A weir () is a small overflow dam used to alter the flow characteristics of a river or stream. In most cases weirs take the form of a barrier across the river that causes water to pool behind the structure (not unlike a dam), but allows water to flow over the top. Weirs are commonly used to alter the flow regime of the river, prevent flooding, measure discharge and to help render a river navigable.

Function

in Toronto, Ontario|thumb|right]]

lake in Victoria (Australia) after heavy rainfall.]]

Weirs allow hydrologists and engineers a simple method of measuring the volumetric flow rate in small to medium-sized streams, or in industrial discharge locations. Since the geometry of the top of the weir is known, and all water flows over the weir, the depth of water behind the weir can be converted to a rate of flow. The calculation relies on the fact that fluid will pass through the critical depth of the flow regime in the vicinity of the crest of the weir. If water is not carried away from the weir, it can make flow measurement complicated or even impossible.

The discharge can be summarized as

:$Q\; =\; C\; L\; H^n$

Where

Q is flow rate

C is a constant for structure

L is the width of the crest

H is the height of head of water over the crest

n varies with structure (e.g. 3/2 for horizontal weir, 5/2 for v-notch weir)

A weir may be used to maintain the vertical profile of a stream or channel, and is then commonly referred to as a grade stabilizer such as the weir in Duffield, Derbyshire.

The crest of an overflow spillway on a large dam is often called a weir.

Weirs, referred to as low head barrier dams in this context, are used in the control of invasive sea lamprey in the Great Lakes. They serve as a barrier to prevent recolonization by lamprey above the weir, reducing the area required to be treated with lampricide, and providing a convenient point to measure water flow (to calculate amount of chemical to be applied).

Mill ponds provide a watermill with the power it requires, using the difference in water level above and below the weir to provide the necessary energy.

Drawbacks

Because a weir will typically increase the oxygen content of the water as it passes over the crest, a weir can have a detrimental effect on the local ecology of a river system. A weir will artificially reduce the upstream water velocity, which can lead to an increase in siltation.

Weirs can also have an effect on local fauna. While a weir is easy for some fish to jump over, other species or certain life stages of the same species may be blocked by weirs due to relatively slow swim speeds or behavioral characteristics. Fish ladders provide a way for fish to get between the water levels.

Even though the water around weirs can often appear relatively calm, they are dangerous places to boat, swim or wade; the circulation patterns on the downstream side can submerge a person indefinitely. This phenomenon is described in the article on whitewater.

The weir can become a point where garbage and other debris accumulate. However, a walkway over the weir is likely to be useful for the removal of floating debris trapped by the weir, or for working staunches and sluices on it as the rate of flow changes. This is also sometimes used as a convenient pedestrian crossing point for the river.

Types

on the River Stour, Dorset]] -type weir near Revin on the Meuse River, France]] near Hoddesdon, England]]

There are different types of weir. It may be a simple metal plate with a V-notch cut into it, or it may be a concrete and steel structure across the bed of a river. A weir which causes a large change of water level behind it, compared to the error inherent in the depth measurement method, will give an accurate indication of the flow rate. Some are used as bridges for people to walk along. These weirs are still designed to prevent floods and other things yet they can be used as a walkway also.

Broad-crested weir

A broad-crested weir is a flat-crested structure, with a long crest compared to the flow thickness (Chanson 1999, 2004, Henderson 1966, Sturm 2001). When the crest is “broad”, the streamlines become parallel to the crest invert and the pressure distribution above the crest is hydrostatic. The hydraulic characteristics of broad-crested weirs were studied during the 19th and 20th centuries. Practical experience showed that the weir overflow is affected by the upstream flow conditions and the weir.

Sharp crested weir (fayoum weir)

A sharp-crested weir allows the water to fall cleanly away from the weir. Sharp crested weirs are typically 1/4" or thinner metal plates. Sharp crested weirs come in many different shapes such as rectangular, V-notch and Cipolletti weirs.

Combination weir

The sharp crested weirs can be considered into three groups according to the geometry of weir: a) the rectangular weir, b) the V or triangular notch and c) special notches, such as trapezoidal, circular or parabolic weirs. For accurate flow measurement over a wider range of flow rates, a combination weir combines a V-notch weir with a rectangular weir. An example is manufactured by Thel-Mar Company and has flow rates engraved along the side of the weir. This is typically used in pipes ranging from 4" to 15" in diameter.

V-notch weir

The V-notch weir is a triangular channel section, used to measure small discharge values. The upper edge of the section is always above the water level, and so the channel is always triangular simplifying calculation of the cross-sectional area. V-notch weirs are preferred for low discharges as the head above the weir crest is more sensitive to changes in flow compared to rectangular weirs.

Minimum Energy Loss weir

The concept of the Minimum Energy Loss (MEL) structure was developed by Gordon McKay in 1971. The first MEL structure was the Redcliffe storm waterway system, also called Humpybong Creek drainage outfall, completed in 1960 in the Redcliffe peninsula (Australia). It consisted of a MEL weir acting as a streamlined drop inlet followed by a 137 m long culvert discharging into the Pacific Ocean. The weir was designed to prevent beach sand being washed in and choking the culvert, as well as to prevent salt intrusion in Humpybong Creek without afflux. The structure is still in use and passed floods greater than the design flow in several instances without flooding (McKay 1970, Chanson 2007).

The concept of the Minimum Energy Loss (MEL) weir was developed to pass large floods with minimum energy loss and afflux, and nearly-constant total head along the waterway. The flow in the approach channel is contracted through a streamlined chute and the channel width is minimum at the chute toe, just before impinging into the downstream natural channel. The inlet and chute are streamlined to avoid significant form losses and the flow may be critical from the inlet lip to the chute toe at design flow. MEL weirs were designed specifically for situations where the river catchment is characterized by torrential rainfalls and by very small bed slope. The first major MEL weir was the Clermont weir (Qld, Australia 1963), if the small control weir at the entrance of Redcliffe culvert is not counted. The largest, Chinchilla weir (Qld, Australia 1973), is listed as a "large dam" by the International Commission on Large Dams.

See also

Fishing weir

Drop structure

References

;Notes

;Bibliography

Chanson, H. (2004). "The Hydraulics of Open Channel Flow : An Introduction." Butterworth-Heinemann, Oxford, UK, 2nd edition, 630 pages (ISBN 978 0 7506 5978 9).

Chanson, H. (2007). Hydraulic Performances of Minimum Energy Loss Culverts in Australia, Journal of Performances of Constructed Facilities, ASCE, Vol. 21, No. 4, pp. 264–272 (doi:10.1061/(ASCE)0887-3828(2007)21:4(264)).

Gonzalez, C.A., and Chanson, H. (2007). Experimental Measurements of Velocity and Pressure Distribution on a Large Broad-Crested Weir, Flow Measurement and Instrumentation, 18 3-4: 107-113 (DOI 10.1016/j.flowmeasinst.2007.05.005).

Henderson, F.M. (1966). "Open Channel Flow." MacMillan Company, New York, USA.

McKay, G.R. (1971). "Design of Minimum Energy Culverts." Research Report, Dept of Civil Eng., Univ. of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia, 29 pages & 7 plates.

Sturm, T.W. (2001). "Open Channel Hydraulics." McGraw Hill, Boston, USA, Water Resources and Environmental Engineering Series, 493 pages.

External links

Hydraulics of Minimum Energy Loss (MEL) culverts and bridge waterways (Click "proceed" at the UQ-ITS Advisory webapge)

Category:Dams Category:Rivers Category:Water transport infrastructure

Name	Johnny Weir
Caption	Weir at the 2010 GLAAD Media Awards
Country
Birth date	July 02, 1984
Height
Coach	Galina Zmievskaya, Viktor Petrenko
Formercoach	Priscilla Hill
Choreographer	David Wilson, Nina Petrenko
Formerchoreographer	Natalia Linichuk, Tatiana Tarasova, Shanetta Folle, Denis Petukhov, Priscilla Hill, Evgeny Platov, Marina Anissina, Maya Usova, Faye Kitarieva, Michelle Poley, Carolanne Leone, Giuseppe Arena, Anjelika Krylova and Yuri Sergeyev
Skating club	SC of New York
Combined total	238.87
Combined date	2010 Winter Olympics
Sp score	84.60
Sp date	2009–2010 GPF
Fs score	156.77
Fs date	2010 Winter Olympics
Medaltemplates

}}

John Garvin "Johnny" Weir (born July 2, 1984) is an American figure skater. He is a three-time U.S. National Champion (2004–2006), the 2008 Worlds bronze medalist, a two-time Grand Prix Final bronze medalist, and the 2001 World Junior Champion.

Weir is ranked 12th in the world by the International Skating Union (ISU). He does not intend to skate competitively in the 2010–11 season and plans to sit out the 2011-2012 season as well.

Personal life

Weir was born in Coatesville, Pennsylvania, to John and Patti Weir. He is of Norwegian heritage. He has a brother, Brian, who is four years younger. Weir was raised in Quarryville, Pennsylvania, a town in southern Lancaster County. His family moved to Newark, Delaware, soon after Johnny began skating at the age of 12 so he could be near his training rink and coach. In the summer of 2007, he moved to Lyndhurst, New Jersey, and began training in nearby Wayne. Weir was an honor roll student at Newark High School and studied linguistics part-time at the University of Delaware before dropping out to concentrate on his skating. He is a self-proclaimed Russophile who admires the skating style and culture of Russia and taught himself to speak and read the language. He also speaks some French.

Weir skated with the Champions on Ice touring ice show every spring from 2004 until 2007, their last season before going out of business. Off the ice, he has appeared in a fashion spread in BlackBook magazine (including a shot of him in a wrap-around mini skirt), taught Kathy Griffin how to skate in the season two finale of , and modeled in runway shows for the fashion label Heatherette. In July 2008, the United States Figure Skating Association and Skating Magazine announced Weir as the winner of the 2008 Reader's Choice Award for Skater of the Year, an annual trophy voted upon by skating fans and awarded to the American skater or skating team whose achievements were of the highest merit in the previous season.

Weir has two pet chihuahuas named Bon-Bon and Vanya, and is a collector of Russian Cheburashka memorabilia. He has an interest in fashion design and, in addition to designing some of his own skating costumes, has designed ice dancing costumes for Melissa Gregory and Denis Petukhov and show costumes for Oksana Baiul.

He serves on the Board of Governors of nPlay, a nonprofit organization devoted to fighting childhood obesity and promoting a healthy lifestyle for young people.

He is Roman Catholic and open to other belief systems, including practicing Kabbalah, stating, "I believe in anything good, and anything that can teach love".

During the 2010 Olympics two Canadian broadcasters commented on Weir's flamboyant demeanor, made derogatory comments of his sexuality, and questioned his gender.

In 2010 a main-belt asteroid, discovered in 1995 by T. V. Kryachko, was officially named after the skater, at the suggestion of his Russian fans.

Weir appeared in an episode of When I Was 17 on the MTV network, describing his experiences in high school. He was a judge on the U.S. reality show Skating with the Stars.

in 2011]] Weir collaborated with Traver Rains to raise money for The Trevor Project in 2010.

Weir's sexual orientation was long the subject of media speculation; however, when asked about his sexuality, Weir often responded along the lines of, "...it's not part of my sport and it's private. I can sleep with whomever I choose and it doesn't affect what I'm doing on the ice." In his memoir Welcome to My World, published January 2011, Weir officially came out as gay, citing the recent string of gay youth suicides as one reason for his decision: "With people killing themselves and being scared into the closet, I hope that even just one person can gain strength from my story."

Documentary and TV series

Pop Star on Ice, a documentary about Weir and his career by filmmakers James Pellerito and David Barba, was filmed between 2006 and Spring 2008. It premiered at the Seattle International Film Festival on May 24, 2009 and was scheduled to show at film festivals across the United States in the Spring and Summer of 2009 before airing on the Sundance Channel on December 24, 2009. The filmmakers are also making a multiple-episode TV series entitled Be Good Johnny Weir, that is set to air on the Sundance Channel in early 2010.

Career

Early career

As a boy, Weir was a successful competitor as an equestrian. He became interested in figure skating at the age of eleven while watching Oksana Baiul win her 1994 Olympic gold medal. He taught himself how to jump on roller skates in his basement. His parents eventually bought him a pair of used figure skates, and he practiced on a frozen cornfield behind his family home. His parents then purchased group lessons for him at the University of Delaware, where coach Priscilla Hill soon noticed his talent and took him on as a private student.

Although he began skating at the relatively late age of 12, Weir progressed quickly through the ranks. He performed an Axel jump in his first week on skates. This was the first time since 1987 that the U.S. had placed first and second on the World Junior podium. Weir also placed sixth that year in his debut at the senior U.S. Championships. Shortly after this competition, he switched club affiliation from the University of Delaware FSC to the Skating Club of New York, which he still represents.

2003–2004 season

The 2003–2004 season was the turning point for Weir. He qualified for the U.S. Nationals by winning his regional and sectional championships. He received the first 6.0 of his career during his long program at 2004 U.S. Championships, winning the gold over Michael Weiss and Matthew Savoie. He then competed at the World Championships and placed fifth. but Weir also skated at the 2004 Cup of Russia for no official points and took the silver medal behind reigning world champion Evgeni Plushenko.

At the 2005 U.S. Championships, he earned five 6.0's for presentation with his free skate to Otonal and successfully defended his national title.

He went on to compete at the 2005 World Championships with a landing foot injury and placed fourth.

2005–2006 season

The 2005–2006 Olympic season proved difficult for Weir. He came in seventh at Skate Canada after spraining his ankle on a jump landing at the start of the free skate and struggling through the rest of the program, and third at Cup of Russia.

At the 2006 U.S. Championships, he won his third consecutive title and, as the national champion, was automatically named to the U.S. Olympics and World teams.

At the 2006 Winter Olympics, Weir skated a personal best short program and was in second place behind Evgeni Plushenko in that segment. However, Weir omitted some of his planned jumps in the free skate, and finished off of the podium in fifth place.

At the 2006 World Championships, Weir finished seventh, fighting a nagging back injury.

2006–2007 season

Weir began the 2006–2007 competitive season at Skate Canada, where he placed third, then went on to Cup of Russia and won the silver medal, his third consecutive medal at that event.

Weir withdrew from the 2006–2007 Grand Prix Final before the free skate due to a hip injury he sustained in a freak fall during the short program. At the 2007 U.S. Championships, Weir was in second place after the short program, less than a point behind Evan Lysacek. In the free program, he was unable to complete his triple axel combination, fell on a triple loop and doubled several of his planned combinations. He attempted a quadruple toe loop but it was heavily two-footed on the landing. Weir lost his national title and finished in third place. At the 2007 World Championships, Weir placed eighth. He subsequently had a great start to his 2007–2008 season at the Cup of China where he skated two clean and strong programs, achieving new personal best scores for both his free skate and overall score and winning the gold medal over fellow American Evan Lysacek. He then went on to Cup of Russia and took the gold medal there, as well. Under ISU rules, in the event of a tie the winner of the long program is awarded the gold medal,

At the 2008 World Championships, the United States had failed to medal at all in every other discipline when the men took the ice last. Weir skated a brilliant short program and received a career-best score that put him in second place. In the free program, he skated steadily but tentatively, eliminating the second jump from his first planned combination and doubling a planned triple jump on another combination. However, the program was strong enough for Weir to win his first World medal – a bronze – and kept the United States from being shut out of the medals at a World Championship for the first time since 1994.

During the off-season, Weir performed in the 2008 Festa On Ice alongside Kim Yu-Na.

2008–2009 season

Weir began the 2008–2009 season by winning the silver medal at Skate America in October 2008. He then went on to the NHK Trophy in late November, where he competed while suffering from a severe cold but still managed to win his second silver medal of the season. These two finishes qualified him for the 2008-2009 Grand Prix Final, where he won the bronze medal in December 2008.

During the 2008 Christmas holiday Weir traveled to South Korea to perform in a charity skating show. While there, he contracted a severe stomach virus that landed him in the hospital and caused him to lose eight pounds in a single day. He was unable to regain all of the weight or train at full capacity before the 2009 U.S. Championships in January 2009, where he singled the planned triple axel in both his short and long programs and also fell on the triple lutz in the long, resulting in a fifth-place finish. It was the first time since 2003 that he had been off the podium at Nationals. He was subsequently not named to the U.S. team for the World Championships.

During the off-season Weir performed in the 2009 Festa On Ice, alongside Kim Yu-Na.

2009–2010 season

In preparation for the 2009–2010 season Weir went to top skating choreographer David Wilson to create his competitive programs. On September 26, 2009, he debuted his short program, which was set to music by Raúl di Blasio, at a benefit to commemorate 9/11.

In the 2009 Grand Prix season Weir finished a disappointing fourth at Cup of Russia after doubling several of the triple jumps in both his short and long programs, but two weeks later rallied to win silver at the NHK Trophy, while suffering from a cold and sinus infection. This qualified Weir for the 2009-2010 Grand Prix Final in Tokyo, Japan, where he won the bronze medal.

Weir won the bronze medal at the 2010 U.S. Championships in Spokane, Washington and was subsequently named to the U.S. team for the Olympics. He became the center of an animal rights controversy by wearing fox fur on his skating costume at that event. He received protests from the animal rights groups Friends of Animals and People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA). When the protests escalated to threats of violence against him, Weir announced he would remove the fur from his costume, although he continued to defend wearing fur as a "personal choice." Death threats from animal rights activists also forced Weir to alter his housing arrangements for the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver. He had intended to stay in a Vancouver hotel, but for security reasons, chose to stay at the secure Olympic Village, sharing a suite with fellow American figure skater Tanith Belbin.

At the 2010 Winter Olympics, Weir finished sixth overall, with a new personal-best combined score of 238.87.

Following the season, Weir performed in Kings On Ice along with Stéphane Lambiel, Brian Joubert and Evgeni Plushenko in Russia. He joined Kim in another ice show, the . Other skaters like Michelle Kwan, Sasha Cohen and Stéphane Lambiel performed in the show as well.

Weir did not compete during the 2010–2011 season and confirmed in June 2011 that he would also miss the 2011–2012 season, while suggesting a competitive return was still possible.

Coaching changes

From the beginning of his career at age twelve, Weir trained under coach Priscilla Hill. They worked together first at the University of Delaware in Newark and after the 2002/2003 season moved to the Pond Ice Arena, also in Newark. Weir also spent part of each summer between 2003 and 2005 working with Russian coach Tatiana Tarasova at the International Skating Center of Connecticut in Simsbury, Connecticut.

He changed coaches in the summer of 2007 when he moved to the Ice Vault Arena in Wayne, New Jersey and began working with Galina Zmievskaya, who previously coached Weir's idol Oksana Baiul. Zmievskaya's son-in-law and Olympic gold medallist Viktor Petrenko acts as Weir's assistant coach, and her daughter Nina Petrenko is one of his choreographers.

Musical career

In addition to his skating career, Weir has also recorded a pop song produced by Lucian Piane titled "Dirty Love". It was recorded in April 2010, and released as a single worldwide on January 11, 2011.

Skating techniques

Unlike most figure skaters, he is a clockwise spinner and jumper.

Programs

" at the 2009 Festa On Ice]]

Competitive highlights

Senior

From left: Johnny Weir (3rd), Jeffrey Buttle (1st), Brian Joubert (2nd)]]

Junior

J = Junior level; WD = Withdrew

References

External links

Johnny Weir Official Website

Johnny Weir's fan site (in Russian)

Michael Collins Enterprises

Category:1984 births Category:Living people Category:American male single skaters Category:Figure skaters at the 2006 Winter Olympics Category:Figure skaters at the 2010 Winter Olympics Category:Gay sportspeople Category:LGBT Christians Category:American Roman Catholics Category:LGBT sportspeople from the United States Category:Olympic figure skaters of the United States Category:People from Bergen County, New Jersey Category:People from Lancaster County, Pennsylvania Category:People from New Castle County, Delaware Category:Sportspeople from Delaware Category:University of Delaware alumni

Name	Lady Gaga
Img alt	Portrait of a young, pale-skinned Caucasian female with blond hair
Background	solo_singer
Birth name	Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta
Born	March 28, 1986
Birth place	New York City, United States
Instrument	Vocals, piano, synthesizer, keytar
Genre	Pop, dance
Occupation	Singer-songwriter, performance artist, record producer, dancer, businesswoman, activist

Gaga has been influenced by glam rock artists such as David Bowie and Queen, as well as pop music artists such as Madonna, Whitney Houston, Britney Spears and Michael Jackson. The Queen song "Radio Ga Ga" inspired her stage name, "Lady Gaga". She commented: "I adored Freddie Mercury and Queen had a hit called 'Radio Gaga'. That's why I love the name [...] Freddie was unique—one of the biggest personalities in the whole of pop music."

Gaga has the vocal range of a contralto. Her vocals have drawn frequent comparison to those of Madonna and Gwen Stefani, while the structure of her music is said to echo classic 1980s pop and 1990s Europop. While reviewing her debut album The Fame, The Sunday Times asserted "in combining music, fashion, art and technology, [Gaga] evokes Madonna, Gwen Stefani circa 'Hollaback Girl', Kylie Minogue 2001 or Grace Jones right now." Similarly, The Boston Globe critic Sarah Rodman commented that she draws "obvious inspirations from Madonna to Gwen Stefani... in [her] girlish but sturdy pipes and bubbly beats." Though her lyrics are said to lack intellectual stimulation, "[she] does manage to get you moving and grooving at an almost effortless pace." Music critic Simon Reynolds wrote that "Everything about Gaga came from electroclash, except the music, which wasn't particularly 1980s, just ruthlessly catchy naughties pop glazed with Auto-Tune and undergirded with R&B;-ish beats.

Gaga has identified fashion as a major influence. Her love of fashion came from her mother, who she stated was "always very well kept and beautiful." Entertainment Weekly put her outfits on its end of the decade "best-of" list, saying, "Whether it's a dress made of Muppets or strategically placed bubbles, Gaga's outré ensembles brought performance art into the mainstream."

Public image

Critical reception of Gaga's music, fashion sense and persona are mixed. Her status as a role model, trailblazer and fashion icon is by turns affirmed and denied. Gaga's albums have received mostly positive reviews, Her role as a self-esteem booster for her fans is also lauded, as is her role in breathing life into the fashion industry. Her performances are described as "highly entertaining and innovative"; in particular, the blood-spurting performance of "Paparazzi" at the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards was described as "eye-popping" by MTV. She continued the "blood soaked" theme in The Monster Ball Tour, in which she wore a revealing leather corset and is "attacked" by a performer dressed in black who gnaws on her throat, causing "blood" to spurt down her chest, after which she lies "dying" in a pool of blood. Her performances of that scene in Manchester, England, triggered protests from family groups and fans in the aftermath of a local tragedy, in which a taxi driver had murdered 12 people. "What happened in Bradford is very fresh in people's minds and given all the violence which happened in Cumbria just hours earlier, it was insensitive," said Lynn Costello of Mothers Against Violence. Chris Rock later defended her flamboyant, provocative behavior. "Well, she's Lady Gaga," he said. "She's not 'Lady Behave Yourself.' Do you want great behavior from a person named Gaga? Is this what you were expecting?" She later returned to the 2010 MTV Video Music Awards wearing a dress supplemented by boots, a purse and a hat—each fabricated from the flesh of a dead animal. The dress, named Time magazine's Fashion Statement of 2010 and more widely known as the "meat dress", was made by Argentinian designer Franc Fernandez and received divided opinions—evoking the attention of worldwide media but invoking the fury of animal rights organization PETA. Gaga, however, later denied any intention of causing disrespect to any person or organization and wished for the dress to be interpreted as a statement of human rights with focus upon those in the LGBT community.

Contrary to her outré style, the New York Post described her early look as like "a refugee from Jersey Shore" with "big black hair, heavy eye makeup and tight, revealing clothes." She has another six known tattoos, among them a peace symbol, which was inspired by John Lennon, who she stated was her hero, Towards the end of 2008, comparisons were made between the fashions of Gaga and fellow recording artist Christina Aguilera that noted similarities in their styling, hair, and make-up. When interviewed by Barbara Walters for her annual ABC News special 10 Most Fascinating People in 2009, Gaga dismissed the claim that she is intersex as an urban legend. Responding to a question on this issue, she stated, "At first it was very strange and everyone sorta said, 'That's really quite a story!' But in a sense, I portray myself in a very androgynous way, and I love androgyny." In addition to Aguilera's statement, comparisons continued into 2010 when Aguilera released the music video of her single "Not Myself Tonight". Critics noted similarities between the song and its accompanying music video with Gaga's video for "Bad Romance". There have also been similar comparisons made between Gaga's style and that of fashion icon Dale Bozzio from the band Missing Persons. Some have considered their respective images to be strikingly parallel although fans of Missing Persons note that Bozzio had pioneered the look more than thirty years earlier.

During an interview with Harper's Bazaar magazine published in May 2011, Gaga discussed the recent appearance of horn-like ridges on her cheekbones, temples, and shoulders. When asked about the necessary makeup to attach the prosthetics, she responded, "They're not prosthetics, they're my bones." She also clarified that they were not the result of plastic surgery, believing such surgery to only be the modern byproduct of fame-induced insecurity to which she does not subscribe. Further probing by the interviewer only got her to state that they are an artistic representation of her inner inspirational light, part of the "performance piece" that is her musical persona, an inevitability of her becoming who she now is.

In view of Lady Gaga's influence on modern culture and her rise to global fame, sociologist Mathieu Deflem of the University of South Carolina since the Spring of 2011 organizes a course titled "Lady Gaga and the Sociology of the Fame" with the objective of unravelling "sociologically relevant dimensions of the fame of Lady Gaga with respect to her music, videos, fashion, and other artistic endeavors".

Philanthropy

Besides her career in music, Gaga has enhanced her repertoire as a philanthropist who has contributed to various charities and humanitarian works. Although declining an invitation to record a benefit song, Gaga held a concert of The Monster Ball Tour following the 2010 Haiti earthquake and dedicated it to the country's reconstruction relief fund. This concert, held at the Radio City Music Hall, New York, on January 24, 2010, donated any received revenue to the relief fund while, in addition, all profits from sales of products on Gaga's official online store on that same day were donated. Gaga announced that an estimated total of $500,000 was collected for the fund. Hours after the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami hit Japan on March 11, 2011, Gaga tweeted a message and a link to Japan Prayer Bracelets. With the company, she designed a bracelet, with all sales revenue going to Japanese relief efforts. The bracelets raised $1.5 million (as of March 29, 2011). Performing at MTV Japan's charity show on June 25, 2011 in Makuhari Messe, Gaga will appear for the benefit of the Japan Red Cross which aids victims suffering in the aftermath of the earthquake and tsunami.

Gaga also contributes in the fight against HIV and AIDS with the focus upon educating young women about the risks of the disease. In collaboration with Cyndi Lauper, Gaga joined forces with MAC Cosmetics to launch a line of lipstick under their supplementary cosmetic line, Viva Glam. Titled Viva Glam Gaga and Viva Glam Cyndi for each contributor respectively, all net proceeds of the lipstick line were donated to the cosmetic company's campaign to prevent HIV and AIDS worldwide. In a press release, Gaga declared, "I don't want Viva Glam to be just a lipstick you buy to help a cause. I want it to be a reminder when you go out at night to put a condom in your purse right next to your lipstick."

With the performance of the bilingual song "Americano" from her second studio album Born This Way (2011), Gaga jumped into the debate surrounding SB 1070, Arizona's immigration law. She premiered the tune for the first time on the Guadalajara, Mexico stop of her Monster Ball tour telling the local press that she could not “stand by many of the unjust immigration laws" in the United States.

LGBT advocacy

, October 11, 2009 |alt=A blond woman wearing a white shirt and black glasses speaking on a lectern carrying a 'National Equality March' poster. Behind her is a white stone balustrade of a building.]] Gaga attributes much of her early success as a mainstream artist to her gay fans and is considered to be a gay icon. Early in her career she had difficulty getting radio airplay, and stated, "The turning point for me was the gay community. I've got so many gay fans and they're so loyal to me and they really lifted me up. They'll always stand by me and I'll always stand by them. It's not an easy thing to create a fanbase." She thanked FlyLife, a Manhattan-based LGBT marketing company with whom her label Interscope works, in the liner notes of The Fame, saying, "I love you so much. You were the first heartbeat in this project, and your support and brilliance means the world to me. I will always fight for the gay community hand in hand with this incredible team." One of her first televised performances was in May 2008 at the NewNowNext Awards, an awards show aired by the LGBT television network Logo, where she sang her song "Just Dance". In June of the same year, she performed the song again at the San Francisco Pride event.

After The Fame was released, she revealed that the song "Poker Face" was about her bisexuality. In an interview with Rolling Stone, she spoke about how her boyfriends tended to react to her bisexuality, saying "The fact that I'm into women, they're all intimidated by it. It makes them uncomfortable. They're like, 'I don't need to have a threesome. I'm happy with just you'." She proclaimed that the October 11, 2009, National Equality March rally on the national mall was "the single most important event of her career." As she exited, she left with an exultant "Bless God and bless the gays," At the Human Rights Campaign Dinner, held the same weekend as the rally, she performed a cover of John Lennon's "Imagine" declaring that "I'm not going to [play] one of my songs tonight because tonight is not about me, it's about you." She changed the original lyrics of the song to reflect the death of Matthew Shepard, a college student murdered because of his sexuality.

's "Don't ask, don't tell" rally in 2010]] Gaga attended the 2010 MTV Video Music Awards accompanied by four service members of the United States Armed Forces (Mike Almy; David Hall; Katie Miller and Stacy Vasquez). All of whom, under the U.S. military's "Don't ask, don't tell" (DADT) policy, had been prohibited from serving openly because of their sexuality. In addition, Gaga wore a dress fabricated from the flesh of a dead animal to the awards ceremony. one that Barack Obama had promised to be.

Gaga has most recently appeared at Europride, a pan-European international event dedicated to LGBT pride, held in Rome in June 2011. In a nearly twenty-minute speech, she criticised the intolerant state of gay rights in many European countries and described homosexuals as "revolutionaries of love" before performing acoustic renderings of "Born This Way" and "The Edge of Glory" in front of thousands at the Circus Maximus. She stated that "Today and every day we fight for freedom. We fight for justice. We beckon for compassion, understanding and above all we want full equality now". Gaga revealed that she is often questioned why she dedicates herself to "gayspeak" and "how gay" she is, to which, she told the audience: "Why is this question, why is this issue so important? My answer is: I am a child of diversity, I am one with my generation, I feel a moral obligation as a woman, or a man, to exercise my revolutionary potential and make the world a better place." She then joked: "On a gay scale from 1 to 10, I'm a Judy Garland fucking 42."

Discography

The Fame (2008)

The Fame Monster (2009)

Born This Way (2011)

Tours

The Fame Ball Tour (2009)

The Monster Ball Tour (2009–11)

Awards and nominations

See also

Honorific nicknames in popular music

List of best-selling music artists

References

Further reading

External links

Year in Gaga: A Provocative 2010 —slideshow by Life magazine

Lady Gaga’s catwalk debut at Paris Fashion Week slideshow by IBTimes HK

Category:1986 births Category:2000s singers Category:2010s singers Category:American contraltos Category:American Roman Catholics Category:American dance musicians Category:American electronic musicians Category:American female pop singers Category:American musicians of Italian descent Category:American singer-songwriters Category:Androgyny Category:Bisexual musicians Category:BRIT Award winners Category:English-language singers Category:Feminist musicians Category:Grammy Award winners Category:Interscope Records artists Category:Keytarists Category:LGBT Christians Category:LGBT musicians from the United States Category:LGBT rights activists from the United States Category:Living people Category:People from Manhattan Category:Pseudonymous musicians Category:Singers from New York Category:Sony/ATV Music Publishing artists Category:Tisch School of the Arts alumni Category:Wonky Pop acts

Name	Bob Weir
Landscape	yes
Background	solo_singer
Birth name	Robert Hall Weir
Alias
Born	October 16, 1947 San Francisco, California
Died
Instrument	Guitar
Genre	Rock
Years active	1960s–present
Label	Warner Bros. Arista Grateful Dead Records
Associated acts	Grateful Dead (1965-'95) Kingfish (1974-'76)Bobby and the Midnites (1980-'84) RatDog (1995-present) The Other Ones (1998-2002) The Dead (2003-2009) Furthur (2009-present)
Url	www.rat-dog.com

Bob Weir (born Robert Hall Weir, October 16, 1947) is an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist, most recognized as a founding member of the Grateful Dead. After the Grateful Dead disbanded, Weir performed with The Other Ones, later known as The Dead, together with other former members of the Grateful Dead. Weir also founded and played in several other bands during and after his career with the Grateful Dead, including Kingfish, the Bob Weir Band, Bobby and the Midnites, RatDog, and his newest band Furthur.

Weir played mostly rhythm guitar during his career with the Grateful Dead. He is known for his unique style of complex voiceleading, bringing unusual depth and a new approach to the role of rhythm guitar expression.

Career

Weir was born in San Francisco, California and raised by his adoptive parents in the suburb of Atherton. He began playing guitar at age thirteen after less successful experimentation with the piano and the trumpet. He had trouble in school because of undiagnosed dyslexia and he was expelled from nearly every school he attended, including Menlo Atherton High School in Atherton and Fountain Valley School in Colorado. At Fountain Valley he met John Perry Barlow, who later wrote the lyrics to a number of Grateful Dead songs.

On New Year's Eve, 1963, 16-year-old Weir and another underage friend were wandering the back alleys of Palo Alto, looking for a club that would admit them, when they heard banjo music. They followed the music to its source, Dana Morgan's Music Store. Here, a young Jerry Garcia, oblivious to the date, was waiting for his students to arrive. Weir and Garcia spent the night playing music together and then decided to form a band. The Beatles significantly influenced their musical direction. "The Beatles were why we turned from a jug band into a rock 'n' roll band," said Bob Weir. "What we saw them doing was impossibly attractive. I couldn't think of anything else more worth doing." Originally called Mother McCree's Uptown Jug Champions, the band was later renamed The Warlocks and eventually the Grateful Dead.

, in 1975. Photo: David Gans]]

Weir played rhythm guitar and sang a portion of the lead vocals through all of the Dead's 30-year career. (In the fall of 1968, the Dead played some concerts without Weir and Ron "Pigpen" McKernan. These shows, with the band billed as "Mickey and the Hartbeats", were intermixed with full-lineup Grateful Dead concerts. Late in the year, the band relented and took Weir and Pigpen back in full time.) In the late 1970s, he began to experiment with slide guitar techniques and perform certain songs during Dead shows using the slide. His unique guitar style is strongly influenced by the hard bop pianist McCoy Tyner and he has cited artists as diverse as John Coltrane, the Rev. Gary Davis, and Igor Stravinsky as influences. He is an honorary member of the board of directors of the environmental organization Rainforest Action Network, along with Woody Harrelson, Bonnie Raitt, and John Densmore. He is also on the honorary board of directors of Little Kids Rock, a non-profit organization that provides free musical instruments and instruction to children in under-served public schools throughout the U.S.

Weir is reported to be a member of the Bohemian Club and has attended and performed at the secretive club's annual bacchanal at the Bohemian Grove.

Guitars

Early pictures of The Warlocks in concert show him playing a Gretsch Duo-Jet, and after the Warlocks became the Grateful Dead, Weir briefly played a Rickenbacker 365, a Guild Starfire IV acoustic-electric (with Garcia playing an identical Cherry Red Starfire IV, which appear very similar to the Gibson ES-335) as well as a Fender Telecaster before settling on for the following decade, the Gibson ES-335. Weir usually played a cherry red 1965 ES-335 until the band's hiatus in 1974, although he did occasionally use a Gibson ES-345. Weir played a black Gibson Les Paul in 1971. Weir can also be seen playing a sunburst ES-335 in The Grateful Dead Movie, filmed in October 1974. During the early 1970s, Weir also used a 1961 or 1962 Gibson SG.

In 1974, Weir began working with Jeff Hasselberger at Ibanez to develop a custom instrument. Weir began playing the Ibanez 2681 during the recording of Blues for Allah; this was a testbed instrument with sliding pickups that Hasselberger used to develop several additional 2681s for use onstage, as well as Weir's custom "Cowboy Fancy" guitar, which he played from 1976 until the mid-1980s. Weir began using a Modulus Blackknife at that point, and continued to play the Blackknife, along with a hybrid Modulus/Casio guitar for the "Space" segment of Grateful Dead concerts for the rest of that band's history. Weir's acoustic guitars include several Martins, a Guild, an Ovation, and a line of Alvarez-Yairi signature models.

Of late, photos on Rat-Dog.com show Weir playing most often a Modulus G3FH custom and his returned to use Gibson ES-335. He has seemingly retired a 1956 Fender Telecaster previously owned by his late half-brother, James Parber.

Discography

Ace - Bob Weir (1972)

Kingfish - Kingfish (1976)

Live 'n' Kickin' - Kingfish (1977)

Heaven Help The Fool - Bob Weir (1978)

Bobby & the Midnites - Bobby and the Midnites (1981)

Where the Beat Meets the Street - Bobby and the Midnights (1984)

- Kingfish (1996)

Live - Bob Weir and Rob Wasserman (1998)

Mother McCree's Uptown Jug Champions - Mother McCree's Uptown Jug Champions (1999)

Evening Moods - RatDog (2000)

Live at Roseland - RatDog (2001)

Weir Here – The Best of Bob Weir - compilation (2004)

Notes

References

Condran, Ed. "Hot Rats", Atlantic City Weekly, July 9, 2009

External links

The Official Bob Weir & RatDog Site

Category:1947 births Category:Living people Category:American male singers Category:American rock guitarists Category:American rock singers Category:Grateful Dead members Category:Musicians from California Category:People from San Francisco, California Category:Rhythm guitarists