Разное

1581. The history of Christmas
Статья пополнение в коллекции 12.01.2009

Many of the established Christmas time traditions have little or nothing to do with the biblical account of Christs birth. Some existed for hundreds, or thousands of years before Christianity, whilst others have evolved, seemingly out of nothing, over the past few centuries.Evergreen trees and plants were often used in the religious festivals of the past. During the winter, when everything else was dying, the continuing green of fir-trees and mistletoe was considered to symbolise the rebirth that would come in the spring. As a result evergreen foliage was used in winter festivals by the Vikings, whilst Druids in Britain and France would decorate trees with fruit and candles in honour of their harvest gods. The Roman Saturnalia also used to decorate their houses with trees bedecked with candles and other bright trinkets. According to legend, Martin Luther decorated trees with candles to reflect the beauty of the stars. In England, the tradition was resurrected by Prince Albert in 1841. The royal family led the fashion and Christmas trees became an established part of the festive season.Holly and Mistletoe have also become a central part of Christmas. Mistletoe was often used by druids. It was believed to have mystical powers, and it was often hung over doors in order to keep out evil influences. The tradition of kissing under the mistletoe may have come from Scandinavia, where mistletoe was associated with the goddess of love, Frigga. Because of its pagan associations, the Christian Church objected to mistletoe being used for Christmas celebrations. As a substitute they suggested holly, another evergreen, claiming that the sharp leaves represented Christs crown of thorns, and the red berries symbolised drops of his blood. Both plants have become a part of the seasonal festivities.The twelve days of Christmas do apparently have a Christian origin: they are the twelve days between Christmas day and the feast of the Epiphany (which according to different interpretations is either the day of Christs baptism or the visit of the wise men). It is considered bad luck if all of the Christmas decorations have not been taken down by the end of the twelfth day the 6th of January.Christmas cards emerged in Germany in the fifteenth century. Rather than being greetings cards, they were devotional pictures to be hung in the home, wishing the family a good and blessed year. In the eighteenth century the tradition began to grow, when seasonally decorated cards were used as visiting cards left for absent friends. However, Christmas cards would reach their peak with the advent of the British mailing system in the mid-nineteenth century. Now that letters could be sent around the country at high speed and for low costs, Christmas cards became popular as a cheap way to send Christmas wishes to friends and relatives that you would not see over the festive season.They were particularly popular as a card, sent in an unsealed envelope cost only half a penny, half the price of a full letter.Father Christmas story is well known. The original model for Santa, was Saint Nicholas, the bishop of Myra. According to legend, he brought a dowry for three girls, who were too poor to find husbands. Whilst they were sleeping he put the gift in their stockings, which were hanging by the fire to dry. The cult of Saint Nicholas spread across much of Europe, and St Nicholas Day, December 6th, was a day for giving and kindness when parents would offer presents to their children. The idea of St Nicholas spread to America with the Dutch colonists, and it was the American press which transformed Father Christmas into his current image. Clement Moores poem The Night Before Christmas, published in 1822, introduced the world to Father Christmas flying reindeer, and the way that he distributed presents down chimney stacks. We discovered what Santa Claus looks like, when a magazine called Harpers Weekly published a series of pictures by the cartoonist Thomas Nash. His red suit with white trimmings came, coincidentally, from St Nicholas, whose bishops robes would have been red and white.
1582. The History of English
Информация пополнение в коллекции 09.12.2008

OEGothicDescription; Position; PronunciationExamplesaaShort back vowel; Mainly in open syllables, when the following one contains a back vowel; English cupmacian (to make), habban (to have)бaiLong back [a] vowel; In any kind of syllables; English starstбn (a stone), hбtan (to call)жaShort back vowel; Met mainly in closed syllables, or in open ones, if the next syllable contains a front vowel; English baddжg (a day), wжter (water)ж 'й, бLong back vowel; as Gothic й found only in some verbal forms, as Gothic б is the result of the so - called i - mutation; German za "hlenstж ' lon (stolen), hж ' lan (to cure)ei, ai, aShort front vowel; as Gothic i, ai noticed only in some infinitives, otherwise is result of the mutation of i; English bedsengean (to sing)йуLong front [e] vowel; resulted from the i - mutation of у; German Meerdйman (to judge)ii, ieShort front vowel; can be either stable or unstable, the unstable sound can interchange with ie and y; English stillbindan (to bind), niht - nyht (a night)нieLong front [i] vowel; also stable and unstable (mutating to э); English stealwrнtan (to write), hн - hэ (they)ou, auShort back vowel; English costcoren (chosen)уoLong back [o] vowel; English storescуc (divided)uu, auShort back vowel; used only when the next syllable contains another back vowel; English bookcuron (they chose)ъъLong back [u] vowel; English stoollъcan (to look)yuShort front vowel; i - mutation of u; German fu" nfgylden (golden)эъLong front [y] vowel; i - mutation of ъ, German glu "henmэs (mice)a.oA special short sound met only before nasals in closed syllablesmonn (a man)
1583. The history of Manhattan
Статья пополнение в коллекции 12.01.2009

Although it`s now long gone, this wall gave it`s name to a street in Lower Manhattan and the street, in turn, became synonymous with American capitalism. The street, of course, is Wall Street. The New York Stock Exchange and the American Stokc Exchange are both in the Wall Street area. So are many stokc brokers, investment blanks and others bank, and headquarters of many large corporations.
1584. The History of Moscow
Статья пополнение в коллекции 12.01.2009

In 1325 the metropolitan of the Russian Orthodox church transferred his seat to Moscow, making the city the national religious capital. It became the national political capital during the reign (1462-1505) of Grand Duke Ivan III Vasilyevich, who unified the Russian principalities. The seat of the Russian government was removed from Moscow to Saint Petersburg in 1712.
1585. The history of Old English and its development
Информация пополнение в коллекции 09.12.2008

Celtic tribes crossed the Channel and starting to settle in Britain already in the 7th century BC. The very word "Britain" seems to be the name given by the pre-Celtic inhabitants of the island, accepted by first Indo-Europeans. The Celts quickly spread over the island, and only in the north still existed non-Indo-European peoples which are sometimes called "Picts" (the name given by Romans). Picts lived in Scotland and on Shetland Islands and represented the most ancient population of the Isles, the origin of which is unknown. Picts do not seem to leave any features of their language to Indo-European population of Britain - the famous Irish and Welsh initial mutations of consonants can be the only sign of the substratum left by unknown nations of Britain. At the time the Celts reached Britain they spoke the common language, close to Gaulish in France. But later, when Celtic tribes occupied Ireland, Northern England, Wales, their tongues were divided according to tribal divisions. These languages will later become Welsh, Irish Gaelic, Cornish, but from that time no signs remained, because the Celts did not invent writing yet. Not much is left from Celtic languages in English. Though many place names and names for rivers are surely Celtic (like Usk - from Celtic *usce "water", or Avon - from *awin "river"), the morphology and phonetics are untouched by the Celtic influence. Some linguists state that the word down comes from Celtic *dún "down"; other examples of Celtic influence in place names are tne following:
1586. The history of railways (История железных дорог)
Информация пополнение в коллекции 09.12.2008

Although а great deal of rail 1rаffiс in Britain is handled by block trains from point of origin to destination, about onefifth of the originating tonnage is less than a train-load. This means that wagons must be sorted on their journey. In Britain there are about 600 terminal points on a 12,000 mile network whitch is served by over 2500 freight trains made up of varying assortments of 249,000 wagons and 3972 locomotives, of witch 333 are electric. This requires the speed of calculation and the information storage and classification capacity of the modern computer, whitch has to be linked to points dealing with or generating traffic troughout the system.The computer input, witch is by punched cards, covers details of loading or unloading of wagons and their movements in trains, the composition of trains and their departures from and arrivals at yards ,and the whereabouts of locomotives. The computer output includes information on the balanse of locomotives at depots and yards, with particulars of when maintenanse examinations are due, the numbers of empty and loaded wagons, with aggregate weight and brake forse, and wheder their movement is on time, the location of empty wagons and a forecast of those that will become available, and the numbers of trains at any location, with collective train weigts and individual details of the component wagons.
1587. The history of smart-cards and their place in modern Russia
Статья пополнение в коллекции 12.01.2009

The greatest company offering corporate integrates smart-cards systems in Russia is IT company. Founded in 1990 today Information Technologies Co. (I.T. Co.) ranks among the top three Systems Integrators in Russia, according to the Dator marketing agency and Russian Computer Union opinion poll statistics. Reporting annual revenues in excess of $27 Million, I.T. Co. has deployed over 500 projects in Russia and the CIS for industrial enterprises, trade companies, government, and financial institutions. In 1996, Computer Press magazine granted I.T. Co. an award “For Outstanding Results in Developing the Russian Computer Market”, and was included into the State Registry of Quality Systems. Having extensive experience in the development of information and computing systems, I.T. Co. has created a broad product line of private-branded high-tech software and hardware solutions for the local and international market. Since 1990, I.T.Co. has focused on meeting the demands of what is now today's competitive global marketplace. As businesses, large and small, progressively long for ways to interface with all of their suppliers using one system -- a complete information management system that is specifically designed with the customers' needs in mind, and just as importantly, a system friendly to the bottom line -- I.T.Co. remains on the forefront of technology, delivering a quality product on time, and on budget
1588. The history of the Tower of London
Статья пополнение в коллекции 12.01.2009

King Edwards new works were, however, put to the test by his son Edward II (1307-27), whose reign saw a resurgence of discontent among the barons on a scale not seen since the reign of his grandfather. Once again the Tower played a crucial role in the attempt to maintain royal authority and as a royal refuge. Edward II did little more than improve the walls put up by his father, but he was a regular resident during his turbulent reign and he moved his own lodgings from the Wakefield Tower and St Thomass Tower to the area round the present Lanthorn Tower. The old royal lodgings were now used for his courtiers and for the storage of official papers by the Kings Wardrobe (a department of government which dealt with royal supplies). The use of the Tower for functions other than military and residential had been started by Edward I who put up a large new building to house the Royal Mint and began to use the castle as a place for storing records. As early as the reign of Henry III the castle had already been in regular use as a prison: Hubert de Burgh, Chief Justiciar of England was incarcerated in 1232 and the Welsh Prince Gruffydd was imprisoned there between 1241 and 1244, when he fell to his death in a bid to escape. The Tower also served as a treasury (the Crown Jewels were moved from Westminster Abbey to the Tower in 1303) and as a showplace for the Kings animals.
After the unstable reign of Edward II came that of Edward III (1327-77). Edward IIIs works at the Tower were fairly minor, but he did put up a new gatehouse between the Lanthorn Tower and the Salt Tower, together with the Cradle Tower and its postern (a small subsidiary entrance), a further postern behind the Byward Tower and another at the Develin Tower. He was also responsible for rebuilding the upper parts of the Bloody Tower and creating the vault over the gate passage, but his most substantial achievement was to extend the Tower Wharf eastwards as far as St Thomass Tower. This was completed in its present form by his successor Richard II (1377-99).
1589. The House of Yorks
Статья пополнение в коллекции 12.01.2009

Born in Dublin, George was the sixth son of Richard, Duke of York, and Cicely Neville. He was created Duke of Clarence in the first year of Edward IVsreign. Until Elizabeth Woodville finally bore Edward a son in 1470, Clarence was the heir presumptive ,and it was soon clear to the Earl of Warwick that he was discontented and ambitious. On 11 July 1469, George married Isobel Neville, Warwicks elder daughter, against the wishes of his brother, cementing an alliance against the king. When Warwick reconciled with Margaret of Anjou, however, and his younger daughter, Anne, was betrothed to the Lancastrian heir, George realized that he was not to be made king in Edwards place. At the last minute, he returned to the Yorkist fold and was reconciled with Edward and his younger brother Richard. After Warwicks death at the Battle of Barnet in 1471, George laid claim to his vast estates, and although eventually forced to share them when Richard of Gloucester married the now-widowed Anne Neville, he remained a rich and powerful prince. He continued to flout Edwards authority, however, and was put in the Tower. In 1478 a Bill of Attainder passed the death sentence on Clarence and he died in the Tower, the exact manner of his death being unknown. Clarence and Isobel had four children, of whom two, Margaret and Edward, survived.
1590. The Impact of the Afghan War on soviet soldiers
Информация пополнение в коллекции 09.12.2008
1591. The Infinitive Constructions and The Ways of Their Using
Курсовой проект пополнение в коллекции 09.12.2008
1. Though the Infinitive as a rule is not used with verbs requiring prepositions, the Objective-with-the-Infinitive Construction is widely used with the preposition “for”. This construction consists of the preposition “for” plus noun in common case (or pronoun in objective case) plus Infinitive. These construction are translated into Russian by a subordinate clause, usually introduced by the conjunctions “что”, “чтобы” and at the same time the noun or pronoun of that construction together with proceeding preposition “for” is translated by a noun (or a pronoun) in the function of the subject of subordinate clause, and the infinitive is translated by a finite for of verb which is the predicate of the subordinate clause.
1592. The influence of the Great Britain on our daily life
Доклад пополнение в коллекции 09.12.2008

St. Valentines Day is celebrated on February 14. Every St. Valentines Day thousands of people travel to a small village on Scotlands border with England to get married. The village is called Gretna Green. Its romantic reputation began in 1754.
1593. The Irish and Australia
Информация пополнение в коллекции 09.12.2008
1594. The Irish and South America
Информация пополнение в коллекции 09.12.2008
1595. The Italian Renaissance (1420-1600)
Статья пополнение в коллекции 12.01.2009

In the arts and sciences as well as society and government, Italy was the major catalyst for progress during the Renaissance: the rich period of development that occurred in Europe at the end of the Middle Ages. Because of the number of different fields in which it applied, ``Renaissance'' is a word with many layers of meaning. Accordingly, Renaissance painting cannot signify any one common or clearly definable style. As Gothic painting had been shaped by the feudal societies of the Middle Ages, with its roots in the Romanesque and Byzantine traditions, Renaissance art was born out of a new, rapidly evolving civilization. It marked the point of departure from the medieval to the modern world and, as such, laid the foundations for modern Western values and society.
1596. The Kremlin
Статья пополнение в коллекции 12.01.2009

Within the Kremlin walls is one of the most striking and beautiful architectural ensembles in the world: a combination of churches and palaces, which are open to the public and are among the city's most popular tourist attractions, and the highest offices of the state, which are surrounded by strict security. Around the central Cathedral Square (Sobornaya Ploshchad) are grouped three magnificent cathedrals, superb examples of Russian church architecture at its height in the late 15th and early 16th centuries. These and the other churches in the Kremlin ceased functioning as places of worship after the Revolution and are now museums. The white stone Cathedral of the Assumption (Uspensky Sobor) is the oldest, built in 1475-79 in the Italianate-Byzantine style. Its pure, simple, and beautifully proportioned lines and elegant arches are crowned by five golden domes. The Orthodox metropolitans and patriarchs of the 14th to the 18th century are buried there. Across the square is the Cathedral of the Annunciation (Blagoveshchensky Sobor), built in 1484-89 by craftsmen from Pskov; though burned in 1547, it was rebuilt in 1562-64. Its cluster of chapels is topped by golden roofs and domes. Inside are a number of early 15th-century icons attributed to Theophanes the Greek and to Andrey Rublyov, considered by many to be the greatest of all Russian icon painters. The third cathedral, the Archangel (Arkhangelsky), was rebuilt in 1505-08; in it are buried the princes of Moscow and tsars of Russia (except Boris Godunov) up to the founding of St. Petersburg.
1597. The lesson of English
Статья пополнение в коллекции 12.01.2009

And soon the lesson begins... We usually start it by pronouncing different words and sounds. Then we are usually invited to the blackboard by the teacher and Oksana Victorovna asks us the words we were to teach by heart. After that we usually do some exercises from the text-book. These exercises teach us to ask questions, or how to make negative sentences and so on. Then, having got our exercise-books for tests, we usually write spelling, two tests and a quiz. During the lesson we speak mostly English, but sometimes, when the students dont understand the teacher or the task in the text-book, we start speaking Russian.
1598. The library of our institute
Статья пополнение в коллекции 12.01.2009

Soon I had to visit our library the first time as I needed a text book on economics. I went downstairs (as library is situated in the ground floor) and found a room I was searching for. But I didnt get the immediately as it was many students. So I waited for my turn. I asked to a librarian if I could get the book on economical theory. She answered affirmatively and soon brought me a book which name was “Modern economics”. Than the librarian asked me if it was for the first time I used the librarys services. I answered that it was true, and she suggest me to receive readers ticket. I was interested to know what documents I had to provide for this. She told that she needed only my photo 3x4 cm and some money. Fortunately, I had picture with myself and two minutes later I was the owner of readers ticket, which proves that I am a real member of the university library.
1599. The magnificent seven
Статья пополнение в коллекции 12.01.2009
1600. The main fault of The 70s or the years of “might-have-been hopes”
Статья пополнение в коллекции 12.01.2009

First of all, I would like to say that at the first stages the two countries rubbed shoulders with each other. But then, at a certain stage the USSR was sadly mistaken having copied the IBM-360 out of date technology. Estimating the discussion of possible ways of the computer technique development in the former USSR in late 1960s - early 1970s from the today point of work it can be noticed that we have chosen a worse if not the worst one. The only progressive way was to base on our domestic researches and to collaborate with the west-European companies in working out the new generation of machines. Thus we would reach the world level of production, and we would have a real base for the further development together with leading European companies.

Blog

Разное