City

A city is a large and permanent human settlement. Although there is no agreement on how a city is distinguished from a town in general English language meanings, many cities have a particular administrative, legal, or historical status based on local law.

Cities generally have complex systems for sanitation, utilities, land usage, housing, and transportation. The concentration of development greatly facilitates interaction between people and businesses, benefiting both parties in the process, but it also presents challenges to managing urban growth.

A big city or metropolis usually has associated suburbs and exurbs. Such cities are usually associated with metropolitan areas and urban areas, creating numerous business commuters traveling to urban centers for employment. Once a city expands far enough to reach another city, this region can be deemed a conurbation or megalopolis. In terms of population, the largest city proper is Shanghai, while the fastest-growing is Dubai.

Origins

There is not enough evidence to assert what conditions gave rise to the first cities. Some theorists have speculated on what they consider suitable pre-conditions and basic mechanisms that might have been important driving forces.

City government in Washington (state)

There are 281 municipalities in the U.S. state of Washington. State law determines the various powers its municipalities have.

City classes

Legally, a city in Washington can be described primarily by its class. There are five classes of cities in Washington:

First class cities are cities with a population over 10,000 at the time of reorganization and operating under a home rule charter. They are permitted to perform any function specifically granted them by Title 35 RCW (Revised Code of Washington). Among them are Seattle, Tacoma, Spokane, Vancouver, and Yakima.

Second class cities are cities with a population over 1,500 at the time of reorganization and operating without a home rule charter. Like first class cities, they are permitted to perform any function specifically granted them by Title 35 RCW. Among them are Port Orchard, Wapato, and Colville.

Towns are municipalities with a population of under 1,500 at the time of reorganization. Towns are not authorized to operate under a charter. Like the previously listed cities, they are permitted to perform any function specifically granted them by Title 35 RCW. Among them are Steilacoom, Friday Harbor, Eatonville, and Waterville. In 1994, the legislature made 1,500 the minimum population required to incorporate.

Administrative divisions of Texas

Texas has a total of 254 counties, many cities, and numerous special districts, the most common of which is the independent school district.

County

Texas has a total of 254 counties, by far the largest number of counties of any state.

Each county is run by a five-member Commissioners' Court consisting of four commissioners elected from single-member districts (called commissioner precincts) and a county judge elected at-large. The county judge does not have authority to veto a decision of the commissioners court; the judge votes along with the commissioners (being the tie-breaker in close calls). In smaller counties, the county judge actually does perform judicial duties, but in larger counties the judge's role is limited to serving on the commissioners court and certifying elections. Certain officials, such as the sheriff and tax collector, are elected separately by the voters, but the commissioners court determines their office budgets, and sets overall county policy. All county elections are partisan, and commissioner precincts are redistricted after each ten year Census both to equalize the voting power in each and in consideration of the political party preferences of the voters in each.

Drag (Austin, Texas)

The Drag is a nickname for a portion of Guadalupe Street that runs along the western edge of the University of Texas campus in Austin, Texas.

The Drag began as a strip of shops which provided vital resources to UT students. Bookstores, restaurants, and clothing stores fulfilled student needs. The proximity to campus, particularly the Main Building and the Union Building, added to the popularity of the street. At the start of each semester The Drag fills with students purchasing textbooks and school supplies.

Past and present buildings on the Drag include the Harry Ransom Humanities Research Center, Raul's, Captain Quackenbush's Intergalactic Espresso and Dessert Company, Record Exchange (later renamed CD Exchange at the NW corner of 21st Street), Hastings Music and Video (directly across from the West Mall and Student Union), Bevo's Bookstore, The Gap (at the SW corner of 24th Street), Al's Formalwear (at 29 1/2 Street), Tower Records, The Bazaar, Texadelphia, Dobie Mall, Goodall Wooten private dormitory, and the University Baptist Church. Also, the Church of Scientology of Texas building is on The Drag.

Drag (clothing)

The term "drag" is used for any clothing carrying symbolic significance but usually referring to the clothing associated with one gender role when worn by a person of another gender. The origins of the word are debated, but "drag" has appeared in print as early as 1870. One suggested etymological root is 19th-century theatre slang, from the sensation of long skirts trailing on the floor.

"Drag queen" appeared in print at least as early as 1941. The verb is to "do drag". A folk etymology whose acronym basis reveals the late-20th-century bias would make "drag" an abbreviation of "dressed as girl" in description of male transvestism. The opposite, "drab" for "dressed as boy", is unrecorded. Drag may be practiced by people of all sexual orientations and gender identities.

Drag in the performing arts

There is a long history of drag in the performing arts, spanning a wide range of cultural as well as artistic traditions.

Drag in the theatre arts manifests two kinds of phenomenon. One is cross-dressing in the performance, which is part of the social history of theatre. The other is cross-dressing within the theatrical fiction (i.e. the character is a cross-dresser), which is part of literary history.

Drag (film)

Drag is a 1929 American Pre-Code drama film directed by Frank Lloyd and starring Richard Barthelmess.

Cast

Awards and honors

Frank Lloyd was nominated at the 2nd Academy Awards for Academy Award for Best Director along with the film Weary River.

Preservation status

The film was long thought to be a lost film but was later rediscovered. The film originally had two versions, a sound version and a silent version.

See also

References

External links

Bojangles' Southern 500

The Bojangles' Southern 500 is a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stock car race at Darlington Raceway in Darlington, South Carolina, United States. The race distance is 501 miles (806 km) long, and consists of 367 laps. From 1950 to 2003, the race was held on Labor Day weekend. During this period, Darlington held two Cup series races annually, the other a 400-mile event in the spring, and the Southern 500 was largely considered one of the Crown Jewels of the NASCAR calendar.

In 2004, the race was moved to November and was run as the second to last race in the inaugural Chase for the NEXTEL Cup. The following year, as the result of a settlement in the Ferko lawsuit, Darlington lost its September race date and chose to move the 500 mile race distance to its remaining date. The 500 was renamed for the sponsorship of Dodge and was moved to Mother's Day weekend in May. The race was run on a Saturday night during this period.

The event reassumed the Southern 500 name in 2009. In 2014, the race moved to April after swapping dates with Kansas Speedway. NASCAR announced that the Southern 500 would be returning to its traditional Labor Day weekend date for 2015, replacing Atlanta Motor Speedway as the host of the Labor Day weekend event (Atlanta's race, meanwhile, was moved into the early portion of the season).