PS3 Vista 02

PS3 Vista 02 theme by ltmreal

Download: PS3Vista02.p3t

PS3 Vista 02 Theme
(8 backgrounds)

P3T Unpacker v0.12
Copyright (c) 2007. Anoop Menon

This program unpacks Playstation 3 Theme files (.p3t) so that you can touch-up an existing theme to your likings or use a certain wallpaper from it (as many themes have multiple). But remember, if you use content from another theme and release it, be sure to give credit!

Download for Windows: p3textractor.zip

Instructions:

Download p3textractor.zip from above. Extract the files to a folder with a program such as WinZip or WinRAR. Now there are multiple ways to extract the theme.

The first way is to simply open the p3t file with p3textractor.exe. If you don’t know how to do this, right click the p3t file and select Open With. Alternatively, open the p3t file and it will ask you to select a program to open with. Click Browse and find p3textractor.exe from where you previously extracted it to. It will open CMD and extract the theme to extracted.[filename]. After that, all you need to do for any future p3t files is open them and it will extract.

The second way is very simple. Just drag the p3t file to p3textractor.exe. It will open CMD and extract the theme to extracted.[filename].

For the third way, first put the p3t file you want to extract into the same folder as p3textractor.exe. Open CMD and browse to the folder with p3extractor.exe. Enter the following:
p3textractor filename.p3t [destination path]Replace filename with the name of the p3t file, and replace [destination path] with the name of the folder you want the files to be extracted to. A destination path is not required. By default it will extract to extracted.filename.

PS3 Vista 01

PS3 Vista 01 theme by ltmreal

Download: PS3Vista01.p3t

PS3 Vista 01 Theme
(5 backgrounds)

P3T Unpacker v0.12
Copyright (c) 2007. Anoop Menon

This program unpacks Playstation 3 Theme files (.p3t) so that you can touch-up an existing theme to your likings or use a certain wallpaper from it (as many themes have multiple). But remember, if you use content from another theme and release it, be sure to give credit!

Download for Windows: p3textractor.zip

Instructions:

Download p3textractor.zip from above. Extract the files to a folder with a program such as WinZip or WinRAR. Now there are multiple ways to extract the theme.

The first way is to simply open the p3t file with p3textractor.exe. If you don’t know how to do this, right click the p3t file and select Open With. Alternatively, open the p3t file and it will ask you to select a program to open with. Click Browse and find p3textractor.exe from where you previously extracted it to. It will open CMD and extract the theme to extracted.[filename]. After that, all you need to do for any future p3t files is open them and it will extract.

The second way is very simple. Just drag the p3t file to p3textractor.exe. It will open CMD and extract the theme to extracted.[filename].

For the third way, first put the p3t file you want to extract into the same folder as p3textractor.exe. Open CMD and browse to the folder with p3extractor.exe. Enter the following:
p3textractor filename.p3t [destination path]Replace filename with the name of the p3t file, and replace [destination path] with the name of the folder you want the files to be extracted to. A destination path is not required. By default it will extract to extracted.filename.

Stage III

Stage III theme by yogosan

Download: StageIII.p3t

Stage III Theme
(1 background)

P3T Unpacker v0.12
Copyright (c) 2007. Anoop Menon

This program unpacks Playstation 3 Theme files (.p3t) so that you can touch-up an existing theme to your likings or use a certain wallpaper from it (as many themes have multiple). But remember, if you use content from another theme and release it, be sure to give credit!

Download for Windows: p3textractor.zip

Instructions:

Download p3textractor.zip from above. Extract the files to a folder with a program such as WinZip or WinRAR. Now there are multiple ways to extract the theme.

The first way is to simply open the p3t file with p3textractor.exe. If you don’t know how to do this, right click the p3t file and select Open With. Alternatively, open the p3t file and it will ask you to select a program to open with. Click Browse and find p3textractor.exe from where you previously extracted it to. It will open CMD and extract the theme to extracted.[filename]. After that, all you need to do for any future p3t files is open them and it will extract.

The second way is very simple. Just drag the p3t file to p3textractor.exe. It will open CMD and extract the theme to extracted.[filename].

For the third way, first put the p3t file you want to extract into the same folder as p3textractor.exe. Open CMD and browse to the folder with p3extractor.exe. Enter the following:
p3textractor filename.p3t [destination path]Replace filename with the name of the p3t file, and replace [destination path] with the name of the folder you want the files to be extracted to. A destination path is not required. By default it will extract to extracted.filename.

Ghost Rider #3

Ghost Rider theme by myownscars

Download: GhostRider_3.p3t

Ghost Rider Theme 3
(5 backgrounds)

Ghost Rider
Ghost Rider on the cover of Marvel Spotlight #5 (Aug. 1972).
Publication information
PublisherMarvel Comics
First appearanceMarvel Spotlight #5 (August 1972)
Created by
In-story information
Alter ego
SpeciesHuman/demon hybrid
Team affiliations
Notable aliases
Abilities

Ghost Rider is the name of multiple superheroes or antiheroes appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Marvel had previously used the name for a Western character whose name was later changed to Phantom Rider.

The first supernatural Ghost Rider is stunt motorcyclist Johnny Blaze, who sold his soul, to save the life of his foster father, agrees to give his soul to "Satan" (later revealed to be an arch-demon named Mephisto). At night and when around evil, Blaze finds his flesh consumed by hellfire, causing his head to become a flaming skull. He rides a fiery motorcycle and wields blasts of hellfire from his body, usually from his skeletal hands. He eventually learns he has been bonded with the demon Zarathos. Blaze is featured in the series Ghost Rider (vol. 2) from 1972 to 1983.

The subsequent Ghost Rider series (1990–1998) features Danny Ketch as a new Ghost Rider. After his sister was injured by ninja gangsters, Ketch comes in contact with a motorcycle that contains the essence of a Spirit of Vengeance. Blaze reappears in this 1990s series as a supporting character, and it is later revealed that Danny and his sister were Johnny Blaze's long-lost siblings. In 2000s comics, Blaze succeeds Ketch, becoming Ghost Rider again. In 2014, Robbie Reyes becomes Ghost Rider as part of the Marvel NOW! initiative.

In May 2011, Ghost Rider placed 90th on IGN's "Top 100 Comic Book Heroes" list.[1] Nicolas Cage starred as the Johnny Blaze incarnation of the character in the 2007 film Ghost Rider and its 2012 sequel, Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance. Gabriel Luna and Tom McComas portray the Robbie Reyes and Johnny Blaze incarnations in the fourth season of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) television series Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., with Henry Simmons and Clark Gregg portraying original incarnations Alphonso Mackenzie and Phil Coulson.

Fictional character biography[edit]

Johnny Blaze[edit]

Following the Western comics character who originally used the name, the first superhero Ghost Rider, Johnny Blaze, debuted in Marvel Spotlight issue #5 (Aug. 1972), created by Marvel editor-in-chief Roy Thomas,[2] writer Gary Friedrich and artist Mike Ploog. He received his own series in 1973, with penciller Jim Mooney handling most of the first nine issues. Several different creative teams mixed-and-matched until penciller Don Perlin began a considerably long stint with issue #26, eventually joined by writer Michael Fleisher through issue #58. The series ran through issue #81 (June 1983). Blaze returned as Ghost Rider in a 2001 six-issue miniseries written by Devin Grayson; a second miniseries written by Garth Ennis in 2005, and an ongoing monthly series that began publication in July 2006. Johnny Blaze was the son of Naomi Blaze and Barton Blaze. Naomi was the previous Ghost Rider.

Danny Ketch[edit]

The next Ghost Rider, a young man named Daniel "Danny" Ketch (Johnny Blaze's long-lost younger brother), debuted in Ghost Rider (vol. 3) #1 (May 1990). This Ghost Rider was nearly identical to the previous, although his costume was now a black leather biker jacket with spiked shoulder-pads, grey leather pants, and a mystic chain he wore across his chest, which responded to his mental commands and served as his primary melee weapon. His new motorcycle resembled a futuristic machine and the front of it could lower to serve as a battering ram. Like the original Ghost Rider's bike, the wheels were composed of mystic hellfire. Unlike the relationship between the previous Ghost Rider and the demon with which he was bonded, Ketch and his demon — who in (vol. 3) #91 (Dec. 1997) is revealed to be Marvel's incarnation of the Angel of Death/Judgment — are cooperative with each other. At the close of the series with (vol. 3) #93 (Feb. 1998), Ketch apparently died. The following year, however, Peter Parker: Spider-Man #93 (July 1999) revealed Ketch was still alive. Nearly a decade later, Marvel published the long-completed final issue as Ghost Rider Finale (Jan. 2007), which reprints the last issue and the previously unpublished Ghost Rider (vol. 3) #94.[3]

Alejandra Jones[edit]

During the 2011 storyline "Fear Itself", a Nicaraguan woman named Alejandra Jones becomes Ghost Rider through a ritual performed by a man named Adam. Though she demonstrates many previously unknown powers of the Ghost Rider entity, she is deprived of its full power when Johnny Blaze takes back most of this power in (Vol. 7) #9. She was killed by Carnage during the Absolute Carnage event.

Robbie Reyes[edit]

In 2014, a new character took on the Ghost Rider mantle: a Mexican-American resident of East Los Angeles named Roberto "Robbie" Reyes, who drives a black classic muscle car reminiscent of a modified 1969 Dodge Charger rather than a motorcycle.[4][5] Robbie Reyes was created by writer/artist Felipe Smith and designed by Smith and artist Tradd Moore.[6]

Michael Badilino[edit]

Michael Badilino, an ex-member of the New York City Police Department, is one-third of an "Organic Medallion of Power"; the other two are Ketch and Blaze (the Medallion itself was never explained in any true detail). He possesses powers more in line with those of the Zarathos version of Ghost Rider, although he also possesses the Penance Stare and his motorcycle seemed to share characteristics with the Noble Kale version. His appearance is distinguished by a deep purple skull, large fangs protruding from his upper jaw, and backswept curved horns on the top of his skull.

In his superhuman form, Badilino was called Vengeance, and originally attempted to kill the Ghost Rider, believing him to be Zarathos. Vengeance later became the ally of Ghost Rider and Johnny Blaze. Vengeance also took on the role of the Ghost Rider and even semi-seriously referred to himself by that name when confronted by Spider-Man shortly after the apparent death of Ghost Rider in battle with Zarathos and acolytes The Fallen. Vengeance killed himself, along with the villain Hellgate, by triggering a massive explosion through his Hellfire, the source of the mystical flames that encompass the bones of both Vengeance and Ghost Rider.

Vengeance reappears in the last four issues of Ghost Rider (vol. 3), involved in Blackheart's plans to kill Noble Kale. Vengeance aids the Ghost Rider in the ensuing battle, destroying Blackheart and ruling Hell during Ketch's absences.

  • An Ultimate Marvel incarnation of Vengeance exists as former biker turned Vice President of the United States Robert Blackthorne and was featured as a villain in Ultimate Avengers.

Kushala[edit]

In the 19th century, while her tribe was being attacked by the U.S. Army, Kushala's parents were killed and, in an act of rage, she prayed to her creator, but instead was possessed by a Spirit of Vengeance. Then she burnt everyone until all that remained were their spirits. After becoming possessed by the Spirit of Vengeance, Kushala traveled the world seeking out and studying different forms of magic in an attempt to cure herself. Her skills in the mystic arts eventually led to her becoming the Sorcerer Supreme of her era.

Powers and abilities[edit]

The Ghost Rider is a human who can transform into a skeletal superhuman wreathed in ethereal flame and given supernatural powers. The abnormal motorcycle he rides can travel faster than any conventional vehicle and perform impossible feats such as riding up a vertical surface, across water, and leaping across great distances that normal motorcycles cannot. The Ghost Riders are virtually indestructible and notoriously hard to injure by any conventional means, as bullets and knives usually pass through them without causing pain (knives are shown to melt while in their body).[7] It is possible that they are genuinely immortal, as it is said that God created them and only God can destroy them.[8] Despite being composed of bone and hellfire, the Ghost Riders possess formidable superhuman strength, enough to easily pick up a truck and hurl it across a road. It has been stated that Johnny Blaze as Ghost Rider can bench press around 25 tons (50,000 lbs) (or more as seen in World War Hulk).[9] Each Ghost Rider entity also had abilities specific to him or her.

Johnny Blaze
Originally when Blaze transformed into Ghost Rider, his body changed but not the clothes he was wearing. In his new incarnation, this is different and his clothes take on a different appearance with a spiked leather jacket and chains. As Ghost Rider, he can cause his motorcycle to transform and surround itself with hellfire or he can create a new cycle from pure hellfire. He is also capable of projecting hellfire as a weapon. His hellfire "burns the soul" without leaving physical injuries on the victim and its effects have been seen as similar to the "Penance Stare." In his new incarnation, Blaze is now possibly the most powerful hero on Earth. During "World War Hulk", Doctor Strange said Ghost Rider might be as powerful as the "Green Scar" persona of Hulk and could possibly defeat him. During this series, Doctor Strange also states that Ghost Rider protects only the innocent, which none of the Illuminati are. In recent comics, Blaze's Ghost Rider has been given the "Penance Stare" and mystical chain, both of which were specific to the Danny Ketch Ghost Rider. Blaze also uses a shotgun and discovered that he can discharge hellfire from the weapon when he first encountered Ketch. Now, he also has new abilities including hellfire breath, the ability to produce chains from either his throat or chest, and the ability to travel between incorporeal realms.
Danny Ketch
When Ketch transformed into Ghost Rider, his clothes changed with him, taking on the appearance of a spiked leather jacket with chains with a dollar, gray leather pants, and spiked gloves and boots. Likewise, his motorcycle underwent a radical transformation, changing from a conventional one into a high-tech motorcycle (this transformation was not strictly limited to the motorcycle he was found in the cemetery with as he was once seen able to transform another cycle in "Ghost Rider/Wolverine/Punisher: Hearts of Darkness"). Along with flaming wheels that allow the bike to nearly fly across surfaces, the bike included a shield-like battering ram on the front. As the Ghost Rider, Ketch used a mystical chain which responded to his mental commands. It could grow in length, alter direction while in the air, stiffen into a staff or spear, and separate into several links which can strike like shrapnel and then return to their original form. Daniel's most famous power was the Penance Stare. By locking eyes with a target and mentally focusing, the Danny Ketch Ghost Rider was able to make the target experience all the pain they had ever inflicted on anyone else. However, some beings have shown resistance to this ability, such as Venom and Carnage as their alien symbiote "costumes" do not technically have eyes; and Madcap, who is so masochistic, he claims to enjoy the experience. In the 1994 Fantastic Four animated series, this ability was shown to be powerful enough to bring down the mighty Galactus, as Ghost Rider forced Galactus to feel the pain of all those who had died as a result of his feeding on their planets; as Ghost Rider put it, "A billion souls". This display of power, though, appeared to simply be a rewrite for the animated series, as the original storyline in Fantastic Four issue 243 has Doctor Strange casting a spell that causes all of the souls of those Galactus had killed by his feedings to be visited upon him at once. Originally, this incarnation of the Ghost Rider could only be summoned if Danny was present when "innocent blood was spilled" (an innocent simply being threatened was not enough), at which time Danny had to touch the gas cap of his motorcycle for the transformation process to occur. Later, he was able to summon the Ghost Rider without touching the gas cap but still needed to wait for innocent blood to be spilled. Later still, he was able to summon the Ghost Rider by willpower alone.
Robbie Reyes
The ghost of Eli Morrow that inhabits Robbie's body is not, according to Johnny Blaze, a true Spirit of Vengeance. Regardless, he gives Robbie several abilities similar to that of other Ghost Riders, including the power to manifest and control chains ending in thin knives or sickles.[10] The black muscle car that Morrow's ghost initially inhabits is linked to Robbie's Ghost Rider form, allowing him to instantly teleport to and/or merge with the car. The car can also be driven remotely, and Robbie's Ghost Rider form can pass harmlessly through it, allowing it to drive into foes. The car's trunk, when opened, acts as a portal, allowing the Ghost Rider to transport anything, including people, to any location. Though it is initially unknown if Robbie's Ghost Rider form possesses the divine powers of his predecessors, he eventually displays the ability to use the Penance Stare during a battle with Star Brand.[11] Eli is able to take full control of Robbie's body when the teen gives in to his negative emotions, signified by a pallid skin tone and both of his eyes turning orange. His Ghost Rider form also displays the ability to change into a more powerful and demonic form when Robbie is sufficiently angered.[12] At the end of the fourth season of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., to prevent the Darkhold from being used again, he slung his flaming chains in the same manner as a Sling Ring, allowing him to travel and take the book with him for safekeeping.

Other Spirits of Vengeance[edit]

Naomi Kale[edit]

Naomi Kale is the mother of Johnny Blaze, Danny Ketch, and Barbara Ketch.

Noble Kale[edit]

Noble lived in the 18th century and grew up with his abusive father Pastor Kale and his younger brother Dante.

Noble fell in love with a black girl named Magdelena. But, because of the color of her skin and his father's strong religious views, the couple kept their love a secret from the world. They were forced to tell Pastor Kale when Magdelena bore Noble's child. Noble and Magdelena were then married.

Shortly after the marriage, Magdelena discovered Pastor Kale's dark secret; he was a servant of the dark lord Mephisto. To cover up Magdelena's findings, Pastor Kale accused her of witchcraft and had her burned at the stake. Knowing that his son, Noble, would object, he had him drugged, tortured and beaten in the church cellar.

Just before Magdelena died, she used a curse to summon demons that avenge wronged women. The demons were called "Furies" and they started killing the townspeople. Fearing death, Pastor Kale struck a deal with Mephisto. In return for his safety, Mephisto got Noble's soul. Mephisto realized that Noble was attached to a piece of the Medallion of Power and he activated the piece to transform Noble into the original "Spirit of Vengeance". When Ghost Rider had destroyed the Furies, Pastor offered him human flesh - Noble's son. Noble, in the guise of Ghost Rider, was unwilling to eat his own child and he killed himself.

When Mephisto later appeared to claim Noble's soul, Mephisto's brother, the archangel Uriel, appeared and demanded that the soul of Noble Kale be spared. No agreement could be reached, and therefore a compromise was made whereby Noble's soul could not be claimed by either realm; but instead, his soul would remain in the void until re-bonded with certain members of his family.[13]

Noble Kale was also established as an ancestor of Jennifer Kale.[14]

Ghost / The Rider[edit]

Due to the Celestial Progenitor presence influencing human evolution, in 1,000,000 B.C., certain humans became much more intelligent than others as well as able to speak a new language. However, they had to hide that gift from their brethren for fear of being ostracized. One day, a boy that was gifted with the ability to speak is approached by a mysterious stranger that also possessed that gift, only to witness the stranger transform into a beast and devour his entire tribe. The stranger allowed the boy to live and names him "Ghost" before telling him to challenge him when he is worthy. The boy was forced to survive on his own, though he does befriend a woolly mammoth. After almost dying in the harsh environment, he is approached by Mephisto in the form of a snake, who tells him to say its name. Ghost does that and is bonded with a Spirit of Vengeance; after which he imbued his newly acquired hellfire into the mammoth. Other humans had never seen someone ride an animal before and began referring to Ghost as "the Rider". The Rider continued his search and five years later, eventually caught up with the man who devoured his tribe. The man transformed once more, revealing himself to be the first Wendigo. During the fight, the Rider took the bones of the dead that the Wendigo had killed and used them to form a weapon; the earliest version of the Ghost Rider's signature chain. The Rider fought the Wendigo until finally it and the Rider's woolly mammoth tumbled over a cliff. Afterwards, Ghost was approached by Odin and Lady Phoenix to join the prehistoric version of the Avengers.[15]

Upon imbuing his hellfire into another woolly mammoth, the Ghost Rider assisted the prehistoric Avengers (consisting of Agamotto, Odin, Lady Phoenix, and prehistoric versions of the Black Panther, Iron Fist, and Star Brand) in fighting an out of control Celestial called the Fallen; which resulted in his woolly mammoth getting killed in action. The Ghost Rider swore revenge and assisted his teammates in defeating the Fallen and sealing it away underground in what would become South Africa.[11] The Ghost Rider later assisted the prehistoric Avengers in fighting the First Host.[16]

Hellhawk[edit]

During the 11th century, a Native American chieftain from the Sioux nation named Hellhawk sported the powers of the Ghost Rider. He was part of Thor's Avengers of 1,000 A.D.[17][18]

During the 17th century, Hellhawk developed a rivalry with Noble Kane.[19] He was later killed by Narcosis to serve as a warning to Mephisto by Belasco to keep his Spirits of Vengeance out of Limbo.[20]

The last stand of the Spirits of Vengeance[edit]

Seven riders show their flaming heads for the first time in this story arc by writer Jason Aaron and artist Tan Eng Huat. Daniel Ketch returns with a new mission: to collect the powers of all the Ghost Riders for the angel Zadkiel to prevent the corruption of the powers with their human hosts. Zadkiel has other motives he keeps to himself, for which he needs the powers of the riders to tear down the walls of New Jerusalem and wage war on the heavens.

Travis Parham[edit]

A version of Ghost Rider appeared in the miniseries Ghost Rider: Trail of Tears #1–6 (April–Sept. 2007) by writer Garth Ennis and artist Clayton Crain. Set during the American Civil War, it finds Confederate officer Travis Parham avenging the murders of his friend, an ex-slave named Caleb and Caleb's family. Parham meets a horse-riding Ghost Rider who seeks the same men. Eventually, Parham learns about the deaths instrumental in helping set forth the Spirit of Vengeance.

19th century Ghost Rider[edit]

During the 19th century, an unnamed Ghost Rider was active during the American frontier. He targeted anyone who killed Native American women and children or who cut off their scalps.[19]

Deputy Kowalski[edit]

Deputy Kowalski was a normal cop in a small town until Ghost Rider rode in one day. It was then that Kowalski was kidnapped by a local cannibal who cut off his hand. Events transpired that led to Kowalski escaping and developing a wrath against the Ghost Rider. His attention was brought to the hellfire shotgun in possession of Badilino. After purchasing the gun—and discovering to Badilino's surprise that it will work for Kowalski—Kowalski was recruited by agents of Zadkiel and told to wait in the middle of the desert for the Ghost Rider. Johnny Blaze (as Ghost Rider) did arrive in hot pursuit of Danny Ketch (as a new incarnation of Ghost Rider). Kowalski did manage to get a shot in on Blaze. Although it was a minor setback Blaze resumed his pursuit of Ketch. Left in the desert Kowalski soon found himself transformed into the new Vengeance, sporting green flames and a hook for his right hand, after Ketch returned the powers of the Spirits of Vengeance to Earth.[volume & issue needed]

With a thirst for revenge, Kowalski, as Vengeance, was recruited by Blackout as a member of Zadkiel's Ghost Rider Assassination League.[21] Kowalski was partnered with The Orb and was to stop Blaze and Ketch from reaching a monastery which contained a gateway to Heaven. Kowalski was easily defeated by both Ghost Riders and was left as a pet with the monastery's Mother Superior.[22]

Vengeance was later freed by the Shadow Council and joins the ninth incarnation of the Masters of Evil.[23]

Supporting characters[edit]

Roxanne Simpson-Blaze
Deceased wife of Johnny Blaze, revived as Black Rose by Blackheart.
Caretaker
An immortal man and ally to Ketch, member of the Blood.
Craig "Crash" Simpson
Roxanne's father and owner of one of the country's most popular motorcycle expedition shows, "Crash Simpson's Daredevil Cycle Show". One of his star performers and friends was cyclist Barton Blaze.[24]
Daniel
The youngest brother of Kazaan and Malachi, loyal to God.[25]
Ruth
A murderous angel from Heaven tasked to hunt and captures the rogue fallen angel Kazann.
Witch Woman
An Arizonan Apache Indian woman named Linda Littletrees who made a deal with Mephisto.[26]
Malachi
A brother of Kazann and angelic commander. He returned the Ghost Rider to the mortal plane after being trapped in Hell to hunt down Kazaan with his brother Daniel's help and to win favor with God.[27]
Shriker
Jack D'Auria, an old friend of Danny Ketch and student of Yuri Watanabe who became an unrequited ally for Ketch against his foes.[28]
Sister Sara
The granddaughter of the Caretaker.
Mary Le Bow
A Brooklyn paranormal investigator who has unrequited love for Danny.[29]
Uri-El
An angel of Heaven who is called the "bane of all demons".[30]
Gabriel Reyes
The handicapped brother of Robbie who helped raise him after their mother Juliana's death.[31]
Barbara Ketch
Sister of Danny and Johnny, daughter of Barton Blaze. Her death inspired Danny to become Ghost Rider.[32]
Barton Blaze
The late father of Johnny Blaze, friend of Crash.
Stacy Dolan
Childhood friend and love interest of Danny and Jack D'Auria, daughter of NYPD Captain Arthur.[32]
Talia Warroad
A young goth agent who appeared as a new ally of Johnny and eventually became his lover.

Enemies[edit]

Aqueduct (formerly Water Wizard)
A former soldier who gained the power to control water and was hired to kill Ghost Rider. He became a frequent opponent to the hero afterwards.
Black Rose
Johnny Blaze's wife Roxanne Simpson-Blaze, who was revived as a servant for Blackheart and later married Ghost Rider Noble Kale.
Blackheart
Mephisto's son, Blackheart, created a group of Spirits of Vengeance to battle Ghost Rider in the hopes of conquering Hell. Instead, Ghost Rider Noble Kale defeats him and takes over his portion of Hell. He is the main antagonist in the 2007 film Ghost Rider.
Blackout
A Lilin who worked under Deathwatch that frequently crossed swords with Ghost Rider. After the hero burned him to disfigurement, Blackout learned his secret identity and began killing his loved ones and acquaintances. Blackout appears as a henchman of Mephisto in the 2012 film Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance.
Centurious the Soulless Man
A servant of Mephisto who sought to battle Zarathos, Centurious was the head of the Firm and targeted Ghost Rider for his association with the demon.
Deacon
An agent of Zadkiel given immense power to destroy Ghost Rider.
Deathwatch
Daniel Ketch's archenemy. A Translord from an unknown demonic dimension posing as a crime boss in New York in an attempt to murder its residents. He later died at the hands of Ghost Rider, then was resurrected as a servant for Centurious.
Doghead
Francisco Fuentes was an acquaintance of Danny Ketch who was murdered while walking his dog, Chupi. He was resurrected by Blackheart, merged with Chupi, and became his servant.
Death Ninja
An agent of Centurious who infiltrated Deathwatch's ranks and frequently battled Ghost Rider.
Dormammu
A Faltine from another dimension who battles Ghost Rider in videogames.
Hag and Troll
Demons under Deathwatch; they were his most loyal servants.
Hoss
A demon tracker. Became an ally of the Ghost Rider in search of the angel Malachi, and known for driving a red Cadillac.
Kid Blackheart
The future Antichrist who hoped to enter Heaven and destroy it.
Exhaust
a parasite that transformed into an evil version of ghost rider
Lilith the Mother of All Demons
An ancient immortal sorceress from Atlantis, Lilith gave birth to the Lilin over the centuries and was imprisoned until recently. Upon her freedom, she discovered many of her kind had been murdered by the Spirits of Vengeance and sought their demise. Her four most loyal children are Pilgrim, Nakota, Meatmarket, and Blackout.
Lucifer
Lucifer, like the other Hell-lords, sought to remove the human component from the Ghost Rider in the hope it would become a mindless killing machine that would eliminate humanity. However, Ghost Rider proved too strong and Lucifer was exiled to Perdition. Later, Lucifer would be the demon-lord charged with torturing Zadkiel for all eternity.
Madcap
A lunatic cursed with immortality and enhanced healing capabilities, Madcap has fought several of New York's heroes, with Ghost Rider one of his more frequent opponents.
Mephisto
Johnny Blaze's archenemy. A demon who posed as the devil to claim Johnny Blaze's soul. Mephisto is the one responsible for bringing Ghost Rider into Johnny's life. Ghost Rider, however, is able to resist the evil that overcame him long ago, and is now able to use his powers for good no matter what. Angered, Mephisto sought revenge against Ghost Rider, and now constantly tries to win his creation back. Mephisto appears under the name Mephistopheles in the 2007 film Ghost Rider.
Orb
Crash Simpson's (mentor to Johnny Blaze) partner in his traveling motorcycle stunt show, Drake Shannon lost most of his face in a challenge against Crash for the business. Given an eyeball-like helmet by They Who Wield Power that was able to hypnotize others, he returned to try and reclaim the stunt show, but was foiled by Ghost Rider. He would return as one of Ghost Rider's most frequent enemies.
Scarecrow
A contortionist, Ebenezer Laughton decided to use his gifts as a thief. In time, he would turn to murder, eventually being brought into conflict with Ghost Rider and nearly killed from the encounter. The Firm turned him into an undead creature, bearing superhuman abilities and able to induce fear in others (whose fear could heal his wounds), setting him upon the Spirit of Vengeance again (and becoming a frequent foe).
Steel Vengeance
Steel Wind's sister, Sadae Tsumura gave her soul to Centurious to save her sister after an encounter with Ghost Rider left her comatose. Sadae was turned into Steel Vengeance, a cyborg bent on killing Ghost Rider.
Steel Wind
Following a freak explosion, Ruriko Tsumura was remade as a cyborg by Freakmaster and challenged Johnny Blaze at the Quentin Carnival in cycling, defeating him and earning a place amongst them. However, she ran the business into the ground and battled Ghost Rider, leaving her comatose. She was rehabilitated by Centurious and used as his agent. In time, she would, instead, become Ghost Rider's ally.
Vengeance
A Spirit of Vengeance, Lt. Michael Badilino sold his soul to Mephisto to gain the power to destroy Ghost Rider (who he blamed for the death of his family). When he learned it was instead Zarathos, he became Ghost Rider's ally.
Zadkiel
A renegade archangel who sought to usurp Heaven due to his hatred for God's admiration of humanity. Using Ghost Rider to kill other Spirits of Vengeance to empower himself, Zadkiel took the throne and cast out Ghost Rider. The hero would return with the dead Spirits of Vengeance to defeat Zadkiel and imprison him in Hell for all eternity.
Zarathos
A demon bound to Johnny Blaze by Mephisto to become the Ghost Rider. He would, however, come to exert control over the entity, but ultimately would be separated from Blaze in the conflict against Centurious. He later renewed his alliance with Lilith.

Alternate versions

P-Crew

P-Crew theme by Ricky Franco

Download: P-Crew.p3t

P-Crew Theme
(1 background)

P3T Unpacker v0.12
Copyright (c) 2007. Anoop Menon

This program unpacks Playstation 3 Theme files (.p3t) so that you can touch-up an existing theme to your likings or use a certain wallpaper from it (as many themes have multiple). But remember, if you use content from another theme and release it, be sure to give credit!

Download for Windows: p3textractor.zip

Instructions:

Download p3textractor.zip from above. Extract the files to a folder with a program such as WinZip or WinRAR. Now there are multiple ways to extract the theme.

The first way is to simply open the p3t file with p3textractor.exe. If you don’t know how to do this, right click the p3t file and select Open With. Alternatively, open the p3t file and it will ask you to select a program to open with. Click Browse and find p3textractor.exe from where you previously extracted it to. It will open CMD and extract the theme to extracted.[filename]. After that, all you need to do for any future p3t files is open them and it will extract.

The second way is very simple. Just drag the p3t file to p3textractor.exe. It will open CMD and extract the theme to extracted.[filename].

For the third way, first put the p3t file you want to extract into the same folder as p3textractor.exe. Open CMD and browse to the folder with p3extractor.exe. Enter the following:
p3textractor filename.p3t [destination path]Replace filename with the name of the p3t file, and replace [destination path] with the name of the folder you want the files to be extracted to. A destination path is not required. By default it will extract to extracted.filename.

Dead Space #2

Dead Space theme by myownscars

Download: DeadSpace_2.p3t

Dead Space Theme 2
(3 backgrounds)

Dead Space
Created byGlen Schofield
Original workDead Space
OwnerElectronic Arts
Years2008–present
Print publications
Novel(s)Dead Space: Martyr (2010)
see § Print media
ComicsDead Space
Films and television
Direct-to-videoDead Space: Downfall (2008)
Dead Space: Aftermath (2011)
Games
Video game(s)see § Main series
Audio
Soundtrack(s)see Music of the Dead Space series
Official website
ea.com/games/dead-space

Dead Space is a science fiction/horror franchise created and directed by Glen Schofield. Dead Space was developed by Visceral Games and published and owned by Electronic Arts. The franchise's chronology is not presented in a linear format; each installment in the Dead Space franchise is a continuation or addition to a continuing storyline, with sections of the storyline presented in prequels or sequels, sometimes presented in other media from the originating video game series, which includes two films and several comic books and novels.

Primarily set in a 26th century science fiction universe featuring environments, weapons, and characters typical of the genre, the Dead Space franchise centers on a series of video games beginning with the release of the first Dead Space, which centers on starship engineer Isaac Clarke and mutated undead horrors that surround him. A central theme in the games is the fictional cult religion "Unitology" and its fanatical adherents, who believe that information about an alien artifact called the "Marker" is being suppressed by "EarthGov", the central political administration of Earth. Their primary goal is to use the Marker as a means to bring about the "Convergence", or complete destruction of humanity, with the Marker and its malevolent influence being the source of the undead monsters encountered by the series' protagonists.

The Dead Space video game series has been positively received; the first game in particular won a number of industry awards for the varied elements of its gameplay and development, and is often regarded as one of the best video games of all time by critics. From a commercial perspective, EA considered the video game series as a whole to have underperformed. After the financial disappointment of 2013's Dead Space 3, no further media for the franchise was produced until a remake of the first game was developed by Motive Studio and released on January 27, 2023.

Media[edit]

Overview of Dead Space video games
Year Title Developer Platforms
2008 Dead Space[a] EA Redwood Shores Xbox 360,[1] PlayStation 3,[2] Microsoft Windows[3]
2009 Dead Space: Extraction[b] Visceral Games Wii, PlayStation 3
2010 Dead Space Ignition[c] Xbox 360,[4] PlayStation 3[4]
2011 Dead Space 2[d] Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360
Dead Space[e] IronMonkey Studios iOS,[5] Android,[6] BlackBerry PlayBook, BlackBerry 10
2013 Dead Space 3 Visceral Games Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360
2023 Dead Space[f] Motive Studio Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S
Notes:
Main entries in the series are given in bold.
a – The Xbox 360 and Microsoft Windows versions were not released in Asia.[1][3]
b – Re-released on PlayStation 3 as a bundle with Dead Space 2, along with PlayStation Move support.[7]
c – Co-developed with Sumo Digital.
d – A remaster of Dead Space: Extraction was included in the PS3 version of the game.
e – Removed from all mobile app storefronts.
f – Remake of the original Dead Space.

Main series[edit]

Release timeline
2008Dead Space
2009Dead Space: Extraction
2010Dead Space Ignition
2011Dead Space 2
Dead Space (mobile)
2012
2013Dead Space 3
2014
2015
2016
2017
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023Dead Space (remake)

Dead Space[edit]

Systems engineer Isaac Clarke joins a search and rescue team for the USG Ishimura, which had gone radio-silent, after receiving a message from his girlfriend Nicole. Their ship suffers damage when attempting to dock with the Ishimura; while the rest of the crew assess the situation and search for a means to leave the Ishimura, Isaac explores the ship to look for Nicole. The ship is overrun by Necromorphs, forcing Isaac to defend himself by weaponizing his mining tools and "Resource Integration Gear" (RIG) spacesuit capabilities. Due to the Red Marker's influence, Isaac experiences recurring visions of Nicole, who guides him to return the Marker to the planet. Towards the end of the game, it is revealed that one of the rescue team members, Kendra Daniels, is a double agent. She betrays Isaac, but is killed by a large Necromorph creature before she can escape, while Isaac commandeers her ship and escapes Aegis VII after defeating the creature and allowing the Marker to be destroyed by a sabotage attempt he had initiated earlier. The sole survivor of the entire ordeal, Isaac soon hears something behind him and looks back to see a horrific hallucination of Nicole.

Dead Space 2[edit]

Dead Space 2 reveals that Isaac has become mentally disturbed and unstable after he destroyed the Red Marker on Aegis VII, and that he was captured by EarthGov and taken to the Sprawl, a massive space-station built into the remains of Titan, Saturn's largest moon. Once there, EarthGov scientists extract information from his mind to build another Marker, and he is later confined to a hospital on the Sprawl due to a dementia-like mental illness caused by the first Marker. A Necromorph outbreak in the Sprawl instigated by the Marker copy soon occurs, thrusting Isaac into a struggle to survive the Necromorph epidemic. Haunted by hallucinations of the deceased Nicole Brennan, Isaac manages to destroy the Marker copy and undo its influence on his mind. Isaac succeeds in escaping with another survivor, Ellie Langford, before the explosive destruction of the station, and goes into hiding from EarthGov authorities as his mind still retains information about the Markers.

Dead Space 3[edit]

Dead Space 3 occurs a few years later. While Isaac Clarke and Ellie Langford returned to Earth and dated for a while, their relationship fell apart. As he is struggling with the breakup in his apartment on the moon, Unitologists led by Jacob Danik activate a Marker near the colony, causing a Necromorph outbreak. Isaac is rescued and enlisted by EarthGov soldiers to help locate Langford, who had traveled to Tau Volantis, one of Earth's oldest off-world colonies, in search of the true origins of the Markers and a means to stop the Necromorph scourge once and for all.

Dead Space remake[edit]

Rumors of a revival of Dead Space within EA appeared in early 2021. Venture Beat reported in July that this revival was a remake of the first game, in the same vein as the Resident Evil 2 remake, and would be a relaunch of the franchise. EA confirmed the remake of Dead Space, under development by Motive Studio, in their EA Play event the same month.[8][9] It was released on January 27, 2023.

Spin-offs[edit]

Dead Space: Extraction[edit]

A prequel to the first Dead Space, Dead Space: Extraction follows a group of colonists from the Aegis VII colony who are beset by Necromorphs created when the Red Marker is removed. Originally released as a rail shooter title for the Nintendo Wii in 2009, a port with PlayStation Move support for the PlayStation 3 was later released as a downloadable game on the PlayStation Network in 2011. It was also bundled with copies of the limited editions of Dead Space 2 for the PlayStation 3.

Dead Space Ignition[edit]

A prequel to Dead Space 2 released in 2010, Dead Space Ignition is an action puzzle video game which follows Franco Delille, an engineer who witnesses the initial Necromorph outbreak on the Sprawl. The ending of Ignition directly sets up the opening of Dead Space 2, where Delille is ordered to find and free Isaac Clarke from an EarthGov asylum, only to be killed and transformed into a Necromorph.

Dead Space (mobile game)[edit]

A 2011 tie-in to Dead Space 2 developed by IronMonkey Studios, Dead Space was a mobile title about a newly converted Unitologist on a mission in the mines of Titan Station. The game features an appearance from Titan Station's director Hans Tiedemann, a major antagonist of Dead Space 2, and provides context behind the Necromorph infestation of the Sprawl. It has since been removed from all mobile app storefronts.[10]

Setting[edit]

The Dead Space franchise is set in the future, where humanity has been able to colonize other planets.[11] By the 23rd century, humanity has used up most of Earth's natural resources, and the world governing body, EarthGov, has fleets of "planet crackers", giant mining spaceships that harvest resources by breaking apart other planets, to gather materials for humanity to sustain itself.[11] During the 23rd century, EarthGov researchers find a double helix-shaped alien artifact in the Chicxulub crater, which they call the Marker. The Marker emits a persistent electromagnetic field from seemingly no source, which researchers believe could be used to provide limitless energy and solve Earth's ecological crisis. Work begins to reverse engineer the Marker on various research stations across the colonies, but they are forced to use bismuth instead of an unidentified alien material, resulting in these duplicates being colored red instead of black as the original.

The project was highly classified, but the lead researcher Michael Altman leaks its existence to the world.[11] EarthGov assassinates Altman hoping to quell the news, but it is too late: Altman is seen as a martyr, and his belief of what the Marker means for humanity form the basis of a new cult-like religion, Unitology, that rapidly spreads across Earth and the colonies.[11] Unitologists believe that by worshipping the Marker, they will discover the true origin and meaning of human life.[11] They also believe that the Marker grants eternal life and will help to unify humanity, as to "make us whole", in an event known as the "Convergence".

The EarthGov researchers also discover that the electromagnetic fields sent by the Marker and its duplicates cause living people to suffer paranoia and hallucinations, while also causing the dead to reanimate, becoming "Necromorphs", biological monstrosities which rise to attack the living. EarthGov immediately terminates the Marker project and abandons all research stations where the work had been done, covering up their locations, knowing as they do that the followers of Unitology would desperately want to seek these Markers out in order to advance their beliefs and bring about Convergence.

In the 26th century, a planet-cracker vessel mining the world of Aegis VII called the USG Ishimura discovers a Red Marker buried near an abandoned colony.[11] The Ishimura captain, a devout Unitologist, ordered his crew to bring the Marker aboard the ship, which causes the crew to become paranoid, turn on each other, and leads to a Necromorph infestation onboard the Ishimura.[11] Among the crew of the Ishimura is a medical officer named Nicole Brennan, who sends a cryptic distress signal to her significant other out of desperation.

Gameplay[edit]

The Dead Space games franchise follow the survival horror genre, with the player character visible at all times. All menu interfaces are diegetic, produced by the character's "Resource Integration Gear" spacesuit for ease of communication with other characters. For instance, the character's hit point meter, built into the spine of his suit, is intended to allow co-workers to monitor his health, and when the character moves into depressurized areas, a readout on his back displays his remaining seconds of oxygen. All sound is removed from gameplay during these segments, save those which would be transferred to the character's ears by the vibrations of his RIG, such as rounds fired from his weapon. Since the menus are diegetic, opening them does not pause gameplay.

The character's RIG can be outfitted with two special abilities for use in combat and puzzle-solving. The "Kinesis" module allows the character to retrieve, levitate and transport objects, often heavier or more distant ones than could be accessed normally. These objects may also be expelled at high speed for use as improvised projectiles. The "Stasis" module causes its target to undergo an extreme slowdown for a short period of time, allowing characters to dart through rapidly moving obstacles such as fan blades, or hinder onrushing enemies. The RIG also has a slot-based inventory for carrying weapons, ammunition, healing items, and other objects.

Gunplay is influenced by the franchise's antagonists. Because Necromorphs are re-animated and re-purposed corpses, lacking dependence on nervous, respiratory, and circulatory systems, the conventions of stopping power are largely irrelevant to them. Thus, instead of targeting foes' heads or center of mass, players are encouraged to engage in "strategic dismemberment" by shooting off their arms and legs. Some Necromorphs can be easily defeated in this manner, but others may change attack patterns or even spawn entirely new enemies when slain. Relatedly, the game's weapons are characterized as being repurposed power tools[12] or mining implements, such as plasma cutters, rotary saws, and gravitic repulsion tools, though an increasing amount of dedicated military ordnance becomes available as the franchise progresses. Ammunition tends to be uncommon, thus necessitating careful usage of the tools at hand.

In the first two games, RIGs and weapons can be upgraded at bench workstations. Players can also visit vending machines to buy or sell items for in-game currency, and upload new schematics to those stores in order to unlock new items. This was changed in the third installment, where the store was scrapped entirely; new "Suit Kiosks" allow the player to upgrade their RIG, and bench functionality was expanded to allow players to craft their own weapons, often by cobbling together parts and resources scavenged through gameplay.

Each type of Necromorph has a unique way of slaying the player character, customized to whatever claws, blades, fangs, or probosces they happen to possess.

Development[edit]

Glen Schofield and Michael Condrey were the respective executive producer and co-director of Dead Space.

Electronic Arts (EA) Redwood Shores had developed a number of movie and tie-in games, though they desired to make their own intellectual property. Around 2005, the studio presented the idea of making a second sequel to System Shock to EA executives but had not gotten much support until the release of Resident Evil 4 in 2005, which quickly became a top-selling title. That success led them to revise their System Shock concept, making it more a horror-driven game set in space, and which EA was more open to as to try to capture a similar type of success. The aim was to create, in Glen Schofield's words, "the most terrifying game we could acquire". The subsequent game became Dead Space, released in 2008.[13] Dead Space did well, leading EA to rebrand Redwood Shores as Visceral Games in 2009 and operate as a "genre" studio.[14]

During the development for Dead Space, EA Redwood Shores (now Visceral Games) gave Isaac a portmanteau name from the science fiction writers Isaac Asimov and Arthur C. Clarke.[15] During development for Dead Space 2, Visceral Games decided to give Isaac a voice and chose Gunner Wright.[16][17][18][19][20] As Wright's performance was motion captured, this influenced Clarke's appearance and movement in the game.[21]

The concept behind the fictional religion of Unitology, which has its own scripture of some kind, is supposed to represent people's illogical thinking about things they don't understand, such as the Marker and the Necromorphs. While it is not meant as a criticism of religion itself, it draws on the falsehoods and corruption that may be hidden inside one.[22] In response to comparisons which have been made by commentators between the fictional Unitology and the real-world Scientology, the developers have stated that they simply meant to portray Unitology as a secretive cult, with the name similarity causing unfortunate implications.[23][24]

While Visceral tried to recreate a similar experience with Dante's Inferno, the title did not perform as well, and EA instead had Visceral return to make the sequel Dead Space 2, released in 2011.[25] While it was critically well-received, the title was said to have not performed well financially due to a large development budget.[26][25] EA had Visceral continue to make Dead Space 3, but asked the studio to make key changes to draw more people to the title, such as adding co-op and introducing gameplay elements to help make the title faster, an aspect in direct conflict with the slow pacing of survival-horror games.

Visceral had planned out ideas for a fourth Dead Space game, but at that point, EA transitioned the studio to work on other existing projects, shelving the series after the developer's closure in October 2017.[25] According to former creative director Ben Wanat, their idea of Dead Space 4 was based on concepts from the flotilla section in Dead Space 3, where the player would need to go between the remnants of dead starships to collect parts needed to allow their own craft to survive and gain faster-than-light travel abilities in order to get to a new system. The game would have been a hybrid between non-linear and linear storytelling: while the order of star systems the player visited would have been set by the game, how they proceeded within each system would have been more open. They had considered switching from Isaac to Ellie Langford as the protagonist for the proposed sequel.[27]

In July 2021, EA announced that a remake of the first game with its proprietary Frostbite Engine was under development by Motive Studio.[9]

Music[edit]

Jason Graves was the main composer of the music for all mainline entries in the series and the majority of spin-off titles. Other composers have been involved in the series; Grave's recurring collaborator Rod Abernethy acted as an early advisor for the titular first game, James Hannigan co-composed the score for Dead Space 3, while Seth Podowitz and Christopher Tin were the respective composers for the movies Dead Space: Downfall and Dead Space: Aftermath.

Major characters[edit]

Isaac Clarke[edit]

Isaac Clarke is the lead character of the Dead Space main series video games. Originally a ship system engineer, his life changes for the worse when a seemingly-routine repair mission becomes a struggle to survive the Necromorph scourge. He originally volunteered the mission to make contact with his girlfriend, who is stationed on the USG Ishimura. Clarke is a silent protagonist in the first game, and is voiced by Gunner Wright in the sequels and the first game's remake.[12]

Nicole Brennan[edit]

Nicole is a medical officer aboard the USG Ishimura and Isaac's girlfriend. She appears at Isaac's side at times of struggle, but later logs reveal that she committed suicide long before Isaac arrived; her appearances have actually been hallucinations created by the Markers with the intent of manipulating Isaac into furthering their agenda. She appears in a similar guise over the course of the second game, serving as a sympathetic antagonist. She is voiced by Iyari Limon in the first game and Tanya Clarke in the second.

Nolan Stross[edit]

Nolan Stross appears in Dead Space 2 and is one of the protagonists in the animated feature Dead Space: Aftermath. Stross was once a high-ranking scientist but suffered from dementia after coming into contact with the Red Marker, and was placed in a psychiatric ward of a hospital on Titan Station. While he and Isaac Clarke attempt to band together to destroy the Marker causing the events of the second game, his madness gets the better of him, and Isaac is forced to kill him. He is voiced by Curt Cornelius. Like Isaac Clarke, the character is named after two science fiction authors, in this case, William F. Nolan and Charles Stross.

Ellie Langford[edit]

Ellie is a major non-player character in Dead Space 2 and Dead Space 3. In the first sequel, she and Isaac work together to escape the Titan Sprawl, and between the two games, they begin a romance. However, by the time of the second sequel, they have separated, partially because Isaac is hesitant to wager his life stopping the Markers. Ellie, with the help of Earth Defense Force Captain Robert Norton, discovers evidence that the planet Tau Volantis is the Marker homeworld; she sends Norton to recruit Isaac, kicking off the events of the third game. She is voiced by and modeled after actress Sonita Henry.[28]

John Carver[edit]

Sgt. John Carver is a character in Dead Space 3, and the protagonist of the tie-in graphic novel Dead Space: Liberation. The graphic novel depicts his past as a loyal EarthGov soldier with troubled home life. Damara and Dylan, his wife and son, are killed by Dead Space 3 antagonist Jacob Danik, and Carver joins forces with Ellie Langford to prevent Danik from triggering Convergence. He is voiced by and modeled after Ricardo Chavira.

Under normal circumstances, Carver is a non-player character, dispensing advice and guidance to Isaac but not assisting in gameplay. However, Dead Space 3 features "drop-in drop-out" co-operative multiplayer: the game's single-player campaign can at any time become a co-operative experience if a second player joins via Xbox Live or other networking services. If a second player does join, Carver is that player's in-game character; as such, he is seamlessly written in and out of the campaign at any time to facilitate the presence (or absence) of said other player. Additionally, if a second player is present, side missions become available that deal with Carver's guilt concerning the way he treated his family, as well as over their deaths.

Adaptations[edit]

The Dead Space franchise includes various types of adaptations and merchandise outside of the video games. EA's multimedia efforts to market the franchise includes novels, comic books, animated films, and other licensed products like action figures of series protagonist Isaac Clarke.[29][30][31]

Print media[edit]

Comic books[edit]

The Dead Space franchise has been adapted into literary format, beginning with a comic book miniseries which serve as a prequel to both the first Dead Space game and the Dead Space: Downfall film. It was written by Antony Johnston, illustrated by Ben Templesmith and published by Image Comics between March and August 2008.

Other published literary works from the franchise include the 2010 comic book Dead Space: Salvage by Antony Johnston, and follows a band of ill-fated scavengers known as the Magpies who discover the seemingly abandoned mining ship USG Ishimura following the events of the first game; and Dead Space: Liberation, a 2013 comic book by Ian Edginton which provides the backstory for the Dead Space 3 character John Carver.

Novels[edit]

Dead Space: Martyr by B. K. Evenson is a 2010 novel which explores the origins of Unitology as well as the initial discovery of the original Black Marker by humanity. Set roughly 200 years before the events of the video game series, Martyr tells the story of geophysicist Michael Altman, who discovers a mysterious signal within the Chicxulub crater and after secretly obtaining a piece of the Marker, leaks it to the public and spreads the visions he received from it.

The second novel by Everson, the 2012 Dead Space: Catalyst, is set two hundred and fifty years after the events of Martyr, where EarthGov decides to tamper with dangerous technology from the Black Marker in the hopes of saving humanity from an energy and resource crisis.

Film[edit]

Dead Space: Downfall[edit]

Dead Space: Downfall is a 2008 animated film prequel to the first game which takes place after the limited comic series of the same name was released direct-to-video in October 2009, before seeing a television showing on Starz Encore the following month. It details the events leading to the Necromorph infestation on the USG Ishimura following the transportation of the Red Marker from the Aegis VII Colony to the ship.

Dead Space: Aftermath[edit]

Dead Space: Aftermath is the 2011 animated film sequel to Downfall and the first game. EarthGov exposes an unsuspecting crew of individuals to the remaining shards of the destroyed Marker and is depic

Highway

Highway theme by CGJ

Download: Highway.p3t

Highway Theme
(1 background, different for HD and SD)

A typical Interstate Highway in Chicago, Illinois, United States
The Tampere Highway in Vantaa, Finland

A highway is any public or private road or other public way on land. It includes not just major roads, but also other public roads and rights of way. In the United States, it is also used as an equivalent term to controlled-access highway, or a translation for motorway, Autobahn, autostrada, autoroute, etc.[1]

According to Merriam-Webster, the use of the term predates the 12th century. According to Etymonline, "high" is in the sense of "main".

In North American and Australian English, major roads such as controlled-access highways or arterial roads are often state highways (Canada: provincial highways). Other roads may be designated "county highways" in the US and Ontario. These classifications refer to the level of government (state, provincial, county) that maintains the roadway. In British English, "highway" is primarily a legal term. Everyday use normally implies roads, while the legal use covers any route or path with a public right of access, including footpaths etc.

The term has led to several related derived terms, including highway system, highway code, highway patrol and highwayman.

Overview[edit]

Raccordo autostradale RA3 In Italy, which connects the Tuscan city of Florence with the city of Siena

Major highways are often named and numbered by the governments that typically develop and maintain them. Australia's Highway 1 is the longest national highway in the world at over 14,500 kilometres (9,000 mi) and runs almost the entire way around the continent. China has the world's largest network of highways, followed closely by the United States. Some highways, like the Pan-American Highway or the European routes, span multiple countries. Some major highway routes include ferry services, such as US Route 10, which crosses Lake Michigan.

Traditionally highways were used by people on foot or on horses. Later they also accommodated carriages, bicycles and eventually motor cars, facilitated by advancements in road construction. In the 1920s and 1930s, many nations began investing heavily in highway systems in an effort to spur commerce and bolster national defence.

Major highways that connect cities in populous developed and developing countries usually incorporate features intended to enhance the road's capacity, efficiency, and safety to various degrees. Such features include a reduction in the number of locations for user access, the use of dual carriageways with two or more lanes on each carriageway, and grade-separated junctions with other roads and modes of transport. These features are typically present on highways built as motorways (freeways).

Terminology[edit]

England and Wales[edit]

The general legal definition deals with right of use, not the form of construction; this is distinct from e.g. the popular use of the word in the US. A highway is defined in English common law by a number of similarly worded definitions such as "a way over which all members of the public have the right to pass and repass without hindrance"[2] usually accompanied by "at all times"; ownership of the ground is for most purposes irrelevant, thus the term encompasses all such ways from the widest trunk roads in public ownership to the narrowest footpath providing unlimited pedestrian access over private land.

A highway might be open to all forms of lawful land traffic (e.g. vehicular, horse, pedestrian) or limited to specific modes of traffic; usually a highway available to vehicles is also available to foot or horse traffic, a highway available to horse traffic is available to cyclists and pedestrians; but there are exceptional cases in which a highway is only available to vehicles, or is subdivided into dedicated parallel sections for different users.

A highway can share ground with a private right of way for which full use is not available to the general public: for example farm roads which the owner may use for any purpose but for which the general public only has a right of use on foot or horseback. The status of highway on most older roads has been gained by established public use, while newer roads are typically dedicated as highways from the time they are adopted (taken into the care and control of a council or other public authority). In England and Wales, a public highway is also known as "The King's Highway".[3]

The core definition of a highway is modified in various legislation for a number of purposes but only for the specific matters dealt with in each such piece of legislation. This is typically in the case of bridges, tunnels and other structures whose ownership, mode of use or availability would otherwise exclude them from the general definition of a highway. Recent examples include toll bridges and tunnels which have the definition of highway imposed upon them (in a legal order applying only to the individual structure) to allow application of most traffic laws to those using them but without causing all of the general obligations or rights of use otherwise applicable to a highway.

Limited access highways for vehicles, with their own traffic rules, are called "motorways" in the UK.[4]

Scotland[edit]

Scots law is similar to English law with regard to highways but with differing terminology and legislation. What is defined in England as a highway will often in Scotland be what is defined by s.151 Roads (Scotland) Act 1984 (but only "in this act" although other legislation could imitate) simply as a road, that is:

  • "any way (other than a waterway) over which there is a public right of passage (by whatever means [and whether subject to a toll or not]) and includes the road’s verge, and any bridge (whether permanent or temporary) over which, or tunnel through which, the road passes; and any reference to a road includes a part thereof"

The word highway is itself no longer a statutory expression in Scots law[5] but remains in common law.

United States[edit]

The I-75/I-85 Downtown Connector in Atlanta, Georgia, in the United States

In American law, the word "highway" is sometimes used to denote any public way used for travel, whether a "road, street, and parkway";[6] however, in practical and useful meaning, a "highway" is a major and significant, well-constructed road that is capable of carrying reasonably heavy to extremely heavy traffic.[7] Highways generally have a route number designated by the state and federal departments of transportation.[clarification needed]

California Vehicle Code, Sections 360, 590, define a "highway" as only a way open for use by motor vehicles, but the California Supreme Court has held that "the definition of 'highway' in the Vehicle Code is used for special purposes of that act" and that canals of the Los Angeles neighborhood of Venice are "highways" that are entitled to be maintained with state highway funds.[8]

History[edit]

The Italian Autostrada dei Laghi ("Lakes Highway"; now parts of the Autostrada A8 and the Autostrada A9), the first controlled-access highway ever built in the world,[9][10] in 1925, the year following its inauguration.

Large scale highway systems developed in the 20th century as automobile usage increased. The first United States limited-access road was constructed on Long Island, New York, and known as the Long Island Motor Parkway or the Vanderbilt Motor Parkway. It was completed in 1911.[11] It included many modern features, including banked turns, guard rails and reinforced concrete tarmac.[12] Traffic could turn left between the parkway and connectors, crossing oncoming traffic, so it was not a controlled-access highway (or "freeway" as later defined by the federal government's Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices).

Italy was the first country in the world to build controlled-access highways reserved for fast traffic and for motor vehicles only.[9][10] The Autostrada dei Laghi ("Lakes Highway"), the first built in the world, connecting Milan to Lake Como and Lake Maggiore, and now parts of the A8 and A9 highways, was devised by Piero Puricelli and was inaugurated in 1924.[10] This highway, called autostrada, contained only one lane in each direction and no interchanges.

The Southern State Parkway opened in 1927, while the Long Island Motor Parkway was closed in 1937 and replaced by the Northern State Parkway (opened 1931) and the contiguous Grand Central Parkway (opened 1936). In Germany, construction of the Bonn-Cologne Autobahn began in 1929 and was opened in 1932 by Konrad Adenauer, then the mayor of Cologne.[13]

In the US, the Federal Aid Highway Act of 1921 (Phipps Act) enacted a fund to create an extensive highway system. In 1922, the first blueprint for a national highway system (the Pershing Map) was published. The Federal Aid Highway Act of 1956 allocated $25 billion for the construction of the 66,000-kilometre-long (41,000 mi) Interstate Highway System over a 20-year period.[14]

In Great Britain, the Special Roads Act 1949 provided the legislative basis for roads for restricted classes of vehicles and non-standard or no speed limits applied (later mostly termed motorways but now with speed limits not exceeding 70 mph);[15] in terms of general road law this legislation overturned the usual principle that a road available to vehicular traffic was also available to horse or pedestrian traffic as is usually the only practical change when non-motorways are reclassified as special roads. The first section of motorway in the UK opened in 1958 (part of the M6 motorway) and then in 1959 the first section of the M1 motorway.[16]

Social effects[edit]

The construction of Harbor Freeway, and its subsequent displacement of homes in Los Angeles, California.[17]

Often reducing travel times relative to city or town streets, highways with limited access and grade separation can create increased opportunities for people to travel for business, trade or pleasure and also provide trade routes for goods. Highways can reduce commute and other travel time but additional road capacity can also release latent traffic demand. If not accurately predicted at the planning stage, this extra traffic may lead to the new road becoming congested sooner than would otherwise be anticipated by considering increases in vehicle ownership. More roads allow drivers to use their cars when otherwise alternatives may have been sought, or the journey may not have been made, which can mean that a new road brings only short-term mitigation of traffic congestion.

The use of "Redlining" often would dictate where in cities highways would go through.[18]

Where highways are created through existing communities, there can be reduced community cohesion and more difficult local access. Consequently, property values have decreased in many cutoff neighborhoods, leading to decreased housing quality over time. Mostly in the U.S., many of these effects are from racist planning practices from before the advent of civil rights. This would result in the vast majority of displacement and social effects mostly going to people like African Americans.[19]

In recent times, the use of freeway removal or the public policy of urban planning to demolish freeways and create mixed-use urban areas, parks, residential, commercial, or other land uses is being popular in many cities to combat most of the social problems caused from highways.[20]

Economic effects[edit]

In transport, demand can be measured in numbers of journeys made or in total distance travelled across all journeys (e.g. passenger-kilometres for public transport or vehicle-kilometres of travel (VKT) for private transport). Supply is considered to be a measure of capacity. The price of the good (travel) is measured using the generalised cost of travel, which includes both money and time expenditure.

A taxiway crossing the Autobahn, near Leipzig

The effect of increases in supply (capacity) are of particular interest in transport economics (see induced demand), as the potential environmental consequences are significant (see externalities below).

In addition to providing benefits to their users, transport networks impose both positive and negative externalities on non-users. The consideration of these externalities—particularly the negative ones—is a part of transport economics. Positive externalities of transport networks may include the ability to provide emergency services, increases in land value and agglomeration benefits. Negative externalities are wide-ranging and may include local air pollution, noise pollution, light pollution, safety hazards, community severance and congestion. The contribution of transport systems to potentially hazardous climate change is a significant negative externality which is difficult to evaluate quantitatively, making it difficult (but not impossible) to include in transport economics-based research and analysis. Congestion is considered a negative externality by economists.[21]

A 2016 study found that for the United States, "a 10% increase in a region's stock of highways causes a 1.7% increase in regional patenting over a five-year period."[22] A 2021 study found that areas that obtained access to a new highway experienced a substantial increase in top-income taxpayers and a decline in low-income taxpayers. Highways also contributed to job and residential urban sprawl.[23]

Environmental effects[edit]

Noise, light and air pollution are negative environmental effects highways can have on their surroundings.

Highways are extended linear sources of pollution.

Roadway noise increases with operating speed so major highways generate more noise than arterial streets. Therefore, considerable noise health effects are expected from highway systems. Noise mitigation strategies exist to reduce sound levels at nearby sensitive receptors. The idea that highway design could be influenced by acoustical engineering considerations first arose about 1973.[24][25]

Air quality issues: Highways may contribute fewer emissions than arterials carrying the same vehicle volumes. This is because high, constant-speed operation creates an emissions reduction compared to vehicular flows with stops and starts. However, concentrations of air pollutants near highways may be higher due to increased traffic volumes. Therefore, the risk of exposure to elevated levels of air pollutants from a highway may be considerable, and further magnified when highways have traffic congestion.

New highways can also cause habitat fragmentation, encourage urban sprawl and allow human intrusion into previously untouched areas, as well as (counterintuitively) increasing congestion, by increasing the number of intersections.

An aerial view of the Lakalaiva interchange in the Tampere Ring Road between the Highway 3 (E12) and Highway 9 (E63) near city of Tampere

They can also reduce the use of public transport, indirectly leading to greater pollution.

High-occupancy vehicle lanes are being added to some newer/reconstructed highways in the United States and other countries around the world to encourage carpooling and mass transit. These lanes help reduce the number of cars on the highway and thus reduces pollution and traffic congestion by promoting the use of carpooling in order to be able to use these lanes. However, they tend to require dedicated lanes on a highway, which makes them difficult to construct in dense urban areas where they are the most effective.

To address habitat fragmentation, wildlife crossings have become increasingly popular in many countries. Wildlife crossings allow animals to safely cross human-made barriers like highways.[26]

Road traffic safety[edit]

Road traffic safety describes the safety performance of roads and streets, and methods used to reduce the harm (deaths, injuries, and property damage) on the highway system from traffic collisions. It includes the design, construction and regulation of the roads, the vehicles used on them and the training of drivers and other road-users.

A report published by the World Health Organization in 2004 estimated that some 1.2 million people were killed and 50 million injured on the roads around the world each year[27] and was the leading cause of death among children 10–19 years of age.

The report also noted that the problem was most severe in developing countries and that simple prevention measures could halve the number of deaths.[28] For reasons of clear data collection, only harm involving a road vehicle is included.[29] A person tripping with fatal consequences or dying for some unrelated reason on a public road is not included in the relevant statistics.

Statistics[edit]

International sign used widely in Europe denoting the start of special restrictions for a section of highway classed as a motorway
Russian Federal M8 highway sign
The Cross Bronx Expressway in New York, United States uses asphalt and concrete pavement, both of which are popular road surfaces on highways.

The United States has the world's largest network of highways, including both the Interstate Highway System and the United States Numbered Highway System. At least one of these networks is present in every state and they interconnect most major cities. It is also the world's most expensive mega-project,[30] as the entirety of the Interstate Highway System was estimated to cost $27 billion in 1955 (equivalent to $240 billion in 2023[31]).[32]

China's highway network is the second most extensive in the world, with a total length of about 3,573,000 kilometres (2,220,000 mi).[33][34][35][36][37] China's expressway network is the longest Expressway system in the world, and it is quickly expanding, stretching some 85,000 kilometres (53,000 mi) at the end of 2011.[38][39] In 2008 alone, 6,433 kilometres (3,997 mi) expressways were added to the network.[40]

Longest international highway
The Pan-American Highway, which connects many countries in the Americas, is nearly 25,000 kilometres (15,500 mi) long as of 2005.[citation needed] The Pan-American Highway is discontinuous because there is a significant gap in it in southeastern Panama, where the rainfall is immense and the terrain is entirely unsuitable for highway construction.
Longest national highway (point to point)
The Trans-Canada Highway has one main route, a northern route through the western provinces, and several branches in the central and eastern provinces. The main route is 7,821 kilometres (4,860 mi) long as of 2006 alone, and the entire system is over 10,700 kilometres (6,600 mi) long. The TCH runs east–west across southern Canada, the populated portion of the country, and it connects many of the major urban centres along its route crossing all provinces, and reaching nearly all of their capital cities.[41] The TCH begins on the east coast in Newfoundland, traverses that island, and crosses to the mainland by ferry. It crosses the Maritime Provinces of eastern Canada with a branch route serving the province of Prince Edward Island via a ferry and bridge. After crossing the remainder of the country's mainland, the highway reaches Vancouver, British Columbia on the Pacific coast, where a ferry continues it to Vancouver Island and the provincial capital of Victoria. Numeric designation is the responsibility of the provinces, and there is no single route number across the country.
Longest national highway (circuit)
Australia's Highway 1 at over 14,500 kilometres (9,000 mi).[citation needed] It runs almost the entire way around the country's coastline. With the exception of the Federal Capital of Canberra, which is far inland, Highway 1 links all of Australia's capital cities, although Brisbane and Darwin are not directly connected, but rather are bypassed short distances away. Also, there is a ferry connection to the island state of Tasmania, and then a stretch of Highway 1 that links the major towns and cities of Tasmania, including Launceston and Hobart (this state's capital city).
Largest national highway system
The United States of America has approximately 6.43 million kilometres (4,000,000 mi) of highway within its borders as of 2008.[42]
Busiest highway
Highway 401 in Ontario, Canada, has volumes surpassing an average of 500,000 vehicles per day in some sections of Toronto as of 2006.[43][44]
Widest highway (maximum number of lanes)
The Katy Freeway (part of Interstate 10) in Houston, Texas, has a total of 26 lanes in some sections as of 2007.[citation needed][45] However, they are divided up into general use/ frontage roads/ HOV lanes, restricting the traverse traffic flow.
Widest highway (maximum number of through lanes)
Interstate 5 along a 3.2-kilometre-long (2 mi) section between Interstate 805 and California State Route 56 in San Diego, California, which was completed in April 2007, is 22 lanes wide.[46]
Highest international highway
The Karakoram Highway, between Pakistan and China, is at an altitude of 4,693 metres (15,397 ft).[citation needed]
Highest national highway
National Highway 5, in India, connecting Amritsar in Punjab with

Venom #2

Venom theme by myownscars

Download: Venom_2.p3t

Venom Theme 2
(4 backgrounds)

Wasp stinger with a droplet of venom

Venom or zootoxin is a type of toxin produced by an animal that is actively delivered through a wound by means of a bite, sting, or similar action.[1][2][3] The toxin is delivered through a specially evolved venom apparatus, such as fangs or a stinger, in a process called envenomation.[2] Venom is often distinguished from poison, which is a toxin that is passively delivered by being ingested, inhaled, or absorbed through the skin,[4] and toxungen, which is actively transferred to the external surface of another animal via a physical delivery mechanism.[5]

Venom has evolved in terrestrial and marine environments and in a wide variety of animals: both predators and prey, and both vertebrates and invertebrates. Venoms kill through the action of at least four major classes of toxin, namely necrotoxins and cytotoxins, which kill cells; neurotoxins, which affect nervous systems; myotoxins, which damage muscles; and haemotoxins, which disrupt blood clotting. Venomous animals cause tens of thousands of human deaths per year.

Venoms are often complex mixtures of toxins of differing types. Toxins from venom are used to treat a wide range of medical conditions including thrombosis, arthritis, and some cancers. Studies in venomics are investigating the potential use of venom toxins for many other conditions.

Evolution[edit]

The use of venom across a wide variety of taxa is an example of convergent evolution. It is difficult to conclude exactly how this trait came to be so intensely widespread and diversified. The multigene families that encode the toxins of venomous animals are actively selected, creating more diverse toxins with specific functions. Venoms adapt to their environment and victims, evolving to become maximally efficient on a predator's particular prey (particularly the precise ion channels within the prey). Consequently, venoms become specialized to an animal's standard diet.[6]

Mechanisms[edit]

Phospholipase A2, an enzyme in bee venom, releases fatty acids, affecting calcium signalling.

Venoms cause their biological effects via the many toxins that they contain; some venoms are complex mixtures of toxins of differing types. Major classes of toxin in venoms include:[7]

Taxonomic range[edit]

Venom is widely distributed taxonomically, being found in both invertebrates and vertebrates, in aquatic and terrestrial animals, and among both predators and prey. The major groups of venomous animals are described below.

Arthropods[edit]

Venomous arthropods include spiders, which use fangs on their chelicerae to inject venom, and centipedes, which use forcipulesmodified legsto deliver venom, while scorpions and stinging insects inject venom with a sting. In bees and wasps, the stinger is a modified ovipositor (egg-laying device). In Polistes fuscatus, the female continuously releases a venom that contains a sex pheromone that induces copulatory behavior in males.[16] In wasps such as Polistes exclamans, venom is used as an alarm pheromone, coordinating a response from the nest and attracting nearby wasps to attack the predator.[17] In some species, such as Parischnogaster striatula, venom is applied all over the body as an antimicrobial protection.[18]

Many caterpillars have defensive venom glands associated with specialized bristles on the body called urticating hairs. These are usually merely irritating, but those of the Lonomia moth can be fatal to humans.[19]

Bees synthesize and employ an acidic venom (apitoxin) to defend their hives and food stores, whereas wasps use a chemically different venom to paralyse prey, so their prey remains alive to provision the food chambers of their young. The use of venom is much more widespread than just these examples; many other insects, such as true bugs and many ants, also produce venom.[20] The ant species Polyrhachis dives uses venom topically for the sterilisation of pathogens.[21]

Other invertebrates[edit]

The fingernail-sized box jellyfish Malo kingi has among the most dangerous venom of any animal, causing Irukandji syndrome — severe pain, vomiting, and rapid rise in blood pressure

There are venomous invertebrates in several phyla, including jellyfish such as the dangerous box jellyfish,[22] the Portuguese man-of-war (a siphonophore) and sea anemones among the Cnidaria,[23] sea urchins among the Echinodermata,[24] and cone snails[25] and cephalopods, including octopuses, among the Molluscs.[26]

Vertebrates[edit]

Fish[edit]

Venom is found in some 200 cartilaginous fishes, including stingrays, sharks, and chimaeras; the catfishes (about 1000 venomous species); and 11 clades of spiny-rayed fishes (Acanthomorpha), containing the scorpionfishes (over 300 species), stonefishes (over 80 species), gurnard perches, blennies, rabbitfishes, surgeonfishes, some velvetfishes, some toadfishes, coral crouchers, red velvetfishes, scats, rockfishes, deepwater scorpionfishes, waspfishes, weevers, and stargazers.[27]

Amphibians[edit]

Some salamanders can extrude sharp venom-tipped ribs.[28][29] Two frog species in Brazil have tiny spines around the crown of their skulls which, on impact, deliver venom into their targets.[30]

Reptiles[edit]

The venom of the prairie rattlesnake, Crotalus viridis (left), includes metalloproteinases (example on the right) which help digest prey before eating.

Some 450 species of snake are venomous.[27] Snake venom is produced by glands below the eye (the mandibular glands) and delivered to the target through tubular or channeled fangs. Snake venoms contain a variety of peptide toxins, including proteases, which hydrolyze protein peptide bonds; nucleases, which hydrolyze the phosphodiester bonds of DNA; and neurotoxins, which disrupt signalling in the nervous system.[31] Snake venom causes symptoms including pain, swelling, tissue necrosis, low blood pressure, convulsions, haemorrhage (varying by species of snake), respiratory paralysis, kidney failure, coma, and death.[32] Snake venom may have originated with duplication of genes that had been expressed in the salivary glands of ancestors.[33][34]

Venom is found in a few other reptiles such as the Mexican beaded lizard,[35] the gila monster,[36] and some monitor lizards, including the Komodo dragon.[37] Mass spectrometry showed that the mixture of proteins present in their venom is as complex as the mixture of proteins found in snake venom.[37][38] Some lizards possess a venom gland; they form a hypothetical clade, Toxicofera, containing the suborders Serpentes and Iguania and the families Varanidae, Anguidae, and Helodermatidae.[39]

Mammals[edit]

Euchambersia, an extinct genus of therocephalians, is hypothesized to have had venom glands attached to its canine teeth.[40]

A few species of living mammals are venomous, including solenodons, shrews, vampire bats, male platypuses, and slow lorises.[27][41] Shrews have venomous saliva and most likely evolved their trait similarly to snakes.[42] The presence of tarsal spurs akin to those of the platypus in many non-therian Mammaliaformes groups suggests that venom was an ancestral characteristic among mammals.[43]

Extensive research on platypuses shows that their toxin was initially formed from gene duplication, but data provides evidence that the further evolution of platypus venom does not rely as much on gene duplication as was once thought.[44] Modified sweat glands are what evolved into platypus venom glands. Although it is proven that reptile and platypus venom have independently evolved, it is thought that there are certain protein structures that are favored to evolve into toxic molecules. This provides more evidence of why venom has become a homoplastic trait and why very different animals have convergently evolved.[13]

Venom and humans[edit]

Envenomation resulted in 57,000 human deaths in 2013, down from 76,000 deaths in 1990.[45] Venoms, found in over 173,000 species, have potential to treat a wide range of diseases, explored in over 5,000 scientific papers.[36]

In medicine, snake venom proteins are used to treat conditions including thrombosis, arthritis, and some cancers.[46][47] Gila monster venom contains exenatide, used to treat type 2 diabetes.[36] Solenopsins extracted from fire ant venom has demonstrated biomedical applications, ranging from cancer treatment to psoriasis.[48][49] A branch of science, venomics, has been established to study the proteins associated with venom and how individual components of venom can be used for pharmaceutical means.[50]

Resistance[edit]

The California ground squirrel is resistant to the Northern Pacific rattlesnake's powerful venom.

Venom is used as a trophic weapon by many predator species. The coevolution between predators and prey is the driving force of venom resistance, which has evolved multiple times throughout the animal kingdom.[51] The coevolution between venomous predators and venom-resistant prey has been described as a chemical arms race.[52] Predator/prey pairs are expected to coevolve over long periods of time.[53] As the predator capitalizes on susceptible individuals, the surviving individuals are limited to those able to evade predation.[54] Resistance typically increases over time as the predator becomes increasingly unable to subdue resistant prey.[55] The cost of developing venom resistance is high for both predator and prey.[56] The payoff for the cost of physiological resistance is an increased chance of survival for prey, but it allows predators to expand into underutilised trophic niches.[57]

The California ground squirrel has varying degrees of resistance to the venom of the Northern Pacific rattlesnake.[58] The resistance involves toxin scavenging and depends on the population. Where rattlesnake populations are denser, squirrel resistance is higher.[59] Rattlesnakes have responded locally by increasing the effectiveness of their venom.[60]

The kingsnakes of the Americas are constrictors that prey on many venomous snakes.[61] They have evolved resistance which does not vary with age or exposure.[55] They are immune to the venom of snakes in their immediate environment, like copperheads, cottonmouths, and North American rattlesnakes, but not to the venom of, for example, king cobras or black mambas.[62]

Ocellaris clownfish always live among venomous sea anemone tentacles and are resistant to the venom.

Among marine animals, eels are resistant to sea snake venoms, which contain complex mixtures of neurotoxins, myotoxins, and nephrotoxins, varying according to species.[63][64] Eels are especially resistant to the venom of sea snakes that specialise in feeding on them, implying coevolution; non-prey fishes have little resistance to sea snake venom.[65]

Clownfish always live among the tentacles of venomous sea anemones (an obligatory symbiosis for the fish),[66] and are resistant to their venom.[67][68] Only 10 known species of anemones are hosts to clownfish and only certain pairs of anemones and clownfish are compatible.[69][70] All sea anemones produce venoms delivered through discharging nematocysts and mucous secretions. The toxins are composed of peptides and proteins. They are used to acquire prey and to deter predators by causing pain, loss of muscular coordination, and tissue damage. Clownfish have a protective mucus that acts as a chemical camouflage or macromolecular mimicry preventing "not self" recognition by the sea anemone and nematocyst discharge.[71][72][73] Clownfish may acclimate their mucus to resemble that of a specific species of sea anemone.[73]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "venom" at Dorland's Medical Dictionary
  2. ^ a b Gupta, Ramesh C. (24 March 2017). Reproductive and developmental toxicology. Saint Louis. pp. 963–972. ISBN 978-0-12-804240-3. OCLC 980850276.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  3. ^ Chippaux, JP; Goyffon, M (2006). "[Venomous and poisonous animals--I. Overview]". Médecine Tropicale (in French). 66 (3): 215–20. ISSN 0025-682X. PMID 16924809.
  4. ^ "Poison vs. Venom". Australian Academy of Science. 3 November 2017. Retrieved 17 April 2022.
  5. ^ Nelsen, D. R., Nisani, Z., Cooper, A. M., Fox, G. A., Gren, E. C., Corbit, A. G., & Hayes, W. K. (2014). "Poisons, toxungens, and venoms: redefining and classifying toxic biological secretions and the organisms that employ them". Biological Reviews, 89(2), 450-465. doi:10.1111/brv.12062. PMID: 24102715.
  6. ^ Kordiš, D.; Gubenšek, F. (2000). "Adaptive evolution of animal toxin multigene families". Gene. 261 (1): 43–52. doi:10.1016/s0378-1119(00)00490-x. PMID 11164036.
  7. ^ Harris, J. B. (September 2004). "Animal poisons and the nervous system: what the neurologist needs to know". Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery & Psychiatry. 75 (suppl_3): iii40–iii46. doi:10.1136/jnnp.2004.045724. PMC 1765666. PMID 15316044.
  8. ^ Raffray, M.; Cohen, G. M. (1997). "Apoptosis and necrosis in toxicology: a continuum or distinct modes of cell death?". Pharmacology & Therapeutics. 75 (3): 153–177.

    Indiana Jones V2

    Indiana Jones version 2 theme by Windrider

    Download: IndianaJonesV2.p3t

    Indiana Jones V2 Theme
    (4 backgrounds)

    P3T Unpacker v0.12
    Copyright (c) 2007. Anoop Menon

    This program unpacks Playstation 3 Theme files (.p3t) so that you can touch-up an existing theme to your likings or use a certain wallpaper from it (as many themes have multiple). But remember, if you use content from another theme and release it, be sure to give credit!

    Download for Windows: p3textractor.zip

    Instructions:

    Download p3textractor.zip from above. Extract the files to a folder with a program such as WinZip or WinRAR. Now there are multiple ways to extract the theme.

    The first way is to simply open the p3t file with p3textractor.exe. If you don’t know how to do this, right click the p3t file and select Open With. Alternatively, open the p3t file and it will ask you to select a program to open with. Click Browse and find p3textractor.exe from where you previously extracted it to. It will open CMD and extract the theme to extracted.[filename]. After that, all you need to do for any future p3t files is open them and it will extract.

    The second way is very simple. Just drag the p3t file to p3textractor.exe. It will open CMD and extract the theme to extracted.[filename].

    For the third way, first put the p3t file you want to extract into the same folder as p3textractor.exe. Open CMD and browse to the folder with p3extractor.exe. Enter the following:
    p3textractor filename.p3t [destination path]Replace filename with the name of the p3t file, and replace [destination path] with the name of the folder you want the files to be extracted to. A destination path is not required. By default it will extract to extracted.filename.