|
Burning Boats
The point of no return (PNR or PONR) is the point beyond which one must continue on one's current course of action because turning back is dangerous, physically impossible or difficult, or prohibitively expensive. The point of no return can be a calculated point during a continuous action (such as in aviation). A particular irreversible action (such as setting off an explosion or signing a contract) can be a point of no return. Origins and spread of the expression The phrase "point of no return" originated as a technical term in air navigation to refer to the time and/or location during a flight at which the aircraft no longer has enough fuel to return to its originating airfield. Important decisions may need to be made prior to the point of no return, since it will be unsafe to turn around and fly back if the pilot changes their mind after that point. Otherwise, it may correspond to the aircraft's maximal safe range in a situation where the only possible landing site ''is'' t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Aviation
Aviation includes the activities surrounding mechanical flight and the aircraft industry. ''Aircraft'' includes fixed-wing and rotary-wing types, morphable wings, wing-less lifting bodies, as well as lighter-than-air craft such as hot air balloons and airships. Aviation began in the 18th century with the development of the hot air balloon, an apparatus capable of atmospheric displacement through buoyancy. Some of the most significant advancements in aviation technology came with the controlled gliding flying of Otto Lilienthal in 1896; then a large step in significance came with the construction of the first powered airplane by the Wright brothers in the early 1900s. Since that time, aviation has been technologically revolutionized by the introduction of the jet which permitted a major form of transport throughout the world. Etymology The word ''aviation'' was coined by the French writer and former naval officer Gabriel La Landelle in 1863. He derived the term from the v ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dice
Dice (singular die or dice) are small, throwable objects with marked sides that can rest in multiple positions. They are used for generating random values, commonly as part of tabletop games, including dice games, board games, role-playing games, and games of chance. A traditional die is a cube with each of its six faces marked with a different number of dots ( pips) from one to six. When thrown or rolled, the die comes to rest showing a random integer from one to six on its upper surface, with each value being equally likely. Dice may also have polyhedral or irregular shapes, may have faces marked with numerals or symbols instead of pips and may have their numbers carved out from the material of the dice instead of marked on it. Loaded dice are designed to favor some results over others for cheating or entertainment. History Dice have been used since before recorded history, and it is uncertain where they originated. It is theorized that dice developed from the practice ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Toungoo Dynasty
, conventional_long_name = Toungoo dynasty , common_name = Taungoo dynasty , era = , status = Empire , event_start = Independence from Ava , year_start = 1510 , date_start = 16 October , event_end = End of dynasty , year_end = 1752 , date_end = 23 March , event_pre = , date_pre = 1485 , event1 = , date_event1 = 1510–99 , event2 = , date_event2 = 1599–1752 , event3 = , date_event3 = , event4 = , date_event4 = , p1 = Ava Kingdom , p2 = Hanthawaddy Kingdom , p3 = Shan states , p4 = Lan Na Kingdom , p5 = Ayutthaya Kingdom , p6 = Lan Xang Kingdom , p7 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Battle Of Naungyo
The Battle of Naungyo ( my, နောင်ရိုးတိုက်ပွဲ ) was a land battle fought between the armies of the Toungoo Kingdom and Hanthawaddy Kingdom during the Toungoo–Hanthawaddy War (1534–41) in late 1538. The battle was the most decisive Toungoo victory of the war. Toungoo armies led by Gen. Kyawhtin Nawrahta (later Bayinnaung) decisively defeated a numerically far superior and better armed force of Hanthawaddy led by Gen. Binnya Dala and Gen. Minye Aung Naing. Only a small portion of the Hanthawaddy forces made it to their intended destination–the fortified city of Prome (Pyay). A decimated Hanthawaddy was no longer in a position to retake the lost territories from Toungoo. The battle is one of the most famous battles in Burmese history. It was after this battle that Kyawhtin Nawrahta was given the title of Bayinnaung (lit. Royal Elder Brother) by his brother-in-law King Tabinshwehti. The battle is deemed "the first characteristic touch of the g ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Burmese History
The history of Myanmar (also known as Burma; my, မြန်မာ့သမိုင်း) covers the period from the time of first-known human settlements 13,000 years ago to the present day. The earliest inhabitants of recorded history were a Tibeto-Burman-speaking people who established the Pyu city-states ranged as far south as Pyay and adopted Theravada Buddhism. Another group, the Bamar people, entered the upper Irrawaddy valley in the early 9th century. They went on to establish the Pagan Kingdom (1044–1297), the first-ever unification of the Irrawaddy valley and its periphery. The Burmese language and Burma culture slowly came to replace Pyu norms during this period. After the First Mongol invasion of Burma in 1287, several small kingdoms, of which the Kingdom of Ava, the Hanthawaddy Kingdom, the Kingdom of Mrauk U and the Shan States were principal powers, came to dominate the landscape, replete with ever-shifting alliances and constant wars. In the second half ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chu–Han Contention
The Chu–Han Contention ( zh, , lk=on) or Chu–Han War () was an interregnum period in ancient China between the fallen Qin dynasty and the subsequent Han dynasty. After the third and last Qin ruler, Ziying, unconditionally surrendered to rebel forces in 206 BCE, the former Qin Empire was divided by rebel leader Xiang Yu into the Eighteen Kingdoms, which were ruled by various rebel leaders and surrendered Qin generals. A civil war soon broke out, most prominently between two major contending powers – Xiang Yu's Western Chu and Liu Bang's Han. Some of the other kingdoms also waged war among themselves but these were largely insignificant compared to the main conflict between Chu and Han. The war ended in 202 BCE with a total Han victory at the Battle of Gaixia, where Xiang Yu fled to Wujiang and committed suicide after a violent last stand. Liu Bang subsequently proclaimed himself Emperor and established the Han dynasty as the ruling dynasty of China. Background In 22 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pitcairn Island
Pitcairn Island is the only inhabited island of the Pitcairn Islands, of which many inhabitants are descendants of mutineers of HMS ''Bounty''. Geography The island is of volcanic origin, with a rugged cliff coastline. Unlike many other South Pacific islands, it is not surrounded by coral reefs that protect the coast. The only access to the island is via a small pier on Bounty Bay. Adamstown is the sole settlement. Pawala Valley Ridge is the island's highest point at 346 m above sea level. The volcanic soil and tropical climate with abundant rainfall make the soil productive. The average temperature ranges from 19 to 24°C. The annual rainfall is 1,800 mm. As there are no rivers or lakes, drinking water is collected from the rain with cisterns. Fauna Indigenous fauna consists of insects and lizards. Since their introduction, rats have become an invasive species. A large number of seabirds nest along the steep shorelines. Due to the absence of coral reefs, fi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mutiny On The Bounty
The mutiny on the Royal Navy vessel occurred in the South Pacific Ocean on 28 April 1789. Disaffected crewmen, led by acting-Lieutenant Fletcher Christian, seized control of the ship from their captain, Lieutenant William Bligh, and set him and eighteen loyalists adrift in the ship's open launch. The mutineers variously settled on Tahiti or on Pitcairn Island. Bligh navigated more than in the launch to reach safety, and began the process of bringing the mutineers to justice. ''Bounty'' had left England in 1787 on a mission to collect and transport breadfruit plants from Tahiti to the West Indies. A five-month layover in Tahiti, during which many of the men lived ashore and formed relationships with native Polynesians, led those men to be less amenable to military discipline. Relations between Bligh and his crew deteriorated after he allegedly began handing out increasingly harsh punishments, criticism, and abuse, Christian being a particular target. After three weeks ba ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hernán Cortés
Hernán Cortés de Monroy y Pizarro Altamirano, 1st Marquess of the Valley of Oaxaca (; ; 1485 – December 2, 1547) was a Spanish ''conquistador'' who led an expedition that caused the fall of the Aztec Empire and brought large portions of what is now mainland Mexico under the rule of the King of Castile in the early 16th century. Cortés was part of the generation of Spanish explorers and conquistadors who began the first phase of the Spanish colonization of the Americas. Born in Medellín, Spain, to a family of lesser nobility, Cortés chose to pursue adventure and riches in the New World. He went to Hispaniola and later to Cuba, where he received an '' encomienda'' (the right to the labor of certain subjects). For a short time, he served as '' alcalde'' (magistrate) of the second Spanish town founded on the island. In 1519, he was elected captain of the third expedition to the mainland, which he partly funded. His enmity with the Governor of Cuba, Diego Velázquez de Cu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Spanish Conquest Of The Aztec Empire
The Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire, also known as the Conquest of Mexico or the Spanish-Aztec War (1519–21), was one of the primary events in the Spanish colonization of the Americas. There are multiple 16th-century narratives of the events by Spanish conquistadors, their indigenous allies, and the defeated Aztecs. It was not solely a contest between a small contingent of Spaniards defeating the Aztec Empire but rather the creation of a coalition of Spanish invaders with tributaries to the Aztecs, and most especially the Aztecs' indigenous enemies and rivals. They combined forces to defeat the Mexica of Tenochtitlan over a two-year period. For the Spanish, the expedition to Mexico was part of a project of Spanish colonization of the New World after twenty-five years of permanent Spanish settlement and further exploration in the Caribbean. Significant events in the conquest of Mesoamerica Historical sources for the conquest of Mexico recount some of the same events in bot ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tariq Bin Ziyad
Ṭāriq ibn Ziyād ( ar, طارق بن زياد), also known simply as Tarik in English, was a Berbers, Berber commander who served the Umayyad Caliphate and initiated the Muslim Umayyad conquest of Hispania, Umayyad conquest of Visigothic Hispania (present-day Spain and Portugal) in 711–718 AD. He led an army and crossed the Strait of Gibraltar from the North African coast, consolidating his troops at what is today known as the Rock of Gibraltar. The name "Gibraltar" is the Spanish language, Spanish derivation of the Arabic name ''Jabal Ṭāriq'' (جبل طارق), meaning "mountain of Ṭāriq", which is named after him. Origins Medieval Arabic historians give contradictory data about Ṭāriq's origins and nationality. Some conclusions about his personality and the circumstances of his entry into al-Andalus are surrounded by uncertainty. The vast majority of modern sources state that Ṭāriq was a Berber ''mawla'' of Musa ibn Nusayr, the Umayyad governor of Ifriqiya. He ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
.jpg "Click for more on -> Dice")
