SeparateScissors

Turkey, The Fundamental Law and abolition of the sultanate

2005-04-05T01:30:00.000-07:00

The Kemalists were now faced with local uprisings, official Ottoman forces, and Greek hostility. The first necessity was to establish a legitimate basis of action. A parliament (the Grand National Assembly) met at Ankara on April 23 and asserted that the sultan's government was under infidel control and that it was the duty of Muslims to resist foreign encroachment.

Alexander The Great, Asia Minor and the Battle of Issus

2005-04-03T10:11:00.000-07:00

In winter 334–333 Alexander conquered western Asia Minor, subduing the hill tribes of Lycia and Pisidia; and in spring 333 he advanced along the coastal road to Perga, passing the cliffs of Mt. Climax, thanks to a fortunate change of wind. The fall in the level of the sea was interpreted as a mark of divine favour by Alexander's flatterers, including the historian Callisthenes. At

Bhaiband

2005-03-31T14:22:00.000-08:00

(Hindi), Urdu-Persian Beradari (“brotherhood”), important instrument of caste self-government in India; the bhaiband is the council formed by the heads of families that belong to the same lineage in a particular area, thus constituting an exogamous (those who do not intermarry) unit within the endogamous (those who do intermarry) caste group. One of their concerns, in addition to questions arising as a

Ringworm

2005-03-29T22:31:00.000-08:00

Superficial skin lesions caused by certain fungi that live and multiply on the surface of the skin and feed on keratin, the horny protein constituting the major part of the outermost layer of the skin and of the hair and nails. The fungi produce responses in the skin that vary from slight scaling to blistering and marked disruption of the keratin layer. The lesions

Cachoeira Do Sul

2005-03-28T06:36:00.000-08:00

City and river port, central Rio Grande do Sul estado (“state”), southern Brazil. It lies along the Jacuí River at 200 feet (60 m) above sea level. Founded in 1819 as São João de Cachoeira and given city status in 1859, Cachoeira do Sul is the centre of one of Brazil's major rice-growing areas. Rice, wool, wheat, and fruits are processed and shipped from the city, which is about 103 miles (165 km) west of Pôrto

Biblical Literature, The Babylonian Exile and the restoration

2005-03-25T22:05:00.000-08:00

The Babylonian Exile (586–538) marks an epochal dividing point in Old Testament history, standing between what were subsequently to be designated the pre-exilic and post-exilic eras. The Judahite community in Babylonia was, on the whole, more Yahwist in religion than ever, following the Mosaic Law, emphasizing and redefining such distinctive elements as circumcision and

Confederation, Articles Of

2005-03-24T18:57:00.000-08:00

First U.S. constitution (1781–89), which served as a bridge between the initial government by the Continental Congress of the Revolutionary period and the federal government provided under the U.S. Constitution of 1787. Because the experience of overbearing British central authority was vivid in colonial minds, the drafters of the Articles deliberately established a confederation

Czardas

2005-03-24T02:32:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Csardas , Hungarian Csárdás national dance of Hungary. A courting dance for couples, it begins with a slow section (lassu), followed by an exhilarating fast section (friss). The individual dancers carry themselves proudly and improvise on a simple fundamental step, their feet snapping inward and outward, the couples whirling. The music, often played by a Gypsy orchestra, is in 2/4 or 4/4 time with compelling,

Brasília, Climate

2005-03-22T09:24:00.000-08:00

The climate is warm and mild with average minimum and maximum temperatures of about 57° F (14° C) and 81° F (27° C), respectively. Rainfall averages some 60 inches (1,600 mm) per year with a dry season from March to October, and humidity is generally between 40 and 80 percent (it fell to 11 percent during a drought in 1994).

Floodgate

2005-03-21T03:39:00.000-08:00

Gate for shutting out or releasing the flow of water over spillways, in connection with the operation of a dam. Vertical lift, or radial, gates rise to permit flow under the gate but over the spillway crest. Drum gates rotate backward, lowering their tops and permitting a measured flow over the top of the gate. Drum gates present the fewest problems in the passage of ice

Fiscus

2005-03-20T20:10:00.000-08:00

Vespasian created the fiscus Alexandrinus and fiscus Asiaticus to receive Egyptian and Asian revenues, formerly directed to the aer

Sullivan, Louis

2005-03-20T05:48:00.000-08:00

In full Louis Henry Sullivan American architect, regarded as the spiritual father of modern American architecture and identified with the aesthetics of early skyscraper design. His more than 100 works in collaboration (1879–95) with Dankmar Adler include the Auditorium Building, Chicago (1887–89); the Guaranty Building, Buffalo, New York (1894–95; now Prudential

Amorphous Solid

2005-03-17T16:58:00.000-08:00

It was once thought that relatively few materials could be prepared as amorphous solids, and such materials (notably, oxide glasses and organic polymers) were called glass-forming solids. It is now known that the amorphous solid state is almost a universal property of condensable matter. The Table presents a list of amorphous solids in which every class of chemical

Zoroastrianism, Post-Islamic Iranian Zoroastrianism

2005-03-17T06:58:00.000-08:00

Islam won a decisive victory at al-Qadisiyah in 635 over the armies of Yazdegerd III, the last Sasanid. Islam, in principle, tolerated the ancient religion, but conversions by persuasion or force were massive in many provinces. Zoroastrianism fomented rebellion and brought persecutions upon itself. There were pockets of survival, notably in Persis, the ancient centre of the

Winterthur

2005-03-16T06:01:00.000-08:00

City, Zürich canton, northern Switzerland. It lies in a wooded basin east of the Töss River, northeast of Zürich city. The Roman settlement of Vitodurum was on the site of the city's northeastern suburb of Ober-Winterthur. Winterthur was founded about 1175 by the counts of Kyburg, who granted it a charter with extensive privileges. It was inherited in 1264 by the Habsburgs, who sold

Jordan, Plant and animal life

2005-03-15T09:37:00.000-08:00

The plant and animal life of Jordan falls into three distinct types: Mediterranean, steppe (treeless plains), and desert. In the uplands the Mediterranean type predominates with scrubby, dense bushes and small trees, while in the drier steppe region to the east sagebrush is most frequent. Grassland is the prevalent vegetation on the steppe, but isolated trees and shrubs,

Johor Bahru

2005-03-14T03:46:00.000-08:00

Johor also spelled Johore, Bahru also spelled Baharu city, southern West Malaysia. It lies at the southern end of the Malay Peninsula and is separated from Singapore Island by the Johor Strait. At this point, a short rail and road causeway (0.75 mile [1.2 km]) crosses the strait to link the mainland with Singapore. Founded by Temenggong Ibrahim, the ruler of Johore, it was called Tanjung Putri until renamed Johore Bahru (“New Johore”) in

Botero, Fernando

2005-03-13T09:59:00.000-08:00

As a youth, Botero attended a school for matadors for several years, but his true interest was in art. While still a teenager, he began painting and was inspired by the pre-Columbian and Spanish colonial art that surrounded him as well as by the political

Protist, Section X. Rhizopod sarcodines

2005-03-12T18:13:00.000-08:00

Many possess nonaxopod pseudopodia in at least some stage of the life cycle, or a shuttle-type flow of cytoplasm is exhibited; tubular mitochondrial cristae; biflagellate stage is common in many species; pseudopodia are often employed in locomotion and holozoic feeding; some 44,000 described species, of which 85 percent are foraminiferans, with about 75 percent of the total

Argall, Sir Samuel

2005-03-12T06:45:00.000-08:00

Employed by the Virginia Company of London, Argall was commissioned in 1609 to discover a shorter route to Virginia and to fish for sturgeon. In 1610 he was named admiral of Virginia and commissioned to expel the French from all territory granted

Carloman

2005-03-10T11:49:00.000-08:00

Eldest son of Louis II the German and father of the emperor Arnulf. Carloman rebelled against his father in 861 and 863 but in 865 was entrusted by Louis with a share in his authority, being granted jurisdiction over Bavaria and Carinthia. After this he remained loyal to his father, even helping to suppress the rebellion of his two younger brothers

Hui

2005-03-10T04:10:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Hwei, or Hui-hui, also called (Wade-Giles) T'ung-kan, or (Pinyin) Tonggan, Burmese Pathay, Russian Dungan, Chinese Muslims, intermingled with the Han Chinese throughout China but relatively concentrated in western China—in the provinces or autonomous regions of Sinkiang, Ningsia, Kansu, Tsinghai, Honan, Hopeh, Shantung, and Yunnan. Considerable numbers also live in Anhwei, Liaoning, and Peking. The Hui are also found on the frontier between China and Myanmar (Burma) and

Dacia

2005-03-08T02:32:00.000-08:00

In antiquity, the area of the Carpathian Mountains and Transylvania, in present north-central and western Romania. The Dacian people had earlier occupied lands south of the Danube and north of the mountains, and the Roman province eventually included wider territories both to the north and east. The Dacians were agricultural and also worked their rich mines of

Cladonia

2005-03-07T17:56:00.000-08:00

Genus of lichens that includes those species commonly known as cup lichen, reindeer moss, and British soldiers (qq.v.).

Theatre

2005-03-06T22:16:00.000-08:00

In November 1994, 87 playwrights, including Harold Pinter, Arnold Wesker, and Peter Shaffer, wrote a letter to the artistic directors of subsidized theatres demanding a quota system of new plays--two or three a year--on their main stages. The writers expressed the feeling that the nation's theatre was slipping into "irrelevance and decline" because of a lack of opportunity for

Dagerman, Stig

2005-03-04T10:55:00.000-08:00

A journalist, Dagerman scored a critical success with his play Den dödsdömde (first

Ibn Jubayr

2005-03-02T07:04:00.000-08:00

The son of a civil servant, Ibn Jubayr became secretary to the Almohad governor of Granada, but he left that post for his pilgrimage, which was begun in 1183 and ended with his return to Granada in 1185. He wrote

La Roche, Sophie Von

2005-03-01T00:38:00.000-08:00

German writer whose first and most important work, Geschichte des Fräuleins von Sternheim (1771; History of Lady Sophia Sternheim), was the first German novel written by a woman and is considered to be among the best works from the period in which English novels, particularly those of Samuel Richardson,

Zittau

2005-02-28T04:27:00.000-08:00

City, Saxony Land (state), eastern Germany, on the Lausitzer Neisse River, near the frontiers of Poland and the Czech Republic. Originating as the Slav settlement of Sitowir, it was mentioned in 1230 and chartered in 1255, when it belonged to Bohemia. Zittau joined the federation of Lusatian towns in 1346 and fell to Saxony in 1635. Four 13th- and 15th-century churches still remain. There are training

Argolis, Gulf Of

2005-02-27T06:32:00.000-08:00

Modern Greek Argolikós Kólpos, deep inlet of the Mirtóön Sea, a western arm of the Aegean, eastern Peloponnese, Greece; it is separated from the Gulf of Saronikós by the Argolís peninsula. Some 30 miles (50 km) long and 20 miles (30 km) wide, it includes some small islands off the eastern shore, notably Psilí and Platiá. At the head of the gulf are its principal port, Nauplia, and the mouth of the Ínakhos River. Just north

Lepsius, Richard

2005-02-25T17:54:00.000-08:00

Following studies in archaeological philology and comparative languages, Lepsius became a lecturer at the University

Quatre Bornes

2005-02-25T02:17:00.000-08:00

Town (“township”) on the island of Mauritius, in the western Indian Ocean. It lies in the western highlands region of the country, about 9 miles (14 km) south of Port Louis, the national capital. Quatre Bornes (French: “Four Boundaries”) was named for the boundary stones that marked the limits of four large sugar estates once situated there. Sugarcane is still produced in the surrounding

Kebnekaise

2005-02-24T16:18:00.000-08:00

Mountain range in the län (county) of Norrbotten, northern Sweden. It lies 25 miles (40 km) from the Norwegian border and about 103 miles (166 km) north of the Arctic Circle. The name is a Sami word meaning “kettle top.” One of its peaks, Mount Kebne (6,926 feet [2,111 m]), is the highest in Sweden. The roughly triangular area of the mountain range covers approximately 18 square miles (47 square km); it is uninhabited

Duroc

2005-02-24T15:42:00.000-08:00

Breed of pig developed between 1822 and 1877 from the Old Duroc pig of New York and the Red Jersey pig of New Jersey; it was formerly called the Duroc-Jersey. The Duroc proved particularly suitable for feeding in the United States Corn Belt; by the 1930s it was the predominant breed in the United States, a distinction it held intermittently throughout the century. Exportation has

Human Evolution, Dating the fossils

2005-02-21T09:25:00.000-08:00

In the early 1970s a number of new carbon-14 datings gave rise to a radical revision in the then-accepted dating of the African Stone Age. The resulting picture has since been confirmed by a variety of newer methods. Accordingly, the African Middle Stone Age no longer is considered to have begun some 40,000 years ago and ended c. 10,000 years ago but instead to have begun c. 200,000 years ago and ended

Epigram

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

Originally an inscription suitable for carving on a monument, but since the time of the Greek Anthology (q.v.) applied to any brief and pithy verse, particularly if astringent and purporting to point a moral. By extension the term is also applied to any striking sentence in a novel, play, poem, or conversation that appears to express a succinct truth, usually in the form

Bridge

2005-02-19T16:12:00.000-08:00

Either of two card games, auction bridge and contract bridge, that are derived from whist and retain its essential features. These features are the following: four players participate, two against two in partnership. They play with a 52-card pack, all of whose cards are dealt face downward one at a time, clockwise. When play begins, the object is to win tricks, consisting of

Germany, Religious war and the Peace of Augsburg

2005-02-18T06:55:00.000-08:00

After the diet of 1530, Charles left Germany for more than a decade, occupied with troubles in the Mediterranean, the Netherlands, and, once again, France. In 1535 he campaigned against Tunis to subdue the Barbary pirates who, as a naval arm of the Ottomans and as corsairs and privateers, had been making navigation unsafe. Renewed war with France was temporarily halted in 1538 by a treaty

Taft, Lorado

2005-02-17T20:01:00.000-08:00

Taft graduated from the University of Illinois in Champaign and from 1880 to 1883 attended the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris, where he received a conservative, traditional art education with an emphasis on mythological

Mountain

2005-02-16T13:09:00.000-08:00

Landform that rises prominently above its surroundings, generally exhibiting steep slopes, a relatively confined summit area, and considerable local relief. Mountains generally are understood to be larger than hills, but the term has no standardized geological meaning. Very rarely do mountains occur individually. In most cases, they are found in elongated ranges

Facet

2005-02-14T07:02:00.000-08:00

Flat, polished surface on a cut gemstone, usually with three or four sides. The widest part of a faceted stone is the girdle; the girdle lies on a plane that separates the crown, the stone's upper portion, from the pavilion, the stone's base. The large facet in the crown parallel to the girdle is the table; the very small one in the pavilion also parallel to the girdle is the culet.

Micronesia

2005-02-13T02:10:00.000-08:00

To the west of the Federated States

Segovia Aqueduct

2005-02-12T08:09:00.000-08:00

Byname El Puente (Spanish: “The Bridge”), water-conveyance structure built under the Roman emperor Trajan (reigned AD 98–117) and still in use; it carries water 10 miles (16 km) from the Frío River to the city of Segovia, Spain. One of the best-preserved Roman engineering works, it was built of some 24,000 dark-coloured Guadarrama granite blocks without the use of mortar. The aboveground portion is 2,388 feet (728 metres) long and consists of some

Augustus Ii

2005-02-11T16:56:00.000-08:00

The second son of Elector John George III of Saxony, Augustus succeeded his elder brother John George IV as elector in 1694. After

China, The rise of the Manchu

2005-02-09T15:55:00.000-08:00

The Manchu, who ruled China from 1644 to 1911, were descendants of the Juchen tribes who had ruled North China as the Chin dynasty in the 12th century. From the 15th century they had paid tribute to the Ming and been organized in the commandery system, so they had long had extensive and regular contact with the Chinese state and, more importantly, with the Chinese military officers

Segovia Aqueduct

2005-02-09T04:28:00.000-08:00

The economic policy of the government of the Soviet Union from 1921 to 1928, representing a temporary retreat from its previous policy of extreme centralization and doctrinaire socialism. The policy of War Communism, in effect since 1918, had by 1921 brought the national economy to the point of total breakdown. The Kronshtadt Rebellion of March 1921 convinced the Communist Party and

Gray, Walter De

2005-02-08T20:04:00.000-08:00

He became chancellor of England in 1205 and, after John had made his peace with the church, was elected bishop of Worcester (1214). In 1215 John advanced him as a candidate for the see of York against the wishes of the cathedral chapter, and Pope Innocent

Portugal

2005-02-07T10:43:00.000-08:00

Officially Portuguese Republic, Portuguese Portugal, or República Portuguesa, country lying along the Atlantic coast of the Iberian Peninsula in southwestern Europe. It is bordered on the east and north by Spain and on the west and south by the Atlantic Ocean. Occupying about 16 percent of the Iberian Peninsula, Portugal has a total area of 35,672 square miles (92,389 square km). Despite its small size, the country displays a great diversity of geographic features;

Olmütz, Punctation Of

2005-02-06T15:53:00.000-08:00

German Olmützer Punktation (Nov. 29, 1850), agreement signed at Olmütz (Olomouc, Moravia, in modern Czech Republic) between Prussia and Austria that regulated those two powers' relations. The development leading up to the punctation was triggered when the elector of Hesse in the autumn of 1850 appealed for help against his rebellious subjects; both Austria and Prussia sent troops in response, and these threatened

China, U.S. aid to China

2005-02-06T04:06:00.000-08:00

One U.S. response was the decision to send large amounts of arms and equipment to China, along with a military mission to advise on their use. The underlying strategy was to revitalize China's war effort as a deterrent to Japanese military and naval operations southward. The Nationalist army was ill equipped to fight the Japanese in 1941. Its arsenals were so lacking in nonferrous

Ob River, Physiography

2005-02-04T01:20:00.000-08:00

There are more than 1,900 rivers within the basin, with an

Reformed Church In America

2005-02-03T21:20:00.000-08:00

Church that developed from the Dutch settlements in New Netherlands (New York) in the 17th century. The Dutch Reformed Church was the first Reformed church of continental European background in North America. During the period of Dutch sovereignty over New Netherlands, it was the established church of the colony. When the English seized the colony in 1664, they gave assurances

Ahmed Hasim

2005-02-02T21:52:00.000-08:00

Born into a prominent family, Hasim developed his knowledge of French literature and his fondness for poetry at Galatasaray Lycée in Constantinople (now Istanbul). After briefly studying law, he worked for the government tobacco offices.

Iran, Ancient, Mithradates II

2005-02-01T02:39:00.000-08:00

The reign of Mithradates II, from 123 to 88 BC, constitutes the most glorious chapter of Parthian history. It put an end to the ambitions of Artabanus's son Himerus, left by his father as governor of Mesopotamia, and brought Hyspaosines, king of Mesene (Characene), who had extended his possessions too far toward the north, back into submission. In the east the Saka were on the move—soon

Performing Arts, Africa.

2005-01-30T22:45:00.000-08:00

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

Maccabiah Games

2005-01-30T11:28:00.000-08:00

International games held in Palestine (later Israel) from 1932, sponsored by the World Maccabi Union, an international Jewish sports organization founded in 1921. Events held are such Olympic events as athletics (track and field), swimming, water polo, fencing, boxing, wrestling, football (soccer), basketball, tennis, table tennis, and volleyball and such non-Olympic events as

China, The history of the Chou (1111255 BC)

2005-01-29T16:53:00.000-08:00

The origin of the Chou royal house is lost in the mists of time. Although the traditional historical system of the Chinese contains a Chou genealogy, no dates can be assigned to the ancestors. The first ancestor was Hou Chi, literally translated as “Lord of Millet.” He appears to have been a cultural hero and agricultural deity rather than a tribal chief. The earliest plausible

Sendak, Maurice (bernard)

2005-01-28T01:35:00.000-08:00

Sendak was the son of Polish immigrants and received his formal art training at the Art Students' League in New York City. While attending school he drew backgrounds for All-American Comics and did window displays for a toy store. The first children's books he illustrated were Marcel

Adams, John Couch

2005-01-27T10:12:00.000-08:00

British mathematician and astronomer, one of two people who independently discovered the planet Neptune. On July 3, 1841, Adams had entered in his journal: “Formed a design in the beginning of this week of investigating, as soon as possible after taking my degree, the irregularities in the motion of Uranus . . . in order

Earth Sciences, Understanding of clouds, fog, and dew

2005-01-26T21:44:00.000-08:00

After Guericke's experiments it was

Deva

2005-01-24T23:47:00.000-08:00

City, capital of Hunedoara judet (county), west-central Romania, on the banks of the Mures River, at an elevation of 590 feet (180 m). The town is dominated by Citadel Hill (1,217 feet), shaped like a truncated cone, which affords a commanding view of the Mures valley. Atop the hill are the ruins of a citadel, built in the 13th century at the time of the Mongol invasions. The city grew in the protective

Smith, Emmitt

2005-01-24T15:32:00.000-08:00

Smith excelled early in football, starring in youth leagues and,

Ustinov, Dmitry Fedorovich

2005-01-23T13:01:00.000-08:00

An engineer by profession, Ustinov graduated in 1934 from the Military Institute of Mechanics in Leningrad (now St. Petersburg) and worked first as a construction engineer, then as director of a Leningrad armament factory. In 1941 Stalin appointed Ustinov people's

Hesychius Of Alexandria

2005-01-23T11:19:00.000-08:00

Although nothing is known of his life, Hesychius indicated the comprehensive design of his lexicon in a letter prefacing the work. Entitled Synagoge pason

Vrata

2005-01-21T18:23:00.000-08:00

In Jainism, a religious vow. See Jaina vrata.

Basel, Council Of

2005-01-20T07:14:00.000-08:00

A general council of the Roman Catholic church held in Basel, Switz. It was called by Pope Martin V a few weeks before his death in 1431 and then confirmed by Pope Eugenius IV. Meeting at a time when the prestige of the papacy had been weakened by the Great Schism (1378–1417), it was concerned with two major problems: the question of papal supremacy and the Hussite heresy. (The Hussites were

Zanj Rebellion

2005-01-19T18:21:00.000-08:00

(AD 869–883), a black-slave revolt against the 'Abbasid caliphal empire. A number of Basran landowners had brought several thousand East African blacks (Zanj) into southern Iraq to drain the salt marshes east of Basra. The landowners subjected the Zanj, who generally spoke no Arabic, to heavy slave labour and provided them with only minimal subsistence. In September 869, 'Ali ibn Muhammad,

La Vérendrye, Pierre Gaultier De Varennes, Et De

2005-01-19T08:33:00.000-08:00

French-Canadian soldier, fur trader, and explorer whose exploits, little honoured during his lifetime, rank him as one of the greatest explorers of the Canadian West. Moreover, the string of trading posts he and his sons built in the course of their search for an overland route to the “western sea” broke the monopoly

Adelaer

2005-01-16T21:41:00.000-08:00

He entered the Dutch navy in 1639 as an adelborst (“cadet”) and served under Martin van Tromp but in 1642 moved into Venetian service, where he was known as Curzio Suffrido Adelborst. He soon distinguished himself and in 1650 was sent to patrol the Dardanelles.

Norfolk

2005-01-16T18:09:00.000-08:00

Laid out as a town in 1682 following

Rouergue

2005-01-15T06:29:00.000-08:00

Ancient province of south central France, corresponding to much of the modern départements of Aveyron and Tarn-et-Garonne. It was bounded on the north by Auvergne, on the south and southwest by Languedoc, on the east by Gévaudan and the Cévennes mountains, and on the west by Quercy. It derived its name from the Gallic tribe of Rutheni. Administratively it formed first

Tetricus, Gaius Pius Esuvius

2005-01-14T19:38:00.000-08:00

He was a Gallic noble related to the usurping ruler of Gaul, Victorinus, and to Victorinus' mother, Victoria. Upon the murder of Victorinus, Tetricus, who was governor of Aquitania, was proclaimed emperor, apparently backed by the influence and money of Victoria. During his short and nominal reign, the monetary inflation

île-de-france

2005-01-13T10:52:00.000-08:00

Région encompassing the north-central French départements of Val-d'Oise, Seine-et-Marne, Seine-Saint-Denis, Paris, Hauts-de-Seine, Val-de-Marne, Essonne, and Yvelines and roughly coextensive with the historical region of the Île-de-France. The capital is Paris. The région is bounded by the départements of Eure to the northwest, Oise and Aisne to the north, Marne, Aube, and Yonne

China, Rural areas

2005-01-13T10:36:00.000-08:00

Except in the mountains and hills, an overwhelming majority of the rural settlements of China consist of sizable compact (nucleated) villages. The formation of such rural settlements is related not only to the increasing population and to a long historical background but also to water supply (the practice of drilling deep wells, for instance) and to defense (especially,

Arundel, Richard Fitzalan, 4th Earl Of, 10th Earl Of Surrey

2005-01-11T14:21:00.000-08:00

He began as a member of the royal council during the minority of Richard II and about 1381 was made one of the young king's governors. About 1385 he joined the baronial party led by the King's uncle, Thomas of Woodstock, duke of Gloucester, and in 1386 was a member of the commission appointed to regulate the kingdom and the royal household.

Ta-ch'ing

2005-01-10T19:11:00.000-08:00

Pinyin Daqing oil field in Heilungkiang province, China, one of the country's most important sources of oil. It is situated in the north of the Sungari-Liao River basin, between Tsitsihar and Harbin, in the general vicinity of An-ta, northwest of Harbin. The field was discovered in the late 1950s and drilling began in 1958, often in difficult conditions caused by the extreme winter cold and by

Nilus Of Ancyra, Saint

2005-01-08T15:33:00.000-08:00

A protégé of the staunchly orthodox and reform patriarch of Constantinople,

Bioclimatology

2005-01-08T11:28:00.000-08:00

Branch of climatology that deals with the effects of the physical environment on living organisms over an extended period of time. Although Hippocrates touched on these matters 2,000 years ago in his treatise on Air, Waters, and Places, the science of bioclimatology is relatively new. It developed into a significant field of study during the 1960s owing largely to a growing

Resistance

2005-01-06T11:26:00.000-08:00

In electricity, property of an electric circuit or part of a circuit that transforms electric energy into heat energy in opposing electric current. Resistance involves collisions of the current-carrying charged particles with fixed particles that make up the structure of the conductors. Resistance is often considered as localized in such devices as lamps,

Andrade, Jorge

2005-01-06T01:11:00.000-08:00

After staging O faqueiro de prata (“The Silver Cutlery”) and O telescópio (“The Telescope”) in 1954, Andrade came even more forcefully to public attention in 1955 with A moratória (“The Moratorium”). Among his later plays, Pedreira das almas

Aristeas, Letter Of

2005-01-05T16:32:00.000-08:00

Pseudepigraphal work of pseudo-history produced in Alexandria, probably in the mid-2nd century BC, to promote the cause of Judaism. Though the size and prestige of the Jewish community had already secured for itself a definite place in Alexandrian society and serious anti-Semitism had not yet gained currency, the Jewish community was in conflict. While some Jews embraced

Resistance

2005-01-04T08:28:00.000-08:00

Former union of garment and apparel workers in the United States and Canada. It was formed in 1976 by the merger of the Amalgamated Clothing Workers of America (ACWA), a large union representing workers in the men's clothing industry, with the Textile Workers Union of America, a smaller union founded in 1939. The ACWA was originally formed when militant elements within the United

Alessandri Palma, Arturo

2005-01-03T21:14:00.000-08:00

The son of an Italian immigrant, Alessandri was graduated in law from the University of Chile in 1893 and in 1897 was elected to the Chamber of Deputies. He was at various times minister of industry, minister of

Wad Madani

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

City, east-central Sudan. Wad Madani lies on the west bank of the Blue Nile, 85 miles (136 km) southeast of Khartoum, at an elevation of 1,348 feet (411 m). It owes its recent growth to the irrigated lands of the Jazirah (Gezira) irrigation scheme and is the commercial centre of the al-Jazirah cotton-growing area. Peanuts (groundnuts) and wheat are also grown in the area. The University of al-Jazirah

'abd Allah

2004-12-29T23:06:00.000-08:00

'Abd Allah followed his family's vocation for religion. In about 1880 he became a disciple of Muhammad Ahmad, who announced that he had a divine mission, became known as al-Mahdi, and appointed 'Abd Allah a caliph (khalifah). When al-Mahdi died

Güyük

2004-12-27T13:11:00.000-08:00

Güyük was elected to the throne in 1246, partly through the maneuvering of his mother. He was strongly influenced by Nestorianism, a form of Christianity considered a heresy by Western Christians, and he favoured Christian

Caldera

2004-12-26T02:31:00.000-08:00

(Spanish: “caldron”), large bowlshaped volcanic depression more than one kilometre in diameter and rimmed by infacing scarps. Calderas usually, if not always, form by the collapse of the top of a volcanic cone or group of cones because of removal of the support formerly furnished by an underlying body of magma (molten rock). Often this collapse is of a composite cone that

Medicine, Specialties in medicine

2004-12-24T16:17:00.000-08:00

At the beginning of World War II it was possible to recognize a number of major medical specialties, including internal medicine, obstetrics and gynecology, pediatrics, pathology, anesthesiology, ophthalmology, surgery, orthopedic surgery, plastic surgery, psychiatry and neurology, radiology, and urology. Hematology was also an important field of study, and microbiology

Pacific Mountain System, Geology

2004-12-22T23:14:00.000-08:00

In general, the movement of tectonic plates has been responsible for the development of the Pacific mountain system. The coastal mountains from the Queen Charlotte Islands southward to southern California have been folded, faulted, and intruded with molten rock as a result of this movement. The most significant activity has been the lateral, northerly movement

Mcmillan, Edwin Mattison

2004-12-19T23:34:00.000-08:00

McMillan was educated at the California Institute of Technology and at Princeton University, where he

Czetwertynski Family

2004-12-17T08:00:00.000-08:00

Also called Swietopelk-Czetwertynski Polish princely family descended from the Kievan grand prince Svyatopolk II Izyaslavich (d. 1113) of the house of Rurik. Among its prominent members was Antoni Czetwertynski (1748–94), the castellan of Przemysl and last leader of the pro-Russian Confederation of Targowica that opposed the Polish constitution of 1791; he was finally hanged as a traitor to Poland during Tadeusz Kosciuszko's

Turkey

2004-12-15T04:46:00.000-08:00

Either of two species of birds in the family Meleagrididae (order Galliformes). The best known is the common turkey (Meleagris gallopavo; see photograph), a native game bird of North America but widely domesticated for the table. The other species is Agriocharis (or Meleagris) ocellata, the ocellated turkey. For unrelated but similar birds, see bustard

Chelm

2004-12-13T01:35:00.000-08:00

City, capital of Chelm województwo (province), eastern Poland. The city is located on the Uherka River, a tributary of the Bug River, 15 miles (24 km) west of the Ukrainian border. It received town rights in 1233, passed to Poland in 1377, and fell to Austria (1795) and then to Russia (1815). During World War II, 90,000 people died in two German prisoner-of-war camps in the town. The Polish republic was proclaimed in

Layamon

2004-12-10T18:43:00.000-08:00

Layamon describes himself

Apple Moss

2004-12-07T06:58:00.000-08:00

(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,

Wolfenden Report

2004-12-06T05:09:00.000-08:00

A study containing recommendations for laws governing sexual behaviour, published in 1957 by the Committee on Homosexual Offences and Prostitution in Great Britain. It was named for Sir John Wolfenden, the chairman of the committee. Using the findings of psychoanalysis and social science, the report urged that public statutes avoid the attempt to legislate morality

Spadebill

2004-12-04T16:28:00.000-08:00

Any of six species of New World flycatchers (family Tyrannidae, order Passeriformes) whose triangular bill is very broad and flat. The white-throated, or stub-tailed, spadebill (Platyrinchus mystaceus), scarcely 10 centimetres (4 inches) long, is the most widespread species; it inhabits forest undergrowth from southern Mexico to Argentina in southern South America.

Montesquieu, Charles-louis De Secondat, Baron De La Brède Et De

2004-12-02T05:38:00.000-08:00

French political philosopher whose major work, The Spirit of Laws, was a major contribution to political theory.

Mammal, Social behavior

2004-11-30T23:54:00.000-08:00

The dependence of the young mammal on its mother for nourishment has made possible a period of training. Such training permits the nongenetic transfer of information between generations. The ability of young mammals to learn from the experience of their elders has allowed a behavioral plasticity unknown in any other group of organisms and has been a primary

Andreini, Giovambattista

2004-11-27T11:56:00.000-08:00

Andreini began his stage career with the Compagnia dei Gelosi founded by his parents, but about 1601 he formed his

SeparateScissors

Turkey, The Fundamental Law and abolition of the sultanate

Alexander The Great, Asia Minor and the Battle of Issus

Bhaiband

Ringworm

Cachoeira Do Sul

Biblical Literature, The Babylonian Exile and the restoration

Confederation, Articles Of

Czardas

Brasília, Climate

Floodgate

Fiscus

Sullivan, Louis

Amorphous Solid

Zoroastrianism, Post-Islamic Iranian Zoroastrianism

Winterthur

Jordan, Plant and animal life

Johor Bahru

Botero, Fernando

Protist, Section X. Rhizopod sarcodines

Argall, Sir Samuel

Carloman

Hui

Dacia

Cladonia

Theatre

Dagerman, Stig

Ibn Jubayr

La Roche, Sophie Von

Zittau

Argolis, Gulf Of

Lepsius, Richard

Quatre Bornes

Kebnekaise

Duroc

Human Evolution, Dating the fossils

Epigram

Bridge

Germany, Religious war and the Peace of Augsburg

Taft, Lorado

Mountain

Facet

Micronesia

Segovia Aqueduct

Augustus Ii

China, The rise of the Manchu

Segovia Aqueduct

Gray, Walter De

Portugal

Olmütz, Punctation Of

China, U.S. aid to China

Ob River, Physiography

Reformed Church In America

Ahmed Hasim

Iran, Ancient, Mithradates II

Performing Arts, Africa.

Maccabiah Games

China, The history of the Chou (1111255 BC)

Sendak, Maurice (bernard)

Adams, John Couch

Earth Sciences, Understanding of clouds, fog, and dew

Deva

Smith, Emmitt

Ustinov, Dmitry Fedorovich

Hesychius Of Alexandria

Vrata

Basel, Council Of

Zanj Rebellion

La Vérendrye, Pierre Gaultier De Varennes, Et De

Adelaer

Norfolk

Rouergue

Tetricus, Gaius Pius Esuvius

île-de-france

China, Rural areas

Arundel, Richard Fitzalan, 4th Earl Of, 10th Earl Of Surrey

Ta-ch'ing

Nilus Of Ancyra, Saint

Bioclimatology

Resistance

China, The history of the Chou (1111255 BC)