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State

Specialty Definition: State

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Specialty Definition: California

(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)

Alternate meanings in California (disambiguation)

California is a state located in the western United States, bordering the Pacific Ocean. The most populous and third largest state in the Union, California is both physically and demographically diverse. The state's official nickname is "The Golden State" (referring to the California gold rush) and its U.S. Postal abbreviation is CA.

Southern California is highly populous, while the larger northern California is less densely populated. The vast majority of the population lives within 50 miles (80 km) of the Pacific Ocean.

State of California

(In Detail) (Full size)
State nickname: The Golden State
Other U.S. States
Capital	Sacramento
Largest City	Los Angeles
Governor	Arnold Schwarzenegger
Area  - Total  - Land  - Water  - % water	Ranked 3rd 410,000 km² 404,298 km² 20,047 km² 4.72%
Population  - Total (2000)  - Density	Ranked 1st 33,871,648 83/km²
Admittance into Union  - Order  - Date	31st September 9, 1850
Time zone	Pacific: UTC-8/-7
Latitude Longitude	32°30'N to 42°N 114°8'W to 124°24'W
Width Length Elevation  -Highest  -Mean  -Lowest	402.5 km 1,240 km   4,418 meters 884 meters 86 meters below sea level
ISO 3166-2:	US-CA

History

Main article: History of California.

California was the name given to the northwestern part of the Spanish Empire in North America. Following the Mexican-American War of 1847, the region was divided between Mexico and the United States. The Mexican portion, Baja (lower) California was later divided into the states of Baja California and Baja California Sur. The American portion, Alta (upper) California became the U.S. state of California in 1850.

Law and government

Main article: California government and politics

The Governor of California serves a four-year term and may be reelected only once. The state legislature consists of a 40 member Senate and 80 member Assembly. Senators serve four year terms and Assemblymembers two. The terms of the Senators are staggered so that half the membership is elected every two years. The Senators representing the odd-numbered districts are elected in years evenly divisible by four, i.e., presidential election years. The Senators from the even-numbered districts are elected in the intervening even-numbered years, in the gubernatorial election cycle. For the 2003-2004 session, there are 48 Democrats and 32 Republicans in the Assembly. In the Senate, there are 25 Democrats and 15 Republicans.

The state's capital is Sacramento. In California's early history, the capital was located in San Jose (1849-1851), Vallejo (1852-1853), Benicia (1853-1854), and San Francisco (1862). The capital moved to Sacramento temporarily in 1852 when construction on a State House could not be completed in time in Vallejo. The capital moved to Sacramento for good on February 25, 1854, except for a four-month temporary move in 1862 to San Francisco due to severe flooding in Sacramento.

At the national level, California is represented by two senators and 53 representatives. It has 55 electoral votes in the U.S. Electoral College. California has the most Congressmen and Presidential Electors of any state.

See also: List of California Governors, List of California counties, List of California ballot propositions

Geography

Main article: Geography of California

California borders the Pacific Ocean, Oregon, Nevada, Arizona, and the Mexican State of Baja California. The state has striking natural features, including a huge fertile central valley, high mountains, and hot dry deserts. With an area of 410,000 km² it is the third largest state in the U.S. Most major cities cling to the cool, pleasant seacoast along the Pacific, notably San Francisco, Los Angeles and San Diego. The capital, however, is Sacramento in the Central Valley. California has many types of geography. Down the center of the state lies the Central Valley, a huge, fertile valley bounded by the coastal mountain ranges in the west, the Sierra Nevada to the east, the Cascade Range in the north and the Tehachapi Mountains in the south. Mountain-fed rivers naturally irrigate the Central Valley. With dredging, several of these rivers have become sufficiently large and deep that several inland cities, notably Stockton, California, are seaports.

In the center and east of the state are the Sierra Nevada, containing the highest peak in the continental U.S., Mt. Whitney, at 4,418 meters (14,495 ft). Also in the Sierra is the world famous Yosemite National Park and a deep freshwater lake, Lake Tahoe. To the east of the Sierra is the Owens Valley and Mono Lake, an essential seabird habitat.

In the south lie the Transverse Ranges and a large salt lake, the Salton Sea. The south-central desert is called the Mojave. Just to the north east of the Mojave, lies Death Valley, which contains the lowest, hottest point in North America.

California is famous for its earthquakes due partly to the presence of the San Andreas Fault. While more powerful earthquakes in the United States have occurred in Alaska and along the Mississippi River, California earthquakes are notable due to their frequency and location in highly populated areas. Popular legend has it that, eventually, an earthquake known as "The Big One" will result in the splitting of coastal California from the continent, either to sink into the ocean or form a new landmass. The fact that this scenario is completely implausible from a geologic standpoint does not lessen its acceptance in public conventional wisdom.

Climate

The southern part of the state has a desert climate, with temperature extremes and 10 inches/year of rain. The coastal regions have a Mediterranean climate, with wet winters and dry summers. There is a temperate climate with 15-40 inches/year rainfall in the north. The Central Valley has a continental climate, with chilly winters and very hot summers. The high mountains, including the Sierra Nevada, have a mountain climate with snow in winter and moderate heat in summer.

Biotopes: desert, savanna with scattered oaks, second-growth taiga (coniferous forest), especially in the north and at high altitudes. Mountain-tops contain tundra, fellfields (stoney ground with patches of meadow), and krumwald (dwarf forests).

Modified Dept. of Commerce map with county divisions For a larger version of this map click here Note: Modified map released under the GNU FDL.

Economy

California is responsible for 14% of American gross domestic product, which at nearly $1.4 trillion is greater than that of every country in the world save for the United States, Japan, Germany and the United Kingdom.

The predominant industry, more than twice as large as the next largest, is agriculture, (including fruit, vegetables, dairy, and wine). This is followed by aerospace; entertainment, primarily television by dollar volume, although many movies are still made in California; and light manufacturing including computer hardware and software, and the mining of borax.

Per capita income varies widely by geographic region and profession. The Central Valley has the most extreme contrasts of income, with migrant farm workers making less than minimum wage, contrasted with farmers who frequently manage multimillion-dollar farms. Most farm managers are highly educated, most with at least master's degrees. While cities include some of the wealthiest per-capita areas in the U.S., notably Irvine in Orange County, the non-agricultural central counties have some of the highest poverty rates in the U.S. The high-technology sectors in Orange County and Silicon Valley, in Santa Clara County are currently in a recession because of the dot.com bust, but medical systems, video games and animation are taking up the slack.

A particular problem with California's economy is that it does not attract manufacturing. The 7.25% sales tax (total statewide base sales/use tax) makes it uneconomic to locate major factories in the state, because that tax must be paid on capital equipment. California also has unusually high unemployment and worker's compensation (for on-the-job injury) taxes. Major manufacturers, especially aerospace, are also leaving the state or shifting production. For this reason, no major new factories have been built in California for many years, and the state suffers a severe lack of good-paying manufacturing jobs. This means that the middle class in California consists almost entirely of small businesspeople and construction and transportation workers, with a small leavening of knowledge workers -- a nearly pure service economy. Manufacturing costs are made even higher by high land and housing prices, which cause workers to need very high pay.

In 2001 the Small Business Survival Committee ranked California among the worst states in the U.S. in which to run a small business. It was in 44th place.

CALIFORNIA UNEMPLOYMENT RATE 1967-2002
1967	5.00%	1986	6.70%
1968	4.50%	1987	5.80%
1969	4.40%	1988	5.30%
1970	7.30%	1989	5.10%
1971	8.80%	1990	5.80%
1972	7.60%	1991	7.70%
1973	7.00%	1992	9.30%
1974	7.30%	1993	9.40%
1975	9.90%	1994	8.60%
1976	9.20%	1995	7.80%
1977	8.20%	1996	7.20%
1978	7.10%	1997	6.30%
1979	6.20%	1998	5.90%
1980	6.80%	1999	5.20%
1981	7.40%	2000	4.90%
1982	9.90%	2001	5.40%
1983	9.70%	2002	6.70%
1984	7.80%
1985	7.20%
Source: CA Employment Development Department

Demographics

With a population of 33,871,648 as of 2000, California is the most populous state in the U.S., and contributes 12% to the total U.S. population.

According to the that census, California lacks a majority ethnic group. Hispanics are the largest group, followed by whites, African Americans, Asian Americans, and Native Americans. Reflecting in part the high birth rate of the Spanish-speaking Catholic population, Hispanics are predicted to become a majority around 2040.

Important Cities and Towns

Anaheim Berkeley Eureka Fresno Long Beach Los Angeles Monterey Oakland

Palo Alto Redding Sacramento San Diego San Francisco San Jose Santa Ana

Education

Main article: List of colleges and universities in California

California's educational system is supported by a unique constitutional amendment that requires 40% of state revenues to be spent on education.

The preeminent state university is the 10-campus University of California, which employs more Nobel Prize winners than any other institution in the world. It has several campuses, notably in Berkeley, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and San Diego. It is intended to accept students from the upper 20% of college-bound students, and provide most graduate studies and research. The University of California also administers federal laboratories for the Federal Department of Energy: Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, and Los Alamos National Laboratory.

The California State University system provides education for teachers, the trades, agriculture and industry. It is intended to accept most college-bound high-school students, while carrying out some research, especially in applied sciences. Lower-division course credits are frequently transferable to the University of California.

The community college system educates students in the trades, providing certificates, and associate-arts degrees. It also provides lower division general-education courses transferable to the State University and the University of California.

Preeminent private institutions include Stanford University, the University of Southern California (USC), and the California Institute of Technology (Cal Tech) (which administers the Jet Propulsion Laboratory for NASA).

California has hundreds of private colleges and universities, including many religious and special-purpose institutions. This leads to many unique entertainment and educational opportunities for residents. For example, Southern California, with one of the highest densities of post-secondary institutions in the world, has a very large base of classically trained vocalists that compete in large choir festivals. Near Los Angeles, there are numerous art and film institutes, including the prestigious Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and the Art Institute.

Secondary education consists of high schools that teach elective courses in trades, languages and liberal arts with tracks for gifted, college-bound and industrial arts students. They accept students from roughly age 14 to 18, with mandatory education ceasing at age 16. In many districts, junior high schools teach electives with a strong skills-based curriculum, for ages from 11 to 13. Elementary schools teach pure skills, history and social studies, with optional half-day kindergartens beginning at age 5. Mandatory full-time instruction begins at age 6.

The primary schools are of varying effectiveness. The quality of the local schools depends strongly on the local tax base, and the size of the local administration. In some regions, administrative costs divert a significant amount of educational monies from instructional purposes. In poor regions, literacy rates may fall below 70%.

Golden State
State Animal:	California grizzly bear
State Bird:	California Quail
State Colors:	blue and gold
State Capital:	Sacramento
State Dance:	West Coast Swing Dancing
State Fish:	Golden trout
State Marine Fish:	Garibaldi
State Flower:	California Poppy
State Fossil:	Sabertooth cat
State Insect:	California dogface butterfly
State Motto:	"Eureka!"
State Song:	"I love you, California"
State Tree:	California redwood
State Mineral:	Gold
State Rock:	Serpentine
State Soil:	San Joaquin Soil

Miscellaneous Information

Major Highways

Interstate 5 Interstate 8 Interstate 10

Interstate 15 Interstate 40 Interstate 80 United States Highway 101

• List of professional sports teams in California
• USS California
• List of California-related topics

External links

• Official Website of the State of California
• California News.

  Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "California."

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Delaware

(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)

Delaware

(In Detail) (Full size)
State nickname: First State
Other U.S. States
Capital	Dover
Largest City	Wilmington
Area  - Total  - Land  - Water  - % water	Ranked 49th 6,452 km² 5,068 km² 1,387 km² 21.5%
Population  - Total (2000)  - Density	Ranked 45th 783,600 155/km²
Admittance into Union  - Order  - Date	1st December 7, 1787
Time zone	Eastern: UTC-5/-4
Latitude Longitude	38°27'N to 39°50'N 75°2'W to 75°47'W
Width Length Elevation  -Highest  -Mean  -Lowest	48 km 161 km   137 meters 18 meters 0 meters
ISO 3166-2:	US-DE

Delaware is a state of the United States. It is known as the "First State" because it was the first of the 13 colonies to ratify the United States Constitution. Ratification occurred on December 7, 1787.

USS Delaware was named in honor of this state.

History

Europeans first settled in a Dutch trading post at "Zwaanendael" (or "Swaanendael," present-day Lewes (pronounced "Lewis") in 1631. The area became "New Sweden" with a colony established by Swedes (led by Peter Minuit) around Fort Christina (now Wilmington) in 1638.

The name "Delaware" comes from the title of Sir Thomas West, Lord de la Warr, erstwhile governor of the colony of Virginia. The deed to the property that is now Delaware was granted to William Penn in 1682, by James, Duke of York (later, James II of England), and was part of the colony of Pennsylvania. In 1704 the "three lower counties" gained a separate legislature, and in 1710 a separate executive council.

Part of the Mason-Dixon line, surveyed by Charles Mason and Jeremiah Dixon between 1763 and 1767 to establish the boundary between Pennsylvania and Maryland, now forms the boundary between Delaware and Maryland, and some 80 of their original limestone markers remain.

Delaware was one of the thirteen colonies which revolted against British rule in the American Revolution. After the Revolution began in 1776, the three counties became "Delaware State," and in 1792 that entity adopted its first constitution, declaring itself to be the "State of Delaware."

The oldest black church in the country was chartered in Delaware by former-slave Peter Spencer in 1813 as the "Union Church of Africans," which is now the A.U.M.P. Church. The Big August Quarterly Spencer began in 1814 is still celebrated, the oldest such cultural festival in the country.

During the American Civil War, Delaware was a slave state that remained in the Union (Delaware voters voted not to secede on January 3, 1861). Eight months after the end of the Civil War, however, Delaware voted on February 18, 1865 to reject the 13th Amendment to the United States Constitution and so voted unsuccessfully to continue slavery beyond the Civil War. Delaware ratified the amendment on February 12, 1901--40 years after Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation.

Law and Government

Delaware's fourth and current constitution was adopted in 1897 and provides for executive, judicial and legislative bodies. The legislative body consists of a House of Representatives with 41 members and a Senate with 21 members. The executive branch is headed by the Governor of Delaware and the judicial branch provides for a hierarchy of courts with the state Supreme Court being the highest.

The present governor of Delaware is Ruth Ann Minner (Democrat). Delaware's U.S. Senators are Joseph R. Biden (Democrat) and Thomas Carper (Democrat). Delaware's single US Representative is former Governor, Michael N. Castle (Republican). See: List of Delaware Governors

Geography

Delaware is bounded to the north by Pennsylvania, to the east by the Delaware River and the Atlantic Ocean and to the west and south by Maryland. The largest city is Wilmington, and the capital is Dover. The U.S. Air Force base outside Dover is one of the largest in the U.S. In addition to its other responsibilities, Dover AFB serves as the entry point and morgue for American military persons (and some U.S. government civilians) who die overseas.

There are no broadcast-television stations in Delaware, but there are cable-television stations and radio stations, and some of the out-of-state broadcast-television stations maintain small facilities in Delaware that can "upload" signals to the stations' main facilities. The northern part of the state is served primarily by stations in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and the southern part by stations in Maryland.

Economy

The state product output for 1999 was $34 billion, placing it 42^nd among the states. The Per Capita Personal Income of 2000 was $31,255.

Delaware's agricultural output consists of poultry, nursery stock, soybeans, dairy products and corn. Its industrial outputs include chemical products, processed foods, paper products, rubber and plastic products, scientific instruments, and publishing.

Delaware is well-known as the state of incorporation for many large U.S. businesses. Delaware bankruptcy courts are very experienced with handling large, complex cases in a fair and equitable manner. This makes Delaware attractive to businesses seeking stability and predictability.

Demographics

Area: 1,954 sq. miles

Population: 783,600 (2000)

Capital: Dover

Counties: 3 (see: Delaware counties)

Bird: Blue Hen Chicken

Flower: Peach Blossom

Tree: American Holly

Nicknames: First State, Diamond State, Blue Wonder

Education

Colleges and Universities

Delaware Law School of Widener University Delaware State University Delaware Technical and Community College Goldey-Beacom College

University of Delaware Wesley College Wilmington College

Professional Sport Teams

Delaware is the home of the Wilmington Blue Rocks minor league baseball team.

Miscellaneous Information

Other Delaware Name Places

• Delaware, Ohio
• Delaware County, New York
• Delaware County, Pennsylvania

The Delaware River is a major river in the eastern United States, rising in New York State, forming the boundary between New Jersey and Pennsylvania, and emptying into Delaware Bay, which separates New Jersey from the state of Delaware.

Delaware Native Americans

Delaware is also the name of a Native American group (called in their own name Lenni Lenape) that was very influential in the dawning days of the United States.

See Also

Delaware corporation

External links

• State of Delaware homepage
• Delaware Map Data
• The Emancipation Proclamation Includes a short introduction.
• U.S. Senate site with the full U.S. Constitution and the Thirteenth Amendment "Slavery and Involuntary Servitude"

  Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "Delaware."

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Equation of state

(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)

In physics, equations of state attempt to describe the relationship between temperature, pressure, and volume for a given substance or mixture of substances. The ideal gas law, shown below, is one of the simplest equations of state. Although reasonably accurate for gases at low pressures and high temperatures, it becomes increasingly inaccurate at higher pressures and lower temperatures.

Despite its shortcomings, the ideal gas law is used extensively in many fields of science and engineering. Due to its simple form, straightforward solutions to a number of problems involving the equation of state can be obtained if the system of interrest can be assumed to behave as an ideal gas. The solutions become much more complicated and difficult to use for the cases where more accurate (and complicated) equations of state must be used.

Using statistical mechanics, the ideal gas law can be derived by assuming that a gas is composed of a large number of small molecules, with no attractive or repulsive forces. In reality gas molecules do interact with attractive and repulsive forces. In fact it is these forces that result in the formation of liquids.

A major weakness of the ideal gas law is its failure to predict the formation of liquid. Most other equations of state do predict the formation of a liquid phase. Usually these equations are cubic in volume and when solved will have either one or three real roots. When there is one real root, there is no liquid phase and the solution corresponds to the volume of the gas phase. When three real roots exist, one solution corresponds to the gas phase and one to the liquid phase. The intermediate root is an artefact and has no real meaning.

Examples of Equations of State

In the following equations the variables are defined as follows, any consistent set of units can be used although SI units are preferred:

P = Pressure

V = Molar volume, the volume of 1 mole of gas or liquid

T = Temperature (K)

Ideal Gas Law

R = Ideal Gas Constant (8.31451 J/mol·K)

Van der Waals equation

Where a, b and R are constants that depend on the specific material. They can be calculated from the critical properties as:

Proposed in 1873, the van der Waals equation of state was one of the first to perform markedly better than the ideal gas law. In this landmark equation a is called the attraction parameter and b the repulsion parameter or the effective molecular volume. While the equation is definitely superior to the ideal gas law and does predict the formation of a liquid phase, the agreement with experimental data is limited for conditions where the liquid forms. While the van der Waals equation is commonly referenced in text-books and papers for historical reasons, it is now obsolete. Other modern equations of only slightly greater complexity are much more accurate.

The Virial Equation

Although usually not the most convenient equation of state, the Virial Equation is important because it can be derived directly from statistical mechanics. If appropriate assumptions are made about the mathematical form of intermolecular forces, theoretical expressions can be developed for each of the coefficients. In this case B corresponds to interactions between pairs of molecules, C to triplets, and so on.

Redlich-Kwong Equation of State

R = Ideal Gas constant (8.31451 J/mol·K)

Introduced in 1949 the Redlich-Kwong equation of state was a considerable improvement over other equations of the time. It is still of interest primarily due to its relatively simple form. While superior to the van der Waals equation of state, it performs poorly with respect to the liquid phase and thus cannot be used for accurately calculating vapor-liquid equilibria. Although, it can be used in conjunction with separate liquid-phase correlations for this purpose.

The Redlich-Kwong equation is adequate for calculation of gas phase properties when the ratio of the pressure to the critical pressure is less than about one-half of the ratio of the temperature to the critical temperature.

The Soave Equation

R = Ideal Gas constant (8.31451 J/mol·K)

Where ω is the acentric factor for the species.

for hydrogen:

In 1972 Soave replaced the a/√(T) term of the Redlich-Kwong equation with a function α(T,ω) involving the temperature and the acentric factor. The α function was devised to fit the vapor pressure data of hydrocarbons and the equation does fairly well for these materials.

The Peng-Robinson Equation of State

R = Ideal Gas constant (8.31451 J/mol·K)

Where ω is the acentric factor for the species.

The Peng-Robinson Equation was developed in 1976 in order to satisfy the following goals:

1. The parameters should be expressible in terms of the critical properties and the acentric factor.
2. The model should provide reasonable accuracy near the critical point, particularly for calculations of the Compressibility factor and liquid density.
3. The mixing rules should not employ more than a single binary interaction parameter, which should be independent of temperature pressure and composition.
4. The equation should be applicable to all calculations of all fluid properties in natural gas processes.

For the most part the Peng-Robinson Equation exhibits performance similar to the Soave equation, although it is generally superior in predicting the liquid densities of many materials, especially nonpolar ones.

The BWRS Equation of State

ρ = the molar density

Values of the various parameters for 15 substances can be found in:

K.E. Starling, Fluid Properties for Light Petroleum Systems. Gulf Publishing Company (1973).

History

Boyle's law (1662)

Boyle's Law was perhaps the first expression of an equation of state. In 1662 Robert Boyle, an Irishman, performed a series of experiments employing a J-shaped glass tube, which was sealed on one end. Mercury was added to the tube, trapping a fixed quantity of air in the short, sealed end of the tube. Then the volume of gas was carefully measured as additional mercury was added to the tube. The pressure of the gas could be determined by the difference between the mercury level in the short end of the tube and that in the long, open end. Through these experiments, Boyle noted that the gas volume varied inversely with the pressure. In mathematical form, this can be stated as:

PV = constant

The above relationship has also been attributed to Edme Mariotte and is sometimes referred to as Mariotte's law. However, Mariotte's work was not published until 1676.

Charles' law (1787)

In 1787 the French physist Jacques Charles found that oxygen, nitrogen, hydrogen, carbon dioxide, and air expand to the same extent over the same 80 degree interval. Later, in 1802, Joseph Louis Gay-Lussac published results of similar experiments, indicating a linear relationship between volume and temperature:

V₁/T₁ = V₂/T₂

Dalton's law of partial pressures (1801)

The Ideal gas law (1834)

In 1834 Émile Clapeyron combined Boyle's Law and Charles' law into the first statement of the ideal gas law. Initially the law was formulated as PV=R(T+267) (with temperature expressed in degrees celsius). However, later work revealed that the number should actually be 273.2, giving:

PV=R(T+273.2)

van der Waals Equation of State (1873)

Amagat's law (1880)

Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "Equation of state."

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List of states and territories of India

(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)

India is subdivided into 28 states and 7 union territories.

States:

• Andhra Pradesh
• Arunachal Pradesh
• Assam
• Bihar
• Chhattisgarh
• Goa
• Gujarat
• Haryana
• Himachal Pradesh
• Jammu and Kashmir
• Jharkhand
• Karnataka
• Kerala
• Madhya Pradesh
• Maharashtra
• Manipur
• Meghalaya
• Mizoram
• Nagaland
• Orissa
• Punjab
• Rajasthan
• Sikkim
• Tamil Nadu
• Tripura
• Uttaranchal
• Uttar Pradesh
• West Bengal

Union Territories:

• Andaman and Nicobar Islands
• Chandigarh
• Dadra and Nagar Haveli
• Daman and Diu
• Delhi
• Lakshadweep
• Pondicherry

See also: List of capitals of subnational entities

External links

Maps: [1], [1]

Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "List of states and territories of India."

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Mathematical formulation of quantum mechanics

(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)

We have a separable Hilbert space H. The states are the projective rays of H. An operator is a linear map from a dense subspace of H to H. If this operator is continuous, then this map can be uniquely extended to a bounded linear map from H to H. By tradition, observables are identified with operators, although this is rather questionable, especially in the presence of symmetries leading to superselection sectors. This is why some people prefer the density state formulation.

See also Schrödinger picture, Heisenberg picture, Born principle, relative state interpretation.

In this framework, Heisenberg's uncertainty principle becomes a theorem about noncommuting operators. Furthermore, both continuous and discrete observables may be accommodated; in the former case, the Hilbert space is a space of square-integrable wavefunctions.

In the Everett many-worlds interpretation of quantum mechanics, postulate (3) is demoted to a phenomenological principle; see quantum decoherence.

C* formulation

In this formulation, we have a C* algebra, the associative algebra of operators. Positive elements of its dual algebra is are called states and they describe the quantum states. This is related to the density matrix. Given a state, we can construct a unitary representation of it using the Gelfand-Naimark-Segal construction. Two unitarily inequivalent representations are said to belong to different superselection sectors. Relative phases between superselection sectors are not observable.

Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "Mathematical formulation of quantum mechanics."

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Nation state

(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)

The term nation state, while often used interchangeably with the term state, refers more properly to a state in which a single nation is dominant. Over the last few centuries (and particular over the last half-century, except in Africa), this form of state has become more common, so that now most states claim to be nation states. However, this has not always been so; and even today there are some states where it is questionable whether they contain a single dominant nation. This is made more difficult by the question of what is a nation. There are many states, such as Belgium and Switzerland, with multiple linguistic, religious or ethnic groups within them, without any one being clearly dominant. However, often (and especially in the case of Switzerland and the United States of America) a national identity has been constructed despite these differences. A better example of a non-nation state would be the United Kingdom, which consists of the four nations England, Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales. While people do talk of a 'British nation', it is questionable whether such an entity really exists. And although England was overwhelmingly dominant within the United Kingdom in the past, that can no longer be so clearly stated as the case.

A somewhat similar example might be contemporary Spain, where Basques, Catalans, and Galicians claim to be nations distinct from the historically dominant Castile (the Spanish Constitution of 1978 hints at this by mentioning "regions and nationalities" within Spain). Historically France was more successful at subsuming within a Gallic nation-state such culturally disparate elements as Brittany, Aquitaine, Languedoc and Burgundy.

Some 20th-century attempts at artificially-created nation-states failed, notably Czechoslovakia and Yugoslavia.

Examples of non-nation states are empires, city-states, thalassocracies, and sovereign corporations (as in the Hudson's Bay Company or the British East India Company).

Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "Nation state."

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New York

(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)

New York

(In Detail) (Full size)
State nickname: Empire State
Other U.S. States
Capital	Albany
Largest City	New York City
Area  - Total  - Land  - Water  - % water	Ranked 27th 141,205 km2 122,409 km2 18,795 km2 13.3%
Population  - Total (2000)  - Density	Ranked 3rd 18,976,457 134/km2
Admittance into Union  - Order  - Date	11th July 26, 1788
Time zone	Eastern: UTC-5/-4
Latitude Longitude	40°29'40"N to 45°0'42"N 71°47'25"W to 79°45'54"W
Width Length Elevation   -Highest   -Mean   -Lowest	455 km 530 km   1,629 meters 305 meters 0 meters
ISO 3166-2:	US-NY

Alternate meaning: New York City

New York is a state in the northeastern United States and its U.S. postal abbreviation is NY.

History

See: History of New York

The Dutch were the first settlers in New York, establishing Fort Orange near Albany in 1624 and New Amsterdam on the island of Manhattan a year later. After the English took over in the 1660s, the colony was renamed New York, after the Duke of York.

In 1683, the government was reorganized into a pattern still followed, and the state was divided into twelve counties, each of which was subdivided into towns. Ten of those counties still exist (see below), but two (Cornwall and Dukes) were in territory purchased by the Duke of York from the Earl of Sterling, and are no longer within the territory of the State of New York, having been transferred by treaty to Massachusetts, Dukes in 1686 and Cornwall in 1692. (Cornwall County became a large portion of the State of Maine when that state was detached from Massachusetts in 1819; Dukes County is still a county in Massachusetts.) While the number of counties has been increased to 62, the pattern still remains that a town in New York State is a subdivision of a county, rather than an incorporated municipality as in most (but not all) other States.

New York was one of the thirteen colonies that revolted against British rule in the American Revolution.

Law and Government

See: List of New York Governors

As in all fifty states, the head of the executive branch of government is a Governor. The legislative branch is called the Legislature, and consists of a Senate and an Assembly. For many years, the two houses of the state legislature have been controlled by different political parties, making legislation and particularly budgeting difficult. Unlike most States, the New York electoral law permits electoral fusion, and New York ballots tend to have, in consequence, a larger number of parties on them, some being permanent minor parties that seek to influence the major parties and others being ephemeral parties formed to give major-party candidates an additional line on the ballot.

Geography

See: List of New York counties

It borders Lake Erie, Lake Ontario, Canada (Quebec and Ontario), Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and the Atlantic Ocean. The state includes everything from skyscrapers in Manhattan to rivers, mountains, and lakes in upstate New York. Niagara Falls is one of the chief attractions. Three major islands form an important part of the state: Long Island, Manhattan Island, and Staten Island. The Hudson River flows through the eastern portion of the state.

Economy

New York is the leading center of banking, finance and communication in the United States. Its 1999 total gross state product was $755 billion, second only to California in the nation. Its 2000 Per Capita Personal Income was $34,547, placing it 4^th in the nation. New York's agricultural outputs are dairy products, cattle and other livestock, vegetables, nursery stock, and apples. Its industrial outputs are printing and publishing, scientific instruments, electric equipment, machinery, chemical products, and tourism.

Agriculture

New York State is an agricultural leader, ranking within the top five states for a number of products including dairy, apples, cherries, cabbage, potatoes, onions, maple syrup and many other products. The state has about a quarter of its land in farms and produced 3.4 billion dollars in agricultural products in 2001. The south shore of Lake Ontario provides the right mix of soils and microclimate for many apple, cherry, plum, pear and peach orchards. Apples are also grown in the Hudson Valley and near Lake Champlain. The south shore of Lake Erie and the southern Finger Lakes hillsides have many vinyards. The Finger Lakes area is famous for award-winning farm wineries.

New York was heavily glaciated in the Ice Age leaving much of the state with deep, fertile, though somewhat rocky soils. Row crops, including hay, corn (also known as maize), wheat, oats, barley, and soybeans. Particularly in the western part of the state, sweet corn, peas, carrots, squash, cucumbers and other vegetables are grown. The Hudson and Mohawk valleys are known for pumpkins and blueberries. The glaciers also left numerous swampy areas, which have been drained for the rich humus soils called muckland which is mostly used for onions, potatoes, celery and other vegetables. Dairy farms are present throughout much of the state. Cheese is a major product, often produced by Amish or Mennonite farm cheeseries. New York is rich in nectar producing plants and is a major honey producing state. The honeybees are also used for pollination of fruits and vegetables. Most commercial beekeepers are migratory, taking their hives to southern states for the winter. Most cities have Farmers' markets which are well supplied by local truck farmers.

Demographics

As of 2000, New York is the third largest state in population after California and Texas, with a population of 18,976,457.

Important Cities and Towns

Albany is the state capital, and New York City is by far the largest city.

Its major cities and towns are:

New York City Buffalo Rochester Yonkers Syracuse Albany

New Rochelle Mount Vernon Schenectady Utica Binghamton

Education

Colleges and Universities

Adelphi University Albany College of Pharmacy Alfred University Audrey Cohen College Bank Street College of Education Bard College Barnard College Boricua College Canisius College Cazenovia College City University of New York System Baruch College Brooklyn College City College College of Staten Island Graduate School and University Center of the City University of New York Hunter College John Jay College Lehman College Medgar Evers College Queens College York College Clarkson University Colgate University College of Aeronautics College of Mount St. Vincent College of New Rochelle College of Saint Rose Columbia University Concordia College, Bronxville The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art Cornell University Daemen College Dominican College Dowling College D´Youville College Elmira College Excelsior College Five Towns College Fordham University Hamilton College Hartwick College Hilbert College Hobart and William Smith Colleges Hofstra University Houghton College Iona College Ithaca College The Jewish Theological Seminary of America The Juilliard School Keuka College Le Moyne College Laboratory Institute of Merchandising Long Island University Arnold and Marie Schwartz College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences Long Island University Brentwood Campus Long Island University Brooklyn Campus Long Island University C.W. Post Campus Long Island University Rockland Graduate Campus Southampton College Long Island University Westchester Campus Manhattan College Manhattan School of Music Manhattanville College Marist College Marymount College Marymount Manhattan College Medaille College Mercy College Molloy College Monroe College Mount Saint Mary College Nazareth College

New School University New York College of Podiatric Medicine New York Institute of Technology New York Medical College New York University Niagara University Pace University Parsons School of Design Paul Smith's College Polytechnic University of New York Pratt Institute Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Roberts Wesleyan College Rochester Institute of Technology The Rockefeller University The Sage Colleges Sarah Lawrence College St. Bonaventure University Saint Francis College St. John Fisher College St. John's University St. Joseph's College St. Lawrence University St. Thomas Aquinas College Sarah Lawrence College School of Visual Arts Siena College Skidmore College State University of New York System Alfred State College State University of New York Albany State University of New York Binghamton State University of New York Buffalo State University of New York Stony Brook State University of New York Brockport State University of New York Buffalo (Buffalo State College) State University of New York Cortland State University of New York Fredonia State University of New York Geneseo State University of New York New Paltz State University of New York Old Westbury State University of New York Oneonta State University of New York Oswego State University of New York Plattsburgh State University of New York Potsdam State University of New York Purchase State University of New York Cobleskill State University of New York Morrisville State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry State University of New York Farmingdale State University of New York Empire State College Fashion Institute of Technology State University of New York Health Science Center at Brooklyn State University of New York Health Science Center at Syracuse State University of New York Institute of Technology Maritime College State University of New York Syracuse University Teachers College, Columbia University Touro College Touro University International Unification Theological Seminary Union College Union Theological Seminary United States Merchant Marine Academy United States Military Academy (West Point) University of Rochester Utica College of Syracuse University Vassar College Wagner College Webb Institute Wells College Yeshiva University

Professional Sports Teams

National Football League Buffalo Bills The following teams play in East Rutherford, New Jersey, but are usually considered New York teams New York Jets New York Giants New York Knicks, National Basketball Association New York Liberty, Women's National Basketball Association New York Power, Women's United Soccer Association National Hockey League Buffalo Sabres New York Rangers New York Islanders Major League Baseball New York Mets New York Yankees Major League Lacrosse Long Island Lizards Rochester Rattlers

Minor League Baseball teams Brooklyn Cyclones Staten Island Yankees Binghamton Mets Buffalo Bisons Jamestown Jammers Batavia Muckdogs Rochester Red Wings Auburn Doubledays Syracuse SkyChiefs Oneonta Tigers Tri-Valley ValleyCats Hudson Valley Renegades Major League Soccer MetroStars (Based in East Rutherford, New Jersey)

Miscellanea

USS New York was named in honor of this state.

External Links

• Avenues, streets of Manhattan
• http://www.state.ny.us/
  

Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "New York."

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Phase (matter)

(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)

In the physical sciences, a phase is a set of states of a macroscopic physical system that have relatively uniform chemical composition and physical properties (i.e. density, crystal structure, index of refraction, and so forth.) The most familiar examples of phases are solids, liquids, and gases. Less familiar phases include plasmas and Bose-Einstein condensates, and the paramagnetic and ferromagnetic phases of magnetic materials.

Phases are sometimes called states of matter, but this term can lead to confusion with thermodynamic states. For example, two gases maintained at different pressures are in different thermodynamic states, but the same "state of matter".

Definitions

Although phases are conceptually simple, they are hard to define precisely. A good definition of a phase of a system is a region in the parameter space of the system's thermodynamic variables in which the free energy is analytic. Equivalently, two states of a system are in the same phase if they can be transformed into each other without abrupt changes in any of their thermodynamic properties.

All the thermodynamic properties of a system -- the entropy, heat capacity, magnetization, compressibility, and so forth -- may be expressed in terms of the free energy and its derivatives. For example, the entropy is simply the first derivative of the free energy with temperature. As long as the free energy remains analytic, all the thermodynamic properties will be well-behaved.

When a system goes from one phase to another, there will generally be a stage where the free energy is non-analytic. This is known as a phase transition. Familiar examples of phase transitions are melting (solid to liquid), freezing (liquid to solid), boiling (liquid to gas), and condensation (gas to liquid). Due to this non-analyticity, the free energies on either side of the transition are two different functions, so one or more thermodynamic properties will behave very differently after the transition. The property most commonly examined in this context is the heat capacity. During a transition, the heat capacity may become infinite, jump abruptly to a different value, or exhibit a "kink" or discontinuity in its derivative.

Possible graphs of heat capacity (C) against temperature (T) at a phase transition.

In practice, each type of phase is distinguished by a handful of relevant thermodynamic properties. For example, the distinguishing feature of a solid is its rigidity; unlike a liquid or a gas, a solid does not easily change its shape. Liquids are distinct from gases because they have much lower compressibility: a gas placed in a large container expands to fill the container, whereas a liquid forms a puddle in the bottom of the container. Not all the properties of solids, liquids, and gases are distinct; for example, it is not useful to compare their magnetic properties. On the other hand, the ferromagnetic phase of a magnetic material is distinguished from the paramagnetic phase by the presence of bulk magnetization without an applied magnetic field.

Emergence and universality

Phases are emergent phenomena produced by the self-organization of a macroscopic number of particles. Typical samples of matter, for example, contain around 10²³ particles (Avogadro's number). In systems that are too small -- even, say, a thousand atoms -- the distinction between phases disappears, since the appearance of non-analyticity in the free energy requires a huge, formally infinite, number of particles to be present.

One might ask why real systems exhibit phases, since they are not actually infinite. The reason is that real systems contain thermodynamic fluctuations. When a system is far from a phase transition, these fluctuations are unimportant, but as it approaches a phase transition, the fluctuations begin to grow in size (i.e. spatial extent). At the ideal transition point, their size would be infinite, but before that can happen the fluctuations will have become as large as the system itself. In this regime, "finite-size" effects come into play, and we are unable to accurately predict the behavior of the system. Thus, phases in a real system are only well-defined away from phase transitions, and how far away it needs to be is dependent on the size of the system.

There is a corollary to the emergent nature of phase phenomena, known as the principle of universality. The properties of phases are largely independent of the underlying microscopic physics, so that the same types of phases arise in a wide variety of systems. This is a familiar fact of life. We know, for example, that the property that defines a solid -- resistance to deformation -- is exhibited by materials as diverse as iron, ice, and Silly Putty. The only differences are matters of scale. Iron may resist deformation more strongly than Silly Putty, but both maintain their shape if the applied forces are not too strong.

Phase diagrams

The different phases of a system may be represented using a phase diagram. The axes of the diagrams are the relevant thermodynamic variables. For simple mechanical systems, we generally use the pressure and temperature. The following figure shows a phase diagram for a typical material exhibiting solid, liquid and gaseous phases.

A typical phase diagram.

The markings on the phase diagram show the points where the free energy is non-analytic. The open spaces, where the free energy is analytic, correspond to the phases. The phases are separated by lines of non-analyticity, where phase transitions occur, which are called phase boundaries.

In the above diagram, the phase boundary between liquid and gas does not continue indefinitely. Instead, it terminates at a point on the phase diagram called the critical point. This reflects the fact that, at extremely high temperatures and pressures, the liquid and gaseous phases become indistinguishable. In water, the critical point occurs at around 647 K (374 °C or 705 °F) and 22.064 MPa.

The existence of the liquid-gas critical point reveals a slight ambiguity in our above definitions. When going from the liquid to the gaseous phase, one usually crosses the phase boundary, but it is possible to choose a path that never crosses the boundary by going to the right of the critical point. Thus, phases can sometimes blend continuously into each other. We should note, however, that this does not always happen. For example, it is impossible for the solid-liquid phase boundary to end in a critical point in the same way as the liquid-gas boundary, because the solid and liquid phases have different symmetry.

An interesting thing to note is that the solid-liquid phase boundary in the phase diagram of most substances, such as the one shown above, has a positive slope. This is due to the solid phase having a higher density than the liquid, so that increasing the pressure increases the melting temperature. However, in the phase diagram for water the solid-liquid phase boundary has a negative slope. This reflects the fact that ice has a lower density than water, which is an unusual property for a material.

Polymorphism

Many substances can exist in a variety of solid phases each corresponding to a unique crystal structure. These varying crystal phases of the same substance are called polymorphs. Diamond and graphite are examples of polymorphs of carbon. Graphite is composed of layers of hexagonally arranged carbon atoms, in which each carbon atom is strongly bound to three neighboring atoms in the same layer and is weakly bound to atoms in the neighboring layers. By contrast in diamond each carbon atom is strongly bound to four neighboring carbon atoms in a cubic array. The unique crystal structures of graphite and diamond are responsible for the vastly different properties of these two materials.

Each polymorph of a given substance is usually only stable over a specific range of conditions. For example, diamond is only stable at extremely high pressures. Graphite is the stable form of carbon at normal atmospheric pressures. Although diamond is not stable at atmospheric pressures and should transform to graphite, we know that diamonds exist at these pressures. This is because at normal temperatures the transformation from diamond to graphite is extremely slow. If we were to heat the diamond, the rate of transformation would increase and the diamond would become graphite. However, at normal temperatures the diamond can persist for a very long time. Non-equilibrium phases like diamond that exist for long periods of time are said to be metastable.

Another important example of metastable polymorphs occurs during the processing of steel. Steels are often subjected to a variety of thermal treatments designed to produce various combinations of stable and metastable iron phases. In this way the steel properties, such as hardness and strength can be adjusted by controlling the relative amounts and crystal sizes of the various phases that form.

Phase separation

Different parts of a system may exist in different phases, in which case the phases are usually separated by boundary surfaces.

Gibbs' phase rule describes the number of phases that can be present at equilibrium for a given system at various conditions. The phase rule indicates that for a single component system at most three phases (usually gas, liquid and solid) can co-exist in equilibrium. The three phases can all co-exist only at a single specific temperature and pressure, characteristic of the material, called the triple point. The conditions where two phases become indistinguishable is called a critical point. The phase rule also indicates that two phases can only co-exist at equilibrium for specific combinations of temperature and pressure. For example for a liquid-gas system if the vapor pressure is lower than that corresponding to the temperature, the system will not be at equilibrium, rather the liquid will tend to evaporate until the vapor pressure reaches the appropriate level or all of the liquid is consumed. Likewise, if the vapor pressure is too great for the given temperature condensation will occur.

For the case of multi-component systems the phase rule indicates that additional phases are possible. A common example of this occurs in mixtures of mutually insoluble substances such as water and oil. If a few drops of oil are poured into pure water, there will be a small amount of intermixing, but there will be two distinct phases: one primarily oil and the other primarily water. The exact composition of the phases will be a function of the temperature and pressure but not a function of the amount of oil. It may be possible to change the temperature such that one of the phases disappears: for example, if the mixture is heated, it is possible that at some temperature, all of the oil is dissolved in the water. Above this temperature there is only one phase, and the composition of the phase does depend on how much oil was put in.

Phase separation can also exist in two dimensions. The boundaries between phases, the surfaces of materials, and the grain boundaries between different crystallographic orientations of a single material can also show distinct phases. For example, surface reconstructions on metal and semiconductor surfaces are two dimensional phases.

See also

• Condensed matter physics

  Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "Phase (matter)."

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Rio de Janeiro (state)

(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)

Rio de Janeiro is one of the states of Brazil, on the southeastern coast. Its capital is the city of Rio de Janeiro, which was the colony's capital from 1764 (the first being Salvador da Bahia), and the nation's capital from 1822 to 1960.

Governor: Rosângela Matheus

Flag:

Other cities include:

• Niterói
• Petrópolis
• Campos
• Angra dos Reis
• Teresópolis
• Nova Friburgo
• Vassouras
• Volta Redonda
• Duque de Caxias
• São Gonçalo
• Cabo Frio
• Nova Iguaçu

  Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "Rio de Janeiro (state)."

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State

(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)

This article discusses states as sovereign political entities. For other meanings, see State (disambiguation).

In international law and international relations, a state is a political entity possessing sovereignty, i.e. not being subject to any higher political authority.

The definition of "state" in the meaning of a political subdivisions of some countries, is related as it emphasizes the intention of a confederation where these state governments are seen as possessing some powers independently of the federal government. Often these states existed before their creation of a federal régime.

In casual language, the idea of a "state" and a "country" are usually regarded as synonymous, although some speakers, notably in the United States, make efforts to use "country" or "nation" for the sovereign entities. Others would primarily understand "the State" as a synonym for "the Government", or be careful to distinguish between a territorial "country" and a "nation" of people.

The legal criteria for statehood are generally accepted to be those set out in Article 1 of the Montevideo Convention. "The state as a person of international law should possess the following qualifications: (a) a permanent population; (b) a defined territory; (c) government; and (d) capacity to enter into relations with the other states." (The Montevideo is a regional American convention; but the principles contained in this article have been generally recognized as an accurate statement of customary international law.) However, some have questioned whether these criteria are sufficient.

A major issue is the difference between the constitutive and declarative theories of recognition of states. According to the constitutive theory, a state exists only insofar as it is recognized by other states. The declarative theory, by contrast, holds that the existence of a state is independent of its recognition by other states. Which theory is correct is a controversial issue in international law. An example in practice was the collapse of central government in Somalia in the early 1990s: the Montevideo convention would imply that the state of Somalia no longer existed, and the subsequently declared republic of Somaliland (comprising part of the so-called "former" Somalia) may meet the criteria for statehood. However the self-declared republic has not achieved recognition by other states.

A further controversy, within political philosophy, centers on the question of when the state came into being, and what its basic characteristics are. The sociologist Norbert Elias famously defined the state as an institution that has a monopoly on legitimate violence in a particular geographic area. One of the most basic characteristics of a state is regulation of property rights, investment, trade and the commodity markets (in food, fuel, etc.) typically using its own currency. Although states increasingly cede these powers to trade bloc entities, e.g. North American Free Trade Agreement, European Union, it is always controversial to do so, and opens the question of whether these blocs are in fact simply larger states. The study of political economy which evolved into the modern study of economics studies these specific questions in more detail.

A problem is that states are often to some extent dependent of dominant and more powerful states, and/or by their free will subject to higher political authorities, as for instance the United Nations, the European Union, the World Trade Organization or other international organizations. However, although states often are in practice subject in this way, they are much stronger in relation to international organizations or other states than lower (substate) political subdivisions normally are in relation to states. But the trend at the moment is for the power of superstate levels of governance to increase, and there is no sign of this increase abating. Many (especially those who favour constitutional theories of international law) therefore reject as outdated the idea of sovereignty, and view the state as just the chief political subdivision of the planet.

See also:

• nation state
• country
• the justification of the state
• anarchism

  Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "State."

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State (computer science)

(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)

In computer science, state is a concept in automata theory which occasionally extends into some forms of systems programming such as lexers and parsers.

Whether the automaton in question is a finite state machine, a pushdown automaton or a full-fledged Turing machine, a state is a particular set of instructions which will be executed in response to the machine's input. The state can be thought of as analogous to a practical computer's main memory. the behavior of the system is a function of (a) the definition of the automaton, (b) the input, and (c) the current state.

Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "State (computer science)."

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State (disambiguation)

(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)

The term state may refer to:

• a sovereign political entity, see state.
• a non-sovereign political entity, see state (national).
  • in Australia, see Australian States and Territories.
  • in Austria (Bundesland), see States of Austria.
  • in Brazil, see States of Brazil.
  • in Germany (Bundesland), see States of Germany.
  • in India, see States and territories of India .
  • in Mexico, see States of Mexico.
  • in the United States of America, see U.S. state.
• a term in computer science and computability theory, see state (computer science).
• a term in physics in the areas of dynamical systems and chaos theory and quantum entanglement, see state (physics).
• a synonym for phases of matter.

Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "State (disambiguation)."

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State (national)

(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)

One meaning of state is a subnational entity of some countries:

• in Australia, see Australian States and Territories.
• in Austria (Bundesland), see States of Austria.
• in Brazil, see States of Brazil.
• in Germany (Bundesland), see States of Germany.
• in India, see States and territories of India .
• in Mexico, see States of Mexico.
• in the United States of America, see U.S. state.

  Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "State (national)."

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State court

(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)

Under the laws of the United States, most disputes are properly taken to the courts of the state in which the dispute arose. Disputes are heard and evidence presented in a district court, usually located in a courthouse in the county seat.

If one of the litigants is unsatisfied with the decision of the lower court, the matter may be appealed (except that an acquittal in a criminal trial may not be appealed. The highest appellate court is usually called the state supreme court. There is usually an intermediate appellate court, often called the state court of appeals. (In New York, however, the Court of Appeals is the highest state court, and the State Supreme Court, Civil Court, and Criminal Court collectively are the lowest courts.)

There is usually a county court which hears criminal arraignments and tries petty matters. Cities often have city courts which hear traffic offenses and violations of city ordinances.

The relationship between state courts and federal courts is quite complicated. Although the federal Constitution and federal laws override state laws, it is not the case that state courts are subordinate to federal courts, rather they are more accurately two sets of parallel courts. With regard to an interpretation of a state law, all Federal courts must defer to the interpretation of the state courts. A case can be moved from a state court to a Federal court only under two conditions. The first is if the case involves federal law or the U.S. Constitution. The second is if the case is between persons of different states. In the latter case, a litigant can bring a matter either to state court or federal court, and deciding on the jurisdiction is part of litigation strategy.

The United States Supreme Court sometimes accepts appeals of cases from state courts, if the justices believe that the case involves a federal question. Appeals to the federal courts from state courts are frequent in the case of death penalty cases in which a federal court is asked to review whether a defendant has been given due process of law.

Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "State court."

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State pattern

(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)

A behavioral software design pattern, state pattern is used for computer programming to control the state in the program.

See also: Strategy pattern, Dynamic classification, Run and return successor, Duality between state and class

Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "State pattern."

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State terrorism

(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)

State terrorism is terrorism considered as carried out or sponsored by a government. Like terrorism generally, state terrorism involves deliberate attacks on civilians, for the purpose of attaining a political or religious goal. Some advocates, such as anti-communists, consider that Stalin's purges also constitute state terrorism; there is much disagreement, however, on what to call this: genocide, crime against humanity, mass murder are also possible descriptions.

The assassination of dissidents in exile (such as the 1940 murder of Leon Trotsky in Mexico by agents of Josef Stalin) might also be considered an example of state terrorism.

Various advocates have accused

• Algeria
• Argentina
• Burma
• Cambodia
• Chile
• China
• Cuba
• Egypt
• France
• India
• Iran
• Iraq
• Israel
• Italy
• Libya
• Mexico
• North Korea
• Pakistan
• Rwanda
• Saudi Arabia
• Soviet Union/Russia
• Sri Lanka
• Syria
• Turkey
• Uganda
• United Kingdom
• United States
• Vietnam

of state terrorism.

In the case of US support of state terrorism, Michael Moore's documentary film Bowling for Columbine provides the following list:

1. 1953: U.S. overthrows Prime Minister Mossadegh of Iran. U.S. installs the Shah as dictator.

2. 1954: U.S. overthrows democratically elected President Arbenz of Guatemala. 20,000 civilians are killed.

3. 1963: U.S. backs assassination of South Vietnamese President Diem.

4. 1963-1975: U.S. military kills 4 million people in Southeast Asia.

5. September 11, 1973: U.S. stages a military coup in Chile. Democratically elected president Salvador Allende is assassinated. Dictator General [[Augusto Pinochet]] is installed. 5,000 Chileans are murdered.

6. 1977: U.S. backs military rulers of El Salvador. 7,000 Salvadorans and four American nuns are killed.

7. 1980s: U.S. trains Osama bin Laden and fellow Muslim terrorists to kill Soviet soldiers. CIA gives them $3 billion.

8. 1981: Reagan administration trains and funds Contras to fight communist government. 30,000 Nicaraguans die.

9. 1982: U.S. provides billions in aid to Saddam Hussein for weapons to kill Iranians.

10. 1983: The White House secretly gives Iran weapons to kill Iraqis.

11. 1989: CIA agent Manuel Noriega (also serving as president of Panama) disobeys orders from Washington. U.S. invades Panama and removes Noriega.

12. 1990: Iraq invades Kuwait with weapons from U.S.

13. 1991: U.S. enters Iraq. Bush reinstates dictator of Kuwait.

14. 1998: U.S. bombs “weapons factory” in Sudan. The factory turns out to be making aspirin.

15. 1991-making of the film: U.S. planes bomb Iraq on a weekly basis. The United Nations estimates that 500,000 Iraqi children die from bombing and sanctions.

16. 2000-2001: U.S. gives Taliban-ruled Afghanistan $245 million in aid.

In the case of Chile, under the dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet, not only they develop a extended policy of State terrorism against civilians, but also in the international arena against perceived enemies, including the assassinations of Orlando Letelier in Washington DC by a car bomb, Gen. Carlos Prats in Argentina in similar circumstances, and the attempted assassination of Bernardo Leighton in Italy.

Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "State terrorism."

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States of Austria

(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)

The States of Austria, or Bundesländer, are the federal states of Austria.

The nine Bundesländer with ISO 3166-2 code are:

States of Austria

English	German	ISO		State capital	Area¹	Population²	Gov web
Burgenland	Burgenland	AT-1	B	Eisenstadt	3'965	277'569	bgld.gv.at
Carinthia	Kärnten	AT-2	K	Klagenfurt	9'536	559'404	ktn.gv.at
Lower Austria	Niederösterreich	AT-3	N	St. Pölten	19'178	1'545'804	noel.gv.at
Upper Austria	Oberösterreich	AT-4	O	Linz	11'982	1'376'797	ooe.gv.at
Salzburg	Salzburg	AT-5	S	Salzburg	7'154	515'327	sbg.gv.at
Styria	Steiermark	AT-6	St	Graz	16'392	1'183'303	stmk.gv.at
Tyrol	Tirol	AT-7	T	Innsbruck	12'648	673'504	tirol.gv.at
Vorarlberg	Vorarlberg	AT-8	V	Bregenz	2'601	372'791	vorarlberg.at
Vienna	Wien	AT-9	W	n/a (city-state)	414,65	1'550'123	wien.gv.at

¹in km² ²on 2001-05-15

See also: Bundesland, List of subnational entities, List of capitals of subnational entities

External link

Map

Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "States of Austria."

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States of Brazil

(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)

There are 27 States of Brazil, or Estados in Portuguese, which are the federal states of Brazil, plus the Federal District which holds the capital city, Brasília.

The twenty-six states are:

• Acre
• Alagoas
• Amapá
• Amazonas
• Bahia
• Ceará
• Espírito Santo
• Goiás
• Maranhão
• Mato Grosso
• Mato Grosso do Sul
• Minas Gerais
• Pará
• Paraíba
• Paraná
• Pernambuco
• Piauí
• Rio de Janeiro
• Rio Grande do Norte
• Rio Grande do Sul
• Rondônia
• Roraima
• Santa Catarina
• São Paulo
• Sergipe
• Tocantins

plus one extra federated unity,

• Federal District

See also: Brazil, List of subnational entities, List of capitals of subnational entities

External link

Map

Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "States of Brazil."

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States of Germany

(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)

Germany is a federation of 16 states called Länder (singular Land) or Bundesländer (singular Bundesland).

The 16 Länder are:

1. Baden-Württemberg
2. Bavaria (Bayern)
3. Berlin (city-state)
4. Brandenburg
5. Bremen (city-state)
6. Hamburg (city-state)
7. Hesse (Hessen)
8. Mecklenburg-Vorpommern
9. Lower Saxony (Niedersachsen)
10. North Rhine-Westphalia (Nordrhein-Westfalen)
11. Rhineland-Palatinate (Rheinland-Pfalz)
12. Saarland
13. Saxony (Sachsen)
14. Saxony-Anhalt (Sachsen-Anhalt)
15. Schleswig-Holstein
16. Thuringia (Thüringen)

Functions

The Basic Law stipulates that the structure of Land government must "conform to the principles of republican, democratic, and social government based on the rule of law" (Article 28[1]). Thirteen of the Länder are governed by a cabinet led by a minister president together with a unicameral legislative body, the Landtag (pl., Landtage). The relationship between the legislative and executive branches mirrors that in the federal system: the legislatures are popularly elected, typically for four years, and the minister president is chosen by a majority vote among Landtag members. The minister president appoints a cabinet to run Land agencies and carry out the executive duties of the Land government. Until 1999, Bavaria was the only Land with a bicameral legislature; the Landtag being popularly elected, with the second chamber, the Senate, consists of representatives of the major social and economic groups in Bavaria. In 1998, voters approved a proposal to abolish the Senate, with effect from December 1999. In the city Länder of Berlin, Bremen, and Hamburg, the executive branch consists of a popularly elected Senate. The senators carry out duties equivalent to those of the ministers in the larger Länder. The senate chooses a senate president in Bremen and a mayor in Berlin and Hamburg to serve as chief executive. Land cabinets consist of about ten ministers; the most important is the minister of the interior, who directs the internal administration of the Land and commands the police.

Politics at the Land level often carry implications for federal politics. Opposition victories in Landtag elections--which take place throughout the federal government's four-year term--can weaken the federal government coalition. This was the case for the fall from the chancellorship of Konrad Adenauer in 1963 and that of Willy Brandt in 1974. The Land elections are also viewed as a barometer of support for the policies of the federal government. If the parties of the governing coalition lose support in successive Land elections, those results may foreshadow difficulties for the federal government. The outcome of Land elections also directly affects the composition of the Bundesrat. In the early 1990s, the opposition SPD commanded a two-thirds majority in that legislative chamber, which made it particularly difficult for the CDU/CSU-FDP government to achieve the constitutional changes it sought. Today (2003) the situation is reversed, the SPD government being severely hindered by a large CDU majority in the Bundesrat. At the same time, the powers of the Lands in their own territories have been much diminished in the last decades with the ever-increasing amount of federal legislation. Due to these twin problems, a commision has been formed to examine the possibility of instituting a clearer separation of federal and Land powers.

Further subdivisions

The city-states of Berlin and Hamburg are not subdivided. The state Bremen consists of two district-cities, Bremen and Bremerhaven. In the other Länder there are the following subdivisions:

• Regierungsbezirke: The large states of Baden-Württemberg, Bavaria, Hesse, Lower Saxony, North Rhine-Westphalia, Rhineland-Palatinate, Saxony and Saxony-Anhalt are divided into administrative regions, or Regierungsbezirke (officially not called "Regierungsbezirk" in Rhineland-Palatinate). These districts decentralize Land administration and are run by district presidents who are appointed by the Land minister president and report to the Land minister of the interior.
• Kreise: Every state consists of districts, or Kreise; there are 438 districts; in addition there are district-free cities; a district-free city is by itself a district. Each consists of an elected council and an executive, who is selected by the council and whose duties are comparable to those of a county manager supervising local government administration. The Landkreise have primary administrative functions in specific areas, such as highways, hospitals, and public utilities.
• Ämter: In some states there is an administrative unit between districts and municipalities. These units are called Ämter (singular Amt), Samtgemeinden, Verbandgemeinden or Verwaltungsgemeinschaften.
• Gemeinden: Every district and every Amt is subdivided into municipalities; there are 13,912 municipalities, which are the smallest administrative units in Germany. Cities are municipalities as well, which have city rights (Stadtrecht). Nowadays this is mostly just the right to be called a city; however, in older times it included many privileges such as to have their own taxes or to allow industry inside cities only. .

Gemeinden are ruled by elected councils and an executive, the mayor, who is chosen by either the council or the people, depending on the Bundesland. Gemeinden have two major policy responsibilities. First, they administer programs authorized by the federal or Land government. Such programs typically might relate to youth, public health, and social assistance. Second, Article 28(2) of the Basic Law guarantees Gemeinden "the right to regulate on their own responsibility all the affairs of the local community within the limits set by law." Under this broad statement of competence, local governments can justify a wide range of activities. For instance, many municipalities develop the economic infrastructure of their communities through the development of industrial parks. Local authorities foster cultural activities by supporting local artists and building arts centers. Local government also provides basic public utilities, such as gas and electricity, as well as public transportation. Most of these functions are currently (2003) under threat since the communities are notoriously badly financed.

• List of cities in Germany includes a table of cities with more than 100,000 inhabitants (Städte) and a general listing of cities, other municipalities, and villages.

See also:

• List of subnational entities
• List of capitals of subnational entities

  Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "States of Germany."

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States of Mexico

(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)

Mexico is divided into 31 states (estados) and 1 Federal District (Distrito Federal), which contains the capital, Mexico City.

States and their capital cities:

• Aguascalientes - Aguascalientes
• Baja California (Norte) - Mexicali
• Baja California Sur - La Paz
• Campeche - Campeche
• Chiapas - Tuxtla Gutiérrez
• Chihuahua - Chihuahua
• Coahuila - Saltillo
• Colima - Colima
• Durango - Durango
• Federal District
• Guanajuato - Guanajuato
• Guerrero - Chilpancingo
• Hidalgo - Pachuca
• Jalisco - Guadalajara
• México - Toluca
• Michoacán - Morelia
• Morelos - Cuernavaca
• Nayarit - Tepic
• Nuevo Leon - Monterrey
• Oaxaca - Oaxaca
• Puebla - Puebla
• Querétaro - Querétaro
• Quintana Roo - Chetumal
• San Luis Potosí - San Luis Potosí
• Sinaloa - Culiacán
• Sonora - Hermosillo
• Tabasco - Villahermosa
• Tamaulipas - Ciudad Victoria
• Tlaxcala - Tlaxcala
• Veracruz - Xalapa
• Yucatán - Mérida
• Zacatecas - Zacatecas

External link

Map

Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "States of Mexico."

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U.S. state

(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)

A U.S. State is any one of the fifty states which is a member of the federation known as the United States of America. Sovereignty is divided between the individual states and the federal government. Under the United States Constitution, the federal government can legislate only on matters explicitly delegated to it by the Constitution, with the remaining governmental powers belonging to the states.

Map

List of states

The states, with their US postal abbreviations and capitals, are:

AL Alabama - Montgomery AK Alaska - Juneau AZ Arizona - Phoenix AR Arkansas - Little Rock CA California - Sacramento CO