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Multicultural Britain
Britain today is a richly diverse society and culture with more than 60 million people from different racial, religious and cultural backgrounds. That diversity is the result of a history which has included invasion, expansion, empire and Commonwealth. Everything in modern Britain - from music and fashion to food and language - has been shaped by different ethnic communities, cultures and social groups.
Ethnic diversity has enriched British society. The different communities are part of the mainstream of contemporary British life, have helped build today’s vibrant Britain and have contributed to its economic, social, democratic and cultural development.
The Notting Hill Carnival, Europe’s biggest street festival is an annual grand event that has been held every year since 1965 on the streets of Notting Hill, London, UK in the month of August. It is led by members of the West Indian community, particularly the Trinidadian and Tobagonian British population or Trinis;, many of whom have lived in the area since the 1950s.
The Notting Hill Carnival, Europe’s biggest street festival is an annual grand event that has been held every year since 1965 on the streets of Notting Hill, London, UK in the month of August. It is led by members of the West Indian community, particularly the Trinidadian and Tobagonian British population or Trinis;, many of whom have lived in the area since the 1950s.
Panelists Tao Zhang, IMF Deputy Managing Director, Yanqing Yang, Abraham Tekeste, Luis Fernando Mejia, Mame Khary Diene and Min Zhu during the IMF seminar Achieving Economic Diversification in Low Income Countries at the 2018 IMF/World Bank Spring Meetings on Friday, April 20 in Washington, D.C. Ryan Rayburn/IMF Photo
GOVERNOR TOMBLIN DELIVERS
FAREWELL ADDRESS TO STATE LEGISLATURE
CHARLESTON, W.VA. (January 11, 2017)-Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin today
delivered his farewell address to the West Virginia Legislature in the House Chamber at the State Capitol Complex after serving six years as governor and a total of 42 years in public service in the Mountain State.
Information on Gov. Tomblin's accomplishments during his six-year
administration can be found here.
See below for the speech as prepared for delivery:
Mr. Speaker, Mr. President, members of the Board of Public Works, justices of
the Supreme Court of Appeals, members of the Legislature, distinguished guests, and my fellow West Virginians, I stand before you today, after six years in the Governor's office and 42 years in this grand statehouse, with a deep sense of gratitude and reflection and an equally profound hope for West Virginia's future.
Public service has anchored my life's work-from a young 22-year-old in this very House chamber, to a desk across the hall in the State Senate, the Senate President's podium for 17 years and now as your 35th Governor.
It has been the greatest honor-and the greatest reward-to serve the people of this state that we all love. Together, we have put West Virginia first and moved our state forward-even in the midst of tough times, including far-reaching economic shifts, budgetary challenges and historic natural disasters.
West Virginians are strongest in the toughest times. We come together. We lift each other up. And we don't just hope for a better future; we fight for it.
ECONOMIC DIVERSIFICATION & JOB CREATION
Working hard is exactly what we've done over the past six years to create new economic opportunities for the Mountain State.
We have all seen the dramatic impact of the coal industry's decline in our state. We've seen thousands of jobs lost. Families and communities struggling. People beginning to lose hope.
But I believe in-and have fought to reach-the light around the corner.
Shortly after becoming Governor, I pledged to go anywhere and meet with anyone to grow our state's economy. Across West Virginia, the country and the globe, we have succeeded.
Last year, global giant Procter & Gamble announced it would build its first U.S. manufacturing facility since the 1970s right here in West Virginia in the Eastern Panhandle. This will ultimately be a half-billion dollar investment in the Mountain State and result in hundreds of new jobs.
P&G chose our state after an exhaustive search of many others. And as numerous companies have discovered, I know they will find it to be the best decision they've ever made.
Toyota Motor Manufacturing West Virginia, which recently celebrated its 20th anniversary, has expanded continuously-nine times, in fact.
Today, Toyota employs more than 1,600 people. And the company has invested $1.4 billion since 1996.
Manufacturing jobs, like those at P&G in Martinsburg and Toyota in Buffalo, will be among the most critical to our state's economic future.
In my time as your Governor, I have fought for jobs like these and many more. From Amazon in Huntington and Macy's in Berkeley County, to Bombardier Aerospace manufacturing in Harrison County-which just in November announced an expansion of 150 jobs.
Companies are finding that when they invest in West Virginia, it pays off.
In fact, since 2011, West Virginia has seen more than $15 billion in new investments, spanning 275 projects. We have welcomed more than 60 new companies and secured 215 competitive expansion projects.
Over the past six years, investment projects have reached 22 industries and provided West Virginians with more than 12,000 good-paying jobs.
Right here in the Kanawha Valley, we have one of the best examples of that remarkable progress.
Gestamp has grown beyond the bounds of any of our expectations. Since opening in 2013, Gestamp has tripled production and more than doubled its workforce, now employing nearly 900 West Virginians.
I know that one of the fundamental reasons behind their growth has been our ability to transform workforce training in West Virginia for the better.
STRENGTHENING WORKFORCE TRAINING & EDUCATION
For example, the Learn and Earn program which we launched in 2012, gives our community and technical college students classroom instruction and hands-on work experience simultaneously. These students earn a competitive salary while giving employers a cost-effective way to recruit and train new employees.
Joe Atha is one of these students. A former coal miner, Joe is now a student at BridgeValley Community and Technical College where he is also supporting his family by earning a wage through the Learn and Earn program at Gestamp.
Joe is here today with his wife, Rita. Please stand to be recognized... along with Dr. Sarah Tucker, Chancellor of our Community and Technical College System.
Through forward-thinking programs like this, we can make a real, lasting difference for West Virginians.
That's why I personally convened the West Virginia Workforce Planning Council, which has helped us break down bureaucratic silos and better align classroom learning with the workforce needs of our businesses and industries.
We've even started that process in high schools through the Simulated Workplace program.
Today, our career technical education classrooms have been transformed into businesses. Medical classes are now clinics. Hospitality programs are now catering businesses and restaurants.
And instead of just going to a welding or carpentry class, our students are now part of a construction company, complete with job foremen and safety inspectors.
Just last month, we celebrated a heartwarming moment as a result of the hard work of more than 2,000 of these students from 12 high schools across the state.
Together with the Department of Education's Career Technical Education division, the West Virginia National Guard and our Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster, we presented keys to tiny homes that were designed and built by these students for survivors of the historic floods that hit our state last June.
REBUILDING FROM NATURAL DISASTERS
Time and again, in the aftermath of this tragic flooding we have seen the selflessness of West Virginians make a difference for one another.
The "Big Hearts Give Tiny Homes" project was a shining example of that West Virginia spirit-one that made an overwhelming difference for 15 families impacted by the flooding, including Brenda Rivers from Nicholas County, whose home was a total loss in the flooding. Brenda now lives in a new tiny home built by students, including Chance Ballard from Spring Valley High School in Wayne County.
Please join me in welcoming Brenda and Chance ... along with Dr. Kathy D'Antoni ... whose visionary leadership at the Department of Education has made Simulated Workplace the success it is today.
Working hand-in-hand with the federal government and local officials, our immediate response to the flooding was quick and effective. We were able to expedite federal assistance to our communities and families in need. And over the past seven months, we have been able to shift our focus to long-term recovery.
Through a public-private approach, we launched the RISE West Virginia program, which in total has provided nearly $2 million to 230 small businesses in the flood-impacted counties-funding that is helping them reopen or continue operations and keep fueling our local economies.
I would like to thank, once again, West Virginia native and champion Brad Smith-the CEO of Intuit, one of the world's leading financial software companies-and his wife Alys for their family donation of $500,000, which gave the RISE program its first, needed boost.
West Virginia has experienced more than its share of disasters during my time as your Governor-this historic flooding, the Derecho, Hurricane Sandy, Winter Storms Thor and Jonas and the water crisis.
Through it all, we have grown stronger, we have improved our emergency response capabilities and we have strengthened public safety.
Adversity demands resilience. That's what we have shown in these challenges and many more-including one of the most trying epidemics I believe the Mountain State has ever faced-with the sharp rise in substance abuse and addiction.
FIGHTING SUBSTANCE ABUSE
That's why in 2011, I issued an Executive Order to create the Governor's Advisory Council on Substance Abuse, made up of representatives of substance abuse prevention, behavioral medicine, law enforcement, child and adolescent psychology, the legal system, residential treatment facilities, the public school system, the faith community and health care.
My vision for this Council was a community-driven, ground-up approach to tackling this epidemic. Through community-based task forces in six regions across the state, we have made significant progress and enacted life-saving reforms.
We now look at substance abuse as an illness-not a crime.
We have decreased the number of meth labs across the state as the result of making it more difficult to obtain pseudoephedrine.
We have expanded access to the life-saving drug Narcan to first responders and family members of those struggling with addiction. Last year alone, hundreds of lives were saved as a result.
We have substance abuse prevention services in all 55 counties. We have expanded and improved community-based treatment options and recovery services. Across the state, we have 188 crisis detox beds in residential treatment facilities with more sites under development.
We have 118 beds designated for youth and postpartum treatment as well as short-term and long-term residential treatment. And we have over 1,000 beds for those seeking help and support through peer and provider recovery homes and facilities.
We are working closely with our prisons and correctional facilities to ensure all West Virginians are provided access to substance abuse rehabilitation.
In fact, the Division of Corrections operates nine residential substance abuse treatment units in correctional centers across the state and we have expanded this model to our regional jail facilities as well.
And-through Justice Reinvestment-we have successfully worked to address substance abuse, which is the root cause of many crimes.
Because of that work, we have expanded drug courts, substance abuse counseling and greater supervision after release.
And ultimately, we have better controlled incarceration rates, which prevented our state from having to build a new $200 million prison that was projected to be needed because of our previous rising prison population.
Just this week, we announced the news that West Virginia reached settlements with two additional drug wholesalers totaling $36 million, which resolves allegations by our state regarding the distribution of controlled substances in West Virginia.
This brings the total amount of drug settlement money paid to our state by drug wholesalers to $47 million, which will expand our efforts even further for more law enforcement diversion options, more treatment recovery services and many more efforts to fight this epidemic.
I am also deeply proud of the work we have done in creating the state's first 24-hour substance abuse call line, 844-HELP-4-WV, which has received nearly 8,500 calls since it launched in September 2015.
The help line provides referral support for those seeking help and recovery services. It's an opportunity for people who are struggling to talk with someone who cares, get connected to treatment options and begin the road to recovery.
No caller is ever placed on hold and they are immediately connected with treatment staff representing the best and most appropriate treatment options for them.
Administered by First Choice Health Systems of West Virginia, the help line is staffed by certified professionals, many who have overcome addiction themselves and want to help others turn their lives around as well.
One young gentleman I met did just that because he picked up the phone.
A.J. Walker, a recovering alcoholic and addict, was given the help line number by his brother.
A.J. said when he called, he was treated like a person-not like a drug addict-and he found hope. They got him into a detox facility and into recovery, and the help line staff called and checked in on him every step of the way.
Today, A.J. is employed by the treatment facility that helped him and he's in school studying to become a substance abuse counselor.
A.J. is here today with his brother, Andrew, and Vickie Jones ... Commissioner of our Bureau of Behavioral Health and Health Facilities.
A.J. we are so proud of you. And today ... you are giving hope to so many.
When I hear stories like A.J.'s, I am incredibly optimistic for West Virginia's future. With economic changes, job losses and families struggling, we have to seize every opportunity before us to become stronger as individuals and as a state.
One such opportunity lies in Boone and Lincoln Counties, where I believe we have the chance to revitalize Southern West Virginia and make the Mountain State stronger.
EMBRACING THE FUTURE
It was here in this chamber, one year ago during my State of the State Address, where I announced plans for the largest development project in West Virginia's history at the former Hobet surface mine site.
Since last year at this time, we have worked every day and we have made tremendous progress on this project, which is now known as Rock Creek Development Park.
We have worked with local landowners, who are generously donating land that will result in more than 12,000 developable acres for Rock Creek, which is the size of the city of Huntington.
The West Virginia National Guard-Rock Creek's first tenant-is on the ground with newly-expanded operations for maintenance work and training.
And we have a long-term strategic plan now in place, which looks at demographics and market trends to help us identify the best investment opportunities for Rock Creek.
For generations, our coal miners, workers and their families have kept West Virginia strong. Now, it's our turn to help them.
By realizing the full potential of Rock Creek Development Park for job creation and economic diversification, we can build up a region of our state hard hit by the downturn in the coal industry.
My vision for Rock Creek started many years ago as I rode my four-wheeler around the hills of Southern West Virginia and saw the possibilities that such an enormous site-with such a great amount of flat land-could have.
Embracing opportunities like this takes careful thought and planning, and this public-private project will require some investment by the state. But I believe wholeheartedly that the returns will vastly exceed our investment.
That isn't something I say lightly.
Throughout my 42 years in public service, fiscal responsibility has been at the heart of every project I've undertaken, every policy I've fought for and every decision I've made.
GOVERNING RESPONSIBLY
As a result of much hard work, over the years we have decreased taxes, embraced responsible spending, made great progress toward paying off the state's unfunded liabilities and controlled growth of the state's budget.
We have realized milestone tax reforms, including progressive elimination of the food tax, saving West Virginians $162 million each year.
We have gradually eliminated the state's business franchise tax and decreased the corporate net income tax-changes that make West Virginia more attractive for business investments.
As a result of responsible reforms, last year the National Council on Compensation Insurance filed the 12th reduction in workers' compensation premiums in 12 years. And West Virginia employers have seen a savings of more than $352 million since we privatized the program in 2006.
We addressed our Other Post Employment Benefits by dedicating $30 million annually to pay off the $5 billion unfunded liability, which was caused by previous promises that became too expensive to maintain.
As I did last year, I present to you today a budget that is balanced, but a budget that requires difficult decisions and thinking about the next generation rather than the next election.
I continue to be proud of the fiscal responsibility we have shown not just for the past six years, but over the last generation. Our commitment to paying down our long-term liabilities has not wavered and we have responsibly reduced taxes on both our employers and our employees.
Because of our improved fiscal policies, we have been able to refinance bonds that pay for schools, water and sewer lines, college campus improvements and roads to save more than $100 million in the past six years.
So when people ask me why I'm so concerned with maintaining our Rainy Day Fund and our bond rating, that's why. It means more schools, more roads and more homes with clean water.
As part of tough decisions during tough economic times, we have cut more than $600 million from our budget in the past five years. While we all continue to hope that the coal industry will rebound, that hasn't happened quickly and it likely won't ever return to the levels that we once saw.
We continue to work to diversify our economy and I know the improvements we've made will pay long-term dividends in job growth and investment.
But we're not there yet, and part of being fiscally responsible means making sure that we can pay our bills without taking the Rainy Day Fund to dangerously low levels or cutting services to the point where we cannot care for our people or educate our students.
Therefore, the budget I present to you today includes a 1 percent increase in the consumer sales tax to raise $200 million and elimination of the current sales tax exemption on telecommunications services-a move that would make our system the same as 80 percent of the country.
I understand these taxes will not be easy, but asking people to pay a few dollars more now is a far better choice than seeing PEIA cards not accepted by medical providers or going back to the days when we couldn't finance school and road improvements, or even pay the gas bill at the Governor's Mansion.
I urge you to consider these responsible actions to balance the budget until the brighter economic picture that we all expect comes into focus.
CLOSING
I believe the thing that compelled each of us to public service is our love for West Virginia. And that is the very thing that should compel us to work together.
When I became your Governor, I said that we must put West Virginia first.
That's what we have done. And I encourage you to continue working together out of that deep devotion to our beloved state-in the coming year and beyond.
I am proud of the work that we have accomplished. I look forward to the leadership of Governor-elect Jim Justice and I thank all of you who have worked with me over the years.
I thank my cabinet members and agency directors. And I thank my dedicated staff members who have worked every day-not for me, but for the people of West Virginia.
It has been the honor of my life to be your Governor-to be West Virginia's Governor. Joanne and I thank the people of West Virginia for your abiding trust, counsel and support.
And we look forward-with the greatest hope and optimism-to an even stronger West Virginia.
Thank you. God bless you. And God bless the great state of West Virginia.
###
Photos available for media use. All photos should be attributed “Photo courtesy of Office of the Governor.”
GOVERNOR TOMBLIN DELIVERS
FAREWELL ADDRESS TO STATE LEGISLATURE
CHARLESTON, W.VA. (January 11, 2017)-Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin today
delivered his farewell address to the West Virginia Legislature in the House Chamber at the State Capitol Complex after serving six years as governor and a total of 42 years in public service in the Mountain State.
Information on Gov. Tomblin's accomplishments during his six-year
administration can be found here.
See below for the speech as prepared for delivery:
Mr. Speaker, Mr. President, members of the Board of Public Works, justices of
the Supreme Court of Appeals, members of the Legislature, distinguished guests, and my fellow West Virginians, I stand before you today, after six years in the Governor's office and 42 years in this grand statehouse, with a deep sense of gratitude and reflection and an equally profound hope for West Virginia's future.
Public service has anchored my life's work-from a young 22-year-old in this very House chamber, to a desk across the hall in the State Senate, the Senate President's podium for 17 years and now as your 35th Governor.
It has been the greatest honor-and the greatest reward-to serve the people of this state that we all love. Together, we have put West Virginia first and moved our state forward-even in the midst of tough times, including far-reaching economic shifts, budgetary challenges and historic natural disasters.
West Virginians are strongest in the toughest times. We come together. We lift each other up. And we don't just hope for a better future; we fight for it.
ECONOMIC DIVERSIFICATION & JOB CREATION
Working hard is exactly what we've done over the past six years to create new economic opportunities for the Mountain State.
We have all seen the dramatic impact of the coal industry's decline in our state. We've seen thousands of jobs lost. Families and communities struggling. People beginning to lose hope.
But I believe in-and have fought to reach-the light around the corner.
Shortly after becoming Governor, I pledged to go anywhere and meet with anyone to grow our state's economy. Across West Virginia, the country and the globe, we have succeeded.
Last year, global giant Procter & Gamble announced it would build its first U.S. manufacturing facility since the 1970s right here in West Virginia in the Eastern Panhandle. This will ultimately be a half-billion dollar investment in the Mountain State and result in hundreds of new jobs.
P&G chose our state after an exhaustive search of many others. And as numerous companies have discovered, I know they will find it to be the best decision they've ever made.
Toyota Motor Manufacturing West Virginia, which recently celebrated its 20th anniversary, has expanded continuously-nine times, in fact.
Today, Toyota employs more than 1,600 people. And the company has invested $1.4 billion since 1996.
Manufacturing jobs, like those at P&G in Martinsburg and Toyota in Buffalo, will be among the most critical to our state's economic future.
In my time as your Governor, I have fought for jobs like these and many more. From Amazon in Huntington and Macy's in Berkeley County, to Bombardier Aerospace manufacturing in Harrison County-which just in November announced an expansion of 150 jobs.
Companies are finding that when they invest in West Virginia, it pays off.
In fact, since 2011, West Virginia has seen more than $15 billion in new investments, spanning 275 projects. We have welcomed more than 60 new companies and secured 215 competitive expansion projects.
Over the past six years, investment projects have reached 22 industries and provided West Virginians with more than 12,000 good-paying jobs.
Right here in the Kanawha Valley, we have one of the best examples of that remarkable progress.
Gestamp has grown beyond the bounds of any of our expectations. Since opening in 2013, Gestamp has tripled production and more than doubled its workforce, now employing nearly 900 West Virginians.
I know that one of the fundamental reasons behind their growth has been our ability to transform workforce training in West Virginia for the better.
STRENGTHENING WORKFORCE TRAINING & EDUCATION
For example, the Learn and Earn program which we launched in 2012, gives our community and technical college students classroom instruction and hands-on work experience simultaneously. These students earn a competitive salary while giving employers a cost-effective way to recruit and train new employees.
Joe Atha is one of these students. A former coal miner, Joe is now a student at BridgeValley Community and Technical College where he is also supporting his family by earning a wage through the Learn and Earn program at Gestamp.
Joe is here today with his wife, Rita. Please stand to be recognized... along with Dr. Sarah Tucker, Chancellor of our Community and Technical College System.
Through forward-thinking programs like this, we can make a real, lasting difference for West Virginians.
That's why I personally convened the West Virginia Workforce Planning Council, which has helped us break down bureaucratic silos and better align classroom learning with the workforce needs of our businesses and industries.
We've even started that process in high schools through the Simulated Workplace program.
Today, our career technical education classrooms have been transformed into businesses. Medical classes are now clinics. Hospitality programs are now catering businesses and restaurants.
And instead of just going to a welding or carpentry class, our students are now part of a construction company, complete with job foremen and safety inspectors.
Just last month, we celebrated a heartwarming moment as a result of the hard work of more than 2,000 of these students from 12 high schools across the state.
Together with the Department of Education's Career Technical Education division, the West Virginia National Guard and our Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster, we presented keys to tiny homes that were designed and built by these students for survivors of the historic floods that hit our state last June.
REBUILDING FROM NATURAL DISASTERS
Time and again, in the aftermath of this tragic flooding we have seen the selflessness of West Virginians make a difference for one another.
The "Big Hearts Give Tiny Homes" project was a shining example of that West Virginia spirit-one that made an overwhelming difference for 15 families impacted by the flooding, including Brenda Rivers from Nicholas County, whose home was a total loss in the flooding. Brenda now lives in a new tiny home built by students, including Chance Ballard from Spring Valley High School in Wayne County.
Please join me in welcoming Brenda and Chance ... along with Dr. Kathy D'Antoni ... whose visionary leadership at the Department of Education has made Simulated Workplace the success it is today.
Working hand-in-hand with the federal government and local officials, our immediate response to the flooding was quick and effective. We were able to expedite federal assistance to our communities and families in need. And over the past seven months, we have been able to shift our focus to long-term recovery.
Through a public-private approach, we launched the RISE West Virginia program, which in total has provided nearly $2 million to 230 small businesses in the flood-impacted counties-funding that is helping them reopen or continue operations and keep fueling our local economies.
I would like to thank, once again, West Virginia native and champion Brad Smith-the CEO of Intuit, one of the world's leading financial software companies-and his wife Alys for their family donation of $500,000, which gave the RISE program its first, needed boost.
West Virginia has experienced more than its share of disasters during my time as your Governor-this historic flooding, the Derecho, Hurricane Sandy, Winter Storms Thor and Jonas and the water crisis.
Through it all, we have grown stronger, we have improved our emergency response capabilities and we have strengthened public safety.
Adversity demands resilience. That's what we have shown in these challenges and many more-including one of the most trying epidemics I believe the Mountain State has ever faced-with the sharp rise in substance abuse and addiction.
FIGHTING SUBSTANCE ABUSE
That's why in 2011, I issued an Executive Order to create the Governor's Advisory Council on Substance Abuse, made up of representatives of substance abuse prevention, behavioral medicine, law enforcement, child and adolescent psychology, the legal system, residential treatment facilities, the public school system, the faith community and health care.
My vision for this Council was a community-driven, ground-up approach to tackling this epidemic. Through community-based task forces in six regions across the state, we have made significant progress and enacted life-saving reforms.
We now look at substance abuse as an illness-not a crime.
We have decreased the number of meth labs across the state as the result of making it more difficult to obtain pseudoephedrine.
We have expanded access to the life-saving drug Narcan to first responders and family members of those struggling with addiction. Last year alone, hundreds of lives were saved as a result.
We have substance abuse prevention services in all 55 counties. We have expanded and improved community-based treatment options and recovery services. Across the state, we have 188 crisis detox beds in residential treatment facilities with more sites under development.
We have 118 beds designated for youth and postpartum treatment as well as short-term and long-term residential treatment. And we have over 1,000 beds for those seeking help and support through peer and provider recovery homes and facilities.
We are working closely with our prisons and correctional facilities to ensure all West Virginians are provided access to substance abuse rehabilitation.
In fact, the Division of Corrections operates nine residential substance abuse treatment units in correctional centers across the state and we have expanded this model to our regional jail facilities as well.
And-through Justice Reinvestment-we have successfully worked to address substance abuse, which is the root cause of many crimes.
Because of that work, we have expanded drug courts, substance abuse counseling and greater supervision after release.
And ultimately, we have better controlled incarceration rates, which prevented our state from having to build a new $200 million prison that was projected to be needed because of our previous rising prison population.
Just this week, we announced the news that West Virginia reached settlements with two additional drug wholesalers totaling $36 million, which resolves allegations by our state regarding the distribution of controlled substances in West Virginia.
This brings the total amount of drug settlement money paid to our state by drug wholesalers to $47 million, which will expand our efforts even further for more law enforcement diversion options, more treatment recovery services and many more efforts to fight this epidemic.
I am also deeply proud of the work we have done in creating the state's first 24-hour substance abuse call line, 844-HELP-4-WV, which has received nearly 8,500 calls since it launched in September 2015.
The help line provides referral support for those seeking help and recovery services. It's an opportunity for people who are struggling to talk with someone who cares, get connected to treatment options and begin the road to recovery.
No caller is ever placed on hold and they are immediately connected with treatment staff representing the best and most appropriate treatment options for them.
Administered by First Choice Health Systems of West Virginia, the help line is staffed by certified professionals, many who have overcome addiction themselves and want to help others turn their lives around as well.
One young gentleman I met did just that because he picked up the phone.
A.J. Walker, a recovering alcoholic and addict, was given the help line number by his brother.
A.J. said when he called, he was treated like a person-not like a drug addict-and he found hope. They got him into a detox facility and into recovery, and the help line staff called and checked in on him every step of the way.
Today, A.J. is employed by the treatment facility that helped him and he's in school studying to become a substance abuse counselor.
A.J. is here today with his brother, Andrew, and Vickie Jones ... Commissioner of our Bureau of Behavioral Health and Health Facilities.
A.J. we are so proud of you. And today ... you are giving hope to so many.
When I hear stories like A.J.'s, I am incredibly optimistic for West Virginia's future. With economic changes, job losses and families struggling, we have to seize every opportunity before us to become stronger as individuals and as a state.
One such opportunity lies in Boone and Lincoln Counties, where I believe we have the chance to revitalize Southern West Virginia and make the Mountain State stronger.
EMBRACING THE FUTURE
It was here in this chamber, one year ago during my State of the State Address, where I announced plans for the largest development project in West Virginia's history at the former Hobet surface mine site.
Since last year at this time, we have worked every day and we have made tremendous progress on this project, which is now known as Rock Creek Development Park.
We have worked with local landowners, who are generously donating land that will result in more than 12,000 developable acres for Rock Creek, which is the size of the city of Huntington.
The West Virginia National Guard-Rock Creek's first tenant-is on the ground with newly-expanded operations for maintenance work and training.
And we have a long-term strategic plan now in place, which looks at demographics and market trends to help us identify the best investment opportunities for Rock Creek.
For generations, our coal miners, workers and their families have kept West Virginia strong. Now, it's our turn to help them.
By realizing the full potential of Rock Creek Development Park for job creation and economic diversification, we can build up a region of our state hard hit by the downturn in the coal industry.
My vision for Rock Creek started many years ago as I rode my four-wheeler around the hills of Southern West Virginia and saw the possibilities that such an enormous site-with such a great amount of flat land-could have.
Embracing opportunities like this takes careful thought and planning, and this public-private project will require some investment by the state. But I believe wholeheartedly that the returns will vastly exceed our investment.
That isn't something I say lightly.
Throughout my 42 years in public service, fiscal responsibility has been at the heart of every project I've undertaken, every policy I've fought for and every decision I've made.
GOVERNING RESPONSIBLY
As a result of much hard work, over the years we have decreased taxes, embraced responsible spending, made great progress toward paying off the state's unfunded liabilities and controlled growth of the state's budget.
We have realized milestone tax reforms, including progressive elimination of the food tax, saving West Virginians $162 million each year.
We have gradually eliminated the state's business franchise tax and decreased the corporate net income tax-changes that make West Virginia more attractive for business investments.
As a result of responsible reforms, last year the National Council on Compensation Insurance filed the 12th reduction in workers' compensation premiums in 12 years. And West Virginia employers have seen a savings of more than $352 million since we privatized the program in 2006.
We addressed our Other Post Employment Benefits by dedicating $30 million annually to pay off the $5 billion unfunded liability, which was caused by previous promises that became too expensive to maintain.
As I did last year, I present to you today a budget that is balanced, but a budget that requires difficult decisions and thinking about the next generation rather than the next election.
I continue to be proud of the fiscal responsibility we have shown not just for the past six years, but over the last generation. Our commitment to paying down our long-term liabilities has not wavered and we have responsibly reduced taxes on both our employers and our employees.
Because of our improved fiscal policies, we have been able to refinance bonds that pay for schools, water and sewer lines, college campus improvements and roads to save more than $100 million in the past six years.
So when people ask me why I'm so concerned with maintaining our Rainy Day Fund and our bond rating, that's why. It means more schools, more roads and more homes with clean water.
As part of tough decisions during tough economic times, we have cut more than $600 million from our budget in the past five years. While we all continue to hope that the coal industry will rebound, that hasn't happened quickly and it likely won't ever return to the levels that we once saw.
We continue to work to diversify our economy and I know the improvements we've made will pay long-term dividends in job growth and investment.
But we're not there yet, and part of being fiscally responsible means making sure that we can pay our bills without taking the Rainy Day Fund to dangerously low levels or cutting services to the point where we cannot care for our people or educate our students.
Therefore, the budget I present to you today includes a 1 percent increase in the consumer sales tax to raise $200 million and elimination of the current sales tax exemption on telecommunications services-a move that would make our system the same as 80 percent of the country.
I understand these taxes will not be easy, but asking people to pay a few dollars more now is a far better choice than seeing PEIA cards not accepted by medical providers or going back to the days when we couldn't finance school and road improvements, or even pay the gas bill at the Governor's Mansion.
I urge you to consider these responsible actions to balance the budget until the brighter economic picture that we all expect comes into focus.
CLOSING
I believe the thing that compelled each of us to public service is our love for West Virginia. And that is the very thing that should compel us to work together.
When I became your Governor, I said that we must put West Virginia first.
That's what we have done. And I encourage you to continue working together out of that deep devotion to our beloved state-in the coming year and beyond.
I am proud of the work that we have accomplished. I look forward to the leadership of Governor-elect Jim Justice and I thank all of you who have worked with me over the years.
I thank my cabinet members and agency directors. And I thank my dedicated staff members who have worked every day-not for me, but for the people of West Virginia.
It has been the honor of my life to be your Governor-to be West Virginia's Governor. Joanne and I thank the people of West Virginia for your abiding trust, counsel and support.
And we look forward-with the greatest hope and optimism-to an even stronger West Virginia.
Thank you. God bless you. And God bless the great state of West Virginia.
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Photos available for media use. All photos should be attributed “Photo courtesy of Office of the Governor.”
The word Allah
The Semitic language which is spoken in the celestial spheres, is the language in which the angels and God address each other. Adam Safi-Allah spoke the same language in paradise. Adam and eve then came into the world and settled in Arabia. Their children also spoke the same language. Then as a result of the descendants of Adam spreading in the world, this language passed from Arabic, Persian, Latin and into English and God was then known by different names in the different languages. As Adam lived in Arabia, there are many words of the Semitic language which are still found in the Arabic language. God addressed the Prophets, Adam as Adam Safi-Allah, Noah as Nuh Nabi-Allah, Abraham as Ibraheem Khalil-Allah, Moses as Musa Kalim-Allah, Jesus as I’sa Ruh-Allah and Mohammed Rasul-Allah. All these titles, in the Semitic language were written on the Tablet before the arrival of the Prophets. This is why the Prophet Mohammed said: “I was a Prophet even before I came in to this world.”
Many people believe that the word Allah is a name given by Muslims, this is not so.
The Prophet Mohammed’s fathers name was Abd-Allah, at a time when Islam did not exist. Prior to the advent of Islam the Name Allah was announced with the title of every Prophet. When the souls were created, the first Name on their tongue was Allah and when the soul entered the body of Adam, it said, Ya-Allah, and only then it entered the body. Many religions understand this enigma and chant the Name Allah and many others because of doubt are deprived of the Name.
Any name which is used to point towards God is worthy of respect.
In other words, which points towards God. The mystical effect of the Name of God has been diversified due to the different names. Every letter of the alphabet has a separate numeric value. This is also a celestial knowledge. All the numeric values are connected with all of the human race. Occasionally the numeric values do not agree with the astronomical calculations as a result of which people become afflicted. Many people go to astrologers and experts of this knowledge and have charts prepared based on the stars. They name their children on this basis.
Just as the letters (a, b, j, d,) (1, 2, 3, 4) when added have the numerical value of ten. Similarly every name has a separate numeric value. As God has been given so many different names, this has caused a conflict between the numeric value of the different names. If all the people called upon God by the same name, then despite the fact that they would all have separate religions, they would all be united inwardly. They too, like Nanak Sahib and Baba Farid would then say:
“All the souls have been created by the light of God, even though their environment and communities are separate.”
The angels that are assigned tasks in the world are also taught the languages of the people of the world.
It is important for the people of every Prophet that they recite, chant and affirm the Title of their Prophet which was granted by God to the Prophet at his time, for the recognition, spiritual grace and purification of his people. The recital and affirmation should be in the same method and in the language of their Prophet.
The entry of any individual into any religion is subject to the condition that the individual accepts and affirms the Title of the Prophet of that religion. Just as the affirmation and the verbal vows are a condition of any marriage.
Entry into the heavens has been made subject to the acceptance and affirmation of the Titles of the Prophets. In the western world many Muslims and Christians have no knowledge of their Prophet’s Title furthermore many do not even know their Prophets original name (in the original language of the Prophet.)
People who only verbalize the affirmation of their Prophet’s Title rely upon their good deeds. Those that reject and do not affirm their Prophet’s Title are refused entry to paradise. Those individuals in whose hearts the affirmation of their Prophet’s Title has descended (entered) they will enter paradise without any accountability.
The revealed celestial Scriptures, whichever language they are in so long as they are in the original form, are a means to finding God. Where the texts and the translations that have been adulterated, just as adulterated flour is harmful for the stomach, the adulterated books have become harmful and people of the same religion and the same of Prophet have divided into so many sects.
To be sure of the straight and guided path it is better that you are guided by the Light (of God) also.
The method of producing light.
In prehistoric times stones would be rubbed together to make fire. Whereas a spark can also be produced by rubbing two metals together. In a similar way electricity is made from water. Similarly by the friction of the blood inside the human body, in other words electric energy is produced by the vibrating heartbeat. In every human being there is present, approximately one and a half volts of electricity due to which the body is energetic. As the heartbeat slows in old age, this reduces the electricity in the body and this in turn also causes a reduction of the energy level in the body.
Firstly, the heartbeat has to be made vibrant and pronounced. Some do this by dancing, some by sports and exercise and some people try to do this by meditating and chanting the Name of God Allah.
When the heartbeat becomes vibrant and pronounced then by chanting the Name Allah try to synchronize it with every heartbeat. Alternatively try to synchronize Allah with one heartbeat and Hu with the other. Some time by placing your hand on the heart and when you feel your heartbeat, again try to synchronize the Name Allah by chanting it with the rythm of the heartbeat and imagine that the Name Allah is entering the heart.
The chanting of Allah Hu is better and more effective but if anyone has an objection, or a fear of chanting Hu, then instead of being deprived one should solely use the Name Allah, repetitively in the chanting. It is beneficial for people who chant and practice this discipline and who read mantras to physically remain as clean as possible as the:
“disrespectful are unfulfilled and the respectful are fulfilled.”
The first method for producing light.
Write Allah on a paper in black ink, and do this exercise for as long as you wish on a daily basis. Soon thereafter, the Word Allah will be transported from the paper and hover over the eyes. Then with one-pointed concentration, attempt to transport the word from the eyes to the heart.
The second method for producing light.
Write Allah on a zero watt bulb, in yellow. Whilst you are awake or just before sleep, concentrate and try to absorb it into the eyes. When it appears on the eyes then try to transport it to the heart.
The third method for producing light.
This method is for those people who have perfect spiritual guides and teachers and who due to their spiritual connection are spiritually assisted by them.
Sit alone and imagine that your index finger is a pen. Using your finger and with your concentration, attempt to write Allah on your heart. Call upon your spiritual teacher (spiritually), so that he too may, hold your finger, and write Allah on your heart. Continue to do this exercise everyday, until you see Allah written on your heart.
By the first and second method, the Name Allah becomes inscribed on the heart, just as it was written and seen by you but when it becomes synchronized with the heartbeat, then it slowly starts to shine. In the synchronized method, the assistance of the spiritual teacher is provided and for this reason it is seen shining and well written on the heart right from the beginning.
Many Prophets and Saints have come into the world, and just for the sake of testing this, if you feel it appropriate, concentrate or call upon all of them when you are practicing your meditation.
Whilst concentrating on any Prophet or Saint, during your meditating practice, if the rhythm of your heartbeat increases, in its vibration or you feel an improvement then this means that your destiny (spiritual fruits) lies with that Prophet or Saint.
Thereafter it is beneficial to concentrate on that same person whenever you practice your meditation as spiritual grace is transferred in this way, because every Saint is spiritually connected to a Prophet, even if that Prophet is not physically living.
The spiritual fruit (grace) of every illuminated person is in the hands of one Saint or another. It is essential that the Saint is living. Sometimes a very fortunate person is gifted with celestial spiritual grace by a perfect Saint who is not living, but this is very rare. However Saints not living in our human realm can provide worldly spiritual grace and assistance to people from their tombs. This is known as Owaisi spiritual grace.
The recipients of such spiritual grace often get entangled in their spiritual insights, visions and dreams because the spiritual guide providing the assistance is in the spiritual realm and so too is Satan and the recognition of the two becomes difficult.
Along with the spiritual grace it is important to have knowledge, for which a living Saint is more appropriate. If a person (Saint) possesses spiritual grace but is without knowledge, that person is known as a Majzoob (Godly but abstracted due to the complete absorption into the Essence of God and who is not in full control of his faculties).
A person (Saint) having spiritual grace and knowledge is known as a Mehboob (literally, loved one). Such people (Saints) as a result of their knowledge provide worldly spiritual assistance as well as spiritual grace and benefit. Whereas the Majzoobs are known to provide worldly spiritual assistance to people by their unusual but accepted practices of shouting obscenities and poking people with their wooden sticks.
If any (Prophet or Saint) appears but does not help or assist you then put Gohar Shahi to the test.
You may belong to any religion, there is no condition in this respect as long as the individual is not eternally ill-fated.
Many people have received the spiritual grace of Qalb meditation from the Moon. This is obtained when there is a full Moon from the East. Look at it with concentration and when you see the image of Gohar Shahi on it say Allah, Allah, Allah three times and you will be blessed with this spiritual grace. Thereafter without any fear or reservation practice the meditation as described.
Believe (the fact) that the image on the Moon has spoken to many people in many different languages. You can try looking and speaking to it also.
About Muraqba
(transcendental meditation)
(Literally. journey. Meditation in which the soul leaves the human body)
Many people without having acquired the illumination of the spiritual entities (‘Lata’if/Shaktian’) and without attaining spiritual strength and prowess try to engage in this meditation. They either fail to reach the meditative state or become the subject of Satanic interference. This type of meditation is for illuminated people, whose spiritual entity of the self has been purified and the Qalb has been cleansed. The practice or attempt at this type of meditation is foolish no matter what type of physical worship is used to achieve this. To collect and gather the strength of the soul and the spiritual entities and then to travel to a place is what is known as meditation.
Sainthood is the one fourtieth part of Prophecy.
Every dream, meditative journey, inspiration or revelation of a Prophet is accurate and authentic and does not need verification. Only fourty out of a hundred dreams, meditative journeys, inspirations and revelations of Saints are accurate the remaining sixty percent are inaccurate.
God cannot be understood without knowledge
The lowest type of meditative journey is started only after the illumination and awakening of the spiritual entity of the Qalb. This is impossible without first achieving the meditation of the Qalb (meditation with the vibrating heartbeat synchronized with the Name Allah). It takes one jerk or shake to bring the person out of this meditative state and back to consciousness. The faculty of the augury (foretelling the future by reading verses or looking into designated books) is also connected to the Qalb.
The next stage is the meditative journey of the soul. It takes three jerks or shakes to return a person back to normality from this meditative state.
The third stage of the meditative journey is done by the spiritual entity, Anna and the soul together. The soul travels along with the spiritual entity Anna, to the realm of souls just as the Archangel Gabriel accompanied the Prophet Mohammed to the realm of souls.
People who are in this meditative state are sometimes even taken to be buried in their graves and they are unaware of this happening to them. Such a meditative state and journey was taken by the “Companions of the Cave” as a result of which they remained asleep in the cave for more than three hundred years.
When this meditative state and journey was undertaken by the Sheikh, Abdul-Qadir al-Jilani, in the jungle, the occupants of the jungle would regard the Sheikh as dead and would take him to a grave for burial but the meditative journey would break just before the burial (the Sheikh would return to consciousness).
How to recognize a special inspiration and revelation from God.
When a person has awakened and illuminated the spiritual entities in the chest and is worthy of receiving the rays of the Grace of God, then at that point God communicates with that person. God is All-Powerful and can do as he pleases and thus communicate with the human being in any way fit, but he has made a special method for his recognition so that his friends can be saved from the deception of Satan.
Firstly, text in the Semitic language appears on the seekers heart and its translation is seen in the language of the seekers mother-tongue. The text is white and shiny and the eyes close automatically and look at the text (internally). The text then passes the Qalb and moves towards the spiritual entity Sirri as a result of which it shines even more. Then the text moves towards the spiritual entity, Akhfa and from here it shines more and then moves onto the tongue. The voice then spontaneously starts to repeat that text.
If this inspiration is from Satan then an illuminated heart will dull the text and if the text is strong and prominent then the spiritual entities Sirri or Akhfa destroy that text. Further if due to the weakness of the spiritual entities the text does arrive at the tongue, then the voice will prevent it from being spoken into words.
This type of inspiration is for special types of Saints, whereas in respect of ordinary Saints, God sends messages to them through the angels or other spiritual entities. When the Archangel Gabriel accompanies the special and inspired text, this is known as revelation which is confined to the Prophets.
For more detail visit www.goharshahi.org or visit asipk.com and for videos visit HH rags
So my diversification into Sport Photography certainly fell flat so it is perhaps well advised I return to nature with several photos from a recent birding trip to Laratinga Wetlands at Mount Barker. It was a very brisk morning with atmospheric mist on the lakes and well worth the visit....
GOVERNOR TOMBLIN DELIVERS
FAREWELL ADDRESS TO STATE LEGISLATURE
CHARLESTON, W.VA. (January 11, 2017)-Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin today
delivered his farewell address to the West Virginia Legislature in the House Chamber at the State Capitol Complex after serving six years as governor and a total of 42 years in public service in the Mountain State.
Information on Gov. Tomblin's accomplishments during his six-year
administration can be found here.
See below for the speech as prepared for delivery:
Mr. Speaker, Mr. President, members of the Board of Public Works, justices of
the Supreme Court of Appeals, members of the Legislature, distinguished guests, and my fellow West Virginians, I stand before you today, after six years in the Governor's office and 42 years in this grand statehouse, with a deep sense of gratitude and reflection and an equally profound hope for West Virginia's future.
Public service has anchored my life's work-from a young 22-year-old in this very House chamber, to a desk across the hall in the State Senate, the Senate President's podium for 17 years and now as your 35th Governor.
It has been the greatest honor-and the greatest reward-to serve the people of this state that we all love. Together, we have put West Virginia first and moved our state forward-even in the midst of tough times, including far-reaching economic shifts, budgetary challenges and historic natural disasters.
West Virginians are strongest in the toughest times. We come together. We lift each other up. And we don't just hope for a better future; we fight for it.
ECONOMIC DIVERSIFICATION & JOB CREATION
Working hard is exactly what we've done over the past six years to create new economic opportunities for the Mountain State.
We have all seen the dramatic impact of the coal industry's decline in our state. We've seen thousands of jobs lost. Families and communities struggling. People beginning to lose hope.
But I believe in-and have fought to reach-the light around the corner.
Shortly after becoming Governor, I pledged to go anywhere and meet with anyone to grow our state's economy. Across West Virginia, the country and the globe, we have succeeded.
Last year, global giant Procter & Gamble announced it would build its first U.S. manufacturing facility since the 1970s right here in West Virginia in the Eastern Panhandle. This will ultimately be a half-billion dollar investment in the Mountain State and result in hundreds of new jobs.
P&G chose our state after an exhaustive search of many others. And as numerous companies have discovered, I know they will find it to be the best decision they've ever made.
Toyota Motor Manufacturing West Virginia, which recently celebrated its 20th anniversary, has expanded continuously-nine times, in fact.
Today, Toyota employs more than 1,600 people. And the company has invested $1.4 billion since 1996.
Manufacturing jobs, like those at P&G in Martinsburg and Toyota in Buffalo, will be among the most critical to our state's economic future.
In my time as your Governor, I have fought for jobs like these and many more. From Amazon in Huntington and Macy's in Berkeley County, to Bombardier Aerospace manufacturing in Harrison County-which just in November announced an expansion of 150 jobs.
Companies are finding that when they invest in West Virginia, it pays off.
In fact, since 2011, West Virginia has seen more than $15 billion in new investments, spanning 275 projects. We have welcomed more than 60 new companies and secured 215 competitive expansion projects.
Over the past six years, investment projects have reached 22 industries and provided West Virginians with more than 12,000 good-paying jobs.
Right here in the Kanawha Valley, we have one of the best examples of that remarkable progress.
Gestamp has grown beyond the bounds of any of our expectations. Since opening in 2013, Gestamp has tripled production and more than doubled its workforce, now employing nearly 900 West Virginians.
I know that one of the fundamental reasons behind their growth has been our ability to transform workforce training in West Virginia for the better.
STRENGTHENING WORKFORCE TRAINING & EDUCATION
For example, the Learn and Earn program which we launched in 2012, gives our community and technical college students classroom instruction and hands-on work experience simultaneously. These students earn a competitive salary while giving employers a cost-effective way to recruit and train new employees.
Joe Atha is one of these students. A former coal miner, Joe is now a student at BridgeValley Community and Technical College where he is also supporting his family by earning a wage through the Learn and Earn program at Gestamp.
Joe is here today with his wife, Rita. Please stand to be recognized... along with Dr. Sarah Tucker, Chancellor of our Community and Technical College System.
Through forward-thinking programs like this, we can make a real, lasting difference for West Virginians.
That's why I personally convened the West Virginia Workforce Planning Council, which has helped us break down bureaucratic silos and better align classroom learning with the workforce needs of our businesses and industries.
We've even started that process in high schools through the Simulated Workplace program.
Today, our career technical education classrooms have been transformed into businesses. Medical classes are now clinics. Hospitality programs are now catering businesses and restaurants.
And instead of just going to a welding or carpentry class, our students are now part of a construction company, complete with job foremen and safety inspectors.
Just last month, we celebrated a heartwarming moment as a result of the hard work of more than 2,000 of these students from 12 high schools across the state.
Together with the Department of Education's Career Technical Education division, the West Virginia National Guard and our Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster, we presented keys to tiny homes that were designed and built by these students for survivors of the historic floods that hit our state last June.
REBUILDING FROM NATURAL DISASTERS
Time and again, in the aftermath of this tragic flooding we have seen the selflessness of West Virginians make a difference for one another.
The "Big Hearts Give Tiny Homes" project was a shining example of that West Virginia spirit-one that made an overwhelming difference for 15 families impacted by the flooding, including Brenda Rivers from Nicholas County, whose home was a total loss in the flooding. Brenda now lives in a new tiny home built by students, including Chance Ballard from Spring Valley High School in Wayne County.
Please join me in welcoming Brenda and Chance ... along with Dr. Kathy D'Antoni ... whose visionary leadership at the Department of Education has made Simulated Workplace the success it is today.
Working hand-in-hand with the federal government and local officials, our immediate response to the flooding was quick and effective. We were able to expedite federal assistance to our communities and families in need. And over the past seven months, we have been able to shift our focus to long-term recovery.
Through a public-private approach, we launched the RISE West Virginia program, which in total has provided nearly $2 million to 230 small businesses in the flood-impacted counties-funding that is helping them reopen or continue operations and keep fueling our local economies.
I would like to thank, once again, West Virginia native and champion Brad Smith-the CEO of Intuit, one of the world's leading financial software companies-and his wife Alys for their family donation of $500,000, which gave the RISE program its first, needed boost.
West Virginia has experienced more than its share of disasters during my time as your Governor-this historic flooding, the Derecho, Hurricane Sandy, Winter Storms Thor and Jonas and the water crisis.
Through it all, we have grown stronger, we have improved our emergency response capabilities and we have strengthened public safety.
Adversity demands resilience. That's what we have shown in these challenges and many more-including one of the most trying epidemics I believe the Mountain State has ever faced-with the sharp rise in substance abuse and addiction.
FIGHTING SUBSTANCE ABUSE
That's why in 2011, I issued an Executive Order to create the Governor's Advisory Council on Substance Abuse, made up of representatives of substance abuse prevention, behavioral medicine, law enforcement, child and adolescent psychology, the legal system, residential treatment facilities, the public school system, the faith community and health care.
My vision for this Council was a community-driven, ground-up approach to tackling this epidemic. Through community-based task forces in six regions across the state, we have made significant progress and enacted life-saving reforms.
We now look at substance abuse as an illness-not a crime.
We have decreased the number of meth labs across the state as the result of making it more difficult to obtain pseudoephedrine.
We have expanded access to the life-saving drug Narcan to first responders and family members of those struggling with addiction. Last year alone, hundreds of lives were saved as a result.
We have substance abuse prevention services in all 55 counties. We have expanded and improved community-based treatment options and recovery services. Across the state, we have 188 crisis detox beds in residential treatment facilities with more sites under development.
We have 118 beds designated for youth and postpartum treatment as well as short-term and long-term residential treatment. And we have over 1,000 beds for those seeking help and support through peer and provider recovery homes and facilities.
We are working closely with our prisons and correctional facilities to ensure all West Virginians are provided access to substance abuse rehabilitation.
In fact, the Division of Corrections operates nine residential substance abuse treatment units in correctional centers across the state and we have expanded this model to our regional jail facilities as well.
And-through Justice Reinvestment-we have successfully worked to address substance abuse, which is the root cause of many crimes.
Because of that work, we have expanded drug courts, substance abuse counseling and greater supervision after release.
And ultimately, we have better controlled incarceration rates, which prevented our state from having to build a new $200 million prison that was projected to be needed because of our previous rising prison population.
Just this week, we announced the news that West Virginia reached settlements with two additional drug wholesalers totaling $36 million, which resolves allegations by our state regarding the distribution of controlled substances in West Virginia.
This brings the total amount of drug settlement money paid to our state by drug wholesalers to $47 million, which will expand our efforts even further for more law enforcement diversion options, more treatment recovery services and many more efforts to fight this epidemic.
I am also deeply proud of the work we have done in creating the state's first 24-hour substance abuse call line, 844-HELP-4-WV, which has received nearly 8,500 calls since it launched in September 2015.
The help line provides referral support for those seeking help and recovery services. It's an opportunity for people who are struggling to talk with someone who cares, get connected to treatment options and begin the road to recovery.
No caller is ever placed on hold and they are immediately connected with treatment staff representing the best and most appropriate treatment options for them.
Administered by First Choice Health Systems of West Virginia, the help line is staffed by certified professionals, many who have overcome addiction themselves and want to help others turn their lives around as well.
One young gentleman I met did just that because he picked up the phone.
A.J. Walker, a recovering alcoholic and addict, was given the help line number by his brother.
A.J. said when he called, he was treated like a person-not like a drug addict-and he found hope. They got him into a detox facility and into recovery, and the help line staff called and checked in on him every step of the way.
Today, A.J. is employed by the treatment facility that helped him and he's in school studying to become a substance abuse counselor.
A.J. is here today with his brother, Andrew, and Vickie Jones ... Commissioner of our Bureau of Behavioral Health and Health Facilities.
A.J. we are so proud of you. And today ... you are giving hope to so many.
When I hear stories like A.J.'s, I am incredibly optimistic for West Virginia's future. With economic changes, job losses and families struggling, we have to seize every opportunity before us to become stronger as individuals and as a state.
One such opportunity lies in Boone and Lincoln Counties, where I believe we have the chance to revitalize Southern West Virginia and make the Mountain State stronger.
EMBRACING THE FUTURE
It was here in this chamber, one year ago during my State of the State Address, where I announced plans for the largest development project in West Virginia's history at the former Hobet surface mine site.
Since last year at this time, we have worked every day and we have made tremendous progress on this project, which is now known as Rock Creek Development Park.
We have worked with local landowners, who are generously donating land that will result in more than 12,000 developable acres for Rock Creek, which is the size of the city of Huntington.
The West Virginia National Guard-Rock Creek's first tenant-is on the ground with newly-expanded operations for maintenance work and training.
And we have a long-term strategic plan now in place, which looks at demographics and market trends to help us identify the best investment opportunities for Rock Creek.
For generations, our coal miners, workers and their families have kept West Virginia strong. Now, it's our turn to help them.
By realizing the full potential of Rock Creek Development Park for job creation and economic diversification, we can build up a region of our state hard hit by the downturn in the coal industry.
My vision for Rock Creek started many years ago as I rode my four-wheeler around the hills of Southern West Virginia and saw the possibilities that such an enormous site-with such a great amount of flat land-could have.
Embracing opportunities like this takes careful thought and planning, and this public-private project will require some investment by the state. But I believe wholeheartedly that the returns will vastly exceed our investment.
That isn't something I say lightly.
Throughout my 42 years in public service, fiscal responsibility has been at the heart of every project I've undertaken, every policy I've fought for and every decision I've made.
GOVERNING RESPONSIBLY
As a result of much hard work, over the years we have decreased taxes, embraced responsible spending, made great progress toward paying off the state's unfunded liabilities and controlled growth of the state's budget.
We have realized milestone tax reforms, including progressive elimination of the food tax, saving West Virginians $162 million each year.
We have gradually eliminated the state's business franchise tax and decreased the corporate net income tax-changes that make West Virginia more attractive for business investments.
As a result of responsible reforms, last year the National Council on Compensation Insurance filed the 12th reduction in workers' compensation premiums in 12 years. And West Virginia employers have seen a savings of more than $352 million since we privatized the program in 2006.
We addressed our Other Post Employment Benefits by dedicating $30 million annually to pay off the $5 billion unfunded liability, which was caused by previous promises that became too expensive to maintain.
As I did last year, I present to you today a budget that is balanced, but a budget that requires difficult decisions and thinking about the next generation rather than the next election.
I continue to be proud of the fiscal responsibility we have shown not just for the past six years, but over the last generation. Our commitment to paying down our long-term liabilities has not wavered and we have responsibly reduced taxes on both our employers and our employees.
Because of our improved fiscal policies, we have been able to refinance bonds that pay for schools, water and sewer lines, college campus improvements and roads to save more than $100 million in the past six years.
So when people ask me why I'm so concerned with maintaining our Rainy Day Fund and our bond rating, that's why. It means more schools, more roads and more homes with clean water.
As part of tough decisions during tough economic times, we have cut more than $600 million from our budget in the past five years. While we all continue to hope that the coal industry will rebound, that hasn't happened quickly and it likely won't ever return to the levels that we once saw.
We continue to work to diversify our economy and I know the improvements we've made will pay long-term dividends in job growth and investment.
But we're not there yet, and part of being fiscally responsible means making sure that we can pay our bills without taking the Rainy Day Fund to dangerously low levels or cutting services to the point where we cannot care for our people or educate our students.
Therefore, the budget I present to you today includes a 1 percent increase in the consumer sales tax to raise $200 million and elimination of the current sales tax exemption on telecommunications services-a move that would make our system the same as 80 percent of the country.
I understand these taxes will not be easy, but asking people to pay a few dollars more now is a far better choice than seeing PEIA cards not accepted by medical providers or going back to the days when we couldn't finance school and road improvements, or even pay the gas bill at the Governor's Mansion.
I urge you to consider these responsible actions to balance the budget until the brighter economic picture that we all expect comes into focus.
CLOSING
I believe the thing that compelled each of us to public service is our love for West Virginia. And that is the very thing that should compel us to work together.
When I became your Governor, I said that we must put West Virginia first.
That's what we have done. And I encourage you to continue working together out of that deep devotion to our beloved state-in the coming year and beyond.
I am proud of the work that we have accomplished. I look forward to the leadership of Governor-elect Jim Justice and I thank all of you who have worked with me over the years.
I thank my cabinet members and agency directors. And I thank my dedicated staff members who have worked every day-not for me, but for the people of West Virginia.
It has been the honor of my life to be your Governor-to be West Virginia's Governor. Joanne and I thank the people of West Virginia for your abiding trust, counsel and support.
And we look forward-with the greatest hope and optimism-to an even stronger West Virginia.
Thank you. God bless you. And God bless the great state of West Virginia.
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Photos available for media use. All photos should be attributed “Photo courtesy of Office of the Governor.”
GOVERNOR TOMBLIN DELIVERS
FAREWELL ADDRESS TO STATE LEGISLATURE
CHARLESTON, W.VA. (January 11, 2017)-Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin today
delivered his farewell address to the West Virginia Legislature in the House Chamber at the State Capitol Complex after serving six years as governor and a total of 42 years in public service in the Mountain State.
Information on Gov. Tomblin's accomplishments during his six-year
administration can be found here.
See below for the speech as prepared for delivery:
Mr. Speaker, Mr. President, members of the Board of Public Works, justices of
the Supreme Court of Appeals, members of the Legislature, distinguished guests, and my fellow West Virginians, I stand before you today, after six years in the Governor's office and 42 years in this grand statehouse, with a deep sense of gratitude and reflection and an equally profound hope for West Virginia's future.
Public service has anchored my life's work-from a young 22-year-old in this very House chamber, to a desk across the hall in the State Senate, the Senate President's podium for 17 years and now as your 35th Governor.
It has been the greatest honor-and the greatest reward-to serve the people of this state that we all love. Together, we have put West Virginia first and moved our state forward-even in the midst of tough times, including far-reaching economic shifts, budgetary challenges and historic natural disasters.
West Virginians are strongest in the toughest times. We come together. We lift each other up. And we don't just hope for a better future; we fight for it.
ECONOMIC DIVERSIFICATION & JOB CREATION
Working hard is exactly what we've done over the past six years to create new economic opportunities for the Mountain State.
We have all seen the dramatic impact of the coal industry's decline in our state. We've seen thousands of jobs lost. Families and communities struggling. People beginning to lose hope.
But I believe in-and have fought to reach-the light around the corner.
Shortly after becoming Governor, I pledged to go anywhere and meet with anyone to grow our state's economy. Across West Virginia, the country and the globe, we have succeeded.
Last year, global giant Procter & Gamble announced it would build its first U.S. manufacturing facility since the 1970s right here in West Virginia in the Eastern Panhandle. This will ultimately be a half-billion dollar investment in the Mountain State and result in hundreds of new jobs.
P&G chose our state after an exhaustive search of many others. And as numerous companies have discovered, I know they will find it to be the best decision they've ever made.
Toyota Motor Manufacturing West Virginia, which recently celebrated its 20th anniversary, has expanded continuously-nine times, in fact.
Today, Toyota employs more than 1,600 people. And the company has invested $1.4 billion since 1996.
Manufacturing jobs, like those at P&G in Martinsburg and Toyota in Buffalo, will be among the most critical to our state's economic future.
In my time as your Governor, I have fought for jobs like these and many more. From Amazon in Huntington and Macy's in Berkeley County, to Bombardier Aerospace manufacturing in Harrison County-which just in November announced an expansion of 150 jobs.
Companies are finding that when they invest in West Virginia, it pays off.
In fact, since 2011, West Virginia has seen more than $15 billion in new investments, spanning 275 projects. We have welcomed more than 60 new companies and secured 215 competitive expansion projects.
Over the past six years, investment projects have reached 22 industries and provided West Virginians with more than 12,000 good-paying jobs.
Right here in the Kanawha Valley, we have one of the best examples of that remarkable progress.
Gestamp has grown beyond the bounds of any of our expectations. Since opening in 2013, Gestamp has tripled production and more than doubled its workforce, now employing nearly 900 West Virginians.
I know that one of the fundamental reasons behind their growth has been our ability to transform workforce training in West Virginia for the better.
STRENGTHENING WORKFORCE TRAINING & EDUCATION
For example, the Learn and Earn program which we launched in 2012, gives our community and technical college students classroom instruction and hands-on work experience simultaneously. These students earn a competitive salary while giving employers a cost-effective way to recruit and train new employees.
Joe Atha is one of these students. A former coal miner, Joe is now a student at BridgeValley Community and Technical College where he is also supporting his family by earning a wage through the Learn and Earn program at Gestamp.
Joe is here today with his wife, Rita. Please stand to be recognized... along with Dr. Sarah Tucker, Chancellor of our Community and Technical College System.
Through forward-thinking programs like this, we can make a real, lasting difference for West Virginians.
That's why I personally convened the West Virginia Workforce Planning Council, which has helped us break down bureaucratic silos and better align classroom learning with the workforce needs of our businesses and industries.
We've even started that process in high schools through the Simulated Workplace program.
Today, our career technical education classrooms have been transformed into businesses. Medical classes are now clinics. Hospitality programs are now catering businesses and restaurants.
And instead of just going to a welding or carpentry class, our students are now part of a construction company, complete with job foremen and safety inspectors.
Just last month, we celebrated a heartwarming moment as a result of the hard work of more than 2,000 of these students from 12 high schools across the state.
Together with the Department of Education's Career Technical Education division, the West Virginia National Guard and our Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster, we presented keys to tiny homes that were designed and built by these students for survivors of the historic floods that hit our state last June.
REBUILDING FROM NATURAL DISASTERS
Time and again, in the aftermath of this tragic flooding we have seen the selflessness of West Virginians make a difference for one another.
The "Big Hearts Give Tiny Homes" project was a shining example of that West Virginia spirit-one that made an overwhelming difference for 15 families impacted by the flooding, including Brenda Rivers from Nicholas County, whose home was a total loss in the flooding. Brenda now lives in a new tiny home built by students, including Chance Ballard from Spring Valley High School in Wayne County.
Please join me in welcoming Brenda and Chance ... along with Dr. Kathy D'Antoni ... whose visionary leadership at the Department of Education has made Simulated Workplace the success it is today.
Working hand-in-hand with the federal government and local officials, our immediate response to the flooding was quick and effective. We were able to expedite federal assistance to our communities and families in need. And over the past seven months, we have been able to shift our focus to long-term recovery.
Through a public-private approach, we launched the RISE West Virginia program, which in total has provided nearly $2 million to 230 small businesses in the flood-impacted counties-funding that is helping them reopen or continue operations and keep fueling our local economies.
I would like to thank, once again, West Virginia native and champion Brad Smith-the CEO of Intuit, one of the world's leading financial software companies-and his wife Alys for their family donation of $500,000, which gave the RISE program its first, needed boost.
West Virginia has experienced more than its share of disasters during my time as your Governor-this historic flooding, the Derecho, Hurricane Sandy, Winter Storms Thor and Jonas and the water crisis.
Through it all, we have grown stronger, we have improved our emergency response capabilities and we have strengthened public safety.
Adversity demands resilience. That's what we have shown in these challenges and many more-including one of the most trying epidemics I believe the Mountain State has ever faced-with the sharp rise in substance abuse and addiction.
FIGHTING SUBSTANCE ABUSE
That's why in 2011, I issued an Executive Order to create the Governor's Advisory Council on Substance Abuse, made up of representatives of substance abuse prevention, behavioral medicine, law enforcement, child and adolescent psychology, the legal system, residential treatment facilities, the public school system, the faith community and health care.
My vision for this Council was a community-driven, ground-up approach to tackling this epidemic. Through community-based task forces in six regions across the state, we have made significant progress and enacted life-saving reforms.
We now look at substance abuse as an illness-not a crime.
We have decreased the number of meth labs across the state as the result of making it more difficult to obtain pseudoephedrine.
We have expanded access to the life-saving drug Narcan to first responders and family members of those struggling with addiction. Last year alone, hundreds of lives were saved as a result.
We have substance abuse prevention services in all 55 counties. We have expanded and improved community-based treatment options and recovery services. Across the state, we have 188 crisis detox beds in residential treatment facilities with more sites under development.
We have 118 beds designated for youth and postpartum treatment as well as short-term and long-term residential treatment. And we have over 1,000 beds for those seeking help and support through peer and provider recovery homes and facilities.
We are working closely with our prisons and correctional facilities to ensure all West Virginians are provided access to substance abuse rehabilitation.
In fact, the Division of Corrections operates nine residential substance abuse treatment units in correctional centers across the state and we have expanded this model to our regional jail facilities as well.
And-through Justice Reinvestment-we have successfully worked to address substance abuse, which is the root cause of many crimes.
Because of that work, we have expanded drug courts, substance abuse counseling and greater supervision after release.
And ultimately, we have better controlled incarceration rates, which prevented our state from having to build a new $200 million prison that was projected to be needed because of our previous rising prison population.
Just this week, we announced the news that West Virginia reached settlements with two additional drug wholesalers totaling $36 million, which resolves allegations by our state regarding the distribution of controlled substances in West Virginia.
This brings the total amount of drug settlement money paid to our state by drug wholesalers to $47 million, which will expand our efforts even further for more law enforcement diversion options, more treatment recovery services and many more efforts to fight this epidemic.
I am also deeply proud of the work we have done in creating the state's first 24-hour substance abuse call line, 844-HELP-4-WV, which has received nearly 8,500 calls since it launched in September 2015.
The help line provides referral support for those seeking help and recovery services. It's an opportunity for people who are struggling to talk with someone who cares, get connected to treatment options and begin the road to recovery.
No caller is ever placed on hold and they are immediately connected with treatment staff representing the best and most appropriate treatment options for them.
Administered by First Choice Health Systems of West Virginia, the help line is staffed by certified professionals, many who have overcome addiction themselves and want to help others turn their lives around as well.
One young gentleman I met did just that because he picked up the phone.
A.J. Walker, a recovering alcoholic and addict, was given the help line number by his brother.
A.J. said when he called, he was treated like a person-not like a drug addict-and he found hope. They got him into a detox facility and into recovery, and the help line staff called and checked in on him every step of the way.
Today, A.J. is employed by the treatment facility that helped him and he's in school studying to become a substance abuse counselor.
A.J. is here today with his brother, Andrew, and Vickie Jones ... Commissioner of our Bureau of Behavioral Health and Health Facilities.
A.J. we are so proud of you. And today ... you are giving hope to so many.
When I hear stories like A.J.'s, I am incredibly optimistic for West Virginia's future. With economic changes, job losses and families struggling, we have to seize every opportunity before us to become stronger as individuals and as a state.
One such opportunity lies in Boone and Lincoln Counties, where I believe we have the chance to revitalize Southern West Virginia and make the Mountain State stronger.
EMBRACING THE FUTURE
It was here in this chamber, one year ago during my State of the State Address, where I announced plans for the largest development project in West Virginia's history at the former Hobet surface mine site.
Since last year at this time, we have worked every day and we have made tremendous progress on this project, which is now known as Rock Creek Development Park.
We have worked with local landowners, who are generously donating land that will result in more than 12,000 developable acres for Rock Creek, which is the size of the city of Huntington.
The West Virginia National Guard-Rock Creek's first tenant-is on the ground with newly-expanded operations for maintenance work and training.
And we have a long-term strategic plan now in place, which looks at demographics and market trends to help us identify the best investment opportunities for Rock Creek.
For generations, our coal miners, workers and their families have kept West Virginia strong. Now, it's our turn to help them.
By realizing the full potential of Rock Creek Development Park for job creation and economic diversification, we can build up a region of our state hard hit by the downturn in the coal industry.
My vision for Rock Creek started many years ago as I rode my four-wheeler around the hills of Southern West Virginia and saw the possibilities that such an enormous site-with such a great amount of flat land-could have.
Embracing opportunities like this takes careful thought and planning, and this public-private project will require some investment by the state. But I believe wholeheartedly that the returns will vastly exceed our investment.
That isn't something I say lightly.
Throughout my 42 years in public service, fiscal responsibility has been at the heart of every project I've undertaken, every policy I've fought for and every decision I've made.
GOVERNING RESPONSIBLY
As a result of much hard work, over the years we have decreased taxes, embraced responsible spending, made great progress toward paying off the state's unfunded liabilities and controlled growth of the state's budget.
We have realized milestone tax reforms, including progressive elimination of the food tax, saving West Virginians $162 million each year.
We have gradually eliminated the state's business franchise tax and decreased the corporate net income tax-changes that make West Virginia more attractive for business investments.
As a result of responsible reforms, last year the National Council on Compensation Insurance filed the 12th reduction in workers' compensation premiums in 12 years. And West Virginia employers have seen a savings of more than $352 million since we privatized the program in 2006.
We addressed our Other Post Employment Benefits by dedicating $30 million annually to pay off the $5 billion unfunded liability, which was caused by previous promises that became too expensive to maintain.
As I did last year, I present to you today a budget that is balanced, but a budget that requires difficult decisions and thinking about the next generation rather than the next election.
I continue to be proud of the fiscal responsibility we have shown not just for the past six years, but over the last generation. Our commitment to paying down our long-term liabilities has not wavered and we have responsibly reduced taxes on both our employers and our employees.
Because of our improved fiscal policies, we have been able to refinance bonds that pay for schools, water and sewer lines, college campus improvements and roads to save more than $100 million in the past six years.
So when people ask me why I'm so concerned with maintaining our Rainy Day Fund and our bond rating, that's why. It means more schools, more roads and more homes with clean water.
As part of tough decisions during tough economic times, we have cut more than $600 million from our budget in the past five years. While we all continue to hope that the coal industry will rebound, that hasn't happened quickly and it likely won't ever return to the levels that we once saw.
We continue to work to diversify our economy and I know the improvements we've made will pay long-term dividends in job growth and investment.
But we're not there yet, and part of being fiscally responsible means making sure that we can pay our bills without taking the Rainy Day Fund to dangerously low levels or cutting services to the point where we cannot care for our people or educate our students.
Therefore, the budget I present to you today includes a 1 percent increase in the consumer sales tax to raise $200 million and elimination of the current sales tax exemption on telecommunications services-a move that would make our system the same as 80 percent of the country.
I understand these taxes will not be easy, but asking people to pay a few dollars more now is a far better choice than seeing PEIA cards not accepted by medical providers or going back to the days when we couldn't finance school and road improvements, or even pay the gas bill at the Governor's Mansion.
I urge you to consider these responsible actions to balance the budget until the brighter economic picture that we all expect comes into focus.
CLOSING
I believe the thing that compelled each of us to public service is our love for West Virginia. And that is the very thing that should compel us to work together.
When I became your Governor, I said that we must put West Virginia first.
That's what we have done. And I encourage you to continue working together out of that deep devotion to our beloved state-in the coming year and beyond.
I am proud of the work that we have accomplished. I look forward to the leadership of Governor-elect Jim Justice and I thank all of you who have worked with me over the years.
I thank my cabinet members and agency directors. And I thank my dedicated staff members who have worked every day-not for me, but for the people of West Virginia.
It has been the honor of my life to be your Governor-to be West Virginia's Governor. Joanne and I thank the people of West Virginia for your abiding trust, counsel and support.
And we look forward-with the greatest hope and optimism-to an even stronger West Virginia.
Thank you. God bless you. And God bless the great state of West Virginia.
###
Photos available for media use. All photos should be attributed “Photo courtesy of Office of the Governor.”
The Burj Khalifa is a skyscraper in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. With a total height of 829.8 m (2,722 ft, just over half a mile) and a roof height (excluding antenna, but including a 244 m spire[2]) of 828 m (2,717 ft), the Burj Khalifa has been the tallest structure and building in the world. The building was opened in 2010 as part of a new development called Downtown Dubai. It is designed to be the centrepiece of large-scale, mixed-use development. The decision to construct the building is based on the government's decision to diversify from an oil-based economy, and for Dubai to gain international recognition.
After World War II, the Bristol Aircraft Company made the decision to diversify its business. They acquired a license from Frazer Nash to build cars based on the pre-war BMW models.
The first car was released in 1947, the Bristol 400 2 door Saloon. The aerodynamic shape was designed in a wind tunnel. The aluminium body sat on a BMW 326 frame. It had a very BMW-like grille at the front of its long bonnet.
The 1948 401 saloon and 402 cabriolet were the successors to the 400, now more spacious, a full five-seater. The headlights were moved into the centre of the body on either side of the narrow grille, the door handles now not exposed, a button was pressed in a groove to open the door. These changes made the car even more aerodynamic.
611 401 Saloons made and only 23 402 Cabriolets
Engine was unchanged; 85hp 1971cc BMW 328 6 cyl, just an extra 5 hp through improved Solex carburettors
السسلآم عليكم ..
صور منوعة من نفس الصورة اللي نشرتها أمس ..
أي وآحد يبي صورة منهم بحجم أكبر .. يرسل لي ع الخآص .. أو يطلبها مني هنا ..
* مآشاء الله تبارك الله ...
أطيب التحآيا ..
The word Allah
The Semitic language which is spoken in the celestial spheres, is the language in which the angels and God address each other. Adam Safi-Allah spoke the same language in paradise. Adam and eve then came into the world and settled in Arabia. Their children also spoke the same language. Then as a result of the descendants of Adam spreading in the world, this language passed from Arabic, Persian, Latin and into English and God was then known by different names in the different languages. As Adam lived in Arabia, there are many words of the Semitic language which are still found in the Arabic language. God addressed the Prophets, Adam as Adam Safi-Allah, Noah as Nuh Nabi-Allah, Abraham as Ibraheem Khalil-Allah, Moses as Musa Kalim-Allah, Jesus as I’sa Ruh-Allah and Mohammed Rasul-Allah. All these titles, in the Semitic language were written on the Tablet before the arrival of the Prophets. This is why the Prophet Mohammed said: “I was a Prophet even before I came in to this world.”
Many people believe that the word Allah is a name given by Muslims, this is not so.
The Prophet Mohammed’s fathers name was Abd-Allah, at a time when Islam did not exist. Prior to the advent of Islam the Name Allah was announced with the title of every Prophet. When the souls were created, the first Name on their tongue was Allah and when the soul entered the body of Adam, it said, Ya-Allah, and only then it entered the body. Many religions understand this enigma and chant the Name Allah and many others because of doubt are deprived of the Name.
Any name which is used to point towards God is worthy of respect.
In other words, which points towards God. The mystical effect of the Name of God has been diversified due to the different names. Every letter of the alphabet has a separate numeric value. This is also a celestial knowledge. All the numeric values are connected with all of the human race. Occasionally the numeric values do not agree with the astronomical calculations as a result of which people become afflicted. Many people go to astrologers and experts of this knowledge and have charts prepared based on the stars. They name their children on this basis.
Just as the letters (a, b, j, d,) (1, 2, 3, 4) when added have the numerical value of ten. Similarly every name has a separate numeric value. As God has been given so many different names, this has caused a conflict between the numeric value of the different names. If all the people called upon God by the same name, then despite the fact that they would all have separate religions, they would all be united inwardly. They too, like Nanak Sahib and Baba Farid would then say:
“All the souls have been created by the light of God, even though their environment and communities are separate.”
The angels that are assigned tasks in the world are also taught the languages of the people of the world.
It is important for the people of every Prophet that they recite, chant and affirm the Title of their Prophet which was granted by God to the Prophet at his time, for the recognition, spiritual grace and purification of his people. The recital and affirmation should be in the same method and in the language of their Prophet.
The entry of any individual into any religion is subject to the condition that the individual accepts and affirms the Title of the Prophet of that religion. Just as the affirmation and the verbal vows are a condition of any marriage.
Entry into the heavens has been made subject to the acceptance and affirmation of the Titles of the Prophets. In the western world many Muslims and Christians have no knowledge of their Prophet’s Title furthermore many do not even know their Prophets original name (in the original language of the Prophet.)
People who only verbalize the affirmation of their Prophet’s Title rely upon their good deeds. Those that reject and do not affirm their Prophet’s Title are refused entry to paradise. Those individuals in whose hearts the affirmation of their Prophet’s Title has descended (entered) they will enter paradise without any accountability.
The revealed celestial Scriptures, whichever language they are in so long as they are in the original form, are a means to finding God. Where the texts and the translations that have been adulterated, just as adulterated flour is harmful for the stomach, the adulterated books have become harmful and people of the same religion and the same of Prophet have divided into so many sects.
To be sure of the straight and guided path it is better that you are guided by the Light (of God) also.
The method of producing light.
In prehistoric times stones would be rubbed together to make fire. Whereas a spark can also be produced by rubbing two metals together. In a similar way electricity is made from water. Similarly by the friction of the blood inside the human body, in other words electric energy is produced by the vibrating heartbeat. In every human being there is present, approximately one and a half volts of electricity due to which the body is energetic. As the heartbeat slows in old age, this reduces the electricity in the body and this in turn also causes a reduction of the energy level in the body.
Firstly, the heartbeat has to be made vibrant and pronounced. Some do this by dancing, some by sports and exercise and some people try to do this by meditating and chanting the Name of God Allah.
When the heartbeat becomes vibrant and pronounced then by chanting the Name Allah try to synchronize it with every heartbeat. Alternatively try to synchronize Allah with one heartbeat and Hu with the other. Some time by placing your hand on the heart and when you feel your heartbeat, again try to synchronize the Name Allah by chanting it with the rythm of the heartbeat and imagine that the Name Allah is entering the heart.
The chanting of Allah Hu is better and more effective but if anyone has an objection, or a fear of chanting Hu, then instead of being deprived one should solely use the Name Allah, repetitively in the chanting. It is beneficial for people who chant and practice this discipline and who read mantras to physically remain as clean as possible as the:
“disrespectful are unfulfilled and the respectful are fulfilled.”
The first method for producing light.
Write Allah on a paper in black ink, and do this exercise for as long as you wish on a daily basis. Soon thereafter, the Word Allah will be transported from the paper and hover over the eyes. Then with one-pointed concentration, attempt to transport the word from the eyes to the heart.
The second method for producing light.
Write Allah on a zero watt bulb, in yellow. Whilst you are awake or just before sleep, concentrate and try to absorb it into the eyes. When it appears on the eyes then try to transport it to the heart.
The third method for producing light.
This method is for those people who have perfect spiritual guides and teachers and who due to their spiritual connection are spiritually assisted by them.
Sit alone and imagine that your index finger is a pen. Using your finger and with your concentration, attempt to write Allah on your heart. Call upon your spiritual teacher (spiritually), so that he too may, hold your finger, and write Allah on your heart. Continue to do this exercise everyday, until you see Allah written on your heart.
By the first and second method, the Name Allah becomes inscribed on the heart, just as it was written and seen by you but when it becomes synchronized with the heartbeat, then it slowly starts to shine. In the synchronized method, the assistance of the spiritual teacher is provided and for this reason it is seen shining and well written on the heart right from the beginning.
Many Prophets and Saints have come into the world, and just for the sake of testing this, if you feel it appropriate, concentrate or call upon all of them when you are practicing your meditation.
Whilst concentrating on any Prophet or Saint, during your meditating practice, if the rhythm of your heartbeat increases, in its vibration or you feel an improvement then this means that your destiny (spiritual fruits) lies with that Prophet or Saint.
Thereafter it is beneficial to concentrate on that same person whenever you practice your meditation as spiritual grace is transferred in this way, because every Saint is spiritually connected to a Prophet, even if that Prophet is not physically living.
The spiritual fruit (grace) of every illuminated person is in the hands of one Saint or another. It is essential that the Saint is living. Sometimes a very fortunate person is gifted with celestial spiritual grace by a perfect Saint who is not living, but this is very rare. However Saints not living in our human realm can provide worldly spiritual grace and assistance to people from their tombs. This is known as Owaisi spiritual grace.
The recipients of such spiritual grace often get entangled in their spiritual insights, visions and dreams because the spiritual guide providing the assistance is in the spiritual realm and so too is Satan and the recognition of the two becomes difficult.
Along with the spiritual grace it is important to have knowledge, for which a living Saint is more appropriate. If a person (Saint) possesses spiritual grace but is without knowledge, that person is known as a Majzoob (Godly but abstracted due to the complete absorption into the Essence of God and who is not in full control of his faculties).
A person (Saint) having spiritual grace and knowledge is known as a Mehboob (literally, loved one). Such people (Saints) as a result of their knowledge provide worldly spiritual assistance as well as spiritual grace and benefit. Whereas the Majzoobs are known to provide worldly spiritual assistance to people by their unusual but accepted practices of shouting obscenities and poking people with their wooden sticks.
If any (Prophet or Saint) appears but does not help or assist you then put Gohar Shahi to the test.
You may belong to any religion, there is no condition in this respect as long as the individual is not eternally ill-fated.
Many people have received the spiritual grace of Qalb meditation from the Moon. This is obtained when there is a full Moon from the East. Look at it with concentration and when you see the image of Gohar Shahi on it say Allah, Allah, Allah three times and you will be blessed with this spiritual grace. Thereafter without any fear or reservation practice the meditation as described.
Believe (the fact) that the image on the Moon has spoken to many people in many different languages. You can try looking and speaking to it also.
About Muraqba
(transcendental meditation)
(Literally. journey. Meditation in which the soul leaves the human body)
Many people without having acquired the illumination of the spiritual entities (‘Lata’if/Shaktian’) and without attaining spiritual strength and prowess try to engage in this meditation. They either fail to reach the meditative state or become the subject of Satanic interference. This type of meditation is for illuminated people, whose spiritual entity of the self has been purified and the Qalb has been cleansed. The practice or attempt at this type of meditation is foolish no matter what type of physical worship is used to achieve this. To collect and gather the strength of the soul and the spiritual entities and then to travel to a place is what is known as meditation.
Sainthood is the one fourtieth part of Prophecy.
Every dream, meditative journey, inspiration or revelation of a Prophet is accurate and authentic and does not need verification. Only fourty out of a hundred dreams, meditative journeys, inspirations and revelations of Saints are accurate the remaining sixty percent are inaccurate.
God cannot be understood without knowledge
The lowest type of meditative journey is started only after the illumination and awakening of the spiritual entity of the Qalb. This is impossible without first achieving the meditation of the Qalb (meditation with the vibrating heartbeat synchronized with the Name Allah). It takes one jerk or shake to bring the person out of this meditative state and back to consciousness. The faculty of the augury (foretelling the future by reading verses or looking into designated books) is also connected to the Qalb.
The next stage is the meditative journey of the soul. It takes three jerks or shakes to return a person back to normality from this meditative state.
The third stage of the meditative journey is done by the spiritual entity, Anna and the soul together. The soul travels along with the spiritual entity Anna, to the realm of souls just as the Archangel Gabriel accompanied the Prophet Mohammed to the realm of souls.
People who are in this meditative state are sometimes even taken to be buried in their graves and they are unaware of this happening to them. Such a meditative state and journey was taken by the “Companions of the Cave” as a result of which they remained asleep in the cave for more than three hundred years.
When this meditative state and journey was undertaken by the Sheikh, Abdul-Qadir al-Jilani, in the jungle, the occupants of the jungle would regard the Sheikh as dead and would take him to a grave for burial but the meditative journey would break just before the burial (the Sheikh would return to consciousness).
How to recognize a special inspiration and revelation from God.
When a person has awakened and illuminated the spiritual entities in the chest and is worthy of receiving the rays of the Grace of God, then at that point God communicates with that person. God is All-Powerful and can do as he pleases and thus communicate with the human being in any way fit, but he has made a special method for his recognition so that his friends can be saved from the deception of Satan.
Firstly, text in the Semitic language appears on the seekers heart and its translation is seen in the language of the seekers mother-tongue. The text is white and shiny and the eyes close automatically and look at the text (internally). The text then passes the Qalb and moves towards the spiritual entity Sirri as a result of which it shines even more. Then the text moves towards the spiritual entity, Akhfa and from here it shines more and then moves onto the tongue. The voice then spontaneously starts to repeat that text.
If this inspiration is from Satan then an illuminated heart will dull the text and if the text is strong and prominent then the spiritual entities Sirri or Akhfa destroy that text. Further if due to the weakness of the spiritual entities the text does arrive at the tongue, then the voice will prevent it from being spoken into words.
This type of inspiration is for special types of Saints, whereas in respect of ordinary Saints, God sends messages to them through the angels or other spiritual entities. When the Archangel Gabriel accompanies the special and inspired text, this is known as revelation which is confined to the Prophets.
For more detail visit www.goharshahi.org or visit asipk.com and for videos visit HH rags
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I haven't really looked for bloggers in a while and the store has diversified a bit, gotten a bit bigger, gotten more up on the marketplace. Most of all, we're participating in a few upcoming events that I'd love to get coverage on.
SO, I'm taking a few blogger apps. Just send me a FM, PP on Plurk ( www.plurk.com/AsylumUtherwurldly ) or a notecard on SL (Asylum Utherwurldly on there as well) with a link to your blog, flickr, and a little about yourself. I'm looking for a consistent style and quality in photographs as well as a wide variety of styles. I tend to have varied tastes so no one will be denied for being cutesy or gothic or urban :)
I've no real requirements on how often you blog but if months go by and nothing is mentioned, I may ask that you begin to include more unless you've previously told me of issues that keep you from blogging.
Think that is about it. Thank you for reading!
Doig's were originally a coal merchants in Greenock who diversified into coaches. As the selling of coal was seasonal another business was sought to bring in money during the lean summer months.
The company was purchased by leading Glasgow independent McDowall's and became a subsidiary. McDowall's claim to fame was as the first Scottish Independent to buy a new Leyland Leopard.
On the death of Mr McDowall in the early 1960's the Doig's subsidiary was offered for sale as a going concern and was bought by a haulage company by the name of S&J Harris, who incidently owned one coach themselves.
The McDowall family tried to reconstitute the company from their offices in Renfield Street in Glasgow but decided to sell out completely after an offer from S&J Harris to purchase the rest of the business, so all coaches were branded under the title of Doig's Tours (Greenock) Limited, which always seemed strange as the largest part of the company was based in Glasgow.
191HGD was a Leyland Leopard PSU3/3R / Duple (Northern) Alpine Continental C47F purchased new by S&J Harris in 1963 and is seen almost derelict at the Doig's Garage based in Millerston Street in Glasgow, but it was rebuilt to serve as the company tow wagon.
As from the '30s Chrysler attempted tp diversify its production with the DeSoto. The name is derived from the 16th century Spanish explorer Hernando De Soto. The make's life was only short lived, disappearing in 1961. A mere 75 models of this convertible version were built.
3.773 cc
6 Cylinder
112 bhp
Autoworld
Brussels - Belgium
September 2019
Wilson Legaspi
Follow · November 9, 2012 ·
THE AGE OF FLOWERING PLANTS
ANGIOSPERM means "seed borne in vessel," while GYMNOSPERM means "naked seed," a reference to the lack of protective structure enveloping the seed. One reason that flowering plants were able to diversify so dramatically and spread during the Cretaceous and Cenozoic, or MODERN, the era was the evolution of new structures and tissues such as the carpel, a womb-like vessel that encloses angiosperm seeds and endosperm, a placenta-like tissue that nourishes the young plant as it develop within the seed, Today, angiosperm dominate terrestrial life on the planet. At an estimated 422,000 species, they compose by far the largest group of plants. They grow in greater range of environments, exhibits a wider range of growth habits, and display more variation in form than any living group of plants. In size, angiosperm range from tiny duckweed to eucaplytuses more than 330 ft (100 m) tall.
The explosion of angiosperm diversity has gone hand in hand with the proliferation of INSECTS, BIRDS, and OTHER ANIMALS that pollinate their flowers, disperse their fruits and seeds, and eat their leaves.
THE ULTIMATE VISUAL REFERENCE TO PLANTS AND FLOWERS OF THE WORLD - Janet Marinelli, Ed-in-Chief
Mindanao Tourist Destinations Local/Travel Website
and Angelique Ross Kaamiño/TravelEscapade TRAVEL/Leisure Cebu/CdO/Butuanon
Featured Link-
BEAUTIFUL PHILIPPINES MT. TABAYOC Benguet and Ifugao Photos
PHOTO INFO-STORY: -wilfredosrb
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July 31, 2012
PHOTO TRAVEL-STORY: - wilfredosrb
The Burj Khalifa is a skyscraper in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. With a total height of 829.8 m (2,722 ft, just over half a mile) and a roof height (excluding antenna, but including a 244 m spire[2]) of 828 m (2,717 ft), the Burj Khalifa has been the tallest structure and building in the world. The building was opened in 2010 as part of a new development called Downtown Dubai. It is designed to be the centrepiece of large-scale, mixed-use development. The decision to construct the building is based on the government's decision to diversify from an oil-based economy, and for Dubai to gain international recognition.
The Burj Khalifa is a skyscraper in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. With a total height of 829.8 m (2,722 ft, just over half a mile) and a roof height (excluding antenna, but including a 244 m spire[2]) of 828 m (2,717 ft), the Burj Khalifa has been the tallest structure and building in the world. The building was opened in 2010 as part of a new development called Downtown Dubai. It is designed to be the centrepiece of large-scale, mixed-use development. The decision to construct the building is based on the government's decision to diversify from an oil-based economy, and for Dubai to gain international recognition.
GOVERNOR TOMBLIN DELIVERS
FAREWELL ADDRESS TO STATE LEGISLATURE
CHARLESTON, W.VA. (January 11, 2017)-Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin today
delivered his farewell address to the West Virginia Legislature in the House Chamber at the State Capitol Complex after serving six years as governor and a total of 42 years in public service in the Mountain State.
Information on Gov. Tomblin's accomplishments during his six-year
administration can be found here.
See below for the speech as prepared for delivery:
Mr. Speaker, Mr. President, members of the Board of Public Works, justices of
the Supreme Court of Appeals, members of the Legislature, distinguished guests, and my fellow West Virginians, I stand before you today, after six years in the Governor's office and 42 years in this grand statehouse, with a deep sense of gratitude and reflection and an equally profound hope for West Virginia's future.
Public service has anchored my life's work-from a young 22-year-old in this very House chamber, to a desk across the hall in the State Senate, the Senate President's podium for 17 years and now as your 35th Governor.
It has been the greatest honor-and the greatest reward-to serve the people of this state that we all love. Together, we have put West Virginia first and moved our state forward-even in the midst of tough times, including far-reaching economic shifts, budgetary challenges and historic natural disasters.
West Virginians are strongest in the toughest times. We come together. We lift each other up. And we don't just hope for a better future; we fight for it.
ECONOMIC DIVERSIFICATION & JOB CREATION
Working hard is exactly what we've done over the past six years to create new economic opportunities for the Mountain State.
We have all seen the dramatic impact of the coal industry's decline in our state. We've seen thousands of jobs lost. Families and communities struggling. People beginning to lose hope.
But I believe in-and have fought to reach-the light around the corner.
Shortly after becoming Governor, I pledged to go anywhere and meet with anyone to grow our state's economy. Across West Virginia, the country and the globe, we have succeeded.
Last year, global giant Procter & Gamble announced it would build its first U.S. manufacturing facility since the 1970s right here in West Virginia in the Eastern Panhandle. This will ultimately be a half-billion dollar investment in the Mountain State and result in hundreds of new jobs.
P&G chose our state after an exhaustive search of many others. And as numerous companies have discovered, I know they will find it to be the best decision they've ever made.
Toyota Motor Manufacturing West Virginia, which recently celebrated its 20th anniversary, has expanded continuously-nine times, in fact.
Today, Toyota employs more than 1,600 people. And the company has invested $1.4 billion since 1996.
Manufacturing jobs, like those at P&G in Martinsburg and Toyota in Buffalo, will be among the most critical to our state's economic future.
In my time as your Governor, I have fought for jobs like these and many more. From Amazon in Huntington and Macy's in Berkeley County, to Bombardier Aerospace manufacturing in Harrison County-which just in November announced an expansion of 150 jobs.
Companies are finding that when they invest in West Virginia, it pays off.
In fact, since 2011, West Virginia has seen more than $15 billion in new investments, spanning 275 projects. We have welcomed more than 60 new companies and secured 215 competitive expansion projects.
Over the past six years, investment projects have reached 22 industries and provided West Virginians with more than 12,000 good-paying jobs.
Right here in the Kanawha Valley, we have one of the best examples of that remarkable progress.
Gestamp has grown beyond the bounds of any of our expectations. Since opening in 2013, Gestamp has tripled production and more than doubled its workforce, now employing nearly 900 West Virginians.
I know that one of the fundamental reasons behind their growth has been our ability to transform workforce training in West Virginia for the better.
STRENGTHENING WORKFORCE TRAINING & EDUCATION
For example, the Learn and Earn program which we launched in 2012, gives our community and technical college students classroom instruction and hands-on work experience simultaneously. These students earn a competitive salary while giving employers a cost-effective way to recruit and train new employees.
Joe Atha is one of these students. A former coal miner, Joe is now a student at BridgeValley Community and Technical College where he is also supporting his family by earning a wage through the Learn and Earn program at Gestamp.
Joe is here today with his wife, Rita. Please stand to be recognized... along with Dr. Sarah Tucker, Chancellor of our Community and Technical College System.
Through forward-thinking programs like this, we can make a real, lasting difference for West Virginians.
That's why I personally convened the West Virginia Workforce Planning Council, which has helped us break down bureaucratic silos and better align classroom learning with the workforce needs of our businesses and industries.
We've even started that process in high schools through the Simulated Workplace program.
Today, our career technical education classrooms have been transformed into businesses. Medical classes are now clinics. Hospitality programs are now catering businesses and restaurants.
And instead of just going to a welding or carpentry class, our students are now part of a construction company, complete with job foremen and safety inspectors.
Just last month, we celebrated a heartwarming moment as a result of the hard work of more than 2,000 of these students from 12 high schools across the state.
Together with the Department of Education's Career Technical Education division, the West Virginia National Guard and our Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster, we presented keys to tiny homes that were designed and built by these students for survivors of the historic floods that hit our state last June.
REBUILDING FROM NATURAL DISASTERS
Time and again, in the aftermath of this tragic flooding we have seen the selflessness of West Virginians make a difference for one another.
The "Big Hearts Give Tiny Homes" project was a shining example of that West Virginia spirit-one that made an overwhelming difference for 15 families impacted by the flooding, including Brenda Rivers from Nicholas County, whose home was a total loss in the flooding. Brenda now lives in a new tiny home built by students, including Chance Ballard from Spring Valley High School in Wayne County.
Please join me in welcoming Brenda and Chance ... along with Dr. Kathy D'Antoni ... whose visionary leadership at the Department of Education has made Simulated Workplace the success it is today.
Working hand-in-hand with the federal government and local officials, our immediate response to the flooding was quick and effective. We were able to expedite federal assistance to our communities and families in need. And over the past seven months, we have been able to shift our focus to long-term recovery.
Through a public-private approach, we launched the RISE West Virginia program, which in total has provided nearly $2 million to 230 small businesses in the flood-impacted counties-funding that is helping them reopen or continue operations and keep fueling our local economies.
I would like to thank, once again, West Virginia native and champion Brad Smith-the CEO of Intuit, one of the world's leading financial software companies-and his wife Alys for their family donation of $500,000, which gave the RISE program its first, needed boost.
West Virginia has experienced more than its share of disasters during my time as your Governor-this historic flooding, the Derecho, Hurricane Sandy, Winter Storms Thor and Jonas and the water crisis.
Through it all, we have grown stronger, we have improved our emergency response capabilities and we have strengthened public safety.
Adversity demands resilience. That's what we have shown in these challenges and many more-including one of the most trying epidemics I believe the Mountain State has ever faced-with the sharp rise in substance abuse and addiction.
FIGHTING SUBSTANCE ABUSE
That's why in 2011, I issued an Executive Order to create the Governor's Advisory Council on Substance Abuse, made up of representatives of substance abuse prevention, behavioral medicine, law enforcement, child and adolescent psychology, the legal system, residential treatment facilities, the public school system, the faith community and health care.
My vision for this Council was a community-driven, ground-up approach to tackling this epidemic. Through community-based task forces in six regions across the state, we have made significant progress and enacted life-saving reforms.
We now look at substance abuse as an illness-not a crime.
We have decreased the number of meth labs across the state as the result of making it more difficult to obtain pseudoephedrine.
We have expanded access to the life-saving drug Narcan to first responders and family members of those struggling with addiction. Last year alone, hundreds of lives were saved as a result.
We have substance abuse prevention services in all 55 counties. We have expanded and improved community-based treatment options and recovery services. Across the state, we have 188 crisis detox beds in residential treatment facilities with more sites under development.
We have 118 beds designated for youth and postpartum treatment as well as short-term and long-term residential treatment. And we have over 1,000 beds for those seeking help and support through peer and provider recovery homes and facilities.
We are working closely with our prisons and correctional facilities to ensure all West Virginians are provided access to substance abuse rehabilitation.
In fact, the Division of Corrections operates nine residential substance abuse treatment units in correctional centers across the state and we have expanded this model to our regional jail facilities as well.
And-through Justice Reinvestment-we have successfully worked to address substance abuse, which is the root cause of many crimes.
Because of that work, we have expanded drug courts, substance abuse counseling and greater supervision after release.
And ultimately, we have better controlled incarceration rates, which prevented our state from having to build a new $200 million prison that was projected to be needed because of our previous rising prison population.
Just this week, we announced the news that West Virginia reached settlements with two additional drug wholesalers totaling $36 million, which resolves allegations by our state regarding the distribution of controlled substances in West Virginia.
This brings the total amount of drug settlement money paid to our state by drug wholesalers to $47 million, which will expand our efforts even further for more law enforcement diversion options, more treatment recovery services and many more efforts to fight this epidemic.
I am also deeply proud of the work we have done in creating the state's first 24-hour substance abuse call line, 844-HELP-4-WV, which has received nearly 8,500 calls since it launched in September 2015.
The help line provides referral support for those seeking help and recovery services. It's an opportunity for people who are struggling to talk with someone who cares, get connected to treatment options and begin the road to recovery.
No caller is ever placed on hold and they are immediately connected with treatment staff representing the best and most appropriate treatment options for them.
Administered by First Choice Health Systems of West Virginia, the help line is staffed by certified professionals, many who have overcome addiction themselves and want to help others turn their lives around as well.
One young gentleman I met did just that because he picked up the phone.
A.J. Walker, a recovering alcoholic and addict, was given the help line number by his brother.
A.J. said when he called, he was treated like a person-not like a drug addict-and he found hope. They got him into a detox facility and into recovery, and the help line staff called and checked in on him every step of the way.
Today, A.J. is employed by the treatment facility that helped him and he's in school studying to become a substance abuse counselor.
A.J. is here today with his brother, Andrew, and Vickie Jones ... Commissioner of our Bureau of Behavioral Health and Health Facilities.
A.J. we are so proud of you. And today ... you are giving hope to so many.
When I hear stories like A.J.'s, I am incredibly optimistic for West Virginia's future. With economic changes, job losses and families struggling, we have to seize every opportunity before us to become stronger as individuals and as a state.
One such opportunity lies in Boone and Lincoln Counties, where I believe we have the chance to revitalize Southern West Virginia and make the Mountain State stronger.
EMBRACING THE FUTURE
It was here in this chamber, one year ago during my State of the State Address, where I announced plans for the largest development project in West Virginia's history at the former Hobet surface mine site.
Since last year at this time, we have worked every day and we have made tremendous progress on this project, which is now known as Rock Creek Development Park.
We have worked with local landowners, who are generously donating land that will result in more than 12,000 developable acres for Rock Creek, which is the size of the city of Huntington.
The West Virginia National Guard-Rock Creek's first tenant-is on the ground with newly-expanded operations for maintenance work and training.
And we have a long-term strategic plan now in place, which looks at demographics and market trends to help us identify the best investment opportunities for Rock Creek.
For generations, our coal miners, workers and their families have kept West Virginia strong. Now, it's our turn to help them.
By realizing the full potential of Rock Creek Development Park for job creation and economic diversification, we can build up a region of our state hard hit by the downturn in the coal industry.
My vision for Rock Creek started many years ago as I rode my four-wheeler around the hills of Southern West Virginia and saw the possibilities that such an enormous site-with such a great amount of flat land-could have.
Embracing opportunities like this takes careful thought and planning, and this public-private project will require some investment by the state. But I believe wholeheartedly that the returns will vastly exceed our investment.
That isn't something I say lightly.
Throughout my 42 years in public service, fiscal responsibility has been at the heart of every project I've undertaken, every policy I've fought for and every decision I've made.
GOVERNING RESPONSIBLY
As a result of much hard work, over the years we have decreased taxes, embraced responsible spending, made great progress toward paying off the state's unfunded liabilities and controlled growth of the state's budget.
We have realized milestone tax reforms, including progressive elimination of the food tax, saving West Virginians $162 million each year.
We have gradually eliminated the state's business franchise tax and decreased the corporate net income tax-changes that make West Virginia more attractive for business investments.
As a result of responsible reforms, last year the National Council on Compensation Insurance filed the 12th reduction in workers' compensation premiums in 12 years. And West Virginia employers have seen a savings of more than $352 million since we privatized the program in 2006.
We addressed our Other Post Employment Benefits by dedicating $30 million annually to pay off the $5 billion unfunded liability, which was caused by previous promises that became too expensive to maintain.
As I did last year, I present to you today a budget that is balanced, but a budget that requires difficult decisions and thinking about the next generation rather than the next election.
I continue to be proud of the fiscal responsibility we have shown not just for the past six years, but over the last generation. Our commitment to paying down our long-term liabilities has not wavered and we have responsibly reduced taxes on both our employers and our employees.
Because of our improved fiscal policies, we have been able to refinance bonds that pay for schools, water and sewer lines, college campus improvements and roads to save more than $100 million in the past six years.
So when people ask me why I'm so concerned with maintaining our Rainy Day Fund and our bond rating, that's why. It means more schools, more roads and more homes with clean water.
As part of tough decisions during tough economic times, we have cut more than $600 million from our budget in the past five years. While we all continue to hope that the coal industry will rebound, that hasn't happened quickly and it likely won't ever return to the levels that we once saw.
We continue to work to diversify our economy and I know the improvements we've made will pay long-term dividends in job growth and investment.
But we're not there yet, and part of being fiscally responsible means making sure that we can pay our bills without taking the Rainy Day Fund to dangerously low levels or cutting services to the point where we cannot care for our people or educate our students.
Therefore, the budget I present to you today includes a 1 percent increase in the consumer sales tax to raise $200 million and elimination of the current sales tax exemption on telecommunications services-a move that would make our system the same as 80 percent of the country.
I understand these taxes will not be easy, but asking people to pay a few dollars more now is a far better choice than seeing PEIA cards not accepted by medical providers or going back to the days when we couldn't finance school and road improvements, or even pay the gas bill at the Governor's Mansion.
I urge you to consider these responsible actions to balance the budget until the brighter economic picture that we all expect comes into focus.
CLOSING
I believe the thing that compelled each of us to public service is our love for West Virginia. And that is the very thing that should compel us to work together.
When I became your Governor, I said that we must put West Virginia first.
That's what we have done. And I encourage you to continue working together out of that deep devotion to our beloved state-in the coming year and beyond.
I am proud of the work that we have accomplished. I look forward to the leadership of Governor-elect Jim Justice and I thank all of you who have worked with me over the years.
I thank my cabinet members and agency directors. And I thank my dedicated staff members who have worked every day-not for me, but for the people of West Virginia.
It has been the honor of my life to be your Governor-to be West Virginia's Governor. Joanne and I thank the people of West Virginia for your abiding trust, counsel and support.
And we look forward-with the greatest hope and optimism-to an even stronger West Virginia.
Thank you. God bless you. And God bless the great state of West Virginia.
###
Photos available for media use. All photos should be attributed “Photo courtesy of Office of the Governor.”
GOVERNOR TOMBLIN DELIVERS
FAREWELL ADDRESS TO STATE LEGISLATURE
CHARLESTON, W.VA. (January 11, 2017)-Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin today
delivered his farewell address to the West Virginia Legislature in the House Chamber at the State Capitol Complex after serving six years as governor and a total of 42 years in public service in the Mountain State.
Information on Gov. Tomblin's accomplishments during his six-year
administration can be found here.
See below for the speech as prepared for delivery:
Mr. Speaker, Mr. President, members of the Board of Public Works, justices of
the Supreme Court of Appeals, members of the Legislature, distinguished guests, and my fellow West Virginians, I stand before you today, after six years in the Governor's office and 42 years in this grand statehouse, with a deep sense of gratitude and reflection and an equally profound hope for West Virginia's future.
Public service has anchored my life's work-from a young 22-year-old in this very House chamber, to a desk across the hall in the State Senate, the Senate President's podium for 17 years and now as your 35th Governor.
It has been the greatest honor-and the greatest reward-to serve the people of this state that we all love. Together, we have put West Virginia first and moved our state forward-even in the midst of tough times, including far-reaching economic shifts, budgetary challenges and historic natural disasters.
West Virginians are strongest in the toughest times. We come together. We lift each other up. And we don't just hope for a better future; we fight for it.
ECONOMIC DIVERSIFICATION & JOB CREATION
Working hard is exactly what we've done over the past six years to create new economic opportunities for the Mountain State.
We have all seen the dramatic impact of the coal industry's decline in our state. We've seen thousands of jobs lost. Families and communities struggling. People beginning to lose hope.
But I believe in-and have fought to reach-the light around the corner.
Shortly after becoming Governor, I pledged to go anywhere and meet with anyone to grow our state's economy. Across West Virginia, the country and the globe, we have succeeded.
Last year, global giant Procter & Gamble announced it would build its first U.S. manufacturing facility since the 1970s right here in West Virginia in the Eastern Panhandle. This will ultimately be a half-billion dollar investment in the Mountain State and result in hundreds of new jobs.
P&G chose our state after an exhaustive search of many others. And as numerous companies have discovered, I know they will find it to be the best decision they've ever made.
Toyota Motor Manufacturing West Virginia, which recently celebrated its 20th anniversary, has expanded continuously-nine times, in fact.
Today, Toyota employs more than 1,600 people. And the company has invested $1.4 billion since 1996.
Manufacturing jobs, like those at P&G in Martinsburg and Toyota in Buffalo, will be among the most critical to our state's economic future.
In my time as your Governor, I have fought for jobs like these and many more. From Amazon in Huntington and Macy's in Berkeley County, to Bombardier Aerospace manufacturing in Harrison County-which just in November announced an expansion of 150 jobs.
Companies are finding that when they invest in West Virginia, it pays off.
In fact, since 2011, West Virginia has seen more than $15 billion in new investments, spanning 275 projects. We have welcomed more than 60 new companies and secured 215 competitive expansion projects.
Over the past six years, investment projects have reached 22 industries and provided West Virginians with more than 12,000 good-paying jobs.
Right here in the Kanawha Valley, we have one of the best examples of that remarkable progress.
Gestamp has grown beyond the bounds of any of our expectations. Since opening in 2013, Gestamp has tripled production and more than doubled its workforce, now employing nearly 900 West Virginians.
I know that one of the fundamental reasons behind their growth has been our ability to transform workforce training in West Virginia for the better.
STRENGTHENING WORKFORCE TRAINING & EDUCATION
For example, the Learn and Earn program which we launched in 2012, gives our community and technical college students classroom instruction and hands-on work experience simultaneously. These students earn a competitive salary while giving employers a cost-effective way to recruit and train new employees.
Joe Atha is one of these students. A former coal miner, Joe is now a student at BridgeValley Community and Technical College where he is also supporting his family by earning a wage through the Learn and Earn program at Gestamp.
Joe is here today with his wife, Rita. Please stand to be recognized... along with Dr. Sarah Tucker, Chancellor of our Community and Technical College System.
Through forward-thinking programs like this, we can make a real, lasting difference for West Virginians.
That's why I personally convened the West Virginia Workforce Planning Council, which has helped us break down bureaucratic silos and better align classroom learning with the workforce needs of our businesses and industries.
We've even started that process in high schools through the Simulated Workplace program.
Today, our career technical education classrooms have been transformed into businesses. Medical classes are now clinics. Hospitality programs are now catering businesses and restaurants.
And instead of just going to a welding or carpentry class, our students are now part of a construction company, complete with job foremen and safety inspectors.
Just last month, we celebrated a heartwarming moment as a result of the hard work of more than 2,000 of these students from 12 high schools across the state.
Together with the Department of Education's Career Technical Education division, the West Virginia National Guard and our Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster, we presented keys to tiny homes that were designed and built by these students for survivors of the historic floods that hit our state last June.
REBUILDING FROM NATURAL DISASTERS
Time and again, in the aftermath of this tragic flooding we have seen the selflessness of West Virginians make a difference for one another.
The "Big Hearts Give Tiny Homes" project was a shining example of that West Virginia spirit-one that made an overwhelming difference for 15 families impacted by the flooding, including Brenda Rivers from Nicholas County, whose home was a total loss in the flooding. Brenda now lives in a new tiny home built by students, including Chance Ballard from Spring Valley High School in Wayne County.
Please join me in welcoming Brenda and Chance ... along with Dr. Kathy D'Antoni ... whose visionary leadership at the Department of Education has made Simulated Workplace the success it is today.
Working hand-in-hand with the federal government and local officials, our immediate response to the flooding was quick and effective. We were able to expedite federal assistance to our communities and families in need. And over the past seven months, we have been able to shift our focus to long-term recovery.
Through a public-private approach, we launched the RISE West Virginia program, which in total has provided nearly $2 million to 230 small businesses in the flood-impacted counties-funding that is helping them reopen or continue operations and keep fueling our local economies.
I would like to thank, once again, West Virginia native and champion Brad Smith-the CEO of Intuit, one of the world's leading financial software companies-and his wife Alys for their family donation of $500,000, which gave the RISE program its first, needed boost.
West Virginia has experienced more than its share of disasters during my time as your Governor-this historic flooding, the Derecho, Hurricane Sandy, Winter Storms Thor and Jonas and the water crisis.
Through it all, we have grown stronger, we have improved our emergency response capabilities and we have strengthened public safety.
Adversity demands resilience. That's what we have shown in these challenges and many more-including one of the most trying epidemics I believe the Mountain State has ever faced-with the sharp rise in substance abuse and addiction.
FIGHTING SUBSTANCE ABUSE
That's why in 2011, I issued an Executive Order to create the Governor's Advisory Council on Substance Abuse, made up of representatives of substance abuse prevention, behavioral medicine, law enforcement, child and adolescent psychology, the legal system, residential treatment facilities, the public school system, the faith community and health care.
My vision for this Council was a community-driven, ground-up approach to tackling this epidemic. Through community-based task forces in six regions across the state, we have made significant progress and enacted life-saving reforms.
We now look at substance abuse as an illness-not a crime.
We have decreased the number of meth labs across the state as the result of making it more difficult to obtain pseudoephedrine.
We have expanded access to the life-saving drug Narcan to first responders and family members of those struggling with addiction. Last year alone, hundreds of lives were saved as a result.
We have substance abuse prevention services in all 55 counties. We have expanded and improved community-based treatment options and recovery services. Across the state, we have 188 crisis detox beds in residential treatment facilities with more sites under development.
We have 118 beds designated for youth and postpartum treatment as well as short-term and long-term residential treatment. And we have over 1,000 beds for those seeking help and support through peer and provider recovery homes and facilities.
We are working closely with our prisons and correctional facilities to ensure all West Virginians are provided access to substance abuse rehabilitation.
In fact, the Division of Corrections operates nine residential substance abuse treatment units in correctional centers across the state and we have expanded this model to our regional jail facilities as well.
And-through Justice Reinvestment-we have successfully worked to address substance abuse, which is the root cause of many crimes.
Because of that work, we have expanded drug courts, substance abuse counseling and greater supervision after release.
And ultimately, we have better controlled incarceration rates, which prevented our state from having to build a new $200 million prison that was projected to be needed because of our previous rising prison population.
Just this week, we announced the news that West Virginia reached settlements with two additional drug wholesalers totaling $36 million, which resolves allegations by our state regarding the distribution of controlled substances in West Virginia.
This brings the total amount of drug settlement money paid to our state by drug wholesalers to $47 million, which will expand our efforts even further for more law enforcement diversion options, more treatment recovery services and many more efforts to fight this epidemic.
I am also deeply proud of the work we have done in creating the state's first 24-hour substance abuse call line, 844-HELP-4-WV, which has received nearly 8,500 calls since it launched in September 2015.
The help line provides referral support for those seeking help and recovery services. It's an opportunity for people who are struggling to talk with someone who cares, get connected to treatment options and begin the road to recovery.
No caller is ever placed on hold and they are immediately connected with treatment staff representing the best and most appropriate treatment options for them.
Administered by First Choice Health Systems of West Virginia, the help line is staffed by certified professionals, many who have overcome addiction themselves and want to help others turn their lives around as well.
One young gentleman I met did just that because he picked up the phone.
A.J. Walker, a recovering alcoholic and addict, was given the help line number by his brother.
A.J. said when he called, he was treated like a person-not like a drug addict-and he found hope. They got him into a detox facility and into recovery, and the help line staff called and checked in on him every step of the way.
Today, A.J. is employed by the treatment facility that helped him and he's in school studying to become a substance abuse counselor.
A.J. is here today with his brother, Andrew, and Vickie Jones ... Commissioner of our Bureau of Behavioral Health and Health Facilities.
A.J. we are so proud of you. And today ... you are giving hope to so many.
When I hear stories like A.J.'s, I am incredibly optimistic for West Virginia's future. With economic changes, job losses and families struggling, we have to seize every opportunity before us to become stronger as individuals and as a state.
One such opportunity lies in Boone and Lincoln Counties, where I believe we have the chance to revitalize Southern West Virginia and make the Mountain State stronger.
EMBRACING THE FUTURE
It was here in this chamber, one year ago during my State of the State Address, where I announced plans for the largest development project in West Virginia's history at the former Hobet surface mine site.
Since last year at this time, we have worked every day and we have made tremendous progress on this project, which is now known as Rock Creek Development Park.
We have worked with local landowners, who are generously donating land that will result in more than 12,000 developable acres for Rock Creek, which is the size of the city of Huntington.
The West Virginia National Guard-Rock Creek's first tenant-is on the ground with newly-expanded operations for maintenance work and training.
And we have a long-term strategic plan now in place, which looks at demographics and market trends to help us identify the best investment opportunities for Rock Creek.
For generations, our coal miners, workers and their families have kept West Virginia strong. Now, it's our turn to help them.
By realizing the full potential of Rock Creek Development Park for job creation and economic diversification, we can build up a region of our state hard hit by the downturn in the coal industry.
My vision for Rock Creek started many years ago as I rode my four-wheeler around the hills of Southern West Virginia and saw the possibilities that such an enormous site-with such a great amount of flat land-could have.
Embracing opportunities like this takes careful thought and planning, and this public-private project will require some investment by the state. But I believe wholeheartedly that the returns will vastly exceed our investment.
That isn't something I say lightly.
Throughout my 42 years in public service, fiscal responsibility has been at the heart of every project I've undertaken, every policy I've fought for and every decision I've made.
GOVERNING RESPONSIBLY
As a result of much hard work, over the years we have decreased taxes, embraced responsible spending, made great progress toward paying off the state's unfunded liabilities and controlled growth of the state's budget.
We have realized milestone tax reforms, including progressive elimination of the food tax, saving West Virginians $162 million each year.
We have gradually eliminated the state's business franchise tax and decreased the corporate net income tax-changes that make West Virginia more attractive for business investments.
As a result of responsible reforms, last year the National Council on Compensation Insurance filed the 12th reduction in workers' compensation premiums in 12 years. And West Virginia employers have seen a savings of more than $352 million since we privatized the program in 2006.
We addressed our Other Post Employment Benefits by dedicating $30 million annually to pay off the $5 billion unfunded liability, which was caused by previous promises that became too expensive to maintain.
As I did last year, I present to you today a budget that is balanced, but a budget that requires difficult decisions and thinking about the next generation rather than the next election.
I continue to be proud of the fiscal responsibility we have shown not just for the past six years, but over the last generation. Our commitment to paying down our long-term liabilities has not wavered and we have responsibly reduced taxes on both our employers and our employees.
Because of our improved fiscal policies, we have been able to refinance bonds that pay for schools, water and sewer lines, college campus improvements and roads to save more than $100 million in the past six years.
So when people ask me why I'm so concerned with maintaining our Rainy Day Fund and our bond rating, that's why. It means more schools, more roads and more homes with clean water.
As part of tough decisions during tough economic times, we have cut more than $600 million from our budget in the past five years. While we all continue to hope that the coal industry will rebound, that hasn't happened quickly and it likely won't ever return to the levels that we once saw.
We continue to work to diversify our economy and I know the improvements we've made will pay long-term dividends in job growth and investment.
But we're not there yet, and part of being fiscally responsible means making sure that we can pay our bills without taking the Rainy Day Fund to dangerously low levels or cutting services to the point where we cannot care for our people or educate our students.
Therefore, the budget I present to you today includes a 1 percent increase in the consumer sales tax to raise $200 million and elimination of the current sales tax exemption on telecommunications services-a move that would make our system the same as 80 percent of the country.
I understand these taxes will not be easy, but asking people to pay a few dollars more now is a far better choice than seeing PEIA cards not accepted by medical providers or going back to the days when we couldn't finance school and road improvements, or even pay the gas bill at the Governor's Mansion.
I urge you to consider these responsible actions to balance the budget until the brighter economic picture that we all expect comes into focus.
CLOSING
I believe the thing that compelled each of us to public service is our love for West Virginia. And that is the very thing that should compel us to work together.
When I became your Governor, I said that we must put West Virginia first.
That's what we have done. And I encourage you to continue working together out of that deep devotion to our beloved state-in the coming year and beyond.
I am proud of the work that we have accomplished. I look forward to the leadership of Governor-elect Jim Justice and I thank all of you who have worked with me over the years.
I thank my cabinet members and agency directors. And I thank my dedicated staff members who have worked every day-not for me, but for the people of West Virginia.
It has been the honor of my life to be your Governor-to be West Virginia's Governor. Joanne and I thank the people of West Virginia for your abiding trust, counsel and support.
And we look forward-with the greatest hope and optimism-to an even stronger West Virginia.
Thank you. God bless you. And God bless the great state of West Virginia.
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Photos available for media use. All photos should be attributed “Photo courtesy of Office of the Governor.”
Maize (/meɪz/ MAYZ; Zea mays subsp. mays, from Spanish: maíz after Taino: mahiz), also known as corn (North American and Australian English), is a cereal grain first domesticated by indigenous peoples in southern Mexico about 10,000 years ago. The leafy stalk of the plant produces pollen inflorescences and separate ovuliferous inflorescences called ears that yield kernels or seeds, which are fruits.
Maize has become a staple food in many parts of the world, with the total production of maize surpassing that of wheat or rice. In addition to being consumed directly by humans (often in the form of masa), maize is also used for corn ethanol, animal feed and other maize products, such as corn starch and corn syrup. The six major types of maize are dent corn, flint corn, pod corn, popcorn, flour corn, and sweet corn.[5] Sugar-rich varieties called sweet corn are usually grown for human consumption as kernels, while field corn varieties are used for animal feed, various corn-based human food uses (including grinding into cornmeal or masa, pressing into corn oil, and fermentation and distillation into alcoholic beverages like bourbon whiskey), and as chemical feedstocks. Maize is also used in making ethanol and other biofuels.
Maize is widely cultivated throughout the world, and a greater weight of maize is produced each year than any other grain. In 2014, total world production was 1.04 billion tonnes. Maize is the most widely grown grain crop throughout the Americas, with 361 million metric tons grown in the United States alone in 2014. Genetically modified maize made up 85% of the maize planted in the United States in 2009. Subsidies in the United States help to account for its high level of cultivation of maize and its position as the largest producer in the world.
HISTORY
PRE-COLUMBIAN DEVELOPMENT
Maize is a cultigen; human intervention is required for it to propagate. Whether or not the kernels fall off the cob on their own is a key piece of evidence used in archaeology to distinguish domesticated maize from its naturally-propagating teosinte ancestor. Genetic evidence can also be used to determine when various lineages split.
Most historians believe maize was domesticated in the Tehuacán Valley of Mexico. Recent research in the early 21st century has modified this view somewhat; scholars now indicate the adjacent Balsas River Valley of south-central Mexico as the center of domestication.
An influential 2002 study by Matsuoka et al. has demonstrated that, rather than the multiple independent domestications model, all maize arose from a single domestication in southern Mexico about 9,000 years ago. The study also demonstrated that the oldest surviving maize types are those of the Mexican highlands. Later, maize spread from this region over the Americas along two major paths. This is consistent with a model based on the archaeological record suggesting that maize diversified in the highlands of Mexico before spreading to the lowlands.
Archaeologist Dolores Piperno has said:
A large corpus of data indicates that [maize] was dispersed into lower Central America by 7600 BP [5600 BC] and had moved into the inter-Andean valleys of Colombia between 7000 and 6000 BP [5000–4000 BC].
— Dolores Piperno, The Origins of Plant Cultivation and Domestication in the New World Tropics: Patterns, Process, and New Developments
Since then, even earlier dates have been published.
According to a genetic study by Embrapa, corn cultivation was introduced in South America from Mexico, in two great waves: the first, more than 6000 years ago, spread through the Andes. Evidence of cultivation in Peru has been found dating to about 6700 years ago. The second wave, about 2000 years ago, through the lowlands of South America.
The earliest maize plants grew only small, 25-millimetre-long (1 in) corn cobs, and only one per plant. In Jackson Spielvogel's view, many centuries of artificial selection (rather than the current view that maize was exploited by interplanting with teosinte) by the indigenous people of the Americas resulted in the development of maize plants capable of growing several cobs per plant, which were usually several centimetres/inches long each. The Olmec and Maya cultivated maize in numerous varieties throughout Mesoamerica; they cooked, ground and processed it through nixtamalization. It was believed that beginning about 2500 BC, the crop spread through much of the Americas. Research of the 21st century has established even earlier dates. The region developed a trade network based on surplus and varieties of maize crops.
Mapuches of south-central Chile cultivated maize along with quinoa and potatoes in pre-Hispanic times; however, potato was the staple food of most Mapuches, "specially in the southern and coastal [Mapuche] territories where maize did not reach maturity". Before the expansion of the Inca Empire maize was traded and transported as far south as 40°19' S in Melinquina, Lácar Department. In that location maize remains were found inside pottery dated to 730 ± 80 BP and 920 ± 60 BP. Probably this maize was brought across the Andes from Chile. The presence of maize in Guaitecas Archipelago (43°55' S), the southernmost outpost of pre-Hispanic agriculture, is reported by early Spanish explorers. However the Spanish may have misidentified the plant.
COLUMBIAN EXCHANGE
After the arrival of Europeans in 1492, Spanish settlers consumed maize, and explorers and traders carried it back to Europe and introduced it to other countries. Spanish settlers far preferred wheat bread to maize, cassava, or potatoes. Maize flour could not be substituted for wheat for communion bread, since in Christian belief only wheat could undergo transubstantiation and be transformed into the body of Christ. Some Spaniards worried that by eating indigenous foods, which they did not consider nutritious, they would weaken and risk turning into Indians. "In the view of Europeans, it was the food they ate, even more than the environment in which they lived, that gave Amerindians and Spaniards both their distinctive physical characteristics and their characteristic personalities." Despite these worries, Spaniards did consume maize. Archeological evidence from Florida sites indicate they cultivated it as well.
Maize spread to the rest of the world because of its ability to grow in diverse climates. It was cultivated in Spain just a few decades after Columbus's voyages and then spread to Italy, West Africa and elsewhere. Widespread cultivation most likely began in southern Spain in 1525, after which it quickly spread to the rest of the Spanish Empire including its territories in Italy (and, from there, to other Italian states). Maize had many advantages over wheat and barley; it yielded two and a half times the food energy per unit cultivated area, could be harvested in successive years from the same plot of land, and grew in wildly varying altitudes and climates, from relatively dry regions with only 250 mm (10 in) of annual rainfall to damp regions with over 5,000 mm (200 in). By the 17th century it was a common peasant food in Southwestern Europe, including Portugal, Spain, southern France, and Italy. By the 18th century, it was the chief food of the southern French and Italian peasantry, especially in the form of polenta in Italy.
Names
The word maize derives from the Spanish form of the indigenous Taíno word for the plant, mahiz. It is known by other names around the world.
The word "corn" outside the US, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand refers to any cereal crop, its meaning understood to vary geographically to refer to the local staple. In the United States,[30] Canada, Australia, and New Zealand, corn primarily means maize; this usage started as a shortening of "Indian corn". "Indian corn" primarily means maize (the staple grain of indigenous Americans), but can refer more specifically to multicolored "flint corn" used for decoration.
In places outside the US, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand, corn often refers to maize in culinary contexts. The narrower meaning is usually indicated by some additional word, as in sweet corn, sweetcorn, corn on the cob, baby corn, the puffed confection known as popcorn and the breakfast cereal known as corn flakes.
In Southern Africa, maize is commonly called mielie (Afrikaans) or mealie (English), words derived from the Portuguese word for maize, milho.
Maize is preferred in formal, scientific, and international usage because it refers specifically to this one grain, unlike corn, which has a complex variety of meanings that vary by context and geographic region. Maize is used by agricultural bodies and research institutes such as the FAO and CSIRO. National agricultural and industry associations often include the word maize in their name even in English-speaking countries where the local, informal word is something other than maize; for example, the Maize Association of Australia, the Indian Maize Development Association, the Kenya Maize Consortium and Maize Breeders Network, the National Maize Association of Nigeria, the Zimbabwe Seed Maize Association.
STRUCTURE AND PHYSIOLOGY
The maize plant is often 3 m (10 ft) in height, though some natural strains can grow 13 m (43 ft). The stem is commonly composed of 20 internodes of 18 cm (7 in) length. The leaves arise from the nodes, alternately on opposite sides on the stalk. A leaf, which grows from each node, is generally 9 cm (3+1⁄2 in) in width and 120 cm (3 ft 11 in) in length.
Ears develop above a few of the leaves in the midsection of the plant, between the stem and leaf sheath, elongating by around 3 mm (1⁄8 in) per day, to a length of 18 cm (7 in) with 60 cm (24 in) being the maximum alleged in the subspecies. They are female inflorescences, tightly enveloped by several layers of ear leaves commonly called husks. Certain varieties of maize have been bred to produce many additional developed ears. These are the source of the "baby corn" used as a vegetable in Asian cuisine.
The apex of the stem ends in the tassel, an inflorescence of male flowers. When the tassel is mature and conditions are suitably warm and dry, anthers on the tassel dehisce and release pollen. Maize pollen is anemophilous (dispersed by wind), and because of its large settling velocity, most pollen falls within a few meters of the tassel.
Elongated stigmas, called silks, emerge from the whorl of husk leaves at the end of the ear. They are often pale yellow and 18 cm (7 in) in length, like tufts of hair in appearance. At the end of each is a carpel, which may develop into a "kernel" if fertilized by a pollen grain. The pericarp of the fruit is fused with the seed coat referred to as "caryopsis", typical of the grasses, and the entire kernel is often referred to as the "seed". The cob is close to a multiple fruit in structure, except that the individual fruits (the kernels) never fuse into a single mass. The grains are about the size of peas, and adhere in regular rows around a white, pithy substance, which forms the ear. The maximum size of kernels is reputedly 2.5 cm (1 in). An ear commonly holds 600 kernels. They are of various colors: blackish, bluish-gray, purple, green, red, white and yellow. When ground into flour, maize yields more flour with much less bran than wheat does. It lacks the protein gluten of wheat and, therefore, makes baked goods with poor rising capability. A genetic variant that accumulates more sugar and less starch in the ear is consumed as a vegetable and is called sweet corn. Young ears can be consumed raw, with the cob and silk, but as the plant matures (usually during the summer months), the cob becomes tougher and the silk dries to inedibility. By the end of the growing season, the kernels dry out and become difficult to chew without cooking them tender first in boiling water.
Planting density affects multiple aspects of maize. Modern farming techniques in developed countries usually rely on dense planting, which produces one ear per stalk. Stands of silage maize are yet denser,[citation needed] and achieve a lower percentage of ears and more plant matter.
Maize is a facultative short-day plant and flowers in a certain number of growing degree days > 10 °C (50 °F) in the environment to which it is adapted. The magnitude of the influence that long nights have on the number of days that must pass before maize flowers is genetically prescribed and regulated by the phytochrome system.
Photoperiodicity can be eccentric in tropical cultivars such that the long days characteristic of higher latitudes allow the plants to grow so tall that they do not have enough time to produce seed before being killed by frost. These attributes, however, may prove useful in using tropical maize for biofuels.
Immature maize shoots accumulate a powerful antibiotic substance, 2,4-dihydroxy-7-methoxy-1,4-benzoxazin-3-one (DIMBOA). DIMBOA is a member of a group of hydroxamic acids (also known as benzoxazinoids) that serve as a natural defense against a wide range of pests, including insects, pathogenic fungi and bacteria. DIMBOA is also found in related grasses, particularly wheat. A maize mutant (bx) lacking DIMBOA is highly susceptible to attack by aphids and fungi. DIMBOA is also responsible for the relative resistance of immature maize to the European corn borer (family Crambidae). As maize matures, DIMBOA levels and resistance to the corn borer decline.
Because of its shallow roots, maize is susceptible to droughts, intolerant of nutrient-deficient soils, and prone to be uprooted by severe winds.
While yellow maizes derive their color from lutein and zeaxanthin, in red-colored maizes, the kernel coloration is due to anthocyanins and phlobaphenes. These latter substances are synthesized in the flavonoids synthetic pathway from polymerization of flavan-4-ols by the expression of maize pericarp color1 (p1) gene which encodes an R2R3 myb-like transcriptional activator of the A1 gene encoding for the dihydroflavonol 4-reductase (reducing dihydroflavonols into flavan-4-ols) while another gene (Suppressor of Pericarp Pigmentation 1 or SPP1) acts as a suppressor. The p1 gene encodes an Myb-homologous transcriptional activator of genes required for biosynthesis of red phlobaphene pigments, while the P1-wr allele specifies colorless kernel pericarp and red cobs, and unstable factor for orange1 (Ufo1) modifies P1-wr expression to confer pigmentation in kernel pericarp, as well as vegetative tissues, which normally do not accumulate significant amounts of phlobaphene pigments. The maize P gene encodes a Myb homolog that recognizes the sequence CCT/AACC, in sharp contrast with the C/TAACGG bound by vertebrate Myb proteins.
The ear leaf is the leaf most closely associated with a particular developing ear. This leaf and above contribute 70%[57] to 75% to 90% of grain fill. Therefore fungicide application is most important in that region in most disease environments.
ABNORMAL FLOWERS
Maize flowers may sometimes exhibit mutations that lead to the formation of female flowers in the tassel. These mutations, ts4 and Ts6, prohibit the development of the stamen while simultaneously promoting pistil development. This may cause inflorescences containing both male and female flowers, or hermaphrodite flowers.
GENETICS
Maize is an annual grass in the family Gramineae, which includes such plants as wheat, rye, barley, rice, sorghum, and sugarcane. There are two major species of the genus Zea (out of six total): Zea mays (maize) and Zea diploperennis, which is a perennial type of teosinte. The annual teosinte variety called Zea mays mexicana is the closest botanical relative to maize. It still grows in the wild as an annual in Mexico and Guatemala.
Many forms of maize are used for food, sometimes classified as various subspecies related to the amount of starch each has:
Flour corn: Zea mays var. amylacea
Popcorn: Zea mays var. everta
Dent corn : Zea mays var. indentata
Flint corn: Zea mays var. indurata
Sweet corn: Zea mays var. saccharata and Zea mays var. rugosa
Waxy corn: Zea mays var. ceratina
Amylomaize: Zea mays
Pod corn: Zea mays var. tunicata Larrañaga ex A. St. Hil.
Striped maize: Zea mays var. japonica
This system has been replaced (though not entirely displaced) over the last 60 years by multivariable classifications based on ever more data. Agronomic data were supplemented by botanical traits for a robust initial classification, then genetic, cytological, protein and DNA evidence was added. Now, the categories are forms (little used), races, racial complexes, and recently branches.
Maize is a diploid with 20 chromosomes (n=10). The combined length of the chromosomes is 1500 cM. Some of the maize chromosomes have what are known as "chromosomal knobs": highly repetitive heterochromatic domains that stain darkly. Individual knobs are polymorphic among strains of both maize and teosinte.
Barbara McClintock used these knob markers to validate her transposon theory of "jumping genes", for which she won the 1983 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. Maize is still an important model organism for genetics and developmental biology today.
The centromeres have two types of structural components, both of which are found only in the centromeres: Large arrays of CentC, a short satellite DNA; and a few of a family of retrotransposons. The B chromosome, unlike the others, contains an additional repeat which extends into neighboring areas of the chromosome. Centromeres can accidentally shrink during division and still function, although it is thought this will fail if it shrinks below a few hundred kilobase. Kinetochores contain RNA originating from centromeres. Centromere regions can become inactive, and can continue in that state if the chromosome still has another active one.
The Maize Genetics Cooperation Stock Center, funded by the USDA Agricultural Research Service and located in the Department of Crop Sciences at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, is a stock center of maize mutants. The total collection has nearly 80,000 samples. The bulk of the collection consists of several hundred named genes, plus additional gene combinations and other heritable variants. There are about 1000 chromosomal aberrations (e.g., translocations and inversions) and stocks with abnormal chromosome numbers (e.g., tetraploids). Genetic data describing the maize mutant stocks as well as myriad other data about maize genetics can be accessed at MaizeGDB, the Maize Genetics and Genomics Database.
In 2005, the US National Science Foundation (NSF), Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Department of Energy (DOE) formed a consortium to sequence the B73 maize genome. The resulting DNA sequence data was deposited immediately into GenBank, a public repository for genome-sequence data. Sequences and genome annotations have also been made available throughout the project's lifetime at the project's official site.
Primary sequencing of the maize genome was completed in 2008. On November 20, 2009, the consortium published results of its sequencing effort in Science. The genome, 85% of which is composed of transposons, was found to contain 32,540 genes (By comparison, the human genome contains about 2.9 billion bases and 26,000 genes). Much of the maize genome has been duplicated and reshuffled by helitrons—group of rolling circle transposons.
In Z. mays and various other angiosperms the MADS-box motif is involved in floral development. Early study in several angiosperm models including Z. mays was the beginning of research into the molecular evolution of floral structure in general, as well as their role in nonflowering plants.
EVOLUTION
As with many plants and animals, Z. mays has a positive correlation between effective population size and the magnitude of selection pressure. Z. m. having an EPS of ~650,000, it clusters with others of about the same EPS, and has 79% of its amino acid sites under selection.
Recombination is a significant source of diversity in Z. mays. (Note that this finding supersedes previous studies which showed no such correlation.)
This recombination/diversity effect is seen throughout plants but is also found to not occur – or not as strongly – in regions of high gene density. This is likely the reason that domesticated Z. mays has not seen as much of an increase in diversity within areas of higher density as in regions of lower density, although there is more evidence in other plants.
Some lines of maize have undergone ancient polyploidy events, starting 11m years ago. Over that time ~72% of polyploid duplicated genes have been retained, which is higher than other plants with older polyploidy events. Thus maize may be due to lose more duplicate genes as time goes along, similar to the course followed by the genomes of other plants. If so - if gene loss has merely not occurred yet - that could explain the lack of observed positive selection and lower negative selection which are observed in otherwise similar plants, i.e. also naturally outcrossing and with similar effective population sizes.
Ploidy does not appear to influence EPS or magnitude of selection effect in maize.
BREEDING
Maize reproduces sexually each year. This randomly selects half the genes from a given plant to propagate to the next generation, meaning that desirable traits found in the crop (like high yield or good nutrition) can be lost in subsequent generations unless certain techniques are used.
Maize breeding in prehistory resulted in large plants producing large ears. Modern breeding began with individuals who selected highly productive varieties in their fields and then sold seed to other farmers. James L. Reid was one of the earliest and most successful developing Reid's Yellow Dent in the 1860s. These early efforts were based on mass selection. Later breeding efforts included ear to row selection (C. G. Hopkins c. 1896), hybrids made from selected inbred lines (G. H. Shull, 1909), and the highly successful double cross hybrids using four inbred lines (D. F. Jones c. 1918, 1922). University supported breeding programs were especially important in developing and introducing modern hybrids. By the 1930s, companies such as Pioneer devoted to production of hybrid maize had begun to influence long-term development. Internationally important seed banks such as the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) and the US bank at the Maize Genetics Cooperation Stock Center University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign maintain germplasm important for future crop development.
Since the 1940s the best strains of maize have been first-generation hybrids made from inbred strains that have been optimized for specific traits, such as yield, nutrition, drought, pest and disease tolerance. Both conventional cross-breeding and genetic modification have succeeded in increasing output and reducing the need for cropland, pesticides, water and fertilizer. There is conflicting evidence to support the hypothesis that maize yield potential has increased over the past few decades. This suggests that changes in yield potential are associated with leaf angle, lodging resistance, tolerance of high plant density, disease/pest tolerance, and other agronomic traits rather than increase of yield potential per individual plant.
Tropical landraces remain an important and underutilized source of resistance alleles for for disease and for herbivores. Notable discoveries of rare alleles for this purpose were made by Dao et al 2014 and Sood et al 2014.
GLOBAL PROGRAM
CIMMYT operates a conventional breeding program to provide optimized strains. The program began in the 1980s. Hybrid seeds are distributed in Africa by the Drought Tolerant Maize for Africa project.
GENETIC MODIFICATION
Genetically modified (GM) maize was one of the 26 GM crops grown commercially in 2016. The vast majority of this is Bt maize. Grown since 1997 in the United States and Canada, 92% of the US maize crop was genetically modified in 2016 and 33% of the worldwide maize crop was GM in 2016. As of 2011, Herbicide-tolerant maize varieties were grown in Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, Colombia, El Salvador, the European Union, Honduras, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Philippines, the Russian Federation, Singapore, South Africa, Taiwan, Thailand, and the United States. Insect-resistant maize was grown in Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, China, Colombia, Egypt, the European Union, Honduras, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Philippines, South Africa, Switzerland, Taiwan, the United States, and Uruguay.
In September 2000, up to $50 million worth of food products were recalled due to the presence of Starlink genetically modified corn, which had been approved only for animal consumption and had not been approved for human consumption, and was subsequently withdrawn from the market.
ORIGIN
Maize is the domesticated variant of teosinte. The two plants have dissimilar appearance, maize having a single tall stalk with multiple leaves and teosinte being a short, bushy plant. The difference between the two is largely controlled by differences in just two genes, called grassy tillers-1 (gt1, A0A317YEZ1) and teosinte branched-1 (tb1, Q93WI2).
Several theories had been proposed about the specific origin of maize in Mesoamerica:
It is a direct domestication of a Mexican annual teosinte, Zea mays ssp. parviglumis, native to the Balsas River valley in south-eastern Mexico, with up to 12% of its genetic material obtained from Zea mays ssp. mexicana through introgression.
It has been derived from hybridization between a small domesticated maize (a slightly changed form of a wild maize) and a teosinte of section Luxuriantes, either Z. luxurians or Z. diploperennis.
It has undergone two or more domestications either of a wild maize or of a teosinte. (The term "teosinte" describes all species and subspecies in the genus Zea, excluding Zea mays ssp. mays.)
It has evolved from a hybridization of Z. diploperennis by Tripsacum dactyloides.
In the late 1930s, Paul Mangelsdorf suggested that domesticated maize was the result of a hybridization event between an unknown wild maize and a species of Tripsacum, a related genus. This theory about the origin of maize has been refuted by modern genetic testing, which refutes Mangelsdorf's model and the fourth listed above.
The teosinte origin theory was proposed by the Russian botanist Nikolai Ivanovich Vavilov in 1931 and the later American Nobel Prize-winner George Beadle in 1932.: 10 It is supported experimentally and by recent studies of the plants' genomes. Teosinte and maize can cross-breed and produce fertile offspring. A number of questions remain concerning the species, among them:
how the immense diversity of the species of sect. Zea originated,
how the tiny archaeological specimens of 3500–2700 BC could have been selected from a teosinte, and
how domestication could have proceeded without leaving remains of teosinte or maize with teosintoid traits earlier than the earliest known until recently, dating from ca. 1100 BC.
The domestication of maize is of particular interest to researchers—archaeologists, geneticists, ethnobotanists, geographers, etc. The process is thought by some to have started 7,500 to 12,000 years ago. Research from the 1950s to 1970s originally focused on the hypothesis that maize domestication occurred in the highlands between the states of Oaxaca and Jalisco, because the oldest archaeological remains of maize known at the time were found there.
Connection with 'parviglumis' subspecies
Genetic studies, published in 2004 by John Doebley, identified Zea mays ssp. parviglumis, native to the Balsas River valley in Mexico's southwestern highlands, and also known as Balsas teosinte, as being the crop wild relative that is genetically most similar to modern maize. This was confirmed by further studies, which refined this hypothesis somewhat. Archaeobotanical studies, published in 2009, point to the middle part of the Balsas River valley as the likely location of early domestication; this river is not very long, so these locations are not very distant. Stone milling tools with maize residue have been found in an 8,700 year old layer of deposits in a cave not far from Iguala, Guerrero.
Doebley was part of the team that first published, in 2002, that maize had been domesticated only once, about 9,000 years ago, and then spread throughout the Americas.
A primitive corn was being grown in southern Mexico, Central America, and northern South America 7,000 years ago. Archaeological remains of early maize ears, found at Guila Naquitz Cave in the Oaxaca Valley, date back roughly 6,250 years; the oldest ears from caves near Tehuacan, Puebla, 5,450 B.P.
Maize pollen dated to 7,300 B.P. from San Andres, Tabasco, on the Caribbean coast has also been recovered.
As maize was introduced to new cultures, new uses were developed and new varieties selected to better serve in those preparations. Maize was the staple food, or a major staple – along with squash, Andean region potato, quinoa, beans, and amaranth – of most pre-Columbian North American, Mesoamerican, South American, and Caribbean cultures. The Mesoamerican civilization, in particular, was deeply interrelated with maize. Its traditions and rituals involved all aspects of maize cultivation – from the planting to the food preparation. Maize formed the Mesoamerican people's identity.
It is unknown what precipitated its domestication, because the edible portion of the wild variety is too small, and hard to obtain, to be eaten directly, as each kernel is enclosed in a very hard bivalve shell.
In 1939, George Beadle demonstrated that the kernels of teosinte are readily "popped" for human consumption, like modern popcorn.[91] Some have argued it would have taken too many generations of selective breeding to produce large, compressed ears for efficient cultivation. However, studies of the hybrids readily made by intercrossing teosinte and modern maize suggest this objection is not well founded.
SPREADING TO THE NORTH
Around 4,500 ago, maize began to spread to the north; it was first cultivated in what is now the United States at several sites in New Mexico and Arizona, about 4,100 ago.
During the first millennium AD, maize cultivation spread more widely in the areas north. In particular, the large-scale adoption of maize agriculture and consumption in eastern North America took place about A.D. 900. Native Americans cleared large forest and grassland areas for the new crop.
In 2005, research by the USDA Forest Service suggested that the rise in maize cultivation 500 to 1,000 years ago in what is now the southeastern United States corresponded with a decline of freshwater mussels, which are very sensitive to environmental changes.
CULTIVATION
PLANTING
Because it is cold-intolerant, in the temperate zones maize must be planted in the spring. Its root system is generally shallow, so the plant is dependent on soil moisture. As a plant that uses C4 carbon fixation, maize is a considerably more water-efficient crop than plants that use C3 carbon fixation such as alfalfa and soybeans. Maize is most sensitive to drought at the time of silk emergence, when the flowers are ready for pollination. In the United States, a good harvest was traditionally predicted if the maize was "knee-high by the Fourth of July", although modern hybrids generally exceed this growth rate. Maize used for silage is harvested while the plant is green and the fruit immature. Sweet corn is harvested in the "milk stage", after pollination but before starch has formed, between late summer and early to mid-autumn. Field maize is left in the field until very late in the autumn to thoroughly dry the grain, and may, in fact, sometimes not be harvested until winter or even early spring. The importance of sufficient soil moisture is shown in many parts of Africa, where periodic drought regularly causes maize crop failure and consequent famine. Although it is grown mainly in wet, hot climates, it has been said to thrive in cold, hot, dry or wet conditions, meaning that it is an extremely versatile crop.
Maize was planted by the Native Americans in hills, in a complex system known to some as the Three Sisters. Maize provided support for beans, and the beans provided nitrogen derived from nitrogen-fixing rhizobia bacteria which live on the roots of beans and other legumes; and squashes provided ground cover to stop weeds and inhibit evaporation by providing shade over the soil. This method was replaced by single species hill planting where each hill 60–120 cm (2 ft 0 in–3 ft 11 in) apart was planted with three or four seeds, a method still used by home gardeners. A later technique was "checked maize", where hills were placed
1 m (40 in) apart in each direction, allowing cultivators to run through the field in two directions. In more arid lands, this was altered and seeds were planted in the bottom of 10–12 cm (4–4+1⁄2 in) deep furrows to collect water. Modern technique plants maize in rows which allows for cultivation while the plant is young, although the hill technique is still used in the maize fields of some Native American reservations. When maize is planted in rows, it also allows for planting of other crops between these rows to make more efficient use of land space.
In most regions today, maize grown in residential gardens is still often planted manually with a hoe, whereas maize grown commercially is no longer planted manually but rather is planted with a planter. In North America, fields are often planted in a two-crop rotation with a nitrogen-fixing crop, often alfalfa in cooler climates and soybeans in regions with longer summers. Sometimes a third crop, winter wheat, is added to the rotation.
Many of the maize varieties grown in the United States and Canada are hybrids. Often the varieties have been genetically modified to tolerate glyphosate or to provide protection against natural pests. Glyphosate is an herbicide which kills all plants except those with genetic tolerance. This genetic tolerance is very rarely found in nature.
In the midwestern United States, low-till or no-till farming techniques are usually used. In low-till, fields are covered once, maybe twice, with a tillage implement either ahead of crop planting or after the previous harvest. The fields are planted and fertilized. Weeds are controlled through the use of herbicides, and no cultivation tillage is done during the growing season. This technique reduces moisture evaporation from the soil, and thus provides more moisture for the crop. The technologies mentioned in the previous paragraph enable low-till and no-till farming. Weeds compete with the crop for moisture and nutrients, making them undesirable.
HARVESTING
Before the 20th century, all maize harvesting was by manual labour, by grazing, or by some combination of those. Whether the ears were hand-picked and the stover was grazed, or the whole plant was cut, gathered, and shocked, people and livestock did all the work. Between the 1890s and the 1970s, the technology of maize harvesting expanded greatly. Today, all such technologies, from entirely manual harvesting to entirely mechanized, are still in use to some degree, as appropriate to each farm's needs, although the thoroughly mechanized versions predominate, as they offer the lowest unit costs when scaled to large farm operations. For small farms, their unit cost can be too high, as their higher fixed cost cannot be amortized over as many units.[citation needed]
Before World War II, most maize in North America was harvested by hand. This involved a large number of workers and associated social events (husking or shucking bees). From the 1890s onward, some machinery became available to partially mechanize the processes, such as one- and two-row mechanical pickers (picking the ear, leaving the stover) and corn binders, which are reaper-binders designed specifically for maize (for example, Video on YouTube). The latter produce sheaves that can be shocked. By hand or mechanical picker, the entire ear is harvested, which then requires a separate operation of a maize sheller to remove the kernels from the ear. Whole ears of maize were often stored in corn cribs, and these whole ears are a sufficient form for some livestock feeding use. Today corn cribs with whole ears, and corn binders, are less common because most modern farms harvest the grain from the field with a combine and store it in bins. The combine with a corn head (with points and snap rolls instead of a reel) does not cut the stalk; it simply pulls the stalk down. The stalk continues downward and is crumpled into a mangled pile on the ground, where it usually is left to become organic matter for the soil. The ear of maize is too large to pass between slots in a plate as the snap rolls pull the stalk away, leaving only the ear and husk to enter the machinery. The combine separates the husk and the cob, keeping only the kernels.
When maize is a silage crop, the entire plant is usually chopped at once with a forage harvester (chopper) and ensiled in silos or polymer wrappers. Ensiling of sheaves cut by a corn binder was formerly common in some regions but has become uncommon. For storing grain in bins, the moisture of the grain must be sufficiently low to avoid spoiling. If the moisture content of the harvested grain is too high, grain dryers are used to reduce the moisture content by blowing heated air through the grain. This can require large amounts of energy in the form of combustible gases (propane or natural gas) and electricity to power the blowers.
PRODUCTION
Maize is widely cultivated throughout the world, and a greater weight of maize is produced each year than any other grain. In 2018, total world production was 1.15 billion tonnes, led by the United States with 34.2% of the total (table). China produced 22.4% of the global total.
UNITED STATES
In 2016, maize production was forecast to be over 380 million metric tons (15 billion bushels), an increase of 11% over 2014 American production. Based on conditions as of August 2016, the expected yield would be the highest ever for the United States. The area of harvested maize was forecast to be 35 million hectares (87 million acres), an increase of 7% over 2015. Maize is especially popular in Midwestern states such as Indiana, Iowa, and Illinois; in the latter, it was named the state's official grain in 2017.
STORAGE
Drying is vital to prevent or at least reduce mycotoxin contamination. Aspergillus and Fusarium spp. are the most common mycotoxin sources, but there are others. Altogether maize contaminants are so common, and this crop is so economically important, that maize mycotoxins are among the most important in agriculture in general.
USES
HUMAN FOOD
Maize and cornmeal (ground dried maize) constitute a staple food in many regions of the world. Maize is used to produce cornstarch, a common ingredient in home cooking and many industrialized food products. Maize starch can be hydrolyzed and enzymatically treated to produce syrups, particularly high fructose corn syrup, a sweetener; and also fermented and distilled to produce grain alcohol. Grain alcohol from maize is traditionally the source of Bourbon whiskey. Corn flour is used to make cornbread and other baked products.
In prehistoric times Mesoamerican women used a metate to process maize into ground cornmeal, allowing the preparation of foods that were more calorie dense than popcorn. After ceramic vessels were invented the Olmec people began to cook maize together with beans, improving the nutritional value of the staple meal. Although maize naturally contains niacin, an important nutrient, it was not bioavailable without the process of nixtamalization. The Maya used nixtamal meal to make varieties of porridges and tamales. The process was later used in the cuisine of the American South to prepare corn for grits and hominy.
Maize is a staple of Mexican cuisine. Masa (cornmeal treated with limewater) is the main ingredient for tortillas, atole and many other dishes of Central American food. It is the main ingredient of corn tortilla, tamales, pozole, atole and all the dishes based on them, like tacos, quesadillas, chilaquiles, enchiladas, tostadas and many more. In Mexico the fungus of maize, known as huitlacoche, is considered a delicacy.
Coarse maize meal is made into a thick porridge in many cultures: from the polenta of Italy, the angu of Brazil, the mămăligă of Romania, to cornmeal mush in the US (or hominy grits in the South) or the food called mieliepap in South Africa and sadza, nshima, ugali and other names in other parts of Africa. Introduced into Africa by the Portuguese in the 16th century, maize has become Africa's most important staple food crop. These are commonly eaten in the Southeastern United States, foods handed down from Native Americans, who called the dish sagamite.
Maize can also be harvested and consumed in the unripe state, when the kernels are fully grown but still soft. Unripe maize must usually be cooked to become palatable; this may be done by simply boiling or roasting the whole ears and eating the kernels right off the cob. Sweet corn, a genetic variety that is high in sugars and low in starch, is usually consumed in the unripe state. Such corn on the cob is a common dish in the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Cyprus, some parts of South America, and the Balkans, but virtually unheard of in some European countries. Corn on the cob was hawked on the streets of early 19th-century New York City by poor, barefoot "Hot Corn Girls", who were thus the precursors of hot dog carts, churro wagons, and fruit stands seen on the streets of big cities today.
Within the United States, the usage of maize for human consumption constitutes only around 1/40th of the amount grown in the country. In the United States and Canada, maize is mostly grown to feed livestock, as forage, silage (made by fermentation of chopped green cornstalks), or grain. Maize meal is also a significant ingredient of some commercial animal food products.
NUTRITIONAL VALUE
Raw, yellow, sweet maize kernels are composed of 76% water, 19% carbohydrates, 3% protein, and 1% fat (table). In a 100-gram serving, maize kernels provide 86 calories and are a good source (10–19% of the Daily Value) of the B vitamins, thiamin, niacin (but see Pellagra warning below), pantothenic acid (B5) and folate (right table for raw, uncooked kernels, USDA Nutrient Database). In moderate amounts, they also supply dietary fiber and the essential minerals, magnesium and phosphorus whereas other nutrients are in low amounts (table).
Maize has suboptimal amounts of the essential amino acids tryptophan and lysine, which accounts for its lower status as a protein source. However, the proteins of beans and legumes complement those of maize.
FEED AND FODDER FOR LIVESTOCK
Maize is a major source of both grain feed and fodder for livestock. It is fed to the livestock in various ways. When it is used as a grain crop, the dried kernels are used as feed. They are often kept on the cob for storage in a corn crib, or they may be shelled off for storage in a grain bin. The farm that consumes the feed may produce it, purchase it on the market, or some of both. When the grain is used for feed, the rest of the plant (the corn stover) can be used later as fodder, bedding (litter), or soil amendment. When the whole maize plant (grain plus stalks and leaves) is used for fodder, it is usually chopped all at once and ensilaged, as digestibility and palatability are higher in the ensilaged form than in the dried form. Maize silage is one of the most valuable forages for ruminants. Before the advent of widespread ensilaging, it was traditional to gather the corn into shocks after harvesting, where it dried further. With or without a subsequent move to the cover of a barn, it was then stored for weeks to several months until fed to the livestock. Today ensilaging can occur not only in siloes but also in silage wrappers. However, in the tropics, maize can be harvested year-round and fed as green forage to the animals.
CHEMICALS
Starch from maize can also be made into plastics, fabrics, adhesives, and many other chemical products.
The corn steep liquor, a plentiful watery byproduct of maize wet milling process, is widely used in the biochemical industry and research as a culture medium to grow many kinds of microorganisms.
Chrysanthemin is found in purple corn and is used as a food coloring.
BIO-FUEL
"Feed maize" is being used increasingly for heating; specialized corn stoves (similar to wood stoves) are available and use either feed maize or wood pellets to generate heat. Maize cobs are also used as a biomass fuel source. Maize is relatively cheap and home-heating furnaces have been developed which use maize kernels as a fuel. They feature a large hopper that feeds the uniformly sized maize kernels (or wood pellets or cherry pits) into the fire.[citation needed]
Maize is increasingly used as a feedstock for the production of ethanol fuel.[120] When considering where to construct an ethanol plant, one of the site selection criteria is to ensure there is locally available feedstock. Ethanol is mixed with gasoline to decrease the amount of pollutants emitted when used to fuel motor vehicles. High fuel prices in mid-2007 led to higher demand for ethanol, which in turn led to higher prices paid to farmers for maize. This led to the 2007 harvest being one of the most profitable maize crops in modern history for farmers. Because of the relationship between fuel and maize, prices paid for the crop now tend to track the price of oil.
The price of food is affected to a certain degree by the use of maize for biofuel production. The cost of transportation, production, and marketing are a large portion (80%) of the price of food in the United States. Higher energy costs affect these costs, especially transportation. The increase in food prices the consumer has been seeing is mainly due to the higher energy cost. The effect of biofuel production on other food crop prices is indirect. Use of maize for biofuel production increases the demand, and therefore price of maize. This, in turn, results in farm acreage being diverted from other food crops to maize production. This reduces the supply of the other food crops and increases their prices.
Maize is widely used in Germany as a feedstock for biogas plants. Here the maize is harvested, shredded then placed in silage clamps from which it is fed into the biogas plants. This process makes use of the whole plant rather than simply using the kernels as in the production of fuel ethanol.
A biomass gasification power plant in Strem near Güssing, Burgenland, Austria, began in 2005. Research is being done to make diesel out of the biogas by the Fischer Tropsch method.
Increasingly, ethanol is being used at low concentrations (10% or less) as an additive in gasoline (gasohol) for motor fuels to increase the octane rating, lower pollutants, and reduce petroleum use (what is nowadays also known as "biofuels" and has been generating an intense debate regarding the human beings' necessity of new sources of energy, on the one hand, and the need to maintain, in regions such as Latin America, the food habits and culture which has been the essence of civilizations such as the one originated in Mesoamerica; the entry, January 2008, of maize among the commercial agreements of NAFTA has increased this debate, considering the bad labor conditions of workers in the fields, and mainly the fact that NAFTA "opened the doors to the import of maize from the United States, where the farmers who grow it receive multimillion-dollar subsidies and other government supports. ... According to OXFAM UK, after NAFTA went into effect, the price of maize in Mexico fell 70% between 1994 and 2001. The number of farm jobs dropped as well: from 8.1 million in 1993 to 6.8 million in 2002. Many of those who found themselves without work were small-scale maize growers."). However, introduction in the northern latitudes of the US of tropical maize for biofuels, and not for human or animal consumption, may potentially alleviate this.
COMMODITY
Maize is bought and sold by investors and price speculators as a tradable commodity using corn futures contracts. These "futures" are traded on the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) under ticker symbol C. They are delivered every year in March, May, July, September, and December.
Ornamental and other uses
Some forms of the plant are occasionally grown for ornamental use in the garden. For this purpose, variegated and colored leaf forms as well as those with colorful ears are used.
Corncobs can be hollowed out and treated to make inexpensive smoking pipes, first manufactured in the United States in 1869.
An unusual use for maize is to create a "corn maze" (or "maize maze") as a tourist attraction. The idea of a maize maze was introduced by the American Maze Company who created a maze in Pennsylvania in 1993. Traditional mazes are most commonly grown using yew hedges, but these take several years to mature. The rapid growth of a field of maize allows a maze to be laid out using GPS at the start of a growing season and for the maize to grow tall enough to obstruct a visitor's line of sight by the start of the summer. In Canada and the US, these are popular in many farming communities.
Maize kernels can be used in place of sand in a sandboxlike enclosure for children's play.
Stigmas from female maize flowers, popularly called corn silk, are sold as herbal supplements.
Maize is used as a fish bait, called "dough balls". It is particularly popular in Europe for coarse fishing.
Additionally, feed corn is sometimes used by hunters to bait animals such as deer or wild hogs.
UNITED STATES USAGE BREAKDOWN
The breakdown of usage of the 12.1-billion-bushel (307-million-tonne) 2008 US maize crop was as follows, according to the World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates Report by the USDA.In the US since 2009/2010, maize feedstock use for ethanol production has somewhat exceeded direct use for livestock feed; maize use for fuel ethanol was 5,130 million bushels (130 million tonnes) in the 2013/2014 marketing year.A fraction of the maize feedstock dry matter used for ethanol production is usefully recovered as DDGS (dried distillers grains with solubles). In the 2010/2011 marketing year, about 29.1 million tonnes of DDGS were fed to US livestock and poultry. Because starch utilization in fermentation for ethanol production leaves other grain constituents more concentrated in the residue, the feed value per kg of DDGS, with regard to ruminant-metabolizable energy and protein, exceeds that of the grain. Feed value for monogastric animals, such as swine and poultry, is somewhat lower than for ruminants.
HAZARDS
PELLAGRA
When maize was first introduced into farming systems other than those used by traditional native-American peoples, it was generally welcomed with enthusiasm for its productivity. However, a widespread problem of malnutrition soon arose wherever maize was introduced as a staple food. This was a mystery, since these types of malnutrition were not normally seen among the indigenous Americans, for whom maize was the principal staple food.
It was eventually discovered that the indigenous Americans had learned to soak maize in alkali — water (the process now known as nixtamalization) — made with ashes and lime (calcium oxide) since at least 1200–1500 BC by Mesoamericans. They did this to liberate the corn hulls, but (unbeknownst to natives or colonists) it coincidentally liberates the B-vitamin niacin, the lack of which was the underlying cause of the condition known as pellagra.
Maize was introduced into the diet of non-indigenous Americans without the necessary cultural knowledge acquired over thousands of years in the Americas. In the late 19th century, pellagra reached epidemic proportions in parts of the southern US, as medical researchers debated two theories for its origin: the deficiency theory (which was eventually shown to be true) said that pellagra was due to a deficiency of some nutrient, and the germ theory said that pellagra was caused by a germ transmitted by stable flies. A third theory, promoted by the eugenicist Charles Davenport, held that people only contracted pellagra if they were susceptible to it due to certain "constitutional, inheritable" traits of the affected individual.
Once alkali processing and dietary variety were understood and applied, pellagra disappeared in the developed world. The development of high lysine maize and the promotion of a more balanced diet have also contributed to its demise. Pellagra still exists today in food-poor areas and refugee camps where people survive on donated maize.
ALLERGY
Maize contains lipid transfer protein, an indigestible protein that survives cooking. This protein has been linked to a rare and understudied allergy to maize in humans. The allergic reaction can cause skin rash, swelling or itching of mucous membranes, diarrhea, vomiting, asthma and, in severe cases, anaphylaxis. It is unclear how common this allergy is in the general population.
MYCOTOXINS
Fungicide application does not reduce fungal growth or mycotoxin dramatically, although it can be a part of a successful reduction strategy. Among the most common toxins are those produced by Aspergillus and Fusarium spp. The most common toxins are aflatoxins, fumonisins, zearalenone, and ochratoxin A. Bt maize discourages insect vectors and by so doing it dramatically reduces concentrations of fumonisins, significantly reduces aflatoxins, but only mildly reduces others.
ART
Maize has been an essential crop in the Andes since the pre-Columbian era. The Moche culture from Northern Peru made ceramics from earth, water, and fire. This pottery was a sacred substance, formed in significant shapes and used to represent important themes. Maize was represented anthropomorphically as well as naturally.
In the United States, maize ears along with tobacco leaves are carved into the capitals of columns in the United States Capitol building. Maize itself is sometimes used for temporary architectural detailing when the intent is to celebrate the fall season, local agricultural productivity and culture. Bundles of dried maize stalks are often displayed along with pumpkins, gourds and straw in autumnal displays outside homes and businesses. A well-known example of architectural use is the Corn Palace in Mitchell, South Dakota, which uses cobs and ears of colored maize to implement a mural design that is recycled annually. Another well-known example is the Field of Corn sculpture in Dublin, Ohio, where hundreds of concrete ears of corn stand in a grassy field.
A maize stalk with two ripe ears is depicted on the reverse of the Croatian 1 lipa coin, minted since 1993.
WIKIPEDIA
Trails along the edge of the Mesa plateau ..my daughter .Laura is just barely visible in the purple shirt towards the top of the trail .A stunningly diversified landscape with rough trails littered with remnants of burned trees and then around the corner new life blooms with yellow purple and red native flowers,a visual treat everywhere!!! In front of you the majestic views and the canyon...
Mesa Verde State park is comprised of 52 thousand aces and elevation ranges from 6000 to 8,527 ft ,thats what I meant when I said it will take your breath away!!
The previous month, there had been a flood in this village. One way that people prepare for floods is to lift all of their precious belongings onto a raised platform (called a Matcha) inside their houses. This woman had received warning about this flood very late. She quickly put all of her belongings on the matcha. She also put her one month old daughter up there, while she ran out of the house to move the animals to safety, to find her husband, and to save what little food she could from their fields. When she returned less than an hour later, her baby lay dead, fallen from the matcha into the rising waters.
Outside her house, hearing the muffled clack of a pedal-powered sewing machine, I saw a small grave with some simple toys resting on top.
Peoples' lives in rural Bangladesh often hang by a thread. In households too poor to do anything but grow food for themselves (and perhaps a little extra to sell if there is a good harvest), what happens when those crops, their only lifeline, are destroyed by a flood, or a cyclone? Protecting their livelihood is the highest priority.
A sewing machine can provide alternate sources of income so that families have income not totally derived from their vulnerable crops, and perhaps can even save money. Diversifying their income like this helps them to not only reduce disaster risk, but also to help them adapt to a changing climate as explained in the previous picture. It cannot make up for their losses, but it can make those losses less over time.
To see why I was in Bangladesh click here, or take a look at the previous or next photo in the series.
If you are interested, please view the series to see what I found and what I learned in my few weeks in Bangladesh, visiting some of the most vulnerable people anywhere on our planet.
THE AGE OF FLOWERING PLANTS
ANGIOSPERM means "seed borne in vessel," while GYMNOSPERM means "naked seed," a reference to the lack of protective structure enveloping the seed. One reason that flowering plants were able to diversify so dramatically and spread during the Cretaceous and Cenozoic, or modern, the era was the evolution of new structures and tissues such as the carpel, a womb-like vessel that encloses angiosperm seeds and endosperm, a placenta-like tissue that nourishes the young plant as it develop within the seed, Today, angiosperm dominate terrestrial life on the planet. At an estimated 422,000 species, they compose by far the largest group of plants. They grow in greater range of environments, exhibits a wider range of growth habits, and display more variation in form than any living group of plants. In size, angiosperm range from tiny duckweed to eucaplytuses more than 330 ft (100 m) tall. The explosion of angiosperm diversity has gone hand in hand with the proliferation of insect, birds, and other animals that pollinate their flowers, disperse their fruits and seeds, and eat their leaves.
PLANT - The ultimate visual reference to plants and flowers of the world JANET MARINELLI
Mindanao Tourist Destinations
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Lost Einsteins: Diversifying Innovation
Amy Brachio, Global Deputy Vice-Chair, EY, USA. Kevin Frey, Chief Executive Officer, Generation Unlimited, UNICEF, Generation Unlimited, USA. Tomas Lamanauskas, Deputy Secretary-General-elect, International Telecommunication Union (ITU), Geneva
Maria Leptin, President, European Research Council, Belgium. Magdalena Skipper, Editor-in-Chief, Nature, United Kingdom
Tuesday 2 May 2023
14.45 - 15.30
Stakeholder Dialogue
World Economic Forum Headquarters, Eiger
Copyright: World Economic Forum/Jean-Luc Auboeuf
The Growth Summit: Jobs and Opportunity for All 2023 in Geneva, Switzerland
Lost Einsteins: Diversifying Innovation
Amy Brachio, Global Deputy Vice-Chair, EY, USA. Kevin Frey, Chief Executive Officer, Generation Unlimited, UNICEF, Generation Unlimited, USA. Tomas Lamanauskas, Deputy Secretary-General-elect, International Telecommunication Union (ITU), Geneva
Maria Leptin, President, European Research Council, Belgium. Magdalena Skipper, Editor-in-Chief, Nature, United Kingdom
Tuesday 2 May 2023
14.45 - 15.30
Stakeholder Dialogue
World Economic Forum Headquarters, Eiger
Copyright: World Economic Forum/Jean-Luc Auboeuf
The Growth Summit: Jobs and Opportunity for All 2023 in Geneva, Switzerland
Canadian Diversified Products 7 Crafts Ltd.
4057 Victoria Ave. (next to the heliport)
Between Briodge Street and River Road
Canada's Largest Candle House
KLAX (Los Angeles International Airport) - 01 JAN 2023
"Pegjet One One" from Licenciado Gustavo Diaz Ordaz International Airport (PVR/MMPR) - Puerto Vallarta, Mexico - on short final to RWY 25L. Operated by Pegasus Elite Aviation.
Production Site: Wichita (ICT)
Year of Manufacture: 1991
Delivery to Ameritrust Texas Financial Corporation: 12 AUG 1992 as N156SC
Hex Code: A0E20C
Passengers: 8
Engines: 2x Allied Signal TFE731-2B
To Society Aviation Company: DEC 1993 as N156SC
Hex Code: A0E20C
Passengers: 8
Engines: 2x Allied Signal TFE731-2B
To Keycorp Aviation Company: OCT 1997 as N156SC
Hex Code: A0E20C
Passengers: 8
Engines: 2x Allied Signal TFE731-2B
To E C Aviation Services Inc: 26 JAN 1998 as N156SC
Hex Code: A0E20C
Passengers: 8
Engines: 2x Allied Signal TFE731-2B
Re-registered to E C Aviation Services Inc: MAY 1998 as N156EC
Hex Code: A0E0E0
Passengers: 8
Engines: 2x Allied Signal TFE731-2B
To Pinnacle Air Group LLC: 31 OCT 2002 as N156EC
Hex Code: A0E0E0
Passengers: 8
Engines: 2x Allied Signal TFE731-2B
Re-registered to Pinnacle Air Group LLC: 01 AUG 2003 as N696PA
Hex Code: A94246
Passengers: 8
Engines: 2x Allied Signal TFE731-2B
To PA Lear 31A-060 LLC: 30 SEP 2004 as N696PA
Hex Code: A94246
Passengers: 8
Engines: 2x Allied Signal TFE731-2B
To Consolidated Pipe & Supply Company Inc: 06 NOV 2006 as N696PA
Hex Code: A94246
Passengers: 8
Engines: 2x Allied Signal TFE731-2B
Re-registered to Consolidated Pipe & Supply Company Inc: 08 FEB 2007 as N699CP
Hex Code: A94C65
Passengers: 8
Engines: 2x Allied Signal TFE731-2B
To Saffron Piers LLC: 29 JAN 2015 as N699CP
Hex Code: A94C65
Passengers: 8
Engines: 2x Allied Signal TFE731-2B
Re-registered to Saffron Piers LLC: 01 MAY 2015 as N52SY
Hex Code: A6883C
Passengers: 8
Engines: 2x Allied Signal TFE731-2B
To Aery Aviation LLC: 30 JUN 2021 as N52SY
Hex Code: A6883C
Passengers: 8
Engines: 2x Allied Signal TFE731-2B
To Diversified Aviation Management LLC: 14 DEC 2021 as N311EW
Operated by Pegasus Elite Aviation
Hex Code: A34B01
Passengers: 8
Engines: 2x Allied Signal TFE731-2B
*** Update ***
To Pegasus Elite Aviation Inc: 14 FEB 2024 as N311EW
Hex Code: A34B01
Passengers: 8
Engines: 2x Allied Signal TFE731-2B
To Rheem Aviation LLC: 12 JUL 2024 as N311EW
Operated by Diamond Aviation
Hex Code: A34B01
Passengers: 8
Engines: 2x Allied Signal TFE731-2B
Re-registered to Rheem Aviation LLC: 11 MAR 2025 as N702GW
Operated by Diamond Aviation
Hex Code: A95CA7
Passengers: 8
Engines: 2x Allied Signal TFE731-2B
Lost Einsteins: Diversifying Innovation
Amy Brachio, Global Deputy Vice-Chair, EY, USA. Kevin Frey, Chief Executive Officer, Generation Unlimited, UNICEF, Generation Unlimited, USA. Tomas Lamanauskas, Deputy Secretary-General-elect, International Telecommunication Union (ITU), Geneva
Maria Leptin, President, European Research Council, Belgium. Magdalena Skipper, Editor-in-Chief, Nature, United Kingdom
Tuesday 2 May 2023
14.45 - 15.30
Stakeholder Dialogue
World Economic Forum Headquarters, Eiger
Copyright: World Economic Forum/Jean-Luc Auboeuf
The Growth Summit: Jobs and Opportunity for All 2023 in Geneva, Switzerland
JMB are diversifying their business to include coaching to a greater degree than hitherto. A recent fleet addition is GCZ505, which is seen here looking superb. It joined the fleet from John Hunter of Alloa, and has just entered service.
It was new in April 2001 as 01-KY-2174 with Murray of Portadown, and is a Scania K124 / Irizar Century.
THE AGE OF FLOWERING PLANTS
ANGIOSPERM means "seed borne in vessel," while GYMNOSPERM means "naked seed," a reference to the lack of protective structure enveloping the seed. One reason that flowering plants were able to diversify so dramatically and spread during the Cretaceous and Cenozoic, or modern, the era was the evolution of new structures and tissues such as the carpel, a womb-like vessel that encloses angiosperm seeds and endosperm, a placenta-like tissue that nourishes the young plant as it develop within the seed, Today, angiosperm dominate terrestrial life on the planet. At an estimated 422,000 species, they compose by far the largest group of plants. They grow in greater range of environments, exhibits a wider range of growth habits, and display more variation in form than any living group of plants. In size, angiosperm range from tiny duckweed to eucaplytuses more than 330 ft (100 m) tall. The explosion of angiosperm diversity has gone hand in hand with the proliferation of insect, birds, and other animals that pollinate their flowers, disperse their fruits and seeds, and eat their leaves.
PLANT - The ultimate visual reference to plants and flowers of the world JANET MARINELLI
Mindanao Tourist Destinations
Local/Travel Website and Angelique Ross Kaamiño/TravelEscapade TRAVEL/Leisure Cebu/CdO/Butuanon
Featured Link-
Eagle View from the top of Mt. Kitanglad of CdeO Macajalar Bay to Mt. Malindang, Mis. Occ./Carfel Amerkhan with Envaronmentalist Survey Group PHOTOS
PHOTO INFO-STORY: -wilfredosrb
Mindanao Tourist Destinations created an event.
June 28, 2012 ·
Let us help promote Mindanao Tourism
July 31, 2012
PHOTO INFO-STORY: - wilfredosrb.
Lost Einsteins: Diversifying Innovation
Amy Brachio, Global Deputy Vice-Chair, EY, USA. Kevin Frey, Chief Executive Officer, Generation Unlimited, UNICEF, Generation Unlimited, USA. Tomas Lamanauskas, Deputy Secretary-General-elect, International Telecommunication Union (ITU), Geneva
Maria Leptin, President, European Research Council, Belgium. Magdalena Skipper, Editor-in-Chief, Nature, United Kingdom
Tuesday 2 May 2023
14.45 - 15.30
Stakeholder Dialogue
World Economic Forum Headquarters, Eiger
Copyright: World Economic Forum/Jean-Luc Auboeuf
The Growth Summit: Jobs and Opportunity for All 2023 in Geneva, Switzerland
wine industry diversifying into bikemaking
=======================
all In vino veritas shots taken during our winery tour in Barossa valley , see other shots here:
List of the tallest towers.
1 Burj Dubai 2,684 feet 818 m 2009 Skyscraper
2 Warsaw Radio Mast 2,121 feet 646.4 m 1974 Guyed mast
3 KVLY/KTHI TV Mast 2,063 feet 628.8 m 1963 Guyed mast
4 KXJB-TV mast 2,060 feet 627.8 m 1998 Guyed mast
5 KXTV/KOVR Tower 2,049 feet 624.5 m 2000 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Walnut Grove, California Tallest structure in California
6 KATV Tower 2,000 feet 609.6 m 1965?1967? Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Redfield, Arkansas
7 KCAU TV Tower 2,000 feet 609.6 m 1965 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Sioux City, Iowa
8 WECT TV6 Tower 2,000 feet 609.6 m 1969 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Colly Township, North Carolina
9 WHO-TV, KDIN-TV,WOI-FM Tower 2,000 feet 609.6 m 1972 Guyed mast VHF-TV, FM radio transmission U.S. Alleman, Iowa
10 Des Moines Hearst-Argyle Television Tower Alleman 2,000 feet 609.6 m 1974 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Alleman, Iowa
11 WEAU-Tower 2,000 feet 609.6 m 1981 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Fairchild, Wisconsin
12 Diversified Communications Tower 2,000 feet 609.6 m 1981 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Floyd Dale, South Carolina
13 AFLAC Tower 2,000 feet 609.6 m 1984 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Rowley, Iowa
14 WBTV-Tower 2,000 feet 609.6 m 1984 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Dallas, North Carolina
15 Hearst-Argyle Tower 2,000 feet 609.6 m 1985 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Walnut Grove, California
16 WTTO Tower 2,000 feet 609.6 m 1986 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Windham Springs, Alabama
17 WCSC-Tower 2,000 feet 609.6 m 1986 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Awendaw, South Carolina
18 KTVE-Tower 2,000 feet 609.6 m 1987 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Bolding, Arkansas
19 WCTV Tower 2,000 feet 609.6 m 1987 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Metcalf, Georgia
20 WCIX/CH6 TV Mast 2,000 feet 609.6 m 1992 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Homestead, Florida
21 KDLT Tower 2,000 feet 609.6 m 1998 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Rowena, South Dakota
22 KMOS TV Tower 2,000 feet 609.6 m 2002 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Syracuse, Missouri
23 Liberman Broadcasting Tower Era 2,000 feet 609.6 m 2006 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Era, Texas
24 Winnie Cumulus Broadcasting Tower 2,000 feet 609.6 m ? Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Winnie, Texas
25 WRAL HDTV Mast 2,000 feet 609.5 m 1991 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Auburn, North Carolina
26 Perry Broadcasting Tower 2,000 feet 609.5 m 2004 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Alfalfa, Oklahoma
27 KY3 Tower 1,999 feet 609.4 m 2000 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Fordland, Missouri
28 SpectraSite Tower Thomasville 1,999 feet 609.4 m 2002 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Thomasville, Georgia
29 Pegasus Broadcasting Tower 1,999 feet 609.4 m Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Metcalf, Georgia
30 CBC Real Estate Tower Auburn 1,999 feet 609.4 m Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Auburn, North Carolina
32 KLDE Tower 1,999 feet 609.3 m 1986 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Liverpool, Texas
33 WCKW/KSTE-Tower 1,999 feet 609.3 m 1988 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Vacherie, Louisiana
34 American Towers Tower Elkhart 1,999 feet 609.3 m 2001 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Elkhart, Iowa
35 Salem Radio Properties Tower 1,999 feet 609.3 m 2002 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Collinsville, Texas
36 Stowell Cumulus Broadcasting Tower 1,999 feet 609.3 m ? Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Stowell, Texas
37 WLBT Tower 1,998 feet 609 m 1999 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Raymond, Mississippi
38 Beasley Tower 1,997 feet 608.7 m Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Immokalee, Florida
39 KYTV Tower 1,996 feet 608.4 m 1973 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Marshfield, Missouri
40 SpectraSite Tower Raymond 1,996 feet 608.4 m Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Raymond, Mississippi
41 Hoyt Radio Tower 1,996 feet 608.38 m 2003 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Hoyt, Colorado
42 Service Broadcasting Tower Decatur 1,995 feet 608.1 m 2000 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Decatur, Texas
43 WTVD Tower 1,994 feet 607.8 m 1978 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Auburn, North Carolina
44 Channel 40 Tower 1,994 feet 607.8 m 1985 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Walnut Grove, California
45 Liberman Broadcasting Tower Devers 1,994 feet 607.7 m 2006 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Devers, Texas
46 KHYS Tower 1,992 feet 607.2 m 1997 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Devers, Texas
47 Clear Channel Broadcasting Tower Devers 1,992 feet 607 m 1988 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Devers, Texas
48 Media General Tower 1,992 feet 607 m 1987 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Awendaw, South Carolina
49 Eastern North Carolina Broadcasting Tower 1,989 feet 606.2 m 1980 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Trenton, North Carolina
50 WNCN Tower 1,989 feet 606.2 m 2000 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Garner, North Carolina
51 KELO TV Tower 1,985 feet 605 m 1974 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Rowena, South Dakota
52 WITN Tower 1,985 feet 605 m 1979 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Grifton, North Carolina
53 Noe Corp Tower 1,984 feet 604.7 m 1998 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Columbia, Louisiana
54 Pappas Telecasting Tower 1,980 feet 603.6 m 2000 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Plymouth County, Iowa
55 KHOU-TV Tower 1,975 feet 602 m 1992 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Missouri City, Texas
56 Richland Towers Tower Missouri City 1,973 feet 601.3 m 2001 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Missouri City, Texas
57 Senior Road Tower 1,971 feet 600.7 m 1983 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Missouri City, Texas
58 KTRK-TV Tower 1,970 feet 600.5 m 1982 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Missouri City, Texas
59 Houston Tower Joint Venture Tower 1,970 feet 600.5 m 1985 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Missouri City, Texas
60 American Towers Tower Missouri City 1,970 feet 600.5 m 2000 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Missouri City, Texas
61 Fox-TV Tower 1,970 feet 600.4 m 1982 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Missouri City, Texas
62 Mississippi Telecasting Tower 1,969 feet 600 m 1982 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Inverness, Mississippi
63 WCNC-TV Tower 1,969 feet 600 m 1992 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Dallas, North Carolina
64 Capstar Radio Tower 1,969 feet 600 m 2001 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Middlesex, North Carolina
65 KDUH/CH4 TV Mast 1,965 feet 599 m 1969 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Hemingford, Nebraska
66 American Towers Tower Liverpool 1,963 feet 598.3 m 1992 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Liverpool, Texas
67 Media General Tower Dillon 1,962 feet 598 m 2001 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Dillon, South Carolina
68 Duffy-Shamrock Joint Venture Tower 1,960 feet 597.4 m 1990 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Bertram, Texas
69 AMFM Tower Collinsville 1,960 feet 597.4 m 2002 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Collinsville, Texas
70 KOLR/KOZK Tower 1,960 feet 597.3 m (orig. 609.6 m) 1971 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Fordland, Missouri
71 Cosmos Broadcasting Tower Winnabow 1,954 feet 595.6 m 1981 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Winnabow, North Carolina
72 Spectra Site Communications Tower Robertsdale 1,944 feet 592.6 m 2001 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Robertsdale, Alabama
73 CBC Real Estate Co. Inc Tower 1,944 feet 592.4 m 1985 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Dallas, North Carolina
74 Cosmos Broadcasting Tower Grady 1,935 feet 589.8 m 1977 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Grady, Alabama
75 American Towers Tower Columbia 1,929 feet 587.9 m 1986 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Columbia, Louisiana
76 Sonsinger Management Tower 1,928 feet 587.6 m 1988 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Splendora, Texas
77 Cedar Rapids TV Tower 1,927 feet 587.3 m 1974 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Walker City, Iowa
78 Channel 6 Tower Eddy 1,924 feet 586.4 m 1981 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Eddy, Texas
79 Entravision Texas Tower 1,920 feet 585.2 m 1998 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Greenwood, Texas
80 Multimedia Associates Tower 1,916 feet 584 m 1999 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Rio Grande City, Texas
81 American Towers Tower Randleman 1,910 feet 582.3 m 2004 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Randleman, North Carolina
82 KTUL Tower Coweta 1,909 feet 581.8 m 1988 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Coweta, Oklahoma
83 American Towers Tower Robertsdale 1,903 feet 579.9 m 2004 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Robertsdale, Alabama
84 Baldpate Platform 1,902 feet 579.7 m 1998 Offshore platform Oil drilling U.S. Garden Banks, Gulf of Mexico (Offshore)
85 WDJR-FM Tower 1,901 feet 579.42 m 1978 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Bethlehem, Florida
86 Clear Channel Broadcasting Tower Redfield 1,889 feet 578.8 m 1985 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Redfield, Arkansas
87 WFMY Tower 1,889 feet 575.9 m 2002 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Greensboro, North Carolina
88 Cox Radio Tower 1,879 feet 572.8 m 2000 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Shepard, Texas
89 Media General Tower Spanish Fort 1,879 feet 572.7 m 1986 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Spanish Fort, Alabama
90 WFTV Tower Saint Cloud 1,874 feet 571.1 m 2000 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Saint Cloud, Florida
91 Capstar Radio Operating Gray Court Tower 1,861 feet 567.1 m 1980 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Gray Court, South Carolina
92 KLKN Tower 1,854 feet 565.1 m 1965 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Genoa, Nebraska
93 Pinnacle Towers Tower Princeton 1,842 feet 561.3 m 1993 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Princeton, Florida
94 WTVJ Tower Princeton 1,841 feet 561.1 m 1993 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Princeton, Florida
95 Pappas Partnership Stations Tower Gretna 1,836 feet 559.6 m 1985 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Gretna, Nebraska
96 KBIM Tower 1,834 feet 559.02 m 1965 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Roswell, New Mexico
97 Tulsa Tower Joint Venture Tower Oneta 1,834 feet 559 m 1984 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Oneta, Oklahoma
98 KTBS Tower 1826 ft 556.5 m 2003 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Shreveport, Louisiana
99 CN Tower 1,814 feet 553 m 1976 Concrete tower Observation, UHF/VHF-transmission Canada Toronto, Ontario
100 SBA Towers Tower Haynesville 1,797 feet 547.7 m 1989 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Haynesville, Alabama
101 Channel 32 Limited Partnership Tower 1,797 feet 547.7 m 1990 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Haynesville, Alabama
102 KATC Tower Kaplan 1,793 feet 546.6 m 1978 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Kaplan, Louisiana
103 Cosmos Broadcasting Tower Egypt 1,793 feet 546.5 m 1981 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Egypt, Arkansas
104 Raycom Media Tower Mooringsport 1,791 feet 545.8 m 1975 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Mooringsport, Louisiana
105 Pinnacle Towers Tower Mooringsport 1,781 feet 542.8 m 1985 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Mooringsport, Louisiana
106 Bold Springs Salem Radio Properties Tower 1,779 feet 542.2 m 2005 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Bold Springs, Georgia
107 Branch Young Broadcasting Tower 1775 ft 541 m ? Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Branch, Louisiana
108 Ostankino Tower 1,772 feet 540.1 m 1967 Concrete tower Observation, UHF/VHF-transmission Russia Moscow 2000 Fire led to renovation
109 KLFY TV Tower Maxie 1,772 feet 540 m 1970 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Maxie, Louisiana
110 American Towers Tower Eglin[5] 1,766 feet 538.3 m 2001 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. 29045, South Carolina also known as WOLO TV Tower
111 Cusseta Richland Towers Tower 1,766 feet 538.2 m 2005 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Cusseta, Georgia
112 Cox Radio Tower Flowery Branch 1,765 feet 537.9 m 1984 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Flowery Branch, Georgia
113 Alabama Telecasters Tower 1,757 feet 535.5 m 1995 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Gordonsville, Alabama
114 WIMZ-FM-Tower 1,752 feet 534.01 m 1963 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Knoxville, Tennessee also known as WBIR TV-mast, World's tallest structure, 1963
115 Capitol Broadcasting Tower Broadway 1,749 feet 533.1 m 1985 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Broadway, North Carolina dismantled
116 Capitol Broadcasting Tower Columbia 1,749 feet 533.1 m 2000 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Columbia, North Carolina
117 WTVM/WRBL-TV & WVRK-FM Tower 1,749 feet 533 m 1962 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Cusseta, Georgia also known as WTVM TV Mast, World's tallest structure, 1962-1963
118 WAVE-Mast 1,739 feet 530.05 m 1990 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. La Grange, Kentucky
119 Moody Centex Television Tower 1739 ft 530 m 1985 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Moody, Texas
120 Louisiana Television Broadcasting Tower Sunshine 1,737 feet 529.4 m 1972 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Sunshine, Louisiana
121 Bullwinkle Platform 1,736 feet 529.1 m 1989 Offshore platform Oil drilling Gulf of Mexico Manatee Field Located appr. 160 miles (257 km) southwest of New Orleans
122 Pinnacle Towers Tower Addis 1,735 feet 528.8 m 1986 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Addis, Louisiana
123 Richland Towers Tower Cedar Hill 1,731 feet 527.6 m 2004 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Cedar Hill, Texas
124 Sears Tower 1,730 feet 527.3 m 1974 Skyscraper Office, observation, UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Chicago, Illinois
125 World Trade Center, Tower 1 1,727 feet 526.3 m 1973 Skyscraper Office, UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. New York City destroyed on September 11, 2001
126 WAFB Tower Baton Rouge 1,725 feet 525.8 m 1965 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Baton Rouge, Louisiana
127 WAEO Tower 1,721 feet 524.5 m 1966 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Starks, Wisconsin destroyed on November 17, 1968 at aircraft collision
128 Media Venture Tower 1,714 feet 522.5 m 1999 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Fincher, Florida
129 Media Venture Management Tower Fincher 1,714 feet 522.5 m 1999 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Fincher, Florida
130 Orlando Hearst Argyle Television Tower 1,714 feet 522.5 m 1980 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Orange City, Florida
131 Pinnacle Towers Tower Moody 1,714 feet 522.4 m 1988 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Moody, Texas
132 Clear Channel Broadcasting Tower Rosinton 1,707 feet 520.3 m 1981 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Rosinton, Alabama
133 Pacific and Southern Company Tower Lugoff 1,707 feet 520.2 m 1985 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Lugoff, South Carolina
134 Young Broadcasting Tower Garden City 1,705 feet 519.7 m 1978 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Garden City, South Dakota
135 Gray Television Tower Carlos 1,705 feet 519.7 m 1983 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Carlos, Texas
136 South Dakota Public Broadcasting Network Tower 1,695 feet 516.7 m 1974 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Faith, South Dakota
137 Spectra Site Communications Tower Orange City 1,695 feet 516.6 m 1984 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Orange City, Florida Height reduced to 512.7 metres
138 Christmas Brown Road Tower 1,695 feet 516.6 m 2001 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Christmas, Florida
139 Gray Television Tower Madill 1,694 feet 516.3 m 1984 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Madill, Oklahoma
140 American Tower Christmas 1,684 feet 513.3 m 2001 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Christmas, Florida
141 Richland Towers Bithlo 1,682 feet 512.7 m 2002 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Bithlo, Florida
142 Northland Television Tower Rhinelander 1,682 feet 512.6 m 1979 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Rhinelander, Wisconsin
143 Gray Television Tower Moody 1,679 feet 511.8 m 1978 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Moody, Texas
144 KFVS TV Mast 1,677 feet 511.1 m 1960 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Cape Girardeau County, Missouri World's tallest structure, 1960-1961
145 Taipei 101 1,671 feet 509.2 m 2004 Skyscraper Office, observation, UHF/VHF-transmission Taiwan Taipei
146 Cox Radio Tower Verna 1,667 feet 508.1 m 1994 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Verna, Florida
147 WMTW TV Mast 1,667 feet 508.1 m 2001 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Baldwin, Maine
148 American Towers Tower Cedar Hill 1,661 feet 506.2 m 1999 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Cedar Hill, Texas
149 American Towers Tower Oklahoma City 1,647 feet 502 m 1999 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
150 University of North Carolina Tower 1,642 feet 500.5 m 2000 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Columbia, North Carolina
151 Richland Towers Tower Cedar Hill 2 1,635 feet 498.4 m 2000 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Cedar Hill, Texas
152 WWTV Tower 1,631 feet 497 m 1961 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Cadillac, Michigan Tallest Structure in Michigan
153 WWRR Renda Tower 1,631 feet 497 m 1987 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Kingsland, Georgia
154 QueenB Television Tower 1,627 feet 496 m 1964 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. La Crosse, Wisconsin Height reduced to 484.3 metres
155 KDEB Tower 1,627 feet 496 m 1968 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Fordland, Missouri also known as American Towers Tower Fordland, dismantled
156 WPSD-TV Tower 1,627 feet 495.9 m 2004 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Kevil, Kentucky
157 NVG-Amarillo Tower 1,626 feet 495.6 m 1969 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Amarillo, Texas
158 WGME TV Tower 1,624 feet 495 m 1959 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Raymond, Maine World's tallest structure, 1959-1960
159 Sinclair Television Tower Oklahoma 1,619 feet 493.5 m 1979 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
160 Shanghai World Financial Center 1,614 feet 492 m 2008 Skyscraper Office, hotels, residential China Shanghai topped out
161 WFTV TV Tower Christmas 1,613 feet 491.6 m 2000 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Christmas, Florida
162 WJJY TV Mast 1,611 feet 491 m Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Bluffs, Illinois collapsed in 1978
163 Media General Tower Jackson 1,611 feet 491 m 1989 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Jackson, Mississippi
164 WHNS TV-Tower 1,611 feet 491 m 2001 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Brevard, South Carolina
165 KOBR-TV Tower 1,610 feet 490.7 m 1956 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Caprock, New Mexico also known as KSWS-TV Transmitter, World's tallest structure, 1956-1959, collapsed in 1960 at storm, rebuilt afterwards
166 Joint Venture TV Tower Bithlo 1,608 feet 490.2 m 1992 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Bithlo, Florida
167 American Towers Tower Bithlo 1,605 feet 489.2 m 1984 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Bithlo, Florida
168 NYT Broadcast Holdings Tower Oklahoma 1,601 feet 488 m 1965 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Oklahoma City, Oklahoma also known as WKY TV Mast
169 Clear Channel Broadcasting Tower Boykin 1,600 feet 487.8 m 1997 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Boykin, Georgia
170 WVFJ Tower Saint Marks 1,600 feet 487.7 m 1998 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Saint Marks, Georgia
171 Paramount Tower Oklahoma 1,596 feet 486.4 m 1980 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
172 WTVA TV Tower 1,593 feet 485.5 m 1972 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Woodland, Mississippi
173 KTVT Tower 1,587 feet 483.7 m 2002 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Cedar Hill, Texas
174 GBC LP DBA Tower 1,582 feet 482.2 m 1997 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Cedar Hill, Texas dismantled
175 WLFL Tower Apex 1,579 feet 481.3 m 1986 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Apex, North Carolina
176 WFAA Tower 1,578 feet 481 m 1998 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Cedar Hill, Texas
177 Griffin Television Tower Oklahoma 1,576 feet 480.5 m 1954 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Oklahoma City, Oklahoma also known as KWTV Tower, World's tallest structure, 1954-1956
178 WCOM-TV Mansfield, Ohio 1,576 feet 480.5 m 1988 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Butler, Ohio Was the tallest structure in Ohio until it was dismantled in 1995
179 Viacom Tower Riverview 1,575 feet 480 m 1998 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Riverview, Florida
180 Tampa Tower General Partnership Tower Riverview 1,573 feet 479.4 m 1987 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Riverview, Florida
181 Riverview Florida West Coast Public Broadcasting Tower 1,572 feet 479.1 m 1999 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Riverview, Florida
182 American Towers Tower Riverview 1,568 feet 478 m 2001 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Riverview, Florida
183 KBSI TV Mast 1,567 feet 477.6 m 1983 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Cape Giradeau, Missouri
184 Media General Tower Saint Ansgar 1,565 feet 477.1 m 1964 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Saint Ansgar, Iowa
185 Red River Broadcast Tower Salem 1,565 feet 477 m 1976 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Salem, South Dakota
186 Hearst-Argyle Television Tower 1,563 feet 476.4 m 1963 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
187 Augusta Tower 1,561 feet 475.6 m 2003 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Jackson, South Carolina
188 WAGT TV Tower 1,560 feet 475.5 m 1985 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Beach Island, South Carolina
189 KPLX Tower 1,559 feet 475.1 m 1969 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Cedar Hill, Texas
190 KTAL TV Tower 1,558 feet 474.9 m 1961 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Vivian, Louisiana
191 Mississippi Authority for Educational Television Tower 1,558 feet 474.9 m 2000 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Raymond, Mississippi
192 KRRT TV Tower 1,553 feet 473.3 m 1985 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Lake Hills, Texas
193 Hearst-Argyle Tower Watsonville 1,552 feet 473.1 m 1984 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Watsonville, California
194 Media General Tower Forest Hill 1,552 feet 473 m 1965 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Forest Hill, Louisiana
195 WVAH Tower 1,552 feet 473 m 1980 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Scott Depot, West Virginia destroyed on February 19, 2003
196 American Towers Tower Cedar Hill]] 2 1,551 feet 472.7 m 1980 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Cedar Hill, Texas
197 KXTV/KOVR/KCRA Tower 1,549 feet 472.1 m 1962 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Walnut Grove, California
198 SpectraSite Tower Holopaw 1,549 feet 472.1 m 1997 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Holopaw, Florida
199 Troll A platform 1,549 feet 472 m 1996 Offshore platform Oil drilling Norway North Sea
200 Morris Tower Perkston 1,540 feet 469.4 m 1986 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Perkston, Mississippi
Heres information about central florida broadcast stations
Broadcast Tower,WFTT-TV is the Telefutura affiliate for Tampa Bay, owned by Univision and operated by Entravision, owners of WVEA-TV. The station, which broadcasts on UHF channel 50, is based at WVEA's studios on Hillsborough Avenue in Tampa, and transmits from Riverview. WFTT can be seen on cable throughout the Bay Area on Bright House channel 5, and on Comcast in Sarasota County on channel 23.
With the completion of the 442.550 repeater in Riverview at 805ft in January, the western pointing antenna on the 442.825 repeater caused a expected overlap that was unnecessary. Since 442.550 now blankets Hillsborough County, we have as of April 11th taken the antenna off the west leg of the Pebbledale tower site at 800ft and moved it to the east leg of the tower. What does mean for users? The tower has a 7 foot wide face, which creates a null that is created behind the antenna. This null used to face a huge portion of Polk County. By moving this antenna to the east, the null is now facing essentially Brandon/Riverview, where 442.550 is now located at 805ft. So far we have gotten incredible results from users in eastern Polk County. Some users in Sebring reporting almost full scale signal, and mobile users with hand helds on 27 at 5 watts can use 442.825 now. None of this was previously possible. So with this move, expect to hear more Polk, Osceola and I-4 corridor area users making it into the network.
A nother tower WVEA (channel 62) is Tampa Bay, Florida's first Spanish-language TV station, which had its start in the early-1980s as low-powered W50AC ch.50, which offered programming from the Spanish International Network (SIN), the forerunner of today's Univision. In 1988, to make way for new HSN flagship WBHS (now WFTT-TV), the station relocated to channel 61 and became W61BL. In the mid-1990s, the station was re-called "WVEA-LP". In 2000, WVEA's parent company, Entravision, acquired Sarasota English independent WBSV channel 62, with the intent of moving the transmitter from Venice to the antenna farm at Riverview. WBSV signed on May 3, 1991 as the Sarasota area's own independent station, designed to compete against WWSB and the other stations in the Tampa Bay and nearby Ft. Myers markets. Licensed to Venice, Florida the call letters stood for Bradenton, Sarasota, Venice, the three cities it primarily served. WBSV had a variety of syndicated and local programming, plus infomercials and home shopping programs. early on, they also had its own newscast. But, WBSV was eternally in red ink, and relied more on home shopping and infomercials to keep the station afloat....
And then,WTVT, channel 13, is a television station in Tampa, Florida. It is an owned and operated station of the Fox Broadcasting Company, a subsdiary of the News Corporation. WTVT's studios are located in Tampa, and its transmitter is located in Riverview, Florida.
Overall the WUSF (89.7 FM) is an NPR-member radio station licensed to Tampa, Florida, USA. The station is currently owned by the University of South Florida. WUSF signed on in 1963, seven years after USF's founding in 1956.
WOPX channel 56 is a television station based in Orlando, Florida, USA. An affiliate of the ION Television network, it transmits its analog signal on UHF channel 56 and its digital signal on UHF channel 48, both from a transmitter located near Holopaw. The station signed on the air in 1986.
WIWA (1160 AM) is a radio station broadcasting a Spanish language Christian format. Licensed to St. Cloud, Florida, USA, it serves the greater Orlando area. The station is currently owned by Centro De La Familia Cristiana Inc.
WAFZ-FM (92.1 FM) is a radio station broadcasting a Regional Mexican format. Licensed to Immokalee, Florida, USA, the station is currently owned by Glades Media Company LLC. WAFZ's programming is also heard on WAFZ AM 1490 in Immokalee.
WTVY or WTVY News 4 is a CBS-affiliated television station broadcasting on channel 4 in Dothan, Alabama, owned by Gray Television. The station's signal, originating from a transmitter in Holmes County, Florida, reaches large portions of Alabama, Georgia and Florida. WTVY is also the designated CBS affiliate for the Panama City, Florida market, where Gray also owns that city's NBC affiliate, WJHG-TV. In exchange, WJHG is available in Dothan on cable since Dothan does not have its own NBC affiliate. In fact, WTVY's transmitter is located within the Panama City market. WTVY-DT uses digital subchannels to operate MyNetworkTV affiliate My 4 and CW affiliate Dothan's CW.
WJED (91.1 FM) is a radio station broadcasting a Christian radio format. Licensed to Dogwood Lakes Estate, Florida, USA. The station is currently owned by Bethany Bible College.
WTVJ, channel 6, is the NBC owned-and-operated television station for South Florida, licensed to Miami. Its analog transmitter is located in Redland. The station's digital transmitter is located near Dolphin Stadium in north Miami-Dade County. Owned by NBC Universal, the station is sister to South Florida's Telemundo owned-and-operated station, WSCV. The two share studios at Peacock Plaza in Miramar.
WOIR (1430 AM) is a radio station broadcasting a Spanish News/Talk format. Licensed to Homestead, Florida, USA, the station serves the Miami area. The station is currently owned by Amanecer Christian Network, Inc..
WTLH is a Fox television affiliate licensed to Bainbridge, Georgia and serves the Tallahassee, Florida television market. It broadcasts its analog signal on UHF channel 49 and its digital signal on UHF channel 50. The station began operations on November 25, 1989. Its transmitter is located in Metcalf, Georgia. The Station is owned by CP Media, LLC. The station runs a duopoly with WFXU, The CW station in Tallahassee. WTLH programming is also seen on a low-powered, Class-A repeater, WBVJ-LP channel 35 in Valdosta.
WTXL-TV is the ABC affiliate station for Tallahassee, Florida, Thomasville, Georgia, and Valdosta, Georgia, broadcasting on channel 27. The station is owned by Calkins Media, Inc., a Pennsylvania-based mass media company that owns several small newspapers in Pennsylvania and two other television stations: WWSB in Sarasota and WAAY-TV in Huntsville, Alabama. It was previously owned by Media Ventures Management, and operated by the Sinclair Broadcast Group pursuant to an outsourcing agreement (See: [1]), the first of its kind in the United States. This agreement merged virtually all of WTXL-TV's operations with that of Sinclair's NBC affiliate WTWC. Denis LeClair, General Manager of WTXL-TV and WBXT-TV at the time, was made General Manager for WTXL, WBXT and WTWC under this agreement. He would be followed by Chris Butterick and then Bob Franklin. Eventually, Kim Urbuteit (who was fired in May, 2007) would be named General Manager of WTXL only as Bob Franklin (now in Mobile, AL) oversaw WTWC. Gary Wordlaw is the current General Manager of WTXL-TV.
WFSU is the callsign (or variations thereon) for public radio stations operated by Florida State University in Tallahassee, Florida. WFSU also operates 3 radio stations that serve northern Florida: * WFSU-FM 88.9 FM: Tallahassee-based news/talk/public affairs station carrying several NPR programs and overnight BBC World Service programming. Also heard on these low-powered repeaters: * 97.1 - Carrabelle * 106.1 - Marianna * 96.7 - Apalachicola * 93.7 - Downtown Tallahassee (necessary because the main WFSU transmitter must conform its signal to protect WTSU in Troy, Alabama) * WFSQ-FM 91.5 FM: Tallahassee-based classical music station. Also heard on WFSL-FM 90.7 in Thomasville, Georgia, and on low-powered 92.7 FM in the northeast portion of the city of Tallahassee. * WFSW-FM 89.1 FM: Panama City-based news/talk/public affairs station. Offers many of the same programs as WFSU. Also heard on low-powered 91.1 FM in the Port St. Joe area along the Gulf of Mexico, as well as 94.5 FM in Fort Walton Beach.
WESH is the NBC affiliate in Orlando, Florida. It is licensed to Daytona Beach, with studio facilities in Winter Park. It transmits its analog signal on VHF channel 2 and its digital signal on VHF channel 11, when viewed over the air PSIP will display 2.1 for WESH DT and 2.2 for WESH Weather Plus. It is currently owned by Hearst-Argyle Television along with the area's CW affiliate, WKCF. WESH's transmitter is located in Orange City, Florida. The tower is the tallest man-made structure in Florida, at 1,740 feet (530 m). The station also serves as the default NBC affiliate for the Gainesville market, and can be seen on the fringes of the Tampa Bay and Jacksonville markets. WESH was the first station in Orlando to carry an on-site RADAR facility, SuperDoppler 2 as opposed to relying on National Weather Service RADARs. It is installed on top of the tower located at the Winter Park broadcast studio. Today it also promotes a VIPIR 3D RADAR system, taking advantage of the fact that the RADARs at Melbourne, Tampa, Jacksonville and Miami can all reach Orlando, in addition to SuperDoppler 2. The primary news anchors at WESH are Martha Sugalski and Jim Payne....
WOMX is a radio station located in the Orlando, Florida area and broadcasts at 105.1. WOMX 105.1 plays the "Best MIX of the 80s, 90s and Today," though the station programming focuses mostly on rock and modern rock music from the 90's and 2000's. Every Friday from 5:00 p.m. to 12:00 a.m., Mix 105.1 presents Friday Night 80's. The "Saturday Night Party MIX" airs every Saturday night from 7 p.m. to midnight. The "Saturday Night Party MIX" replaced the Orlando heritage show "Seventies Saturday Night" in 2005.
WOTF-TV Channel 43 is the TeleFutura station serving the Orlando/Daytona Beach/Melbourne, Florida television market. It is owned by Univision and managed by Entravision which owns Univision affiliate WVEN-TV 26 and radio station WNUE 98.1 FM and offers a Spanish language entertainment format featuring movies, dramas, comedy shows, and kids shows. The studios are located in Altamonte Springs which is also shared by WVEN.
WOFL, "Fox 35", is the Fox owned-and-operated television station serving the Orlando, Florida metropolitan area. It is licensed to Orlando, with studios located in Lake Mary. It broadcasts its analog signal on UHF channel 35, and its digital signal on UHF channel 22. Its transmitter is located in Bithlo, Florida. Its Digital TV transmitter has a power of 1,000 kW. Its Analog TV transmitter has a power of 2,570 kW. WOFL and sister station WTVT of the bordering Tampa market commonly share reporters and footage, as other station groups do.
WFTV channel 9 is a television station based in Orlando, Florida, affiliated with the ABC network. It transmits its analog signal on VHF channel 9 from a transmitter located in Bithlo, Florida, and its digital signal on UHF channel 39 from a transmitter located in Christmas, Florida. It is owned by Cox Enterprises along with independent station WRDQ TV 27. The primary news anchors at WFTV are Bob Opsahl and Martie Salt. They anchored the main afternoon newscasts from 1984 through 1994, when Ms. Salt transferred to WFTS, a TV station in Tampa (where she was known as "Martie Tucker"). She returned to anchor WFTV's news again with Opsahl in 2003. Opsahl is one of the longest-serving (at one station) local news anchors in Florida. Barbara West, a 20 year veteran at WFTV and the station's medical reporter is paired with Opsahl at 5:30. Marla Weech, a former anchor for WFTV, was paired up with Bob Opsahl during most of Salt's absence. Weech currently works for WKMG. Tom Terry is the "Chief Meteorologist". WFTV's Severe Weather Center 9 includes WFTV's own doppler weather radar station located at Joint Venture TV Tower Bithlo. Its radar has features that are...
WRBW-TV is the MyNetworkTV owned and operated station serving the Orlando/Daytona Beach/Melbourne, Florida television market. It is owned by the Fox Television Stations Group, along with Fox station WOFL Channel 35. Known on-air as "My65", the station offers sitcoms, cartoons, court shows, and talk/reality shows. Its transmitter is located in Christmas, Florida.
WNTF (1580 AM) is a radio station broadcasting a News Talk Information format. Licensed to Bithlo, Florida, USA, it serves the Orlando area. The station is currently owned by Rama Communications, Inc.
WBCC is an educational television station serving the Orlando television market. It broadcasts on UHF channel 68, with a digital signal on channel 30. It is one of the Orlando market's PBS member stations. WBCC's digital signal, on channel 30, offers programming from the University of Central Florida (channel 68.2) and BPS-TV from Brevard Public Schools (channel 68.3), in addition to WBCC's standard programming.
WRDQ, channel 27, is an independent television station in Orlando, Florida. Its analog transmitter is located in northeastern Osceola County. The station's digital transmitter is located in Christmas. Onwed by Cox Enterprises, WRDQ is sister to ABC affiliate WFTV. The two stations share studios on East South Street in downtown Orlando. WRDQ offers the Retro Television Network on its second digital subchannel. It can also be seen on Bright House digital channel 1028. Syndicated programming on WRDQ includes: South Park, Scrubs, Merv Griffin's Crosswords, Oprah, According to Jim, and George Lopez. The station can be considered an alternate ABC affiliate. As such, it may take on the responsibility of airing ABC programs whenever WFTV may not be able to do so as in a news-related emergency.
WXPX is a television station licensed to Bradenton, Florida. Operating on channel 66, it is an ION Television affiliate, owned and operated by ION Media Networks (formerly Paxson Communications), which has owned the station since its founding in 1994. Current programming on WXPX is virtually the same as other ION affiliates -- infomercials throughout the day and during the overnights, plus ION programming in the evenings. WXPX also shows Tampa Bay Lightning hockey, Orlando Magic basketball, some college football and Tampa Bay Rays baseball, though most of these games are in the evenings only, as WXPX tend to reserve non-prime-time hours for infomercials. Rays games air in high definition on WXPX in the 720p format, the same format as FSN Florida, the producers of the games (See: [1]). The only local programming on WXPX is i on Tampa (public affairs) and the aforementioned Rays and Magic games. The station once aired Miccosukee Magazine along with WPXM Miami and WPXP West Palm Beach, but no longer airs the program. (the latter two stations still do, along with WOPX Orlando) WXPX started in 1994 as WFCT, which featured infomercials at all hours under...
Wesh News Cast Bay News 9 Cast Weather Channel
Kristina
Abernathy
Stephanie
Abrams
Natalie
Allen
Tetiana
Anderson
Adam
Berg
Mike
Bettes
Vivian
Brown
Jim
Cantore
Jennifer
Carfagno
Kelly
Cass
Betty
Davis
Kristin
Dodd
Jorma
Duran
Dr Marcus
Eriksen
Paul
Goodloe
Ryan
Goswick
Rich
Johnson
Bill
Keneely
Danny
Lipford
Warren
Madden
Mark
Mancuso
Dr Anna
Marie
Julie
Martin
Jeff
Mielcarz
Jarod
Miller
Nicole
Mitchell
Samantha
Mohr
Jeff
Morrow
Carl
Parker
Kim
Perez
Sharon
Resultan
Kevin
Robinson
Marshall
Seese
Mike
Seidel
Alexandra
Steele
Heather
Tesch
Nick
Walker
Alex
Wallace
Dr Steve Lyons
Dr Greg Forbes
Dr Heidi Cullen
Stu Ostro
Aixa Diaz (NEWS ANCHORS
Jen Holloway
Al Ruechel
Leigh Moody
Erica Riggins
Rick Elmhorst
(METEOROLOGISTS)
Mike Clay
Juli Marquez
Josh Linker
Diane Kacmarik
Brian McClure
Alan Winfield
(NEWS REPORTERS
Jennifer Anderson
Dalia Dangerfield
Laurie Davison
Melissa Eichman
Samantha Hayes
Chuck Johnson
Troy Kinsey
Jason Lanning
Emily Maza
Carol Minn Vacca
Jonathan Petramala
Josh Rojas
Summer Smith
Kathryn Simmons
Melanie Snow
Melissa Sogegian
Anna Tataris
Ferdinand
Zogbaum
(EN ESPANOL
Lydia Guzmán
Roy De Jesús
Sandra Pinto
Jim Payne
Syan Rhodes
Martha Sugalski
Scott Walker
Eryka Washington
Weather:
Jason Brewer
Tony Mainolfi
Malachi Rodgers
Amy Sweezey
WESH.com Web Staff:
Jeff Cousins
Managing Editor
Jessica Seeley
Washington Reporters:
Sally Kidd
Nikole Killion
Laurie Kinney
Orlando Sentinel:
Roger Moore
Movie Critic
Sports:
Pat Clarke
Guy Rawlings
Reporters:
Danielle Bellini
Dan Billow
Greg Fox
Bob Kealing
Jeff Lennox
Craig Lucie
Dave McDaniel
Michelle Meredith
Claire Metz
Amanda Ober
Kendra Oestreich
Gail Paschall-Brown
Tim Trudell
Todd Wilson
Other Talent:
Jason Chepenik
Financial Analyst
Dr. Todd Husty
Dan McCarthy
Chopper 2 Pilot
Kimberly Williams
Traffic Reporter
List of the tallest towers.
1 Burj Dubai 2,684 feet 818 m 2009 Skyscraper
2 Warsaw Radio Mast 2,121 feet 646.4 m 1974 Guyed mast
3 KVLY/KTHI TV Mast 2,063 feet 628.8 m 1963 Guyed mast
4 KXJB-TV mast 2,060 feet 627.8 m 1998 Guyed mast
5 KXTV/KOVR Tower 2,049 feet 624.5 m 2000 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Walnut Grove, California Tallest structure in California
6 KATV Tower 2,000 feet 609.6 m 1965?1967? Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Redfield, Arkansas
7 KCAU TV Tower 2,000 feet 609.6 m 1965 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Sioux City, Iowa
8 WECT TV6 Tower 2,000 feet 609.6 m 1969 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Colly Township, North Carolina
9 WHO-TV, KDIN-TV,WOI-FM Tower 2,000 feet 609.6 m 1972 Guyed mast VHF-TV, FM radio transmission U.S. Alleman, Iowa
10 Des Moines Hearst-Argyle Television Tower Alleman 2,000 feet 609.6 m 1974 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Alleman, Iowa
11 WEAU-Tower 2,000 feet 609.6 m 1981 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Fairchild, Wisconsin
12 Diversified Communications Tower 2,000 feet 609.6 m 1981 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Floyd Dale, South Carolina
13 AFLAC Tower 2,000 feet 609.6 m 1984 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Rowley, Iowa
14 WBTV-Tower 2,000 feet 609.6 m 1984 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Dallas, North Carolina
15 Hearst-Argyle Tower 2,000 feet 609.6 m 1985 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Walnut Grove, California
16 WTTO Tower 2,000 feet 609.6 m 1986 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Windham Springs, Alabama
17 WCSC-Tower 2,000 feet 609.6 m 1986 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Awendaw, South Carolina
18 KTVE-Tower 2,000 feet 609.6 m 1987 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Bolding, Arkansas
19 WCTV Tower 2,000 feet 609.6 m 1987 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Metcalf, Georgia
20 WCIX/CH6 TV Mast 2,000 feet 609.6 m 1992 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Homestead, Florida
21 KDLT Tower 2,000 feet 609.6 m 1998 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Rowena, South Dakota
22 KMOS TV Tower 2,000 feet 609.6 m 2002 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Syracuse, Missouri
23 Liberman Broadcasting Tower Era 2,000 feet 609.6 m 2006 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Era, Texas
24 Winnie Cumulus Broadcasting Tower 2,000 feet 609.6 m ? Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Winnie, Texas
25 WRAL HDTV Mast 2,000 feet 609.5 m 1991 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Auburn, North Carolina
26 Perry Broadcasting Tower 2,000 feet 609.5 m 2004 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Alfalfa, Oklahoma
27 KY3 Tower 1,999 feet 609.4 m 2000 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Fordland, Missouri
28 SpectraSite Tower Thomasville 1,999 feet 609.4 m 2002 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Thomasville, Georgia
29 Pegasus Broadcasting Tower 1,999 feet 609.4 m Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Metcalf, Georgia
30 CBC Real Estate Tower Auburn 1,999 feet 609.4 m Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Auburn, North Carolina
32 KLDE Tower 1,999 feet 609.3 m 1986 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Liverpool, Texas
33 WCKW/KSTE-Tower 1,999 feet 609.3 m 1988 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Vacherie, Louisiana
34 American Towers Tower Elkhart 1,999 feet 609.3 m 2001 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Elkhart, Iowa
35 Salem Radio Properties Tower 1,999 feet 609.3 m 2002 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Collinsville, Texas
36 Stowell Cumulus Broadcasting Tower 1,999 feet 609.3 m ? Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Stowell, Texas
37 WLBT Tower 1,998 feet 609 m 1999 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Raymond, Mississippi
38 Beasley Tower 1,997 feet 608.7 m Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Immokalee, Florida
39 KYTV Tower 1,996 feet 608.4 m 1973 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Marshfield, Missouri
40 SpectraSite Tower Raymond 1,996 feet 608.4 m Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Raymond, Mississippi
41 Hoyt Radio Tower 1,996 feet 608.38 m 2003 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Hoyt, Colorado
42 Service Broadcasting Tower Decatur 1,995 feet 608.1 m 2000 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Decatur, Texas
43 WTVD Tower 1,994 feet 607.8 m 1978 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Auburn, North Carolina
44 Channel 40 Tower 1,994 feet 607.8 m 1985 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Walnut Grove, California
45 Liberman Broadcasting Tower Devers 1,994 feet 607.7 m 2006 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Devers, Texas
46 KHYS Tower 1,992 feet 607.2 m 1997 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Devers, Texas
47 Clear Channel Broadcasting Tower Devers 1,992 feet 607 m 1988 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Devers, Texas
48 Media General Tower 1,992 feet 607 m 1987 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Awendaw, South Carolina
49 Eastern North Carolina Broadcasting Tower 1,989 feet 606.2 m 1980 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Trenton, North Carolina
50 WNCN Tower 1,989 feet 606.2 m 2000 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Garner, North Carolina
51 KELO TV Tower 1,985 feet 605 m 1974 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Rowena, South Dakota
52 WITN Tower 1,985 feet 605 m 1979 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Grifton, North Carolina
53 Noe Corp Tower 1,984 feet 604.7 m 1998 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Columbia, Louisiana
54 Pappas Telecasting Tower 1,980 feet 603.6 m 2000 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Plymouth County, Iowa
55 KHOU-TV Tower 1,975 feet 602 m 1992 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Missouri City, Texas
56 Richland Towers Tower Missouri City 1,973 feet 601.3 m 2001 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Missouri City, Texas
57 Senior Road Tower 1,971 feet 600.7 m 1983 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Missouri City, Texas
58 KTRK-TV Tower 1,970 feet 600.5 m 1982 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Missouri City, Texas
59 Houston Tower Joint Venture Tower 1,970 feet 600.5 m 1985 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Missouri City, Texas
60 American Towers Tower Missouri City 1,970 feet 600.5 m 2000 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Missouri City, Texas
61 Fox-TV Tower 1,970 feet 600.4 m 1982 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Missouri City, Texas
62 Mississippi Telecasting Tower 1,969 feet 600 m 1982 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Inverness, Mississippi
63 WCNC-TV Tower 1,969 feet 600 m 1992 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Dallas, North Carolina
64 Capstar Radio Tower 1,969 feet 600 m 2001 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Middlesex, North Carolina
65 KDUH/CH4 TV Mast 1,965 feet 599 m 1969 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Hemingford, Nebraska
66 American Towers Tower Liverpool 1,963 feet 598.3 m 1992 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Liverpool, Texas
67 Media General Tower Dillon 1,962 feet 598 m 2001 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Dillon, South Carolina
68 Duffy-Shamrock Joint Venture Tower 1,960 feet 597.4 m 1990 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Bertram, Texas
69 AMFM Tower Collinsville 1,960 feet 597.4 m 2002 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Collinsville, Texas
70 KOLR/KOZK Tower 1,960 feet 597.3 m (orig. 609.6 m) 1971 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Fordland, Missouri
71 Cosmos Broadcasting Tower Winnabow 1,954 feet 595.6 m 1981 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Winnabow, North Carolina
72 Spectra Site Communications Tower Robertsdale 1,944 feet 592.6 m 2001 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Robertsdale, Alabama
73 CBC Real Estate Co. Inc Tower 1,944 feet 592.4 m 1985 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Dallas, North Carolina
74 Cosmos Broadcasting Tower Grady 1,935 feet 589.8 m 1977 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Grady, Alabama
75 American Towers Tower Columbia 1,929 feet 587.9 m 1986 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Columbia, Louisiana
76 Sonsinger Management Tower 1,928 feet 587.6 m 1988 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Splendora, Texas
77 Cedar Rapids TV Tower 1,927 feet 587.3 m 1974 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Walker City, Iowa
78 Channel 6 Tower Eddy 1,924 feet 586.4 m 1981 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Eddy, Texas
79 Entravision Texas Tower 1,920 feet 585.2 m 1998 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Greenwood, Texas
80 Multimedia Associates Tower 1,916 feet 584 m 1999 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Rio Grande City, Texas
81 American Towers Tower Randleman 1,910 feet 582.3 m 2004 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Randleman, North Carolina
82 KTUL Tower Coweta 1,909 feet 581.8 m 1988 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Coweta, Oklahoma
83 American Towers Tower Robertsdale 1,903 feet 579.9 m 2004 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Robertsdale, Alabama
84 Baldpate Platform 1,902 feet 579.7 m 1998 Offshore platform Oil drilling U.S. Garden Banks, Gulf of Mexico (Offshore)
85 WDJR-FM Tower 1,901 feet 579.42 m 1978 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Bethlehem, Florida
86 Clear Channel Broadcasting Tower Redfield 1,889 feet 578.8 m 1985 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Redfield, Arkansas
87 WFMY Tower 1,889 feet 575.9 m 2002 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Greensboro, North Carolina
88 Cox Radio Tower 1,879 feet 572.8 m 2000 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Shepard, Texas
89 Media General Tower Spanish Fort 1,879 feet 572.7 m 1986 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Spanish Fort, Alabama
90 WFTV Tower Saint Cloud 1,874 feet 571.1 m 2000 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Saint Cloud, Florida
91 Capstar Radio Operating Gray Court Tower 1,861 feet 567.1 m 1980 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Gray Court, South Carolina
92 KLKN Tower 1,854 feet 565.1 m 1965 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Genoa, Nebraska
93 Pinnacle Towers Tower Princeton 1,842 feet 561.3 m 1993 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Princeton, Florida
94 WTVJ Tower Princeton 1,841 feet 561.1 m 1993 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Princeton, Florida
95 Pappas Partnership Stations Tower Gretna 1,836 feet 559.6 m 1985 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Gretna, Nebraska
96 KBIM Tower 1,834 feet 559.02 m 1965 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Roswell, New Mexico
97 Tulsa Tower Joint Venture Tower Oneta 1,834 feet 559 m 1984 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Oneta, Oklahoma
98 KTBS Tower 1826 ft 556.5 m 2003 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Shreveport, Louisiana
99 CN Tower 1,814 feet 553 m 1976 Concrete tower Observation, UHF/VHF-transmission Canada Toronto, Ontario
100 SBA Towers Tower Haynesville 1,797 feet 547.7 m 1989 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Haynesville, Alabama
101 Channel 32 Limited Partnership Tower 1,797 feet 547.7 m 1990 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Haynesville, Alabama
102 KATC Tower Kaplan 1,793 feet 546.6 m 1978 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Kaplan, Louisiana
103 Cosmos Broadcasting Tower Egypt 1,793 feet 546.5 m 1981 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Egypt, Arkansas
104 Raycom Media Tower Mooringsport 1,791 feet 545.8 m 1975 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Mooringsport, Louisiana
105 Pinnacle Towers Tower Mooringsport 1,781 feet 542.8 m 1985 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Mooringsport, Louisiana
106 Bold Springs Salem Radio Properties Tower 1,779 feet 542.2 m 2005 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Bold Springs, Georgia
107 Branch Young Broadcasting Tower 1775 ft 541 m ? Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Branch, Louisiana
108 Ostankino Tower 1,772 feet 540.1 m 1967 Concrete tower Observation, UHF/VHF-transmission Russia Moscow 2000 Fire led to renovation
109 KLFY TV Tower Maxie 1,772 feet 540 m 1970 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Maxie, Louisiana
110 American Towers Tower Eglin[5] 1,766 feet 538.3 m 2001 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. 29045, South Carolina also known as WOLO TV Tower
111 Cusseta Richland Towers Tower 1,766 feet 538.2 m 2005 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Cusseta, Georgia
112 Cox Radio Tower Flowery Branch 1,765 feet 537.9 m 1984 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Flowery Branch, Georgia
113 Alabama Telecasters Tower 1,757 feet 535.5 m 1995 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Gordonsville, Alabama
114 WIMZ-FM-Tower 1,752 feet 534.01 m 1963 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Knoxville, Tennessee also known as WBIR TV-mast, World's tallest structure, 1963
115 Capitol Broadcasting Tower Broadway 1,749 feet 533.1 m 1985 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Broadway, North Carolina dismantled
116 Capitol Broadcasting Tower Columbia 1,749 feet 533.1 m 2000 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Columbia, North Carolina
117 WTVM/WRBL-TV & WVRK-FM Tower 1,749 feet 533 m 1962 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Cusseta, Georgia also known as WTVM TV Mast, World's tallest structure, 1962-1963
118 WAVE-Mast 1,739 feet 530.05 m 1990 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. La Grange, Kentucky
119 Moody Centex Television Tower 1739 ft 530 m 1985 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Moody, Texas
120 Louisiana Television Broadcasting Tower Sunshine 1,737 feet 529.4 m 1972 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Sunshine, Louisiana
121 Bullwinkle Platform 1,736 feet 529.1 m 1989 Offshore platform Oil drilling Gulf of Mexico Manatee Field Located appr. 160 miles (257 km) southwest of New Orleans
122 Pinnacle Towers Tower Addis 1,735 feet 528.8 m 1986 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Addis, Louisiana
123 Richland Towers Tower Cedar Hill 1,731 feet 527.6 m 2004 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Cedar Hill, Texas
124 Sears Tower 1,730 feet 527.3 m 1974 Skyscraper Office, observation, UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Chicago, Illinois
125 World Trade Center, Tower 1 1,727 feet 526.3 m 1973 Skyscraper Office, UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. New York City destroyed on September 11, 2001
126 WAFB Tower Baton Rouge 1,725 feet 525.8 m 1965 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Baton Rouge, Louisiana
127 WAEO Tower 1,721 feet 524.5 m 1966 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Starks, Wisconsin destroyed on November 17, 1968 at aircraft collision
128 Media Venture Tower 1,714 feet 522.5 m 1999 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Fincher, Florida
129 Media Venture Management Tower Fincher 1,714 feet 522.5 m 1999 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Fincher, Florida
130 Orlando Hearst Argyle Television Tower 1,714 feet 522.5 m 1980 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Orange City, Florida
131 Pinnacle Towers Tower Moody 1,714 feet 522.4 m 1988 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Moody, Texas
132 Clear Channel Broadcasting Tower Rosinton 1,707 feet 520.3 m 1981 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Rosinton, Alabama
133 Pacific and Southern Company Tower Lugoff 1,707 feet 520.2 m 1985 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Lugoff, South Carolina
134 Young Broadcasting Tower Garden City 1,705 feet 519.7 m 1978 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Garden City, South Dakota
135 Gray Television Tower Carlos 1,705 feet 519.7 m 1983 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Carlos, Texas
136 South Dakota Public Broadcasting Network Tower 1,695 feet 516.7 m 1974 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Faith, South Dakota
137 Spectra Site Communications Tower Orange City 1,695 feet 516.6 m 1984 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Orange City, Florida Height reduced to 512.7 metres
138 Christmas Brown Road Tower 1,695 feet 516.6 m 2001 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Christmas, Florida
139 Gray Television Tower Madill 1,694 feet 516.3 m 1984 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Madill, Oklahoma
140 American Tower Christmas 1,684 feet 513.3 m 2001 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Christmas, Florida
141 Richland Towers Bithlo 1,682 feet 512.7 m 2002 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Bithlo, Florida
142 Northland Television Tower Rhinelander 1,682 feet 512.6 m 1979 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Rhinelander, Wisconsin
143 Gray Television Tower Moody 1,679 feet 511.8 m 1978 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Moody, Texas
144 KFVS TV Mast 1,677 feet 511.1 m 1960 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Cape Girardeau County, Missouri World's tallest structure, 1960-1961
145 Taipei 101 1,671 feet 509.2 m 2004 Skyscraper Office, observation, UHF/VHF-transmission Taiwan Taipei
146 Cox Radio Tower Verna 1,667 feet 508.1 m 1994 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Verna, Florida
147 WMTW TV Mast 1,667 feet 508.1 m 2001 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Baldwin, Maine
148 American Towers Tower Cedar Hill 1,661 feet 506.2 m 1999 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Cedar Hill, Texas
149 American Towers Tower Oklahoma City 1,647 feet 502 m 1999 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
150 University of North Carolina Tower 1,642 feet 500.5 m 2000 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Columbia, North Carolina
151 Richland Towers Tower Cedar Hill 2 1,635 feet 498.4 m 2000 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Cedar Hill, Texas
152 WWTV Tower 1,631 feet 497 m 1961 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Cadillac, Michigan Tallest Structure in Michigan
153 WWRR Renda Tower 1,631 feet 497 m 1987 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Kingsland, Georgia
154 QueenB Television Tower 1,627 feet 496 m 1964 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. La Crosse, Wisconsin Height reduced to 484.3 metres
155 KDEB Tower 1,627 feet 496 m 1968 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Fordland, Missouri also known as American Towers Tower Fordland, dismantled
156 WPSD-TV Tower 1,627 feet 495.9 m 2004 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Kevil, Kentucky
157 NVG-Amarillo Tower 1,626 feet 495.6 m 1969 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Amarillo, Texas
158 WGME TV Tower 1,624 feet 495 m 1959 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Raymond, Maine World's tallest structure, 1959-1960
159 Sinclair Television Tower Oklahoma 1,619 feet 493.5 m 1979 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
160 Shanghai World Financial Center 1,614 feet 492 m 2008 Skyscraper Office, hotels, residential China Shanghai topped out
161 WFTV TV Tower Christmas 1,613 feet 491.6 m 2000 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Christmas, Florida
162 WJJY TV Mast 1,611 feet 491 m Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Bluffs, Illinois collapsed in 1978
163 Media General Tower Jackson 1,611 feet 491 m 1989 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Jackson, Mississippi
164 WHNS TV-Tower 1,611 feet 491 m 2001 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Brevard, South Carolina
165 KOBR-TV Tower 1,610 feet 490.7 m 1956 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Caprock, New Mexico also known as KSWS-TV Transmitter, World's tallest structure, 1956-1959, collapsed in 1960 at storm, rebuilt afterwards
166 Joint Venture TV Tower Bithlo 1,608 feet 490.2 m 1992 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Bithlo, Florida
167 American Towers Tower Bithlo 1,605 feet 489.2 m 1984 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Bithlo, Florida
168 NYT Broadcast Holdings Tower Oklahoma 1,601 feet 488 m 1965 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Oklahoma City, Oklahoma also known as WKY TV Mast
169 Clear Channel Broadcasting Tower Boykin 1,600 feet 487.8 m 1997 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Boykin, Georgia
170 WVFJ Tower Saint Marks 1,600 feet 487.7 m 1998 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Saint Marks, Georgia
171 Paramount Tower Oklahoma 1,596 feet 486.4 m 1980 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
172 WTVA TV Tower 1,593 feet 485.5 m 1972 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Woodland, Mississippi
173 KTVT Tower 1,587 feet 483.7 m 2002 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Cedar Hill, Texas
174 GBC LP DBA Tower 1,582 feet 482.2 m 1997 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Cedar Hill, Texas dismantled
175 WLFL Tower Apex 1,579 feet 481.3 m 1986 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Apex, North Carolina
176 WFAA Tower 1,578 feet 481 m 1998 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Cedar Hill, Texas
177 Griffin Television Tower Oklahoma 1,576 feet 480.5 m 1954 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Oklahoma City, Oklahoma also known as KWTV Tower, World's tallest structure, 1954-1956
178 WCOM-TV Mansfield, Ohio 1,576 feet 480.5 m 1988 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Butler, Ohio Was the tallest structure in Ohio until it was dismantled in 1995
179 Viacom Tower Riverview 1,575 feet 480 m 1998 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Riverview, Florida
180 Tampa Tower General Partnership Tower Riverview 1,573 feet 479.4 m 1987 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Riverview, Florida
181 Riverview Florida West Coast Public Broadcasting Tower 1,572 feet 479.1 m 1999 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Riverview, Florida
182 American Towers Tower Riverview 1,568 feet 478 m 2001 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Riverview, Florida
183 KBSI TV Mast 1,567 feet 477.6 m 1983 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Cape Giradeau, Missouri
184 Media General Tower Saint Ansgar 1,565 feet 477.1 m 1964 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Saint Ansgar, Iowa
185 Red River Broadcast Tower Salem 1,565 feet 477 m 1976 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Salem, South Dakota
186 Hearst-Argyle Television Tower 1,563 feet 476.4 m 1963 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
187 Augusta Tower 1,561 feet 475.6 m 2003 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Jackson, South Carolina
188 WAGT TV Tower 1,560 feet 475.5 m 1985 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Beach Island, South Carolina
189 KPLX Tower 1,559 feet 475.1 m 1969 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Cedar Hill, Texas
190 KTAL TV Tower 1,558 feet 474.9 m 1961 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Vivian, Louisiana
191 Mississippi Authority for Educational Television Tower 1,558 feet 474.9 m 2000 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Raymond, Mississippi
192 KRRT TV Tower 1,553 feet 473.3 m 1985 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Lake Hills, Texas
193 Hearst-Argyle Tower Watsonville 1,552 feet 473.1 m 1984 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Watsonville, California
194 Media General Tower Forest Hill 1,552 feet 473 m 1965 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Forest Hill, Louisiana
195 WVAH Tower 1,552 feet 473 m 1980 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Scott Depot, West Virginia destroyed on February 19, 2003
196 American Towers Tower Cedar Hill]] 2 1,551 feet 472.7 m 1980 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Cedar Hill, Texas
197 KXTV/KOVR/KCRA Tower 1,549 feet 472.1 m 1962 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Walnut Grove, California
198 SpectraSite Tower Holopaw 1,549 feet 472.1 m 1997 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Holopaw, Florida
199 Troll A platform 1,549 feet 472 m 1996 Offshore platform Oil drilling Norway North Sea
200 Morris Tower Perkston 1,540 feet 469.4 m 1986 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Perkston, Mississippi
Heres information about central florida broadcast stations
Broadcast Tower,WFTT-TV is the Telefutura affiliate for Tampa Bay, owned by Univision and operated by Entravision, owners of WVEA-TV. The station, which broadcasts on UHF channel 50, is based at WVEA's studios on Hillsborough Avenue in Tampa, and transmits from Riverview. WFTT can be seen on cable throughout the Bay Area on Bright House channel 5, and on Comcast in Sarasota County on channel 23.
With the completion of the 442.550 repeater in Riverview at 805ft in January, the western pointing antenna on the 442.825 repeater caused a expected overlap that was unnecessary. Since 442.550 now blankets Hillsborough County, we have as of April 11th taken the antenna off the west leg of the Pebbledale tower site at 800ft and moved it to the east leg of the tower. What does mean for users? The tower has a 7 foot wide face, which creates a null that is created behind the antenna. This null used to face a huge portion of Polk County. By moving this antenna to the east, the null is now facing essentially Brandon/Riverview, where 442.550 is now located at 805ft. So far we have gotten incredible results from users in eastern Polk County. Some users in Sebring reporting almost full scale signal, and mobile users with hand helds on 27 at 5 watts can use 442.825 now. None of this was previously possible. So with this move, expect to hear more Polk, Osceola and I-4 corridor area users making it into the network.
A nother tower WVEA (channel 62) is Tampa Bay, Florida's first Spanish-language TV station, which had its start in the early-1980s as low-powered W50AC ch.50, which offered programming from the Spanish International Network (SIN), the forerunner of today's Univision. In 1988, to make way for new HSN flagship WBHS (now WFTT-TV), the station relocated to channel 61 and became W61BL. In the mid-1990s, the station was re-called "WVEA-LP". In 2000, WVEA's parent company, Entravision, acquired Sarasota English independent WBSV channel 62, with the intent of moving the transmitter from Venice to the antenna farm at Riverview. WBSV signed on May 3, 1991 as the Sarasota area's own independent station, designed to compete against WWSB and the other stations in the Tampa Bay and nearby Ft. Myers markets. Licensed to Venice, Florida the call letters stood for Bradenton, Sarasota, Venice, the three cities it primarily served. WBSV had a variety of syndicated and local programming, plus infomercials and home shopping programs. early on, they also had its own newscast. But, WBSV was eternally in red ink, and relied more on home shopping and infomercials to keep the station afloat....
And then,WTVT, channel 13, is a television station in Tampa, Florida. It is an owned and operated station of the Fox Broadcasting Company, a subsdiary of the News Corporation. WTVT's studios are located in Tampa, and its transmitter is located in Riverview, Florida.
Overall the WUSF (89.7 FM) is an NPR-member radio station licensed to Tampa, Florida, USA. The station is currently owned by the University of South Florida. WUSF signed on in 1963, seven years after USF's founding in 1956.
WOPX channel 56 is a television station based in Orlando, Florida, USA. An affiliate of the ION Television network, it transmits its analog signal on UHF channel 56 and its digital signal on UHF channel 48, both from a transmitter located near Holopaw. The station signed on the air in 1986.
WIWA (1160 AM) is a radio station broadcasting a Spanish language Christian format. Licensed to St. Cloud, Florida, USA, it serves the greater Orlando area. The station is currently owned by Centro De La Familia Cristiana Inc.
WAFZ-FM (92.1 FM) is a radio station broadcasting a Regional Mexican format. Licensed to Immokalee, Florida, USA, the station is currently owned by Glades Media Company LLC. WAFZ's programming is also heard on WAFZ AM 1490 in Immokalee.
WTVY or WTVY News 4 is a CBS-affiliated television station broadcasting on channel 4 in Dothan, Alabama, owned by Gray Television. The station's signal, originating from a transmitter in Holmes County, Florida, reaches large portions of Alabama, Georgia and Florida. WTVY is also the designated CBS affiliate for the Panama City, Florida market, where Gray also owns that city's NBC affiliate, WJHG-TV. In exchange, WJHG is available in Dothan on cable since Dothan does not have its own NBC affiliate. In fact, WTVY's transmitter is located within the Panama City market. WTVY-DT uses digital subchannels to operate MyNetworkTV affiliate My 4 and CW affiliate Dothan's CW.
WJED (91.1 FM) is a radio station broadcasting a Christian radio format. Licensed to Dogwood Lakes Estate, Florida, USA. The station is currently owned by Bethany Bible College.
WTVJ, channel 6, is the NBC owned-and-operated television station for South Florida, licensed to Miami. Its analog transmitter is located in Redland. The station's digital transmitter is located near Dolphin Stadium in north Miami-Dade County. Owned by NBC Universal, the station is sister to South Florida's Telemundo owned-and-operated station, WSCV. The two share studios at Peacock Plaza in Miramar.
WOIR (1430 AM) is a radio station broadcasting a Spanish News/Talk format. Licensed to Homestead, Florida, USA, the station serves the Miami area. The station is currently owned by Amanecer Christian Network, Inc..
WTLH is a Fox television affiliate licensed to Bainbridge, Georgia and serves the Tallahassee, Florida television market. It broadcasts its analog signal on UHF channel 49 and its digital signal on UHF channel 50. The station began operations on November 25, 1989. Its transmitter is located in Metcalf, Georgia. The Station is owned by CP Media, LLC. The station runs a duopoly with WFXU, The CW station in Tallahassee. WTLH programming is also seen on a low-powered, Class-A repeater, WBVJ-LP channel 35 in Valdosta.
WTXL-TV is the ABC affiliate station for Tallahassee, Florida, Thomasville, Georgia, and Valdosta, Georgia, broadcasting on channel 27. The station is owned by Calkins Media, Inc., a Pennsylvania-based mass media company that owns several small newspapers in Pennsylvania and two other television stations: WWSB in Sarasota and WAAY-TV in Huntsville, Alabama. It was previously owned by Media Ventures Management, and operated by the Sinclair Broadcast Group pursuant to an outsourcing agreement (See: [1]), the first of its kind in the United States. This agreement merged virtually all of WTXL-TV's operations with that of Sinclair's NBC affiliate WTWC. Denis LeClair, General Manager of WTXL-TV and WBXT-TV at the time, was made General Manager for WTXL, WBXT and WTWC under this agreement. He would be followed by Chris Butterick and then Bob Franklin. Eventually, Kim Urbuteit (who was fired in May, 2007) would be named General Manager of WTXL only as Bob Franklin (now in Mobile, AL) oversaw WTWC. Gary Wordlaw is the current General Manager of WTXL-TV.
WFSU is the callsign (or variations thereon) for public radio stations operated by Florida State University in Tallahassee, Florida. WFSU also operates 3 radio stations that serve northern Florida: * WFSU-FM 88.9 FM: Tallahassee-based news/talk/public affairs station carrying several NPR programs and overnight BBC World Service programming. Also heard on these low-powered repeaters: * 97.1 - Carrabelle * 106.1 - Marianna * 96.7 - Apalachicola * 93.7 - Downtown Tallahassee (necessary because the main WFSU transmitter must conform its signal to protect WTSU in Troy, Alabama) * WFSQ-FM 91.5 FM: Tallahassee-based classical music station. Also heard on WFSL-FM 90.7 in Thomasville, Georgia, and on low-powered 92.7 FM in the northeast portion of the city of Tallahassee. * WFSW-FM 89.1 FM: Panama City-based news/talk/public affairs station. Offers many of the same programs as WFSU. Also heard on low-powered 91.1 FM in the Port St. Joe area along the Gulf of Mexico, as well as 94.5 FM in Fort Walton Beach.
WESH is the NBC affiliate in Orlando, Florida. It is licensed to Daytona Beach, with studio facilities in Winter Park. It transmits its analog signal on VHF channel 2 and its digital signal on VHF channel 11, when viewed over the air PSIP will display 2.1 for WESH DT and 2.2 for WESH Weather Plus. It is currently owned by Hearst-Argyle Television along with the area's CW affiliate, WKCF. WESH's transmitter is located in Orange City, Florida. The tower is the tallest man-made structure in Florida, at 1,740 feet (530 m). The station also serves as the default NBC affiliate for the Gainesville market, and can be seen on the fringes of the Tampa Bay and Jacksonville markets. WESH was the first station in Orlando to carry an on-site RADAR facility, SuperDoppler 2 as opposed to relying on National Weather Service RADARs. It is installed on top of the tower located at the Winter Park broadcast studio. Today it also promotes a VIPIR 3D RADAR system, taking advantage of the fact that the RADARs at Melbourne, Tampa, Jacksonville and Miami can all reach Orlando, in addition to SuperDoppler 2. The primary news anchors at WESH are Martha Sugalski and Jim Payne....
WOMX is a radio station located in the Orlando, Florida area and broadcasts at 105.1. WOMX 105.1 plays the "Best MIX of the 80s, 90s and Today," though the station programming focuses mostly on rock and modern rock music from the 90's and 2000's. Every Friday from 5:00 p.m. to 12:00 a.m., Mix 105.1 presents Friday Night 80's. The "Saturday Night Party MIX" airs every Saturday night from 7 p.m. to midnight. The "Saturday Night Party MIX" replaced the Orlando heritage show "Seventies Saturday Night" in 2005.
WOTF-TV Channel 43 is the TeleFutura station serving the Orlando/Daytona Beach/Melbourne, Florida television market. It is owned by Univision and managed by Entravision which owns Univision affiliate WVEN-TV 26 and radio station WNUE 98.1 FM and offers a Spanish language entertainment format featuring movies, dramas, comedy shows, and kids shows. The studios are located in Altamonte Springs which is also shared by WVEN.
WOFL, "Fox 35", is the Fox owned-and-operated television station serving the Orlando, Florida metropolitan area. It is licensed to Orlando, with studios located in Lake Mary. It broadcasts its analog signal on UHF channel 35, and its digital signal on UHF channel 22. Its transmitter is located in Bithlo, Florida. Its Digital TV transmitter has a power of 1,000 kW. Its Analog TV transmitter has a power of 2,570 kW. WOFL and sister station WTVT of the bordering Tampa market commonly share reporters and footage, as other station groups do.
WFTV channel 9 is a television station based in Orlando, Florida, affiliated with the ABC network. It transmits its analog signal on VHF channel 9 from a transmitter located in Bithlo, Florida, and its digital signal on UHF channel 39 from a transmitter located in Christmas, Florida. It is owned by Cox Enterprises along with independent station WRDQ TV 27. The primary news anchors at WFTV are Bob Opsahl and Martie Salt. They anchored the main afternoon newscasts from 1984 through 1994, when Ms. Salt transferred to WFTS, a TV station in Tampa (where she was known as "Martie Tucker"). She returned to anchor WFTV's news again with Opsahl in 2003. Opsahl is one of the longest-serving (at one station) local news anchors in Florida. Barbara West, a 20 year veteran at WFTV and the station's medical reporter is paired with Opsahl at 5:30. Marla Weech, a former anchor for WFTV, was paired up with Bob Opsahl during most of Salt's absence. Weech currently works for WKMG. Tom Terry is the "Chief Meteorologist". WFTV's Severe Weather Center 9 includes WFTV's own doppler weather radar station located at Joint Venture TV Tower Bithlo. Its radar has features that are...
WRBW-TV is the MyNetworkTV owned and operated station serving the Orlando/Daytona Beach/Melbourne, Florida television market. It is owned by the Fox Television Stations Group, along with Fox station WOFL Channel 35. Known on-air as "My65", the station offers sitcoms, cartoons, court shows, and talk/reality shows. Its transmitter is located in Christmas, Florida.
WNTF (1580 AM) is a radio station broadcasting a News Talk Information format. Licensed to Bithlo, Florida, USA, it serves the Orlando area. The station is currently owned by Rama Communications, Inc.
WBCC is an educational television station serving the Orlando television market. It broadcasts on UHF channel 68, with a digital signal on channel 30. It is one of the Orlando market's PBS member stations. WBCC's digital signal, on channel 30, offers programming from the University of Central Florida (channel 68.2) and BPS-TV from Brevard Public Schools (channel 68.3), in addition to WBCC's standard programming.
WRDQ, channel 27, is an independent television station in Orlando, Florida. Its analog transmitter is located in northeastern Osceola County. The station's digital transmitter is located in Christmas. Onwed by Cox Enterprises, WRDQ is sister to ABC affiliate WFTV. The two stations share studios on East South Street in downtown Orlando. WRDQ offers the Retro Television Network on its second digital subchannel. It can also be seen on Bright House digital channel 1028. Syndicated programming on WRDQ includes: South Park, Scrubs, Merv Griffin's Crosswords, Oprah, According to Jim, and George Lopez. The station can be considered an alternate ABC affiliate. As such, it may take on the responsibility of airing ABC programs whenever WFTV may not be able to do so as in a news-related emergency.
WXPX is a television station licensed to Bradenton, Florida. Operating on channel 66, it is an ION Television affiliate, owned and operated by ION Media Networks (formerly Paxson Communications), which has owned the station since its founding in 1994. Current programming on WXPX is virtually the same as other ION affiliates -- infomercials throughout the day and during the overnights, plus ION programming in the evenings. WXPX also shows Tampa Bay Lightning hockey, Orlando Magic basketball, some college football and Tampa Bay Rays baseball, though most of these games are in the evenings only, as WXPX tend to reserve non-prime-time hours for infomercials. Rays games air in high definition on WXPX in the 720p format, the same format as FSN Florida, the producers of the games (See: [1]). The only local programming on WXPX is i on Tampa (public affairs) and the aforementioned Rays and Magic games. The station once aired Miccosukee Magazine along with WPXM Miami and WPXP West Palm Beach, but no longer airs the program. (the latter two stations still do, along with WOPX Orlando) WXPX started in 1994 as WFCT, which featured infomercials at all hours under...
Wesh News Cast Bay News 9 Cast Weather Channel
Kristina
Abernathy
Stephanie
Abrams
Natalie
Allen
Tetiana
Anderson
Adam
Berg
Mike
Bettes
Vivian
Brown
Jim
Cantore
Jennifer
Carfagno
Kelly
Cass
Betty
Davis
Kristin
Dodd
Jorma
Duran
Dr Marcus
Eriksen
Paul
Goodloe
Ryan
Goswick
Rich
Johnson
Bill
Keneely
Danny
Lipford
Warren
Madden
Mark
Mancuso
Dr Anna
Marie
Julie
Martin
Jeff
Mielcarz
Jarod
Miller
Nicole
Mitchell
Samantha
Mohr
Jeff
Morrow
Carl
Parker
Kim
Perez
Sharon
Resultan
Kevin
Robinson
Marshall
Seese
Mike
Seidel
Alexandra
Steele
Heather
Tesch
Nick
Walker
Alex
Wallace
Dr Steve Lyons
Dr Greg Forbes
Dr Heidi Cullen
Stu Ostro
Aixa Diaz (NEWS ANCHORS
Jen Holloway
Al Ruechel
Leigh Moody
Erica Riggins
Rick Elmhorst
(METEOROLOGISTS)
Mike Clay
Juli Marquez
Josh Linker
Diane Kacmarik
Brian McClure
Alan Winfield
(NEWS REPORTERS
Jennifer Anderson
Dalia Dangerfield
Laurie Davison
Melissa Eichman
Samantha Hayes
Chuck Johnson
Troy Kinsey
Jason Lanning
Emily Maza
Carol Minn Vacca
Jonathan Petramala
Josh Rojas
Summer Smith
Kathryn Simmons
Melanie Snow
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Indigenous women of Guatemala’s Polochic valley are feeding their families, growing their businesses and saving more money than ever before, with the help of a joint UN programme that’s empowering rural women.
Puente Viejo is a mostly agrarian indigenous community that relies on wooden canoes to transport their products or to access services. The women of the village are part of a joint programme by UN Women, World Food Programme (WFP), Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), which is empowering more than 1,600 rural women to become economically self-reliant across the department of Alta Varapaz and the municipalities of Tucurú, La Tinta and Panzos.
Pictured: Women from the Puente Viejo community gather near a communal garden. In addition to growing food for their families, the women use ingredients from their farms and garden to make and market organic shampoo. The women now produce shampoo in bigger batches and in different varieties—such as aloe, cacao, avocado and honey—and sell them in local markets.
Read More: www.unwomen.org/en/news/stories/2018/7/feature-guatemala-...
Photo: UN Women/Ryan Brown
The king cobra (Ophiophagus hannah) is a venomous snake endemic to Asia. The sole member of the genus Ophiophagus, it is not taxonomically a true cobra, despite its common name and some resemblance. With an average length of 3.18 to 4 m (10.4 to 13.1 ft) and a record length of 5.85 m (19.2 ft), it is the world's longest venomous snake. The species has diversified colouration across habitats, from black with white stripes to unbroken brownish grey. The king cobra is widely distributed albeit not commonly seen, with a range spanning from the Indian Subcontinent through Southeastern Asia to Southern China. It preys chiefly on other snakes, including those of its own kind. This is the only ophidian that constructs an above-ground nest for its eggs, which are purposefully and meticulously gathered and protected by the female throughout the incubation period.
The threat display of this elapid includes spreading its neck-flap, raising its head upright, making eye contact, puffing, hissing and occasionally charging. Given the size of the snake, it is capable of striking at a considerable range and height, sometimes sustaining a bite. Envenomation from this species is medically significant and may result in a rapid fatality unless antivenom is administered in time. Despite the species' fearsome reputation, altercations usually only arise from an individual inadvertently exposing itself or being cornered.
Threatened by habitat destruction, it has been listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List since 2010. Regarded as the national reptile of India, it has an eminent position in the mythology and folk traditions of India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Myanmar.
Taxonomy
The king cobra is also referred to by the common name "hamadryad", especially in older literature. Hamadryas hannah was the scientific name used by Danish naturalist Theodore Edward Cantor in 1836 who described four king cobra specimens, three captured in the Sundarbans and one in the vicinity of Kolkata. Naja bungarus was proposed by Hermann Schlegel in 1837 who described a king cobra zoological specimen from Java. In 1838, Cantor proposed the name Hamadryas ophiophagus for the king cobra and explained that it has dental features intermediate between the genera Naja and Bungarus. Naia vittata proposed by Walter Elliot in 1840 was a king cobra caught offshore near Chennai that was floating in a basket. Hamadryas elaps proposed by Albert Günther in 1858 were king cobra specimens from the Philippines and Borneo. Günther considered both N. bungarus and N. vittata a variety of H. elaps. The genus Ophiophagus was proposed by Günther in 1864. The name is derived from its propensity to eat snakes.
Naja ingens proposed by Alexander Willem Michiel van Hasselt in 1882 was a king cobra captured near Tebing Tinggi in northern Sumatra.
Ophiophagus hannah was accepted as the valid name for the king cobra by Charles Mitchill Bogert in 1945 who argued that it differs significantly from Naja species. A genetic analysis using cytochrome b, and a multigene analysis showed that the king cobra was an early offshoot of a genetic lineage giving rise to the mambas, rather than the Naja cobras.
A phylogenetic analysis of mitochondrial DNA showed that specimens from Surattani and Nakhon Si Thammarat Provinces in southern Thailand form a deeply divergent clade from those from northern Thailand, which grouped with specimens from Myanmar and Guangdong in southern China.
Description
Scales of the king cobra
A baby king cobra showing its chevron pattern on the back
The king cobra's skin is olive green with black and white bands on the trunk that converge to the head. The head is covered by 15 drab coloured and black edged shields. The muzzle is rounded, and the tongue black. It has two fangs and 3–5 maxillar teeth in the upper jaw, and two rows of teeth in the lower jaw. The nostrils are between two shields. The large eyes have a golden iris and round pupils. Its hood is oval shaped and covered with olive green smooth scales and two black spots between the two lowest scales. Its cylindrical tail is yellowish green above and marked with black. It has a pair of large occipital scales on top of the head, 17 to 19 rows of smooth oblique scales on the neck, and 15 rows on the body. Juveniles are black with chevron shaped white, yellow or buff bars that point towards the head. Adult king cobras are 3.18 to 4 m (10.4 to 13.1 ft) long. The longest known individual measured 5.85 m (19.2 ft). Ventral scales are uniformly oval shaped. Dorsal scales are placed in an oblique arrangement.
The king cobra is sexually dimorphic, with males being larger and paler in particular during the breeding season. Males captured in Kerala measured up to 3.75 m (12.3 ft) and weighed up to 10 kg (22 lb). Females captured had a maximum length of 2.75 m (9 ft 0 in) and a weight of 5 kg (11 lb). The largest known king cobra was 5.59 m (18 ft 4 in) long and captured in Thailand. It differs from other cobra species by size and hood. It is larger, has a narrower and longer stripe on the neck.
Distribution and habitat
The king cobra has a wide distribution in South and Southeast Asia. It occurs up to an elevation of 2,000 m (6,600 ft) from the Terai in India and southern Nepal to the Brahmaputra River basin in Bhutan and northeast India, Bangladesh and to Myanmar, southern China, Cambodia, Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia and the Philippines.
In northern India, it has been recorded in Garhwal and Kumaon, and in the Shivalik and terai regions of Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh. In northeast India, the king cobra has been recorded in northern West Bengal, Sikkim, Assam, Meghalaya, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Manipur and Mizoram. In the Eastern Ghats, it occurs from Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh to coastal Odisha, and also in Bihar and southern West Bengal, especially the Sundarbans. In the Western Ghats, it was recorded in Kerala, Karnataka and Maharashtra, and also in Gujarat. It also occurs on Baratang Island in the Great Andaman chain.
Behaviour and ecology
Captive king cobras with their hoods extended
Like other snakes, a king cobra receives chemical information via its forked tongue, which picks up scent particles and transfers them to a sensory receptor (Jacobson's organ) located in the roof of its mouth. When it detects the scent of prey, it flicks its tongue to gauge the prey's location, with the twin forks of the tongue acting in stereo. It senses earth-borne vibration and detects moving prey almost 100 m (330 ft) away.
Following envenomation, it swallows its prey whole. Because of its flexible jaws, it can swallow prey much larger than its head. It is considered diurnal because it hunts during the day, but has also been seen at night, rarely.
Diet
King cobra in Pune
King cobra in Pune, India
The king cobra is an apex predator and dominant over all other snakes except large pythons. Its diet consists primarily of other snakes and lizards, including Indian cobra, banded krait, rat snake, pythons, green whip snake, keelback, banded wolf snake and Blyth's reticulated snake. It also hunts Malabar pit viper and hump-nosed pit viper by following their odour trails. In Singapore, one was observed swallowing a clouded monitor. When food is scarce, it also feeds on other small vertebrates, such as birds, and lizards. In some cases, the cobra constricts its prey using its muscular body, though this is uncommon. After a large meal, it lives for many months without another one because of its slow metabolic rate.
Defence
A king cobra in its defensive posture (mounted specimen at the Royal Ontario Museum)
The king cobra is not considered aggressive. It usually avoids humans and slinks off when disturbed, but is known to aggressively defend incubating eggs and attack intruders rapidly. When alarmed, it raises the front part of its body, extends the hood, shows the fangs and hisses loudly. Wild king cobras encountered in Singapore appeared to be placid, but reared up and struck in self defense when cornered.
The king cobra can be easily irritated by closely approaching objects or sudden movements. When raising its body, the king cobra can still move forward to strike with a long distance, and people may misjudge the safe zone. It can deliver multiple bites in a single attack.
Growling hiss
The hiss of the king cobra is a much lower pitch than many other snakes and many people thus liken its call to a "growl" rather than a hiss. While the hisses of most snakes are of a broad-frequency span ranging from roughly 3,000 to 13,000 Hz with a dominant frequency near 7,500 Hz, king cobra growls consist solely of frequencies below 2,500 Hz, with a dominant frequency near 600 Hz, a much lower-sounding frequency closer to that of a human voice. Comparative anatomical morphometric analysis has led to a discovery of tracheal diverticula that function as low-frequency resonating chambers in king cobra and its prey, the rat snake, both of which can make similar growls.
Reproduction
A captive juvenile king cobra in its defensive posture
The female is gravid for 50 to 59 days.The king cobra is the only snake that builds a nest using dry leaf litter, starting from late March to late May. Most nests are located at the base of trees, are up to 55 cm (22 in) high in the centre and 140 cm (55 in) wide at the base. They consist of several layers and have mostly one chamber, into which the female lays eggs. Clutch size ranges from 7 to 43 eggs, with 6 to 38 eggs hatching after incubation periods of 66 to 105 days. Temperature inside nests is not steady but varies depending on elevation from 13.5 to 37.4 °C (56.3 to 99.3 °F). Females stay by their nests between two and 77 days. Hatchlings are between 37.5 and 58.5 cm (14.8 and 23.0 in) long and weigh 9 to 38 g (0.32 to 1.34 oz).
The venom of hatchlings is as potent as that of the adults. They may be brightly marked, but these colours often fade as they mature. They are alert and nervous, being highly aggressive if disturbed.
The average lifespan of a wild king cobra is about 20 years.
Venom
Venom of the king cobra, produced by the postorbital venom glands, consists primarily of three-finger toxins (3FTx) and snake venom metalloproteinases (SVMPs).
Of all the 3FTx, alpha-neurotoxins are the predominant and most lethal components when cytotoxins and beta-cardiotoxins also exhibit toxicological activities. It is reported that cytotoxicity of its venom varies significantly, depending upon the age and locality of an individual. Clinical cardiotoxicity is not widely observed, nor is nephrotoxicity present among patients bitten by this species, presumably due to the low abundance of the toxins.
SVMPs are the second most protein family isolated from the king cobra's venom, accounting from 11.9% to 24.4% of total venom proteins. The abundance is much higher than that of most cobras which is usually less than 1%. This protein family includes principal toxins responsible for vasculature damage and interference with haemostasis, contributing to bleeding and coagulopathy caused by envenomation of vipers. While there are such haemorrhagins isolated from the king cobra's venom, they only induce species-sensitive haemorrhagic and lethal activities on rabbits and hares, but with minimal effects on mice. Clinical pathophysiology of the king cobra's SVMPs has yet to be well studied, although its substantial quantity suggests involvement in tissue damage and necrosis as a result of inflammatory and proteolytic activities, which are instrumental for foraging and digestive purposes.
Ohanin, a minor vespryn protein component specific to this species, causes hypolocomotion and hyperalgesia in experimental mice. It is believed that it contributes to neurotoxicity on the central nervous system of the victim.
Clinical Management
King cobra's envenomation may result in a rapid fatality, as soon as 30 minutes following a bite. Local symptoms include dusky discolouration of skin, edema and pain; in severe cases swelling extends proximally with necrosis and tissue sloughing that may require amputation. Onset of general symptoms follows while the venom is targeting the victim's central nervous system, resulting in blurred vision, vertigo, drowsiness, and eventually paralysis. If not treated promptly, it may progress to cardiovascular collapse and subsequently coma. Death soon follows due to respiratory failure.
Polyvalent antivenom of equine origin is produced by Haffkine Institute and King Institute of Preventive Medicine and Research in India. A polyvalent antivenom produced by the Thai Red Cross Society can effectively neutralise venom of the king cobra. In Thailand, a concoction of turmeric root has been clinically shown to create a strong resilience against the venom of the king cobra when ingested. Proper and immediate treatments are critical to avoid death. Successful precedents include a client who recovered and was discharged in 10 days after being treated by accurate antivenom and inpatient care.
It can deliver up to 420 mg venom in dry weight (400–600 mg overall) per bite, with a LD50 toxicity in mice of 1.28 mg/kg through intravenous injection, 1.5 to 1.7 mg/kg through subcutaneous injection, and 1.644 mg/kg through intraperitoneal injection. For research purposes, up to 1 g of venom was obtained through milking
Threats
In Southeast Asia, the king cobra is threatened foremost by habitat destruction owing to deforestation and expansion of agricultural land. It is also threatened by poaching for its meat, skin and for use in traditional Chinese medicine.
Conservation
The king cobra is listed in CITES Appendix II. It is protected in China and Vietnam. In India, it is placed under Schedule II of Wildlife Protection Act, 1972. Killing a king cobra is punished with imprisonment of up to six years. In the Philippines, king cobras (locally known as banakon) are included under the list of threatened species in the country. It is protected under the Wildlife Resources Conservation and Protection Act (Republic Act No. 9147), which criminalises the killing, trade, and consumption of threatened species with certain exceptions (like indigenous subsistence hunting or immediate threats to human life), with a maximum penalty of two years imprisonment and a fine of ₱20,000.
Cultural significance
The king cobra has an eminent position in the mythology and folklore of India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Myanmar. A ritual in Myanmar involves a king cobra and a female snake charmer. The charmer is a priestess who is usually tattooed with three pictograms and kisses the snake on the top of its head at the end of the ritual. Members of the Pakokku clan tattoo themselves with ink mixed with cobra venom on their upper bodies in a weekly inoculation that they believe would protect them from the snake, though no scientific evidence supports this.
It is regarded as the national reptile of India.
Diversification of the Ambulopterid clade, circa 100MYa.
From the speculative evolution seedworld project Pteros
German company NSU was founded in 1873, initially manufacturing knitting machines. The company diversified into bicycles in 1880, and motorcycles in 1901. The first NSU automobile debuted in 1905.
Motorcycle production resumed after WWII, followed by the new Prinz automobile in 1957. The Prinz was a small rear-engine car, powered by a 583 cc twin-cylinder producing 20 hp (15 kW)
The Sport Prinz was a 2-seater sports coupe variant. It was designed by Franco Scaglione at Bertone studios in Turin. 20,831 were manufactured between 1958 and 1968. The first 250 bodies were built by Bertone in Turin. The rest were built in Heilbronn at Karrosseriewerke Drauz which was later bought by NSU.
The Sport Prinz was initially powered by the 583 cc (35.6 cu in) Prinz 50 straight-twin engine but a maximum speed of 160 km/h (99 mph) was nevertheless claimed. From late 1962 a 598 cc (36.5 cu in) engine was fitted.
The NSU Spider was a Wankel rotary powered two-seater roadster based on the Sport Prinz platform.
The word Allah
The Semitic language which is spoken in the celestial spheres, is the language in which the angels and God address each other. Adam Safi-Allah spoke the same language in paradise. Adam and eve then came into the world and settled in Arabia. Their children also spoke the same language. Then as a result of the descendants of Adam spreading in the world, this language passed from Arabic, Persian, Latin and into English and God was then known by different names in the different languages. As Adam lived in Arabia, there are many words of the Semitic language which are still found in the Arabic language. God addressed the Prophets, Adam as Adam Safi-Allah, Noah as Nuh Nabi-Allah, Abraham as Ibraheem Khalil-Allah, Moses as Musa Kalim-Allah, Jesus as I’sa Ruh-Allah and Mohammed Rasul-Allah. All these titles, in the Semitic language were written on the Tablet before the arrival of the Prophets. This is why the Prophet Mohammed said: “I was a Prophet even before I came in to this world.”
Many people believe that the word Allah is a name given by Muslims, this is not so.
The Prophet Mohammed’s fathers name was Abd-Allah, at a time when Islam did not exist. Prior to the advent of Islam the Name Allah was announced with the title of every Prophet. When the souls were created, the first Name on their tongue was Allah and when the soul entered the body of Adam, it said, Ya-Allah, and only then it entered the body. Many religions understand this enigma and chant the Name Allah and many others because of doubt are deprived of the Name.
Any name which is used to point towards God is worthy of respect.
In other words, which points towards God. The mystical effect of the Name of God has been diversified due to the different names. Every letter of the alphabet has a separate numeric value. This is also a celestial knowledge. All the numeric values are connected with all of the human race. Occasionally the numeric values do not agree with the astronomical calculations as a result of which people become afflicted. Many people go to astrologers and experts of this knowledge and have charts prepared based on the stars. They name their children on this basis.
Just as the letters (a, b, j, d,) (1, 2, 3, 4) when added have the numerical value of ten. Similarly every name has a separate numeric value. As God has been given so many different names, this has caused a conflict between the numeric value of the different names. If all the people called upon God by the same name, then despite the fact that they would all have separate religions, they would all be united inwardly. They too, like Nanak Sahib and Baba Farid would then say:
“All the souls have been created by the light of God, even though their environment and communities are separate.”
The angels that are assigned tasks in the world are also taught the languages of the people of the world.
It is important for the people of every Prophet that they recite, chant and affirm the Title of their Prophet which was granted by God to the Prophet at his time, for the recognition, spiritual grace and purification of his people. The recital and affirmation should be in the same method and in the language of their Prophet.
The entry of any individual into any religion is subject to the condition that the individual accepts and affirms the Title of the Prophet of that religion. Just as the affirmation and the verbal vows are a condition of any marriage.
Entry into the heavens has been made subject to the acceptance and affirmation of the Titles of the Prophets. In the western world many Muslims and Christians have no knowledge of their Prophet’s Title furthermore many do not even know their Prophets original name (in the original language of the Prophet.)
People who only verbalize the affirmation of their Prophet’s Title rely upon their good deeds. Those that reject and do not affirm their Prophet’s Title are refused entry to paradise. Those individuals in whose hearts the affirmation of their Prophet’s Title has descended (entered) they will enter paradise without any accountability.
The revealed celestial Scriptures, whichever language they are in so long as they are in the original form, are a means to finding God. Where the texts and the translations that have been adulterated, just as adulterated flour is harmful for the stomach, the adulterated books have become harmful and people of the same religion and the same of Prophet have divided into so many sects.
To be sure of the straight and guided path it is better that you are guided by the Light (of God) also.
The method of producing light.
In prehistoric times stones would be rubbed together to make fire. Whereas a spark can also be produced by rubbing two metals together. In a similar way electricity is made from water. Similarly by the friction of the blood inside the human body, in other words electric energy is produced by the vibrating heartbeat. In every human being there is present, approximately one and a half volts of electricity due to which the body is energetic. As the heartbeat slows in old age, this reduces the electricity in the body and this in turn also causes a reduction of the energy level in the body.
Firstly, the heartbeat has to be made vibrant and pronounced. Some do this by dancing, some by sports and exercise and some people try to do this by meditating and chanting the Name of God Allah.
When the heartbeat becomes vibrant and pronounced then by chanting the Name Allah try to synchronize it with every heartbeat. Alternatively try to synchronize Allah with one heartbeat and Hu with the other. Some time by placing your hand on the heart and when you feel your heartbeat, again try to synchronize the Name Allah by chanting it with the rythm of the heartbeat and imagine that the Name Allah is entering the heart.
The chanting of Allah Hu is better and more effective but if anyone has an objection, or a fear of chanting Hu, then instead of being deprived one should solely use the Name Allah, repetitively in the chanting. It is beneficial for people who chant and practice this discipline and who read mantras to physically remain as clean as possible as the:
“disrespectful are unfulfilled and the respectful are fulfilled.”
The first method for producing light.
Write Allah on a paper in black ink, and do this exercise for as long as you wish on a daily basis. Soon thereafter, the Word Allah will be transported from the paper and hover over the eyes. Then with one-pointed concentration, attempt to transport the word from the eyes to the heart.
The second method for producing light.
Write Allah on a zero watt bulb, in yellow. Whilst you are awake or just before sleep, concentrate and try to absorb it into the eyes. When it appears on the eyes then try to transport it to the heart.
The third method for producing light.
This method is for those people who have perfect spiritual guides and teachers and who due to their spiritual connection are spiritually assisted by them.
Sit alone and imagine that your index finger is a pen. Using your finger and with your concentration, attempt to write Allah on your heart. Call upon your spiritual teacher (spiritually), so that he too may, hold your finger, and write Allah on your heart. Continue to do this exercise everyday, until you see Allah written on your heart.
By the first and second method, the Name Allah becomes inscribed on the heart, just as it was written and seen by you but when it becomes synchronized with the heartbeat, then it slowly starts to shine. In the synchronized method, the assistance of the spiritual teacher is provided and for this reason it is seen shining and well written on the heart right from the beginning.
Many Prophets and Saints have come into the world, and just for the sake of testing this, if you feel it appropriate, concentrate or call upon all of them when you are practicing your meditation.
Whilst concentrating on any Prophet or Saint, during your meditating practice, if the rhythm of your heartbeat increases, in its vibration or you feel an improvement then this means that your destiny (spiritual fruits) lies with that Prophet or Saint.
Thereafter it is beneficial to concentrate on that same person whenever you practice your meditation as spiritual grace is transferred in this way, because every Saint is spiritually connected to a Prophet, even if that Prophet is not physically living.
The spiritual fruit (grace) of every illuminated person is in the hands of one Saint or another. It is essential that the Saint is living. Sometimes a very fortunate person is gifted with celestial spiritual grace by a perfect Saint who is not living, but this is very rare. However Saints not living in our human realm can provide worldly spiritual grace and assistance to people from their tombs. This is known as Owaisi spiritual grace.
The recipients of such spiritual grace often get entangled in their spiritual insights, visions and dreams because the spiritual guide providing the assistance is in the spiritual realm and so too is Satan and the recognition of the two becomes difficult.
Along with the spiritual grace it is important to have knowledge, for which a living Saint is more appropriate. If a person (Saint) possesses spiritual grace but is without knowledge, that person is known as a Majzoob (Godly but abstracted due to the complete absorption into the Essence of God and who is not in full control of his faculties).
A person (Saint) having spiritual grace and knowledge is known as a Mehboob (literally, loved one). Such people (Saints) as a result of their knowledge provide worldly spiritual assistance as well as spiritual grace and benefit. Whereas the Majzoobs are known to provide worldly spiritual assistance to people by their unusual but accepted practices of shouting obscenities and poking people with their wooden sticks.
If any (Prophet or Saint) appears but does not help or assist you then put Gohar Shahi to the test.
You may belong to any religion, there is no condition in this respect as long as the individual is not eternally ill-fated.
Many people have received the spiritual grace of Qalb meditation from the Moon. This is obtained when there is a full Moon from the East. Look at it with concentration and when you see the image of Gohar Shahi on it say Allah, Allah, Allah three times and you will be blessed with this spiritual grace. Thereafter without any fear or reservation practice the meditation as described.
Believe (the fact) that the image on the Moon has spoken to many people in many different languages. You can try looking and speaking to it also.
About Muraqba
(transcendental meditation)
(Literally. journey. Meditation in which the soul leaves the human body)
Many people without having acquired the illumination of the spiritual entities (‘Lata’if/Shaktian’) and without attaining spiritual strength and prowess try to engage in this meditation. They either fail to reach the meditative state or become the subject of Satanic interference. This type of meditation is for illuminated people, whose spiritual entity of the self has been purified and the Qalb has been cleansed. The practice or attempt at this type of meditation is foolish no matter what type of physical worship is used to achieve this. To collect and gather the strength of the soul and the spiritual entities and then to travel to a place is what is known as meditation.
Sainthood is the one fourtieth part of Prophecy.
Every dream, meditative journey, inspiration or revelation of a Prophet is accurate and authentic and does not need verification. Only fourty out of a hundred dreams, meditative journeys, inspirations and revelations of Saints are accurate the remaining sixty percent are inaccurate.
God cannot be understood without knowledge
The lowest type of meditative journey is started only after the illumination and awakening of the spiritual entity of the Qalb. This is impossible without first achieving the meditation of the Qalb (meditation with the vibrating heartbeat synchronized with the Name Allah). It takes one jerk or shake to bring the person out of this meditative state and back to consciousness. The faculty of the augury (foretelling the future by reading verses or looking into designated books) is also connected to the Qalb.
The next stage is the meditative journey of the soul. It takes three jerks or shakes to return a person back to normality from this meditative state.
The third stage of the meditative journey is done by the spiritual entity, Anna and the soul together. The soul travels along with the spiritual entity Anna, to the realm of souls just as the Archangel Gabriel accompanied the Prophet Mohammed to the realm of souls.
People who are in this meditative state are sometimes even taken to be buried in their graves and they are unaware of this happening to them. Such a meditative state and journey was taken by the “Companions of the Cave” as a result of which they remained asleep in the cave for more than three hundred years.
When this meditative state and journey was undertaken by the Sheikh, Abdul-Qadir al-Jilani, in the jungle, the occupants of the jungle would regard the Sheikh as dead and would take him to a grave for burial but the meditative journey would break just before the burial (the Sheikh would return to consciousness).
How to recognize a special inspiration and revelation from God.
When a person has awakened and illuminated the spiritual entities in the chest and is worthy of receiving the rays of the Grace of God, then at that point God communicates with that person. God is All-Powerful and can do as he pleases and thus communicate with the human being in any way fit, but he has made a special method for his recognition so that his friends can be saved from the deception of Satan.
Firstly, text in the Semitic language appears on the seekers heart and its translation is seen in the language of the seekers mother-tongue. The text is white and shiny and the eyes close automatically and look at the text (internally). The text then passes the Qalb and moves towards the spiritual entity Sirri as a result of which it shines even more. Then the text moves towards the spiritual entity, Akhfa and from here it shines more and then moves onto the tongue. The voice then spontaneously starts to repeat that text.
If this inspiration is from Satan then an illuminated heart will dull the text and if the text is strong and prominent then the spiritual entities Sirri or Akhfa destroy that text. Further if due to the weakness of the spiritual entities the text does arrive at the tongue, then the voice will prevent it from being spoken into words.
This type of inspiration is for special types of Saints, whereas in respect of ordinary Saints, God sends messages to them through the angels or other spiritual entities. When the Archangel Gabriel accompanies the special and inspired text, this is known as revelation which is confined to the Prophets.
For more detail visit www.goharshahi.org or visit asipk.com and for videos visit HH rags
Iceland[4][5] i/ˈaɪslənd/ (Icelandic: Ísland, IPA: [ˈislant]; see Names for Iceland), officially called Republic of Iceland[6][7][8] and sometimes its counterpart Lýðveldið Ísland in Icelandic (for example this is a part of the name of the Constitution of Iceland, Stjórnarskrá lýðveldisins Íslands), is a Nordic European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge.[9] The country has a population of about 320,000 and a total area of 103,000 km2 (40,000 sq mi).[10] The capital and largest city is Reykjavík,[11] with the surrounding areas in the southwestern region of the country being home to two-thirds of the country's population. Iceland is volcanically and geologically active. The interior mainly consists of a plateau characterised by sand fields, mountains and glaciers, while many glacial rivers flow to the sea through the lowlands. Iceland is warmed by the Gulf Stream and has a temperate climate despite a high latitude just outside the Arctic Circle.
According to Landnámabók, the settlement of Iceland began in AD 874 when the chieftain Ingólfur Arnarson became the first permanent Norse settler on the island.[12] Others had visited the island earlier and stayed over winter. Over the following centuries, Norsemen settled Iceland, bringing with them thralls (serfs) of Gaelic origin. From 1262 to 1918 Iceland was part of the Norwegian and later the Danish monarchies. Until the 20th century, the Icelandic population relied largely on fisheries and agriculture. Industrialisation of the fisheries and Marshall Aid brought prosperity in the years after World War II. In 1994, Iceland became party to the European Economic Area, which made it possible for the economy to diversify into economic and financial services.
Iceland has a free market economy with relatively low taxes compared to other OECD countries,[13] while maintaining a Nordic welfare system providing universal health care and tertiary education for its citizens.[14] In recent years, Iceland has been one of the wealthiest and most developed nations in the world. In 2011, it was ranked as the 14th most developed country in the world by the United Nations' Human Development Index,[3] and the fourth most productive country per capita.[15] In 2008, the nation's entire banking system systemically failed and there was substantial resulting political unrest.
Icelandic culture is founded upon the nation's Norse heritage. Most Icelanders are descendants of Norse (particularly from Western Norway) and Gaelic settlers. Icelandic, a North Germanic language, is closely related to Faroese and some West Norwegian dialects. The country's cultural heritage includes traditional Icelandic cuisine, poetry, and the medieval Icelanders' sagas. Currently, Iceland has the smallest population among NATO members and is the only one with no standing army.
Camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark II
Lens: Canon EF 16-35mm f/2.8 L II USM
Focal Length: 23mm
Aperture: f/4.0
Shutter Speed : .3
ISO: 200
Exposure: Manual
The Burj Khalifa is a skyscraper in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. With a total height of 829.8 m (2,722 ft, just over half a mile) and a roof height (excluding antenna, but including a 244 m spire[2]) of 828 m (2,717 ft), the Burj Khalifa has been the tallest structure and building in the world. The building was opened in 2010 as part of a new development called Downtown Dubai. It is designed to be the centrepiece of large-scale, mixed-use development. The decision to construct the building is based on the government's decision to diversify from an oil-based economy, and for Dubai to gain international recognition.
German company NSU was founded in 1873, initially manufacturing knitting machines. The company diversified into bicycles in 1880, and motorcycles in 1901. The first NSU automobile debuted in 1905.
Motorcycle production resumed after WWII, followed by the new Prinz automobile in 1957. The Prinz was a small rear-engine car, powered by a 583 cc twin-cylinder producing 20 hp (15 kW)
The Sport Prinz was a 2-seater sports coupe variant. It was designed by Franco Scaglione at Bertone studios in Turin. 20,831 were manufactured between 1958 and 1968. The first 250 bodies were built by Bertone in Turin. The rest were built in Heilbronn at Karrosseriewerke Drauz which was later bought by NSU.
The Sport Prinz was initially powered by the 583 cc (35.6 cu in) Prinz 50 straight-twin engine but a maximum speed of 160 km/h (99 mph) was nevertheless claimed. From late 1962 a 598 cc (36.5 cu in) engine was fitted.
The NSU Spider was a Wankel rotary powered two-seater roadster based on the Sport Prinz platform.