Half-life

Half-life (t_1⁄2) is the amount of time required for the amount of something to fall to half its initial value. The term is very commonly used in nuclear physics to describe how quickly unstable atoms undergo radioactive decay, but it is also used more generally for discussing any type of exponential decay.

The original term, dating to Ernest Rutherford's discovery of the principle in 1907, was "half-life period", which was shortened to "half-life" in the early 1950s. Rutherford applied the principle of a radioactive element's half-life to studies of age determination of rocks by measuring the decay period of radium to lead-206.

Half-life is used to describe a quantity undergoing exponential decay, and is constant over the lifetime of the decaying quantity. It is a characteristic unit for the exponential decay equation. The term "half-life" may generically be used to refer to any period of time in which a quantity falls by half, even if the decay is not exponential. The table on the right shows the reduction of a quantity in the number of half-lives elapsed. For a general introduction and description of exponential decay, see exponential decay. For a general introduction and description of non-exponential decay, see rate law. The converse of half-life is doubling time.

Half-Life 2

Half-Life 2 (stylized as HλLF-LIFE²) is a first-person shooter video game and the sequel to Half-Life (1998). Developed by Valve Corporation, it was released on November 16, 2004, following a five-year $40 million development, during which a substantial part of the project was leaked and distributed on the Internet. The game was developed alongside Valve's Steam software. It introduced the Source game engine and, because of Steam, was the first single-player video game to require online product activation.

Some years after the events of Half-Life, protagonist Gordon Freeman is woken by the enigmatic G-Man to find the world has been taken over by the alien Combine. Joined by allies including resistance fighter Alyx Vance, Gordon searches for a way to free humanity using a variety of weapons, including the object-manipulating gravity gun.

Like its predecessor, Half-Life 2 received critical acclaim. It was praised for its advanced physics, animation, sound, AI, graphics, and narrative. The game won 39 "Game of the Year" awards and the title of "Game Of The Decade" at the 2012 Spike Video Game Awards. Over 6.5 million copies of Half-Life 2 were sold at retail by December 3, 2008, (not including Steam sales); as of February 9, 2011, Half-Life 2 had sold over 12 million copies. Half-Life 2 is considered one of the greatest video games of all time.

Duncan Sheik

Duncan Sheik (born November 18, 1969) is an American singer-songwriter and composer. Initially finding success as a singer, most notably for his 1996 debut single "Barely Breathing", he later expanded to compositions for motion pictures and the Broadway stage, such as the successful musical, Spring Awakening, where he won multiple Tonys and a Grammy. Sheik practices Nichiren Buddhism and is a member of the US branch of the worldwide Buddhist association Soka Gakkai International.

Early career

After being raised by both his parents in Montclair, New Jersey and his grandparents in Hilton Head, South Carolina (of whom his Juilliard-trained grandmother taught him piano), and after graduating from Phillips Academy, Andover in 1988, Sheik studied semiotics at Brown University, and moved to Los Angeles. Playing for other artists, including Liz and Lisa (with Lisa Loeb and Elizabeth Mitchell), Sheik also played on His Boy Elroy's 1993 album through his connections from fellow Brown alum, Tracee Ellis Ross. He is the half brother of Broadway actress Kacie Sheik.

Kiss Me (Olly Murs song)

"Kiss Me" is a song recorded by English singer Olly Murs for Never Been Better: Special Edition (2015), the reissue of his fourth studio album, Never Been Better (2014). It was written by Murs, Zacharie Raymond, Yannick Rastogi, Steve Robson, Gary Derussy, Lindy Robbins and singer Taio Cruz, whilst the production was done by Raymond, Rastogi, Banx & Ranx and Robson. It was digitally released on 9 October 2015, followed by a release of two remixes, an acoustic and a karaoke version of the song in a span of a month.

Production and release

"Kiss Me" was written by Olly Murs, Zacharie Raymond, Yannick Rastogi, Steve Robson, Gary Derussy, Lindy Robbins and singer Taio Cruz, whilst the production was handled by Raymond, Rastogi, Banx & Ranx and Robson. It was digitally released on 9 October 2015 as the first single from Never Been Better: Special Edition (2015), the reissue of his fourth studio album, Never Been Better (2014). A karaoke and an acoustic versions of the single were released via the iTunes Store on 30 October and 6 November respectively. Two remixes of "Kiss Me" were also launched; The Alias Club Mix was made available for download on 23 October, whilst the Aevion Tropical Mix was released on 13 November.

Cassie (album)

Cassie is the self-titled debut album by American recording artist Cassie, released on August 8, 2006 by NextSelection Lifestyle Group, Bad Boy Records, and Atlantic Records. Cassie was discovered by record producer Ryan Leslie, who helped Cassie record demo tapes. After Cassie was signed by P. Diddy, the founder of Bad Boy Records, she continued to work with Leslie who produced the entire album. Musically, Cassie is mainly a R&B, hip hop and pop album with urban, pop rock and contemporary R&B styles, containing "looming synthesizer patterns" and "ice-cream-truck melod[ies] to give it a slightly twisted and threatening edge," as well as "flippant playfulness."

The album was well-received critically and praised for its production. In addition to being called "confection," it drew comparisons to Ashanti and Ciara. Cassie debuted at number four on the US Billboard 200 with 100,374 copies sold in its first week. It stayed in the top twenty for two weeks. As of April 2008, the album had sold 321,000 copies in the US.

With Every Heartbeat (film)

With Every Heartbeat, also released as Kiss Me (Swedish: Kyss mig), is a 2011 Swedish drama film directed by Alexandra Therese Keining. The film won the "Breakthrough Award" at the 2011 AFI Festival.

Synopsis

Mia, an up-and-coming architect, is about to marry Tim, her business partner. At the birthday party for her also newly engaged father, Lasse, she meets Frida, daughter of Lasse's fiancee, Elisabeth. Mia and Frida exchange many glances, portending mutual attraction.

Mia and Frida both visit the remote island home that Elisabeth and Lasse plan to share, and Frida, an 'out' lesbian, continues to be intrigued by Mia, whose feelings are mutual but is conflicted about her relationship with Tim. Mia and Frida's feelings for one another blossom, which eventually lead to them having sex. Afterwards, Mia is left to decide whether to suppress her romantic feelings for Frida and go on with her wedding plans, or break off her engagement to Tim and pursue a new life with Frida.