Russo became involved in political issues in the early-1990s when he produced and starred in the documentary entitled Mad As Hell in which he criticized the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), the federal government's War on Drugs, the concept of a National Identity Card, and government regulation of alternative medicine.[citation needed]
In 1998, Russo took his political interests to a higher level, running for governor of the state of Nevada as a Republican. Placing second in the Republican primary with 26% of the vote to candidate Kenny Guinn, Russo later endorsed the Democratic nominee, then-Las Vegas mayor Jan Laverty Jones, who would eventually lose to Republican nominee Kenny Guinn.[citation needed] Russo was planning to run again for Nevada governor in 2002 as either an independent or Libertarian but was sidelined by cancer.
In January 2004, Russo declared his candidacy for the President of
the United States initially as an independent but then as a Libertarian.
At the Libertarian National Convention in May 2004, Russo received 258
votes to Michael Badnarik's 256 votes and Gary Nolan's
246 votes, short of the majority required to receive the presidential
nomination. Russo would eventually lose the nomination on the
convention's third and final ballot to Badnarik by a vote of 423–344.
On February 14, 2004, Russo gave his full endorsement to the Free State Project,
saying in his letter, "I encourage my fellow Libertarians and all
freedom-loving Americans to consider joining the Free State Project."[3]
In 2007, Russo created the political grassroots organization, Restore the Republic, to fulfill the political ambitions laid out in his final movie documentary, America: Freedom to Fascism.
Regarding the organization, Russo said his goal was to "try and get the
word out to the public about what's happening to America – and give
them an opportunity to try to change things".[citation needed]
The Aaron Russo Gold Commemorative Memorial Piece.
Death
On August 24, 2007, Russo died at the age of 64 of bladder cancer at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles.[4] During an interview with Alex Jones[5] he confided to him that he suspected a cancer-causing agent had been intentionally and covertly introduced into his system in an effort to eliminate him from the picture.[6]
References
Mahoney, John C. (November 1979). "Bette Midler in "The Rose"". Bette on the Boards. Archived from the original on August 7, 2007. Retrieved August 24, 2007.
"Aaron Russo". Hollywood Foreign Press Association. Retrieved February 11, 2010.
This is one of the most vital and important areas of deliverance
ministry that we cannot overlook. While it is important to cast out
demons, it is just as important, if not more important, to minister to
the emotional wounds. Emotional wounds are one of the most common
reasons that deliverances can fail or demons seem to keep coming back
and regaining inhabitation within the person. I need to make it clear
that if you are going to be in the deliverance ministry, it is an
absolute necessity that you learn about emotional wounds and how to
bring the person to the point where they can receive inner healing from
the Holy Spirit. Our goal is not to forget a hurtful event or trauma, but to receive
healing for that event, where the Holy Spirit removes the stinger from
it. When we look back upon a healed wound, we can see it in a different
way, because it has been healed and is no longer painful to look back
upon.
Former British MP Louise
Mensch took to Twitter as well to condemn Sainsbury's, saying that
"rather than call the police on demonstrators they took kosher food OFF
their shelves."
"That is disgusting, @Sainsbury's you are sick. You discriminate
against British Jews instead of calling the police, how dare you," she
went on to say.
Mensch also stressed the difference between kosher food, and Israeli-made products.
"Dear
@Sainsburys kosher is JEWISH food. Israel is a COUNTRY. How DARE YOU
equate Jews' food to ISRAEL, how dare you #EverydayAntisemitism."
London supermarket empties kosher food shelves amid fears of anti-Israel protests
Political career
Mensch was placed on the A-List of Conservative candidates in 2006. This move was criticised by David Burrowes, from the socially conservative Cornerstone Group of Tory MPs, as favouring "minor celebrities", such as Mensch, over local candidates when selecting prospective parliamentary candidates.[29] In October 2006 she was selected to stand in Corby.[30] As part of her campaigning for the 2010 election, she appeared on Question Time[10] and BBC One's The Big Questions.[31] She believes the fox hunting ban should be repealed on civil liberties grounds, and that its debate and implementation was a waste of Parliamentary time.[32] In the 2010 general election Mensch won the seat of Corby with a majority of 1,951, defeating Labour incumbent Phil Hope, and in June 2010 she was elected by other Conservative MPs to serve on the Select Committee for the Department of Culture, Media and Sport.
Most Famous British Baby Brothers Starring : Charlie Bit My Finger Again
Most Famous British Baby Brothers Starring : Charlie Bit My Finger Again
Background
Even had I thought of trying to get my boys to do this I probably
couldn't have, neither were coerced into any of this and neither were
hurt (for very long anyway).
Howard Davies-Carr, the father of the boys, said the video was
"simply an attempt to capture the boys growing up". While watching the
finger-biting scene on his camera after recording it, it "didn't
particularly stand out". It was not until he transferred the video onto
his computer a few weeks later and played it again that he realized it
was funny.[8]
The Davies-Carr family lives in England. Howard uploaded the video
onto YouTube so that it could be watched by the boys' godfather, who was
living in the United States.[2] He chose YouTube because the size of the video file was so big that it could not be sent by email.[9]
Originally the video was set to private and he mentions, "I was just
about to remove (the video) before it exploded[....] but once it had
(exploded) I had lost control of the clip anyway so I left it."[10]
Howard commented on the video: "The clip only went up as I wanted to
share it with the boys' godfather. I was naive about the whole YouTube
thing. It became viral and once that happened there was nothing I could
do. People have sent lovely comments and messages and I now upload a new
video of the boys every six weeks."[2]
Views
"Charlie Bit My Finger" had received 2.6 million views on YouTube at the start of February 2008[11] and 12 million hits in March 2008.[12] In December 2008, it was the twelfth most viewed video on YouTube with 65 million views.[13] In April the following year, the video had received 92 million hits.[14] It became the second most viewed video in August 2009,[15] and took over the title as the most viewed video ever at the end of October 2009, when it replaced Evolution of Dance.[2] As of November 2009, "Charlie Bit My Finger - Again!" had received over 130 million views.[2]
In addition to being the most viewed, it was also the "most favorited"
and the second "most discussed" video on the website in the United
Kingdom.[6]
In a May 2009 report compiled by Visible Measures, which measures video
hits across 150 video-sharing websites, "Charlie Bit My Finger" was the
thirteenth most viewed viral video on the Internet.[16] In 2011, it was surpassed by Justin Bieber's "Baby", Lady Gaga's "Bad Romance", Eminem feat. Rihanna's "Love the Way You Lie"and Shakira's "Waka Waka (This Time for Africa)". In September 2011, it was surpassed by Jennifer Lopez feat. Pitbull's "On The Floor", becoming the 6th most viewed video on YouTube. In November 2012, it was surpassed by Psy's "Gangnam Style", becoming the 7th most viewed video on YouTube.[9][17]
It has since surpassed all but "Gangnam Style", "Baby", and "On the
Floor" to reclaim the position of 4th-most-watched video. As of June 9,
2014 it has had 721,563,024 views and remains the most viewed YouTube
video that is not a professional music video.[18]
As of December 2013, the official YouTube channel for the "Charlie Bit My Finger" video has over 238,000 subscribers.[19]
Impact
As a result of the video's inadvertent fame, the boys gained
recognition. Following the video, multiple clips were uploaded by their
father to YouTube. They feature Jasper, the third child in the family.[9] Shelley Davies-Carr, their mother, told The Sun
in 2010 that "a lot of people like seeing Harry and Charlie growing up
and following the family story. They knew I was pregnant with Jasper and
now they're watching him grow up."[9]
In the same article Howard noted, however, that he has "deliberately
kept away from the personal bits. You don't see their birthdays, school
plays or things like the first they cycled. All I do is put up one clip
every six weeks and an awful lot happens every six weeks."[9]
Howard has stated that he will not continue to upload videos of his
children when they grow older. He said in 2010 that "I don't know if
they'll take it over. I'd like to think they'd have an interest, but it
will be their decision."[9] Shelley commented on the success: "Susan Boyle
has never had the hits we have had. The video got on to a college
networking site in the US and from there it went viral. I think the
British accents have helped make it so globally viewed."[2]
According to a 2008 interview with Shelley, the boys get embarrassed
when they see themselves on television. She also noted that in 2008 they
were "shy about their new fame."[13][20] Howard commented in 2009 that his sons "are now almost legendary. People want their autographs, it's just crazy."[6][20]
According to the Daily Mail, various fan clubs dedicated to Harry and Charlie were established around the world.[21]
In their list of YouTube's 50 greatest viral videos, Time ranked "Charlie Bit My Finger" as number one.[22]
The video's lasting impact was underscored by the Davies-Carr family's appearance as mystery guests on Channel 4's Big Fat Quiz of the '00s on September 30, 2012. Among the references to the video includes an episode of the U.S. television series The Office.
In a 2012 interview Howard Davies-Carr discussed the pitfalls of
their children's accidental fame saying, "There are an awful lot of
unscrupulous people out there who will try and take advantage of people
that don't understand what they have."[23]
When it comes to the topic of the boys getting older, the boys father
has reflected, "When the boys get to 18, I'd like them to think back and
think, 'O.K., I've got something in my life which is more than just
what I was when I did the 'Charlie Bit Me' video."
The parents have passed on invitations to talk shows and on making public appearances in media outlets.[23]
In 2014, during his "After The Oscar's Special" on Jimmy Kimmel Live!, Jimmy Kimmel
enlisted the help of many big name celebrities to showcase some of
YouTube's greatest videos. The first video to be showcased was "Charlie
Bit My Finger" and was parodied in a video entitled "Bitman Begins" and
featured Tom Hanks, Meryl Streep, and brothers Chris & Liam
Hemsworth. Chris played the role of Harry, while Liam played the role
of Charlie. The video was a mock trailer for a film featuring the
actors. The climatic scene takes place on the roof of a building where
Harry wants revenge on Charlie for biting his finger. "Harry" screams
the line "Charlie bit me, Charlie bit my finger!" They fall off the roof
onto the street below. "Harry" then utters the famous line "Ouch
Charlie, that really hurt" while "Charlie" just laughs.[24]
Financial impact
It was reported that in 2011 the family made over £100,000 off advertising revenue from the video.[25] The profit from the video was enough that the family could afford to purchase a new house.[26]
In 2012 it was reported that the profits from the video were over £300,000 (US $500,000).[27][28] Their success has been compared to winning a lottery.[23] The family plans on using the money being made to go towards the boys future education.[29]
Since the "Charlie Bit My Finger" video was posted, other videos of
babies have gone "viral" on the site YouTube and the families are
monetising them.[30]
The pasta sauce company Ragú also produced a commercial based on the video with the boys.[31]
At one point in time, their father Howard Davies-Car stressed that he
didn't want to commercialize on the boy's success but realized that
unlicensed merchandise was being sold based on their video.[9]
In response to requests from viewers online the family created "Charlie
Bit My Finger" T-shirts, mugs and limited edition calendars.[2][32]
The family signed into a partnership with a video management company
called Viral Spiral. Viral Spiral, a video management company
specializing in viral videos, has helped place the video in
advertisements for companies like Sprint and helped to create a brand.[23][33] There was also news of a web series featuring the boys in the works.[34]
An app called "Charlie Bit Me!!!" was created for Apple and Android devices, developed by Viral Spiral and zGames.[35]
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Charlie Bit My Finger - Again!
Harry and Charlie as seen in the video.
Release date(s)
May 22, 2007
Running time
56 seconds
"Charlie Bit My Finger – Again!",[1] more simply known as Charlie Bit My Finger or Charlie Bit Me (referring to a quotation in the video), is a 2007 Internet viral video famous for formerly being the most viewed YouTube video.[2][3] As of April 2014, the video ranks as the fourth most viewed video on YouTube with approximately 730 million views.[4] The clip features two English
brothers, aged three and one. In the video, the younger brother,
Charlie, bites the finger of his older brother, Harry. The boys' father
uploaded the video online in May 2007. The 56-second-long video,[5] which was uploaded on YouTube in May 2007,[6] features two English
brothers, Harry Davies-Carr (aged three) and Charlie Davies-Carr (aged
one). The two are seen sitting in a chair when Harry puts his finger
into Charlie's mouth and gets bitten. "Charlie bit me," he observes and
puts his finger back into Charlie's mouth, which gets it bitten harder.
Harry, who is hurt, says "Ouch" repeatedly and his brother begins to
giggle. Afterwards, Harry smiles and repeats "Charlie bit me".[2]
The War On Stupidity And Mindless Bloodthirsty Thought
The War On Stupidity And Mindless Bloodthirsty Thought
Etymology
Engraving after Pieter Breughel the Elder, 1556. caption: Al rijst den esele ter scholen om leeren, ist eenen esele hij en zal gheen peert weder keeren (Even if the Ass travels to school to learn, as a horse he will not return)
Stupidity is a quality or state of being stupid, or an act or idea that exhibits properties of being stupid.[3] The root word stupid,[4] which can serve as an adjective or noun, comes from the Latin verb stupere, for being numb or astonished, and is related to stupor.[5] In Roman culture, the stupidus was the professional fall-guy in the theatrical mimes.[6]
According to the online Merriam-Webster dictionary, the words
"stupid" and "stupidity" entered the English language in 1541. Since
then, stupidity has taken place along with "fool," "idiot," "dumb," "moron,"
and related concepts as a pejorative appellation for human misdeeds,
whether purposeful or accidental, due to absence of mental capacity.
Definition
The modern English word "stupid" has a broad range of application,
from being slow of mind (indicating a lack of intelligence, care or
reason), dullness of feeling or sensation (torpidity, senseless,
insensitivity), or lacking interest or point (vexing, exasperating). It
can either imply a congenital lack of capacity for reasoning, or a
temporary state of daze or slow-mindedness.
In Understanding Stupidity, James F. Welles defines stupidity
this way: "The term may be used to designate a mentality which is
considered to be informed, deliberate and maladaptive." Welles
distinguishes stupidity from ignorance; one must know they are acting in
their own worst interest. Secondly, it must be a choice, not a forced
act or accident. Lastly, it requires the activity to be maladaptive, in
that it is in the worst interest of the actor, and specifically done to
prevent adaption to new data or existing circumstances."[7]
Laws of Stupidity
Carlo Maria Cipolla, an economic historian, is famous for his essays about human stupidity, such as "The Basic Laws of Human Stupidity".[8][9][10] He viewed stupid people as a group, more powerful by far than major organizations such as the Mafia and the industrial complex,
which without regulations, leaders or manifesto nonetheless manages to
operate to great effect and with incredible coordination.
These are Cipolla's five fundamental laws of stupidity:
Always and inevitably each of us underestimates the number of stupid individuals in circulation.
The probability that a given person is stupid is independent of any other characteristic possessed by that person.
A person is stupid if they cause damage to another person or
group of people without experiencing personal gain, or even worse
causing damage to themselves in the process.
Non-stupid people always underestimate the harmful potential of
stupid people; they constantly forget that at any time anywhere, and in
any circumstance, dealing with or associating themselves with stupid
individuals invariably constitutes a costly error.
A stupid person is the most dangerous type of person there is.
Playing stupid
Eric Berne described the game of "Stupid" as having "the thesis...'I laugh with you at my own clumsiness and stupidity.'"[11]
He points out that the player has the advantage of lowering other
people's expectations, and so evading responsibility and work; but that
s/he may still come through under pressure, like the proverbially stupid
younger son.[12] Wilfred Bion considered that psychological projection created a barrier against learning anything new, and thus its own form of pseudo-stupidity.[13]
Intellectual stupidity
Otto Fenichel
maintained that "quite a percentage of so-called feeble-mindedness
turns out to be pseudo-debility, conditioned by inhibition....Every
intellect begins to show weakness when affective motives are working
against it".[14] He suggests that "people become stupid ad hoc, that is, when they do not want to understand, where understanding would cause anxiety or guilt feeling, or would endanger an existing neurotic equilibrium."[15]
In rather different fashion, Doris Lessing
argued that "there is no fool like an intellectual...a kind of clever
stupidity, bred out of a line of logic in the head, nothing to do with
experience."[16]
Persisting in folly
In the Romantic reaction to Enlightenment wisdom, a valorisation of the irrational, the foolish and the stupid emerged, as in William Blake's dictum that "if the fool would persist in his folly he would become wise;"[17] or Jung's
belief that "it requires no art to become stupid; the whole art lies in
extracting wisdom from stupidity. Stupidity is the mother of the wise,
but cleverness never."[18]
Similarly, Michel Foucault argued for the necessity of stupidity to re-connect with what our articulate categories exclude, to recapture the alterity of difference.[19]
In culture
In comedy
The fool or buffoon has been a central character in much comedy. Alford and Alford found that humor based on stupidity was prevalent in "more complex" societies as compared to some other forms of humor.[20]
Some analysis of Shakespeare's comedy has found that his characters
tend to hold mutually contradictory positions; because this implies a
lack of careful analysis it indicates stupidity on their part.[21]
Today there is a wide array of television shows that showcase stupidity such as The Simpsons.[22]Goofball comedy refers to a class of naive, zany humour typified by actor Leslie Nielsen.[23][24]
In literature
The first book in English on stupidity was A Short Introduction to the History of Stupidity by Walter B. Pitkin (1932):
“
Stupidity
can easily be proved the supreme Social Evil. Three factors combine to
establish it as such. First and foremost, the number of stupid people is
legion. Secondly, most of the power in business, finance, diplomacy and
politics is in the hands of more or less stupid individuals. Finally,
high abilities are often linked with serious stupidity.[25]
”
According to In Search of Stupidity: Over Twenty Years of High Tech Marketing Disasters, (2003) by Merrill R. Chapman:
“
The
claim that high-tech companies are constantly running into 'new' and
'unique' situations that they cannot possibly be expected to anticipate
and intelligently resolve is demonstrably false....The truth is that
technology companies are constantly repeating the same mistakes with
wearying consistency...and many of the stupid things these companies do
are completely avoidable.
”
"While In Search of Excellence turned out to be a fraud, In Search of Stupidity is genuine, and no names have been changed to protect the guilty," according to one reviewer.[26]
In film
Stupidity was a 2003 movie directed by Albert Nerenberg.[27]
It depicted examples and analyses of stupidity in modern society and
media, and sought "to explore the prospect that willful ignorance has
increasingly become a strategy for success in the realms of politics and
entertainment."[28]
Awards
The Darwin Awards
honour people who ensure the long-term survival of the human race by
removing themselves from the gene pool in a sublimely idiotic fashion.
The World Stupidity Awards are granted in several categories: statement, situation, trend, achievement; man, movie, and media outlet.[29]
In technology
Used as a term to retrospectively apply to an earlier generation of technology. For example "stupid-phone" to apply to a 2.5G mobile or POTS or even a non-cordless phone as opposed to the more modern "smartphones" or cordlesses.
Williams was found unconscious in his home in an unincorporated area just outside Tiburon, California, at around 11:55 am PDT on August 11, 2014, and was pronounced dead at 12:02 pm.[88][89] The Coroner Division of Marin County suspects the death to be suicide by asphyxia, pending investigation.[90][91]
According to his publicist, Williams was "battling severe depression"
in the time before his death, though his publicist would not confirm the
reports that the death was suicide.[92] A forensic examination and postliminary toxicology test is scheduled for August 12, 2014.[93]
Williams' wife Susan Schneider said "I lost my husband and my best
friend, while the world lost one of its most beloved artists and
beautiful human beings. I am utterly heartbroken."[94]
Fellow comedian Steve Martin tweeted "I could not be more stunned by the loss of Robin Williams, mensch, great talent, acting partner, genuine soul."[95][96] US PresidentBarack Obama said Williams was "one of a kind", and someone who "ended up touching every element of the human spirit."[97]
This article is about a person who has recently died.
Some information, such as the circumstances of the person's death and
surrounding events, may change as more facts become known.
The word volcano is derived from the name of Vulcano, a volcanic island in the Aeolian Islands of Italy whose name in turn originates from Vulcan, the name of a god of fire in Roman mythology.[3] The study of volcanoes is called volcanology, sometimes spelled vulcanology.
Plate tectonics
Map showing the divergent plate boundaries (OSR – Oceanic Spreading Ridges) and recent sub aerial volcanoes.
At the mid-oceanic ridges, two tectonic plates diverge from one another as new oceanic crust
is formed by the cooling and solidifying of hot molten rock. Because
the crust is very thin at these ridges due to the pull of the tectonic
plates, the release of pressure leads to adiabatic expansion and the partial melting of the mantle, causing volcanism and creating new oceanic crust. Most divergent plate boundaries are at the bottom of the oceans; therefore, most volcanic activity is submarine, forming new seafloor. Black smokers
(also known as deep sea vents) are an example of this kind of volcanic
activity. Where the mid-oceanic ridge is above sea-level, volcanic
islands are formed, for example, Iceland.
Subduction zones
are places where two plates, usually an oceanic plate and a continental
plate, collide. In this case, the oceanic plate subducts, or submerges
under the continental plate forming a deep ocean trench just offshore.
In a process called flux melting, water released from the subducting plate lowers the melting temperature of the overlying mantle wedge, creating magma. This magma tends to be very viscous due to its high silica
content, so often does not reach the surface and cools at depth. When
it does reach the surface, a volcano is formed. Typical examples of this
kind of volcano are Mount Etna and the volcanoes in the Pacific Ring of Fire.
"Hotspots" is the name given to volcanic areas believed to be formed by mantle plumes,
which are hypothesized to be columns of hot material rising from the
core-mantle boundary in a fixed space that causes large-volume melting.
Because tectonic plates move across them, each volcano becomes dormant
and is eventually reformed as the plate advances over the postulated
plume. The Hawaiian Islands have been suggested to have been formed in such a manner, as well as the Snake River Plain, with the Yellowstone Caldera being the part of the North American plate currently above the hot spot. This theory is currently under criticism, however.[2]
Volcanic features
Lakagigar fissure vent in Iceland, source of the major world climate alteration of 1783–84.
Skjaldbreiður, a shield volcano whose name means "broad shield"
The most common perception of a volcano is of a conical mountain, spewing lava and poisonous gases from a crater
at its summit; however, this describes just one of the many types of
volcano. The features of volcanoes are much more complicated and their
structure and behavior depends on a number of factors. Some volcanoes
have rugged peaks formed by lava domes rather than a summit crater while others have landscape features such as massive plateaus. Vents that issue volcanic material (including lava and ash) and gases (mainly steam and magmatic gases) can develop anywhere on the landform and may give rise to smaller cones such as Puʻu ʻŌʻō on a flank of Hawaii's Kīlauea. Other types of volcano include cryovolcanoes (or ice volcanoes), particularly on some moons of Jupiter, Saturn, and Neptune; and mud volcanoes,
which are formations often not associated with known magmatic activity.
Active mud volcanoes tend to involve temperatures much lower than those
of igneous volcanoes except when the mud volcano is actually a vent of an igneous volcano.
Shield volcanoes, so named for their broad, shield-like
profiles, are formed by the eruption of low-viscosity lava that can flow
a great distance from a vent. They generally do not explode
catastrophically. Since low-viscosity magma is typically low in silica,
shield volcanoes are more common in oceanic than continental settings.
The Hawaiian volcanic chain is a series of shield cones, and they are
common in Iceland, as well.
Lava domes are built by slow eruptions of highly viscous lava.
They are sometimes formed within the crater of a previous volcanic
eruption, as in the case of Mount Saint Helens, but can also form independently, as in the case of Lassen Peak.
Like stratovolcanoes, they can produce violent, explosive eruptions,
but their lava generally does not flow far from the originating vent.
Cryptodomes
Cryptodomes are formed when viscous lava is forced upward causing the surface to bulge. The 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens
was an example; lava beneath the surface of the mountain created an
upward bulge which slid down the north side of the mountain.
Izalco (volcano) located in the Cordillera de Apaneca volcanic range complex in El Salvador,
only a few generations old, is the youngest and most well known cone
volcano. Izalco erupted almost continuously from 1770 (when it formed)
to 1958 earning it the nickname of "Lighthouse of the Pacific".
Volcanic cones or cinder cones result from eruptions of mostly small pieces of scoria and pyroclastics
(both resemble cinders, hence the name of this volcano type) that build
up around the vent. These can be relatively short-lived eruptions that
produce a cone-shaped hill perhaps 30 to 400 meters high. Most cinder
cones erupt only once. Cinder cones may form as flank vents on larger volcanoes, or occur on their own. Parícutin in Mexico and Sunset Crater in Arizona are examples of cinder cones. In New Mexico, Caja del Rio is a volcanic field of over 60 cinder cones.
Based on satellite images it was suggested that cinder cones might
occur on other terrestrial bodies in the Solar system too; on the
surface of Mars and the Moon.[4][5][6][7]
Stratovolcanoes (composite volcanoes)
Cross-section through a stratovolcano (vertical scale is exaggerated):
1. Large magma chamber
2. Bedrock
3. Conduit (pipe)
4. Base
5. Sill
6. Dike
7. Layers of ash emitted by the volcano
8. Flank
9. Layers of lava emitted by the volcano
10. Throat
11. Parasitic cone
12. Lava flow
13. Vent
14. Crater
15. Ash cloud
Stratovolcanoes or composite volcanoes are tall conical mountains composed of lava flows and other ejecta in alternate layers, the strata
that gives rise to the name. Stratovolcanoes are also known as
composite volcanoes because they are created from multiple structures
during different kinds of eruptions. Strato/composite volcanoes are made
of cinders, ash, and lava. Cinders and ash pile on top of each other,
lava flows on top of the ash, where it cools and hardens, and then the
process repeats. Classic examples include Mt. Fuji in Japan, Mayon Volcano in the Philippines, and Mount Vesuvius and Stromboli in Italy.
Throughout recorded history, ash produced by the explosive eruption
of stratovolcanoes has posed the greatest volcanic hazard to
civilizations. Not only do stratovolcanoes have greater pressure build
up from the underlying lava flow than shield volcanoes, but their
fissure vents and monogenetic volcanic fields (volcanic cones) have more powerful eruptions, as they are many times under extension. They are also steeper than shield volcanoes, with slopes of 30–35° compared to slopes of generally 5–10°, and their loose tephra are material for dangerous lahars.[8]
A supervolcano usually has a large caldera
and can produce devastation on an enormous, sometimes continental,
scale. Such volcanoes are able to severely cool global temperatures for
many years after the eruption due to the huge volumes of sulfur and ash released into the atmosphere. They are the most dangerous type of volcano. Examples include: Yellowstone Caldera in Yellowstone National Park and Valles Caldera in New Mexico (both western United States); Lake Taupo in New Zealand; Lake Toba in Sumatra, Indonesia; Ngorongoro Crater in Tanzania; and Krakatoa near Java
and Sumatra, Indonesia. Because of the enormous area they may cover,
supervolcanoes are hard to identify centuries after an eruption.
Similarly, large igneous provinces are also considered supervolcanoes because of the vast amount of basalt lava erupted (even though the lava flow is non-explosive).
Submarine volcanoes are common features of the ocean floor. In
shallow water, active volcanoes disclose their presence by blasting
steam and rocky debris high above the ocean's surface. In the ocean's
deep, the tremendous weight of the water above prevents the explosive
release of steam and gases; however, they can be detected by hydrophones and discoloration of water because of volcanic gases. Pillow lava
is a common eruptive product of submarine volcanoes and is
characterized by thick sequences of discontinuous pillow-shaped masses
which form under water. Even large submarine eruptions may not disturb
the ocean surface due to the rapid cooling effect and increased buoyancy
of water (as compared to air) which often causes volcanic vents to form
steep pillars on the ocean floor. Hydrothermal vents are common near these volcanoes, and some support peculiar ecosystems
based on dissolved minerals. Over time, the formations created by
submarine volcanoes may become so large that they break the ocean
surface as new islands or floating pumice rafts.
Subglacial volcanoes develop underneath icecaps. They are made up of flat lava which flows at the top of extensive pillow lavas and palagonite. When the icecap melts, the lava on top collapses, leaving a flat-topped mountain. These volcanoes are also called table mountains, tuyas, or (uncommonly) mobergs. Very good examples of this type of volcano can be seen in Iceland, however, there are also tuyas in British Columbia. The origin of the term comes from Tuya Butte, which is one of the several tuyas in the area of the Tuya River and Tuya Range in northern British Columbia. Tuya Butte was the first such landform analyzed and so its name has entered the geological literature for this kind of volcanic formation. The Tuya Mountains Provincial Park was recently established to protect this unusual landscape, which lies north of Tuya Lake and south of the Jennings River near the boundary with the Yukon Territory.
Mud volcanoes or mud domes are formations created by
geo-excreted liquids and gases, although there are several processes
which may cause such activity. The largest structures are 10 kilometers
in diameter and reach 700 meters high.
Erupted material
Pāhoehoe lava flow on Hawaii. The picture shows overflows of a main lava channel.
The Stromboli stratovolcano off the coast of Sicily has erupted continuously for thousands of years, giving rise to the term strombolian eruption.
San Miguel (volcano), El Salvador. On December 29, 2013, San Miguel volcano, also known as Chaparrastique,
erupted at 10:30 local time spewing a large column of ash and smoke
into the sky, seen from space, and prompted the evacuation of thousands
of people living in a 3 km radius around the volcano. The eruption was
the first for 11 years.
Lava composition
Another way of classifying volcanoes is by the composition of material erupted
(lava), since this affects the shape of the volcano. Lava can be
broadly classified into 4 different compositions (Cas & Wright,
1987):
If the erupted magma contains a high percentage (>63%) of silica, the lava is called felsic.
Felsic lavas (dacites or rhyolites) tend to be highly viscous (not very fluid) and are erupted as domes or short, stubby flows. Viscous lavas tend to form stratovolcanoes or lava domes. Lassen Peak in California is an example of a volcano formed from felsic lava and is actually a large lava dome.
Because siliceous magmas are so viscous, they tend to trap volatiles (gases) that are present, which cause the magma to erupt catastrophically, eventually forming stratovolcanoes. Pyroclastic flows (ignimbrites)
are highly hazardous products of such volcanoes, since they are
composed of molten volcanic ash too heavy to go up into the atmosphere,
so they hug the volcano's slopes and travel far from their vents during
large eruptions. Temperatures as high as 1,200 °C are known to occur in
pyroclastic flows, which will incinerate everything flammable in their
path and thick layers of hot pyroclastic flow deposits can be laid down,
often up to many meters thick. Alaska's Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes, formed by the eruption of Novarupta near Katmai
in 1912, is an example of a thick pyroclastic flow or ignimbrite
deposit. Volcanic ash that is light enough to be erupted high into the Earth's atmosphere may travel many kilometres before it falls back to ground as a tuff.
If the erupted magma contains 52–63% silica, the lava is of intermediate composition.
Magma mixing between felsic rhyolitic and mafic basaltic magmas in an intermediate reservoir prior to emplacement or lava flow.
If the erupted magma contains <52% and >45% silica, the lava is called mafic (because it contains higher percentages of magnesium (Mg) and iron (Fe)) or basaltic.
These lavas are usually much less viscous than rhyolitic lavas,
depending on their eruption temperature; they also tend to be hotter
than felsic lavas. Mafic lavas occur in a wide range of settings:
At mid-ocean ridges, where two oceanic plates are pulling apart, basaltic lava erupts as pillows to fill the gap;
Some erupted magmas contain <=45% silica and produce ultramafic lava. Ultramafic flows, also known as komatiites, are very rare; indeed, very few have been erupted at the Earth's surface since the Proterozoic, when the planet's heat flow was higher. They are (or were) the hottest lavas, and probably more fluid than common mafic lavas.
Lava texture
Two types of lava are named according to the surface texture: ʻAʻa (pronounced [ˈʔaʔa]) and pāhoehoe ([paːˈho.eˈho.e]), both Hawaiian words. ʻAʻa
is characterized by a rough, clinkery surface and is the typical
texture of viscous lava flows. However, even basaltic or mafic flows can
be erupted as ʻaʻa flows, particularly if the eruption rate is high and the slope is steep.
Pāhoehoe is characterized by its smooth and often ropey or wrinkly
surface and is generally formed from more fluid lava flows. Usually,
only mafic flows will erupt as pāhoehoe, since they often erupt at
higher temperatures or have the proper chemical make-up to allow them to
flow with greater fluidity.
A popular way of classifying magmatic volcanoes is by their frequency of eruption, with those that erupt regularly called active, those that have erupted in historical times but are now quiet called dormant or inactive, and those that have not erupted in historical times called extinct.
However, these popular classifications—extinct in particular—are
practically meaningless to scientists. They use classifications which
refer to a particular volcano's formative and eruptive processes and
resulting shapes, which was explained above.
Active
There is no consensus among volcanologists on how to define an
"active" volcano. The lifespan of a volcano can vary from months to
several million years, making such a distinction sometimes meaningless
when compared to the lifespans of humans or even civilizations. For
example, many of Earth's volcanoes have erupted dozens of times in the
past few thousand years but are not currently showing signs of eruption.
Given the long lifespan of such volcanoes, they are very active. By
human lifespans, however, they are not.
Scientists usually consider a volcano to be erupting or likely to erupt
if it is currently erupting, or showing signs of unrest such as unusual
earthquake activity or significant new gas emissions. Most scientists
consider a volcano active if it has erupted in the last 10,000 years (Holocene times) – the Smithsonian Global Volcanism Program uses this definition of active. There are about 1500 active volcanoes in the world – the majority along the Pacific Ring of Fire – and around 50 of these erupt each year.[9] An estimated 500 million people live near active volcanoes.[9] Historical time (or recorded history) is another timeframe for active.[10][11] The Catalogue of the Active Volcanoes of the World, published by the International Association of Volcanology, uses this definition, by which there are more than 500 active volcanoes.[10] However, the span of recorded history differs from region to region. In China and the Mediterranean,
it reaches back nearly 3,000 years, but in the Pacific Northwest of the
United States and Canada, it reaches back less than 300 years, and in
Hawaii and New Zealand, only around 200 years.[10]
Kīlauea lava entering the sea.
As of 2013, the following are considered Earth's most active volcanoes:[12]
Extinct volcanoes are those that scientists consider unlikely to
erupt again, because the volcano no longer has a magma supply. Examples
of extinct volcanoes are many volcanoes on the Hawaiian – Emperor seamount chain in the Pacific Ocean, Hohentwiel, Shiprock and the Zuidwal volcano in the Netherlands. Edinburgh Castle
in Scotland is famously located atop an extinct volcano. Otherwise,
whether a volcano is truly extinct is often difficult to determine.
Since "supervolcano" calderas
can have eruptive lifespans sometimes measured in millions of years, a
caldera that has not produced an eruption in tens of thousands of years
is likely to be considered dormant instead of extinct. Some
volcanologists refer to extinct volcanoes as inactive, though the term
is now more commonly used for dormant volcanoes once thought to be
extinct.
Dormant
It is difficult to distinguish an extinct volcano from a dormant
(inactive) one. Volcanoes are often considered to be extinct if there
are no written records of its activity. Nevertheless, volcanoes may
remain dormant for a long period of time. For example, Yellowstone has a repose/recharge period of around 700,000 years, and Toba of around 380,000 years.[14]Vesuvius was described by Roman writers as having been covered with gardens and vineyards before its eruption of AD 79, which destroyed the towns of Herculaneum and Pompeii. Before its catastrophic eruption of 1991, Pinatubo was an inconspicuous volcano, unknown to most people in the surrounding areas. Two other examples are the long-dormant Soufrière Hills volcano on the island of Montserrat, thought to be extinct before activity resumed in 1995 and Fourpeaked Mountain in Alaska, which, before its September 2006 eruption, had not erupted since before 8000 BC and had long been thought to be extinct.
Technical classification of volcanoes
Volcanic-alert level
The three common popular classifications of volcanoes can be
subjective and some volcanoes thought to have been extinct have erupted
again. To help prevent people from falsely believing they are not at
risk when living on or near a volcano, countries have adopted new
classifications to describe the various levels and stages of volcanic
activity.[15]
Some alert systems use different numbers or colors to designate the
different stages. Other systems use colors and words. Some systems use a
combination of both.
Volcano warning schemes of the United States
The United States Geological Survey (USGS) has adopted a common
system nationwide for characterizing the level of unrest and eruptive
activity at volcanoes. The new volcano alert-level system classifies
volcanoes now as being in a normal, advisory, watch or warning stage.
Additionally, colors are used to denote the amount of ash produced.
Details of the US system can be found at Volcano warning schemes of the United States.
The concentrations of different volcanic gases can vary considerably from one volcano to the next. Water vapor is typically the most abundant volcanic gas, followed by carbon dioxide and sulfur dioxide. Other principal volcanic gases include hydrogen sulfide, hydrogen chloride, and hydrogen fluoride. A large number of minor and trace gases are also found in volcanic emissions, for example hydrogen, carbon monoxide, halocarbons, organic compounds, and volatile metal chlorides.
Large, explosive volcanic eruptions inject water vapor (H2O), carbon dioxide (CO2), sulfur dioxide (SO2), hydrogen chloride (HCl), hydrogen fluoride (HF) and ash (pulverized rock and pumice) into the stratosphere
to heights of 16–32 kilometres (10–20 mi) above the Earth's surface.
The most significant impacts from these injections come from the
conversion of sulfur dioxide to sulfuric acid (H2SO4), which condenses rapidly in the stratosphere to form fine sulfateaerosols. It is worth mentioning that the SO2 emissions alone of two different eruptions are sufficient to compare their potential climatic impact.[16] The aerosols increase the Earth's albedo—its reflection of radiation from the Sun
back into space – and thus cool the Earth's lower atmosphere or
troposphere; however, they also absorb heat radiated up from the Earth,
thereby warming the stratosphere.
Several eruptions during the past century have caused a decline in the
average temperature at the Earth's surface of up to half a degree
(Fahrenheit scale) for periods of one to three years – sulfur dioxide
from the eruption of Huaynaputina probably caused the Russian famine of 1601–1603.[17]
Significant consequences
One proposed volcanic winter happened c. 70,000 years ago following the supereruption of Lake Toba on Sumatra island in Indonesia.[18] According to the Toba catastrophe theory to which some anthropologists and archeologists subscribe, it had global consequences,[19] killing most humans then alive and creating a population bottleneck that affected the genetic inheritance of all humans today.[20] The 1815 eruption of Mount Tambora created global climate anomalies that became known as the "Year Without a Summer" because of the effect on North American and European weather.[21]
Agricultural crops failed and livestock died in much of the Northern
Hemisphere, resulting in one of the worst famines of the 19th century.[22] The freezing winter of 1740–41, which led to widespread famine in northern Europe, may also owe its origins to a volcanic eruption.[23]
It has been suggested that volcanic activity caused or contributed to the End-Ordovician, Permian-Triassic, Late Devonianmass extinctions, and possibly others. The massive eruptive event which formed the Siberian Traps, one of the largest known volcanic events of the last 500 million years of Earth's geological history, continued for a million years and is considered to be the likely cause of the "Great Dying" about 250 million years ago,[24] which is estimated to have killed 90% of species existing at the time.[25]
The sulfate aerosols also promote complex chemical reactions on their surfaces that alter chlorine and nitrogen chemical species in the stratosphere. This effect, together with increased stratospheric chlorine levels from chlorofluorocarbon pollution, generates chlorine monoxide (ClO), which destroys ozone (O3). As the aerosols grow and coagulate, they settle down into the upper troposphere where they serve as nuclei for cirrus clouds and further modify the Earth's radiation
balance. Most of the hydrogen chloride (HCl) and hydrogen fluoride (HF)
are dissolved in water droplets in the eruption cloud and quickly fall
to the ground as acid rain.
The injected ash also falls rapidly from the stratosphere; most of it
is removed within several days to a few weeks. Finally, explosive
volcanic eruptions release the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide and thus
provide a deep source of carbon for biogeochemical cycles.
Gas emissions from volcanoes are a natural contributor to acid rain. Volcanic activity releases about 130 to 230 teragrams (145 million to 255 million short tons) of carbon dioxide each year.[26] Volcanic eruptions may inject aerosols into the Earth's atmosphere. Large injections may cause visual effects such as unusually colorful sunsets and affect global climate mainly by cooling it. Volcanic eruptions also provide the benefit of adding nutrients to soil through the weathering
process of volcanic rocks. These fertile soils assist the growth of
plants and various crops. Volcanic eruptions can also create new
islands, as the magma cools and solidifies upon contact with the water.
Hazards
Ash thrown into the air by eruptions can present a hazard to aircraft, especially jet aircraft where the particles can be melted by the high operating temperature; the melted particles then adhere to the turbine blades and alter their shape, disrupting the operation of the turbine. Dangerous encounters in 1982 after the eruption of Galunggung in Indonesia, and 1989 after the eruption of Mount Redoubt in Alaska raised awareness of this phenomenon. Nine Volcanic Ash Advisory Centers were established by the International Civil Aviation Organization to monitor ash clouds and advise pilots accordingly. The 2010 eruptions of Eyjafjallajökull caused major disruptions to air travel in Europe.
Volcanoes on other planetary bodies
The Tvashtar volcano erupts a plume 330 km (205 mi) above the surface of Jupiter's moon Io.
The Earth's Moon
has no large volcanoes and no current volcanic activity, although
recent evidence suggests it may still possess a partially molten core.[27] However, the Moon does have many volcanic features such as maria (the darker patches seen on the moon), rilles and domes.
The planet Venus has a surface that is 90% basalt,
indicating that volcanism played a major role in shaping its surface.
The planet may have had a major global resurfacing event about 500
million years ago,[28]
from what scientists can tell from the density of impact craters on the
surface. Lava flows are widespread and forms of volcanism not present
on Earth occur as well. Changes in the planet's atmosphere and
observations of lightning have been attributed to ongoing volcanic
eruptions, although there is no confirmation of whether or not Venus is
still volcanically active. However, radar sounding by the Magellan probe
revealed evidence for comparatively recent volcanic activity at Venus's
highest volcano Maat Mons, in the form of ash flows near the summit and on the northern flank.
There are several extinct volcanoes on Mars, four of which are vast shield volcanoes far bigger than any on Earth. They include Arsia Mons, Ascraeus Mons, Hecates Tholus, Olympus Mons, and Pavonis Mons. These volcanoes have been extinct for many millions of years,[29] but the European Mars Express spacecraft has found evidence that volcanic activity may have occurred on Mars in the recent past as well.[29] Jupiter's moonIo is the most volcanically active object in the solar system because of tidal interaction with Jupiter. It is covered with volcanoes that erupt sulfur, sulfur dioxide and silicate rock, and as a result, Io
is constantly being resurfaced. Its lavas are the hottest known
anywhere in the solar system, with temperatures exceeding 1,800 K
(1,500 °C). In February 2001, the largest recorded volcanic eruptions in
the solar system occurred on Io.[30]Europa, the smallest of Jupiter's Galilean moons,
also appears to have an active volcanic system, except that its
volcanic activity is entirely in the form of water, which freezes into
ice on the frigid surface. This process is known as cryovolcanism, and is apparently most common on the moons of the outer planets of the solar system.
In 1989 the Voyager 2 spacecraft observed cryovolcanoes (ice volcanoes) on Triton, a moon of Neptune, and in 2005 the Cassini–Huygens probe photographed fountains of frozen particles erupting from Enceladus, a moon of Saturn.[31][32] The ejecta may be composed of water, liquid nitrogen, dust, or methane compounds. Cassini–Huygens also found evidence of a methane-spewing cryovolcano on the Saturnian moon Titan, which is believed to be a significant source of the methane found in its atmosphere.[33] It is theorized that cryovolcanism may also be present on the Kuiper Belt ObjectQuaoar.
A 2010 study of the exoplanetCOROT-7b, which was detected by transit in 2009, studied that tidal heating from the host star very close to the planet and neighboring planets could generate intense volcanic activity similar to Io.[34]
Traditional beliefs about volcanoes
Many ancient accounts ascribe volcanic eruptions to supernatural causes, such as the actions of gods or demigods.
To the ancient Greeks, volcanoes' capricious power could only be
explained as acts of the gods, while 16th/17th-century German astronomer
Johannes Kepler believed they were ducts for the Earth's tears.[35] One early idea counter to this was proposed by JesuitAthanasius Kircher (1602–1680), who witnessed eruptions of Mount Etna and Stromboli, then visited the crater of Vesuvius and published his view of an Earth with a central fire connected to numerous others caused by the burning of sulfur, bitumen and coal.
Various explanations were proposed for volcano behavior before the modern understanding of the Earth's mantle structure as a semisolid material was developed. For decades after awareness that compression and radioactive materials may be heat sources, their contributions were specifically discounted. Volcanic action was often attributed to chemical reactions and a thin layer of molten rock near the surface.
Santa Ana Volcano, El Salvador, a close up aerial view of the nested summit calderas and craters, along with the crater lake as seen from a United States Air Force C-130 Hercules flying above El Salvador.
A volcano is a rupture on the crust of a planetary mass object, such as the Earth, which allows hot lava, volcanic ash, and gases to escape from a magma chamber below the surface. Earth's volcanoes occur because the planet's crust is broken into 17
major, rigid tectonic plates that float on a hotter, softer layer in the
Earth's mantle.[1] Therefore, on Earth, volcanoes are generally found where tectonic plates are diverging or converging. For example, a mid-oceanic ridge, such as the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, has volcanoes caused by divergent tectonic plates pulling apart; the Pacific Ring of Fire has volcanoes caused by convergent tectonic plates coming together. Volcanoes can also form where there is stretching and thinning of the crust's interior plates, e.g., in the East African Rift and the Wells Gray-Clearwater volcanic field and Rio Grande Rift in North America. This type of volcanism falls under the umbrella of "plate hypothesis" volcanism.[2] Volcanism away from plate boundaries has also been explained as mantle plumes. These so-called "hotspots", for example Hawaii, are postulated to arise from upwelling diapirs with magma from the core–mantle boundary, 3,000 km deep in the Earth. Volcanoes are usually not created where two tectonic plates slide past one another. Erupting volcanoes can pose many hazards, not only in the immediate
vicinity of the eruption. One such hazard is that volcanic ash can be a
threat to aircraft, in particular those with jet engines where ash particles can be melted by the high operating temperature; the melted particles then adhere to the turbine
blades and alter their shape, disrupting the operation of the turbine.
Large eruptions can affect temperature as ash and droplets of sulfuric acid obscure the sun and cool the Earth's lower atmosphere (or troposphere); however, they also absorb heat radiated up from the Earth, thereby warming the upper atmosphere (or stratosphere). Historically, so-called volcanic winters have caused catastrophic famines.
