Ni-Chang (The Forbidden Kingdom, 2008)


Li Bingbing as Ni-Chang, the White-Haired Witch/Assassin from The Forbidden Kingdom (2008)


@ How romantic. Men will tell you what you want to hear, Sparrow, but in the end they will leave you with nothing!

Nina Dobrev (1989- )


Nina Dobrev (1989- )

Nina Dobrev (born Nina Constantinova Dobreva, January 9, 1989) is a Bulgarian-Canadian actress and model. She played the role of Mia Jones, the single teenage mother, on Degrassi: The Next Generation, from the show's sixth to ninth season. She currently stars as Elena Gilbert and Katherine Pierce on The CW television teen drama, The Vampire Diaries.


Quotes·Quotation by Nina Dobrev

Celebrities

¶ It’s changed my life a lot, in many different ways. I came into it really new to the business, didn’t really know much. I learned everything on set here, made some really good friends. Everyone’s really positive – I love it. [on being part of “Degrassi: The Next Generation" ]

¶ People tell me that I look like her a few times a day. I think she’s gorgeous.

¶ When I have an audition I don’t pick up the phone, I sit at home and I dissect the scenes to the bone. There’s a lot of time and work that goes into it.

Challenge

¶ Every role is a challenge. I want to keep doing everything… I want to try to do things that aren’t similar to one another.

¶ It was challenging because it’s not me. I went to a lot of web sites that dealt with teenage pregnancy. I read a lot of stories about girls having to go through what Mia did [Mia is Nina's character on Degrassi]. There’s the alienation factor and there are all the stories and rumors, having everybody judge you. It isn’t easy.

Life

¶ (If given a chance at immortality) I don’t know if I’d want it. I live a pretty cool life, so I’m happy where I am.

¶ I came to L.A. for the first time in January of this past year. The Vampire Diaries was actually my first audition for a pilot. I read the script, and I loved it. I thought it was really cool and I’d just gotten off a series, so obviously I was trained and ready, and I knew the drill and everything to do with it. It just sort of worked out. [in a 2009 interview]

¶ I didn’t have a stage mom at all. I was the one who planned out my auditions and drove myself an hour and a half into the city. [in a 2009 interview]


Nina Dobrev as Elena Gilbert from Vampire Diaries

¶ They just don't care any more. They don't remember that our parents are dead, they have their own lives to deal with. The rest of the world has moved on. You should try to. [Vampire Diaries, Pilot 1.1]

¶ Dear Diary, Today will be different. It has to be. I will smile, and it will be believable. My smile will say, "I'm fine, thank you. Yes, I feel much better." I will no longer be the sad little girl that lost her parents. I will start fresh, be someone new. It's the only way I'll make it through. [Vampire Diaries, Pilot 1.1]

¶ Dear Diary, I made it through the day. I must have said "I'm fine, thanks" at least 37 times. And I didn't mean it once. But no one noticed. When someone asks "How are you?", they really don't want an answer. [Vampire Diaries, Pilot 1.1]

¶ All you can do is be ready for the good, so when it comes, you invite it in. Because you need it. I need it. [Vampire Diaries, Pilot 1.1]

¶ When you lose someone, it stays with you. Always reminding you of how easy it is to get hurt. [Vampire Diaries, 1.2 The Night of the Comet]

¶ I would write, `Dear Diary, Today I convinced myself it's okay to give up. Stick with the status quo, now just isn't the time. But my reasons aren't reasons, they're excuses and the truth is, I'm scared` Stefan. I'm scared that if I let myself be happy for one minute, that the my world's going to come crashing down and I don't know if I'll be able to survive that. [Vampire Diaries, 1.2 The Night of the Comet]

¶ Well, then say something about yourself.. anything. Otherwise, I'm left with nothing but what other people tell me. [Vampire Diaries, 1.4 Family Ties]

¶ No, I'm not okay with any of it. I'm not gonna cry about it either. Honestly, I'm not gonna be one of those pathetic girls whose world stops spinning because of some guy. [Vampire Diaries, 1.5 You're Undead To Me (2009)]

¶ Dear Diary, I'm not a believer. People are born, they grow old and then they die. That's the world we live in. There's no magic, no mysticism, no immortality. There is nothing that defies rational thought. It's not possible. I'm not a believer, I can't be. But how can I deny what's right in front of me? Someone who never grows old.. never gets hurt.. someone who changes in ways that can't be explained. Girls bitten.. bodies drained of blood.. [Vampire Diaries, 1.5 You're Undead To Me (2009)]

¶ (Thinks, and gets out of the car, with a determined face) No. You don't get to make that decision for me. If you walk away, it's for you because I know what I want. Stefan I love you. [Vampire Diaries, 01.10 The Turning Points (2009)]

¶ If you don't come with me, I'm going by myself. What? You're the one who told me that I could handle things on my own now. [Vampire Diaries, 03.02 The Hybrid]


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nina_Dobrev



Nina Dobrev at the Ian Somerhalder Foundation's Influence Affair Red Carpet 2012 | 21 April 2012 | Source: Nina Dobrev https://www.flickr.com/photos/minglemediatv/6956864916/ | Author: MingleMediaTVNetwork | Wikimedia Commons under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license | https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Nina_Dobrev,_2012.jpg

Image: Nina Dobrev | Date: 14 July 2012 |  Author: Gage Skidmore from Peoria, AZ, United States of America | Wikiemedia Commons under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license | https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Nina_Dobrev_(7604977966).jpg

Image: Nina Dobrev speaking at the 2012 San Diego Comic-Con International in San Diego, California | Date: 14 July 2012 | Source: Nina Dobrev, https://www.flickr.com/photos/gageskidmore/7604962432/ | Author: Gage Skidmore from Peoria, AZ, United States of America | Wikimedia Commons under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license | https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Nina_Dobrev_(7604962432).jpg

Nigeria


Nigeria

Federal Republic of Nigeria
Jamhuriyar Taraiyar Nijeriya (Hausa)
Ọ́há Njíkọ̀ Ọ́hanézè Naìjíríà (Igbo)
Orílẹ̀-èdè Olómìnira Àpapọ̀ ilẹ̀ Nàìjíríà (Yoruba)

Nigeria i/naɪˈdʒɪəriə/, officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in the north. Its coast in the south lies on the Gulf of Guinea on the Atlantic Ocean. The three largest and most influential ethnic groups in Nigeria are the Hausa, Igbo and Yoruba.

The name Nigeria was taken from the Niger River running through the country. This name was coined by Flora Shaw, the future wife of Baron Lugard, a British colonial administrator, in the late 19th century. The British colonised Nigeria in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, setting up administrative structures and law while recognizing traditional chiefs. Nigeria became independent again in 1960. Several years later, it had civil war as Biafra tried to establish independence. Military governments in times of crisis have alternated with democratically elected governments.

Nigeria is roughly split half and half between Muslims in the North and Christians in the South; a very small minority practice traditional religion. Since 2002 there have been a spate of clashes, particularly in the North of the country, between government forces and the Islamists Boko Haram, militant jihadists who seek to establish sharia law.

The people of Nigeria have an extensive history. Archaeological evidence shows that human habitation of the area dates back to at least 9000 BC.[5] The area around the Benue and Cross River is thought to be the original homeland of the Bantu migrants who spread across most of central and southern Africa in waves between the 1st millennium BC and the 2nd millennium.

Nigeria is the most populous country in Africa, the seventh most populous country in the world, and the most populous country in the world in which the majority of the population is black.[6] Its oil reserves have brought great revenues to the country. It is listed among the "Next Eleven" economies, and is a member of the Commonwealth of Nations.


References

[5]^ McIntosh, Susan Keech, Current directions in west African prehistory. Palo Alto, California: Annual Reviews Inc., 1981. 215–258 p.: ill.
[6]^ Library of Congress – Federal Research Division (July 2008). Country profile: Nigeria. pp. 9. Retrieved 28 December 2011.


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nigeria

Niels Bohr (1885-1926)


Niels Henrik David Bohr (1885-1926)

Niels Henrik David Bohr (Danish pronunciation: [ˈniːls ˈboɐ̯ˀ]; 7 October 1885 – 18 November 1962) was a Danish physicist who made foundational contributions to understanding atomic structure and quantum mechanics, for which he received the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1922. Bohr mentored and collaborated with many of the top physicists of the century at his institute in Copenhagen. He was part of a team of physicists working on the Manhattan Project. Bohr married Margrethe Nørlund in 1912, and one of their sons, Aage Bohr, grew up to be an important physicist who in 1975 also received the Nobel Prize. Bohr has been described as one of the most influential scientists of the 20th century.


Quotes·Quotation by Niels Bohr

Advice

¶ Never express yourself more clearly than you are able to think.

Science·Research

¶ An expert is a person who has made all the mistakes that can be made in a very narrow field.


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Niels_Henrik_David_Bohr

Nicolas Sarkozy (1955- )


Nicolas Sarkozy (1955- )

Nicolas Sarkozy (pronounced [ni.kɔ.la saʁ.kɔ.zi], born Nicolas Paul Stéphane Sarközy de Nagy-Bocsa; 28 January 1955) is the 23rd and current President of the French Republic and ex officio Co-Prince of Andorra. He assumed the office on 16 May 2007 after defeating the Socialist Party candidate Ségolène Royal 10 days earlier.

Before his presidency, he was leader of the Union for a Popular Movement (UMP). Under Jacques Chirac's presidency he served as Minister of the Interior in Jean-Pierre Raffarin's (UMP) first two governments (from May 2002 to March 2004), then was appointed Minister of Finances in Raffarin's last government (March 2004 to May 2005) and again Minister of the Interior in Dominique de Villepin's government (2005–2007).

Sarkozy was also president of the General council of the Hauts-de-Seine department from 2004 to 2007 and mayor of Neuilly-sur-Seine, one of the wealthiest communes of France from 1983 to 2002. He was Minister of the Budget in the government of Édouard Balladur (RPR, predecessor of the UMP) during François Mitterrand's last term.

In foreign affairs, he has promised a strengthening of the entente cordiale with the United Kingdom and closer cooperation with the United States. During his term, he faced the late-2000s financial crisis (followed by the recession and the debt crisis caused by it) and the Arab Spring (especially in Tunisia, Libya and Syria). He also married singer-songwriter Carla Bruni on 2 February 2008 at the Élysée Palace in Paris.


Quotes·Quotation by Nicolas Sarkozy

Finance

¶ Purely financial capitalism has perverted the logic of capitalism, Financial capitalism is a system of irresponsibility and ... is amoral. It is a system where the logic of the market excuses everything. [At the Symposium "New World, New Capitalism," Paris, Jan. 9, 2009]


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nicolas_Sarkozy

Nick Mirov



Nick Mirov


Quotes·Quotation

Entertainment·Television

¶ Life is like a movie; since there aren't any commercial breaks, you have to get up and go to the bathroom in the middle of it.

Viktor Frankl (1905~1997)

Source:
Prof. Dr.
Franz
Vesely
Viktor Frankl (1905~1997)

Viktor Emil Frankl, M.D., Ph.D. (26 March 1905 – 2 September 1997) was an Austrian neurologist and psychiatrist as well as a Holocaust survivor. Frankl was the founder of logotherapy, which is a form of existential analysis, the "Third Viennese School of Psychotherapy". His best-selling book Man's Search for Meaning (published under a different title in 1959: From Death-Camp to Existentialism, and originally published in 1946 as Trotzdem Ja Zum Leben Sagen: Ein Psychologe erlebt das Konzentrationslager, meaning Nevertheless, Say "Yes" to Life: A Psychologist Experiences the Concentration Camp) chronicles his experiences as a concentration camp inmate, which led him to discover the importance of finding meaning in all forms of existence, even the most brutal ones, and thus, a reason to continue living. Frankl became one of the key figures in existential therapy and a prominent source of inspiration for humanistic psychologists.


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Viktor_Frankl
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Viktor_Frankl2.jpg

Edmund Burke (1729-1797)

Edmund Burke (1729-1797)

Edmund Burke (January 12, 1729 – July 9, 1797) was an Irish political philosopher, Whig politician and statesman who is often regarded as the father of modern conservatism.


Accident

@ Chapter of accidents.
Edmund Burke, Notes for Speeches (Edition 1852), Volume II, p. 426.


http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Edmund_Burke

Netherlands and Dutch people

Netherlands and Dutch people



Netherlands

The Netherlands (i/ˈnɛðərləndz/; Dutch: Nederland [ˈneːdərˌlɑnt]) is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, consisting of twelve provinces in North-West Europe and three islands in the Caribbean. The European part of the Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders[9] with Belgium, Germany and the United Kingdom. It is a parliamentary democracy organised as a unitary state. The country capital is Amsterdam and the seat of government is The Hague.[10] The Netherlands in its entirety is often referred to as "Holland", although North and South Holland are actually only two of its provinces.

The Netherlands is a geographically low-lying country, with about 20% of its area and 21% of its population located below sea level,[11] and 50% of its land lying less than one metre above sea level.[12] This distinct feature contributes to the country's name: in Dutch (Nederland), English, and in many other European languages, its name literally means "(The) Low Countries" or "Low Country". Most of the areas below sea level are man-made, caused by centuries of extensive and poorly controlled peat extraction, lowering the surface by several meters. Even in flooded areas peat extraction continued through turf dredging. From the late 16th century land reclamation started and large polder areas are now preserved through elaborate drainage systems with dikes, canals and pumping stations. Much of the Netherlands is formed by the estuary of three important European rivers, which together with their distributaries form the Rhine-Meuse-Scheldt delta. Most of the country is very flat, with the exception of foothills in the far southeast and several low hill ranges in the central parts.

The Netherlands was one of the first countries to have an elected parliament, and the country is a founding member of the EU, NATO, OECD and WTO. Together with Belgium and Luxembourg it forms the Benelux economic union. The Netherlands had the tenth-highest per capita income in the world in 2011. The country is host to the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons and five international courts: the Permanent Court of Arbitration, the International Court of Justice, the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia, the International Criminal Court and the Special Tribunal for Lebanon. The first four are situated in The Hague, as is the EU's criminal intelligence agency Europol and judicial co-operation agency Eurojust. This has led to the city being dubbed "the world's legal capital".[13] The Netherlands has a market-based mixed economy, ranking 13th of 157 countries according to the Index of Economic Freedom.[14] In May 2011, the Netherlands was ranked as the "happiest" country according to results published by the OECD.[15]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Netherlands


Dutch language

Dutch (Nederlands) is a West Germanic language and the native language of most of the population of the Netherlands, and about sixty percent of the populations of Belgium and Suriname, the three member states of the Dutch Language Union. Most speakers live in the European Union, where it is a first language for about 23 million and a second language for another 5 million people.[1][2] It also holds official status in the Caribbean island nations of Aruba, Curaçao, and Sint Maarten, while historical minorities remain in parts of France and Germany, and to a lesser extent, in Indonesia,[n 1] and up to half a million native Dutch speakers may be living in the United States, Canada, and Australia.[n 2] The Cape Dutch dialects of Southern Africa have been standardised into Afrikaans, a mutually intelligible daughter language of Dutch[n 3] which today is spoken to some degree by an estimated total of 15 to 23 million people in South Africa and Namibia.[n 4]

Dutch is closely related to German and English[n 5] and is said to be between them.[n 6] Apart from not having undergone the High German consonant shift, Dutch—like English—has mostly abandoned the grammatical case system, is relatively unaffected by the Germanic umlaut, and has levelled much of its morphology.[n 7] Dutch has three grammatical genders,[3] but this distinction has far fewer grammatical consequences than in German.[n 8] Dutch shares with German the use of subject–verb–object word order in main clauses and subject–object–verb in subordinate clauses.[n 9] Dutch vocabulary is mostly Germanic and contains the same Germanic core as German and English, while incorporating more Romance loans than German and fewer than English.[n 10]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dutch_language


Dutch people

The Dutch people (Dutch: Nederlanders) are an ethnic group native to the Netherlands.[14] They share a common culture and speak the Dutch language. Dutch people and their descendants are found in migrant communities worldwide, notably in Suriname, Chile, Brazil, Canada,[15] Australia,[16] South Africa,[17] New Zealand, and the United States.[18]

The traditional art and culture of the Dutch encompasses various forms of traditional music, dances, architectural styles and clothing, some of which are globally recognizable. Internationally, Dutch painters such as Rembrandt, Vermeer and Van Gogh are held in high regard. The dominant religion of the Dutch is Christianity (both Catholic and Protestant), although in modern times the majority is no longer (openly) religious. Significant percentages of the Dutch are adherents of other religions (Islam, Buddhism), humanism, agnosticism, atheism or individual spirituality.[19][20]

In the Middle Ages the Low Countries were situated around the border of France and the Holy Roman Empire, forming a part of their respective peripheries, and the various territories of which they consisted had de facto become virtually autonomous by the 13th century.[21] Under the Habsburgs, the Netherlands were organised into a single administrative unit, and in the 16th and 17th centuries the Northern Netherlands gained independence from Spain as the Dutch Republic.[22] The high degree of urbanization characteristic of Dutch society was attained at a relatively early date.[23] During the Republic the first series of large scale Dutch migrations outside of Europe took place.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dutch_people


Dutch Proverbs

Confidence

¶ A drop of honey catches more flies than a barrel of vinegar.

Diffidence

¶ Acht is meer dan duizend.
Idiomatic translation: Diffidence is the right eye of prudence.
Meaning: When forming a belief be doubtful; no one is always right after all.

Honesty

¶ An open box tempts an honest man.

Trees

¶ Tall trees catch much wind.


Notes

Dutch language

[1]^ In France, a historical dialect called French Flemish is spoken. There are about 80,000 Dutch speakers in France; see Simpson 2009, p. 307. In French Flanders, only a remnant of between 50,000 to 100,000 Flemish-speakers remain; see Berdichevsky 2004, p. 90. Flemish is spoken in the north-west of France by an estimated population of 20,000 daily speakers and 40,000 occasional speakers; see European Commission 2010.
A dialect continuum exists between Dutch and German through the South Guelderish and Limburgish dialects.
In 1941, 400,000 Indonesians spoke Dutch, and Dutch exerted a major influence on Indonesian; see Sneddon 2003, p. 161. In 1941, about 0.5% of the inland population had a reasonable knowledge of Dutch; see Maier 2005, p. 12. At the beginning of World War II, about one million Asians had an active command of Dutch, while an additional half million had a passive knowledge; see Jones 2008, p. xxxi. Many older Indonesians speak Dutch as a second language; see Thomson 2003, p. 80. Some of the ethnic Chinese in Indonesia speak Dutch amongst each other; see Tan 2008, pp. 62–64, Erdentuğ & Colombijn 2002, p. 104. Dutch is spoken by "smaller groups of speakers" in Indonesia; see Bussmann 2002, p. 83. Some younger Indonesians learn Dutch as a foreign language because their parents and grandparents may speak it and because in some circles, Dutch is regarded as the language of the elite; see Vos 2001, p. 91. At present, only educated people of the oldest generation, in addition to specialists for which knowledge of the language is required, can speak Dutch fluently; see Ammon 2006, p. 2017. Around 25% of present-day Indonesian vocabulary can be traced back to Dutch words, see Maier 2005, p. 17.
[2]^ 410,000 in USA, 159,000 in Canada, 47,000 in Australia; see Simpson 2009, p. 307. Between 200,000 and 400,000 in USA alone; see McGoldrick, Giordano & Garcia-Preto 2005, p. 536.
[3]^ Afrikaans is a daughter language of Dutch; see Booij 1995, p. 2, Jansen, Schreuder & Neijt 2007, p. 5, Mennen, Levelt & Gerrits 2006, p. 1, Booij 2003, p. 4, Hiskens, Auer & Kerswill 2005, p. 19, Heeringa & de Wet 2007, pp. 1, 3, 5.
Afrikaans was historically called Cape Dutch; see Deumert & Vandenbussche 2003, p. 16, Conradie 2005, p. 208, Sebba 1997, p. 160, Langer & Davies 2005, p. 144, Deumert 2002, p. 3, Berdichevsky 2004, p. 130.
Afrikaans is rooted in 17th century dialects of Dutch; see Holm 1989, p. 338, Geerts & Clyne 1992, p. 71, Mesthrie 1995, p. 214, Niesler, Louw & Roux 2005, p. 459.
Afrikaans is variously described as a creole, a partially creolised language, or a deviant variety of Dutch; see Sebba 2007, p. 116.
[4]^ It has the widest geographical and racial distribution of all official languages of South Africa; see Webb 2003, pp. 7, 8, Berdichevsky 2004, p. 131. It has by far the largest geographical distribution; see Alant 2004, p. 45.
It is widely spoken and understood as a second or third language; see Deumert & Vandenbussche 2003, p. 16, Kamwangamalu 2004, p. 207, Myers-Scotton 2006, p. 389, Simpson 2008, p. 324, Palmer 2001, p. 141, Webb 2002, p. 74, Herriman & Burnaby 1996, p. 18, Page & Sonnenburg 2003, p. 7, Brook Napier 2007, pp. 69, 71.
An estimated 40 percent of South Africans have at least a basic level of communication in Afrikaans; see Webb 2003, p. 7 McLean & McCormick 1996, p. 333. Afrikaans is a lingua franca of Namibia; see Deumert 2004, p. 1, Adegbija 1994, p. 26, Batibo 2005, p. 79, Donaldson 1993, p. xiii, Deumert & Vandenbussche 2003, p. 16, Baker & Prys Jones 1997, p. 364, Domínguez & López 1995, p. 399, Page & Sonnenburg 2003, p. 8, CIA 2010.
While the number of total speakers of Afrikaans is unknown, estimates range between 15 and 23 million. Afrikaans has 16.3 million speakers; see de Swaan 2001, p. 216. Afrikaans has a total of 16 million speakers; see Machan 2009, p. 174. About 9 million people speak Afrikaans as a second or third language; see Alant 2004, p. 45, Proost 2006, p. 402. Afrikaans has over 5 million native speakers and 15 million second language speakers; see Réguer 2004, p. 20. Afrikaans has about 6 million native and 16 million second language speakers; see Domínguez & López 1995, p. 340. In South Africa, over 23 million people speak Afrikaans, of which a third are first-language speakers; see Page & Sonnenburg 2003, p. 7. L2 "Black Afrikaans" is spoken, with different degrees of fluency, by an estimated 15 million; see Stell 2008–11, p. 1.
Dutch and Afrikaans share mutual intelligibility; see Gooskens 2007, p. 453, Holm 1989, p. 338, Baker & Prys Jones 1997, p. 302, Egil Breivik & Håkon Jahr 1987, p. 232. For written mutual intelligibility; see Sebba 2007, p. 116, Sebba 1997, p. 161.
It is easier for Dutch speakers to understand Afrikaans than the other way around; see Gooskens 2007, p. 454.
[5]^ Dutch and English are the closest relatives of German; see Abraham 2006, p. 124. Dutch is the closest relative of German; see Czepluch & Abraham 2004, p. 13. Dutch and English are closely related; see Ingram 1989, p. 494, Todd 2004, p. 37, Kager 1989, p. 105, Hogg 2002, p. 134, De Bot, Lowie & Verspoor 2005, pp. 130, 166, Weissenborn & Höhle 2001, p. 209, Crisma & Longobarde 2009, p. 250. Dutch and English are very closely related languages; see Fitzpatrick 2007, p. 188. Dutch is, after Frisian, the closest relative of English; see Mallory & Adams 2006, p. 23, Classe 2000, p. 390, Hogg 2002, p. 3, Denning, Kessler & Leben 2007, p. 22. English is most closely related to Dutch; see Lightfoot 1999, p. 22, and more so than to German; see Sonnenschein 2008, p. 100, Kennedy Wyld 2009, p. 190.
[6]^ Dutch is traditionally described as morphologically between English and German, while syntactically closer to German; see Clyne 2003, p. 133. Dutch has been positioned to be between English and German; see Putnam 2011, p. 108, Bussmann 2002, p. 83, Müller 1995, p. 121, Onysko & Michel 2010, p. 210. Typologically, Dutch takes a midway position between English and German, having a similar word order to that of German, having a grammatical gender, and a largely Germanic vocabulary. It is however morphologically close to English, and the case system and subjunctive have largely fallen out of use; see Swan & Smith 2001, p. 6.
[7]^ Dutch shares with English its simplified morphology and the abandonment of the grammatical case system; see Booij 1995, p. 1, Simpson 2009, p. 309. In contrast to German, case markings have become vestigial in English and Dutch; see Hogg 2002, p. 134, Abraham 2006, p. 118, Bussmann 2002, p. 83, Swan & Smith 2001, p. 6. The umlaut in Dutch and English matured to a much lesser extent than in German; see Simpson 2009, p. 307, Lass 1994, p. 70, Deprez 1997, p. 251.
[8]^ Dutch has effectively two genders; see Booij 1995, p. 1, Simpson 2009, p. 309, De Vogelaer 2009, p. 71. Grammatical gender has little grammatical consequences in Dutch; see Bussmann 2002, p. 84
[9]^ Simpson 2009, p. 307, Booij 1995, p. 1. Dutch and German not have a strict SVO order as in English; see Hogg 2002, pp. 87, 134. In contrast to English, which has SVO as the underlying word order, for Dutch and German this is SV1OV2 or (in subordinate clauses) SOV; see Ingram 1989, p. 495, Jordens & Lalleman 1988, pp. 149, 150, 177. Dutch has almost the same word order as German; see Swan & Smith 2001, p. 6.
[10]^ Dutch vocabulary has more Germanic words than English and more Romance words than German; see Simpson 2009, p. 309, Swan & Smith 2001, p. 17. Dutch vocabulary is mostly Germanic; see Swan & Smith 2001, p. 6. Dutch has the most similar vocabulary to English; see Mallory & Adams 2006, p. 1.


References

Netherlands

[1]^ a b c d The World Factbook – Netherlands. Central Intelligence Agency. Retrieved on 8 March 2009.
[2]^ "Population and population dynamics; month, quarter and year". Centraal Bureau voor de Statistiek. Retrieved 23 April 2013.
[3]^ a b c d "Netherlands". International Monetary Fund. Retrieved 17 April 2013.
[4]^ "Distribution of family income – Gini index". World Factbook. CIA. Retrieved May 1, 2013.
[5]^ "Country Comparison: Distribution Of Family Income - Gini Index". World Factbook. CIA. Retrieved May 1, 2013.
[6]^ "Human Development Report 2013". United Nations. 2013. Retrieved 15 March 2013.
[7]^ "Wet gebruik Friese taal in het rechtsverkeer" (in Dutch). wetten.nl. Retrieved 25 October 2010.
[8]^ a b "Invoeringswet openbare lichamen Bonaire, Sint Eustatius en Saba" (in Dutch). wetten.nl. Retrieved 1 January 2011.
[9]^ "North Sea". Ministry of Defence. Retrieved 6 March 2012.
[10]^ Dutch Ministry of Foreign affairs. "About the Nederlands". Retrieved 3 March 2011.
[11]^ "Milieurekeningen 2008". Centraal Bureau voor de Statistiek. Retrieved 4 February 2010.
[12]^ "Netherlands Guide – Interesting facts about the Netherlands". Eupedia. 19 April 1994. Retrieved 29 April 2010.
[13]^ van Krieken, Peter J.; David McKay (2005). The Hague: Legal Capital of the World. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 90-6704-185-8., specifically, "In the 1990s, during his term as United Nations Secretary-General, Boutros Boutros-Ghali started calling The Hague the world's legal capital."
[14]^ Netherlands, Index of Economic Freedom. heritage.org
[15]^ "Where is the happiest place on Earth? | The Search Office Space Blog | Searchofficespace". News.searchofficespace.com. 25 May 2011. Retrieved 28 October 2011.

Dutch language

[1]^ a b c d (Dutch) "Nederlands, wereldtaal". Nederlandse Taalunie. 2010. Retrieved 2011-04-07.
[2]^ a b c European Commission (2006). "Special Eurobarometer 243: Europeans and their Languages (Survey)" (PDF). Europa. Retrieved 2007-02-03. "1% of the EU population claims to speak Dutch well enough in order to have a conversation." (page 153)
[3]^ Especially maintained in written language; cf. W. Haeseryn et al. (eds.), Algemene Nederlandse Spraakkunst (2nd ed., 1997), 160–161.

Dutch people

[14]^ Autochtone population at 1 January 2006, Central Statistics Bureau, Integratiekaart 2006, (external link) This includes the Frisians as well.
[15]^ Based on Statistics Canada, Canada 2001 Census.Link[dead link] to Canadian statistics.
[16]^ "2001CPAncestryDetailed (Final)" (PDF). Retrieved 2010-08-27.
[17]^ Based on figures given by Professor JA Heese in his book Die Herkoms van die Afrikaner (The Origins of Afrikaners), who claims the modern Afrikaners (who total around 4.5 million) have 35% Dutch heritage. How 'Pure' was the Average Afrikaner?
[18]^ According to Factfinder.census.gov
[19]^ "CBS statline Church membership". Statline.cbs.nl. 2009-12-15. Retrieved 2010-08-27.
[20]^ Religion in the Netherlands. (Dutch)
[21]^ Winkler Prins Geschiedenis der Nederlanden I (1977), p. 150; I.H. Gosses, Handboek tot de staatkundige geschiedenis der Nederlanden I (1974 [1959]), 84 ff.
[22]^ The actual independence was accepted by in the 1648 treaty of Munster, in practice the Dutch Republic had been independent since the last decade of the 16th century.
[23]^ D.J. Noordam, "Demografische ontwikkelingen in West-Europa van de vijftiende tot het einde van de achttiende eeuw", in H.A. Diederiks e.a., Van agrarische samenleving naar verzorgingsstaat (Leiden 1993), 35-64, esp. 40


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portal:Netherlands
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Netherlands
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dutch_language
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dutch_people
http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Dutch_proverbs

Ndebele


Ndebele

1. A people of South Africa. South Ndebele people, located in South Africa

2. A people of Zimbabwe. Northern Ndebele people, located in Zimbabwe and Botswana

3. Any of the languages spoken by these two peoples.


Quotes·Quotations by Ndebele

Fortune

¶ Amajodo awela abangelambiza.
Translation: Fortune favours the foolish.

Nathaniel Hawthorne (1804-1864)


Nathaniel Hawthorne (1804-1864)

Nathaniel Hawthorne (born Nathaniel Hathorne; July 4, 1804 – May 19, 1864) was an American novelist and short story writer.

He was born in 1804 in Salem, Massachusetts to Nathaniel Hathorne and the former Elizabeth Clarke Manning. His ancestors include John Hathorne, the only judge involved in the Salem witch trials who never repented of his actions. Nathaniel later added a "w" to make his name "Hawthorne" in order to hide this relation. He entered Bowdoin College in 1821, was elected to Phi Beta Kappa in 1824,[1] and graduated in 1825. Hawthorne published his first work, a novel titled Fanshawe, in 1828; he later tried to suppress it, feeling it was not equal to the standard of his later work.[2] He published several short stories in various periodicals which he collected in 1837 as Twice-Told Tales. The next year, he became engaged to Sophia Peabody. He worked at a Custom House and joined Brook Farm, a transcendentalist community, before marrying Peabody in 1842. The couple moved to The Old Manse in Concord, Massachusetts, later moving to Salem, the Berkshires, then to The Wayside in Concord. The Scarlet Letter was published in 1850, followed by a succession of other novels. A political appointment took Hawthorne and family to Europe before their return to The Wayside in 1860. Hawthorne died on May 19, 1864, and was survived by his wife and their three children.

Much of Hawthorne's writing centers on New England, many works featuring moral allegories with a Puritan inspiration. His fiction works are considered part of the Romantic movement and, more specifically, Dark romanticism. His themes often center on the inherent evil and sin of humanity, and his works often have moral messages and deep psychological complexity. His published works include novels, short stories, and a biography of his friend Franklin Pierce.


Quotes·Quotations by Nathaniel Hawthorne

Autumn

¶ I cannot endure to waste anything as precious as autumn sunshine by staying in the house. So I spend almost all the daylight hours in the open air.


Notes

[1]^ Who Belongs To Phi Beta Kappa, ’Phi Beta Kappa website’’, accessed Oct 4, 2009
[2]^ Hawthorne, Nathaniel (1828). Fanshawe. Boston: Marsh & Capen.


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nathaniel_Hawthorne

Natalia Boa Vista (CSI: Miami)


Natalia Boa Vista

Natalia Boa Vista (pron.: /nəˈtæliə ˈboʊ.ə ˈvɪstə/)[1] is a fictional character on the CBS crime drama CSI: Miami, portrayed by actress Eva LaRue.


CSI Level 2: Officer Natalia Boa Vista (Eva LaRue) is a DNA analyst who upon first arriving, was only allowed to work on cold or unsolved cases due to the restrictions of her federal grant. She escaped an abusive marriage before joining the department, when her association with a society for battered women was key to helping the team solve the murder of a woman. At the end of season four, it is revealed that Natalia is an FBI informant in the lab, assigned to help build a case against Horatio Caine and his team. Natalia was revealed to be the mole in the lab. In season 5, much to her distress, she discovered her abusive ex-husband Nick Townsend (Rob Estes) was out of prison when he served her with a restraining order and he was working for a private company that cleans up crime scenes. The two shared a tense relationship until Nick's murder, a crime for which Natalia was briefly considered the prime suspect. In "Darkroom", Ryan Wolfe finds a stash of photographed girls and Natalia discovers that one of the pictures is her sister Anya and DNA from a crime scene reveals that Anya is indeed one of the women that the CSIs are looking for. In "Tunnel Vision", Natalia was finally certified to carry a firearm, and she shot a suspect in self-defense with her Glock 26 for the first time. In "Count Me Out", Natalia was involved in a meth lab explosion that caused hearing loss.


Quotes·Quotations by Natalia Boa Vista

Eva LaRue as Natalia Boa Vista from CSI: Miami

¶ Natalia: I'm late!
Eric: For what?!
Natalia: I'm late!
Eric: What we gonna do?
Natalia: [laughs]
Eric: WHAT?
Natalia: It's just nice. You said 'we'.
Eric: It takes two to tango.

[Power Trip (7.09)]
Natalia: What does a girl usually do before a date?
Ryan: Make me wait in the living room with her cat?


Notes

[1]^ CSI: Miami Episode: "Internal Affairs"


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CSI:_Miami#Main_characters
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Natalia_Boa_Vista

Napoleon (1769-1821)


Napoleon Bonaparte (1769–1821)

Napoleon Bonaparte (French: Napoléon Bonaparte puis Napoléon Ier [napoleɔ̃ bɔnɑpaʁt]) (15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821) was a French military and political leader during the latter stages of the French Revolution.

As Napoleon I, he was Emperor of the French from 1804 to 1815. His legal reform, the Napoleonic Code, has been a major influence on many civil law jurisdictions worldwide, but he is best remembered for his role in the wars led against France by a series of coalitions, the so-called Napoleonic Wars. He established hegemony over most of continental Europe and sought to spread the ideals of the French Revolution, while consolidating an imperial monarchy which restored aspects of the deposed ancien régime. Due to his success in these wars, often against numerically superior enemies, he is generally regarded as one of the greatest military commanders of all time.

Napoleon was born in Corsica to parents of noble Genoese ancestry and trained as an artillery officer in mainland France. He rose to prominence under the French First Republic and led successful campaigns against the First and Second Coalitions arrayed against France. In 1799, he staged a coup d'état and installed himself as First Consul; five years later the French Senate proclaimed him emperor. In the first decade of the 19th century, the French Empire under Napoleon engaged in a series of conflicts—the Napoleonic Wars—involving every major European power.

After a streak of victories, France secured a dominant position in continental Europe, and Napoleon maintained the French sphere of influence through the formation of extensive alliances and the appointment of friends and family members to rule other European countries as French client states. Napoleon's campaigns are studied at military academies throughout much of the world.

The Peninsular War and 1812 French invasion of Russia marked turning points in Napoleon's fortunes. His Grande Armée was badly damaged in the campaign and never fully recovered. In 1813, the Sixth Coalition defeated his forces at Leipzig; the following year the Coalition invaded France, forced Napoleon to abdicate and exiled him to the island of Elba. Less than a year later, he escaped Elba and returned to power, but was defeated at the Battle of Waterloo in June 1815. Napoleon spent the last six years of his life in confinement by the British on the island of Saint Helena. An autopsy concluded he died of stomach cancer, although this claim has sparked significant debate, as some scholars have held that he was a victim of arsenic poisoning.


Quotes·Quotations by Napoleon Bonaparte

War

¶ Never interrupt your enemy when he is making a mistake.

¶ You must not fight too often with one enemy, or you will teach him all your art of war.

***

@ The heart of a statesman should be in his head.


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Napoleon


Images

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Koichi Nakano


Koichi Nakano

a political science professor at Sophia University in Tokyo


Quotes·Quotations by Koichi Nakano

Japan

Bilateral summits will now be even more of a long shot. It will likely also hurt Tokyo's ties with Washington, considering how the U.S. has been pushing for Japan to improve ties with its Asian neighbors. The visit seems to make it obvious that Mr. Abe's economic polices were a guise to hide his nationalistic intent. (Dec 26, 2013)

Vladimir Nabokov (1899-1977)


Vladimir Nabokov (1899-1977)

Vladimir Vladimirovich Nabokov (Russian: Влади́мир Влади́мирович Набо́ков, pronounced [vlɐˈdʲimʲɪr nɐˈbokəf]; 22 April [O.S. 10 April] 1899c – 2 July 1977) was a Russian-born novelist. Nabokov's first nine novels were in Russian. He then rose to international prominence as a writer of English prose. He also made serious contributions as a lepidopterist and chess composer.


Quotes·Quotations by Vladimir Nabokov

Attitudes

¶ My loathings are simple: stupidity, oppression, crime, cruelty, soft music.


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vladimir_Nabokov