In military or paramilitary organizations, such as police departments, a hierarchical organization of personnel exists, often called the chain of command.
The general rankings within a police force, depending on its size, is as follows, in order from highest to lowest rankings:
The Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) is part of the United States Department of the Interior established on March 11, 1824. The mission of this bureau is to provide services to the 566 federally recognized Native American tribes and Alaska Natives in the United States. The BIA also administers and manages over 55 million acres of land within the U.S. The BIA is one of two bureaus under the Assistant Secretary of Indian Affairs, the other being the Bureau of Indian Education.
Native American groups have clashed with the BIA because they believe the agency is not doing all it can for the groups it is pledged to support. Many of these claims of neglect, mismanagement, misappropriated funds, and hypocritical bureaucratic standards and procedures have been proven in courts of law.
A protective rim found at the front and rear of most vehicles. The bumper protects the body of the vehicle from incidental contact with objects, such as brush, debris, and even minor contact with other vehicles (for example the minor dings that can occur while parallel parking). The bumper is also engineered to absorb high impact contact and lessen the damage during an automobile accident. Rear bumpers have also become the site for automobile owners to decorate their car with eye-catching bumper stickers that communicate slogans, notices, cultural commentary, or political propaganda.
Buffalo grass (Bouteloua dactyloides) is a prairie grass found in the western regions of North America. It has curling leaves and grows in thick patches. Buffalo grass is a short grass that is cold, heat, and drought resistant. Historically, buffalo grass was used to make sod houses during the westward expansion.
A vernacular reference to the North American bison, large herds of which once roamed the North American plains in seemingly endless waves. The bison was an integral component of North American indigenous lifeways throughout the interwest regions. In addition to being a major source of direct subsistence, it also served indigenous communities indirectly in terms of a supporting a thriving economy of exchange founded on bison by-products. The bison was one of the most revered animals in the spiritual belief systems of Native American peoples, and its cultural and material significance cannot be over-emphasized.
Before Anglo-European settlement and the transcontinental railroad, there were approximately thirty million bison roaming the Great Plains. By the mid-19th century, the bison population was depleted to about 100,000 animals because of non-Native profit-driven mass hunting. To those tribes that saw the bison as integral and sacred, this mass hunting was a desecration. Recently, efforts to bring back the numbers of the endangered species have increased the overall bison population to about 250,000.
Buckskin is soft leather made from the skin of a deer, or other kind of horned animal, which has been treated to make it pliable. After the skin has been removed from the carcass of the deer, the subcutaneous material is scrapped off, and then the skin is tanned in a solution that contains tannin, a bitter substance present in bark, acorns, and other plant materials. The tanning process is a preservation process and is what converts animal hide into long-lasting leather. Modern buckskin is tanned, dyed, and then softened with chemicals, but traditionally, natural oils from the deer’s body are used to make the skin supple and moldable after the tanning process.
Some cultures use buckskin for clothing; however, buckskin is used by Navajos only for ceremonial purposes.
The bony protuberance above the eye sockets, often adorned with eyebrows. The ridge exists to protect the eyes from blunt force, the sun, and even moisture, as eyebrows are supposed to prevent sweat or precipitation from dripping off the forehead into the eyes.
A handheld optical instrument with magnifying abilities, composed of two telescopes and a focusing device. Binoculars are used to observe objects at a distance for the purpose of examining them closely.
A vernacular expression referring to one's assistance in facilitating the commission of a crime, even if only to cover it up.
In both biological and cultural terms, adaptation is a process of change during which an organism, an individual, or even a society alters over time. These changes are typically thought of as improvements that make the organism, individual, or society "better," or at least more efficient, at surviving its given environment.