SafeLibrary

Tiglath-pileser Ii

2005-03-23T01:45:00.000-08:00

King of Assyria (c. 965–c. 932 BC). He apparently ruled effectively, as a successor addressed him by a title reserved for mighty monarchs. Otherwise, little is known of the period other than that Assyria was beginning to emerge from its collapse of a century before.

Durand, Guillaume

2005-03-21T16:01:00.000-08:00

After receiving a doctorate in canon law at Bologna, Italy, Durand taught briefly there and later at Modena, Italy. Some time after 1260 he was appointed auditor (a judge commissioned to hear cases of appeal brought to the Holy See). At the second Council of Lyon (1274), he helped draft the statutes

Arsaces

2005-03-20T16:48:00.000-08:00

Iranian name borne by the Parthian royal house as being descended from Arsaces, son of Phriapites (date unknown), a chief of the seminomadic Parni tribe from the Caspian steppes. The first of his line to gain power in Parthia was Arsaces I, who reigned from about 250 to about 211 BC. (Some authorities believe that a brother, Tiridates I, succeeded Arsaces about 248 and ruled until 211; other

Guru

2005-03-18T16:48:00.000-08:00

In Sikhism, any of the first 10 leaders of the Sikh religion of northern India. The word Sikh is derived from the Sanskrit sisya (“disciple”), and all Sikhs are disciples of the Guru (spiritual guide, or teacher). The first Sikh Guru, Nanak, established the practice of naming his successor before his death (1539), and from the time of Ram Das, the fourth to reign, the Gurus all came from one family.

Henderson, Sir Nevile Meyrick

2005-03-16T17:16:00.000-08:00

Henderson joined the diplomatic service in 1905, serving as minister

Table Tennis

2005-03-14T10:54:00.000-08:00

At the 1997 world table tennis championships in Manchester, Eng., China again dominated play, winning six of the seven titles. The men's team from China defeated France (the first time since 1948 France had reached the final), while the women's team downed North Korea. Deng Yaping, the 24-year-old 1992 and 1996 Olympic champion, won her third world singles championship, then announced her retirement.

Faridkot

2005-03-12T21:55:00.000-08:00

Town, southwestern Punjab state, northwestern India, 70 miles (116 km) southwest of Ludhiana town. It was founded by Bhallan of the Burai Jat (a warrior community of northern India) during the 16th-century reign of the Mughal emperor Akbar. It later came under British rule. Seized in 1803 by Ranjit Singh, the Sikh ruler of the historic Punjab, it was subsequently restored to the British by

Madeira River

2005-03-10T17:03:00.000-08:00

Portuguese Rio Madeira, major tributary of the Amazon. It is formed by the junction of the Mamoré and Beni rivers at Villa Bella, Bolivia, and flows northward forming the border between Bolivia and Brazil for approximately 60 miles (100 km). After receiving the Rio Abunã, the Madeira meanders northeastward in Brazil through Rondônia and Amazonas states to its junction with the Amazon River, 90 miles

Selden, John

2005-03-07T23:30:00.000-08:00

Called to the bar in 1612, Selden practiced as a conveyancer, rarely appearing in court. His first major book, Titles of Honour (1614), has remained a useful reference. Analecton

Sokollu, Mehmed Pasa

2005-03-05T06:00:00.000-08:00

Ottoman grand vizier (chief minister) from June 1565, under the sultans Süleyman the Magnificent and Selim II, and perhaps the real ruler of the empire until the death of Selim in 1574. During his tenure, a war was fought with Venice (1570–73), in which the Ottoman navy was defeated in the famous Battle of Lepanto (Oct. 7, 1571), but

Macdonald, John Sandfield

2005-03-04T16:46:00.000-08:00

Macdonald was called to the bar in 1840, and the next year he was elected to the Canadian Parliament for Glengarry, a seat he held for 16 years. He supported constitutional government and in 1849–51 served as solicitor general. He held the posts of speaker

Afghanistan

2005-03-02T20:30:00.000-08:00

Landlocked, multiethnic country located in the heart of south-central Asia. Lying along important trade routes connecting southern and eastern Asia to Europe and the Middle East, Afghanistan has long been a prize sought by empire builders, and for millennia great armies have attempted to subdue it, leaving traces of their efforts in great monuments now fallen

Lewis, John Aaron

2005-02-28T19:27:00.000-08:00

American composer and pianist (b. May 3, 1920, La Grange, Ill.—d. March 29, 2001, New York, N.Y.), brought elegance and charm to jazz while leading the Modern Jazz Quartet (MJQ) to musical and popular success for over four decades. He played piano in a spare, graceful style, and his compositions included sophisticated modern melodies as well as breaks, ostinatos, riffs, and other devices from the

To-lun

2005-02-26T04:19:00.000-08:00

Historically important as the site of Shang-tu (the Xanadu of Samuel Coleridge's poem “Kubla Khan”), it was founded by Kublai Khan in 1256 and became the summer capital of the Mongol emperors of China, known as the “city of 108 temples.” Excavations have revealed that the site

Boito, Arrigo

2005-02-24T01:19:00.000-08:00

The son of an Italian painter of miniatures and a Polish countess, Boito attended the Milan Conservatory and travelled to Paris on a scholarship. There he met Verdi, for whom, in 1862, he wrote

Fabry's Disease

2005-02-22T01:11:00.000-08:00

Also called Angiokeratoma Corporis Diffusum, sex-linked hereditary disease in which a deficiency in the enzyme alpha-galactosidase A results in abnormal deposits of a glycosphingolipid (ceramide trihexoside) in the blood vessels. These deposits in turn produce heart and kidney disturbances resulting in a marked reduction in life expectancy. Distinctive clusters of dark red granules in the skin on the

Xenophon

2005-02-19T05:07:00.000-08:00

Biographical studies are L.V. Jacks, Xenophon, Soldier of Fortune (1930); E. Delebecque, Essai sur la vie de Xénophon (1957); and H.R. Breitenbach, “Xenophon von Athen,” in Pauly-Wissowa Realencyclopädie, vol. 19, col. 1569–2051 (1967), each with full bibliography. For a picture of Xenophon, see G.M. Richter, The Portraits of the Greeks, vol. 2 (1965).

Libya, Drainage

2005-02-18T05:51:00.000-08:00

There are no perennial rivers in Libya. The numerous wadis that drain the uplands are filled by flash floods during the rains and quickly dry up or are reduced to a trickle. The largest wadi systems are the Wadi Zamzam and Wadi Bayy al-Kabir, both of which reach the western coast of the Gulf of Sidra. Other large wadis drain the interior basins of Surt, Zaltan, and the Fezzan.

Insurance, Settlement options

2005-02-16T01:36:00.000-08:00

The death proceeds or cash values of insurance may be settled in various ways. The insured may take the cash value and lapse the policy. A beneficiary may take a lump sum settlement of the face amount upon the death of the insured. The beneficiary may, instead, elect to receive the proceeds over a given number of years or in some fixed amount, such as $100 a month, for as long as

Sabatier, Paul

2005-02-13T09:05:00.000-08:00

Sabatier studied at the École Normale

Teagarden, Jack

2005-02-12T06:31:00.000-08:00

Beginning on trombone at age seven, Teagarden was entirely self-taught. After drifting across the Southwest, he eventually arrived in New York City in 1927 and made his recording debut; from that moment he was the acknowledged

Quang Ngai

2005-02-09T07:37:00.000-08:00

Town, central Vietnam, on the South China Sea coast. It is a minor port on the south bank of the Tra Khuc River estuary, 125 miles (200 km) southeast of Hue. The town has lighter (barge) facilities, a hospital, and a commercial airport. Across the river at Sin Tinh a highway penetrates the interior to a short distance beyond Phuoc Lam; the highway to Cong Tum in the central highlands begins

Performing Arts, Nontheatrical Films.

2005-02-08T15:36:00.000-08:00

Austrian filmmaker Kurt Mundl (Power of the Earth Productions) in 1998 created an amazing film about butterflies and moths, The Messengers of the Gods--Butterflies. The 49-minute gem was made from 18,000 minutes of film patiently photographed using special lenses. New findings about behaviour were brought to life. It won many awards, including Best of Festival at Chicago's U.S. International

Sea Anemone

2005-02-05T19:12:00.000-08:00

Any member of the invertebrate order Actiniaria (class Anthozoa, phylum Cnidaria), primarily sedentary marine animals resembling flowers. They are found from the tidal zone of all oceans to depths of more than 10,000 m (about 33,000 feet). Some live in brackish water. They are largest, most numerous, and most colourful in warmer seas. The colourful Tealia

Account Payable

2005-02-03T21:37:00.000-08:00

Any amount owed by a company as the result of a purchase of goods or services from another company on a credit basis. Under a trade-credit arrangement, the purchasing company, after placing its order with the seller, receives the goods and an invoice denoting the price of the goods and the terms for payment. The purchasing firm does not send a trade acceptance or promissory

Calah

2005-02-01T00:35:00.000-08:00

Founded in the 13th century BC by Shalmaneser I, Calah remained unimportant until King Ashurnasirpal II (reigned 883–859 BC) chose it as his royal seat and the military capital of Assyria. His extensive work on the

Calah

2005-01-31T19:19:00.000-08:00

Any of four species of toothless insect-eating mammals found in tropical savannas and forests from southern Mexico to Paraguay and northern Argentina and Paraguay. The four species are long-tailed animals with elongated skulls and tubular muzzles. The mouth opening of the muzzle is small, but the salivary glands are large and secrete

Maastrichtian Stage

2005-01-29T07:32:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Maestrichtian, uppermost of six main divisions in the Upper Cretaceous Series, representing all those rocks on a global basis deposited during the Maastrichtian Age (74.5 to 66.4 million years ago). The stage's name is derived from the city of Maastricht in the southeastern Netherlands, whose surrounding area serves as the classic type district for rocks of this age. The Maastrichtian Stage

Hooft, Gerardus 't

2005-01-27T02:27:00.000-08:00

Dutch physicist, corecipient with Martinus J.G. Veltman of the 1999 Nobel Prize for Physics for their development of a mathematical model that enabled scientists to predict the properties of both the subatomic particles that constitute the universe and the fundamental forces through which they interact. Their work facilitated the finding of

Pierre

2005-01-25T20:47:00.000-08:00

Capital of South Dakota, U.S., seat (1880) of Hughes county, on the Missouri River, in the geographic centre of the state. Before 1800 the capital of the Arikara Indian nation was located on its site. Founded in June 1880 as the western terminus of the Chicago and North Western Railway, it was first known as Mahto (Sioux: “Bear”) but was renamed in December 1880 for Pierre Chouteau, a French fur trader.

Davidson College

2005-01-22T13:45:00.000-08:00

Private, coeducational institution of higher learning in Davidson, North Carolina, U.S. It is a liberal arts college with bachelor's degree programs in the humanities, social sciences, and sciences and is affiliated with the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.). Junior-year students can study at the University of Tours in Tours, France, or the Julius Maximilian University in W

Abbot, Charles Greeley

2005-01-21T21:05:00.000-08:00

An informal autobiography is provided by Charles Greeley Abbot, Adventures in the World of Science (1958). David H. DeVorkin, “Charles Greeley Abbot,” in Biographical Memoirs of the National Academy of Sciences, vol. 73, pp. 3–23 (1998), is a short biography; and David H. DeVorkin, “Defending a Dream: Charles Greeley Abbot's Years at the Smithsonian,” Journal for the History of Astronomy, vol. 21, part 1, no. 63, pp. 121–136 (February 1990), discusses Abbot's influence on the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory.

Dominus

2005-01-19T22:00:00.000-08:00

Plural Domini, in ancient Rome, “master,” or “owner,” particularly of slaves. The name became the official title for the emperor, beginning with Diocletian, who reigned from AD 284 to 305; and thus he and his successors are often referred to as the dominate (dominatus), as contrasted with the earlier principate (principatus) of Augustus and his successors. Some earlier emperors, such as Caligula (reigned

Ahern, Bertie

2005-01-17T05:12:00.000-08:00

Ahern was educated at St. Aidan's Christian Brothers secondary school, Rathmines College of Commerce, University College in Dublin, and the London School of Economics, obtaining degrees in taxation, business administration, and computer science. He was elected to the Dáil (lower house of Parliament)

London, Other spectator sports

2005-01-15T22:55:00.000-08:00

June brings international tennis stars to the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club at Wimbledon in southern London. An earlier highspot of the sporting calendar is the spring boat race between the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge, rowed up the turbulent waters of the tideway from Putney to Mortlake. Since the closure of the racecourse at Alexandra Park

Floor Covering, Construction

2005-01-13T14:52:00.000-08:00

The basic structure of traditionally manufactured carpets consists of the backing fabric and the pile, which is bound under and between the weft. Pile is formed on Axminster looms by inserting weft, with reciprocating needles, across the warp chain yarns. A central stuffer warp usually separates top from bottom weft. In Jacquard Wilton and Brussels carpet, the pile

Turkana

2005-01-10T07:16:00.000-08:00

A people living in the arid, sandy expanse of northwestern Kenya, from Lake Rudolf (Lake Turkana) to the Ugandan border. The Turkana speak an Eastern Nilotic language of the Nilo-Saharan language family. Their language closely resembles that of the Teso. They apparently moved to their present lands about 200 years ago from an area now in northeastern Uganda where the closely

Spotsylvania Court House, Battle Of

2005-01-09T17:50:00.000-08:00

(May 8–19, 1864), Union failure to smash or outflank Confederate forces defending Richmond, Virginia, during the American Civil War. Following the Battle of the Wilderness (May 5–6), Union General Ulysses S. Grant moved his left flank forward, engaging the Confederate forces of General Robert E. Lee at Spotsylvania Court House, Virginia. The battle raged for about a week and a half, and

China, The air masses

2005-01-06T21:47:00.000-08:00

China lies in Asia, the world's largest continent, and faces the Pacific, the world's largest ocean. Between the Pacific and China's part of Asia, there is a seasonal movement of air masses. The polar continental air mass, originating in Siberia, dominates a large part of China during the winter, while the tropical Pacific air mass exerts its influence during the summer.

Olympic Games, Oslo, Norway, 1952

2005-01-05T09:51:00.000-08:00

With the awarding of the sixth Winter Olympics to Oslo, the Games were held for the first time in a Scandinavian country. While some questioned the country's ability to stage the competition, the worries proved unfounded. New facilities were built and existing ones were refurbished to meet the high Olympic standard. Oslo saw the Winter Games debut of the Olympic torch,

Kazak Language

2005-01-03T07:15:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Kazakh, member of the Turkic language family (a subfamily of the Altaic languages), belonging to the northwestern, or Kipchak, branch. The Kazak language is spoken primarily in Kazakstan and in the Uighur Autonomous Region of Sinkiang in China but is also found in Uzbekistan, Mongolia, and Afghanistan. The so-called Kipchak-Uzbek dialect is closely related to Kazak and is considered

Qina

2004-12-31T07:41:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Qena, muhafazah (governorate) in Upper Egypt, extending 3–4 miles (5–6 km) on each side of the Nile River between the Arabian and Libyan deserts. Occupying the great bend in the Nile Valley, it has an area of 715 square miles (1,851 square km) and contains the celebrated ruins of Thebes and the Valley of the Tombs of the Kings. Qina has a dense agricultural population (more than 3,000 persons per square mile),

Marechal, Leopoldo

2004-12-29T10:23:00.000-08:00

In the early 1920s, Marechal was part of the literary group responsible for Martín Fierro and Proa, Ultraista journals that revolutionized Argentine letters. His first book of poems, Aguiluchos (1922; “Eaglets”), employed Modernista techniques in the treatment

Architecture, History Of Western, From the 17th to the 19th century

2004-12-28T06:04:00.000-08:00

A Gothic Revival was in a sense initiated early in England during the late 16th century under the influence of Elizabethan and Jacobean notions of chivalry and again between 1620 and 1630 under the impetus of William Laud's Anglicanism; but it is in the Gothic experimentalism of the late 17th century, particularly that of Wren's circle, in which seeds of a Gothic Revival can be discerned.

Bush, George W.

2004-12-25T22:57:00.000-08:00

In full George Walker Bush 43rd president of the United States (2001– ). Narrowly winning the electoral college vote over Vice President Al Gore in one of the closest and most controversial elections in American history, George W. Bush became the first person since Benjamin Harrison in 1888 to become president despite having lost the nationwide popular vote. He was narrowly reelected in 2004, defeating Democratic challenger John Kerry. Before assuming the presidency of the United States, Bush was a businessman and served as governor of Texas (1995–2000). (For a discussion of the history and nature of the presidency, see presidency of the United States of America.)

Pacific Mountain System, Agriculture and fishing

2004-12-23T23:45:00.000-08:00

Agriculture is important in some of the valleys within the ranges. From southern British Columbia to northern California, dairying and egg production are leading activities. Some of California's most important vineyards are in the Coast Ranges near San Francisco, notably the Napa and Sonoma valleys to the north. The Salinas Valley south of San Francisco and the

Epiphyte

2004-12-22T13:42:00.000-08:00

Any plant that grows upon or is in some manner attached to another plant or object merely for physical support. Epiphytes are primarily tropical in distribution and are often known as air plants because they have no attachment to the ground or other obvious nutrient source. They obtain water and minerals from rain

Gravesend

2004-12-19T05:30:00.000-08:00

The discovery of the skull of Swanscombe man near Gravesend dates early settlement in the area to the Second Interglacial Period (about 200,000 years ago). Gravesend is mentioned in Domesday Book (1086) as Gravesham, possessing a hithe

Cacomistle

2004-12-17T02:22:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Cacomixl (Bassariscus), either of two species of large-eyed, long-tailed carnivores related to the raccoon (family Procyonidae). Cacomistles are grayish brown with lighter underparts and white patches over their eyes. The total length is about 60–100 cm (24–40 inches), about half of which is the bushy, black-and-white-ringed tail. The animals weigh about 1 kg (2.2 pounds) and have small faces with long

Fairfax

2004-12-15T18:02:00.000-08:00

City, seat (1779) of Fairfax county (though administratively independent of it), northeastern Virginia, U.S., about 15 miles (24 km) southwest of Washington, D.C. It developed after 1799 with the construction of the county courthouse and relocation of the county seat from Alexandria. The wills of George and Martha Washington are displayed in the courthouse wing. Early known as Earp's Corner,

Ashland

2004-12-14T07:43:00.000-08:00

City, seat (1860) of Ashland county, extreme northern Wisconsin, U.S. It is a port on Chequamegon Bay of Lake Superior. A Jesuit mission was established there in 1665, but not until 1854 did Asaph Whittlesey settle the site, which he named for Henry Clay's Kentucky estate. In 1877 Ashland became the terminus of the first railroad of northern Wisconsin and developed with iron-mining and lumbering

Wolf, Friedrich August

2004-12-11T07:08:00.000-08:00

Extremely precocious, Wolf learned Greek, Latin, and French as a child. He was largely self-taught when in 1777 he

Ironbridge

2004-12-09T21:31:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Iron-bridge, structure that is generally considered the first cast-iron bridge, spanning the River Severn at Ironbridge, near Coalbrookdale, in Shropshire, England. It is now a British national monument. The bridge's semicircular arch spans 100.5 feet (30.6 m) and has five arch ribs, each cast in two halves. Designed by Abraham Darby or Thomas Pritchard, the bridge was erected by Darby in 1777–79. (A similar

Morris, Clara

2004-12-07T14:33:00.000-08:00

Morris was the eldest child of a bigamous marriage. When she was three her father was exposed, and her mother fled with her to Cleveland, Ohio, where they adopted her grandmother's name, Morrison. Clara received only

Kyonggi

2004-12-05T14:28:00.000-08:00

Do (province), northwestern South Korea. It is bounded by the truce line with North Korea (north), by the do of Kangwon (east) and Kyongsang-puk and Ch'ungch'ong-nam (south), and by the Yellow Sea (west). The nation's capital, Seoul, is in the middle of the province but was separated from it administratively in 1946 as a special city. Formerly Kyonggi do was the granary of Seoul; the Kyonggi plain,

Escher (von Der Linth), Hans Conrad

2004-12-04T11:00:00.000-08:00

With his friend and political colleague Paul Usteri, Escher founded the Schweizer Republikaner, a journal of moderately reformist opinion. Elected

Narcotic

2004-12-01T06:22:00.000-08:00

The main therapeutic use of narcotics is for pain relief, and hence they are often called narcotic analgesics. The best-known narcotics are the opiates—i.e., compounds

Bridel, Philippe-sirice

2004-11-29T13:16:00.000-08:00

While serving as a pastor at Basel, Châ

Ear, Human, Vestibule

2004-11-27T00:57:00.000-08:00

The two membranous sacs of the vestibule, the utricle and the saccule, are known as the otolith organs (Figure 4). Because they respond to gravitational forces, they are also called gravity receptors. Each sac has on its inner surface a single patch of sensory cells called a macula, which is about 2 millimetres (0.08 inch) in diameter and which monitors the position of the head

Arts, Central Asian

2004-11-26T17:06:00.000-08:00

The performing arts have played an important role in the spiritual and social life of Central Asia, where they evolved as didactic art forms within a religious context. Performance, therefore, occurs in conjunction with some religious or special event. Two main types of performance predominate throughout Tibet, Nepal, Sikkim, Bhutan, Mongolia, and the former Soviet

Aguinaldo, Emilio

2004-11-24T05:57:00.000-08:00

Born of Chinese and Tagalog parentage, he completed his education at the University of Santo Tomás, Manila. In August 1896 he was mayor of Cavite Viejo and was the local leader of the Katipunan, a revolutionary

Plymouth

2004-11-21T15:13:00.000-08:00

Town (township), Windsor county, south-central Vermont, U.S. The town includes the villages of Plymouth, Plymouth Union, and Tyson. It was chartered in 1761 as Saltash and renamed in 1797. Calvin Coolidge, 30th president of the United States, was born (July 4, 1872) in Plymouth in a small house behind the crossroads village store. The homestead in Plymouth Notch where he took the presidential

Wyszynski, Stefan

2004-11-19T01:08:00.000-08:00

After study at Warsaw, Lomza, and Wloclawek, Wyszynski was ordained on his 23rd birthday, Aug. 3, 1924, and was assigned to the basilica at Wloclawek. After gaining a doctorate in sociology and ecclesiastical law at the Catholic University of Lublin, he studied further in France,

Utilitarianism

2004-11-17T01:24:00.000-08:00

In normative ethics, a tradition stemming from the late 18th- and 19th-century English philosophers and economists Jeremy Bentham and John Stuart Mill that an action is right if it tends to promote happiness and wrong if it tends to produce the reverse of happiness—not just the happiness of the performer of the action but also that of everyone affected by it. Such a theory

Pyramid Texts

2004-11-16T18:15:00.000-08:00

Collection of Egyptian mortuary prayers, hymns, and spells intended to protect a dead king or queen and ensure life and sustenance in the hereafter. The texts, inscribed on the walls of the inner chambers of the pyramids, are found at Saqqarah in several 5th- and 6th-dynasty pyramids, of which that of Unas, last king of the 5th dynasty, is the earliest known. The texts constitute

Pien-tsung-lun

2004-11-13T18:23:00.000-08:00

Pinyin Bianzonglun (Chinese: “Discussions of Essentials”), treatise by Hsieh Ling-yun, an early Chinese Buddhist intellectual, valued chiefly as one of the few sources of information about the author's eminent teacher, Tao-sheng (d. 434). According to Tao-sheng, enlightenment is a sudden and all-encompassing experience, rather than a gradual process as described by his contemporaries. This assertion,

Condon, Edward U(hler)

2004-11-11T03:02:00.000-08:00

During World War II Condon made valuable contributions to the development of both atomic energy and radar. In 1943 he helped J. Robert Oppenheimer recruit the group that made the

Macpherson, Sir David (lewis)

2004-11-10T00:55:00.000-08:00

Macpherson emigrated in 1835 from Scotland to Montreal, where he amassed a large fortune in shipping. He moved to Toronto in 1853 and obtained a contract to build a railway line in Canada West (now in Ontario)

Moree

2004-11-07T22:15:00.000-08:00

Town, northern New South Wales, Australia, on the Gwydir River, in the Western Slopes district. Originating in 1848 as a livestock station, it became a village in 1852, a town in 1862, and a municipality in 1890. Its name comes from an Aboriginal word for “rising sun,” “long spring,” or “water hole.” At the junction of the Gwydir and Newell highways, with regular air and rail service to Sydney (319 mi [513 km] southeast),

Gama, Vasco Da, 1er Conde (1st Count) Da Vidigueira

2004-11-04T20:40:00.000-08:00

Portuguese navigator whose voyages to India (1497–99, 1502–03, 1524) opened up the sea route from western Europe to the East by way of the Cape of Good Hope and thus ushered in a new era in world history. He also helped make Portugal a world power.

Sinkiang, Uygur Autonomous Region Of, The economy

2004-11-02T01:40:00.000-08:00

Because of the dry climate, most of the cultivated land in Sinkiang depends entirely on irrigation. The various nationalities in the region have had rich experience in water conservancy techniques, of which the wells of the qanat system in the Turfan and Ha-mi depressions are a fine example. Since the 1950s, these have been greatly supplemented with canals and reservoirs,

Smith Sound

2004-10-31T16:59:00.000-08:00

The sound was discovered in 1616 by William Baffin and named for Sir Thomas Smythe (Smith), promoter of voyages to find a Northwest Passage. It was not until the mid-19th century that any explorer reached

Legal Ethics, Advertising and solicitation

2004-10-29T08:22:00.000-07:00

Traditionally, advertising by lawyers was forbidden almost everywhere. It has been a long-standing principle of professional ethics in Anglo-American countries that an attorney must not seek professional employment through advertising or solicitation, direct or indirect. The reasons commonly given have been that seeking employment through these means

Quintillus, Marcus Aurelius Claudius

2004-10-26T03:00:00.000-07:00

Roman emperor in AD 270, who died or was killed a few weeks after being proclaimed emperor.

Maturidi, Abu Mansur Muhammad Al-

2004-10-24T16:37:00.000-07:00

Except for the place and time of Maturidi's death, almost nothing is known about the details of Maturidi's life. He lived during a time when the Mu'tazilites, a Muslim sect, were using the techniques of Greek logical argument to attack what had

Spanish Moss

2004-10-21T18:11:00.000-07:00

The silvery-gray plant often grows in large, beardlike masses. It has threadlike stems up to 6 to 7.5 metres

Almaty

2004-10-17T09:48:00.000-07:00

Russian Alma-Ata, formerly (1855–1921) Verny, city, southeastern Kazakstan. It was formerly the capital of the Kazakh S.S.R. (1929–91) and of independent Kazakstan (1991–97). Almaty lies in the northern foothills of the Trans-Ili Alatau at an elevation of 2,300–3,000 feet (700–900 m), where the Bolshaya and Malaya Almaatinka rivers emerge into the plain. The modern city was founded in 1854 when the Russians established the military fortification of Zailiyskoye

Karadzic, Vuk Stefanovic

2004-10-15T22:37:00.000-07:00

Karadzic learned to read and write in the old monastery Tronosha (near his native village). Mostly in the

Joubert, Barthélemy-catherine

2004-10-12T07:13:00.000-07:00

Joubert, son of an advocate, ran away from school in 1784 to enlist in the artillery but was brought back and sent to study law at Lyon and Dijon. In 1791 he joined the volunteers of the Ain and fought with the French army in Italy in 1793. By the end of 1796 he was a general of division. He was in charge of the

Mask

2004-10-10T00:51:00.000-07:00

A form of disguise. It is an object that is frequently worn over or in front of the face to hide the identity of a person and by its own features to establish another being. This essential characteristic of hiding and revealing personalities or moods is common to all masks. As cultural objects they have been used throughout the world in all periods since the Stone Age

Kaunda, Kenneth

2004-10-08T05:12:00.000-07:00

Kaunda's father, who was from Nyasaland (now Malawi), was a schoolteacher; his mother, also a teacher, was the first African woman to teach in colonial Zambia. Both taught among the Bemba tribe in northern Zambia, where young Kaunda

Biblical Literature, Haggai

2004-10-06T11:30:00.000-07:00

The Book of Haggai, the 10th book of the Twelve (Minor) Prophets, is a brief work of only two chapters. Written about 520 BCE by the prophet Haggai, the book contains four oracles. The first oracle calls for Zerubbabel, the governor of Judaea, and Joshua, the high priest, to rebuild the Temple (chapter 1, verses 1–11). A drought and poor harvests, according to Haggai, had been caused because the

Lutheranism, Lutheran Confessions

2004-10-04T21:29:00.000-07:00

The official teaching of the Lutheran churches is that of the Book of Concord (1580), which contains the three ancient creeds (Apostles', Nicene, and Athanasian), the Augsburg Confession, the Apology of the Augsburg Confession, Luther's Schmalkaldic Articles, Luther's Small and Large Catechism, Melanchthon's “Treatise on the Power and Primacy of the Pope,” and the Formula of Concord.

Oslo Fjord

2004-10-03T14:21:00.000-07:00

Norwegian Oslofjorden, fjord on the Skagerrak (strait) penetrating the southern coast of Norway for 60 miles (100 km) from about Fredrikstad to Oslo. With an area of 766 square miles (1,984 square km), the fjord occupies a glacier-formed depression, or graben, that has been partially filled and partially reexcavated. The fjord's forested shoreline is dotted with numerous towns and seaports and is one of the most

Fisher, Clara

2004-10-01T03:49:00.000-07:00

Fisher made her stage debut in 1817, at the age of six, in a children's adaptation of David Garrick's Lilliput at the Drury Lane Theatre. Her performance in that and in an afterpiece of excerpts from Richard III captivated

Ribbonism

2004-09-29T14:07:00.000-07:00

Also called Ribandism Irish secret-society movement that began at the end of the 18th century in opposition to the Orange Society, or Protestant Orangemen. It was represented by various associations under different names, organized in lodges, and recruited all over Ireland from the lower classes. The actual name of Ribbonism (from a green badge worn by its members) became attached to the

Shakhty

2004-09-27T14:57:00.000-07:00

Also spelled Šachty, formerly (until 1920) Aleksandrovsk-grushevsky, city, Rostov oblast (province), western Russia. It lies along the upper Grushevka River, 47 miles (75 km) northeast of Rostov-na-Donu. Shakhty developed in the early 19th century as a coal-mining centre and became a city in 1881. It is now the main city of the eastern end of the Donets Basin coalfield and is surrounded by many pits and their waste heaps. (The city's name means “pits” in Russian.)

Biblical Literature, Discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls

2004-09-24T06:34:00.000-07:00

New literary documents from the intertestamental period were found in the caves of Qumran in the vicinity of the Dead Sea in the 1940s, but only a portion of them has yet been published. All the Dead Sea Scrolls were written before the destruction of the Second Temple; with the exception of small Greek fragments, they are all in Hebrew and Aramaic. The scrolls formed the library

Aqueous Humour

2004-09-22T03:39:00.000-07:00

Watery, alkaline liquid that occupies the anterior and posterior chambers of the eye—the space in front of the iris and lens and the ringlike space encircling the lens. The aqueous humour resembles blood plasma in composition, but contains much less protein, less glucose, more lactic acid, and much more ascorbic acid. Aqueous humour is formed from the blood by filtration

Robbins (of Clare Market), Lionel Charles Robbins, Baron

2004-09-21T07:27:00.000-07:00

Robbins was educated at the University of London and the London School of Economics (LSE). After periods of teaching at New College, Oxford, and LSE, he was appointed professor of economics at the latter university in 1929, a position he held until 1961. Robbins was influenced

Anorexia Nervosa

2004-09-19T10:39:00.000-07:00

Body weight may drop to half of normal. Associated

Nordal, Sigurdur Jóhannesson

2004-09-16T00:30:00.000-07:00

Nordal received his doctorate in Old Norse philology from the University of Copenhagen in 1914, with a thesis on the saga of Saint Olaf. He studied philosophy

Sentimental Comedy

2004-09-15T05:42:00.000-07:00

A dramatic genre of the 18th century, denoting plays in which middle-class protagonists triumphantly overcome a series of moral trials. Such comedy aimed at producing tears rather than laughter. Sentimental comedies reflected contemporary philosophical conceptions of humans as inherently good but capable of being led astray through bad example. By an appeal

Floral Decoration, 15th and 16th centuries

2004-09-13T15:29:00.000-07:00

Floral decorations became more studied and elaborate during the Renaissance period of the 15th and 16th centuries. The revival of interest in antiquity influenced the widespread use of garlands and wreaths in Renaissance Europe, especially in Italy. They were popular for pageants and feasts as well as for decorating houses and churches, and were commonly depicted

Actinomyxidian

2004-09-10T07:34:00.000-07:00

Also called Actinosporean, any parasitic microorganism of the class Actinomyxidia (Actinosporea), phylum Myxosporidia (Myxospora). It inhabits the alimentary canal of certain aquatic worms. The characteristic spores develop in the host's gut after the union of large and small gametes. The spores contain three polar filaments (possibly anchoring devices) enclosed in capsules and one to many

More, Henry

2004-09-08T09:09:00.000-07:00

Though reared a Calvinist, More became an Anglican as a youth. At Christ's College, Cambridge, he encountered such Platonists as Edward Fowler and John Worthington. In 1639 he was

Schlesinger, Arthur M(eier)

2004-09-06T10:59:00.000-07:00

Schlesinger graduated from Ohio State University in 1910. When he entered Columbia University, New York City, to continue graduate study in history, he came under the influence of the progressive scholarship of James H. Robinson,

Uccello, Paolo

2004-09-05T00:15:00.000-07:00

Uccello was long thought to be significant primarily for his role in establishing new means of rendering perspective that became a major component of the Renaissance style. The 16th-century biographer Giorgio Vasari said that Uccello was “intoxicated” by perspective. Later historians found the unique charm and decorative genius evinced by his compositions to

Augustine, Saint, Early writings

2004-09-03T07:42:00.000-07:00

Moderns enamoured of Augustine from the narrative in the Confessions have given much emphasis to his short, attractive early works, several of which mirror the style and manner of Ciceronian dialogues with a new, Platonized Christian content: Contra academicos (386; Against the Academics), De ordine (386; On Providence), De beata vita (386; On the Blessed Life), and Soliloquia (386/387; Soliloquies

Southern Africa, Xhosa-Dutch conflict

2004-08-31T20:32:00.000-07:00

Settler expansion to the Cape's eastern frontier was blocked by the 1770s when trekboers came up against numerous Xhosa farmers in the area of the Great Fish River. During the 18th century the Xhosa had been embroiled in two major civil wars over the chiefly succession, of which the more important was the dispute, between the paramount Gcaleka and his ambitious brother