What is "beacon"

Beacon \Bea"con\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Beaconed (b[=e]"k'nd); p. pr. & vb. n. Beaconing.]

1. To give light to, as a beacon; to light up; to illumine.

   That beacons the darkness of heaven.
   --Campbell.

2. To furnish with a beacon or beacons.

Beacon \Bea"con\ (b[=e]"k'n), n. [OE. bekene, AS. be['a]cen, b[=e]cen; akin to OS. b[=o]kan, Fries. baken, beken, sign, signal, D. baak, OHG. bouhhan, G. bake; of unknown origin. Cf. Beckon.]

1. A signal fire to notify of the approach of an enemy, or to give any notice, commonly of warning.

   No flaming beacons cast their blaze afar.
   --Gay.

2. A signal, such as that from a lighthouse, or a conspicuous mark erected on an eminence near the shore, or moored in shoal water, as a guide to mariners.

3. A high hill near the shore. [Prov. Eng.]

4. That which gives notice of danger.

   Modest doubt is called The beacon of the wise.
   --Shak.

5. (Navigation) a radio transmitter which emits a characteristic signal indication its location, so that vehicles may determine their exact location by locating the beacon with a radio compass; -- also called radio beacon.

   5. [fig.] that which provides guidance or inspiration; the Constitution has been a beacon for civil rights activists.

   Beacon fire, a signal fire.

Old English beacen "sign, portent, lighthouse," from West Germanic *baukna "beacon, signal" (cognates: Old Frisian baken, Old Saxon bokan, Old High German bouhhan); not found outside Germanic. Perhaps borrowed from Latin bucina "a crooked horn or trumpet, signal horn." But more likely from PIE *bhew-, a variant of the base *bha- (1) "to gleam, shine" (see phantasm). Figurative use from c.1600.

n. 1 A signal fire to notify of the approach of an enemy, or to give any notice, commonly of warning. 2 (context nautical English) A signal or conspicuous mark erected on an eminence near the shore, or moored in shoal water, as a guide to mariners. 3 A high hill or other easily distinguishable object near the shore which can serve as guidance for seafarers. 4 That which gives notice of danger. vb. 1 To act as a beacon. 2 To give light to, as a beacon; to light up; to illumine. 3 To furnish with a beacon or beacons.

1. n. a fire (usually on a hill or tower) that can be seen from a distance [syn: beacon fire]

2. a radio station that broadcasts a directional signal for navigational purposes [syn: radio beacon]

3. a tower with a light that gives warning of shoals to passing ships [syn: lighthouse, beacon light, pharos]

4. v. shine like a beacon

5. guide with a beacon

A beacon is an intentionally conspicuous device designed to attract attention to a specific location.

Beacons can also be combined with semaphoric or other indicators to provide important information, such as the status of an airport, by the colour and rotational pattern of its airport beacon, or of pending weather as indicated on a weather beacon mounted at the top of a tall building or similar site. When used in such fashion, beacons can be considered a form of optical telegraphy.

Beacon is a Metro-North Railroad station that serves the residents of Beacon, New York, via the Hudson Line. Trains leave for New York City every hour during off peak hours, and about every 15–25 minutes during rush hour. It is from Grand Central Terminal and travel time to Grand Central Terminal vary depending on run, ranging from 1 hour and 10 minutes (super-express runs) to 1 hour and 15–18 minutes (trains making all local stops north of Croton-Harmon and 1 hour and 25–30 minutes (trains making all local stops north of Croton-Harmon and some lower Hudson stops, such as Ossining, Tarrytown, Yonkers, Marble Hill).

It is a wheelchair accessible station, featuring wheelchair ramps, an elevator to the train platform, and a high-level island platform which is level with the doors on the train (for many years, most Upper Hudson Line stations had platforms that were lower than the train doors). It also boasts a small newsstand on the platform itself, open daily. It is not fully ADA accessible.

Paid parking is provided. There are spaces that require permits and others which can be paid for on a daily basis. Parking is free on weekends and holidays.

renovations by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority reflect the station's increasing traffic and importance as a destination. The Dia:Beacon art museum, a short walk from the station, has drawn regular visitors from the city since its 2003 opening to see its collection of large installations which could not be shown in the more limited spaces available in Manhattan. Many signs in and around the station point the way. The heavy Dia traffic on weekends is complemented by visitors to prisoners at Fishkill or Downstate correctional facilities, who take many of the taxis available from the station to the prisons just outside town. Inmates being released are sometimes dropped off here as well to catch trains back to the city.

The station complex also has long housed an upper Hudson Line station of the MTA Police. Unruly passengers are often put off here to be taken into custody.

The word beacon can refer to several things:

• Beacon, traditionally a fire lit on a hill to attract attention
• Electric beacon, a type of beacon used with direction-finding equipment to find one's relative location
• Bluetooth low energy beacon, a device that broadcasts a unique identifier to nearby portable electronic devices
• Aerodrome beacon, a lighting device which indicates the location of a civilian airport
• Distress radiobeacon, a tracking transmitter that aids in the detection and location of boats, aircraft, and/or persons in distress
• Beacon mode service, a simple signal that some space probes use to indicate their status
• Web beacon, an object used to track a user's visit to a web page
• Belisha beacon, a flashing light atop a black-and-white pole placed at pedestrian crossings
• Beacon (Facebook), a part of Facebook's Ads system that collects and publishes activities of its users from external websites
• Beacon frame, one of the management frames in wireless local-area networks (WLANs) based on IEEE 802.11
• Beacon (supercomputer), an Appro International, Inc. Xtreme-X Supercomputer named Beacon, deployed by NICS of the University of Tennessee, which topped the Green500 list

Beacon is the name of two fictional characters published by Big Bang Comics. The Beacon of Earth-A (Julie Gardener) is a Silver Age character. The Beacon of Earth-B (Scott Martin) is a Golden Age character. Both characters first appear in Big Bang Comics #3 (October 1994), and were created by Chris Ecker, Gary S. Carlson and Steve Adams.

The characters are a pastiche of the Golden Age and Silver Age Green Lanterns of DC Comics. Scott Martin is equivalent to Earth-2's Alan Scott and is named for him and his creator Martin Nodell, and Julie Gardener is equivalent to Earth-1's Hal Jordan (although her name may also be a reference to Guy Gardner, it is more likely a reference to Julius Schwartz who was frequently credited as Julie Schwartz and Gardner Fox).

Beacon is a cold-hardy cultivar of apple developed by University of Minnesota in 1936. It is a cross between 'Wealthy' and 'Malinda' apples. This apple is medium in size with full, deep red stripes. Its flesh is pulpy and fairly soft, with a mildy sweet flavor. This apple is good for cooking and eating (when fresh).

Beacon is the second studio album by Irish indie rock band Two Door Cinema Club. It was released on 31 August 2012 by Kitsuné. The album was recorded in Los Angeles with producer Jacknife Lee in his home studios.