BeautifulBucket

Gabar

2005-03-23T05:26:00.000-08:00

Any member of the small Zoroastrian minority in Iran. The name Gabar was formerly applied derogatorily to the Iranian Zoroastrians; the term is linguistically related to the Arabic kafir, meaning “infidel.” The Zoroastrians who remained in Persia (modern Iran) after the Arab–Muslim conquest (7th century AD) had a long history as outcasts. Although they purchased some toleration

Alcott, Bronson

2005-03-21T11:38:00.000-08:00

The self-educated son of a poor farmer, Alcott traveled in the South as a peddler before establishing a series of schools for children. His educational theories owed something to J.H. Pestalozzi, the Swiss reformer, but more to the examples

Visvakarman

2005-03-19T09:43:00.000-08:00

(Sanskrit: “All Accomplishing”), in Hindu mythology, the architect of the gods. The name was originally used as an epithet of any powerful god but later came to personify creative power. Visvakarman is the divine carpenter and master craftsman who fashioned the weapons of the gods and built their cities and chariots. He is the architect of the mythical city, Lanka, and is also

Chiapas Highlands

2005-03-18T08:08:00.000-08:00

High-altitude region of dissected plateaus enclosing a central valley (Valle Central de Chiapas) in Chiapas state, southeastern Mexico. The highlands constitute the northwestern end of a mountainous region extending northward from the lowlands of Nicaragua to the Isthmus of Tehauntepec and are composed of three main features running parallel to the Pacific

Esquipulas

2005-03-15T04:52:00.000-08:00

Town, southeastern Guatemala, in the central highlands near the borders of Honduras and El Salvador at an elevation of 3,018 feet (920 m). The town itself is not large; it derives its great importance from its magnificent colonial church, now Central America's greatest pilgrimage centre, built in 1737 by the archbishop of Guatemala to house the spectacular Black Christ. The figure,

Ukrainian Catholic Church

2005-03-13T04:23:00.000-08:00

Largest of the Eastern Catholic churches, in communion with Rome since the Union of Brest-Litovsk (1596). Byzantine Christianity was established among the Ukrainians in 988 by St. Vladimir (Volodimir) and followed Constantinople in the Great Schism of 1054. Temporary reunion with Rome was effected in the mid-15th century, and a definitive union was achieved at Brest-Litovsk in 1596, when

Lorde, Audre

2005-03-12T06:39:00.000-08:00

The daughter of Grenadan parents, Lorde attended Hunter College and received a B.A. in 1959 and a master's degree in library science in 1961. She married in 1962 and wrote poetry while working as a librarian at

Amtrak

2005-03-09T17:08:00.000-08:00

Formally National Railroad Passenger Corporation federally supported corporation that operates nearly all intercity passenger trains in the United States. It was established by Congress in 1970 and assumed control of passenger service from the nation's private rail companies the following year. Virtually all railways, with the exception of a small handful, signed contracts with Amtrak. The corporation pays the

Stiller, Mauritz

2005-03-07T10:47:00.000-08:00

Motion-picture director who during the early 1920s was a leader in the internationally preeminent Swedish cinema. He was influenced by D.W. Griffith's epic style and Thomas Harper Ince's integral use of landscape but most of all by the typically Swedish mysticism and passionate love of nature reflected in the novels of Selma Lagerlöf, many of which

Sibiu

2005-03-06T18:07:00.000-08:00

Judet (county), central Romania. The Transylvanian Alps (Southern Carpathians), including the Sebes, Lotru, and Fagaras ranges, rise in the southern portion of the county. Settlement areas are in intermontane valleys. Sibiu (q.v.) city, a cultural and industrial centre, is the county capital. Metal products, chemicals, and machinery are manufactured in Sibiu, Medias, Avrig, Copsa

Paulding, James Kirke

2005-03-04T11:03:00.000-08:00

At 18 he went to New York City, where he formed a lasting friendship with the Irving brothers. This association aroused his enthusiasm for literature, and he, with William and Washington Irving,

Binomial Theorem

2005-03-01T23:05:00.000-08:00

In which n! (called n factorial) is the product of the first n natural numbers 1, 2, 3, . . . n (and where 0! is defined

Karbala'

2005-02-28T02:11:00.000-08:00

The city's religious importance derives from the Battle of Karbala' (AD 680) between the Sunnite and Shi'ite sects of Islam. Husayn ibn 'Ali, the Shi'ite leader and grandson of Muhammad, was killed, and his tomb remains one of the greatest Shi'ite shrines and pilgrimage

Fairchild, Mary Salome Cutler

2005-02-25T03:48:00.000-08:00

Salome Cutler graduated from Mount Holyoke Female Seminary (now Mount Holyoke College) in South Hadley, Massachusetts, in 1875 and taught there from 1876 to 1878. After a period of ill health, she became interested in the

Monck (of Ballytrammon), Sir Charles Stanley, 4th Viscount, 1st Baron Monck Of Ballytrammon

2005-02-21T01:01:00.000-08:00

Monck was educated at Trinity College in Dublin and was called to practice in the Irish bar in 1841. On the death of his father he succeeded to the peerage of Ireland in 1849 and was elected to the House of Commons as a Liberal member from Portsmouth.

Downpatrick

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

Irish Dún Pádraig town and seat, Down district (established 1973), formerly in County Down, Northern Ireland. Downpatrick is located where the River Quoilé broadens into its estuary in Strangford Lough (inlet of the sea). The town takes its name from dún (fortress) and from its association with St. Patrick. It is the Dun-da-leth-glas (Fortress of the Two Broken Fetters) of Irish chroniclers. Formerly

Kirstein, Lincoln Edward

2005-02-17T09:28:00.000-08:00

U.S. arts patron (b. May 4, 1907, Rochester, N.Y.--d. Jan. 5, 1996, New York, N.Y.), was a dance authority and cofounder and general director (1948-89) of the New York City Ballet. Together with choreographer George Balanchine, he changed the course of dance in the U.S. Their collaboration lasted until Balanchine's death in 1983. Kirstein was ambitious, financially independent, and keenly interested in high culture.

Culpeper's Rebellion

2005-02-15T22:16:00.000-08:00

(1677–79), early popular uprising against proprietary rule in the Albemarle section of northern Carolina, caused by the efforts of the proprietary government to enforce the British Navigation acts. These trade laws denied the colonists a free market outside England and placed heavy duties on commodities. The colonists' resentment found an object in the deputy governor,

Cracking

2005-02-13T23:54:00.000-08:00

Cracking of petroleum yields light oils (corresponding to gasoline), heavier oils, and such gases as methane, ethane,

Asilah

2005-02-12T09:21:00.000-08:00

Also called Arzila, Spanish Arcila, city on the Atlantic coast of western Morocco. Built on the site of an ancient Phoenician-Carthaginian settlement (Zili), it later fell to the Romans. It passed to the Idrisids, who in the early 11th century repulsed several attacks by Normans. From AD 972 on, it was dominated by the Marinids, until in 1471 the Portuguese occupied Asilah, which they fortified as a military base (the walls

Scandinavian Literature, Icelandic learning and literature

2005-02-10T00:05:00.000-08:00

The effect of the Reformation on Icelandic learning and literature was that Catholic poetry was discarded and attempts were made by the first

Balanchine, George

2005-02-08T04:04:00.000-08:00

Original name Georgy Melitonovich Balanchivadze most influential choreographer of classical ballet in the United States in the 20th century. His works, characterized by a cool neoclassicism, include The Nutcracker (1954) and Don Quixote (1965), both pieces choreographed for the New York City Ballet, of which he was a founder (1948), the artistic director, and the

Computers, Integrated circuits

2005-02-05T17:46:00.000-08:00

William Shockley, a coinventor of the transistor, started Shockley Semiconductor Laboratories in 1955 in his hometown of Palo Alto, California. In 1957 his eight top researchers left to form Fairchild Semiconductor Company, funded by Fairchild Camera and Instrument Company. Along with Hewlett-Packard, another Palo Alto firm, Fairchild Semiconductor was the seed of what

Teófilo Otoni

2005-02-04T01:09:00.000-08:00

City, east central Minas Gerais state, Brazil, on the Rio Todos os Santos in the Rio Mucuri Valley, at 1,047 ft (319 m) above sea level. It was given city status in 1878. Teófilo Otoni is a trade centre for an agricultural hinterland in which coffee is the principal crop. Livestock raising is also of some importance, and the city has manufacturing and food-processing plants. Extensive mining

Hojo Masako

2005-02-01T10:41:00.000-08:00

Masako fell in love with Yoritomo when he was exiled from the capital by his family's rivals, the Taira clan, and put under the watch of Masako's father.

Lathrop, Mother Alphonsa

2005-01-31T18:21:00.000-08:00

The daughter of the author Nathaniel Hawthorne, Rose was an infant when her family moved to Liverpool, where her father

Hsin-tien

2005-01-28T08:36:00.000-08:00

Town, T'ai-pei hsien (county), northern Taiwan. It lies 5 miles (8 km) southeast of Taipei city, in the northernmost portion of Taiwan's western coastal plain. Situated on the right bank of the Hsin-tien River, the town is the centre of a region producing tea, rice, and citrus fruits. Woodworking, glassmaking, and the manufacture of small machinery are Hsin-tien's major industries,

Rabbi

2005-01-27T01:25:00.000-08:00

(Hebrew: “my teacher,” or “my master”), in Judaism, a person qualified by academic studies of the Hebrew Bible and the Talmud to act as spiritual leader and religious teacher of a Jewish community or congregation. Ordination (certification as a rabbi) can be conferred by any rabbi, but one's teacher customarily performs this function by issuing a written statement. Ordination

Jewish Religious Year

2005-01-24T05:15:00.000-08:00

Scholars have not succeeded in tracing the origin of the seven-day week, nor can they account for the origin of the Sabbath.

Congo, Democratic Republic Of The (zaire)

2005-01-23T16:05:00.000-08:00

On May 25, 1998, Pres. Laurent Kabila promulgated a decree that established a national constituent and legislative assembly. This apparent move toward democracy was, however, belied by a series of arrests of people believed to be critical of the government, including,

Slavery, Legal relationships between slave owners

2005-01-20T19:24:00.000-08:00

There was more uniformity across systems regarding legal relationships between slave owners. All societies had provisions for the recovery of runaways, and most imposed sanctions on owners who stole others' slaves (a capital offense in some systems) or helped them to flee. There also were relatively uniform laws about passing slaves from one generation to

Computers, The hobby market expands

2005-01-18T10:08:00.000-08:00

Some entrepreneurs, particularly in the San Francisco Bay area, saw opportunities to build add-on devices, or peripherals, for the Altair; others decided to design competitive hardware products. Because different machines might use different data paths, or buses, peripherals built for one computer might not work with another computer. This led the emerging industry

Aid

2005-01-16T20:47:00.000-08:00

A feudal lord could ask his vassals for an aid because they owed him help and counsel. In the course of time, however, the occasions on which

Switzerland, The Reformation

2005-01-14T23:18:00.000-08:00

Shortly after the peace settlement with the French, the impact of the Reformation reached Switzerland. A period of internal strife ensued that was instrumental in shaping the human geography of the country. The cities, particularly the major centres of Bern, Basel, Geneva, Lausanne, Schaffhausen, and Zürich, were far more receptive to the reform preaching of such

Cumberland, William Augustus, Duke Of

2005-01-13T02:10:00.000-08:00

During the War of the Austrian Succession (1740–48), he became commander of the allied forces (1745) and was severely defeated by France's Marshal Maurice

Malwa Plateau

2005-01-11T02:20:00.000-08:00

Plateau in north central India, bounded by the Gujarat Plains on the west, the Vindhya Range on the south, the Madhya Bharat Plateau and Bundelkhand Upland on the north, and the Vindhya Range on the east. Of volcanic origin, the plateau comprises central Madhya Pradesh state and southeastern Rajasthan state. The name Malwa is derived from the Sanskrit term Malav and means

Johannesburg

2005-01-09T07:17:00.000-08:00

One of the youngest of the world's major cities, Johannesburg was founded in 1886, following the discovery of gold. The city was initially part of the Transvaal, an independent Afrikaner, or Boer, republic that later became one of the four provinces of South Africa. Today the

Tie-dyeing

2005-01-07T14:59:00.000-08:00

Method of dyeing by hand in which coloured patterns are produced in the fabric by gathering together many small portions of material and tying them tightly with string before immersing the cloth in the dyebath. The dye fails to penetrate the tied sections. After drying, the fabric is untied to reveal irregular circles, dots, and stripes. Varicoloured patterns may

India, The early Turkish sultans

2005-01-05T06:54:00.000-08:00

When Qutb-ud-Din Aybak assumed authority over the Ghurid possessions in India, he moved from the neighbourhood of Delhi to Lahore. There he set up guard against another of Muhammad of Ghur's slaves, Taj-ud-Din Yildiz of Ghazna, who also claimed his former master's Indian possessions. In 1208 Qutb-ud-Din defeated his rival and captured Ghazna but soon was driven out again. He died in 1210 in a

Hawke, Robert

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

After graduating from the University of Western Australia with a degree in law, Hawke spent three years at the University of Oxford as a Rhodes Scholar. He was briefly an economics researcher at the Australian National University in Canberra and in 1958 joined the Australian

Hines, Gregory

2004-12-31T15:46:00.000-08:00

By the age of four, Hines and his older brother Maurice were taking tap lessons with renowned dancer and choreographer Henry Le Tang. The brothers soon formed the Hines Kids, a song-and-dance

Probolinggo

2004-12-29T13:08:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Prabalingga, or Perobolinggo, city, in kabupaten (regency), Jawa Timur provinsi (“province”), Java, Indonesia, on the southern side of Madura Strait. There is a good harbour for small ships, and the fishing industry is important. Cottage industries include pottery and the manufacture of sarongs. The surrounding regency grows rice, corn (maize), sugar, rubber, coffee, and mangoes, the last renowned for their

Bridgend

2004-12-28T05:37:00.000-08:00

Welsh Pen-y-Bont ar Ogwr county borough, historic county of Glamorgan (Morgannwg), southern Wales. Bridgend county borough extends from the mining valleys of Ogmore, Garw, and Llynfi in the north to the arable lowlands and an extensive coastline in the south. Discoveries of Bronze Age and Iron Age artifacts have been made near the village of Merthyr Mawr, and the remains of many Norman castles

Aran Islands

2004-12-26T00:09:00.000-08:00

Irish Arainn, three limestone islands—Inishmore, Inishmaan, and Inisheer—comprising 18 square miles (47 square km) and lying across the mouth of Galway Bay on the west coast of Ireland. They are administratively part of County Galway. The islands, whose sheer cliffs face the Atlantic Ocean, are generally bleak. Steamers and ferries call mainly at the town of Kilronan on Inishmore, the

Earth, Energy sources for convection

2004-12-23T19:12:00.000-08:00

Measurements of temperature in deep mines and oil wells indicate that there is a substantial temperature increase with depth. In part, this is due to the weight of overlying rocks. Such temperature increases are not accompanied by a change in heat content and are referred to as adiabatic temperature increases. Convection within the Earth occurs only if the temperature

Silent Trade

2004-12-21T20:46:00.000-08:00

Also called dumb barter , or depot trade specialized form of barter in which goods are exchanged without any direct contact between the traders. Generally, one group goes to a customary spot, deposits the goods to be traded, and withdraws, sometimes giving a signal such as a call or a gong stroke. Another group then comes to leave a second set of articles and retreats. The first group returns, removing these

Aleutian Basin

2004-12-20T01:17:00.000-08:00

Submarine depression forming the floor of the southwestern section of the Bering Sea in the Pacific Ocean. On the west it rises to meet Siberia and the Kamchatka Peninsula; on the northeast, the continental shelf of North America off southwestern Alaska; and on the south, the Aleutian Islands. The basin extends about 1,100 miles (1,800 km) north-south and 600 miles (1,000 km) east-west and is

Tobey, Mark

2004-12-17T06:45:00.000-08:00

Tobey studied at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and worked for a time as a fashion illustrator and portraitist in New York City. He converted

United States, The Radicals' plan

2004-12-15T19:37:00.000-08:00

Radical Republicans were outraged at these procedures, which savoured of executive usurpation of congressional powers, which required only minimal changes in the Southern social system, and which left political power essentially in the hands of the same Southerners who had led their states out of the Union. The Radicals put forth their own plan of Reconstruction in the Wade–Davis Bill, which Congress passed on July 2, 1864; it required not 10 percent but a majority of the white male citizens in each Southern state to participate in the reconstruction process, and it insisted upon an oath of past, not just of future, loyalty. Finding the bill too rigorous and inflexible, Lincoln pocket vetoed it; and the Radicals bitterly denounced him. During the 1864–65 session of Congress, they in turn defeated the president's proposal to recognize the Louisiana government organized under his 10 percent plan. At the time of Lincoln's assassination, therefore, the president and the Congress were at loggerheads over Reconstruction.

Europium

2004-12-13T00:51:00.000-08:00

(Eu), chemical element, rare-earth metal of transition Group IIIb of the periodic table; it is the least dense, softest, and most volatile member of the lanthanide series. The element was discovered (1896) by Eugène-Anatole Demarçay and named for Europe. One of the least abundant rare earths, it occurs in minute amounts in many rare-earth minerals such as monazite and also in the

Enclosed Rhyme

2004-12-12T17:56:00.000-08:00

Also called enclosing rhyme in poetry, the rhyming pattern abba found in certain quatrains, such as the first verse of Matthew Arnold's “Shakespeare”:Others abide our question. Thou art free.We ask and ask—thou smilest and art still,Out-topping knowledge. For the loftiest hill,Who to the stars uncrowns his majesty,

Yemen

2004-12-10T08:49:00.000-08:00

Yemen held the second parliamentary election in its history on April 27, 1997. The General People's Congress (GPC) party of Pres. Ali Abdallah Salih won 187 of the 301 seats, and the Islah Party finished

Clam Shrimp

2004-12-08T15:59:00.000-08:00

Also called Claw Shrimp, any member of the crustacean order Conchostraca (subclass Branchiopoda), a group of about 200 species inhabiting shallow freshwater lakes, ponds, and temporary pools throughout the world. Clam shrimps are so called because their entire body is contained within a bivalve shell (carapace) that resembles the shell of a small mollusk. Inside the shell the trunk of the animal

Albany River

2004-12-06T00:25:00.000-08:00

River, north central Ontario, Canada, rising in Lake St. Joseph at an elevation of 1,218 ft (371 m) and flowing generally eastward into James Bay. For 250 mi (400 km) of its 610-mi course, the river is navigable, and it served as an important route during the fur-trading days, when boats sailed inland from the Hudson's Bay Company post of Ft. Albany (established 1684) at the mouth. Its largest tributary is the

Atheism

2004-12-04T06:33:00.000-08:00

In general, the critique and denial of metaphysical beliefs in God or spiritual beings. As such, it is usually distinguished from theism, which affirms the reality of the divine and often seeks to demonstrate its existence. Atheism is also distinguished from agnosticism, which leaves open the question whether there is a god or not, professing to find the questions

Boise

2004-12-01T18:22:00.000-08:00

Boise was named by early 19th-century French-Canadian trappers for the tree-lined river (French boisé, “wooded

Selene

2004-11-30T08:20:00.000-08:00

Latin Luna, in Greek and Roman religion, the personification of the moon as a goddess. She was worshiped at the new and full moons. Her parents were the Titans Hyperion and Theia; her brother was Helios, the sun god (sometimes called her father); her sister Eos (Dawn); and her husband Zeus. She is most identified with Endymion, whom she loved and whom Zeus cast into eternal sleep in a cave

China, The Shang dynasty

2004-11-27T20:26:00.000-08:00

The first dynasty to leave historical records is thought to have ruled from the mid-16th to mid-11th century BC. (Some scholars date the Shang dynasty from the mid-18th to the late 12th century BC.) One must, however, distinguish Shang as an archaeological term from Shang as a dynastic one. Erh-li-t'ou in north central Honan, for example, was initially classified archaeologically as Early

Saudi Arabia, Religion

2004-11-26T14:07:00.000-08:00

Saudi Arabia is the home of Islam, and its native population is almost entirely Sunnite Muslim (i.e., adhering to the chief branch of Islam, Sunnism [Sunnah], called traditionalist or orthodox). The Wahhabi interpretation of Sunnite Islam is the one officially used. Wahhabism, as it is called in the West, is a puritanical interpretation and is named after Muhammad ibn 'Abd

Appleton Layer

2004-11-23T00:22:00.000-08:00

Upper layer (called F2) of the F region (q.v.) of the ionosphere.

Military Affairs

2004-11-22T20:39:00.000-08:00

Defense Minister Alain Richard presented a F 243.5 billion (U.S. $43.8 billion) 1999 budget proposal in keeping with the four-year defense spending plan he had unveiled in April. That plan was designed to cut F 20 billion ($3.5 billion) from the defense budget by 2002. To help meet this goal, France abandoned seven military programs,

Scheffel, Joseph Victor Von

2004-11-19T00:56:00.000-08:00

Scheffel's father was a Baden army engineer, and

Alexander Of Hales

2004-11-17T19:41:00.000-08:00

Alexander studied and taught in Paris, receiving the degrees of master of arts (before 1210) and theology (1220). He was archdeacon

Oersted

2004-11-15T14:51:00.000-08:00

Unit of magnetic-field strength, in the centimetre-gram-second system of physical units. Named for the 19th-century Danish physicist Hans Christian Ørsted, it is defined as the intensity of a magnetic field in a vacuum in which a unit magnetic pole (one that repels a similar pole at a distance of one centimetre with a force of one dyne) experiences a mechanical force of

Schapera, Isaac

2004-11-13T05:56:00.000-08:00

Schapera received an M.A. from the University of Cape Town and a Ph.D. from the London School of Economics and Political Science. His work was influenced by his instructors A.R.

Devil

2004-11-11T13:54:00.000-08:00

In the monotheistic Western religions, the devil is viewed as a fallen angel who in pride has tried to usurp the position of

Gun War

2004-11-10T21:12:00.000-08:00

(1880–81), southern African war that ended 10 years of rule by the British Cape Colony over Basutoland (Lesotho). Cape magistrates had interfered with the chiefs' authority and with the traditional laws of the Sotho people; part of southern Lesotho was demarcated for white use, and a 1879 Disarmament Act was to be enforced in 1880. The Sotho refused to give up their guns. Fighting from defensive

Furniture, Carving

2004-11-08T01:48:00.000-08:00

Whereas carving does not appear to

Zambezi River, Plant life

2004-11-06T11:12:00.000-08:00

The vegetation along the upper and middle course of the Zambezi is predominantly savanna, with deciduous trees, grass, and open woodland. Mopane woodland (Colophospermum mopane) is predominant on the alluvial flats of the low-lying river valleys and is highly susceptible to fire. Grass, when present, is typically short and sparse. Forestland with species of the genus

Ammonia-soda Process

2004-11-03T22:20:00.000-08:00

In the ammonia-soda process, common salt, sodium chloride, is treated with ammonia and then

Cumberland

2004-11-02T18:41:00.000-08:00

County, south-central Pennsylvania, U.S. It consists of a hilly region in the Appalachian Ridge and Valley physiographic province bounded to the north by Blue Mountain, to the east by the Susquehanna River, to the southeast by Yellow Breeches Creek, and to the south by the Blue Ridge Mountains. Conodoguinet Creek and the Appalachian National Scenic Trail cross the

Tsuruga

2004-10-30T20:13:00.000-07:00

City, Fukui ken (prefecture), Honshu, Japan. It faces Tsuruga Bay of the Sea of Japan. A flourishing port since early historic times, it was one of the main centres of communication with the Asian mainland and a major shipment centre for the former national capitals of Nara and Kyoto. Tsuruga's industrial base was developed after World War II with factories producing synthetic

Trichloroethylene

2004-10-29T00:25:00.000-07:00

Trichloroethylene was first prepared in 1864; its

Eisenhüttenstadt

2004-10-27T15:14:00.000-07:00

City, Brandenburg Land (state), eastern Germany. The city lies along the Oder River at the Polish border, southeast of Frankfurt an der Oder. It was formed in 1961 by the union of Fürstenberg, Stalinstadt, and Schönfliess. Stalinstadt was a planned-residence town for workers employed in a metallurgical complex established in 1951 just west of the old town of Fürstenberg. Now one

Eurocommunism

2004-10-24T00:08:00.000-07:00

The term Eurocommunism was coined in the mid-1970s and received wide publicity after the publication

English Literature, Drama by Dryden and others

2004-10-22T23:06:00.000-07:00

Characteristically, Dryden, as dramatist, experimented vigorously in all the popular stage modes of the day, exploring the possibilities of the rhymed heroic play in the 1660s and early 1670s and producing some distinguished tragic writing in All for Love (1677) and Don Sebastian (1689); but his greatest achievement, Amphitryon (1690), is a comedy. In this he was typical of his age. Though there

Cost Of Living

2004-10-21T10:36:00.000-07:00

Monetary cost of maintaining a particular standard of living, usually measured by calculating the average cost of a number of specific goods and services required by a particular group. The goods and services used as indexes may be the minimum necessary to preserve health or may be what is considered average for a given income group, depending on the purposes of

Byron, George Gordon Byron, 6th Baron

2004-10-18T16:36:00.000-07:00

Byname Lord Byron English Romantic poet and satirist whose poetry and personality captured the imagination of Europe. Renowned as the “gloomy egoist” of his autobiographical poem Childe Harold's Pilgrimage (1812–18) in the 19th century, he is now more generally esteemed for the satiric realism of Don Juan (1819–24).

United Kingdom, Flag Of The

2004-10-17T01:34:00.000-07:00

The earliest form of the flag of Great Britain, developed in 1606 and used during the reigns of James I (1603–25) and Charles I (1625–49), displayed the red cross of England superimposed on the white cross of Scotland, with the blue field of the latter. Because in heraldry a red on blue is not considered permissible, the red cross had to be bordered with white, its own correct field. During the Commonwealth

Mitropoulos, Dimitri

2004-10-16T03:50:00.000-07:00

Mitropoulos studied in Athens, where his opera Soeur Béatrice (after Maeterlinck) was performed in 1919. Later in Berlin he studied piano under the brilliant pianist, composer, and teacher Ferruccio Busoni. An excellent pianist, Mitropoulos sometimes conducted from the keyboard (e.g., in 1930 and

Baha' Al-din

2004-10-15T22:33:00.000-07:00

In July 1188, after making the pilgrimage to Mecca, Baha' al-Din entered the service of Saladin, who was waging war against the Christians in Palestine. Baha' al-Din sought Saladin's favour by urging him to the vigorous prosecution

Epistemology, Philosophy of mind and epistemology

2004-10-14T11:28:00.000-07:00

In the late 1970s a series of developments occurred in a variety of intellectual fields that promise to cast new light on the nature of the human mind. There have been explosive advances in neuroscience, psychology, cognitive science, neurobiology, artificial intelligence, and computer studies. These have resulted in a new understanding of how seeing works, how the mind

Welsh Literary Renaissance

2004-10-12T04:46:00.000-07:00

Literary activity centring in Wales and England in the mid-18th century that attempted to stimulate interest in the Welsh language and in the classical bardic verse forms of Wales. The movement centred on Lewis, Richard, and William Morris, Welsh scholars who preserved ancient texts and encouraged contemporary poets to use strict metres of the ancient Welsh bards

Philidor, André

2004-10-12T03:45:00.000-07:00

The first recorded representatives of the family were Michel Danican (died c. 1659), upon whom the nickname Philidor (the name of a famous Italian musician) was bestowed by Louis XIII as a complimentary reference to his skill,

Radioactivity

2004-10-11T07:12:00.000-07:00

An unstable nucleus will decompose spontaneously, or decay, into a more stable configuration but will do so only in a few specific ways by emitting certain particles or certain forms of electromagnetic

Sun Rose

2004-10-10T02:26:00.000-07:00

Helianthemum apenninum, H. cinereum, H. glaucum, and H. hirsutum are dwarf

Saran

2004-10-09T00:57:00.000-07:00

City, east-central Kazakstan. A major centre of coal mining in the Qaraghandy coal basin, it was established in 1946 near the Saran coal deposit and became a city in 1954. The city's manufactures include chemical and rubber product plants. Pop. (1991 est.) 62,600.

Carnatic Wars

2004-10-08T13:06:00.000-07:00

Also spelled Karnatic Wars series of military contests during the 18th century between the British, the French, the Marathas, and Mysore for control of the coastal strip of eastern India from Nellore (north of Madras) southward (the Tamil country). The name Carnatic properly refers to the region occupied by the Kannada-speaking people, which roughly corresponds to the modern Indian state of Karnataka

Scheidt, Samuel

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

Scheidt studied with Sweelinck in Amsterdam and in 1609 became organist at the Church of St. Maurice (Moritzkirche) in Halle. About 1619 he became organist, and later chapelmaster, to the Margrave of Brandenburg. He was esteemed

Omalius D'halloy, Jean-baptiste-julien D'

2004-10-06T06:17:00.000-07:00

D'Omalius was educated first in Liège and afterward in Paris. While a youth he became interested in geology (over the protests of his parents) and, having an independent income, was able to devote his energies to geologic researches. As early as 1808 he communicated

China, The role of the government

2004-10-05T02:38:00.000-07:00

China is a socialist country, and the government plays a predominant role in the economy. In the industrial sector, for example, the state owns outright firms that produce more than 60 percent of the gross value of industrial output, and all but a small portion of the remainder is owned collectively. In the urban sector the government has set the prices for key commodities,

Ala Shan Desert

2004-10-04T18:54:00.000-07:00

Southernmost portion of the Gobi (desert), occupying about 400,000 square miles (1,000,000 square km) in north-central China. Covering portions of the western Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region and northern Kansu sheng (province), it is bounded by the Huang Ho (Yellow River) and Ho-lan Mountains on the east and southeast; by the Ch'i-lien Mountains on the south and southwest; by the northern

Gág, Wanda Hazel

2004-10-03T02:12:00.000-07:00

Gág was the daughter of a Bohemian immigrant artist. While attending high school in Minnesota, she helped support her family by contributing

Kuldja

2004-10-02T19:45:00.000-07:00

Also spelled Kulja, Chinese (Wade-Giles) I-ning, or (Pinyin) Gulja, or Yining, city in western Uighur Autonomous Region of Sinkiang, China. It is the chief city, agricultural market, and commercial centre of the I-li River valley, which is a principal route from the Sinkiang region into Central Asia. The valley is far wetter than any other part of Sinkiang and has rich grazing land. Kuldja has been a strategic centre since early times, being known

Hveragerdhi

2004-10-01T18:19:00.000-07:00

Village, southwestern Iceland. It lies midway between the lake of Thingvallavatn to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the south. The centre of Iceland's hothouse industry, Hveragerdhi is noted for its fruit (especially tomatoes and even bananas), vegetables, and flowers, all of which are grown under glass. The hothouses are heated by steam from the numerous hot springs

Amino Acid

2004-09-30T13:05:00.000-07:00

The only exceptions to this basic structure are proline and hydroxyproline, in which the primary amino group is replaced by a secondary amino group present

D.c.m.g.

2004-09-29T10:35:00.000-07:00

Dame commander of St. Michael and St. George, member of the second highest rank of a British order of knighthood. See Saint Michael and Saint George, The Most Distinguished Order of.

Quadrangle

2004-09-27T15:14:00.000-07:00

Byname Quad, in architecture, rectangular open space completely or partially enclosed by buildings of an academic or civic character. The grounds of a quadrangle are often grassy or landscaped. Such a quadrangular area, intended as an environment for contemplation, study, or relaxation, was a feature of monastic establishments and thus of the colleges that evolved from them.

Mormon

2004-09-26T05:59:00.000-07:00

The First Presidency (church president and two councillors), the Council of the Twelve, the First Quorum of Seventy (and its presidency, concerned especially with missions), and the presiding bishop and two councillors (who control the Aaronic priesthood) constitute the “General Authorities” of the church. They are “sustained in office” by the regular and now ritualized

Quadrangle

2004-09-25T23:24:00.000-07:00

Rodent native to Eurasia but introduced worldwide through association with humans. Highly adaptive, the house mouse has both behavioral and physiological traits—such as the ability to survive in buildings and aboard ships, a tendency to move into agricultural fields and leave when the habitat changes, and a rapid rate of reproduction—that allow