:: wikimiki.org ::

Door

Door

A door is a structure in a wall that allows easy conversion between an opening and a closed wall. It is found in many houses and other buildings: internal ones, doors giving access to the street/external world, and doors to private outdoor areas such as a garden or balcony. In an apartment building, an intermediate kind is the outer door of an apartment, inside the building. Doors are also found in vehicles, cupboards, cages, etc. See door furniture for a discussion of attachments to doors such as doorhandles and doorknobs. The purpose of an opening is:
- for people, animals and objects to pass; some doors are for emergencies only (emergency exit)
- for ventilation
- for seeing and hearing what happens on the other side - however, some doors are partly or fully made of glass, thereby allowing visibility in any case. The purpose of a closure is:
- for preventing air to pass: reducing air drafts and creating an enclosed space that can be heated or cooled more effectively. The use of doors is essential in colder climates where heating would be very difficult without them, and similarly in climates where air conditioning is used. Revolving doors are especially efficient for this purpose.
- for not seeing or hearing what happens on the other side: privacy, avoiding noise
- for preventing falling out of vehicles
- regulation of access. Combined with various types of locks, doors become important safety measures.
- for aesthetics - for example, cupboard doors preventing the sight of the contents.
- for helping prevent fire to spread. Doors can also have ritual purposes (see Black Rod for an example of the opening and closing of doors having a symbolic meaning). A door is usually fastened in a doorway, that is a frame constructed around the edges of a hole in a wall or other containing structure. The two vertical members of the frame are called jambs.

Types of doors

Black Rodan Namdroling monastery, southern India.]] A door may slide or rotate. Sliding is usually horizontal. In the case of rotation, the axis of rotation is usually vertical, but e.g. for garage doors often horizontal, above the door opening. Sometimes the axis of rotation is, with a special construction, not in the plane of the door, on the other side than that in which the door opens, to reduce the space required on the side to which the door opens. This is sometimes the case in a train, for the door to the toilet, opening inward. Many kinds of doors have specific names, depending on their purpose. The most common variety of door consists of a single rigid panel that fills the doorway, hinged along one side so that it can fold away from the doorway in one direction but not in the other. Many variations on this basic design are possible, such as "double" doors that have two adjacent independent panels hinged on each side of the doorway. A trapdoor is a door that is oriented horizontally in a floor or ceiling, often accessed via a ladder. A stable door is divided in half horizontally. The top half can be opened to allow the horse to be fed, while the bottom half can be closed to keep the animal inside. Stable doors are also known as dutch doors. A swing door has special hinges that allow it to open either outwards or inwards, and is usually sprung to keep it closed. Saloon doors are a pair of lightweight swing doors often found in public bars. A blind door is a door with no passage, a 'fake' door that is actually part of the wall. It is used for decorative purposes. An up-and-over door is often used in garages. Instead of hinges it has a mechanism, often counterbalanced or sprung, that allows it to be lifted so that it rests horizontally above the opening. A barn door is a door on a barn. It is often/always found on barns, and because of a barn's immense size (often) doors are subsequently big for utility. A French door is a door that has multiple lights, the full length of the door. Traditional French doors are assembled from individual small pieces of glass and mullions. French doors made of double-pane glass (on exterior doors for insulation reasons) may have the decorative grill embedded between the panes. The decorative grill may also be superimposed on top of single pane of glass in the door. mullion A sliding glass door is a glass door that slides to open. A similar sliding door, though often not made of glass and in the interior of the building, is called a pocket door. A garden door is any door that opens to a garden or backyard. It is often used specifically for double French doors in place of a sliding glass door. In such a configuration, it has the advantage of a very large opening for moving large objects in and out. A pet door is an opening in a door to allow pets to enter and exit without the main door being opened. It may be simply covered by a rubber flap or it may be an actual door hinged on the top that the pet can push through. Pet doors may be mounted in a sliding glass door as a new (permanent or temporary) panel. Pet doors may be unidirectional, only allowing pets to exit. Pet doors may be electronic, only allowing pets with a special electronic tag to enter. A revolving door is a type of door that typically consists of a structure with three or four panels that meet in the center and rotate one way about a vertical axis (sometimes the movement is not in a circle, but following a more complicated path, a combination of rotation and translation). Between the point of access and the point of exit the user walks between two moving panels. The door may be motorized or the user needs to push the front panel, and the space between two panels may be designed for multiple users or a single one. This door design is used primarily to maintain an air seal from the outside, thus minimizing leaking of climate controlled air from the building and the resulting expense of compensating for the loss. This type of door is also often seen as a mark of prestige and glamour for a building and it not unusual for neighbouring buildings to install their own revolving doors when a rival building gets one. Automatic doors open with little effort to its user. The user of a regular door would normally have to push or pull it open with their hands, but an automatic door senses its need to open by the activation of some sort of sensor by which it detects a person or machine waiting or approaching it to pass through its portals. Sensors for automatic doors are generally pressure sensors, light sensors or motion sensors. Heron of Alexandria created the first automatic door. Blast-proof doors, nuclear-blast proof doors, etc.

History

The earliest records are those represented in the paintings of the Egyptian tombs, in which they are shown as single or double doors, each in a single piece of wood. In Egypt, where the climate is intensely dry, there would be no fear of their warping, but in other countries it would be necessary to frame them, which according to Vitruvius (iv. 6.) was done with stiles (sea/si) and rails (impages): the spaces enclosed being filled with panels (tympana) let into grooves made in the stiles and rails. The stiles were the vertical boards, one of which, tenoned or hinged, is known as the hanging stile, the other as the middle or meeting stile. The horizontal cross pieces are the top rail, bottom rail, and middle or intermediate rails. The most ancient doors were in timber, those made for King Solomon's temple being in olive wood (I Kings vi. 31-35), which were carved and overlaid with gold. The doors dwelt upon in Homer would appear to have been cased in silver or brass. Besides Olive wood, elm, cedar, oak and cypress were used. All ancient doors were hung by pivots at the top and bottom of the hanging stile which worked in sockets in the lintel and cill, the latter being always in some hard stone such as basalt or granite. Those found at Nippur by Dr. Hilprecht, dating from 2000 B.C. were in dolorite. The tenons of the gates at Balawat were sheathed with bronze (now in the British Museum). These doors or gates were hung in two leaves, each about 8 ft.4 in. wide and 27 ft. high; they were encased with bronze bands or strips, 10 in. high, covered with repouss decoration of figures, etc. The wood doors would seem to have been about 3 in. thick, but the hanging stile was over 14 inches diameter. Other sheathings of various sizes in bronze have been found, which proves this to have been the universal method adopted to protect the wood pivots. In the Hauran in Syria, where timber is scarce the doors were made in stone, and one measuring 5 ft. 4 in. by 2 ft. 7 in. is in the British Museum; the band on the meeting stile shows that it was one of the leaves of a double door. At Kuffeir near Bostra in Syria, Burckhardt found stone doors, 9 to 10 ft. high, being the entrance doors of the town. In Etruria many stone doors are referred to by Dennis. The ancient Greek and Roman doors were either single doors , double doors or folding doors, in the last case the leaves were hinged and folded back. In Eumachia, is a painting of a door with three leaves. In the tomb of Theron at Agrigentum there is a single four-panel door carved in stone. In the Blundell collection is a bas-relief of a temple with double doors, each leaf with five panels. Among existing examples, the bronze doors in the church of SS. Cosmas and Damiano, in Rome, are important examples of Roman metal work of the best period; they are in two leaves, each with two panels, and are framed in bronze. Those of the Pantheon are similar in design, with narrow horizontal panels in addition, at the top, bottom and middle. Two other bronze doors of the Roman period are in the Lateran Basilica. The doors of the church of the Nativity at Bethlehem (6th century) are covered with plates of bronze, cut out in patterns: those of Sta Sophia at Constantinople, of the 8th and 9th century, are wrought in bronze, and the west doors of the cathedral of Aix-la-Chapelle (9th century), of similar manufacture, were probably brought from Constantinople, as also some of those in St. Marks, Venice. Of the 11th and 12th centuries there are numerous examples of bronze doors, the earliest being one at Hildesheim, Germany (1015). Of others in South Italy and Sicily, the following are the finest: in Sant Andrea, Amalfi (1060); Salerno (1099); Canosa (1111); Troja, two doors (1119 and 1124); Ravello (1179), by Barisano of Trani, who also made doors for Trani cathedral; and in Monreale and Pisa cathedrals, by Bonano of Pisa. In all these cases the hanging stile had pivots at the top and bottom. The exact period when the hinge was substituted is not quite known, but the change apparently brought about another method of strengthening and decorating doors, viz, with wrought-iron bands of infinite varieties of design. As a rule three bands from which the ornamental work springs constitute the hinges, which have rings outside the hanging stiles fitting on to vertical tenons run into the masonry or wooden frame. There is an early example of the 12th century in Lincoln; in France the metal work of the doors of Notre Dame at Paris is perhaps the most beautiful in execution, but examples are endless throughout France and England. Returning to Italy, the most celebrated doors are those of the Battistero di San Giovanni (Florence), which together with the door frames are all in bronze, the borders of the latter being perhaps the most remarkable: the modeling of the figures, birds and foliage of the south doorway, by Andrea Pisano (1330), and of the east doorway by Ghiberti (1425-1452), are of great beauty; in the north door (1402-1424) Ghiberti adopted the same scheme of design for the paneling and figure subjects in them as Andrea Pisano, but in the east door the rectangular panels are all filled, with bas-reliefs, in which Scripture subjects are illustrated with innumerable figures, these being probably the gates of Paradise of which Michelangelo speaks. The doors of the mosques in Cairo were of two kinds; those which, externally, were cased with sheets of bronze or iron, cut out in decorative patterns, and incised or inlaid, with bosses in relief; and those in wood, which were framed with interlaced designs of the square and diamond, this latter description of work being Coptic in its origin. The doors of the palace at Palermo, which were made by Saracenic workmen for the Normans, are fine examples and in good preservation. A somewhat similar decorative class of door to these latter is found in Verona, where the edges of the stiles and rails are beveled and notched. In the Renaissance period the Italian doors are quite simple, their architects trusting more to the doorways for effect; but in France and Germany the contrary is the case, the doors being elaborately carved, especially in the Louis XIV. and Louis XV. periods, and sometimes with architectural features such as columns and entablatures with pediment and niches, the doorway being in plain masonry. While in Italy the tendency was to give scale by increasing the number of panels, in France the contrary seems to have been the rule; and one of the great doors at Fontainebleau, which is in two leaves, is entirely carried out as if consisting of one great panel only. The earliest Renaissance doors in France are those of the cathedral of St. Sauveur at Aix (1503); in the lower panels there are figures 3 ft. high in Gothic niches, and in the upper panels a double range of niches with figures about 2 ft. high with canopies over them, all carved in cedar. The south door of Beauvais cathedral is in some respects the finest in France; the upper panels are carved in high relief with figure subjects and canopies over them. The doors of the church at Gisors (1575) are carved with figures in niches subdivided by classic pilasters superimposed. In St. Maclou at Rouen are three magnificently carved doors; those by Jean Goujon have figures in niches on each side, and others in a group of great beauty in the center. The other doors, probably about forty to fifty years later, are enriched with bas-reliefs, landscapes, figures and elaborate interlaced borders. In England in the 17th century the door panels were raised with bolection or projecting moldings, sometimes richly carved, round them; in the 18th century the moldings worked on the stiles and rails were carved with the egg and tongue ornament.
- The oldest door in England can be found in Westminster Abbey and dates from 1050. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/4743899.stm]

External links

Patents
- US[http://patft.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect2=PTO1&Sect2=HITOFF&p=1&u=%2Fnetahtml%2Fsearch-bool.html&r=1&f=G&l=50&d=PALL&S1=2724258.WKU.&OS=PN/2724258&RS=PN/2724258 2,724,258 ] -- Fire exit lock Category:Architectural elements Category:Doors ja:扉

House

:For other meanings of the word "house", see House (disambiguation). A house in its most general sense is a human-built dwelling with enclosing walls, a floor, and a roof. It provides shelter against precipitation, wind, heat, cold and intruding humans and animals. When occupied as a routine dwelling for humans, a house is called a home (though animals may often live in the house as well, both domestic pets and "unauthorised" animals such as mice living in the walls). People may be away from home most of the day for work and recreation, but typically are home at least for sleeping. A house generally has at least one entrance, usually in the form of a door or a portal,many houses have back doors that open into the back yard and may have any number of windows or none at all.

Types of house

window] :See also list of house types. There are three basic house types:
- houses standing on their own (detached houses)
- houses attached to one other house (semi-detached houses)
- houses attached to two other houses, possibly in a row (terraced (GB) or rowhouse (USA) houses). In Britain terraced or semi-detached houses are the most common type of accommodation, with 27% of all British people living in a terraced house and 32% in semi-detached houses (2002). In the USA in 2000, 61.4% of people lived in detached houses and 5.6% in semi-detached houses, the rest living in rowhouses or apartments, except 7% living in mobile homes. A treehouse is built in one or more trees; though its most common use is a fort or playhouse for children, this design is sometimes used as a house for adults.

Inside the house

adult.]] Houses consist of many specific designated rooms. Basic design consists of a living/eating area, a sleeping area, and (if indoor facilities are available) a washing/lavatory area. Often, in traditional agrarian societies, domestic animals such as chickens or larger livestock share part of the house with human beings. In the West, where plumbing is common and the standard of living fairly high, each house will at least contain a bedroom, bathroom, kitchen or kitchen area, and a living room. These rooms should be designed to meet the needs of the people who live in the house. This designing is known as interior design and it is a popular subject in universities. Feng shui, originally a Chinese method of situating houses according to such factors as sunlight and microclimates, has recently been expanded to include designing house interiors with the intention of giving harmonious effects to the people living inside the house.

Shelters

Forms of shelter simpler than a house include dugouts, yaodongs, tents (see also camp), campers, huts, roofs without walls, or a structure with roof and partial walls, such as often at a bus stop (see picture there), and a gazebo.

Construction

Popular modern house construction techniques include light-frame construction in areas with access to supplies of wood, and adobe or sometimes rammed-earth construction in arid regions with scarce wood resources. In some areas brick is used almost exclusively. Increasingly popular alternative construction methods include insulated concrete forms (foam forms filled with concrete), structural insulated panels (foam panels faced with oriented strand board or fiber cement), and light-gauge steel framing. These newer products provide labor savings, more consistent quality, and may accelerate the construction process. They are more consistently used than are the lesser used approaches described below. Lesser used construction methods which have recently gained (or regained) popularity in recent years. Examples of these are Cannabis hurd Cannabrick construction, cordwood construction, straw bale construction, and geodesic domes. These methods are not widely used and frequently are adopted by homeowners who may be actively involved in the construction process.

Animal houses

Humans often build houses for domestic or wild animals, often resembling smaller versions of human domiciles. Familiar animal houses built by humans include bird houses and dog houses, while domiciles for agricultural animals are more often called barns. However, human interest in building houses for animals does not stop at the domestic pet. People build bird houses, bat houses, nesting sites for wild ducks, and more.

Usage in language

As a verb, to house (pronounced "haʊz") is to provide a routine locale for an object, a person or an organization. Historic or artistic artifacts, for example, are said to be housed in museums. A business may be housed in a storefront, or a family may be housed in an apartment or a house. A collection of domiciles, either for persons, for organizations, for animals or for objects, is often called housing. An individual person or a single object might also find housing in an appropriate domicile. In English the word "house" on its own usually refers to a dwelling for one family, or for more than one family living together, sharing the house. In other languages the translation for "house" often covers other types of building such as tower blocks or commercial property: in German, for example, a "Haus" can also refer to a hotel or a block of flats. In English, the word "house" can be used in combination with other words to describe buildings other than residential dwellings, such as an opera house, a "monkey house" (a building for several cages) in a zoo, etc. A "madhouse" is a disparaging term for a mental hospital or insane asylum (also see House (disambiguation) for more.) The White House also has only a secondary use as a dwelling. A house is also called a home, but a house is not a home. Home has a more abstract and poetic meaning.

Heraldry

The house is an exceedingly rare charge in heraldry.

External link

- [http://y2u.co.uk/&002_Images/Downland_Museum%2001.htm Photos of rare houses at Singleton Wealdland and Downland Museum, Nr Chichester]
- [http://www.khov.com New Home Builder in North America]
- [http://www.pygmies.info/camps.html African Pygmies house] Category:Houses ja:家屋 simple:House

Garden

:The Garden can also refer to Madison Square Garden.

Madison Square Garden Madison Square Garden Madison Square Garden

A garden is a planned space, usually outdoors, set aside for the display, cultivation, and enjoyment of plants and other forms of nature. The garden can incorporate both natural and man-made materials. The most common form is known as a residential garden. Western gardens are almost universally based around plants. Zoos, which display wild animals in simulated natural habitats, were formerly called zoölogical gardens. Some traditional types of eastern gardens, such as Zen gardens, use plants sparsely or not at all. Food-producing gardens are distinguished from farms by their smaller scale, more labor-intensive methods, and their purpose (enjoyment of a hobby rather than produce for sale); this distinction is not always clear-cut, however. The gardening article discusses the differences and similarities between gardens and farms in greater detail. Gardening is the activity of growing and maintaining the garden. This work is done by an amateur or professional gardener. A gardener might also work in a non-garden setting, such as a park, a roadside embankment, or other public space. Landscape architecture is a related professional activity with landscape architects tending to specialise in design for public and corporate clients.

Relating to the garden

A garden can have many purposes— aesthetic, functional, and recreational. People develop a relationship with the space. That relationship can take many forms; among these are:
- Cooperation with nature
- Plant cultivation
- Observance of nature
- Bird- and insect-watching
- Reflection on the changing seasons
- Relaxation
- Family dinners on the terrace
- Children playing in the yard
- Reading and relaxing in the hammock
- Maintaining the flowerbeds
- Pottering in the shed
- Basking in warm sunshine
- Growing useful produce
- Flowers to cut and bring inside for indoor beauty
- Fresh herbs and vegetables for cooking

Other similar spaces

Other outdoor spaces that are similar to gardens include:
- A landscape is an outdoor natural space of a larger scale, often considered from a distance.
- A park is a planned outdoor space, usually of a larger size, often for public use.
- An arboretum is a planned outdoor space, usually large, for the display and study of trees.
- A farm or orchard is for the production of food stuff.
- A botanical garden is a type of garden where a wide variety of plants are grown both for scientific purposes and for the enjoyment and education of visitors.
- A zoological garden, or zoo for short, is a place where wild animals are cared for and exhibited to the public.

Garden planning and design

Garden planning and garden design may be undertaken by a professional. A landscape architect is a trained, certified and registered professional who can plan and realise outdoor spaces. A garden designer is usually trained to plan and realise residential gardens. The planner must give consideration to many factors:
- Purpose
- Existing conditions
- Financial constraints
- Maintenance implications

Elements of a garden

garden designer garden designer] garden designer temple]] garden designer]

The elements of a garden consist of natural conditions and materials, as well as man-made elements: Natural conditions and materials:
- Soil
- Rocks
- Light conditions
- Wind
- Precipitation
- Air quality
- Pollution
- Proximity to ocean (salinity)
- Plant materials Man-made elements:
- Terrace, patio, deck
- Paths
- Lighting
- Raised beds
- Outdoor art/sculpture, such as Gazebos
- Pool, water garden, or other water elements

Types of gardens

Gardens may feature a particular plant or plant type:
- Cactus garden
- Fernery
- Herb garden
- Lawn
- Orchard
- Rose garden
- White garden
- Wildflower garden Gardens may feature a particular style or aesthetic:
- Alpine or rock garden
- Bonsai or miniature garden
- Chinese garden
- Cottage garden
- Tropical garden
- Formal garden
- Geometric garden
- Informal garden
- Japanese garden
- Zen garden
- Naturalistic garden
- Water garden
- Wild garden Gardens may function in a particular manner:
- Botanical garden
- Community garden
- Forest garden
- Raised bed gardening
- Residential garden
- Roof garden
- Vertical garden
- Water or soil-less gardening (hydroponics)
- Walled garden
- Windowbox
- Zoological garden

History of gardens

See history of gardens page.

Gardens in literature

- The Garden of Eden
- Romance of the Rose
- Nathaniel Hawthorne's short-story "Rappaccini's Daughter"
- Frances Hodgson Burnett's The Secret Garden
- Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil
- Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's opera La Finta Giardiniera

External Links

- [http://www.gardenvisit.com/garden_history/garden_types/garden-types.htm Classification of garden types] Category:Gardening ja:庭園

Balcony

. The balcony is supported on console brackets.]] Balcony (from Italian balcone, scaffold; cf. High German balcho, beam, balk), a kind of platform projecting from the wall of a building, supported by columns or console brackets, and enclosed with a balustrade. Alternatively it does not protrude out of the building, but is an open part of an upper floor, with a balustrade only at the front, and walls on the sides. Russia, with balconies on the right. Usually a door provides access to a balcony. Sometimes balconies are adapted for ceremonial purposes, e.g. that of St. Peter's cathedral at Rome, whence the newly elected pope gives his blessing urbi et orbi. Inside churches balconies are sometimes provided for the singers, and in banqueting halls and the like for the musicians. In theatres the balcony was formerly a stage-box, but the name is now usually confined to the part of the auditorium above the dress circle and below the gallery. A simulated balcony is commonly termed a Juliette balcony in Australia and Canada. The term is spreading, particularly where new apartments are being built in urban locations, often with waterside aspects where external views feature strongly in their marketing. A Juliette balcony is a balustrade, usually of open metalwork, guarding an exterior door (normally serving an upper floor of a building) that may from afar look like a usable balcony but provides a negligible area beyond the main building envelope. It may be detailed to match genuine balconies in the same facade. Category:Architectural elements th:เฉลียง

Apartment

An apartment (or flat in Britain and other Commonwealth countries) is a self-contained housing unit that occupies only part of a building. Apartments may be owned (by an owner-occupier) or rented (by tenants). Some apartment-dwellers own their apartments, either as co-ops, in which the residents own shares of a corporation that owns the building or development; or in condominiums, whose residents own their apartments and share ownership of the public spaces. Most apartments are in buildings designed for the purpose, but large older houses are sometimes divided into apartments. The word apartment connotes a residential unit or section in a building. Apartment building owners, lessors, or managers often use the more general word units to refer to apartments. Units can be used to refer to rental business suites as well as residential apartments. When there is no tenant occupying an apartment, the lessor is said to have a vacancy. For apartment lessors, each vacancy represents a loss of income from rent-paying tenants for the time the apartment is vacant (i. e., unoccupied). Lessors' objectives are often to minimize the vacancy rate for their units. The owner of the apartment typically transfers possession to the occupant(s) by giving him/her the key to the apartment entrance door(s) and any other keys need to live there, such as a common key to the building or any other common areas, and an individual unit mailbox key. When the occupant(s) move out, these keys should typically be returned to the owner.

Apartment types and characteristics

Apartments can be classified into several types. Studio or efficiency apartments tend to be the smallest apartments with the cheapest rents in a given area. These kinds of apartment usually consist mainly of a large room which is the living, dining, and bedroom combined. There are usually kitchen facilities as part of this central room, but the bathroom is its own smaller separate room. Moving up from the efficiencies are one-bedroom apartments where one bedroom is a separate room from the rest of the apartment. Then there are two-bedroom, three-bedroom, etc. apartments. Small apartments often have only one entrance/exit. Large apartments often have two entrances/exits, perhaps a door in the front and another in the back. Depending on the building design, the entrance/exit doors may be directly to the outside or to a common area inside, such as a hallway. Depending on location, apartments may be available for rent furnished with furniture or unfurnished into which a tenant usually moves in with his own furniture. Permanent carpeting is often included in an apartment. Laundry facilities are usually kept in a separate area accessible to all the tenants in the building. Depending on when the building was built and the design of the building, utilities such as water, heating, and electric may be common for all the apartments in the building or separate for each apartment and billed separately to each tenant. Outlets for connection to telephones are typically included in apartments. Telephone service is optional and is practically always billed separately from the rent payments. Cable television and similar amenities are extra also. Parking space(s), air conditioner, and extra storage space may or may not be included with an apartment. Rental leases often limit the maximum number of people who can reside in each apartment. On or around the ground floor of the apartment building, a series of mailboxes are typically kept in a location accessible to the public and, thus, to the mailman too. Every unit typically gets its own mailbox with individual keys to it. Some very large apartment buildings with a full-time staff may take mail from the mailman and provide mail-sorting service. Near the mailboxes or some other location accessible by outsiders, there may be a buzzer (equivalent to a doorbell) for each individual unit. In smaller apartment buildings such as two- or three-flats, or even four-flats, garbage is often disposed of in trash containers similar to those used at houses. In larger buildings, garbage is often collected in a common trash bin or dumpster. For cleanliness or minimizing noise, many lessors will place restrictions on tenants regarding keeping pets in an apartment. In some parts of the world, the word apartment is used generally to refer to a new purpose-built self-contained residential unit in a building, whereas the word flat means a converted self-contained unit in an older building. An industrial, warehouse, or commercial space converted to an apartment is commonly called a loft. When part of a house is converted for the ostensible use of a landlord's family member, the unit may be known as an in-law apartment or granny flat, though these (sometimes illegally) created units are often occupied by ordinary renters rather than family members. Staying in privately owned apartments rather than in a hotel is quickly becoming popular with travellers.

Cupboard

A cupboard is a type of cabinet, often made of wood, used indoors to store household objects such as food and crockery. A cupboard specialized for the storage of guns is an armoire, though the word armoire today typically refers to any tall standalone cabinet and a cabinet for holding guns would simply be a gun cabinet. As the name suggests, this piece of furniture was originally a simple board or table on which to place cups - recorded use of such a name dates back to at least the Middle Ages. For the last few centuries, "cupboard" has referred to a storage area enclosed by doors. The storage of foodstuffs in cupboards was a major advance in public health as it protected foods from insects and vermin. Furthermore, in hot countries the temperature inside a cupboard is likely to be cooler than outside. This, and the dark interior, will preserve food longer than if it were stored outside. Category:furniture ja:食器棚

Door furniture

Door furniture refers to any of the items that are attached to a door or a drawer to enhance its functionality or appearance. It is named by analogy to street furniture. Design of door furniture is an issue to disabled persons who might have difficulty opening or using some kinds of door, and to specialists in Interior design as well as those Interior design.]]usability professionals which often take their didactic examples from door furniture design and use. Items of door furniture include:
- fingerplate
- keyhole
- lock
- doorknob (or doorhandle)
- door knocker
- thumb latch
- hinge
- pull handle
- letter plate (or letter box)
- door stop
- escutcheon
- bell push
- toilet roll holder

Door furniture in literature

With the exception of keyhole, explicit references to door furniture appear to be rare in English literature but include the following:
- One of the letters was directed to Samuel F. Billington, No. 7, The Crescent, Whitby, another to Herr Leutner, Varna. The third was to Coutts & Co., London, and the fourth to Herren Klopstock & Billreuth, bankers, Buda Pesth. The second and fourth were unsealed. I was just about to look at them when I saw the door handle move. I sank back in my seat, having just had time to resume my book before the Count, holding still another letter in his hand, entered the room. (Count Dracula, Bram Stoker, May 12).
- Then she swept toward the door with her empress air, the rather shabby, dark dress making a swirl behind her; and as she got there she turned and spoke again, with her hand on the bronze tracery of the fingerplate, making, unconsciously, a highly dramatic picture, as a sudden last ray of the sinking sun shot out and struck the glory of her hair, turning it to flame above her brow (The Reason Why, Elinor Glyn).
- But Hodder was thinking of that house whither they were bound with a new gratitude, a new wonder that it should exist. Thus they came to the sheltered vestibule with its glistening white paint, its polished name plate and doorknob (The inside of the cup, Winston Churchill). category:door furniture

Doorhandle

A doorknob is a popular type of handle used for opening and closing a door. In its simplest form, a doorknob provides only a place to grab so that the door may be pulled toward oneself. On most modern doors, however, doorknobs can be turned to operate a latching mechanism, which normally holds the door closed. A doorknob may also have a lock built in, though in some cases it is beneficial for the lock to be separate. Doorknobs can be difficult for the young and elderly to operate. If a person lacks a firm grip a doorknob must sometimes be operated using two hands. For this reason doors in most commercial and industrial buildings and in many households now use an operating lever, rather than a doorknob, as the lever does not require a firm grip. Levers are also beneficial on doors with narrow stile widths where the reduced backset leaves insufficient space to comfortably turn a doorknob. Most household doorknobs use a simple mechanism with a screw-style axle (also called a spindle) with two flat ends, to be threaded through the door latch, and two knob sides. Knobs are attached on both sides by screwing them directly onto the axle, and then securing one or more retaining screws on the side of the knob's axle. Doorknobs that lose traction can frequently be repaired by replacing the screw, which prevents them from slipping on the axle. The location of the doorknob on the door may vary between a few centimeters away from the door frame to the exact center of the door, depending on local culture or owner preference. The distance from the edge of the door to the center of the doorknob is called a backset.

Doorknobs in popular culture

In the TV series Bewitched, Aunt Clara had a very impressive collection of doorknobs. She referred to an unusual glass doorknob in her collection as the doorknob equivalent of the Hope Diamond.

External links

- [http://www.copper.org/health/papers/doorknob.html Relative merits of copper and brass compared to stainless steel in microorganism hosting in hospital settings. (Copper industry site.)] category:door furniture

Doorknob

Doorknobs in popular culture

In the TV series Bewitched, Aunt Clara had a very impressive collection of doorknobs. She referred to an unusual glass doorknob in her collection as the doorknob equivalent of the Hope Diamond.

External links

Animal

:For the Muppet Show character, see Animal (Muppet). For the professional wrestler, see Joseph Laurinaitis.

- Porifera (sponges)
- Ctenophora (comb jellies)
- Cnidaria (coral, jellyfish, anenomes)
- Placozoa (trichoplax)
- Subregnum Bilateria (bilateral symmetry)
- Acoelomorpha (basal)
- Orthonectida (flatworms, echinoderms, etc.)
- Rhombozoa (dicyemids)
- Myxozoa (slime animals)
- Superphylum Deuterostomia (blastopore becomes anus)
- Chordata (vertebrates, etc.)
- Hemichordata (acorn worms)
- Echinodermata (starfish, urchins)
- Chaetognatha (arrow worms)
- Superphylum Ecdysozoa (shed exoskeleton)
- Kinorhyncha (mud dragons)
- Loricifera
- Priapulida (priapulid worms)
- Nematoda (roundworms)
- Nematomorpha (horsehair worms)
- Onychophora (velvet worms)
- Tardigrada (water bears)
- Arthropoda (insects, etc.)
- Superphylum Platyzoa
- Platyhelminthes (flatworms)
- Gastrotricha (gastrotrichs)
- Rotifera (rotifers)
- Acanthocephala (acanthocephalans)
- Gnathostomulida (jaw worms)
- Micrognathozoa (limnognathia)
- Cycliophora (pandora)
- Superphylum Lophotrochozoa (trochophore larvae / lophophores)
- Sipuncula (peanut worms)
- Nemertea (ribbon worms)
- Phoronida (horseshoe worms)
- Ectoprocta (moss animals)
- Entoprocta (goblet worms)
- Brachiopoda (brachipods)
- Mollusca (mollusks)
- Annelida (segmented worms) Animals are a major group of organisms, classified as the kingdom Animalia or Metazoa. In general they are multicellular, capable of locomotion and responsive to their environment, and feed by consuming other organisms. Their body plan becomes fixed as they develop, usually early on in their development as embryos, although some undergo a process of metamorphosis later on. Along with sponges, gastropods, emus, dolphins and all other animals, Homo sapiens sapiens meet all the criteria above for membership in the group of organisms known as animals and they do not meet the criteria of the other groups. Some humans often consider themselves separate from animals, not on the grounds of biology, but through the use of "other contexts". Whilst self-delusion may be a unique characteristic of the human species it is not cause for exclusion from the Kingdom Animalia. The name animal comes from the Latin word animal, of which animalia is the plural, and ultimately from anima, meaning vital breath or soul.

Characteristics

Aristotle divided the living world between animals and plants, and this was followed by Carolus Linnaeus in the first hierarchical classification. Since then biologists have begun emphasizing evolutionary relationships, and so these groups have been restricted somewhat. For instance, microscopic protozoa were originally considered animals because they move, but are now treated separately. Kingdom Animalia has several characteristics that set it apart from other living things. First, animals are eukaryotic. This separates them from the Kingdom Monera. Second, animals are multicellular, which separates them from Kingdom Protista. Third, they are heterotrophic, setting them apart from Kingdom Plantae and several plant-like protists. Finally, Kingdom Animalia consists of organisms without cell walls, which makes it unique compared to Kingdom Plantae, algae, and Kingdom Fungi.

Structure

With a few exceptions, most notably the sponges (Phylum Porifera), animals have bodies differentiated into separate tissues. These include muscles, which are able to contract and control locomotion, and a nervous system, which sends and processes signals. There is also typically an internal digestive chamber, with one or two openings. Animals with this sort of organization are called metazoans, or eumetazoans when the former is used for animals in general. All animals have eukaryotic cells, surrounded by a characteristic extracellular matrix composed of collagen and elastic glycoproteins. This may be calcified to form structures like shells, bones, and spicules. During development it forms a relatively flexible framework upon which cells can move about and be reorganized, making complex structures possible. In contrast, other multicellular organisms like plants and fungi have cells held in place by cell walls, so develop by progressive growth. Also, unique to animal cells are the following intercellular junctions: tight junctions, gap junctions, and desmosomes.

Reproduction and development

Nearly all animals undergo some form of sexual reproduction. Adults are diploid or occasionally polyploid. They have a few specialized reproductive cells, which undergo meiosis to produce smaller motile spermatozoa or larger non-motile ova. These fuse to form zygotes, which develop into new individuals. Many animals are also capable of asexual reproduction. This may take place through parthenogenesis, where fertile eggs are produced without mating, or in some cases through fragmentation. A zygote initially develops into a hollow sphere, called a blastula, which undergoes rearrangement and differentiation. In sponges, blastula larvae swim to a new location and develop into a new sponge. In most other groups, the blastula undergoes more complicated rearrangement. It first invaginates to form a gastrula with a digestive chamber, and two separate germ layers - an external ectoderm and an internal endoderm. In most cases, a mesoderm also develops between them. These germ layers then differentiate to form tissues and organs. Animals grow by indirectly using the energy of sunlight. Plants use this energy to turn air into simple sugars using a process known as photosynthesis. These sugars are then used as the building blocks which allow the plant to grow. When animals eat these plants (or eat other animals which have eaten plants), the sugars produced by the plant are used by the animal. They are either used directly to help the animal grow, or broken down, releasing stored solar energy, and giving the animal the energy required for motion. This process is known as glycolysis.

Origin and fossil record

Animals are generally considered to have evolved from flagellate protozoa. Their closest living relatives are the choanoflagellates, collared flagellates that have the same structure as certain sponge cells do. Molecular studies place them in a supergroup called the opisthokonts, which also include the fungi and a few small parasitic protists. The name comes from the posterior location of the flagellum in motile cells, such as most animal sperm, whereas other eukaryotes tend to have anterior flagella. The first fossils that might represent animals appear towards the end of the Precambrian, around 600 million years ago, and are known as the Vendian biota. These are difficult to relate to later fossils, however. Some may represent precursors of modern phyla, but they may be separate groups, and it is possible they are not really animals at all. Aside from them, most animal phyla with known phyla make a more or less simultaneous appearance during the Cambrian period, about 570 million years ago. It is still disputed whether this event, called the Cambrian explosion, represents a rapid divergence between different groups or a change in conditions that made fossilization possible.

Groups of animals

The sponges (Porifera) diverged from other animals early. As mentioned, they lack the complex organization found in most other phyla. Their cells are differentiated, but not organized into distinct tissues. Sponges are sessile and typically feed by drawing in water through pores all over the body, which is supported by a skeleton typically divided into spicules. The extinct Archaeocyatha, which have fused skeletons, may represent sponges or a separate phylum. Among the eumetazoan phyla, two are radially symmetric and have digestive chambers with a single opening, which serves as both the mouth and the anus. These are the Cnidaria, which include anemones, corals, and jellyfish, and the Ctenophora or comb jellies. Both have distinct tissues, but they are not organized into organs. There are only two main germ layers, the ectoderm and endoderm, with only scattered cells between them. As such, these animals are sometimes called diploblastic. The tiny phylum Placozoa is similar, but individuals do not have a permanent digestive chamber. The remaining animals form a monophyletic group called the Bilateria. For the most part, they are bilaterally symmetric, and often have a specialized head with feeding and sensory organs. The body is triploblastic, i.e. all three germ layers are well-developed, and tissues form distinct organs. The digestive chamber has two openings, a mouth and an anus, and there is also an internal body cavity called a coelom or pseudocoelom. There are exceptions to each of these characteristics, however - for instance adult echinoderms are radially symmetric, and certain parasitic worms have extremely simplified body structures. Genetic studies have considerably changed our understanding of the relationships within the Bilateria. Most appear to belong to four major lineages: # Deuterostomes # Ecdysozoa # Platyzoa # Lophotrochozoa In addition to these, there are a few small groups of bilaterians with relatively similar structure that appear to have diverged before these major groups. These include the Acoelomorpha, Rhombozoa, and Orthonectida. The Myxozoa, single-celled parasites that were originally considered Protozoa, are now believed to have developed from the Bilateria as well.

Deuterostomes

Deuterostomes differ from the other Bilateria, called protostomes, in several ways. In both cases there is a complete digestive tract. However, in protostomes the initial opening (the archenteron) develops into the mouth, and an anus forms separately. In deuterostomes this is reversed. In most protostomes cells simply fill in the interior of the gastrula to form the mesoderm, called schizocoelous development, but in deuterostomes it forms through evagination of the endoderm, called enterocoelic pouching. Deuterostomes also have a dorsal, rather than a ventral, nerve chord and their embryos undergo different cleavage. All this suggests the deuterostomes and protostomes are separate, monophyletic lineages. The main phyla of deuterostomes are the Echinodermata and Chordata. The former are radially symmetric and exclusively marine, such as sea stars, sea urchins, and sea cucumbers. The latter are dominated by the vertebrates, animals with backbones. These include fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals. In addition to these, the deuterostomes also include the Hemichordata or acorn worms. Although they are not especially prominent today, the important fossil graptolites may belong to this group. The Chaetognatha or arrow worms may also be deuterostomes, but this is less certain.

Ecdysozoa

The Ecdysozoa are protostomes, named after the common trait of growth by moulting or ecdysis. The largest animal phylum belongs here, the Arthropoda, including insects, spiders, crabs, and their kin. All these organisms have a body divided into repeating segments, typically with paired appendages. Two smaller phyla, the Onychophora and Tardigrada, are close relatives of the arthropods and share these traits. The ecdysozoans also include the Nematoda or roundworms, the second largest animal phylum. Roundworms are typically microscopic, and occur in nearly every environment where there is water. A number are important parasites. Smaller phyla related to them are the Nematomorpha or horsehair worms, which are visible to the unaided eye, and the Kinorhyncha, Priapulida, and Loricifera, which are all microscopic. These groups have a reduced coelom, called a pseudocoelom. The remaining two groups of protostomes are sometimes grouped together as the Spiralia, since in both embryos develop with spiral cleavage.

Platyzoa

The Platyzoa include the phylum Platyhelminthes, the flatworms. These were originally considered some of the most primitive Bilateria, but it now appears they developed from more complex ancestors. A number of parasites are included in this group, such as the flukes and tapeworms. Flatworms lack a coelom, as do their closest relatives, the microscopic Gastrotricha. The other platyzoan phyla are microscopic and pseudocoelomate. The most prominent are the Rotifera or rotifers, which are common in aqueous environments. They also include the Acanthocephala or spiny-headed worms, the Gnathostomulida, Micrognathozoa, and possibly the Cycliophora. These groups share the presence of complex jaws, from which they are called the Gnathifera.

Lophotrochozoa

The Lophotrochozoa include two of the most successful animal phyla, the Mollusca and Annelida. The former includes animals such as snails, clams, and squids, and the latter comprises the segmented worms, such as earthworms and leeches. These two groups have long been considered close relatives because of the common presence of trochophore larvae, but the annelids were considered closer to the arthropods, because they are both segmented. Now this is generally considered convergent evolution, owing to many morphological and genetic differences between the two phyla. The Lophotrochozoa also include the Nemertea or ribbon worms, the Sipuncula, and several phyla that have a fan of cilia around the mouth, called a lophophore. These were traditionally grouped together as the lophophorates, but it now appears they are paraphyletic, some closer to the Nemertea and some to the Mollusca and Annelida. They include the Brachiopoda or lamp shells, which are prominent in the fossil record, the Entoprocta, the Phoronida, and possibly the Ectoprocta or moss animals.

History of classification

In Linnaeus' original scheme, the animals were one of three kingdoms, divided into the classes of Vermes, Insecta, Pisces, Amphibia, Aves, and Mammalia. Since then the last four have all been subsumed into a single phylum, the Chordata, whereas the various other forms have been separated out. The above lists represent our current understanding of the group, though there is some variation from source to source.

Usage of the word animal

In everyday usage animal refers to any member of the animal kingdom that is not a human being, and sometimes excludes insects (although including such arthropods as crabs). This confusion stems primarily from the familiarity with zoo animals, farm animals and pets, not from an analytical distinction between insects, humans and the rest of the animal kingdom.

Examples

Some well-known types of animals, listed by their common names:
- alpaca, ant, antelope, badger, bat, bear, bee, beetle, bird, bison, butterfly, cat, chicken, cockroach, coral, cow, deer, dinosaur, dog, dolphin, earthworm, elephant, elk, fish, fly, fox, frog, giraffe, goat, gorilla, hippopotamus, horse, human, iguana, jellyfish, kangaroo, lion, lizard, llama, lynx, monkey, mouse, nightingale, octopus, owl, ox, parrot, penguin, pig, quail, rabbit, rat, rhinoceros, salamander, scorpion, seahorse, shark, sheep, sloth, snake, spider, squid, starfish, tiger, turtle, urial, vole, whale, wolf, yak, zebra

References

External links

- [http://www.animool.com/animals/index.jsp Animals Search Engine]
- [http://www.wikianimals.com wikianimals.com] - Documenting the animal kingdom
- [http://tolweb.org/tree?group=Animals&contgroup=Eukaryotes Tree of Life]
- [http://www.arkive.org A Multimedia Database of Various UK or Endangered Species]
- [http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~wakefield/animals.html Animals and Birds Names] - Large table of words: animal, collective, male, female, young, & home
- [http://www273.pair.com/med/words/animal_adjectives.htm English Animal Adjectives]
- [http://www.georgetown.edu/faculty/ballc/animals/animals.html Sounds of the World's Animals] - animal sounds in many languages
- [http://www.findsounds.com/ FindSounds - Search the Web for Sounds] - sound files including animal sound files
- [http://www.australianfauna.com/ Australian Animals]
- [http://www.animalreviews.com AnimalReviews] - animals reviewed and evaluated
- [http://animals.timduru.org/ The animal photo archive] - Photos of animals
- [http://www.wildlife-photo.org Photo gallery of animals pictures from the entire world.]
- [http://www.wildlife-photo.org/birds_list.htm Birds Name Check List in Latin, English, Russian and Hebrew.]
- [http://www.wildanimalsonline.com Wild Animals Online] - an online encyclopedia of wild animals - facts, photos Category:Animals zh-min-nan:Tōng-bu̍t ko:동물 ms:Haiwan ja:動物 simple:Animal th:สัตว์

Emergency Exit

Emergency Exit, by Manlio Santanelli, is a play written originally in Italian.

Synopsis

A ferocious and funny play set in an earthquake zone. Described by Eugene Ionesco as "Extraordinary, intended for audiences who hunger for the rare and the beautiful."

Summary

The action of Emergency Exit, a two-act play by Manlio Santanelli, takes place in a place where there should be no action. Two squatters in an abandoned house in Naples wage psychological war on one another as the house, shaken by earthquakes, teeters on the brink of collapse.

Reviews

"Extraordinary, intended for audiences who hunger for the rare and the beautiful." ~ Eugene Ionesco

Editions

- Translated from Italian by Anthony Molino, with Jane House. Grand Terrace, California: Xenos Books. ISBN 1-879378-40-X (paper), xiii + 119 p. [With cover art by Harvey Fry.] Category:Italian plays

Seeing

The word seeing can mean more than one thing:
- In common usage, the word means visual perception
- In astronomy, seeing is a technical term related to the blurring effects of air turbulence in the atmosphere
- In the occult seeing refers to "the sight" or the ability to see auras or to predict the future
- (someone) being in a romantic relationship

Hearing (sense)

Hearing, or audition, is one of the traditional five senses, and refers to the ability to detect sound. There is a common misconception that listening and hearing are the same thing. Hearing is an involuntary process of sound waves striking the ear drum. Hearing requires no effort. Listening, however, is purely voluntary and it requires effort. Listening requires one to: 1) Attend - hear and pay attention to the signal 2) Understand - make sense of the message 3) Respond - give feedback to the speaker 4) Remember In human beings, hearing is performed by the ears, which also perform the function of balance, a sense in itself but not one of the traditional list (due to Aristotle). This is in common with most mammals. Many other organisms also have some form of hearing, either by some sort of ear, or by other structures, or by a combination. A common rule of thumb used to describe human hearing is that human hearing is sensitive in the range of frequency of 20 Hz to 20 kHz, though this varies significantly with age, occupational hearing damage, and gender; some individuals are able to hear up to 22 kHz and perhaps beyond, while others are limited to about 16 kHz. Frequencies capable of being heard by humans are called audio or referred to as sonic. Frequencies higher than audio are referred to as ultrasonic, while frequencies below audio are referred to as infrasonic. Some organisms are able to hear ultrasound and/or infrasound. Some bats use ultrasound for echo location while in flight. Dogs are able to hear ultrasound, which is the principle of 'silent' dog whistles. Snakes sense infrasound through their bellies, and there is evidence that whales and elephants may use it for communication. See sound for hearing ranges of various organisms. The hearing can be tested using a device or computer program called audiometer. One should bear in mind that, as Arthur Reber says, 'Explaining hearing adequately has proven a singularly difficult task. One would almost ensure oneself a Nobel prize by presenting a theory explaining satisfactorily no more than the perception of pitch and loudness.' (A. S. & E. S. Reber, The Penguin Dictionary of Psychology (3rd Edn., 2001))

Localization of Sound

Humans can hear the direction of the source of a sound, sometimes with surprising accuracy. Two mechanisms are known to be used.
- The nervous system can resolve time differences as small as the time it takes sound to pass one ear and reach the other.
- For high frequencies, frequencies with a wavelength shorter than the listener's head, more sound reaches the nearer ear. Neither of these mechanisms work as well in water, in which the speed of sound is faster than in air. The arrival time of a sound to a particular ear is given greater weight when localizing than relative intensity, according to an observation known as the Law of the First Wavefront.

From the Ear to the Primary Auditory Cortex

Axons of the vestibulocochlear nerve (auditory nerve) synapse in the cochlear nucleus of the same side. Projections lead from the cochlear nuclei to the superior olives, and the olivary nuclei continue on passing through the lateral lemniscus towards the inferior colliculi, where they synapse again on neurons that project to the medial geniculate nuclei of the thalamus, which in turn projects toward the primary auditory cortex. This Primary Auditory Cortex is located slightly below the lateral fissure between the frontal and the temporal lobes.

External links

- [http://www.sensaura.co.uk/whitepapers/index.php Sensaura white papers] on human hearing and emulating hearing in 3D
- [http://www.med.uwo.ca/physiology/courses/sensesweb/L9Auditory/L9Auditory.swf flash demonstration on hearing] (664 KB)
- [http://communication-skills-4confidence.com/listening-skills.html Listening Skills] How to develop listening skills. Category:Sound ja:聴覚

Revolving door

A revolving door is a type of door that, as its name suggests, revolves in its frame. Most kinds of doors are bolted to the wall and are on hinges. They open only one way, for a theoretical maximum of 180 degrees rotation. Sometimes hinge-doors can open both ways in their frames, for a theoretical maximum of 360 degrees rotation. A revolving door, however, has a theoretical rotation maximum of infinity, as it is set on a rotating shaft. rotation Around the shaft are several doors that are bolted to it and incapable of independent movement. The usual number of doors on a revolving door is four, although the number may be higher or lower. The doors may be electric (in which case there is a motor at the base of the shaft) or manual, in which case the doors have handle bars on them. When you push on the handlebar of the door in front of you, the entire shaft will rotate around. Often there is a partial wall around the circumference of the revolving door with only openings sized to match an individual section of the revolving door. In this configuration, the revolving door prevents a direct path between the interior and exterior. This can be used as a partial airlock to minimize heat loss from the building. This can also be used as a security measure to allow only a single person through the revolving door at a time. This is in contrast to a normal door which suffers from easy "tailgating" by a second person when the door is opened for the authorized person. Another recent security application of the revolving door is the now-common usage in airports to prevent one from bypassing airport security checkpoints by entering the exit. Such doors are designed with a brake that is activated by a sensor should someone enter from the incorrect side. The door will also revolve backwards to permit the person to exit, while also notifying security of the attempt.

History

H. Bockhacker of Berlin was granted German patent DE18349 on December 22, 1881 for "Thür ohne Luftzug" or "Door without draft of air". Theophilus Van Kannel, of Philadelphia, was granted US patent 387,571 on August 7, 1888 for a "Storm-Door Structure". The patent drawings filed show a three partition revolving door. The patent describes it as having "three radiating and equidistant wings . . . provided with weather-strips or equivalent means to insure a snug fit". The door "possesses numerous advantages over a hinged-door structure . . .it is perfectly noiseless . . . effectually prevents the entrance of wind, snow, rain or dust . . ." "Moreover, the door cannot be blown open by the wind . . . there is no possibility of collision, and yet persons can pass both in and out at the same time." The patent further lists, "the excluding of noises of the street" as another advantage of the revolving door. It goes on to describe how a partition can be hinged so as to open to allow the passage of long objects through the revolving door. The patent itself does not use the term "revolving door". "In 1889, the Franklin Institute of Philadelphia (the original home of the revolving door) awarded the "John Scott Legacy Medal" to Van Kannel for his contribution to society."[http://www.internationalrevolvingdoors.com/History.html] "In 1899, the world’s first revolving door was installed at Rector’s, a restaurant on Times Square in Manhattan, located on Broadway between West 43rd and 44th Streets."[http://www.newsday.com/features/custom/ithappened/newyork/ny-ihiny061504story,0,7435899.htmlstory?coll=4thrail-bottom-promo]

Metaphorical use

Metaphorically, a revolving door is an instance of the easy movement of individuals from one position or situation to another. For example, from government-related jobs to lobbying jobs and vice versa, resulting in a conflict of interest for those chosen to represent the public and/or special priveleges and benefits to former government officials and personnel. A similar metaphor in the Japanese language is Amakudari, but it refers only to former government employees joining companies they were once supervising.

References

- Alan Beadmore, The Revolving Door since 1881: Architecture in Detail, 2000, ISBN 9090137432
- Harvey E. Van Kannel and Joanne Fox Marshall, T. Van Kannel, the inventor : his autobiography and journal, 1988, Library of Congress control number 88091258

External links

- http://www.lobbyinginfo.org/ Category: Architectural elements Category:Doors

Privacy

Privacy is the ability of an individual or group to stop information about themselves from becoming known to people other than those they choose to give the information to. Privacy is sometimes related to anonymity although it is often most highly valued by people who are publicly known. Privacy can be seen as an aspect of security—one in which trade-offs between the interests of one group and another can become particularly clear. The right against unsanctioned intrusion of privacy by the government, corporations or individuals is part of many countries' laws, and in some cases, constitutions (see privacy laws). Almost all countries have laws which in some way limit privacy, for example taxation normally requires passing on information about earnings. In some countries individual privacy may conflict with freedom of speech laws and some laws may require public disclosure of information which would be considered private in other countries and cultures. Privacy may be voluntarily sacrificed, normally in exchange for perceived benefits, but often with little benefit and very often with specific dangers and losses. An example of voluntary sacrifice is entering a competition; a person gives personal details (often for advertising purposes), so they have a chance of winning a prize. Another example is where information voluntarily shared is later stolen or misused such as in identity theft.

Privacy and security trade offs

Privacy is one of the areas of security with trade-offs. For the collection of taxes it is in the interests of government if your earnings and income are well known. On the other hand, that same information may be used to select you or your family as a good target for kidnapping or to identify the kidnapper so that they cannot plan any kidnappings. In these narrow terms, one group's interest is to keep the information private whilst the other group's interest is to obtain that information. In most countries this risk is reduced, but not eliminated, by limiting the number of people with access to taxation information. On the other hand, in some countries, mostly places with a low risk of kidnapping such as Finland, such information is directly accesible to anyone who wishes it. Privacy can also have free speech ramifications. In some countries privacy has been used as a tool to supress free speech. Free speech and privacy is another area with trade-offs. In various cases the US Supreme Court has ruled that the first amendment trumps privacy. In Bartnicki v. Vopper, 532 U.S. 514 (2001) Docket Number: 99-1687, US Supreme Court ruled 6-3 that someone cannot be held liable in court for publishing or broadcasting intercepted contents of telephone calls or other electronic communications. The protection extends even when the publisher or broadcaster knows that someone else illegally intercepted the communication to obtain the information, as long as that information is of public concern. Census data is another area where such trade-offs become apparent. Accurate data is useful for planning future services (whether commercial or public sector), on the other hand, almost all censuses are released only in a way which does not allow identification of specific individuals. Often this is done by randomly altering the data and directly reducing accuracy. On the other hand sometimes false trade-offs are made. Identity card systems which clearly reduce privacy, are often sold as a method of increasing security. Strong arguments have been made by security experts such as Bruce Schneier, however, that these systems in fact reduce security and are a form of "security theatre".

Reasons for maintaining privacy

One may wish to maintain privacy by withholding information from others because of stigma (as in the case of some "closeted" homosexuals), or for protection from the law (as when criminals hide information to prevent others from catching them). Privacy may include preserving modesty and preventing embarrassment by keeping others away while naked, using a toilet, or having sex. Often, information (such as bank account numbers or, in the USA, the Social Security Number) may be used against the owner of the information, for example to commit fraud. By maintaining privacy, information owners hope to avoid this fraud or limit effects from it.

Reasons for not maintaining privacy

It has been reasoned that privacy discourages information sharing between individuals which in turn can lead to mistrust and intolerance amongst people and perpetuate false information. If information can be shared widely then facts can generally be verified through many different sources and there are less chances of inaccuracies. It has also been reasoned that Privacy can perpetuate stigma and intolerance. The reasoning behind this is that restrictions on information about people can inhibit and discourage collection and finding of data that is required for an accurate analysis and discussion on the causes and root of the stigma and intolerance. Philosophers often ask how can people learn to accept each other if they cannot know about each other? Issues have also been raised that privacy can encourage criminal activity as it makes it easier for criminals to hide their unlawful activities.

Types of privacy

Political privacy

:Main article: Political privacy People may wish to keep their political viewpoints secret for a variety of reasons - political groupings may be able to commit violence either when successful (using the powers of the state) or when defeated (using their own militias for example). This may be used to punish those who disagree with them. Many people have been tortured or killed for their political views by, for example, dictators, terrorist groups, and often forces linked to democratically elected politicians. The secret ballot, which is common in democratic elections worldwide, is designed to maintain political privacy to limit any discrimination against people who did not vote for the office-holder and to avoid revenge attacks by those who were not elected. Outing of individuals can be done for several political reasons; either as a negative campaigning tactic designed to lower the outed person's reputation, or by others of a similar sexual orientation who seek openness over privacy.

Medical privacy

:Main article: Medical privacy Information concerning a person's health is kept confidential to the patient. In most countries, the patient must grant access before anyone other than the staff of medical institutions may view the information. The reasons for keeping medical information private may include possible discrimination against people with a certain medical condition. However, it may be illegal to fail to disclose medical information in certain cases (for example, in the United Kingdom in 2001, Stephen Kelly was found guilty of "culpable and reckless" conduct for failing to tell his girlfriend he was HIV-positive before having unprotected sex with her ). Also see remarks on the Roe v Wade abortion decision below.

Genetic privacy

The concept of “genetic discrimination” and the associated need for confidentiality of genetic information, or "genetic privacy," have only recently entered our vocabulary. But the problem is well documented. In numerous cases around the world, individuals and family members have been barred from employment or lost their health and life insurance based on an apparent or perceived genetic abnormality. Many of those who have suffered discrimination are clinically healthy and exhibit none of the symptoms of a genetic disorder. Often, genetic testing results in uncertain probabilities rather than clear-cut predictions of disease. Even in the most definitive genetic conditions, which are few in number, there remains a wide variability in the timing of onset and severity of clinical symptoms. Employers have access to medical/genetic information, which may be used to discriminate against their employees.

Privacy from corporations

Many companies exist which attempt to obtain as much information about customers as possible, through loyalty cards and other kind of customer schemes. This data is immensely valued by other companies, which may pay large amounts of money for access to this information, for marketing purposes (often telemarketing). A huge public backlash against telemarketers led to the introduction of the National Do Not Call Registry in the United States, and similar systems in other countries. With the increasing amount of e-mail spam being sent, often advertising products for sale, solutions to prevent the loss of privacy (as the spammers use social engineering and other similar practices to keep an up-to-date list of email addresses) have been developed. See e-mail spam for more information. Laws regulating the use of personal information by companies have diverged significantly between Europe and America with strong regulation in Europe and requirements for explicit permission before personal information can be reused being standard in the European Union whilst this area is largely unregulated in the USA. In the USA the First Amendment protects against regulating the freedom of information of individuals and corporations.

Privacy from government interference

As a human right, privacy primarily relates to government actions not private actions. Human rights guarantees do not impose broad obligations on governments to protect individuals against possible invasions of their privacy by other individuals. However Constitutional and international guarantees require that restrictions on freedom of expression, even in the interests of privacy, must meet a very high standard of legality and necessity. Governments in many countries are given powers to breach privacy. This is often due to criminal investigations, where police are permitted to seize private property from a suspect's house. Telephone tapping, where all information being transmitted over a phone line is secretly monitored, is often permissible for Law Enforcement Agencies although it sometimes requires permission from a court. This can then be used as evidence in trials where it is used to secure convictions against criminals. However, in the past, numerous cases have been overturned in the United States because the wiretap was not legally allowed. Other ways to monitor people include closed-circuit television cameras, which are placed in public. The desirability of the government monitoring communications, whether permitted by law or not, is a common debate. Organisations such as the Electronic Frontier Foundation argue that the right to privacy from the government is an inalienable human right and that it is up to the person whether they should have to disclose information. Other groups, including government agencies like the National Security Agency, maintain that the ability to monitor all communications aids in the prevention of criminal activity and terrorism.

Effects of war upon privacy

During periods of war, identity documents and similar artifacts have been introduced to establish the identity of the holder. These were used for security purposes — individuals who did not carry the required documents were assumed to be spies and could be interrogated. In World War I identity cards were introduced in the United Kingdom, but in 1919 compulsion to carry them was removed. They were reintroduced in World War II, but after the successful prosecution of Clarence Henry Willcock for refusing to present his card to the police, the law was repealed in 1952. In this case, Lord Chief Justice Lord Goddard commented that identity cards "tend to make people resentful of the acts of the police". Rights of the individual, including habeas corpus, often only apply in periods of peacetime. During the American Civil War in the United States, and during World War II in the United Kingdom, habeas corpus was suspended. It is the opinion of some that the September 11, 2001 attacks and the "War on Terrorism" declared by the United States government, have "restricted" the right to privacy. Proponents of this belief cite the introduction of bills such as the Patriot Act, and new government organisations such as the United States Department of Homeland Security, and the controversial, unfunded Information Awareness Office. In 2005, the Labour United Kingdom government have introduced a bill, the Identity Cards Bill, which would create a national identity database and introduce a national identity card. The idea was initially revived after the September 11, 2001 attacks by the then-Home Secretary, David Blunkett, and became part of Labour's manifesto for the 2005 general election. As of 2005, the right to privacy remains an important point of political debate in the United States, the United Kingdom, and other countries.

Arguments for government monitoring

- Increased crime detection - due to the placement of CCTV cameras, the success rate of conviction is increased as criminals are more likely to be convicted due to the increased ability to prove a suspect committed an offence.
- Prevention of terrorism - terrorist activities need coordination and this is often done using electronic equipment. If communications between devices can be monitored, the activities of terrorists can be prevented before any terrorist attacks are carried out, and their networks can be disclosed by network analysis and traffic analysis.

Arguments against government monitoring

- Surveillance infringes on civil liberties - there is a lack of anonymity if facial recognition systems can be used, for example, to identify protestors in a demonstration.
- CCTV cameras displace crime, rather than eliminate it - criminals move to areas where CCTV is not in place.
- Monitoring can be used in committing crime, for example Police officers have been caught using cameras to invade the personal privacy of women walking through airports.
- Gathering data about many people in one place (the monitoring center) provides a valuable source of data for undesirable activities
- The same technology used for disclosing networks of terrorists and criminals can be used by repressive regimes for finding dissidents

Door

Types of doors

History

See Also

External links

House

Types of house

Inside the house

Shelters

Construction

Animal houses

Usage in language

Heraldry

See also

Articles

Lists

External link

Garden

Relating to the garden

Other similar spaces

Garden planning and design

Elements of a garden

Types of gardens

History of gardens

Gardens in literature

See also

External Links

Balcony

Apartment

Apartment types and characteristics

See also

Cupboard

Door furniture

Door furniture in literature

Doorhandle

Doorknobs in popular culture

External links

Doorknob

Doorknobs in popular culture

External links

Animal

Characteristics

Structure

Reproduction and development

Origin and fossil record

Groups of animals

Deuterostomes

Ecdysozoa

Platyzoa

Lophotrochozoa

History of classification

Usage of the word animal

Examples

See also

References

External links

Emergency Exit

Synopsis

Summary

Reviews

Editions

Seeing

Hearing (sense)

Localization of Sound

From the Ear to the Primary Auditory Cortex

See also

External links

Revolving door

History

Metaphorical use

References

External links

Privacy

Privacy and security trade offs

Reasons for maintaining privacy

Reasons for not maintaining privacy

Types of privacy

Political privacy

Medical privacy

Genetic privacy