NormalThumb

Chelate

2005-03-30T17:11:00.000-08:00

The ethylenediamine ligand has two points of attachment to the cadmium ion, thus forming a ring; it is known as a bidentate ligand. Ligands

Metalwork, Modern

2005-03-29T23:28:00.000-08:00

The structure of trade, following the drastic social changes that have taken place since 1914, is similar in all industrial countries. A few artist-craftsmen maintain independent studio workshops, producing commercially unprofitable but artistically significant work. Many of them also teach in art schools or work part-time in factories as industrial designers.

Steel, Vacuum treatment

2005-03-29T11:03:00.000-08:00

Exposing steel to vacuum conditions has a profound effect on all metallurgical reactions involving gases. First, it lowers the level of gases dissolved in liquid steel. Hydrogen, for example, is readily removed in a vacuum to less than two parts per million. Nitrogen is not as mobile in liquid steel as hydrogen, so that only 15 to 30 percent is typically removed during a 20-minute

Este

2005-03-28T01:56:00.000-08:00

Town and episcopal see of Padova province, in the Veneto region of northern Italy at the southern foot of the Colli (hills) Euganei southwest of Padua. Known in antiquity as Ateste (q.v.), it was for long the principal seat of the Veneti (q.v.), before being absorbed by Rome c. 200 BC. Originally on the Adige River, it was completely abandoned after the river (now 9 mi [14 km] to the south) changed

Spalatin, Georg

2005-03-27T04:35:00.000-08:00

As a student Spalatin came in contact with various humanists, and he followed their custom in choosing a last name that reflected his birthplace. In 1505 he joined

Málaga

2005-03-26T17:55:00.000-08:00

Port city and capital of Málaga provincia, in the comunidad autónoma (“autonomous community”) of Andalusia, southern Spain. It lies along a wide bay of the Mediterranean Sea at the mouth of the Guadalmedina River in the centre of the Costa del Sol. It was founded by the Phoenicians in the 12th century BC, conquered successively by the Romans and the Visigoths, and taken by the

Arab League

2005-03-26T13:22:00.000-08:00

Also called League Of Arab States (LAS) , Arabic Al-Jami'a Al-'Arabiyah, or Al-Jami'a Ad-Duwal Al-'Arabiyah, regional organization of Arab states in the Middle East, formed in Cairo on March 22, 1945. The founding member states were Egypt, Syria, Lebanon, Iraq, Transjordan (now Jordan), Saudi Arabia, and Yemen. Other members are Libya (1953); The Sudan (1956); Tunisia and Morocco (1958); Kuwait (1961); Algeria (1962); Bahrain, Oman, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates (1971); Mauritania (1973); Somalia (1974); the Palestine Liberation Organization

Furniture, Spain: 17th century

2005-03-26T01:32:00.000-08:00

The Golden Age of Spain during the 17th century also left its mark on the chair. Paintings show a type of chair with a relatively crude wooden frame; a back and seat, nailed on, consisting of two layers of leather, with horsehair stuffing in between, stitched to produce a pattern of small pads. The front board and a corresponding board at the back could be folded after loosening

Ha'apai Group

2005-03-24T11:59:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Haabai Group, central island cluster of Tonga, in the South Pacific Ocean about 2,000 miles (3,000 km) northeast of Sydney. Comprising 36 coral and volcanic islands, the group has a total land area of 43 square miles (110 square km), dispersed over about 5,000 square miles (13,000 square km). The administrative headquarters and principal port in the group is Pangai, which is situated on the west coast of Lifuka, a crescent-shaped

Actor-manager System

2005-03-23T17:46:00.000-08:00

Method of theatrical production dominant in England and the U.S. in the 19th century, consisting of a permanent company formed by a leading actor who chose his own plays, took a leading role in them, and handled business and financial arrangements. The advantages of this system became apparent in the 18th century when successful actor-managers such as Colley Cibber and

Stuttgart

2005-03-22T11:32:00.000-08:00

City, capital (1945) of Baden-Württemberg Land (state), southwestern Germany, astride the Neckar River, in a forested vineyard-and-orchard setting in historic Swabia. It lies between the Black Forest on the west and the Swabian Jura to the south. There were prehistoric settlements and a Roman fort in the area of Bad Cannstatt (a suburb), but Stuttgart itself originated as a Stuotgarten,

Frederick Ii

2005-03-22T03:25:00.000-08:00

King of Sicily (1197–1250), duke of Swabia (as Frederick VI, 1228–35), German king (1212–50), and Holy Roman emperor (1220–50). A Hohenstaufen and grandson of Frederick I Barbarossa, he pursued his dynasty's imperial policies against the papacy and the Italian city states; and he also joined in the Sixth Crusade

Niven, David

2005-03-21T11:33:00.000-08:00

Born to a longtime military family, Niven attended Sandhurst Military Academy. He made his way to Hollywood in the mid-1930s and began performing as an extra. His first major roles were in Dawn Patrol (1938) and Wuthering Heights (1939). He rapidly became known

World War I, Italy and the Italian front, 191516

2005-03-20T03:40:00.000-08:00

Great Britain, France, and Russia concluded on April 26, 1915, the secret Treaty of London with Italy, inducing the latter to discard the obligations of the Triple Alliance and to enter the war on the side of the Allies by the promise of territorial aggrandizement at Austria-Hungary's expense. Italy was offered not only the Italian-populated Trentino and Trieste but also South

Biblical Literature, Exegetical problems

2005-03-19T23:53:00.000-08:00

This third category does not involve any consonantal alteration but results solely from the different possibilities inherent in the consonantal spelling. Thus, the lack of vowel signs may permit the word DBR to be read as a verb DiBeR (“he spoke,” as in the Masoretic text of Hosea) or as a noun DeBaR (“the word of,” as in the Septuagint). The absence of word dividers could lead

Differential Psychology

2005-03-19T00:16:00.000-08:00

Branch of psychology that deals with individual and group differences in behaviour. Charles Darwin's studies of the survival capabilities of different species and Sir Francis Galton's researches on individual visual and auditory skills, as well as more recent experiments, have shown that both individual and group differences are quantitative rather than

Osiander, Andreas

2005-03-17T17:51:00.000-08:00

The son of a blacksmith, Osiander was educated at Leipzig, Altenburg, and the University of Ingolstadt. Ordained in 1520, he helped reform the imperial free city of Nürnberg on strictly Lutheran principles

Pendleton, Ellen Fitz

2005-03-17T16:28:00.000-08:00

Pendleton graduated from Wellesley College in 1886. She remained at Wellesley as a tutor in mathematics, Latin, and Greek until 1888, when she received an appointment as instructor in mathematics. She pursued graduate studies at Newnham

Alexis, Willibald

2005-03-17T13:48:00.000-08:00

Alexis grew up in Berlin. After service as a volunteer in the campaign of 1815, he studied law at Berlin and Breslau but abandoned his legal career for writing after the success of his literary hoax Walladmor (1824), a parody

Silvassa

2005-03-17T10:22:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Silvasa town, capital of Dadra and Nagar Haveli Union Territory, western India. The town is located about 13 miles (21 km) southeast of Daman on the Daman Ganga River some 15 miles (25 km) inland from the Arabian Sea. It is the economic centre of the territory, which is primarily agricultural and produces rice, pulses, and fruit crops. Pop. (1991 prelim.) 11,720.

Dandolo, Vincenzo

2005-03-16T15:01:00.000-08:00

Of modest origins, Dandolo, after studying chemistry at the University of Padua, became a champion of new scientific

Términos Lagoon

2005-03-16T01:13:00.000-08:00

Spanish Laguna De Términos, lagoon in southwestern Campeche state, at the base of the Yucatán Peninsula, eastern Mexico. An inlet of the Bay of Campeche on the Gulf of Mexico, it measures 45 mi (72 km) east–west and 12 to 15 mi north–south. Long, narrow Carmen Island stretches across its entrance. The lagoon is fed by the Palizada and Candelaria rivers. Shrimp, fish, and turtles are taken from Términos, and crocodiles

Swatow

2005-03-15T23:06:00.000-08:00

Chinese (Wade-Giles) Shan-t'ou, or (Pinyin) Shantou, city in eastern Kwangtung sheng (province), southern China. Swatow lies on the coast of the South China Sea a few miles west of the mouth of the Han River, which, with its tributary, the Mei River, drains most of eastern Kwangtung. The Han forms a delta, and Swatow is on an inlet that extends some 9.5 miles (15 km) inland on the southwest part of the delta. The city stands at the narrow seaward

War Democrat

2005-03-15T02:28:00.000-08:00

The great majority of Northern Democrats stayed loyal to the Union after the South seceded. So-called Peace Democrats (or “Copperheads” in pejorative Unionist terminology) opposed the war and advocated a negotiated peace with concessions

Owo

2005-03-14T05:58:00.000-08:00

Town, Ondo state, southwestern Nigeria, at the southern edge of the Yoruba Hills (elevation 1,130 feet [344 m]) and at the intersection of roads from Akure, Kabba, Benin City, and Siluko. A major collecting point for cocoa, it also serves as a market centre (yams, cassava, corn [maize], rice, palm oil and kernels, pumpkins, okra). Cotton and teak are cultivated in the surrounding area, which was

Dubuffet, Jean(-philippe-arthur)

2005-03-14T04:31:00.000-08:00

After World War II, as one of

Agni

2005-03-13T23:06:00.000-08:00

(Sanskrit: “Fire”), fire-god of the Hindus, second only to Indra in the Vedic mythology of ancient India. He is equally the fire of the sun, of lightning, and of the hearth that men light for purposes of worship. As the divine personification of the fire of sacrifice, he is the mouth of the gods, the carrier of the oblation, and the messenger between the human and the divine orders.

Carl Xvi Gustaf

2005-03-12T07:39:00.000-08:00

The only son of King Gustav VI Adolf's eldest son, Prince Gustav Adolf (who died in an air crash in 1947), Carl Gustaf became crown prince in 1950, when his grandfather acceded to the throne. He studied at military cadet schools, at the University of Uppsala, and in France and was commissioned as a naval officer in 1968. He married Silvia Sommerlath

Trafalgar, Battle Of

2005-03-12T04:33:00.000-08:00

At the end of September 1805, Villeneuve had

Monchique Mountains

2005-03-11T19:33:00.000-08:00

Portuguese Serra De Monchique, low mountain range forming the frontier between Beja and Faro districts, southern Portugal, near Cape Saint Vincent, the southwestern extremity of the Iberian Peninsula. A dissected igneous rock (syenite) massif, its highest point is La Foia (2,960 ft [902 m]). The range is famous for its wild and generally varied plant life, as well as for its spas with medicinal waters (Caldas de

China, The Southeast Mountains

2005-03-11T09:56:00.000-08:00

Southeastern China is bordered by a rocky shoreline backed by picturesque mountains. In general, there is a distinct structural and topographic trend from northeast to southwest. The higher peaks may reach altitudes of 5,000 to 6,500 feet. The rivers are short and fast-flowing and have cut steep-sided valleys. The chief areas of settlement are on narrow strips of coastal plain

Hysteria

2005-03-10T23:46:00.000-08:00

A type of mental disorder in which a wide variety of sensory, motor, or psychic disturbances may occur. It is traditionally classified as one of the psychoneuroses and is not dependent upon any known organic or structural pathology. The term is derived from the Greek hystera, meaning “uterus,” and reflects the ancient notion that hysteria was a specifically female

Fyodor I

2005-03-10T16:21:00.000-08:00

The son of Ivan IV the Terrible and his first wife, Anastasiya Romanovna Zakharina-Yureva, Fyodor succeeded his father on March 19, 1584. Being both physically weak and feebleminded, however, he took no part in government affairs, which were dominated by his wife's

Biblical Literature, The Letter of Paul to the Romans

2005-03-10T06:57:00.000-08:00

Romans differs from all the other Pauline letters in that it was written to a congregation over which Paul did not claim apostolic authority. He stressed that he was merely going to Rome in transit, because it was his principle not to evangelize where others had worked. Because his apostolic ministry appeared to be completed in Asia Minor and Greece, Paul planned

Saba

2005-03-09T02:02:00.000-08:00

Island of the Netherlands Antilles in the Caribbean Sea. It lies 16 miles (26 km) northwest of Sint Eustatius, with which it forms the northwestern termination of the inner volcanic arc of the Lesser Antilles. Saba has an area of 5 square miles (13 square km) and is actually the peak of an extinct volcano, Mount Scenery (2,910 feet [887 m]), surrounded by sea cliffs. It is windward with respect to

Integral Transform

2005-03-09T00:10:00.000-08:00

Mathematical operator that produces a new function f(y) by integrating the product of an existing function F(x) and a so-called kernel function K(x, y) between suitable limits. The process, which is called transformation, is symbolized by the equation f(y) = òK(x, y)F(x)dx. Several transforms are commonly named for the mathematicians who introduced them: in the Laplace

Kidney Vetch

2005-03-07T13:02:00.000-08:00

Also called ladies' fingers (species Anthyllis vulneraria) perennial herb, of the pea family (Fabaceae), found in meadows, alpine pastures, and dry places of Europe and northern Africa. The low, hairy plant grows to a height of 15–40 cm (6–16 inches) and has narrow leaves 1.4–3.8 cm (0.5–1.5 inches) long and yellow, reddish, or white flowers. It was formerly used as a remedy for kidney disorders but is now frequently cultivated in rock gardens.

Kazoku

2005-03-07T00:46:00.000-08:00

In Japan, the unified, crown-appointed aristocracy of the period 1869–1947, which replaced the feudal lords. The kazoku (“flower family”) class was created in 1869 as part of the Westernizing reforms of the Meiji Restoration. In this class the old feudal lords (daimyo) and court nobles (kuge) were merged into one group and deprived of territorial privileges. In 1884 the kazoku was reorganized

Beverly Hills

2005-03-06T07:08:00.000-08:00

City, western Los Angeles county, California, U.S., completely surrounded by the city of Los Angeles. The site originated in the 19th century as the Rancho Rodeo de las Aguas. In 1906 it was organized as a residential area called Beverly; in 1912 the Beverly Hills Hotel was erected, and in 1914, with a population of about 500, the town was incorporated. In 1919 the film stars Mary Pickford and Douglas

Egypt, The Tulunid dynasty (868905)

2005-03-06T07:06:00.000-08:00

Though short-lived, the Tulunid dynasty succeeded in restoring a measure of Egypt's ancient glory. For the first time since the pharaohs, Egypt became virtually autonomous and the bulk of its revenues remained within its borders. What is more, Egypt became the centre of a small empire when Ibn Tulun conquered Syria in 878–879. These developments were paralleled in other provinces

Hardwick, Elizabeth

2005-03-05T22:46:00.000-08:00

Hardwick attended the University of Kentucky (B.A., 1938; M.A., 1939) and Columbia University in New York City. Her experience as a young Southern woman in Manhattan provided the backdrop for her somber, introspective first novel, The Ghostly

Hoisin Sauce

2005-03-05T21:05:00.000-08:00

Commercially prepared, thick reddish-brown sauce used in Chinese cuisine both as an ingredient in cooking and as a table condiment. Made from soybeans, flour, sugar, water, spices, garlic, and chili, it is sweet and spicy. It is used in cooking shellfish and fatty meats such as pork and duck. As a condiment, hoisin sauce is eaten with shrimp, pork, and poultry and is invariably

Wu Hou

2005-03-05T18:20:00.000-08:00

Wu Hou entered the palace of the T'ang emperor T'ai Tsung as a junior concubine, at the age of 13, in 638. By that time, the T'ang dynasty had recently reunited China, largely through the efforts of the

Laibach, Congress Of

2005-03-04T16:31:00.000-08:00

(Jan. 26–May 12, 1821), meeting of the Holy Alliance powers (all European rulers except those of Britain, the Ottoman Empire, and the papacy) at Laibach (now Ljubljana, Slovenia) that set the conditions for Austrian intervention in and occupation of the Two Sicilies in action against the Neapolitan revolution (July 1820). As such, it was a triumph for antiliberal Austrian policy, and also,

Chulym River

2005-03-03T06:05:00.000-08:00

River in Krasnoyarsk kray (region) and Tomsk oblast (province), Russia, and the longest right-bank tributary of the Ob River; it is 1,118 miles (1,799 km) long and has a basin of 53,400 square miles (134,000 square km). The Chulym, formed by the convergence of the Bely and Chyorny Iyus, rises on the northeastern slopes of the Kuznetsky Alatau Mountains. It flows northward through the mountains and then

Deneuve, Catherine

2005-03-03T01:26:00.000-08:00

Deneuve was the third of four daughters born to the French actors Maurice Dorléac and Renée Deneuve. She landed a small role in the 1957 film Les Collégiennes (The Twilight Girls) and began her film career

Vajrayana

2005-03-02T23:19:00.000-08:00

Also called Tantric Buddhism, important development within Buddhism in India and neighbouring countries, notably Tibet. Vajrayana, in the history of Buddhism, marks the transition from Mahayana speculative thought to the enactment of Buddhist ideas in individual life. The term vajra (Sanskrit: “diamond,” or “thunderbolt”) is used to signify the absolutely real and indestructible in man, as opposed

Luther V. Borden

2005-03-02T14:28:00.000-08:00

In the spring of 1842, Rhode Island had two governors and two legislatures. One government was committed to retaining the old colonial charter, which severely limited voting rights, as the state's constitution. The other government, led by Thomas W. Dorr and providing for white

Lancaster, Joseph

2005-03-01T22:38:00.000-08:00

British-born educator who developed the system of mass education known as the Lancasterian method, a monitorial, or “mutual,” approach in which brighter or more proficient children were used to teach other children under the direction of an adult. In the early 19th century the system, as developed by Lancaster, Andrew Bell, and Jean-Baptiste

Agriculture

2005-03-01T02:08:00.000-08:00

The science or art of cultivating the soil, growing and harvesting crops, and raising livestock. The art of making land more productive is practiced throughout the world—in some areas by methods not far removed from the conditions of several thousands of years ago and in other areas, with the aid of science and mechanization, as a highly commercial type of endeavour.

Leaf Insect

2005-03-01T01:18:00.000-08:00

(family Phylliidae), also called walking leaf any of about 25 species of flat, green insects with a leaflike appearance that belong to the order Phasmatodea. The female has large leathery forewings (tegmina) that lie edge to edge on the abdomen and resemble, in their vein pattern, the midrib and veins in a leaf; the hindwings have no function. The male has small tegmina and ample, non-leaflike, functional hindwings.

Celestine V, Saint

2005-02-28T01:28:00.000-08:00

Pietro was a Benedictine in his youth but soon became a hermit and lived in the Abruzzi Mountains, near Sulmona. His rigorous asceticism attracted followers, and he became the head of a group

Closed Shop

2005-02-27T20:49:00.000-08:00

By the 1930s the closed shop had become a commonly negotiated agreement meant to protect labour organizations. This and other

Narrator

2005-02-27T00:33:00.000-08:00

A work may have more than one narrator, as in an epistolary novel such as Samuel Richardson's

Merced

2005-02-26T15:02:00.000-08:00

City, Merced county, central California, U.S., on Bear Creek in the San Joaquin valley, 55 miles (89 km) northwest of Fresno. It was founded in 1872 by the Central Pacific Railroad, and it became county seat in the same year. It was named for the Nuestra Señora de la Merced River. It developed as a processing and shipping point for agricultural produce of the valley, irrigated by the Tri-Dam

Chiavari

2005-02-25T13:14:00.000-08:00

Town, Genova provincia, Liguria regione, northwestern Italy. It lies on the Riviera di Levante at the mouth of the Entella River, east of Genoa. The town grew up on the traces of a Roman camp on the Via Aurelia. A pre-Roman necropolis dating from the 8th to 7th century BC has been uncovered there. The old town contains numerous arcades and buildings from the 13th century, including

Gabon

2005-02-25T09:50:00.000-08:00

Gabon's economy has more links with European and American markets than with those in neighbouring states (with the exception of Cameroon) or elsewhere in Africa. The economy shares some of the characteristics of those of other tropical African states: strong links with the former colonial ruler, a large degree of foreign investment and control, dependence on foreign

Sales Tax

2005-02-25T08:31:00.000-08:00

Levy imposed upon the sale of goods and services. A sales tax levied on the manufacture, purchase, sale, or consumption of a specific type of commodity is known as an excise tax. American terminology in this matter tends to differ from that used in the United Kingdom and former British colonies, however. In the United States, excises apply to imports as well as to domestic

Sá-carneiro, Mário De

2005-02-24T18:43:00.000-08:00

Sá-Carneiro studied in Paris at the Sorbonne. His first poems, Dispersão (“Dispersion”), were written in Paris and published in 1914. In the same year he published a novel, A Confissão de Lúcio (“The Confession of Lúcio”), and back in Portugal he

Lanarkshire

2005-02-24T16:35:00.000-08:00

Also called Lanark historic county of south-central Scotland, roughly coinciding with the basin of the River Clyde. It is bounded to the south by the historic county of Dumfriesshire, to the east by Peeblesshire, Midlothian, and West Lothian, to the north by Stirlingshire and Dunbartonshire, and to the west by Renfrewshire and Ayrshire. It encompasses all of the council areas of South

Kamenev, Lev Borisovich

2005-02-23T14:19:00.000-08:00

Born to middle-class parents who themselves had been involved in the Russian

China, Burma

2005-02-23T06:53:00.000-08:00

In 1867 the British gained the right to station a commercial agent at Bhamo in Burma, from which they could explore the Irrawaddy River up to the Yunnan border. A British interpreter accompanying a British exploratory mission to Yunnan was killed by local tribesmen on the Yunnan–Burma border in February 1875. The British minister in China, Thomas Wade, seized the opportunity

Vuillard, (jean-)édouard

2005-02-23T02:04:00.000-08:00

Vuillard met Bonnard, Paul Sérusier, and Félix Vallotton while studying at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris, and, along with his old friends Maurice Denis and Ker-Xavier Roussel, they formed an association called the

Eckhart, Meister

2005-02-22T21:55:00.000-08:00

Johannes Eckhart entered the Dominican order when he was 15 and studied in Cologne, perhaps under the Scholastic

Downing, Andrew Jackson

2005-02-22T20:11:00.000-08:00

Downing was born into horticulture, his father being a nurseryman. After finishing his schooling at 16, he worked in his father's nursery and gradually became interested in landscape gardening and architecture.

Masirah

2005-02-21T15:18:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Masira, island of Oman, in the Arabian Sea, off the country's southeastern coast. The island is separated from the mainland by the narrow Tur'at (channel) Masirah. There is an airfield, occupied by the British until the late 1970s, at the northern tip. The Gulf of Masira lies between the island (north) and the Ra's (cape) al-Madrakah (south). Masirah is the habitat of large colonies of turtles. There

Arbus, Diane

2005-02-21T11:10:00.000-08:00

Diane Nemerov was the daughter of Gertrude Russek and David Nemerov, proprietors of a department store. Her older brother was the poet and critic Howard Nemerov. At age 18 she married Allan Arbus (divorced

Biblical Literature, The Torah

2005-02-20T23:25:00.000-08:00

The Book of the Chronicles, composed c. 400 BCE, frequently refers to the “Torah of Moses” and exhibits a familiarity with all the five books of the Pentateuch. The earliest record

Arbus, Diane

2005-02-19T04:21:00.000-08:00

The OAU was established on May 25, 1963, and its activities included diplomacy

Cassone

2005-02-19T00:28:00.000-08:00

Italian chest, usually used as a marriage chest, and the most elaborately decorated piece of furniture of the Renaissance. Cassoni traditionally were made in pairs and sometimes bore the respective coats of arms of the bride and groom. They contained the bride's clothes, linen, and many other items of her dowry. In the 15th century, when the greatest importance was attached

Cabildo

2005-02-18T01:09:00.000-08:00

(Spanish: “municipal council”), the fundamental unit of local government in colonial Spanish America. Conforming to a tradition going back to the Romans, the Spaniards considered the city to be of paramount importance, with the surrounding countryside directly subordinate to it. In local affairs each municipality in Hispanic America was governed by its cabildo,

Japan, Aesthetics

2005-02-17T09:09:00.000-08:00

The dual influences of East and West have helped construct a modern Japanese culture that offers familiar elements to the Westerner but that also contains a powerful and distinctive traditional cultural aesthetic. This can be seen, for example, in the intricate detail, miniaturization, and concepts of subtlety that have transformed imported visual art forms.

Buzau

2005-02-17T05:22:00.000-08:00

Judet (county), southeastern Romania, occupying an area of 2,344 square miles (6,072 square km). The Buzau mountain range, part of the Eastern Carpathians and the sub-Carpathian mountains, lies in the west, rising above settlement areas in the valleys and lowlands. The Buzau River and its tributaries drain eastward. Buzau city, the county capital, has been an economic centre with ties to

White Plains

2005-02-17T04:59:00.000-08:00

City, seat (1778) of Westchester county, New York, U.S. It lies along the Bronx and Hutchinson rivers. Known to the Wappinger Indians as Quarropas (“White Marshes”), probably for the area's heavy fogs, the site was sold twice (in 1660 and in 1683) by them to different groups, causing long litigation over the title and delays in the settlement of the area. An established community by 1735 within the town

Clarence River

2005-02-16T09:50:00.000-08:00

Coastal river, northeastern New South Wales, Australia, rising in the McPherson Range near the Queensland border, flowing south and northeast for 245 mi (394 km), and emptying into the Pacific 40 mi below Grafton. Its chief tributaries are the Timbarra, Mitchell, and Orara. Woodford, Chatsworth, and Harwood are the largest of its many islands, most of which are subject to floods. The

Pax

2005-02-15T11:57:00.000-08:00

In Roman religion, personification of peace, probably recognized as a deity for the first time by the emperor Augustus, in whose reign much was made of the establishment of political calm. An altar of Pax Augusta (the Ara Pacis) was dedicated in 9 BC and a great temple of Pax completed by the emperor Vespasian in AD 75.

Kirchhoff, Gustav Robert

2005-02-15T09:39:00.000-08:00

In 1845 Kirchhoff first announced Kirchhoff's

Pierce, John Davis

2005-02-15T07:03:00.000-08:00

Though denied an extensive education as a youth because of his father's early death and consequent family financial limitations, Pierce decided at age 20 to educate himself. He succeeded so well that he was

Melfi

2005-02-15T03:45:00.000-08:00

Town and episcopal see, Potenza provincia, Basilicata regione, southern Italy, at the foot of the volcanic mass of Monte Vulture, at an elevation of 1,742 feet (531 m), north of Potenza. Of Roman origin, the town was taken from the Byzantines by the Normans, who, for a period, made it their capital. It was a favourite residence of the Holy Roman emperor Frederick II, who there assembled

Ness, Loch

2005-02-14T15:18:00.000-08:00

Lake, lying in the Highland council area, Scotland. With a depth of 788 feet (240 metres) and a length of about 23 miles (36 km), Loch Ness has the largest volume of fresh water in Great Britain. It lies in the Glen Mor—or Great Glen, which bisects the Highlands—and forms part of the system of waterways across Scotland that civil engineer Thomas Telford linked by means of the Caledonian

Sa'adia Ben Joseph

2005-02-14T08:27:00.000-08:00

Nechemiah Aloni, Ha-Egron (1969), an edition (in Hebrew) with extensive annotations; Israel Davidson (ed.), Saadiah's Polemic Against Hiwi al-Balkhi (1915), and The Book of the Wars of the Lord (1934), polemics against Sa'adia by Solomon ben Yeruhim (Hebrew edition with English translation)—the introductions to both editions require revision in light of later Genizah fragments; Joseph Derenbourg, Oeuvres complètes de R. Saadia Ben Iosef al-Fayyoûmî, vol. 3, Version arabe d'Isaïe (1896), and vol. 6, Version arabe des Proverbes (1894), Sa'adia's Arabic version of Isaiah and his version of the Proverbs—the Isaiah translation is accompanied by fragments of Sa'adia's lost commentary; Z. Diesendruck, “Saadya's Formulation of the Argument for Creation,” in Jewish Studies in Memory of George A. Kohut, 1874–1933 (1953), a profound article; Jakob Guttmann, Die Religionsphilosophie des Saadia (1882), traces the Greek and Arabic sources of Sa'adia's philosophy (the Arabic sources are not fully exhausted); Henry Malter, Saadia Gaon: His Life and Works (1921, reprinted 1969), the most comprehensive study on Sa'adia, although many aspects need to be revised in light of later studies; Harry A. Wolfson, “Saadia on the Trinity and Incarnation,” Studies and Essays in Honor of Abraham A. Neuman (1962), a very exhaustive study; Sa'adia anniversary volume, Proceedings of the American Academy for Jewish Research (1943); Erwin I.J. Rosenthal (ed.), Saadya Studies (1943); Moses Zucker, Rav Saadya Gaon's Translation of the Torah (in Hebrew, with English summary; 1959), and A Critique Against the Writings of R. Saadya Gaon by R. Mubashshir (1955), an edition important for restoration of Sa'adianic material as well as for the study of the relationship of some of Sa'adia's contemporaries to his literary work.

Cambridge

2005-02-13T19:01:00.000-08:00

City, seat (1686) of Dorchester county, eastern Maryland, U.S., on the Choptank River's south bank near Chesapeake Bay's eastern shore. Bisected by Cambridge Creek (a natural harbour), it was founded in 1684 as a plantation port and named in 1686 for the English university town. For more than two centuries it handled small coastwise traffic, but the addition of deepwater facilities and the

Jovanovic, Slobodan

2005-02-13T05:49:00.000-08:00

Serbian jurist, historian, and statesman, prime minister in the Yugoslav government-in-exile during World War II (Jan. 11, 1942–June 26, 1943). Liberal in his social and political views, he was perhaps Yugoslavia's greatest authority on constitutional law; also a master of Serbian prose style, he was for nearly half a century a leader of the Serbian

Adda River

2005-02-12T22:05:00.000-08:00

Italian Fiume Adda, river, in the Lombardia (Lombardy) regione of northern Italy, issuing from small lakes in the Rhaetian Alps at 7,660 feet (2,335 m). The Adda flows southward from Bormio to Tirano, where it turns west past Sondrio to enter Lake Como near its northern end after a course of 194 miles (313 km). The river's upper course is known as the Valtellina (q.v.). Leaving Lake Como at Lecco, it crosses the Lombardy

Ibis

2005-02-12T21:22:00.000-08:00

Any of about 20 species of medium-sized wading birds constituting the subfamily Threskiornithinae of the family Threskiornithidae (order Ciconiiformes), which also includes the spoonbills. Ibises occur in all warm regions except on South Pacific islands. They wade in shallow lagoons, lakes, bays, and marshes, using their slender, down-curved bills to feed on small

Hyades

2005-02-11T23:59:00.000-08:00

Cluster of several hundred stars in the zodiacal constellation Taurus. As seen from Earth, the bright star Aldebaran appears to be a member of the cluster, but in fact Aldebaran is much closer to the Earth than the Hyades' distance of about 130 light-years. Five genuine members of the group are visible to the unaided eye. Their name (Greek: “the rainy ones”) is derived from the

Galty Mountains

2005-02-10T18:20:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Galtee Mountains, mountain range, extending across the border between southwestern County Tipperary and southeastern County Limerick, southern Ireland. The range has the east–west trend characteristic of the extreme south of the country. The highest peaks are formed of sandstone, the highest point being Galtymore (3,018 feet [920 m]). The mountains bear strong evidence of glaciation, notably

Marsh Treader

2005-02-10T13:29:00.000-08:00

The marsh

Mckinley, William

2005-02-10T13:18:00.000-08:00

Renominated for another term without opposition, McKinley again faced Democrat William Jennings Bryan in the presidential election of 1900. McKinley's margins of victory in both the popular and electoral votes were greater than they were four years before, no doubt reflecting satisfaction with the outcome of the war and with the widespread prosperity that the country enjoyed. Following his inauguration in 1901 (see primary source document: Second Inaugural Address), McKinley left Washington for a tour of the western states, to be concluded with a speech at the Pan-American Exposition in Buffalo, New York. Cheering crowds throughout the journey attested to McKinley's immense popularity. More than 50,000 admirers attended his exposition speech, in which the leader who had been so closely identified with protectionism now sounded the call for commercial reciprocity among nations. (See primary source document: Reciprocal Trade Agreements.) The following day, September 6, 1901, while McKinley was shaking hands with a crowd of well-wishers at the exposition, Leon Czolgosz, an anarchist, fired two shots into the president's chest and abdomen. Rushed to a hospital in Buffalo, McKinley lingered for a week before dying in the early morning hours of September 14. He was succeeded by his vice president, the man Mark Hanna sneeringly referred to as “that damned cowboy,” Theodore Roosevelt.

Hydroid

2005-02-10T09:05:00.000-08:00

Any member of the invertebrate order Hydroida (class Hydrozoa, phylum Cnidaria). Hydroids have three basic life-cycle stages: (1) a tiny free-swimming planula larva about 1 mm (0.04 inch) long, which settles and grows into (2) a sessile (attached), usually colonial hydroid stage, which in turn liberates (3) medusae. This cycle is exemplified by the genus Obelia (q.v.), whose members are widely

Rhyme-tag

2005-02-08T16:05:00.000-08:00

A word or phrase used primarily to produce a rhyme. Rhyme-tags are used to comic effect in much light verse, as in W.S. Gilbert's “The Modern Major-Gineral,” which reads in partI am the very pattern of a modern Major-Gineral,I've information vegetable, animal, and mineral;I know the kings of England, and I quote the fights historical,From Marathon to Waterloo, in order

Unity School Of Christianity

2005-02-08T15:39:00.000-08:00

Also called Unity, religious movement founded in Kansas City, Mo., in 1889 by Charles Fillmore (1854–1948), a real-estate agent, and his wife, Myrtle (1845–1931). Mrs. Fillmore believed that spiritual healing had cured her of tuberculosis. As a result, the Fillmores began studying spiritual healing. They were deeply influenced by Emma Curtis Hopkins, a former follower of Mary Baker Eddy, who founded Christian Science.

Huizinga, Johan

2005-02-08T15:36:00.000-08:00

Huizinga was educated at the universities of Groningen and Leipzig. After teaching history in Haarlem and lecturing in Indian literature at Amsterdam, he was professor of history first at Groningen (1905–15) and then at Leiden

Computers, Early computer enthusiasts

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

Though the young engineering executives at Intel could sense the ground shifting upon the introduction of their new microprocessors, the leading computer manufacturers did not. It should not have taken a visionary to observe the trend of cheaper, faster, and more powerful devices. Nevertheless, even after the invention of the microprocessor, few could imagine

Adams, Henry

2005-02-06T14:14:00.000-08:00

Henry Adams, The Degradation of the Democratic Dogma (1919, reprinted 1969), a collection of Adams' theoretical essays with a lengthy introduction by his brother Brooks; “The Great Secession Winter 1860–1861,” Proceedings, Massachusetts Historical Society, 43:656–687 (1909–10), an essay, written during the secession crisis of 1860–61 but not published for 50 years, which analyzed the political developments that led to the Civil War; Essays in Anglo-Saxon Law (1876), a collection of studies in early British history written by Adams and his seminar students; Historical Essays (1891), a reprint of articles Adams had previously published in various journals; and introductions to Documents Relating to New England Federalism (1877), which shed light on the politics of the early national period; Ernest Samuels (ed.), The Education of Henry Adams (1973), is the definitive edition in which collation is made between the privately printed text and the revised text of the published edition. Worthington Chauncey Ford (ed.), A Cycle of Adams Letters, 1861–1865, 2 vol. (1920, reprinted in 1 vol. 1969), Letters of Henry Adams, 1858–1891 (1930, reprinted 1969), and Letters of Henry Adams, 1892–1918 (1938, reprinted 1969), all contain a rich selection of Adams' letters; Ernest Samuels, The Young Henry Adams (1948), Henry Adams: The Middle Years (1958), and Henry Adams: The Major Phase (1964), the most comprehensive and distinguished biography of Adams; J.C. Levenson, The Mind and Art of Henry Adams (1957), an unexcelled interpretative work centring upon both the man and his writings; Melvin Lyon, Symbol and Idea in Henry Adams (1970), an examination of the problem of illusion and reality, which Adams often expressed through symbols, as seen in his six major works; Vern Wagner, The Suspension of Henry Adams: A Study of Manner and Matter (1969), a discussion of Adams' writing style as an example of unique literary artistry; Frederic Cople Jaher, Doubters and Dissenters: Cataclysmic Thought in America, 1885–1918 (1964), a critical study of Adams, seeing him as a displaced Brahmin afloat in an industrialized world he was helpless to understand; William Dusinberre, Henry Adams: The Myth of Failure (1980), is a reconsideration.

Casualty Insurance

2005-02-06T08:16:00.000-08:00

Liability insurance contracts may cover liability arising out of the use of an automobile, the operation of a business, professional negligence

Athena

2005-02-06T04:21:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Athene in Greek religion, the city protectress, goddess of war, handicraft, and practical reason, identified by the Romans with Minerva (q.v.). She was essentially urban and civilized, the antithesis in many respects of Artemis, goddess of the outdoors. Athena was probably a pre-Hellenic goddess and was later taken over by the Greeks. Yet the Greek economy, unlike that

Poison, Drugs of abuse

2005-02-06T01:34:00.000-08:00

Mind-altering drugs commonly abused include amphetamines, cocaine, phencyclidine, heroin, and methaqualone. These drugs are primarily toxic to the central nervous system; amphetamine and cocaine cause stimulation of the system (hallucinations and delirium), and heroin causes the depression of the system (depressed respiration and coma). In contrast, phencyclidine

Middle America

2005-02-04T14:28:00.000-08:00

The isthmian tract between the southern Rocky Mountains and the northern tip of the Andes (or, generally, from the southern border of the United States to the northern border of Colombia), marking the territorial transition from North America to South America. The difference between this designation and “Central America” is that Middle America includes Mexico; sometimes

Abduction

2005-02-03T07:25:00.000-08:00

In law, the carrying away of any female for purposes of concubinage or prostitution. The taking of a girl under a designated age for purposes of marriage is in most jurisdictions also included in the crime of abduction. Abduction is generally regarded as a form of kidnapping (q.v.).

NormalThumb

Chelate

Metalwork, Modern

Steel, Vacuum treatment

Este

Spalatin, Georg

Málaga

Arab League

Furniture, Spain: 17th century

Ha'apai Group

Actor-manager System

Stuttgart

Frederick Ii

Niven, David

World War I, Italy and the Italian front, 191516

Biblical Literature, Exegetical problems

Differential Psychology

Osiander, Andreas

Pendleton, Ellen Fitz

Alexis, Willibald

Silvassa

Dandolo, Vincenzo

Términos Lagoon

Swatow

War Democrat

Owo

Dubuffet, Jean(-philippe-arthur)

Agni

Carl Xvi Gustaf

Trafalgar, Battle Of

Monchique Mountains

China, The Southeast Mountains

Hysteria

Fyodor I

Biblical Literature, The Letter of Paul to the Romans

Saba

Integral Transform

Kidney Vetch

Kazoku

Beverly Hills

Egypt, The Tulunid dynasty (868905)

Hardwick, Elizabeth

Hoisin Sauce

Wu Hou

Laibach, Congress Of

Chulym River

Deneuve, Catherine

Vajrayana

Luther V. Borden

Lancaster, Joseph

Agriculture

Leaf Insect

Celestine V, Saint

Closed Shop

Narrator

Merced

Chiavari

Gabon

Sales Tax

Sá-carneiro, Mário De

Lanarkshire

Kamenev, Lev Borisovich

China, Burma

Vuillard, (jean-)édouard

Eckhart, Meister

Downing, Andrew Jackson

Masirah

Arbus, Diane

Biblical Literature, The Torah

Arbus, Diane

Cassone

Cabildo

Japan, Aesthetics

Buzau

White Plains

Clarence River

Pax

Kirchhoff, Gustav Robert

Pierce, John Davis

Melfi

World War I, Italy and the Italian front, 191516

Egypt, The Tulunid dynasty (868905)