Jeff Bezos Biography

Jeff Bezos (born January 12, 1964, Albuquerque, New Mexico, U.S.) is an American entrepreneur who played a key role in the growth of e-commerce as the founder and chief executive officer of Amazon.com, Inc., an online merchant of books and later of a wide variety of products. Under his guidance, Amazon became the largest retailer on the World Wide Web and the model for Internet sales.

Early life and career

While still in high school, Bezos developed the Dream Institute, a centre that promoted creative thinking in young students. After graduating (1986) summa cum laude from Princeton University with degrees in electrical engineering and computer science, he undertook a series of jobs before joining the New York investment bank D.E. Shaw & Co. in 1990. Soon named senior vice president—the firm's youngest—Bezos was in charge of examining the investment possibilities of the Internet. Its enormous potential—Web usage was growing by more than 2,000 percent a year—sparked his entrepreneurial imagination. In 1994 he and his wife, Mackenzie Scott Tuttle, quit D.E. Shaw and moved to Seattle, Washington, to open a virtual bookstore. Working out of their garage with a handful of employees, they began developing the software for the site and the business plan for the new company. Named after the South American river, Amazon sold its first book in July 1995.

Amazon.com

Amazon quickly became the leader in e-commerce. Open 24 hours a day, the site was user-friendly, encouraging browsers to post their own reviews of books and offering discounts, personalized recommendations, and searches for out-of-print books. In June 1998 it began selling CDs, and later that year it added videos. In 1999 Bezos added auctions to the site and invested in other virtual stores. The success of Amazon encouraged other retailers, including major book chains, to establish online stores. As more companies battled for Internet dollars, Bezos saw the need to diversify, and by 2005 Amazon offered a vast array of products, including consumer electronics, apparel, and hardware. Amazon diversified even further in 2006 by introducing Amazon Web Services (AWS), a cloud-computing service that eventually became the largest such service in the world. In late 2007 Amazon released a new handheld reading device called the Kindle, a digital book reader with wireless Internet connectivity, enabling customers to purchase, download, read, and store a vast selection of books on demand. Amazon announced in 2010 that sales of Kindle books had surpassed those of hardcover books. That same year Amazon moved into making its own television shows and movies with its Amazon Studios division. Amazon's yearly net sales increased from $510,000 in 1995 to some $600 million in 1998 and from more than $19.1 billion in 2008 to almost $233 billion in 2018. About half of the company's operating income in 2018 was derived from AWS. Two years later Amazon registered record profits, and its revenue in the fourth quarter that year surpassed $100 billion for the first time. The unprecedented numbers were, in part, caused by a rise in home shopping during the COVID-19 pandemic. In February 2021 Bezos announced that he would be stepping down as CEO later that year. However, he planned to remain at Amazon as executive chairman.

Personal life

In 1993 Bezos married Mackenzie Scott Tuttle, whom he had met at D.E. Shaw. The couple announced in January 2019 that they were divorcing, and the following day the National Enquirer printed a story revealing that Bezos was having an affair with another woman. Bezos subsequently launched an investigation into how the tabloid had obtained his private text messages. Then, in February, he posted a lengthy essay online in which he accused officials at American Media Inc. (AMI), the parent company of the Enquirer, of "extortion and bribery" for suggesting that they would release nude photographs of Bezos if he did not stop his inquiry, amid other demands. The Bezos-led investigation later alleged that his lover's brother had leaked the texts. 

Kidney disease

"Nephropathy" redirects here and is not to be confused with neuropathy.

Kidney disease, or renal disease, technically referred to as nephropathy, is damage to or disease of a kidney. Nephritis is an inflammatory kidney disease and has several types according to the location of the inflammation. Inflammation can be diagnosed by blood tests. Nephrosis is non-inflammatory kidney disease. Nephritis and nephrosis can give rise to nephritic syndrome and nephrotic syndrome respectively. Kidney disease usually causes a loss of kidney function to some degree and can result in kidney failure, the complete loss of kidney function. Kidney failure is known as the end-stage of kidney disease, where dialysis or a kidney transplant is the only treatment option.

Chronic kidney disease is defined as prolonged kidney abnormalities (functional and/or structural in nature) that last for more than three months. Acute kidney disease is now termed acute kidney injury and is marked by the sudden reduction in kidney function over seven days.

Rates for both chronic kidney disease and mortality have increased, associated with the rising prevalence of diabetes and the ageing global population. The World Health Organization has reported that "kidney diseases have risen from the world's nineteenth leading cause of death to the ninth, with the number of deaths increasing by 95% between 2000 and 2021." In the United States, prevalence has risen from about one in eight in 2007, to one in seven in 2021.

Causes

Causes of kidney disease include deposition of the Immunoglobulin A antibodies in the glomerulus, administration of analgesics, xanthine oxidase deficiency, toxicity of chemotherapy agents, and a long-term exposure to lead or its salts. Chronic conditions that can produce nephropathy include systemic lupus erythematosus, diabetes mellitus and high blood pressure (hypertension), which lead to diabetic nephropathy and hypertensive nephropathy, respectively.

Analgesics

Main article: Analgesic nephropathy

One cause of nephropathy is the long term usage of pain medications known as analgesics. The pain medicines which can cause kidney problems include aspirin, acetaminophen, and nonsteroidal anti inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) such as ibuprofen and naproxen. This form of nephropathy is "chronic analgesic nephritis", a chronic inflammatory change characterized by loss and atrophy of tubules and interstitial fibrosis and inflammation.

Specifically, long-term use of the analgesic phenacetin has been linked to renal papillary necrosis (necrotizing papillitis).

Diabetes

Main article: Diabetic nephropathy

Diabetic nephropathy is a progressive kidney disease caused by angiopathy of the capillaries in the glomeruli. It is characterized by nephrotic syndrome and diffuse scarring of the glomeruli. It is particularly associated with poorly managed diabetes mellitus and is a primary reason for dialysis in many developed countries. It is classified as a small blood vessel complication of diabetes.

Autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease

Gabow 1990 talks about autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease and how this disease is genetic. They go on to say "Autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD) is the most common genetic disease, affecting a half million Americans. The clinical phenotype can result from at least two different gene defects. One gene that can cause ADPKD has been located on the short arm of chromosome.  The same article also goes on to say that millions of Americans are affected by this disease and it is very common. 

Heart Disease

Heart disease includes many diseases that affect your heart, but coronary artery disease (CAD) is the most common and familiar one. CAD can create a waxy buildup in your heart's arteries that can cause a heart attack. Healthy habits, medicines and procedures can prevent or treat CAD and other heart diseases.

Overview

What is heart disease?

Heart disease is a variety of issues that can affect your heart. When people think about heart disease, they often think of the most common type — coronary artery disease (CAD) and the heart attacks it can cause. But you can have trouble with different parts of your heart, like your heart muscle, valves or electrical system.

When your heart isn't working well, it has trouble sending enough blood, oxygen and nutrients to your body. In a way, your heart delivers the fuel that keeps your body's systems running. If there's a problem with delivering that fuel, it affects everything your body's systems do.

Lifestyle changes and medications can keep your heart healthy and lower your chances of getting heart disease.

What are the types of heart disease?

Heart disease types include:

        Narrowing of your heart's blood vessels because of fatty deposits (coronary artery disease).

·       Abnormal heart rhythms (arrhythmias).

·       Heart valve diseases.

·       Abnormal heart muscle (cardiomyopathy).

·       Heart squeezing and relaxation difficulties (heart failure).

·       Heart issues you have at birth (congenital heart disease).

·       Issues with the fluid-filled sac surrounding your heart (pericardium).

Symptoms and Causes

What are the symptoms of heart disease?

You can have different symptoms of heart disease depending on what's wrong. Heart disease symptoms may include:

·       Pounding or racing heart (palpitations).

·       Sweating.

·       Lightheadedness.

·       Shortness of breath.

·       Dizziness or sudden unexplained loss of consciousness.

·       Chest or upper body pain, pressure, heaviness or discomfort.

·       Neck pain.

·       Heartburn or indigestion.

·       Nausea or vomiting.

·       Swelling in your lower body.

·       Exhaustion.

·       Difficulty sleeping.

·       Inability to handle exercise.

·       Fever.

What are the early warning signs of heart disease?

Early warning signs of heart disease include:

·       Chest pain.

·       Shortness of breath.

·       Swelling in your legs.

·       Fatigue.

Dizziness, fainting unexpectedly or near-fainting repeatedly.

 

Brain Diseases

There are many types of brain diseases, ranging from injuries and infections to brain tumors and dementia. They can impact your ability to function and carry out daily activities. Outcomes vary widely depending on the type of brain disease, location and severity of the condition.

What are the types of brain diseases?

There are many types, including hundreds, of rare brain diseases. The general categories of brain diseases include:

Autoimmune brain diseases

Autoimmune brain diseases occur when your body's defenses attack a part of your brain, mistaking it for an invader. Multiple sclerosis (MS) is the most prominent of these. Like electrical wires, nerve cells have insulation covering them. Multiple sclerosis attacks this in your brain, spinal cord and the nerves going to your eyes. There are less common autoimmune brain diseases that mimic MS. There are others, like autoimmune encephalitis, which irritate your brain, causing confusion and involuntary movements.

Epilepsy

Epilepsy is a tendency to have seizures. A seizure is an electrical storm in your brain, typically interfering with consciousness and causing convulsions (uncontrolled movements). Some seizures can be subtle — only causing clouding of consciousness or uncontrolled movements of one part of your body.

Infections

Infections occur when various types of germs invade your brain or its protective coverings. Meningitis happens when your protective coverings are infected. It often causes headaches, confusion and a very stiff neck. Sometimes, it's necessary to do a spinal tap to find out which germ is causing an infection so the right antibiotics can be given.

Mental illness

Mental, behavioral and emotional disorders can diminish a person's quality of life and ability to function. Major types include:

1)    Anxiety.

2)    Bipolar disorder.

3)    Depression.

4)    Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

Schizophrenia. 

Russo-Ukrainian War

The Russo-Ukrainian War began in February 2014. Following Ukraine's Revolution of Dignity, Russia occupied and annexed Crimea from Ukraine. It then supported Russian paramilitaries who began a war in the eastern Donbas region against Ukraine's military. In 2018, Ukraine declared the region to be occupied by Russia. These first eight years of conflict also included naval incidents and cyberwarfare. In February 2022, Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine and began occupying more of the country, starting the biggest conflict in Europe since World War II. The war has resulted in a refugee crisis and hundreds of thousands of deaths.

In early 2014, the Euromaidan protests led to the Revolution of Dignity and the ousting of Ukraine's pro-Russian president Viktor Yanukovych. Shortly after, pro-Russian protests began in parts of southeastern Ukraine, while unmarked Russian troops occupied Crimea. Russia soon annexed Crimea after a highly disputed referendum. In April 2014, Russian-backed militants seized towns and cities in Ukraine's eastern Donbas region and proclaimed the Donetsk People's Republic (DPR) and the Luhansk People's Republic (LPR) as independent states, starting the Donbas war. Russia covertly supported the separatists with its own troops, tanks and artillery, preventing Ukraine from fully retaking the territory. The International Criminal Court judged that the war was both a national and international armed conflict involving Russia, and the European Court of Human Rights judged that Russia controlled the DPR and LPR from 2014 onward. In February 2015, Russia and Ukraine signed the Minsk II agreements, but they were never fully implemented in the years that followed. The Donbas war became a static conflict likened to trench warfare; ceasefires were repeatedly broken but the frontlines did not  move. 

Battle of Plassey

The Battle of Plassey was a decisive victory of the British East India Company, under the leadership of Robert Clive, over the Nawab of Bengal and his French allies on 23 June 1757. The victory was made possible by the defection of Mir Jafar, Nawab Siraj-ud-Daulah's commander in chief as well as much of the Bengal Subah's armies  being earlier committed against an Afghan invasion led by Ahmad Shah Durrani against the Mughal Empire. The battle helped the British East India Company take control of Bengal, Bihar, and Orissa in 1772. Over the next hundred years, they continued to expand their control over vast territories in the rest of the Indian subcontinent, including Burma.

The battle took place at Plassey on the banks of the Hooghly River, about 150 kilometres north of Calcutta (now Kolkata) and south of Murshidabad in West Bengal, then capital of Bengal Subah. The belligerents were the British East India Company, and the Nawab Siraj-ud-Daulah, the last independent Nawab of Bengal. He succeeded Alivardi Khan (his maternal grandfather). Siraj-ud-Daulah had become the Nawab of Bengal the year before, and he had ordered the English to stop the extension of their fortification. Robert Clive bribed Mir Jafar, the commander-in-chief of the Nawab's army, and also promised to make him Nawab of Bengal. Clive defeated Siraj-ud-Daulah at Plassey in 1757 and captured Calcutta.

 

First Battle of Panipat

The First Battle of Panipat, on 21 April 1526 was fought between the invading forces of Babur against Ibrahim Lodi, the Sultan of Delhi, in North India. Babur's forces, employing gunpowder firearms and cannons, defeated Ibrahim. This was one of the earliest battles involving gunpowder arms on the Indian subcontinent. The victory marked the beginning of Mughal rule in India.

Background

In 1504, Babur succeeded his late uncle Ulugh Beg II by force of arms, taking control of the latter's kingdom based around Kabul and Ghazni. Opposed by Muhammad Shaybani to the northwest, Babur sought to expand his kingdom to the southeast, into Punjab, the land of the five rivers. By 1519, he had reach the Chenab River.

At that time, most of North India was part of the Delhi Sultanate, under rule of Ibrahim Lodi of the Lodi dynasty. However, Ibrahim was locked in a power struggle with his relatives and ministers. Daulat Khan Lodi, Governor of Punjab, offered to defect to Babur. Babur started for Lahore, in 1524 but found that Daulat had been driven out by forces sent by Ibrahim. The Lodi army marched out to engage Babur and was routed. Babur also took control of Jhelum, Sialkot, Kalanaur and Dipalpur before returning to Kabul. He placed Dipalpur under control of Alam Khan, a rebel uncle of Ibrahim. 

Discovery Of Taj Mahal

 

Taj Mahal

An immense mausoleum of white marble, built in Agra between 1631 and 1648 by order of the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his favourite wife, the Taj Mahal is the jewel of Muslim art in India and one of the universally admired masterpieces of the world's heritage.

The Taj Mahal is located on the right bank of the Yamuna River in a vast Mughal garden that encompasses nearly 17 hectares, in the Agra District in Uttar Pradesh. It was built by Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his wife Mumtaz Mahal with construction starting in 1632 AD and completed in 1648 AD, with the mosque, the guest house and the main gateway on the south, the outer courtyard and its cloisters were added subsequently and completed in 1653 AD. The existence of several historical and Quaranic inscriptions in Arabic script have facilitated setting the chronology of Taj Mahal. For its construction, masons, stone-cutters, inlayers, carvers, painters, calligraphers, dome builders and other artisans were requisitioned from the whole of the empire and also from the Central Asia and Iran. Ustad-Ahmad Lahori was the main architect of the Taj Mahal.

Egyptian pyramids

 

The Egyptian pyramids are ancient masonry structures located in Egypt. Most were built as tombs for the pharaohs and their consorts during the Old and Middle Kingdom periods. At least 138 identified pyramids have been discovered in Egypt. Approximately 80 pyramids were built within the Kingdom of Kush, now located in the modern country of Sudan.

The earliest known Egyptian pyramids are at Saqqara, west of Memphis. Step-pyramid-like structures, like Mastaba 3808 attributed to pharaoh Anedjib, may the predate the Pyramid of Djoser built 2630-2610 BCE during the Third Dynasty.  This pyramid and its surrounding complex are generally considered to be the world's oldest monumental structures constructed of dressed masonry.

The most famous Egyptian pyramids are those found at Giza, on the outskirts of Cairo. Several of the Giza pyramids are counted among the largest structures ever built.  The Pyramid of Khufu is the largest Egyptian pyramid and the last of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World still in existence, despite being the oldest by about 2,000 years.

Elon Must Biography

 

Elon Must Story

Elon Musk life story begins in South Africa, where he was born. Later, he went on to become an American entrepreneur who co-founded PayPal and established SpaceX, a launch vehicle and spacecraft manufacturer. He was also one of the original major investors in and the CEO of Tesla, an electric car company. Elon Reeve Musk is the eldest of his parents' three children, and a citizen of three countries: South Africa, Canada, and the United States. He was born in 1971 to Maye Musk, a model and nutritionist, and Elon Musk, an electromechanical engineer whom Elon has described as "a dreadful human being.

Elon Musk Early Life

Musk was born in Canada to a Canadian mother and a South African father. Musk grew up with his head stuck in books and computers. He was bullied by his classmates and often beaten up by class bullies as a little, timid youngster until he grew strong enough to defend himself during a growth spurt in his teens. He developed a video game at the age of 12 and sold it to a computer magazine. Musk left South Africa in 1988 after getting a Canadian passport because he refused to support apartheid through compulsory military duty and wanted to pursue the higher economic prospects offered in the United States.