CHANGE encyclopedia topics

Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), scientific panel created (1988) by two United Nations organizations, the UN Environment Program and the World Meteorological Organization. Open to all member nations in these two groups, the IPCC was established to gather, assess, and make available objective scientific, technical, and socioeconomic information on human-induced climate change. Headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, the IPCC is governed by a general assembly. It does not conduct its own research, but, divided into three working groups and a task force, it gathers material on climate change from hundreds of scientists and other reputable experts, analyzing and summarizing it in periodic IPCC assessment reports. The panel also publishes special reports, methodology reports, technical papers, and supporting material. In 2007 the IPCC and Albert Gore, Jr. shared the Nobel Peace Prize in recognition of their work to "disseminate greater knowledge about man-made climate change, and to lay the foundation for the measures that are needed to counteract such change."

The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia Copyright © 2004.
Licensed from Columbia University Press

Change to Win Federation

Change to Win Federation, coalition of seven labor unions representing primarily American workers. It was founded in 2005 as the Change to Win Coalition by five American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations unions that had united to make changes in the AFL-CIO that were aimed at rebuilding the American labor movement. The original members were the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), Teamsters Union, Union of Needle and Industrial Textile Employees-Hotel Employees and Restaurant Employees (Unite Here), Laborers' International Union of North America (LIUNA), and United Food and Commercial Workers International (UFCW). Failing in their reform efforts, these unions disaffiliated (2005) from the AFL-CIO, founded the new labor association, and were soon joined by the United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners and the United Farm Workers. Change to Win's basic aim is to increase union membership by organizing workers. Headed by Anna Burger, the first woman to lead an American labor federation, it has more than 5.4 million members.

The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia Copyright © 2004.
Licensed from Columbia University Press

change ringing

Traditional English art of ringing tower or hand bells in a succession of different orders. Groups of swinging bells in English church towers date from the 10th century. Control of bell ringing was much enhanced with the invention of the bell wheel in the 14th century; further improvements in bearings and fittings allowed the bells to swing at the same speed and led to recognizably modern change ringing by the 17th century. A “ring” (set) of 6 bells can be tolled in 720 different “changes” (orders); 8 bells allow 40,320 different changes, and 10 bells allow more than 3,000,000. In practice, only a selection of the possible changes is rung, derived by a “method” (a shuffling algorithm), usually involving switching pairs of bells in a certain order (e.g., 123456 becomes 214365, which can then become 241635, etc.). “Rounds”—all the bells in order from highest to lowest—is rung before and after a method is completed.

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Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.