Solas (group)

Solas (Irish: light) is an American musical group formed in 1994, playing Irish traditional music as well as original compositions, sometimes demonstrating an inclination towards Country music in recent albums.

Their name comes from an Irish word meaning "light". At the time, the band was made up of Séamus Egan, who had already recorded two solo albums as well as a soundtrack to a film; Winifred Horan, a member of Cherish the Ladies; John Doyle, previously a member of Susan McKeown & The Chanting House with Egan; Karan Casey and John Williams. Their first performance was in Georgetown University's Gaston Hall in Washington, D.C. in 1995.

Solas received national exposure on American Public Media's A Prairie Home Companion in May 1996. That same year, they recorded their first album and, in October, toured the U.S. A second album followed in 1997 and several members of Solas appeared on Karan's debut solo album as session musicians. Following their second album, John Williams left Solas to pursue a solo career to be replaced by Mick McAuley. In 1999, between the releases of The Words That Remain and The Hour Before Dawn, Karan left for a similar purpose and was replaced by Deirdre Scanlan. John Doyle left after the release of The Hour Before Dawn, being replaced by Donal Clancy. Clancy left after the release of The Edge of Silence, and was replaced by Éamon McElholm. In June 2008 the band announced Mairead Phelan had joined the group as their new singer. In September 2010, Niamh Varian-Barry from Cork replaced Mairead Phelan as lead singer of Solas. On July 11, 2013, they announced on their Facebook page that Niamh was leaving the band and that Noriana Kennedy would be replacing her. In 2015, Solas has been touring with Johnny Connolly on the accordion in place of Mick McAuley. Moira Smiley has also been touring with the band as the featured singer.

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Groups of people

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Shot grouping

In shooting, a shot grouping, or simply grouping, is the placement of multiple shots on a target, the shots taken in one shooting session. The closeness of the grouping, the nearness of all the shots to each other, is a measure of the accuracy of a weapon, and a measure of the shooter's consistency and skill.

Uses of the term

For firearms that shoot one round at a time, a shot grouping can be used to measure the accuracy of the system comprised out of weapon as well as the precision and uniformity of the ammunition by fixing the weapon into position on a test mount, and aiming it at a target. Multiple shots using rounds from same type and batch are fired to observe how the weapon groups the shots. If a person holds the weapon and shoots it, the grouping measures the combination of the person's skill and the weapon's accuracy.

In shotgun shooting, the grouping is also called the pattern. The pattern is the spread of shot from a single shotgun shell, measured as the smallest circle containing all the shots on the target. The barrel of a shotgun is designed to deliver a wide or narrow grouping, depending on the expected use. Shooting at close range indicates a cylinder bore barrel to deliver a wide grouping, while for hunting at longer distances such as 50 yards or meters, a choke is recommended for a tighter grouping.

Stratigraphic unit

A stratigraphic unit is a volume of rock of identifiable origin and relative age range that is defined by the distinctive and dominant, easily mapped and recognizable petrographic, lithologic or paleontologic features (facies) that characterize it.

Units must be mappable and distinct from one another, but the contact need not be particularly distinct. For instance, a unit may be defined by terms such as "when the sandstone component exceeds 75%".

Lithostratigraphic units

Sequences of sedimentary and volcanic rocks are subdivided on the basis of their lithology. Going from smaller to larger in scale, the main units recognised are Bed, Member, Formation, Group and Supergroup.

Bed

A bed is a lithologically distinct layer within a member or formation and is the smallest recognisable stratigraphic unit. These are not normally named, but may be in the case of a marker horizon.

Member

A member is a named lithologically distinct part of a formation. Not all formations are subdivided in this way and even where they are recognized, they may only form part of the formation.