Halo 2 is a first-person shooter video game developed by Bungie Studios. Released for the Xboxvideo game console on November 9, 2004, the game is the second installment in the Halo franchise and the sequel to 2001's critically acclaimed Halo: Combat Evolved. A Microsoft Windows version of the game, developed by Microsoft Game Studios, was released on May 31, 2007. The player alternately assumes the roles of the human Master Chief and the alien Arbiter in a 26th-century conflict between the human United Nations Space Command and genocidal Covenant. Time constraints forced a series of cutbacks in the size and scope of the game, including the campaign mode's cliffhanger ending, which drew widespread criticism. On release, Halo 2 was the most popular video game on Xbox Live, holding that rank until the release of Gears of War for the Xbox 360 nearly two years later. Halo 2 is the best-selling first-generation Xbox game, with at least 6.3 million copies sold in the United States alone. Critical reception was generally positive, with most publications lauding the strong multiplayer component. (more...)
Olympic records in athletics have been recognised by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) every four years at the modern Summer Olympic Games since the first Games in 1896. The athletics events, which take place at each Games, are divided into four groups: track events, field events, road events (such as walks and the marathon) and combined events (the heptathlon and the decathlon). Olympic records for each event have existed since the first Games, although some were later rescinded by the IOC. In 1988, Canadian sprinter Ben Johnson broke the Olympic and world record in the 100 metres, but he was subsequently disqualified after it was discovered that he had used anabolic steroids to enhance his performance. His record was expunged and the gold medal was instead awarded to American Carl Lewis. Usain Bolt(pictured) holds the current Olympic record in the 100 metres, set at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London. The longest-standing modern Olympic athletics record is Bob Beamon's achievement in the men's long jump at the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City, which also stood as the world record for 23 years until Beamon's compatriot, Mike Powell, jumped farther at the 1991 World Championships in Athletics in Tokyo. (more...)
A panoramic view of Prague, the capital city of the Czech Republic, as viewed from the Petřín Lookout Tower. The view is approximately 180 degrees, from north on the left to south on the right. The area on which Prague was founded was settled as early as the Paleolithic age. By the year 800 there was a simple fort with wooden buildings, occupying about two-thirds of the area that is now Prague Castle. Prague was an important seat for trading where merchants from all of Europe settled, and it especially flourished during the reign of Charles IV, Holy Roman Emperor.
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