Heat engines
The second law of thermodynamics puts a fundamental limit on the thermal efficiency of heat engines. Surprisingly, even an ideal, frictionless engine can't convert anywhere near 100% of its input heat into work. The limiting factors are the temperature at which the heat enters the engine, , and the temperature of the environment into which the engine exhausts its waste heat,, measured in the absolute Kelvin or Rankine scale. From Carnot's theorem, for any engine working between these two temperatures:

This limiting value is called the Carnot cycle efficiency because it is the efficiency of an unattainable, ideal, lossless (reversible) engine cycle called the Carnot cycle. No heat engine, regardless of its construction, can exceed this efficiency.
Examples of are the temperature of hot steam entering the turbine of a steam power plant, or the temperature at which the fuel burns in an internal combustion engine. is usually the ambient temperature where the engine is located, or the temperature of a lake or river that waste heat is discharged into. For example, if an automobile engine burns gasoline at a temperature of and the ambient temperature is , then its maximum possible efficiency is given by:

In practice, because no practical implementation of the Carnot cycle exists coupled with other irreversibilities such as the combustion process itself and friction, real engines fall far short of the Carnot efficiency. Real automobile engines are only around 25% efficient, combined cycle power stations have efficiencies much higher however will still fall at least 15% points short of the Carnot value. As Carnot's theorem only applies to heat engines, devices that convert the fuel's energy directly into work without burning it such as fuel cells, can exceed the Carnot efficiency.

Carnot efficiency
For an energy conversion device like a boiler or furnace, the thermal efficiency is . So, for a boiler that produces 210 kW (or 700,000 BTU/h) output for each 300 kW (or 1,000,000 BTU/h) heat-equivalent input, its thermal efficiency is 210/300 = 0.70, or 70%. This means that the 30% of the energy is lost to the environment.
An electric resistance heater has a thermal efficiency of at or very near 100%, so, for example, 1500W of heat are produced for 1500W of electrical input. When comparing heating units, such as a 100% efficient electric resistance heater to an 80% efficient natural gas-fueled furnace, an economic analysis is needed to determine the most cost-effective choice.

Energy conversion
Heat pumps, refrigerators, and air conditioners, for example, move heat, rather than convert it, so other measures are needed to describe their thermal performance. The common measures are the coefficient of performance (COP), energy efficiency ratio (EER), and seasonal energy efficiency ratio (SEER). The Efficiency of a Heat pump (HP) and Refrigerators (R)*: If temperatures at both ends of the Heat Pump or Refrigerator are constant and their processes reversible:
Energy efficiency

Annual fuel utilization efficiency (AFUE)
Electrical efficiency
Mechanical efficiency
Figure of merit

This is about John Leland, antiquary. For other people called John Leland see John Leland (disambiguation).
John Leland (September 13, 1506 – April 18, 1552) was an English antiquary. He has been described as 'the father of English local history'; his Itinerary introduced the shire as the basic unit for studying the history of England—an idea that has been influential ever since.

Royal appointment
Leland's notes have survived, and held in the Bodleian Library. They are an invaluable primary source not only for the local history and the geography of England, but also for archaeology, social history, and economic history.
The writings of Leland are numerous; in his lifetime he published several Latin and Greek poems, and some tracts on antiquarian subjects. His voluminous manuscripts, after passing through many hands, came into the Bodleian library, furnishing valuable materials to John Stow, William Lambarde, William Camden, Thomas Burton, William Dugdale, and many other antiquaries and historians. Polydore Virgil, who had plagiarised them freely, had the insolence to abuse Leland's memory—calling him "a vain glorious man." From these collections Hall published, in 1709, Commentarii de Scriptoribus Brittanicis. The Itinerary of John Leland, Antiquary, was published by Thomas Hearne, at Oxford, in nine volumes in 1710, with a second edition printed in 1745, with considerable improvements and additions. The same editor published Joannis Lelandi Antiquarii de Rebus Brittanicis Collectanea in six volumes at Oxford in 1716.

Somerset and Camelot
The Leland Trail is a 28 mile footpath which follows in the footsteps of John Leland as he traversed South Somerset between 1535 and 1543 in the course of his investigation of the region's antiquities. The Leland Trail begins at King Alfred's Tower on the Wiltshire/Somerset border and finishes at Ham Hill Country Park.

450,000 (est.)
This article is about Icelanders as an ethnic group. For information about residents or nationals of Iceland, see Demographics of Iceland.
Icelanders are the nation or ethnic group of Iceland descended primarily from Norseman of Scandinavia and Celts of the British Isles. The language spoken is Icelandic, a North Germanic language, and the religion is overwhelmingly Lutheran.
Icelanders, especially those living on the main island, have had a tumultuous history. Development of the island was slow due to a lack of interest from the countries controlling it for most of its history; Norway, Denmark–Norway and ultimately Denmark. Through this time, Iceland had relatively few contacts with the outside world. The island became independent in union with Denmark in 1918. Since 1944, Iceland has been a republic, and Icelandic society has undergone a rapid modernisation process in the post-independence era.
Due to the isolated location of Iceland, the immigration and genetic inflow was limited in its indigenous population for hundreds of years; thus the population was considered to be highly homogeneous in terms of its genes. This genetic similarity and unusually well-documented genealogy of the Icelanders are being utilized today for genetic studies.

History

Main article: Settlement of Iceland Initial migration and settlement
In 930, on the Þingvellir (English: Thingvellir) plain near Reykjavík, the chieftains and their families met and established the Alþing, Iceland's first national assembly. However, the Alþing lacked the power to enforce the laws it made. In 1262, struggles between rival chieftains left Iceland so divided that King Haakon IV of Norway was asked to step in as a final arbitrator for all disputes, as part of the Old Covenant. This is known as the Age of the Sturlungs. This disaster is known as the Mist Hardship (Icelandic: Móðuharðindin).
In 1798–99 the Alþing was discontinued for several decades, eventually being restored in 1844. It was moved to Reykjavík, the capital, after residing at Þingvellir for over nine centuries.

Hardship and conflict
The 19th century brought significant improvement in the Icelanders' situation. This movement was led by Jón Sigurðsson, a statesman, historian and authority on Icelandic literature. Inspired by the romantic and nationlist currents from mainland Europe, Sigurðsson protested strongly, through political journals and self-publications, for 'a return to national consciousness' and for political and social changes to be made to help speed up Iceland's development.

Independence and prosperity

Main article: Demographics of Iceland Demographics and society
Due to their considerable history of relative isolation, Icelanders have often been considered highly genetically homogeneous as compared to other European populations. For this reason, along with the extensive genealogical records for much of the population that reach back to the settlement of Iceland, Icelanders have been the focus of considerable genomics research by both biotechnology companies and academic and medical researchers. However, studies of mitochondrial DNA, blood groups, and isozymes have revealed a highly variable population from a genetic standpoint, comparable to or exceeding the diversity of other Europeans.

Genetics

Emigration

Main article: History of Greenland North America

Main article: Culture of Iceland Culture

Main article: Icelandic language Language and literature

Main article: Religion in Iceland Religion

Main article: Cuisine of Iceland Cuisine
Further information: Music of Iceland
The earliest indigenous Icelandic music was the rímur, epic tales from the Viking era that were often performed a cappella. Christianity played a major role in the development of Icelandic music, with many hymns being written in the local idiom. Hallgrímur Pétursson, a poet and priest, is noted for writing many of these hymns in the seventeenth century. The island's relative isolation ensured that the music maintained its regional flavor. It was only in the nineteenth century that the first pipe organs, prevalent in European religious music, first appeared on the island.
Many singers, groups, and forms of music have come from Iceland. Most Icelandic music contains vibrant folk and pop traditions. Some more recent groups and singers are Voces Thules, The Sugarcubes, Björk, Sigur Rós and Silvía Night.
The national anthem is "Ó Guð vors lands" (English: "Our Country's God"), written by Matthías Jochumsson, with music by Sveinbjörn Sveinbjörnsson. The song was written in 1874, when Iceland celebrated its one thousandth anniversary of settlement on the island. It was originally published with the title A Hymn in Commemoration of Iceland's Thousand Years.

Performance art
Iceland's national football team has yet to participate in the FIFA World Cup. Their first Olympic participation was in the 1912 Summer Olympics, however, they did not participate again until the 1936 Summer Olympics. Their first appearance at the winter games was at the 1948 Winter Olympics. In 1956, Vilhjálmur Einarsson won the Olympic silver medal for the triple jump.

See also

Tuesday, November 13, 2007

John Butler Yeats (Born Tullylish, County Down, 16 March 1839, died 3 February 1922) was an Irish artist and the father of William Butler Yeats and Jack Butler Yeats. He is probably best known for his portrait of the young William Butler Yeats which is one of a number of his pictures in the Yeats museum in the National Gallery of Ireland. His portrait of John O'Leary (1904) is considered to be his masterpiece (Raymond Keaveney 2002).
Educated in Trinity College Dublin and a member of the University Philosophical Society John Butler Yeats began his career as a lawyer and devilled briefly with Isaac Butt before he took up painting in 1867 and studied at Hearthleys Art School. There are few records of his sales, so there is no catalogue of his work in private collections. It is possible that some of his early work may have been destroyed by fire in WWII. It is clear that he had no trouble getting commissions as his sketches and oils are found in private homes in Ireland, England and America. His later portraits show great sensitivity to the sitter. However, he was a poor businessman and was never financially secure. He moved house frequently and moved several times between England and Ireland. At the age of 69 he moved to New York, where he was friendly with members of the Ashcan School of painters. He is buried in Chestertown Rural Cemetery in Chestertown, New York.

Monday, November 12, 2007

The "West Coast", "Western Seaboard", or "Pacific Seaboard" are terms for the westernmost coastal states of the Western United States, comprising most often California, Oregon and Washington. Arizona and Nevada, while not coastal states, are also often included in the West Coast due to their proximity to the Pacific Coast and their economic and cultural ties to California (such as Arizona's two largest universities which are members of the Pacific 10 Conference). Although not part of the contiguous United States, Alaska and Hawaii do border the Pacific Ocean and could be included in the West Coast. As of 2007, the estimated population of the West Coast ranged from approximately 50–60 million, depending on which states are included in the estimate.

Sunday, November 11, 2007

The Ottoman Empire (1299 to 1922) (Old Ottoman Turkish: دولت عالیه عثمانیه Devlet-i Âliye-yi Osmâniyye, Late Ottoman and Modern Turkish: Osmanlı Devleti or Osmanlı İmparatorluğu, also known as the Turkish Empire or Turkey by its contemporaries, see the other names of the Ottoman State), was a multi-ethnic and multi-religious Turkish-ruled state which, at the height of its power (16th – 17th centuries), spanned three continents, controlling much of Southeastern Europe, the Middle East and North Africa, stretching from the Strait of Gibraltar (and, in 1553, the Atlantic coast of Morocco beyond Gibraltar) in the west to the Caspian Sea and Persian Gulf in the east, from the edge of Austria, Slovakia and parts of Ukraine in the north to Sudan, Eritrea, Somalia and Yemen in the south.
The empire was at the centre of interactions between the Eastern and Western worlds for six centuries. At the height of its power, the Ottoman Empire contained 29 provinces, in addition to the tributary principalities of Moldavia, Transylvania, and Wallachia. With Constantinople (today known as Istanbul) as its capital, the Ottoman Empire was in many respects an Islamic successor to earlier Mediterranean empires — namely the Roman and Byzantine empires. As such, the Ottomans regarded themselves as the heirs to both Roman and Islamic traditions, and hence rulers of a "Universal Empire" through this "unification of cultures".

Rise (1299–1453)

Main article: Growth of the Ottoman Empire Expansion and apogee (1453–1566)
Suleiman's death in 1566 marked the beginning of an era of diminishing territorial gains. The rise of western European nations as naval powers and the development of alternate sea routes from Europe to Asia and the New World damaged the Ottoman economy. The effective military and bureaucratic structures of the previous century also came under strain during a protracted period of misrule by weak Sultans. But in spite of these difficulties, the empire remained a major expansionist power until the Battle of Vienna in 1683, which marked the end of Ottoman expansion into Europe.
European states initiated efforts at this time to curb Ottoman control of overland trade routes. Western European states began to circumvent the Ottoman trade monopoly by establishing their own naval routes to Asia. Economically, the huge influx of Spanish silver from the New World caused a sharp devaluation of the Ottoman currency and rampant inflation. This had serious negative consequences at all levels of Ottoman society. Sokullu Mehmet Pasha, who was the grand vizier of Selim II, created the projects of Suez Channel and Don-Volga Channel to save the economy but these were cancelled as well.
In southern Europe, a coalition of Catholic powers, led by Philip II of Spain, formed an alliance to diminish Ottoman naval strength in the Mediterranean Sea. Their victory over the Ottomans at the naval Battle of Lepanto (1571) hastened the end of the empire's primacy in the Mediterranean. In fact, Lepanto was considered by some earlier historians to signal the beginning of Ottoman decline. By the end of the 16th century, the golden era of sweeping conquest and territorial expansion was over.
The Habsburg frontier in particular became a more or less permanent border until the 19th century, marked only by relatively minor battles concentrating on the possession of individual fortresses. This stalemate was partly a reflection of simple geographical limits: in the pre-mechanized age, Vienna marked the furthest point that an Ottoman army could march from Istanbul during the early-spring to late-autumn campaigning season. It also reflected the difficulties imposed on the empire by the need to maintain two separate fronts: one against the Austrians (see:Ottoman wars in Europe), and the other against a rival Islamic state, the Safavids of Persia (see: Ottoman wars in Near East).
On the battlefield, the Ottomans gradually fell behind the Europeans in military technology as the innovation which fed the empire's forceful expansion became stifled by growing religious and intellectual conservatism. Changes in European military tactics caused the once-feared Sipahi cavalry to lose military relevance. Discipline and unit cohesion in the army also became a problem due to relaxations in recruitment policy and the growth of the Janissary corps at the expense of other military units.
Murad IV (1612–1640), who recaptured Yerevan (1635) and Baghdad (1639) from the Safavids, is the only example in this era of a sultan who exercised strong political and military control of the empire. Notably, Murad IV was the last Ottoman emperor who led his forces from the front.
The Jelali revolts (1519–1610) and Janissary revolts (1622) caused widespread lawlessness and rebellion in Anatolia in the late 16th and early 17th centuries, and toppled several governments. However, the 17th century was not simply an era of stagnation and decline, but also a key period in which the Ottoman state and its structures began to adapt to new pressures and new realities, internal and external.
The Sultanate of women (1530s–1660s) was a period in which the political impact of the Imperial Harem was unchallenged, as the mothers of young sultans exercised power on behalf of their sons. Hürrem Sultan, who established herself in the early 1530s as the successor of Nurbanu, the first Valide Sultan, was described by the Venetian Baylo Andrea Giritti as 'a woman of the utmost goodness, courage and wisdom' despite the fact that she 'thwarted some while rewarding others'. The last prominent women of this period were Kösem Sultan and her daughter-in-law Turhan Hatice, whose political rivalry culminated in Kösem's murder in 1651. This period gave way to the Köprülü Era (1656–1703), during which the Empire was controlled first by the powerful members of the Imperial Harem, and later by a sequence of Grand Viziers. The relative ineffectiveness of the successive sultans and the diffusion of power to lower levels of the government have characterized the Köprülü Era.

Revolts and revival (1566–1683)
The long period of Ottoman decline is typically broken by historians into an era of failed reforms and a subsequent era of modern times. The military and political details of this period are covered in three separate articles: the stagnation of the Ottoman Empire (1699–1827), when the empire began to lose territory along its western borders, but managed to maintain its stature as a great regional power; the decline of the Ottoman Empire (1828–1908), when the empire lost territory on all fronts, and there was administrative instability due to the breakdown of centralized government, despite efforts of reform and reorganization such as the Tanzimat; and the dissolution of the Ottoman Empire (1908-1922), when the Ottoman state finally met its demise under the government of the Committee of Union and Progress which administered the country during the Italo-Turkish War of 1911–1912, the Balkan Wars of 1912–1913, and the First World War of 1914–1918.

Decline and reform (1699–1908)

Main article: Stagnation of the Ottoman Empire Reform (1699–1827)

Main article: Decline of the Ottoman Empire Modernization (1828–1908)

Main article: Dissolution of the Ottoman Empire Dissolution (1908–1922)
The Ottoman Empire took part in the Middle Eastern theatre of World War I, under the terms of the Ottoman-German Alliance. The Ottomans managed to win important victories in the early years of the war, particularly at the Battle of Gallipoli and the Siege of Kut; but there were setbacks as well, such as the disastrous Caucasus Campaign against the Russians. The Russian Revolution of 1917 gave the Ottomans the opportunity to regain lost ground and Ottoman forces managed to take Azerbaijan in the final stages of the war, but the Empire was forced to cede these gains at the end of World War I. A significant event in this conflict was the creation of an Armenian resistance movement in the province of Van, in response to deportations and murders of hundreds of thousands Armenians by Turks and Kurds (Armenian Genocide) Similar arguments swirl around the concurrent mass mortalities suffered by the Assyrian and later the Pontic Greek communities of the Ottoman Empire. The Turkish rejection of the genocide definition is widely viewed by the Armenians as historical revisionism, who often compare it to Holocaust denial. See the main Armenian Genocide article for more information.

World War I
Partitioning of the Ottoman Empire happened in the aftermath of World War I. The empire was forced to submit to a complete partition. The process began with the signing of the Armistice of Mudros on 30 October 1918, followed 13 days later with the occupation of Istanbul; under the shadow of Turkish Courts-Martial of 1919-20 and the Malta exiles followed by the subsequent Treaty of Sèvres. Partition of its Middle Eastern territories under the mandates of Britain and France, cede the Turkish Mediterranean coast to Italy, the Turkish Aegean coast to Greece, cede the Turkish Straits and Sea of Marmara to the Allied powers as an international zone, and recognize the Wilsonian Armenia, an extension of Democratic Republic of Armenia in eastern Anatolia (in an area which was mostly inhabited by Turks and Kurds). Britain obtained virtually everything it had sought under the secret Sykes-Picot Agreement it had made with France in 1916 for the partitioning of the Middle East. The other powers of the Triple Entente, however, soon became entangled in the Turkish War of Independence.
Occupation of Istanbul along with the occupation of İzmir mobilized the establishment of the Turkish national movement, and led to the Turkish War of Independence and the foundation of the Republic of Turkey.
The Turkish national movement, under the leadership of Mustafa Kemal (Atatürk) resulted in the creation of the Grand National Assembly (Büyük Millet Meclisi) in Ankara on 23 April 1920, which refused to recognize the Ottoman government in Istanbul and the invading forces in Turkey. Turkish revolutionaries raised a "people's army" and expelled the invading Greek, Italian and French forces. They took back the Turkish provinces which were given to the Republic of Armenia with the Treaty of Sèvres, and threatened the British forces controlling the Straits. Turkish revolutionaries eventually freed the Straits and Istanbul, and abolished the Ottoman sultanate on 1 November 1922. The last sultan, Mehmed VI Vahdettin (1918-1922), left the country on 17 November 1922, and the Republic of Turkey was officially declared with the Treaty of Lausanne on 24 July 1923. The Caliphate was constitutionally abolished several months later, on 3 March 1924. the Sultan and his family were declared persona non grata of Turkey and exiled. Fifty years later, in 1974, the Grand National Assembly of Turkey granted descendants of the former dynasty the right to acquire Turkish citizenship. See also: Ertuğrul Osman V.
The new countries created from the remnants of the empire currently number 40 (including the disputed Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus).
The fall of the Ottoman Empire can be attributed to the failure of its economic structure; the size of the empire created difficulties in economically integrating its diverse regions. Also, the empire's communication technology was not developed enough to reach all territories. In many ways, the circumstances surrounding the Ottoman Empire's fall closely paralleled those surrounding the fall of the Roman Empire, particularly in terms of the ongoing tensions between the empire's different ethnic groups, and the various governments' inability to deal with these tensions. In the case of the Ottomans, the introduction of a parliamentary system during the Tanzimat proved too late to reverse the trends that had been set in place.

Partition

Main article: Economic history of the Ottoman Empire Economic history

Main article: State organisation of the Ottoman Empire State
Further information: Ottoman Dynasty, House of Osman
The "Ottoman dynasty" (c. 1290–1922) or as an institution "House of Osman" was unprecedented and unequaled in the Islamic world for its size and duration..
Throughout Ottoman history, however — despite the supreme de jure authority of the sultans and the occasional exercise of de facto authority by Grand Viziers — there were many instances in which local governors acted independently, and even in opposition to the ruler. On eleven occasions, the sultan was deposed because he was perceived by his enemies as a threat to the state. There were only two attempts in the whole of Ottoman history to unseat the ruling Osmanlı dynasty, both failures, which is suggestive of a political system which for an extended period was able to manage its revolutions without unnecessary instability.
After the dissolution of the empire, the new republic abolished the Caliphate and Sultanate and declared the Ottoman Dynasty as persona non grata of Turkey. Fifty years later, in 1974, the Grand National Assembly of Turkey granted descendants of the former dynasty the right to acquire Turkish citizenship. The current head of the House of Osman is Ertuğrul Osman V living in New York City.

House of Osman

Main article: Imperial Harem Imperial Harem

Main article: Palace school Palace schools

Main articles: Porte, Grand Vizier, and Vizier The Divan (Council)

Main article: Imperial Government of the Ottoman Empire Young Turk period
Further information: Tughra, Ottoman Flag
The Tughra were calligraphic monograms, or signatures, of the Ottoman Sultans, of which there were 35. Carved on the Sultan's seal, they bore the names of the Sultan and his father. The prayer/statement "ever victorious" was also present in most. The earliest belonged to Orhan Gazi. The ornately stylized Tughra spawned a branch of Ottoman-Turkish calligraphy.

Insignia

Main article: Social structure of the Ottoman Empire Society

Main article: Millet (Ottoman Empire) Millet
Further information: Devshirmeh
Slavery was an important part of Ottoman society. In Istanbul, about 1/5 of the population consisted of slaves.

Slavery

Main articles: Lifestyle of the Ottoman Empire and Culture of the Ottoman court The court and lifestyle
Apart from the Ottoman court, there were also large metropolitan centers where the Ottoman influence expressed itself with a diversity similar to metropolises of today: Sarajevo, Skopje, Thessaloniki, Dimashq, Baghdad, Beirut, Jerusalem, Makkah and Algiers were other cities that had their own examples of Ottoman diversity, with their own small versions of Provincial Administration replicating the culture of the Ottoman court locally.

The provincial capitals

Main article: Culture of the Ottoman Empire Culture

Main article: Ottoman architecture Architecture

Main article: Ottoman Turkish language Language

Main article: Ottoman classical music Music

Main article: Ottoman cuisine Cuisine
Further information: State and Religion (Ottoman Empire), Ottoman Caliphate, History of the Jews in Turkey, History of the Armenians in the Ottoman Empire
Before adopting Islam — a process that was greatly facilitated by the Abbasid victory at the 751 Battle of Talas, which ensured Abbasid influence in Central Asia — the Turkic peoples practised a variety of shamanism. After this battle, many of the various Turkic tribes — including the Oghuz Turks, who were the ancestors of both the Seljuks and the Ottomans — gradually converted to Islam, and brought the religion with them to Anatolia beginning in the 11th century.
The Ottoman Empire was, in principle, tolerant towards Christians and Jews (the "Ehl-i Kitab", or "People of the Book", according to the Qu'ran but not towards the polytheists, in accordance with the Sharia law.
Under the millet system, non-Muslim people were considered subjects of the empire, but were not subject to the Muslim faith or Muslim law. The Orthodox millet, for instance, was still officially legally subject to Justinian's Code, which had been in effect in the Byzantine Empire for 900 years. Also, as the largest group of non-Muslim subjects (or zimmi) of the Islamic Ottoman state, the Orthodox millet was granted a number of special privileges in the fields of politics and commerce, in addition to having to pay higher taxes than Muslim subjects.
The Ottoman Sultan Mehmed II allowed the local Christians to stay in Constantinople (Istanbul) after conquering the city in 1453, and to retain their institutions such as the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate. In 1461 Sultan Mehmed II established the Armenian Patriarchate of Constantinople. Previously, the Byzantines considered the Armenian Church as heretical and thus did not allow them to build churches inside the walls of Constantinople. In 1492, when the Muslims and Sephardic Jews were expelled from Spain during the Spanish Inquisition, the Ottoman Sultan Bayezid II sent his fleet under Kemal Reis to save them and granted the refugees the right to settle in the Ottoman Empire.
The state's relationship with the Greek Orthodox Church was largely peaceful, and recurrent oppressive measures taken against the Greek church were a deviation from generally established practice. The church's structure was kept intact and largely left alone but under close control and scrutiny until the Greek War of Independence of 1821–1831 and, later in the 19th and early 20th centuries, the rise of the Ottoman constitutional monarchy, which was driven to some extent by nationalistic currents, tried to be balanced with Ottomanism. Other Orthodox churches, like the Bulgarian Orthodox Church, were dissolved and placed under the jurisdiction of the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate; until Sultan Abdülaziz established the Bulgarian Exarchate in 1870 and reinstated the autonomy of the Bulgarian Church.
Similar millets were established for the Ottoman Jewish community, who were under the authority of the Haham Başı or Ottoman Chief Rabbi; the Armenian Orthodox community, who were under the authority of a head bishop; and a number of other religious communities as well.

Religion
Further information: Mecelle
Ottoman legal system accepted the Religious law over its subjects. The Ottoman Empire was organized around a system of local jurisprudence. Legal administration in the Ottoman Empire was part of a larger scheme of balancing central and local authority. The Ottoman system had three court systems: one for Muslims, one for non-Muslims, involving appointed Jews and Christians ruling over their respective religious communities, and the "trade court". The entire system was regulated from above by means of the administrative Kanun, i.e. laws. Kanun system based upon the Turkic Yasa and Töre which were developed in the pre-Islamic era. The kanun law system, on the other hand, was the secular law of the sultan, and dealt with issues not clearly addressed by the sharia system.
These court categories were not, however, wholly exclusive in nature: for instance, the Islamic courts — which were the empire's primary courts — could also be used to settle a trade conflict or disputes between litigants of differing religions, and Jews and Christians often went to them so as to obtain a more forceful ruling on an issue. The Ottoman state tended not to interfere with non-Muslim religious law systems, despite legally having a voice to do so through local governors. The Islamic Sharia law system had been developed from a combination of the Qur'ān; the Hadīth, or words of the prophet Muhammad; ijmā', or consensus of the members of the Muslim community; qiyas, a system of analogical reasoning from previous precedents; and local customs. Both systems were taught at the empire's law schools, which were in Istanbul and Bursa.
Tanzimat reforms, had a drastic effect on the law system. In 1877, the civil law (excepting family law) was codified in the Mecelle code. Later codifications covered commercial law, penal law and civil procedure.

Law

Main article: Military of the Ottoman Empire Military
The first military unit of the Ottoman State was an army that was organized by Osman I from the tribesmen inhabiting western Anatolia in the late 13th century. The military system became an intricate organization with the advance of the Empire.
The Ottoman military was a complex system of recruiting and fief-holding. The main corps of the Ottoman Army included:
The Ottoman army was once among the most advanced fighting forces in the world, being one of the first to employ muskets. The Ottoman cavalry used bows and short swords and often applied nomad tactics similar to those of the Mongol Empire; such as pretending to retreat while surrounding the enemy forces inside a crescent-shaped formation and then making the real attack.
Starting from the Battle of Kosovo in 1389 and the Battle of Nicopolis in 1396, the Ottoman army quickly advanced towards central Europe, capturing Hungary with the Battle of Mohács in 1526 and twice laying siege to Vienna, in 1529 and 1683.
The modernization of the Ottoman Empire in the 19th century started with the military. In 1826 Sultan Mahmud II abolished the Janissary corps and established the modern Ottoman army, which he named as the Nizam-ı Cedid (New Order). The Ottoman army was also the first institution to hire foreign experts and send its officers for training in western European countries.

Janissary: Infantry units recruited at a very young age from the non-Muslim ethnic groups of the empire and raised as Muslim Turkish warriors; also forming the Sultan's household troops and bodyguard.
Sipahi: Elite cavalry knights who were granted tımars (fiefs) throughout the empire's lands. Their alternative name was Tîmârlı Sipahi (Enfiefed Knight).
Akıncı: Frontline cavalry units of the Ottoman Army which raided and scouted the border areas and outposts.
Mehterân: Ottoman Army Band which played martial tunes during military campaigns. The mehterân was usually associated with the Janissary corps. Ottoman Army

Main article: Ottoman Navy Ottoman Navy

Main article: Ottoman Air Force Ottoman Air Force
47 Constantelos, D (1978) "The neomartyrs as evidence for methods and motives leading to conversion and martyrdom in the Ottoman Empire" published in The Greek Orthodox Theological Review, vol. XXII, No. 3-4, pp. 216-234

Notes

Cleveland, William L. "The Ottoman and Safavid Empires: A New Imperial Synthesis" in A History of the Modern Middle East. Westview Press, 2004. pp37–56. ISBN 0-8133-4048-9.
Creasy, Sir Edward Shepherd. History of the Ottoman Turks: From the beginning of their empire to the present time. R. Bentley and Son, 1877.
Finkel, Caroline. Osman's Dream: The Story of the Ottoman Empire, 1300–1923. John Murray, 2005. ISBN 0-7195-5513-2.
Guilmartin, John F., Jr. "Ideology and Conflict: The Wars of the Ottoman Empire, 1453–1606", Journal of Interdisciplinary History, (Spring 1988) 18:4., pp721–747.
Imber, Colin. The Ottoman Empire, 1300–1650: The Structure of Power. Palgrave Macmillan, 2002. ISBN 0-333-61386-4.
Jelavich, Barbara. History of the Balkans: Eighteenth and Nineteenth Centuries. Cambridge University Press, 1983. ISBN 0-521-25249-0.
Lafi (Nora), Une ville du Maghreb entre ancien régime et réformes ottomanes. Genèse des institutions municipales à Tripoli de Barbarie (1795–1911), Paris: L'Harmattan, 2002, 305 pp.
Lafi (Nora), Municipalités méditerranéennes. Les réformes municipales ottomanes au miroir d'une histoire comparée, Berlin: K. Schwarz, 2005.
Lybyer, Albert Howe. The Government of the Ottoman Empire in the Time of Suleiman the Magnificent. AMS Press, 1978. ISBN 0-404-14681-3.
Mansel, Philip. Istanbul: City of the World's Desire, 1453–1924. Gardners Books, 1997. ISBN 0-14-026246-6.
McCarthy, Justin. The Ottoman Peoples and the End of Empire. Hodder Arnold, 2001. ISBN 0-340-70657-0.
Necipoğlu, Gülru. Architecture, Ceremonial, and Power: The Topkapı Palace in the Fifteenth and Sixteenth Centuries. MIT Press, 1991. ISBN 0-262-14050-0.
Quataert, Donald. The Ottoman Empire, 1700–1922. Cambridge University Press, 2005. ISBN 0-521-54782-2.
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This article incorporates text from the Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition, a publication now in the public domain.
Leiner, Frederick C.The end of Barbary terror : America's 1815 war against the pirates of North Africa / by Frederick C. Leiner. New York : Oxford University Press, 2006. See also

Saturday, November 10, 2007

Ivy Queen (born Martha Ivelisse Pesante on March 4, 1972 in Añasco, Puerto Rico) is a Latin Grammy nominated composer and singer who is known as "La Diva", "La Gata", "La Caballota", and "La Reina del Reggaeton", "The Queen of Reggaeton". Ivy Queen has earned her name as "The Queen of Reggaeton" due to her success. She is among the few female artists in the reggaeton genre. Despite being in genre of music dominated by men, she has been able to have 2 Top 10 albums, and 3 Top 10 singles, along with over 900,000 records sold worldwide.

Singing career
Ivy Queen lived for many years with rap producer and vocalist Omar Navarro (Gran Omar), who she met in 1995, when she was part of The Noise. They have an adopted daughter together (who is actually her niece).

Personal life

Albums

The song "In The Zone" features Wyclef Jean

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