title: Michael Thomas (academic)

abstract: Michael Thomas is research professor at Liverpool John Moores University. His work incorporates the field of digital education in relation to social justice, the educational implications of disadvantage, online and distance education, digitally mediated communication, and higher education policy.

text:
# Michael Thomas (academic)

**Michael Thomas** (born 1969) is research professor at Liverpool John Moores University. His work incorporates the field of digital education in relation to social justice, the educational implications of disadvantage, online and distance education, digitally mediated communication, and higher education policy.

## Education

Thomas attended Collingwood Junior School, Norham High School and Tynemouth Sixth Form College. He has studied at Newcastle University, the University of Manchester, Lancaster University, Cardiff University, Wales, the University of the West of England and the University of Leicester in the U.K. as well as at Cornell University in the U.S.. He holds a Ph.D. in Critical and Cultural Theory from Newcastle University focusing on the work of the French philosopher Jacques Derrida, deconstructionism and post-modernism, and a Ph.D. in Applied Linguistics from Lancaster University, which explored technology-mediated project-based learning.

## Career

Thomas was previously a lecturer at the University of Heidelberg in Germany (1998), Associate Professor (2002), and then Professor (2009) in English Communication at Nagoya University of Commerce & Business, Japan. He moved to the University of Central Lancashire in 2010, where he became Professor of Higher Education and Online Learning. Thomas has also held visiting or affiliated positions at Stuttgart University and Mannheim University in Germany, the University of Liverpool in the UK, and Harvard University in the US.

Thomas has published over 20 authored and edited books in these fields. He is the founding and lead editor of four international book series: Digital Education and Learning (publisher: Palgrave Macmillan), Global Policy and Critical Futures in Education (publisher: Palgrave Macmillan), Advances in Digital Language Learning and Teaching (publisher: Bloomsbury), and Advances in Virtual and Personal Learning Environments (publisher: IGI). He has authored 3 monographs and edited 26 books. Thomas was the founding editor-in-chief of the Scopus-indexed International Journal of Virtual and Personal Learning Environments, and since 2014, he has been a member of the journal's International Advisory Board.

Thomas was the project coordinator and principal investigator of the EU-funded CAMELOT Project on Language Learning with Machinima, a two-year project consisting of nine European Union partners that ran from December 2013 until November 2015. He was a partner in the Erasmus+ VITAL project on learning analytics and online learning (2015–17) and the coordinator of the EU GUINEVERE project (KA2 Strategic Partnership in Schools) on digital gaming in immersive environments (2017–19).

Outside of academia, he has published articles in The Times Higher Education Supplement on the use of iPods and podcasting and The Guardian as a contributor in a debate about massive open online courses and the future of higher education. He has also been interviewed by the French-language publication Regards Sur Le Numerique on the subject of digital natives, among others. Thomas is a Principal Fellow of the Higher Education Academy and the Royal Society of Arts.

## Authored Monographs

## Edited books

* *Recent Developments in Technology-Enhanced and Computer-Assisted Language Learning* (IGI, 2020) (edited with Bin Zou).
* *Handbook of Research on Integrating Technology into Contemporary Language Learning and Teaching* (IGI, 2018) (edited with Bin Zou).
* *Digital Language Learning and Teaching: IV Volumes* (Bloomsbury, 2017) (edited with Julie Sykes, Hayo Reinders and Mark Peterson).
* *E-Research in Educational Contexts* (Routledge, 2017) (edited with Jocelyn Wishart).
* *Researching Language Learner Interaction Online: From Social Media to MOOCs* (CALICO, 2015) (edited with Ed Dixon).
* *Contemporary Task-Based Language Teaching in Asia* (Bloomsbury, 2015) (edited with Hayo Reinders).
* *Design, Implementation, and Evaluation of Virtual Learning Environments* (IGI, 2012).
* *Contemporary Computer-Assisted Language Learning* (Bloomsbury, 2012).
* *Digital Education: Opportunities for Social Collaboration* (Palgrave Macmillan, 2011).
* *Deconstructing Digital Natives: Young People, Technology, and the New Literacies* (Routledge, 2011).
* *Technology Enhanced Learning: Quality of Teaching and Educational Reform. Series: Communications in Computer and Information Science* (Springer, 2010).
* *Task-Based Language Learning and Teaching with Technology* (Continuum, 2010) (edited with Hayo Reinders).
* *Interactive Whiteboards for Education: Theory, Research and Practice* (IGI Global, 2010) (edited with Euline Cutrim Schmid).
* *Online Learning: IV Volumes* (SAGE Publications, 2010).


title: Wayson R. Jones

abstract: Wayson R. Jones is an American artist predominantly known for his textured abstract paintings. He resides in Mount Rainier, Maryland, a suburb of Washington, D.C.

text:
# Wayson R. Jones

**Wayson R. Jones** is an American artist predominantly known for his textured abstract paintings. He resides in Mount Rainier, Maryland, a suburb of Washington, D.C.

## Education

Jones is a 1980 graduate from the University of Maryland.

## Awards

Jones is a 2017 grant-award winner from the Prince Georges County Arts and Humanities Council.

## Exhibitions

### Solo shows

## Reviews

In 2016, *The Baltimore Sun* wrote that "Wayson R. Jones' "Black President" (2012), an abstract portrait on canvas incorporating powdered graphite, acrylic medium and gesso that seems to bristle with conflict, internal and external." Also in 2016, in a group show review, *The Washington Post* highlighted the fact that "One of the starkest and most striking contributions is Wayson R. Jones’s near-abstract “Giant Angry Stars,” rendered in grainy black-and-white."

In a 2017 review, *The Washington Post* art critic noted that the "Jones makes art that's raw and unexpected." In an interview in East City Art, the artist stated that he started "making visual art when I was 50, ten years ago, but I’ve been involved in the arts since I was a kid. I played music from grade school through college, where I also was in an improv dance company for a couple of years. I was in the DC downtown arts scene in the 80s and early 90s as part of an active Black LGBT arts scene that had national prominence, doing spoken word and music..."

In 2019, Jones started working in color again.

## InfoBox

| Wayson R. Jones | |
| --- | --- |
| Nationality | American |
| Occupation | Artist |
| Known for | Abstract painting |
| Website | www.waysonjones.com |


title: Michael Keane (hurler)

abstract: Michael Keane was an Irish hurler. At club level he played with Thurles Sarsfields and was also a member of the Tipperary senior hurling team.

text:
# Michael Keane (hurler)

**Michael Keane** (1933 – 9 January 2002) was an Irish hurler. At club level he played with Thurles Sarsfields and was also a member of the Tipperary senior hurling team.

## Career

Keane first played hurling at juvenile and underage levels with Thurles Sarsfields. He subsequently progressed onto the club's senior team, with his career coinciding with an unprecedented era of success for the club. Between 1952 and 1965 Keane won 11 Tipperary SHC titles and captained the team in 1960. He also won a Tipperary SFC with Thurles Crokes in 1960. Keane brought his club career to an end after a defeat by Roscrea in the 1968 final.

Keane first played for Tipperary during an unsuccessful season with the minor team in 1951. His progression to the senior team was delayed due to the dominance of Tony Reddin. Keane became Reddin's understudy in 1955 before taking over as first-choice goalkeeper the following year. He was part of Tipperary's successful National League campaign in 1956–57. Keane was replaced as goalkeeper shortly after this victory, however, he later spent a season with the Tipperary junior football team.

## Personal life and death

Keane was born in Kilkenny where his father, Con Keane, was a member of the Irish Army. He had played hurling and Gaelic football for Tipperary and was also included on Munster's Railway Cup team. The family later relocated to Thurles, County Tipperary. Keane's brothers, Connie and Larry Keane, also lined out with Tipperary.

Keane died on 9 January 2002, aged 68.

## Honours

Thurles Crokes Thurles Sarsfields Tipperary

## InfoBox

Michael Keane
| Personal information | | | |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Irish name | *Mícheál Ó Catháin* | | |
| Sport | Hurling | | |
| Position | Goalkeeper | | |
| Born | 1933
Kilkenny, Ireland | | |
| Died | 9 January 2002 (aged 68)
Thurles,
County Tipperary, Ireland | | |
| Nickname | Blackie | | |
| Occupation | Telecom employee | | |
| Club(s) | | | |
| Years | **Club** | | |
| 1951–1968 | Thurles Sarsfields | | |
| Club titles | | | |
|  | **Football** | **Hurling** |
| Tipperary titles |  | 11 |
| Inter-county(ies) | | | |
| Years | **County** | | |
| 1955–1957 | Tipperary | | |
| Inter-county titles | | | |
| Munster titles | 0 | | |
| All-Irelands | 0 | | |
| NHL | 1 | | |


title: Michael Holody

abstract: Michael Holody is a retired American soccer player.

text:
# Michael Holody

**Michael Holody** (born March 30, 1987) is a retired American soccer player.

## Career

### College and amateur

Holody attended University of Michigan, where he made 75 appearance for the men's soccer team, the Michigan Wolverines. During his college career, Holody played with USL Premier Development League side Michigan Bucks between 2006 and 2008. Holody's time with the Bucks was very successful as he helped the side to the 2006 PDL North American championship before captaining the team back to a finals appearance in 2007 and the PDL Regular Season title in 2008.

### Professional

Holody was drafted in the fourth round, 59th overall, of the 2009 MLS SuperDraft by Colorado Rapids. He was sent on loan to USL-2 side Real Maryland Monarchs in July 2009, making his debut for them against Crystal Palace Baltimore.

He made his MLS debut on September 5, 2009, appearing as a substitute against Toronto FC. He scored his debut goal a week later on September 12, 2009, in another substitute appearance against Toronto. Holody was waived by Colorado on September 15, 2010.

Holody was re-signed by Colorado on March 1, 2011. At season's end, the club declined his 2012 contract option and he entered the 2011 MLS Re-Entry Draft. Holody was not selected in the draft and became a free agent.

## Honors

### Michigan Bucks

## InfoBox

Michael Holody
| Personal information | | | |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Full name | Michael Holody | | |
| Date of birth | (1987-03-30) March 30, 1987 | | |
| Place of birth | Clarkston, Michigan, United States | | |
| Height | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | | |
| Position(s) | Defender | | |
| College career | | | |
| Years | **Team** | **Apps** | **(Gls)** |
| 2005–2008 | Michigan Wolverines | 75 | (9) |
| Senior career\* | | | |
| Years | **Team** | **Apps** | **(Gls)** |
| 2006–2008 | Michigan Bucks | 47 | (4) |
| 2009–2011 | Colorado Rapids | 4 | (1) |
| 2009 | Real Maryland (loan) | 9 | (0) |
| \*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 15 September 2010 | | | |


title: Michael Voysey

abstract: Michael Voysey was a playwright and writer for TV programmes. As a playwright he created My Astonishing Self from the works of George Bernard Shaw. He also wrote The Amorous Goldfish and adapted Marguerite by Armand Salacrou

text:
# Michael Voysey

**Michael Voysey** (1920 in Grimsby − 1987 in Colchester) was a playwright and writer for TV programmes.

As a playwright he created *My Astonishing Self* from the works of George Bernard Shaw. He also wrote *The Amorous Goldfish* and adapted *Marguerite* by Armand Salacrou

## Works

As a TV writer he has written the following:

1. *G.B.S. Lives*, Time article published Monday, Jan. 30, 1978.  Time.com. Retrieved 2006-12-20.
2. "Michael Voysey - playwright". Archived from the original on 2007-09-27. Retrieved 2006-12-20. Doollee.com. Retrieved 2006-12-20.
3. Internet Movie Database. Retrieved 2006-12-20.
4. "Action TV Online - the White Rabbit episode guide". Archived from the original on 2006-08-18. Retrieved 2006-12-20. Action TV Online. Retrieved 2006-12-20.


title: Michael McGrady

abstract: Michael McGrady is an American theater, film and television actor. He is known for playing Tom Matthews in Beyond and for voicing and providing the motion capture for Rusty Galloway in the 2011 video game LA Noire. He is also an artist.

text:
# Michael McGrady

**Michael McGrady** is an American theater, film and television actor. He is known for playing Tom Matthews in *Beyond* and for voicing and providing the motion capture for Rusty Galloway in the 2011 video game *LA Noire*. He is also an artist.

## Life and work

McGrady was born in Federal Way, Washington, to Gloria, a hair salon owner, and George McGrady, an airline mechanic. He attended Federal Way High School and the University of Washington, majoring in Business Administration. He currently splits his time between Southern California and Washington State, with his wife Ilka .

McGrady had planned to become a lawyer and was working at a bank when his sister entered him in a contest for a scholarship to a local acting school. After that McGrady moved to California to pursue his dream of becoming an actor. He was cast in a Cherry Pepsi commercial. He has worked steadily in the industry since. He guest starred in several popular television shows such as *24*, *Murder She Wrote*, *CSI: Miami*, *Leverage* and *Prison Break*. McGrady played Sal Salinger on the TNT drama *Southland*, which premiered in April 2009. He has also been seen as recurring character Frank Barnes on Showtime's *Ray Donovan* and appeared as Detective Philip Vanatter on FX's *American Crime Story: The People v. O. J. Simpson*. Mcgrady has also made a quick cameo in the 2007 movie Iron Man.

McGrady gave his voice and likeness to Rockstar Games period video game *L.A. Noire* as Rusty Galloway, and most recently appeared in the film *Freelancers*. He starred in *Low Winter Sun* for AMC as Brendan McCann, and as Cy in the independent feature *Under The Harvest Moon*. He played Detective John Gentile in *The Frozen Ground*. He is also a painter.

## Selected filmography

| Film | | | |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
| 1992 | *The Babe* | Lou Gehrig |  |
| 1993 | *Hocus Pocus* | Cop Eddie |  |
| 2002 | *Half Past Dead* | Guard Damon J. Kestner |  |
| 2008 | *Keith* | Pete Anderson |  |
| 2008 | *Ring of Death* | Colson |  |
| 2012 | *The Perfect Family* | Frank Cleary |  |
| 2013 | *The Frozen Ground* | Vice Det. John Gentile |  |
| 2014 | *Rage* | Danny Doherty |  |
|
| Television | | | |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 2002–2003 | *24* | Officer Raymond Brown | 4 episodes |
| 2005 | *Criminal Minds* | Sheriff John Bridges | 1 episode |
| 2006–2008 | *Day Break* | Shadow Agent Buchalter | Main cast |
| 2007 | *Grey's Anatomy* | Stanley Singer | 1 episode |
| 2008 | *Leverage* | Sheriff Hastings | 1 episode |
| 2009 | *The Mentalist* | Coach Dieter | 1 episode |
| 2009–2011 | *Southland* | Detective Daniel "Sal" Salinger | Main cast |
| 2010 | *Lie to Me* | Gil Wallace | 1 episode |
| 2010 | *CSI: Miami* | Larry Chandler | 1 episode |
| 2011 | *The Protector* | J.R. Daldrop | 1 episode |
| 2012 | *Castle* | Brian Reilly | 1 episode |
| 2013 | *Low Winter Sun* | Brendan McCann | Recurring role |
| 2013 | *Mob City* | Chief Clemance Horall | Recurring role |
| 2013–2017 | *Ray Donovan* | Frank Barnes | Recurring role
(seasons 1–5) |
| 2014 | *How to Get Away with Murder* | AUSA Hobbs | 1 episode |
| 2015 | *Battle Creek* | Jack Stanton | 1 episode |
| 2016 | *The People v. O. J. Simpson: American Crime Story* | Detective Philip Vannatter | Recurring role |
| 2016–2017 | *Chance* | Sanford Pringle | Recurring role |
| 2017–2018 | *Beyond* | Tom Matthews | Main cast |
| 2018 | *Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.* | Samuel Voss | 2 episodes |
| 2018–2019 | *SEAL Team* | Captain Harrington | Recurring role
(season 2) |
| 2019 | *FBI* | Tom Brennan | 1 episode |
| 2022 | *S.W.A.T.* | Agent Phil Kaminski | 1 episode |
| Video Games | | | |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 2009 | *Prototype* | Additional Voices |  |
| 2011 | *L.A. Noire* | Rusty Galloway |  |

## InfoBox

| Michael McGrady | |
| --- | --- |
| Born | Federal Way, Washington, U.S. |
| Occupation(s) | Actor, painter |
| Years active | 1983–present |
| Spouse | Ilka McGrady |
| Children | 3; including Hunter |


title: Michael Xavier

abstract: Michael D. Xavier is an English actor and singer. He is a two-time Laurence Olivier Award nominee and has performed on Broadway and in the West End.

text:
# Michael Xavier

**Michael D. Xavier** (born **Michael David Smith**; 27 November 1977) is an English actor and singer. He is a two-time Laurence Olivier Award nominee and has performed on Broadway and in the West End.

## Early life

Michael David Smith (later known as Michael Xavier) attended Knutsford High and ultimately completed his professional acting training at the Manchester Metropolitan University in 1999. His first professional role and London West End debut was in the musical comedy Pageant in 2000.

## Work in theatre

Xavier has been nominated twice for a Laurence Olivier Award. He was first nominated for Best Performance in a Supporting Role in a Musical in 2011 for his performance as the Wolf/Cinderella's Prince in *Into the Woods* at the Regent's Park Open Air Theatre. The same year he was also nominated for the Best Actor in a Musical for his performance as Oliver in the musical *Love Story* at the Duchess Theatre. In January 2017, Xavier's lead performance in *Sunset Boulevard* (at the London Coliseum) won the 2016 BroadwayWorld UK/West End Award for Best Actor in a New Production of a Musical.

Xavier has worked in lead roles on stage in the United Kingdom and the United States of America for over 20 years. Notable productions in which he has appeared include Joe Gillis in *Sunset Boulevard* on Broadway, Prince Of Broadway with the theatre director and producer Harold Prince, *Miss Saigon*, Freddie Eynsford-Hill and 20 years later Professor Henry Higgins in *My Fair Lady*, Raoul in *The Phantom of the Opera*, Curly in *Oklahoma!*, and Captain von Trapp in *The Sound of Music*. In 2014, he played Sid Sorokin in *The Pajama Game* at the Shaftesbury Theatre in London.

In 2008, Xavier played Rock Hudson in Tim Fountain's play *Rock* at the Unity Theatre in Liverpool, the Library Theatre in Manchester, and the Oval House Theatre in London. It went on to be produced as a radio play by production company Made in Manchester, and won the Best Online Only Audio Drama award at the BBC Audio Drama Awards in 2012.

## Theatre credits

| Year | Show | Role | Theatre | Director |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 2000 | *Pageant* | Miss Great Plains | Vaudeville Theatre, West End | Bill Russell |
| 2002-03 | *My Fair Lady* | Freddy Eynsford-Hill | Theatre Royal Drury Lane, West End | Trevor Nunn |
| 2003 | *Miss Saigon* | Ensemble / Alternate Chris | UK Tour | Matthew Ryan |
| 2004 | *Sunset Boulevard* | Artie Green | Cork Opera House |  |
| | *Mamma Mia!* | Sky | International Tour | Phyllida Lloyd / Paul Garrington |
| 2006 | *The Phantom of the Opera* | Raoul, Vicomte de Chagny | Her Majesty's Theatre, West End | Hal Prince |
| 2008 | *Rock* | Rock Hudson | Oval House Theatre, Off-West End | Tamara Harvey |
| 2008-09 | *Spamalot* | Sir Dennis Galahad / The Black Knight / Prince Herbert's Father | Palace Theatre, West End | Mike Nichols |
| 2009 | *Oklahoma!* | Curly | Chichester Festival Theatre | John Doyle |
| 2010 | *Into the Woods* | The Wolf / Cinderella's Prince | Regent's Park Open Air Theatre | Timothy Sheader |
| | *Love Story* | Oliver | Duchess Theatre, West End | Rachel Kavanagh |
| 2012 | *Soho Cinders* | James Prince | Soho Theatre | Jonathan Butterell |
| | *Wonderful Town* | Bob Baker | UK No. 1 Tour | Braham Murray |
| | *Hello Dolly* | Cornelius Hackl | Curve Theatre Leicester | Paul Kerryson |
| 2013 | *The Sound of Music* | Captain Von Trapp | Regent's Park Open Air Theatre | Rachel Kavanagh |
| 2014 | *The Pajama Game* | Sid Sorokin | Shaftesbury Theatre, West End | Richard Eyre |
| 2015 | *Assassins* | John Wilkes Booth | Menier Chocolate Factory, Off-West End | Jamie Lloyd |
| | *The War of the Roses* | Suffolk / George of Clarence | Rose Theatre Kingston | Trevor Nunn |
| | *Showboat* | Gaylord | Sheffield Crucible | Daniel Evans |
| 2016 | *Bumblescratch* | Hookbeard | Adelphi Theatre, West End | Stewart Nicholls |
| | *The Secret Garden* | Lord Archibald Craven | Shakespeare Theatre Company | David Armstrong |
| | *Sunset Boulevard* | Joe Gillis | London Colliseum, West End (English National Opera) | Lonny Price |
| | | 2017 | | Palace Theatre, Broadway |
| | *Prince of Broadway* | Featured Performer | Samuel J. Friedman Theatre, Broadway | Hal Prince, Susan Stroman |
| 2021 | *Love Story* | Oliver | Cadogan Hall | Kirk Jameson |
| 2022 | *Stephen Sondheim's Old Friends* | Performer | Sondheim Theatre, West End | Matthew Bourne |
| 2022-23 | *My Fair Lady* | Professor Henry Higgins | UK Tour | Bartlett Sher |

## Work in television and film

Although Xavier started out primarily as a theatre actor, he has also gained many television and film credits including Lieutenant Hamilton Knox in Outlander (Stars), Christopher Miles in The Blacklist (NBC), Dr. Steph Belcombe in Gentleman Jack (BBC) and series regular DCI Elliott Wallace in season 7 and 8 of Grantchester (ITV). As well as roles in Grace (ITV) and The Chelsea Detective (ITV).

Xavier's film work includes his portrayal of Maurice in Hallmark's 'Paris, Wine & Romance' directed by Alex Zamm, Tom in the 2014 production 'Never Let Go' with director Howard J. Ford for Latitude Films, scheduled for release in 2015. In 2013, he appeared as Rob in the short film 'Gnomeland' by writer/director Francesca Jaynes, as well as playing a Russian Gulag Prisoner in Walt Disney Pictures' 'Muppets Most Wanted', filmed at Pinewood Studios.

### Major television and film credits

| Year | Role | Production | Producer | Director |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 2015 | Tom | Never Let Go | Independent | Howard J. Ford |
| 2019 | Maurice | Paris, Wine & Romance | Hallmark | Alex Zamm |
| 2019 | Christopher Miles | The Blacklist | NBC | Andrew McCarthy, Michael Caraciollo, Christine Gee |
| 2019-2021 | Dr. Steph Belcombe | Gentleman Jack | BBC, HBO | Sally Wainwright, Sarah Harding |
| 2020 | Lieutenant Hamilton Knox | Outlander | Starz | Stephen Woolfenden, Meera Menon |
| 2021 | Martin Broom | Grace | ITV | Julia Ford |
| 2022 | Patrick Thompson | The Chelsea Detective | Alibi (TV channel) | Richard Signy |
| 2022-2023 | DCI Elliot Wallace | Grantchester | ITV | Tim Fywell |
| 2023 | Hellemans | Hammarskjöld | Patrick Ryborn | Per Fly |

### Video games

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 2023 | *The Isle Tide Hotel* | Josh Malone | Interactive film |
|

## Presenting and recording work

In 2013, Xavier co-presented the Olivier Awards BBC Radio 2 Covent Garden Stage with Claudia Winkleman, and returned again in 2014 to co-present on the ITV Stage with Myleene Klass. He also hosted the UK Theatre Awards at the historic Guildhall in the City of London in both 2013 and 2014.

In addition, Xavier has worked as a recording artist, with both radio and original soundtrack credits to his name. In 2007, BBC Radio 2 presented a special edition of *Friday Night is Music Night*, celebrating the work of Leonard Bernstein and the 50th anniversary of *West Side Story*. Paul Gambaccini presented the program at London's Mermaid Theatre, featuring the BBC Concert Orchestra and Xavier as Tony. He also played Artie Green in the BBC Radio 2 live recording of Sunset Boulevard, performed at the Cork Opera House with Michael Ball and Petula Clark. Outside of radio, his work in recordings includes *Bumblescratch* (2016 London Concert Cast Recording) *Collaborations: The Songs of Elliot Davis* (2013), *Lift* (2012 Concept Album), *Soho Cinders* (2011 Concert Cast), *Love Story* (2011 Original London Cast), and *Little Women* (2004 Studio Cast).

## MX Masterclass

Xavier is the Principal of MX Masterclass, a training school for musical theatre students which aims to aid them in gaining acceptance to professional training colleges. The school runs every Sunday, based at Rambert, Upper Ground. Their patrons are Matthew Bourne, Natalie Paris, Emily Carey and Sebastian Croft. Regular teachers over the years have included Anna Tringham, Ross Sharkey, Lucinda Lawrence, Brandon Lee Sears, Nicola Coates, Peter Polycarpou and Alex Young. Students are also taught by guest performers and practitioners including Kerry Ellis, Ramin Karimloo, Rebecca Trehearn, Marc Antolin, Robbie Sherman, Katie Brayben, Louise Dearman, Trevor Dion Nicholas and Matt Henry (singer).

The students are often given an opportunity to perform at various charity and West End events at which Xavier also appears. The students also appear at a Christmas concert at St Paul's, Covent Garden, alongside industry professionals. The 2016 concert was hosted by Rufus Hound.

Students have many performance opportunities throughout the year and gain national and local news coverage in the process. On three occasions they performed at The Best of the West End concert at The Royal Albert Hall starring many big West End names including Xavier himself. They have also performed at Lambert Jackson Productions concert, West End Women and Main Men Of Musicals.

## InfoBox

| Michael Xavier | |
| --- | --- |
|  | |
| Born | Michael David Smith
(1977-11-27) 27 November 1977 |
| Nationality | British |
| Alma mater | Knutsford Academy
Manchester Metropolitan University |
| Occupations | * Actor * singer |
| Website | www.michaelxavier.co.uk |


title: Michinori Shiraishi

abstract: Michinori Shiraishi was a Lieutenant Colonel in the Imperial Japanese Army during World War II. He was brother-in-law to General Takeshi Mori, commander of the First Imperial Guards Division, in charge of defending Tokyo and the surrounding region. Very early on the morning of 15 August 1945, Shiraishi was in his brother-in-law's office when Mori was visited by Major Kenji Hatanaka, Lt. Colonels Jiro Shiizaki and Masataka Ida, and Captain Shigetaro Uehara, who sought Mori's aid in a coup. They wished to seize the Imperial Palace and prevent the Emperor's declaration of Japan's surrender. Mori refused the conspirators, and Uehara allegedly made to kill the General with his sword; Shiraishi leapt in front of his brother-in-law, and was killed himself. Mere moments later, Hatanaka murdered General Mori.

text:
# Michinori Shiraishi

**Michinori Shiraishi (白石通教, *Shiraishi Michinori*)** (1 December 1910  15 August 1945) was a Lieutenant Colonel (Chūsa (中佐)) in the Imperial Japanese Army during World War II. He was brother-in-law to General Takeshi Mori, commander of the First Imperial Guards Division, in charge of defending Tokyo and the surrounding region.

Very early on the morning of 15 August 1945, Shiraishi was in his brother-in-law's office when Mori was visited by Major Kenji Hatanaka, Lt. Colonels Jiro Shiizaki and Masataka Ida, and Captain Shigetaro Uehara, who sought Mori's aid in a *coup*. They wished to seize the Imperial Palace and prevent the Emperor's declaration of Japan's surrender. Mori refused the conspirators, and Uehara allegedly made to kill the General with his sword; Shiraishi leapt in front of his brother-in-law, and was killed himself. Mere moments later, Hatanaka murdered General Mori.

* Brooks, Lester. *Behind Japan's Surrender: The Secret Struggle That Ended an Empire*. New York: McGraw-Hill Book Company, 1968.


title: Michinori Tanaka

abstract: Michinori Tanaka is a Japanese mixed martial artist who competes in the bantamweight division of the Legacy Fighting Alliance. A professional mixed martial artist since 2010, Tanaka has also competed in the Ultimate Fighting Championship.

text:
# Michinori Tanaka

**Michinori Tanaka** (田中 路教, *Tanaka Michinori*, born October 4, 1990) is a Japanese mixed martial artist who competes in the bantamweight division of the Legacy Fighting Alliance. A professional mixed martial artist since 2010, Tanaka has also competed in the Ultimate Fighting Championship.

## Mixed martial arts career

### Shooto

Tanaka started his professional career in 2010. Until the first half of 2012, he fought only for Shooto, where he won the 2011 rookie 132-pound tournament.

### Pacific Xtreme Combat

Tanaka faced Crisanto Pitpitunge on May 18, 2013, at *PXC 37* for the bantamweight title. He won the title via unanimous decision after five rounds.

Tanaka defended his title against Kyle Aguon on October 25, 2013, at *PXC 40*. He defeated Aguon via unanimous decision over five rounds.

### Ultimate Fighting Championship

In February 2014, it was announced that Tanaka has signed a contract with the Ultimate Fighting Championship.

In his debut, Tanaka faced Roland Delorme on June 14, 2014, at UFC 174. He won the fight via unanimous decision.

Tanaka faced Kang Kyung-ho on September 20, 2014, at UFC Fight Night 52. He lost the fight via split decision. Despite the loss on the scorecards, Tanaka was awarded his first *Fight of the Night* bonus award. Subsequently, Tanaka had his bonus award rescinded and in turn, was suspended for nine months after testing positive for banned substances during his post fight drug screening.

Tanaka was briefly linked to a bout with Russell Doane on January 2, 2016, at UFC 195. However, Doane was forced from the bout with injury and replaced by Joe Soto. He won the fight by split decision.

Tanaka next faced Rani Yahya on September 24, 2016, at UFC Fight Night 95. He lost the fight via unanimous decision.

Tanaka faced promotional newcomer Ricardo Ramos on February 4, 2017, at UFC Fight Night 104. He lost the fight by unanimous decision.

In May 2017, Tanaka was released from the company.

### Post-UFC career

In January 2018, it was announced that Tanaka has signed a contract with the Absolute Championship Berkut.

After two winning bouts in his native Japan, Tanaka signed a multi-fight contract with Legacy Fighting Alliance in April 2020. Tanaka is expected to make his promotional debut by headlining LFA 117 against Ricardo Dias on November 5, 2021. He won the fight via unanimous decision.

Tanaka faced Ary Farias at LFA 138 on August 5, 2022. He lost the fight by split decision. Two judges scored the fight 29–28 for Farias, while the third judge awarded an identical scorecard to Tanaka.

Tanaka rebounded against Kunihisa Sasa on April 30, 2023, at Pancrase 333, winning the bout via unanimous decision.

Tanaka next faced Sindile Manengela on July 9, 2023, at Pancrase 336, winning the bout via unanimous decision.

## Championships and accomplishments

### Mixed martial arts

## Mixed martial arts record

Professional record breakdown
| **20 matches** | **16 wins** | **4 losses** |
| --- | --- | --- |
| **By knockout** | 0 | 0 |
| **By submission** | 6 | 0 |
| **By decision** | 10 | 4 |

| Res. | Record | Opponent | Method | Event | Date | Round | Time | Location | Notes |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Win | 16–4 | Sindile Manengela | Decision (unanimous) | Pancrase 336 | July 9, 2023 | 3 | 5:00 | Tokyo, Japan |  |
| Win | 15–4 | Kunihisa Sasa | Decision (unanimous) | Pancrase 333 | April 30, 2023 | 3 | 5:00 | Tachikawa, Japan |  |
| Loss | 14–4 | Ary Farias | Decision (split) | LFA 138 | August 5, 2022 | 3 | 5:00 | Shawnee, Oklahoma, United States |  |
| Win | 14–3 | Ricardo Dias | Decision (unanimous) | LFA 117 | November 5, 2021 | 3 | 5:00 | Visalia, California, United States |  |
| Win | 13–3 | Vladimir Leontyev | Decision (unanimous) | Pancrase 303 | March 17, 2019 | 3 | 5:00 | Tokyo, Japan |  |
| Win | 12–3 | Rogério Bontorin | Submission (rear-naked choke) | Grandslam 6: Way of the Cage | October 29, 2017 | 3 | 2:27 | Tokyo, Japan |  |
| Loss | 11–3 | Ricardo Ramos | Decision (unanimous) | UFC Fight Night: Bermudez vs. The Korean Zombie | February 4, 2017 | 3 | 5:00 | Houston, Texas, United States |  |
| Loss | 11–2 | Rani Yahya | Decision (unanimous) | UFC Fight Night: Cyborg vs. Länsberg | September 24, 2016 | 3 | 5:00 | Brasília, Brazil |  |
| Win | 11–1 | Joe Soto | Decision (split) | UFC 195 | January 2, 2016 | 3 | 5:00 | Las Vegas, Nevada, United States |  |
| Loss | 10–1 | Kang Kyung-ho | Decision (split) | UFC Fight Night: Hunt vs. Nelson | September 20, 2014 | 3 | 5:00 | Saitama, Japan | Tanaka tested positive for banned substances. Fight of the Night forfeited. |
| Win | 10–0 | Roland Delorme | Decision (unanimous) | UFC 174 | June 14, 2014 | 3 | 5:00 | Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada |  |
| Win | 9–0 | Kyle Aguon | Decision (unanimous) | Pacific Xtreme Combat 40 | October 25, 2013 | 5 | 5:00 | Mangilao, Guam | Defended the PXC Bantamweight Championship. |
| Win | 8–0 | Crisanto Pitpitunge | Decision (unanimous) | Pacific Xtreme Combat 37 | May 18, 2013 | 5 | 5:00 | Pasig, Philippines | Won the PXC Bantamweight Championship. |
| Win | 7–0 | Caleb Vallotton | Submission (triangle choke) | Pacific Xtreme Combat 36 | March 8, 2013 | 2 | 2:39 | Mangilao, Guam |  |
| Win | 6–0 | Russell Doane | Submission (rear-naked choke) | Pacific Xtreme Combat 34 | November 17, 2012 | 3 | 2:09 | Quezon City, Philippines |  |
| Win | 5–0 | Jong Hoon Choi | Submission (rear-naked choke) | Shooto: 3rd Round | March 10, 2012 | 1 | 3:29 | Tokyo, Japan |  |
| Win | 4–0 | Teruto Ishihara | Decision (unanimous) | Shooto: The Rookie Tournament 2011 Final | December 18, 2011 | 2 | 5:00 | Tokyo, Japan | Won the 2011 Shooto Rookie 132 lbs Championship. |
| Win | 3–0 | Takuya Ogura | Submission (triangle choke) | Shooto: Gig Tokyo 7 | August 6, 2011 | 1 | 3:09 | Tokyo, Japan |  |
| Win | 2–0 | Hiroshi Roppongi | Technical Submission (armbar) | Shooto: Gig Saitama 3 | April 10, 2011 | 2 | 1:29 | Fujimi, Japan |  |
| Win | 1–0 | Yasutaka Hamaji | Decision (unanimous) | Shooto: Shooting Disco 13: Can't Stop Myself! | October 16, 2010 | 2 | 5:00 | Tokyo, Japan |  |

## InfoBox

| Michinori Tanaka | |
| --- | --- |
| Born | (1990-10-04) October 4, 1990
Yokohama, Kanagawa, Japan |
| Nationality | Japanese |
| Height | 5 ft 5 in (165 cm) |
| Weight | 135 lb (61 kg; 9 st 9 lb) |
| Division | Bantamweight (135 lb) |
| Reach | 67+12 in (171 cm) |
| Fighting out of | Yokohama, Kanagawa, Japan |
| Team | Reversal Gym Yokohama Ground Slam (2009–2014)
Team Alpha Male (2015–present) |
| Rank | 2nd degree black belt in Judo |
| Years active | 2010–present |
|  | |
| Mixed martial arts record | |
| **Total** | 20 |
| **Wins** | 16 |
| By submission | 6 |
| By decision | 10 |
| **Losses** | 4 |
| By decision | 4 |
|  | |
| Notable school(s) | Yokosuka Gakuin High School |
| Mixed martial arts record from Sherdog | |


title: Mickey's Warriors

abstract: Mickey's Warriors is a 1930 short film in Larry Darmour's Mickey McGuire series starring a young Mickey Rooney. Directed by Albert Herman, the two-reel short was released to theaters on May 25, 1930 by RKO.

text:
# Mickey's Warriors

***Mickey's Warriors*** is a 1930 short film in Larry Darmour's *Mickey McGuire* series starring a young Mickey Rooney. Directed by Albert Herman, the two-reel short was released to theaters on May 25, 1930 by RKO.

## Synopsis

Mickey's gang and Stinkey's gang are all attending a high society lawn party. Mickey's pals eventually put on a show in which they sing about bringing peace to the world. All goes well until Stinkey's Gang starts trouble.

## Cast

## InfoBox

| Mickey's Warriors | |
| --- | --- |
| Directed by | Albert Herman |
| Written by | E.V. Durling (story) |
| Produced by | Larry Darmour |
| Starring | Mickey Rooney
Billy Barty
Jimmy Robinson
Delia Bogard
Marvin Stephens
Douglas Fox IV |
| Cinematography | James Brown |
| Edited by | Edgar Scott |
| Music by | Lee Zahler |
| Distributed by | RKO Radio Pictures |
| Release date | * May 25, 1930 (1930-05-25) |
| Running time | 18 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |


title: Mickey Trotman

abstract: Mickey Trotman was a Trinidadian professional footballer who played as a midfielder in the United States with the Dallas Burn, the Miami Fusion and the Rochester Rhinos, as well as representing the Trinidad and Tobago national team. He died in a car crash in Port of Spain on 1 October 2001, at the age of 26.

text:
# Mickey Trotman

**Mickey Trotman** (21 October 1974 – 1 October 2001) was a Trinidadian professional footballer who played as a midfielder in the United States with the Dallas Burn, the Miami Fusion and the Rochester Rhinos, as well as representing the Trinidad and Tobago national team. He died in a car crash in Port of Spain on 1 October 2001, at the age of 26.

## Club career

In 1997, Trotman played several late season games with the New Orleans Riverboat Gamblers, a minor league team associated with the Dallas Burn. In 1998, he moved to the Burn.

## International career

Mickey made his international debut for the Trinidad and Tobago national team on 6 May 1999, in a Friendly match against South Africa, scoring on his debut in the 24th minute. His most famous goal for T&T was in the 2000 CONCACAF Gold Cup Finals when he scored the Golden goal in the quarterfinals against Costa Rica to send T&T through to the semifinals. His last appearance for T&T before his death was a 2002 FIFA World Cup Qualification match against Mexico on 5 September 2001, when he came on as a 45th-minute substitute. His international career ended with 26 caps and 5 goals

## Death

He died in a motor vehicle accident, along with his wife and brother.

## InfoBox

Mickey Trotman
| Personal information | | | |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Date of birth | (1974-10-21)21 October 1974 | | |
| Place of birth | Trinidad and Tobago | | |
| Date of death | 1 October 2001(2001-10-01) (aged 26) | | |
| Place of death | Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago | | |
| Position(s) | Midfielder | | |
| Youth career | | | |
| 1993–1996 | University of Mobile | | |
| Senior career\* | | | |
| Years | **Team** | **Apps** | **(Gls)** |
| 1997 | New Orleans Riverboat Gamblers |  |  |
| 1998 | Dallas Burn | 27 | (6) |
| 1999 | Miami Fusion | 3 | (0) |
| 2000 | Joe Public | ? | (1) |
| 2001 | Rochester Rhinos | 11 | (0) |
| International career | | | |
| 1999–2001 | Trinidad and Tobago | 26 | (5) |
| \*Club domestic league appearances and goals | | | |


title: Mickey Tucker

abstract: Mickey Tucker is an American jazz pianist and organist.

text:
# Mickey Tucker

**Mickey Tucker** (born **Michael B. Tucker**; April 28, 1941) is an American jazz pianist and organist.

## Biography

Tucker was born in Durham, North Carolina in 1941. He grew up in Rankin, Pennsylvania before moving back to North Carolina aged 12. When he was six, he started learning piano, eventually playing in church. While at high school, Tucker played in the school band as well as in a trio that included Grady Tate. Aged 15, Tucker received an early admission scholarship to attend Morehouse College. He became a teacher and taught at a high school in Lake Wales, Florida and Mississippi Valley State College while also performing music.

Tucker left Mississippi in 1964 and moved to New York City. In New York, he performed with Damita Jo, with whom he toured London. He moved on to have stints working with comedian Timmy Rogers, Little Anthony and the Imperials and as organist for James Moody. He entered the jazz world in 1969, working for the next several years with Eric Kloss, Rahsaan Roland Kirk, the Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Orchestra, Eddie Jefferson, and George Benson. He was music director for Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers. During the 1980s, he appeared on albums by Phil Woods, Art Farmer, Richie Cole, and Benny Golson.

In 1989, Tucker move to Melbourne, Australia. In an interview with Cadence magazine, Tucker explained that he moved to Australia following the murder of two women in his apartment complex in 1987. Tucker's friend, who Tucker says was with him at the time of crime, was accused of the murders. The stress caused by trying to help his friend led him to decide to move to Australia - where his wife was from.

In Melbourne, Tucker worked at the Victorian College of the Arts' School of Music.

## Discography

### As leader

### As sideman

**With Richie Cole**

**With Junior Cook**

**With Frank Foster**

* 1968 *Manhattan Fever*
* 1978 *Twelve Shades of Black*
* 1979 *Non-Electric Company*
* 1998 *Swing*
* 2007 *Well Water*

**With Bill Hardman**

**With Louis Hayes**

**With Willis Jackson**

**With Eddie Jefferson**

**With Rahsaan Roland Kirk**

* 1971 *Blacknuss*
* 1978 *The Vibration Continues*
* 1999 *Left Hook Right Cross*

**With Eric Kloss**

**With Johnny Lytle**

**With the Art Farmer/Benny Golson Jazztet**

**With Philly Joe Jones**

**With Archie Shepp**

* 1978 *Live in Tokyo*
* 1989 *Tray of Silver*

**With George Benson**

* 1985 *Love Walked In*
* 1985 *The Electrifying George Benson*
* 1987 *4 for an Afternoon*
* 1993 *Witchcraft*
* 1995 *Par Excellence*
* 1998 *San Francisco: 1972*
* 1999 *Live: Early Years*
* 1999 *The Masquerade Is Over*
* 2002 *After Hours*
* 2002 *Blue Bossa*

**With others**

## InfoBox

| Mickey Tucker | |
| --- | --- |
| Born | (1941-04-28) April 28, 1941<br>Durham, North Carolina, U.S. |
| Genres | Jazz |
| Occupation | Musician |
| Instrument(s) | Piano, organ |
| Years active | 1960s–present |
| Labels | Xanadu, Muse, Steeplechase, Denon |


title: Michael Roberts (cricketer)

abstract: Michael David Tudor Roberts is an English cricketer. Roberts was born at Oxford in March 1989. He was educated at The Oratory School, before matriculating to the University of Bath. Roberts made his debut in minor counties cricket for Berkshire against Dorset in the 2006 Minor Counties Championship. His first spell in minor counties cricket with Berkshire lasted until 2012, with him making fourteen appearances in the Minor Counties Championship and seven in the MCCA Knockout Trophy. While playing for Berkshire in the 2011 Minor Counties Championship against Herefordshire, Roberts made a double century with a score of 205, sharing in a partnership of 371 for the first wicket with Jono McLean (210); their partnership of 371 remains as of 2024 the highest ever for Berkshire. During this time he also played Second XI cricket for both Middlesex and Hampshire. In 2012, he was selected to play for the Unicorns in the 2012 Clydesdale Bank 40, making his List A debut in the competition against Derbyshire. Opening the batting for the Unicorns, Roberts made 4 runs before he was dismissed by Tim Groenewald. On 4 October 2012 Roberts was offered a full contract by Hampshire after excelling in the Second XI team during the 2012 season scoring 610 runs at an average of 58.10. He made his first-class debut for the county the following season against Loughborough MCCU.

text:
# Michael Roberts (cricketer)

**Michael David Tudor Roberts** (born 13 March 1989) is an English cricketer.

Roberts was born at Oxford in March 1989. He was educated at The Oratory School, before matriculating to the University of Bath. Roberts made his debut in minor counties cricket for Berkshire against Dorset in the 2006 Minor Counties Championship. His first spell in minor counties cricket with Berkshire lasted until 2012, with him making fourteen appearances in the Minor Counties Championship and seven in the MCCA Knockout Trophy. While playing for Berkshire in the 2011 Minor Counties Championship against Herefordshire, Roberts made a double century with a score of 205, sharing in a partnership of 371 for the first wicket with Jono McLean (210); their partnership of 371 remains as of 2024 the highest ever for Berkshire.

During this time he also played Second XI cricket for both Middlesex and Hampshire. In 2012, he was selected to play for the Unicorns in the 2012 Clydesdale Bank 40, making his List A debut in the competition against Derbyshire. Opening the batting for the Unicorns, Roberts made 4 runs before he was dismissed by Tim Groenewald.

On 4 October 2012 Roberts was offered a full contract by Hampshire after excelling in the Second XI team during the 2012 season scoring 610 runs at an average of 58.10. He made his first-class debut for the county the following season against Loughborough MCCU.

## InfoBox

Michael Roberts
| Personal information | |
| --- | --- |
| Full name | Michael David Tudor Roberts |
| Born | (1989-03-13) 13 March 1989<br>Oxford, Oxfordshire, England |
| Batting | Right-handed |
| Bowling | Right-arm off break |
| Domestic team information | |
| Years | Team |
| 2006–2012 | Berkshire |
| 2012 | Unicorns |
| 2013 | Hampshire *(squad no. 13)* |
|  | |
| Career statistics | |
| Competition First-class List A  Matches 3 1  Runs scored 81 4  Batting average 27.00 4.00  100s/50s 0/0 0/0  Top score 44 4  Catches/stumpings 0/– 0/– | |
|  | |
| Source: Cricinfo, 29 July 2013 | |


title: Michael Roberts (priest)

abstract: Michael Graham Vernon Roberts is a retired British Church of England priest and academic. His early career was spent as a parish priest and a university chaplain. From 1970 to 1974, he was Chaplain of Clare College, Cambridge. He taught at The Queens Theological College in Birmingham during the 80s.From 1993 to 2006, he was Principal of Westcott House, Cambridge, an Anglican theological college. In 2006, he was appointed an honorary canon of Ely Cathedral.

text:
# Michael Roberts (priest)

**Michael Graham Vernon Roberts** (born 1943) is a retired British Church of England priest and academic.

His early career was spent as a parish priest and a university chaplain. From 1970 to 1974, he was Chaplain of Clare College, Cambridge. He taught at The Queens Theological College in Birmingham during the 80s.From 1993 to 2006, he was Principal of Westcott House, Cambridge, an Anglican theological college. In 2006, he was appointed an honorary canon of Ely Cathedral.


title: Micronemacheilus zispi

abstract: Micronemacheilus zispi is a species of stone loach. It is regarded by some authorities as being of doubtful validity and of being a synonym of Traccatichthys taeniatus, the genus Micronemacheilus is then used for placing Yunnanilus cruciatus in its own monotypic genus.

text:
# Micronemacheilus zispi

***Micronemacheilus zispi*** is a species of stone loach. It is regarded by some authorities as being of doubtful validity and of being a synonym of *Traccatichthys taeniatus*, the genus *Micronemacheilus* is then used for placing *Yunnanilus cruciatus* in its own monotypic genus.

## InfoBox

| *Micronemacheilus zispi* | |
| --- | --- |
|
| Scientific classification | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Actinopterygii |
| Order: | Cypriniformes |
| Family: | Nemacheilidae |
| Genus: | *Micronemacheilus*
Rendahl, 1944 |
| Species: | ***M. zispi*** |
| Binomial name | |
| ***Micronemacheilus zispi***
Prokofiev | |
|
| Synonyms | |
| *Traccatichthys zispi* (Prokofiev, 2004) | |


title: Microschismus sceletias

abstract: Microschismus sceletias is a species of moth of the family Alucitidae. It is known from South Africa.

text:
# Microschismus sceletias

***Microschismus sceletias*** is a species of moth of the family Alucitidae. It is known from South Africa.

## InfoBox

| *Microschismus sceletias* | |
| --- | --- |
|
| Scientific classification | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Lepidoptera |
| Family: | Alucitidae |
| Genus: | *Microschismus* |
| Species: | ***M. sceletias*** |
| Binomial name | |
| ***Microschismus sceletias***<br>Meyrick, 1911 | |
|


title: Microbacterium aquimaris

abstract: Microbacterium aquimaris is a Gram-positive, non-spore-forming and non-motile bacterium from the genus Microbacterium which has been isolated from seawater from Jeju in Korea. the major menaquinones of Microbacterium aquimaris are MK-11, MK-12 and MK-10.

text:
# Microbacterium aquimaris

***Microbacterium aquimaris*** is a Gram-positive, non-spore-forming and non-motile bacterium from the genus *Microbacterium* which has been isolated from seawater from Jeju in Korea. the major menaquinones of *Microbacterium aquimaris* are MK-11, MK-12 and MK-10.

## Further reading

* George M., Garrity (2012). *Bergey's manual of systematic bacteriology* (2nd ed.). New York: Springer Science + Business Media. ISBN 978-0-387-68233-4.

## InfoBox

| *Microbacterium aquimaris* | |
| --- | --- |
|
| Scientific classification | |
| Domain: | Bacteria |
| Phylum: | Actinomycetota |
| Class: | Actinomycetia |
| Order: | Micrococcales |
| Family: | Microbacteriaceae |
| Genus: | *Microbacterium* |
| Species: | ***M. aquimaris*** |
| Binomial name | |
| ***Microbacterium aquimaris***
Kim et al. 2008 | |
|
| Type strain | |
| DSM 19713
JCM 15625
JS54-2
KCTC 19124 | |


title: Mick Cooke (Australian footballer)

abstract: Mick Cooke was an Australian rules footballer who played with North Melbourne in the Victorian Football League (VFL).

text:
# Mick Cooke (Australian footballer)

**Mick Cooke** (4 January 1938 – 19 February 2014) was an Australian rules footballer who played with North Melbourne in the Victorian Football League (VFL).

## InfoBox

| Mick Cooke | | | |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Personal information | | | |
| Full name | Mick Cooke | | |
| Date of birth | (1938-01-04)4 January 1938 | | |
| Date of death | 19 February 2014(2014-02-19) (aged 76) | | |
| Original team(s) | Ballarat | | |
| Height | 178 cm (5 ft 10 in) | | |
| Weight | 78 kg (172 lb) | | |
| Playing career1 | | | |
| Years | **Club** | **Games (Goals)** |
| 1959–60 | North Melbourne | 16 (5) |
| 1 Playing statistics correct to the end of 1960. | | | |
| Sources: AFL Tables, AustralianFootball.com | | | |


abstract: Microsoft Office Project Portfolio Server is a discontinued project portfolio management application from Microsoft. It was part of its Enterprise Project Management suite which includes Microsoft Office Project Server.

text:
# Microsoft Office Project Portfolio Server

**Microsoft Office Project Portfolio Server** is a discontinued project portfolio management application from Microsoft. It was part of its Enterprise Project Management suite which includes Microsoft Office Project Server.

## Versions for Windows

* 2007 – Project Portfolio Server 2007
* 2006 – Project Portfolio Server 2006
* Previous Years – UMT Portfolio Manager

## Description

**Microsoft Office Project Portfolio Server** 2007 allows creation of a project portfolio, including workflows, hosted centrally, so that the information is available throughout the enterprise, even from a browser. It also aids in centralized data aggregation regarding the project planning and execution, and in visualizing and analyzing the data to optimize the project plan. It can also support multiple portfolios per project, to track different aspects of it. It also includes reporting tools to create consolidated reports out of the project data.

Office Project PortfolioServer is being rolled up into Project Server 2010 with 64 bit requirements all the way around for the 2010 family


title: Microbotryum violaceum

abstract: Microbotryum violaceum, also known as the anther smut fungus, was formerly known as Ustilago violacea. It is a basidiomycete obligate parasite of many Caryophyllaceae. But it has now separated into many species due to its host specificity. Meiosis in M. violaceum produces a tetrad of four haploid meiotic products. Pairwise intra-tetrad mating can occur between these meiotic products.

text:
# Microbotryum violaceum

***Microbotryum violaceum***, also known as the **anther smut fungus**, was formerly known as *Ustilago violacea*. It is a basidiomycete obligate parasite of many Caryophyllaceae. But it has now separated into many species due to its host specificity.

Meiosis in *M. violaceum* produces a tetrad of four haploid meiotic products. Pairwise intra-tetrad mating can occur between these meiotic products.

## Examples

*Microbotryum violaceum* can infect and sterilize the plant species *Silene latifolia* by acting like a sexually transmitted infection.

## InfoBox

| *Microbotryum violaceum* | |
| --- | --- |
|  | |
| *Microbotryum violaceum* on *Silene alba* | |
|
| Scientific classification | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Fungi |
| Division: | Basidiomycota |
| Class: | Microbotryomycetes |
| Order: | Microbotryales |
| Family: | Microbotryaceae |
| Genus: | *Microbotryum* |
| Species: | ***M. violaceum*** |
| Binomial name | |
| ***Microbotryum violaceum***
(Pers.) G. Deml & Oberw., (1982) | |
|
| Synonyms | |
| *Caeoma antherarum* (DC.) Nees (1816)
*Caeoma violaceum* (DC.) Nees (1816)
*Microbotryum antherarum* (DC.) Lév., (1847)
*Uredo antherarum* DC., (1815)
*Uredo antherarum* var. *antherarum* DC., (1815)
*Uredo antherarum* a silenes-nutantis DC., (1815)
*Uredo violacea* Pers., (1797)
*Ustilago antherarum* (DC.) Fr., (1832)
*Ustilago silenes-nutantis* (DC.) Liro, (1924)
*Ustilago violacea* (Pers.) Roussel, (1806) *Ustilago violacea* var. *silenes-nutantis* (DC.) Durrieu & Zambett., (1973) | |


abstract: Microbotryum violaceum is a host-specific anther smut (fungus) disease that infects Silene latifolia and sterilizes the host plant. When infected with this disease, the flowers generate pathogenic spores, which can then be transferred to other plants by pollinating insects. Therefore, this disease is sometimes classified as a sexually transmitted infection.

text:
# Microbotryum violaceum infection of Silene latifolia

*Microbotryum violaceum* is a host-specific anther smut (fungus) disease that infects *Silene latifolia* and sterilizes the host plant. When infected with this disease, the flowers generate pathogenic spores, which can then be transferred to other plants by pollinating insects. Therefore, this disease is sometimes classified as a sexually transmitted infection.

## Smuts

They are fungal diseases that can infect different parts of the host plants (i.e. leaves, stems, flowers) and usually create black spores called teliospores in the infected area. Teliospores produce sporidia, white smut, and can survive under harsh environmental conditions. Therefore, the most effective way to prevent the spread of this fungal disease is to remove and destroy the infected area of the plant. Fungicides can be used to control the spread of smut; however, they must be applied before symptoms appear to be effective.

## Transmission

In male *S. latifolia*, *M. violaceum* eliminates pollen production in the anthers and replaces the pollen with fungal teliospores. These teliospores can then be transferred by pollinators to other plants, resulting in the spread of the infection. In females, the infection can subdue the development of the reproductive organs, styles and ovaries, resulting in complete sterilization.

## Risk of infection

Male *S. latifolia* tend to have a lower rate of infection compared to female *S. latifolia* because males have the ability to drop contaminated flowers before the entire plant is infected by *M. violaceum*; whereas, females do not have that male phenotype. So females hold onto the flowers with the intention to develop fruits carrying seeds with the purpose of creating offspring. However, these "offspring" merely carry the fungal disease and cannot develop into mature plants.

## Effect of sterilizing diseases

Sterilizing diseases do not attract a lot of attention in the research field compared to diseases that cause mortality in humans. However, there is an abundance of these diseases across biological kingdoms (i.e. plants, animals, fungi). They can create detrimental effects on a species’ population size because, although the organism does not immediately die, it cannot reproduce for the next generation. This chain of reaction leads to a decreased population size, which in extreme situations could lead to extinction. In addition, hosts with long life-spans can act as a "disease reservoir" in transmission by being a constant source for spreading the disease for years.

### *Gypsophila repens*

*G. repens* is a hermaphroditic plant species that is also plagued by *M.* *violaceum*, but it is usually only partially diseased. The same branch can have healthy and diseased flowers, and some of the diseased flowers can still have functional stigmas and produce seeds; whereas, the stigmas in diseased flowers of most host species are usually greatly reduced in their function or aborted, leading to sterility. A study conducted by López-Villavicencio et al. (2005) drew the conclusion that *M. violaceum* had recently undergone a host shift to *G. repens* from another diseased *Caryophyllaceae* species because of the disease's failure to completely infect and sterilize *G. repens*.

### *Spodoptera frugiperda*

*S. frugiperda*, the fall armyworm, is affected by the ectoparasitic nematode *Noctuidonema guyanense,* which can usually be found on the "intersegmental membranes of the abdomen of both sexes of its adult hosts," and is transmitted through mating, but not found on the host's larvae. *N. guyanese* can shorten the lifespan or reduce flight ability and fecundity in its adult host, thus acting as a sexually transmitted parasitic infection.

### *Homo sapiens*

*Chlamydia trachomatis* is the *M. violaceum* of humans, except it is a bacterial sexually transmitted infection rather than fungal. It is primarily transmitted through sexual intercourse, but can also be vertically transmitted from mother to child during birth. The latter form of transmission leaves the child with chlamydial conjunctivitis and pneumonia. Due to this complication, along with female infertility, the main focus of research and screening strategies for chlamydia is women. However, there is emerging research that shows that men also experience reduced fertility because of "decreased semen quality and impaired sperm fertilizing capacity and DNA integrity".


title: Midnighter (2015 comic book)

abstract: Midnighter is an American comic book series published by DC Comics and written by Steve Orlando that ran for twelve issues from June 2015 to July 2016, featuring Midnighter as its protagonist. The series is also known as Midnighter to differentiate itself from the character's previous series first published by WildStorm in 2006. The release of Midnighter marked the first time a gay man was the protagonist in an ongoing series released by one of the "Big Two" comic book publishers. Despite its underwhelming sales, Midnighter met with critical acclaim from professional critics, who praised among other things the series' fast-paced events and its portrayal of queer characters. The series appeared on numerous publications' end-of-year lists, and won "Best New Series" from Broken Frontier's 2015 awards program. Two Midnighter trade paperbacks were released in 2016, with seven and five issues each. A 6-issue miniseries sequel titled Midnighter and Apollo, also written by Orlando, ran from October 2016 to March 2017.

text:
# Midnighter (2015 comic book)

***Midnighter*** is an American comic book series published by DC Comics and written by Steve Orlando that ran for twelve issues (plus an un-numbered preview issue) from June 2015 to July 2016, featuring Midnighter as its protagonist. The series is also known as ***Midnighter (Volume 2)*** to differentiate itself from the character's previous series first published by WildStorm in 2006.

The release of *Midnighter* marked the first time a gay man was the protagonist in an ongoing series released by one of the "Big Two" comic book publishers (Marvel and DC Comics). Despite its underwhelming sales, *Midnighter* met with critical acclaim from professional critics, who praised among other things the series' fast-paced events and its portrayal of queer characters. The series appeared on numerous publications' end-of-year lists, and won "Best New Series" from Broken Frontier's 2015 awards program. Two *Midnighter* trade paperbacks were released in 2016, with seven and five issues each. A 6-issue miniseries sequel titled *Midnighter and Apollo*, also written by Orlando, ran from October 2016 to March 2017.

## Background

In September 2011, after the conclusion of the "Flashpoint" story arc wherein The Flash caused irreparable damage to the DC Universe's timestream in an attempt to prevent his mother's murder, DC merged the universe of its WildStorm imprint into a rebooted DC Universe in a relaunch known as The New 52. The character's first appearance in New 52 continuity was in a *Stormwatch* series released as part of the first wave of titles, and was a younger, single version of the character, replete with a new costume. Intended to be a significant part of this new universe, *Stormwatch* was a commercial and critical disappointment. Midnighter's characterization was criticized for being too distant of his WildStorm version and his costume, which included a chin spike, was so disliked that it was even referenced in the comic itself. After some relaunch attempts, *Stormwatch* was cancelled at issue #30.

## Publication history

The series was released as a part of "DC You", a marketing campaign to reinvigorate DC Comics' image. In May 2015, during the *Convergence* event, the publisher released digital sneak previews for several of its current and upcoming titles, all featuring a new short story. Titled "Perdition Pistol", the *Midnighter* preview appeared in the comic book *Nightwing/Oracle* #2. Series promotion included video interviews with Steve Orlando and Jase Peeples, entertainment editor of *The Advocate*, which also presented a short history of DC's LGBT characters to celebrate the release of the series and LGBT Pride Month. *Midnighter*'s first issue was released in June, together with twenty other new DC Comics' titles. The series had a traditional publication, with a 20-page issue priced at 2.99 released monthly, and is codified in comics tracking as *Midnighter Volume 2* to avoid confusion with the character's previous series.

> "\[Midnighter is\] a version of Batman who’s not Batman, and by pairing him with Dick Grayson, Batman’s partner, we can highlight aspects of both characters that I think people haven’t seen before. You get these two together and a thousand Freudian issues will instantly flow into a pretty awesome super hero fight".

Tom King on Midnighter inclusion in *Grayson* series.

## Conception and development

*Midnighter* represented both a new path and a return to the character's roots. It re-established his over-the-top acts of graphic violence and focused on his community work with everyday people, a similar scenario to the character's early days in the WildStorm Universe before joining Stormwatch. This Midnighter, however, is considerably younger than his WildStorm counterpart, and desires to have a more social life. According to writer Steve Orlando, he began writing *Midnighter* after Mark Doyle, *Batman*'s editor, asked if he wanted to "pitch" any character. In an interview with *Comic Vine*, Orlando described Midnighter as:

> ...a fighter. That is a big part of where we’re going in this book. People talk about how he’s the "anti-Batman". I think he’s very different. \[...\] Midnighter doesn’t brood. People think he’s like another mopey vigilante. Really, Midnighter loves his job. It just happens that his job is horrifying. Everybody knows who he is and what he does but he has to really find out how to do anything. \[...\] Midnighter doesn’t know if he likes bagels. He doesn’t know if he likes going to the movies. He doesn’t know if he likes any of those things because all he’s ever done is fight. He can do that. He’s the best at that but there has to be other things if he’s going to be a real person.

ACO, the title's main artist, brought to the comic a characteristic style, which features a large number of small panels to highlight the constant action scenes present in the story. He formed a collaboration with Hugo Petrus, who was co-credited as an inker for all of their issues and as a penciller for the last four issues. Stephen Mooney, who also pencilled *Grayson*, was the artist of issues #4 and 5.

The series had a close relationship with *Grayson*, a rebooted Dick Grayson solo comic. The characters Midnighter, Dick Grayson and Helena Bertinelli frequently feature in both comic books. *Midnighter* begins shortly after the end of his relationship with Andrew Pulaski, known as the hero Apollo. This decision, according to Orlando, was made to define Midnighter as a stand-alone character with his own sexual experiences with other people, while slowly building both characters' new interactions. The writer cites Christopher Marlowe, Orlando Cruz, Tab Hunter, John McClane, Emile Griffith, John Woo and Melvin Van Peebles as inspirations for the title character's personality.

## Plot

New in the city of Oakland, Midnighter arranges a date with a man called Jason. Suddenly, the restaurant where they are is invaded by Modoran mercenaries searching for three of their countrymen, making Midnighter reveal himself and beat them in a fight. Afterwards, Midnighter takes Jason to his apartment and installs a *smartalk* in him, in which Jason can contact him wherever he is. He also talks about his recent breakup with Andrew Pulaski (Apollo), saying he could not handle pretending to be a normal human and that Andrew is too good for him. Feeling too intimidated, Jason prefers to be just friends with Midnighter.

Called by The Gardener, Midnighter discovers the God Garden was robbed by a mysterious intruder who took several weapons and also a file containing his past memories before he was genetically enhanced. He starts a search to recover everything that was lost while beginning to date Matt, whom he met during the Modoran attack. Midnighter finds the first weapon, a powered necklace, with Marina Lucas, who was using it to avenge her husband's death by food poisoning. He finds another weapon while saving Amanda Riley, a little schoolgirl kidnapped by Multiplex, a villain in the employ of Mr. Rohmer, a corrupt businessman who sought the power of the God Garden. Rohmer reveals that he pretended to use Amanda as a guinea pig for a machine he built using God Garden technology. Beaten by Midnighter, he revealed that he acquired the tech from a Russian man named Noi Akakievitch.

Midnighter then abducts Dick Grayson to help him with his mission in Russia. There, they go after a secret inn administered by Guire Grando, an employee of Akakievitch. Grando takes homeless people from the streets and makes them go through a treatment with reprogrammed martian cells (originally from the God Garden) that transform them into vampire-like creatures, who are murdered for entertainment by the hooligan youngsters that frequent the inn. Midnighter and Grayson succeed in taking down the place, attracting Akakievitch's attention, who wants to have the Midnighter's computer brain technology. Then, Midnighter and Grayson go to his lair, where they fight and beat martian cells manipulated beasts, defeating Akakievitch, who reveals that he received the technology from a mysterious supplier.

Back home, Midnighter celebrates Thanksgiving for the first time with Matt, when they are attacked by Multiplex. Midnighter manages to defeat him, only to find out a few days later that Matt's father was also attacked. He and Matt go visit the man, who lives in a small town in Connecticut, and Midnighter begins investigating the place. While investigating at a nearby bar, he is attacked by a gang and during the fight, he discovers they are not humans, but rather androids created with God Garden technology. Midnighter then goes back to Matt's father's house and attacks him, revealing him to also be an android. Matt stabs Midnighter, revealing himself as the supervillain Prometheus and confessing to stealing the tech from the God Garden with the intention of taking down all superheroes, starting with Midnighter. They begin fighting and Prometheus reveals he downloaded all of Midnighter's origin file into his brain and destroyed the original, so if Midnighter kills him, all his early history would be destroyed. Midnighter does not mind and beats down Prometheus, who manages to escape severely injured. After that, Midnighter goes to take a drink with his friend Tony.

## Setting

Oakland, California and Boston, Massachusetts, are the cities where most of *Midnighter*'s action happens. This breaks from DC tradition, as most DC stories take place in fictional DC locales. Thanks to the door technology, however, Midnighter can easily travel to any place in the world. Cities Bridgewater, Massachusetts, Rochester, New York, Richmond, California, Tacoma, Washington and Detroit, Michigan, as well as Florida Keys, Baffin Island (Canada) and the Darvaza gas crater (Turkmenistan) are also depicted through the series. Fictional Opal City is often shown during scenes with Apollo, who lives there. Porter, a fictional small town located in Connecticut, was also depicted, as well as another fictional country named Modora.

Much of the series takes place in Russia. Steve Orlando, himself a Russian culture admirer, explained the connection made between Midnighter and the place:

> I think Russia is a great fit for Midnighter. If you’ve seen issue #1, you know he enjoys patronizing Russia. It’s definitely something to acknowledge: that type of hypermasculinity, that type of discomfort toward the queer community there. But at the same time, I think it’s a slippery slope to have him be an easy answer. You have a character who could just walk into the Kremlin and beat up Putin and that would be great, but it wouldn’t solve any real problems. It might be cathartic for 20 pages, but then you’ve also kind of dumped on the real struggles that these people are having.

## Cancellation and DC Rebirth

> "I’ve said it before, but working on *Midnighter* has been an honor. Getting to take a character that helped me when I was younger and boost the signal to a new generation has been an honor. And honestly, to beat the odds with a character people that people doubted \[*sic*\], or didn’t know what to expect from, has been an honor".

— Steve Orlando considerations after *Midnighter*'s finale.

In February 2016, DC Comics announced another relaunch, DC Rebirth, which mostly consisted of relaunches for their traditional titles like *Batman*, *Superman* and *Wonder Woman*. *Midnighter* and other DC You titles like *Starfire* and *Black Canary* did not have new series announced, and ended their runs at the twelfth issue, a decision criticized by some media outlets. Oliver Sava, writing for *The A.V. Club*, said that "it’s unfortunate that \[*Midnighter*\] is heading to its conclusion when it feels like this creative team still has so much more to offer", adding that "DC hasn’t done much to increase \[Midnighter's\] profile. \[They\] could have used this critical acclaim to promote the book". Jon Erik Christianson from *Panels* lamented the lack of representation that would happen with the cancellation of one of the few mainstream LGBT comic books.

Midnighter's first DC Rebirth appearance was in a flashback in *Nightwing Rebirth* #1, released in July 2016. DC announced a miniseries titled *Midnighter and Apollo* later that year.

## Reception

The announcement of *Midnighter*'s release in February 2015 generated instant media interest due to the premise of the series being the first to prominently feature a gay superhero. *The New York Times* referred to Midnighter and the new wave of gay characters as ones who "zap stereotypes", calling it "a golden age for queer characters in comic books". Its writer, Gregory Schmidt, also expressed a belief that Midnighter's popularity "stems in part from efforts to make his sexual orientation just one aspect of his character".

### Critical response

Upon release, *Midnighter* issues received widespread acclaim from comics critics. At the review aggregator website Comic Book Roundup, which assigns a weighted mean rating out of 10 to reviews from comics critics, the series received an average score of 8.2 based on 158 reviews. Reviewing the first issue, David Pepos from *Newsarama* gave it a maximum score, saying that "there aren't many books out there that I'd call perfect, but when you can see 10 steps ahead, it's perhaps not surprising that *The Midnighter* earns that praise. This book looks great, reads great, and is easily one of the best debuts from DC since the soft relaunch of *Batgirl*. If you've been skeptical about this character - and believe me, I was one of them - get ready for a spectacular change of heart". Keith Dooley of *Multiversity Comics* opined that "*Midnighter* is imperfect, has emotional issues, and yet has a hero’s heart. Darkness and light concurrently mingle to create such a promising and exciting opening chapter to what has the potential to be something great". Writing for *PopMatters*, Matthew Fay felt the debut was a "reassuring and faithful reintroduction to the character" that "leaves open a lot of room for exploration".

> "Probably the best matching of character and writer that we saw in comics in 2015. Steve Orlando came determined to take Midnighter and drag him straight to the top of DC’s characters. And he succeeded with such strength and force that it’s hard to remember a time when *Midnighter* wasn’t a hugely important concept for the company. Orlando leans hard with a sharper sense of insight, cutting through the syndicated nature of superhero comics with aggressive verse. This was blunt-force comics, and some of the most daring and exciting work we’ve ever seen from DC".

*Midnighter* introductory text from writer Steve Morris, published on *Comic Book Resources'* Top 100 Comics of 2015.

Critic Jesse Schedeen described *Midnighter* #3 in IGN positively as "great about exploring \[Midnighter's\] dichotomies". Jeff Ayers from *Fanboys.Inc* commended the Midnighter and Grayson pairing in *Midnighter* #5, writing that "Orlando is still crafting a compelling story of theft and intrigue within Midnighter's world". Matt Santori-Griffith of *Comicosity* reported *Midnighter* as "not just the gay hero I always wanted, but it’s the comic I’ve always wanted, period. Plus it’s the gay comic I’ve always wanted, with a world I recognize so deeply and naturally in the place I’ve been looking for it all my life. It’s all of it and more, none subsumed or accelerated over the other, all in perfect harmony. Until it all falls apart and you reduce a forty-year-old homosexual to shock and awe on the floor. Yes, I am a sucker for Midnighter’s charms. But admit it, so are you", in his review of the sixth issue.

Writing about *Midnighter* #8, *Comic Vine'*s Tony 'G-Man' Guerrero believes that "with his attitude and action, \[Midnighter is\] not always the most likable character but Orlando succeeds in making readers care about it". Jideobi Odunze from *Geeked Out Nation* commended "the bond Midnighter has shared with others" in his *Midnighter* #10 review, feeling that "everything about \[Midnighter\] is right on the surface for the most part".

*Midnighter* #12, the series' final issue, received very positive reviews, being given maximum score from Josh McCullough at *We The Nerdy* ("It's been one of the smartest, emotionally hard hitting and action packed series DC have had in a long time"), and *Comicosity*'s Mat Santori-Griffith ("Orlando, ACO, Petrus, and Fajardo have concluded this series with as much vigor and sensitivity as they carried throughout the previous 11 issues"). Jideobi Odunze at *Geeked Out Nation*, said that "*Midnighter* #12 was a marvelous ending to a series you would have to be crazy to have missed. The action, the humor, the everything you got from this series that you don’t from all the rest from DC at this time. Not to mention the team-up with Spyral and Suicide Squad. This is how you do comics". *Newsarama*'s C.K. Stewart in his review said that "\[it\] provides all the closure we needed for this stand-out series", and *Comic Crusaders* commented: "I've not been able to find a flaw with any issue of this one until now, and that flaw is simply...it's the last issue".

Less positive about the series, Jim Werner from *Weird Science* described it as "good at its best and awful for the rest of the time" in his reviews, calling Orlando's dialogue "close to laughable" and Midnighter "a tough sell as a character". *Midnighter*'s constant artist changes during its run were also criticised by some critics. *The Rainbow Hub'*s Sam Riedel wrote "it’s better in my mind to establish a series’ aesthetic before switching up art duties", while Jarrod Jones of *Doom Rocket* declared that "*Midnighter* is too good to settle for menial sequentials", and added: "For a book like this, DC would do well to roll out the red carpet for its best and brightest".

### Accolades

Together with *The Omega Men*, *Midnighter* was the most acclaimed DC Comics book of 2015, appearing on more than twenty year-end lists of industry publications. *The A.V. Club* included it at number fifteen on its list of favorite comic books of 2015, stating that *Midnighter* has proven to be one of the laugh-out-loud funniest books, as well as one of the more emotionally weighty ones". *io9* named it one of 2015's twenty best comic books, and commented that "*Midnighter* balances its brilliant superhero action with a frank, refreshing, and sex-positive look at its hero's life".

In 2015, *Midnighter* won a Broken Frontier Award for Best New Series, and was runner-up at the All-Comic Awards in a similar category, losing to *We Can Never Go Home*. The series also received a GLAAD Media Award nomination for Outstanding Comic Book, but lost to *Lumberjanes*.

### Year-end lists

| Year | Rank | Publication | List |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 2015 | * | *Salon* | The Best Comics of 2015 (Mark Peters) |
| 2015 | 4 | *The Hundreds* | The Top 10 Comics of 2015 (Zach Norris) |
| 2015 | 15 | *The A.V. Club* | Favorite Ongoing and Serial Comics of 2015 (Caitlin Rosberg) |
| 2015 | * | *Big Comic Page* | The Best of 2015 (Martin Doyle) |
| 2015 | * | *Tor.com* | The Top Comic Books of 2015 (Alex Brown) |
| 2015 | * | *Panels* | Best Comics of 2015 (Swapna Krishna) |
| 2015 | * | *io9* | The 20 Best Comics and Graphic Novels of 2015 (James Whitbrook) |
| 2015 | 8 | *Vulture* | The 10 Best Comic Books of 2015 (Joshua Riviera) |
| 2015 | 4 | *Polygon* | The Top 10 Best Comics of 2015 (Susana Polo) |
| 2015 | 17 | *Den of Geek* | The Best Comics of 2015 (Jim Dandy) |
| 2015 | 27 | *Comic Book Resources* | Top 100 Comics of 2015 |
| 2015 | * | *The Court of Nerds* | Favorite Comic Book Series of 2015 (Benjamin Raven) |
| 2015 | 1 | *Newsarama* | Best of Best Shots 2015 (C.K. Stewart) |
| 2015 | 2 | *Newsarama* | Best of Best Shots 2015 (David Pepose) |
| 2015 | * | ComiXology | Best New Series of 2015 |
| 2015 | * | *Guide Live* | The Top 10 Comics of 2015 (Nicholas Friedman) |
| 2015 | * | *The Coast* | Top 10 Comics Released in 2015 (Kevin Hartford) |
| 2015 | * | Uproxx | The Fifteen Best New Comics Of 2015 (Dan Seitz) |
| 2015 | * | *Comics Bastards* | Best Ongoing Series of 2015 |
| 2015 | * | *Times Union* | Best New Series of 2015 (Chad Burdette) |
| 2015 | 5 | *Retcon Punch* | Best Issues of 2015 (*Midnighter* #6) |
| 2015 | 2 | *Retcon Punch* | Best Series of 2015 |
| 2015 | * | *Geeked Out Nation* | Best of 2015: New Series (Jess Camacho) |
| 2015 | * | Geeks OUT | Best Comic Books of 2015 (Ian Carlos) |
|

* denotes an unordered list

### Awards and nominations

|
|  |
| Award | Category | Result |
| All-Comic Best of 2015 Awards | Best New Series | Runner-up |
| Broken Frontier 2015 Awards | Best New Series | Won |
| 27th GLAAD Media Awards | Outstanding Comic Book | Nominated |

## Collected editions

Covering its first seven issues and the sneak peek, *Midnighter*'s first trade paperback was released on February 17, 2016. *Midnighter: Out*, titled after the series' first arc, has the same cover art of the debut comic book issue. The second trade paperback, titled *Hard*, was released on October 19, 2016 and has the same cover as *Midnighter* #12. Along with the series' second arc, *Hard* also collects issues #7–8 from Midnighter's previous WildStorm book and "Seoul Brothers", an Apollo and Midnighter story from *Young Romance: The New 52 Valentine's Day Special* #1.

|
|  |
| Title | Material collected | Publication date | ISBN |
| *Midnighter: Out* (Volume 1) | *Midnighter* #1–7 | February 17, 2016 | 978-1401259785 |
| *Midnighter: Hard* (Volume 2) | *Midnighter* #8–12 | October 19, 2016 | 978-1401264932 |

## Sales

*Midnighter* #1 debuted at number eighty-three on Diamond Comic Distributors best-selling comics ranking for June 2015, with 32,200 copies distributed, being the seventeenth best-selling DC comic book series debut in that month. It was the series' only issue to chart in the top 100, after *Midnighter* #2 had 61.5% less copies distributed next month, placing at number one hundred and twenty-nine.

### Trade paperbacks

The trade *Midnighter: Out* had 1,678 copies accounted during its release month, February 2016, in Diamond distributed comic shops. It was placed at number forty-four on Diamond's trade paperbacks chart. Released in October of the same year, *Midnighter: Hard* had 1,232 copies distributed during its release month, placing at number ninety on the same chart. According to DC co-publisher, Dan DiDio, "\[DC\] has seen more life for *Midnighter* in the graphic novel area". He further explained: "With the *Midnighter* book in particular, \[which had\] a lot of great press, a lot of great reviews, that's where we've seen reviews really inform the sales on the graphic novel collection". Steve Orlando described *Midnighter* trade sales as "very, very nice with a huge amount of support from fans and readers".

*Midnighter*: Physical sales per issue (in thousands)
| Story arc # Sales *Average* Diamond<br>ranking  *Out* 1 32,200 *17,099* 83  2 19,813 129  3 16,563 132  4 14,431 149  5 13,235 152  6 12,186 161  7 11,267 191  *Hard* 8 10,408 *9,886* 174  9 10,428 172  10 9,803 176  11 9,435 194  12 9,354 197 |
| --- |

## Credits and personnel

Credits and personnel adapted from the series issues.

* ACO – inks (#1; #3; #6–7; #9–12)\*, cover (#1–2; #4–12), penciller (#1; #3; #6–7; #9–12)*
* Alex Antone – editor (#8–12)
* Gaetano Carlucci – inks (#8)
* Chris Conroy – editor (#1–12)*
* Jeremy Cox – colors (#5; #11)
* Mark Doyle – group editor (#1–12)*
* Romulo Fajardo, Jr. – colors (#1–10; #12)\*, cover (#1–2; #4–12)
* Jared K. Fletcher – letters (#1–3)*
* Brittany Holzherr – assistant editor (#8–12)
* David Messina – penciller (#8)
* Stephen Mooney – artist (#4–5)
* Alec Morgan – artist (#2)
* Tom Napolitano – letters (#4–12)
* Steve Orlando – writer (#1–12)*
* Allen Passalaqua – colors (#2)
* Hugo Petrus – inks (#1; #3; #6–7; #9–12), penciller (#7; #9–12)
* Artyom Trakhanov – cover (#3)
* Dave Wielgosz – assistant editor (#1–7)*

* also credited for the sneak peek

## *Midnighter and Apollo*

DC Comics released a *Midnighter* sequel, *Midnighter and Apollo*, as a 6-issue miniseries, starting in October of the same year. Steve Orlando returned to writing, with interior art by Fernando Blanco and covers by ACO. Romulo Fajardo Jr. also returned as colorist. The series lasted until March 2017.

## InfoBox

| *Midnighter* | |
| --- | --- |
| Cover of *Midnighter* #1. Art by ACO. | |
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | DC Comics |
| Schedule | Monthly |
| Format | Ongoing series |
| Genre | Superhero |
| Publication date | June 2015 – May 2016 |
| No. of issues | 12 |
| Creative team | |
| Created by | Warren Ellis<br>Bryan Hitch |
| Written by | Steve Orlando |
| Artist(s) | ACO<br>Alec Morgan<br>David Messina<br>Stephen Mooney<br>Hugo Petrus |
| Editor(s) | Chris Conroy<br>Mark Doyle |


title: Midre Cummings

abstract: Midre Almeric Cummings is an American former professional baseball outfielder, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Pittsburgh Pirates (1993-1997), Philadelphia Phillies (1997), Boston Red Sox, Minnesota Twins (1999-2000), Arizona Diamondbacks (2001), Tampa Bay Devil Rays (2004), and Baltimore Orioles (2005). He spent 2006 with the La New Bears of the Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL).

text:
# Midre Cummings

**Midre Almeric Cummings** (born October 14, 1971) is an American former professional baseball outfielder, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Pittsburgh Pirates (1993-1997), Philadelphia Phillies (1997), Boston Red Sox (1998 and 2000), Minnesota Twins (1999-2000), Arizona Diamondbacks (2001), Tampa Bay Devil Rays (2004), and Baltimore Orioles (2005). He spent 2006 with the La New Bears of the Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL).

## Amateur career

Cummings was born and raised in the United States Virgin Islands. Given that there was no high school baseball in the U.S. Virgin Islands, Cummings "played in a lot of open leagues, amateur leagues" sometimes against players as old as 21 when he was only 16. In 1987, he played for the St. Croix team which represented the U.S. Virgin Islands at the 1987 Senior League World Series. Cummings moved to Miami for his senior year of high school so that he could play baseball at Miami Edison Senior High School in the hopes of earning a college baseball scholarship. Cummings had a .400 batting average in his only season of high school baseball. Prior to the 1990 Major League Baseball draft, one talent evaluator said Cummings "could outrun Vince Coleman." Another said he was "the best outfielder to ever play in Dade County."

## Professional career

Cummings was drafted by the Minnesota Twins in the 1st round (29th overall) of the 1990 Major League Baseball Draft. On March 17, 1992, he was traded by the Twins along with Denny Neagle to the Pirates for John Smiley, making his major league debut for the Pirates in 1993. In his fifth season with the Pirates, he was claimed off waivers by the Phillies on July 8. Cummings was released by the Phillies on February 24, 1998, and signed with the Cincinnati Reds three days later only to be claimed off waivers by the Red Sox in spring training. The Red Sox released him on March 30, 1999, and Cummings signed with the Twins on May 14. On August 31, 2000, he was traded to the Red Sox for minor leaguer Hector De Los Santos. Cummings became a free agent after the season and signed with the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Cummings helped the Diamondbacks win the 2001 World Series over the New York Yankees, scoring the tying run in the ninth inning during Game 7. It would be three years before Cummings played in the majors again, spending time in the Milwaukee Brewers and Chicago Cubs minor league systems from 2002-2003. On February 10, 2004, he signed with the Devil Rays and batted .278 in 54 at bats that year. He was released after the season and signed with the Baltimore Orioles, but got only two at bats that year and retired after the season.

Cummings signed with the La New Bears of the Chinese Professional Baseball League for the 2006 season.

## InfoBox

| Midre Cummings | |
| --- | --- |
| **Outfielder** | |
| **Born:**  (1971-10-14) October 14, 1971<br>St. Croix, Virgin Islands | |
| **Batted:** Left**Threw:** Right | |
| MLB debut | |
| September 10, 1993, for the Pittsburgh Pirates | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| August 6, 2005, for the Baltimore Orioles | |
| MLB statistics | |
| Batting average | .257 |
| Home runs | 22 |
| Runs batted in | 124 |
| CPBL statistics | |
| Batting average | .214 |
| Home runs | 1 |
| Runs batted in | 1 |
|  | |
| Teams | |
|  | |
| Career highlights and awards | |
|  | |


title: Microapp

text:
# Microapp

A Micro-app is a super-specialized application designed to perform one task or use case with the only objective of doing it well. They follow the single responsibility principle, which states that "a class should have one and only one reason to change." Micro applications help developers create less complex applications while reducing costs by breaking down monolithic systems into groups of independent services acting as one system. A good example of Microapps would be https://docs.citrix.com/en-us/legacy-archive/downloads/microapps.pdfthat provide single purpose action from Salesforce and over 40 applications on its workspace.

## Requirements and characteristics

Micro apps usually are accessible on any device, display, or operating system

without installation on the viewer's device. To qualify as a micro app, the entity must:

* be built and deployed as an independent software module
* bring together various media types into a single experience
* have advanced security and compliance features
* be functionally-extensible
* comply with granular data demands
* be agnostic
* single use case oriented

Micro apps differentiate from traditional web or mobile applications by how the end-user interacts with them. Consequently, they can be embedded in websites or viewed online to bypass app stores and are typically built to provide a focused experience to the user.

## Usage

Micro apps are typically used for commercial purposes to reduce development costs for projects not requiring the large scope of a traditional web or mobile application. In addition, they are often used to showcase in-depth information or enrich marketing material with interactivity. Lately, micro apps are being used to boost productivity by providing quick tools to people to reuse best practices.

Users have been interacting with micro apps for a while with suites like Office365 and Google Workspace, where each one of their end-user services could be considered as a micro-app. All these micro apps share a unique identity manager to provide a unified user experience.

## Benefits

Replacing monolith systems with micro apps provide several advantages like:

* Reduce complexity for developers and users.
* Smaller, more cohesive, and maintainable codebases
* Scalable organizations with decoupled, autonomous teams
* Allows for hyper-specialization
* Independent deployment
* Multi-stack

## Cloud-native micro apps

Technologies like Kubernetes, or OpenShift, allow companies to replace their monolith and legacy systems with modular software taking advantage of micro apps on reducing costs and improve reliability and security.

## Micro apps vs. Microservices

There is a widespread misunderstanding between these two concepts, which is the key difference. *Microservices* is an architectural style that is systems-centric, meaning it decouples the presentation and data layer using web services APIs. On the other side, micro apps behave more as a super-architecture style (that embraces microservices among other types), and it is user-centric, meaning they decouple the whole monolith system onto modules that are designed to interact with final users.

Both architectural styles rely on modularity to provide high performance, scalability, and resilience.

## Considerations

Developing Micro apps requires a different approach than traditional software, and user experience is crucial. The following considerations are essential for switching to micro-apps.

* To run multiple micro-apps is required a single identity management system.
* Microservices are well suited to make micro-apps more powerful
* Apps with different levels of maturity might create a non-unified user experience.
* Duplication of dependencies can create security issues and inefficiencies.
* Suitable for well-organized teams


title: Midwest Buddhist Temple Taiko

abstract: The Midwest Buddhist Temple Taiko group is a self-taught taiko group based in Chicago, Illinois, at the Midwest Buddhist Temple. The group started in 1977 based upon Buddhistic principals after the model of Kinnara Taiko in Los Angeles. The Midwest Buddhist Temple Taiko group performs for the temple, the Buddhist community, the Japanese American community, other communities, commercial gigs, business conferences, and different ethnic fairs. They do not consider themselves to be primarily a performing group, and they do service projects with the temple such as performing at the Midwest Buddhist Temple Ginza Holiday Festival.

text:
# Midwest Buddhist Temple Taiko

The **Midwest Buddhist Temple Taiko** group is a self-taught taiko group based in Chicago, Illinois, at the Midwest Buddhist Temple (Buddhist Churches of America). The group started in 1977 based upon Buddhistic principals after the model of Kinnara Taiko in Los Angeles. The Midwest Buddhist Temple Taiko group performs for the temple, the Buddhist community, the Japanese American community, other communities, commercial gigs, business conferences, and different ethnic fairs. They do not consider themselves to be primarily a performing group, and they do service projects with the temple such as performing at the Midwest Buddhist Temple Ginza Holiday Festival.

## History

The Midwest Buddhist Temple Taiko group started in 1977 with the help of the Kinnara Taiko based out of the Senshin Buddhist Temple in Los Angeles, California. The Midwest Buddhist Temple Taiko group inherited the Kinnara Taiko Group philosophy for Japanese American Buddhist Taiko. In the 1970s, Reverend Masao Kodani of Kinnara Taiko helped groups such as San Jose Taiko, Ogden (Utah) Taiko, Denver Taiko, Midwest Buddhist Temple Taiko, Orange County Taiko, and several other groups throughout the United States in their early stages of development. Midwest Buddhist Temple Taiko was the first group east of Denver.

## Midwest Buddhist Temple

At the end of World War II, Chicago attracted Japanese American workers with job opportunities. In 1944, Reverend Gyodo Kono started the Midwest Buddhist Temple as Japanese Americans were released from the World War II relocation camps. The Midwest had much less discrimination than areas in the West Coast, and jobs were available. Of about 120,000 Japanese and Japanese-Americans that were interned, about 20,000 were present in Chicago at the end of the war. Japanese immigrants introduced Buddhism to the United States between the late 1890s and 1924. The Midwest Buddhist Temple was originally an ethnic temple, but in the 1970s, it started to expand beyond just the Japanese American community. The temple tried to go beyond being an ethnic temple and increased efforts to spread Buddhism to surrounding communities. Eventually, many immigrants began to move back to the West Coast and to the suburbs as seen in temple demographics, for there was no Japantown or Little Tokyo in Chicago.

## Music and rhythms

In the mid-1970s, Johnny Mori and George Abe of Kinnara Taiko taught members of Midwest Buddhist Temple how to make drums with barrels and car jacks. For performances today, they use any combination of four odaiko (thirty-gallon), six jozuke (fifteen-gallon), four shime-daiko (from Japan, tightened with bolts, not ropes), and a mixture of kane, chappa, binzasara and two conch shells (a Pacific Triton and an East Coast shell), as well as a mixture of old drums used for practice and workshops. Costumes include happi coats with black pants, black t-shirt, hachimaki and tabi.

The group’s form and musicality depend on the piece, but they typically use the Kinnara stance: a 45-degree body and legs equidistant outside of the shoulders with the left knee paramount to the stance and the back leg more straight. They also use the thrust stance that most taiko players use today.

There is no master teacher, and the group describes itself as self-governed. There is usually an elected practice leader, a business manager, a treasurer, and a historian. All members have the opportunity to teach a piece if they have expertise in it, and arrangements are considered a democratic group effort.

Practices include a little opening, exercises, stretching, drilling, and one or two pieces. The group usually practices for two hours each week and holds more practices closer to the Ginza Holiday Festival. Although the group once practiced all year-round, the group usually takes a break from Thanksgiving to early January to feel refreshed for the new year.

The Midwest Buddhist Temple taiko group performs at commercial events, business conferences, bars, nightclubs, and different ethnic fairs. The group has traveled as far as Philadelphia to the east and Minneapolis and St. Louis to the west. The Chicago-based taiko group has its own venue to use as practice space and equipment storage, and the temple has contributed greatly to the group’s longevity.

## Affiliations

In 1979, an event called Horaku invited all taiko players in the United States and brought together all of the Buddhist Taiko Groups during that time. This event was considered to be the first taiko conference, and both Bugaku and Gagaku performances were involved.

In the early 1980s, the Midwest Buddhist Temple Taiko group helped start the Ho Daiko Group group at the Seabrook Buddhist Temple, the Soh Daiko Group at the New York Buddhist Church, and the Twin-Cities Taiko Group which changed their name to the Kogen Taiko Group, a part of the Twin-Cities Buddhist Association in Minnesota.

## Ginza Holiday Festival

The Midwest Buddhist Temple Ginza Holiday Festival is a summertime festival that features classical dance, martial arts, folk dance, and taiko. Three taiko groups are the main attraction at the Ginza Festival, and the Festival is considered the primary cultural event for Midwest Buddhist Temple. The Midwest Buddhist Temple taiko group has been performing in the Ginza festival since the mid-1980s with one exception when Kinnara performed in place of Midwest. The Midwest Buddhist Temple taiko group is self-sustaining and uses admission revenue from the festival to support the organization

## Membership

The Midwest Buddhist Temple Taiko group do not consider themselves to be a professional or semi-professional group. The group currently consists of fourteen adults between the ages of twenty and sixty. For the most part, only temple members are members of the taiko group; however, non-temple members and non-Japanese people may also play in the group. There is no audition process, and current members usually refer potential new members to the organization. New members attend practices during a one-year probation period. The group has also taken in members as young as the ages of thirteen and fourteen if they were siblings of existing players.

## Musical works

The Midwest Buddhist Temple Taiko group composes their own original music as well as plays pieces from the taiko community. They have close relationships with other groups and willingly share pieces. No published compacts discs or digital video discs exist to date.