SlowBeach

China, Hsi (Western) Han

2005-04-05T10:42:00.000-07:00

Since at least as early as the Shang dynasty the Chinese had been accustomed to acknowledging the temporal and spiritual authority of a single leader and its transmission within a family, at first from brother to brother and later from father to son. Some of the early kings had been military commanders, and they may have organized the corporate work of the community,

Airplane, Aerodynamics

2005-04-02T06:13:00.000-08:00

An aircraft in straight-and-level unaccelerated flight has four forces acting on it. (In turning, diving, or climbing flight, additional forces come into play.) These forces are lift, an upward-acting force; drag, a retarding force of the resistance to lift and to the friction of the aircraft moving through the air; weight, the downward effect that gravity has on the aircraft;

Breast Cancer

2005-03-31T17:37:00.000-08:00

Disease characterized by the growth of malignant cells in the mammary glands. Breast cancer can strike males and females, although women are about 100 times more likely to develop the disease than men. Most cancers in female breasts form shortly before, during, or after menopause, with three-quarters of all cases being diagnosed after age 50. Generally, the older a woman

Catalexis And Acatalexis

2005-03-30T06:21:00.000-08:00

In prosody, an omission or incompleteness in the last foot of a line or other unit in metrical verse and, conversely, the metrical completeness of such a unit.

Ghana

2005-03-28T15:24:00.000-08:00

Although relatively small in area and population, Ghana is one of the leading countries

Kadoma

2005-03-26T05:13:00.000-08:00

City, Osaka fu (urban prefecture), Honshu, Japan, bordering Osaka city. The city is located on the left bank of the Yodo River and is known for its cultivation of lotus flowers. After the establishment of a railway connection to Osaka in 1909, industrialization was rapid. The Matsushita Electric Industrial Company moved to Kadoma in 1933 to establish factories producing electrical

Grito De Dolores

2005-03-23T20:48:00.000-08:00

Hidalgo was involved in a plot against the Spanish colonial government, and, when the plot was betrayed, he decided to act immediately. After arming the people, he addressed them from the pulpit,

Ithaca

2005-03-21T21:35:00.000-08:00

With an area of 37 square miles (96 square km), Ithaca consists of two limestone masses connected by a narrow, peninsula that curves to form the head of a gulf facing the Greek mainland. The island is separated from the island of Cephallenia to the west by

West Germany

2005-03-19T04:34:00.000-08:00

From 1949 to 1990, a republic consisting of the western two-thirds of what is now Germany. West Germany was created in 1949 when the United States, Great Britain, and France consolidated those zones, or portions, of Germany that they had occupied at the end of World War II. When West and East Germany were reunited in 1990, West Germany's constitution and official name (Federal Republic of Germany)

Frelinghuysen, Frederick Theodore

2005-03-18T15:31:00.000-08:00

Frelinghuysen was born into a family that had long been prominent in politics. Left an orphan at the age of three, he was adopted by his uncle, Theodore Frelinghuysen. He graduated from Rutgers College in 1836, studied law in his uncle's law office,

Aldridge, Ira Frederick

2005-03-17T13:25:00.000-08:00

Herbert Marshall and Mildred Stock, Ira Aldridge: The Negro Tragedian (1958).

Vagus Nerve

2005-03-15T00:03:00.000-08:00

Also called Tenth Cranial Nerve, longest and most complex of the cranial nerves. The vagus nerve runs from the brain through the face and thorax to the abdomen. It is a mixed nerve that contains parasympathetic fibres. The vagus nerve has two sensory ganglia (masses of nerve tissue that transmit sensory impulses): the superior and the inferior ganglia. The branches of the superior ganglion innervate

Qatar

2005-03-13T20:54:00.000-08:00

Officially State of Qatar , Arabic Dawlat Qatar independent emirate on the west coast of the Persian Gulf. It occupies a small desert peninsula that extends from the larger Arabian Peninsula north of eastern Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. It has an area of 4,416 square miles (11,437 square km), the total including a number of nearby small islands and the Hawar Islands (which are also claimed by Bahrain) in the Persian

Kermadec Trench

2005-03-11T10:56:00.000-08:00

Submarine trench in the floor of the South Pacific Ocean, about 750 mi (1,200 km) in length, forming the eastern boundary of the Kermadec Ridge. The two together comprise the southern half of the Tonga–Kermadec Arc, a structural feature completed to the north by the Tonga Trench and Ridge. The Kermadec Trench reaches a maximum depth of 32,962 ft (10,047 m).

Mountain

2005-03-09T14:38:00.000-08:00

Detailed introductions to the European Alps are E.R. Oxburgh, The Geology of the Eastern Alps (1968), concentrating on Austria; and R. Trümpy, An Outline of the Geology of Switzerland, vol. 1 of Geology of Switzerland: A Guide-Book, ed. by the Schweizerische Geologische Kommission (1980). Introductory articles on other mountain belts of the world are found in Scientific American, including the following: Don L. Anderson, “The San Andreas Fault,” 225(5):52–68 (November 1971); Peter Molnar and Paul Tapponnier, “The Collision Between India and Eurasia,” 236(4):30–41 (April 1977), describing the evolution of mountain belts in eastern Asia; and David L. Jones et al., “The Growth of Western North America,” 247(5):70–84 (November 1982), describing the accretion of exotic terrains to that area. Two useful articles in Geological Society of America Bulletin are Tanya Atwater, “Implications of Plate Tectonics for the Cenozoic Tectonic Evolution of Western North America,” 81(12):3513–35 (December 1970), a classic article that changed the way geologists view that region; and John F. Deway et al., “Plate Tectonics and the Evolution of the Alpine System,” 84(10)3137–80 (October 1973), a summary of motions of lithospheric plates and mountain building in the Mediterranean area. See also Peter Molnar, “The Geologic History and Structure of the Himalaya,” American Scientist, 74(2):144–154 (March-April 1986), describing how the structure of the Himalayas allows the chain to achieve its great height.

Moral Theology

2005-03-06T05:57:00.000-08:00

Also called Christian ethics Christian theological discipline concerned with identifying and elucidating the principles that determine the quality of human behaviour in the light of Christian revelation. It is distinguished from the philosophical discipline of ethics, which relies upon the authority of reason and which can only call upon rational sanctions for moral failure. Moral

Computer Virus

2005-03-04T14:21:00.000-08:00

A virus consists of a set of instructions that attaches itself to other computer programs, usually in the computer's operating system,

Tardieu, André

2005-03-03T14:50:00.000-08:00

A member of an upper middle-class family, Tardieu studied at the École Normale Supérieure. After a period in the diplomatic service, he made his reputation as foreign editor of Le Temps. Elected

Hughes, John

2005-03-01T00:49:00.000-08:00

First Roman Catholic archbishop of New York, who became one of the foremost American Roman Catholic prelates of his time. Hughes immigrated in 1816 to the United States, studied at Mount St. Mary's College, Emmitsburg, Md., and was ordained priest in 1826. After serving several parishes in Philadelphia, where he founded the Catholic

Hupeh, Relief

2005-02-27T06:19:00.000-08:00

Almost all of Hupeh Province lies immediately north of the Yangtze River. Hupeh is bounded on the north by the eastern extension of the axis of the Tsinling, T'ung-pai, and Ta-pieh mountains. In the southeast the Mu-fu Mountains divide the province from Kiangsi. Along its central southern border there is no clear physical divide apart from the Yangtze itself: a lake-studded

Diplomacy, New styles of diplomacy

2005-02-25T04:47:00.000-08:00

One result of the breakdown of old premises, mainly in new states, was that diplomatic immunity was breached, and diplomacy became a hazardous career. Disease was no longer the chief killer of diplomats, nor was overindulgence at court; the new hazards were murder, maiming, and kidnapping. Diplomats were a target because they represented states and symbolized privileged

Rouget De Lisle, Claude-joseph

2005-02-23T01:11:00.000-08:00

Author of “La Marseillaise,” the French national anthem. A lowly army officer and only a moderate republican, Rouget de Lisle never wrote anything else of significance. He composed both the words and music of “La Marseillaise” for his comrades in 1792 while stationed at Strasbourg; it was originally called “Chant de guerre de l'armée

Philip Ii

2005-02-20T06:59:00.000-08:00

John II's grant of the duchy of Burgundy to Philip in September 1363 did not become effective until

Zamosc

2005-02-19T16:10:00.000-08:00

City, Zamosc województwo (province), east-central Poland. One of the few large communities in the Lublin uplands, it was founded on the estates of Polish chancellor Jan Zamoyski (1542–1605) that lay on the trade route between the Black Sea and northern and western Europe. In 1578 the Paduan architect Bernardo Morando conceived and implemented the city's modern design, which remains a

Utzon, Jørn

2005-02-17T14:11:00.000-08:00

Utzon studied at the Copenhagen School of Architecture (1937–42) and then spent three years in Stockholm, where he came under the influence of the Swedish architect Erik Gunnar Asplund. He also studied in the United States, and, for a six-month

Offa

2005-02-15T21:00:00.000-08:00

Town, Kwara state, southwestern Nigeria. It lies along the railroad from Lagos and at the intersection of roads from Ilorin town, Lafiagi, and Ikirun. A traditional settlement of the Yoruba people in a savanna area, it now serves as a collecting point for the yams, cassava, corn (maize), sorghum, and shea nuts grown in the surrounding area. Cotton weaving and dyeing (with locally

Gabes, Gulf Of

2005-02-12T21:07:00.000-08:00

Arabic Khalij Qabis, French Golfe De Gabès, Latin Syrtis Minor, inlet, on the east coast of Tunisia, northern Africa. It is 60 miles (100 km) long and 60 miles wide and is bounded by the Qarqannah (Kerkena) Islands on the northeast and by Jarbah (Djerba) Island on the southeast. Except for the Strait of Gibraltar and the Gulf of Venice, it is the only part of the Mediterranean with a substantial tidal range (about 8 feet [2 1/2 m] at spring tides), causing the uncovering

Metal Point

2005-02-11T10:28:00.000-08:00

Descendant of the stylus of classical times and ancestor of the modern pencil, a small, sharpened metal rod used for drawing precise compositions on paper or parchment. The metal could be lead, silver, copper, or gold, but silverpoint was the most common choice because it is the most suited to permanent drawing, its stroke adhering unerasably. The silverpoint was of

Yazata

2005-02-09T20:32:00.000-08:00

In Zoroastrianism, member of an order of angels created by Ahura Mazda to help him maintain the flow of the world order and quell the forces of Ahriman and his demons. They gather the light of the Sun and pour it on the Earth. Their help is indispensable in aiding man to purify and elevate himself. They teach him to dispel demons and free himself of the future torments of

Spontaneous Fission

2005-02-06T01:18:00.000-08:00

Type of radioactive decay in which certain unstable nuclei of heavier elements split into two nearly equal fragments (nuclei of lighter elements) and liberate a large amount of energy. Spontaneous fission, discovered (1941) by the Russian physicists G.N. Flerov and K.A. Petrzhak in uranium-238, is observable in many nuclear species of mass number 230 or more. Among these nuclides,

Music

2005-02-04T07:13:00.000-08:00

In 1994 several pioneers of free improvisation were especially newsworthy. Anthony Braxton (see BIOGRAPHIES) was one of two jazz artists to receive a MacArthur Foundation fellowship during the year. Only a fraction of his music had been documented on recordings, so the appearance of Composition No. 96 (Leo), played by an orchestra directed by Braxton, was welcome even if it

Anne Boleyn

2005-02-02T00:15:00.000-08:00

Anne's father was Sir Thomas Boleyn, later Earl of Wiltshire and Ormonde.

Spanish Literature, Revival of the Spanish novel

2005-01-31T23:52:00.000-08:00

For more than two centuries the novel, with which Spain had made its greatest contribution to literature, had been almost extinct. The first novels of the revival were more interesting for powers of observation and description (a continuation of costumbrismo) than for imaginative or narrative quality. A woman novelist, Fernán Caballero, determined the technique

Ekman, V(agn) Walfrid

2005-01-29T13:04:00.000-08:00

Swedish physical oceanographer best known for his studies of the dynamics of ocean currents. The common oceanographic terms Ekman layer, denoting certain oceanic or atmospheric layers occurring at various interfaces; Ekman spiral, used in connection with vertical oceanic velocity; and Ekman transport, denoting

Scandinavian Literature, The heroic sagas

2005-01-28T14:17:00.000-08:00

The fantastic element was further developed in the fornaldar sögur, literally “the sagas of antiquity,” whose heroes were supposed to have lived in Scandinavia and Germany before Iceland was settled. The best known, the Völsunga saga (c. 1270), retold in prose stories from heroic lays of Sigurd, the Burgundians, and Jörmunrekr, and the Hrólfs saga kraka (c. 1280–1350) incorporated ancient

Natural History Museum

2005-01-26T22:29:00.000-08:00

The museum was formerly an integral part of the British

Henogamy

2005-01-23T22:10:00.000-08:00

The custom by which one, and only one, member of a family is permitted to marry. The classic example is that of the patrilineal Nambudiri Brahmans of Malabar in Tamil Nadu, India; among them, only eldest sons were permitted to marry Nambudiri women and have legitimate children. The custom is concerned with the need to keep property intact and to limit the number of legitimate

World War I, Caporetto

2005-01-22T09:17:00.000-08:00

On the Italian front, Cadorna's 10th Battle of the Isonzo in May–June 1917 won very little ground; but his 11th, from August 17 to September 12, during which General Luigi Capello's 2nd Army captured much of the Bainsizza Plateau (Banjška Planota), north of Gorizia, strained Austrian resistance very severely. To avert an Austrian collapse, Ludendorff decided that the Austrians must take

Stained Glass

2005-01-19T17:19:00.000-08:00

In the arts, the coloured glass used for making decorative windows and other objects through which light passes. Strictly speaking, all coloured glass is “stained,” or coloured by the addition of various metallic oxides while it is in a molten state; nevertheless, the term stained glass has come to refer primarily to the glass employed in making ornamental or pictorial

Catechumens, Liturgy Of The

2005-01-17T17:12:00.000-08:00

The instructional part of the Christian worship service, consisting of hymns, prayers, scriptural readings, and homilies, which precedes the Eucharist (i.e., the Liturgy of the Faithful). In the early church the catechumens, or hearers who had not yet been baptized, were dismissed at the conclusion of the Liturgy of the Catechumens, and the faithful, or baptized Christians,

Eames, Charles; And Eames, Ray

2005-01-15T17:26:00.000-08:00

John Neuhart, Marilyn Neuhart, and Ray Eames, Eames Design: The Work of the Office of Charles and Ray Eames (1989); Pat Kirkham, Charles and Ray Eames: Designers of the Twentieth Century (1995); and Donald Albrecht et al., The Work of Charles and Ray Eames (1997), discuss their work.

Sänger, Eugen

2005-01-13T14:59:00.000-08:00

German rocket propulsion engineer whose projected “antipodal bomber,” with a range far greater than that made possible by its fuel capacity alone, greatly interested the major Western governments and the Soviet Union at the end of World War II. The development of long-range missiles and the difficulties of

Adams, Douglas Noël

2005-01-11T16:19:00.000-08:00

British novelist (b. March 11, 1952, Cambridge, Eng.—d. May 11, 2001, Santa Barbara, Calif.), was the creator of the satiric science-fiction whimsy The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, which first saw life as a radio series and then became a book, a television series, a play, record albums, comic books, and a computer game, gaining cult status along the way. The book and its sequels feature British

Ancillon, Johann Peter Friedrich

2005-01-09T20:23:00.000-08:00

Educated in Geneva, Ancillon acquired a chair in history at the Berlin Military Academy in 1792. After the publication of Tableau des révolutions

Lancaster, Edmund, 1st Earl Of

2005-01-07T08:41:00.000-08:00

At the age of 10, Edmund was invested by Pope Innocent IV with the kingdom of Sicily (April 1255), as an expression of his conflict with the Holy Roman Emperor, who held Sicily; but Edmund was never more than an absentee titular

Halfmoon

2005-01-05T03:09:00.000-08:00

(Medialuna californiensis), edible Pacific fish of the family Kyphosidae (order Perciformes). Some authorities place it in the subfamily Scorpidinae, as distinct from the other Kyphosidae, which are known as sea chubs. Halfmoons are bluish gray in colour, with dark gray fins. They normally reach a length of about 30 centimetres (1 foot). They inhabit Pacific coastal areas

Kaesong

2005-01-03T00:17:00.000-08:00

City, southwestern North Korea. It lies just south of the 38th parallel and northwest of Seoul, South Korea. One of the oldest cities of Korea, Kaesong was the capital of the Koryo dynasty (935–1392). It was formerly called Songdo (“City of Pine”), so named because it is surrounded by pine-covered mountains: Songak (2,506 feet [764 m]), Osong (3,483 feet), Nam (584 feet), and Mansu (754 feet). Kaesong is a castle city enclosed by a

Chemical Banking Corporation

2005-01-02T07:02:00.000-08:00

The holding company's principal subsidiary was Chemical Bank, which was chartered in 1824 in New York City as a division of the New York Chemical Manufacturing Company. Manufacturing activities were dropped in 1832. In 1844 the company was reconstituted as a state bank, and the chemical

Maratha Wars

2004-12-31T20:53:00.000-08:00

The first war (1775–82) began with British support for Raghunath Rao's bid for the office of peshwa (chief minister) of the confederacy. The British were defeated at Wadgaon (see Wadgaon, Convention of ) in January 1779, but they continued to fight the Maratha until conclusion

Katipunan

2004-12-27T04:14:00.000-08:00

In full Kataastaasan Kagalang-galang Na Katipunan Nang Manga Anak Nang Bayan (“Supreme Worshipful Association of the Sons of the People”), Filipino nationalist organization founded in 1892 to oppose Spanish rule. The organization numbered anywhere from 100,000 to 400,000 members. The Filipino nationalist Emilio Aguinaldo was the leader of this group, which successfully fought the Spanish. Most of the members were Tagalogs.

Ambros, August Wilhelm

2004-09-16T17:12:00.000-07:00

Ambros studied law, entered the civil service in 1840, and became public prosecutor in Prague in 1850. A keen, well-trained musician and composer of a Czech opera, Bretislaw a Jitka, he also established himself as a brilliant writer on music. His pamphlet Über

Sessa Aurunca

2004-09-15T05:34:00.000-07:00

Town and episcopal see, Caserta provincia, Campania regione, southern Italy, on a lava deposit of the extinct Roccamonfina volcano, north-northwest of Naples. The town is on the site of the ancient Suessa Aurunca, the chief city of the Aurunci (an ancient Italic tribe), which was punished by the Romans for refusing to pay tribute. Later, it became a Roman municipium and was

Udayanacarya

2004-09-12T05:58:00.000-07:00

Of the two schools, the old Nyaya system was concerned with the critical examination of

Saint Asaph

2004-09-11T00:23:00.000-07:00

Welsh Llanelwy cathedral village, Denbighshire (Sir Ddinbych) county, historic county of Flintshire (Sir Fflint), Wales. It stands beween the Rivers Clwyd and Elwy, from which its Welsh name derives. Asaph, the Celtic ecclesiastic to whom the cathedral is dedicated, was bishop there in the 6th century. The original wooden structure, destroyed by the English in the 13th century, was rebuilt

Gulf Oil Corporation

2004-09-08T10:15:00.000-07:00

Gulf Oil was originally incorporated in 1907 but had beginnings going back to the tapping in 1901 of an enormous oil gusher on Spindletop Hill, near Beaumont, Texas. The development of this well was funded by the Mellon family of Pittsburgh banking fame. Following the discovery, Thomas Mellon built

Ricimer

2004-09-06T20:33:00.000-07:00

Ricimer's father was a chief of the Suebi (a Germanic people) and his mother was a Visigothic princess. Early in his military career he befriended the future emperor Majorian. After turning back an attempted Vandal invasion of Sicily at Agrigentum (modern Agrigento) in 456, Ricimer was appointed master

Razor Clam

2004-09-05T02:46:00.000-07:00

Any of the species of marine bivalve mollusks of the family Solenidae. In England the species of the genera Ensis and Solen are called razor shells. The Solenidae are common in intertidal sands and muds, particularly of temperate seas. These bivalves have narrow and elongated razorlike shells up to about 20 cm (8 inches) long. They have a large active foot that enables them

Distribution

2004-09-01T23:16:00.000-07:00

Also called Distribution Of Terms, in syllogistics, the application of a term of a proposition to the entire class that the term denotes. A term is said to be distributed in a given proposition if that proposition implies all other propositions that differ from it only in having, in place of the original term, any other term whose extension is a part of that of the original term—i.e., if, and only if, the term

Ardabil Carpet

2004-08-29T19:00:00.000-07:00

Either of two Persian floor coverings that are among the most famous examples of early classical Persian workmanship. The larger one measures 34 feet by 17.5 feet (10.4 by 5.3 m), and both carpets have a silk warp and wool pile. The carpets were completed in 1539–40, during the reign of the Safavid ruler Shah Tahmasp I (1524–76), and they were originally laid in the Mosque of Ardabil, in the Iranian province of

Sinkiang, Uygur Autonomous Region Of, Drainage

2004-08-27T19:31:00.000-07:00

The drainage pattern of Sinkiang is unique to China. The only stream whose waters reach the sea is the O-erh-ch'i-ssu, which rises in north-central Sinkiang, crosses into Kazakstan, and joins the Irtysh that (in Russia) flows into the Ob, which then empties into the Arctic Ocean. Other streams in Sinkiang issue from the mountains and disappear into inland deserts or salt

Lightning Rod

2004-08-25T21:46:00.000-07:00

Metallic rod (usually copper) that protects a structure from lightning damage by intercepting flashes and guiding their currents into the ground. Because lightning tends to strike the highest object in the vicinity, rods are typically placed at the apex of a structure and along its ridges; they are connected to the ground by low-impedance cables. In the case of a building,

Pijao

2004-08-23T22:43:00.000-07:00

Extinct Indian people of the southern highlands of Colombia. The Pijao spoke a language of the Chibchan family, related to that of the Páez, their neighbours to the south. They were agriculturists, raising corn (maize), sweet manioc (yuca), beans, potatoes, and many fruits; they also hunted and fished. They lived in settlements of several families in houses built of wood and

Atatürk, Kemal

2004-08-23T08:15:00.000-07:00

Mustafa Kemal's career almost ended soon after his graduation when it was discovered that he and several friends were meeting to read about and discuss political abuses within the empire. A government spy infiltrated their group and informed on them. A cloud of suspicion hung over their heads that was not to be lifted for years. The group was broken up and its members

Osco-umbrian Languages

2004-08-21T01:55:00.000-07:00

Language group proposed by some scholars to be included in the Italic branch of Indo-European languages. The group includes Oscan, Umbrian, and the minor dialects of central Italy—Marsian, Marrucinian, Paelignian, Sabine, Vestinian, and Volscian. Oscan, the language imposed by the Samnites on the Osci of Campania, is known from over 200 inscriptions dated between 400 and 89 BC. Umbrian

Bharatpur

2004-08-20T10:02:00.000-07:00

Also called Bhurtpore town, eastern Rajasthan state, northwestern India. It lies 34 miles (55 km) west of Agra. The town, which was the capital of the former princely state of Bharatpur, was founded about 1733. A communications centre connected by road and rail with Jaipur, Agra, and Mathura, Bharatpur is an important industrial and agricultural market centre. Its major industries include oil mills, metal-fabricating

Libertarianism, Nonaggression axiom

2004-08-20T09:14:00.000-07:00

According to the principle that libertarians call the nonaggression axiom, all acts of aggression against the rights of others—whether committed by individuals or by governments—are unjust. Indeed, libertarians believe that the primary purpose of government is to protect citizens from the illegitimate use of force. Accordingly, governments may not use force

The Environment

2004-08-18T18:50:00.000-07:00

To the surprise of professional horticulturists, computers had a large impact on the field in 1997. Academics led the way, and numerous universities in industrialized countries converted their reference resources to on-line, searchable form, making them freely available via the World Wide Web. The types of information that were obtained from these sites included

Sankt Gallen

2004-08-18T02:11:00.000-07:00

French Saint-gall, canton, northeastern Switzerland, bounded north by Lake Constance (Bodensee); east by the Rhine Valley, which separates it from the Austrian Vorarlberg Bundesland (federal state) and from Liechtenstein; south by the cantons of Graubünden, Glarus, and Schwyz; west by the canton of Zürich; and northwest by the canton of Thurgau. Appenzell Ausser-Rhoden and Appenzell Inner-Rhoden

Gabelle

2004-08-17T05:37:00.000-07:00

In the 14th century the gabelle denoted any tax on the sale of consumer goods; an ordinance of 1360 made it a permanent tax. In the 15th century the gabelle began to mean specifically the salt tax, that is, a tax on consumption of salt. The nobility, the clergy, and certain other privileged

Bridie, James

2004-08-16T14:13:00.000-07:00

Trained at the University of Glasgow's medical school, Bridie maintained a successful general practice (until 1938) and served as a physician in World War I and World War II. His first play, The Sunlight Sonata (1928), written under the pseudonym

Torch Cactus

2004-08-15T15:20:00.000-07:00

T. pasacana, a stout tree up to 10.5 m in height,

Hughes, John Ceiriog

2004-08-14T17:18:00.000-07:00

After working successively as a grocer's helper, a clerk in Manchester, and a railway official in Wales, Hughes began winning poetry prizes in the 1850s and thereafter published several volumes of verse, the first

Out Islands

2004-08-12T10:26:00.000-07:00

The islands that make up The Bahamas apart from New Providence Island. Extending eastward off the Florida coast to just north of Hispaniola are about 3,000 islands and rocks, with a combined area of about 4,000 square miles (10,500 square km). About 20 of the islands are permanently inhabited. Pop. (1980) 74,068.

Buber, Martin

2004-08-11T18:56:00.000-07:00

German-Jewish religious philosopher, biblical translator and interpreter, and master of German prose style. Buber's philosophy was centred on the encounter, or dialogue, of man with other beings, particularly exemplified in the relation with other men but ultimately resting on and pointing to the relation with God. This thought

Murchison, Ira

2004-08-11T09:56:00.000-07:00

In 1951 Murchison was Illinois high-school champion in the 100- and 220-yard dashes. In 1956 he ran the leadoff leg of the 4 ´ 100-metre relay for the United States at the Olympic Games in Melbourne, Australia, and helped propel the U.S. team to a gold medal in a world-record time of 39.5 sec.

Cosmas And Damian, Saints

2004-08-09T15:03:00.000-07:00

According to Christian tradition, Cosmas and Damian were educated in Syria and became distinguished

Arabia, History Of, Arabia since 1962

2004-08-08T21:16:00.000-07:00

Political changes in Yemen and Saudi Arabia during the early 1960s epitomized a vast transformation of the Arabian Peninsula that affected the lives of most of its inhabitants. In 1962 Egyptian-trained Yemeni officers led a coup d'état and invited Egypt to send troops to support the republic. The imam's forces, although backed by Saudi Arabia during five years of war against

Austria, The accession of the Habsburgs

2004-08-08T16:08:00.000-07:00

As the German princes had not cared to give Rudolf adequate support against Otakar, he did not feel bound to them and set out to acquire the former Babenberg lands for his own house. In 1281 he made his eldest son, Albert (later Albert I, king of Germany), governor of Austria and Styria; on Christmas, 1282, he invested his two sons, Albert and Rudolf II, with Austria, Styria, and Carniola,

Pippin Iii

2004-08-06T17:24:00.000-07:00

The pope was in need of aid. Aistulf, king of the Lombards, had seized Ravenna with its lands, known as the exarchate. Soon, Lombard troops marched south, surrounded Rome, and prepared to lay siege to its walls. So matters stood when in 752 Zacharias died and Stephen II became pope. In November 753 Pope Stephen made his way over the stormy mountain passes to Frankish territory. He

Condensation Reaction

2004-08-05T16:09:00.000-07:00

Any of a class of organic reactions in which two molecules combine, usually in the presence of a catalyst, with elimination of water or some other simple molecule. The combination of two identical molecules is known as self-condensation. Aldehydes, ketones, esters, alkynes (acetylenes), and amines are among several organic compounds that combine with each other and,

Delibes, (clément-philibert-)léo

2004-08-05T06:49:00.000-07:00

French opera and ballet composer who was the first to write music of high quality for the ballet. His pioneering symphonic work for the ballet opened up a field for serious composers, and his influence can be traced in the work of Tchaikovsky and others who wrote for the dance. His own music—light, graceful, elegant, with a tendency

Wild Oat

2004-08-03T09:29:00.000-07:00

The best-known species is A. fatua, which has become a common field and roadside weed in temperate Australia, North America, and southern Africa. It grows in small tufts about 0.9 to 1.2 m (3 to 4 feet) tall.

Jackson, Helen Hunt

2004-08-02T13:23:00.000-07:00

She was the daughter of Nathan Fiske, a professor at Amherst (Mass.) College. She lived the life of a young army wife, traveling from post to post, and after the deaths of her first husband, Captain Edward Hunt, and her two sons, in 1863 she turned to writing. She

Giordano, Luca

2004-07-31T09:52:00.000-07:00

The most celebrated and prolific Neapolitan painter of the late 17th century. His nickname Luca fa presto (“Luca, work quickly”) is said to derive from his painter-copyist father's admonitions, which were certainly heeded. His other nickname, Proteus, was acquired as a result of his reputed skill in producing pastiches in the style of almost any artist.

Reproductive System Disease, Inflammatory conditions

2004-07-30T14:02:00.000-07:00

Balanitis, or inflammation of the glans penis, and posthitis, or infection of the prepuce, result from the retention of secretions and bacteria beneath the foreskin and can be prevented with good sexual hygiene. Balanitis can also develop as a complication of certain sexually transmitted diseases. Acute prostatitis, inflammation of the prostate gland, may be caused

Saco

2004-07-29T03:56:00.000-07:00

City, York county, southwestern Maine, U.S., at the mouth of the Saco River opposite Biddeford. Founded with Biddeford in 1631 as a single plantation, it was the seat of Sir Ferdinando Gorges' government (1636–53) before passing to Massachusetts. It was called Saco until 1718 and Biddeford until it was separately incorporated (1762) as Pepperellboro Township. It developed a lumbering and seaport

Udon Thani

2004-07-28T23:10:00.000-07:00

Town, northeastern Thailand, near the northern (Laotian) border. Udon Thani is the major town of the northern Khorat Plateau and is served by road, rail, and air. The surrounding area produces rice, livestock, timber, and freshwater fish. Pop. (1986 est.) 82,706.

Computers, UNIVAC

2004-07-27T03:13:00.000-07:00

After leaving the Moore School, Eckert and Mauchly struggled to obtain capital to build their latest design, a computer they called the Universal Automatic Computer, or UNIVAC. (In the meantime, they contracted with the Northrop Corporation to build the Binary Automatic Computer, or BINAC, which, when completed in 1949, became the first American stored-program computer.)

Szell, George

2004-07-25T17:31:00.000-07:00

A child prodigy on the piano, Szell was educated in Vienna. His conducting debut came at the age of 16 with the Vienna Symphony Orchestra.

Tea Production

2004-07-24T19:12:00.000-07:00

Cultivation of the tea plant, usually done in large commercial operations. The plant, a species of evergeen (Camellia sinensis), is valued for its young leaves and leaf buds, from which the tea beverage is produced. This article treats the cultivation of the tea plant. For information on the processing of tea and the history of its use, see the article tea.

Computers, The personal computer revolution

2004-07-23T18:27:00.000-07:00

Michael S. Malone, The Big Score: The Billion-Dollar Story of Silicon Valley (1985), explains how the invention of the semiconductor transformed Silicon Valley.

Pietersburg

2004-07-22T21:57:00.000-07:00

Town and capital of Northern province, South Africa. It is located about midway between Pretoria and the Zimbabwe border, at an elevation of 4,199 feet (1,280 m). The town was founded by Voortrekkers (Afrikaans: “Pioneers”) in 1886 on land purchased in 1884 from a local farmer and was named after Petrus (Piet) Joubert, a Boer general. It was the temporary capital in 1900 of both the Transvaal and the Orange

Switzerland, Crop cultivation at high altitudes

2004-07-22T08:53:00.000-07:00

The Alpine pastures of the Monte Rosa region reach an altitude of 10,800 feet, and until recently the highest Alpine grainfields, which have fallen victim to the decline in Alpine agriculture, lay above Zermatt at an altitude of 6,900 feet. The highest vineyard of central Europe, at an altitude of 3,900 feet, is still located near Visperterminen in the Valais. The largest vineyards are

Nepali Literature

2004-07-21T16:16:00.000-07:00

The body of writings in the Nepali language of Nepal. Before the Gurkha (Gorkha) conquest of Nepal in 1768, Nepalese writings were in Sanskrit and Newari as well as Nepali (the latter being the language of the Gurkha conquerors). These writings consisted of religious texts, chronicles, gift-deeds, and so on. The extant material in Nepali, with the possible exception of the memoirs

Europe, History Of, The revolutions of 1848

2004-07-20T00:29:00.000-07:00

France's monarchy had turned toward greater repression in the 1840s, spurring new liberal agitation. Artisan concerns also had quickened, against their loss of status and shifts in work conditions following from rapid economic change; a major recession in 1846–47 added to popular unrest. Some socialist ideas spread among artisan leaders, who urged a regime in which workers

France, History Of, Gaul under the late Roman Empire (c. 250c. 400)

2004-07-18T01:49:00.000-07:00

High Roman Gaul came to an end in an empirewide crisis characterized by foreign invasions and a rapid succession of rulers, as increased pressure on the empire's frontiers exacerbated its internal economic and political weaknesses. Priority was given to holding the Danube and the East; despite sporadic visits by emperors, the West was neglected. In 260 and 276 Gaul suffered

Wild Rye

2004-07-17T09:28:00.000-07:00

Sea lyme, or dune, grass (E. arenarius) is a Eurasian species 0.6 to 2.5 m (2 to 8 feet)

Paprika

2004-07-17T09:01:00.000-07:00

C. annuum is cultivated throughout most of the world for its pods, often called chili peppers, or chilies. The species includes most of

Singhasari

2004-07-16T23:00:00.000-07:00

Kingdom based in eastern Java that emerged in the first half of the 13th century after the decline of the kingdom of Kadiri. Singhasari's first king, Ken Angrok (or Ken Arok), defeated the king of Kadiri, Kertajaya, in 1222. The last king of Singhasari, Kertanagara (q.v.; 1268–92), was able to unite eastern Java temporarily. Toward the end of Kertanagara's reign, Kublai Khan, the great khan of the Mongols

Andes Mountains, Physiography of the Central Andes

2004-07-15T23:43:00.000-07:00

The Central Andes begin at latitude 35° S, at a point where the cordillera undergoes a sharp change of character. Its width increases to about 50 miles, and it becomes arid and higher; the passes, too, are higher and more difficult to cross. Glaciers are rare and found only at high elevations. There is virtually no vegetation, lakes having disappeared north of 39° S and forests north