Sight (device)

A sight is a device used to assist aligning or aim weapons, surveying instruments, or other items by eye. Sights can be a simple set or system of markers that have to be aligned together as well as aligned with the target (referred to as an iron sights on firearms). They can also be optical devices that allow the user to see the image of an aligned aiming point in the same focus as the target. These include telescopic sights and reflector (or "reflex") sights. There are also sights that project an aiming point onto the target itself, such as laser sights.

Simple sights

At its simplest, a sight is typically composed of two components, front and rear aiming pieces that have to be lined up. Sights such as this can be found on many types of devices including weapons, surveying and measuring instruments, and navigational tools.

On weapons, these sights are usually formed by rugged metal parts, giving these sights the name "iron sights", a term relative to other weapon sights in that they are not optical or computing sights. On many types of weapons they are built-in and may be fixed, adjustable, or marked for elevation, windage, target speed, etc. They also are classified in forms of notch (open sight) or aperture (closed sight). These types of sights can take considerable experience and skill in the user who has to hold a proper eye position and simultaneously focus on the rear sight, the front sight, a target at different distances, and align all three planes of focus.

If You Wait

If You Wait is the debut studio album by English indie pop band London Grammar, released on 6 September 2013 by Metal & Dust Recordings and Ministry of Sound. Seven singles have been released from the album: "Metal & Dust", "Wasting My Young Years", "Strong", "Nightcall", "Hey Now", "Sights" and "If You Wait". The album debuted at number two the UK Albums Chart with first-week sales of 33,130 copies.

Background

After the band signed with Ministry of Sound and Big Life Management they began the first sessions of the album in early 2012 with Cam Blackwood. Later that year he was replaced by Tim Bran and Roy Kerr. Hannah Reid described the collaboration as 'Tim is amazing at recording, of finding the best way of recording a guitar or my vocal. Roy had the strongest relationship with Dot and they worked on production together'.

The album's lyrics are mainly based upon vocalist Hannah Reid's personal life, in particular her troubled teenage years, prompting The Guardian to suggest that this was "the first quarter-life-crisis album."

Four sights

The four sights are four encounters described in the legendary account of Gautama Buddha's life which led to his realization of the impermanence and ultimate dissatisfactoriness of conditioned existence. According to this legend, before these encounters Siddhārtha Gautama had been confined to his palace by his father, who feared that he would become an ascetic if he came into contact with sufferings of life according to a prediction. However, on his first venture out of the palace with his charioteer Channa, he observed four sights: an old man, a sick man, a corpse and an ascetic. These observations affected him deeply and made him realize the sufferings of all beings, and compelled him to begin his spiritual journey as a wandering ascetic, which eventually led to his enlightenment. The spiritual feeling of urgency experienced by Siddhārtha Gautama is referred to as saṃvega.

The Legendary Account of the Four Sights

Background

After the birth of the Prince Siddhārtha, King Śuddhodana called upon eight Brahmins to predict his only son's future. While seven of them declared that the prince would either be a Buddha or a great King, the Brahmin Kaundinya was confident that he would renounce the world and become a Buddha.