- published: 31 Aug 2013
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In typography, a bullet ( • ) is a typographical symbol or glyph used to introduce items in a list. For example:
It is likely that the name originated from the resemblance of the traditional circular bullet symbol (•) to an actual bullet.
The bullet symbol may take any of a variety of shapes, such as circular, square, diamond, arrow, etc., and typical word processor software offer a wide selection of shapes and colours. Several regular symbols are conventionally used in ASCII-only text or another environments where bullet characters are not available, such as * (asterisk), - (hyphen), . (period), and even o (lowercase O). Of course, when writing by hand, bullets may be drawn in any style.
Bullets are most often used in technical writing, reference works, notes and presentations.
Example:
Where are bullets most often used?
An alternative method is to use a numbered list.
Bulleted items – known as "bullet points" – may be short phrases, single sentences, or of paragraph length. Bulleted items are not usually terminated with a full stop if they are not complete sentences, although it is a common practice to terminate every item except the last one with a semicolon, and terminate the last item with a full stop. It is correct to terminate a bullet point with a full stop if the text within that item consists of one 'full' sentence or more.
A bullet is a projectile propelled by a firearm, sling, or air gun. Bullets do not normally contain explosives, but damage the intended target by impact and penetration. The word "bullet" is sometimes colloquially used to refer to ammunition in general, or to a cartridge, which is a combination of the bullet, case/shell, powder, and primer.
The history of bullets far predates the history of firearms. Originally, bullets were metallic or stone balls used in a sling as a weapon and for hunting. Eventually as firearms were developed, these same items were placed in front of an explosive charge of gun powder at the end of a closed tube. As firearms became more technologically advanced, from 1500 to 1800, bullets changed very little. They remained simple round (spherical) lead balls, called rounds, differing only in their diameter.
The development of the hand culverin and matchlock arquebus brought about the use of cast lead balls as projectiles. "Bullet" is derived from the French word boulette which roughly means little ball. The original musket bullet was a spherical lead ball smaller than the bore, wrapped in a loosely-fitted paper patch which served to hold the bullet in the barrel firmly upon the powder. (Bullets that were not firmly upon the powder upon firing risked causing the barrel to explode, with the condition known as a short start.) The loading of muskets was, therefore, easy with the old smooth-bore Brown Bess and similar military muskets. The original muzzle-loading rifle, on the other hand, with a more closely fitting ball to take the rifling grooves, was more difficult to load, particularly when the bore of the barrel was fouled from previous firings. For this reason, early rifles were not generally used for military purposes.
Bullet for My Valentine are a Welsh heavy metal band from Bridgend, formed in 1998. The band is composed of Matthew Tuck (lead vocals, rhythm guitar), Michael Paget (lead guitar, backing vocals), Jason James (bass guitar, backing vocals), and Michael Thomas (drums). They were formed under the name Jeff Killed John and started their music career by covering songs by Metallica and Nirvana. Jeff Killed John recorded six songs which were not released; two of these tracks were reworked later in their career as Bullet for My Valentine. Financial difficulties dictated the name change, which was followed by a change in music direction. In 2002, the band secured a five-album deal with Sony BMG. The band has stated that their music is influenced by classic heavy metal acts such as Metallica, Iron Maiden, and Slayer. The band is part of the Cardiff music scene.
Bullet for My Valentine's debut album, The Poison, was released on 3 October 2005 in the United Kingdom and on 14 February 2006 in the United States to coincide with Valentine's Day hence their band name. The album entered the Billboard 200 in the US at number 128. It was certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America. The band made appearances at the Download Festival and Kerrang! XXV, and undertook a US tour with Rob Zombie. Bullet for My Valentine's second studio album, Scream Aim Fire, was released on 29 January 2008 and debuted at number four on the Billboard 200. The band's third album, Fever, was released on 26 April 2010 and debuted at number three on the Billboard 200. The band has sold over one million albums in the United States and nearly 2,500,000 albums worldwide and are the most-successful act in the Kerrang! Awards category of "Best British Band" with three wins.