LeftChess

Allée

2005-04-05T19:58:00.000-07:00

The allée normally passed through a planted boscage (a small wood); in the 17th century the boscage was square-trimmed at the sides and on top; later the sides were

Biblical Literature, Samuel: Israel under Samuel and Saul

2005-04-05T02:25:00.000-07:00

The book of Samuel covers the period from Samuel, the last of the judges, through the reigns of the first two kings of Israel, Saul and David (except for David's death). The division of Samuel and its succeeding book, Kings (Melakhim), into four separate books first appeared in the Septuagint, the Greek translation of the Old Testament from the 3rd to 2nd centuries BCE.

Tarahumara

2005-04-04T10:19:00.000-07:00

Also called Rarámuri, Middle American Indians of southwestern Chihuahua state in northern Mexico. Their language, which belongs to the Sonoran division of the Uto-Aztecan family, is most closely related to Yaqui and Mayo. Culturally the Tarahumara show similarities to such neighbouring Uto-Aztecan peoples as the Cora, Huichol, Tepehuan, and Pima-Papago. The land inhabited by the Tarahumara

Barante, Amable-guillaume-prosper Brugière, Baron De

2005-04-03T21:54:00.000-07:00

Educated at the École Polytechnique

Leap Of Faith

2005-04-02T22:46:00.000-08:00

Metaphor used by the 19th-century Danish philosopher Søren Kierkegaard in his Afsluttende uvidenskabelig Efterskrift (1846; Concluding Unscientific Postscript) to describe commitment to an objective uncertainty, specifically to the Christian God. For Kierkegaard, God is totally other than man; between God and man there exists a gulf that faith alone can bridge. Kierkegaard

Biblical Literature, Types of biblical hermeneutics

2005-04-02T09:34:00.000-08:00

As has been said, the importance of biblical hermeneutics has lain in the Bible's status as a sacred book in Judaism and Christianity, recording a divine revelation or reproducing divine oracles. The “oracles” are primarily prophetic utterances, but often their narrative setting has also come to acquire oracular status. Quite different hermeneutical principles,

Parallax

2005-04-01T17:20:00.000-08:00

In astronomy, the difference in direction of a celestial object as seen by an observer from two widely separated points. The measurement of parallax is used directly to find the distance of the body from the Earth (geocentric parallax) and from the Sun (heliocentric parallax). The two positions of the observer and the position of the object form a triangle; if the base

Flórez, Enrique

2005-04-01T00:29:00.000-08:00

In 1718 Flórez entered the Augustinian order and studied philosophy with the priests of Piedrahita, moving a year later

Chiapas Highlands

2005-03-31T19:02:00.000-08:00

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

Loch (of Drylaw), Henry Brougham Loch, 1st Baron

2005-03-30T21:17:00.000-08:00

A career soldier, Loch began his service in India (1844–53) and fought in the Crimean War (1853–56) and in the second and third China wars (1857–58 and 1860). After 1860 he held civil appointments. From

World War Ii, Iraq and Syria, 194041

2005-03-30T03:05:00.000-08:00

In 1940 Prince 'Abd al-Ilah, regent of Iraq for King Faysal, had a government divided within itself about the war; he himself and his foreign minister, Nuri as-Said, were pro-British, but his prime minister, Rashid Ali al-Gailani, had pro-German leanings. Having resigned office in January 1941, Rashid Ali on April 3 seized power in Baghdad with help from some army officers and announced

Alkali Feldspar

2005-03-29T14:22:00.000-08:00

Any of several common silicate minerals that often occur as variously coloured, glassy crystals. They are used in the manufacture of glass and ceramics; transparent, highly coloured, or iridescent varieties are sometimes used as gemstones. The alkali feldspars are primarily important as constituents of rocks; they are very widespread and abundant in alkali and

Architecture And Civil Engineering, Exhibitions.

2005-03-27T22:16:00.000-08:00

The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City staged the largest exhibit ever held of the work of the Scottish designer Charles Rennie Mackintosh. Originating in Glasgow, Scot., the exhibit later traveled to Chicago and Los Angeles. It focused on 250 items, including furniture, watercolours, posters, and other objects by the noted architect, one of the founders of the

United States Court Of Appeals For The Armed Forces

2005-03-27T02:41:00.000-08:00

Originally consisting of three civil judges, the court since 1990 has consisted of five judges appointed by the president and

Cloete, Stuart

2005-03-27T02:33:00.000-08:00

Cloete farmed in South Africa for several years (1926–35) before turning to writing. His first novel, Turning Wheels (1937), expressed a negative view of Boer life and dealt with interracial love affairs. It stimulated

Yang Chu

2005-03-26T06:55:00.000-08:00

Pinyin Yang Zhu one of the early Taoist philosophers. Yang has been infamous in Chinese history for what was thought to be his extreme hedonism. This characterization of Yang was fostered by the great Confucian philosopher Mencius (c. 371–289 BC), the second Sage (after Confucius) of China, who condemned Yang Chu for upholding the principle of “each for himself.” According to Mencius,

Bae Systems

2005-03-25T21:19:00.000-08:00

Major British manufacturer of aircraft, missiles, avionics, and other aerospace and defense products. It was formed in 1999 from the merger of British Aerospace PLC (BAe) with Marconi Electronic Systems, formerly part of General Electric Company PLC. BAe, in turn, dates to the merger in 1977 of British Aircraft Corporation, Hawker Siddeley Aviation, and two other firms. Headquarters

Pacific Islands

2005-03-25T09:08:00.000-08:00

Humans in the Pacific have had to adapt to island environments just as other species have done. The technologies and organizational systems introduced into the Pacific by migrants were established in habitats that varied from receptive to hostile. The earliest arrivals, as food-gathering peoples, probably provoked little disruption of the environment. Their

Raymond Iii

2005-03-23T23:42:00.000-08:00

Raymond succeeded to the countship after the assassination of his father, Raymond II, in 1152. In his campaigns against the Muslims he was taken prisoner by their leader Nureddin in 1164 but was released in 1172. When the new king of Jerusalem, Baldwin IV, took the throne

Racer

2005-03-23T23:27:00.000-08:00

Any of several large, swift snakes belonging to the family Colubridae. Blue racers are central and western North American subspecies of Coluber constrictor; they are plain bluish, greenish blue, gray, or brownish, sometimes with yellow bellies. The eastern subspecies is called black snake; it is all black except for its whitish chin and throat.

Biblical Literature, The King James (Authorized) Version

2005-03-22T21:22:00.000-08:00

A conference of churchmen in 1604 became noteworthy

Davidescu, Nicolae

2005-03-22T02:51:00.000-08:00

Romanian poet and novelist whose early poems, Inscriptii (1916), showed the influence of Charles Baudelaire. Among his prose works the novel Zâna din fundul lacului (1912; “The Fairy at the Bottom of the Lake”) was an exercise in symbolism, and Vioara muta (1928; “The Muted Violin”), in social psychology. In the epic Cântecul omului (1928–37; “The Song of Man”), he aimed at re-creating world history.

Hooks, Bell

2005-03-21T07:15:00.000-08:00

Watkins grew up in a segregated community of the American South. At age 19 she began writing what would become her first full-length book, Ain't I a Woman: Black Women and Feminism, which was

Ortelius, Abraham

2005-03-20T20:16:00.000-08:00

Trained as an engraver, Ortelius about 1554 set up his book and antiquary business. About 1560, under the influence of Gerardus Mercator, Ortelius became interested in mapmaking.

Aliquippa

2005-03-20T04:54:00.000-08:00

City, Beaver county, western Pennsylvania, U.S. It lies along the Ohio River, just northwest of Pittsburgh. Settled about 1750 as a post for trade with Delaware, Iroquois, and Shawnee Indians, it was first known as Logstown and later renamed for “Queen” Aliquippa, probably an Iroquois. After the French and Indian War (1754–63), the Indian peoples lost their title to the land, and Logstown

Radishchev, Aleksandr Nikolayevich

2005-03-19T16:18:00.000-08:00

Radishchev, a nobleman, was educated in Moscow (1757–62), at the St. Petersburg Corps of Pages (1763–66), and at Leipzig, where he studied law (1766–71). His career as a civil servant brought him into contact with people from all social strata. Under the influence

Cosimo Ii

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

Cosimo II succeeded his father, Ferdinand I, in 1609; and, guided by his mother, Christine of Lorraine, and by Belisario Vinta, he followed his father's example and sought to establish a balance between France and Spain. He used his

Stearyl Alcohol

2005-03-18T10:14:00.000-08:00

Also called 1-octadecanol, or Octadecyl Alcohol, waxy solid alcohol formerly obtained from whale or dolphin oil and used as a lubricant and antifoam agent and to retard evaporation of water from reservoirs. It is now manufactured by chemical reduction of stearic acid.

Oat Grass

2005-03-17T22:58:00.000-08:00

Any of the perennial plants of two genera of grasses, Arrhenatherum and Danthonia (family Poaceae). Approximately six species of tall grasses, native to temperate Europe and Asia, constitute the genus Arrhenatherum. Tall oat grass (A. elatius), which has been introduced into various countries as a pasture grass, grows wild in many areas and is considered a weed, especially

Sayan Mountains

2005-03-16T18:35:00.000-08:00

The Sayans form a rough arc, convex to the north, and stretch from the Altai Mountains in the west to Lake Baikal in the

Spectroscopy, Interference

2005-03-16T09:32:00.000-08:00

A third class of devices for dispersing spectra are known as interferometers. These instruments divide the light with semitransparent surfaces, producing two or more beams that travel different paths and then recombine. In spectroscopy, the principal interferometers are those developed by the American physicist A.A. Michelson (1881) in an attempt to find the luminiferous

Nigeria, Relief

2005-03-16T00:09:00.000-08:00

In general, the topography of Nigeria consists of plains in the north and south interrupted by plateaus and hills in the centre of the country. The Sokoto Plains are in the northwestern corner of the country, while the Borno Plains in the northeastern corner surround the Lake Chad region. The Lake Chad basin and the coastal areas, including the Niger River delta and

Madison, James

2005-03-14T18:53:00.000-08:00

Fourth president of the United States (1809–17) and one of the founding fathers of his country. At the Constitutional Convention (1787) he influenced the planning and ratification of the U.S. Constitution and collaborated with Alexander Hamilton and John Jay in the publication of The Federalist Papers. As a member of the new House of Representatives, he sponsored the first 10 amendments to the Constitution, commonly called the Bill of Rights. He was secretary of state under President Thomas Jefferson when the Louisiana Territory was purchased from France. The War of 1812 was fought during his presidency. (For a discussion of the history and nature of the presidency, see presidency of the United States of America. See also Cabinet of President James Madison.)

Ahura Mazda

2005-03-14T07:56:00.000-08:00

According to Zoroaster, Ahura Mazda created the universe and the cosmic order that he maintains.

Caitanya Sect

2005-03-14T04:03:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Chaitanya intensely emotional form of Hinduism that has flourished from the 16th century, mainly in Bengal and eastern Orissa, India. It takes its name from the medieval saint Caitanya (Chaitanya; 1485–1533), whose fervent devotion to Lord Krishna (Krsna) inspired the movement. For Caitanya the legends of Krishna and his youthful beloved, Radha, were both symbolic of and the highest expressions

Muffler

2005-03-14T01:51:00.000-08:00

A typical sound-absorbing

Wace

2005-03-13T05:22:00.000-08:00

The Rou was commissioned by Henry II of England, who sometime before 1169 secured for Wace a canonry at Bayeux in northwestern France. The Brut may have been dedicated to Henry's queen,

Sunga Script

2005-03-12T17:05:00.000-08:00

Brahmi script of north India, possibly connected with the late Maurya scripts and the early Kalinga character, and associated with the Sunga dynasty (c. 185 BC–c. 73 BC). The script was one of three prototypes of the North Indian subdivision of Brahmi script, out of which the Gupta scripts rose.

Gravimetric Analysis

2005-03-11T08:29:00.000-08:00

A method of quantitative chemical analysis in which the constituent sought is converted into a substance (of known composition) that can be separated from the sample and weighed. The steps commonly followed in gravimetric analysis are (1) preparation of a solution containing a known weight of the sample, (2) separation of the desired constituent, (3) weighing the isolated

Carnivore, Importance to humans

2005-03-11T03:52:00.000-08:00

The scavenger habits of most of the members of the Hyaenidae make them of considerable benefit to the ecosystem as a whole and often directly to man. They perform the service of eliminating the remnants left by the large predators and thus fit into a niche unused by most mammals. In some parts of Africa, hyenas are allowed to roam the villages, cleaning up garbage. In

Downing, Sir George

2005-03-10T19:48:00.000-08:00

The son of a Puritan lawyer, Downing was one of the first graduates of Harvard College,

Chekiang, Cultural life

2005-03-10T02:50:00.000-08:00

During the Nan (Southern) Sung dynasty (1127–1279) the political and cultural centre of China moved from the North to western Chekiang. The Hang-chou area became the homeland of a galaxy of famous painters (including a Sung emperor), as well as of calligraphers, poets, essayists, philosophers, and historians. The beauty of Lin-an (modern Hang-chou), the Nan Sung capital, was immortalized

Alexander (v)

2005-03-10T01:03:00.000-08:00

Alexander became a Franciscan theologian and then archbishop of Milan (1402). Pope Innocent VII appointed him cardinal (1405) and papal legate to Lombardy. Unanimously elected by the invalid Council of Pisa in 1409 when he was 70 years old, Alexander was pope for only 10 months. It was hoped that his election would swiftly terminate

'antar, Romance Of

2005-03-08T20:34:00.000-08:00

Tales of chivalry centred on the black Arab desert poet and warrior 'Antarah ibn Shaddad, one of the poets of the celebrated pre-Islamic collection Al-Mu'allaqat. It was composed anonymously between the 8th and the 12th century, though the Romance itself credits the 9th-century philologist al-Asma'i with its authorship. Written in rhymed prose (saj') interspersed with 10,000 poetic verses,

Chiba

2005-03-08T20:28:00.000-08:00

City and capital of Chiba ken (prefecture), Honshu, Japan. It lies on the Boso Peninsula about 20 miles (30 km) southeast of Tokyo and on the east coast of Tokyo Bay. It was a castle town controlled by the Chiba family in the 12th–15th century, and during the Tokugawa period (1603–1867) it served as a post-station town for several major roads. The town grew after the construction of a railway connecting

Bone

2005-03-08T03:27:00.000-08:00

The functions of bone include (1) structural support for the mechanical action of soft tissues, such as contraction of

Auch

2005-03-07T23:11:00.000-08:00

Town, capital of Gers département, Midi-Pyrénées région, southwestern France. Auch is built on and around a hill on the west bank of the Gers River, west of Toulouse. The capital of the Celtiberian tribe of Ausci, it became important in Roman Gaul as Elimberris and, after Christianity was established, became the metropolis of Novempopulani. In 732, to protect against Muslim

Xeroderma Pigmentosum

2005-03-07T04:49:00.000-08:00

Rare, recessively inherited skin condition in which resistance to sunlight and other radiation beyond the violet end of the spectrum is lacking. On exposure to such radiation the skin erupts into numerous pigmented spots, resembling freckles, which tend to develop into multiple carcinomas. The condition may occur in mild or severe forms. Protection from direct

Fitch, Clyde

2005-03-06T17:36:00.000-08:00

Fitch graduated from Amherst College in 1886. In New York City he began writing short stories for magazines. A prolific writer, he produced 33 original plays and 22 adaptations, including Beau Brummel (1890), written for the actor Richard Mansfield, The

Wolsey, Thomas, Cardinal

2005-03-05T22:20:00.000-08:00

The son of a butcher of Ipswich, Wolsey was educated at the University of Oxford. In 1498 he was ordained

Widmann, Joseph Viktor

2005-03-05T20:58:00.000-08:00

As literary editor of the Bern daily newspaper Der Bund from 1880 to 1910, Widmann occupied an authoritative position in Swiss letters and promoted many talented writers. He was himself an accomplished though not a strikingly original writer, and he handled such

Mahamudra

2005-03-05T15:56:00.000-08:00

(Sanskrit: “the great seal”), in Tantric Buddhism, the final goal, the union of all apparent dualities. Mudra, in addition to its more usual meaning, has in Tantric Buddhism the esoteric meaning of “female partner,” which in turn symbolizes prajna (“wisdom”). The union of the Tantric initiate with his sexual partner signifies the symbolic union of the upaya (the “means,” or method of

Dorgon

2005-03-04T22:31:00.000-08:00

Dorgon was the 14th of the 16 sons of Nurhachi, founder of the Manchu state, who

Switzerland

2005-03-04T15:16:00.000-08:00

Etruscans, Rhaetians, Celts, Romans, and Germanic peoples have left their imprint on Switzerland in the course of its historical evolution. The present population shows traces mainly of the Alpine, “Nordic,” and southern Slav or Dinaric peoples. To survive as a cohesive unit, the disparate elements of the Swiss people have had to learn a mutual cooperation to protect

Apple Moss

2005-03-04T15:06:00.000-08:00

(Bartramia pomiformis), moss of the order Bryales that has apple-shaped capsules (spore cases) and forms wide, deep cushions in moist, rocky woods throughout the Northern Hemisphere. It is one of more than 100 species in the genus Bartramia; more than 10 are found in North America. An apple moss is usually erect, with a two-forked caulid (stem) about 6 cm (about 2.25 inches) tall, with rust-coloured,

Ouzel

2005-03-03T08:33:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Ousel, also called Ring-ouzel (species Turdus torquatus), a thrush of the family Turdidae (order Passeriformes), characterized by a white crescent on the breast. A blackish bird, 24 cm (9.5 inches) long, it breeds locally in uplands from Great Britain and Norway to the Middle East. The name ouzel was formerly applied to a closely related European blackbird (T. merula; see blackbird). For a related bird in Mexico,

Camaieu

2005-03-02T10:19:00.000-08:00

Plural Camaieux, painting technique by which an image is executed either entirely in shades of a single colour or in several tints unnatural to the object, figure, or scene represented. When a picture is monochromatically rendered in gray, it is called grisaille; when in yellow, cirage. Originating in the ancient world, camaieu was used in miniature painting to simulate cameos and

Saigo Takamori

2005-03-02T08:55:00.000-08:00

Original name Kichibe , or Kichinosuke , literary name Nanshu a leader in the overthrow of the Tokugawa shogunate who later rebelled against the weaknesses he saw in the Imperial government that he had helped to restore. Although his participation in the restoration made him a legendary hero, it also, to his mortification, relegated his samurai class to impotence.

French Literature, Secular drama

2005-03-01T07:35:00.000-08:00

The earliest comic plays extant date from the second half of the 13th century. Le Garçon et

'arafat, Yasir

2005-03-01T07:14:00.000-08:00

Byname of Muhammad 'Abd ar-Ra'uf al-Qudwah al-Husayni president (1996–2004) of the Palestinian Authority, chairman (1969–2004) of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), and leader of Fatah, the largest of the constituent PLO groups. In 1993 he led the PLO to a peace agreement with the Israeli government. 'Arafat and Yitzhak Rabin and Shimon Peres of Israel were jointly awarded the Nobel Prize for Peace

Nagai Kafu

2005-02-28T22:42:00.000-08:00

Rebellious as a youth, Kafu failed to finish his university studies and was sent abroad from 1903 to 1908. Before he left, he had produced three novels, which were influenced by French naturalism. After he returned to Japan he continued to be a student and translator

Baikie, William Balfour

2005-02-27T10:37:00.000-08:00

Educated in medicine at the University of Edinburgh, Baikie entered the Royal Navy as an assistant surgeon in 1848 and served on several ships as well as on land (1851–54). In 1854 he joined an expedition up the Niger River and, on the death

Médéa

2005-02-27T02:01:00.000-08:00

Also called Lemdiyya, town, north-central Algeria. It is situated on a plateau 56 miles (90 km) south of Algiers. Shadowed by Mount Nador (3,693 feet [1,126 m]) to the northwest, the town is surrounded by fertile, well-watered soil that forms the watershed for the Chelif River and the Wadis Chiffa and Isser. Located on the site of Lambdia, a Roman military post, Médéa was founded in the 10th century by Yusuf Buluggin I ibn

Raymond Vi

2005-02-26T18:33:00.000-08:00

The son of Count Raymond V, Raymond VI was a nephew of King Louis VII of France and brother-in-law of King Richard I of England. Tolerant toward the many

Rio Branco Law

2005-02-25T14:13:00.000-08:00

Also called Law of Free Birth , Portuguese Lei do Ventre Livre measure enacted by the Brazilian parliament in 1871 that freed children born of slave parents. The law was passed under the leadership of José Maria da Silva Paranhos, Viscount do Rio Branco, premier during 1871–73, and Joaquim Nabuco de Araujo, a leading abolitionist. Although the children were set free, the measure allowed the parents' owners to require such children to work

Straits Settlements

2005-02-25T03:37:00.000-08:00

Former British crown colony on the Strait of Malacca, comprising four trade centres, Penang, Singapore, Malacca, and Labuan, established or taken over by the British East India Company. The British settlement at Penang was founded in 1786, at Singapore in 1819; Malacca, occupied by the British during the Napoleonic Wars, was transferred to the East India Company in 1824. The three territories

Ben Khedda, Benyoussef

2005-02-25T03:28:00.000-08:00

Algerian independence leader (b. Feb. 23, 1920, Berrouaghia, Alg.—d. Feb. 4, 2003, Algiers, Alg.), negotiated Algeria's independence from France in 1962, but he was forced from power shortly thereafter. In 1943, after he protested against French attempts to recruit Algerians in World War II, Ben Khedda was imprisoned for eight months. After the war he became general secretary of the pro-independence

Dalhousie, James Andrew Broun Ramsay, Marquess And 10th Earl Of

2005-02-24T16:21:00.000-08:00

Dalhousie also took advantage of every opportunity to acquire territory by peaceful means. The East India Company, which was no longer an independent corporation but largely under the control of the British government, was rapidly becoming the predominant power in India. It had concluded alliances with Indian rulers, promising to support them and their heirs

North Germanic Languages, Orthography

2005-02-23T16:27:00.000-08:00

The five basic vowel symbols of the Latin alphabet are supplemented by a number of special symbols that are used mostly to represent umlauted vowels: thus, there is y (pronounced as German ü), æ (used in Danish, Norwegian, Icelandic, and Faroese) and the corresponding ä (used in Swedish), ø (in Danish, Norwegian, and Faroese) and the corresponding ö (in Swedish and Icelandic), and

Lipalian Interval

2005-02-23T10:42:00.000-08:00

In geology, time span suggested in an attempt to explain the sudden appearance of abundant life forms in the earliest known Cambrian rocks (approximately 570,000,000 years old), in contrast to their absence in the latest Precambrian strata (no more than about 800,000,000 years old). Unlike Precambrian indications of life, Cambrian faunas are comparatively highly developed and diverse,

Exercise, Overall conditioning

2005-02-21T17:14:00.000-08:00

Much emphasis has been given in the foregoing discussion to aerobic fitness, because this form of conditioning is extremely important. It should be noted, however, that other types of conditioning also have benefits. A total exercise program should include strengthening exercises, to maintain body mass and appropriate levels of strength for daily functioning,

Zappa, Frank

2005-02-21T16:33:00.000-08:00

Zappa was, in no apparent order, a first-rate cultural gadfly dedicated to upsetting American suburban complacency and puncturing the hypocrisy and pretensions of both the U.S. political establishment and the counterculture that opposed it; a contemporary orchestral

California Aqueduct

2005-02-21T03:50:00.000-08:00

Principal water-conveyance structure of the California State Water Project, U.S., running from the Sacramento River Delta east of San Francisco, south through the San Joaquin Valley, and over the summit of the Tehachapi Mountains, a distance of 273 mi (440 km). At this point it divides into east and west branches, the former terminating some 444 mi from the delta. Sizes of channels

Alphabet, Theories explaining diffusion

2005-02-20T18:48:00.000-08:00

There is no complete agreement among scholars as to how or why certain alphabets have come to dominate much of the world. Some believe that diffusion is explained by the efficiency of the orthography; the Greek alphabet, capable of representing unambiguously a full range of meanings, was adopted throughout western Europe. Others hold that the alphabet follows

Armenian Rite

2005-02-20T16:19:00.000-08:00

The system of liturgical practices and discipline observed by both the Armenian Apostolic (Orthodox) Church and the Armenian Catholics. The Armenians, who regard themselves as the “first Christian nation,” were converted to Christianity by St. Gregory the Illuminator about AD 300. The Liturgy of St. Gregory the Illuminator, used by both Apostolic and Catholic Armenians,

Murano

2005-02-20T07:37:00.000-08:00

Island, north of Venice, in Veneto region, northeastern Italy, with an area of 1,134 acres (459 hectares) in the Laguna Veneta (Venice Lagoon). It was founded between the 5th and the 7th century, and it experienced its major development after 1291, when glass furnaces were moved there from Venice. Murano became the manufacturing centre for Venetian glass, exported in large quantities to

Janub Sina'

2005-02-19T02:59:00.000-08:00

The topography of the

Ouvéa Island

2005-02-18T03:28:00.000-08:00

French Île Uvéa , also called Urea or Uea northernmost of the Loyalty Islands, an island group within the French overseas territory of New Caledonia, southwestern Pacific Ocean. Ouvéa is a crescent-shaped atoll, 30 miles (50 km) long and 4.5 miles (7 km) wide, with a total area of 51 square miles (132 square km). The most fertile of the group, it is wooded and exports copra. Faiaué (Fayaoué), on the southeast coast, is the chief village and

Muhammad, The emigration from Mecca to Medina

2005-02-17T22:43:00.000-08:00

In the summer of 621, 12 men from Medina, visiting Mecca for the annual pilgrimage to the Ka'bah (still a pagan shrine), secretly professed themselves Muslims to Muhammad and went back to make propaganda for him at Medina. At the pilgrimage in June 622 a representative party of 75 persons from Medina, including two women, not merely professed Islam but also took an oath to defend Muhammad

Porsgrunn

2005-02-17T22:18:00.000-08:00

Town, Telemark fylke (county), southern Norway, at the mouth of the Skienselva (river) on Frierfjorden. Established as a customs post in 1652 with the name Porsgrund, it received its town charter in 1842. An export and industrial centre, it contains the huge Norsk Hydro chemical factories, a factory that produces Norway's finest porcelain, shipyards, metalworks, and lumber mills.

Cabot, George

2005-02-17T04:13:00.000-08:00

After studying at Harvard, Cabot went to sea. He became a shipowner and successful merchant, retiring from business in 1794. Cabot was a member of the Massachusetts Constitutional Convention (1779–80), of the state Senate (1783), and of the Massachusetts convention that ratified the Federal

San Fernando

2005-02-16T11:30:00.000-08:00

Capital of Colchagua provincia, O'Higgins región, central Chile, lying on the Rapel River, at 1,112 feet (339 m) above sea level, in a fertile longitudinal valley. Founded in 1742, it became the provincial capital in 1840. San Fernando's rodeos rank among Chile's best, for the city is in the heart of huaso (“cowboy”) country. In addition to livestock, the surrounding region yields wheat, forage crops,

Levi-montalcini, Rita

2005-02-15T13:37:00.000-08:00

Levi-Montalcini studied medicine at the University of Turin and did research there on the

Poland

2005-02-15T02:34:00.000-08:00

Over the past millennium,

Fagaras Mountains

2005-02-14T13:30:00.000-08:00

Romanian Muntii Fagaras mountain range, the highest section of the Transylvanian Alps (Southern Carpathian Mountains), south-central Romania. Their steep northern face rises above 8,000 feet (2,450 m) and overlooks the Fagaras Depression, through which flows the Olt River over a gentler gradient south to the Carpathian foothills. The mountains are heavily glaciated, with lakes, fretted peaks, and morainic

Botany

2005-02-14T03:45:00.000-08:00

Branch of biology that deals with the study of plants, including their structure, properties, and biochemical processes. Also included are plant classification and the study of plant diseases and of interactions with the environment. The principles and findings of botany have provided the base for such applied sciences as agriculture, horticulture, and

Ruzicka, Leopold

2005-02-13T22:44:00.000-08:00

While working as an assistant to the German chemist Hermann

Aphrodite

2005-02-13T13:48:00.000-08:00

Ancient Greek goddess of sexual love and beauty, identified by the Romans with Venus (q.v.). Because the Greek word aphros means “foam,” the legend arose that Aphrodite was born from the white foam produced by the severed genitals of Uranus (Heaven), after his son Cronus threw them into the sea. Aphrodite was, in fact, widely worshiped as a goddess of the sea and of seafaring; she

Komárom-esztergom

2005-02-12T20:34:00.000-08:00

Megye (county), northwestern Hungary. The megye extends southward from the Danube River and the Slovakian frontier. It has a mixed agricultural-industrial economic base. Sugar beets and peaches are important crops, and there is a sugar beet mill at Ács. Tatabánya (q.v.), the megye seat, is Hungary's chief mining (lignite) centre. Considerable industrial activity is concentrated

Wells, Horace

2005-02-11T19:20:00.000-08:00

While practicing in Hartford, Conn., in 1844, Wells noted the pain-killing properties of nitrous oxide (“laughing gas”) during a laughing-gas road show and thereafter used it in performing painless dental operations. He was allowed to demonstrate the method at the Massachusetts

Eastern Orthodoxy, Theological and monastic renaissance

2005-02-11T16:07:00.000-08:00

Paradoxically, the pitiful history of Byzantium under the Palaeologan emperors coincided with an astonishing intellectual, spiritual, and artistic renaissance that influenced the entire Eastern Christian world. The renaissance was not without fierce controversy and polarization. In 1337 Barlaam the Calabrian, one of the representatives of Byzantine Humanism,

Dubuque

2005-02-11T08:27:00.000-08:00

City, seat (1834) of Dubuque county, northeastern Iowa, U.S., on the Mississippi River (bridged to East Dubuque, Illinois), opposite the junction of the Wisconsin and Illinois boundary lines. It was named for Julien Dubuque (1762–1810), a French Canadian trader who in 1788 concluded a treaty with the Fox giving him lead-mining rights. He was the first person of European descent to settle permanently

Himeji

2005-02-09T11:03:00.000-08:00

City, Hyogo ken (prefecture), western Honshu, Japan. It is situated west of Kobe, near the Inland Sea. It developed as a castle town around the white, five-storied Himeji, or Shirasagi (“Egret”), Castle, built in the 14th century and reconstructed in 1577 and 1964. A large part of the city was destroyed by bombing during World War II. The city recovered and grew rapidly after the war. It is now the

Japanese Spaniel

2005-02-09T08:56:00.000-08:00

Also called Japanese Chin, breed of toy dog that originated in China and was introduced to Japan, where it was kept by royalty. The breed became known in the West when Commodore Matthew Perry returned from Japan in 1853 with several dogs that had been presented to him. The Japanese spaniel is a compact, dainty-looking dog with large, dark eyes, a short muzzle, and a heavily plumed tail that curls over its

Requests, Court Of

2005-02-09T07:52:00.000-08:00

Called the Court of Poor Men's Causes until 1529, it was a popular court because of the limited expense of bringing suit before it. Modeled after the French Chambre

Law, Crime, And Law Enforcement, Other Issues.

2005-02-09T03:06:00.000-08:00

That not all disputes were susceptible to peaceful means of settlement was shown when a sudden border war flared up between Peru and Ecuador in January over a 77-km (48-mi) stretch of disputed land along the Cenepa River. The hostilities, which involved ground and air troops, were ended by a treaty signed in Brasília, Brazil, on February 17 providing for negotiations toward

Skateboarding

2005-02-07T14:54:00.000-08:00

Form of recreation popular among youths, in which a person rides standing balanced on a small board mounted on wheels. Most skateboards are about 2 feet 8 inches (0.81 m) long and 9 inches (23 cm) wide. Originally, they were made of wood, but later they were also made of aluminum, fibreglass, and plastic. The wheels are made of tough polyurethane plastic. There are two kinds of skateboards:

Theatre Music

2005-02-07T05:14:00.000-08:00

Music as an art of the theatre has its roots in primitive ritual and ceremony and its branches in every modern means of theatrical presentation. Its functions are

Quietism

2005-02-07T01:29:00.000-08:00

A doctrine of Christian spirituality that, in general, holds that perfection consists in passivity (quiet) of the soul, in the suppression of human effort so that divine action may have full play. Quietistic elements have been discerned in several religious movements, both Christian and non-Christian, through the centuries; but the term is usually identified with

Bushehr

2005-02-06T16:29:00.000-08:00

Coastal region, southwestern Iran, bordering the Persian Gulf on the west and bounded by the regions of Hormozgan and Fars on the southeast and east and Khuzestan on the northwest. Inland the region is part of the Zagros Mountains and consists of fingers of upland within a plateau. The Shapur River drains the region and serves as an inland waterway from the coast of the Persian