• Il Sidro è una delle bevande più diffuse nei paesi dell’ area celtica. La produzione nel nord Italia è andata scomparendo a causa di una norma della dittatura fascista che vietava la produzione di ...Questo aceto monovitigno prodotto con vino Barolo, invecchiato in botti di rovere ideale per la cottura di volatili da cortile, rognone e cipolle. Cesare Giaccone è l'unico produttore di Aceto Mon

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• Harry Potter

• Da Wikipedia, l'enciclopedia libera.
• Vai a: Navigazione, cerca
• Disambiguazione – Se stai cercando il personaggio della serie, vedi Harry Potter (personaggio).
• Harry Potter è una saga letteraria fantasy in sette libri, ideata dalla scrittrice inglese J. K. Rowling all'inizio degli anni novanta e concretizzata negli anni successivi, tra il 1997 e il 2007^[1].
• L'opera descrive le avventure del mago adolescente Harry Potter e dei suoi migliori amici e coetanei, Ronald Weasley e Hermione Granger. L'ambientazione principale è la Scuola di Magia e Stregoneria di Hogwarts dove vengono educati alle arti magiche i giovani maghi e streghe del Regno Unito e non solo.
• L'arco narrativo copre un periodo di sette anni - uno per ogni libro della serie - dal momento in cui Harry Potter, un undicenne orfano che abita a Little Whinging con gli sgradevoli zii adottivi Vernon e Petunia Dursley (da parte della madre di Harry), apprende della sua condizione speciale e inizia a frequentare Hogwarts allo scontro aperto con il suo antagonista, il malvagio mago Lord Voldemort, responsabile dell'assassinio dei genitori di Harry nel suo primo tentativo di ottenere il dominio del mondo magico.
• Harry Potter è esploso dapprima come fenomeno letterario in Inghilterra nel 1997, anno di pubblicazione nel Regno Unito del primo episodio della saga del piccolo mago, dal titolo Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone. Nel 1998 il successo assume dimensione mondiale: solo in Italia il libro, tradotto come Harry Potter e la pietra filosofale e pubblicato con una tiratura iniziale di 20.000 copie, vince nel dicembre dello stesso anno il Premio Cento, riconoscimento dedicato alla letteratura per ragazzi; negli Stati Uniti la casa cinematografica Warner Bros. acquista i diritti cinematografici del volume e nel novembre 2001, per la regia di Chris Columbus, la storia di Harry Potter - interpretato dall'attore Daniel Radcliffe - conquista l'intera platea mondiale.
• Ad aprile 2007, i primi sei libri hanno venduto un totale di 400 milioni di copie^[2] e sono stati tradotti in più di 64 lingue.^[3]

• Caratteristiche dell'opera [modifica]

• Harry Potter viene collocata tra le saghe fantasy, e rientra pienamente nel genere, benché sia fortemente influenzato anche dal genere classico del "Bildungsroman" (romanzo di formazione)^[4]. Tuttavia le differenze tra questa saga ed altre celebri saghe del genere Fantasy sono da rimarcarsi: le storie di Harry Potter non sono ambientate in un'epoca immaginaria o differente dalla nostra, né in un altro universo.
• Contrariamente ad altre saghe fantasy, i cui protagonisti appartengono generalmente ad epoche e mondi immaginari (su tutte Dragonlance o anche i più recenti Earthsea ed Eragon) quella di Harry Potter si caratterizza per essere ambientata nel mondo reale e nei decenni contemporanei, svolgendosi tra il 1981 ed il 2016; in altre parole, il mondo di Harry Potter conviverebbe da sempre con quello ordinario delle persone comuni (che vengono chiamati Babbani) ma da esso si nasconderebbe (dal 1600) per motivi di sicurezza ed ordine; non a caso, in Harry Potter si trovano moltissime citazioni della mitologia celtica e greca, dell'alchimia, della criptozoologia e degli stereotipi più classici legati alla concezione magica e fantastica dell'uomo; tali elementi fanno da cornice alle avventure del protagonista oppure, a volte con ironia, si piegano al volere della trama. La stessa saga è composta da sette libri, numero ritenuto "magico" da molte tradizioni e leggende fantastiche.
• Altra peculiarità è la crescita interiore ed emotiva dei protagonisti attraverso le prove più o meno pericolose che il destino ha loro riservato. In Harry Potter i protagonisti non vivranno un'esperienza magica limitata all'infanzia o all'adolescenza per poi tornare nel mondo reale ordinario (Le cronache di Narnia), ma diverranno adulti nel mondo magico come le persone comuni. Dagli aspetti prettamente adolescenziali come le ribellioni, la fiducia in se stessi, la curiosità, la scoperta dell'amore, l'impulsività ed i relativi errori si passa ad elementi molto più maturi come il potere politico, le strumentalizzazioni mediatiche, il razzismo, l'immaturità e le paure degli adulti, l'oppressione del più debole, la vecchiaia ed i suoi errori, la depressione e la morte. In questo contesto, all'inizio la magia è ludica ed affascinante ma quasi subito diventa arma temibile ed insidiosa. Per questo motivo, se agli occhi dei babbani la magia risolverebbe molti problemi, in realtà un'ipotetica vita nel mondo magico di Harry Potter sarebbe molto più pericolosa e complicata. Tutta l'opera è caratterizzata da regole appositamente create per rendere logico l'iter della trama: si va dall'impossibilità per i minorenni di effettuare magie al di fuori della loro scuola di magia (Hogwarts), al corretto atteggiamento da adottare per avvicinare un ippogrifo; dall'obbligo d'iscrizione per gli animaghi nel registro ministeriale, all'impossibilità di smaterializzarsi internamente ai confini di Hogwarts; dall'imbarazzante conseguenza che genererà un'apertura posticipata di una strillettera, ai sintomi "comuni" di possessione. Dalle regole per essere un ottimo occlumante, alla superiorità magica spesso sottovalutata di alcune creature come gli elfi domestici e i folletti; dalla responsabilità che si assume un custode segreto (Incanto Fidelius), alle regole di precedenza e sottomissione che esistono tra le bacchette magiche in relazione al mago vincitore o sconfitto in un duello. L'insieme costituisce un corredo di preziose nozioni messe a disposizione del lettore per risolvere, potenzialmente, i vari enigmi e misteri che libro dopo libro si accumulano fino a risolversi nel finale. Tuttavia, nonostante la ricca componente di norme create ad hoc dall'autrice, una delle principali caratteristiche della saga è proprio quella dell'imprevedibilità dei forti colpi di scena, con cui tutte le regole vengono aggirate.

• Ambientazione della saga [modifica]

• Il treno utilizzato per rappresentare l'Hogwarts Express nelle trasposizioni cinematografiche mentre viaggia sul viadotto Glenfinnan
• I romanzi si svolgono principalmente nella scuola di magia e di stregoneria di Hogwarts, un castello nel mezzo di una catena di montagne, che gli studenti raggiungono prendendo il treno Espresso per Hogwarts dal binario 9 e ¾ della stazione di King's Cross a Londra. Secondo una nota a margine del libro Gli animali fantastici: dove trovarli il castello di Hogwarts si trova in Scozia. Oltre ad Hogwarts, dove i protagonisti trascorreranno la maggior parte del tempo, altri luoghi fanno da scenario alle vicende narrate nella serie di libri. I ricorrenti e quindi principali sono:
• Hogwarts - scuola di magia e di stregoneria nella quale è ambientata gran parte della saga Privet Drive, 4 - l'abitazione della famiglia Dursley La Tana - la casa della famiglia Weasley, luogo dal calore domestico del tutto opposto a quello di Privet Drive, 4 Il Paiolo Magico - è un locale magico londinese gestito da un certo Tom. Nel retro c'è un muro che permette di raggiungere Diagon Alley e Notturn Alley Diagon Alley - la via commerciale londinese di articoli magici, segreta ai Babbani Gringott - la banca dei maghi. Vi lavorano i folletti. Luogo più sicuro al mondo dopo Hogwarts. King's Cross - la stazione di Londra da dove parte il treno diretto ad Hogwarts (binario 9 e 3/4) Hogsmeade - il villaggio di maghi che sorge a poca distanza dal castello di Hogwarts in cui si trovano molti negozi e locali, tra cui il Tre manici di scopa e il Testa di Porco Grimmauld Place, 12 - la casa di Sirius Black, sede poi dell'Ordine della Fenice Ministero della Magia - sede del potere magico. Ministro: Fino al 5 volume della saga Cornelius Caramell; nel sesto e in parte del settimo Rufus Scrimgeour; in una parte del settimo Pius O'Tusoe e nelle ultime pagine del settimo Kingsley Shacklebolt La Foresta proibita - una fitta foresta che si estende ai piedi di Hogwarts per vari chilometri, e al cui limitare sorge la capanna di Hagrid.
• Altre ambientazioni risultano secondarie se confrontate alle precedenti ma restano comunque scenari di importanti svolte nella saga. Alcune di esse compaiono solo in unico libro mentre altre non verranno nemmeno visitate dal protagonista.
• Notturn Alley - l'antitesi di Diagon Alley, dove si possono trovare potenti oggetti di magia oscura. Un negozio, Magie Sinister è luogo d' incontro per i mangiamorte. Lì viene svolta la cerimonia del Marchio Nero su Draco Malfoy. Vi è un armadio svanitore che ha il suo gemello ad Hogwarts, nella stanza delle necessità. Little Hangleton - paese legato alla famiglia di Lord Voldemort Ospedale San Mungo - l'ospedale dei maghi, specializzato nella cura delle malattie e delle ferite magiche. Vi sono ricoverati due ex auror: Frank e Alice Paciock, i genitori di Neville. Spinner's End - la via dove si trova la casa di Severus Piton Villa Malfoy - residenza privata della famiglia Malfoy Villa Conchiglia - la residenza della famiglia di William Weasley (detto anche Bill), di sua moglie Fleur Delacour e dei loro figli Godric's Hollow - paese natale di Harry, dove furono uccisi i suoi genitori e dove visse anche Silente Azkaban - la prigione dei maghi, presidiata dai Dissennatori.
• 
  Si aggiungono, abitazioni private, foreste e spazi naturali in genere, che fanno da supporto alle scene di transizione o alle vicende del mondo magico antecedenti la nascita di Harry.
• Luogo più volte nominato ma mai utilizzato come scenario dall'autrice è la prigione di Azkaban, che viene vagamente descritta come una prigione su un'isola nel Mare del Nord popolata da Dissennatori.

• Personaggi principali [modifica]

• Harry Potter, ragazzo che scopre di essere un mago, i cui genitori sono stati uccisi dal malvagio Voldemort. Ronald Weasley, detto Ron, migliore amico di Harry. Ha cinque fratelli (Bill, Charlie, Percy, George, Fred) e una sorella, Ginny. Hermione Granger, migliore amica di Harry. Draco Malfoy la insulta a causa del suo sangue non "puro", definendola mezzosangue (in inglese in realtà sarebbe una mud-blood in quanto figlia di entrambi genitori babbani). Albus Silente (Albus Dumbledore nella versione originale in inglese), preside di Hogwarts e mentore di Harry, è il più grande mago al mondo, uomo molto carismatico e saggio (Il suo nome completo è Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Silente). Lord Voldemort (Tom Orvoloson Riddle, nella versione inglese Tom Marvolo Riddle), mago malvagio desideroso di dominare il mondo magico servendosi dei suoi alleati, i Mangiamorte. Minerva McGranitt (Minerva McGonagal nella versione originale in inglese), vicepreside di Hogwarts, insegnante di Trasfigurazione, direttrice della casa Grifondoro. Severus Piton (Severus Snape nella versione in inglese), direttore della casa Serpeverde, insegnante di Pozioni. Ha sempre desiderato fare l'insegnante di Difesa contro le Arti Oscure, materia che gli verrà poi assegnata nel sesto anno di Harry. Ginny Weasley, sorella minore di Ron. Draco Malfoy, studente di Serpeverde, detesta Harry e i Mezzosangue. Lucius Malfoy, padre di Draco, Mangiamorte. Rubeus Hagrid, guardiacaccia e Custode delle Chiavi e dei Luoghi a Hogwarts; guida di Harry fin dal suo primo approccio al mondo magico. Sirius Black, padrino di Harry, creduto criminale era rinchiuso ad Azkaban. Neville Paciock (Neville Longbotton nella versione originale in inglese), timido e impacciato amico di Harry. Luna Lovegood, figlia del direttore della rivista Il Cavillo, è una giovane ed eccentrica strega. Cedric Diggory, studente di Tassorosso e rivale di Harry nel Quiddich e nel torneo Tremaghi. Viene ucciso da Codaliscia sotto ordine di Voldemort al quarto anno. Remus Lupin, insegnante di Difesa contro le Arti Oscure al terzo anno. Alastor "Malocchio" Moody ("Mad-Eye" nella versione originale in inglese), auror ed insegnante di Difesa contro le Arti Oscure al quarto anno. Pomona Sprite, insegnante di Erbologia. Cho Chang, studentessa di Corvonero e cercatrice di Quidditch. Bellatrix Lestrange, cugina di Sirius Black, Mangiamorte più fedele a Voldemort, è responsabile di torture e omicidi. Sibilla Cooman, insegnante di Divinazione. Fred Weasley e George Weasley, gemelli, fratelli di Ron, appassionati di scherzi e passaggi segreti. Professor Raptor, professore di difesa contro le Arti Oscure il primo anno. Lotta contro Harry per la Pietra Filosofale ma viene trasformato in polvere.

• La serie di libri [modifica]

• La saga è composta da sette libri. Ogni libro della saga rappresenta un anno nella vita di Harry dagli undici ai diciassette anni; i primi sei libri descrivono anche ogni singolo anno scolastico trascorso nella scuola di magia e stregoneria di Hogwarts che dura appunto sette anni. Tuttavia, il settimo e conclusivo libro della saga è ambientato nella scuola solo in parte.
• In ciascuno dei libri l'atmosfera è un po' più cupa rispetto a quello che lo precede ed ognuno mostra una maturazione dei protagonisti; dalle atmosfere fantastiche, spensierate e festose del primo libro, si approda, anche attraverso la morte di alcuni personaggi (Cedric Diggory, Sirius Black, Albus Silente), a quelle cupe, disilluse ed a tratti horror degli ultimi libri. Parimenti, lo stile narrativo si evolve con il personaggio diventando via via più complesso, ironico ed adulto. Le indiscrezioni circolate nel 2004, che davano come possibile la stesura da parte della Rowling di un ottavo libro della saga, sono state smentite dalla scrittrice dichiarando che con il settimo libro vengono risolti tutti i quesiti.^{[senza fonte]} La Rowling tuttavia dichiarò che avrebbe semmai potuto scrivere un volume enciclopedico su tutta la saga, dove avrebbero trovato posto tutte le idee, gli appunti ed i tagli non inseriti nei libri. La stessa autrice ha però dichiarato nel 2007 che non scriverà nemmeno il volume enciclopedico.^{[senza fonte]} La Rowling ha però scritto per beneficenza un racconto di 800 parole che si svolge tre anni prima della nascita di Harry Potter, e i cui protagonisti sono Sirius Black e James Potter. Il racconto manoscritto è stato battuto all'asta per la cifra di 25.000 sterline.^[5]
• I libri, editi in Italia da Adriano Salani Editore, sono:
• 1998 Harry Potter e la Pietra Filosofale (nel Regno Unito Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone/negli Stati Uniti Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone^[6]) 1999 Harry Potter e la Camera dei Segreti (Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets) 2000 Harry Potter e il Prigioniero di Azkaban (Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban) 2001 Harry Potter e il Calice di Fuoco (Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire), vero record per la casa editrice Salani: 300.000 copie 2003 Harry Potter e l'Ordine della Fenice (Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix), uscito in Italia il 31 ottobre 2003, preceduto dal lancio in tutto il mondo avvenuto il 21 giugno dello stesso anno 2005/2006 Harry Potter e il Principe Mezzosangue (Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince), uscito in lingua inglese sabato 16 luglio 2005 e in italiano venerdì 6 gennaio 2006 2007/2008 Harry Potter e i Doni della Morte^[7] (Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows), uscito in lingua inglese sabato 21 luglio 2007 e in Italiano sabato 5 gennaio 2008
• Il libro più lungo della saga è il quinto, Harry Potter e l'Ordine della Fenice, il più corto è il primo, Harry Potter e la Pietra Filosofale.
• Con l'uscita del quinto tomo delle avventure di Harry, la Rowling, la casa editrice inglese (Bloomsbury) e la casa editrice Salani hanno sposato la causa della salvaguardia dell'ambiente, infatti per la stampa del volume è stato adottato un procedimento di lavorazione a basso impatto ambientale ed è stata usata carta in parte riciclata.
• Nella traduzione italiana delle prime edizioni dei primi tre libri, una delle quattro Case di Hogwarts (Ravenclaw) veniva a volte tradotta come "Pecoranera", ma con l'uscita del quarto volume della serie, i traduttori della Salani hanno deciso di ribattezzarla "Corvonero" per riflettere più da vicino lo stemma della scuola, che raffigura appunto un leone, un serpente, un tasso e un corvo.
• La Rowling ha scritto anche altre opere ispirate all'universo di Harry Potter (con due diversi pseudonimi):
• Gli animali fantastici: dove trovarli, Salani, 2002, ISBN 88-8451-150-X; Il Quidditch attraverso i secoli, Salani, 2002, ISBN 88-8451-149-6; Le fiabe di Beda il Bardo, Salani, 2008, ISBN 978-88-6256-036-8 (pseudobiblium nelle mani di Hermione Granger in Harry Potter e i Doni della Morte).
• I libri della Rowling sono stati confrontati con Le cronache di Narnia (The Chronicles of Narnia) di C. S. Lewis, Il Signore degli Anelli (The Lord of the Rings) di J.R.R.Tolkien, con quelli di Earthsea, trilogia fantasy di Ursula K. Le Guin, con i romanzi di Diana Wynne Jones e con quelli di Philip Pullman.
• Numerosi sono poi i libri che prendono spunto dalle gesta di Harry Potter; è stato ad esempio pubblicato Herry Sotter e la maledizione vegetale di Claudio Comini, Edizioni Lapis, una parodia della saga, dove è narrata la storia di un bambino babbano, privo cioè di poteri magici, che viene scambiato per il celebre Harry Potter.

• Libri su Harry Potter [modifica]

• Sulla saga di Harry Potter sono stati pubblicati molti libri in diverse lingue. Tra quelli editi in Italia:
• R. Ricci, Harry Potter. L'avventura di crescere. Psicologia dell'adolescenza e magia della fiaba, Roma 2005. David Colbert, I magici mondi di Harry Potter. Guida ai personaggi, miti e leggende della saga del mago di Hogwarts, Roma 2003. M. Lenti, L'incantesimo Harry Potter, Milano 2006, 2007 (vincitore Premio Italia 2007) M. Lenti, Harry Potter a test, Milano 2007 F. Barbolini, Effetto Harry Potter, 2010, edizioni Ass. Culturale Il Foglio F. Balboni - S. Tanzini, Harry Potter e il suo magico mondo. Personaggi, luoghi, oggetti, creature magiche, incantesimi, 2003 V. Oppezzo, Harry Potter al Cinema, 2010, edizioni LeMani A. Bottero, Harry il giovane mago, 2002 C. Neal, Il Vangelo secondo Harry Potter, 2003 M. Benvegnù - C. Fagnani Guida completa a Harry Potter, 2005 A. Z. Kronzek - E. Kronzek, Manuale per apprendisti maghi, Milano 2001 Edi Vesco, Il Magicolibro, Milano, 2002, 2005, 2007 F. Cosi, A. Repossi, Guida completa alla saga di Harry Potter, Milano 2008. B. Paoletti, L. Vassallo, A tavola con Harry Potter, Milano 2007. S. Riglietti, Harry Potter & Co. L'arte fantastica della favola, Milano 2007. I. Katerinov, Lucchetti babbani e medaglioni magici. Harry Potter in italiano: le sfide di una traduzione, Este (PD) 2007. A. Carriero, L'ultima magia di Harry Potter, (articolo di critica letteraria), "Mondoerre" - n.4 (Apr. 2008) - Anno XXXIV. A. Carriero, Elementi di psicopedagogia nell'antica scuola di Hogwarts. Harry Potter e la magia dell'educazione, Rimini 2010. M. Tuveri, Quel che più brami sapere, io toccherò… Harry Potter e il nuovo Realistic Fantasy, (articolo di critica letteraria), "Nugae" - n.16 (Gen./Mar.2008) - Anno V. S. Regazzoni, Harry Potter e la filosofia, Genova, il melangolo, 2008 ISBN 978-88-7018-699-4 R. Highfield, La Scienza di Harry Potter - Come funziona veramente la magia, Milano, 2003 (titolo dell'originale 2002: "The Science of Harry Potter")

• Adattamenti cinematografici [modifica]

• Dal 2001, Harry Potter è anche un fenomeno cinematografico: la major Warner Bros, acquistati i diritti sull'opera nel 1999, realizza le trasposizioni cinematografiche di ogni singolo libro.
• Harry Potter e la pietra filosofale: il primo film esce nel dicembre del 2001 per la regia di Chris Columbus; i protagonisti sono interpretati da Daniel Radcliffe (Harry Potter), Rupert Grint (Ronald Weasley), Emma Watson (Hermione Granger). Alla sceneggiatura del film contribuirà la stessa autrice J. K. Rowling, riscrivendo, talvolta, scene che per esigenze di montaggio devono essere variate da quelle presenti nel libro. Il grande successo della pellicola (976 milioni di dollari di incasso nel mondo, a suo tempo il secondo più grande successo dietro solo a "Titanic") fa conoscere Harry Potter anche al grande pubblico non letterario. Harry Potter e la camera dei segreti: il secondo film esce nel novembre 2002 con incassi inferiori rispetto al precedente ma che si rivela ugualmente un enorme successo; il regista è ancora Chris Columbus. Harry Potter e il prigioniero di Azkaban: la regia cambia alla terza pellicola che viene diretta da Alfonso Cuaron ed esce nelle sale nel giugno 2004 anziché nel periodo natalizio. Sirius Black è interpretato da Gary Oldman. Harry Potter e il calice di fuoco: a novembre 2005 esce il quarto film diretto da Mike Newell; Lord Voldemort è interpretato da Ralph Fiennes, Cedric Diggory da Robert Pattinson mentre Katie Leung interpreta Cho Chang. Harry Potter e l'ordine della fenice: nel luglio 2007, esce il quinto film, per la regia di David Yates; fra i nuovi attori presenti nel film si ricordano Imelda Staunton, che veste i panni di Dolores Umbridge, Evanna Lynch nel ruolo di Luna Lovegood ed Helena Bonham Carter che interpreta Bellatrix Lestrange. Harry Potter e il principe mezzosangue: il sesto film, uscito nelle sale il 15 luglio 2009 per la regia di David Yates. L' adattamento cinematografico di Harry Potter e i doni della morte è stato diviso in due pellicole (Harry Potter e i doni della morte: Parte I e Harry Potter e i doni della morte: Parte II); la prima è uscita nelle sale il 19 novembre 2010, la seconda uscirà il 15 luglio 2011. Lo sceneggiatore Steve Kloves, il regista David Yates e il produttore David Heyman hanno optato per questa scelta adducendo a "motivazioni puramente creative", ritenendo che, considerata la lunghezza del settimo libro e, soprattutto, l'importanza di ogni momento della sua struttura narrativa, sarebbe stato difficile condensare la trama in un unico film. ^[8][9] La decisione è stata presa consultando anche l'autrice J.K. Rowling.
• 
  Mentre nei primi due film l'originale controparte letteraria era estesa in un totale di trecento pagine, che consentì una fedeltà al libro quasi totale, già dal terzo volume si rendono necessari cospicui tagli nella sceneggiatura per ovvie ragioni di minutaggio della pellicola.
• Un comunicato stampa ufficiale: «Con il successo di Harry Potter e l'Ordine della Fenice (938 milioni di dollari nel mondo, sesto successo più grande di sempre e secondo più grande nella saga), i film di Harry Potter della Warner Bros Pictures sono diventati, in tutto il mondo, gli adattamenti cinematografici più produttivi di sempre.» L'annuncio è stato fatto l'11 settembre 2007 da parte di Barry Meyer e Alan Horn della Warner Bros.^{[senza fonte]}
• I risultati del box office combinati insieme per i sei film di Harry Potter più la prima parte di Harry Potter e i Doni Della Morte raggiungono e superano i 6,35 miliardi di dollari, sorpassando quindi i ventidue film di James Bond e i sei film di Star Wars, diventando la serie più produttiva della storia.^{[senza fonte]}

• Adattamenti videoludici [modifica]

• I videogiochi di Harry Potter sono destinati prevalentemente ad un'utenza di bambini; escono in concomitanza con i film (circa una settimana prima). Queste riproduzioni videoludiche seguono la trama della pellicola cinematografica, più che la trama dei romanzi di J.K. Rowling.
• Harry Potter e la pietra filosofale (2001) Harry Potter e la camera dei segreti (2002) Harry Potter e la Coppa del Mondo di Quidditch (2003) Harry Potter e il prigioniero di Azkaban (2004) Harry Potter e il calice di fuoco (2005) Harry Potter e l'ordine della fenice (2007) Harry Potter e il principe mezzosangue (2009) Harry Potter e i Doni della Morte: Parte I (videogioco) (2010) Harry Potter e i Doni della Morte: Parte II (videogioco) (2011) Lego Harry Potter: Anni 1-4 (2010)
• Oltre ai videogiochi per console, sono state realizzati alcuni DVD interattivi dedicati alla saga, Harry Potter e la sfida di Hogwarts (2007) e Harry Potter DVD Game: Wizarding World (previsto per fine 2009^[10]), e due versioni del gioco da tavolo Scene It? (2005 e 2007).

• Cronologia del fenomeno Harry Potter [modifica]

• 1997 (UK), 1998 (IT) - pubblicazione del primo libro, Harry Potter e la pietra filosofale 1998 - pubblicazione del secondo libro, Harry Potter e la camera dei segreti 1999 - pubblicazione del terzo libro, Harry Potter e il prigioniero di Azkaban 2000 - pubblicazione del quarto libro, Harry Potter e il calice di fuoco 2001 - uscita del primo film, Harry Potter e la pietra filosofale 2002 - uscita del secondo film, Harry Potter e la camera dei segreti 2003 - pubblicazione del quinto libro, Harry Potter e l'Ordine della Fenice 2004 - uscita del terzo film, Harry Potter e il prigioniero di Azkaban 2005 (UK), 2006 (IT) - pubblicazione del sesto libro, Harry Potter e il principe mezzosangue 2005 - uscita del quarto film, Harry Potter e il calice di fuoco 2007 - uscita del quinto film, Harry Potter e l'Ordine della Fenice 2007 (UK), 2008 (IT) - pubblicazione del settimo libro, Harry Potter e i Doni della Morte 2009 dopo lo slittamento dal 21 novembre 2008 al 15 luglio 2009 - uscita del sesto film, Harry Potter e il principe mezzosangue 2010 - 19 novembre, uscita del settimo film, Harry Potter e i doni della morte: Parte I 2011 - a luglio è prevista l'uscita dell'ottavo film, Harry Potter e i doni della morte: Parte II in 3D e in 2D

• Critiche a Harry Potter [modifica]

• Critiche dalla Chiesa cattolica [modifica]

• Nel 2003, la tedesca Gabriele Kuby pubblicò un pamphlet contro la serie, asserendo che l'opera poteva traviare l'educazione dei bambini alla fede cristiana. La posizione della Kuby sembrò essere anche appoggiata dall'allora cardinale Joseph Ratzinger, all'epoca prefetto della pontificia Congregazione per la Dottrina della Fede. All'uscita del sesto libro si scatenò sui giornali una polemica sulle presunte affermazioni del cardinale Ratzinger, affermazioni mai confermate.
• Tuttavia il 14 luglio 2005 Radio Vaticana trasmise un'intervista a monsignor Peter Fleetwood (Pontificio Consiglio per la Cultura) nella quale, fra le altre cose, affermò che la risposta sulla quale la Kuby basò il suo libro era stata molto generica, scritta da un assistente dell'allora cardinale Ratzinger. Monsignor Fleetwood afferma: "I racconti (di Harry Potter, n.d.r.) sono scritti sul classico dualismo bene-male, in linea con quelli che erano gli standard dei vecchi miti dove gli 'eroi' del bene sono quelli che alla fine vinceranno. I nemici di Harry ricordano il male in tutte le sue forme e alla fine sono quelli che perderanno. Non vedo niente di sbagliato in questo o niente che possa danneggiare i bambini che lo leggono".^[11]
• Antonio Spadaro ha scritto un articolo sull'argomento: «Il fenomeno “Harry Potter”», in La Civiltà Cattolica Quaderno N°3641 del 21 marzo 2009 - (Civ. Catt. I 425-530 n°1 del 2002).

• Critiche femministe [modifica]

• In un articolo del gennaio 2000, la giornalista anglo-tedesca Christine Schoefer critica l'ambientazione e la caratterizzazione dei personaggi dei primi tre libri, allora gli unici usciti, della saga di Harry Potter, definendola convenzionale, stereotipata e sessista. Secondo la Schoefer, il mondo magico descritto dalla scrittrice inglese «rispecchia fedelmente il convenzionale assunto che gli uomini gestiscano il mondo e che così debba essere»^[12].
• Questa rappresentazione convenzionale - secondo l'opinione della giornalista - è deducibile dal contrasto tra il coraggio espresso da Harry nelle situazioni pericolose rispetto all'apparente fragilità emotiva di Hermione che, a dispetto delle sue brillanti capacità, esprime un costante bisogno di approvazione da parte di Harry e Ron. Alla stessa maniera, la Schoefer critica la rappresentazione degli adulti con ruoli di responsabilità: la fragilità e la severità della professoressa McGranitt contrasterebbe con il carisma e la composta lungimiranza di Silente; l'eccentricità e l'incapacità di profetizzare volontariamente di Sibilla Cooman esprimerebbero il discredito per la pratica, tradizionalmente femminile, della predizione della fortuna.
• Oltre alle critiche di sessismo, la saga di Harry Potter è stata fatto oggetto di illazioni per i forti contenuti "fallici": infatti, come riporta la scrittrice Valentina Oppezzo in "Harry Potter al cinema" (2010), Jack Zipes nel 2002 ha sostenuto che il mondo magico dipinto nei romanzi di HP sarebbe pieno di riferimenti alla virilità maschile ("universo fallocentrico della Rowling"), di cui il principale indizio sarebbe un uso ossessivo delle bacchette magiche per risolvere i duelli.

• Critiche al conservatorismo della saga [modifica]

• Il critico Anthony Holden ha scritto sul The Observer della sua esperienza nel giudicare Harry Potter e il prigioniero di Azkaban per i Whitbread Awards del 1999. Il suo giudizio sulla serie è decisamente negativo: "la saga di Potter era essenzialmente molto conservatrice e tristemente nostalgica di un'Inghilterra ormai passata" e "molti critici del Whitbread erano d'accordo con me".^[13]

• Critiche dai conservatori [modifica]

• Nel 2000, Steve Bonta, il Communications Director del Partito Conservatore, dichiarò che i libri di Harry Potter insegnavano ai bambini una cattiva lezione: "Il mondo magico è eccitante, compassionevole e ricco di caratteri non convenzionali, mentre il mondo convenzionale, conservatore e lavoratore è rigido e popolato da famiglie allo sbando piene di bigotteria e di piccolezze patologiche".^[14] Il magazine, inoltre, considera l'autrice J.K. Rowling, a causa della sua simpatia per Jessica Mitford, una persona con ideologie di sinistra.
• Quando il conservatore Michael Gove è venuto a conoscenza dell'ammirazione della Rowling per la socialista Jessica Mitford ha scritto una colonna sul The Times dichiarando di aver "perso rispetto per l'autrice."^[15]

• Curiosità [modifica]

• Contribuisci a migliorarla integrando se possibile le informazioni nel corpo della voce e rimuovendo quelle inappropriate.
• Ad una specie di dinosauro è stato dato il nome Dracorex hogwartsia in riferimento alla Scuola di Magia.
• Il 18 giugno 2010 è stata aperta un'area nel parco di divertimento di Island of Adventures, sul mondo di Harry Potter, chiamata: "The Wizarding World of Harry Potter". Il parco situato ad Orlando in Florida ricostruisce gli scenari più caratteristici della saga di Harry Potter come la scuola di Hogwarts, il villaggio Hogsmeade e la via Diagon Alley. Oltre alla costruzione di nuove attrazioni, il parco divertimenti della Universal, vedrà la ritematizzazione di una delle storiche attrazioni del parco: Dueling Dragons.
• Nella Repubblica Popolare Cinese il successo di Harry Potter è stato talmente vasto da generare un singolare fenomeno di pirateria editoriale che vede, a fianco della realizzazione di ristampe non ufficiali vendute a una frazione del prezzo originale e traduzioni non autorizzate, anche la creazione di storie originali scritte da autori cinesi sconosciuti che cercano di cavalcare l’onda del successo di J.K. Rowling. Fra questi titoli "apocrifi", che vengono venduti agli angoli delle strade o in rete, vale la pena citare "Harry Potter and the Chinese Witch", "Harry Potter and the Hiking Dragon", "Harry Potter and the Poor and the Rich Father", "Harry Potter and the Chinese Porcelain Doll", "Harry Potter and the Chinese Empire".^[16]

• Note [modifica]

• ^ J. K. Rowling Official Site – Section Biography. URL consultato il 2007-08-15.
• ^ Jenny Booth. J.K. Rowling publishes Harry Potter spin-off in Times UK. 2007. URL consultato il 2007-12-31.
• ^ JK Rowling. J.K.Rowling Official Site - Harry Potter and more: Acknowledgements. URL consultato il 2007-07-30.
• ^ [1].Elizabeth E. Heilman, in "Critical Perspectives on Harry Potter" sostiene infatti che "The Harry Potter books belong to this same genre, Bildungsroman: a young man is led by a collection of hands higher than he is aware of toward his destiny"
• ^ Prequel di Harry Potter.
• ^ Negli Stati Uniti si scelse il titolo Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone poiché la Scholastic pensò che se nel titolo si fosse parlato di filosofi (Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone), il libro non avrebbe attratto la fascia d'età a cui era indirizzato
• ^ Deathly Hallows vuol dire Doni della Morte ma anche Reliquie Mortali
• ^ Harry Potter e i Doni della Morte diviso in due parti: parlano Heyman, Robinov e Yates, letto su Harry Potter Italia. URL consultato il 13 Novembre 2010.
• ^ Harry Potter e i Doni della Morte diviso in due parti: Steve Kloves commenta, letto su Harry Potter Italia. URL consultato il 13-11-2010.
• ^ Warner Home Video to Release DVD Game Harry, TimeWarner.com
• ^ Trascrizione dell'intervista (in lingua inglese).
• ^ «Harry's fictional realm of magic and wizardry perfectly mirrors the conventional assumption that men do and should run the world.», in Christine Schoefer Harry Potter's girl trouble. 12 gennaio 2000
• ^ Anthony Holden. (EN) Why Harry Potter doesn't cast a spell over me. The Observer, 25 giugno 2000. URL consultato il 30-3-2009.
• ^ (cit.). (EN) THE DARK WORLD OF HARRY POTTER!. Pathlights, 2000. URL consultato il 28-5-2010.
• ^ M. Gove. (EN) The revelation that put me off J. K. Rowling. The Times, 15/11/2006. URL consultato il 28-5-2010.
• ^ Panorama.it. (IT) Cina: il boom degli Harry Potter taroccati. Mondadori, 3 agosto 2007. URL consultato il 27-5-2010.

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• The Big Bang Theory

• From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
• Jump to: navigation, search
• This article is about the sitcom. For the cosmological model, see Big Bang. For other uses, see Big Bang Theory (disambiguation).
• The Big Bang Theory is an American sitcom created by Chuck Lorre and Bill Prady, both of whom serve as executive producers on the show, along with Lee Aronsohn, who is also one of the head writers. It premiered on CBS on September 24, 2007.^[2]
• Set in Pasadena, California, the show is centered on five characters: two roommate Caltech geniuses, experimental physicist Leonard Hofstadter and theoretical physicist Sheldon Cooper; their neighbor across the hall Penny, an attractive blonde waitress and aspiring actress; and Leonard's and Sheldon's equally geeky and socially awkward co-workers and friends Howard Wolowitz, an Aerospace engineer and a non-PhD from JPL, and Rajesh Koothrappali, a particle astrophysicist postdoc also working at Caltech. The geekiness and intellect of the four guys are contrasted for comic effect with Penny's social skills and common sense.^[3][4] Three other supporting characters have also been promoted to main cast status for a few episodes: Leslie Winkle, a Caltech colleague of Leonard, Sheldon, and Raj; Bernadette, a microbiology student who works with Penny part time as a waitress; and Amy Farrah Fowler, a friend of Sheldon's.
• The show is produced by Warner Bros. Television and Chuck Lorre Productions.^[5] In August 2009, the sitcom won the best comedy series TCA award and Jim Parsons won the award for individual achievement in comedy.^[6] In 2010, the show won the People's Choice Award for Favorite Comedy, while Parsons won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series.^[7] On January 16, 2011, Parsons was awarded a Golden Globe by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association for Best Performance by an Actor In A Television Series - Comedy Or Musical, an award that was presented by co-star Kaley Cuoco.
• When the third season premiered on September 21, 2009, it ranked as CBS's highest-rated show of that evening in the adults 18–49 demographic (4.6/10), along with a then series-high 12.83 million viewers.^[8] On May 19, 2010, it was announced that CBS would be moving the show to Thursdays at 8:00 ET for the 2010–2011 schedule. On January 12, 2011, it was announced that the show has been renewed for an additional three years, extending it through the 2013-2014 season.^[9]

• The Big Bang Theory

• From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
• Jump to: navigation, search
• This article is about the sitcom. For the cosmological model, see Big Bang. For other uses, see Big Bang Theory (disambiguation).

• The Big Bang Theory is an American sitcom created by Chuck Lorre and Bill Prady, both of whom serve as executive producers on the show, along with Lee Aronsohn, who is also one of the head writers. It premiered on CBS on September 24, 2007.^[2]
• Set in Pasadena, California, the show is centered on five characters: two roommate Caltech geniuses, experimental physicist Leonard Hofstadter and theoretical physicist Sheldon Cooper; their neighbor across the hall Penny, an attractive blonde waitress and aspiring actress; and Leonard's and Sheldon's equally geeky and socially awkward co-workers and friends Howard Wolowitz, an Aerospace engineer and a non-PhD from JPL, and Rajesh Koothrappali, a particle astrophysicist postdoc also working at Caltech. The geekiness and intellect of the four guys are contrasted for comic effect with Penny's social skills and common sense.^[3][4] Three other supporting characters have also been promoted to main cast status for a few episodes: Leslie Winkle, a Caltech colleague of Leonard, Sheldon, and Raj; Bernadette, a microbiology student who works with Penny part time as a waitress; and Amy Farrah Fowler, a friend of Sheldon's.
• The show is produced by Warner Bros. Television and Chuck Lorre Productions.^[5] In August 2009, the sitcom won the best comedy series TCA award and Jim Parsons won the award for individual achievement in comedy.^[6] In 2010, the show won the People's Choice Award for Favorite Comedy, while Parsons won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series.^[7] On January 16, 2011, Parsons was awarded a Golden Globe by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association for Best Performance by an Actor In A Television Series - Comedy Or Musical, an award that was presented by co-star Kaley Cuoco.
• When the third season premiered on September 21, 2009, it ranked as CBS's highest-rated show of that evening in the adults 18–49 demographic (4.6/10), along with a then series-high 12.83 million viewers.^[8] On May 19, 2010, it was announced that CBS would be moving the show to Thursdays at 8:00 ET for the 2010–2011 schedule. On January 12, 2011, it was announced that the show has been renewed for an additional three years, extending it through the 2013-2014 season.^[9]

• [edit] Production

• The show's initial pilot, developed for the 2006–07 television season, was substantially different from its current form. Only Johnny Galecki and Jim Parsons were in the cast, and the female lead, Katie, was envisioned as "a street-hardened, tough-as-nails woman with a vulnerable interior".^[10] Katie was played by actress Amanda Walsh.^[11] They also had a female friend called Gilda (played by Iris Bahr). The show's original theme music was also different, using Thomas Dolby's hit "She Blinded Me With Science" (This song was later used as the ringtone for Howard's cell phone in the season 3 episode "The Creepy Candy Coating Corollary"). The show was not picked up, but the creators were given an opportunity to revise the show, bringing in the remaining leading cast and retooling the show to its current format. The original unaired pilot has never been released on any official format, but copies are available on the Internet. On the evolution of the show, Lorre said "We did the 'Big Bang Pilot' about two and a half years ago, and it sucked... but there were two remarkable things that worked perfectly, and that was Johnny and Jim. We rewrote the thing entirely, and then we were blessed with Kaley and Simon and Kunal." As to whether the world will ever see that original pilot, maybe on a DVD, Lorre said "Wow that would be something, we will see. Show your failures..."^[12]
• The title card for the original 2006 pilot
• The second pilot of The Big Bang Theory was directed by James Burrows, who did not continue with the show. This reworked pilot led to a 13-episode order by CBS on May 14, 2007.^[13] Prior to its airing on CBS, the pilot episode was distributed on iTunes free of charge. The show premiered September 24, 2007, and was picked-up for a full 22-episode season on October 19, 2007.^[14]
• Production on the show was halted on November 6, 2007 due to the Writers Guild of America strike, returning on March 17, 2008 in an earlier time slot^[15] and with nine new episodes.^[16][17] After the strike ended, the show was picked up for a second season airing in the 2008–2009 season, premiering in the same time slot on September 22, 2008.^[18] With increasing ratings, the show received a two-year renewal through the 2010–11 season.^[19][20] Since then, the show has been picked up for three more seasons, which will make it end in the seventh season (2013-2014 season).^{[citation needed]}
• David Saltzberg, a professor of physics and astronomy at the University of California, Los Angeles, checks scripts and provides dialogue, math equations, and diagrams used as props.^[3] According to executive producer/co-creator Bill Prady, "We're working on giving Sheldon an actual problem that he's going to be working on throughout the [first] season so there's actual progress to the boards ... We worked hard to get all the science right."^[4]
• The lead characters are named Sheldon and Leonard after actor, director, and producer Sheldon Leonard.^[21]
• Several of the actors in The Big Bang Theory worked together previously on Roseanne, an American sitcom broadcast on ABC from October 18, 1988 to May 21, 1997. These former Roseanne cast-mates are Johnny Galecki (Leonard Hofstadter), Sara Gilbert (Leslie Winkle) and Laurie Metcalf, guest star role as Sheldon Cooper's mother, (Mary Cooper).
• "The Big Bang Theory theme song (The History of Everything)," single cover Barenaked Ladies single (2007)
• Barenaked Ladies wrote and recorded the theme song, which describes the development of the universe and the changes that the Earth and humans have undergone since the dawn of time, according to the eponymous theory, and the history of life according to the theory of evolution. On October 9, 2007, a full-length (1 minute and 45 seconds) version of the song was released.^[22] In a 2010 issue of TV Guide, the show’s opening title sequence ranked #6 on a list of TV's top 10 credits sequences, as selected by readers.^[23]

• [edit] Production costs

• For the first three seasons, Johnny Galecki, Kaley Cuoco, and Jim Parsons, the three main stars of the show, received at most $60,000 per episode. The salary for the three went up to $200,000 per episode for the fourth season. According to their contracts, their pay will go up an additional $50,000 per episode every season culminating in $350,000 per episode in the seventh season.^[24]

• [edit] Main cast

• Main article: List of The Big Bang Theory characters
• Cast of characters in The Big Bang Theory. From left: Howard Wolowitz, Leonard Hofstadter, Penny, Sheldon Cooper and Rajesh Koothrappali. Johnny Galecki^[25] as Leonard Hofstadter, Ph.D. – Leonard is an experimental physicist with an IQ of 173 who received his Ph.D. when he was 24 years old. He shares an apartment with colleague and friend Sheldon Cooper. The writers immediately implied a potential romance between him and neighbor Penny, and their sexual tension is a frequently explored drama. Jim Parsons^[26] as Sheldon Cooper, Ph.D. – Originally from East Texas, he was a child prodigy who began college at the age of 11 (after completing the fifth grade), started graduate studies at 14, and earned his first Ph.D. at 16. A theoretical physicist focusing on string theory, he possesses a master's degree, two PhDs, and an IQ of 187. He exhibits a strict adherence to routine; a lack of understanding of irony, sarcasm, and humor; he is also uninterested in many of the romantic hijinks between Leonard, Howard, and Raj. These characteristics are the main sources of his humor and the basis of a number of episodes. Sheldon shares an apartment with Leonard Hofstadter, across the hall from Penny, and relies on both for advice in social situations. Kaley Cuoco^[27] as Penny – She is the attractive blonde, "born and raised in Omaha, Nebraska", who lives across the hall from Sheldon and Leonard. She hopes for a career in acting, and has been to casting calls and auditions but has not been successful thus far. To pay the bills, she is a waitress at The Cheesecake Factory. To date, her last name has not been revealed.^[28] During the fourth season, Cuoco broke her leg in a horse-riding accident.^[29][30][31] When she returned to the show, after missing two episodes, she was shown working as a bartender at the Cheesecake Factory, instead of in her normal employment as a waitress. Her cast was concealed, and no mention of the unseen broken leg was made.^[32] Simon Helberg^[33] as Howard Wolowitz, M.Eng.^[34] – He works as an aerospace engineer. He is Jewish, and lives with his mother. His father left when he was 11, and, to date, he has never learned why. Unlike Sheldon, Leonard, and Raj, Howard lacks a Ph.D. He defends this by pointing out that he has a master's degree in Engineering from MIT and the apparatus he designs are built and launched into space, unlike the purely abstract work of his friends. He provides outrageous pick-up lines and fancies himself a lady's man with suitably unimpressed reactions from Penny; however, he has shown limited success with other women. He claims to be a polyglot, although in truth, he isn't (ex. the Chinese waiter at one episode addressed Howard as "the guy who thinks he speaks Chinese). Kunal Nayyar^[35] as Rajesh Koothrappali, Ph.D. – Rajesh, who originally comes from New Delhi, India, works as a particle astrophysicist at Caltech.^[36] He is very shy around women and is physically unable to talk to them unless he drinks alcohol (or thinks he has been drinking alcohol). However, he has had much better luck with women than his overly confident best friend Howard. His parents, Dr. and Mrs. V.M. Koothrappali, are seen via webcam. In the third season, he works for Sheldon because his research has run into a dead-end and he does not want to return to India.^[37] Sara Gilbert as Leslie Winkle, Ph.D. (recurring seasons 1 & 3, starring season 2)^[38][39] – Leslie is an experimental physicist who has casual sex with both Howard and Leonard during the show's airing. She does not get along well with Sheldon and frequently mocks him. Gilbert was promoted to main cast during the second season, but demoted again once the writers realized they could not produce quality material for her for every episode.^[38] Melissa Rauch as Bernadette Rostenkowski (recurring season 3, starring season 4)^[40] – a waitress and co-worker of Penny paying her way through graduate school microbiology studies. Bernadette is introduced to Howard by Penny. At first she and Howard do not get along, as they appear to have nothing in common. When they find out that they both have overbearing mothers, they feel a connection. Mayim Bialik as Amy Farrah Fowler, Ph.D. (guest season 3, recurring and starring season 4)^[41] – a woman Raj and Howard meet on an online dating site using a faux account for Sheldon. She is essentially a female duplicate of Sheldon and she and Sheldon become friends although - as Sheldon claims - she is a girl and is his friend, but she is not his "girlfriend". However, she has recently pushed Sheldon's limits of restraint, such as when she compared Star Trek to cheap science fiction. She is a neuroscientist (which corresponds to Bialik's real life Ph.D.).

• [edit] Elements of the show

• This section does not cite any references or sources.
  Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (February 2011)

• This section may contain original research. Please improve it by verifying the claims made and adding references. Statements consisting only of original research may be removed. More details may be available on the talk page. (February 2011)

• [edit] Science

• Much of the show focuses on science, particularly physics. The four main male characters are employed at Caltech and have science-related occupations.
• Leonard is an experimental optical^{[citation needed]} physicist who earned his Ph.D. at age 24. He often works with lasers, and unsuccessfully attempted to disprove the existence of dark matter.
• Sheldon is a theoretical physicist with an M.Sc. and two Ph.Ds. He has spent much of his career attempting to prove string theory over loop quantum gravity. He believed he proved it on an expedition to the North Pole, but Leonard, Howard and Rajesh later revealed that they fabricated the positive data so Sheldon would stop acting like a "huge Dickensian".
• Howard is an aerospace engineer who has a Master's from MIT. He has developed several devices for the International Space Station, but he often uses them for his own purposes with disastrous results, such as getting the Mars rover stuck in a ditch while trying to impress a girl or getting a robotic arm stuck on his penis while using it to masturbate. He also invented a zero-gravity human waste disposal system (essentially a space toilet) for the space station, but shortly after it was deployed he discovered a structural weakness: that the toilet would fail after a certain number of flushes, and the waste material would eventually come back out. As a result, he pulled an all-nighter with Sheldon and Raj trying to fix it; their ultimate solution proved unsuccessful (and it became, as Raj put it, a "waste distribution system").
• Raj is an astrophysicist with a Ph.D. Following his discovery of a planetary object beyond the Kuiper Belt, Raj was named in People Magazine's "30 Under 30 to Watch," and became a celebrity of sorts, getting a larger office and drawing the envy of his friends. After failed research on the composition of trans-Neptunian objects, Raj feared the prospect of being deported back to India; eventually he collaborated with Sheldon "exploring string theory implications of gamma rays from dark matter."
• The guys also date some women who are experts in a science-related field. Both Leonard and Howard have had casual sex with Leslie Winkle, an experimental physicist at Caltech who is essentially Leonard's female counterpart. In season 3, Howard begins dating Bernadette, a microbiology major employed as a waitress at the Cheesecake Factory. In season 4, Sheldon begins a "relationship" with Amy Farrah Fowler, a neurobiologist.
• Science has also interfered with the guys romantic lives. Leslie broke up with Leonard when he sided with Sheldon in his support for string theory rather than her support for loop quantum gravity. When Bernadette showed interest in Leonard's work, it made both Penny and Howard jealous and resulted in Howard confronting Leonard and Penny asking Sheldon to teach her physics. Sheldon also "broke up" with Amy when she boasted that neurobiology was superior to theoretical physics.

• [edit] Leonard and Penny's relationship

• A major force that drives the series is the relationship between Leonard and Penny. Leonard becomes attracted to Penny within seconds of spotting her. He asks her out in the season 1 finale, and the date continues into the season 2 premiere; however, Penny breaks up with Leonard because of a misunderstanding involving their respective educational attainments.
• Following the breakup, Leonard dates a few other women, including Leslie Winkle and Dr. Stephanie Barnett. When Leonard's mother comes to visit, he and Penny get drunk and come very close to having sex, but Leonard ruins the moment by talking about childhood issues with his mother and her father.
• When Penny starts dating Stuart, the clerk at the comic book store, Leonard isn't too happy about it, and even tries to sabotage one of their dates. However, the relationship doesn't fare too well. On the first date, the two are interrupted by Sheldon. On the second date, Penny mistakenly calls Stuart, "Leonard."
• When Sheldon, Leonard, Raj, and Howard accept a National Science Foundation expedition to the North Pole in the season 2 finale, Penny begins to show feelings for Leonard. When they return in the season 3 premiere, Leonard and Penny have sex for the first time, and are together for the majority of the third season.
• However, toward the end of the season, Penny breaks up with Leonard after he prematurely tells her he loves her and she realizes she can not say it back. In the finale, after Penny's failed attempts to move on, she gets drunk after a bad date with a dim-witted beefcake named Zack, and has sex with Leonard, making him incorrectly believe that they are back together.
• In the eighth episode of season 4, "The 21 Second Excitation", Penny shows signs of regret in her decision to end the relationship, as she tells Amy and Bernadette "I don’t know" when they ask, during a game of Truth or Dare, why she broke up with him. She says that Leonard is a great guy, and Amy points out that another woman could realize this, and asks what Penny would do if she ever changed her mind but Leonard wasn’t available. In response to this, Penny says that she doesn’t want to play any more, gets up, and leaves the room.
• In the ninth episode of season 4, Penny's dad comes to visit. Penny tells her father that she and Leonard are back together, because Leonard is Penny's only boyfriend that he ever approved of. In the end, he finds out the truth, first he yells at Penny. He then turns to Leonard, Penny says Leonard had nothing to do with this, but he sends Penny into the other room. Wyatt grabs Leonard's shirt and begs him to get back together with Penny. To help Leonard, he pretends to throw him out, but the viewer is never shown Penny's reaction. This episode indicates that Penny's family want Penny and Leonard to be a couple.
• In the eleventh episode of season 4, Penny begins dating Zack again. She agrees to go with him and the guys to the comic book store on New Year's Eve to help them win a prize dressed as Wonder Woman. Just before they leave she gets mad at Zack and will not leave her apartment even though Zack has apologized and Sheldon tried to talk to her. Howard suggests that Leonard talk to her. She lets Leonard in and tells him that she only got back together with Zack because she didn't want to be alone on New Year's. Penny goes on to say "If Zack and I had just gone to a regular party it would have been fine. But this, with the costumes and you". Leonard responds by saying "What about me?" Penny looks at him and comes close to telling him that she still has feelings for him, but then says, "Nothing. Let's go to the party". When later in the party Zack and Penny kiss as the new year begins, Leonard is visibly upset and Penny looks at him guiltily while still embracing Zack.
• In the season 4 episode "The Love Car Displacement" Everyone stays at the same hotel and Penny and Leonard have to share a bed because "Howard is a complete and total ass, Bernadette is in Penny's bed, and Amy bites." After talking about their relationship Penny agrees that having sex for one night wouldn't be the worst thing, but Raj enters before Leonard and Penny get very far.

• [edit] Religion

• Religion has been a minor focus on the series in the past. Sheldon was raised in a Christian household, but does not follow any religion now. He calls his childhood "hell," however it is not clear this is from his religious upbringing or his inability to fit in with and subsequent tormenting by his peers, for example, excrement was once placed on the handlebars of Sheldon's bike. His mother, Mary, is an extremely conservative, right-wing Christian whose religious views often clash with Sheldon's scientific ones, nevertheless, Sheldon tends to accept (or at least humour) them.
• Howard is Jewish but doesn't keep kosher. He eats pork in season 2, and when the price of the pork went up, Howard remarked "it's getting tougher and tougher to be a bad Jew." When his stomach reacts badly to the pork, Raj mocks him by quoting Leviticus 11:3. However, Howard has shown some faith in his religion. When he and Raj posed as goths to pick up women, they wore fake-tattoo sleeves, and Howard refused to get actual tattoos so he could still be buried in a Jewish cemetery.^[42]
• Raj is a Hindu, but like Howard doesn't follow dietary restrictions. He loathes Indian cuisine, and when he mocks Howard for not keeping kosher by quoting the Torah, Howard responds with, "Hey, do I mock you with the Bhagavad Gita every time you scarf down a Whopper?" However, Raj does hold some traditional Hindu beliefs, such as reincarnation and karma.
• Leonard and Penny do not appear to follow any religion; however, Leonard seems to envy Sheldon's childhood, and gets along well with Sheldon's religious mother. Penny, on the other hand, has expressed belief in several fringe practices, including psychics (precognition), ghosts, voodoo, astrology, and pyramid power, but doesn't believe in crystal healing.

• [edit] Endcard

• Like all shows created by Chuck Lorre, The Big Bang Theory ends by showing a vanity card written by Lorre after the credits.^[43]

• [edit] Ratings

• [edit] U.S. standard ratings

• Seasonal ratings based on average total viewers per episode of The Big Bang Theory on CBS:

• [edit] UK distribution and ratings

• The show made its UK debut on Channel 4 on February 14, 2008 bringing in an average audience of 1.0 million viewers. The second episode, shown the following week, also received 1.0 million. For the third episode an average of 1.1 million tuned in. The show is also shown as a 'first-look' on Channel 4's digital offshoot E4, and brings in 400,000 viewers on average. The fifth episode received 880,000 viewers. After the first five episodes, the average number of viewers continues to hover around the 1 million mark. Episode 13 was watched by 1.3 million viewers and was the most watched episode.^[47]
• In December 2008, Virgin Media made the first nine episodes of the first season available to watch on its TV Choice On Demand service, and the rest of Season 1 was made available in January 2009.
• As of December 5, 2009, all 23 episodes of Season 2 were also made available on Virgin Media TV Choice On Demand Service, but both seasons have now been removed.
• The third season began airing on E4 and E4 HD on December 17, 2009 at 9.00 pm but was on hiatus between February 25, 2010 until May 6, 2010 when the final 11 episodes of the season aired.
• Season 4 began airing on E4 on November 4, 2010 at 9pm. It drew 877,000 viewers, with a further 256,000 watching on the E4+1 hour service. This gave the show an overall total of 1.13 million viewers, making it E4's most watched programme for that week.^[48]

• [edit] Canadian ratings

• The Big Bang Theory started off quietly in Canada, but managed to garner major success later on in further seasons. The season 4 premiere garnered an estimated 3.1 million viewers across Canada (representing roughly 31 million American viewers in comparison). This is the largest audience for a sitcom since the series finale of Friends. The Big Bang Theory has pulled ahead and has now become the most watched show in Canada.^[49]

• [edit] Media information

• [edit] Production

• The show's initial pilot, developed for the 2006–07 television season, was substantially different from its current form. Only Johnny Galecki and Jim Parsons were in the cast, and the female lead, Katie, was envisioned as "a street-hardened, tough-as-nails woman with a vulnerable interior".^[10] Katie was played by actress Amanda Walsh.^[11] They also had a female friend called Gilda (played by Iris Bahr). The show's original theme music was also different, using Thomas Dolby's hit "She Blinded Me With Science" (This song was later used as the ringtone for Howard's cell phone in the season 3 episode "The Creepy Candy Coating Corollary"). The show was not picked up, but the creators were given an opportunity to revise the show, bringing in the remaining leading cast and retooling the show to its current format. The original unaired pilot has never been released on any official format, but copies are available on the Internet. On the evolution of the show, Lorre said "We did the 'Big Bang Pilot' about two and a half years ago, and it sucked... but there were two remarkable things that worked perfectly, and that was Johnny and Jim. We rewrote the thing entirely, and then we were blessed with Kaley and Simon and Kunal." As to whether the world will ever see that original pilot, maybe on a DVD, Lorre said "Wow that would be something, we will see. Show your failures..."^[12]
• The title card for the original 2006 pilot
• The second pilot of The Big Bang Theory was directed by James Burrows, who did not continue with the show. This reworked pilot led to a 13-episode order by CBS on May 14, 2007.^[13] Prior to its airing on CBS, the pilot episode was distributed on iTunes free of charge. The show premiered September 24, 2007, and was picked-up for a full 22-episode season on October 19, 2007.^[14]
• Production on the show was halted on November 6, 2007 due to the Writers Guild of America strike, returning on March 17, 2008 in an earlier time slot^[15] and with nine new episodes.^[16][17] After the strike ended, the show was picked up for a second season airing in the 2008–2009 season, premiering in the same time slot on September 22, 2008.^[18] With increasing ratings, the show received a two-year renewal through the 2010–11 season.^[19][20] Since then, the show has been picked up for three more seasons, which will make it end in the seventh season (2013-2014 season).^{[citation needed]}
• David Saltzberg, a professor of physics and astronomy at the University of California, Los Angeles, checks scripts and provides dialogue, math equations, and diagrams used as props.^[3] According to executive producer/co-creator Bill Prady, "We're working on giving Sheldon an actual problem that he's going to be working on throughout the [first] season so there's actual progress to the boards ... We worked hard to get all the science right."^[4]
• The lead characters are named Sheldon and Leonard after actor, director, and producer Sheldon Leonard.^[21]
• Several of the actors in The Big Bang Theory worked together previously on Roseanne, an American sitcom broadcast on ABC from October 18, 1988 to May 21, 1997. These former Roseanne cast-mates are Johnny Galecki (Leonard Hofstadter), Sara Gilbert (Leslie Winkle) and Laurie Metcalf, guest star role as Sheldon Cooper's mother, (Mary Cooper).
• "The Big Bang Theory theme song (The History of Everything)," single cover Barenaked Ladies single (2007)
• Barenaked Ladies wrote and recorded the theme song, which describes the development of the universe and the changes that the Earth and humans have undergone since the dawn of time, according to the eponymous theory, and the history of life according to the theory of evolution. On October 9, 2007, a full-length (1 minute and 45 seconds) version of the song was released.^[22] In a 2010 issue of TV Guide, the show’s opening title sequence ranked #6 on a list of TV's top 10 credits sequences, as selected by readers.^[23]

• [edit] Production costs

• For the first three seasons, Johnny Galecki, Kaley Cuoco, and Jim Parsons, the three main stars of the show, received at most $60,000 per episode. The salary for the three went up to $200,000 per episode for the fourth season. According to their contracts, their pay will go up an additional $50,000 per episode every season culminating in $350,000 per episode in the seventh season.^[24]

• [edit] Main cast

• Main article: List of The Big Bang Theory characters
• Cast of characters in The Big Bang Theory. From left: Howard Wolowitz, Leonard Hofstadter, Penny, Sheldon Cooper and Rajesh Koothrappali. Johnny Galecki^[25] as Leonard Hofstadter, Ph.D. – Leonard is an experimental physicist with an IQ of 173 who received his Ph.D. when he was 24 years old. He shares an apartment with colleague and friend Sheldon Cooper. The writers immediately implied a potential romance between him and neighbor Penny, and their sexual tension is a frequently explored drama. Jim Parsons^[26] as Sheldon Cooper, Ph.D. – Originally from East Texas, he was a child prodigy who began college at the age of 11 (after completing the fifth grade), started graduate studies at 14, and earned his first Ph.D. at 16. A theoretical physicist focusing on string theory, he possesses a master's degree, two PhDs, and an IQ of 187. He exhibits a strict adherence to routine; a lack of understanding of irony, sarcasm, and humor; he is also uninterested in many of the romantic hijinks between Leonard, Howard, and Raj. These characteristics are the main sources of his humor and the basis of a number of episodes. Sheldon shares an apartment with Leonard Hofstadter, across the hall from Penny, and relies on both for advice in social situations. Kaley Cuoco^[27] as Penny – She is the attractive blonde, "born and raised in Omaha, Nebraska", who lives across the hall from Sheldon and Leonard. She hopes for a career in acting, and has been to casting calls and auditions but has not been successful thus far. To pay the bills, she is a waitress at The Cheesecake Factory. To date, her last name has not been revealed.^[28] During the fourth season, Cuoco broke her leg in a horse-riding accident.^[29][30][31] When she returned to the show, after missing two episodes, she was shown working as a bartender at the Cheesecake Factory, instead of in her normal employment as a waitress. Her cast was concealed, and no mention of the unseen broken leg was made.^[32] Simon Helberg^[33] as Howard Wolowitz, M.Eng.^[34] – He works as an aerospace engineer. He is Jewish, and lives with his mother. His father left when he was 11, and, to date, he has never learned why. Unlike Sheldon, Leonard, and Raj, Howard lacks a Ph.D. He defends this by pointing out that he has a master's degree in Engineering from MIT and the apparatus he designs are built and launched into space, unlike the purely abstract work of his friends. He provides outrageous pick-up lines and fancies himself a lady's man with suitably unimpressed reactions from Penny; however, he has shown limited success with other women. He claims to be a polyglot, although in truth, he isn't (ex. the Chinese waiter at one episode addressed Howard as "the guy who thinks he speaks Chinese). Kunal Nayyar^[35] as Rajesh Koothrappali, Ph.D. – Rajesh, who originally comes from New Delhi, India, works as a particle astrophysicist at Caltech.^[36] He is very shy around women and is physically unable to talk to them unless he drinks alcohol (or thinks he has been drinking alcohol). However, he has had much better luck with women than his overly confident best friend Howard. His parents, Dr. and Mrs. V.M. Koothrappali, are seen via webcam. In the third season, he works for Sheldon because his research has run into a dead-end and he does not want to return to India.^[37] Sara Gilbert as Leslie Winkle, Ph.D. (recurring seasons 1 & 3, starring season 2)^[38][39] – Leslie is an experimental physicist who has casual sex with both Howard and Leonard during the show's airing. She does not get along well with Sheldon and frequently mocks him. Gilbert was promoted to main cast during the second season, but demoted again once the writers realized they could not produce quality material for her for every episode.^[38] Melissa Rauch as Bernadette Rostenkowski (recurring season 3, starring season 4)^[40] – a waitress and co-worker of Penny paying her way through graduate school microbiology studies. Bernadette is introduced to Howard by Penny. At first she and Howard do not get along, as they appear to have nothing in common. When they find out that they both have overbearing mothers, they feel a connection. Mayim Bialik as Amy Farrah Fowler, Ph.D. (guest season 3, recurring and starring season 4)^[41] – a woman Raj and Howard meet on an online dating site using a faux account for Sheldon. She is essentially a female duplicate of Sheldon and she and Sheldon become friends although - as Sheldon claims - she is a girl and is his friend, but she is not his "girlfriend". However, she has recently pushed Sheldon's limits of restraint, such as when she compared Star Trek to cheap science fiction. She is a neuroscientist (which corresponds to Bialik's real life Ph.D.).

• [edit] Elements of the show

• This section does not cite any references or sources.
  Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (February 2011)

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• [edit] Science

• Much of the show focuses on science, particularly physics. The four main male characters are employed at Caltech and have science-related occupations.
• Leonard is an experimental optical^{[citation needed]} physicist who earned his Ph.D. at age 24. He often works with lasers, and unsuccessfully attempted to disprove the existence of dark matter.
• Sheldon is a theoretical physicist with an M.Sc. and two Ph.Ds. He has spent much of his career attempting to prove string theory over loop quantum gravity. He believed he proved it on an expedition to the North Pole, but Leonard, Howard and Rajesh later revealed that they fabricated the positive data so Sheldon would stop acting like a "huge Dickensian".
• Howard is an aerospace engineer who has a Master's from MIT. He has developed several devices for the International Space Station, but he often uses them for his own purposes with disastrous results, such as getting the Mars rover stuck in a ditch while trying to impress a girl or getting a robotic arm stuck on his penis while using it to masturbate. He also invented a zero-gravity human waste disposal system (essentially a space toilet) for the space station, but shortly after it was deployed he discovered a structural weakness: that the toilet would fail after a certain number of flushes, and the waste material would eventually come back out. As a result, he pulled an all-nighter with Sheldon and Raj trying to fix it; their ultimate solution proved unsuccessful (and it became, as Raj put it, a "waste distribution system").
• Raj is an astrophysicist with a Ph.D. Following his discovery of a planetary object beyond the Kuiper Belt, Raj was named in People Magazine's "30 Under 30 to Watch," and became a celebrity of sorts, getting a larger office and drawing the envy of his friends. After failed research on the composition of trans-Neptunian objects, Raj feared the prospect of being deported back to India; eventually he collaborated with Sheldon "exploring string theory implications of gamma rays from dark matter."
• The guys also date some women who are experts in a science-related field. Both Leonard and Howard have had casual sex with Leslie Winkle, an experimental physicist at Caltech who is essentially Leonard's female counterpart. In season 3, Howard begins dating Bernadette, a microbiology major employed as a waitress at the Cheesecake Factory. In season 4, Sheldon begins a "relationship" with Amy Farrah Fowler, a neurobiologist.
• Science has also interfered with the guys romantic lives. Leslie broke up with Leonard when he sided with Sheldon in his support for string theory rather than her support for loop quantum gravity. When Bernadette showed interest in Leonard's work, it made both Penny and Howard jealous and resulted in Howard confronting Leonard and Penny asking Sheldon to teach her physics. Sheldon also "broke up" with Amy when she boasted that neurobiology was superior to theoretical physics.

• [edit] Leonard and Penny's relationship

• A major force that drives the series is the relationship between Leonard and Penny. Leonard becomes attracted to Penny within seconds of spotting her. He asks her out in the season 1 finale, and the date continues into the season 2 premiere; however, Penny breaks up with Leonard because of a misunderstanding involving their respective educational attainments.
• Following the breakup, Leonard dates a few other women, including Leslie Winkle and Dr. Stephanie Barnett. When Leonard's mother comes to visit, he and Penny get drunk and come very close to having sex, but Leonard ruins the moment by talking about childhood issues with his mother and her father.
• When Penny starts dating Stuart, the clerk at the comic book store, Leonard isn't too happy about it, and even tries to sabotage one of their dates. However, the relationship doesn't fare too well. On the first date, the two are interrupted by Sheldon. On the second date, Penny mistakenly calls Stuart, "Leonard."
• When Sheldon, Leonard, Raj, and Howard accept a National Science Foundation expedition to the North Pole in the season 2 finale, Penny begins to show feelings for Leonard. When they return in the season 3 premiere, Leonard and Penny have sex for the first time, and are together for the majority of the third season.
• However, toward the end of the season, Penny breaks up with Leonard after he prematurely tells her he loves her and she realizes she can not say it back. In the finale, after Penny's failed attempts to move on, she gets drunk after a bad date with a dim-witted beefcake named Zack, and has sex with Leonard, making him incorrectly believe that they are back together.
• In the eighth episode of season 4, "The 21 Second Excitation", Penny shows signs of regret in her decision to end the relationship, as she tells Amy and Bernadette "I don’t know" when they ask, during a game of Truth or Dare, why she broke up with him. She says that Leonard is a great guy, and Amy points out that another woman could realize this, and asks what Penny would do if she ever changed her mind but Leonard wasn’t available. In response to this, Penny says that she doesn’t want to play any more, gets up, and leaves the room.
• In the ninth episode of season 4, Penny's dad comes to visit. Penny tells her father that she and Leonard are back together, because Leonard is Penny's only boyfriend that he ever approved of. In the end, he finds out the truth, first he yells at Penny. He then turns to Leonard, Penny says Leonard had nothing to do with this, but he sends Penny into the other room. Wyatt grabs Leonard's shirt and begs him to get back together with Penny. To help Leonard, he pretends to throw him out, but the viewer is never shown Penny's reaction. This episode indicates that Penny's family want Penny and Leonard to be a couple.
• In the eleventh episode of season 4, Penny begins dating Zack again. She agrees to go with him and the guys to the comic book store on New Year's Eve to help them win a prize dressed as Wonder Woman. Just before they leave she gets mad at Zack and will not leave her apartment even though Zack has apologized and Sheldon tried to talk to her. Howard suggests that Leonard talk to her. She lets Leonard in and tells him that she only got back together with Zack because she didn't want to be alone on New Year's. Penny goes on to say "If Zack and I had just gone to a regular party it would have been fine. But this, with the costumes and you". Leonard responds by saying "What about me?" Penny looks at him and comes close to telling him that she still has feelings for him, but then says, "Nothing. Let's go to the party". When later in the party Zack and Penny kiss as the new year begins, Leonard is visibly upset and Penny looks at him guiltily while still embracing Zack.
• In the season 4 episode "The Love Car Displacement" Everyone stays at the same hotel and Penny and Leonard have to share a bed because "Howard is a complete and total ass, Bernadette is in Penny's bed, and Amy bites." After talking about their relationship Penny agrees that having sex for one night wouldn't be the worst thing, but Raj enters before Leonard and Penny get very far.

• [edit] Religion

• Religion has been a minor focus on the series in the past. Sheldon was raised in a Christian household, but does not follow any religion now. He calls his childhood "hell," however it is not clear this is from his religious upbringing or his inability to fit in with and subsequent tormenting by his peers, for example, excrement was once placed on the handlebars of Sheldon's bike. His mother, Mary, is an extremely conservative, right-wing Christian whose religious views often clash with Sheldon's scientific ones, nevertheless, Sheldon tends to accept (or at least humour) them.
• Howard is Jewish but doesn't keep kosher. He eats pork in season 2, and when the price of the pork went up, Howard remarked "it's getting tougher and tougher to be a bad Jew." When his stomach reacts badly to the pork, Raj mocks him by quoting Leviticus 11:3. However, Howard has shown some faith in his religion. When he and Raj posed as goths to pick up women, they wore fake-tattoo sleeves, and Howard refused to get actual tattoos so he could still be buried in a Jewish cemetery.^[42]
• Raj is a Hindu, but like Howard doesn't follow dietary restrictions. He loathes Indian cuisine, and when he mocks Howard for not keeping kosher by quoting the Torah, Howard responds with, "Hey, do I mock you with the Bhagavad Gita every time you scarf down a Whopper?" However, Raj does hold some traditional Hindu beliefs, such as reincarnation and karma.
• Leonard and Penny do not appear to follow any religion; however, Leonard seems to envy Sheldon's childhood, and gets along well with Sheldon's religious mother. Penny, on the other hand, has expressed belief in several fringe practices, including psychics (precognition), ghosts, voodoo, astrology, and pyramid power, but doesn't believe in crystal healing.

• [edit] Endcard

• Like all shows created by Chuck Lorre, The Big Bang Theory ends by showing a vanity card written by Lorre after the credits.^[43]

• [edit] Ratings

• [edit] U.S. standard ratings

• Seasonal ratings based on average total viewers per episode of The Big Bang Theory on CBS:

• [edit] UK distribution and ratings

• The show made its UK debut on Channel 4 on February 14, 2008 bringing in an average audience of 1.0 million viewers. The second episode, shown the following week, also received 1.0 million. For the third episode an average of 1.1 million tuned in. The show is also shown as a 'first-look' on Channel 4's digital offshoot E4, and brings in 400,000 viewers on average. The fifth episode received 880,000 viewers. After the first five episodes, the average number of viewers continues to hover around the 1 million mark. Episode 13 was watched by 1.3 million viewers and was the most watched episode.^[47]
• In December 2008, Virgin Media made the first nine episodes of the first season available to watch on its TV Choice On Demand service, and the rest of Season 1 was made available in January 2009.
• As of December 5, 2009, all 23 episodes of Season 2 were also made available on Virgin Media TV Choice On Demand Service, but both seasons have now been removed.
• The third season began airing on E4 and E4 HD on December 17, 2009 at 9.00 pm but was on hiatus between February 25, 2010 until May 6, 2010 when the final 11 episodes of the season aired.
• Season 4 began airing on E4 on November 4, 2010 at 9pm. It drew 877,000 viewers, with a further 256,000 watching on the E4+1 hour service. This gave the show an overall total of 1.13 million viewers, making it E4's most watched programme for that week.^[48]

• [edit] Canadian ratings

• The Big Bang Theory started off quietly in Canada, but managed to garner major success later on in further seasons. The season 4 premiere garnered an estimated 3.1 million viewers across Canada (representing roughly 31 million American viewers in comparison). This is the largest audience for a sitcom since the series finale of Friends. The Big Bang Theory has pulled ahead and has now become the most watched show in Canada.^[49]

• [edit] Media information

• From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
• Jump to: navigation, search

• Julian Paul Assange ( /əˈsɑːnʒ/ ə-SAHNZH; born 3 July 1971) is an Australian publisher,^[4][5] journalist,^[6][7][8] software developer and Internet activist. He is the founder, spokesperson, and editor in chief of WikiLeaks, a whistleblower website and conduit for worldwide news leaks, with the stated purpose of creating open governments. Assange has worked as a computer programmer and was a hacker during his youth.^[9] He has lived in several countries, and has made public appearances in many parts of the world to speak about freedom of the press, censorship, and investigative journalism.
• Assange founded the WikiLeaks website in 2006 and serves on its advisory board. He has published material about extrajudicial killings in Kenya, toxic waste dumping in Côte d'Ivoire, Church of Scientology manuals, Guantanamo Bay procedures, and banks such as Kaupthing and Julius Baer.^[10] In 2010, he published classified details about American involvement in the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. On 28 November 2010, WikiLeaks and its five international print media partners (Der Spiegel, The New York Times, Le Monde, The Guardian and El País) began publishing secret US diplomatic cables.^[11]
• Assange has been praised and condemned for his work with WikiLeaks. In the USA, there have been calls for him to be arrested or treated as a terrorist. He received a number of awards and nominations, including the 2009 Amnesty International Media Award for publishing material about extrajudicial killings in Kenya and Readers' Choice for Time magazine's 2010 Person of the Year.^[12]
• Assange is currently wanted for questioning in Sweden regarding alleged sexual offences, and was arrested in London, England on 7 December 2010.^[13] He is currently on bail and under house arrest in England pending an extradition^[14][15] hearing on 7 and 8 of February.^[16] The hearing overran and an additional closing arguments session was scheduled for the morning of February 11.^[17] Assange has denied the allegations and claimed that they are politically motivated.^[18]

• Early life

• Deaths in 2010

• From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
• Jump to: navigation, search

The following is a list of notable deaths in 2010. A typical entry lists information in the following sequence:

• Name, age, country of citizenship and reason for notability, established cause of death, reference, language of reference if not English.

December 2010

See Deaths in December 2010.

November 2010

See Deaths in November 2010.

October 2010

See Deaths in October 2010.

September 2010

See Deaths in September 2010.

August 2010

See Deaths in August 2010.

July 2010

See Deaths in July 2010.

June 2010

See Deaths in June 2010.

May 2010

See Deaths in May 2010.

April 2010

See Deaths in April 2010.

March 2010

See Deaths in March 2010.

February 2010

See Deaths in February 2010.

January 2010

See Deaths in January 2010.

References

External links

The User Datagram Protocol (UDP) is one of the core members of the Internet Protocol Suite, the set of network protocols used for the Internet. With UDP, computer applications can send messages, in this case referred to as datagrams, to other hosts on an Internet Protocol (IP) network without requiring prior communications to set up special transmission channels or data paths. The protocol was designed by David P. Reed in 1980 and formally defined in RFC 768.

UDP uses a simple transmission model without implicit hand-shaking dialogues for providing reliability, ordering, or data integrity. Thus, UDP provides an unreliable service and datagrams may arrive out of order, appear duplicated, or go missing without notice. UDP assumes that error checking and correction is either not necessary or performed in the application, avoiding the overhead of such processing at the network interface level. Time-sensitive applications often use UDP because dropping packets is preferable to waiting for delayed packets, which may not be an option in a real-time system.^[1] If error correction facilities are needed at the network interface level, an application may use the Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) or Stream Control Transmission Protocol (SCTP) which are designed for this purpose.

UDP's stateless nature is also useful for servers answering small queries from huge numbers of clients. Unlike TCP, UDP is compatible with packet broadcast (sending to all on local network) and multicasting (send to all subscribers).^[2]

Common network applications that use UDP include: the Domain Name System (DNS), streaming media applications such as IPTV, Voice over IP (VoIP), Trivial File Transfer Protocol (TFTP) and many online games.

[edit] Service ports

UDP applications use datagram sockets to establish host-to-host communications. An application binds a socket to its endpoint of data transmission, which is a combination of an IP address and a service port. A port is a software structure that is identified by the port number, a 16 bit integer value, allowing for port numbers between 0 and 65535. Port 0 is reserved, but is a permissible source port value if the sending process does not expect messages in response.

The Internet Assigned Numbers Authority has divided port numbers into three ranges.^[2] Port numbers 0 through 1023 are used for common, well-known services. On Unix-like operating systems, using one of these ports requires superuser operating permission. Port numbers 1024 through 49151 are the registered ports used for IANA-registered services. Ports 49152 through 65535 are dynamic ports that are not officially for any specific service, and can be used for any purpose. They are also used as ephemeral ports, from which software running on the host may randomly choose a port in order to define itself.^[2] In effect, they are used as temporary ports primarily by clients when communicating with servers.

[edit] Packet structure

UDP is a minimal message-oriented Transport Layer protocol that is documented in IETF RFC 768.

UDP provides no guarantees to the upper layer protocol for message delivery and the UDP protocol layer retains no state of UDP messages once sent. For this reason, UDP is sometimes referred to as Unreliable Datagram Protocol.^{[citation needed]}

UDP provides application multiplexing (via port numbers) and integrity verification (via checksum) of the header and payload.^[3] If transmission reliability is desired, it must be implemented in the user's application.

The UDP header consists of 4 fields, each of which is 2 bytes (16 bits).^[1] The use of two of those is optional in IPv4 (pink background in table). In IPv6 only the source port is optional (see below).

Source port number

This field identifies the sender's port when meaningful and should be assumed to be the port to reply to if needed. If not used, then it should be zero. If the source host is the client, the port number is likely to be an ephemeral port number. If the source host is the server, the port number is likely to be a well-known port number.^[2]

Destination port number

This field identifies the receiver's port and is required. Similar to source port number, if the client is the destination host then the port number will likely be an ephemeral port number and if the destination host is the server then the port number will likely be a well-known port number.^[2]

Length

A field that specifies the length in bytes of the entire datagram: header and data. The minimum length is 8 bytes since that's the length of the header. The field size sets a theoretical limit of 65,535 bytes (8 byte header + 65,527 bytes of data) for a UDP datagram. The practical limit for the data length which is imposed by the underlying IPv4 protocol is 65,507 bytes (65,535 − 8 byte UDP header − 20 byte IP header).^[2]

Checksum

The checksum field is used for error-checking of the header and data. If no checksum is generated by the transmitter, the field uses the value all-zeros.^[4] This field is not optional for IPv6.^[5]

[edit] Checksum computation

The method used to compute the checksum is defined in RFC 768:

Checksum is the 16-bit one's complement of the one's complement sum of a pseudo header of information from the IP header, the UDP header, and the data, padded with zero octets at the end (if necessary) to make a multiple of two octets.^[4]

In other words, all 16-bit words are summed using one's complement arithmetic. The sum is then one's complemented to yield the value of the UDP checksum field.

If the checksum calculation results in the value zero (all 16 bits 0) it should be sent as the one's complement (all 1's).

The difference between IPv4 and IPv6 is in the data used to compute the checksum.

[edit] IPv4 PSEUDO-HEADER

When UDP runs over IPv4, the checksum is computed using a PSEUDO-HEADER that contains some of the same information from the real IPv4 header. The PSEUDO-HEADER is not the real IPv4 header used to send an IP packet. The following table defines the PSEUDO-HEADER used only for the checksum calculation.

The source and destination addresses are those in the IPv4 header. The protocol is that for UDP (see List of IP protocol numbers): 17 (0x11). The UDP length field is the length of the UDP header and data.

UDP checksum computation is optional for IPv4. If a checksum is not used it should be set to the value zero.

[edit] IPv6 PSEUDO-HEADER

When UDP runs over IPv6, the checksum is mandatory. The method used to compute it is changed as documented in RFC 2460:

Any transport or other upper-layer protocol that includes the addresses from the IP header in its checksum computation must be modified for use over IPv6 to include the 128-bit IPv6 addresses.^[5]

When computing the checksum, again a PSEUDO-HEADER is used that mimics the real IPv6 header:

The source address is the one in the IPv6 header. The destination address is the final destination; if the IPv6 packet does not contain a Routing header, that will be the destination address in the IPv6 header; otherwise, at the originating node, it will be the address in the last element of the Routing header, and, at the receiving node, it will be the destination address in the IPv6 header. The value of the Next Header field is the protocol value for UDP: 17. The UDP length field is the length of the UDP header and data.

[edit] Reliability and congestion control solutions

Lacking reliability, UDP applications must generally be willing to accept some loss, errors or duplication. Some applications such as TFTP may add rudimentary reliability mechanisms into the application layer as needed.^[2] Most often, UDP applications do not require reliability mechanisms and may even be hindered by them. Streaming media, real-time multiplayer games and voice over IP (VoIP) are examples of applications that often use UDP. If an application requires a high degree of reliability, a protocol such as the Transmission Control Protocol or erasure codes may be used instead.

Lacking any congestion avoidance and control mechanisms, network-based mechanisms are required to minimize potential congestion collapse effects of uncontrolled, high rate UDP traffic loads. In other words, since UDP senders cannot detect congestion, network-based elements such as routers using packet queuing and dropping techniques will often be the only tool available to slow down excessive UDP traffic. The Datagram Congestion Control Protocol (DCCP) is being designed as a partial solution to this potential problem by adding end host TCP-friendly congestion control behavior to high-rate UDP streams such as streaming media.

[edit] Applications

Numerous key Internet applications use UDP, including: the Domain Name System (DNS), where queries must be fast and only consist of a single request followed by a single reply packet, the Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP), the Routing Information Protocol (RIP)^[1] and the Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP).

Voice and video traffic is generally transmitted using UDP. Real-time video and audio streaming protocols are designed to handle occasional lost packets, so only slight degradation in quality occurs, rather than large delays if lost packets were retransmitted. Because both TCP and UDP run over the same network, many businesses are finding that a recent increase in UDP traffic from these real-time applications is hindering the performance of applications using TCP, such as point of sale, accounting, and database systems. When TCP detects packet loss, it will throttle back its data rate usage. Since both real-time and business applications are important to businesses, developing quality of service solutions is seen as crucial by some.^[6]

[edit] Comparison of UDP and TCP

Transmission Control Protocol is a connection-oriented protocol, which means that it requires handshaking to set up end-to-end communications. Once a connection is set up user data may be sent bi-directionally over the connection.

• Reliable – TCP manages message acknowledgment, retransmission and timeout. Multiple attempts to deliver the message are made. If it gets lost along the way, the server will re-request the lost part. In TCP, there's either no missing data, or, in case of multiple timeouts, the connection is dropped.
• Ordered – if two messages are sent over a connection in sequence, the first message will reach the receiving application first. When data segments arrive in the wrong order, TCP buffers the out-of-order data until all data can be properly re-ordered and delivered to the application.
• Heavyweight – TCP requires three packets to set up a socket connection, before any user data can be sent. TCP handles reliability and congestion control.
• Streaming – Data is read as a byte stream, no distinguishing indications are transmitted to signal message (segment) boundaries.

UDP is a simpler message-based connectionless protocol. Connectionless protocols do not set up a dedicated end-to-end connection. Communication is achieved by transmitting information in one direction from source to destination without verifying the readiness or state of the receiver.

• Unreliable – When a message is sent, it cannot be known if it will reach its destination; it could get lost along the way. There is no concept of acknowledgment, retransmission or timeout.
• Not ordered – If two messages are sent to the same recipient, the order in which they arrive cannot be predicted.
• Lightweight – There is no ordering of messages, no tracking connections, etc. It is a small transport layer designed on top of IP.
• Datagrams – Packets are sent individually and are checked for integrity only if they arrive. Packets have definite boundaries which are honored upon receipt, meaning a read operation at the receiver socket will yield an entire message as it was originally sent.

[edit] See also

• List of TCP and UDP port numbers
• Reliable User Datagram Protocol (RUDP)
• Transport protocol comparison table
• UDP flood attack
• UDP Data Transport
• UDP Lite, a variant that will deliver packets even if they are malformed
• UDP Helper Address

[edit] References

[edit] RFC references

• RFC 768 - User Datagram Protocol
• RFC 2460 - Internet Protocol, Version 6 (IPv6) Specification
• RFC 4113 - Management Information Base for the UDP
• RFC 5405 - Unicast UDP Usage Guidelines for Application Designers

[edit] External links

• IANA Port Assignments
• The Trouble with UDP Scanning (PDF)
• Breakdown of UDP frame
• UDP on MSDN Magazine Sockets and WCF
• UDP connections

Assange was born in Townsville, Queensland, and spent much of his youth living on Magnetic Island.^[19]

When he was one year old, his mother Christine married theatre director Brett Assange, who gave him his surname.^[2][20] Brett and Christine Assange ran a touring theatre company. His stepfather, Julian's first "real dad", described Julian as "a very sharp kid" with "a keen sense of right and wrong". "He always stood up for the underdog... he was always very angry about people ganging up on other people."^[20]

Julian has stated as his core values in the following way: "Capable, generous men do not create victims; they nurture victims." He says he is a combative person and that perhaps he is not so good at nurturing, but that "there is another way of nurturing victims, which is to police perpetrators." ^[21]

In 1979, his mother remarried; her new husband was a musician whom Julian Assange believed belonged to a New Age group called Santiniketan Park Association led by Yoga teacher Anne Hamilton-Byrne. The couple had a son, but broke up in 1982 and engaged in a custody struggle for Assange's half-brother.His divorced mother fled her boyfriend for years across Australia taking both children into hiding for the next five years. Assange moved 30 times before he turned 14, attending many schools, sometimes being home-schooled.^[2][22]

Hacking and conviction

In 1987, after turning 16, Assange began hacking under the name "Mendax" (derived from a phrase of Horace: "splendide mendax", or "nobly untruthful").^[2] He and two other hackers joined to form a group which they named the International Subversives. Assange wrote down the early rules of the subculture: "Don’t damage computer systems you break into (including crashing them); don’t change the information in those systems (except for altering logs to cover your tracks); and share information".^[2] The Personal Democracy Forum said he was "Australia's most famous ethical computer hacker."^[23]

The Australian Federal Police became aware of this group and set up "Operation Weather" to investigate their hacking. In September 1991 Mendax was discovered in the act of hacking into the Melbourne master terminal of Nortel, the Canadian telecommunications company.^[2] In response the Australian Federal Police tapped Assanges' phoneline and subsequently raided his Melbourne home in 1991.^[24] He was also reported to have accessed computers belonging to an Australian university,^[2] the USAF 7th Command Group in the Pentagon^[25] and other organisations, via modem.^[26] It took three years to bring the case to court, where he was charged with 31 counts of hacking and related crimes. Nortel claimed his incursions cost them more than $100,000 dollars. Despite representing hacking as a victimless crime, he nonetheless pleaded guilty to 25 charges of hacking. Six charges were dropped. He was released on bond for good conduct after being fined A$2100.^[2][27] The judge said "there is just no evidence that there was anything other than sort of intelligent inquisitiveness and the pleasure of being able to—what's the expression—surf through these various computers"^[2] and stated that Assange would have gone to jail for up to 10 years if he had not had such a disrupted childhood.^[25]

Assange later commented, "It's a bit annoying, actually. Because I co-wrote a book about [being a hacker], there are documentaries about that, people talk about that a lot. They can cut and paste. But that was 20 years ago. It's very annoying to see modern day articles calling me a computer hacker. I'm not ashamed of it, I'm quite proud of it. But I understand the reason they suggest I'm a computer hacker now. There's a very specific reason."^[4]

Child custody issues

In 1989, Assange started living with his girlfriend and they had a son, Daniel.^[28] They split up during the period of Assange's arrest and conviction. They subsequently engaged in a lengthy custody struggle and did not agree on a custody arrangement until 1999.^[2][29] The entire process prompted Assange and his mother to form Parent Inquiry Into Child Protection, an activist group centered on creating a "central databank" for otherwise inaccessible legal records related to child custody issues in Australia.^[29]

Computer programming and university studies

In 1993, Assange was involved in starting one of the first public internet service providers in Australia, Suburbia Public Access Network.^[4][30] Starting in 1994, he lived in Melbourne as a programmer and a developer of free software.^[27] In 1995, he wrote Strobe, the first free and open source port scanner.^[31][32] He contributed several patches to the PostgreSQL project in 1996.^[33][34] He helped to write the book Underground: Tales of Hacking, Madness and Obsession on the Electronic Frontier (1997), which credits him as a researcher and reports his history with International Subversives.^[35][36] Starting around 1997, he co-invented the Rubberhose deniable encryption system, a cryptographic concept made into a software package for Linux designed to provide plausible deniability against rubber-hose cryptanalysis;^[37] he originally intended the system to be used "as a tool for human rights workers who needed to protect sensitive data in the field."^[38] Other free software that he has authored or co-authored includes the Usenet caching software NNTPCache^[39] and Surfraw, a command-line interface for web-based search engines. In 1999, he registered the domain leaks.org; "But", he says, "then I didn't do anything with it."^[40]

From 2003 to 2006, Assange pursued a bachelor of science degree from the University of Melbourne. He also studied philosophy and neuroscience.^[22][23] He never graduated and received the minimum passing grades in most of his math courses. The fact that his fellow students were doing research for Pentagon's DARPA was reportedly a factor in motivating him to drop out and start WikiLeaks.^[2][22][41]

WikiLeaks

WikiLeaks was founded in 2006.^[2][42] That year, Assange wrote two essays setting out the philosophy behind WikiLeaks: "To radically shift regime behavior we must think clearly and boldly for if we have learned anything, it is that regimes do not want to be changed. We must think beyond those who have gone before us and discover technological changes that embolden us with ways to act in which our forebears could not."^[43][44][45] In his blog he wrote, "the more secretive or unjust an organisation is, the more leaks induce fear and paranoia in its leadership and planning coterie.... Since unjust systems, by their nature induce opponents, and in many places barely have the upper hand, mass leaking leaves them exquisitely vulnerable to those who seek to replace them with more open forms of governance."^[43][46]

Assange sits on Wikileaks's nine-member advisory board,^[47] and is a prominent media spokesman on its behalf. While newspapers have described him as a "director"^[48] or "founder"^[24] of Wikileaks, Assange has said, "I don't call myself a founder";^[49] he does describe himself as the editor in chief of WikiLeaks,^[50] and has stated that he has the final decision in the process of vetting documents submitted to the site.^[51] Assange says that Wikileaks has released more classified documents than the rest of the world press combined: "That's not something I say as a way of saying how successful we are – rather, that shows you the parlous state of the rest of the media. How is it that a team of five people has managed to release to the public more suppressed information, at that level, than the rest of the world press combined? It's disgraceful."^[42] He advocates a "transparent" and "scientific" approach to journalism, saying that "you can't publish a paper on physics without the full experimental data and results; that should be the standard in journalism."^[52][53] In 2006, CounterPunch called him "Australia's most infamous former computer hacker."^[54] The Age has called him "one of the most intriguing people in the world" and "internet's freedom fighter."^[40] Assange has called himself "extremely cynical".^[40] He has been described as being largely self-taught and widely read on science and mathematics,^[27] and as thriving on intellectual battle.^[55]

WikiLeaks has been involved in the publication of material documenting extrajudicial killings in Kenya, a report of toxic waste dumping on the coast of Côte d'Ivoire, Church of Scientology manuals, Guantanamo Bay procedures, the 12 July 2007 Baghdad airstrike video, and material involving large banks such as Kaupthing and Julius Baer among other documents.^[10]

In late 2010, Assange was in the process of completing his memoirs for publication in 2011.^[56]

Public appearances

In addition to exercising great authority and editorial control within WikiLeaks, Assange acts as its public face. He has appeared at media conferences such as New Media Days '09 in Copenhagen,^[57] the 2010 Logan Symposium in Investigative Reporting at the UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism,^[58] and at hacker conferences, notably the 25th and 26th Chaos Communication Congress.^[59] In the first half of 2010, he appeared on Al Jazeera English, MSNBC, Democracy Now!, RT, and The Colbert Report to discuss the release of the Baghdad airstrike video by Wikileaks. On 3 June he appeared via videoconferencing at the Personal Democracy Forum conference with Daniel Ellsberg.^[60][61] Ellsberg told MSNBC "the explanation he [Assange] used" for not appearing in person in the USA was that "it was not safe for him to come to this country."^[62] On 11 June he was to appear on a Showcase Panel at the Investigative Reporters and Editors conference in Las Vegas,^[63] but there are reports that he cancelled several days prior.^[64]

On 10 June 2010, it was reported that Pentagon officials were trying to determine his whereabouts.^[65][66] Based on this, there were reports that U.S. officials wanted to apprehend Assange.^[67] Ellsberg said that the arrest of Bradley Manning and subsequent speculation by US officials about what Assange may be about to publish "puts his well-being, his physical life, in some danger now."^[62] In The Atlantic, Marc Ambinder called Ellsberg's concerns "ridiculous", and said that "Assange's tendency to believe that he is one step away from being thrown into a black hole hinders, and to some extent discredits, his work."^[68] In Salon.com, Glenn Greenwald questioned "screeching media reports" that there was a "manhunt" on Assange underway, arguing that they were only based on comments by "anonymous government officials" and might even serve a campaign by the U.S. government, by intimidating possible whistleblowers.^[69]

On 21 June 2010, he took part at a hearing in Brussels, Belgium, appearing in public for the first time in nearly a month.^[70] He was a member on a panel that discussed Internet censorship and expressed his worries over the recent filtering in countries such as Australia. He also talked about secret gag orders preventing newspapers from publishing information about specific subjects and even divulging the fact that they are being gagged. Using an example involving The Guardian, he also explained how newspapers are altering their online archives sometimes by removing entire articles.^[71][72] He told The Guardian that he does not fear for his safety but is on permanent alert and will avoid travel to America, saying "[U.S.] public statements have all been reasonable. But some statements made in private are a bit more questionable." He said "politically it would be a great error for them to act. I feel perfectly safe but I have been advised by my lawyers not to travel to the U.S. during this period."^[70]

On 17 July, Jacob Appelbaum spoke on behalf of WikiLeaks at the 2010 Hackers on Planet Earth (HOPE) conference in New York City, replacing Assange due to the presence of federal agents at the conference.^[73][74] He announced that the WikiLeaks submission system was again up and running, after it had been temporarily suspended.^[73][75] Assange was a surprise speaker at a TED conference on 19 July 2010 in Oxford, and confirmed that WikiLeaks was now accepting submissions again.^[76][77][78] On 26 July, after the release of the Afghan War Diary, he appeared at the Frontline Club for a press conference.^[79]

Release of US diplomatic cables

On 28 November 2010, WikiLeaks began releasing some of the 251,000 American diplomatic cables in their possession, of which over 53 percent are listed as unclassified, 40 percent are "Confidential" and just over six percent are classified "Secret". The following day, the Attorney-General of Australia, Robert McClelland, told the press that Australia would inquire into Assange's activities and WikiLeaks.^[80] He said that "from Australia's point of view, we think there are potentially a number of criminal laws that could have been breached by the release of this information. The Australian Federal Police are looking at that".^[81] McClelland would not rule out the possibility that Australian authorities will cancel Assange's passport, and warned him that he might face charges should he return to Australia.^[82] As of 11 December 2010 only 1295 cables have been released, or 0.5 percent of the total.^[83][84]

The United States Department of Justice launched a criminal investigation related to the leak. US prosecutors are reportedly considering charges against Assange under several laws, but any prosecution would be difficult.^[85] In relation to its ongoing investigations of WikiLeaks, on the 14 December 2010 the US DoJ issued a subpoena ordering Twitter to release information relating to Assange's account, amongst others.^[86][87]

Pentagon Papers whistleblower Daniel Ellsberg said that Assange "is serving our [American] democracy and serving our rule of law precisely by challenging the secrecy regulations, which are not laws in most cases, in this country." On the issue of national security considerations for the US, Ellsberg added that "He's obviously a very competent guy in many ways. I think his instincts are that most of this material deserves to be out. We are arguing over a very small fragment that doesn’t. He has not yet put out anything that hurt anybody's national security".^[88] Assange told London reporters that the leaked cables showed US ambassadors around the world were ordered "to engage in espionage behavior" which he said seemed to be "representative of a gradual shift to a lack of rule of law in US institutions that needs to be exposed and that we have been exposing."^[89]

Journalistic status dispute

Assange received the 2009 Media award from Amnesty International,^[8] which are intended to "recognise excellence in human rights journalism"^[90] and he has been recognized as a journalist by the Centre for Investigative Journalism.^[7] In December 2010, US State Department spokesman Philip J. Crowley objected to the description of Assange as a journalist,^[91] and also stated that the US State Department does not regard WikiLeaks as a media organization. In response to a question from the press, Crowley said; "I think he’s an anarchist, but he’s not a journalist."^[92] Alex Massie wrote an article in The Spectator called "Yes, Julian Assange is a journalist", but acknowledged that "newsman" might be a better description of Assange.^[6] Assange has said that he has been publishing factual material since age 25, and that it is not necessary to debate whether or not he is a journalist. He has stated that his role is "primarily that of a publisher and editor-in-chief who organises and directs other journalists".^[93]

Financial sanctions

On 6 December, the Swiss bank, PostFinance, announced that it had frozen assets of Assange's totalling 31,000 euros, because he had "provided false information regarding his place of residence" when opening the account.^[94] MasterCard,^[95] Visa Inc.,^[96] and Bank of America^[97] also halted dealings with Wikileaks. Assange described these actions as "business McCarthyism".^[98] The English-language Swedish newspaper web-site "Local" quoted Assange on 27 Dec 2010 as saying that legal costs for the whistleblowing website and his own defence had reached £500,000. The decisions to halt donations to WikiLeaks by Visa, MasterCard and PayPal had cost it £425,000, the same amount it costs the website to publish for six months. Assange claimed WikiLeaks had been receiving as much as £85,000 a day at its peak.^[99]

Autobiography

In December 2010 Assange sold the publishing rights to his autobiography for over £1 million. He told the Sunday Times that he was forced to enter the deals for an autobiography due to the financial difficulties he and the site encountered, he told them "I don't want to write this book, but I have to. I have already spent £200,000 for legal costs and I need to defend myself and to keep WikiLeaks afloat".^[100]

Internal dispute

Daniel Domscheit-Berg, the German spokesman and effective number 2 at Wikileaks, resigned on 25 September 2010 during an interview with Der Spiegel. Domscheit-Berg left because he felt the organization was too centered around the figure of Assange whom Domscheit-Berg accused of having an authoritarian style contrary to the transparency-focused mission of the organization, and that Assange was not ready to step back from public view, jeopardizing the project.^[101] Assange accused Domscheit-Berg of leaking information to Newsweek claiming the Wikileaks team was unhappy with Assange's leadership and handling of the Afghan war document releases.^[101] Domscheit-Berg left with a small group to start OpenLeaks.^[102] Herbert Snorrason, also a 25-year old Icelandic university student, resigned after he challenged Assange on his decision to suspend Domscheit-Berg and was bluntly rebuked.^[101] Iceland MP Birgitta Jonsdottir also left Wikileaks citing lack of transparency, lack of structure, and poor communication flow in the organisation.^[103]

Criticism

In July 2010, after WikiLeaks released classified documents related to the war in Afghanistan, Chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, Mike Mullen, said in an interview with Democracy Now!, "Disagree with the war all you want, take issue with the policy, challenge me or our ground commanders on the decisions we make to accomplish the mission we’ve been given, but don’t put those who willingly go into harm’s way even further in harm’s way just to satisfy your need to make a point. Mr. Assange can say whatever he likes about the greater good he thinks he and his source are doing, but the truth is, they might already have on their hands the blood of some young soldier or that of an Afghan family." Assange responded, "There is, as far as we can tell, no incident of that. So it is a speculative charge. Of course, we are treating any possible revelation of the names of innocents seriously. That is why we held back 15,000 of these documents, to review that. ...it’s really quite fantastic that Robert Gates and Mullen...being the former head of the CIA during Iran-Contra and the overseer of Iraq and Afghanistan, and Mullen being the military commander for Iraq and Afghanistan—I’m not sure what his further background is, who have ordered assassinations every day, are trying to bring people on board to look at a speculative understanding of whether we might have blood on our hands. These two men arguably are wading in the blood from those wars."^[104]

A number of political and media commentators, as well as current and former US government officials, have accused Assange of terrorism. US Vice President Joe Biden argued that Assange was "closer to being a high-tech terrorist than the Pentagon papers." ^[105] In May 2010 Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell had used the phrase, calling Assange "a high-tech terrorist", and saying "he has done enormous damage to our country. I think he needs to be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law".^[106]

Also in May 2010, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich said: "Information terrorism, which leads to people getting killed, is terrorism, and Julian Assange is engaged in terrorism. He should be treated as an enemy combatant."^[107]

Support

Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, former president of Brazil, expressed his "solidarity" with Assange following his 2010 arrest in the United Kingdom.^[108][109] He further criticised the arrest of Assange as "an attack on freedom of expression".^[110]

Prime Minister of Russia, Vladimir Putin condemned Assange’s detention as "undemocratic".^[111] A source within the office of Russian President Dmitry Medvedev suggested that Assange be nominated for a Nobel Prize, and said that "Public and non-governmental organisations should think of how to help him."^[112]

In December 2010, the United Nations' Special Rapporteur for Freedom of Opinion and Expression, Frank LaRue, said Assange or other WikiLeaks staff should not face legal accountability for any information they disseminated, noting that "if there is a responsibility by leaking information it is of, exclusively of the person that made the leak and not of the media that publish it. And this is the way that transparency works and that corruption has been confronted in many cases."^[113]

Daniel Ellsberg, who was working in the U.S. Department of Defense when he leaked the Pentagon Papers in 1971, was a signatory to a statement by an international group of former intelligence officers and ex-government officials in support of Assange’s work, which was released in late December 2010. Other signatories included David MacMichael, Ray McGovern, and five recipients of annual Sam Adams Award: Frank Grevil, Katharine Gun, Craig Murray, Coleen Rowley and Larry Wilkerson.^[114] Ellsberg has said, "If I released the Pentagon Papers today, the same rhetoric and the same calls would be made about me ... I would be called not only a traitor — which I was [called] then, which was false and slanderous — but I would be called a terrorist... Assange and Bradley Manning are no more terrorists than I am."^[115]

Prime Minister Julia Gillard has come under widespread condemnation and a backlash within her own party for failing to support Assange after calling the leaks "an illegal act" and suggesting that his Australian passport should be cancelled. Hundreds of lawyers, academics and journalists came forward in his support with Attorney-General Robert McClelland, unable to explain how Assange had broken Australian law. Opposition Legal Affairs spokesman, Senator George Brandis, a Queen's Counsel, accused Gillard of being "clumsy" with her language, stating, "As far as I can see, he (Assange) hasn't broken any Australian law, nor does it appear he has broken any American laws." Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd, who supports Assange, stated that any decision to cancel the passport would be his, not Gillard's. Queen's Counsel Peter Faris, who acted for Assange in a hacking case 15 years ago, said that the motives of Swedish authorities in seeking Assange's extradition for alleged sex offences are suspect: "You have to say: why are they [Sweden] pursuing it? It's pretty obvious that if it was Bill Bloggs, they wouldn't be going to the trouble." Following the Swedish Embassy issuing of a "prepared and unconvincing reply" in response to letters of protest, Gillard was called on to send a message to Sweden "querying the way charges were laid, investigated and dropped, only to be picked up again by a different prosecutor."^{[111][116][117][118][119]}

On 10 December 2010 over five hundred people rallied outside Sydney Town Hall and about three hundred and fifty people gathered in Brisbane^[120] where Assange's lawyer, Rob Stary, criticised Julia Gillard's position, telling the rally that the Australian government was a "sycophant" of the US. A petition circulated by GetUp!, who have placed full page ads in support of Assange in The New York Times and The Washington Times, received more than 50,000 signatures.^[118]

Awards

Assange won the 2008 Economist Index on Censorship Award.^[7] He won the 2009 Amnesty International UK Media Award (New Media),^[121] for exposing extrajudicial assassinations in Kenya by distributing and publicizing the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights (KNCHR)'s investigation The Cry of Blood – Extra Judicial Killings and Disappearances.^[122][123] Accepting the award, Assange said, "It is a reflection of the courage and strength of Kenyan civil society that this injustice was documented."^[124]

In 2010 Assange was awarded the Sam Adams Award,^[125][126] Readers' Choice in Time magazine's Person of the Year poll,^[12] and runner-up for Person of the Year.^[127] An informal poll of editors at Postmedia Network named him the top newsmaker for the year after six out of 10 felt Assange had "affected profoundly how information is seen and delivered".^[128]

Le Monde named him person of the year with fifty six percent of the votes in their online poll. Le Monde is one of the five publications to cooperate with Wikileaks' publication of the recent document leaking.^{[129][130][131]}

In February 2011, it was announced that Assange had been awarded the Sydney Peace Medal by the Sydney Peace Foundation of the University of Sydney for what they said was his "exceptional courage and initiative in pursuit of human rights."^[132]

Allegations of sexual assault

On 20 August 2010, Swedish police opened an investigation against Assange in connection with sexual encounters with two women, aged 26 and 31,^[133] one in Enköping and the other in Stockholm.^[134] Within hours, Chief Public Prosecutor Eva Finné reviewed the case and dropped the rape investigation, saying there was insufficient evidence to suggest rape but kept open the molestation investigation,^[135] and on 30 August Stockholm police questioned Assange.^[136] He denied the allegations, saying he had consensual sexual encounters with the two women.^[137][138]

Claes Borgström, who represents the two women, appealed against the decision to drop the rape investigation. Swedish Director of Public Prosecution Marianne Ny then reopened and expanded the investigation on 1 September.^[139] Swedish investigators reinterviewed the two women, wanting to clarify their allegations before talking to Assange but he left Sweden on 27 September, according to statements in UK court, and refused to return to Stockholm for questioning in October, according to Borgström. According to Assange's lawyer, Mark Stephens, Assange made repeated attempts to contact the prosecution, spending over a month in Stockholm before obtaining permission to leave the country, with the Swedish prosecution stating an interview would not be required.^[140]

On 18 November 2010 prosecutor Marianne Ny asked the local district court for a warrant for Assange in order for him to be heard by the prosecutor.^[141] The court ordered Assange detained^[142]"on probable cause suspected of rape, sexual molestation and unlawful coercion."^[143] An appeal from the legal representatives of Assange was turned down by the Svea Court of Appeal,^[144] and the Supreme Court of Sweden declined to hear the case.^[145] On 6 December 2010, Scotland Yard notified Assange that a valid European arrest warrant had been received.^[146] He presented himself to the Metropolitan Police the next morning and was remanded to London's Wandsworth Prison.^[147][148] On 16 December he was granted bail and placed under house arrest at Ellingham Hall, Norfolk, the High Court Judge rejected the prosecution's argument that he was a flight risk. Bail was set at £240,000 surety with £200,000 ($312,700) required to be actually deposited in the court's account.^[149]

On release Assange said "I hope to continue my work and continue to protest my innocence in this matter,"^[89] and told the BBC, "This has been a very successful smear campaign and a very wrong one."^[150] Assange claimed that the extradition proceedings to Sweden were "actually an attempt to get me into a jurisdiction which will then make it easier to extradite me to the US." Swedish prosecutors have denied the case has anything to do with WikiLeaks.^[149]

The extradition hearing is set for 7–8 February 2011 at Belmarsh Magistrates' court, Thamesmead, south east London.^[151] His defence team outlined seven strands of their argument, including a challenge for abuse of process as well as the potential risks to Assange's person were he "rendered" to the US.^[152] The initial two day hearing ran out of time and an additional session was scheduled for the morning of February 11.^[17]

Residency

Though an Australian citizen, Assange has not had a permanent address for several years.^[5] Assange has described himself as constantly on the move. He has lived for periods in Australia, Kenya and Tanzania, and began renting a house in Iceland on 30 March 2010, from which he and other activists, including Birgitta Jónsdóttir, worked on the 'Collateral Murder' video.^[2]

For much of 2010, he was visiting the United Kingdom, Iceland, Sweden and other European countries. On 4 November 2010, Assange told Swiss public television TSR that he was seriously considering seeking political asylum in neutral Switzerland and moving the operation of the WikiLeaks foundation there.^[153] In December 2010 it was reported that US Ambassador to Switzerland Donald S. Beyer had warned the Swiss government against offering asylum to Assange.^[154]

In late November 2010, Deputy Foreign Minister Kintto Lucas of Ecuador spoke about giving Assange residency with "no conditions... so he can freely present the information he possesses and all the documentation, not just over the Internet but in a variety of public forums".^[155] Lucas believed that Ecuador may benefit from initiating a dialogue with Assange.^[156] Foreign Minister Ricardo Patino stated on 30 November that the residency application would "have to be studied from the legal and diplomatic perspective".^[157] A few hours later, President Rafael Correa stated that WikiLeaks "committed an error by breaking the laws of the United States and leaking this type of information... no official offer was [ever] made."^[158][159] Correa noted that Lucas was speaking "on his own behalf"; additionally, he will launch an investigation into possible ramifications Ecuador would suffer from the release of the cables.^[159]

In a hearing at the City of Westminster Magistrates' Court on 7 December 2010, Assange identified a post office box as his address. When told by the judge that this information was not acceptable, he submitted "Parkville, Victoria, Australia" on a sheet of paper. His lack of permanent address and nomadic lifestyle were cited by the judge as factors in denying bail.^[160] He was ultimately released, in part because journalist Vaughan Smith offered to provide Assange with an address for bail during the extradition proceedings, Smith's Norfolk mansion, Ellingham Hall.^[161]

References

• Birragustonaturale
• Olio Carli
• Saclà
• Valle'
• Banco Alimentare
• Pasta di farro Latini
• Virgilio Donne
• Italia a Tavola

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