Rifleman

A rifleman (abbr. Rfn) is a soldier in a light infantry unit who carries a rifled firearm. Although the infantry role had its origin with 16th century hand gunners and 17th-century musketeers and streltsy, the term rifleman originated in the 18th century. Entire regiments and bodies of troops were armed with the weapon. It later became the term for the archetypal common infantryman.

History

Units of musketeers originally developed to support units of pikemen. As firearms became more effective, the composition of these pike-and-musket units changed, until the pikemen were supporting the musketeers. The last pike regiments were dissolved by the 1720s as pikes were superseded with the invention of the bayonet, which replaced the pike, and in effect converted the musket into a pike for those situations where it might still be useful, such as following up volleys with a charge, or defending against cavalry.

Project Blowed

Project Blowed is an open-mic workshop, its affiliated underground hip hop crew and record label based in Los Angeles, California. This hip hop function started in 1994 and features many music groups, emcees, and dancers local to the Southern California area.

History

The roots of Project Blowed can be traced back to the Good Life Cafe, a health food center in South Central Los Angeles, California. It was described by UGSMAG as "a platform for rappers to perform their material" and "a testing ground for Los Angeles' independent rap scene".Ice Cube, Snoop Dogg, and Lenny Kravitz reportedly attended the open-mic.

In 1994, Aceyalone and Abstract Rude produced the original Project Blowed compilation album. It was released in 1995. In 2005, Project Blowed released a follow up album, Project Blowed: 10th Anniversary, on Decon.

Social impact

Project Blowed is the essential outlet for much of the LA underground African American culture. It is a place that many people of all genders can go a freestyle, rhyme, or just speak what is on their mind. Project Blowed was a turning point for the underground culture; it “did not fan the flames of urban decay and societal attacks. Project Blowed was putting out the fire.” Rappers were required to pay a small fee to enter a battle and formally introduce themselves, and “MCs generally did not resort to homophobic slurs or excessive name calling during rap battles, as such behavior denoted lack of skill.” This group discouraged violent activity among the youth and encouraged strict norms and respect. The participation in Project Blowed positively shaped the lives of the local community.

Rifleman (bird)

The rifleman (Acanthisitta chloris) (Māori: tītipounamu) is a small insectivorous passerine bird that is endemic to New Zealand. It belongs to the Acanthisittidae family, also known as the New Zealand wrens, of which it is one of only two surviving species. The rifleman resembles a wren in form, but is not related to the family of true wrens, Troglodytidae, nor the fairy-wrens of Australia.

The rifleman is named after a colonial New Zealand regiment because its plumage drew similarities with the military uniform of a rifleman.

Description

The rifleman is New Zealand's smallest endemic bird, with fully grown adults reaching around 8 cm. The male rifleman is bright green on the dorsal side, while the female is of a more somber brownish tone and her head and back are flecked with ochre. Male birds typically weigh around 6 g, females 7 g. Both birds are white on their under surfaces and have white eyebrow stripes. They have short, rounded wings, a very short tail, and a long, thin, awl-like bill which is slightly upturned for insertion into cracks. The rifleman flies quickly with a wing beat producing a characteristic humming sound like a humming bird.