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Walter Reed Army Medical Center

Walter Reed Army Medical Center

Walter Reed Army Medical Center is the U.S. Army's premier medical center on the east coast of the United States. Located in Washington, D.C., it serves more than 150,000 active duty and retired personnel from all branches of the military. The center is named after Major Walter Reed, an army surgeon who led the team which discovered that yellow fever is transmitted by mosquitoes rather than direct contact. mosquito Civilians such as United States Senators and even the President receive care at this medical center. Walter Reed Army Medical Center is considered a tertiary care center and houses numerous medical and surgical specialties. It is part of the larger Walter Reed Health Care System, which includes some ten other hospitals. Congressional legislation authorized construction of Walter Reed General Hospital and the first patient was admitted on May 1, 1909. Since then it has grown from a bed capacity of 80 patients to approximately 5500 rooms covering more than 28 acres (113,000 m²) of floor space.

Base Realignment and Closure, 2005

As part of a Base Realignment and Closure announcement on May 13, 2005, the Department of Defense proposed replacing Walter Reed Army Medical Center with a new "Walter Reed National Military Medical Center"; the new center would be on the grounds of the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland, seven miles (11 km) from Walter Reed's current location in Washington, D.C. The proposal is part of a program to transform medical facilities into joint facilities, with staff including Army, Navy, and Air Force medical personnel. On August 25, 2005, the BRAC Committee recommended passage of the plans for Walter Reed National Military Medical Center.

External links


- [http://www.wramc.amedd.army.mil/ Official Walter Reed Army Medical Center website]
- [http://www.defenselink.mil/news/May2005/20050513_1063.html BRAC 2005: DoD Uses Process to Revamp Medical System] Category:United States military hospitals Category:Washington, D.C.

United States Army

The Army is the branch of the United States armed forces that has primary responsibility for land-based military operations. As of fiscal year 2004 (FY04), it consisted of 485,500 soldiers (including 71,400 women) on active duty and 591,000 in reserve (325,000 in the Army National Guard (ARNG) and 246,000 in the United States Army Reserve (USAR)). The Continental Army was formed on June 14, 1775, before the establishment of the United States, to meet the demands of the American Revolutionary War. Congress created the United States Army on June 3, 1784 after the end of the American Revolutionary War, to replace the disbanded Continental Army.

Components of the U.S. Army

1784 Between 1775 and August 7, 1789, the established Federal Army was the Continental Army. On the latter date, the Continental Army was replaced by the United States Army under the newly-established War Department. The structure of the US Army was constitutionally established as the Regular Army, the units of the State Militias when called to federal service, and units of Volunteers that were established for the duration of the emergency. This remained the normal scheme of things until the Civil War, when the first Conscription took place. The concept of the National Army as a Conscript Army was thus established in all but name, since units were established to accommodate the use of the conscripts in combat. The last time that the Volunteer Units were utilized was the Spanish-American War in 1898. From that time forward, the Regular Army, the State Militias, and the National Army were codified as standard. In 1908, the Organized Reserve Corps was established to provide trained Officers and Enlisted Men for immediate use in time of war. During the First World War, the "National Army" was organized to fight the conflict. It was demobilized at the end of World War I, and was replaced by the Regular Army, the Organized Reserve Corps, and the State Militias. In the 1920s and 1930s, the "career" soldiers were known as the "Regular Army" with the "Enlisted Reserve Corps" and "Officer Reserve Corps" augmented to fill vacancies when needed. In 1941, the "Army of the United States" was founded to fight the Second World War. The Regular Army, Army of the United States, the National Guard, and Officer/Enlisted Reserve Corps (ORC and ERC) existed simultaneously. After World War II, the ORC and ERC were combined into the United States Army Reserve. The Army of the United States was re-established for the Korean War and Vietnam War and was demobilized upon the suspension of the draft. Currently, the Army is divided into the Regular Army, the Army Reserve, and the United States National Guard. Prior to the 21st century, members of the National Guard were considered state Soldiers unless federalized by the Army. Currently, all National Guard members hold dual status: as National Guardsmen under the authority of the State Adjutant General, and as National Guardsmen under the authority of the Army Human Resources Command. Until such time as National Guardsmen retire from National Guard service, they are never considered members of the Army Reserve, but become members of the US Army Retired Reserve upon retirement, and remain in such status until their 60th Birthday, when they become full-fleged Retirees with a status equal to Regular Army Retirees. Various State Defense Forces also exist, sometimes known as State Militias, which are sponsored by individual state governments and serve as an auxiliary to the National Guard. Except in times of extreme national emergency, such as a mainland invasion of the United States, State Militias are operated independently from the U.S. Army and are seen as state government agencies rather than a component of the military. By design, the use of the Army Reserve and National Guard has increased since the Vietnam War. Reserve and Guard units took part in the Gulf War, peacekeeping in Kosovo, and the 2003 invasion of Iraq. With recent manpower shortages in the military, some U.S. citizens have been concerned regarding a reinstitution of the draft (conscription) force. Federal and state lawmakers, however, have asserted that no such action is being planned. Although the present-day Army exists as an all volunteer force, augmented by Reserve and National Guard forces, measures exist for emergency expansion in the event of a catastrophic occurrence, such as a large scale attack against the US or the outbreak of a major global war. The current "call-up" order of the United States Army is as follows: major global war # Regular Army volunteer force # Army Reserve total mobilization # Full scale activation of all National Guard forces # Recall of all retired personnel fit for military duty # Re-establishment of the draft and creation of a conscript force within the Regular Army # Recall of previously discharged officers and enlisted who were separated under honorable conditions # Activation of the State Defense Forces/State Militias # Full scale mobilization of the unorganized U.S. militia The final stage of Army mobilization, known as "activation of the unorganized militia" would effectively place all able bodied males in the service of the U.S. Army. The last time an approximation of this occurred was during the American Civil War when the Confederate States of America activated the "Home Guard" in 1865, drafting all males, regardless of age or health, into the Confederate Army. A similar event, albeit in a foreign country, occurred during World War II when Nazi Germany activated the Volkssturm in April and May of 1945.

Structure of the U.S. Army

Officially, a member of the U.S. Army is called a Soldier (always capitalized). The U.S. Army is divided into the following components, from largest to smallest: Soldier, Smith, Weyland, Nugent;
front row: Simpson, Patton, Spaatz, Eisenhower, Bradley, Hodges, Gerow.]] Gerow :#Field ArmyField Army: Usually commanded by a General (GEN; note that abbreviations of military rank within the U.S. Army are given in all capital letters without a period or other punctuation). :#Corps: Consists of two or more divisions and organic support brigades. The commander is most often a Lieutenant General (LTG). :#Division: Usually commanded by a Major General (MG). :#Brigade (or group): Composed of typically three or more battalions, and commanded by a Colonel (COL) or Brigadier General (BG). (See Regiment for combat arms units.) :#Battalion (or squadron): A Battalion usually consists of two to six companies and roughly 300 to 1000 soldiers. Most units are organized into battalions. Cavalry units are formed into squadrons. A battalion-sized unit is commanded by a Lieutenant Colonel (LTC), supported by a Command Sergeant Major/E-9 (CSM). This unit consists of a Battalion Commander (CO, LTC), a Battalion Executive Officer (XO,MAJ), a Command Sergeant Major (CSM) and headquarters, 3-5 Company Commanders (CPT), 3-5 Company Executive Officers (1LT), 3-5 First Sergeants (1SG) and headquarters, 6 or more Platoon Leaders (2LT/1LT), 6 or more Platoon sergeants (SFC),and 12 or more Squad Leaders (any NCO). :#Company (or battery/troop): A company usually consists of three to four platoons and roughly 100 to 130 soldiers. Artillery units are formed into batteries. Cavalry units are formed into troops. A company-sized unit is usually led by a Company Commander usually the rank of Captain/O-3 (CPT) supported by a First Sergeant/E-8 (1SG). This unit consists of a Company Commander (CO, CPT), a Company Executive Officer (XO,1LT), A First Sergeant(1SG) and a headquarters, Two or more Platoon Leaders (2LT/1LT), two or more Platoon Sergeants (SFC), and four or more Squad Leaders (any NCO). :#Platoon: Usually led by a lieutenant supported by a Sergeant First Class/E-7 (SFC). This unit consists of a Platoon Leader (2LT/1LT), a Platoon Sergeant (SFC), and two or more Squad Leaders (any NCO). :#Section (military unit): Usually directed by Staff Sergeants/E-6 (SSG) who supply guidance for junior NCO Squad leaders. Often used in conjunction with platoons at the company level. :#Squad: Squad leaders are often Staff Sergeants/E-6 (SSG), Sergeants/E-5 (SGT), or Corporals/E-4 (CPL). This unit consists of eight to ten Soldiers. :#Fire team: Usually consists of four Soldiers: a fire team leader, a grenadier, and two riflemen. Fire team leaders are often Corporals/E-4 (CPL).

Organization

The Army is organized by function. Combat Arms include Infantry, Armor, Field Artillery, Air Defense Artillery, Combat Engineers, Army Aviation, and Special Forces. Combat Support Arms include Signal Corps, Intelligence Corps, Chemical Corps, and Military Police Corps. Combat Service Support troops include the Judge Advocate General's Corps, Adjutant General's Corps, Finance Corps, Transportation Corps, Quartermaster Corps, Ordnance Corps, Medical Corps, Medical Service Corps, and Nurse Corps.

Named Campaigns

Revolutionary War

Nurse Corps #Lexington, 19 April 1775. Opening hostilities of the Revolutionary War occurred at Lexington, Massachusetts and Concord, Massachusetts on 19 April 1775, when a column of British troops that had moved out of Boston to seize rebel military stores at Concord was assailed by Minute Men and militia. The Massachusetts militia immediately placed the British in Boston under siege. #Ticonderoga, 10 May 1775. At the same time as Lexington, steps were taken to send an expedition against British-held Fort Ticonderoga on Lake Champlain, a strategic post well-supplied with artillery and military stores much needed by the American forces investing Boston. Early on 10 May a New England force of some 80 men led by Cols. Ethan Allen of Vermont and Benedict Arnold of Connecticut surprised the British garrison of about 40 men, which surrendered without a fight. Following this success, Allen seized Crown Point, New York on 12 May and Arnold temporarily occupied St. John, Quebec, a fort across the Canadian border, on 16 May. Subsequently, a large part of the 100 cannon and substantial military stores captured at Ticonderoga were laboriously hauled overland to Boston under the direction of Maj. Gen. Henry Knox, of Washington's artillery, to supply the army besieging the city. #Boston, 17 June 1775 - 17 March 1776. On the night of 16 - 17 June 1775 about 1,200 men of the Colonial force besieging Boston moved on to the Charlestown isthmus overlooking the city and threw up entrenchments on Breed's Hill. The British garrison reacted promptly to this threat. On 17 June 2,200 troops under Maj. Gen. William Howe were ferried across to the isthmus and stormed the American positions on Breed's Hill. In the ensuing battle, incorrectly named after Bunker Hill which stands nearby, the British drove the Colonials from the isthmus after three assaults, but at a cost of about 1,000 in killed and wounded as compared with American losses of approximately 400 killed and wounded. Some 3,030 patriots took part in the fighting at one time or another. This proved to be the only major engagement of the prolonged siege of Boston. Gen. George Washington took formal command of the besieging army on 3 July 1775 and devoted the next several months to building up the American force and trying to solve its severe logistical difficulties. By March 1776 Washington had an army of 14,000 men. On 4 March he moved suddenly to install artillery on Dorchester Heights and, a short time later, on Nook's Hill, positions that dominated Boston from the south. The British commander, Howe, now recognized the serious difficulty of his position. He evacuated the city by 17 March and on 26 March sailed with about 9,000 men for Halifax, Nova Scotia. #Quebec, 28 August 1775 - July 1776. In June 1775 the Continental Congress, influenced by reports that the British commander in Canada was recruiting a force in preparation for an invasion of New York and by hopes that Canada, largely inhabited by French, might become a fourteenth colony in support of the Revolution, authorized seizure of any vital points in Canada needed to guarantee the security of the colonies. Consequently, a two-pronged invasion of Canada was launched in the early fall of 1775. Col. Benedict Arnold, starting from Cambridge, Massachusetts, with about 1,100 men, went by water and land through the Maine wilderness on an epic march up the Kennebec River and down the Chaudiere River, arriving before Quebec on 8 November with only 650 men. There he had to await the arrival of Brig. Gen. Richard Montgomery, who had taken over command of a force of about 2,000 men organized at Fort Ticonderoga by Maj. Gen. Philip Schuyler for an advance up the historic Lake Champlain-St. Lawrence River route. Beginning on 17 September, Montgomery laid siege to the British fort at St. Johns, which fell on 2 November, opening up the way to American occupation of Montreal on 13 November. Finally, Montgomery joined Arnold near Quebec on 3 December, but with only 300 men, the rest of his force staying behind to garrison St. Johns and Montreal, Quebec. With enlistments of most of the volunteer troops expiring at the end of the year' the two commanders decided to undertake a desperate night attack on Quebec on 30-31 December 1775. A composite British garrison repelled the assault, killing or wounding about 100 Americans and taking over 400 prisoners. Montgomery was among those killed. In spite of these severe losses, the Americans continued to besiege the city until the spring of 1776, when the reinforced British garrison drove the Colonials, who had already begun a retreat, back to the head of Lake Champlain. #Charleston, 28-29 June 1776 and 29 March-12 May 1780. The two engagements at Charleston, South Carolina, are reflected on a single streamer. The first campaign blunted the British threat in the southern theater for three years, and the second, while a defeat for the Americans, did not result in a cessation of hostilities in the south. Guerrillas began to harry British posts and lines of communications, and the American grass roots strength began once again to assert itself and to deny the British the fruits of military victory won in the field. #Long Island, 26-29 August 1776. After the British evacuation of Boston, Washington immediately moved his army, less the militia, to New York, in anticipation of a British invasion of that strategically important city. During July and August 1776, General Howe, supported by a British fleet under his brother, Adm. Lord Richard Howe, landed an army of 32,000 British and Hessian regulars unopposed on Staten Island. But by late August Washington had assembled a force of over 20,000 virtually untrained Continentals and militia, and built a system of defenses on and around Manhattan Island. About half of these Colonial troops were disposed in fortifications on Brooklyn Heights and forward positions at the western end of Long Island under command of Maj. Gen. Israel Putnam. From 22 - 25 August General Howe landed about 20,000 men on Long Island and, in the evening of the 26th, directed a wide flanking movement around the American left, commanded by Maj. Gen. John Sullivan. On the morning of the 27th Howe fell upon the rear of Sullivan's forces and, despite a valiant defense by the Continentals on the right under Brig. Gen. William Alexander (Lord Stirling), the whole American front crumpled. Remnants of the forward American forces fled back to entrenchments on Brooklyn Heights and two nights later were evacuated to Manhattan in a skillful withdrawal unobserved by the British. Estimates place American losses at 300-400 killed and wounded and 700-1,200 taken prisoners. General Howe listed his losses as 367. #Trenton, 26 December 1776. The British followed up their success on Long Island with a series of landings on Manhattan Island which compelled Washington to retire northward to avoid entrapment. When Fort Washington and Fort Lee on opposing sides of the Hudson above Manhattan were lost in mid-November 1776, Washington retreated across New Jersey with General Howe in close pursuit, escaping finally over the Delaware into Pennsylvania with about 3,000 men. Howe then went into winter quarters in New York City, leaving garrisons at Newport, R. I., and in several New Jersey towns. In December 1776, Washington determined to make a surprise attack on the British garrison in Trenton, a 1,400-man Hessian force, in the hope that a striking victory would lift the badly flagging American morale. Reinforcements had raised Washington's army to about 7,000 and on Christmas night (25-26 December) he ferried about 2,400 men of this force across the ice-choked Delaware River. At 0800 hours they converged on Trenton, New Jersey in two columns, achieving complete surprise. After only an hour and a half of fighting, the Hessians surrendered. Some 400 of the garrison escaped southward to Bordentown, New Jersey, when two other American columns failed to get across the Delaware in time to intercept them. About 30 were killed and 918 captured. American losses were only 4 dead and a like number wounded. #Princeton, 3 January 1777. After the successful coup at Trenton, Washington recrossed the Delaware into Pennsylvania with his Hessian prisoners. But he reoccupied Trenton on 30 - 31 December 1776, and collected there a force of 5,200 men, about half militia. Meanwhile, Maj. Gen. Charles Cornwallis, British commander in New Jersey, who was in New York at the time of the attack on Trenton, returned gathering troops as he came. He entered Trenton with some 6,000 British regulars on 2 January and faced Washington's forces, which had withdrawn southward behind Assunpink Creek. The Americans were in a most precarious position with their backs to the Delaware. Fortunately, Cornwallis delayed his attack until the following morning. This gave Washington's men an opportunity to steal off quietly by a side road during the night of 2 - 3 January, leaving their campfires burning brightly. They slipped southward and eastward undetected around the enemy's flank and by morning of the 3rd had arrived at Princeton, where they encountered a column of British regulars led by Col. Charles Mawhood just leaving the town to join Cornwallis. Mahwood's force consisted of only single battalion of aroung 400 men. But despite being heavily outnumbered, Mahwood routed two American brigades in succession, and was only driven from the field when Washington arrived to rally the panicking Americans bringing up a fresh brigade, and giving the Americans, with 4,600 men, an 11 to 1 numerical advantage. Mawhood's force retired in good order toward Trenton and New Brunswick, having lost some 86 men in the unequal fight, while Washington moved on north, having taken 40-50 casualties, to Morristown, New Jersey, where thickly wooded hills provided protection against a British attack. Here he established his winter headquarters on the flank of the British line of communications, compelling General Howe to withdraw his forces in New Jersey back to New Brunswick, New Jersey and points eastward. Some 323 other British troops surrendered to Washington's force in and around Princton without a fight. #Saratoga, 30 July - 17 October 1777. British over-all strategy in 1777 had two major objectives: (1) to split New England from the rest of the American states by a drive from Canada down the Hudson to Albany that would link up with another British force advancing north from New York City; and (2) to seize Philadelphia, seat of the Revolutionary government. The campaign in upper New York began in June 1777 with a two-pronged British drive from Canada. Maj. Gen. John Burgoyne's force of about 7,500, accompanied by some 400 Indians, pushed down Lake Champlain and compelled 2,500 Continentals and militia under Maj. Gen. Arthur St. Clair to evacuate Ticonderoga on 27 June. Other American forces in the area under the over-all command of General Schuyler retired southward, but were able to slow the progress of the heavily laden British in the rugged terrain. The other prong of the British invading force consisted of some 700 regulars and Tories, and a band of 1,000 Indians, under command of Col. Barry St. Leger. This force moved east from Fort Oswego on Lake Ontario into the Mohawk Valley with the objective of joining with Burgoyne at Albany. Leger laid siege to Fort Stanwix guarding the head of the Mohawk Valley on 2 August, but had to give up his campaign in mid-August when a relief force of 950 Continentals under Arnold scattered his Indian allies by means of a clever ruse. Meanwhile, Burgoyne continued his advance toward Albany, although his force was further weakened by the near annihilation on 17 August of a foraging detachment dispatched to capture stores at Bennington, Vt., protected by 2,600 militia under Brig. Gen. John Stark. On 13 - 14 September Burgoyne crossed the Hudson at Saratoga (now Schuylerville, N.Y.) and faced an American force of about 7,000 under Maj. Gen. Horatio Gates, who on 19 August had replaced General Schuyler as over-all commander of the northern army. On 19 September, Burgoyne, determined to reach Albany by winter, moved to attack Bemis Heights, where Gates' force barred the route southward in strongly entrenched positions. A major engagement occurred at Freeman's Farm, just forward of the main positions. The Americans yielded the field but inflicted twice as many casualties (600) as they suffered and held on to the Heights. For more than two weeks Burgoyne remained inactive while Maj. Gen. Sir Henry Clinton, now commanding troops in New York City, made an ineffectual effort to send relief forces up the Hudson. Finally, on 7 October, Burgoyne ventured out of his lines toward the American left with 1,650 troops and was repulsed in a sharp fight known as the Battle of Bemis Heights. On 9 October he retired to a position near Saratoga, where he was soon virtually surrounded by an American force now grown to nearly 15,000 men. Here on 17 October Burgoyne surrendered his entire army of about 5,000 men and large military stores. #Brandywine, 11 September 1777. The campaign to seize Philadelphia, the second mayor phase of British strategy in 1777, began in late July. Some 15,000 troops under Howe's command sailed from New York on 23 July and landed at Head of Elk (now Elkton), Maryland, a month later (25 August). Washington, with about 11,000 men, took up a defensive position blocking the way to Philadelphia at Chad's Ford on the eastern side of Brandywine Creek in Pennsylvania. Howe attacked on 11 September, sending Cornwallis across the creek in a wide-sweeping flanking movement around the American right, while his Hessian troops demonstrated opposite Chad's Ford. Maj. Gen. Nathanael Greene's troops staved off Cornwallis' threatened envelopment of Washington's whole force, and the Americans fell back to Chester in a hard-pressed but orderly retreat. Patriot losses in this engagement totaled about 1,200 killed, wounded, and prisoners. British casualties were 576. #Germantown, 4 October 1777. After their victory at Brandywine the British forces under Howe maneuvered in the vicinity of Philadelphia for two weeks, virtually annihilating a rear guard force under Brig. Gen. Anthony Wayne at Paoli on 21 September 1777, before moving unopposed into the city on 26 September. Howe established his main encampment in nearby Germantown, stationing some 9,000 men there. Washington promptly attempted a coordinated attack against this garrison on the night of 3 - 4 October. Columns were to move into Germantown from four different directions and begin the assault at dawn Two of the columns, both made up of militia, never appeared to take part in the attack, but in the early phases of the fighting the columns under Greene and Divan achieved considerable success. However, a dense early morning fog which resulted in some American troops firing on each other while it permitted the better disciplined British to re-form for a counterattack and a shortage of, ammunition contributed to the still not fully explained retreat of the Americans, beginning about 0900. Howe pursued the Colonials a few miles as they fell back in disorder, but he did not exploit his victory. American losses were 673 killed and wounded and about 400 taken prisoner. British losses were approximately 521 killed and wounded. #Monmouth, 28 June 1778. After conclusion of the Franco-American Alliance (6 February 1778) British forces in America had to give consideration to the new threat created by the powerful French fleet. General Clinton, who relieved Howe as British commander in America on 8 May 1778, decided to shift the main body of his troops from Philadelphia to a point nearer the coast where it would be easier to maintain close communications with the British Fleet. Consequently, he ordered evacuation of the 10,000-man garrison in Philadelphia on 18 June. As these troops set out through New Jersey toward New York, Washington broke camp at his winter headquarters in Valley Forge, Pennsylvania, and began pursuit of Clinton with an army of about 13,500 men. Advance elements under Mad. Gen. Charles Lee launched the initial attack on the British column as it marched out of Monmouth Courthouse (now Freehold, New Jersey, on 28 June, an extremely hot day. For reasons not entirely clear Lee did not follow up early advantages gained, and when British reinforcements arrived on the scene he ordered a retreat. This encouraged Clinton to attack with his main force. Washington relieved Lee and assumed personal direction of the battle, which continued until dark without either side retiring from the field. But, during the night, the British slipped away to Sandy Hook, New Jersey, from where their fleet took them to New York City. The British reported losses of 65 killed, 155 wounded, and 64 missing; the Americans listed 69 killed, 161 wounded, and 130 missing. General Lee was subsequently court-martialed and suspended from service for disobedience and misbehavior. Washington's army moved northward, crossed the Hudson, and occupied positions at White Plains, New York #Savannah, 29 December 1778 and 16 September-10 October 1779. The fighting at Savannah, Georgia, on these two occasions is represented by a single streamer. In the first battle, a British expeditionary force that had landed on the Savannah River below the town overwhelmed and outmaneuvered the American defending force under General Robert Howe, and Savannah was captured. The following year D'Estaing's French fleet returned from the West Indies to the southern coast and began to debark troops at Beaulieu, Georgia, 14 miles south of Savannah, with the intention of attacking the British at Savannah. A combined force of 1,500 Americans under General Lincoln and more than 5,000 Frenchmen from D'Estaing's fleet laid siege to Savannah, which was defended by about 3,200 British regulars. D'Estaing's fears for the safety of the French fleet led to an early Franco-American attack on the entrenched British, which was repulsed with 828 casualties. British losses were 103. #Camden, 16 August 1780. An encounter between the main British/Hessian force in the Carolinia's, 2,200 troops under General Cornwallis, and a newly raised American force of 4,100 under Horation Gates and Baron de Kalb, sent south to retieve the situation following the fall of Charleston. The American centre and left, made up of militia from Virginia and North Carolina, fled at the first impact of the British assault, leaving the Continental regulars on the right to fight on their own. Outflanked, and taken from the rear by cavalry under Lt. Col. Banastre Tarleton, the Continentals were overwhelmed and de Kalb killed. British losses were 312. American lossess were 880 killed and wounded, plus 1,000 captured. #Cowpens, 17 January 1781. Cowpens, South Carolina, was the scene of a classic battle, which marked the beginning of the American campaign under General Greene, to drive the British from the south. In terms of duration and actual troops engaged, it was a larger battle than Princeton, and its results—the destruction of an important part of the British army in the south—were incalculable toward ending the war. #Guilford Court House, 15 March 1781. Guilford Court House, North Carolina, was the site of the culminating battle in General Greene's campaign against General Cornwallis. Despite having 4,400 troops, and being on the defensive, General Greene lost agaisnt the able Cornwallis and his 1,900 veteran soldiers in a hard fought engagement that cost the British 500 casualties, and the Americans 1,300. However, Greene could replace his heavier losses, while Cornwallis could not, causing him to retreat to the coast and from there to move to Virginia, where he ultimately became trapped at Yorktown. #Yorktown, 28 September - 19 October 1781. After 1778 the main theater of war shifted to the South as the British concentrated on trying to reestablish their control of that area. By 1781 they were convinced that this could not be accomplished while Virginia continued to serve as a base for American military operations. Hence in January 1781 Clinton sent the American turncoat, Benedict Arnold, with 1,600 British troops to raid up the James River. By late May the British had accumulated about 7,200 men in Virginia, including the remnants (1,500) of Cornwallis' force, which had come up from Wilmington, North Carolina. Cornwallis was given over-all command of British forces in Virginia and in late May and early June led them on raids deep into the state. At first he was opposed only by a numerically greatly inferior force under the Marquis de Lafayette, but in mid-June the later was reinforced by troops under Brig. Gen. Anthony Wayne and Baron von Steuben, drillmaster and inspector general of the Continental Army. Cornwallis then turned back to the coast to establish a base at Yorktown from which he could maintain sea communications with Clinton in New York.
- Meanwhile, Washington was tentatively preparing his northern army, recently reinforced by about 4,800 French troops under Lt. Gen. Jean B. de Rochambeau, for an attack on New York. However, he received confirmation on 14 August that Adm. Francois de Grasse's fleet had departed the French West Indies with 3,000 troops aboard and would be available for operations in the Chesapeake Bay area until mid-October. Re therefore finally determined to go to Virginia with a substantial part of his army, including the French regulars under Rochambeau. He crossed the Hudson (20-26 August), made a feint in the direction of New York to hold Clinton in the city, and then struck southward across New Jersey and Pennsylvania to Maryland. In the meantime, De Grasse's fleet arrived off Yorktown on 30 August, debarked 3,000 French regulars to reinforce Lafayette, and on 5 September fought an indecisive naval engagement off the Virginia capes with a British fleet under Adm. Thomas Graves. After several days of maneuvering at sea, Graves retired temporarily to New York for repairs, leaving the French fleet in control of Chesapeake Bay. This permitted Washington and Rochambeau to embark their forces in Maryland and sail via the Chesapeake and the James River to a point near Williamsburg (14-24 September). From there an allied army numbering about 15,000-8,845 Americans and 7,800 French moved forward on 28 September to begin siege operations against Yorktown. Finally, after a night attack on 16 October failed to recapture key defense points, Cornwallis requested an armistice (17 October). He surrendered his entire command—about 8,000 men—on 19 October. In the siege the British lost 156 killed and 326 wounded; the Americans, 20 killed and 56 wounded; and the French, 52 killed and 134 wounded. British hopes for victory in America collapsed with Cornwallis' defeat. Lord North's ministry fell in March 1782 and the new cabinet opened direct negotiations with the American peace commissioners in Europe that resulted ultimately in ending the war. ----

Rank Structure

Comparison of ranking structure available at Ranks and Insignia of NATO. The Officer Corps provides leadership and managerial functions, and is composed of
- Company Grade officers
  - Second Lieutenant (2LT; pay grade O-1) - gold bar,
  - First Lieutenant (1LT; pay grade O-2) - silver bar,
  - Captain (CPT; pay grade O-3) - two silver bars,
- Field Grade officers
  - Major (MAJ; pay grade O-4) - gold oak leaf,
  - Lieutenant Colonel (LTC; pay grade O-5) - silver oak leaf,
  - Colonel (COL; pay grade O-6) - silver eagle,
- and General officers
  - Brigadier General (BG; pay grade O-7) - one star,
  - Major General (MG; pay grade O-8) - two stars,
  - Lieutenant General (LTG; pay grade O-9) - three stars,
  - General (GEN; pay grade O-10) - four stars
  - General of the Army - In the 19th century, a title held by the Commander of the Army. After World War II a rank comprised of five stars in a pentagon
  - General of the Armies - No established insignia. Held only by George Washington and John J. Pershing There are several sources of commissioned officers:
- The United States Military Academy at West Point, New York
- Graduates of other military academies of the United States may elect to be commissioned in the Army
- Enlisted soldiers or College graduates who successfully pass Officer Candidate School (OCS)
- College graduates who underwent Army Reserve Officer Training Corps courses at a four-year university
- Lawyers, doctors, nurses, veterinarians, and chaplains may be directly commissioned into their respective corps
- Enlisted soldiers may also be battlefield commissioned for valor and leadership during actual combat, Audie Murphy received his commission in this manner Officers receive a commission assigning them to the Officer Corps from the President. The appointments of commision officers can be either in the Regular Army, the Army Reserve (USAR), or the National Guard. Those officers who receive their commision in the USAR, but serve on active duty, upon attaining the rank of Major, can be appointed into the Regular Army by the President with the advice and consent of the United States Senate [http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/10/531.html]. Commissioned officers are assigned to a branch of service until they reach the rank of Brigadier General, where it is assumed that they are competent to command soldiers of all branches. Once commissioned, an officer attends several levels of professional education, starting with branch qualification in their respective branch and concluding in Command and General Staff College at Fort_Leavenworth, Kansas. Professional education is required for promotion at certain grades. The Warrant Officer is a single track specialty officer. Initially appointed an officer by the Secretary of the Army via a warrant, he/she is commissioned by the President upon promotion to the rank of Chief Warrant Officer Two (CW2). The warrant officer is managed as a company grade officer, but receives limited field grade privilege upon promotion to Chief Warrant Officer Four (CW4). The primary source for Warrant Officers is the U.S. Army Warrant Officer Candidate School at Fort Rucker, Alabama. The Non-Commissioned Officer Corps (or NCO Corps) is the first line of leadership for the enlisted members of the Army, and includes the ranks of
- Corporal (CPL; pay grade E-4) (two stripes pointing up, called chevrons) ),
- Sergeant (SGT; pay grade E-5) (three chevrons),
- Staff Sergeant (SSG; pay grade E-6) (three chevrons and one rocker, a curved stripe at the bottom),
- Sergeant First Class (SFC; pay grade E-7) (three chevrons and two rockers),
- Master Sergeant (MSG; pay grade E-8) (three chevrons and three rockers),
- First Sergeant (1SG; pay grade E-8) (which holds the same enlisted pay grade as Master Sergeant, but which carries extra administrative duties - three chevrons and three rockers with a lozenge in the center),
- Sergeant Major (SGM; pay grade E-9) (three chevrons and three rockers with a star in the center),
- Command Sergeant Major (CSM; pay grade E-9) (three chevrons and three rockers with a wreathed star in the center)
- and Sergeant Major of the Army (of whom there is only one, and who advises the Chief of Staff of the Army on matters relating to enlisted personnel - three chevrons and three rockers with a centered eagle accompanied with two stars). Sergeant Major of the Army Training for NCOs takes place at any of the various NCO training centers around the world. Until relatively recent history, most countries depended upon their officer corps to micromanage strategy, tactics and virtually every other aspect of military operations. Current military theory in the U.S. and UK has begun to emphasize the "strategic corporal," recognizing that combat decision-making by NCOs is potentially of vast importance. The lowest enlisted ranks are:
- Private (PV1; pay grade E-1) (no rank insignia),
- Private Enlisted Grade 2 (PV2; pay grade E-2) (one chevron),
- Private First Class (PFC; pay grade E-3) (one chevron and one rocker),
- and Specialist (SPC; pay grade E-4) (which is the same Enlisted Grade as Corporal, but which requires technical leadership skills, as opposed to the combat leadership skills required of corporal -a dark green patch with an eagle centered). A Specialist ranks below a corporal in terms of chain of command. Training for enlisted soldiers usually consists of Basic Training, and Advanced Individual Training in their primary Military Occupational Specialty (MOS) at any of the numerous MOS training facilities around the world. All members of the Army must take an oath upon being sworn in as members, swearing (or affirming) to "protect the Constitution of the United States from all enemies, both foreign and domestic." This emphasis on the defense of the United States Constitution illustrates the concern of the framers that the military be subordinate to legitimate civilian authority.

Uniforms

Since World War II, the Army has maintained three distinct types of uniforms: Full Dress, Service/Garrison Dress, and Combat Dress. The Full Dress uniform, known today as Army Blue, is worn for most ceremonial duties in most Stateside posts, especially those attached to the 3rd Infantry Regiment in Washington, D.C. This uniform, adopted in present form in 1955, consists of a dark blue open-fronted coat with white shirt and black necktie, and light blue trousers, all trimmed in gold (the U.S. Marine Corps dress blues has a "choker collar" coat and scarlet trim). It is worn with a dark blue saucer cap, with officers rank insignia being worn on rectangluar epaulettes in the color of their branch of service. General officers wear a similar uniform, but with dark blue trousers in place of light blue ones, along with their distinctive General officer's insignia. A bowtie, worn in place of the necktie, is used when the uniform is worn when attending events similar to that of a "black-tie" function. The Service/Garrison uniform, introduced in the mid-1950's and replacing the Olive Drab uniforms worn since 1902, consists of an "Army Green" coat and trousers similar in design to the Army Blue uniform. Between the introduction of the uniform and the mid-1980's, the uniform was worn with a tan shirt and black necktie, but has since been replaced with a light green shirt. Enlisted members wear rank on both sleeves, while officers have their insginia on the epaulets. In addition, officers uniforms have black mohair bands on the coat cuffs and mohair stripes on the trousers. Since 2001, the uniform has been worn with the U.S. Army's general service black beret, which was worn only by Ranger regiments, prior to its service-wide introduction. Although regular units wear black shoes, with boots, ascot scarves, and pistol belts being worn only for parade dress functions, Airborne, Ranger, and Special Forces (green beret) units wear "Corcoran" jump boots with the trousers bloused into them. The Combat uniform, known throughout recent history as "fatigues," or "BDUs," has undergone the most changes since World War II. Introduced as a one-piece coverall, it was later changed to a two-piece shirt/trousers design by the end of World War II, and was the most-seen uniform during the Cold War. A two-piece "jungle fatigue" uniform, introduced during the Vietnam War, was modified in the 1980's with a woodland and "six-color" desert pattern, and replaced the old-style fatigues by Operation Desert Shield/Storm. The desert pattern changed after Operation Desert Storm to a 3-color pattern, used by Operation Iraqi Freedom, but the introduction of the new MARPAT digital pattern uniform for U.S. Marines and Navy Combat Corpsmen prompted the Army to introduce its new "Army Combat Uniform," or ACU in 2005. Identical to the Marine's uniform, in terms of pocket layout, the ACU differs only with the cammoflague pattern--the elimination of black squares allow the uniform to be worn in all non-polar terrains throughout the world, thus the same uniform can be worn in the Black Forest in Germany, to the deserts of the Southwest U.S. or Southwest Asia. The ACU also features, for the first time since WW2, rough-hide brown leather boots, which allows easier care, than their black leather counterparts worn since 1955. The new boots replaces the black "speed-lace" all-leather boots and the leather/canvas "jungle" boots worn since Vietnam. The combat uniform is worn with the beret for garrison (base) duties, with a visor cap for non-combat patrols and "kevlar" helmet and body armor for combat duties.

Leadership

Army Combat Uniform The civilian executive is the Secretary of the Army who heads the United States Department of the Army, formerly called the Secretary of War who headed the United States Department of War or the War Office for short, at the founding of the Republic. The professional head of the United States Army is the Chief of Staff of the Army (CSA). This position is filled by a four star general who sits on the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee. As with the other members of that committee, the Army Chief of Staff is not in the direct chain of command over combatant forces. His function is administrative and policy making. The current Army Chief of Staff is General Peter J. Schoomaker. The most senior Army generals who are directly in the chain of command are those who command a Unified Combatant Command, known as the Combatant Commanders (COCOM's). An example is General John Abizaid, the commander of U.S. Central Command. Three star positions in the Army include some deputy commanders of the Combatant Commands, the heads of the army components of the Combatant Commands and general officers commanding an army corps.

Major Commands of the United States Army

Formations of the United States Army

First Army "First In Deed" (Reserve) :78th "Lightning" Division, Edison, NJ (Training Support) ::1st Brigade (Training Support) ::2d Brigade (Training Support) ::3d Brigade (Training Support) ::4th Brigade (Training Support) ::5th Brigade "We Dare" (Training Support) :85th "Custer" Division (Training Support) ::1st Brigade (Training Support) ::2d Brigade (Training Support) ::3d Brigade (Training Support) ::4th Brigade (Training Support) :87th Division "Golden Acorn", Birmingham, AL (Training Support) ::1st Brigade (Training Support) ::2d Brigade (Training Support) ::3d Brigade (Training Support) ::4th Brigade (Training Support) ::5th Brigade (Training Support) :Army Units ::4th Cavalry Brigade (Training Support) ::157th Infantry Brigade (Training Support) ::188th Infantry Brigade (Training Support) ::205th Infantry Brigade (Separate) (Light) Third Army: Army Central Command (ARCENT) :C/JTF-Kuwait :ARCENT Kuwait :ARCENT Saudi :ARCENT Qatar :Army Prepositioned Stock (APS-3) :Army Prepositioned Stock (APS-5) Fifth Army (Reserve) :7th Infantry Division "Bayonets", Fort Carson, CO (Light) ::39th Infantry Brigade (Light) (Separate) ::41st Infantry Brigade (Light) (Separate) ::45th Infantry Brigade (Light) (Separate) :75th Division, Houston, TX (Training Support) ::1st Brigade (Training Support) ::2d Brigade (Training Support) ::3d Brigade (Training Support) ::4th Brigade (Training Support) :91st Division, Houston, TX (Training Support) ::1st Brigade (Training Support) ::2d Brigade (Training Support) ::3d Brigade (Training Support) ::4th Brigade (Training Support) :Army Units ::5th Armored Brigade (Training Support) ::120th Infantry Brigade (Training Support) ::166th Aviation Brigade (Training Support) ::191st Infantry Brigade (Training Support) Seventh Army: United States Army Europe :V Corps, Heidelberg, Germany ::1st Infantry Division ("The Big Red One") — Würzburg, Germany ::1st Armored Divsion — Wiesbaden, Germany Eighth Army: South Korea ::2d Infantry Division ("Indian Head" Division) — Camp Red Cloud, South Korea ::25th Infantry Division (Light) ("Tropic Lightning") — Schofield Barracks, Hawaii :I Corps, Fort Lewis, Washington ("America's Corps") :::3d Brigade, 2d Infantry Division (Light) :::1st Brigade, 25th Infantry Division (Light) :III Corps, Fort Hood, Texas ::1st Cavalry Division ::4th Infantry Division (Mechanized) :--III Corps U.S. Army National Guard ::7th Infantry Division (Light) ("Bayonet" Division) — Fort Carson, Colorado :XVIII Airborne Corps ::3d Infantry Division (Mechanized) ("Rock of the Marne") — Fort Stewart, Georgia :::1st Brigade (Raiders) "E Pluribus Unum" :::2d Brigade (Spartan) "Send Me" :::3d Brigade (Sledgehammer) "Not Pretty Just Tough" :::4th Brigade (Vanguard) ::10th Mountain Division (Light) — Fort Drum, New York :::1st Brigade :::2d Brigade :::3d Brigade :::27th Brigade (Orions) — New York National Guard ::82nd Airborne Division (All American)— Fort Bragg, North Carolina :::82d Aviation Brigade :::325th Airborne Infantry Regiment ::::1st Battalion 325th Airborne Infantry Regiment ::::2d Battalion 325th Airborne Infantry Regiment ::::3d Battalion 325th Airborne Infantry Regiment :::504th Parachute Infantry Regiment ::::1st Battalion 504th Parachute Infantry Regiment ::::2d Battalion 504th Parachute Infantry Regiment ::::3d Battalion 504th Parachute Infantry Regiment :::505th Parachute Infantry Regiment ::::1st Battalion 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment ::::2d Battalion 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment ::::3d Battalion 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment ::101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) (Screaming Eagles) — Fort Campbell, Kentucky :::101st Aviation Brigade :::159th Aviation Brigade :::327th Parchute Infantry Regiment ("Bastogne") :::1st Battalion 327th PIR :::2d Battalion 327th PIR :::3d Battalion 327th PIR :::502nd Parachute Infantry Regiment ("Strike") :::1st Battalion 502nd PIR :::2nd Battalion 502nd PIR :::3rd Battalion 502nd PIR :::187th Parachute Infantry Regiment ("Rakkasans") :::1st Battalion 187th PIR :::2nd Battalion 187th PIR :::3rd Battalion 187th PIR ::XVIII Airborne Corps Artillery :::18th Field Artillery Brigade ::2d Armored Cavalry Regiment :: Red states show states that have coastlines, while pink shows states that are included as part of the East Coast but do not border the Atlantic Ocean.
The "East Coast," "Eastern Seaboard," or "Atlantic Seaboard" are terms referencing the easternmost coastal states in the United States of America. It includes all thirteen original colonies, as well as such selected places as Washington, DC, Florida and Vermont. People elsewhere in the United States sometimes refer to the East Coast colloquially as "back east". "East Coast" is frequentlty associated with the Northeastern United States, particularly for cultural concepts such as an "Eastern college" or "East-coast liberal"; the Southeast coast is more associated culturally with the larger American South. "East Coast" may also refer even more narrowly to the highly urbanized strip along the coast from Boston, Massachusetts to Washington, D.C., the so-called "BosWash megalopolis", which is also known as the "Northeast Corridor." In the rap music community the term has been embraced in a sense of regional loyalty to New York City. The terms "East Coast" and "West Coast" are often used as metonyms for New York and Los Angeles, respectively. There has been animosity and violence between rappers from each of these groups, though the controversy has waned in recent years. Perhaps the two best-known cases of this animus are that of the murders of The Notorious B.I.G. (of Brooklyn, New York) and Tupac Shakur (of Oakland, California). See also: Geology of the Appalachians Category:Regions of the United States ja:東海岸

Walter Reed

Walter Reed (September 13, 1851 - November 23, 1902) was an American Army surgeon who led the team which proved the theory first set forth in 1881 by the Cuban doctor and scientist Dr. Carlos Finlay that yellow fever is transmitted by mosquitoes rather than direct contact. Reed was born and raised in Belroi, Gloucester County, Virginia to Lemuel Sutton Reed (a Methodist minister) and Pharaba White. Soon after graduation from the University of Virginia, Reed became a medical officer with the US Army in a time of great advances in medicine due to widespread acceptance of Louis Pasteur's germ theory of disease as well as the methods of studying bacteria developed by Robert Koch. Reed worked closely with George Miller Sternberg, the Army Surgeon General, who was one of the founders of bacteriology. Yellow fever became a problem for the Army during the Spanish American War, when the disease felled thousands of soldiers in Cuba. In May 1900, Reed, a major, was appointed president of a board "to study infectious diseases in Cuba paying particular attention to yellow fever." This board eventually proved both the transmission by mosquitoes and disproved the common belief that yellow fever could be transmitted by clothing and bedding soiled by the body fluids and excrement of yellow fever sufferers - articles known as fomites. His work with the disease was largely responsible for stemming the mortality rates from yellow fever during the building of the Panama Canal in the early 1900s, something that had confounded the French attempt to build in that region only 30 years earlier. After this work, Reed resumed his position as professor of bacteriology in the Army Medical School, and as professor of pathology and bacteriology at the George Washington University Medical School. His health had been in decline following an appendectomy, and he died of peritonitis. He was buried in Arlington National Cemetery. In 1929, the Walter Reed Medal was awarded posthumously to Walter Reed for his work in discovering the cause of yellow fever. Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C. is also named after him. Reed, Walter Reed, Walter Category:Methodists Category:People from Virginia

Yellow fever

:This article discusses the viral disease. Yellow fever is also another term for "Asian fetish". Yellow fever (also called yellow jack, black vomit or sometimes American Plague) is an acute viral disease. It is still an important cause of hemorrhagic illness in several African and South American countries despite existence of an effective vaccine. In the past it was a source of several devastating epidemics. As of 2005, the World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that yellow fever causes 200,000 illnesses and 30,000 deaths every year in unvaccinated populations. The disease is caused by an arbovirus of the family Flaviviridae, and is one of the smallest RNA viruses isolated by man. Mosquitos are the primary vector in transmission of the disease from forest monkeys to humans and in person-to-person transmission. The mosquitos involved are Aedes simpsoni, Aedes africanus, and Aedes aegypti in Africa; and the Haemagogus and Sabethes genera. The disease can remain locally unknown in humans for long periods of time and then suddenly break out in an epidemic fashion. In Central America and Trinidad this has been due to a form of the disease ("Jungle Yellow Fever") which is kept alive in Red Howler monkey populations and transmitted by Haemagogus mosquito species which only live in the canopy of rainforests. It is passed to humans when the tall rainforest trees are cut down. Infected woodcutters can then pass on the disease to others via species of Aedes mosquitoes which typically live at low altitudes, thus triggering an epidemic. The course of the disease varies from an unapparent infection to an intense feverish illness with high mortality rate. There is a difference between disease outbreaks in rural or forest areas and in towns. Disease outbreaks in towns and non-native people are usually more serious. After a 3 to 6 day incubation period the typical symptoms that arise are fever, muscle aches, headache and backache. Other symptoms may include a red tongue, flushed face, and reddening of the eyes. In a proportion of cases there is also involvement of internal organs - liver, kidneys and the heart. There may be hemorrhage from the digestive tract (bloody vomit). Later the disease is sometimes complicated by jaundice with liver failure and/or renal insufficiency with proteinuria. If the disease progresses, delirium, seizures and coma ensue. Hypotension and dehydration are also common. Mortality is around 5%; although historically it has been much higher [http://etext.lib.virginia.edu/healthsci/reed/browse/Public_Health.html], [http://etext.lib.virginia.edu/etcbin/fever-browse?id=N2659002].Patients who die usually do so within six to seven days from the onset.

Prevention

A vaccine for yellow fever was developed which gives a 10-year+ immunity from the disease and effectively protects people traveling to the affected areas whilst being a means to control the disease at the same time. Woodcutters working in jungle areas should be particularly targeted for vaccination. Insecticides, protective clothing and screening of houses are helpful but not always enough. In affected areas mosquito control methods have proved effective in decreasing the number of cases.

Public health

Yellow fever is one of the few diseases where some countries have a legal requirement that travellers to an endemic area require vaccination. These countries also usually have regulations requiring quarantine for people who arrive from yellow fever endemic areas who do not provide evidence of their having being vaccinated against yellow fever. This is because one of the vectors for transmission of yellow fever, the Aedes mosquito, exists in other tropical parts of the world (which are not endemic for yellow fever) and an outbreak could potentially erupt if the disease is inadvertently brought in.

Treatment

There is no specific cure for the disease; therefore vaccination is important. Treatment is symptomatic and supportive only. Fluid replacement, fighting hypotension and transfusion of blood derivates is mostly needed in severe cases. In severe cases resulting in acute renal failure, dialysis may be necessary. A fever victim needs to get lots of rest, fresh air, and drink plenty of fluids.

History

The Yellow Fever has had several important roles in the history of the Americas and the Caribbean, Guantánamo Bay. English and American colonial troops died by the thousands in Havana beween 1762-1763. The Panama Canal could only be completed when the disease was understood. In the early 19th Century an army of 40,000 sent by First Consul Napoleon Bonaparte of France to Haiti to suppress the Haitian Revolution was wiped out by an epidemic of Yellow Fever (including the expedition's commander and Bonaparte's brother-in-law, Charles Leclerc). Some historians believe Haiti was to be a staging point for an invasion of the United States through Louisiana (then still under French control). A ship carrying persons infected with the virus arrived in Hampton Roads in June, 1855. The disease spread quickly through the community, eventually killing over 3,000 people, 1 of 3 residents of Portsmouth and Norfolk, Virginia. The Howard Association, a benevolent organization, was formed to help coordinate assistance in the form of funds, supplies, and medical professionals and volunteers which poured in from many other areas, particularly the Atlantic and Gulf Coast areas of the United States. In addition the first failed attempts to build the Panama Canal (by a French company) were thwarted in part due to the huge number of deaths amongst workers caused by the Yellow Fever. The vaccination for the fever was first formulated during the second attempt to build the canal. Walter Reed, M.D., (1851-1902) was an American Army surgeon who led the team which proved the theory first set forth in 1881 by the Cuban doctor and scientist Dr. Carlos Finlay that yellow fever is transmitted by mosquitoes rather than direct contact. The risky but fruitful research work was done with human volunteers, including some of the medical personnel who had themselves infected. All this lead to the elimination of Yellow Fever from Cuba and allowed the final construction of the Panama canal. [http://etext.lib.virginia.edu/healthsci/reed/browse/Public_Health.html] themselves Photograph from the Agricultural Research Service.

See also


- Lassa fever
- Dengue fever
- Walter Reed
- Clara Maass

External links


- [http://home.hamptonroads.com/stories/story.cfm?story=88346&ran=240842 Interactive Internet article on the 1855 Yellow Fever Epidemic from Pilot Online, Hampton Roads]: a detailed story with maps, slides, and quiz
- [http://www.who.int/topics/yellow_fever/ WHO site on Yellow Fever]
- [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Gazetteer/Places/America/United_States/Louisiana/New_Orleans/_Texts/Yellow_Fever_in_Little_Palermo
- .html New Orleans, 1905: Housing Conditions and the Yellow Fever]: a case study
- [http://www2.ncid.cdc.gov/travel/yb/utils/ybGet.asp?section=dis&obj=yellowfever.htm Health Information for International Travel, 2005-2006]:from Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

References


- Theiler, Max and Downs, W. G. 1973. The Arthropod-Borne Viruses of Vertebrates: An Account of The Rockefeller Foundation Virus Program 1951-1970. Yale University Press.
- Downs, Wilbur H., et al. 1965. Virus diseases in the West Indies. Special edition of the Caribbean Medical Journal, Vol. XXVI, Nos. 1-4, 1965 Category:Infectious diseases Category:Flaviviruses ms:Demam kuning dewasa ja:黄熱

Mosquito


See text. The mosquito is a member of the family Culicidae; these insects have a pair of scaled wings, a pair of halteres, a slender body, and long legs. The females of most mosquito species suck blood from other animals. Size varies but is rarely greater than 15 mm (0.6 inch). Mosquitoes weigh only about 2 to 2.5 mg (0.03 to 0.04 grain). They can fly at about 1.5 to 2.5 km/h (0.9 to 1.6 mph) and most species are nocturnal. Mosquitoes are believed to have evolved around 170 million years ago during the Jurassic era (206–135 million years ago) with the earliest known fossils from the Cretaceous era (144–65 million years ago). They evolved in the land mass that is now South America, spreading initially to the northern continent Laurasia and re-entering the tropics from the north. Ancestral mosquitoes were about three times the size of the extant species and they are a sister group to the Chaoboridae (biting midges). The family Culicidae belongs to the order Diptera and contains about 3500 species in three subfamilies: Anophelinae (3 genera), the Culicinae (9 genera and >80% of all the species) and the Toxorhynchitinae (1 genus). The genera include Anopheles, Culex, Psorophora, Ochlerotatus, Aedes, Sabethes, Wyeomyia, Culiseta, and Haemagoggus. Within the family Anophelinae six subgenera are recognized: Stethomyia, Lophopodomyia, Kerteszia, Nyssorhynchus (all South American), Cellia (Old World only) and Anopheles (worldwide). Mosquitos are principally nectar feeders with only the females requiring a meal of blood. In contrast to this rule the Toxorhynchites never drinks blood. This family includes the largest of the extant mosquitoes (colloquially referred to as "mosquito eaters") and their larvae are predatory on the larvae of other mosquitoes. Attempts have been made in the past to use these as mosquito control agents but with variable success. Mosquito is a Spanish word meaning "little fly", with its use dates back to about 1583. Before then, they were called "biting flies" in English, but the term "mosquito" was adopted to prevent confusion with the house fly. The word derives from Sanskrit maksh (fly) via the Latin word musca (fly) and the Italian moschetta or Spanish mosquito (little fly). The French word is moustique. The female mosquito (in almost all species) sucks the blood of mammals, including humans — commonly referred to (incorrectly) as a "bite." Mosquito bites often swell up hours after happening, causing a red ringed white bump about a centimeter in diameter. This bump can itch for days and over-scratching the bite can cause it to bleed. Mosquito bites can transmit diseases, such as malaria and West Nile Virus, so authorities in many areas take measures to reduce mosquito populations through pesticides or more organic means. An easy way to reduce mosquito populations in a residential area is the removal of standing water (where mosquitoes breed), and the use of repellents, such as DEET.

Natural history

DEET In most female mosquitoes, the mouth parts form a long proboscis for piercing the skin of mammals (or in some cases birds or even reptiles and amphibians) to suck their blood. As opposed to a syringe's typically smooth needle, the mosquito proboscis is highly serrated, which leaves a minimal number of points of contact with the skin being pierced — this reduces nerve stimulation to the point where the "bite" is not felt at all, which is generally the case (see the Mosquitoes and health section below for an explanation on the swelling.) The females require protein for egg development, and since the normal mosquito diet consists of nectar and fruit juice, which has no protein, most must drink blood to get the necessary protein. Males differ from females, with mouth parts not suitable for blood sucking. Mosquitoes and health The mosquito undergoes complete metamorphosis, going through four distinct stages in its life cycle: egg, larva, pupa, and adult — a process that was first described by the Greek philosopher Aristotle. The length of the first three stages is dependent on the species and temperature. Culex tarsalis may complete its life cycle in 14 days at 20 °C (68 °F) and only ten days at 25 °C (77 °F). Some species have a life cycle of as little as four days or up to one month. The larvae are the "wrigglers" or "wigglers" found in puddles or water-filled containers. These breathe atmospheric oxygen through a siphon at the tail end. The pupae are nearly as active as the larvae, but breathe through thoracic "horns" attached to the thoracic spiracles. Most larvae feed on microorganisms, but a few are predatory on other mosquito larvae. Some mosquito larvae, such as those of Wyeomyia live in unusual situations. These mosquito wigglers live either in the water collected in epiphytic bromeliads or inside water stored in carnivorous pitcher plants. Larvae of the genus Deinocerites live in crab holes along the edge of the ocean. Most mosquito species outside of the tropics overwinter as eggs, but a significant minority overwinter as larvae or adults. Mosquitoes of the genus Culex (a vector for St. Louis encephalitis) overwinter as mated adult females. St. Louis encephalitis The females of blood sucking species locate their victims primarily through scent. They are extremely sensitive to the carbon dioxide in exhaled breath, as well as several substances found in sweat. Some people seem to attract mosquitoes more than others. Empirical studies of mosquito bites suggest that the risk of being bitten follows an approximately negative binomial distribution. Being male, being overweight, and having type 'O' blood may increase the risk of being bitten. Mosquitoes can detect heat, so they can find warm-blooded mammals and birds very easily once they get close enough.

Mosquitoes and health

In the United States, mosquito bites are mostly a nuisance. However, worldwide, mosquitoes are a major public health problem; they are estimated to transmit disease to more than 700 million annually, and will be responsible for the deaths of about one in 17 people currently alive. [http://www.slu.edu/colleges/sph/csbei/emerginginfections/wnv/key_ref/acp_asim_1.pdf] Some mosquitoes are capable of transmitting protozoan diseases such as malaria (see Plasmodium falciparum), filarial diseases like filariasis, and viral diseases such as yellow fever, dengue, epidemic polyarthritis, encephalitis, and West Nile virus. West Nile virus was accidentally introduced into the United States in 1999 and by 2003 had spread to almost every state. Through the transmission of such diseases, it can be argued that mosquitoes have caused more human deaths than any other animal. When a mosquito first bites a human, she injects saliva and anti-coagulants. When one is first bitten there is no reaction, but after several bites the body's immune system develops antibodies and an itchy red mark appears about a day after the bite. This is the usual reaction in young children. After many more bites, the sensitivity of the human immune system increases, and an itchy red hive appears in minutes where the immune response has broken capillary blood vessels and fluid has collected under the skin. This type of reaction is common in older children and adults. Some adults could possibly become desensitized to mosquitoes, and not have any reaction to their bites, but others can become hyper-sensitive with bites causing large painful red welts. Mosquitoes are also very irritating as sometimes they tend to fly around the ears of humans, their wingbeats coming within audible range of the human ear. This is especially more pronounced during the monsoon season in tropical climates, when the incidence of mosquitoes increases manyfold. The buzzing noise wakes up people who would otherwise have not been disturbed by the mosquito bite alone. This has prompted many to stuff their ears with cotton to shut out the buzzing of the mosquitoes.

Mosquito control and integrated mosquito management

There are two kinds of mosquito control: large, organized programs to reduce mosquito populations over a wide area, and actions and invidual can take to control mosquitoes with respect to themselves and their own property. Organized mosquito control programs today draw on the principles of integrated pest management. An integrated mosquito control program typically includes the following measures, all guided by surveillance of mosquito populations and knowledge of the mosquito life cycle: [http://vector.ifas.ufl.edu/chap03.pdf]
- source reduction - the removal of mosquito breeding habitats
- habitat modification - manipulating habitats to reduce breeding
- biocontrol - introducing natural predators of mosquitoes
- larvicide - using pesticides to reduce larval populations
- adulticide - using pesticides to reduce adult populations Since many mosquitoes breed in standing water, source reduction can be as simple as overturning an old tin can, or can be as complex as permanently draining marshes. Much source reduction is a matter of education. For example, homeowners can eliminate mosquito breeding grounds by removing unused plastic pools, old tires, or buckets; by clearing clogged gutters and repairing leaks around faucets; by regularly changing water in bird baths; and by filling or draining puddles, swampy areas, and tree stumps. Eliminating such mosquito breeding areas can be an extremely effective and permanent way to reduce mosquito populations without resorting to insecticides. Habitat modification, such as ditching or diking marshes or manipulating daily water flows can be effective at reducing mosquito populations by disrupting the mosquito life cycle, but experience has shown that such large-scale programs can be harmful to the ecosystem if not undertaken carefully. One example of a successful approach to habitat modification, open marsh water management, involves the use of shallow ditches to connect the shallow waters where mosquitoes breed to deeper waters where natural predators live. Simply giving the predators access to the mosquito larvae can result in long-term mosquito control. Biocontrol is the direct introduction of predators to target mosquitoes. Effective biocontrol agents include predatory fish that feed on mosquito larvae such as Gambusia affinis and other minnows and killifish. Some other biocontrol agents that have had lesser degrees of success include the predator mosquito Toxorhynchites and predator crustaceans, nematodes, and fungi. Some public agencies also employ other predators such as birds, bats, dragonflies, and frogs, but evidence of effectiveness of these agents is only anecdotal. In particular, there is no documented study that establishes that bats or purple martins consume enough mosquitoes to significantly control mosquito populations. Also used as biological control agent are the dead spores of varieties of the natural soil bacteria Bacillus thuringiensis, especially Bt israelensis (BTI). BTI is used to interfere in the digestion systems of larvae. It can be dispersed by hand or dropped by helicopter in large areas. BTI is no longer effective after the larvae turn into pupae, because they stop eating. At this point larviciding oils, such as Golden Bear, can be used which increase the water tension until the pupae and larvae cannot break the surface to obtain air and therefore drown. A chemical commonly used in the United States is methoprene, considered slightly toxic to larger animals, which mimics and interferes with natural growth hormones in mosquito larvae, preventing development. Methoprene is frequently distributed in time-release briquette form in breeding areas. Adulticide, the ground or arial application of chemical pesticides, is less effective than the other methods of mosquito control and is generally considered a method of last resort. Nevertheless, careful application of adulticide is considered a critical part of integrated mosquito management. For example, ultra low volume (ULV) spraying of Malathion has been used in metropolitan areas like New York City to decrease the mosquito population and prevent the spread of West Nile Virus. The most effective solutions for malaria control efforts in the third world are: mosquito nets (klamboe), insecticide-laced mosquito nets, and DDT. [http://www.cdc.gov/malaria/control_prevention/vector_control.htm] Plain mosquito nets are cheap, they are completely effective in protecting humans within the net, they do not adversely affect the health of natural predators such as dragonflies, and do not require sophisticated public health capacity on the part of the government. The role of DDT in combating mosquitoes has been the subject of considerable controversy. While some argue that DDT deeply damages biodiversity, others argue that DDT is the most effective weapon in combating mosquitoes and hence malaria. While some of this disagreement is based on differences in the extent to which disease control is valued as opposed to the value of biodiversity, there is also genuine disagreement amongst experts about the costs and benefits of using DDT. Moreover, DDT-resistant mosquitoes have started to increase in numbers, especially in tropics due to mutations, reducing the effectiveness of this chemical.

Mosquito repellants and personal mosquito control

Mosquito repellants generally contain one of the following active ingredients: DEET, Catnip oil extract, nepetalactone, citronella, or eucalyptus oil extract. Often the best "repellant" is a fan or gentle breeze as mosquitoes do not like moving air. Other popular methods of household mosquito control include use of small electrical mats, mosquito repellent vapour, and mosquito coil, all containing a form of the chemical allethrin. Mosquito repellant candles containing Citronella oil is another method to keep mosquitoes at bay. Some more lesser known methods use the cultivation of plants like wormwood or sagewort, lemon balm, lemon grass, lemon thyme and the mosquito plant (Pelargonium) which act against mosquitoes. However scientists have determined that these plants are effective only when the leaves are crushed and used. There are several widespread theories about mosquito control such as the assertion that Vitamin B, garlic, ultrasonic devices, incense, bats, purple martins and bug zappers can be used to repel or control moquitoes [http://dermnetnz.org/arthropods/bites.html]. Whether these methods are effective at deterring mosquitos or significantly reducing mosquito populations remains disputed.[http://www.vnh.org/NHB/HW9421Mosquito2.html] Moreover, some manufacturers of "mosquito repelling" ultrasonic devices have been found to be fraudulent [http://www.ftc.gov/opa/2002/08/lentek.htm]. Although bats can be prodigious consumers of insects, many of which are pests, less than 1% of a bat's diet will consist of mosquitoes; bats mostly feed on larger insects such as beetles. Bats are known carriers of rabies, so care must be taken if attempting to use bats to control insects. Similarly, bug zappers kill a wide range of flying insects including many beneficial insects as well as mosquitoes; bug zappers are not effective at controlling mosquito populations. Some newer mosquito traps emit a plume of carbon dioxide together with other mosquito attractants such as chemical scents, warmth, water vapor and sounds. By mimicking a mammal, these factors draw female mosquitoes toward the trap, where they are typically sucked into a net or holder where they collect. According to the American Mosquito Control Association [http://www.mosquito.org/trapqueries.php], "these devices will, indeed, trap and kill measurable numbers of mosquitoes," but their effectiveness in any particular case will depend on a number of factors such as the size and species of the mosquito population and the type and location of the breeding habitat. The relative effectiveness of these newer mosquito traps is still being studied.

External links


- [http://www.mosquito.org/mosquito-information/index.aspx American Mosquito Control Association - Mosquito Information]
- [http://www.slu.edu/colleges/sph/csbei/emerginginfections/wnv/key_ref/acp_asim_1.pdf Mosquitoes and mosquito repellents: a clinician’s guide]
- [http://vector.ifas.ufl.edu/chapter_03.htm University of Florida Public Health Pesticide Applicator Training Manual - Chapter on Mosquitoes]
- [http://klab.agsci.colostate.edu/ Mosquito Genomics WWW Server]
- [http://www.microscopy-uk.org.uk/mag/artsep03/drmosq.html Mosquitoes - Micscape September 2003]
- [http://www.mosquito-pictures.com Mosquito pictures] - Shares facts and pictures regarding mosquitoes and their behavior, life cycle, and feeding habits.
- [http://www.mosquito-kill-net.com/mosquito-pictures.html Close up mosquito pictures] - Close up shots of mosquitoes before and after feeding and while mating.
- [http://hypertextbook.com/facts/2000/DianaLeung.shtml Frequency of Mosquito Wings]
- [http://www.cieh-npap.org.uk/documents/Human_biting_mosquito_species_of_the_British_Isles.pdf Mosquito Species of the British Isles] (PDF file)
- [http://www.blackwellpublishing.com/ridley/tutorials/The_theory_of_natural_selection__part_1_13.asp The evolution of DDT resistant mosquitoes]
- [http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvbid/ CDC Division of Vector-Bourne Infectious Diseases] - Information on West Nile virus as well as other mosquito- and tick- bourne diseases.
- [http://dermnetnz.org/arthropods/bites.html New Zealand Dermatological Society Incorporated] - Insect bites and stings and how to prevent them. Category:Parasitology Category:Flies Category:Insects ko:모기 ms:Nyamuk ja:カ

United States Senator

] The United States Senate is one of the two chambers of the Congress of the United States, the other being the House of Representatives. In the Senate, each state is equally represented by two members, regardless of population; as a result, the total membership of the body is currently 100. Senators serve for six-year terms that are staggered so elections are held for approximately one-third of the seats (a "class") every second year. The Vice President of the United States is the presiding officer of the Senate but is not a senator and does not vote except to break ties. The Senate is regarded as a more deliberative body than the House of Representatives; the Senate is smaller and its members serve longer terms, allowing for a more collegial and less partisan atmosphere that is somewhat more insulated from public opinion than the House. The Senate has several exclusive powers enumerated in the Constitution not granted to the House; most significantly, the President cannot ratify treaties or make important appointments without the "Advice and Consent" of the Senate The Framers of the Constitution created a bicameral Congress out of a desire to have two houses to check each other. One house was intended to be a "people's house" that would be very sensitive to public opinion. The other house was intended to a more reserved, more deliberate forum of elite wisdom. The Constitution provides that the approval of both chambers is necessary for the passage of legislation. The exclusive powers enumerated to the Senate in the Constitution are regarded as more important than those exclusively enumerated to the House. As a result, the responsibilities of the Senate (the "upper house") are more extensive than those of the House of Representatives (the "lower house"). The Senate of the United States was named after the ancient Roman Senate. The chamber of the United States Senate is located in the north wing of the Capitol building, in Washington, D.C., the national capital. The House of Representatives convenes in the south wing of the same building.

History

Under the Articles of Confederation, Congress was a unicameral body in which each state was equally represented. The inefficacy of the federal government under the Articles led Congress to summon a Constitutional Convention in 1787; all states except Rhode Island agreed to send delegates. Many delegates called for a second Congressional chamber, modeled on the House of Lords (the aristocratic upper house of the British Parliament). For example, John Dickinson argued that the second chamber should "consist of the most distinguished characters, distinguished for their rank in life and their weight of property, and bearing as strong a likeness to the British House of Lords as possible." The structure of Congress was one of the most divisive issues facing the Convention. The Virginia Plan called for a bicameral Congress; the lower chamber would be elected directly by the people, and the upper chamber would be elected by the lower chamber. The Virginia Plan was primarily supported by the larger states, as it called for representation based on population in both Chambers. The smaller states, however, favored the New Jersey Plan, which called for a unicameral Congress with equal representation for the states. Eventually, a compromise, known as the Connecticut Compromise or the Great Compromise, was reached; one chamber of Congress (the House of Representatives) would provide proportional representation, whereas the other (the Senate) would provide equal representation. In order to further preserve the authority of the states, it was provided that state legislatures, rather than the people, would elect senators. The Constitution was ratified by the requisite number of states (nine out of the 13) in 1788, but its full implementation was set for March 4, 1789. However, the Senate could not begin work until a majority of the members assembled on April 6 of the same year. The Founding Fathers intended the Senate to be a more stable, deliberative body than the House of Representatives. James Madison described the Senate's purpose as "A necessary fence against...fickleness and passion". George Washington, in answer to a question by Thomas Jefferson, said "we pour legislation into the senatorial saucer to cool it (from The House of Representatives)". The early 19th century was marked by the service of distinguished orators and statesmen such as Daniel Webster, John C. Calhoun, Henry Clay, Stephen A. Douglas and Thomas Hart Benton. The era, however, was also marred by sectional clashes between the free North and the slaveholding South. For most of the first half of the 19th century, a balance between North and South existed in the Senate, as the numbers of free and slave states were equal. Southern senators could often block schemes passed by the House of Representatives, a body dominated by the populous North. Sectional conflict was most pronounced over the issue of slavery, and persisted until the Civil War (1861–1865). The war, which began soon after several southern states declared secession from the Union, culminated in the South's defeat and in the abolition of slavery. The ensuing years of Reconstruction witnessed large majorities for the Republican Party, which many Americans associated with the Union's victory in the Civil War. The efforts of "Radical Republicans" led to the impeachment of Democratic President Andrew Johnson in 1868 for political purposes; the trial ultimately ended in acquittal, with the Senate falling one vote short of the two-thirds majority requisite for conviction. Reconstruction ended in 1877, at approximately the same time as the Gilded Age began. This period was marked by sharp political divisions in the electorate; both the Democrats and the Republicans were in power in the Senate, but neither could obtain large majorities. At the same time the Senate descended into a period of irrelevance that stood in sharp contrast with the pre-Civil War era. Very few senators had long and distinguished careers, with most serving but for a single term. The corruption of state legislatures was also widespread; nine cases of bribery in Senate elections arose between 1866 and 1906. Many individuals, furthermore, perceived the Senate as a bastion of the rich and the elite. Several reformers of the Progressive Era pushed for the direct election of senators by the people, rather than state legislatures; they achieved their objective in 1913 with the ratification of the Seventeenth Amendment. The Amendment ultimately had the result of making senators more responsive to the concerns of voters. Some have argued that, as a result of this amendment, the states have no real representation in Congress, since senators are now directly elected by the people rather than by state legislatures. Others argue that a state is, by definition, one and the same as the citizens thereof, and that both directly elected and appointed senators ultimately represent the people. In the 1910s a Senate leadership structure developed, with Henry Cabot Lodge and John Worth Kern becoming the unofficial leaders of the Republican and Democratic parties, respectively. The Democrats appointed their first official leader, Oscar Underwood, in 1925; the Republicans followed with Charles Curtis in 1925. Initially, the powers of the leaders were very limited, and individual senators—especially the chairmen of important committees—still held more clout. The influence of the party leaders, however, would eventually grow, especially during the tenures of skilled leaders such as Lyndon B. Johnson.

Members and elections

Article One of the Constitution stipulates that each state may elect two senators. The Constitution further stipulates that no constitutional amendment may deprive a state of its equal suffrage in the Senate without the consent of the state concerned. The District of Columbia and territories are not entitled to any representation. As there are presently 50 states, the Senate comprises 100 members. The senator from each state with the longer tenure is known as the "senior senator," and his or her counterpart as the "junior senator"; this convention, however, does not have any special significance. Senators serve for terms of six years each; the terms are staggered so that approximately one-third of the Senate seats are up for election every two years. The staggering of the terms is arranged such that both seats from a given state are never contested in the same general election. Senate elections are held on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November, Election Day, and coincide with elections for the House of Representatives. Each senator is elected by his or her state as a whole. Generally, the Republican and Democratic parties choose their candidates in primary elections, which are typically held several months before the general elections. Ballot access rules for independent and third party candidates vary from state to state. For the general election, almost all states use the first-past-the-post system, under which the candidate with a plurality of votes (not necessarily an absolute majority) wins. The two exceptions are Louisiana and Washington, which use runoff voting. Once elected, a senator continues to serve until the expiry of his or her term, death, or