title: Paul Kurtz

abstract: Paul Kurtz was an American scientific skeptic and secular humanist. He has been called "the father of secular humanism". He was Professor Emeritus of Philosophy at the State University of New York at Buffalo, having previously also taught at Vassar, Trinity, and Union colleges, and the New School for Social Research. Kurtz founded the publishing house Prometheus Books in 1969. He was also the founder and past chairman of the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry, the Council for Secular Humanism, and the Center for Inquiry. He was editor in chief of Free Inquiry magazine, a publication of the Council for Secular Humanism. He was co-chair of the International Humanist and Ethical Union (IHEU) from 1986 to 1994. He was a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, Humanist Laureate, president of the International Academy of Humanism and Honorary Associate of Rationalist International. As a member of the American Humanist Association, he contributed to the writing of Humanist Manifesto II. He was an editor of The Humanist, 1967–78. Kurtz published over 800 articles or reviews and authored and edited over 50 books. Many of his books have been translated into over 60 languages.

text:
# Paul Kurtz

**Paul Kurtz** (December 21, 1925 – October 20, 2012) was an American scientific skeptic and secular humanist. He has been called "the father of secular humanism". He was Professor Emeritus of Philosophy at the State University of New York at Buffalo, having previously also taught at Vassar, Trinity, and Union colleges, and the New School for Social Research.

Kurtz founded the publishing house Prometheus Books in 1969. He was also the founder and past chairman of the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry (CSI, formerly the *Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal*, CSICOP), the Council for Secular Humanism, and the Center for Inquiry. He was editor in chief of *Free Inquiry* magazine, a publication of the Council for Secular Humanism.

He was co-chair of the International Humanist and Ethical Union (IHEU) from 1986 to 1994. He was a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, Humanist Laureate, president of the International Academy of Humanism and Honorary Associate of Rationalist International. As a member of the American Humanist Association, he contributed to the writing of *Humanist Manifesto II*. He was an editor of *The Humanist*, 1967–78.

Kurtz published over 800 articles or reviews and authored and edited over 50 books. Many of his books have been translated into over 60 languages.

## Early life and education

Kurtz was born in Newark, New Jersey, into a secular Jewish family, the son of Sara Lasser and Martin Kurtz. Kurtz received his bachelor's degree from New York University, and then a master's degree and Doctor of Philosophy degree from Columbia University. Kurtz was left-wing in his youth, but has said that serving in the United States Army in World War II taught him the dangers of ideology. He saw the Buchenwald and Dachau concentration camps after they were liberated, and became disillusioned with Communism when he encountered Russian slave laborers who had been taken to Nazi Germany by force but refused to return to the Soviet Union at the end of the war. He was a professor at Trinity College (Connecticut) which was an Episcopal college.

## Secular humanism

Kurtz was largely responsible for the secularization of humanism. Before Kurtz embraced the term "secular humanism," which had received wide publicity through fundamentalist Christians in the 1980s, humanism was more widely perceived as a religion (or a pseudoreligion) that did not include the supernatural. This can be seen in the first article of the original *Humanist Manifesto* which refers to "Religious Humanists" and by Charles and Clara Potter's influential 1930 book *Humanism: A New Religion*.

Kurtz used the publicity generated by fundamentalist preachers to grow the membership of the Council for Secular Humanism, as well as strip the religious aspects found in the earlier humanist movement. He founded the Center for Inquiry in 1991. There are now some 40 Centers and Communities worldwide, including in Los Angeles, Washington, New York City, London, Amsterdam, Warsaw, Moscow, Beijing, Hyderabad, Toronto, Dakar, Buenos Aires and Kathmandu.

In 1999, Kurtz was given the International Humanist Award by the International Humanist and Ethical Union (IHEU). He had been a board member of IHEU between 1969 and 1994, and in a tribute by former colleague at both IHEU and the Council for Secular Humanism Matt Cherry, Kurtz was described as having "had a strong commitment to international humanism — a commitment to humanism beyond US borders never seen matched by another American. He did a lot to expand IHEU as a member of the IHEU Growth and Development Committee (with Levi Fragell and Rob Tielman) and then when he was co-chair, also with Rob and Levi. He always pushed IHEU to be bigger and bolder."

In 2000, he received the International Rationalist Award by Rationalist International. In 2001, he debated Christian philosopher William Lane Craig over the nature of morality.

Kurtz believed that the nonreligious members of the community should take a positive view on life. Religious skepticism, according to Paul Kurtz, is only one aspect of the secular humanistic outlook. In an interview with D.J. Grothe, he stated that a categorical imperative of secular humanism is "genuine concern for the well-being of other humans."

At the Council of Secular Humanism's Los Angeles conference (October 7–10, 2010), tension over the future of humanism was on display as Kurtz urged a more accommodationist approach to religion while his successors argued for a more adversarial approach.

On May 18, 2010, he resigned from all these positions. Moreover, the Center for Inquiry accepted his resignation as chairman emeritus, board member, and as editor in chief of *Free Inquiry* as being the culmination of a years-long "leadership transition", thanking him "for his decades of service" while also alluding to "concerns about Dr. Kurtz's day-to-day management of the organization". Kurtz renewed his efforts in organized humanism by founding The Institute for Science and Human Values and its journal *The Human Prospect: A NeoHumanist Perspective* in June 2010.

## Critique of the paranormal

Another aspect in Kurtz's legacy is his critique of the paranormal. In 1976, CSICOP started *Skeptical Inquirer*, its official journal. Like Martin Gardner, Carl Sagan, Isaac Asimov, James Randi, Ray Hyman and others, Kurtz has popularized scientific skepticism and critical thinking about claims of the paranormal.

Concerning the founding of the modern skeptical movement, Ray Hyman states that in 1972, he, along with James Randi and Martin Gardner, wanted to form a skeptical group, SIR (Sanity In Research). The three of them felt they had no administration experience, saying "we just had good ideas", and were soon joined by Marcello Truzzi who provided structure for the group. Truzzi involved Paul Kurtz, and they together formed CSICOP in 1976.

Kurtz wrote:

> \[An\] explanation for the persistence of the paranormal, I submit, is due to the transcendental temptation. In my book by that name, I present the thesis that paranormal and religious phenomena have similar functions in human experience; they are expressions of a tendency to accept magical thinking. This temptation has such profound roots within human experience and culture that it constantly reasserts itself.

In *The Transcendental Temptation*, Kurtz analyzes how provable are the claims of Jesus, Moses, and Muhammad, as well as the founders of religions on American soil such as Joseph Smith and Ellen White. He also evaluates the activities of the most famous modern psychics and what he believes are the fruitless researches of parapsychologists. *The Transcendental Temptation* is considered among Kurtz's most influential writings.

He promoted what he called "Skepticism of the Third Kind," in which skeptics actively investigate claims of the paranormal, rather than just question them. He saw this type of skepticism as distinct from the "first kind" of extreme philosophical skepticism, which questions the possibility that anything can be known, as well as the "second kind" of skepticism, which accepts that knowledge of the real world is possible but is still largely a philosophical exercise.

On April 19, 2007, Kurtz appeared on Penn & Teller's television show *Bullshit!* arguing that exorcism and satanic cults are merely "hype and paranoia".

### Eupraxsophy

Kurtz coined the term eupraxsophy (originally *eupraxophy*) to refer to philosophies or life stances such as secular humanism, Confucianism and Taoism that do not rely on belief in the transcendent or supernatural. A *eupraxsophy* is a nonreligious life stance or worldview emphasizing the importance of living an ethical and exuberant life, and relying on rational methods such as logic, observation and science (rather than faith, mysticism or revelation) toward that end. The word is based on the Greek words for "good", "practice", and "wisdom". Eupraxsophies, like religions, are cosmic in their outlook but eschew the supernatural component of religion, avoiding the "transcendental temptation," as Kurtz puts it. Although critical of supernatural religion, he has attempted to develop affirmative ethical values of naturalistic humanism.

### The Paul Kurtz Lecture Series

In June 2010, the State University of New York at Buffalo announced the establishment of the Paul Kurtz Lecture Series. The series will bring notable speakers to the university's campus in Amherst, New York, to speak on topics relevant to the philosophy of humanism and philosophical naturalism. Kurtz had made the bequest and charitable gift annuity to the university, where he taught from 1965 to 1991, to help promote the development of critical intelligence in future generations of SUNY at Buffalo students. On November 5, 2010, the university announced that cognitive scientist Steven Pinker would inaugurate the new Paul Kurtz Lecture Series on December 2, 2010.

### Paul Kurtz Institute for Science and Human Values

Paul Kurtz conceived of the *Institute for Science and Human Values* in 2009 as yet another branch of the umbrella group, the Center for Inquiry. Upon his resignation from the Center for Inquiry he launched the Institute for Science and Human Values as a separate entity. In ISHV's first press release Kurtz said ISHV hoped to "rehumanize secularism" and "find out how to better develop the common moral virtues that we share as human beings." Kurtz was editor-in-chief of ISHV's journal, *The Human Prospect: A NeoHumanist Perspective*.

In 2019, the institute's board of directors renamed the organization as the Paul Kurtz Institute for Science and Human Values.

## Honors

The asteroid 6629 Kurtz was named in his honor.

At a meeting of the executive council of CSI in Denver, Colorado in April 2011, Kurtz was selected for inclusion in CSI's Pantheon of Skeptics. The Pantheon of Skeptics was created by CSI to remember the legacy of deceased fellows of CSI and their contributions to the cause of scientific skepticism.

## Bibliography

* *The Humanist Alternative* (Paul Kurtz, editor), 1973, Prometheus Books, ISBN 0-87975-013-8
* *Exuberance: An Affirmative Philosophy of Life* 1978, Prometheus Books, ISBN 0-87975-293-9
* *A Secular Humanist Declaration* 1980, ISBN 0-87975-149-5
* *Sidney Hook: Philosopher of Democracy and Humanism* 1983, ISBN 0-87975-191-6
* *In Defense of Secular Humanism* 1983, Prometheus Books, ISBN 0-87975-228-9
* *The Transcendental Temptation: A Critique of Religion and the Paranormal*, 1986 ISBN 0-87975-645-4
* *A Skeptic's Handbook of Parapsychology* (Paul Kurtz, editor), 1985, Prometheus Books, ISBN 0-87975-300-5
* *Forbidden Fruit: The Ethics of Humanism*, 1988, Prometheus Books, ISBN 0-87975-455-9
* *The New Skepticism: Inquiry and Reliable Knowledge*, 1992, Prometheus Books, ISBN 0-87975-766-3
* *Challenges to the Enlightenment: In Defense of Reason and Science* by Paul Kurtz, *et al.*, 1994 ISBN 0-87975-869-4
* *Living Without Religion: Eupraxophy*, 1994, Prometheus Books, ISBN 0-87975-929-1
* *Toward a New Enlightenment: The Philosophy of Paul Kurtz* (Tim Madigan, editor; Vern Bullough, *Introduction*), 1994, Transaction, ISBN 1-56000-118-6
* *The Courage to Become*, 1997, Praeger/Greenwood, ISBN 0-275-96016-1
* *Embracing the Power of Humanism*, 2000, Rowman & Littlefield, ISBN 0-8476-9966-8
* *Humanist Manifesto 2000*, 2000, ISBN 1-57392-783-X
* *Skepticism and Humanism: The New Paradigm*, 2001 ISBN 0-7658-0051-9
* *Science and Religion* by Paul Kurtz, *et al.*, 2003 ISBN 1-59102-064-6
* *Affirmations: Joyful And Creative Exuberance*, 2004 ISBN 1-59102-265-7
* *What Is Secular Humanism?*, 2006 ISBN 1-59102-499-4
* *The Turbulent Universe*, 2013, Prometheus Books, ISBN 978-1-61614-735-8

* Madigan, Timothy J. (ed.). *Promethean love: Paul Kurtz and the humanistic perspective on love*. Newcastle, UK: Cambridge Scholars Press, 2006. xii, 327 p.

## InfoBox

| Paul Kurtz | |
| --- | --- |
| Kurtz in 1979 | |
| Born | Paul Winter Kurtz
(1925-12-21)December 21, 1925
Newark, New Jersey, U.S. |
| Died | October 20, 2012(2012-10-20) (aged 86)
Amherst, New York, U.S. |
| Alma mater | New York University (BA)
Columbia University (MA, PhD) |
|  | |
| Era | 20th-century philosophy |
| School | Scientific skepticism, secular humanism |
| Main interests | Philosophy of religion, Secularism, philosophical naturalism |
|  | |


title: Paul F. Thomas

abstract: Paul F. Thomas is a retired United States Coast Guard vice admiral who last served as Deputy Commandant for Mission Support from 2021 to 2024. He previously served as Deputy for Personnel Readiness to the Deputy Commandant for Mission Support from 2019 to 2021, with tours as commander of the Eighth Coast Guard District from 2017 to 2019 and commander of Coast Guard Sector Jacksonville from 2006 to 2009. Thomas graduated from the United States Coast Guard Academy in 1985 with a B.S. degree in naval architecture and marine engineering. He later earned separate M.S. degrees in naval architecture and marine engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

text:
# Paul F. Thomas

**Paul F. Thomas** (born November 21, 1963) is a retired United States Coast Guard vice admiral who last served as Deputy Commandant for Mission Support from 2021 to 2024. He previously served as Deputy for Personnel Readiness to the Deputy Commandant for Mission Support from 2019 to 2021, with tours as commander of the Eighth Coast Guard District from 2017 to 2019 and commander of Coast Guard Sector Jacksonville from 2006 to 2009.

Thomas graduated from the United States Coast Guard Academy in 1985 with a B.S. degree in naval architecture and marine engineering. He later earned separate M.S. degrees in naval architecture and marine engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

## InfoBox

| Paul F. Thomas | |
| --- | --- |
|  | |
| Born | (1963-11-21) November 21, 1963
Schenectady, New York |
| Allegiance | United States |
| Branch | United States Coast Guard |
| Years of service | 1985–2024 |
| Rank | Vice Admiral |
| Commands | Eighth Coast Guard District
Coast Guard Sector Jacksonville |
| Awards | Coast Guard Distinguished Service Medal
Legion of Merit |
| Alma mater | United States Coast Guard Academy (BS)
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MS) |
| Spouse(s) | Mary A. Thomas |
| Children | 1 |


title: Paul F. Whelan

abstract: Paul F. Whelan is Professor of Computer Vision at the Centre for Image Processing & Analysis, School of Electronic Engineering, Faculty of Engineering & Computing Dublin City University.

text:
# Paul F. Whelan

**Paul F. Whelan** is Professor of Computer Vision at the Centre for Image Processing & Analysis, School of Electronic Engineering, Faculty of Engineering & Computing Dublin City University.

## Education and career

Whelan earned his Bachelor of Engineering with First Class Honours from the National Institute for Higher Education before enrolling in the University of Limerick for his Master of Engineering degree. After receiving his PhD in Computing Mathematics/Computer Vision from Cardiff University, Whelan joined the Industrial and Scientific Imaging Ltd to research and develop an industrial vision system.

## Selected publications

* *Machine Vision Algorithms in Java: Techniques and Implementation*, Springer (reprinted Aug. 2001), 2000.
* *Intelligent Vision Systems for Industry*, Springer-Verlag, 1997.

Paul F. Whelan publications indexed by Google Scholar

## InfoBox

| Paul F. Whelan | |
| --- | --- |
| Awards | Dublin City University Presidents Research Award in 2011 |
|  | |
| Academic background | |
| Education | B.Eng., National Institute for Higher Education (Dublin City University)
M.Eng, University of Limerick
PhD., Cardiff University |
| Academic work | |
| Institutions | Dublin City University |
|  | |
| Website | cipa.dcu.ie |


title: Flag of Rhineland-Palatinate

abstract: The flag of Rhineland-Palatinate, also known as Rhineland-Pfalz, is a tricolor of three horizontal bands of black, red and gold. These colors are Germany's national colors and are sometimes referred to as schwarz-rot-gold. In the canton, or the upper left corner, is the coat of arms of the state of Rhineland-Palatinate.

text:
# Flag of Rhineland-Palatinate

The **flag of Rhineland-Palatinate**, also known as Rhineland-Pfalz, is a tricolor of three horizontal bands of black, red and gold. These colors are Germany's national colors and are sometimes referred to as schwarz-rot-gold. In the canton, or the upper left corner, is the coat of arms of the state of Rhineland-Palatinate.

## InfoBox

Rhineland-Palatinate
|
|  |
|  | |
| Civil and State flag (Landes- und Landesdienstflagge) | |
| Use | Civil and state flag |
| Proportion | 2:3 |
| Adopted | 10 May 1948 |
|  | |


title: Flora of Cantabria

abstract: The flora of Cantabria is the result of three determining factors: the climate, the composition of the soil, directly dependent on the types of existing rocks, and the evolutionary history of the different plant formations. From the point of view of its flora, Cantabria is located between two biogeographic realms. Most of the territory belongs to the Eurosiberian region, but the southern end is part of the Mediterranean region. This border situation has a direct effect on the characteristics of the plant landscape of the region, where Mediterranean and Atlantic species intermingle, enriching the botanical composition of the different existing ecosystems.

text:
# Flora of Cantabria

The **flora of Cantabria** is the result of three determining factors: the climate, the composition of the soil, directly dependent on the types of existing rocks, and the evolutionary history of the different plant formations.

From the point of view of its flora, Cantabria is located between two biogeographic realms. Most of the territory belongs to the Eurosiberian region, but the southern end is part of the Mediterranean region. This border situation has a direct effect on the characteristics of the plant landscape of the region, where Mediterranean and Atlantic species intermingle, enriching the botanical composition of the different existing ecosystems.

## Origin of current vegetation

The vegetation of Cantabria is adapted to two types of substrate. On the one hand, there are limestone rocks, as in Peña Cabarga or Picos de Europa, with little soil development and a large amount of outcropping rocks, which have a very characteristic flora, adapted to these types of soils, called calcareous flora, very similar throughout the region, but especially abundant in the eastern sector, where this type of substrates predominate. On the other hand, there are acidic rocks (sandstones, clays, siltstones...), which supply few nutrients to the soil. This type of material harbors an acidophilic flora very characteristic of the high mountains of the Cantabrian Mountains, and in general, dominant in the region.

The other determining factor of the composition of the current vegetation landscape is the evolutionary history of the different floristic communities present today. This evolution is due both to biogeographical causes and to the influence exerted by man over the centuries. The Quaternary glaciations, together with the interglacial periods marked the evolution of the different phases of the flora of the region, which went through very cold periods, with tundra-type vegetation, with warmer periods, in which temperate deciduous hardwood forests spread throughout the territory. It is usually considered three thousand years before the present, as the approximate date when the vegetation acquired similar characteristics to the present, that is, dominated by deciduous hardwood forests, accompanied by Mediterranean forest formations, with evergreen species, covering the territory from sea level to 1700 - 1900 meters, considered the ceiling of the wooded vegetation in Cantabria. Of this potential vegetation, only a small unaltered part survives today in the most inaccessible parts of the region. In the rest of the territory, human action has caused the degeneration of the forest and the appearance of substitution stages, made up of heaths and scrublands, and finally of pastures and meadows, the basis for livestock feeding.

The most appropriate way to describe the vegetation landscape is to refer to its bioclimatic floors, which are distributed in a staggered manner with respect to the altitude. Four bioclimatic floors or horizons can be differentiated in Cantabria: the hilly, the montane, the subalpine and the alpine, the latter restricted to the summits of the Picos de Europa.

## Colline zone

The **colline level**, which is distributed approximately from sea level to 500 - 600 meters above sea level, has a vegetation landscape dominated by the presence of mowing meadows, the basis of dairy cattle feeding, which have been implanted by man, replacing the old temperate deciduous forests that covered the entire territory. This area has been the most transformed by human development, as it is here that the majority of the population and a large part of the infrastructures and intensive exploitations are located, so its ecosystems show a significant degree of alteration.

The vegetation communities of these coastal territories include those typical of the littoral (**beaches** and **dunes, cliffs,** and **marshes**), **hay meadows, mixed deciduous forests, holm oak groves, riverside forests** and **eucalyptus** plantations.

### Dunes

Coastal dunes are one of the most endangered ecosystems in Cantabria. Its species, all herbaceous, are exclusive to these ecosystems, so their disappearance would mean the irreversible loss of highly specialized plants.

In the area closest to the sea, where the grains of sand deposited by the tide are intercepted, slightly above the average high tide, the first band of pioneer dune vegetation begins to settle, represented in Cantabria mainly by the northern couch grass (*Elymus farctus*), generally accompanied by the prickly saltwort (*Salsola kali*), the searockets (*Cakile maritima*) and the arenaria (*Honkenya pelopides*).

Where there is no marine influence, the sand dunes rise and form strands in the inner part of the large beaches of Cantabria. A certain stabilization of the dune occurs in this growth zone as a result of the settlement of vegetation that reduces its mobility, especially the beachgrass (*Ammophila arenaria*), which due to its wingspan and intricate root system, is the main fixative plant in this environment. Other characteristic species of this area are the sea holly *(Eryngium maritimun)*, the carex (*Carex arenaria*) or the sea spurge (*Euphorbia paralias*).

Further inland, in the more sheltered areas of the beach, the sandy substrate is fixed in extensive plains covered by less specialized vegetation, in which sandy species are mixed with other opportunistic ones. The meadows of *Festuca rubra*, *Lolium perenne*, *Lagurus ovatus*, *Phlenum arenarium* and *Briza maxima* are typical. There are also other species such as *Medicago marina* and *M. littoralis*, *Linaria maritima*, *Dianthus monspessulanus* and *Otanthus maritimus*.

Cantabria is home to the largest dune field in the Cantabrian Sea, the Liencres Dunes, declared a natural park by Decree 101/1986 of December 9, 1986, the main natural element that determined the creation of the Park being the dune system located on the right bank of the mouth of the Pas river. The park is a true ecological jewel, due to the enormous development of its dunes and its acceptable degree of conservation, which is threatened by the urban development projects currently existing in its surroundings, which far exceed the carrying capacity of this valuable ecosystem. It was also included in the National Inventory of Points of Geological Interest of the Geological and Mining Institute of Spain (IGME).

### Coastal flora

The cliff coasts of Cantabria, of vertical development and variable height, are home to communities, adapted, as in the case of the dunes, to the proximity to the sea. These communities develop on two types of substrates, the hard limestones, dominant on the surface in the region, and the marl and sandstones, which are more brittle, with more developed soils.

The first vegetation belt, the one closest to the sea, is characterized by the presence of herbaceous species growing in the fissures of the rocks, such as sea fennel (*Crithmum maritimum*) or sea plantain (*Plantago maritima*) and in more protected fissures the spleenworts (*Asplenium marinum*).

Moving towards the edges of the cliff, the vegetation becomes more abundant, in addition to the aforementioned species, including the armenia maritima (*Armenia maritima* and *A. pubigera* *ssp. depillata*) and sea lavender (*Limonium lanceolatum*), to the east of the estuary of San Martín de la Arena, in Suances. The areas where it is not possible for upper vegetation to take root, are colonized by lichens, such as *Xantoria parietina* or *Verrucaria maura*.

The emergence of more spread out areas where vegetation settles more easily makes possible the appearance of new species such as the wild carrot (*Daucus carota ssp. gummifer*), the Portuguese angelica (*Angelica pachycarpa*) or the sweet alyssum (*Lobularia maritima*), accompanied by small meadows of grasses dominated by the red fescue (*Festuca rubra*).

Finally, in elevated areas, quite far from the sea, there are thickets of Cornish heath (*Erica vagans*), genista (*Genista occidentalis*) and gorse (*Ulex europaeus*).

### Estuaries and marshes

The marshes constitute one of the habitats of greatest scientific interest, since they possess the highest biodiversity of all the existing ecosystems in Cantabria. In Cantabria, the marsh communities are well developed in the Santoña, Victoria and Joyel Marshes Natural Park in the Rabia estuary, in the two Tinas (Tinamayor and Tinamenor), and as in the case of the dunes, their conservation is threatened by the urban development pressure in their surroundings.

These communities form a complex of floristic associations with a very diverse distribution, atomized and variable in space, responding mainly to the degree of salinity of the environment.

The marshes of Cantabria have, in the areas most flooded by sea water, meadows of *Zostera marina* and *Zostera noltii*, both species in danger of extinction on the European Atlantic coast. Near the lower tidal level, cordgrass (*Spartina spp.*) appears, followed by salicornia (*Salicornia spp.*) or limonium (*Limonium vulgare*). Finally, in the areas farther from the sea, with less influence of salt water (river mouths, banks of canals, ponds...), there are rushes and reed beds of *Juncus spp.*, common reed (*Phragmites australis*) and *Scirpus spp.*

### Hay meadows

Beyond the strictly coastal area, the vegetation landscape is characterized by the dominance of intensively managed mowing meadows, in which forage gramineae such as *Lolium perenne*, *Holcus lanatus*, *Anthoxanthum odoratum*, etc. appear, intermingled with leguminous plants such as clovers (*Trifolium pratense*, *Trifolium repens*...). These meadows are the plant formation that occupy the largest area in the region, distributed in large spaces with very few trees on their margins and with hardly any hedges separating the farms.

### Mixed deciduous forests

Distributed in valleys and enclaves that are difficult to manage due to their excessive slope, there are few remains of the type of forest characteristic of this colline level, the mixed forest (deciduous multispecific). They are composed of a mixture of different species, among which the common oak (*Quercus robur*) dominates, accompanied by ash (*Fraxinus excelsior*), maple (*Acer pseudoplatanus*), birch (*Betula celtiberica*), linden (*Tilia spp.* ), chestnut (*Castanea sativa*) and a large number of tall shrubs such as the common hazel (*Corylus avellana*), the *alder buckthorn* (*Rhamnus frangula*), dogwood (*Cornus sanguinea*) or laurel (*Laurus nobilis*), interspersed with lianas and epiphytes, thickets and herbaceous plants. These forests, with a great floristic diversity in their undergrowth, used to occupy the best soils of the territory, so they have been massively displaced from their natural habitat to plant crops, constituting the most transformed forest mass and therefore the one of most interest for its restoration.

### Holm oak forests

Within the colline level of the region, on the rocky limestone beds, and in general on carbonate rocks, a plant formation of major interest is developed, called Cantabrian holm oak forest. This type of forest is made up of Mediterranean species, among which the holm oak (*Quercus ilex*) dominates, accompanied by laurel (*Laurus nobilis*), strawberry tree (*Arbutus unedo*), buckthorns (*Rhamnus alaternus*), etc., all of them evergreen, intermingled with Atlantic species such as hazel (*Corylus avellana*), or hawthorn (*Crataegus monogyna*). These holm oak forests, located outside their climatic optimum, need a substrate of a certain degree of aridity, so they take refuge in the limestone rocks due to their high permeability. The best holm oak forests are located in the Asón valley and in the Aras valley. In the coastal fringe, the holm oak forest of Monte Buciero in Santoña stands out especially. Due to its extension, its location and its contact with the cliff formations, it is undoubtedly the holm oak forest of greatest scientific interest in the north of the peninsula.

At the bottom of valleys of marked summer drought, such as those of Liébana, where the climatic characteristics are more Mediterranean, the holm oak (*Quercus ilex ssp. rotundifolia*) appears, typical of areas of low rainfall and that do not present a marked dependence on limestone rocks. The kermes oak groves appear in Valderredible, around Villaescusa de Ebro, and especially in Liébana. The four valleys of Liébana have kermes oak groves that end up being the dominant vegetation at their confluence in Potes. Particularly noteworthy are those of Maredes and Valmeo, in the Cereceda Valley (Vega de Liébana) and those of Aniezo in Valdeprado (Pesaguero).

### Riverside forests

The riparian forests in Cantabria are formed mainly by alnus (*Alnus glutinosa*). The **alnus groves** are practically the only riverside forests in Cantabria, at least in the lower areas. In the higher areas where the alder cannot survive, there are other forest communities associated with the river courses.

In the alder groves there are also a considerable number of trees and shrubs with a rich herbaceous substrate. The main element is the alder, together with elm (*Ulmus glabra)* and ash (*Fraxinus excelsior*). Other frequent trees are willows (*Salix spp*.). Beeches and oaks are also occasionally found.

The shrub substrate is dominated by small willows (*Salix spp.* or *salgueras*) of which in Cantabria we have a large number of species, including *S. atrocinerea*, *S. cantabrica* and *S. purpurea*. Other common shrubs are the dogwood (*Cornus sanguinea*) or the spindle (*Euonymus europaeus*) that together with various brambles (*Rubus sp.)* and lianas (*Hedera helix, Rubia peregrina*) contribute to characterize these forest formations.

In the herbaceous stratum, *Carex remota*, *C. pendula* or *Bromus ramosus* stand out together with widely distributed plants such as nettle (*Urtica dioica*), which are favored by the detritus provided by the floods in these areas.

In Cantabria the alder groves are concentrated in the middle and lower areas of the rivers of the Cantabrian slope and in the Ebro. However, the Camesa, which flows into the Duero basin, lacks this riparian formation, probably due to the altitude of the areas through its course. When the valleys are very steep, the surface that can occupy the riparian forest is reduced, even disappearing and being replaced by mixed oak groves, as happens in the middle stretch of the Miera in Mortesante or in the Nansa, in the town of Rozadío in Rionansa.

Another formation associated with riverbanks are the willows or shrubby salcedas, a pioneer formation that is installed as a barrier between the riverbed and the alder groves. They also play a role as replacement vegetation when the alder grove is destroyed, as well as constituting the dominant vegetation of the riverbanks in those mountain areas that lack alder groves due to altitude, generally above 1000 meters. In these areas, the dominant vegetation consists of several species of the genus *Salix*, (different types of willows), depending on the environmental and geographical conditions. *S. cantabrica* and *S. atrocinerea* dominate the willow groves of the southwestern part of the region, which prefer streams that maintain a constant minimum level that is not excessively torrential. Where the torrential level is more pronounced, the willows are dominated by *S. elaeagnos ssp.* *angustifolia*. In some areas of the lower course of our rivers there are groups of *Salix alba*, especially in the lower course of the Deva in Molleda (Val de San Vicente). These formations with a tree stratum dominated by this willow are located on very sandy soils.

### Eucalyptus

In these low levels of the region, between sea level and 300 meters of altitude, the native vegetation has been destroyed in many areas to artificially implant the other dominant formation in the vegetation landscape of the coast of Cantabria, the eucalyptus. These monospecific masses of the exotic Australian species *Eucalyptus globulus* have been planted for their use in the production of paper pulp. The plantations existing in Cantabria - in no case repopulations, since it is an exotic tree - constitute the largest extensions of this species in the European continent and in many occasions they have been planted at the cost of previously destroying the real autochthonous Cantabrian forests. The area devastated by the plantation of this timber species exceeded all admissible thresholds a long time ago, especially considering the disastrous influence it has on soils and aquifers, and on the homogenization and loss of biodiversity, especially noticeable in some areas such as Guriezo. Eucalyptus plantations are industrial crops, authentic plantations of stakes, and, therefore, in no case should they be called forests, since they have nothing to do with them.

The eucalyptus plantations of Cantabria have a wide variety of regenerated native species according to the data collected by the Cantabria Forest Damage Network, which is prepared by the General Directorate of Forestry together with the company Tragsatec. This network evaluates, among other parameters, the regeneration of species in the undergrowth, finding among the existing scrub and depending on the area, regenerated *Quercus robur, Frangula alnus, Arbutus unedo, Quercus ilex* and sometimes even *Fagus sylvatica*, but the main problem of this type of crops is that its plantation framework and its utilization system, as well as the lack of silvicultural treatments in all its growth stages, along with the burns with which the remains of its cutting are disposed of in most cases, cause this regeneration not to thrive. On the other hand, given that these studies on the regeneration of native species are carried out by the General Directorate of Forestry and Tragsatec, which are interested parties in the pulp business, their credibility is null and void.

## Montane level

The montane level in Cantabria is distributed, although in a variable way, between 500 and 1600 meters of altitude. At this level, the most thermophilic species disappear due to the effect of frost and the forests are more homogeneous and with less floristic diversity.

The vegetal landscape of the montane floor differs notably from that of the colline, as it enters more abrupt zones, where the hay meadows are notably reduced and the scrub becomes dominant on the surface, regressive vegetation of the ancient forests that used to cover the slopes in the past. These forests remain in the form of isolated patches, generally at the head of valleys and on steep slopes, not very accessible to human activity, in contact with the rocks and high pastures, already at the upper limit of the montane level.

The plant communities of this level include the **different types of** **oak forests**, **beech forests**, **birch forests**, **cork oak forests** and **heath forests** originated as a consequence of the degradation of any of the previous communities.

### Oak forests of *Quercus robur*

The oak grove of *Quercus robur*, (common oak) develops in Cantabria up to 1000 meters of altitude. In these formations there are also ash trees (*Fraxinus excelsior*), lime trees (*Tilia spp*.) or chestnut trees (*Castanea sativa*) and a large number of shrubs such as holly (*Ilex aquifolium*), blackthorn (*Prunus spinosa*) or hazel (*Corylus avellana*). In the understory, various species of ferns (*Dryopteris spp., Polystichum setiferum*) and numerous herbaceous species such as hellebore (*Helleborus viridis*) or dog's mercury (*Mercurialis perennis*) are common.

This type of forest has suffered a strong regression as a result of its exploitation for shipbuilding during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, and for its use as fuel in forges and in the Royal Artillery Factory of La Cavada, so its sparse and fragmented distribution may endanger the persistence and recovery of this species, symbolic par excellence for the pre-Roman peoples of the northern Iberian Peninsula. The last surviving oak forests in Cantabria are located in the mountain range that separates the Saja and Besaya valleys, such as those of Rucieza and Guzaporos in Cieza, Montequemau and Rodil in Iguña, Monte Aá in Ruente or Viaña in Cabuérniga.

### Sessile oak forests (*Quercus petraea*)

The sessile oak grove (*Quercus petraea*) replaces the ones found in the higher elevations, in more inland territories and isolated from the sea, of continental character, although sometimes hybridized with the previous ones and extending up to 1700 meters of altitude approximately, preferably on slopes with sunny exposure. Accompanying the dominant species, there are also beech (*Fagus sylvatica*) and rowan (*Sorbus aucuparia*). The shrub layer of these environments is mainly composed of heather (*Erica arborea*) and broom (*Cytisus cantabricus*), interspersed with holly (*Ilex aquifolium*) and hazel (*Corylus avellana*). The herbaceous substrate is similar to that of the common oak groves, with wood sorrel (*Oxalis acetosella*) or martagon (*Lilium martagon*) also appearing.

The distribution of this type of forest in Cantabria includes the interior valleys of the south and west of the region, from Liébana and Polaciones to Campoo, the upper basin of the Saja and Valderredible, where the best preserved example is found on Mount Hijedo.

### Pyrenean oak forests *(Quercus pyrenaica)*

The Pyrenean oak groves (Quercus pyrenaica) are common on the northern slopes of the Cantabrian Mountains, especially in the drier areas of the valleys where the beech or oak groves cannot develop due to their high water dependence, distributed from 700 to 1400 meters of altitude. Other tree species accompanying them are ash (*Fraxinus excelsior*) or maple (*Acer campestre*), while the shrub substrate is mainly composed of blackthorn (*Prunus spinosa*), holly (*Ilex aquifolium*) and broom (*Cytisus cantabricus*). In the herbaceous stratum, species such as *Melampyrum pratense* or *Chamaespartium tridentatus* are prominent.

Although small stands of this forest appear throughout the region, the best examples are located on the slopes of Peña Sagra, especially those of Valderrodíes, in Aniezo and Bárago.

### Portuguese oak forests *(Quercus faginea)*

The oak groves of gall oak or Portuguese oaks (*Quercus faginea*) are typically Mediterranean forests and very rare in the Cantabrian Mountains. In Cantabria, there are only a few isolated forests in places with particular mesoclimatic conditions, as is the case of the regions of Liébana or Campoo-Los Valles, where they always appear on limestone substratum on steep slopes and sunny orientations, between 700 and 1000 meters above sea level. The shrub layer of these formations is very diverse, highlighting species of dry environments such as *Viburnum lantana* or Rhamnus catharticus. The herbaceous stratum is of great interest, highlighting, along with other species of wider distribution, others very rare in Cantabria, such as *Artemisia alba*.

The best representation of this type of formation in Cantabria is found in La Robleda mountain, in Villacantid (Hermandad de Campoo de Suso). It is also remarkable those existing around Arcera (Valdeprado del Río). In Liébana, only small scattered groups persist.

### Beech forests

Beech groves (*Fagus sylvatica*) are the best preserved forest ecosystem in Cantabria. They develop preferably between 800 and 1600 meters of altitude, in areas of frequent fog and high rainfall. In Cantabria there are three types of beech forests, depending on the characteristics of the soil on which they grow.

On the one hand, there are the oligotrophic beech forests that settle on acid soils, in which the mature stage corresponds to a dense forest of beech (*Fagus sylvatica*) that becomes practically exclusive, with a herbaceous understory where the most acidophilic species such as *Deschampia flexuosa*, blueberry (Vaccinium myrtillus), *Luzula sylvatica subs. henriquesii*, etc., develop.

In second place, in terms of their abundance, there are the umbrophilous and basophilous beech forests, that is, beech forests in areas with a strong presence of water but on limestone soils. These beech forests are especially abundant in the large limestone massifs of the easternmost sector of the autonomous community.

Finally, the scarcer beech forests, located on limestone soils but on steep slopes and more sunny orientations, are the so-called erophilous beech forests, located at the limits of the distribution of this species, in the south of the region.

Beech groves are forests where the dominant species leave very few opportunities for other tree species and generally lack the shrub layer itself. The herbaceous stratum is homogeneous and poorly developed, due to the scarce amount of light that reaches this level. Among the most significant species are the wild garlic (*Allium ursinum*) or the orchid *Neottia nidos-avis*.

The largest beech forests in Cantabria are located in Campoo, the headwaters of the Nansa and Saja rivers and, above all, in Liébana, especially those between Pido and Cosgaya (Camaleño) or those that descend from Peña Sagra and Piedrasluengas towards Liébana in Pesaguero. However, there are isolated and smaller beech forests in the rest of the region, at the headwaters of the Besaya, Pas, Miera or Asón rivers.

### Birch forests

Birch forests develop between 1600 and 2000 meters in the western part of Cantabria, above the distribution limit of other deciduous forests. Birch forests *(Betula celtiberica*) grow in very poor acid soils in areas of high rainfall. The birch is accompanied by a few trees, including rowan (*Sorbus aucuparia*) and some isolated specimens of beech (*Fagus sylvatica*), the undergrowth being occupied by species characteristic of the Cantabrian high mountains such as heather (*Erica arborea, Calluna vulgaris*), broom (*Genista spp.*) or blueberry (*Vaccinium myrtillus*). The herbaceous substrate is dominated by species typical of siliceous soils such as *Avenella flexuosa.*

The best preserved birch groves in Cantabria are found at the headwaters of the Deva, Nansa, Saja and Híjar basins, with the Ajotu birch grove at the headwaters of the Tanea river (Lamasón) standing out.

### Cork oak forests

The very few cork oak groves that exist in Cantabria, all of them in Liébana, are found on siliceous soils, halfway between the montane and the hilly areas. It is a typical species of the Mediterranean region that shuns cold and excessively dry climates and that appears in Cantabria in a relict form. The dominant species, the cork oak (*Quercus suber*), is accompanied by a rich shrub substrate formed mainly by strawberry trees (*Arbutus unedo*), buckthorns (*Rhamnus alaternus*), sloes (*Prunus spinosa*) or hawthorns (*Crataegus monogyna*), as well as some brooms (*Cytisus cantabricus, Genista spp*.).

The best cork oak groves are those of Tolibes and Valmayor, in Valmeo (Vega de Liébana) and the one that extends from Frama to Cahecho (Cabezón de Liébana).

### Heath forests

Heathlands are the most common formations in the montane landscapes of the region. They appear as replacement vegetation after the elimination of the deciduous forest to establish tooth pastures, either by cutting or, more frequently, by wildfires.

These formations, which are usually dominated by different species of heather, have a great floristic diversity, with numerous taxa of endemic flora, such as *Erica mackaiana, Daboecia cantabrica, Calluna vulgaris* or *Genista obtusirramea* and are considered habitats of community interest by the Habitat Directive of the European Union.

## Alpine subnival level

The next altitudinal level, the subalpine, is located in Cantabria from 1600-1700 meters of altitude, although these heights can be variable. It is fully present in the summits of the Picos de Europa and in the western part of the Cantabrian Mountains, appearing also, although with a very reduced extension, in the Castro Valnera. The main formations of this stratum in Cantabria are the **grasslands**, the different types of **high mountain scrub** and **bogland**.

### Grasslands

The high mountain pastures, called brañas, constitute the climatic vegetation in the highest areas of Cantabria, which are adapted to situations of very prolonged snowfall, and whose floristic composition is highly dependent on the substratum. They cover the natural passes that form between the great masses of rock that occupy the altitudinal ceiling of the region. They are generally accompanied by shrub thickets, typical of the Cantabrian mountains (heather, gorse and broom).

There are various types of grasslands, in terms of their floristic composition, depending on the type of soil on where they are located, with numerous endemic species, such as *Helianthemum urrielense, Festuca burnatii,.*

The high altitude pastures are the food for the cattle in the mountain passes during the summer (Sejos and Áliva passes).

### High mountain scrub

In the limestone mountains, which at these altitudes are reduced to the mountainous massif of the Picos de Europa, **juniper** **groves** develop, dominated by the common juniper (*Juniperus communis subsp. alpina*) accompanied by other species such as the bearberry (*Arctostaphylos uva-ursi*) or the spurge-laurel (*Daphne laureola*), which takes refuge in the crags, spurs and stony ridges, in biotopes covered for a short time by snow. Acidophilic species such as blueberries (*Vaccinium myrtilus, Vaccinium uliginosum*) or heather (*Calluna vulgaris*) also appear in siliceous areas. In these subalpine landscapes there is a great development of gorse, communities dominated by the Spanish gorse (*Genista occidentalis*), accompanied by another interesting orocantabrian endemism*, Genista legionensis*, which on rare occasions descends, even to the hill floor, as long as there are adequate substrate conditions, as is the case in the vicinity of Carmona (Cabuérniga).

In the high mountains of Cantabria, two types of **heathlands** develop: the Spanish heather (*Erica australis subsp. aragonensis*) and the heather (*Calluna vulgaris*), although sometimes both formations are intermingled.

Finally, in the transition zones between the wooded formations and the high mountains, the **Pyrenean broom** formed by *Genista florida* or *Cytisus cantabricus* develop.

### Bogland

In the siliceous subalpine territories with high humidity, bogland communities, considered of priority interest by the Habitat Directive, have a considerable presence, made up of different species of sphagnum *(Sphagnum spp*.) that grow in waterlogged soils, forming convex masses. These peatlands are home to species exclusive to these environments such as *Carex nigra subsp. carpetana, Scirpus caespitosus subsp. germanicus*, or the carnivorous *Drosera rotundifolia*. The extension of peat bogs in Cantabria is very reduced, standing out for their interest those located in the Puertos de Río Frío (Vega de Liébana).

## Alpine level

The last altitudinal level in Cantabria is the alpine level, restricted only to the highest mountain peaks of the Picos de Europa and Peña Prieta. In these biotopes, located from 2200 meters of altitude, the abundant presence of snow and the abrupt relief prevent the development of the soil. The result is the impossibility for woody vegetation to develop, so the ecological climax in these alpine environments is a natural grassland that varies greatly with the conditions of the substrate. On limestone substrates, mostly in Cantabria, a dense grassland appears, very characteristic, with species such as *Elyna myosuroides* or *Salix breviserrata*. In long snow-covered substrates, on more acid soils, present only on the summit of Peña Prieta, the grasslands are formed by species such as *Festuca eskia, Juncus trifidus* or *Luzula hispanica.*

Finally, on the rocks of the rocky walls, taking advantage of the cracks and small landings where some soil accumulates, small species of great ecological importance develop. In these environments, endemic species such as *Aster alpinus, Sempervivum antabricum* or *Armeria cantabrica* stand out.

## Protected flora species

In Cantabria, the Regional Catalog of Threatened Species is developed in Decree 120/2008 of December 4, 2008, which regulates the regional catalog of threatened species as established in Cantabria Law 4/2006, of May 19, 2006, on Nature Conservation, which presumably includes flora species. This is in spite of the fact that even before the Spanish Law 4/1989, of 27 March, on the Conservation of Natural Spaces and Wild Flora and Fauna, many protectionist provisions had been published in Cantabria, one of them for algal flora, Order of 6 February 1984; BOC of 22 February.

Cantabria was the first Autonomous Community to develop a law for the protection of trees, Law 6/1984 of October 29, 1984, on the protection and promotion of native forest species. This law establishes the native forest species (common oak, sessile oak, Pyrenean oak, holly, holm oak, Portuguese oak, cork oak, beech, chestnut, ash, maple, linden, elm, birch, alder, yew, Scots pine, poplar, whitebeam) and the figure of Singular Tree.

An order of March 4, 1986 declares the yew (*Taxus baccata*) a protected forest species.

The Catalog of Singular Trees of Cantabria, approved by order of May 28, 1986, in compliance with the aforementioned autonomous legislation, has been expanded in successive orders and represents the only specific protection of plant species in Cantabria. It includes and protects 214 specimens of trees of exceptional value, either for their beauty, size, longevity, species or symbolic character of many of them.

On the other hand, the Habitat Directive includes a series of flora and fauna taxa whose conservation is a priority for the European Union. The species of flora present in Cantabria that are included in the Habitat Directive are the following:

*Drepanocladus vernicosus.*

*Sphagnumpylaisii*.

*Culcita macrocarpa.* Woolly tree fern.

*Trichomanes speciosum*.

*Dryopteris corleyi.* Asturian male fern.

*Woodwardia radicans*.

*Rumex rupestris*.

*Eryngium viviparum*.

*Apium repens.* Creeping marshwort.

*Soldanella villosa.* Snowbell.

*Limonium lanceolatum* Sea lavender.

*Centaurium somedanum*. Centaury.

*Omphalodes littoralis*.

*Veronica micrantha*.

*Jasione lusitanica*.

*Santolina semidentata*.

*Centaurea borjae*.

*Aster pyrenaeus.* Pyrenean aster.

*Luronium natans.* Floating water-plantain.

*Narcissus pseudonarcissus nobilis.* Wild daffodil.

*Narcissus cyclamineus*. Daffodil.

*Narcissus asturiensis* Pygmy daffodil.

*Festuca elegans.* Boiss.

*Festuca summilusitanica*.

1. Parliament of Cantabria (1999). «*Ley de Cantabria 1/1999, de 18 de febrero de Declaración del Parque Natural de Collados del Asón*». Archived from the original on September 28, 2007. Accessed on January 19, 2008.
2. Rivas Martínez (1983). «*Pisos bioclimáticos de España*». Archived from the original on November 18, 2011. Accessed on August 30, 2007.
3. Government of Cantabria (2006). «*Orden GAN/67/2006, de 21 de julio, por la que se acuerda la iniciación del proceso de elaboración y aprobación del Plan de Ordenación de los Recursos Naturales de las Dunas de Liencres, Estuario del Pas y Costa Quebrada*.». Archived from the original on January 22, 2008. Accessed on January 17, 2008.
4. Linares Argüelles, Mariano; Pindado Uslé, Jesús; Aedo Pérez, Carlos. (1985). «Tomo III». *Gran Enciclopedia de Cantabria* (Santander: Editorial Cantabria, S. A.). ISBN 84-86420-03-2.
5. «*Ley 6/1992 de 27 de marzo* (Head of State), *por la que se declara Reserva Natural a las Marismas de Santoña y Noja**.». BOE. 1992.* Accessed on January 19, 2008. (broken link available in Internet Archive; see history, first version and last version).
6. Higuera Soldevilla (2007). «*Cantabria y la Armada española: breve relato de una intensa relación. En los astilleros de Colindres y Guarnizo se construyeron la gran mayoría de los galeones de la Armada Española durante los siglos XV, XVI y XVII*.». Accessed on August 31, 2007.
7. «*Directiva 92/43/CEE del Consejo, de 21 de mayo de 1992, relativa a la Conservación de los Hábitats Naturales y de la Fauna y la Flora Silvestres*». *Diario Oficial de las Comunidades Europeas*. 1992. Archived from the original on February 2007, accessed on January, 2008.
8. Parlamento de Cantabria (2006). «*Ley de Cantabria 4/2006, de 19 de mayo, de Conservación de la Naturaleza*». Archived from the original on September 28, 2007. Accessed on August 30, 2007.
9. *Jefatura del Estado* (1989). «L*ey 4/1989, de 27 de marzo, de Conservación de los Espacios Naturales y de la Flora y Fauna Silvestres*». *Boletín Oficial del Estado* (74, 28 de marzo de 1989). pp.8262-8269.
10. Devesa Alcaraz, J. A. (2006). «*La protección de la flora vascular en España peninsular y Baleares*». *Ecosistemas, revista científica y técnica de ecología y medio ambiente* **XV** (002). pp.4-5. (broken link available at Internet Archive; see history, first version and latest version).
11. *Ilustre Colegio Oficial de Ingenieros Técnicos Forestales (*2001). «*Árboles singulares de Cantabria*». Archived from the original on January 22, 2008. Accessed on January 19, 2008.
12. *Gobierno de Cantabria* (1984). «*Ley 6/1984, de 29 de octubre, de Protección y fomento de las especies forestales autóctonas*.». Archived from the original on December 12, 2009. Accessed on January 19, 2008.
13. *Gobierno de Cantabria* (2006). «Catálogo de Árboles Singulares de Cantabria». Archived from the original on January 4, 2008. Accessed on January 17, 2008.
14. *Diario Oficial de las Comunidades Europeas* (2006). «*Acto Natura 2000 y actos conexos*». Archived from the original on October 29, 2007. Accessed on January 17, 2008.
15. *Gobierno de Cantabria* (2003). «*Decreto 41/2003, de 30 de abril, por el que se declara el Monumento Natural de las Sequoias del Monte Cabezón.*». Accessed on January 19, 2008.

## Bibliography

* Aedo, C., Diego, C,, García Cordón, J. C. y Moreno, G. (1990). *El bosque en Cantabria*. University of Cantabria, Santander. 286 pp.
* Díaz, T., Loidi, J., Penas, A., Prieto, J. A. y Rivas Martínez, S. (1984). *La vegetación de la alta montaña cantábrica: los Picos de Europa*. Ediciones Leonesas S. A., León.
* Guinea, A. (1953). *Geografía botánica de Santander*. Diputación Provincial, Santander.
* Linares Argüelles, Mariano; Pindado Uslé, Jesús; Aedo Pérez, Carlos. *Gran enciclopedia de Cantabria*. Editorial Cantabria. 1985. ISBN 84-86420-00-8 (Complete work)\] ISBN 84-86420-03-2 (Volume III).\]
* Polunin, O. & Smythies, B. E. (1988). *Flowers of South-west Europe*. Oxford University Press. 480 pp.
* Rivas-Martínez, S.(1983) *Pisos bioclimáticos de España*. *Lazaroa* **5**, 33-43.
* Vázquez, V. M. (1985). *El bosque atlántico*. MOPU, *Unidades Temáticas Ambientales. Dirección General de Medio Ambiente*, Madrid.
* VV. AA. (2000). *Fauna y flora de Cantabria*. Editorial Cantabria, S.A., Santander. 343 pp.


title: Novopay

abstract: Novopay is a web-based payroll system for state and state integrated schools in New Zealand, processing the pay of 110,000 teaching and support staff at 2,457 schools. It was purchased by the New Zealand Ministry of Education for $182 million over ten years, and was implemented in August 2012 after seven years of planning and development by Australian human resources company Talent2. From the outset, the system led to widespread problems with over 8,000 teachers receiving the wrong pay and in some cases no pay at all; within a few months, 90% of schools were affected. The 'Novopay debacle' as it was called received almost daily media attention, causing embarrassment for the new Minister of Education Hekia Parata, and contributed to the resignation of newly recruited Education secretary Leslie Longstone. In October 2014, Novopay transitioned to be 100% operated by the New Zealand Ministry of Education under current Minister Responsible for Novopay, Steven Joyce. Talent2 continues to provide the software but services and the accuracy of payroll is now the responsibility of the Ministry of Education through the government owned company, Education Payroll Ltd. Under the new arrangement the government assumes full responsibility for the provision of the education payroll service. They have since spent millions in taxpayer funds fixing problems with the system. The error rate for payments is now less than 0.2 per cent, less than half the 0.5 per cent acceptable error rate as defined by the Novopay technical review.

text:
# Novopay

**Novopay** is a web-based payroll system for state and state integrated schools in New Zealand, processing the pay of 110,000 teaching and support staff at 2,457 schools. It was purchased by the New Zealand Ministry of Education for $182 million over ten years, and was implemented in August 2012 after seven years of planning and development by Australian human resources company Talent2. From the outset, the system led to widespread problems with over 8,000 teachers receiving the wrong pay and in some cases no pay at all; within a few months, 90% of schools were affected.

The 'Novopay debacle' as it was called received almost daily media attention, causing embarrassment for the new Minister of Education Hekia Parata, and contributed to the resignation of newly recruited Education secretary Leslie Longstone.

In October 2014, Novopay transitioned to be 100% operated by the New Zealand Ministry of Education under current Minister Responsible for Novopay, Steven Joyce. Talent2 continues to provide the software but services and the accuracy of payroll is now the responsibility of the Ministry of Education through the government owned company, Education Payroll Ltd. Under the new arrangement the government assumes full responsibility for the provision of the education payroll service. They have since spent millions ($45M by 2015) in taxpayer funds fixing problems with the system.

The error rate for payments is now less than 0.2 per cent, less than half the 0.5 per cent acceptable error rate as defined by the Novopay technical review.

## Talent2 background

Talent2 was started by two Australian entrepreneurs, Andrew Banks and Geoff Morgan. Banks and Morgan founded the Australian recruitment company Morgan and Banks in 1985. In 1994 the company was listed on the Australian stock exchange and sold four years later for $470 million.

Banks and Morgan launched Talent2 in 2003 focusing on recruitment and payroll management. The company grew rapidly and soon had 1700 staff in 19 countries and a turnover of more than $300 million a year. It claimed to have 2400 clients in the Asia Pacific region with more than 740,000 employees whose pay was managed by the company. The chief executive of Talent2 is John Rawlinson, a former physical education teacher. He has been at the head of the company from its incorporation.

During the period the Novopay contract was being negotiated with the Government, the company was having financial problems and was later delisted from the Australian stock exchange.

## The choice of Talent2

Prior to adopting Novopay, the payroll for 90,000 teachers and school staff nationwide had been managed for the Ministry of Education by Datacom Group. However, in February 2005, the Ministry of Education decided a new payroll system for teachers was required. Ministry documents reveal that the existing payroll service had been stable during the previous eight years, but was considered 'dated'; there was no on-line access and the system provided insufficient data to "support the more complex information and research needs of the Ministry".

Datacom lost the contract to Talent 2, the creators of Novopay, in a competitive tender in 2005. Talent2 won the contract ahead of ten other tenderers. The Novopay contract was initially signed off by the Labour Government in 2008. It was subsequently renegotiated by National twice.

Because of delays in the development of the programme, it was not until August 2012 that Novopay was finally rolled out. When Steven Joyce was appointed to sort out problems with Novopay in 2013, he initiated discussions with Datacom in case the contract with Talent2 had to be scrapped.

## Payroll problems at NZ Post

Talent2 was also selected to provide a new payroll system at New Zealand Post. The Australian company was awarded the NZ Post contract in 2010 to create a centralised payroll programme to replace the existing regional system. After it went live in 2011, thousands of NZ Post workers were also under-paid or over-paid.

EPMU national industry organiser Joe Gallagher described the new NZ Post payroll as a "dog" of a system and said: "We had workers overpaid, underpaid, not paid, you name it, we had it. We had instances where people got significantly large amounts and occasions where they were paid minus amounts." He said he was aware of team leaders "paying for their employees' groceries and petrol to cover pay problems, while others had faced the possibility of mortgage defaults." Given NZ Post's problems with Talent2, Mr Gallagher wondered why the company was awarded another Government contract. In fact, contract negotiations with the Ministry of Education appear to have begun long before the contract with NZ Post was signed – although NZ Post went live first.

NZ Post took Talent2 to task over the mistakes but the software had to be re-written and it took nearly two years before the system began to improve. Steven Joyce, who was subsequently tasked with sorting out problems with Novopay, said in January 2013 he was aware of NZ Post's payroll problems but could not yet comment on "the similarities or otherwise" between the two.

## Implementation of Novopay in 2012

### Delays in implementation

Talent2 was originally awarded the multimillion-dollar contract by the Labour Government on the recommendation of Education Minister Trevor Mallard – but it was renegotiated twice by the subsequent National Government. Once the contract was signed, Novopay was meant to go live in May 2010 but the company missed a number of deadlines which delayed the rollout by more than two years. Along the way, the Ministry of Education spent $650,000 trialling the system before it was rolled out nationally. More than half of the 731 trial-users felt they were not ready for the system to go live but the Government went ahead anyway.

The system was last tested three months before it became operational, and revealed 147 software defects and made 6000 errors. TV3 reported that Education Minister Hekia Parata, Associate Education Minister Craig Foss and the Minister of Finance Bill English were all informed about the 'bugs' in the system but 'signed off on it anyway'. Four independent agencies – Pricewaterhouse Coopers, the Ministry of Social Development, the Primary Industries Ministry and the New Zealand Transport Agency – also all advised the system should go ahead.

### Errors

In the first payround of the new system, 5000 school staff were underpaid (5.05%) and 15 were not paid at all. International auditors, Deloitte, recommends the error rate should be consistently below 1% in such systems. However, Novopay has been problematic on each successive payround with thousands of school staff finding discrepancies in their pay. Some teachers were getting paid too much, some not enough, and others nothing at all. One of the bugs in the system caused long or hyphenated names to appear twice in the payroll.

In the pay period 9 Jan 2013 through to 22 Jan 2013, $139 million was the total gross payroll, 176 were underpaid or not paid, giving an error rate of 0.29% according to the Ministry. This figure does not include teachers who were overpaid.

Concerns were raised that Novopay also committed breaches of privacy by giving teachers' personal information, including bank account details, to the wrong schools. A Manawatu school principal discovered that a glitch in Novopay allowed staff at a different school to change the pay details of one of his teachers. Opiki School principal Bede Gilmore said "the breach showed there was opportunity for fraud on a huge scale".

Many of the errors were described as 'bizarre'. One teacher was paid for 39 days, instead of 39 hours getting thousands of dollars more than he should have. Another teacher was overpaid by $39,000. She returned the money immediately, but two months later, had not been paid since. A relief teacher was paid for working at two different schools on the same day – one in Upper Hutt and the other in Auckland. Ashburton College principal, Grant McMillan, said the 'most ludicrous' problem was when "Novopay took $40,000 directly out of the school bank account to pay a number of teachers who had never worked at the college". Another difficulty was the amount of time it was taking callers to get through to Talent2's helpline. When Gladstone School principal Margaret Hyslop called for assistance, she found she was 1,117th in the complaints queue.

The problems seem to compound with each successive payday upsetting school staff nationwide. Only three months after Novopay was rolled out, the teachers' union, the NZEI, called for a public inquiry; NZEI National Secretary Paul Goulter said Novopay had been causing 'endless stress for schools and staff for months and needs to be fixed immediately'. By February 2013, over 14,000 teachers and school support staff were owed nearly $12 million in backpay because of all the mistakes. More than $600,000 had been overpaid to teachers by Novopay although about 80% has already been repaid.

In addition to the errors in their pay, school staff have had to spend hours entering additional data on the system to try and correct the mistakes. By February, the Ministry had received 225 invoices for extra administration costs (for which then Associate Education Minister Craig Foss had promised to compensate schools) totalling nearly $1.2 million. In November 2012, retail banks across New Zealand made the extraordinary step of offering school staff interest-free overdrafts after many employees missed out on being paid for up to four months.

Five months after its implementation (mid-December 2012), a survey showed only 16% of schools had no errors that pay round, compared to 36% a month before, suggesting Novopay's performance was getting worse, rather than better. On 15 November the Ministry of Education said it would be taking legal action against Talent2, seeking financial compensation for the errors, which would be used to pay teachers.

The error rate for payments is now less than 0.2 per cent, less than half the 0.5 per cent acceptable error rate as defined by the Novopay technical review.

### Resignation of Leslie Longstone

In November 2012, newly recruited education secretary, Leslie Longstone, said it could take a year to fix the system. However, as Minister of Education, Hekia Parata received most of the criticism for Novopay's failures. Parata reportedly fell out with Longstone – who subsequently resigned. In 2013, it was revealed that Longstone received severance pay of $425,000 after only 13 months into her five-year appointment and had been paid $50,000 to relocate from Britain to New Zealand to take the job.

### Talent2's response

In response to publicity about the errors, Talent2's chief executive, John Rawlinson, said there were "no technical problems with Novopay". He claimed the software was based on a previous payroll system, Alesco, that Talent2 had already been using for 15 years. Alesco had been developed using Oracle database software. Interviewed by the National Business Review, Mr Rawlinson said: "Interestingly enough there’s not really a problem with the technology. The vast majority of issues are about interfacing with our help centre". He added that the company had responded by moving another nine payroll experts to New Zealand and now has 130 staff dedicated to Novopay. Despite Mr Rawlinson's claims, the Government subsequently paid Talent2 another $5 million to produce software upgrades, the first of which went into operation in February 2013.

With intense scrutiny on the system, in 2013 additional reporting was put in place, including media releases after each pay round. Additional information is on the website, including average call waiting times updated daily. Talent2 committed to reduce waiting times to a maximum of four minutes. During February, the time varied from 12 seconds one day to 29 minutes on another. The only day the waiting time was 12 seconds (6 February, which was a public holiday due to Waitangi Day) was the only day in the entire month the waiting time was below four minutes.

## Problems in 2013

In January 2013, the *Sunday Star-Times* revealed that mistakes by Novopay have begun to involve other government departments and "spawned a number of serious side-effects" that have misdirected ACC levies, child support payments, superannuation funds, KiwiSaver and student loan payments which are not getting through to the right account – despite being debited from teachers' payslips.

Novopay was also forced to make bulk payments to schools after teachers had not been paid for weeks on end. This pushed some teachers into higher tax brackets leaving them with less pay than they were entitled to. These teachers will not be able to get back their lost pay until they file tax returns at the end of the financial year – but with their payslips now full of errors, this may be very difficult. Another issue is that schools are now facing annual audits with their bank accounts so depleted, they have had to put Novopay down as a debtor. With so many schools affected, the Auditor-General has decided to adopt a monitoring role on behalf of teachers.

Catching up on backpay from Novopay also requires teachers to go to considerable lengths to prove their identity. This is because Novopay introduced a temporary "fix" for the problem by creating a new identity for teachers who were underpaid. To be repaid wages owing to them (in their original identity), teachers have to provide Novopay with "copies of their qualifications and a letter of endorsement from their school signed by a Justice of the Peace and verified by the Ministry of Education". It is only after this process of verification that Novopay corrects their pay.

At the end of February a survey of principals found 23 admin staff have already resigned, and as many as 50 may have quit over the ongoing problems with Novopay. The survey also found the proportion of schools experiencing difficulties had gone up from 86% in October to 96%. President of the PPTA Angela Roberts said schools were yet to receive any financial assistance from the Government for all the extra hours staff spent sorting out the problems. Also in February, the Post Primary Teachers Association surveyed 4500 teachers and found 36% had not bothered to report mistakes in their pay because they were either "too embarrassed or feared putting school administrators under more pressure".

In March, further concerns arose when it was reported that Novopay had called in debt collectors to get back overpayments made to teachers, even for as little as $22. A new glitch also appeared in the system, with 100 teachers having their contracts wrongly 'terminated' by Novopay at the end of the first school term.

### Appointment of Steven Joyce

In January 2013, as part of a Cabinet reshuffle, Prime Minister John Key announced Economic Development Minister Steven Joyce – who the media began referring to as 'Mr Fixit' – would take over the handling of Novopay. Mr Joyce was initially reluctant to discuss the various options being considered by the Government but indicated that scrapping Talent2's contract was possible but unlikely. Two weeks later, after talking to the stakeholders including Talent2 chief executive, John Rawlinson, Mr Joyce changed his tune and said the system might be scrapped. Before making a decision, he said a ministerial inquiry and a technical audit of Novopay would be conducted. The technical review is expected to cost $200,000 and should be completed by the end of February; the ministerial inquiry will cost $500,000 and should be finished by the end of May.

In early February, Mr Joyce released hundreds of documents which showed the Ministry and Talent2 had a testy relationship prior to the national rollout of Novopay. The documents show the Ministers who gave the go ahead to roll out Novopay were aware of its deficiencies and the Ministry of Education almost abandoned the system four months before it became operational. In fact the Ministry of Education had been trying to get Talent2 to meet operational milestones for two years. One of the documents released was a memo written by Lesley Longstone and her deputy Anne Jackson stating four deadlines had been missed by Talent2 and they warned the company it was in breach of its contract. No action was taken because Talent2 threatened legal action against the Ministry if they were hit with a breach. Steven Joyce and acting Education Secretary Peter Hughes also began a dialogue with Datacom, the previous payroll provider about creating a contingency plan in case Novopay had to be scrapped.

One of the main problems identified by Mr Joyce was that Talent2 had "no senior management bandwidth" in New Zealand. It seems the lack of senior executives meant the company was unable to make decisions about increasing its financial investment to bolster the service when it got into difficulty. Behind the scenes, Talent2's share price had dropped dramatically and in September 2012, the company was delisted from the Australian stock exchange.

A couple of weeks later Mr Joyce provided an update on his investigation into Novopay and said "Talent2 had been issued with formal notices of a breach of contract and key performance indicators". However, he also indicated the Government had agreed to pay Talent2 another $5 million to fix the software bugs and boost the number of data processing staff and staff at its call centre. At the end of February, a software upgrade was launched with further upgrades planned for March and April. However, the errors continued leading the Post Primary Teachers' Association to launch group legal action seeking compensation for "the hurt, humiliation and financial suffering caused by the dysfunctional payroll system".

### The technical audit

On 19 March Joyce released the results of a technical review of the system. It found there were 526 defects with Novopay and a backlog of 19,000 pay-related problems. The defects were rated – 49 were classified as very serious, 320 as serious, 115 as moderate and 42 as cosmetic. Prior to Novopay going live in June 2012, the Ministry's own audit found only 147 software defects. Joyce also said there would be a $6 million compensation package to cover extra administration costs – $500 per school plus $105 per full-time teacher employed at the school for each pay round.

In addition to so many technical errors, the audit revealed that Talent2 assumed that 90% of school administrators would fill in data online. But only 70% were doing so because "forms for part-time teachers and support staff do not work online" and have to be sent in by email. The audit found that Talent2 lacked the staff to handle the extra workload and were reluctant to hire more. It concluded: "We do not believe long-term stability can be delivered by the current processes and resources. It would require materially elevated and sustained effort by both the Ministry and Talent2". Mr Joyce has put pressure on the ministry's previous payroll system provider, Datacom, to be ready to implement a back-up system should it be required.

In the first pay period for 2013, 1647 teachers were overpaid, 206 were underpaid and 39 were not paid at all – affecting 286 schools. These errors were the result of a brand new glitch introduced into Novopay as part of Talent2's attempts to fix the system. Commenting on the new flaw, Steven Joyce said: "I am advised that it was a one-off event that has been corrected." In April, PricewaterhouseCoopers announced 363 defects had been fixed since the end of February, but another 172 had emerged. Since February, the percentage of teachers affected by errors was dropping with each successive pay round – going from 2.2% (and affecting 628 schools) in the 23rd pay period to 0.43% of staff (affecting 232 schools) in the 26th pay round.

### Cost

By the end of April 2013, the cost to the Government of fixing Novopay had risen to $11 million and was still climbing. In May the Ministry of Education revealed it had spent an extra $1.7 million paying 12 consultants to help sort out problems with Novopay.

By the start of 2015, the cost of fixing had risen to $45 million.

### Decision to keep Novopay

In May 2013, Joyce said Novopay was here to stay for the time-being, as the number of technical errors continued to be reduced. The most recent pay run affected only 166 schools, with 127 non-payments and 80 overpayments. The error rate was below 0.5% for three of the last four pay periods, which is considered 'normal' for complex payroll systems. Teachers overpaid small amounts wouldn't be made to pay it back. Although small overpayments would be written off, those of $100 in a single payment or $300 over the course of a full year, would still be pursued. There was still a backlog of 25,000 errors to be dealt with.

## Novopay now operated by Ministry of Education

In July 2014, the Ministry of Education and Talent2 mutually agreed to a new service delivery model which saw the operation of the Novopay payroll service transition to a government owned company, **Education Payroll Ltd**.

Talent2's Alesco software continues to be used by Education Payroll to process the Ministry's payroll under a six-year license arrangement.

The transition occurred on 17 October 2014, and saw the government assume full responsibility for the provision of the education payroll service and also the responsibility for customisations of the software.

The error rate for payments is now less than 0.2 per cent, less than half the 0.5 per cent acceptable error rate as defined by the Novopay technical review.

Police software failure: INCIS


title: Raheens GAA

abstract: Raheens is a Gaelic football club based in Caragh, County Kildare, Ireland, winner of the Leinster senior club championship in 1981, 10 county senior football championships, first winners of the Kildare club of the year in 1973 and winners again in 1976. The separate hurling club, formerly known as Éire Óg, has now amalgamated to become Éire Óg-Corrachoill.

text:
# Raheens GAA

**Raheens** /ræˈhnz/ is a Gaelic football club based in Caragh, County Kildare, Ireland, winner of the Leinster senior club championship in 1981, 10 county senior football championships, first winners of the Kildare club of the year in 1973 and winners again in 1976. The separate hurling club, formerly known as Éire Óg, has now amalgamated to become Éire Óg-Corrachoill.

## History

Raheens won the first of ten Kildare titles in 1935 with a massive 6-3 to 1-0 win over Kildare St. Brigid's. They won their second in 1936. They climbed back onto the winner's podium with the help of Pat Dunny in 1964. A 1981 win led to Leinster club championship honours. In 2017, Raheens beat Kilcock to win the Intermediate Championship Final. Feather Thompson is a renowned figure within the club - Known for speed & technical ability on the field, he now spends his time praising the vast majority of the current senior team.

## Camogie

Geraldine Dwyer, Teresa Lynch, Nuala Malone, Eileen Reilly and Marianne Johnson were selected on the Kildare camogie team of the century in 2000.

## Honours Raheens

## Honours Éire Óg

## Honours Prosperous

* **Kildare Senor Camogie Championship** (8) 1954, 1972, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1980, 1981
* **Kildare Junior Camogie Championship** (1) 1939
* **Kildare Senor Camogie League** (8) 1974, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1981, 1984, 1985, 1986
* **Kildare Senior Football Championship** Finalists 1901

## Bibliography

* Kildare GAA: A Centenary History, by Eoghan Corry, CLG Chill Dara, 1984, ISBN 0-9509370-0-2 hb ISBN 0-9509370-1-0 pb
* Kildare GAA yearbook, 1972, 1974, 1978, 1979, 1980 and 2000- in sequence especially the Millennium yearbook of 2000
* Soaring Sliothars: Centenary of Kildare Camogie 1904-2004 by Joan O'Flynn Kildare County Camogie Board.

## InfoBox

Raheens
| *Na Raithíní* | |
| --- | --- |
|  | |
| Founded: | 1925 |
| County: | Kildare |
| Nickname: | The Heens |
| Colours: | Blue and Saffron |
| Grounds: | Tom Lawler Park, Gingerstown, Caragh |
| Coordinates: | 53°14′03″N 6°43′11″W / 53.23428°N 6.71962°W / 53.23428; -6.71962 |
| Playing kits | |
|  | |
| Senior Club Championships | |
| All Ireland Leinster
champions Kildare
champions  Football:   10  Hurling: | |


title: Pedro Portugal

abstract: Pedro Portugal is a Portuguese artist, with a wide production.

text:
# Pedro Portugal

**Pedro Portugal** (Castelo Branco, 12 August 1963) is a Portuguese artist, with a wide production.

## Life

### Early years

His first individual exhibition was in 1985, the year he finished his painting course. At this exhibition he presented small pastel and oil paintings, already pregnant with a figurative stylizing code or, more generically, a signal system that is reportable to comics and cartoons. Coming close graphics as these is not an indication of spontaneity or any kind of lenience of execution; quite the contrary, it is a-route through a meticulous composition effort, with an unwavering use of a perfected plan of contrasts and symmetries.

### '90s

Pedro Portugal is, in fact, not just a painter, he is a cultural "agitator". By the end of the 80s his work became more ample and explicit in as far as its critical commentary was concerned. It focused on the artistic, cultural, social and political state of affairs. As a prime example of the works under this general concept, one should identify the eucalyptus planted upside-down in Lisbon airport's main roundabout, in 1991.

Throughout the 90s, the artist's horizon became more diversified in terms of workable materials. One could witness an emphasis on installations that were created for very specific purposes. In terms of social intentions, it funneled down to ecological concerns and political criticism. And, finally, in terms of his own activities' modes of promulgation, he supported the foundation of artists' associations and other structures of research and transmission of thought.

### Explainism and later years

In 2007 he began the theoretical and artistic movement "Explainism" in collaboration with Pedro Proença.

Thus, the artist dedicates himself in a multifaceted way to the ever-present question of the end of painting and of its aesthetic cultural tradition.

## InfoBox

| Pedro Portugal | |
| --- | --- |
| Born | 12 August 1963<br>Castelo Branco, Portugal |
| Known for | painting |
| Website | www.pedroportugal.pt |


title: V446 Herculis

abstract:
V446 Herculis was a nova in the constellation Hercules in 1960. It reached magnitude 2.8.
The nova was first observed by Olaf Hassel in the early morning hours of 7 March 1960, when it was a 5th magnitude star. Pre-discovery photographs showed that it was about three days past peak brightness, and had faded by 2 magnitudes during that time. The star was so near the border between the constellations of Hercules and Aquila that accurate measurements of its position were needed to determine which constellation contained it. V446 Herculis was the first nova to have the degree of linear polarization of its light measured. It was determined that the polarization did not arise from the star itself. Like all novae, V446 Herculis is a close binary star system with a "donor" star transferring matter to its white dwarf companion. In the case of V446 Herculis the donor star is a red dwarf and the pair's orbital period is 4.97 hours. Unlike many novae, V446 Herculis is not an eclipsing binary, but it does show dwarf nova outbursts every 13 to 30 days.

text:
# V446 Herculis

**V446 Herculis** was a nova in the constellation Hercules in 1960. It reached magnitude 2.8. The nova was first observed by Olaf Hassel in the early morning hours of 7 March 1960, when it was a 5th magnitude star. Pre-discovery photographs showed that it was about three days past peak brightness, and had faded by 2 magnitudes during that time. The star was so near the border between the constellations of Hercules and Aquila that accurate measurements of its position were needed to determine which constellation contained it.

V446 Herculis was the first nova to have the degree of linear polarization of its light measured. It was determined that the polarization did not arise from the star itself.

Like all novae, V446 Herculis is a close binary star system with a "donor" star transferring matter to its white dwarf companion. In the case of V446 Herculis the donor star is a red dwarf and the pair's orbital period is 4.97 hours. Unlike many novae, V446 Herculis is not an eclipsing binary, but it does show dwarf nova outbursts every 13 to 30 days.

## InfoBox

V446 Herculis
| Location of V446 Hercules (circled in red) | |
| --- | --- |
| Observation data
Epoch J2000.0      Equinox J2000.0 | |
| Constellation | Hecules |
|
| Right ascension | 18h 57m 21.59s |
| Declination | +13° 14 29.3 |
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| Astrometry | |
|  | |
| **Distance** | 1361+185
−100 pc |
|  | |
| Characteristics | |
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| Variable type | Nova, Dwarf Nova |
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| Other designations | |
| V446 Her, Nova Her 1960, AAVSO 1852+13 | |
| Database references | |
| **SIMBAD** | data |


title: Myrcia pendula

abstract: Myrcia pendula is a species of plant in the family Myrtaceae. It is endemic to rainforest habitats in south-east Bahia, Brazil, at 600 to 700 metres above sea level. The tree was first described in 2010 and grows to between 3 and 15 metres tall.

text:
# Myrcia pendula

***Myrcia pendula*** is a species of plant in the family Myrtaceae. It is endemic to rainforest habitats in south-east Bahia, Brazil, at 600 to 700 metres above sea level. The tree was first described in 2010 and grows to between 3 and 15 metres tall.

## InfoBox

| *Myrcia pendula* | |
| --- | --- |
| Conservation status | |
|
Endangered  (IUCN 3.1) | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| *Clade*: | Tracheophytes |
| *Clade*: | Angiosperms |
| *Clade*: | Eudicots |
| *Clade*: | Rosids |
| Order: | Myrtales |
| Family: | Myrtaceae |
| Genus: | *Myrcia* |
| Species: | ***M. pendula*** |
| Binomial name | |
| ***Myrcia pendula***
Sobral | |
|


title: North Rowan High School

abstract: North Rowan High School, formerly Spencer High School and East Spencer High School, is located in the north eastern end of Rowan County in Spencer, North Carolina. It is part of the Rowan–Salisbury School System.

text:
# North Rowan High School

**North Rowan High School**, formerly **Spencer High School** and **East Spencer High School**, is located in the north eastern end of Rowan County in Spencer, North Carolina. It is part of the Rowan–Salisbury School System.

## History

### Establishment

In the spring of 1959, North Rowan High School was accredited by the Southern Association of Secondary Schools and Colleges. The first principal of North Rowan was Johnson H. Steelman. Camden was the second.

### The James Carr Eagle Athletic Field

On August 4, 1958, the Rowan County Board voted unanimously to name the North Rowan High School athletic field "The James Carr Eagle Athletic Field". On September 21, 1958, the building was dedicated with Dr. Charles Carroll, State Superintendent of Public Instruction, as speaker at the ceremonies.

## Scholarship

Begun in 2001 by the class of 1973, the North Rowan Alumni Memorial Scholarship has assisted nine outstanding graduates with college expenses. These students are currently enrolled in college. The campaign goal is to create a fund of $500,000.00 from which the earnings will be used to fund a full four-year tuition scholarship for a graduate of North Rowan High School deemed worthy.

## Controversies

In May 2012, a social studies teacher by the name of Tanya Dixon-Neely was suspended for telling a student not to disrespect President Barack Obama, claiming that "criticism of the president could lead to jail time."

## InfoBox

| North Rowan High School | |
| --- | --- |
| North Rowan High School entrance | |
| Address | |
|  | |
| 300 North Whitehead Avenue
Spencer, North Carolina 28159
United States | |
| Coordinates | 35°41′50″N 80°25′47″W / 35.6973°N 80.4297°W / 35.6973; -80.4297 |
| Information | |
| Type | Public |
| Founded | 1958 (1958) |
| CEEB code | 343705 |
| NCES School ID | 370405001625 |
| Principal | Michael White |
| Teaching staff | 37.72 (FTE) |
| Enrollment | 589 (2022-2023) |
| Student to teacher ratio | 15.62 |
| Schedule type | Block, 4-period |
| Color(s) | Kelly green, white, and gold
 |
| Athletics conference | Central Carolina 1A |
| Mascot | Cavaliers |
| Website | www.rssed.org/northrowanhigh |


title: Livewell

abstract: A livewell is a water tank found on many fishing boats that is used to keep bait and caught fish alive. It works by pumping fresh water from the surrounding body into the tank, as well as keeping the water aerated. A rule of thumb for determining the necessitated size of a livewell is that every one inch length of fish needs a gallon of water if it is desired to keep the fish alive for a prolonged period of time. Besides size and water circulation, two other key factors of the functionality of a livewell are maintaining proper temperature and removing metabolic waste. Water temperatures should be below 75 °F (24 °C); ice can be used as a coolant.

text:
# Livewell

A **livewell** is a water tank found on many fishing boats that is used to keep bait and caught fish alive. It works by pumping fresh water from the surrounding body into the tank, as well as keeping the water aerated. A rule of thumb for determining the necessitated size of a livewell is that every one inch length of fish needs a gallon (3.8 liter) of water if it is desired to keep the fish alive for a prolonged period of time.

Besides size and water circulation, two other key factors of the functionality of a livewell are maintaining proper temperature and removing metabolic waste. Water temperatures should be below 75 °F (24 °C); ice can be used as a coolant.

## Oxygen levels

It is very important to maintain adequate oxygen levels in the livewell. It should be above 5 parts per million. Electric aeration systems are often used to do this. These often work by creating a spray that increases the surface area of the water, or by passing it through a Venturi.

A livewell is a box used to transport live aquatic animals; shrimp, baitfish and mature fish, saltwater or freshwater species. A livewell should be made of materials that are non- toxic to aquatic animals. The shape may be square, rectangular, oval or round. The box may be insulated, portable, and have a drain and lid. Maintaining minimal safe water quality standards in livewell water is essential to ensure a safe habitat for all the captive animals during transport. When transporting baitfish, shrimp or mature fish, maintaining dissolved oxygen saturation (DO Sat) is the single most important water quality parameter that must be controlled. Livewell oxygen–injection systems and LOX systems insure O2 enriched livewell water. Pure 100% compressed welding oxygen is injected into the water with a precision dose adjustable high-pressure oxygen regulator, oxygen tube and diffuser. Commercial and sport fishing oxygen-injection systems are designed to insure 100% DO Saturation or greater whether the bait or fish load is 1 lb or \>1000 lbs. The minimal safe EPA water quality standard for steady state environments (rivers, lakes, ponds, etc.) is 5 ppm DO.

Dissolved oxygen is the single most important factor for keeping bass alive, and an understanding of factors that affect oxygen levels will better enable anglers to keep their fish alive. At a moderate water temperature of 70˚F, 100 percent oxygen saturation is 8.8 mg/L of oxygen, whereas at the higher temperature of 80˚F, 100 percent saturation is 7.9 mg/L. Both of these 100 percent saturation oxygen levels are suitable for keeping bass alive. Without injecting oxygen into the livewell, it is very difficult to supply enough oxygen to keep alive heavier tournament limits. Oxygen injection has long been used by Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) hatcheries to maintain the health of fish being stocked into reservoirs. Fisheries staff regularly transport or hold fish in ratios equal to or greater than one pound of fish to a gallon of water. However, boat manufactures do not offer oxygen injection system options. Proper installation and operation of an oxygen injection system will ensure oxygen levels remain above the preferred level of 7 mg/L even when livewells contain heavy limits.