The long ton, also known as the imperial ton or displacement ton, is a measurement unit equal to 2,240 pounds (1,016.0 kg). It is the name for the unit called the "ton" in the avoirdupois system of weights or Imperial system of measurements. It was standardised in the 13th century. It is used in the United States for bulk commodities. It is not to be confused with the short ton, a unit of weight equal to 2,000 pounds (907.2 kg) used in the United States, and Canada before metrication, also referred to simply as a "ton". == Unit definition == A long ton is defined as exactly 2,240 pounds. The long...

Proto-Romance is the result of applying the comparative method to reconstruct the latest common ancestor of the Romance languages. To what extent, if any, such a reconstruction reflects a real état de langue is controversial. The closest real-life counterpart would have been (vernacular) Late Latin. == Phonology == === Vowels === ==== Monophthongs ==== ==== Diphthong ==== /au̯/ appears to be the only phonemic diphthong that can be reconstructed. ==== Phonetics ==== Vowels were lengthened in stressed open syllables. Stressed /ɛ ɔ/ may have yielded incipient diphthongs like [e͡ɛ o͡ɔ...

Languages of the Indo-European family are classified as either centum languages or satem languages according to how the dorsal consonants (sounds of "K", "G" and "Y" type) of the reconstructed Proto-Indo-European language (PIE) developed. An example of the different developments is provided by the words for "hundred" found in the early attested Indo-European languages (which is where the two branches get their names). In centum languages, they typically began with a /k/ sound (Latin centum was pronounced with initial /k/), but in satem languages, they often began with /s/ (the example satem comes...

Palatalization in the Romance languages encompasses various historical sound changes which caused consonants to develop a palatal articulation or secondary articulation, as well as certain further developments such as affrication. It resulted in the creation of several consonants that had not existed in Classical Latin, such as the Italian [t͡s d͡z ʃ t͡ʃ d͡ʒ ɲ ʎ]. Certain types of palatalization affected all Romance languages, and were in some cases discernible in Late Latin, while others affected only a subset of languages and are only known from later evidence. Palatalization was not a single...

The Joret line (French: ligne Joret; Norman: lène Joret: Picard: line Joret) is an isogloss that divides the langues d'oïl. Dialects north and west of it preserve Latin /k/ and /ɡ/ before /a/; dialects south and east of it palatalize them. In Old French the result of this palatalisation was /t͡ʃ/ and /d͡ʒ/ (for original /k/ and /ɡ/ respectively), which yield /ʃ/ and /ʒ/ in Modern French. The line was first identified by Charles Joret and published in 1883. The area north and west of it is sometimes called the 'Normano-Picard domain' (French: domaine normano-picard). Within it lie Picard and the...

Prepulse inhibition (PPI) is a neurological phenomenon in which a weaker prestimulus (prepulse) inhibits the reaction of an organism to a subsequent strong reflex-eliciting stimulus (pulse), often using the startle reflex. The stimuli are usually acoustic, but tactile stimuli (e.g. via air puffs onto the skin) and light stimuli are also used. When prepulse inhibition is high, the corresponding one-time startle response is reduced. The reduction of the amplitude of startle reflects the ability of the nervous system to temporarily adapt to a strong sensory stimulus when a preceding weaker signal...

Lepidophthalmus turneranus (formerly Callianassa turnerana), the Cameroon ghost shrimp, is a species of "ghost shrimp" or "mud lobster" that lives off the coast of West Africa. It occasionally erupts into dense swarms, one of which resulted in the naming of the country Cameroon. == Distribution == Lepidophthalmus turneranus is found in lagoons and estuaries, including almost fresh water, around the Gulf of Guinea from Togo to Congo. == Description == Adults reach a total length of 5.5–14.5 centimetres (2.2–5.7 in). The rostrum ends in three or five teeth, a feature shared with the Madag...