Atlas

An atlas is a collection of maps; it is typically a map of Earth or a region of Earth, but there are atlases of the other planets (and their satellites) in the Solar System. Furthermore, atlases of anatomy exist, mapping out the human body or other organisms. Atlases have traditionally been bound into book form, but today many atlases are in multimedia formats. In addition to presenting geographic features and political boundaries, many atlases often feature geopolitical, social, religious and economic statistics. They also have information about the map and places in it.

Etymology

The word atlas dates from 1636, first in reference to the English translation of Atlas, sive cosmographicae meditationes de fabrica mundi (1585) by Flemish geographer Gerhardus Mercator, who might have been the first to use this word in this way. A picture of the Titan Atlas holding up the world appeared on the frontispiece of this and other early map collections.

History

The first work that contained systematically arranged woodcut maps of uniform size, intended to be published in a book, thus representing the first modern atlas, was De Summa totius Orbis (1524–26) by the 16th-century Italian cartographer Pietro Coppo. Nonetheless, this distinction is conventionally awarded to the Flemish cartographer Abraham Ortelius who in 1570 published the collection of maps Theatrum Orbis Terrarum.

Atlas (computer)

The Atlas Computer was a joint development between the University of Manchester, Ferranti, and Plessey. The first Atlas, installed at Manchester University and officially commissioned in 1962, was one of the world's first supercomputers, considered to be the most powerful computer in the world at that time. It was said that whenever Atlas went offline half of the United Kingdom's computer capacity was lost. It was a second-generation machine, using discrete germanium transistors. Two other Atlas machines were built: one for British Petroleum and the University of London, and one for the Atlas Computer Laboratory at Chilton near Oxford.

A derivative system was built by Ferranti for Cambridge University. Called the Titan, or Atlas 2, it had a different memory organisation and ran a time-sharing operating system developed by Cambridge University Computer Laboratory. Two further Atlas 2s were delivered: one to the CAD Centre in Cambridge (later called CADCentre, then AVEVA), and the other to the Atomic Weapons Research Establishment (AWRE), Aldermaston.

Atlas (topology)

In mathematics, particularly topology, one describes a manifold using an atlas. An atlas consists of individual charts that, roughly speaking, describe individual regions of the manifold. If the manifold is the surface of the Earth, then an atlas has its more common meaning. In general, the notion of atlas underlies the formal definition of a manifold and related structures such as vector bundles and other fibre bundles.

Charts

The definition of an atlas depends on the notion of a chart. A chart for a topological space M (also called a coordinate chart, coordinate patch, coordinate map, or local frame) is a homeomorphism from an open subset U of M to an open subset of Euclidean space. The chart is traditionally recorded as the ordered pair .

Formal definition of atlas

An atlas for a topological space M is a collection of charts on M such that . If the codomain of each chart is the n-dimensional Euclidean space and the atlas is connected, then M is said to be an n-dimensional manifold.

TEC-9

The Intratec TEC-9 or TEC-DC9 or AB-10 is a blowback-operated semi-automatic pistol, chambered in 9×19mm Parabellum. It was designed by Intratec, an American offshoot of Interdynamic AB. The TEC-9 was made of inexpensive molded polymers and a mixture of stamped and milled steel parts.

History

Swedish company Interdynamic AB of Stockholm designed the Interdynamic MP-9 9mm submachine gun. Intended as an inexpensive submachine gun based on the Carl Gustav M/45 for military applications, Interdynamic did not find a government buyer, so it was taken to US market as an open-bolt semi-automatic KG-9 pistol. The open bolt design was too easy to convert to full-auto. Because of this, the ATF forced Interdynamic to redesign it into a closed-bolt system, which was harder to convert to full-auto. This variant was called the KG-99. It made frequent appearances on Miami Vice, where it was legally converted to full-auto by Title II manufacturers. The KG-9 and KG-99 have an open end upper receiver tube where the bolt, recoil springs and buffer plate are held in place by the plastic/polymer lower receiver frame. This design only allows for 115 grain 9mm ammo. If heavier grain ammo or hot loads are used, the plastic lower receiver will fail/crack rendering the firearm unusable. The later model TEC-9 and AB-10 have a threaded upper receiver tube (at the rear) and screw on end cap to contain the bolt , recoil spring and buffer plate, even if removed from the lower receiver. This solves the problem of lower receiver failure when using "hot ammo".

Space

Space is the boundless three-dimensional extent in which objects and events have relative position and direction. Physical space is often conceived in three linear dimensions, although modern physicists usually consider it, with time, to be part of a boundless four-dimensional continuum known as spacetime. The concept of space is considered to be of fundamental importance to an understanding of the physical universe. However, disagreement continues between philosophers over whether it is itself an entity, a relationship between entities, or part of a conceptual framework.

Trompe le Monde

Trompe le Monde is the fourth studio album by the American alternative rock band Pixies, released in 1991 on the English independent record label 4AD in the United Kingdom and by Elektra Records in the United States. After the surf-pop of Bossanova, the album saw a return to the abrasive sound of the band's early albums.

Critical reception

The album was described by Michael Bonner, writing in Lime Lizard, as "one of the best albums that you may very well ever hear" and "a strong contender for best album of the 20th century".AllMusic writer Heather Phares noted the reduced role of Kim Deal, calling it "essentially Black Francis' solo debut".

Content

The album name comes from the title of the first track, "Trompe le Monde", a French phrase meaning "Fool the World". Unlike previous albums, the title of the album comes from the name of a song (rather than a song lyric), and is a play on the French phrase "trompe l'oeil"—a painting technique in which the painter fools the viewer into thinking objects presented are real.

Space (Modern Jazz Quartet album)

Space is an album by American jazz group the Modern Jazz Quartet featuring performances recorded in 1969 and released on the Apple label.

Reception

The Allmusic review stated "Overall this is an average but worthy outing from a group whose excellence could always be taken for granted".

Track listing

All compositions by John Lewis, except where noted.

Personnel

References