BadShoe

Al-

2005-03-18T17:47:00.000-08:00

Arabic definite article, meaning “the.” It often prefixes Arabic proper nouns, especially place-names; an example is Al-Jazirah (Arabic: “The Island”), the name of an interfluvial region in The Sudan. The article is often used in lowercase form, hence al-Jazirah. Reference works, including Encyclopædia Britannica, often alphabetize names beginning with al- under the main part

Arabic Language

2005-03-16T23:02:00.000-08:00

Arabic is the language of the Qur'an (or Koran, the sacred book of Islam) and the religious language of all Muslims. Literary Arabic, usually called Classical Arabic, is essentially the form of the language

Earth, Measurement of the field

2005-03-15T18:24:00.000-08:00

Magnetic fields can be measured in various ways. The simplest measurement technique still employed today involves the use of the compass, a device consisting of a permanently magnetized needle that is balanced to pivot in the horizontal plane. In the presence of a magnetic field and in the absence of gravity, a magnetized needle aligns itself exactly along the

Epicureanism

2005-03-12T14:39:00.000-08:00

In a strict sense, the philosophy taught by Epicurus (341–270 BC). In a broad sense, it is a system of ethics embracing every conception or form of life that can be traced to the principles of his philosophy. In ancient polemics, as often since, the term was employed with an even more generic (and clearly erroneous) meaning as the equivalent of hedonism, the doctrine that pleasure or

Huguenot

2005-03-11T16:58:00.000-08:00

Any of the Protestants in France in the 16th and 17th centuries, many of whom suffered severe persecution for their faith. The origin of the name is uncertain, but it appears to have come from the word aignos, derived from the German Eidgenossen (confederates bound together by oath), which used to describe, between 1520 and 1524, the patriots of Geneva hostile to the duke of Savoy. The

Undersea Cable

2005-03-08T00:04:00.000-08:00

Also called Marine Cable, assembly of conductors enclosed by an insulating sheath and laid on the ocean floor for the transmission of messages. Undersea cables for transmitting telegraph signals antedated the invention of the telephone; the first undersea telegraph cable was laid in 1850 between England and France. The Atlantic was spanned in 1858 between Ireland and Newfoundland, but the cable's

Chalcocite

2005-03-07T05:11:00.000-08:00

A sulfide mineral that is one of the most important ores of copper. Valuable occurrences include deposits of sulfide minerals at Ely, Nev., and Morenci, Ariz., where other components of the original rock have been dissolved away; it is also found with bornite in the sulfide veins of Tsumeb, Namibia, and Butte, Mont. For detailed physical properties, see sulfide mineral

M'clure Strait

2005-03-05T10:03:00.000-08:00

Eastern arm of the Beaufort Sea of the Arctic Ocean. It is about 170 miles (270 km) long and 60 miles (90 km) wide. In western Franklin District, Northwest Territories, Canada, it extends west of Viscount Melville Sound and lies between Melville and Eglinton islands (north) and Banks Island (south). The strait is part of the Northwest Passage route through the Canadian Arctic archipelago.

Masaka

2005-03-02T04:51:00.000-08:00

Town, southern Uganda, situated about 80 miles (130 km) southwest of Kampala (the national capital), at an elevation of 4,300 feet (1,310 m). Roads connect it with Mbirizi, Lyantonde, and Mbarara. It is a market town and important commercial centre for the surrounding rich coffee-growing area. Its industries produce processed meat and fish, beverages, footwear, furniture, bakery products, glass,

John Of Beverley, Saint

2005-03-01T03:19:00.000-08:00

After studies at St. Augustine's Monastery, Canterbury, Kent, under the celebrated abbot St. Adrian, John entered Whitby Abbey, Yorkshire. In 687 he succeeded St. Eata as bishop of Hexham, Northumberland, and in 705 was consecrated bishop of York. He founded a

Aureus

2005-02-27T07:41:00.000-08:00

Basic gold monetary unit of ancient Rome and the Roman world. It was first named nummus aureus (“gold money”), or denarius aureus, and was equal to 25 silver denarii; a denarius equaled 10 bronze asses. (In 89 BC, the sestertius, equal to one-quarter of a denarius, replaced the bronze ass as a unit of account.) In Constantine's reform of AD 312, the aureus was replaced by the solidus as the basic monetary

Ventilating

2005-02-24T08:40:00.000-08:00

The hazards of poor ventilation were not clearly understood until the early

Pankhurst, Dame Christabel Harriette

2005-02-23T07:27:00.000-08:00

A daughter of suffrage activist Emmeline Pankhurst and a sister of Sylvia Pankhurst, Christabel Pankhurst advocated the use of militant tactics to win the vote for women in England. With her mother she founded the Women's

Ayer, Sir A.j.

2005-02-21T20:48:00.000-08:00

Ayer graduated from Eton College and from Christ Church, Oxford (B.A., 1932; M.A., 1936). He was exposed to logical positivism in 1932 during a stay in Vienna. He began teaching at the University of Oxford in 1932 and served in

Narai

2005-02-18T23:54:00.000-08:00

Narai was a son of King Prasat Thong by a queen who was a daughter of King Song Tham, and he came to the throne after violent palace upheavals had cut short the reigns of his elder brother and his uncle.

Amphitrite

2005-02-17T08:30:00.000-08:00

In Greek mythology, the goddess of the sea, wife of the god Poseidon, and one of the 50 (or 100) daughters (the Nereids) of Nereus and Doris (the daughter of Oceanus). Poseidon chose Amphitrite from among her sisters as the Nereids performed a dance on the isle of Naxos. Refusing his offer of marriage, she fled to Atlas, from whom she was retrieved by a dolphin sent by Poseidon. Amphitrite

Performing Arts, Africa.

2005-02-14T01:47:00.000-08:00

In Senegal, Joseph Gaï Ramaka's Karmen Geï translated Prosper Merimée's Carmen to modern Africa and a sexually more complex society, while Moussa Sene Absa's Madame Brouette was a lively music-driven story of independent women in revolt against feckless and self-serving men. From Chad, Mahamet Saleh Haroun's Abouna (Our Father) related the optimistic saga of two young

Fiscal Policy

2005-02-12T15:30:00.000-08:00

The usual goals of both fiscal and monetary policy are to achieve or maintain full employment, to achieve or

Robert The Strong

2005-02-11T06:51:00.000-08:00

Count of various regions between the Seine and Loire rivers, Robert served the Carolingian king of France Charles II the Bald and, by his bold and inspiring military leadership, succeeded in checking the depredations of the Northmen who were laying waste the settlements near the Loire. A great victory

Goa

2005-02-08T10:33:00.000-08:00

Goa, with a coastline of 65 miles, is hilly and includes a portion of the Western Ghats rising to nearly 4,000 feet. The two largest rivers are the Mandavi and Zuari, between the mouths of which lies the island of Goa (Ilhas). The island is triangular, the apex (called the cape) being a rocky headland separating the harbour of Goa into two anchorages. There are three principal cities in

Maun

2005-02-07T08:50:00.000-08:00

Village, northwestern Botswana. It lies at the southern edge of the Okavango Swamp, northeast of Lake Ngami. The traditional capital of the Tswana people, Maun is the centre of the safari and game industry for the Okavango River delta and the Moremi Game Reserve. Pop. (1991) 26,768.

Backpacking

2005-02-05T00:25:00.000-08:00

Sport of hiking while carrying clothing, food, and camping equipment in a pack on the back. Originally, in the early 20th century, backpacking was practiced in the wilderness as a means of getting to areas inaccessible by car or by day hike. It demands physical conditioning and practice, knowledge of camping and survival techniques, and selection of equipment of a minimum

Kofu

2005-02-02T02:30:00.000-08:00

Capital, Yamanashi ken (prefecture), Honshu, Japan. Kofu lies in the fertile Kofu Basin, west of Tokyo. Long a centre of sericulture, the city adjusted to the decline in silk demand by producing other textiles, increasing viticulture, and developing nearby hot springs. Locally mined rock crystal became the basis of a jewelry industry, but most rock crystal is now imported.

Rabbula

2005-02-01T15:49:00.000-08:00

Reforming bishop of Edessa and theologian who was a leading figure in the Christian church in Syria. He advocated the orthodox Alexandrian (Egypt) position in the 5th-century controversy with the Antiochian (Syria) school of Nestorianism, a heretical teaching that denied that the person of Christ possessed both a divine and

Great Eastern

2005-01-30T06:36:00.000-08:00

Steamship considered to be the prototype of the modern ocean liner. Designed by Isambard Kingdom Brunel and John Scott Russell for the Eastern Navigation Company to carry cargo and passengers between England and India, it was the largest ship in the world at the time of its launching (1858), displacing 32,160 tons and measuring 692 feet (211 metres) overall. It had a projected speed of

Saavedra Fajardo, Diego De

2005-01-28T00:32:00.000-08:00

After studying law at the University of Salamanca, Saavedra went to Rome, where he served under the

Pap Smear

2005-01-25T13:52:00.000-08:00

Also called Papanicolaou smear laboratory method of obtaining secretions from the cervix for the examination of cast-off epithelial cells to detect the presence of cancer. The Pap smear, named for Greek-born American physician George Papanicolaou, is notably reliable in detecting the early stages of cancer in the uterine cervix. Two specimens are usually taken for laboratory staining and

Kabila, Laurent-désiré

2005-01-23T22:19:00.000-08:00

Congolese political leader (b. Nov. 27, 1939, Jadotville, Katanga province, Belgian Congo—confirmed dead on Jan. 18, 2001, Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo [DRC; formerly Zaire]), was president of the DRC from 1997 until his death. In 1960, after studying in France and Tanzania, Kabila became a youth leader in a political party allied to Congo's first postindependence prime minister, Marxist-Maoist

Mammal, The evolution of the mammalian condition

2005-01-21T18:05:00.000-08:00

Mammals were derived in the Triassic Period from members of the reptilian order Therapsida. The therapsids, members of the subclass Synapsida (sometimes called the mammal-like reptiles), generally were unimpressive in relation to other reptiles of their time. Synapsids were present in the Carboniferous Period (about 280,000,000 to 345,000,000 years ago) and are one of the earliest known

Bío-bío River

2005-01-19T14:54:00.000-08:00

River in south-central Chile. It rises in the Andes on Chile's eastern border and flows generally northwestward to enter the Gulf of Arauco on the Pacific Ocean near Concepción after a course of 240 miles (380 km). The Bío-Bío River traverses the fertile Central Valley and then forms the only major transverse valley through the coastal mountain range. Although it is one of Chile's

Württemberg

2005-01-18T14:58:00.000-08:00

Former German state, successively a countship, a duchy, a kingdom, and a republic before its partition after World War II. Its territory approximated the central and eastern areas of present-day Baden-Württemberg (q.v.) Land (state), of Germany. For the last period of its separate existence, Württemberg was bounded northeast and east by Bavaria, southeast by Bavaria and

Habeas Corpus

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

An ancient common-law writ, issued by a court or judge directing one who holds another in his custody to produce the body of the person before the court for some specified purpose. Although there have been and are many varieties of the writ, the most important is that used to correct violations of personal liberty by directing judicial inquiry into the legality of

Arakan Mountain Range

2005-01-13T20:17:00.000-08:00

Burmese Arakan Yoma mountain arc in western Myanmar (Burma), between the Arakan coast and the Irrawaddy River valley. The arc extends northward for about 600 miles (950 km) from Cape Negrais (Myanmar) to Manipur (India) and includes the Naga, Chin, Lushai, and Patkai hills. The mountain range itself is about 250 miles (400 km) long. Its highest point is Mount Victoria (10,150 feet [3,094 m]). Dividing the Arakan coast from the rest

Coase, Ronald

2005-01-12T18:28:00.000-08:00

Coase attended the London School of Economics, where he received a bachelor of commerce degree in 1932 and a Ph.D. in economics in 1951. He was employed at various universities, including the London School of Economics (1935–51), the University of Buffalo, New York

Tu-yün

2005-01-10T05:47:00.000-08:00

Pinyin Duyun, city in central Kweichow sheng (province), China. Situated some 60 miles (100 km) southeast of the provincial capital of Kuei-yang, Tu-yün is a transport centre, with a highway route running eastward into Hunan province and a main route, followed by a highway and railway, running south to Liu-chou in Kwangsi province. It is approximately 25 miles (40 km) south by rail from the junction

Dvija

2005-01-08T18:57:00.000-08:00

(Sanskrit: “twice-born”), in the Hindu social system, members of the three upper varnas, or social classes—the Brahmans (priests and teachers), Kshatriya (warriors), and Vaisya (merchants)—whose sacrament of initiation is regarded as a second or spiritual birth. The initiation ceremony (upanayana; q.v.) invests the male caste members with a sacred thread, a loop worn next to the skin

Aldfrith

2005-01-06T00:12:00.000-08:00

King of Northumbria (685–704) and patron of literature. An illegitimate son of Oswiu, he succeeded to the throne when his brother Ecgfrith was killed at the Battle of Nechtansmere. Educated for the priesthood, he stimulated the growth of scholarship in Northumbria during his reign, producing conditions under which the historian Bede flourished.

Tudor, Antony

2005-01-03T01:15:00.000-08:00

He began his dance studies at 19 years of age with Marie Rambert and for her company choreographed his first ballet, Cross-Gartered (1931), based on an incident in Shakespeare's Twelfth Night. In 1938 he founded his own company,

Newhall, Nancy

2005-01-01T11:19:00.000-08:00

She attended Smith College and was a member of the Art Students League of New York. Her career began in 1943, when she became acting curator of the photography department at the Museum of Modern

Vitamin, Vitamin K group

2004-12-30T08:06:00.000-08:00

Vitamin K1 (20) is synthesized by plants; the members of the vitamin K2 (30) series are of microbial origin. Vitamin K2 (20) is the important form in mammalian tissue; all other forms are converted to K2 (20) from vitamin K3. Since vitamin K3 does not accumulate in tissue, it does not furnish any dietary vitamin K. Vitamins K4, K5, K6, and K7 have been synthesized and have vitamin K activity, but they are

Perspective

2004-12-29T19:51:00.000-08:00

Perceptual methods of representing space and volume, which render them as seen at a particular time and from a fixed position and are characteristic of Chinese and most Western

Telescope, Gamma-ray telescopes

2004-12-27T10:15:00.000-08:00

These instruments require the use of grazing-incidence techniques similar to those employed with X-ray telescopes. Gamma rays are the shortest (about 0.1 angstrom or less) known waves in the electromagnetic spectrum. As mentioned above, HEAO-3 was developed to collect data from cosmic gamma-ray sources. NASA and collaborative international agencies have numerous

Macdowell, Edward (alexander)

2004-12-24T07:34:00.000-08:00

MacDowell first studied in New York with Teresa Carreño and then at the Conservatoire (1876–78) in Paris. In 1878 he went to Germany to study composition

Kirchner, Ernst Ludwig

2004-12-20T16:12:00.000-08:00

In 1898 Kirchner was impressed by the graphic art of the German late Gothic artists,

Cetacean, Feeding adaptations

2004-12-18T21:29:00.000-08:00

Before cetaceans evolved aquatic adaptations, they had a fully differentiated set of teeth (heterodont dentition), including incisors, canines, premolars, and molars. As the animals became more adapted to aquatic locomotion and lost the ability to manipulate food with their forelimbs, they started grabbing their food and swallowing it whole. In toothed

Dowson, Ernest (christopher)

2004-12-17T17:32:00.000-08:00

As a boy Dowson lived an unsettled life. In 1886 he entered Queen's College, Oxford, but left in 1888 when a decline in his father's fortunes obliged him to work at his father's dock in the Limehouse district in London. Dowson was an active member of the Rhymers' Club,

Bench

2004-12-15T18:03:00.000-08:00

Long seat that may be freestanding, fixed to the wall, or placed against the wall. Paneled benches were used by the Romans, and they were the most common form of seating in medieval halls at a time when a chair was a rare luxury. Benches were not only used as seats but were normally wide enough to be used for sleeping on or eating from; as the Frankish ecclesiastic and historian

Cabbage Looper

2004-12-12T03:17:00.000-08:00

Distinctive green, white-lined larva, or caterpillar, of Trichoplusia ni, of the owlet moth family Noctuidae (order Lepidoptera). Like other larvae in this family, the cabbage looper lacks the usual lepidopteran legs beneath the mid-region of the body, which therefore rises up in a loop when the tail advances while the head stands still. It is an economic pest of cabbages

Chuuk Islands

2004-12-11T10:56:00.000-08:00

Formerly Truk Islands, or Hogoleu, cluster of 14 much-eroded high volcanic islands in Chuuk State, Federated States of Micronesia, in the western Pacific Ocean. Forming part of the eastern Caroline Islands, the Chuuk Islands are enclosed within an encircling barrier bank composed of some 69 sand and coral islets. The bank (often referred to as a reef) encloses a lagoon of 822 square miles (2,129 square km) in area and

Hooke's Law

2004-12-08T17:13:00.000-08:00

Law of elasticity discovered by the English scientist Robert Hooke in 1660, which states that, for relatively small deformations of an object, the displacement or size of the deformation is directly proportional to the deforming force or load. Under these conditions the object returns to its original shape and size upon removal of the load. Elastic behaviour of solids

Ringtailed Cat

2004-12-07T14:52:00.000-08:00

Carnivorous mammal, a species of cacomistle (q.v.).

Vaughan, Frankie

2004-12-04T05:05:00.000-08:00

British theatre and cabaret singer who was one of the most popular romantic crooners of the 1950s through the '90s; darkly handsome and elegantly dressed, “Mr. Moonlight” (as he was known from his signature tune, “Give Me the Moonlight”) also appeared on television in Britain, the U.S., and across Europe and in motion pictures, notably in a musical number with Marilyn Monroe in Let's

God, Peace Of

2004-12-02T01:36:00.000-08:00

The Peace of God is first heard of in the year 990 at three synods held in different parts of southern and central France—at Charroux, Narbonne, and Puy. It enlisted the immediate support of the regular clergy and of William V of Aquitaine, the

Mana

2004-12-01T08:37:00.000-08:00

Town, northwestern French Guiana, on the south bank of the Mana River, near its mouth on the Atlantic coast. It originated in 1830 around an orphanage founded by a French nun and, after 1848, also served as a refuge for runaway and newly emancipated slaves. The site of a large leprosarium, its economy is basically agricultural, including sugarcane and cattle. Pop. (1982) mun. 1,721.

Junee

2004-11-29T13:53:00.000-08:00

Town, south central New South Wales, Australia, just north of Wagga Wagga in the fertile Riverina district. Founded in 1863 as Jewnee, it was known as Jewnee Junction or Loftus when proclaimed a town in 1883 and was gazetted a municipality in 1886. It became a shire in 1981. Its name is Aboriginal for “speak to me.” On the main southern rail line from Sydney (216 mi [348 km] northeast), Junee has large locomotive

Balaklava, Battle Of

2004-11-26T20:36:00.000-08:00

Balaklava also spelled Balaclava (Oct. 25 [Oct. 13, Old Style], 1854), indecisive military engagement of the Crimean War, best known as the inspiration of the English poet Alfred, Lord Tennyson's “Charge of the Light Brigade.” In this battle, the Russians failed to capture Balaklava, the Black Sea supply port of the British, French, and Turkish forces in the southern Crimea; but the British lost control of their best supply

Affair Of The Diamond Necklace

2004-11-25T19:28:00.000-08:00

Also called Affair of the Necklace scandal at the court of Louis XVI in 1785 that discredited the French monarchy on the eve of the French Revolution. It began as an intrigue on the part of an adventuress, the comtesse (countess) de La Motte, to procure, supposedly for Queen Marie-Antoinette but in reality for herself and her associates, a diamond necklace worth 1,600,000 livres. The necklace was the property of the Parisian

Alphabet, The Aramaic alphabet

2004-11-23T00:45:00.000-08:00

The adaptation of the North Semitic alphabet to the Aramaic language took place at some time in the 10th century BC, when Aramaic was spoken in several petty kingdoms in northern Mesopotamia and Syria, the most important of them being Dammeshek (Damascus). The process of the reestablishment of the Assyrian Empire and its hegemony over a good part of the Middle East began

Mesopotamia, History Of, Adad-nirari III and his successors

2004-11-20T14:07:00.000-08:00

Shamshi-Adad V died while Adad-nirari III (810–783) was still a minor. His Babylonian mother, Sammu-ramat, took over the regency, governing with great energy until 806. The Greeks, who called her Semiramis, credited her with legendary accomplishments, but historically little is known about her. Adad-nirari later led several campaigns against the Medes and also against Syria and

Jacob, Georges

2004-11-19T02:50:00.000-08:00

Born of a Burgundian peasant family, Jacob moved to Paris at 16 and is believed to have been apprenticed to Louis Delanois. He made chairs for Queen Marie-Antoinette

Dávid, Ferenc

2004-11-17T15:35:00.000-08:00

After successively rejecting Roman Catholicism and Lutheranism, in 1566 Dávid became bishop of the Calvinist community at Kolozsvár and court preacher to the Unitarian king

Kyffhäuser Mountains

2004-11-15T07:35:00.000-08:00

German Kyffhäuser Gebirge, double line of hills on the northern edge of the Thüringer Basin in central Germany that extend for 13 miles (21 km) and reach a maximum height in the Kulpen-Berg (1,565 feet [477 m]). Lying in the lowland of Thuringia on the south side of the Harz Mountains, the range cuts off steeply to the north and slopes gently to the south. The northern hills look down upon the valley of the Goldene Aue

Prickly Heat

2004-11-12T17:35:00.000-08:00

A noncontagious skin eruption of red pimples with intense itching and tingling caused by inflammation around the sweat glands. It is a form of miliaria (q.v.).

Alb

2004-11-10T22:47:00.000-08:00

Derived from the long white tunic (tunica alba, or linea) commonly

Telescope, X-ray telescopes

2004-11-08T14:54:00.000-08:00

The X-ray telescope is used to examine the shorter-wavelength region of the electromagnetic spectrum adjacent to the ultraviolet region. The design of this type of telescope must be radically different from that of a conventional reflector. Since X-ray photons have so much energy, they would pass right through the mirror of a standard reflector. X rays must be bounced

Utrecht

2004-11-07T17:09:00.000-08:00

The site of successive Roman, Frisian, and Frankish fortresses, Utrecht became

Interior Design, India

2004-11-04T22:16:00.000-08:00

Words of Indian origin such as calico, chintz, and palampore indicate the importance of Indian textiles in the history of western interior design (see photograph). Yet the Indians themselves have never been very conscious of this role, their own domestic interiors being of the utmost simplicity, with hardly more than a carpet or prayer mat to offset stone floors and

Parakeet

2004-11-03T09:27:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Parrakeet any of numerous seed-eating parrots of small size, slender build, and long, tapering tail. In this sense the name is given to some 115 species in 30 genera of the subfamily Psittacinae (family Psittacidae) and has influenced another parrot name, lorikeet (see parrot). To indicate size only, the name is sometimes extended to little parrots with short, blunt tails, as the hanging

Aerospace Industry, World War II

2004-11-01T14:26:00.000-08:00

Germany's aircraft industry after World War I was heavily restricted by the Treaty of Versailles. In 1921–22 the constraints were eased, and a productive light-aircraft industry began to develop. When restrictions were basically abolished in 1926, a number of new ventures were formed; those which survived included such companies as Arado, Dornier, Focke-Wulf, Junkers, and Heinkel.

Floire Et Blancheflor

2004-10-30T16:26:00.000-07:00

French metrical romance known in two versions from the 12th and 13th centuries and thought to be of Greco-Byzantine or Moorish origin. Its theme of separation and reunion of young lovers is the same as that treated in Aucassin et Nicolette, though the roles and religion of the two main characters are reversed. Floire is the son of a Saracen king; Blancheflor, his beloved,

Jewel Food Stores, Inc.

2004-10-27T06:10:00.000-07:00

The company traced its origins to 1899, when Frank Vernon Skiff and Frank Ross founded the Jewel Tea Company to supply condiments to the Chicago area from horse-drawn wagons. As the automobile gained in importance, the firm moved from wagons

Bowerman, Bill

2004-10-25T09:50:00.000-07:00

American coach, inventor, and entrepreneur who while serving (1949–72) as coach of the track team at the University of Oregon led teams to four National Collegiate Athletic Association titles (1962, 1964, 1965, and 1970) and coached 24 NCAA individual champions; in his quest to give his runners an edge, Bowerman experimented with creating a lighter outsole and fashioned the modern-day “waffle” running

Gonad

2004-10-24T17:11:00.000-07:00

The gonads in some lower invertebrate groups (e.g., hydrozoans) are temporary organs; in higher forms they are permanent. In some invertebrates, such as oligochaete worms and leeches, both

Abraham Lincoln Battalion

2004-10-22T06:26:00.000-07:00

A force of volunteers from the United States who served on the Republican side in the Spanish Civil War from January 1937 until November 1938. All seven International Brigades (q.v.)—each composed of three or more battalions—were formed by the Comintern (Communist International), beginning in late 1936, and all were disbanded by late 1938 as the war neared an end. Like the European battalions,

Apple Computer, Inc.

2004-10-19T16:17:00.000-07:00

American manufacturer of personal computers, computer peripherals, and computer software. It was the first successful personal computer company and the popularizer of the graphical user interface. Headquarters are located in Cupertino, California.

China, Population distribution

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

Because of complex natural conditions, the population of China is quite unevenly distributed. Population density varies strikingly, with the greatest contrast occurring between the eastern half of China and the lands of the west and the northwest. Exceptionally high population densities occur in the Yangtze Delta, in the Pearl River Delta, and on the Ch'eng-tu

De La Mare, Walter

2004-10-14T10:09:00.000-07:00

De la Mare was educated at St. Paul's Cathedral Choir School in London, and from 1890 to 1908 he worked in the London office of the Anglo-American Oil Company. From 1902, however, when his poetry collection Songs of Childhood appeared

Silifke

2004-10-11T04:37:00.000-07:00

Also called Seleucia, town, south-central Turkey. It is located along the banks of the Göksu River, overlooking the Taurus Mountains. An irrigation scheme supplying the fertile lowland of the Göksu delta is located at Silifke. The town is a market centre for agricultural produce of its hinterland, including cotton, tobacco, grapes, olives, beans, and lentils. Industrial products include

La Salle, Saint Jean-baptiste De

2004-10-09T06:47:00.000-07:00

Of noble birth, La Salle was ordained priest in 1678 and devoted himself to education of the poor. He helped to establish

Water Mold

2004-10-07T05:22:00.000-07:00

Also spelled water mould any of about 150 species of fungi belonging to the order Saprolegniales within the class Oomycetes. Many of them live in fresh or brackish water or wet soils. Most species are saprobic (i.e., they live on dead or decaying organic matter), although some cause diseases in certain fishes, higher plants, algae, protozoans, and marine invertebrates. The mycelium (filaments composing

Dovekie

2004-10-05T05:35:00.000-07:00

Also called little auk (Alle alle) small, black and white seabird of the North Atlantic. The dovekie belongs to the family Alcidae (order Charadriiformes). It is about 20 centimetres (8 inches) long, with a short bill. Its legs and wings are short, and its feet are webbed. It is a proficient diver, feeding on fish, mollusks, and crustaceans. Dovekies breed on rocky coasts and islands of the Arctic Ocean, from Greenland

Aureate

2004-10-03T18:10:00.000-07:00

A writing style that is affected, pompous, and heavily ornamental, that uses rhetorical flourishes excessively, and that often employs interlarded foreign words and phrases. The style is usually associated with the 15th-century French, English, and Scottish writers. The word is from the Middle English aureat, “golden” or “splendid,” and was probably coined on the basis

Yun, Isang

2004-10-01T01:19:00.000-07:00

Yun began composing at the age of 14 and studied music in Japan in Osaka and Tokyo. He returned to Korea, where he was active in the resistance movement against the Japanese during World War

An-k'ang

2004-09-29T15:47:00.000-07:00

Pinyin Ankang, formerly Hsing-an, city in southeastern Shensi sheng (province), China. Situated in the narrow valley of the Han River between the Tsinling and Ta-pa mountain ranges, it has been an important trade centre since antiquity, being situated at the junction of the east-west route via the Han River valley and the route to the north over the mountains to Sian (Ch'ang-an). A rail line, completed in 1978, links

Lance Missile

2004-09-28T13:45:00.000-07:00

The Lance is about 20 feet (6 m) long and is launched from a light trailer or a modified personnel carrier. It is propelled by a liquid-fueled rocket engine to ranges of 5 to 75 miles (8 to 120 km), depending on the warhead.

Empiricism, In ancient philosophy

2004-09-25T11:56:00.000-07:00

So-called common sense is inarticulately empiricist; and philosophy, in seeking to correct it, has to start from a rationalistic position. Philosophical Empiricism is thus always critical, a resistance to the pretensions of a more speculative philosophy. The ground was prepared for Plato, the greatest of Rationalist philosophers, by three earlier bodies of thought:

New General Catalogue Of Nebulae And Clusters Of Stars

2004-09-24T11:35:00.000-07:00

(NGC), basic reference list of star clusters, nebulas, and galaxies. It was compiled in 1888 by Danish astronomer Johan Ludvig Emil Dreyer, who based his work on earlier lists made by the Herschel family of British astronomers. Dreyer included some 8,000 celestial objects, a total raised to about 13,000 by his first and second Index Catalogues (IC), published in 1895 and 1908, respectively. With these

Attalus, Priscus

2004-09-22T02:25:00.000-07:00

Attalus was born a pagan and was baptized by an Arian bishop. He was a senator at the time of Alaric's second siege of Rome, and he was named emperor of the West by the Goths after the city surrendered in 409. Attalus then urged the legitimate emperor, Honorius, to vacate his throne.

Aurora

2004-09-19T00:37:00.000-07:00

Auroras are caused by the interaction of energetic particles (electrons and protons) from outside the atmosphere

Hansi

2004-09-18T06:56:00.000-07:00

City, west-central Haryana state, northwestern India, on the road between Hissar city (northwest) and Delhi (southeast). Hansi is an ancient town and was probably a Kushan stronghold in the 1st and 2nd centuries AD. It was captured in 1192 by Qutb-ud-Din Aybak, general of the Muslim emperor Muhammad Ghuri; several mosques and tombs date from the 12th century. Hansi was the capital of the independent

Armenian Alphabet

2004-09-16T11:34:00.000-07:00

Script developed for the Armenian language in the 5th century AD and still in use. It was probably derived from the Pahlavi alphabet of Persia, with some Greek influences. According to local tradition, the Armenian alphabet was invented in the early 5th century AD by Mesrop Mashtots, aided by Isaac (Sahak) the Great, supreme head of the Armenian Apostolic Church, and by a Greek

Metallic Fibre

2004-09-14T16:16:00.000-07:00

In textiles, synthetic fibre, known generically as metallic, including manufactured fibres composed of metal, metal-coated plastic, or of a core covered by metal (usually aluminum). Trademarked names include Chromeflex, Lurex, and Melora. Foil types are made with a metal foil that is coated with a plain or coloured plastic film and then cut into strips. Metallized types

Hydaspes, Battle Of The

2004-09-11T01:13:00.000-07:00

(326 BC), fourth and last pitched battle fought by Alexander the Great during his campaign of conquest in Asia. It took place after Alexander's conquest of the Achaemenidian Empire and immediately before his army began the journey homeward to Macedonia. Porus, the Indian ruler of the territory between the Jhelum and the Chenab rivers (in modern Pakistan), was his opponent. After

George Ii

2004-09-10T03:09:00.000-07:00

George Augustus was the only son of the German prince George Louis, elector of Hanover (King

Nebula, Ultracompact H II region

2004-09-07T01:17:00.000-07:00

Recently “ultracompact” H II regions have been discovered inside the molecular clouds in which they were formed. These nebulae are observed only at the wavelengths of radio and far-infrared radiation, which are able to penetrate the thick dust in the clouds. They are extremely bright at wavelengths of 50 micrometres, and the most luminous ones were detected throughout

Tarija

2004-09-06T09:20:00.000-07:00

City, southern Bolivia, situated at 6,122 feet (1,866 m) above sea level in the Río Grande de Tarija (Guadalquivir) Valley. Founded in 1574 by the conquistador Luis de Fuentes as San Bernardo de la Frontera de Tarija, it is one of Bolivia's oldest settlements. The inhabitants are well known for their outdoor religious processions. Although the city is accessible by air and road, transport

Bolivia, Drainage

2004-09-04T04:31:00.000-07:00

The rivers of Bolivia belong to three major systems—the Amazon tributaries in the northwest, north, and northeast, the Pilcomayo-Paraguay system in the south and southeast, and an isolated, inland-draining system centring on Lakes Titicaca and Poopó on the Altiplano in the west. The Uyuni Salt Flat is a smaller inland-draining basin nearby but separate from the

China, The National Government from 1928 to 1937

2004-09-02T03:34:00.000-07:00

The most serious immediate problem facing the new government was the continuance of military separatism. The government had no authority over the vast area of western China, and even regions in eastern China were under the rule of independent regimes that had lately been part of the Nationalist coalition. After an unsuccessful attempt at negotiations, Chiang

Bohemian-moravian Highlands

2004-08-30T05:42:00.000-07:00

Czech Ceskomoravská Vysocina , or Vrchovina plateau (125 miles [200 km] long and 35 to 50 miles wide) forming the southeastern boundary of the Bohemian Massif, which separates the former historic provinces of Bohemia and Moravia, now in the Czech Republic. The highlands are roughly defined by the Luznice River (west), the Dyje River (south), the Morava River (east), and the tributaries of the Elbe (Labe) River (north). They form a rolling,

Johannsenite

2004-08-29T03:37:00.000-07:00

Silicate mineral in the pyroxene family. It has a molecular formula of Ca(Mn,Fe)Si2O6. A calcium-manganese-iron silicate mineral, johannsenite is produced either by metamorphic processes in altered limestones or is associated with pyrite or other minerals in copper, lead, and zinc ores. It is moderately hard, has a glassy lustre, and forms brown, gray, or green crystals