Fezzan

Fezzan (Berber: ⴼⴻⵣⵣⴰⵏ, Arabic: فزان‎ Fizzān, Turkish: Fizan, Latin: Phasania) or Phazania is the southwestern region of modern Libya. It is largely desert, but broken by mountains, uplands, and dry river valleys (wadis) in the north, where oases enable ancient towns and villages to survive deep in the otherwise inhospitable Sahara Desert. The term originally applied to the land beyond the coastal strip of Africa proconsularis, including the Nafusa and extending west of modern Libya over Ouargla and Illizi. As these Berber areas came to be associated with the regions of Tripoli, Cirta or Algiers, the name was increasingly applied to the arid areas south of Tripolitania.

Name

In Tamazight (Berber language), Fezzan (or ifezzan) means "rough rocks".

Fezzan could also be a derivation from the region's Latin name Phasania or Phazania, which may mean "the country of the pheasants" or be related to the Biblical name Phut.

Geography

Fezzan is crossed in the north by the Ash-Shati Valley (Wadi Al Shatii) and in the west by the Wadi Irawan. These two areas, along with portions of the Tibesti Mountains crossing the Chadian border and a sprinkling of remote oases and border posts, are the only parts of the Fezzan able to support settled populations. The large dune seas known as ergs of the Idehan Ubari and the Idehan Murzuq cover much of the remaining land of Fezzan.

Europa Universalis

Europa Universalis is a grand strategy video game released on February 20, 2001 by Paradox Development Studio and distributed in North America by Strategy First. Originally based on a French board game of the same name by Philippe Thibaut, Europa Universalis lets the player take control of one of seven European nations (others are available in different scenarios) from 1492 to 1792, expanding its power through military might, diplomacy, and colonial wealth. The game takes place on a map divided into approximately 1,500 provinces, and proceeds in a pausable real time format. The lead game programmer was Johan Andersson and the lead designer was Philippe Thibaut.

The game became a surprise hit for its great deal of depth and strategy. Paradox used this sudden success to springboard other titles such as Victoria, Crusader Kings, and Hearts of Iron.

Europa Universalis was followed by Europa Universalis II, Europa Universalis III, Europa Universalis: Rome and Europa Universalis IV

Europa Universalis IV

Europa Universalis IV is a grand strategy video game in the Europa Universalis series, developed by Paradox Development Studio and published by Paradox Interactive. The game was released on 13 August 2013.

In the game, players control a nation during the Late Middle Ages until the Early Modern Period (1444 to 1821), conducting trade, diplomacy, colonization, and warfare.

Gameplay

The game itself is an interactive map of Earth divided into the provinces that compose of nations. Each of these provinces contributes to their country either positively or negatively, as provinces can both provide resources to a nation and serve as a point of unrest and rebellion. The gameplay requires the player to lead a nation by finding a balance of military, diplomacy, and economy. The player does so through their choices as sovereign of their nation, and through the spending of resources available to them: Prestige, Stability, Gold, Manpower, and Monarch Points (Administrative, Diplomatic, Military).

Rock and a Hard Place

"Rock and a Hard Place" is a song by The Rolling Stones from their 1989 album Steel Wheels. It is the second single from the album, and remains to this day the most recent Billboard top 40 hit by the band.

Recording

Credited to Mick Jagger and Keith Richards, "Rock and a Hard Place" was recorded at Montserrat's AIR Studios and London's Olympic Studios in the spring months of 1989. On the song, Richards said in the liner notes to the 1993 compilation album Jump Back (on which it was included), "This was like going back to the way we worked in the early days, before Exile, when we were living round the corner from each other in London. Mick and I hadn't got together in four years since Dirty Work, but as soon as we met up in Barbados for a fortnight, with a couple guitars and pianos, everything was fine." At the time of release, Jagger said, "This is one of those songs like "Start Me Up", where the minute you hear the opening notes, you head for the dance floor. It's real '70s, in the best possible way."

Mare Nostrum

Mare Nostrum (Latin for "Our Sea") was a Roman name for the Mediterranean Sea. In the years following the unification of Italy in 1861, the term was revived by Italian nationalists who believed that Italy was the successor state to the Roman Empire.

Roman usage

The term mare nostrum originally was used by Romans to refer to the Tyrrhenian Sea, following their conquest of Sicily, Sardinia and Corsica during the Punic Wars with Carthage. By 30 BC, Roman domination extended from the Iberian Peninsula to Egypt, and mare nostrum began to be used in the context of the whole Mediterranean Sea. Other names were also employed, including Mare Internum ("The Internal Sea"); however, they did not include Mediterraneum Mare, which was a late Latin creation only attested to well after the Fall of Rome.

Italian nationalist usage

The rise of Italian nationalism during the "Scramble for Africa" of the 1880s led to calls for the establishment of an Italian colonial empire. The phrase was first revived by the Italian poet Gabriele d'Annunzio.