Ard (plough)

The ard, ard plough, or scratch plough is a simple light plough without a mouldboard. It is symmetrical on either side of its line of draft and is fitted with a symmetrical share that traces a shallow furrow but does not invert the soil. It began to be replaced in most of Europe by the carruca turnplough from the 7th century.

In its simplest form it resembles a hoe, consisting of a draft-pole (either composite or a single piece) pierced with a nearly vertical, wooden, spiked head (or stock) which is dragged through the soil by draft animals and very rarely by people. The ard-head is at one end a stilt (handle) for steering and at the other a share (cutting blade) which gouges the surface ground. More sophisticated models have a composite pole, where the section attached to the head is called the draft-beam, and the share may be made of stone or iron. Some have a cross-bar for handles or two separate stilts for handles (two-handled ard). The share comes in two basic forms: a socket share slipped over the nose of the ard-head; and the tang share fitted into a groove where it is held with a clamp on the wooden head. Additionally, a slender protruding chisel (foreshare) can be fitted over the top of the mainshare.

ARD

Ard, ARD, Ards or ARDS may refer to:

Ard:

ARD:

5-alpha-reductase deficiency

5α-Reductase deficiency (5-ARD) is an autosomal recessive intersex condition caused by a mutation of the 5α reductase type II gene.

Normal function

5α-Reductase is an enzyme that converts testosterone to 5α-dihydrotestosterone (DHT) in peripheral tissues. These enzymes also participate in the creation of such neurosteroids as allopregnanolone and THDOC, convert progesterone into dihydroprogesterone (DHP), and convert deoxycorticosterone (DOC) into dihydrodeoxycorticosterone (DHDOC). 5-ARD is biochemically characterized by low to low-normal levels of testosterone and decreased levels of DHT, creating a higher testosterone/DHT ratio.

DHT is a potent androgen, and is necessary for the development of male external genitalia in utero.

Signs

The condition affects only genetic males (that is, those with a Y-chromosome) because DHT has no known role in female development.

Individuals with 5-ARD are born with male gonads, including testicles and Wolffian structures. They can have normal male external genitalia, ambiguous genitalia, or normal female genitalia, but usually tend towards a female appearance. As a consequence, they are often raised as girls, but usually have a male gender identity. There is a tendency towards a macroclitoris or micropenis, and the urethra may attach to the phallus.

Das Erste

Das Erste ("The First"), or Erstes Deutsches Fernsehen ("First German Television"), is the principal publicly owned television channel in Germany. It is a joint production of Germany's regional public broadcasters acting through, and coordinated by, the ARD consortium.

History

The channel's first experimental broadcast was on 27 November 1950 as the TV channel of the then NWDR, which in 1956 split into NDR and WDR. The regular NWDR television service started on 25 December 1952. Nationwide transmission began on 1 November 1954 within the ARD framework, under the name Deutsches Fernsehen ("German Television"). It was West Germany's only television channel prior to the establishment of ZDF in 1963.

The new channel consisted of jointly-produced shows such as the nightly news programme Tagesschau (on the air since 26 December 1952), as well as broadcasts produced individually by ARD member stations. The programs were coordinated by the Programmdirektion based in Munich. Besides several entertaining shows, ARD went political in 1957 when it launched its first political TV magazine, Panorama. Germany's first political TV show adopted the slogan "What is being talked about and what should be talked about" and pictured all aspects of postwar West German society—including conflict-laden topics, scandals, and other taboo topics, such as former Nazis who had held important roles.