DESCRIPTION:
.Rodents (from Latin rodere, "to gnaw") are mammals of the order Rodentia, which are characterized by a single pair of unremittingly growing incisors in each of the upper and lower jaws. About 40% of all mammal species are rodents; they are found in vast numbers on all continents except Antarctica. They are the most diversified mammalian order and live in a variety of terrestrial habitats, including human-made environments.

Species can be arboreal, fossorial (burrowing), or semiaquatic. Well-known rodents include mice, rats, squirrels, prairie dogs, porcupines, beavers, guinea pigs, hamsters, and capybaras. Other animals such as rabbits, hares, and pikas were once included with them, but are now considered to be in a separate order, the Lagomorpha.

Most rodents are small animals with robust bodies, short limbs, and long tails. They use their sharp incisors to gnaw food, excavate burrows, and defend themselves. Most eat seeds or other plant material, but some have more varied diets. They tend to be social animals and many species live in societies with complex ways of communicating with each other. Mating among rodents can vary from monogamy, to polygyny, to promiscuity. Many have litters of underdeveloped, altricial young, while others have precocial (relatively well developed) at birth.

The rodent fossil record dates back to the Paleocene on the supercontinent of Laurasia. They share a most recent common ancestor with rabbits, hares, and pikas, mammals whose incisors also grow continually. Rodents greatly diversified in the Eocene, as they spread across continents, sometimes even crossing oceans. Rodents reached both South America and Madagascar from Africa, and were the only terrestrial placental mammals to reach and colonize Australia.

Rodents have been used as food, for clothing, as pets, and as laboratory animals in research. Some species, in particular the brown rat, the black rat, and the house mouse, are serious pests, eating and spoiling food stored by humans, and spreading diseases. Accidentally introduced species of rodents are often considered to be invasive, and have caused the extinction of numerous species, such as island birds, previously isolated from land-based predators.

Star Wars is an American epic space opera franchise, centered on a film series created by George Lucas. It depicts the adventures of various characters "a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away".

The franchise began in 1977 with the release of the film Star Wars (subtitled Episode IV: A New Hope in 1981[2][3]), which became a worldwide pop culture phenomenon. It was followed by the similarly successful sequels The Empire Strikes Back (1980) and Return of the Jedi (1983); these three films constitute the original Star Wars trilogy. A prequel trilogy was later released between 1999 and 2005, which received a more mixed reaction from critics and fans in comparison to the original trilogy. More recently, a sequel trilogy began with the release of Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015). All seven films were nominated for Academy Awards (with wins going to the first two films) and have all been commercial successes with a combined box office revenue of $7.075 billion,[4] making Star Wars the third highest-grossing film series.[5] Additional theatrical films outside of the main saga include Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008), an animated film, and Rogue One (2016), which is the first in a series of anthology films.

The series has spawned an extensive media franchise—the Star Wars expanded universe—including books, television series, computer and video games, and comic books, resulting in significant development of the series's fictional universe. Star Wars also holds a Guinness World Records title for the "Most successful film merchandising franchise." In 2015, the total value of the Star Wars franchise was estimated at USD $41.9 billion, including box-office receipts as well as profits from their video games and DVD sales.[6]

In 2012, The Walt Disney Company acquired Lucasfilm for $4.06 billion and earned the distribution rights to all subsequent Star Wars films, beginning with the release of The Force Awakens in 2015.[7] The former distributor, 20th Century Fox, retains the physical distribution rights to the first two Star Wars trilogies, owning permanent rights for the original 1977 film and holding the rights to Episodes I–III, V and VI until May 2020.[8][9] Walt Disney Studios owns digital distribution rights to all the Star Wars films, excluding A New Hope.[9