Portal:California
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California is the most populous state of the United States. Located on the Pacific coast of North America, it is bordered by Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east and southeast in the United States, and Mexico's Baja California to the south. The state's four largest cities are Los Angeles, San Diego, San Jose and San Francisco. California is known for its Mediterranean climate and ethnically diverse population. The state has 58 counties.
Inhabited by indigenous people for millennia, Alta California was first colonized by the Spanish Empire in 1769, and after Mexican independence in 1821, continued as part of Mexico. Following one brief week as the independent California Republic in 1846, and the conclusion of the Mexican-American war in 1848, California was annexed by the United States and was admitted to the Union as the thirty-first state on September 9, 1850.
California's diverse geography ranges from the sandy beaches of the Pacific coast to the rugged, snow-capped Sierra Nevada mountains in the northeast. The central portion of the state is dominated by the Central Valley, one of the most vital agricultural areas in the country. The Sierra Nevada contains Yosemite Valley, famous for its glacially-carved domes, and Sequoia National Park, home to the largest living organisms on Earth, the giant sequoia trees, and the highest point in the contiguous United States, Mount Whitney. The tallest living things on Earth, the ancient redwood trees, paste the northern coastline, mainly north of San Francisco. California is also home to the lowest and hottest place in the Western Hemisphere, Death Valley. Bristlecone pines located in the White Mountains are the oldest known trees in the world; one has an age of 4,700 years.
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Hearst Castle was built on a 40,000 acre (160 km²) ranch that William Randolph Hearst's father, George Hearst, originally purchased in 1865. The younger Hearst grew fond of this site over many childhood family camping trips. He inherited the ranch, which had grown to 250,000 acres (1000 km²), from his mother, Phoebe Apperson Hearst, upon her death in 1919. Construction began that same year and continued through 1947, when he stopped living at the estate due to ill health. San Francisco architect Julia Morgan designed most of the buildings. Hearst was an inveterate tinkerer, and would tear down structures and rebuild them at a whim, so the estate was never completed in his lifetime.
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Oceanside is the third largest city in San Diego County, California. The city has a population of 173,303. Together with Vista and Carlsbad, it makes up the Tri-City area. The city is just south of U.S. Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, the busiest military base in the United States.
Did you know?
- ...that Josiah Belden was a member of the first party to use the California Trail, and the first mayor of San Jose, California?
- ...that the California Pacific Conference has school members that range from members of the California State University system to religious and liberal arts colleges?
- ... that Isaac Newton Van Nuys of New York founded Van Nuys, California, United States in 1911?
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Pauling was born and raised in Oregon. He attended Oregon Agricultural College and graduated in 1922 with a degree in chemical engineering. Pauling then went to the California Institute of Technology (Caltech), where he received his Ph. D in physical chemistry and mathematical physics in 1925. Two years later, he accepted a position at Caltech as an assistant professor in theoretical chemistry. In 1932, Pauling published a landmark paper, detailing his theory of orbital hybridization and analyzed the tetravalency of carbon. That year, he also established the concept of electronegativity and developed a scale that would help predict the nature of chemical bonding.
In the news
- February 23: Buddy Roemer ends Republican presidential bid to seek Reform Party nomination
- February 12: American pop star Whitney Houston dies at 48
- February 1: California teacher arrested after photos indicated lewd acts on children
- January 21: US singer Etta James dies aged 73
- January 13: Observing the 2012 Human Trafficking Awareness Day in the US, and wider world
- January 4: Suspect arrested in Los Angeles arson rampage case
- November 30: California judge jails Michael Jackson doctor
- November 21: California campus pepper spray police suspended
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Southern California • Los Angeles • San Francisco Bay Area • Santa Barbara County • California State Highways • California County Routes • University of California • California State University
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The Kern River is a river in the U.S. state of California, approximately 164 miles (264 km) long. It drains an area of the southern Sierra Nevada mountains northeast of Bakersfield. Fed by snowmelt near Mount Whitney, the river passes through scenic canyons in the mountains and is a popular destination for whitewater rafting and kayaking.
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1st Academy Awards • 82nd Academy Awards • List of Governors of California • Foo Fighters discography • List of Golden State Warriors head coaches • List of acquisitions by Juniper Networks • List of Bay Area Rapid Transit stations • List of birds of California • List of California hurricanes • List of Caltrain stations • List of Kraft Nabisco Championship champions • List of Los Angeles Clippers seasons • List of Los Angeles County Metro Rail stations • List of milestone home runs by Barry Bonds • List of Muni Metro stations • List of municipalities in the San Francisco Bay Area • List of Oakland Athletics team records • List of Oakland Raiders head coaches • List of Sacramento Regional Transit light rail stations • List of San Diego Padres team records • List of San Francisco Giants first-round draft picks • List of San Francisco Giants managers • List of San Francisco Giants Opening Day starting pitchers • List of San Francisco Municipal Railway lines • List of San Francisco 49ers head coaches • List of San Jose Sharks players • List of Santa Clara VTA Light Rail stations • List of tallest buildings in Los Angeles • List of tallest buildings in Oakland, California • List of tallest buildings in San Diego • List of tallest buildings in San Francisco • List of 1960 Winter Olympics medal winners • List of Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim first-round draft picks • Mayor of San Francisco • List of San Diego Padres first-round draft picks
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Good articles1st Filipino Infantry Regiment • 100 McAllister Street • 1939 California tropical storm • 1959 National League tie-breaker series • 1960 Winter Olympics • 2005 USC Trojans football team • 2007 Major League Baseball All-Star Game • 2008 Chino Hills earthquake • 2010 Auto Club 500 • 2010 Toyota/Save Mart 350 • Aboriginal title in California • Jessica Alba • Maya Angelou • Arroyo Seco Parkway • Auburn Dam • Auto Club Speedway • Azusa Street Revival • Drew Barrymore • Bay Area Rapid Transit • Bayshore Freeway • Berkelium • Black Cat Bar • Blown for Good • Barry Bonds • Kate Bosworth • Ryan Braun • California Southern Railroad • California State Polytechnic University, Pomona • California State Route 3 • California State Route 7 • California State Route 14 • California State Route 16 • California State Route 20 • California State Route 37 • California State Route 46 • California State Route 47 • California State Route 57 • California State Route 133 • California State Route 139 • California State Route 149 • California State Route 160 • California State Route 174 • California State Route 190 • California State Route 275 • David Carradine • Casa de Estudillo • Castle Lake (California) • J. R. Celski • Central Valley Project • Tory Christman • Russ Christopher • Chuck E. Cheese's • Columbia Park, Torrance, California • Ina Coolbrith • Misty Copeland • Iris Cummings • William F. Dean • Ygnacio del Valle • Diamond Valley Lake • Dougherty Valley High School • Drew Doughty • Dr. Dre • Jessica Dubroff • Dan Dugan (audio engineer) • Dan Dworsky • Clint Eastwood • Eazy-E • Aaron Eckhart • Facebook • Ronald Fedkiw • Jessica Feshbach • Fire Station No. 23 (Los Angeles, California) • Doug Fister • James Franco • Milton Friedman • Ryan Garko • Ronald M. George • Larry Geraty • Getty Center • Getty Conservation Institute • Getty Foundation • Getty Research Institute • Getty Villa • Google • William S. Hamilton • Jon Hamm • Serranus Clinton Hastings • History of San Diego State University • Houston Rockets • Hughes Airwest Flight 706 • Shane Hurlbut • Interstate 205 (California) • Interstate 680 (California) • Interstate 780 • Islais Creek • Bruce Jackson (audio engineer) • Ed Jew • J. Paul Getty Trust • Hurricane Kathleen (1976) • George Kelly (baseball) • Seth Kinman • Klamath River • Heather Knight (educator) • Shia LaBeouf • Laguna Canyon • Bill Lange • Taylor Lautner • Leuschner Observatory • Los Angeles Daily News (historic) • Los Angeles Lakers • Byron McLaughlin • Malloch Building • Maritime Fur Trade • Jeff "Swampy" Marsh • Eric McCormack • Merced River • Metrolink (Southern California) • Dan Meyer (first baseman) • Beatriz Michelena • Michael A. Monsoor • Darius Morris • Jonas Mouton • Kendrick Moxon • Mussel Slough Tragedy • Gavin Newsom • Nickel Creek • Daniel O'Connell (journalist) • Ohlone people • Walter O'Malley • One Rincon Hill • Parents Television Council • Rob Pelinka • Pentachaeta bellidiflora • A Perfect Circle • Katy Perry • Michelle Pfeiffer • Timothy L. Pflueger • Phoenix (fireboat) • Pixar • Pony Express • Presidio of Santa Barbara • Project 86 • Rage Against the Machine • Rancho Camulos • Rancho San Francisco • Kenny Roberts • Jeriome Robertson • Romeo Void • Ronald Reagan Presidential Library • Royal Rumble (1993) • R U Professional • Leo Ryan • Winona Ryder • San Diego • San Juan Creek • Santa Ana River • Santa Maria de Ovila • José Sarria • Michael Savage • Richard Henry Savage • Say Anything (band) • David Schwimmer • Self Made Man • Ravi Shankar • Harry Shearer • Sierra Highway • Skinner's Room • Solar power plants in the Mojave Desert • Hilda Solis • Spring Creek Dam • Ralph Stackpole • Sulphur Creek (California) • Sunol Water Temple • Taboo Tuesday (2005) • Mount Tehama • Tenacious D • The Terminator • TouchWave • Traffic (2000 film) • Chris Turner (American football) • University of California, Santa Cruz • U.S. Route 50 in California • U.S. Route 395 in California • Will Venable • Stafford L. Warren • Max Weinberg • White Night riots • Whitney High School (Rocklin, California) • SS Winfield Scott • Tiger Woods • Wyntoon • Chris Young (pitcher) • YouTube • Zinfandel • Zodiac Killer
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