North American cold Ware

The 1936 North American cold wave positions among the most extraordinary icy waves of the 1930s. The states of the mid west United States were hit the hardest. February 1936 was one of the coldest months recorded in the Midwest. The states of North Dakota, South Dakota, and Minnesota saw their coldest month on record. What was so noteworthy about this icy wave was that the 1930s had a percentage of the mildest winters in the US history. Notwithstanding one of the coldest winters in the 1930s, the icy wave was trailed by one of the hottest summers on record, the 1936 North American hotness wave.

Adventure

An adventure is an exciting or unusual experience; it may also be a bold, usually risky undertaking, with an uncertain outcome. Adventures may be activities with some potential for physical danger, such as skydiving, mountain climbing or participating in extreme sports. The term also broadly refers to any enterprise that is potentially fraught with physical, financial or psychological risk, such as a business venture, a love affair, or other major life undertakings. Adventurous experiences create psychological and physiological arousal, which can be interpreted as negative or positive, and which can be detrimental as stated by the Yerkes-Dodson law.

For some people, adventure becomes a major pursuit in and of itself. According to adventurer André Malraux, in his La Condition Humaine, "If a man is not ready to risk his life, where is his dignity?”. Similarly, Helen Keller stated that "Life is either a daring adventure or nothing."Outdoor adventurous activities are typically undertaken for the purposes of recreation or excitement: examples are adventure racing and adventure tourism. Adventurous activities can also lead to gains in knowledge, such as those undertaken by explorers and pioneers. Adventure education intentionally uses challenging experiences for learning.

Lebanese people

The Lebanese people (Arabic: الشعب اللبناني‎ / ALA-LC: al-sha‘ab al-lubnānī, Lebanese Arabic pronunciation: are a nation and ethnic group of Levantine people originating in what is today the country of Lebanon, including those who had inhabited Mount Lebanon prior to the creation of the modern Lebanese state.

The cultural and linguistic heritage of the Lebanese people is a rich blend of both indigenous elements and the foreign cultures that have come to rule the land and its people over the course of thousands of years.
Lebanon does not collect official census data on ethnic background and therefore is difficult to have an exact demographic analysis of Lebanese society, with the last census conducted by the French Mandate government in 1932. The largest concentration or people of Lebanese ancestry is in Brazil having an estimated population of 6 to 7 million. As with their predecessors, the Lebanese have always travelled the world, many of them settling permanently, most notably in the last two centuries.

Religiously, descendants of Lebanese Christians comprise the overwhelming majority of Lebanese people worldwide, according to some estimates, outnumbering Lebanese Muslims (both Sunni and Shi'a) at a 3:1 ratio, and concentrated principally in the diaspora.

Reduced in numbers and estimated to have lost their status as a majority in Lebanon itself, largely as a result of their emigration, Christians still remain one of the principal religious groups in the country.

Middle East and North Africa

Area: 10,452 sq km (4,036 sq miles)
Population: 4million
Capital City: Beirut (population: 2.1m, estimate 2007)
People: 4 million. The population is predominantly Arab with a sizeable Armenian minority ( figure does not include an estimated 320,000 Palestinian refugees). The Lebanese diaspora is thought to total 14 million
Languages: Arabic (official), English, French, Armenian
Religion(s): There are 18 registered sects in Lebanon including, Maronite Christian, Shia Muslim, Sunni Muslim and Druze
Currency: Lebanese Pound/ US dollar is used interchangeably
Major political parties: Numerous political groupings exist in Lebanon, organised along mostly sectarian lines
Government: Republic
Head of State: President General Michel Sleiman
Prime Minister: Sa'ad el- Hariri
Foreign Minister: dr. Ali Chami

Lebanon

Lebanon (i/ˈlɛbənɒn/ or /ˈlɛbənən/; Arabic: لُبْنَان‎ Lubnān; French: Liban), officially the Republic of Lebanon (Arabic: اَلْجُمْهُورِيَّة اَللُّبْنَانِيَّة al-Jumhūrīyah al-Lubnānīyah; French: République libanaise), is a country in Western Asia, on the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea. It is bordered by Syria to the north and east, and Israel to the south. Lebanon's location at the crossroads of the Mediterranean Basin and the Arabian hinterland has dictated its rich history, and shaped a cultural identity of religious and ethnic diversity.

The earliest evidence of civilization in Lebanon dates back more than 7,000 years—predating recorded history. Lebanon was the home of the Phoenicians, a maritime culture that flourished for nearly 2,500 years (3000–539 BC). Following the collapse of the Ottoman Empire after World War I, the five provinces that comprise modern Lebanon were mandated to France. The French expanded the borders of Mount Lebanon, which was mostly populated by Maronite Catholics and Druze, to include more Muslims. Lebanon gained independence in 1943, and established a unique political system, known as confessionalism, a power-sharing mechanism based on religious communities – Bechara El Khoury who became independent Lebanon first President and Riad El-Solh, who became Lebanon's first prime minister, are considered the founders of the modern Republic of Lebanon and are national heroes for having led the country's independence. French troops withdrew from Lebanon in 1946.

Before the Lebanese Civil War (1975–1990), the country experienced a period of relative calm and prosperity, driven by tourism, agriculture, and banking. Because of its financial power and diversity, Lebanon was known in its heyday as the "Switzerland of the East". It attracted large numbers of tourists, such that the capital Beirut was referred to as "Paris of the Middle East." At the end of the war, there were extensive efforts to revive the economy and rebuild national infrastructure.

Until July 2006, Lebanon enjoyed considerable stability, Beirut's reconstruction was almost complete, and increasing numbers of tourists poured into the nation's resorts. Then, the month-long 2006 war between Israel and Hezbollah caused significant civilian death and heavy damage to Lebanon's civil infrastructure.

Due to its tightly regulated financial system, Lebanese banks have largely avoided the financial crisis of 2007–2010. In 2009, despite a global recession, Lebanon enjoyed 9% economic growth and hosted the largest number of tourists in its history.

Lebanon is known for its unique efforts in the Middle East to guarantee civil rights and freedom to its citizens, ranking first in the Middle East and 26th worldwide (out of 66 countries) in the The World Justice Project's Rule of Law Index 2011.