Official name	Oslo
Pushpin map	Norway
Image shield	Oslo komm.svg
Shield size	150px
Dot map caption	Location of Oslo in Norway
Coordinates region	NO
Subdivision type	Country
Subdivision name	Norway
Subdivision type1	District
Subdivision name1	Østlandet
Subdivision type2	County
Subdivision name2	Oslo
Subdivision type3	Municipality
Subdivision name3	Oslo
Leader title	Mayor
Leader name	Fabian Stang (H)
Leader title1	Governing mayor
Leader name1	Stian Berger Røsland (H)
Established title	Established
Established date	1048
Area total km2	454.03
Area urban km2	285.26
Area metro km2	8900
Population as of	2011
Population total	605005
Population density km2	auto
Population metro	1442318
Population density metro km2	auto
Population urban	912046
Population density urban km2	auto
demographics type1	Ethnic groups
demographics1 footnotes
demographics1 title1	Norwegians
demographics1 info1	71.5%
demographics1 title2	Pakistanis
demographics1 info2	3.6%
demographics1 title3	Somalis
demographics1 info3	2.0%
demographics1 title4	Swedes
demographics1 info4	2.0%
demographics1 title5	Poles
demographics1 info5	1.7%
Timezone	CET
Utc offset	+1
Timezone dst	CEST
Utc offset dst	+2
Coordinates display	displayinline,title
Postal code	0301
Website
Motto	Unanimiter et constanter (Latin: ''United and constant'') }}

Oslo (, , or ) is a municipality, as well as the capital and most populous city in Norway. As a municipality (''formannskapsdistrikt''), it was established on 1 January 1838. Founded around 1048 by King Harald III of Norway, the city was largely destroyed by fire in 1624. The city was moved under the reign of Denmark–Norway's King Christian IV. It was rebuilt closer to Akershus Fortress, as Christiania (also spelt Kristiania in late 1800's). In 1925, the city reclaimed its original Norwegian name, Oslo. The diocese of Oslo is one of the five original dioceses in Norway, which originated around the year 1070.

Oslo is the cultural, scientific, economic and governmental centre of Norway. The city is also a hub of Norwegian trade, banking, industry and shipping. It is an important centre for maritime industries and maritime trade in Europe. The city is home to many companies within the maritime sector, some of which are amongst the world's largest shipping companies, shipbrokers and maritime insurance brokers. Oslo is a pilot city of the Council of Europe and the European Commission intercultural cities programme.

Oslo is considered a global city and ranked "Beta World City" in studies performed by the Globalization and World Cities Study Group and Network in 2008. For several years, Oslo has been listed as one of the most expensive cities in the world along with such other global cities, as Zurich, Geneva, Copenhagen, Paris, and Tokyo. In 2009, however, Oslo regained its status as the world's most expensive city. A survey conducted by ECA International in 2011 placed Oslo 2nd after Tokyo.

As of 2010, the metropolitan area of Oslo has a population of 1,442,318 of whom 912,046 live in the contiguous conurbation. The population currently increases at a record rate of 1.64% annually, making it the fastest growing city in Europe. This growth stems from immigration, as the Norwegian population in the city is decreasing. The immigrant share of the population in the city proper now counts more than 25% of the city's total.

Urban region

The population of the municipality of Oslo is 605,318 as of 1 Apr. 2011. The urban area extends beyond the boundaries of the municipality into the surrounding county of Akershus, (municipalities of Bærum, Asker, Røyken, Lørenskog, Skedsmo, Gjerdrum, Sørum, Oppegård) its agglomeration total 912,046 inhabitants. The metropolitan area of Oslo, also referred to as the Greater Oslo Region (), has a land area of with a population of 1,422,442 as of 1 Apr. 2010. The Inner Oslo Fjord Region, or the Capital Region made up by the 5 counties of Oslo, Akershus, Buskerud, Vestfold (west bank of the Oslo fjord) and Østfold (east bank) has a population of 1,908,231 people (01.10.2010). The city centre is situated at the end of the Oslofjord, from which point the city sprawls out in three distinct "corridors" from its centre; inland north-eastwards and southwards along both sides of the fjord giving the city area more or less the shape of a reclining "Y" when seen from the north. To the north and east, wide forested hills (''Marka'') rise above the city giving the location the shape of a giant amphitheatre. The urban municipality (''bykommune'') of Oslo and county of Oslo (''fylke'') are two parts of the same entity, making Oslo the only city in Norway where two administrative levels are integrated. Of Oslo's total area, is built-up and is agricultural. The open areas within the built-up zone amount to .

The city of Oslo was established as a municipality on 3 January 1838 (see formannskapsdistrikt). It was separated from the county of Akershus to become a county of its own in 1842. The rural municipality of Aker was merged with Oslo on 1 January 1948 (and simultaneously transferred from Akershus county to Oslo county). Furthermore, Oslo shares several important functions with Akershus county. The neighbouring industrial commune of Aker was incorporated into Oslo in 1948.

General information

Toponymy

The origin of the name ''Oslo'' has been the subject of much debate. While certainly derived from Old Norse, it was in all probability originally the name of a large farm at the site of the first settlements in Bjørvika.

Most modern linguists lean toward an interpretation of "Oslo/Åslo" as either "the meadow at the foot of the hill", with the name serving a topographical description, or the possibility of the name referring to an ancient site of worship in "the meadow consecrated to the gods". Both interpretations are considered equally likely.

Erroneously, it was once assumed that Oslo meant "the mouth of the Lo river", referring to another name of the river Alna. This apocryphal story is not only ungrammatical (the correct form would be ''Loaros'', cf. Nidaros), but the name ''Lo'' is not recorded anywhere before Peder Claussøn Friis first used it in the same work in which he proposed this etymology. The name ''Lo'' is now believed to be a back-formation arrived at by Friis in support of his spurious etymology for ''Oslo''.

City seal

Oslo is one of very few cities in Norway, besides Bergen and Tønsberg, that does not have a formal coat-of-arms, but which uses a city seal instead. The seal of Oslo shows the city's patron saint, St. Hallvard, with his attributes, the millstone and arrows, with a naked woman at his feet. He is seated on a throne with lion decorations, which at the time was also commonly used by the Norwegian Kings.

History

According to the Norse sagas, Oslo was founded around 1049 by King Harald Hardråde. Recent archaeological research has uncovered Christian burials which can be dated to prior to 1000 CE, evidence of a preceding urban settlement. This called for the celebration of Oslo's millennium in 2000.

It has been regarded as the capital city since the reign of King Håkon V (1299–1319), the first king to reside permanently in the city. He also started the construction of the Akershus Fortress. A century later, Norway was the weaker part in a personal union with Denmark, and Oslo's role was reduced to that of provincial administrative centre, with the monarchs residing in Copenhagen. The fact that the University of Oslo was founded as late as 1811 had an adverse effect on the development of the nation.

Oslo was destroyed several times by fire, and after the fourteenth calamity, in 1624, King Christian IV of Denmark (and Norway) ordered it rebuilt at a new site across the bay, near Akershus Fortress and given the name ''Christiania''. Long before this, Christiania had started to establish its stature as a centre of commerce and culture in Norway. The part of the city built starting in 1624 is now often called ''Kvadraturen'' because of its orthogonal layout. The last plague outbreak ravaged Oslo in 1654. In 1814 Christiania once more became a real capital when the union with Denmark was dissolved.

Many landmarks were built in the 19th century, including the Royal Palace (1825–1848); Stortinget (the Parliament) (1861–1866), the University, Nationaltheatret and the Stock Exchange. Among the world-famous artists who lived here during this period were Henrik Ibsen and Knut Hamsun (the latter was awarded the Nobel Prize for literature). In 1850, Christiania also overtook Bergen and became the most populous city in the country. In 1877 the city was renamed ''Kristiania''. The original name of Oslo was restored in 1925.

1000–1700

Under the reign of King Olav Kyrre, Oslo became a cultural centre for Eastern Norway. St. Hallvard became the city's patron saint and is depicted on the city's seal.

In 1174, Hovedøya Abbey (''Hovedøya kloster'') was built. The churches and abbeys became major owners of large tracts of land, which proved important for the city's economic development, especially before the Black Death.

During the Middle Ages, Oslo reached its heights in the reign of King Håkon V. He started the building of Akershus Fortress and was also the first king to reside permanently in the city, which helped to make Oslo the capital of Norway.

In the end of the 12th century, Hanseatic traders from Rostock moved into the city and gained major influence in the city. The Black Death came to Norway in 1349 and, like other cities in Europe, the city suffered greatly. The churches' earnings from their land also dropped so much that the Hanseatic traders dominated the city's foreign trade in the 15th century.

Over the years, fire destroyed major parts of the city many times, as many of the city's buildings were built entirely of wood. After the last fire in 1624, which lasted for three days, King Christian IV decided that the old city should not be rebuilt again. His men built a network of roads in Akershagen near Akershus Castle. He demanded that all citizens should move their shops and workplaces to the newly built city of Christiania.

The transformation of the city went slowly for the first hundred years. Outside the city, near Vaterland and Grønland near Gamle Oslo a new, unmanaged part of the city grew up with citizens of low status.

1700s

In the 18th century, after the Great Northern War, the city's economy boomed with shipbuilding and trade. The strong economy transformed Christiania into a trading port.

1800s

In the 19th century, several state institutions were established and the city's role as a capital intensified. Christiania expanded its industry from 1840, most importantly around Akerselva. The expansion prompted the authorities to construct several important buildings, most of which remain as tourist attractions. There was a brief building boom from 1880, with many new houses, but the boom collapsed in 1889.

1900–present

Auctioning off of children was prohibited by law (''Fattigloven'') in 1900, as a result of court cases related to children having died/been killed.

The ''kommune'' developed new areas such as Ullevål Hageby(1918–1926) and Torshov (1917–1925). City Hall was constructed in the former slum area of Vika, from 1931–1950. The municipality of Aker was incorporated into Oslo in 1948, and suburbs were developed, such as Lambertseter (from 1951). Aker Brygge was constructed on the site of the former shipyard Akers Mekaniske Verksted, from 1982–1998.

On 22 July 2011, Oslo was hit by a bomb blast that ripped through the city central government district, also damaging Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg's office while he was absent and the nearby Ministry of Petroleum. The terrorist blast killed at least eight people prior to a shooting spree on the island of Utøya on lake Tyrifjorden, which killed at least 68 youths participating in a Norwegian Labour Party youth camp. The suspect is Anders Behring Breivik.

Geography

Oslo occupies an arc of land at the northernmost end of the Oslofjord. The fjord, which is nearly bisected by the Nesodden peninsula opposite Oslo, lies to the south; in all other directions Oslo is surrounded by green hills and mountains. There are 40 islands within the city limits, the largest being Malmøya (), and scores more around the Oslofjord. Oslo has 343 lakes, the largest being Maridalsvannet (). This is also a main source of drinking water for large parts of Oslo.

Although Eastern Norway has a number of rivers, none of these flow into the ocean at Oslo. Instead Oslo has two smaller rivers: Akerselva (draining Maridalsvannet, which flows into the fjord in Bjørvika), and Alna. The waterfalls in Akerselva gave power to the first modern industry of Norway in the 1840, and later in the century, the river became the symbol of the stable and consistent economic and social divide of the city into an East End and a West End; the labourers' neighbourhoods lie on both sides of the river, and the divide in reality follows Uelands street a bit further west. River Alna flows through Groruddalen, Oslo's major suburb and industrial area. The highest point is Kirkeberget, at . Although the city's population is small compared to most European capitals, it occupies an unusually large land area, of which two thirds are protected areas of forests, hills and lakes. Its boundaries encompass many parks and open areas, giving it an airy and green appearance.

Climate

Oslo has a humid continental climate (Dfb according to the Köppen climate classification system). Because of the city's northern latitude, daylight varies greatly, from more than 18 hours in midsummer, when it never gets completely dark at night, to around 6 hours in midwinter. Despite its northerly location, the climate is relatively mild throughout the year because of the Gulf Stream.

Oslo has pleasantly mild to warm summers with average high temperatures of and lows of around . Temperatures exceed quite often, and heatwaves are common during the summer. In the summer of 2009, a heatwave caused temperatures to exceed for six straight days, peaking at . The highest temperature ever recorded was on 21 July 1901. Due to the fjord being a relatively enclosed body of water, the water temperatures can get quite high during long warm periods. During the summer of 2008, the water reached a temperature of . Winters are cold and snowy with temperatures between up to . The coldest temperature recorded is in January 1942. Temperatures have tended to be higher in recent years.

Annual precipitation is with moderate rainfall throughout the year. Snowfall can occur from November to April, but snow accumulation occurs mainly from January through March. Almost every winter, ice develops in the innermost parts of the Oslofjord, and during some winters the whole inner fjord freezes. As it is far from the mild Atlantic water of the west coast, this large fjord can freeze over completely, although this has become rare.

Parks and recreation areas

Oslo has a large number of parks and green areas within the city core, as well as outside it.

Frogner Park is a large park located a few minutes walk away from the city centre. This is the biggest and most reputed park in Norway with a large collection of sculptures of Gustav Vigeland

Bygdøy is a huge and green area, commonly called the Museum Peninsula of Oslo. The beautiful location, surrounded by the sea, makes it the most expensive Norwegian district.

St. Hanshaugen Park is an old public park on a high hill in central Oslo. 'St. Hanshaugen' is also the name of the surrounding neighbourhood as well as the larger administrative district (borough) that includes major parts of central Oslo. Tøyen Park stretches out behind the Munch Museum, and is a vast, grassy expanse. In the north, there is a viewing point known as Ola Narr. The Tøyen area also includes the Botanical Garden and Museum belonging to the University of Oslo. Oslo (with neighbouring Sandvika-Asker) is built in a horseshoe shape on the shores of the Oslofjord and limited in most directions by hills and forests. As a result, any point within the city is relatively close to the forest. There are two major forests bordering the city: ''Østmarka'' (literally "Eastern Forest", on the eastern perimeter of the city), and the very large ''Nordmarka'' (literally "Northern Forest", stretching from the northern perimeter of the city deep into the hinterland).true

The municipality operates eight public swimming pools. Tøyenbadet is the largest indoor swimming facility in Oslo and one of the few pools in Norway offering a 50-metre main pool. The outdoor pool Frognerbadet also has the 50-metre range.

Cityscape

Oslo's cityscape is being redeveloped as a modern city with various access-points, an extensive metro-system with a new financial district and a cultural city. In 2008, an exhibition was held in London presenting the award-winning Oslo Opera House, the urban regeneration scheme of Oslo's seafront, Munch/Stenersen and the new Deichman Library. Most of the buildings in the city and in neighbouring communities are low in height with only the Plaza, Postgirobygget and the highrises at Bjørvika considerably taller.

Architecture

Oslo's architecture is very diverse. Architect Carl Frederik Stanley (1769–1805), who was educated in Copenhagen, spent some years in Norway around the turn of the 19th century. He did minor works for wealthy patrons in and around Oslo, but his major achievement was the renovation of the Oslo Katedralskole, completed in 1800. He added a classical portico to the front of an older structure, and a semi-circular auditorium that was sequestered by Parliament in 1814 as a temporary place to assemble, now preserved at Norsk Folkemuseum as a national monument.

Christiania, recently promoted to the status of a capital city, had practically no buildings suitable for the many new government institutions. An ambitious building program was initiated, but realised very slowly because of a strained economy. The first major undertaking was the Royal Palace, designed by Hans Linstow and built between 1824 and 1848. Linstow also planned Karl Johans gate, the avenue connecting the Palace and the city, with a monumental square halfway to be surrounded by buildings for the University, the Parliament (Storting) and other institutions. Only the University buildings were realised according to this plan. Christian Heinrich Grosch, one of the first fully educated architects in Norway, designed the original building for the Oslo Stock Exchange (1826–1828), the local branch of the Bank of Norway (1828), Christiania Theatre (1836–1837), and the first campus for the University of Oslo (1841–1856). For the University buildings, he sought the assistance of the renowned German architect Karl Friedrich Schinkel.

The German architectural influence persisted in Norway, and many wooden buildings followed the principles of Neoclassicism. In Oslo, the German architect Alexis de Chateauneuf designed Trefoldighetskirken, the first neo-gothic church, completed by von Hanno in 1858.

A number of landmark structures, particularly in Oslo, were built in the functionalist style, the first one being the Skansen restaurant (1925–1927) by Lars Backer, demolished in 1970. Backer also designed the restaurant at Ekeberg, opened in 1929. The art gallery Kunstnernes Hus by Gudolf Blakstad and Herman Munthe-Kaas (1930) still shows influence from the preceding classicist trend of the 1920s. Oslo Airport (by the Aviaplan consortium at Gardermoen was Norway's largest construction project ever.

Politics and government

Oslo is the capital of Norway, and as such is the seat of Norway's national government. Most government offices, including that of the Prime Minister, are gathered at ''Regjeringskvartalet'', a cluster of buildings close to the national Parliament—the Storting.

Constituting both a municipality and a county of Norway, the city of Oslo is represented in the Storting by seventeen Members of Parliament. Six MPs are from the Labour Party; the Conservative Party and the Progress Party have three each; the Socialist Left Party and the Liberals have two each; and one is from the Christian Democrats.

250px|thumb|right|[[Royal Palace, Oslo|Slottet is the home of the Royal Family.]]The combined municipality and county of Oslo has had a parliamentary system of government since 1986. The supreme authority of the city is the City Council (''Bystyret''), which currently has 59 seats. Representatives are popularly elected every four years. The City Council has five standing committees, each having its own areas of responsibility.The largest parties in the City Council are the Labour Party and the Conservatives, with 18 and 16 representatives respectively.

The Mayor of Oslo is the head of the City Council and the highest ranking representative of the city. This used to be the most powerful political position in Oslo, but following the implementation of parliamentarism, the Mayor has had more of a ceremonial role, similar to that of the President of the Storting at the national level. The current Mayor of Oslo is Fabian Stang.

Since the local elections of 2003, the city government has been a coalition of the Conservative Party and the Progress Party. Based mostly on support from the Christian Democrats and the Liberals, the coalition maintains a workable majority in the City Council. After the 2007 local elections on 10 September, the conservative coalition remained in majority.

The Governing Mayor of Oslo is the head of the City government. The post was created with the implementation of parliamentarism in Oslo and is similar to the role of the prime minister at the national level. The current governing mayor is Stian Berger Røsland.

Economy

Oslo is an important centre of maritime knowledge in Europe and is home to approximately 1980 companies and 8,500 employees within the maritime sector, some of which are the world's largest shipping companies, shipbrokers, and insurance brokers. Det Norske Veritas, headquartered at Høvik outside Oslo, is one of the three major maritime classification societies in the world, with 16.5% of the world fleet to class in its register. The city's port is the largest general cargo port in the country and its leading passenger gateway. Close to 6,000 ships dock at the Port of Oslo annually with a total of 6 million tonnes of cargo and over five million passengers. The gross domestic product of Oslo totalled NOK268.047 billion (€33.876 billion) in 2003, which amounted to 17% of the national GDP. This compares with NOK165.915 billion (€20.968 billion) in 1995. The metropolitan area, bar Moss and Drammen, contributed 25% of the national GDP in 2003 and was also responsible for more than one quarter of tax revenues. In comparison, total tax revenues from the oil and gas industry on the Norwegian Continental Shelf amounted to about 16%.

Oslo is one of the most expensive cities in the world. As of 2006, it is ranked tenth according to the Worldwide Cost of Living Survey provided by Mercer Human Resource Consulting and first according to the Economist Intelligence Unit. The reason for this discrepancy is that the EIU omits certain factors from its final index calculation, most notably housing. Although Oslo does have the most expensive housing market in Norway, it is comparably cheaper than other cities on the list in that regard. Meanwhile, prices on goods and services remain some of the highest of any city. Oslo hosts 2654 of the largest companies in Norway. Within the ranking of Europe's largest cities ordered by their number of companies Oslo is in fifth position. A whole group of oil and gas companies is situated in Oslo. According to a report compiled by Swiss bank UBS in the month of August 2006, Oslo and London were the world's most expensive cities.

Environment

Oslo is a compact city. It is easy to move around by public transportation and you can access rentable city bikes all over the city centre. In 2003, Oslo received The European Sustainable City Award and in 2007 Reader's Digest ranked Oslo as number two on a list of the world's greenest, most liveable cities.

''See also Transportation ''

Education

Institutions of higher education

University of Oslo (Universitetet i Oslo) – undergraduate, graduate and PhD programs in most fields.

Oslo University College (Høgskolen i Oslo) – focuses on 3–4 year professional degree programs.

Norwegian School of Management (Handelshøyskolen BI) – primarily economics and business administration.

Norwegian School of Information Technology (Norges Informasjonsteknologiske Høyskole)

Oslo School of Architecture and Design (Arkitektur- og designhøgskolen i Oslo)

Norwegian School of Sport Sciences (Norges idrettshøgskole) – offers opportunities to study at the Bachelor, Masters and Doctoral level

Norwegian Academy of Music (Norges musikkhøgskole)

MF Norwegian School of Theology (Det teologiske Menighetsfakultet — MF)

Oslo National Academy of the Arts (Kunsthøgskolen i Oslo KHIO) Norwegian University of Life Sciences (Universitetet for Miljø og Biovitenskap-UMB) located right outside of Oslo

Norwegian Military Academy (Krigsskolen)

Norwegian School of Veterinary Science (Norges Veterinærhøgskole) Oslo Academy of Fine Arts (Statens kunstakademi)

Oslo School of Management (Markedshøyskolen)

The level of education and productivity in the workforce is high in Norway. Nearly half of those with education at tertiary level in Norway live in the Oslo region, placing it among Europe's top three regions in relation to education. In 2008, the total workforce in the greater Oslo region (5 counties) numbered 1,020,000 people. The greater Oslo region has several higher educational institutions and is home to more than 73,000 students. The University of Oslo is the largest educational institution with 27,700 students and 5,900 employees.

Culture

Oslo has a large and varied number of cultural attractions, which include several buildings containing artwork from Edvard Munch and various other international artists but also several Norwegian artists. Several world-famous writers have either lived or been born in Oslo. Examples are Knut Hamsun and Henrik Ibsen. The government has recently invested large amounts of money in cultural installations, facilities, buildings and festivals in the City of Oslo. Bygdøy, outside the city centre is the centre for history and the Norwegian Vikings' history. The area contains a large amount of parks and seasites and a large amount of museums. Examples are the Fram Museum, Vikingskiphuset and the Kon-Tiki Museum. Oslo hosts the annual Oslo Freedom Forum, a conference described by The Economist as “on its way to becoming a human-rights equivalent of the Davos economic forum.” Oslo is also known for giving out the Nobel Peace Prize every year.

Museums, galleries

Oslo houses several major Museums and galleries. The Munch Museum contains the Scream and other work by Edvard Munch who donated all his work to the city after his death. The City-Council is currently planning a new Munch Museum which is most likely to be built in Bjørvika, in the southeast of the city. The museum will be named Munch/Stenersen. 50 different museums are located around the city. Folkemuseet is located on the Bygdøy peninsula and is dedicated to Folk art, Folk Dress, Sami culture and the viking culture. The outdoor museum contains 155 authentic old buildings from all parts of Norway, including a Stave Church. The Vigeland Museum located in the large Vigeland Park by many people known as the Frognerpark is free to access and contains over 212 sculptures by Gustav Vigeland including an obelisk and the Wheel of Life. Another popular sculpture is Sinnataggen, a baby boy stamping his foot in fury. This statue is very well known as an icon in the city. Vikingskiphuset contains three vikingships found at Oseberg, Gokstad and Tune and several other unique items from the Viking age. The Oslo City Museum holds a permanent exhibition about the people in Oslo and the history of the city. The Kon-Tiki Museum houses Thor Heyerdahls Kontiki and Ra2.

The National Museum holds and preserves, exhibits and promotes public knowledge about Norway's most extensive collection of art. The Museum shows permanent exhibitions of works from its own collections but also temporary exhibitions that incorporate work loaned from elsewhere. The National Museums exhibition avenues are the National Gallery, the Museum of Contemporary Art, the National Museum, the Museum of Decorative Arts and the National Museum of Architecture. A new National Museum in Oslo will be built in the next 10 years. The winner was Forum Artis, and the building will be located at Vestbanen behind the Nobel Peace Center. The Nobel Peace Center is an independent organisation opened on 11 June 2005 by the King Harald V as part of the celebrations to mark Norway's centenary as an independent country. The building houses a permanent exhibition, expanding every year when a new Nobel Peace Prize winner is announced, containing information of every winner in history. The building is mainly used as a communication centre.

Music and events

A large number of festivals are held in Oslo, such as Oslo Live, a rock and roll event, and the Oslo Jazz festival is a six-day festival which has been held annually in August for the past 25 years. Oslo's biggest Rock festival is Øyafestivalen or simply "Øya". It draws about 60,000 people to the Medieval Park east in Oslo and last for four days. The Oslo World Music Festival showcases people who are stars in their own country but strangers in Norway. The Oslo Chamber Music Festival is held in August every year and world-class chambers and soloists gather in Oslo to perform at this festival. The Norwegian Wood Rock Festival is held every year in June in Oslo.

The Nobel Peace Prize Ceremony is headed by the Institute; the award ceremony is held annually in The City Hall on 10 December. Even though Sami land is far away from the capital, the Norwegian Museum of Cultural History marks the Sami National Day with a series of activities and entertainment.

The World Cup Biathlon in Holmenkollen is held every year and here male and female competitors compete against each other in Sprint, Pursuit and Mass Start disciplines.

Other examples of annual events in Oslo are Desucon, a convention focusing on Japanese culture and Færderseilasen, the world's largest overnight regatta with more than 1100 boats taking part every year.

Rikard Nordraak, composer of the Norwegian national anthem, was born in Oslo in 1842.

Norway's principal orchestra is the Oslo Philharmonic, based at the Oslo Concert Hall since 1977. Although it was founded in 1919, the Oslo Philharmonic can trace its roots to the founding of the ''Christiania Musikerforening'' (Christiania Musicians Society) by Edvard Grieg and Johan Svendsen in 1879.

Performing arts

Oslo houses over 20 theatres, such as the Norwegian Theatre and the National Theatre located at Karl Johan Street. The National Theatre is the largest theatre in Norway and is situated between the castle and the Storting. The names of Ludvig Holberg, Henrik Ibsen and Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson are engraved on the façade of the building over the main entrance. This theatre represents the actors and play-writers of the country but the songwriters, singers and dancers are represented in the form of a newly opened Oslo Opera House, situated in Bjørvika. The Opera was opened in 2008 and is a national landmark, designed by the Norwegian architectural firm, Snøhetta. There are two houses, together containing over 2000 seats. The building cost 500 million euro to build and took five years to build and is known for being the first Opera House in the world to let people walk on the roof of the building. The foyer and the roof are also used for concerts as well as the three stages.

Literature

Most great Norwegian authors have lived in Oslo for some period in their life. For example Nobel Prize author Sigrid Undset grew up Oslo, and has described her life here in the autobiographical novel ''Elleve år'' (1934; translated as ''The longest years''; New York 1971).

Playwright Henrik Ibsen is probably the most famous Norwegian author. Ibsen wrote plays such as ''Peer Gynt'', ''A Doll's House'' and ''The Lady from the Sea''. The Ibsen Quotes project completed in 2008 is a work of art consisting of 69 Ibsen quotations in stainless steel lettering which have been set into the granite sidewalks of the city's central streets.

In recent years, novelists like Lars Saabye Christensen, Tove Nilsen and Roy Jacobsen have described the city and its people in their novels. Early 20th century literature from Oslo include poets Rudolf Nilsen and André Bjerke.

Media

The newspapers ''Aftenposten,'' ''Dagbladet,'' ''Verdens Gang,'' ''Dagens Næringsliv,'' ''Finansavisen,'' ''Dagsavisen,'' ''Morgenbladet,'' ''Vårt Land, Nationen'' and ''Klassekampen'' are published in Oslo. The main office of the national broadcasting company NRK is located at Marienlyst in Oslo, near Majorstuen. TVNorge (TVNorway) is also located in Oslo, while TV 2 (based in Bergen) and TV3 (based in London) operate branch offices in central Oslo. There is also a variety of specialty publications and smaller media companies. A number of magazines are produced in Oslo. The two dominant companies are Aller Media and Hjemmet Mortensen AB.

Sports

Holmenkollen National Arena and Holmenkollbakken is the country's main biathlon and Nordic skiing venue. It hosts annual world cup tournaments, including the Holmenkollen Ski Festival. It has hosted Biathlon World Championships in 1986, 1990, 1999 and 2002. FIS Nordic World Ski Championships have been hosted in 1930, 1966, 1982 and 2011, as well as the 1952 Winter Olympics.

Ullevål Stadion is the home arena for the Tippeligaen football side Vålerenga Fotball, the Norwegian national football team and the Football Cup Final. The stadium has previously hosted the finals of the UEFA Women's Championship in 1987 and 1997, and the 2002 UEFA European Under-19 Football Championship. Røa IL is Oslo's only team in the women's league, Toppserien. Each year, the international youth football tournament Norway Cup is held on Ekebergsletta and other places in the city.

Bislett Stadion is the city's main track and field venue, and hosts the annual Bislett Games, part of IAAF Diamond League. Bjerke Travbane is the main venue for harness racing in the country. Oslo Spektrum is used for large ice hockey and handball matches. Bækkelagets SK and Nordstrand IF plays in the women's Postenligaen in handball, while Vålerenga Håndball plays in the men's league. Jordal Amfi, the home of the ice hockey team Vålerenga Ishockey, and Manglerudhallen is the home of Manglerud Star, both of whom play in GET-ligaen. The 1999 IIHF World Championship in ice hockey were held in Oslo, as have three Bandy World Championships, in 1961, 1977 and 1985. The UCI Road World Championships in bicycle road racing were hosted 1993.

Crime

Oslo Police District is Norway's largest police district with over 2300 employees. Over 1700 of those are policemen, nearly 140 police lawyers and 500 civil employees. Oslo Police District has five police stations located around the city. Kripos is located in Oslo, which is a Norwegian special police division under the NMJP.

PST is also located in the Oslo District. PST is a security agency which was established in 1936 and is one of the non-secret agencies in Norway. At least two known underground NATO facilities are located in The Oslo District, one underground in Kolsås near NSM which is one of Norway's major national security authorities.

On 22 July 2011, Oslo was the site of one of two terrorist attacks: a bombing of Oslo government offices, and a shooting at a youth camp in Utøya.

Transportation

Oslo has Norway's most extensive public transport system, managed by Ruter. This includes the six-line Oslo Metro, the world's most extensive metro per resident, the six-line Oslo Tramway and the eight-line Oslo Commuter Rail. The tramway operates within the areas close to the city centre, while the metro, which runs underground through the city centre, operates to suburbs further away; this includes two lines which operate to Bærum, and the Ring Line which loops to areas north of the centre.

Oslo Central Station acts as the central hub, and offers train services to most major cities in southern Norway as well as Stockholm and Gothenburg in Sweden. The Airport Express Train operates along the high-speed Gardermoen Line. The Drammen Line runs under the city centre in the Oslo Tunnel. Some of the city islands and the neighbouring municipality of Nesodden are connected by ferry. Daily cruiseferry services operate to Copenhagen and Frederikshavn in Denmark, and to Kiel in Germany.

Many of the motorways pass through the downtown and other parts of the city in tunnels. The construction of the roads is partially supported through a toll ring. The major motorways through Oslo are European Route E6 and E18. There are three beltways, the innermost which are streets and the outermost, Ring 3 which is an expressway.

The main airport serving Oslo is Oslo Airport, Gardermoen, located in Ullensaker, from the city centre of Oslo. It acts as the main international gateway to Norway, and is the sixth-largest domestic airport in Europe. Gardermoen is a hub for Scandinavian Airlines, Norwegian Air Shuttle and Widerøe. Oslo is also served by two secondary airports, which serve some low-cost carriers, such as Ryanair: Moss Airport, Rygge and Sandefjord Airport, Torp, the latter being from the city.

Demographics

{{bar box |title=Religion in Oslo |titlebar=#ddd |left1=religion |right1=percent |float=right |bars= }} An estimated 28 % of Oslo's residents are of an immigrant or non-Norwegian background (about 170,000 inhabitants), predicted to increase to between 44% and 51% around 2030. In 2008, the immigrant population accounted for about 82% of the population growth of the city. From 1970 to 2007, the ethnic Norwegian population decreased by 10.1% while the immigrant population increased by 823.6%. Pakistanis make up 20,812 of the city's inhabitants, followed by Somalis (10,780), Swedes (9,250), and Poles (8,854)—these being the four largest ethnic minority groups. Other large immigrant groups are people from Sri Lanka, Vietnam, Turkey, Morocco, Iraq and Denmark.

By June 2009, more than 40% of Oslo schools had a majority of people of immigrant backgrounds, with some schools having up to a 97% immigrant share. Schools are also increasingly divided by ethnicity, with white flight being widespread. In the borough Groruddalen in 2008 for instance, the ethnic Norwegian population decreased by 1,500, while the immigrant population increased by 1,600. From 2000–2007, 7,250 ethnic Norwegians moved out of the city, while 32,700 persons of immigrant background, mostly non-western, moved in.

The population of Oslo is currently increasing at a record rate of nearly 2% annually (17% over the last 15 years), making it the fastest-growing Scandinavian capital. The increase is due, in almost equal degree, to high birth-rates and immigration, though both is largely due to immigration, seeing that the ethnic Norwegian population is actually decreasing. In particular, immigration from Poland and the Baltic states has increased sharply since the accession of these countries to the EU in 2004.

Oslo is a city with various religious communities. The city has a low percentage of Christians in contrast to other parts of the country. As of 2009, 11% of the population of Oslo are Muslim, but just 7.59% are registered Muslims.

Number of minorities (1st and 2nd generation) in Oslo by country of origin per 1. January 2011.

style="background:#efefef;"	Rank	Ancestry	Number
1		21,629
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20

Notable residents

International relations

Oslo is a pilot city of the Council of Europe and the European Commission Intercultural cities programme.

Twin towns – partner cities – and regions

Oslo is twinned or has cooperation agreements with the following cities/regions:

	* Alfaz del Pi, Spain	* Gothenburg, Sweden	* Gujrat, Pakistan	* Mazarrón, Spain	* Mbombela, South Africa	* St. Petersburg, Russia	* Schleswig-Holstein, Germany	* Shanghai, China	* Vilnius, Lithuania	* Warsaw, Poland

Christmas trees as gifts

Oslo has a tradition of sending a Christmas tree every year to the cities of Washington, D.C., New York, London, Rotterdam, Antwerp, and Reykjavík. Since 1947, Oslo has sent a 65–80-foot (20–25 m) high, 50 to 100 year-old spruce, as an expression of gratitude toward Britain for its support of Norway during World War II.

See also

East End and West End of Oslo

List of books about Oslo

Oslo Accords

Parks and open spaces in Oslo

Timeline of transport in Oslo

References

External links

Oslo Virtual Tour – 360* panoramic pictures

City of Oslo: Official website City of Oslo: Official website

Official Travel and Visitors Guide to Oslo

Oslo The official travel guide to Norway

Local Travel Information Guide Oslo city

SNL.no Online encyclopedia ''Store Norske Leksikon'''s entry about Oslo

Category:1040s establishments in Norway Category:Populated places established in the 11th century Category:Capitals in Europe Category:Cities and towns in Norway Category:Counties of Norway Category:Host cities of the Winter Olympic Games Category:Populated coastal places in Norway Category:Port cities and towns in Norway Category:Port cities and towns of the North Sea Category:Viking Age populated places Category:IOC Session Host Cities

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region	Western Philosophy
Era	20th century philosophy
Color	#B0C4DE
image	Mckenna1.jpg
name	Terence Kemp McKenna
Birth date	November 16, 1946
Birth place	Paonia, Colorado, United States
Death date	April 03, 2000
Death place	San Rafael, California, United States
School tradition	Metaphysics, phenomenology|
Main interests	shamanism, ethnobotany, metaphysics, psychedelic drugs, futurism, primitivism, environmentalism, consciousness, phenomenology, historical revisionism, evolution, ontology, Mind at Large, virtual reality, dominator culture, criticizing science, the Logos
Influences	psychedelic drugs, Marshall McLuhan, Alfred North Whitehead, Teilhard de Chardin, Aldous Huxley, I Ching, William Blake, Riane Eisler, James Joyce, Vladimir Nabokov, Heraclitus
Influenced	Rupert Sheldrake, Robert Anton Wilson, Ralph Abraham, RU Sirius, Cliff Pickover, Timothy Leary
Notable ideas	Novelty Theory, The "Stoned Ape" Theory of Human Evolution, Machine elves }}

Terence Kemp McKenna (November 16, 1946 – April 3, 2000) was an Irish-American researcher, philosopher, speaker, spiritual teacher and writer on many subjects; such as human consciousness, psychedelic drugs, the evolution of civilizations, the origin and the end of the universe, cybernetics, alchemy, and extraterrestrial beings.

Biography

Early life

Terence McKenna grew up in Paonia, Colorado. He was introduced to geology through his uncle and developed a hobby of solitary fossil hunting in the arroyos near his home. From this he developed a deep artistic and scientific appreciation of nature.

At age 16, Terence moved to Los Altos, California to live with family friends for a year. He finished high school in Lancaster, CA. In 1963, McKenna was introduced to the literary world of psychedelics through ''The Doors of Perception'' and ''Heaven and Hell'' by Aldous Huxley and certain issues of ''The Village Voice'' that talked about psychedelics.

Terence claimed that one of his early psychedelic experiences with morning glory seeds showed him "that there was something there worth pursuing." In an audio interview Terence Mckenna claims to have started smoking cannabis regularly during the summer following his 17th birthday.

Studying and traveling

In 1965, Terence enrolled in U.C. Berkeley to study Art History. In 1967, while in college, he got involved with shamanism after being lead there by studying Tibetan religions That year, which he called his "opium and kabbala phase," he also traveled to Jerusalem, where he met Kathleen Harrison, who would later become his wife.

In 1969, Terence traveled to Nepal lead by his "interest in Tibetan painting and hallucinogenic shamanism." During his time there, he studied the Tibetan language and worked as a hashish smuggler, until "one of his Bombay-to-Aspen shipments fell into the hands of U. S. Customs." He was forced to move to avoid capture by Interpol. He wandered through Southeast Asia viewing ruins, collected butterflies in Indonesia, and worked as an English teacher in Tokyo. He then went back to Berkeley to continue studying biology, which he called "his first love."

After he completed part of his studies and his mother's death from cancer in 1971, Terence, his brother Dennis, and three friends traveled to the Colombian Amazon in search of oo-koo-hé, a plant preparation containing DMT. Instead of oo-koo-hé they found various forms of ayahuasca, or "yagé," and gigantic psilocybe cubensis which became the new focus of the expedition. In La Chorrera, at the urging of his brother, he was the subject of a psychedelic experiment which he claimed put him in contact with Logos: an informative, divine voice he believed was universal to visionary religious experience. The voice's revelations and his brother's simultaneous peculiar experience prompted him to explore the structure of an early form of the I Ching, which led to his "Novelty Theory." During their stay in the Amazon, Terence also got romantically involved with his translator, Ev.

In 1972, Terence returned to Berkeley to finish his studies. There he decided to switch majors to a Bachelor of Science in Ecology and Conservation, in a then-new experimental section of the same university called the Tussman Experimental College. During his studies, he would also develop techniques for cultivating psilocybin mushrooms with Dennis.

In 1975, he parted with his girlfriend Ev, when she left him for one of Terence's friends from Berkeley. Their parting left him "tormented with migraines and living alone." He graduated in 1975. That same year, he began a relationship with a friend he met in Jerusalem, Kathleen.

Soon after graduating, Terence and Dennis published a book inspired by their Amazon experiences, ''The Invisible Landscape: Mind, Hallucinogens and the I Ching.'' Terence also began lecturing. The brothers' experiences in the Amazon would later play a major role in Terence's book ''True Hallucinations'', published in 1993. In 1976, the brothers published what they had learned about the cultivation of mushrooms in a book entitled ''Psilocybin - Magic Mushroom Grower's Guide'' under the pseudonyms OT Oss and ON Oeric.

Later life

In the early 1980s, McKenna began to speak publicly on the topic of psychedelic drugs, lecturing extensively and conducting weekend workshops. Though associated with the New Age and human potential movements, McKenna himself had little patience for New Age sensibilities. He repeatedly stressed the importance and primacy of felt experience, as opposed to dogma. Timothy Leary once introduced him as "one of the five or six most important people on the planet." }}He soon became a fixture of popular counterculture. His growing popularity culminated in the early to mid-1990s with the publication of several books: ''True Hallucinations'', relating the tale of his 1971 La Chorrera experience; ''Food of the Gods''; and ''The Archaic Revival''. He became a popular personality in the psychedelic rave/dance scene of the early 1990s, with frequent spoken word performances at raves and contributions to psychedelic and goa trance albums by The Shamen, Spacetime Continuum, Alien Project, Capsula, Entheogenic, Zuvuya, Shpongle, and Shakti Twins. His speeches were, and are, sampled by many. In 1994 he appeared as a speaker at the Starwood Festival, documented in the book ''Tripping'' by Charles Hayes. His lectures were produced on both cassette tape and CD.

McKenna was a colleague of chaos mathematician Ralph Abraham, and biologist Rupert Sheldrake, creator of the theory of "morphogenetic fields", not to be confused with the mainstream usage of the same term. He conducted several public debates known as ''trialogues'' with them from the late 1980s until his death. Books containing transcriptions of some of these events were published. He was also a friend and associate of Ralph Metzner, Nicole Maxwell, and Riane Eisler, participating in joint workshops and symposia with them. He was a personal friend of Tom Robbins, and influenced the thought of many scientists, writers, artists, and entertainers. His influences include comedian Bill Hicks, whose routines about psychedelic drugs drew heavily from McKenna's works. He is also the inspiration for the Twin Peaks character Dr. Jacoby.

In addition to psychedelic drugs, McKenna spoke on the subjects of virtual reality, which he saw as a way to artistically communicate the experience of psychedelics; techno-paganism; artificial intelligence; evolution; extraterrestrials; and aesthetic theory, specifically about art/visual experience as ''information'' representing the significance of hallucinatory visions experienced under the influence of psychedelics.

In 1985, McKenna co-founded Botanical Dimensions with his then-wife Kathleen, a nonprofit ethnobotanical preserve in Hawaii, where he lived for many years before he died. In 1997 he and Kathleen divorced. Before moving to Hawaii permanently, McKenna split his time between Hawaii and Occidental, located in the redwood-studded hills of Sonoma County, California.

Death

A longtime sufferer of migraines, in mid-1999 McKenna returned to his home on the big island of Hawaii after a long lecturing tour. He began to suffer from increasingly painful headaches. This culminated in three brain seizures in one night, which he claimed were the most powerful psychedelic experiences he had ever known. Upon his emergency trip to the hospital on Oahu, Terence was diagnosed with glioblastoma multiforme, a highly aggressive form of brain cancer. For the next several months he underwent various treatments, including experimental gamma knife radiation treatment. According to Wired magazine, McKenna was worried that his tumour was caused by his 35-years of smoking cannabis; though his doctors assured him there was no causal relation.

In late 1999, Erik Davis conducted what would be the last interview of McKenna. During the interview McKenna also talked about the announcement of his death:

Terence died on April 3, 2000, at the age of 53, with his loved ones at his bedside. He is survived by his brother Dennis, his son Finn, and his daughter Klea.

The library fire

On February 7, 2007, McKenna's library of rare books and personal notes was destroyed in a fire which burned offices belonging to Big Sur's Esalen Institute storing the collection. An index maintained by his brother Dennis survives, though little else.

Ideas

Terence McKenna advocated the exploration of altered states of mind via the ingestion of naturally occurring psychedelic substances. For example, and in particular, as facilitated by the ingestion of high doses of psychedelic mushrooms, and DMT, which he believed was the apotheosis of the psychedelic experience. He spoke of the "jeweled, self-dribbling basketballs" or "self-transforming machine elves" that one encounters in that state.

Although he avoided giving his allegiance to any one interpretation (part of his rejection of monotheism), he was open to the idea of psychedelics as being "trans-dimensional travel"; literally, enabling an individual to encounter what could be ancestors, or spirits of earth. He remained opposed to most forms of organized religion or guru-based forms of spiritual awakening.

Either philosophically or religiously, he expressed admiration for Marshall McLuhan, Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, Gnostic Christianity, Alfred North Whitehead and Alchemy. McKenna always regarded the Greek philosopher Heraclitus as his favorite philosopher.

He also expressed admiration for the works of James Joyce (calling ''Finnegans Wake'' "the quintessential work of art, or at least work of literature of the 20th century") and Vladimir Nabokov: McKenna once said that he would have become a Nabokov lecturer if he had never encountered psychedelics.

The "Stoned Ape" Theory of Human Evolution

In his book ''Food of the Gods'', McKenna proposed that the transformation from humans' early ancestors ''Homo erectus'' to the species ''Homo sapiens'' mainly had to do with the addition of the mushroom ''Psilocybe cubensis'' in its diet - an event which according to his theory took place in about 100,000 BC (this is when he believed that the species diverged from the Homo genus). He based his theory on the main effects, or alleged effects, produced by the mushroom. One of the effects that comes about from the ingestion of low doses, which agrees with one of scientist Roland Fischer's findings from the late 60s-early 70s, is it significantly improves the visual acuity of humans - so theoretically, of other human-like mammals too. According to McKenna, this effect would have definitely prove to be of evolutionary advantage to humans' omnivorous hunter-gatherer ancestors that would have stumbled upon it "accidentally"; as it would make it easier for them to hunt.

In higher doses, McKenna claims, the mushroom acts as a sexual stimulator, which would make it even more beneficial evolutionarily, as it would result in more offspring. At even higher doses, the mushroom would have acted to "dissolve boundaries", which would have promoted community-bonding and group sexual activities-that would result in a mixing of genes and therefore greater genetic diversity. Generally McKenna believed that the periodic ingestion of the mushroom would have acted to dissolve the ego in humans before it ever got the chance to grow in destructive proportions. In this context he likened the ego to a cancerous tumor that can grow uncontrollable and become destructive to its host. In his own words:

The mushroom, according to McKenna, had also given humans their first truly religious experiences (which, as he believed, were the basis for the foundation of all subsequent religions to date). Another factor that McKenna talked about was the mushroom's potency to promote linguistic thinking. This would have promoted vocalisation, which in turn would have acted in cleansing the brain (based on a scientific theory that vibrations from speaking cause the precipitation of impurities from the brain to the cerebrospinal fluid), which would further mutate the brain. All these factors according to McKenna were the most important factors that promoted evolution towards the ''Homo sapiens'' species. After this transformation took place, the species would have begun moving out of Africa to populate the rest of the planet Later on, this theory by McKenna was given the name "The 'Stoned Ape' Theory of Human Evolution".

Bibliography

1975 - ''The Invisible Landscape: Mind, Hallucinogens, and the I Ching'' (with Dennis McKenna) (Seabury; 1st Ed) ISBN 0-8164-9249-2.

1976 - ''The Invisible Landscape'' (with Dennis McKenna, and Quinn Taylor) (Scribner) ISBN 0-8264-0122-8

1976 - ''Psilocybin - Magic Mushroom Grower's Guide'' (with Dennis McKenna: credited under the pseudonyms OT Oss and ON Oeric) (2nd edition 1986) (And/Or Press) ISBN 0-915904-13-6

1992 - ''Psilocybin - Magic Mushroom Grower's Guide'' (with Dennis McKenna: (credited under the pseudonyms OT Oss and ON Oeric) (Quick American Publishing Company; Revised edition) ISBN 0-932551-06-8

1992 - ''The Archaic Revival'' (HarperSanFrancisco; 1st edition) ISBN 0-06-250613-7

1992 - ''Food of the Gods: The Search for the Original Tree of Knowledge - A Radical History of Plants, Drugs, and Human Evolution'' (Bantam) ISBN 0-553-37130-4

1992 - ''Synesthesia'' (with Timothy C. Ely) (Granary Books 1st Ed) ISBN 1-887123-04-0

1992 - ''Trialogues at the Edge of the West: Chaos, Creativity, and the Resacralization of the World'' (with Ralph H. Abraham, Rupert Sheldrake and Jean Houston) (Bear & Company Publishing 1st Ed) ISBN 0-939680-97-1

1993 - ''True Hallucinations: Being an Account of the Author’s Extraordinary Adventures in the Devil’s Paradise'' (HarperSanFrancisco 1st Ed) ISBN 0-06-250545-9

1994 - ''The Invisible Landscape'' (HarperSanFrancisco; Reprint edition) ISBN 0-06-250635-8

1998 - ''True Hallucinations & the Archaic Revival: Tales and Speculations About the Mysteries of the Psychedelic Experience'' (Fine Communications/MJF Books) (Hardbound) ISBN 1-56731-289-6

1998 - ''The Evolutionary Mind : Trialogues at the Edge of the Unthinkable'' (with Rupert Sheldrake and Ralph H. Abraham) (Trialogue Press; 1st Ed) ISBN 0-942344-13-8

1999 - ''Food of the Gods: A Radical History of Plants, Drugs, and Human Evolution'' (Rider & Co; New edition) ISBN 0-7126-7038-6

1999 - ''Robert Venosa: Illuminatus'' (with Robert Venosa, Ernst Fuchs, H. R. Giger, and Mati Klarwein) (Craftsman House) ISBN 90-5703-272-4

2001 - ''Chaos, Creativity, and Cosmic Consciousness'' (with Rupert Sheldrake and Ralph H. Abraham) (Park Street Press; revised ed) ISBN 0-89281-977-4 (Revised edition of Trialogues at the Edge of the West)

2005 - ''The Evolutionary Mind: Trialogues on Science, Spirit & Psychedelics'' (Monkfish Book Publishing; Revised Ed) ISBN 0-9749359-7-2

Spoken word

''History Ends In Green: Gaia, Psychedelics and the Archaic Revival'', 6 audiocassette set, Mystic Fire audio, 1993, ISBN 1-56176-907-x (recorded at the Esalen Institute, 1989)

''TechnoPagans at the End of History'' (transcription of rap with Mark Pesce from 1998)

''Psychedelics in the Age of Intelligent Machines'' (1999) 90 minutes video

''Alien Dreamtime'' with Spacetime Continuum & Stephen Kent (Magic Carpet Media) (CD) video

''Conversations on the Edge of Magic'' (1994) (CD & Cassette) ACE

''Rap-Dancing Into the Third Millennium'' (1994) (Cassette) (Re-issued on CD as ''The Quintessential Hallucinogen'') ACE

''Packing For the Long Strange Trip'' (1994) (Cassette) ACE

Coast to Coast AM with Art Bell, broadcast on May 22, 1997, Five hour interview covering various topics

''Global Perspectives and Psychedelic Poetics'' (1994) (Cassette) Sound Horizons Audio-Video, Inc.

''The Search for the Original Tree of Knowledge'' (1992) (Cassette) Sounds True

Discography

''Re : Evolution'' with The Shamen (1992)

''Alien Dreamtime'' with Spacetime Continuum & Stephen Kent (Magic Carpet Media) (DVD)

2009 - ''Cognition Factor'' (2009)

See also

Ethnomycology

Exopheromone

List of notable brain tumor patients

Machine Elf

References

External links

Terence McKenna Land at Deoxy.org

Terence McKenna at Levity.com

Erowid's Terence McKenna Vault

Botanical Dimensions

Rotten.com bio

FloatingWorldWeb's McKenna Pages

Terence McKenna's Last Trip 2000 Wired Magazine article by Erik Davis

"Mind contagions" (2001) at disinfo.com

Psychedelics, Evolution & Fun 2008 essay by Patrick Lundborg

Machine Elves 101, or Why Terence McKenna Matters - Reallity Sandwish by Daniel Moler

Transcription from 1991 interview regarding cannabis

Audio and video resources

Terence McKenna's interview Conducted by John Hazard in October 1998

Audio and video archive at Deoxy.org

Terence McKenna media archive at EROCx1.com

FutureHi.net MP3 Downloads - Terence McKenna, Albert Hoffman, Robert Anton Wilson, and more

McKenna at the 1999 Entheobotany Seminar - Audio Podcast

Psychedelics in the Age of Intelligent Machines - Video samples from the 1999 DVD

McKenna Video on FloatingWorldWeb - McKenna Video Portal

Over 100 podcasts of Terence McKenna talks - Audio Podcast

Transcripts

MindofMcKenna - McKenna Audio Excerpts, Transcriptions and Quotes

Category:2012 theorists Category:Deaths from brain cancer Category:Cancer deaths in Hawaii Category:Psychedelic drug advocates Category:Psychedelic researchers Category:American cannabis activists Category:American book and manuscript collectors Category:Contemporary philosophers Category:Counterculture festivals activists Category:1946 births Category:2000 deaths Category:American anarchists Category:Philosophers of science Category:Western mystics Category:Ethnobotanists Category:Religious skeptics

bs:Terrence McKenna cs:Terence McKenna de:Terence McKenna es:Terence McKenna fr:Terence McKenna (écrivain) hr:Terrence McKenna it:Terence McKenna nl:Terence McKenna ja:テレンス・マッケナ pl:Terence McKenna pt:Terence McKenna ru:Маккенна, Теренс Кемп sk:Terence McKenna fi:Terence McKenna sv:Terence McKenna tr:Terence McKenna

name	dan le sac Vs Scroobius Pip
background	group_or_band
origin	Stanford-le-Hope, England
genre	Electronic, Hip hop
years active	2007-present
label	Sunday Best RecordingsStrange Famous Recordings
current members	dan le sacScroobius Pip
website	http://www.lesacvspip.co.ukLesacVsPip Myspace }}

dan le sac Vs Scroobius Pip are a hip-hop duo, combining electronic beats with sung, spoken, and rapped lyrics. The pair are Daniel Stephens (aka dan le sac; production, programming, keyboards, guitars and backing vocals), and David Peter Meads (1981-) (aka Scroobius Pip; vocals/rapper). The name "Scroobius Pip" is an intentional misspelling of the Edward Lear poem, ''The Scroobious Pip''. dan le sac originally hails from Corringham and Scroobius Pip from neighbouring Stanford-le-Hope in Essex. Their first single was "Thou Shalt Always Kill". Signed with the Sunday Best record label, dan le sac Vs Scroobius Pip released their debut album in 2008. Titled ''Angles'', it reached 31 in the UK album chart. They released their second album entitled ''The Logic of Chance'' on 15 March 2010 on the Sunday Best label.

History

Both dan le sac and Scroobius Pip worked as solo artists before forming this duo, dan le sac as a laptop musician, DJ and promoter, Scroobius Pip as a spoken word artist.

David Meads began writing poetry in about 2005; he adopted the pseudonym "Scroobius Pip" from Edward Lear's poem, ''The Scroobious Pip''. In a 2010 interview with ''Beatdom'', Meads explained why he chose the name: "I loved the story. It's about a creature that doesn't know what it is ...By the end [of the poem] he realises that he is simply The Scroobious Pip. He doesn't fit into any one category and can just be his own creature."

In 2006 Scroobius Pip undertook his "Relying on the kindness of strangers tour" which took him round the UK in a Toyota Space Cruiser performing in various venues and also saw him doing street performances outside gigs for the likes of Buck 65 & DJ Shadow.

The duo formed in 2006 after dan le sac booked Scroobius Pip to play at a gig he was promoting at the Fez Club (now Sakura) in Reading, around this time dan le sac started remixing Scroobius Pip’s solo album ''No Commercial Breaks'', a selection of the remixes form the core of their debut album ''Angles'' but the band didn’t garner any commercial success until they wrote the original song "Thou Shalt Always Kill" at the end of 2006. Although it is commonly thought that Rob Da Bank of BBC Radio 1 gave the band their first radio play, it was actually John Kennedy of XFM London, the band sent a demo CD to John Kennedy in December 2006 and he played it on his Xposure show within 2 hours of receiving it.

"Thou Shalt Always Kill" was re-released in 2009 with additional vocals by Pos Plug Won (Posdnous) of De La Soul. In 2007 the duo released 2 singles on Lex Records, "Thou Shalt Always Kill" and "The Beat that my Heart Skipped" but it wasn’t until early 2008 that they signed for Rob da Bank’s Sunday Best record label and released their debut album ''Angles''; the album was later released on Sage Francis’s Strange Famous Records in the USA and Traffic in Japan.

On Christmas Eve 2007, whilst still unsigned, the duo released a free download of "Letter From God To Man" which includes a sample of Radiohead's "Planet Telex". To promote this, the duo created and posted a spoof video on YouTube showing the pair auditioning for ''The X Factor'' in front of Simon Cowell, Sharon Osbourne and Louis Walsh. A montage of clips of judges' comments are added to their profanity-laden performance of what Scroobius Pip says is "'It Ain't No Fun' by Snoop Dogg, featuring Warren G, Nate Dogg and Kurupt." The clip, titled "Le Sac Vs Pip Letter from X-factor", was featured in "The 10 Best Clips of the Month" in the October 2008 edition of ''Q'' magazine., the video also included a voice over from Zane Lowe.

They have also appeared on the BBC's ''Sound'', NBC's ''Last Call with Carson Daly'', with Scroobius Pip appearing by himself on the BBC's ''Newsnight Review'' and Setanta Sport Channel, he has also been interviewed and performed live on Stephen Merchant's show on BBC 6 Music.

They spent 2009 recording their second studio album, ''The Logic of Chance'' which was released in March 2010, preceded by the single "Get Better".

Music and influences

The duo’s music includes Hip-Hop, Electronica, and Pop. On the duo's Facebook page they cite many influences including Sage Francis, Gil Scott Heron, Chilly Gonzales, KRS-ONE, Rakim, Atmosphere, Purple Ronnie, Joy Division, Kraftwerk, Clark, El-P, Gorecki, Devandra Banhart, Beta Band, and Mogwai.

Live gigs and tours

Since March 2007, they have undertaken multiple UK, US and European tours. The band have also appeared at the Glastonbury Festival '07, '09, '10 and '11. Reading and Leeds Festival '07 and '08, Lounge on the Farm '09, Bestival '07, '08, '09 and '10 Camp Bestival '08, '09 and '10, Beat-Herder festival in '10, Lowlands '08 and '10, Pukkelpop, Fuji Rock Festival, Coachella, Monolith Festival, Dour Festival, Beatherder '10, Pohoda festival '10, Electric Picnic '10 & Beach Break Live '10, Greenbelt Festival '09, they played their first headline festival slot at 2000 Trees '11.

Remixes

dan le sac also works as a remix producer, he has to date been commissioned to remix Biffy Clyro, Bat for Lashes (feat Scroobius Pip), Eddy Temple Morris's Losers (feat Riz Ahmed (AKA Riz Mc) and Envy), The Maccabees, King Blues (feat Scroobius Pip), Dub Pistols, This is Radio Freedom, Micachu, Tired Irie, Playdoe, Producers with Computers, Yila and has undertaken unsolicited remixes of Elastica, Radiohead, Florence And The Machine, Joy Division, Tricky and Bob Dylan.

Discography

Singles

#34 "The Beat That My Heart Skipped" "A Letter From God To Man" "Look For The Woman" "A Letter From God To Man" (Re-Release) "Thou Shalt Always Kill [De La Edit]" "Get Better" "Great Britain" / "Sick Tonight" "Cauliflower"

Year !! Single !! UK Singles Chart	UK !! UK Indie !! Notes
2007	"Thou Shalt Always Kill"	|	-	-
2007	|	#85	-	-
2007	|	-	-	free download
2008	|	#72	#1	-
2008	|	#170	#8
2009	|	#116	-	featuring Pos Plug Won of De La Soul
2010	|	#30	-	-
2010	|	-	-	double-A side
2010	|	-	-	featuring Kid A

Albums

- ''Lesacsayyeah!'' ''Angles (Dan Le Sac Vs Scroobius Pip album) ''The Logic of Chance'' ''Distraction Pieces'' ''Title TBA''

Year !! Album !! UK Albums Chart	UK !! UK Indie !! Label !! Notes
2006	''No Commercial Breaks''	|	-	self-released	Scroobius Pip solo album; 1,000 copies
2007	|	-	-	self-released	dan le sac solo album; 50 copies
2008	Angles'' ||	#31	#16	Sunday Best (music company)>Sunday Best Recordings US: Strange Famous Records
2010	|	#43	-	Sunday Best Recordings
2011	|	-	-	UK: Speech Development US: Strange Famous Records	Scroobius Pip solo album
2012	|	-	-	Sunday Best Recordings	dan le sac solo album

References

;Notes

;Bibliography

External links

dan le sac's blog

Dan le sac vs Scroobius Pip profile on Last.fm

Dan le sac vs Scroobius Pip profile on Discogs

Dan le sac vs Scroobius Pip official page on Facebook

Dan le sac vs Scroobius Pip official profile on SoundCloud

Review of dan le sac and Scroobius Pip at the Reading Festival 2007, The Guardian

Paul Morley interviews dan le sac and Scroobius Pip for The Guardian

Interview with Scroobius Pip for meg.ie

Category:Articles with inconsistent citation formats Category:English electronic music groups Category:British hip hop groups Category:People from Corringham, Essex

de:Dan Le Sac vs. Scroobius Pip

name	Sage Francis
background	solo_singer
birth name	Paul Francis
born	November 18, 1976 Providence, Rhode Island
genre	Hip hop
occupation	Rapper, Spoken Word Artist
years active	1996–present
associated acts	Non-Prophets, Joe Beats, B. Dolan, Sole, Alias, Art Official Intelligence
label	Strange Famous RecordsEpitaphAnticonANTI-
website	Official Website
notable instruments	}}

Paul "Sage" Francis (born November 18, 1976) is a hip-hop artist from Providence, Rhode Island.

Biography

Born Paul Francis in Miami, Florida, Sage Francis is a rapper/writer/performer from Providence, Rhode Island. He is the founder and CEO of the independent hip-hop record label Strange Famous Records. This label first began as a way for Francis to bootleg his unreleased songs in the late 90's and has since evolved into an official enterprise with an expanding roster of like-minded artists. Francis won the Scribble Jam Emcee battle in 2000 and released several CDs available only on his tours and website (''Still Sick'', ''Sick Of Waiting'', ''Sick of Waging War'', ''Sickly Business'', ''Still Sickly Business'', ''Sick of Wasting included''). In 2001 his song "Makeshift Patriot" became an internet hit for its critique of American media during, and immediately following, the September 11 attacks. After releasing his critically acclaimed ''Personal Journals'' album in 2002 he signed to Epitaph Records, making Francis the first hip-hop artist to sign with the punk-rock label. He subsequently released three albums with Epitaph; ''A Healthy Distrust'' (2005), ''Human the Death Dance'' (2007), and ''Li(f)e'' (2010)

Francis is also part of the contemporary spoken word movement. Francis' relationship with the Providence Poetry Slam community (he was on their 1998, 1999 and 2002 national poetry slam teams) led to it being called "The House that Sage Francis Built." From 2000 - 2002, he also DJ-ed for the NYC-Urbana Poetry Slam, a weekly slam series held at the legendary punk rock venue CBGB.

Discography

''The Known UnSoldier "Sick of Waging War'' (Strange Famous Records, 2001)

''Sage Frenchkiss'' (Strange Famous Records, 2002)

''Personal Journals'' (Anticon, 2002)

''A Healthy Distrust'' (Epitaph, 2005)

''Human the Death Dance'' (Epitaph, 2007)

''Sick Of Wasting'' (Strange Famous Records, 2009)

''Li(f)e'' (Anti-, 2010)

References

External links and further reading

Official Sage Francis website

Strange Famous Records

Strange Famous Forum

KnowMore: The People's Corporation Watch Project

Interview for Slap Magazine (Dead Link)

Interview for Scene Missing Magazine

Sage Francis Interview with Chuck D.

Interview with Sage Francis 2010

Interview: Sage Francis | The Find Magazine (2010)

Category:1976 births Category:American vegetarians Category:Epitaph Records artists Category:Living people Category:People from Providence, Rhode Island Category:Rappers from Rhode Island Category:Slam poets Category:Spoken word poets Category:Underground rappers

de:Sage Francis fr:Sage Francis it:Sage Francis nl:Sage Francis pl:Sage Francis fi:Sage Francis sv:Sage Francis