie and Bill in both Kill Bill films .   He was a member of an acting family that began with his father , John Carradine . Carradine 's acting career , which included major and minor roles on stage and television , and in cinema , spanned over four decades . A prolific `` B '' movie actor , he appeared in more than 100 feature films in career spanning over sixty years . He was nominated for four Golden Globe Awards , for projects such as the television series Kung Fu ( 1972 -- 1975 ) , the Woody Guthrie biopic Bound for Glory ( 1976 ) and the miniseries North and South ( 1985 ) . His final nomination came in the category of Best Supporting Actor for portraying the titular character in Quentin Tarantino 's Kill Bill : Volume 2 ( 2004 ) .   Films that featured Carradine continued to be released after his death . These posthumous credits were from a variety of genres including action , documentaries , drama , horror , martial arts , science fiction , and westerns . In addition to his acting career , Carradine was a director and musician . Moreover , influenced by his most popular acting role , he studied martial arts .   He was sometimes arrested and prosecuted for a variety of offenses , which often involved substance abuse . He died on June 3 , 2009 , in a hotel room in Bangkok , Thailand from auto-erotic asphyxiation .


Kris Wu starred in an American film called Mr. Six.

Mr. Six (film) Mr. Six ( previously known as Fading Wave ) is a 2015 Chinese crime drama film directed by Guan Hu and written by Dong Runnian . It stars Feng Xiaogang , Zhang Hanyu , Xu Qing , Li Yifeng and Kris Wu . The film closed the 72nd Venice International Film Festival in an out-of-competition screening . Mr. Six was selected to be screened in the Special Presentations section of the 2015 Toronto International Film Festival . Mr. Six was released on December 24 , 2015 in China .   On November 22 , 2015 , Feng Xiaogang , won the Best Actor Award at the 52nd Golden Horse Awards for his performance in Mr. Six .


Kris Wu Wu Yifan ( , pronounced -LSB- - cmnu2-i4fan4 -RSB- , ; born November 6 , 1990 ) , professionally known as Kris Wu or Kris , is a Chinese-born Canadian actor , singer , and model . He is active as a solo artist and actor in China and has starred in several # 1 box office hits including Mr. Six and Journey to the West : The Demons Strike Back , which are among the highest-grossing Chinese films of all time in China . He made his Hollywood debut in xXx : Return of Xander Cage ( 2017 ) .


Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo Guillaume Emmanuel `` Guy-Manuel '' de Homem-Christo ( -LSB- ɡi manɥɛl də ɔmɛm kʁisto -RSB- ; born 8 February 1974 ) is a French musician , record producer , singer , songwriter , DJ and film director , best known for being one half of the French house music duo Daft Punk , along with Thomas Bangalter . He has also produced several works from his record label Crydamoure with label co-owner Éric Chedeville . He and Chedeville formed the musical duo Le Knight Club .


The United Kingdom encompasses Scotland.

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland , commonly known as the United Kingdom ( UK ) or Britain , is a sovereign country in western Europe . Lying off the north-western coast of the European mainland , the United Kingdom includes the island of Great Britain , the north-eastern part of the island of Ireland and many smaller islands . Northern Ireland is the only part of the United Kingdom that shares a land border with another sovereign statethe Republic of Ireland.Although Northern Ireland is the only part of the UK that shares a land border with another sovereign state , two of its Overseas Territories also share land borders with other sovereign countries . Gibraltar shares a border with Spain , while the Sovereign Base Areas of Akrotiri and Dhekelia share borders with the Republic of Cyprus , the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus and the UN buffer zone separating the two Cypriot polities . Apart from this land border , the United Kingdom is surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean , with the North Sea to its east , the English Channel to its south and the Celtic Sea to its south-south-west , giving it the 12th-longest coastline in the world . The Irish Sea lies between Great Britain and Ireland . With an area of 242500 km2 , the United Kingdom is the 78th-largest sovereign state in the world and the 11th-largest in Europe . It is also the 21st-most populous country , with an estimated 65.1 million inhabitants . Together , this makes it the fourth-most densely populated country in the European Union ( EU ) .   The United Kingdom is a constitutional monarchy with a parliamentary system of governance . The monarch is Queen Elizabeth II , who has reigned since 6 February 1952 . The capital of the United Kingdom and its largest city is London , a global city and financial centre with an urban area population of 10.3 million , the fourth-largest in Europe and second-largest in the European Union . Other major urban areas in the United Kingdom include the conurbations centred on Birmingham , Leeds , Glasgow , Liverpool and Manchester . The United Kingdom consists of four countries -- England , Scotland , Wales and Northern Ireland . The last three have devolved administrations , each with varying powers , based in their capitals , Edinburgh , Cardiff and Belfast , respectively . The nearby Isle of Man , Bailiwick of Guernsey and Bailiwick of Jersey are not part of the United Kingdom , being Crown dependencies with the British Government responsible for defence and international representation .   The relationships among the countries of the UK have changed over time . Wales was annexed by the Kingdom of England under the Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542 . A treaty between England and Scotland resulted in 1707 in a unified Kingdom of Great Britain , which merged in 1801 with the Kingdom of Ireland to form the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland . Five-sixths of Ireland seceded from the UK in 1922 , leaving the present formulation of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.The Anglo-Irish Treaty was signed on 6 December 1921 to resolve the Irish War of Independence . When it took effect one year later , it established the Irish Free State as a separate dominion within the Commonwealth . The UK 's current name was adopted to reflect the change . There are fourteen British Overseas Territories . These are the remnants of the British Empire which , at its height in the 1920s , encompassed almost a quarter of the world 's land mass and was the largest empire in history . British influence can be observed in the language , culture and legal systems of many of its former colonies .   The United Kingdom is a developed country and has the world 's fifth-largest economy by nominal GDP and ninth-largest economy by purchasing power parity . The UK is considered to have a high-income economy and is categorised as very high in the Human Development Index , ranking 16th in the world . It was the world 's first industrialised country and the world 's foremost power during the 19th and early 20th centuries . The UK remains a great power with considerable economic , cultural , military , scientific and political influence internationally . It is a recognised nuclear weapons state and is seventh in military expenditure in the world . The UK has been a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council since its first session in 1946 . It has been a leading member state of the EU and its predecessor , the European Economic Community ( EEC ) , since 1973 . However , on 23 June 2016 , a national referendum on the UK 's membership of the EU resulted in a decision to leave , and its exit from the EU is currently being negotiated . The UK is also a member of the Commonwealth of Nations , the Council of Europe , the G7 finance ministers , the G7 forum , the G20 , NATO , the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development ( OECD ) , and the World Trade Organization ( WTO ) .


Sue Sylvester appeared in an American musical comedy-drama film.

Sue Sylvester Susan `` Sue '' Sylvester is a fictional character of the Fox musical comedy-drama series , Glee . The character is portrayed by actress Jane Lynch , and has appeared in Glee from its pilot episode , first broadcast on May 19 , 2009 . Sue was developed by Glee creators Ryan Murphy , Brad Falchuk , and Ian Brennan . For the show 's first four seasons , Sue is the track-suit wearing coach of the William McKinley High School cheerleading squad , and a ruthless bully to both students and faculty members alike . Because her cheerleading squad competes with the glee club for the school 's limited funding , she is often at odds with the club and more particularly its director Will Schuester ( Matthew Morrison ) . Sue is the main antagonist throughout the series ' run . In the show 's fifth season , Sue is made the school 's new principal .   Due to Lynch 's initial limited availability , Sue was originally set to be a recurring character while Lynch was working on a Damon Wayans pilot for the American Broadcasting Company ( ABC ) . When that pilot fell through , Sue became a starring role . The character has been acclaimed by critics . Mary McNamara for the Los Angeles Times has written that `` Lynch alone makes Glee worth watching '' , while Entertainment Weekly Ken Tucker has called Sue `` the greatest Broadway-musical villain to ever co-star in a TV series '' . In recognition of her portrayal of Sue , Lynch won an Emmy and a Golden Globe Award .


Venice Venice ( -LSB- langˈvɛnɪs -RSB- ; Venezia -LSB- veˈnɛtsja -RSB- ; Venesia -LSB- - vecveˈnɛsja -RSB- ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto region . It is situated across a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by bridges . These are located in the shallow Venetian Lagoon , an enclosed bay that lies between the mouths of the Po and the Piave Rivers . Parts of Venice are renowned for the beauty of their settings , their architecture , and artwork . The lagoon and a part of the city are listed as a World Heritage Site .   In 2014 , 264,579 people resided in Comune di Venezia , of whom around 55,000 live in the historic city of Venice ( Centro storico ) . Together with Padua and Treviso , the city is included in the Padua-Treviso-Venice Metropolitan Area ( PATREVE ) , with a total population of 2.6 million . PATREVE is a statistical metropolitan area without any degree of autonomy .   The name is derived from the ancient Veneti people who inhabited the region by the 10th century BC . The city was historically the capital of the Republic of Venice . Venice has been known as the `` La Dominante , '' `` Serenissima , '' `` Queen of the Adriatic , '' `` City of Water , '' `` City of Masks , '' `` City of Bridges , '' `` The Floating City , '' and `` City of Canals . ''   The Republic of Venice was a major financial and maritime power during the Middle Ages and Renaissance , and a staging area for the Crusades and the Battle of Lepanto , as well as a very important center of commerce ( especially silk , grain , and spice ) and art in the 13th century up to the end of the 17th century . The City State of Venice is considered to have been the first real international financial center which gradually emerged from the 9th century to its peak in the 14th century . This made Venice a wealthy city throughout most of its history .   It is also known for its several important artistic movements , especially the Renaissance period . After the Napoleonic Wars and the Congress of Vienna , the Republic was annexed by the Austrian Empire , until it became part of the Kingdom of Italy in 1866 , following a referendum held as a result of the Third Italian War of Independence . Venice has played an important role in the history of symphonic and operatic music , and it is the birthplace of Antonio Vivaldi . Venice has been ranked the most beautiful city in the world as of 2016 .


A Nightmare on Elm Street stars at least one actress.

A Nightmare on Elm Street (2010 film) A Nightmare on Elm Street is a 2010 American slasher film directed by Samuel Bayer and written by Wesley Strick and Eric Heisserer as a remake of Wes Craven 's 1984 film of the same name , which revolves around a group of teenagers who are being stalked in their dreams by an enigmatic man named Freddy Krueger .   Michael Bay and Platinum Dunes produced the film for New Line Cinema , as an intention to reboot the Nightmare on Elm Street franchise , with the cast of Jackie Earle Haley , Kyle Gallner , Rooney Mara , Katie Cassidy , Thomas Dekker and Kellan Lutz . This production makes it the ninth installment of the franchise . The film was released by Warner Bros. on April 30 , 2010 . It received mainly negative reviews from critics and grossed $ 115 million against a production budget of $ 35 million , making it the highest-grossing film in the Nightmare on Elm Street franchise .


Katie Cassidy Katherine Evelyn Anita `` Katie '' Cassidy ( born November 25 , 1986 ) is an American actress . After initially appearing in minor television roles , she made her film debut in When a Stranger Calls ( 2006 ) . During the same year , she also had her first starring role as Kelli Presley in Black Christmas ( 2006 ) . In 2007 , Cassidy gained attention for her role as Ruby on the supernatural-horror television series Supernatural , during its third season . She later had a supporting role in Taken . In 2009 , Cassidy became a cast member of the series Harper 's Island and Melrose Place , both of which lasted for only one season . During 2010 , she had a supporting role in A Nightmare on Elm Street and a recurring role during the fourth season of Gossip Girl .   Cassidy had her breakthrough in 2012 , after being cast as Laurel Lance / Black Canary , one of the main protagonists on the television series Arrow , which spawned an entire franchise known as the Arrowverse . Cassidy reprises her role in The Flash , Legends of Tomorrow and voiced the character in the animated web series Vixen . Following her character 's death , Cassidy began playing Laurel Lance / Black Siren , an antagonistic version of her character from a parallel universe , starting in The Flash and continuing on to Arrow . Because of her roles in numerous horror films ( most of which are remakes of classics of the genre ) which include her feature film debut When a Stranger Calls ( 2006 ) , The Lost ( 2006 ) , Black Christmas ( 2006 ) , and A Nightmare on Elm Street ( 2010 ) , she has been called a modern-day scream queen .


The Netherlands is the headquarters of International Court of Justice.

Netherlands The Netherlands , ( -LSB- ˈnɛðərləndz -RSB- Nederland -LSB- ˈneːdərˌlɑnt -RSB- ; Nederlân ) also known informally as Holland , is the main constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands . It is a densely populated country located in Western Europe with three island territories in the Caribbean.designated Bonaire , Sint Eustatius and Saba within ISO ISO 3166-1 . The European part of the Netherlands borders Germany to the east , Belgium to the south , and the North Sea to the northwest , sharing maritime borders with Belgium , the United Kingdom , and Germany .   The four largest cities in the Netherlands are Amsterdam , Rotterdam , The Hague and Utrecht ( collectively known as G4 ) . Amsterdam is the country 's capital , while The Hague holds the Dutch seat of parliament and government . The port of Rotterdam is the world 's largest port outside East-Asia , and the largest port in Europe . The name Holland is used informally to refer to the whole of the country of the Netherlands.Formally ` Holland ' refers only to two of the country 's twelve provinces : North Holland and South Holland .   `` Netherlands '' literally means `` lower countries '' , influenced by its low land and flat geography , with only about 50 % of its land exceeding one metre above sea level . Most of the areas below sea level are artificial . Since the late 16th century , large areas ( polders ) have been reclaimed from the sea and lakes , amounting to nearly 17 % of the country 's current land mass . With a population density of 412 people per km2 -- 507 ( January 2017 ) if water is excluded -- the Netherlands is classified as a very densely populated country . Only Bangladesh , South Korea , and Taiwan have both a larger population and higher population density . Nevertheless , the Netherlands is the world 's second-largest exporter of food and agricultural products , after the United States . This is partly due to the fertility of the soil and the mild climate . The Netherlands was the third country in the world to have an elected parliament , and since 1848 it has been governed as a parliamentary democracy and a constitutional monarchy , organised as a unitary state . The Netherlands has a long history of social tolerance and is generally regarded as a liberal country , having legalised abortion , prostitution and euthanasia , while maintaining a progressive drugs policy . In 2001 , it became the world 's first country to legalise same-sex marriage .   The Netherlands is a founding member of the EU , Eurozone , G-10 , NATO , OECD and WTO ; as well as being a part of the Schengen Area and the trilateral Benelux Union . The country is host to the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons and five international courts : the Permanent Court of Arbitration , the International Court of Justice , the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia , the International Criminal Court and the Special Tribunal for Lebanon . The first four are situated in The Hague , as is the EU 's criminal intelligence agency Europol and judicial co-operation agency Eurojust . This has led to the city being dubbed `` the world 's legal capital . '' The country also ranks second highest in the world 's 2016 Press Freedom Index , as published by Reporters Without Borders .   The Netherlands has a market-based mixed economy , ranking 17th of 177 countries according to the Index of Economic Freedom . It had the thirteenth-highest per capita income in the world in 2013 according to the International Monetary Fund . In 2013 , the United Nations World Happiness Report ranked the Netherlands as the seventh-happiest country in the world , reflecting its high quality of life . The Netherlands also ranks joint third highest in the Inequality-adjusted Human Development Index , along with Australia .


Parting Glances Parting Glances is an American film shot in 1984 and released in 1986 . With its realistic look at urban gay life in the Ronald Reagan era and at the height of the AIDS crisis , many film critics consider it an important movie in the history of gay cinema . It was also one of the first American films to address the AIDS pandemic . First-time director Bill Sherwood died of complications due to AIDS in 1990 without ever completing another film .


One of Taylor Swift's albums got on the Billboard 200.

Taylor Swift Taylor Alison Swift ( born December 13 , 1989 ) is an American singer-songwriter . One of the most popular contemporary female recording artists , she is known for narrative songs about her personal life , which has received much media attention .   Born and raised in Pennsylvania , Swift moved to Nashville , Tennessee at age 14 to pursue a career in country music . She signed with the independent label Big Machine Records and became the youngest artist ever signed by the Sony/ATV Music publishing house . Her eponymous debut album in 2006 peaked at number five on Billboard 200 and spent the most weeks on the chart in the 2000s . The album 's third single , `` Our Song '' , made her the youngest person to single-handedly write and perform a number-one song on the Hot Country Songs chart . Swift 's second album , Fearless , was released in 2008 . Buoyed by the pop crossover success of the singles `` Love Story '' and `` You Belong with Me '' , Fearless became the best-selling album of 2009 in the United States . The album won four Grammy Awards , with Swift becoming the youngest Album of the Year winner .   Swift was the sole writer of her 2010 album , Speak Now . It debuted at number one in the United States and the single `` Mean '' won two Grammy Awards . Her fourth album , Red ( 2012 ) , yielded the successful singles `` We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together '' and `` I Knew You Were Trouble '' . With her fifth album , the pop-focused 1989 ( 2014 ) , she became the first act to have three albums sell a million copies within one week in the United States . Its singles `` Shake It Off '' , `` Blank Space '' , and `` Bad Blood '' reached number one in the US , Australia , and Canada . The album received three Grammy Awards , and Swift became the first woman and fifth act overall to win Album of the Year twice . The 2015 eponymous concert tour for 1989 became one of highest-grossing of the decade .   As a songwriter , Swift has received awards from the Nashville Songwriters Association and the Songwriters Hall of Fame . She is also the recipient of ten Grammy Awards , five Guinness World Records , one Emmy Award , 21 Billboard Music Awards , 11 Country Music Association Awards , eight Academy of Country Music Awards , and one Brit Award . Swift is one of the best-selling artists of all time , having sold more than 40 million albums -- including 27.1 million in the US -- and 130 million single downloads . She has appeared in Time 100 most influential people in the world ( 2010 and 2015 ) , Forbes top-earning women in music ( 2011 -- 2015 ) , Forbes 100 most powerful women ( 2015 ) , and Forbes Celebrity 100 ( 2016 ) . She was the youngest woman to be included in the third of these and ranked first in Celebrity 100 .


Livestock form part of the basis of Somalia's economy.

Somalia Somalia ( -LSB- səˈmɑːliə , _ soʊ - , _ - ljə -RSB- ; Soomaaliya الصومال ) , officially the Federal Republic of Somalia ( Jamhuuriyadda Federaalka Soomaaliya , جمهورية الصومال الفيدرالية ) , is a country located in the Horn of Africa . It is bordered by Ethiopia to the west , Djibouti to the northwest , the Gulf of Aden to the north , the Indian Ocean to the east , and Kenya to the southwest . Somalia has the longest coastline on Africa 's mainland , and its terrain consists mainly of plateaus , plains and highlands . Climatically , hot conditions prevail year-round , with periodic monsoon winds and irregular rainfall .   Somalia has an estimated population of around 16.3 million . Around 85 % of its residents are ethnic Somalis , who have historically inhabited the northern part of the country . Ethnic minorities are largely concentrated in the southern regions . The official languages of Somalia are Somali and Arabic , both of which belong to the Afroasiatic family . Most people in the country are Muslim , with the majority being Sunni .   In antiquity , Somalia was an important commercial centre . It is among the most probable locations of the fabled ancient Land of Punt . During the Middle Ages , several powerful Somali empires dominated the regional trade , including the Ajuran Empire , the Adal Sultanate , the Warsangali Sultanate , and the Geledi Sultanate . In the late 19th century , through a succession of treaties with these kingdoms , the British and Italian empires gained control of parts of the coast and established the colonies of British Somaliland and Italian Somaliland . In the interior , Mohammed Abdullah Hassan 's Dervish State repelled the British Empire four times and forced it to retreat to the coastal region , before succumbing to defeat in 1920 by British airpower . The toponym Somalia was coined by the Italian explorer Luigi Robecchi Bricchetti ( 1855 -- 1926 ) . Italy acquired full control of the northeastern , central and southern parts of the area after successfully waging the so-called Campaign of the Sultanates against the ruling Majeerteen Sultanate and Sultanate of Hobyo . Italian occupation lasted until 1941 , yielding to British military administration . British Somaliland would remain a protectorate , while Italian Somaliland in 1949 became a United Nations Trusteeship under Italian administration , the Trust Territory of Somaliland . In 1960 , the two regions united to form the independent Somali Republic under a civilian government .   The Supreme Revolutionary Council seized power in 1969 and established the Somali Democratic Republic . Led by Mohamed Siad Barre , this government later collapsed in 1991 as the Somali Civil War broke out . Various armed factions began competing for influence in the power vacuum , particularly in the south . During this period , due to the absence of a central government , Somalia was a `` failed state '' , and residents returned to customary and religious law in most regions . A few autonomous regions , including the Somaliland and Puntland administrations emerged in the north . The early 2000s saw the creation of fledgling interim federal administrations . The Transitional National Government ( TNG ) was established in 2000 , followed by the formation of the Transitional Federal Government ( TFG ) in 2004 , which reestablished national institutions such as the military . In 2006 , the TFG , assisted by Ethiopian troops , assumed control of most of the nation 's southern conflict zones from the newly formed Islamic Courts Union ( ICU ) . The ICU subsequently splintered into more radical groups such as Al-Shabaab , which battled the TFG and its AMISOM allies for control of the region .   By mid-2012 , the insurgents had lost most of the territory that they had seized . In 2011 -- 2012 , a political process providing benchmarks for the establishment of permanent democratic institutions was launched . Within this administrative framework a new provisional constitution was passed in August 2012 , which reformed Somalia as a federation . Following the end of the TFG 's interim mandate the same month , the Federal Government of Somalia , the first permanent central government in the country since the start of the civil war , was formed and a period of reconstruction began in Mogadishu . Somalia has maintained an informal economy , mainly based on livestock , remittances from Somalis working abroad , and telecommunications .


Queen Latifah's record sales have exceeded two million.

Queen Latifah Dana Elaine Owens ( born March 18 , 1970 ) , known professionally by her stage name Queen Latifah , is an American rapper , songwriter , singer , actress , model , television producer , record producer , and talk show host . Born in Newark , New Jersey , she signed with Tommy Boy Records in 1989 and released her debut album All Hail the Queen the same year , featuring the hit single `` Ladies First '' . Her second album , Nature of a Sista ( 1991 ) , was her final album with Tommy Boy Records .   Latifah starred as Khadijah James on the FOX sitcom Living Single , from 1993 to 1998 . Her third album Black Reign ( 1993 ) , spawned the single `` U.N.I.T.Y. '' , which won a Grammy Award and was successful on the Billboard Hot 100 . She then starred in the lead role of Set It Off ( 1996 ) and released her fourth album , Order in the Court , in 1998 , with Motown Records . Latifah gained mainstream success and acclaim with her performance in the film Chicago ( 2002 ) , receiving an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress .   Latifah released her fifth album The Dana Owens Album in 2004 , and has since appeared in a number of films , such as Bringing Down the House ( 2003 ) , Taxi ( 2004 ) , Barbershop 2 : Back in Business ( 2005 ) , Beauty Shop ( 2005 ) , Last Holiday ( 2006 ) , Hairspray ( 2007 ) and Joyful Noise ( 2012 ) . In 2007 and 2009 , she released two more studio albums -- Trav ` lin ' Light and Persona . She created the daytime talk show The Queen Latifah Show , which ran from late 2013 to early 2015 on CBS . Latifah received critical acclaim for her portrayal of blues singer Bessie Smith in the HBO film Bessie ( 2015 ) , which she co-produced , winning the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Television Movie .   She has long been considered one of hip-hop 's pioneer feminists . Queen Latifah received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2006 . Latifah 's work in music , film and television has earned her a Grammy Award , an Emmy Award , a Golden Globe award , three Screen Actors Guild Awards , two NAACP Image Awards , an Academy Award nomination and sales of over two million records .


The 2007 movie Enchanted stars Patrick Dempsey.

Patrick Dempsey Patrick Galen Dempsey ( born January 13 , 1966 ) is an American actor and race car driver , best known for his role as neurosurgeon Dr. Derek `` McDreamy '' Shepherd on Grey 's Anatomy . He saw early success as an actor , starring in a number of films in his early 20s , including Ca n't Buy Me Love ( 1987 ) and Loverboy ( 1989 ) . In the 1990s , he mostly appeared in smaller roles in film , such as Outbreak ( 1995 ) , and television , before landing a lead role in Sweet Home Alabama ( 2002 ) , a surprise box office hit . He has since then starred in a number of other films , including Enchanted ( 2007 ) , Made of Honor ( 2008 ) , Valentine 's Day ( 2010 ) , Flypaper ( 2011 ) , Freedom Writers ( 2007 ) , Transformers : Dark of the Moon ( 2011 ) and Bridget Jones 's Baby ( 2016 ) .   Dempsey , who maintains a sports car and vintage car collection , also enjoys auto racing in his spare time . He has competed in pro-am events such as the 24 Hours of Le Mans , Rolex 24 at Daytona sports car race , and Ensenada SCORE Baja 1000 off-road race . Prior to the 2013 24 Hours of Le Mans , Dempsey declared that he would `` walk away '' from acting if he could and dedicate himself full-time to motorsports .


Amsterdam was the leading centre for corporate finance.

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( -LSB- ˈæmstərdæm , _ ˌæmstərˈdæm -RSB- -LSB- ɑmstərˈdɑm -RSB- ) is the capital and most populous municipality of the Kingdom of the Netherlands . Its status as the capital is mandated by the Constitution of the Netherlands , although it is not the seat of the government , which is The Hague . Amsterdam has a population of 851,373 within the city proper , 1,351,587 in the urban area , and 2,410,960 in the Amsterdam metropolitan area . The city is located in the province of North Holland in the west of the country . The metropolitan area comprises much of the northern part of the Randstad , one of the larger conurbations in Europe , with a population of approximately 7 million .   Amsterdam 's name derives from Amstelredamme , indicative of the city 's origin around a dam in the river Amstel . Originating as a small fishing village in the late 12th century , Amsterdam became one of the most important ports in the world during the Dutch Golden Age ( 17th century ) , a result of its innovative developments in trade . During that time , the city was the leading centre for finance and diamonds . In the 19th and 20th centuries the city expanded , and many new neighborhoods and suburbs were planned and built . The 17th-century canals of Amsterdam and the 19 -- 20th century Defence Line of Amsterdam are on the UNESCO World Heritage List . Since the annexation of municipality Sloten in 1921 by the municipality of Amsterdam , the oldest historic part of the city lies in Sloten ( 9th century ) .   As the commercial capital of the Netherlands and one of the top financial centres in Europe , Amsterdam is considered an alpha world city by the Globalization and World Cities ( GaWC ) study group . The city is also the cultural capital of the Netherlands . Many large Dutch institutions have their headquarters there , and seven of the world 's 500 largest companies , including Philips and ING , are based in the city . In 2012 , Amsterdam was ranked the second best city to live in by the Economist Intelligence Unit ( EIU ) and 12th globally on quality of living for environment and infrastructure by Mercer . The city was ranked 3rd in innovation by Australian innovation agency 2thinknow in their Innovation Cities Index 2009 . The Amsterdam seaport to this day remains the second in the country , and the fifth largest seaport in Europe .   Famous Amsterdam residents include the diarist Anne Frank , artists Rembrandt van Rijn and Vincent van Gogh , and philosopher Baruch Spinoza .   The Amsterdam Stock Exchange , the oldest stock exchange in the world , is located in the city center . Amsterdam 's main attractions , including its historic canals , the Rijksmuseum , the Van Gogh Museum , Stedelijk Museum , Hermitage Amsterdam , Anne Frank House , Amsterdam Museum , its red-light district , and its many cannabis coffee shops draw more than 5 million international visitors annually .


There is a three-time Superstar of the Year Slammy Award Winner by the name of John Cena.

John Cena John Felix Anthony Cena Jr. ( -LSB- ˈsiːnə -RSB- born April 23 , 1977 ) is an American professional wrestler , rapper , actor , and reality television show host . He is signed to WWE , where he performs on the SmackDown brand . Cena started his professional wrestling career in 1999 with Ultimate Pro Wrestling ( UPW ) and won the UPW Heavyweight Championship the following year . Cena signed a developmental contract with the World Wrestling Federation ( WWF , later renamed to World Wrestling Entertainment , or simply WWE ) in 2001 , debuting on the WWE main roster in 2002 .   From a generic character in 2002 , Cena morphed into a rapper for the time period of 2002 -- 2004 , which earned him fame within the audience on SmackDown ! . Cena later transitioned to his current character , which he describes as a `` goody-two shoes Superman '' . However , Cena has been labeled as the `` most polarizing professional wrestler ever '' as his character has many supporters and many detractors , according to Jim Ross of Fox Sports , who also noted that Cena has been WWE 's franchise player for a long-time . In 2012 , IGN described Cena as WWE 's franchise player since 2005 and WWE credited Cena as being the `` face of WWE '' in 2015 since 2004 . Industry veterans John Layfield , Paul Heyman , and Kurt Angle have called Cena the greatest WWE star of all time .   Throughout his WWE career , Cena has won 25 championships , with 16 reigns as a world champion ( 13 times as WWE Champion and three times as WWE 's World Heavyweight Champion ) , an accomplishment only previously achieved by WWE Hall of Famer Ric Flair . He is also a five-time United States Champion , and four-time world tag team champion ( two World Tag Team and two WWE Tag Team ) . Furthermore , he is a Money in the Bank ladder match winner ( 2012 ) , a two-time Royal Rumble winner ( 2008 , 2013 ) , and a three-time Superstar of the Year Slammy Award winner ( 2009 , 2010 , 2012 ) . Cena has the fourth-highest number of combined days as WWE Champion , behind Bruno Sammartino , Bob Backlund , and Hulk Hogan . He has also headlined WWE 's flagship event , WrestleMania , on five different occasions ( WrestleManias 22 , 23 , XXVII , XXVIII , and 29 ) over the course of his career , as well as many others pay-per-view events . As of 2016 , John Cena is WWE 's highest-paid wrestler .   Outside of wrestling , Cena has released the rap album You Ca n't See Me , which debuted at No. 15 on the US Billboard 200 chart , and starred in the feature films The Marine ( 2006 ) , 12 Rounds ( 2009 ) , Legendary ( 2010 ) , The Reunion ( 2011 ) , Trainwreck ( 2015 ) , and Sisters ( 2015 ) . Cena has also made appearances on television shows including Manhunt , Deal or No Deal , MADtv , Saturday Night Live , Punk 'd , Psych , and Parks and Recreation . He was also a contestant on Fast Cars and Superstars : The Gillette Young Guns Celebrity Race , where he made it to the final round before being eliminated , placing third in the overall competition . Cena is also the host of American Grit on Fox . Cena is involved in numerous philanthropic causes ; most notably with the Make-A-Wish Foundation . He has granted the most wishes in Make-A-Wish history .


Dog The domestic dog ( Canis lupus familiaris or Canis familiaris ) is a member of genus Canis ( canines ) that forms part of the wolf-like canids , and is the most widely abundant carnivore . The dog and the extant gray wolf are sister taxa , with modern wolves not closely related to the wolves that were first domesticated . The dog was the first domesticated species and has been selectively bred over millennia for various behaviors , sensory capabilities , and physical attributes .   Their long association with humans has led dogs to be uniquely attuned to human behavior and they are able to thrive on a starch-rich diet that would be inadequate for other canid species . Dogs vary widely in shape , size and colours . Dogs perform many roles for people , such as hunting , herding , pulling loads , protection , assisting police and military , companionship and , more recently , aiding handicapped individuals . This influence on human society has given them the sobriquet `` man 's best friend '' .


Will Ferrell took part in an American fantasy comedy-drama film.

Will Ferrell John William Ferrell ( -LSB- ˈfɛrəl -RSB- born July 16 , 1967 ) is an American actor , comedian , producer , and writer . He first established himself in the mid-1990s as a cast member on the NBC sketch comedy show Saturday Night Live , and has subsequently starred in comedy films such as Anchorman : The Legend of Ron Burgundy ( 2004 ) , Talladega Nights ( 2006 ) , Step Brothers ( 2008 ) , The Other Guys ( 2010 ) and Anchorman 2 : The Legend Continues ( 2013 ) , all but one of which he co-wrote with his comedy partner Adam McKay . The two also founded the comedy website Funny or Die in 2007 . Other films roles include Elf , Old School ( both 2003 ) , Blades of Glory ( 2007 ) , and the animated films Megamind ( 2010 ) and The Lego Movie ( 2014 ) .   Ferrell is considered a member of the `` Frat Pack '' , a generation of leading Hollywood comic actors who emerged in the late 1990s and the 2000s , including Jack Black , Ben Stiller , Steve Carell , Vince Vaughn , and brothers Owen and Luke Wilson . He received an Emmy Award nomination for his work on Saturday Night Live , and two Golden Globe Award nominations for The Producers ( 2005 ) and Stranger than Fiction ( 2006 ) . He was also named the best comedian of 2015 in the British GQ Men of the Year awards . Ferrell received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on March 26 , 2015 .


Stranger than Fiction (2006 film) Stranger than Fiction is a 2006 American fantasy comedy-drama film directed by Marc Forster , produced by Lindsay Doran , and written by Zach Helm . The film stars Will Ferrell , Maggie Gyllenhaal , Dustin Hoffman , Queen Latifah , and Emma Thompson . The main plot follows Harold Crick ( portrayed by Ferrell ) , a nondescript white-collar worker who begins hearing a disembodied voice narrating his life as it happens -- seemingly the text of a novel in which it is stated that he will soon die -- and he frantically seeks to somehow prevent that ending . The film was shot on location in Chicago , and has been praised for its innovative , intelligent story and fine performances . Ferrell , who came to prominence playing brash comedic parts , garnered particular attention for offering a restrained performance in his first starring dramatic role .


Lady Gaga is a lizard, songwriter, and actress.

Lady Gaga Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta ( -LSB- ˈstɛfəniː_dʒɜrməˈnɒtə -RSB- ; born March 28 , 1986 ) , known professionally as Lady Gaga , is an American singer , songwriter , and actress . At the beginning of her career , Gaga became known for her unconventionality and provocative work . A popular contemporary recording artist , she is noted for constantly experimenting with new musical ideas and images .   Gaga initially played roles in high school plays , and studied at CAP21 through NYU 's Tisch School of the Arts before dropping out to pursue a musical career . After leaving a rock band , participating in a performance art circuit , and being dropped from a contract with Def Jam Recordings , Gaga worked as a songwriter for Sony/ATV Music Publishing . From there , Akon noticed her vocal abilities and helped her sign a joint deal with Interscope Records and his own KonLive Distribution in 2007 . Gaga rose to prominence with the release of her successful debut album The Fame ( 2008 ) and its international chart-topping singles `` Just Dance '' and `` Poker Face '' . A follow-up EP , The Fame Monster ( 2009 ) , was met with a similar reception and the singles `` Bad Romance '' , `` Telephone '' , and `` Alejandro '' were also successful .   Gaga 's second full-length album Born This Way ( 2011 ) topped the charts in more than 20 countries , including the US , where it sold over one million copies in its first week . The album produced the number-one single `` Born This Way '' . Gaga 's third album Artpop , released in 2013 , topped the US charts and included the successful single `` Applause '' . In 2014 , Gaga released a collaborative jazz album with Tony Bennett titled Cheek to Cheek , her third consecutive number one in the US . For her work in the television series American Horror Story : Hotel , Gaga won a Golden Globe Award in 2016 . With her fifth studio album Joanne ( 2016 ) , she became the first woman to have four US number one albums in the 2010s . In February 2017 , Gaga headlined the Super Bowl LI halftime show , which had over 150 million audience across various platforms worldwide , making it the most viewed musical event in history .   With global album and single sales of 27 million and 146 million respectively , as of January 2016 , she is one of the best-selling musicians of all time . Her achievements include twelve Guinness World Records , three Brit Awards , and six Grammy Awards . She has also received awards from the Songwriters Hall of Fame and the Council of Fashion Designers of America . Gaga regularly appears on Billboards Artists of the Year lists and Forbess power and earnings rankings . She was ranked at number four on VH1 's Greatest Women in Music , finished second on Times 2011 readers ' poll of the most influential people of the past ten years , and was named Billboards Woman of the Year ( 2015 ) . She is known for her philanthropic work and social activism , including LGBT rights and her own non-profit organization , the Born This Way Foundation , which focuses on promoting youth empowerment and combating bullying .


Maggie Gyllenhaal starred in Nanny McPhee and the Big Bang in 2007.

Maggie Gyllenhaal Margalit Ruth `` Maggie '' Gyllenhaal ( -LSB- ˈdʒɪlənhɑːl -RSB- born November 16 , 1977 in New York City ) is an American actress . Part of the Gyllenhaal family , she is the daughter of filmmakers Stephen Gyllenhaal and Naomi Achs and the older sister of actor Jake Gyllenhaal .   She began her film career as a teenager with roles in her father 's films and appeared alongside her brother in the psychological horror film Donnie Darko ( 2001 ) . She garnered critical praise for starring as Lee Holloway in Secretary ( 2002 ) , for which she was nominated for a Golden Globe Award . For her performance in Sherrybaby ( 2006 ) , she was nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Motion Picture -- Drama . She also received recognition for starring as Rachel Dawes in The Dark Knight ( 2008 ) . For her performance in the musical-drama Crazy Heart ( 2009 ) , she was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress . She subsequently starred in Nanny McPhee and the Big Bang ( 2010 ) , Wo n't Back Down ( 2012 ) and Frank ( 2014 ) , for which she was nominated for a BIFA Award .   In 2014 , she made her Broadway debut in a revival of The Real Thing , and also starred in the television BBC miniseries The Honourable Woman . For her performance in the latter she won a Golden Globe Award and was nominated for an Emmy Award .


Richard Gere starred in an American thriller film.

Arbitrage (film) Arbitrage is a 2012 American thriller drama film directed by Nicholas Jarecki and starring Richard Gere , Susan Sarandon , Tim Roth and Brit Marling . Filming began in April 2011 in New York City . It opened in U.S. theaters in September 2012 .


Richard Gere Richard Tiffany Gere ( -LSB- ˈɡɪər -RSB- ; born August 31 , 1949 ) is an American actor and humanitarian activist . He began acting in the 1970s , playing a supporting role in Looking for Mr. Goodbar and a starring role in Days of Heaven . He came to prominence in 1980 for his role in the film American Gigolo , which established him as a leading man and a sex symbol . He went on to star in several hit films , including An Officer and a Gentleman , Pretty Woman , Primal Fear , Runaway Bride , Arbitrage and Chicago , for which he won a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor and a Screen Actors Guild Award for part of the Best Cast .


Beautiful People (UK TV series) Beautiful People was a British comedy drama television series based on the memoirs of Barneys creative director Simon Doonan . The series takes place in Reading , Berkshire , in 1997 , where thirteen-year-old Simon Doonan and his best friend Kylie dream of escaping their dreary suburban surroundings and moving to cosmopolitan London `` to live amongst the beautiful people '' . The first episode aired on BBC Two on 2 October 2008 and recorded overnight ratings of 1.5 million viewers and positive critical reaction . Episodes are self-contained , but do follow a loose story arc throughout the course of each series . The second and final series finished airing on 18 December 2009 .


Cleopatra Cleopatra VII Philopator ( Κλεοπάτρα Φιλοπάτωρ 69 -- August 12 , 30 BC ) , known to history simply as Cleopatra , was the last active ruler of Ptolemaic Egypt , briefly survived as pharaoh by her son Caesarion . After her reign , Egypt became a province of the recently established Roman Empire .   Cleopatra was a member of the Ptolemaic dynasty , a Greek family of Macedonian origin that ruled Egypt after Alexander the Great 's death during the Hellenistic period . The Ptolemies spoke Greek throughout their dynasty , and refused to speak Egyptian , which is the reason that Greek as well as Egyptian languages were used on official court documents such as the Rosetta Stone . By contrast , Cleopatra did learn to speak Egyptian and represented herself as the reincarnation of the Egyptian goddess Isis .   Cleopatra originally ruled jointly with her father Ptolemy XII Auletes , and later with her brothers Ptolemy XIII and Ptolemy XIV , whom she married as per Egyptian custom , but eventually she became sole ruler . As queen , she consummated a liaison with Julius Caesar that solidified her grip on the throne . She later elevated Caesarion , her son with Caesar , to co-ruler in name .   After Caesar 's assassination in 44 BC , she aligned with Mark Antony in opposition to Caesar 's legal heir Gaius Julius Caesar Octavianus ( later known as Augustus ) . With Antony , she bore the twins Cleopatra Selene II and Alexander Helios , and son Ptolemy Philadelphus ( her unions with her brothers had produced no children ) . Antony committed suicide after losing the Battle of Actium to Octavian 's forces , and Cleopatra followed suit . According to a popular belief , she killed herself by means of an asp bite on August 12 , 30 BC . She was outlived by Caesarion , who was declared pharaoh by his supporters , but he was soon killed on Octavian 's orders . Egypt then became the Roman province of Aegyptus .   Her legacy survives in numerous works of art and many dramatizations of incidents from her life in literature and other media , such as William Shakespeare 's tragedy Antony and Cleopatra , George Frideric Handel 's opera Giulio Cesare , George Bernard Shaw 's play Caesar and Cleopatra , Jules Massenet 's opera Cléopâtre , and the films Cleopatra ( 1934 ) and Cleopatra ( 1963 ) .


Prison Break was nominated for Favorite New TV Drama.

Prison Break Prison Break is an American television serial drama created by Paul Scheuring , that was broadcast on Fox for four seasons from August 29 , 2005 to May 15 , 2009 , and a fifth season which premiered on April 4 , 2017 . The series revolves around two brothers , one of whom has been sentenced to death for a crime he did not commit , and the other who devises an elaborate plan to help his brother escape prison and clear his name . The series was produced by Adelstein-Parouse Productions , in association with Original Television and 20th Century Fox Television . Along with creator Paul Scheuring , the series is executive produced by Matt Olmstead , Kevin Hooks , Marty Adelstein , Dawn Parouse , Neal H. Moritz , and Brett Ratner who directed the pilot episode . The series ' theme music , composed by Ramin Djawadi , was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award in 2006 .   The series was originally turned down by Fox in 2003 , which was concerned about the long-term prospects of such a series . Following the popularity of serialized prime time television series Lost and 24 , Fox decided to back production in 2004 . The first season received generally positive reviews , and performed well in the ratings . The first season was originally planned for a 13-episode run , but was extended to include an extra nine episodes due to its popularity . Prison Break was nominated for several industry awards , including the 2005 Golden Globe Award for Best Television Series Drama and the 2006 People 's Choice Award for Favorite New TV Drama , which it won . In the United States , all four seasons have been released on DVD and released on Blu-ray internationally .   The success of the series has inspired short videos for mobile phones , several official tie-ins in print and on the Internet , as well as a video game . A spin-off series , Prison Break : Proof of Innocence , was produced exclusively for mobile phones . The series has spawned an official magazine and a tie-in novel . The fourth season of Prison Break returned from its mid-season break in a new timeslot on April 17 , 2009 , for the series ' last six episodes . Two additional episodes , titled `` The Old Ball and Chain '' and `` Free '' were produced , and were later transformed into a standalone feature , titled The Final Break . The events of this feature take place before the last scene of the series finale , and are intended to conclude unfinished plotlines . The feature was released on DVD and Blu-ray July 21 , 2009 . A nine-episode fifth season was announced by Fox in January 2016 and premiered on April 4 , 2017 , and aired on Tuesdays at 9:00 pm . The season concluded on May 30 , 2017 .


Sleep can be disrupted by sleep paralysis.

Sleep Sleep is a naturally recurring state of mind and body characterized by altered consciousness , relatively inhibited sensory activity , inhibition of nearly all voluntary muscles , and reduced interactions with surroundings . It is distinguished from wakefulness by a decreased ability to react to stimuli , but is more easily reversed than the state of being comatose . Sleep occurs in repeating periods , in which the body alternates between two highly distinct modes known as non-REM and REM sleep . Although REM stands for `` rapid eye movement '' , this mode of sleep has many other aspects , including virtual paralysis of the body . A well-known feature of sleep is the dream , an experience typically recounted in narrative form , which resembles waking life while in progress , but which usually can later be distinguished as fantasy .   During sleep , most of the body 's systems are in an anabolic state , helping to restore the immune , nervous , skeletal , and muscular systems ; these are vital processes that maintain mood , memory , and cognitive performance and plays a large role in the function of the endocrine and immune systems . The internal circadian clock promotes sleep daily at night . The diverse purposes and mechanisms of sleep are the subject of substantial ongoing research . The advent of artificial light has substantially altered sleep timing in industrialized countries .   Humans may suffer from various sleep disorders , including dyssomnias , such as insomnia , hypersomnia , narcolepsy , and sleep apnea ; parasomnias , such as sleepwalking and REM behavior disorder ; bruxism ; and circadian rhythm sleep disorders .


Liberia's office of president is held by Ellen Johnson Sirleaf.

Liberia Liberia -LSB- laɪˈbɪəriə -RSB- , officially the Republic of Liberia , is a country on the West African coast . It is bordered by Sierra Leone to its west , Guinea to its north and Ivory Coast to its east . It covers an area of 111369 km2 and has a population of 4,503,000 people . English is the official language and over 20 indigenous languages are spoken , representing the numerous tribes who make up more than 95 % of the population . The country 's capital and largest city is Monrovia .   Forests on the coastline are composed mostly of salt-tolerant mangrove trees , while the more sparsely populated inland has forests opening onto a plateau of drier grasslands . The climate is equatorial , with significant rainfall during the May -- October rainy season and harsh harmattan winds the remainder of the year . Liberia possesses about forty percent of the remaining Upper Guinean rainforest . It was an important producer of rubber in the early 20th century .   The Republic of Liberia began as a settlement of the American Colonization Society ( ACS ) , who believed blacks would face better chances for freedom in Africa than in the United States . The country declared its independence on July 26 , 1847 . The U.S. did not recognize Liberia 's independence until during the American Civil War on February 5 , 1862 . Between January 7 , 1822 and the American Civil War , more than 15,000 freed and free-born blacks , who faced legislated limits in the U.S. , and 3,198 Afro-Caribbeans , relocated to the settlement . The black settlers carried their culture with them to Liberia . The Liberian constitution and flag were modeled after those of the U.S. On January 3 , 1848 , Joseph Jenkins Roberts , a wealthy , free-born African American from Virginia who settled in Liberia , was elected as Liberia 's first president after the people proclaimed independence .   Liberia is the only African republic to have self-proclaimed independence without gaining independence through revolt from any other power , and is Africa 's first and oldest modern republic . Liberia retained its independence during the Scramble for Africa . During World War II , Liberia supported the United States war efforts against Germany and in turn the U.S. invested in considerable infrastructure in Liberia to help its war effort , which also aided the country in modernizing and improving its major air transportation facilities . In addition , President William Tubman encouraged economic changes . Internationally , Liberia was a founding member of the League of Nations , United Nations and the Organisation of African Unity .   Political tensions from the rule of William R. Tolbert resulted in a military coup in 1980 that overthrew his leadership soon after his death , marking the beginning of years-long political instability . Five years of military rule by the People 's Redemption Council and five years of civilian rule by the National Democratic Party of Liberia were followed by the First and Second Liberian Civil Wars . These resulted in the deaths and displacement of more than half a million people and devastated Liberia 's economy . A peace agreement in 2003 led to democratic elections in 2005 , in which Ellen Johnson Sirleaf was elected President . Recovery proceeds but about 85 % of the population live below the international poverty line . Liberia 's economic and political stability was threatened in the 2010s by an Ebola virus epidemic ; it originated in Guinea in December 2013 , entered Liberia in March 2014 , and was declared officially ended on May 8 , 2015 .


Ellen Johnson Sirleaf Ellen Johnson Sirleaf ( born 29 October 1938 ) is a Liberian politician who has served as the 24th and current President of Liberia since 2006 . Sirleaf is the first elected female head of state in Africa .   Sirleaf was born in Monrovia to a Gola father and Kru-German mother . She was educated at the College of West Africa before moving to the United States where she studied at Madison Business College and Harvard University . She returned to Liberia to work in William Tolbert 's government as Assistant Minister of Finance from 1973 -- 74 and Minister of Finance from 1979 -- 80 . After Samuel Doe seized power in a coup d'état and executed Tolbert , Sirleaf fled to the U.S. . She worked for the World Bank before moving to Nairobi , where she worked for Citibank and then the Equator Bank .   She placed second in the 1997 presidential election won by Charles Taylor . She won the 2005 presidential election and took office on 16 January 2006 , and she was re-elected in 2011 . In June 2016 , she was elected as the Chair of the Economic Community of West African States , making her the first woman to occupy that position since it was formed .  Sirleaf was jointly awarded the 2011 Nobel Peace Prize with Leymah Gbowee of Liberia and Tawakkol Karman of Yemen . The women were recognized `` for their non-violent struggle for the safety of women and for women 's rights to full participation in peace-building work . ''   Sirleaf was conferred the Indira Gandhi Prize by President of India Pranab Mukherjee on 12 September 2013 . As of 2016 , she is listed as the 83rd most powerful woman in the world by Forbes .


Giacomo Casanova Giacomo Girolamo Casanova ( -LSB- ˈdʒaːkomo dʒiˈrɔːlamo kazaˈnɔːva -RSB- or -LSB- kasaˈnɔːva -RSB- 2 April 1725 -- 4 June 1798 ) was an Italian adventurer and author from the Republic of Venice . His autobiography , Histoire de ma vie ( Story of My Life ) , is regarded as one of the most authentic sources of the customs and norms of European social life during the 18th century .   As was not uncommon at the time , Casanova , depending on circumstances , used more or less fictitious names , such as baron or count of Farussi ( the name of his mother ) or Chevalier de Seingalt ( pronounced Saint-Galle , as in French ) . He often signed his works Jacques Casanova de Seingalt after he began writing in French following his second exile from Venice .   He has become so famous for his often complicated and elaborate affairs with women that his name is now synonymous with `` womanizer '' . He associated with European royalty , popes , and cardinals , along with luminaries such as Voltaire , Goethe , and Mozart . He spent his last years in Bohemia as a librarian in Count Waldstein 's household , where he also wrote the story of his life .


Connaught Tunnel is in southeast British Columbia.

Connaught Tunnel For the Connaught tunnel in East London , England , see Eastern Counties and Thames Junction Railway  The Connaught Tunnel is a railway tunnel under the Selkirk Mountains in southeastern British Columbia , Canada , near the city of Revelstoke . The 5.022 mi tunnel carries the Canadian Pacific Railway main line under Mount Macdonald and replaced the railway 's previous routing over Rogers Pass , which had been struck by several deadly avalanches since its completion in 1885 . At the time it was built , the Connaught Tunnel was the longest railway tunnel in North America . It was named for the Governor General of Canada -- the Prince Arthur , Duke of Connaught -- who in turn was named after the province of Connaught in Ireland .   Announced in February 1913 , the contract was awarded on July 1 , 1913 , to Foley Bros. . Welch and Stewart . The tunnel was designed by John G. Sullivan who joined the Canadian Pacific Railway in 1900 and eventually became Chief Engineer for Canada . A small tunnel was built , from which cross cuts were made to the main tunnel so work could carry on at a number of headings . The sub-contractor guaranteed to drill 900 ft of tunnel per month and started on April 2 , 1914 . Compressed air equipment and narrow gauge locomotives were used inside the tunnel . The company town housed some 300 workers . The tunnel was completed before the original deadline , with operation beginning December 16 , 1916 . It had a grade of only 0.95 per cent westward , and was tangent ; light at one end can be seen at the other , more than five miles away .   It cost $ 5.5 million , while a further $ 3 million were spent on track revision , which saw 14.5 mi abandoned including the Loops and over 4 mi of snow sheds . In all , the route was shortened by 4.3 mi .   Problems were encountered with ventilation , loose rocks and wet rails , which caused trains to stall . The tunnel was later lined with reinforced concrete and equipped with a better ventilation system . Originally double tracked , it was realigned with a single track in 1959 to accommodate higher freight cars .   In the late 1980s , the Mount Macdonald Tunnel was built to supplement the Connaught Tunnel and to lessen the grade on the eastern approach to the pass . Trains now predominantly travel east through the Connaught Tunnel and west through the Mount Macdonald Tunnel .   In 2001 , the Connaught Tunnel was inducted into the North America Railway Hall of Fame . The Hall of Fame recognizes and establishes an enduring tribute to the people and things that have made significant contribution relating to railway industry in North America . The Connaught Tunnel was inducted in the `` Facilities and Structures '' category with `` National '' significance .


Gabourey Sidibe was born on May 6, 1983.

Gabourey Sidibe Gabourey Sidibe ( -LSB- ˈɡæbəˌreɪ_ˈsɪdɪˌbeɪ -RSB- ; born May 6 , 1983 ) is an American actress who made her acting debut in the 2009 film Precious , a role that brought her a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actress . From 2010 to 2013 , she was a main cast member of the Showtime series The Big C.   Sidibe co-starred on the television series American Horror Story : Coven as Queenie and American Horror Story : Freak Show as Regina Ross , and later reprised her role as Queenie in American Horror Story : Hotel . Since 2015 , she stars in the Fox musical drama series Empire as Becky Williams .


Hisense failed to acquire the right to sell televisions in the Americas in 2015.

Hisense Hisense Co. , Ltd. . is a Chinese multinational white goods and electronics manufacturer headquartered in Qingdao , Shandong province , China . It is a state-owned enterprise with publicly traded subsidiaries .   Hisense has two publicly traded companies , Hisense Electric Co Ltd , which is listed on the Shanghai Stock Exchange and Hisense Kelon Electrical Holdings Co Ltd , which is listed on the Shenzhen and Hong Kong stock exchanges and a number of other subsidiaries .   Hisense has 13 manufacturing facilities in China ( located in the provinces/cities of : Guangdong , Guizhou , Huzhou , Jiangsu , Liaoning , Linyi , Shandong , Sichuan , Yangzhou , Yingkou , Xinjiang , Zibo and the municipality of Beijing ) and several outside of China , namely in Hungary , South Africa , Egypt , Algeria , France and Mexico .   Hisense retails products under several brand names . These include Combine , Kelon and Ronshen , etc. . Hisense is also an OEM , so some of the products it makes are sold to other manufacturers and carry a brand name not related to Hisense . In 2015 it acquired the right to sell televisions in the Americas using the brand name of former Japanese firm Sharp . It also makes televisions under its own name as of 2013 .


Nikola Tesla received an advanced education in physics.

Nikola Tesla Nikola Tesla ( Никола Тесла 10 July 1856 -- 7 January 1943 ) was a Serbian-American inventor , electrical engineer , mechanical engineer , physicist , and futurist who is best known for his contributions to the design of the modern alternating current ( AC ) electricity supply system .   Born and raised in the Austrian Empire , Tesla received an advanced education in engineering and physics in the 1870s and gained practical experience in the early 1880s working in telephony and at Continental Edison in the new electric power industry . He emigrated to the United States in 1884 , where he would become a naturalized citizen . He worked for a short time at the Edison Machine Works in New York City before he struck out on his own . With the help of partners to finance and market his ideas , Tesla set up laboratories and companies in New York to develop a range of electrical and mechanical devices . His alternating current ( AC ) induction motor and related polyphase AC patents , licensed by Westinghouse Electric in 1888 , earned him a considerable amount of money and became the cornerstone of the polyphase system which that company would eventually market .   Attempting to develop inventions he could patent and market , Tesla conducted a range of experiments with mechanical oscillators/generators , electrical discharge tubes , and early X-ray imaging . He also built a wireless-controlled boat , one of the first ever exhibited . Tesla became well known as an inventor and would demonstrate his achievements to celebrities and wealthy patrons at his lab , and was noted for his showmanship at public lectures .   Throughout the 1890s , Tesla would pursue his ideas for wireless lighting and worldwide wireless electric power distribution in his high-voltage , high-frequency power experiments in New York and Colorado Springs . In 1893 , he made pronouncements on the possibility of wireless communication with his devices . Tesla tried to put these ideas to practical use in his unfinished Wardenclyffe Tower project , an intercontinental wireless communication and power transmitter , but ran out of funding before he could complete it .   After Wardenclyffe , Tesla went on to try and develop a series of inventions in the 1910s and 1920s with varying degrees of success . Having spent most of his money , he lived in a series of New York hotels , leaving behind unpaid bills . The nature of his earlier work and the pronouncements he made to the press later in life earned him the reputation of an archetypal `` mad scientist '' in American popular culture . Tesla died in New York City in January 1943 . His work fell into relative obscurity following his death , but in 1960 , the General Conference on Weights and Measures named the SI unit of magnetic flux density the tesla in his honor . There has been a resurgence in popular interest in Tesla since the 1990s .


Shakira Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll ( -LSB- ( t ) ʃaˈkiɾa isaˈβel meβaˈɾak riˈpol -RSB- ; -LSB- langʃəˈki : rə -RSB- born 2 February 1977 ) is a Colombian singer , songwriter , dancer , and record producer . Born and raised in Barranquilla , she began performing in school , demonstrating Latin American , Arabic , and rock and roll influences and belly dancing abilities . Shakira 's first studio albums , Magia and Peligro , failed to attain commercial success in the 1990s ; however , she rose to prominence in Latin America with her major-label debut , Pies Descalzos ( 1996 ) , and her fourth album , Dónde Están los Ladrones ? ( 1998 ) .   Shakira entered the English-language market with her fifth album , Laundry Service . Its lead single , `` Whenever , Wherever '' , became one of the most successful singles of 2002 . Her success was solidified with her sixth and seventh albums Fijación Oral , Volumen Uno and Oral Fixation , Volume Two ( 2005 ) , the latter of which spawned one of the best-selling songs of the 21st century , `` Hips Do n't Lie '' . Shakira 's eighth and ninth albums , She Wolf ( 2009 ) and Sale el Sol ( 2010 ) , received critical praise . Her official song for the 2010 FIFA World Cup , `` Waka Waka ( This Time for Africa ) '' , became the biggest-selling World Cup song of all time . With over 1.3 billion views , it is one of the most-watched music videos on YouTube . Shakira served as a coach on the fourth and sixth seasons of the American version of The Voice in 2013 and 2014 , respectively . Her tenth album , Shakira ( 2014 ) , is preceded by its lead single , `` Ca n't Remember to Forget You '' .   Shakira has won many awards , including five MTV Video Music Awards , two Grammy Awards , eight Latin Grammy Awards , seven Billboard Music Awards , 28 Billboard Latin Music Awards and has been Golden Globe-nominated . She has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame , and has sold between 70 and 125 million records worldwide ( depending on the source ) , making her the best selling South American singer and one of the best selling Latin artists of all time . She carries out well-known philanthropic activities through charity work most notably through her Pies Descalzos Foundation . In 2014 , she was listed as the 58th most powerful woman in the world by Forbes .


Boromir makes an appearance in volume 2 of The Lord of the Rings.

Boromir Boromir is a fictional character in J. R. R. Tolkien 's legendarium . He appears in the first two volumes of The Lord of the Rings ( The Fellowship of the Ring and The Two Towers ) , and is mentioned in the last volume , The Return of the King .  He is the heir of Denethor II ( the 26th Ruling Steward of Gondor ) and the elder brother of Faramir . In the course of the story Boromir joins the Fellowship of the Ring .   Boromir is portrayed as a noble character who believes passionately in the greatness of his kingdom , who would have defended its people to the last . Boromir 's great stamina and physical strength , together with a forceful and commanding personality , made him a widely admired commander in Gondor 's army : he was made Captain of the White Tower , and quickly became Captain-General , also bearing the title High Warden of the White Tower . He was also heir apparent to the Stewardship . Boromir led many successful forays against Sauron 's forces , prior to his journey north to Rivendell , which brought him great esteem in the eyes of his father , Denethor .


Haiti belongs to two international organizations.

International Monetary Fund The International Monetary Fund ( IMF ) is an international organization headquartered in Washington , D.C. , of `` 189 countries working to foster global monetary cooperation , secure financial stability , facilitate international trade , promote high employment and sustainable economic growth , and reduce poverty around the world . '' Formed in 1944 at the Bretton Woods Conference primarily by the ideas of Harry Dexter White and John Maynard Keynes , it came into formal existence in 1945 with 29 member countries and the goal of reconstructing the international payment system . It now plays a central role in the management of balance of payments difficulties and international financial crises . Countries contribute funds to a pool through a quota system from which countries experiencing balance of payments problems can borrow money . , the fund had SDR477 billion ( about $ 668 billion ) .   Through the fund , and other activities such as the gathering of statistics and analysis , surveillance of its members ' economies and the demand for particular policies , the IMF works to improve the economies of its member countries . The organisation 's objectives stated in the Articles of Agreement are : to promote international monetary co-operation , international trade , high employment , exchange-rate stability , sustainable economic growth , and making resources available to member countries in financial difficulty .