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Cotton

Cotton

Cotton is a soft fiber that grows around the seeds of the cotton plant, a shrub native to the tropical and subtropical regions of both the Old World and the New World. The fibre is most often spun into thread and used to make a soft, breathable textile. Cotton is a valuable crop because only about 10% of the raw weight is lost in processing. Once traces of wax, protein, etc. are removed, the remainder is a natural polymer of pure cellulose. This cellulose is arranged in a way that gives cotton unique properties of strength, durability, and absorbency. Each fibre is made up of twenty to thirty layers of cellulose coiled in a neat series of natural springs. When the cotton boll (seed case) is opened the fibres dry into flat, twisted, ribbon-like shapes and become kinked together and interlocked. This interlocked form is ideal for spinning into a fine yarn.

History

yarn]] yarn Cotton has been used to make very fine lightweight cloth in areas with tropical climates for millennia. Some authorities claim that it was likely that the Egyptians had cotton as early as 12,000 BC, and evidence has been found of cotton in Mexican caves (cotton cloth and fragments of bloody fibre interwoven with feathers and fur) which dated back to approximately 7,000 years ago. There is clear archaeological evidence that people in South America and India domesticated different species of cotton independently thousands of years ago. The earliest written reference to cotton is in India. Cotton has been grown in India for more than three thousand years, and it is referred to in the Rig-Veda, written in 1500 BC. A thousand years later the great Greek historian Herodotus wrote about Indian cotton: "There are trees which grow wild there, the fruit of which is a wool exceeding in beauty and goodness that of sheep. The Indians make their clothes of this tree wool". (Book iii. 106) During the late mediaeval period, cotton became known as an imported fibre in northern Europe, without any knowledge of what it came from other than that it was a plant; people in the region, familiar only with animal fibres (wool from sheep), could only imagine that cotton must be produced by plant-borne sheep. John Mandeville, writing in 1350, stated as fact the now-preposterous belief: "There grew there India a wonderful tree which bore tiny lambs on the endes of its branches. These branches were so pliable that they bent down to allow the lambs to feed when they are hungrie.". This aspect is retained in the name for cotton in many European languages, such as German Baumwolle, which translates as "tree wool". By the end of the 16th century AD, cotton was cultivated throughout the warmer regions in Africa, Eurasia and the Americas. The Indian cotton processing industry was eclipsed during the British Industrial Revolution, when the invention of the Spinning Jenny (1764) and Arkwright's spinning frame (1769) enabled cheap mass-production of cotton cloth in the UK. Production capacity was further improved by the invention of the cotton gin by Eli Whitney in 1793. In the United States, growing the three crops, cotton, indigo and tobacco historically were the leading occupations of slaves. After emancipation, the share cropping system evolved which in many cases differed little from the systems of slavery.

Production

share cropping Today cotton is produced in many parts of the world, including Europe, Asia, Africa, the Americas and Australia, using cotton plants that have been selectively bred so that each plant grows more fibre. In 2002, cotton was grown on 330,000 km² of farmland. 47 billion pounds (21 million t) of raw cotton worth 20 billion dollars US was grown that year. The cotton industry relies heavily on chemicals such as fertilizers and insecticides, although a very limited number of farmers are moving towards an organic model of production, and organic cotton products are now available at a limited number of locations. Historically, in North America, one of the most economically destructive pests in cotton production has been the boll weevil. Due to a highly successful program of the US Dept. of Agriculture (the Boll Weevil Eradication Program, BWEP) this pest has been eliminated as a cotton pest from most of the United States. This program, along with the introduction of genetically engineered cotton containing a gene which codes for a plant produced protein which is toxic to a number of worm pest of cotton (tobacco budworm, cotton bollworm, pink bollworm) the use of synthetic insecticides for controlling these pests has been greatly reduced throughout the parts of the world where GE cotton is grown. Most cotton in the United States, Europe and Australia is harvested mechanically, either by a cotton picker, a machine that removes the cotton from the boll without damaging the cotton plant, or by a cotton stripper which strips the entire boll off the plant. Cotton strippers are generally used in regions where it is too windy to grow picker varieties of cotton and generally used after application of a defoliant or natural defoliation occurring after a freeze. Cotton is a perennial crop in the tropics and without defoliation or freezing, the plant will continue to grow. defoliant The logistics of cotton harvesting and processing have been improved by the development of the cotton module builder, a machine that compresses harvested cotton into a large block, which is then covered with a tarp and temporarily stored at the edge of the field.

Uses

In addition to the textile industry, cotton is used in fishnets, coffee filters, tents and in bookbinding. The first Chinese paper was made of cotton fiber, as is the modern US dollar bill and federal stationery. Fire hoses were once made of cotton. Denim, a type of durable cloth, is made mostly of cotton, as are most T-shirts. The cottonseed which remains after the cotton is ginned is used to produce cottonseed oil, which after refining can be consumed by humans like any other vegetable oil. The cottonseed meal that is left is generally fed to livestock.

Fair trade

Cotton is an enormously important commodity throughout the world. However, many farmers in developing countries receive a low price for their produce, or find it difficult to compete with developed countries. This has led to 'fair trade' cotton clothing being available in some countries.

Old British cotton yarn measures

- 1 thread = 54 inches (c. 137 cm)
- 1 skein or rap = 80 threads (120 yards or c. 109 m)
- 1 hank = 7 skeins (840 yards or c. 768 m)
- 1 spindle = 18 hanks (15,120 yards or c. 13.826 km)

References and further reading

- The Thames and Hudson Manual of Dyes and Fabrics, Joyce Storey, 1978
- [http://gardenbees.com/cotton%20spray/cottonspray.htm Photo documentation and commentary on collateral damage to the environment from cotton spraying]

External links

- [http://www.agrocel-cotton.com/english/en_glossary_of_terms.html Glossary of cotton terms]
- [http://www.cottoninc.com/ Cotton Incorporated] - a cotton industry trade group
- [http://quotes.tradingcharts.com/futures/quotes/CT.html New York Cotton Futures Prices] (30 Minute Delay)
- [http://www.nybot.com/ New York Board of Trade]
- [http://www.cotton-net.com/default.htm Cotton on the Net: The Cotton Market Directory]
- [http://www.ams.usda.gov/cotton/mncs/index.htm USDA AMS - Market News Reports - Cotton Reports]
- [http://www.tfc-charts.w2d.com/ Commodity Futures & Financial Market Charts]
- [http://www.usda.gov/ U.S. Department of Agriculture]
- [http://www.cottonusa.org/index.htm Cotton Council International]
- [http://www.cotton.org/cf/index.htm Cotton Foundation]
- [http://www.meeman.rhodes.edu/institutes/cotton/default.html ACSA International Cotton Institute]
- [http://www.supimacotton.org/ The Supima Association]
- [http://www.acsa-cotton.org/ American Cotton Shippers Association]
- [http://www.atmi.org/ American Textile Manufactures Institute]
- [http://www.cottoninc.com/ Cotton Incorporated]
- [http://www.icac.org/ International Cotton Advisory Committee]
- [http://www.cotton-net.com/ Cotton on the Net Home Page]
- [http://www.cotton.org/news National Cotton Council News and Current Events]
- [http://www.landofcotton.com/ The Land of Cotton News Magazine]
- [http://www.theseam.com The Seam]
- [http://www.ecotton.com eCotton]
- [http://www.pcca.com Plains Cotton Cooperative Association]
- [http://www.acsa-cotton.org/ American Cotton Shippers Association]
- [http://www.ams.usda.gov/cotton Agricultural Marketing Service]
- [http://www.lca.org.uk International Cotton Association] Category:Biodegradable materials Category:Fibers Category:Arabic words ja:綿 simple:Cotton

Cotton plant

:For information on the history and uses of cotton fibre, see cotton.
See text The cotton plant (Gossypium) is a genus of about 40 species of shrubs in the family Malvaceae, native to the tropical and subtropical regions of both the Old World and the New World. In the wild cotton shrubs can grow up to 3 m (10 ft) high. The leaves are broad and have three to five (or even seven) lobes. The seeds are contained in a capsule called a boll, each seed surrounded by a downy fibre called lint. Commercial species of cotton plant are G. hirsutum (US and Australia), G. arboreum and G. herbaceum (Asia), and G. barbadense (Egypt). While the lint naturally occurs in colors of white, brown, and green, fears of contaminating the genetics of white cotton has led many cotton-growing locations to ban growing of colored cotton varieties.

Species

;Commercial species Commercial cotton fibers, used to manufacture cloth, are derived from the fruit of the cotton plant. The following species are grown commercially:
- Gossypium arboreum L. – Tree cotton, native to southern Asia.
- Gossypium barbadense L. – Creole cotton or Sea island cotton, native to tropical South America.
- Gossypium herbaceum L. – Levant cotton, native to southern Africa
- Gossypium hirsutum L. – Upland cotton, native to Central America, the Caribbean and southern Florida. ;Other species of Gossypium
- Gossypium sturtianum Willis – Sturt's cotton, native to Australia.
- Gossypium thurberi Tod. – Arizona wild cotton, native to Arizona, New Mexico and northern Mexico.
- Gossypium tomentosum Nutt. ex Seem – Ma‘o or Hawaiian cotton, is a species endemic to the Hawaiian Islands. The seed hairs (lint) are short and reddish brown, unsuitable for spinning or twisting into thread.

Cotton pests and diseases

Pests

Hawaiian Islands.]]
- Boll Weevil, Anthonomus grandis
- Cotton Aphid, Aphis gossypii
- Cotton bollworm, Helicoverpa armigera, and native budworm Helicoverpa punctigera are caterpillars that attack cotton :
- Other Lepidoptera which feed on cotton include Brown-tail, Garden Dart, The Nutmeg and Turnip Moth.
- Green mirid (Creontiades dilutus), a sucking insect
- Spider mites, Tetranychus urticae, T. ludeni and T. lambi
- Thrips, Thrips tabaci and Frankliniella schultzei

Diseases

- Alternaria leaf spot, caused by Alternaria macrospora and Alternaria alternata
- Anthracnose boll rot, caused by Colletotrichum gossypii
- Black root rot, caused by the fungus Thielaviopsis basicola
- Blight cuased by Xanthomonas campestris pv. malvacearum
- Fusarium boll rot caused by Fusarium spp.
- Phytophthora boll rot, caused by Phytophthora nicotianae var parasitica
- Sclerotinia boll rot, caused by fungus Sclerotinia sclerotiorum

Genetically modified cotton

GM cotton was developed to reduce the heavy reliance on pesticides. GM cotton is widely used throughout the world with claims of requiring up to 80% less pesticide than ordinary cotton. The International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-Biotech Applications (ISAAA) said that worldwide GM cotton was planted on an area of 67,000 km² in 2002. This is 20% of the worldwide total area planted in cotton. The US cotton crop was 73% GM in 2003. The initial introduction of GM cotton proved to be a commercial disaster in Australia - the yields were far lower than predicted, and the cotton plants cross-pollinated with other varieties of cotton. However the introduction of a second variety of GM cotton led to 15% of Australian cotton being GM in 2003 with 80% of the crop being GM in 2004 when the original variety was banned.

Organic cotton

Organic cotton is cotton grown without pesticides or chemical additives to fertilizer, relying instead on [http://www.sustainablecotton.org/BASIC/index.html methods with less ecological impact]. Organic cotton is used to manufacture everything from handkerchiefs to kimono robes. Different levels of [http://www.ams.usda.gov/nop/indexIE.htm certification] exist, but at a minimum, a crop must be grown in soil that has been chemical-free for at least three years.

External links

- [http://hortiplex.gardenweb.com/plants/nph-ind.cgi?name=Gossypium&f=d&gl=1&p=1 HortiPlex info for Gossypium] Image:Cotton_pollination_5892.JPG|Gossypium hirsutum flower with bumblebee pollinator, Hemingway, South Carolina Image:Hawn_Cotton.jpg|Gossypium tomentosum boll Image:IPMtrap4854.JPG|Integrated Pest Management bollworm trap at a cotton field in Manning, South Carolina Image:Cottonbiocontrol6038.JPG|Natural biocontrol: Predatory Polistes wasp looking for bollworms or other caterpillars on cotton plant in Hemingway, South Carolina Category:Malvaceae Category:Hawaii native flora

Old World

The Old World consists of those parts of Earth known to Europeans before the voyages of Christopher Columbus: Europe, Asia, and Africa (collectively known as Africa-Eurasia) and the surrounding islands. The term is in distinction from the New World, meaning the Americas. Although the interiors of Asia and Africa were not well known to Europeans at the time, their existence was known, as far as Japan and South Africa, so they are considered Old World. Australia and Antarctica are neither definitely Old World nor definitely New World, since the terms "Old World" and "New World" predate their discovery by Europeans.

Other meanings

Old World may also refer to: In biological usage, Old World organisms are those found in Eurasia and Africa, and sometimes Australasia, and New World organisms are those found in the Americas. Old World ROM refers to Macintosh computers that use a Macintosh Toolbox ROM chip. Old World wines is used to refer to wines produced in the traditional wine-growing regions around Europe. These contrast to the New World wines of North America, South America, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand. In the miniature wargame game series Warhammer, the term is used to mean its imaginary setting on another planet.

Yarn

:This article is about yarn fiber. A yarn is also a type of long and involved story, such as a shaggy dog story or a campfire yarn. campfire yarn Yarn is a long continuous length of interlocked fibers, suitable for use in the production of textiles, sewing, crocheting, knitting, weaving and ropemaking. Yarn can be made from any number of synthetic or natural fibers. Yarn can be made from a variety of natural fibers including wool, alpaca, angora, cotton, silk, bamboo, hemp, and soy. Less commonly, yarn is spun from camel, yak, possum, cat, dog, wolf, rabbit, buffalo hair and even turkey feathers. Commercial yarns are often made from synthetic fibers or a combination of natural and synthetic fibers. Very thin yarn is referred to as thread. Yarns are made up of any number of plies, each ply being a single spun yarn. These single plys of yarn are twisted in the opposite direction (plied) together to make a thicker yarn. ply In some cases, thread may be monofilament, in which case it is a single fiber. The only natural fiber that is counted as monofilament is silk. silk silk Yarn is manufactured by either a spinning or air texturizing (commonly referred to as taslanizing) process. Yarn manufacturing was one of the very first processes that was industrialized. Yarn used for fabric manufacture is made by spinning short lengths various types of fibers. Synthetic fibers which have high strength, artificial lusture, and fire retardant qualities are blended with natural fibers which have good water absorbance and skin comforting qualities, in different proportions to manufacture yarn for fabric. The most widely used blends are cotton-polyester and wool-acrylic fiber blends. Synthetic fibers Knitters often use worsted-weight yarn spun from the wool of a sheep, though mohair, angora, and alpaca are also well-known. Natural fibres such as these have the advantage of being slightly elastic and very breathable, while trapping a great deal of air, making for a fairly warm fabric. Other natural fibers that can be used for yarn include silk, linen, and cotton. These tend to be much less elastic than the animal-hair yarns, though they can be stronger in some cases. The finished product will also look rather different from the woolen yarns. A number of synthetic materials are also commonly made into yarn, chiefly acrylic. All-acrylic yarns are available, as are wool-acrylic blends in various proportions. Some other synthetics are available as well; yarn designed for use in socks frequently contains a small percentage of nylon, and numerous specialty yarns exist. A relatively recent trend is the novelty yarn. Typically these involve at least one or two strands of regular yarn twisted together with something else to make an interesting texture. The extra element can be a metallic thread, a much-thicker or much-narrower strand of yarn, yarn that varies between thick and thin or yarn that has short bits of plastic sticking out at ninety degrees from the main strand. Yarn is usually measured by weight. In the United States, balls of yarn are usually sold in three-ounce, four-ounce, six-ounce, and eight-ounce skeins. In Europe the units used by textile engineers is often tex, which is the weight in grams of a kilometer of yarn. Many other units have been used over time by different industries.
See also:

- urban legend
- textile manufacturing
External links

- [http://www.craftyarncouncil.com/ Craft Yarn Council of America]
- [http://www.yarnstandards.com Standards & Guidelines] for yarn, needle and hook labeling Category:Knitting Category:Textiles

Textile

:This article is about the type of material. Textile is also a jargon term used by naturists or nudists to describe a person who wears clothes. Textile is also a kind of ReStructured Text. A textile is any type of material made from fibers or other extended linear materials such as thread or yarn (1). Classes of textiles include woven, crochet, knitted, knotted (as in macrame) or tufted cloth, and non-woven fabrics such as felt. Materials such as fiberglass, which are made from fibers dispersed in a matrix of another material are considered composite materials rather than textiles. The production of textiles is an ancient craft, whose speed and scale of production has been altered almost beyond recognition by mass-production and the introduction of modern manufacturing techniques. However, a Roman weaver would have no problem recognizing modern plain weave, twill or satin. Many textiles have been in use for millennia, while others use artificial fibers and are recent inventions. The range of fibers has increased in the last 100 years. The first synthetics were made in the 1920s and 1930s.

Sources and types

Textiles can be made from a variety of materials. The following is a partial list of the materials that can be used to make textiles.

Animal origin

- Alpaca
- Thread
- Angora rabbit hair
- Camel hair
- Cashmere
- Mohair
- Silk
- Vicuña hair
- Wool: divided into woollen and worsted

Vegetable

- Bark cloth has various uses, and is used in sheets.
- Coir: the fibre from coconuts.
- Cotton
- Grass, rush and straw
- Hemp (mostly used in rope making)
- Jute
- Kapok
- Linen, made from flax
- Nettle: processed in a similar manner to flax.
- Ramie
- Seaweed: a water soluble fibre (alginate) is produced. This is used as a holding fibre in the production of certain textiles: when the cloth is finished the alginate is dissolved, leaving an open area.
- Sisal

Derived from plant products

- Paper
- Rayon
- Modal

Mineral

- Asbestos
- Glass fibres can be used in the manufacture of textiles for insulation and other purposes.
- Metal fibre, metal wire and metal foil have some uses in textiles, either on their own or with other materials (see, for example, goldwork embroidery).

Synthetic

- Acrylic fiber
- Lurex
- Spandex, tactel, lycra and other 'stretch' fabrics
- Nylon fiber
- Polyester fiber
- Polypropylene (comes under various common trade names such as Olefin or Herculon)

Production methods

- Braiding/Plaiting
- Crochet – usually by hand.
- Felt – fibres are matted together to produce a cloth.
- Knitting – by hand or on knitting machines (see stocking frame).
- Knotting, including macrame: used in making nets.
- Lace – again both hand made and machine made.
- Pile fabrics – carpets and some rugs
- Velvet, velveteen, plush fabrics and similar have a secondary set of yarns which provide a pile.
- Weaving – the cloth is prepared on a loom, of which there are a number of types. Some weaving is still done by hand, but the vast majority is mechanised.

Processes

- Carding
- Bleaching – where the natural or original colour of the textile is removed by chemicals or exposure to sunlight.
- Dyeing – adding colour to textiles: there is a vast range of dyes, natural and synthetic, some of which require mordants.
- Textile printing
- Embroidery – threads which are added to the surface of a finished textile for ornamentation.
- Starching
- Waterproofing and other finishings.

Uses

Textiles have been used in almost every possible context where their properties are useful. In cleaning
- Bags and other means of carrying objects
- Balloons, kites, sails, parachutes and other transport use. Early airplanes used cloth as part of the construction.
- Clothing
- Flags
- Furnishings, including towels and table cloths
- Geotextiles
- Industrial and scientific uses, including filtering
- Nets
- Rugs and carpets
- Tents
- Towels

External links

- [http://www.ianr.unl.edu/pubs/homefurnish/g1316.htm Carpet construction and texture]
- [http://www.cs.arizona.edu/patterns/weaving/weavedocs.html Weaving document archive]
- [http://realmofvenus.renaissancewoman.net/seamstress/fabricglossary.htm A Glossary of Fabrics in sixteenth-Century Italy]
- [http://ozhanozturk.com/content/view/398/1/ The Anatolian art of hand-printed textiles ]

Reference

- [http://www.textilemuseum.org/PDFs/TextileTerms.pdf (1) glossary from the Textile Museum]
- [http://www.spacentime.net (2) Textile Machinery Consultant & Advisers]
- [http://www.hhtraders.com (3) Textile Machinery Dealer]
- ja:織物

Wax

:Wax is also the name of several bands, an American, a British, and a Korean one. Wax has traditionally referred to a substance that is secreted by bees (beeswax) and used by them in constructing their honeycombs. In modern terms, wax is an imprecisely defined term generally understood to be a substance with properties similar to beeswax, namely
- plastic (malleable) at normal ambient temperatures
- a melting point above approximately 45 °C (which differentiates waxes from fats and oils)
- a relatively low viscosity when melted (unlike many plastics)
- insoluble in water
- hydrophobic Waxes may be natural or artificial. In addition to beeswax, carnauba (a vegetable wax) and paraffin (a mineral wax) are commonly encountered waxes which occur naturally. Ear wax is a sticky substance found in the human ear. Some artificial materials that exhibit similar properties are also described as wax or waxy. Chemically, a wax may be an ester of ethylene glycol (ethan-1,2-diol) and two fatty acids, as opposed to a fat which is an ester of glycerin (propan-1,2,3-triol) and three fatty acids. It may also be an ester of a fatty acid with a fatty alcohol. It is a type of lipid.

Wax types

Animal and insect waxes

- Beeswax - produced by honeybees
- Chinese wax - produced by insects Coccus ceriferus
- Shellac wax - from lac insect Coccus lacca
- Spermaceti - from head cavities and blubber of the Sperm Whale
- Lanolin (wool wax) - from the sebaceous glands of sheep

Vegetable waxes

- Bayberry wax - from the surface of the berries of the bayberry shrub
- Candelilla wax - from Mexican shrubs Euphorbia cerifera and E. antisyphilitica
- Carnauba wax - the "queen of waxes" from leaves of Carnauba Palm
- Castor wax - catalytically hydrogenated castor oil
- Esparto wax - a byproduct of making paper from esparto grass
- Japan wax - a vegetable tallow (not a true wax), from the berries of Rhus and Toxicodendron species
- Jojoba oil - pressed from seeds of the jojoba tree, a replacement for spermaceti
- Ouricury wax - from the Brazilian Feather Palm
- Rice bran oil - obtained from rice bran

Mineral waxes

- Ceresin waxes
- Montan wax - extracted from lignite and brown coal
- Ozocerite - found in lignite beds
- Peat waxes

Petroleum waxes

- Paraffin wax - made of long-chain alkane hydrocarbons
- Microcrystalline wax - with very fine crystalline structure

Synthetic waxes

- Polyethylene waxes - based on polyethylene
- Fischer-Tropsch waxes
- Chemically modified waxes - usually esterified or saponified
- substituted amide waxes
- polymerized α-olefins

External links

- [http://kontraband.com/show/show.asp?ID=1639&NEXTID=0&PREVID=1650&DISPLAYORDER=20041012131842&CAT=movies&NSFW=&page=2 Wax frosting] (Kontraband.com)
- [http://www.cyberlipid.org/wax/wax0001.htm Waxes]
- [http://www.gujaratwaxes.com/about_waxes.htm About waxes] Waxes ja:蝋

Polymer

Polymer is a generic term used to describe a very long molecule consisting of structural units and repeating units connected by covalent chemical bonds. The key feature that distinguishes polymers from other molecules is the repetition of many identical, similar, or complementary molecular subunits in these chains. These subunits, the monomers, are small molecules of low to moderate molecular weight, and are linked to each other during a chemical reaction called polymerization. Instead of being identical, similar monomers can have varying chemical substituents. The differences between monomers can affect properties such as solubility, flexibility, and strength. In proteins, these differences give the polymer the ability to adopt a biologically-active conformation in preference to others. (See self-assembly.) Identical monomers with nonreactive side groups result in a polymer chain that will tend to adopt a random coil conformation, as described by an ideal chain mathematical model. Although most polymers are organic, with carbon-based monomers, there are also inorganic polymers; for example, the silicones, with a backbone of alternating silicon and oxygen atoms. Polymers are typically classified according to three main groups:
- thermoplastics (linear or branched chains)
- thermosets (crosslinked chains)
- elastomers The term polymer covers a large, diverse group of molecules, including substances from proteins to stiff, high-strength Kevlar fibres. For example, the formation of polyethene (also called polyethylene) involves thousands of ethene molecules bonded together to form a straight (or branched) chain of repeating -CH₂-CH₂- units (with a -CH₃ at each terminal): image:example_polymerization.png Polymers are often named in terms of the monomer from which they are made. Because it is synthesized from ethene in a process during which all the double bonds in the vinyl monomers are lost, polyethene has the unsaturated structure: image:polyethene_monomer.png If it were named according to its final structure, it would have the alkane designation "polyethane". Because synthetic polymer formation is governed by random assembly from the constituent monomers, polymer chains within a solution or substance are generally not of equal length. This is unlike basic, smaller molecules in which every atom is stoichiometrically accounted for, and each molecule has a set molecular mass. An ensemble of differing chain lengths, often obeying a normal (Gaussian) distribution, occurs because polymer chains terminate during polymerization after random amounts of chain lengthening (propagation). Proteins are polymers of amino acids. Typically, hundreds of the (nominally) twenty different amino acid monomers make up a protein chain, and the sequence of monomers determines its shape and biological function. (There are also shorter oligopeptides which function as hormones.) But there are active regions, surrounded by, as is believed now (Aug 2003), structural regions, whose sole role is to expose the active regions. (There may be more than one on a given protein.) So the exact sequence of amino acids in certain parts of the chains can vary from species to species, and even given mutations within a species, so long as the active sites are properly accessible. Also, whereas the formation of polyethylene occurs spontaneously under the right conditions, the synthesis of biopolymers such as proteins and nucleic acids requires the help of enzyme catalysts, substances that facilitate and accelerate reactions. Unlike synthetic polymers, these biopolymers have exact sequences and lengths. (This does not include the carbohydrates.) Since the 1950s, catalysts have also revolutionised the development of synthetic polymers. By allowing more careful control over polymerization reactions, polymers with new properties, such as the ability to emit coloured light, have been manufactured. The characterization of a polymer requires several parameters which need to be specified. This is because a polymer actually consists of a statistical distribution of chains of varying lengths, and each chain consists of monomer residues which affect its properties. Some of these parameters are described below.

Physical properties of polymers

Physical properties of polymers include the degree of polymerization, molar mass distribution, crystallinity, as well as the thermal phase transitions:
- T_g, glass transition temperature
- T_m, melting point (for thermoplastics).

Branching

During the propagation of polymer chains, branching can occur. In free-radical polymerization, this occurs when a chain curls back and bonds to an earlier part of the chain. When this curl breaks, it leaves small chains sprouting from the main carbon backbone. Branched carbon chains cannot line up as close to each other as unbranched chains can. This causes less contact between atoms of different chains, and fewer opportunities for induced or permanent dipoles to occur. A low density results from the chains being further apart. Lower melting points and tensile strengths are evident, because the intermolecular bonds are weaker and require less energy to break. Besides branching, polymers can have other topologies: linear, network (cross-linked 3D structure), IPN (integrated polymer network), comb, or star as well as dendrimer and hyperbranched structures.

Stereoregularity

Stereoregularity or tacticity describes the isomeric arrangement of functional groups on the backbone of carbon chains. Isotactic chains are defined as having substituent groups aligned in one direction. This enables them to line up close to each other, creating crystalline areas and resulting in highly rigid polymers. In contrast, atactic chains have randomly aligned substituent groups. The chains do not fit together well and the intermolecular forces are low. This leads to a low density and tensile strength, but a high degree of flexibility. Syndiotactic substituent groups alternate regularly in opposite directions. Because of this regularity, syndiotactic chains can position themselves close to each other, though not as close as isotactic polymers. Syndiotactic polymers have better impact strength than isotactic polymers because of the higher flexibility resulting from their weaker intermolecular forces.

Constitution of polymers

Copolymers

Copolymerization with two or more different monomers results in chains with varied properties. There are twenty amino acid monomers whose sequence results in different shapes and functions of protein chains. Copolymerising ethene with small amounts of 1-hexene (or 4-methyl-1-pentene) is one way to form linear low-density polyethene (LLDPE). (See polyethylene.) The C₄ branches resulting from the hexene lower the density and prevent large crystalline regions from forming within the polymer, as they do in HDPE. This means that LLDPE can withstand strong tearing forces whilst remaining flexible. A block copolymer is formed when the reaction is carried out in a stepwise manner, leading to a structure with long sequences or blocks of one monomer alternating with long sequences of the other. There are also graft copolymers, in which entire chains of one kind (e.g., polystyrene) are made to grow out of the sides of chains of another kind (e.g., polybutadiene), resulting in a product that is less brittle and more impact-resistant. Thus, block and graft copolymers can combine the useful properties of both constituents and often behave as quasi-two-phase systems. The following is an example of step-growth polymerization, or condensation polymerization, in which a molecule of water is given off and nylon is formed. The properties of the nylon are determined by the R and R' groups in the monomers used. nylon The first commercially successful, completely synthetic polymer was nylon 6,6, with alkane chains R = 4C (adipic acid) and R' = 6C (hexamethylene diamine). Including the two carboxyl carbons, each monomer donates 6 carbons; hence the name. In naming nylons, the number of carbons from the diamine is given first and the number from the diacid second. Kevlar is an aromatic nylon in which both R and R' are benzene rings. Copolymers illustrate the point that the repeating unit in a polymer, such as a nylon, polyester or polyurethane, is often made up of two (or more) monomers.

Chemical properties of polymers

Intermolecular forces

The attractive forces between polymer chains play a large part in determining a polymer's properties. Because polymer chains are so long, these interchain forces are amplified far beyond the attractions between conventional molecules. Also, longer chains are more amorphous (randomly oriented). Polymers can be visualised as tangled spaghetti chains - pulling any one spaghetti strand out is a lot harder the more tangled the chains are. These stronger forces typically result in high tensile strength and melting points. The intermolecular forces in polymers are determined by dipoles in the monomer units. Polymers containing amide groups can form hydrogen bonds between adjacent chains; the positive hydrogen atoms in N-H groups of one chain are strongly attracted to the oxygen atoms in C=O groups on another. These strong hydrogen bonds result in, for example, the high tensile strength and melting point of kevlar. Polyesters have dipole-dipole bonding between the oxygen atoms in C=O groups and the hydrogen atoms in H-C groups. Dipole bonding is not as strong as hydrogen bonding, so ethene's melting point and strength are lower than kevlar's, but polyesters have greater flexibility. Ethene, however, has no permanent dipole. The attractive forces between polyethene chains arise from weak van der Waals forces. Molecules can be thought of as being surrounded by a cloud of negative electrons. As two polymer chains approach, their electron clouds repel one another. This has the effect of lowering the electron density on one side of a polymer chain, creating a slight positive dipole on this side. This charge is enough to actually attract the second polymer chain. Van der Waals forces are quite weak, however, so polyethene melts at low temperatures.

Polymer characterization

A variety of lab techniques are used to determine the properties of polymers. Techniques such as wide angle X-ray scattering, small angle X-ray scattering, and small angle neutron scattering are used to determine the crystalline structure of polymers. Gel permeation chromatography is used to determine the number average molecular weight, weight average molecular weight, and polydispersity. FTIR is used to determine composition. Thermal properties such as the glass transition temperature and melting point can be determined by differential scanning calorimetry and dynamic mechanical analysis. Pyrolysis followed by analysis of the fragments is one more technique for determining the possible structure of the polymer. Polymer known as polymer substrate is used for everyday banknotes in Australia and New Zealand, and is also used in commemorative notes in other countries. See also: Polymerization -- Biopolymer -- Condensation polymer -- Addition polymer -- Synthetic polymer -- Glass transition temperature -- Polymer physics -- Important publications in polymer chemistry

External links

- [http://www.borealisgroup.com/public/dictionary/Dictionary.jsp Polymer dictionary]
- [http://www.vivamer.com/ Responsive Biopolymers for Drug Delivery and Imaging]
- [http://web.umr.edu/~wlf/ Polymer Chemistry Hypertext, Educational resource]
- [http://www.polychemistry.com/ Polymer Chemistry Innovations]
- [http://www.odcad.com/html/organicdevice_appearance1.HTM Materials for Organic devices]
- [http://www.pslc.ws/macrog/index.htm The Macrogalleria - a cyberwonderland of polymer fun!] Category:Polymers Category:Polymer chemistry ko:중합체 ms:Polimer ja:重合体 th:โพลีเมอร์

Spinning

Spinning refers to several activities:
- Rotation about an internal axis.
- For the fabrication of thread, see Spinning (textiles).
- For the practice of continuous rotation of pedals on mobile or stationary bicycles, see Spinning (cycling).
- For the practice of "spinning" a news story for PR value, see spin (politics).
- For the practice of Metal Spinning to form metal - see Metal spinning.
- Spin Casting (or "Spinning") is a method of fishing. See Fishing rod, Trolling for fish.
- Suggestion of an alternate Domain name.
- For the effects caused by the medical condition Vertigo refer to balance disorder
- Can refer to a DJ spinning a record.
- Distributing IPO-Stock to prefered customers in order to create future investmentbanking business.

Yarn

Cloth

Cloth or fabric is a flexible artificial material made up of a network of natural or artificial fibres (thread or yarn) formed by weaving or knitting (textiles), or pressed into felt. The words fabric and material are commonly used in the textile assembly trades such as tailoring and dressmaking, as synonyms for cloth. They are however, words with much more general meanings.

Uses

Cloth is most often used in the manufacture of clothing, household furnishings, and art such as tapestry. Before the advent of woven cloth, the functions of textiles were fulfilled by furs and skins.

Sources

In the past, all cloth was made from natural fibres, including plant sources such as cotton, flax, and hemp, and animal sources such as wool, hair, and silk. In the 20th century, these were supplemented by artificial fibres such as polyester and rayon.

Treatments

Cloth is most often but not always dyed, with fabrics available in every color. Coloured designs in fabric can be created by weaving strands of different colours (plaid) and adding coloured stitches to finished fabric (embroidery), but also by using various printing processes on finished fabric. The hobby of machine embroidery has become popular in the last few years, thanks to less expensive home embroidery machines. Since the 1990s, finishing agents have been used to strengthen fabrics and make them wrinkle free. [http://ask.yahoo.com/ask/20010315.html]

Types of cloth

Cloth is made in many, various strengths and degrees of durability, from the finest gossamer fabrics to sturdy canvas sails. The relative thickness of fibres in cloth is measured in deniers. Microfiber refers to fibers made of strands thinner than one denier.
- Bògòlanfini
- Bombazine
- Broadcloth
- Calico
- Burlap
- Cambric
- Canvas
- Corduroy
- Crêpe
- Denim
- Fustian
- Felt
- Flannel
- Gabardine
- Gingham
- Lamé
- Linen
- Muslin
- Organza
- Satin
- Serge
- Silk
- Split Microfiber
- Twill
- Velvet
- Worsted

Synonyms

rag

External links

- [http://www.fabricdictionary.com Fabricdictionary - explanations for fabric- and textile-related terms]
- ja:布

Egypt

The Arab Republic of Egypt, commonly known as Egypt, (in Arabic: مصر, romanized Misr), is a republic in North Africa. While it is geographically located in Africa, it is sometimes associated with the Middle East for political reasons. Covering an area of about 1,020,000 km², Egypt shares land borders with Libya to the west, Sudan to the south, and Israel and the Gaza Strip to the northeast and has coasts on the north and east by the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea, respectively. Egypt is the second most populous country in Africa, second only to Nigeria, and the vast majority of its 77 million population (2005) live near the banks of the Nile River (about 40,000 km²), where the only arable agricultural land is found. Large areas of land are part of the Sahara Desert and are sparsely inhabited. The majority of Egyptians today are urban, living in the great Arab population centers of greater Cairo, the largest city in Africa, and Alexandria. Egypt is famous for its ancient civilization and some of the world's most stunning ancient monuments, including the Giza Pyramids, the Karnak Temple and the Valley of the Kings; the southern city of Luxor contains a particularly large number of ancient artifacts. Today, Egypt is widely regarded as the main political and cultural centre of the Arab and Middle Eastern regions.

Origin and history of the name

Misr, the Arabic and official name for modern Egypt, is of Semitic origin directly cognate with the Hebrew מִצְרַיִם Misráyim meaning "the two straits", and possibly means "a country" or "a state." The ancient name for the country, kemet, or "black land," is derived from the fertile black soils deposited by the Nile floods, distinct from the 'red land' (deshret) of the desert. This name became keme in a later stage of Coptic. The English name "Egypt" came via the Latin word Aegyptus derived from the ancient Greek word Αίγυπτος Aiguptos (see also List of traditional Greek place names), which in turn is derived from the ancient Egyptian phrase ḥwt-k3-ptḥ ("Hwt ka Ptah") meaning "home of the Ka (part of the soul) of Ptah," the name of a temple of the god Ptah at Memphis. For details see the article Copt.

History

Main article: History of Egypt The regularity and richness of the annual Nile River flood, coupled with semi-isolation provided by deserts to the east and west, allowed for the development of one of the world's great civilizations. A unified kingdom was founded circa 3200 BC by King Menes, and a series of dynasties ruled in Egypt for the next three millennia. The last native dynasty, known as the Thirtieth Dynasty, fell to the Persians in 341 BC who dug the predecessor of the Suez canal and connected the Red Sea to the Mediterranean. Later, Egypt fell to the Greeks, Romans, Byzantines and Persians again. It was the Muslim Arabs who introduced Islam and the Arabic language in the seventh century changing Egypt into a linguistically and mostly ethnically "Arab" nation. Muslim rulers nominated by the Islamic Caliphate remained in control of Egypt for the next six centuries. A local military caste, the Mamluks took control about 1250 and continued to govern even after the conquest of Egypt by the Ottoman Turks in 1517. Following the completion of the Suez Canal in 1869, Egypt became an important world transportation hub; however, the country also fell heavily into debt. Ostensibly to protect its investments, Britain seized control of Egypt's government in 1882, but nominal allegiance to the Ottoman Empire continued until 1914. Partially independent from the UK in 1922, Egypt acquired full sovereignty following World War II. Between 1924-1936 there existed a short-lived attempt to model Egypt's constitutional government after the European style of government; known as Egypt's Liberal Experiment. In 1952 a popularly-supported military coup d'état forced King Farouk I, a constitutional monarch, to abdicate in support of his son King Ahmed Fouad II. Finally the Egyptian Republic was declared on 18 June 1953 with General Muhammad Naguib as the first President of the Republic. After Naguib resigned in 1954, Gamal Abdel Nasser, the real architect of the 1952 Revolution, assumed power as President and nationalized the Suez Canal leading to the 1956 Suez Crisis. Nasser came out of the war an Arab hero, and Nasserism won widespread influence in the region. Between 1958 and 1961 Egypt and Syria formed a union known as the United Arab Republic. Three years after the 1967 Six Day War, in which Egypt lost the Sinai to Israel, Nasser died and was succeeded by Anwar Sadat, who presented his takeover in terms of a Corrective Revolution. Sadat switched Egypt's Cold War allegiance from the Soviet Union to the United States, expelling Soviet advisors in 1972, and launched the Infitah economic reform, while violently clamping down on religious and secular opposition alike. In 1973, Egypt, along with Syria, launched a surprise attack on Israel in the October War,which despite not being a complete military success was by most accounts a political victory. Both the United States and the USSR intervened and a cease-fire was reached between Egypt and Israel. In 1979, Sadat made peace with Israel in exchange for the Sinai, a move which sparked enormous controversy in the Arab world and led to Egypt's expulsion from the Arab League (it was readmitted in 1989). Sadat was murdered by a religious fundamentalist in 1981, and succeeded by Hosni Mubarak. Hosni Mubarak

Politics

Main article: Politics of Egypt Egypt has been a republic since 18 June 1953. President Mohamed Hosni Mubarak has been the President of the Republic since October 14 1981, following the assassination of former President Anwar Sadat on October 6 1981. Mubarak is currently serving his fifth term in office. He is the leader of the ruling National Democratic Party. Prime Minister Ahmed Nazif was sworn in as Prime Minister on 9 July 2004, following the resignation of Dr. Atef Ebeid from his office. The permanent headquarters for the League of Arab States is located in Cairo. Egypt was the first Arab state to establish peace with the State of Israel after the signing of the Israel-Egypt Peace Treaty after the Camp David Accords. Egypt also has a major influence on the other Arab states. Historically, Egypt has played the role of a mediator in resolving disputes of various Arab nations. Most Arab nations still use Egypt in that role. Egypt supposedly operates under a multi-party semi-presidential system where the executive power is divided between the President and the Prime Minister. Egypt holds regular single-candidate presidential and multi-party parliamentary elections. The last presidential election was held in September 2005, in which Mubarak won again. However, after the September elections there has been expressed concern from international human rights observers concerning freedom of speech, government interference in local elections and vote-rigging. I had been, as previous elections, just a pantomime. There had been many cases of misrespect for the oposition candidates and their followers' human right. In late February 2005, Mubarak announced on a surprise television broadcast that he has ordered the reform of the country's presidential election law, paving the way for multi-candidate polls in the coming election. For the first time in Egypt's history, the people will have a chance to elect their leader in a closely watched election. The President said his initiative came "out of my full conviction of the need to consolidate efforts for more freedom and democracy." However, the new law places draconian restrictions on the filing of presidential candidacies designed to pave the road for Mubarak's easy re-election. As a result most Egyptians are sceptical about the process of democratisation and the role of elections. As expected, Mubarak was re-elected. Newspapers however have exhibited an increasing freedom in criticizing the president, and the results of the parlimentary elections genuinely indicate that a democratic transition is underway, as evidenced by the strong showing of rival political parties.

Military

Main article: Military of Egypt The Egyptian Armed Forces (Arabic: القوات المسلحة المصرية) consists of the Army, Air Force, Navy and Air Defense. The Coast Guard and Border Guard operate as subordinates to the Navy and Army Command respectively. The Egyptian military is the strongest military power on the African continent, and the second largest in the Middle East, after Israel - (Source: Jaffee Center for Strategic Studies' annual Middle East Strategic Balance). The Egyptian Armed Forces also ranks among the most battle-trained armed forces in the region. Its inventory includes F-16s, Mirage 2000 aircraft, Apache helicopters, M1 Abrams Tanks and medium-long range missiles. The Egyptian Armed forces, has a combined troop strength of 450,000 active personel. The Commander-in-Chief is Field Marshal Mohamed Hussein Tantawi. The Chief of Staff is Lt. Gen. Sami Hafez Enan. Conscription is compulsory for egyptian men of 18 years of age. Full-time students may defer their service until the age of 28. The length of the service depend on the level of education achieved by the conscripted. Military relations between Egypt and the US are strong. Military cooperation between the two countries covers a number of strategic areas, including cooperation in the ongoing process of modernising Egyptian armaments and training the Egyptian armed forces. While military cooperation between the US and Egypt is close and diversified this does not constitute a form of military alliance. Nothing could furnish clearer proof of this than the high degree of transparency surrounding all aspects of Egyptian-US military cooperation. Bilateral exercises, mutual training are carried out regularly and according to one US source, reflect the great esteem in which the US holds the high levels of professionalism and commitment and the growing excellence of the fighting men and women in the various branches of the Egyptian armed forces. Egypt take part regularely in military exercises with the US and other European and Arab allies, including the manoeuvres that take place in Egypt every two years. Egypt continues to contribute regularly to United Nations peacekeeping missions, most recently in East Timor, Sierra Leone, and Liberia.

Governorates

Liberia Main article: Governorates of Egypt Egypt is divided into 26 governorates (Muhafazat; singular – Muhafazah):

- Aswan
- Asyut
- al-Bahr al-Ahmar (Red Sea)
- Bani Suwayf
- al-Buhayrah
- Bur Sa'id (Port Said)
- ad-Daqahliyah
- Dumyat (Damietta)
- al-Fayyum

- al-Gharbiyah
- al-Iskandariyah (Alexandria)
- al-Isma'iliyah
- Janub Sina' (South Sinai)
- al-Jizah (Giza)
- Kafr ash Shaykh
- Matruh
- al-Minufiyah
- al-Minya

- al-Qahirah (Cairo)
- al-Qalyubiyah
- Qina
- Shamal Sina' (North Sinai)
- ash-Sharqiyah
- Suhaj
- as-Suways (Suez)
- al-Wadi al-Jadid (New Valley)

Foreign relations

al-Wadi al-Jadid al-Wadi al-Jadid al-Wadi al-Jadid al-Wadi al-Jadid and the Middle East]]Middle Easts]]Middle East]]Middle East Geography, population, history, military strength, and diplomatic expertise give Egypt extensive political influence in the Middle East. Cairo has been a crossroads of Arab commerce and culture for millennia, and its intellectual and Islamic institutions are at the center of the region's social and cultural development. The League of Arab States headquarters is in Cairo. The Secretary General of the League has traditionally been an Egyptian. Former Egyptian Foreign Minister Amr Moussa is the present Secretary General of the Arab League. Egyptian Deputy Prime Minister Boutros Boutros-Ghali served as Secretary General of the United Nations from 1991 to 1996. Egypt is on good terms with all of its neighbours, and was the first Arab nation to make peace with Israel. It has a territorial dispute with Sudan over the Hala'ib Triangle.

Economy

Main article: Economy of Egypt Egypt's economy depends mainly on agriculture, media, petroleum exports, and tourism; there are also more than 5 million Egyptians working abroad, mainly in Saudi Arabia, the Gulf area like UAE, and Europe. The United States as well has a large population of Egyptian immigrants. The completion of the Aswan High Dam in 1971 and the resultant Lake Nasser have altered the time-honored place of the Nile River in the agriculture and ecology of Egypt. A rapidly growing population (the largest in the Arab world), limited arable land, and dependence on the Nile all continue to overtax resources and stress society. The government has struggled to ready the economy for the new millennium through economic reform and massive investment in communications and physical infrastructure, much financed from U.S. foreign aid (since 1979, an average of 2.2 billion dollars per year). Egypt is the third largest recipient of such funds from the United States following the Iraq war. Economic conditions are starting to improve considerably after a period of stagnation due to the adoption of more liberal economic policies by the government, as well as increased revenues from tourism and a booming stock market. In its annual report, the IMF has rated Egypt as one of the top countries in the world undertaking economic reforms.

Demographics

Main article: Demographics of Egypt Egypt is the most populous country in the Arab world, at about 77,500,000 people. Nearly all the population is concentrated along the River Nile, notably Alexandria and Cairo, and along the Nile Delta and near the Suez Canal. Approximately 90% of the population adheres to Islam and most of the remainder to Christianity (primarily the Coptic denomination). The Egyptians are a fairly homogeneous people. In the northern part of the country, North African and Mediterranean elements are more predominant, and the south is home to populations more closely related to Ethiopians and Somalis from the Horn of Africa. The bulk of the modern Egyptian people still maintain a homogenous genetic tie to ancient Egyptian society, which has always been regarded as rural and most populous compared to the neighboring demographics. The Egyptian people have spoken only languages from the Afro-Asiatic family (previously known as Hamito-Semitic) throughout their history starting with Old Egyptian, to modern Egyptian-Arabic. Ethnic minorities include a small number of Bedouin Arab nomads in the Sinai and eastern and western deserts, as well as a Nubian minority clustered along the Nile in Upper (southern) Egypt who are estimated for about 0.8% of the population. The once-vibrant Jewish community in Egypt has disappeared, but several important archeological and historical sites remain.

Geography

Main articles: Geography of Egypt Geography of Egypt Towns and cities include Alexandria, Aswan, Asyut, Cairo, El-Mahalla El-Kubra, Giza, Hurghada, Luxor, Kom Ombo, Port Safaga, Port Said, Sharm el Sheikh, Shubra-El-Khema, Suez, Zagazig,Al-Minya. Deserts: Egypt includes parts of the Sahara Desert and of the Libyan Desert Oases include: Bahariya Oasis, Dakhleh Oasis, Farafra Oasis, Kharga Oasis, Siwa Oasis. Egypt borders on Libya on the west, on Sudan on the south and on Israel on the northeast. It controls the Suez Canal between the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea. Egypt's important role in geopolitics stems from its strategic position: as a land bridge between Africa and Asia, and as a passage between the Mediterranean Sea and the Indian Ocean through the Suez Canal.

Culture

Main article: Culture of Egypt Egypt's capital city, Cairo, is Africa's largest city and has been renowned for centuries as a center of learning, culture and commerce. The Egyptian Academy of the Arabic Language is responsible for regulating the Arabic Language throughout the world. Egypt also hosts two major religious institutions. Al-Azhar University, the oldest Islamic institution for higher studies (founded around 970 CE) with its corresponding mosque Al-Azhar. The head of Al-Azhar is traditionally regarded as the supreme leader of Sunni Muslims all over the world. Egypt also has a strong Christian heritage as evidenced by the existence of the Coptic Orthodox Church headed by the Patriarch of Alexandria, which has a following of approximately 50 million Christians worldwide (one of the famous Coptic Orthodox Churches is Saint Takla Haimanot Church in Alexandria http://www.St-Takla.org). Though considered a low-income country, Egypt has a thriving media and arts industry, with more than 30 satellite channels and more than 100 motion pictures produced each year. To bolster its media industry, especially with the keen competition from the Persian Gulf states and Lebanon, it has built a large media city that it has promoted as the "Hollywood of the East". Egypt is the only Arab country with an opera house. Some famous Egyptians include:
- Gamal Abdel Nasser (former president)
- Boutros Boutros-Ghali (former Secretary General of the United Nations)
- Naguib Mahfouz (Nobel Prize-winning novelist)
- Umm Kulthum (singer)
- Omar Sharif (actor)
- Ahmed Zewail (Nobel Prize-winning chemist)
- Mohamed ElBaradei (Head of the International Atomic Energy Agency and Winner of the 2005 Nobel Peace Prize)
- Anwar Sadat (former president and winner of the Nobel Peace Prize)

References

-
-

External links

Government

- [http://www.egypt.gov.eg/ Official Egyptian Government Portal]
- [http://www.investment.gov.eg/ Egyptian Investment Portal] official government site
- [http://www.sis.gov.eg/ Egypt State Information Service] official government site
- [http://www.presidency.gov.eg/ The Egyptian Presidency]
- [http://www.parliament.gov.eg/EPA/en/Index.jsp The People Assembly of Egypt]
- [http://www.shoura.gov.eg/ Egyptian Shoura Council]

News

- [http://weekly.ahram.org.eg/ Al-Ahram Weekly]
- [http://allafrica.com/egypt/ AllAfrica – Egypt] news
- [http://www.egypttoday.com/ Egypt Today] magazine
- [http://www.businesstodayegypt.com/ Business Today Egypt] magazine
- [http://story.news.yahoo.com/fc?cid=34&tmpl=fc&in=World&cat=Egypt Yahoo! News Full Coverage – Egypt] headline links

Overviews

- [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/world/middle_east/country_profiles/737642.stm BBC News Country Profile - Egypt]
- [http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/eg.html CIA World Factbook - Egypt]
- [http://www.state.gov/p/nea/ci/c3729.htm US State Department - Egypt] includes Background Notes, Country Study and major reports
- [http://dmoz.org/Regional/Africa/Egypt Open Directory Project - Egypt] directory category
- [http://www.joinafrica.com/countries1/Egypt/people.htm Joinafrica.com - Egypt]

Education

See: List of Egyptian universities
- [http://www.worldwide.edu/ci/egypt/index.html Study Destinations in Egypt]
- [http://www.scu.eun.eg/eng/scu-eng.htm/ Supreme Council of Universities] U suck

Tourism

See: List of museums in Egypt
-
- [http://www.touregypt.net/ Tour Egypt] (Association of Egyptian Travel Businesses)
- [http://www.egypt-travelguide.com/ Egypt Hotel & Travel Guide]
- [http://www.eternalegypt.org/ Journey through Eternal Egypt]
- [http://ancient-egypt.blogspot.com/ History of Ancient Egypt]

Other

- [http://www.fonsvitae.com/archit.html CAIRO - 1001 Years of Islamic Art and Architecture (Video series in four parts)]
- [http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/egypt.html Egypt Maps - Perry-Castañeda Map Collection]
- [http://ianandwendy.com/OtherTrips/Egypt Egypt Photo Galleries] Pictures from a visit in December 2004
- [http://st-takla.org/Egypt-1.html Egypt through the ages..]
- [http://www.egyptianculture.net Egyptian Mythology]
- Khnumhotep & Niankhkhnum
- [http://en.jurispedia.org/index.php/Egypt Egyptian law] from Jurispedia
Category:Arab League Category:Near Eastern countries Category:Middle Eastern countries Category:African Union member states Category:Bicontinental countries zh-min-nan:Ai-ki̍p als:Ägypten ko:이집트 ms:Mesir ja:エジプト simple:Egypt th:ประเทศอียิปต์

Mexico

The United Mexican States or Mexico (Spanish: Estados Unidos Mexicanos or México; regarding the use of the variant spelling Méjico, see section The name below) is a country located in North America, bordered by the United States to the north, and Belize and Guatemala to the southeast. It is the northernmost and westernmost country in Latin America, and also the most populous Spanish-speaking country in the world.

History

Main article: History of Mexico

Pre-Hispanic Times

Hunter-Gatherer peoples are thought to have discovered and inhabited Mexico more than 28,000 years ago. Ancient Mexicans began to selectively breed corn plants around 8,000 B.C. Evidence shows the explosion of pottery works by 2300 B.C. and the beginning of intensive farming between 1800 and 1500 BC. For more than 3,000 years, Mexico was the site of several Mesoamerican civilizations, such as the Aztec, the Olmec, Teotihuacan, the Toltec, Mixtec, Zapotec and the Mayan. These indigenous civilizations are credited with many inventions: pyramid-temples, mathematics, astronomy, medicine, writing, highly-accurate calendars, fine arts, intensive agriculture, engineering, an abacus, a complex theology, and the wheel. Archaic inscriptions on rocks and rock walls all over northern Mexico (especially in the state of Nuevo León) demonstrate an early propensity for counting in Mexico. These very early and ancient count-markings were associated with astronomical events and underscore the influence that astronomical activities had upon Mexican natives, even before they possessed civilization. In fact, the later Mexican civilizations would all carefully build their cities and ceremonial centers according to specific astronomical events. At different points in time, three different Mexican cities were the largest cities in the world: Teotihuacan, Tenochtitlan, and Cholula. These cities, among several others, blossomed as centers of commerce, ideas, ceremonies, and theology. In turn, they radiated influence outwards onto neighboring cultures. Cholula] Cholula] While many city-states, kingdoms, and empires competed with one another for power and prestige, Mexico had four major, unifying civilizations: The Olmec, Teotihuacan, Toltec, and the Mexica. These four civilizations extended their reach across Mexico and beyond like no others. They consolidated power and distributed influence in matters of trade, art, politics, technology, and theology. Other regional power players made economic and political alliances with these four civilizations over the span of 4,000 years. Many made war with them, but almost all found themselves within these four spheres of influence. Latecomers to Mexico's central plateau, the Mexica, or Aztecs, as they were sometimes called in memory of Aztlán, the starting point of their tribes wanderings, never thought of themselves as anything but heirs of the brilliant civilizations that had preceded them. For them, highly-civilized arts, sculpture, architecture, engraving, feather-mosiac work, and the invention of the calendar were due to the former inhabitants of Tula, the Toltecs, who reached the height of their civilization in the tenth and eleventh centuries. The Mexica, one of the Aztec groups, were the first people in the world to practice mandatory education for all people, regardless of gender, rank, or station. There were two types of schools: the telpochcalli, for practical and military studies, and the calmecac, for advanced learning in writing, astronomy, statesmanship, theology, and other areas. The Aztecs' religious beliefs were based on a fear that the universe would cease functioning without a constant offering of human sacrifice. This belief was common throughout nahuatl people. As a result, Aztec warfare was conducted with an aim to only injure the enemy, so that he could later be sacrificed, and weapons were constructed with this in mind. This penchant for human sacrifice proved to be the undoing of the Aztecs, for when they confronted the Spaniards, who fought to the death, their less effective weapons made resistance difficult. In order to acquire captives in time of peace, the Aztec resorted to ritual warfare, or flower war. Tlaxcalteca and other nahuatl nations were forced into such wars, so they joined the Spaniard forces against the Aztec. The small Spanish force was reinforced with thousands of indian allies, who were schooled on European warfare.

The Spanish Era

The arrival of the Spanish in the early 16th century and their defeat of the Mexica in 1521 marked the beginning of the 300 year-long colonial period of Mexico as New Spain. After the fall of Tenochtitlan, it would take decades of continuous war to pacify Mesoamerica. Particularly fierce were the "Chichimeca wars" in the north of Mexico (1576-1606). The colonists brought with them the Catholic faith, to which the population seemingly converted rapidly, but soon they found the natives had adopted "the god of the heavens", as they called it, as just one of their gods. While it was an important god, because it was the god of the conquerors,they did not see why they had to abandon their old beliefs. As a result, a second wave of missionaries began a process attempting to completely erase the old beliefs, and thus wiped out many aspects of Mesoamerican culture. Hundreds of thousands of codices were destroyed, priests and teachers were persecuted, and the temples and statues of the gods were destroyed. The Mesoamerican education system was set aside and replaced by church education; even some foods associated with religion, like amaranto, were forbidden. Eventually, the natives were declared minors, and forbidden to read and write, so they would always need a white man in charge of them to be responsible of their indoctrination. Although officially they could not become slaves, the system, known as encomienda, came to signify the oppression and exploitation of natives, although its originators did not set out with such intent. Due to some horrifying instances of abuse against the indigenous peoples, Bishop Bartolome de las Casas suggested bringing black slaves to replace them. Bartolome later repented when he saw the treatment given to the black slaves. Unlike most English-speaking colonists of North America, Spanish colonists married the natives, and were even encouraged to do so by Queen Isabella during the earliest days of colonization (in Cuba, specifically). The first Spanish colonists were mainly male, so they took native women, and sometimes black women, although rarely. After the native population was decimated by epidemics and forced labor, black slaves were imported, and for a time they even outnumbered the white population. However, they eventually mixed with the population. There are still a few black communities (see Afro-Mexican), but few modern Mexicans are aware of thi