WrongEgg

San, Saya

2005-04-04T18:30:00.000-07:00

Saya San was a native of Shwebo, a centre of nationalist-monarchist sentiment in north-central Burma that was the birthplace of the Konbaung (or Alaungpaya) dynasty, which controlled Myanmar from 1752 until the British annexation in 1886. He was a Buddhist

Jackson, William Henry

2005-04-04T11:58:00.000-07:00

As a child in Troy, New York, Jackson painted landscapes on screens and did retouching for a photographic studio. After serving in the Civil War he went west in 1867 and opened a studio in Omaha, Nebraska. During this period

Corbulo, Gnaeus Domitius

2005-04-04T11:29:00.000-07:00

In AD 47 Corbulo was victorious over the German tribe of the Frisii on the Rhine, thereby restoring them to Roman tributary status. Appointed legate of Galatia and Cappadocia (two provinces to the west of Armenia) by the emperor Nero in 54, Corbulo was ordered to recover Armenia from Tiridates, brother of the Parthian

Albania

2005-04-02T09:54:00.000-08:00

Officially Republic of Albania, Albanian Shqipëria, or Republika e Shqipërisë, country located in the western part of the Balkan Peninsula on the Strait of Otranto, the southern entrance to the Adriatic Sea. It encompasses an area of 11,100 square miles (28,748 square kilometres), with a maximum length from north to south of about 210 miles (340 kilometres) and a maximum width of about 95 miles. It is bounded to the northwest by Montenegro, to the northeast by the Kosovo region

Corato

2005-04-02T08:33:00.000-08:00

Town, Bari province, Puglia (Apulia) region, southeastern Italy, on a slope descending to the Adriatic Sea, west of Bari. Founded by the Normans, Corato became subject to Alfonso V, king of Aragon, at the end of the 15th century, and later to the Carafa family. The chief features of the ancient centre of the town, which is surrounded by modern buildings, are the Romanesque church

Rabe, David

2005-04-01T20:03:00.000-08:00

Rabe was educated at Loras College, Dubuque (B.A., 1962), and Villanova University, Pennsylvania (M.A., 1968). He completed his graduate studies

Sculpture, Decorative sculpture

2005-04-01T02:11:00.000-08:00

The devices and motifs of ornamental sculpture fall into three main categories: abstract, zoomorphic, and botanical. Abstract shapes, which can easily be made to fit into any framework, are a widespread form of decoration. Outstanding examples of abstract relief ornament are found on Islamic, Mexican, and Mayan buildings and on small Celtic metal artifacts. The character

Biblical Literature, The Book of Enoch

2005-03-31T03:16:00.000-08:00

Another book that was written during the period of the apocalyptic movement in which the Dead Sea sect came into existence is the Book of Enoch, or I Enoch. It was completely preserved in an Ethiopic translation from Greek, and large parts from the beginning and end of the Greek version have been published from two papyri. Aramaic fragments of many parts of the book

'abbadid Dynasty

2005-03-30T18:00:00.000-08:00

In 1023 the qadi (religious judge) Abu al-Qasim Muhammad ibn 'Abbad declared Sevilla independent of Córdoba. His son Abu 'Amr 'Abbad, known as al-Mu'tadid (1042–69), greatly enlarged his territory by forcibly

Daniel Of Kiev

2005-03-29T08:52:00.000-08:00

Also called Daniel The Pilgrim, Russian Daniil Kievsky, or Daniil Polomnik the earliest known Russian travel writer, whose account of his pilgrimage to the Holy Land is the earliest surviving record in Russian of such a trip. Abbot of a Russian monastery, he visited Palestine probably during 1106–07. His narrative begins at Constantinople; from there he traveled along the west and south coasts of Asia Minor to Cyprus and the Holy Land. Despite his

Indigestion

2005-03-29T02:34:00.000-08:00

Also called dyspepsia any or all of the symptoms—abdominal discomfort, belching, flatulence, aversion to eating, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, constipation, heartburn—associated with the malfunctioning of the digestive system. Indigestion may be caused by disease, but it primarily occurs because of stress, improper eating habits, excessive smoking, exorbitant consumption of coffee or

Great Bear Lake

2005-03-28T15:30:00.000-08:00

Ear Disease, Labyrinthitis

2005-03-27T17:03:00.000-08:00

Labyrinthitis, an inflammation of the labyrinth of the inner ear, happens when infection occurs as a result of meningitis, syphilis, acute otitis media and mastoiditis, or chronic otitis media and cholesteatoma. Loss of both equilibrium and hearing occurs in the affected ear. Prompt antibiotic treatment sometimes arrests the damage and allows for the possibility

Miranda, Francisco De

2005-03-27T15:04:00.000-08:00

Educated in Caracas, Miranda purchased

Aschelminth, Behaviour

2005-03-26T10:29:00.000-08:00

Although their nervous systems are simple, aschelminths can respond to a range of environmental stimuli by, for example, attraction, avoidance, feeding, or copulation. They respond to touch, temperature gradients, chemicals, and light. Some species in each class have two or more pairs of simple eyes capable of indicating the direction and intensity of light but unable

Beak Style

2005-03-25T10:58:00.000-08:00

Distinctive use of birdlike forms in human figures carved in wood in the lower Sepik and Ramu regions of Papua New Guinea. The head of the figure is generally placed on a short neck that connects it to a thick body, over which a long, beaklike nose often projects. Facial features have a thin, linear quality that emphasizes the downward thrust of the nose and contrasts

Lloyd, Seton Howard Frederick

2005-03-25T01:58:00.000-08:00

British archaeologist who led a number of digs in Iraq and Turkey and was the first director of the British Institute of Archaeology at Ankara, Turkey (b. May 30, 1902--d. Jan. 7, 1996).

Rhys, Siôn Dafydd

2005-03-24T22:36:00.000-08:00

Rhys spent some time at Oxford then earned a degree in medicine from the University of Siena, Italy. He practiced as a physician at Cardiff,

Gyroscope

2005-03-24T04:08:00.000-08:00

Any device consisting of a rapidly spinning wheel set in a framework that permits it to tilt freely in any direction—i.e., to rotate about any axis. The momentum of such a wheel causes it to retain its attitude when the framework is tilted; from this characteristic derive a number of valuable applications. Gyroscopes are used in such instruments as compasses and automatic

Augustine, Saint

2005-03-23T18:09:00.000-08:00

Two of Augustine's works stand out above the others for their lasting influence, but they have had very different fates. City of God was widely read in Augustine's time and throughout the Middle Ages and still demands attention today, but it is impossible to read without a determined effort to place it in its historical context. The Confessions was not much read in the

Lurie, Alison

2005-03-23T02:49:00.000-08:00

Lurie graduated from Radcliffe College in 1947 and later taught English and then children's literature at Cornell University. One of her best-known books, The War Between the Tates (1974; filmed 1977), concerns the manner in which the wife of a professor

São Leopoldo

2005-03-21T22:12:00.000-08:00

São Leopoldo serves an agricultural region producing

Mashriq Al-adhkar

2005-03-21T21:38:00.000-08:00

(Arabic: “place where the uttering of the name of God arises at dawn”), temple or house of worship in the Baha'i faith. The mashriq is characterized by a nine-sided construction, in keeping with the Baha'i belief in the mystical properties of the number nine. Free of ritual and clergy, the mashriq is open to adherents of all religions and offers a simple service consisting of readings

Isidore Of Sevilla, Saint

2005-03-21T03:26:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Saint Isidore of Seville , Latin Isidorus Hispalensis theologian, last of the Western Latin Fathers, archbishop, and encyclopaedist, whose Etymologies, an encyclopaedia of human and divine subjects, was one of the chief landmarks in glossography (the compilation of glossaries) and was for many centuries one of the most important reference

Rama

2005-03-20T23:13:00.000-08:00

One of the most widely worshipped Hindu deities, the embodiment of chivalry and virtue. Although there are three Ramas mentioned in Indian tradition (Parasurama, Balarama, and Ramacandra), the name is specifically associated with Ramacandra, the seventh incarnation (avatara) of Lord Vishnu (Visnu). It is possible that Rama was an actual historical figure, a tribal hero of ancient

Kiribati

2005-03-20T11:06:00.000-08:00

Officially Republic of Kiribati island country in the central Pacific Ocean. Of its 33 islands, only 20 are inhabited. The population is concentrated in the 16 Gilbert Islands, which straddle the Equator. From the Gilbert Islands, Kiribati extends 250 miles (400 km) to the west to Banaba (formerly Ocean Island) and 1,800 miles to the east, to the Line Islands, three of which are inhabited. In between lie the islands of the Phoenix

Quantum Number

2005-03-19T05:16:00.000-08:00

The principal quantum number for electrons confined

Kwanza River

2005-03-18T20:52:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Coanza, Cuanza, Quanza, or Kuanza, river in central Angola, rising about 50 miles (80 km) southeast of Chitembo in the Bié Plateau at 5,000 feet (1,500 m). It flows northward for about 320 miles (510 km) and then curves westward to enter the Atlantic Ocean 30 miles (48 km) south of Luanda, after a course of 600 miles (960 km). The Kwanza drains much of central Angola and is the only Angolan river of economic significance. At intervals during much of its

Xerxes I

2005-03-18T05:28:00.000-08:00

Soured by this failure, which modern historians consider the beginning of Achaemenian decline, Xerxes retired to Susa and Persepolis. He then furthered the depletion of the once-enormous resources he had gathered, through multiple taxation, by launching a vast construction program. At the capital city of Persepolis, Darius' architects, working from a unified plan

Passeriform, Size range and structural diversity

2005-03-18T04:20:00.000-08:00

Passerines are small to medium-sized land birds, ranging from about 7.5 to about 117 centimetres (three to 46 inches) in overall length. Among the tiniest species are the New World flycatchers (Tyrannidae), New Zealand wrens (Xenicidae), titmice (Paridae), flower-peckers (Dicaeidae), tanagers (Thraupidae), and waxbills (Estrildidae). The heaviest are the lyrebirds (Menuridae) of Australia

Cade, Jack

2005-03-17T23:10:00.000-08:00

Cade was living in Sussex when, in 1449, he was accused of murdering a woman. He fled to France

Anthony Of Novgorod

2005-03-16T20:09:00.000-08:00

Anthony's importance derives mainly from his Pilgrim's

Vienna, University Of

2005-03-16T11:28:00.000-08:00

The university was first chartered, following the model of the University of Paris, by the Habsburg duke Rudolf IV of Austria, as an expression of his rivalry with German king Charles IV, who had founded the University of Prague

Cohen, Stanley

2005-03-16T02:02:00.000-08:00

Cohen was educated at Brooklyn College (B.A., 1943), Oberlin College (M.A., 1945), and at the University of Michigan, where he received a Ph.D. in

Quaker Foods And Beverages

2005-03-14T14:30:00.000-08:00

The Quaker Oats trademark was registered in 1877 by Henry Parsons Crowell (1855–1944), an Ohio milling company owner who in 1891 joined with two other millers, Robert Stuart and

Alice

2005-03-14T00:35:00.000-08:00

Town, Eastern province, South Africa. It lies on the southwestern bank of the Tyume River, west-northwest of East London, at an elevation of 1,720 feet (524 m). Alice began as a mission station established by the Glasgow Missionary Society for the Xhosa people in 1824. It was named after Princess Alice (a daughter of Queen Victoria) and became the seat of a magistracy in 1847 and a town in 1852. Livestock,

Netherlands, The, Plant and animal life

2005-03-13T16:10:00.000-08:00

Most wild Dutch plant species are of the Atlantic district within the Euro-Siberian phytogeographic region. Gradients of salt and winter temperature variations cause relatively minor zonal differences in both wild and garden plants from the coast to more continental regions. The effects of altitude are negligible. Vegetation from coastal sand dunes, muddy

Eusebius Of Dorylaeum

2005-03-13T15:25:00.000-08:00

While a layman, Eusebius was the first to challenge publicly (429) the teaching of Patriarch Nestorius of Constantinople, posting throughout

Biblical Literature, History of religions criticism

2005-03-12T07:17:00.000-08:00

“History of religions” criticism, to use an ungainly expression, relates Old and New Testament religion to the religious situation of the contemporary world of the writings and tries to explain biblical religion as far as possible in terms of current religious attitudes and practices. This is helpful to a point, insofar as it throws into relief those features of

Alembert, Jean Le Rond D'

2005-03-12T04:59:00.000-08:00

The main editions of d'Alembert's collected works are: Oeuvres philosophiques, historiques et littéraires de d'Alembert, ed. by J.F. Bastien, 18 vol. (1805); and Oeuvres complètes de d'Alembert, ed. by Bossange and Belin, 5 vol. (1821, reprinted 1967). These may be supplemented by d'Alembert's Mélanges de littérature, d'histoire et de philosophie, 2 vol. (1753), 4 vol. (1759), 5th vol. (1767), which contain a few pieces omitted from the collected editions; and his Histoire des membres de l'Académie française morts depuis 1700 jusqu'en 1771, 6 vol. (1785–87, reprinted 1970). General studies are: Joseph Bertrand, D'Alembert (1889); and Ronald Grimsley, Jean d'Alembert, 1717–83 (1963).

Confession Of Faith

2005-03-11T08:55:00.000-08:00

The medieval Christian Church did not attempt an official codification of

Submarine

2005-03-11T07:33:00.000-08:00

Submarines first became a major factor in naval warfare during World War I (1914–18), when Germany employed them to destroy surface merchant vessels.

Ugarit

2005-03-10T20:04:00.000-08:00

Ancient city lying in a large artificial mound called Ras Shamra (Ra's Shamrah), 6 miles (10 km) north of Al-Ladhiqiyah (Latakia) on the Mediterranean coast of northern Syria. Its ruins, about half a mile from the shore, were first uncovered by the plow of a peasant at Al-Bayda Bay. Excavations were begun in 1929 by a French archaeological mission under the direction of Claude F.A.

Mies Van Der Rohe, Ludwig

2005-03-10T05:22:00.000-08:00

In the 1960s Mies continued to create beautiful buildings, among them the Bacardi Building in Mexico City (1961); One Charles Center office building in Baltimore (1963); the Federal Center in Chicago (1964); the Public Library in Washington, D.C. (1967); and, most Miesian of all, the Gallery of the Twentieth Century (later called the New National Gallery) in Berlin, dedicated in 1968. A heavy man, badly plagued

Altona

2005-03-09T23:56:00.000-08:00

Northwest district of the city and Land (state) of Hamburg, northwestern Germany. It lies on cliffs above the right bank of the Elbe River. The name may have come originally from allzu-nah (“all too near”), which was the Hamburgers' designation for an inn that lay too close to their territory and was for long the only building. As a small fishing village called Altwasser, it fell

Murder, Inc.

2005-03-09T14:09:00.000-08:00

In popular usage, an arm of the American national crime syndicate, founded in the 1930s to threaten, maim, or murder designated victims for a price; the organization lacked an official name. Murder, Inc., was headed by Louis “Lepke” Buchalter and later by Albert Anastasia, and its services were available to any syndicate member anywhere in the country. Most victims of Murder,

Gray, Thomas

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

Born into a prosperous but unhappy home, Gray was the sole survivor of 12 children

East Detroit

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

City, Macomb county, Michigan, U.S., 10 miles (16 km) north-northeast of Detroit. It is primarily a residential suburb of Detroit but does have such commerce as truck and poultry farming, as well as light manufacturing. First settled in 1837, it was on the military road (now Gratiot Avenue) connecting Fort Wayne (Detroit) with Fort Gratiot (Port Huron). Equidistant between Detroit and Mount

Yab-yum

2005-03-07T09:14:00.000-08:00

(Tibetan: “father-mother”), in Buddhist art of India, Nepal, and Tibet, the representation of the male deity in sexual embrace with his female consort. The pose is generally understood to represent the mystical union of the active force, or method (upaya, conceived of as masculine), with wisdom (prajna, conceived of as feminine)—a fusion necessary to overcome the false duality

Bedford

2005-03-06T06:13:00.000-08:00

Borough (town), seat (1771) of Bedford county, southern Pennsylvania, U.S., on the Pennsylvania Turnpike and the Raystown Branch Juniata River, in the Allegheny Mountains, 38 miles (61 km) south of Altoona. A settlement made on the site about 1750 by John Wray (or Ray), a Scottish trader, was known as Raystown. Fort Bedford (built 1758 and apparently named for John Russell, 4th duke of Bedford) was a frontier

Laird, Macgregor

2005-03-05T17:54:00.000-08:00

In 1832 Laird accompanied his Liverpool firm's expedition, commanded by the Cornish explorer Richard Lander, to the delta of the Niger River. Among the three ships was the Alburkah, a 55-ton paddle-wheeler designed by Laird and the first

China, Foreign affairs under Yang-ti

2005-03-05T15:29:00.000-08:00

In addition to these farsighted construction works, Yang-ti also pursued a very active foreign policy. An expedition to the south established sovereignty over the old Chinese settlement in Tongking and over the Champa state of Lin-yi in central Nam Viet. Several expeditions were sent to Taiwan, and relations with Japan were opened. The T'u-yü-hun people were driven

Mahapurusa

2005-03-05T05:46:00.000-08:00

Also called Salakapurusa, in Hindu, Jaina, and Buddhist belief, an individual of extraordinary destiny, distinguished by certain physical traits or marks (laksanas). Such men are born to become either universal rulers (cakravartins) or great spiritual leaders (such as buddhas or the Jaina spiritual leaders, the Tirthankaras). In the case of Gautama Buddha, soothsayers were able to recognize the

Gnetophyte

2005-03-04T08:20:00.000-08:00

Any member of the division Gnetophyta, a small group of vascular gymnospermous plants that are represented by three genera: Ephedra, Gnetum, and Welwitschia. There are about 35 species in the genus Ephedra, 30 or more in Gnetum, but only one in Welwitschia. The three genera exhibit their great diversity in the immense variety of form and size among the various species.

Blood Count

2005-03-03T20:56:00.000-08:00

Determination of the number of red blood cells (RBC's, or erythrocytes) and white blood cells (WBC's, or leukocytes) in a given volume of blood. The readings vary with sex, age, physiological state, and general health, but a cubic millimetre of blood of a normal individual contains approximately 5,000,000 red cells and 7,000 white cells. A differential blood count is the enumeration of the

Zamora

2005-03-03T07:05:00.000-08:00

Town, southeastern Ecuador. It lies in the forested jungles east of the main Andean ranges and is situated at the southeastern foot of the Andean Cordillera (mountains) de Zamora, just south of the Zamora River. The Roman Catholic Church has established a Vicar Apostolic in Zamora, which is considered to be a missionary settlement; the population is almost entirely

Almond, Gabriel Abraham

2005-03-03T02:04:00.000-08:00

Almond received a Ph.D. from the University of Chicago in 1938 and taught at Brooklyn College from 1939 to 1946, except during his service in the U.S. Office of War Information (1942–45). After

Tigereye

2005-03-02T10:48:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Tiger's-eye, semiprecious quartz gem displaying chatoyancy, a vertical luminescent band like that of a cat's eye. Veins of parallel, blue asbestos (crocidolite) fibres are first altered to iron oxides and then replaced by silica. The gem has a rich yellow to yellow-brown or brown colour and, when polished, a fine golden lustre. The best stones come from Griqualand West, S.Af. Hawk's-eye

Seafloor Spreading Hypothesis

2005-03-01T22:45:00.000-08:00

The seafloor spreading hypothesis was proposed

Jawf, Al-

2005-03-01T13:28:00.000-08:00

Town and oasis, northern Saudi Arabia. It lies at the northern edge of an-Nafud desert near the source of the Wadi as-Sirhan. Formerly considered a part of the Jabal Shammar region, the oasis now lies within the northern reaches of the Hejaz. The town is strategically located on an ancient caravan route between the Mediterranean Sea and the Indian Ocean, and it has long been

Ocean, Structure and composition

2005-03-01T03:12:00.000-08:00

The oceanic crust differs from the continental crust in several ways: it is thinner, denser, younger, of different chemical composition, and created in a different plate-tectonic setting. The oceanic crust is formed at spreading centres on the oceanic ridges, whereas continental crust is formed above the subduction zones. The oceanic crust is about six kilometres

Basil, Colonel W. De

2005-02-28T20:19:00.000-08:00

Original name Vasily Grigorievich Voskresensky Russian impresario who in 1932 became codirector with René Blum of the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo. He lost the celebrated premier danseur Léonide Massine and several other dancers to Blum, who, with a U.S. sponsoring agency (World Art), reorganized the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo with Massine as director. De Basil then formed a

New Delhi

2005-02-28T10:24:00.000-08:00

The capital of India, constituting part of the city and union territory of Delhi (q.v.).

Karatau

2005-02-28T02:48:00.000-08:00

Kazak Qaratau mountain range, a northwestern spur of the Tien Shan, in southern Kazakstan. The name is Turkic, meaning “black mountain.” The range extends for 260 miles (420 km) along the Syr Darya (river) and rises to 7,139 feet (2,176 m), with an average elevation of 3,300–5,000 feet (1,000–1,525 m). The summits are smooth, and small snow-fed streams flow down the steep slopes in spring. On the eastern slopes rich deposits of phosphorites

Penicillium

2005-02-27T22:15:00.000-08:00

Genus of blue or green mold fungi (division Mycota) of the form-class Deuteromycetes (Fungi Imperfecti). Those species for which the sexual phase is known are placed in the Eurotiales. Found on foodstuffs, leather, and fabrics, they are of economic importance in the production of antibiotics (penicillin, q.v.), organic acids, and cheeses.

Canada Act

2005-02-26T02:39:00.000-08:00

Also called Constitution Act 1982, Canada's constitution approved by the British Parliament on March 25, 1982, and proclaimed by Queen Elizabeth II on April 17, 1982, making Canada wholly independent. The document contains the original statute that established the Canadian Confederation in 1867 (the British North America Act), the amendments made to it by the British Parliament over the years, and new material resulting

Argentina, Forestry and fishing

2005-02-25T20:51:00.000-08:00

The forestry industry does not supply all of Argentina's needs. Most of the harvest is used for lumber, with smaller amounts for firewood and charcoal. In Mesopotamia the Paraná pine is harvested for its timber; there are also plantations of poplar and willow. The Northwest highlands produce pine and cedar, used for pulp and industry. The red quebracho of the Chaco region

Novella

2005-02-25T07:23:00.000-08:00

Short and well-structured narrative, often realistic and satiric in tone, that influenced the development of the short story and the novel throughout Europe. Originating in Italy during the Middle Ages, the novella was based on local events that were humorous, political, or amorous in nature; the individual tales often were gathered into collections along with

Great Karoo

2005-02-25T01:10:00.000-08:00

Karoo also spelled Karroo , Afrikaans Groot Karoo , also called Central Karoo plateau basin in Western Cape province, South Africa, lying between the Great Escarpment (north) and the Swartberg (south). It represents the effect of headwater erosion by rivers flowing southwest and southeast from the escarpment. The Great Karoo is divided into a western basin and a much larger eastern basin. The western, which is the headwater basin for the Doring

Dilleniidae

2005-02-24T20:24:00.000-08:00

Although tricolpate pollen is known from the Barremian and Aptian ages (124 to 113 million years ago) of the Early Cretaceous Period (144 to 97.5 million years ago), the record of those fossils recognized as Dilleniidae goes back no farther than the Cenomanian Age (97.5 to 91 million years ago) of the Late Cretaceous Period (97.5 to 66.4 million years ago). By this time, families in all parts of the subclass

Usair Group, Inc.

2005-02-24T00:17:00.000-08:00

Beginning service in 1939 as a mail carrier over the mountainous

Ribble Valley

2005-02-23T20:26:00.000-08:00

Borough (district), administrative county of Lancashire, northwestern England, along the county's eastern border, extending into the western Pennine uplands. The southern part of the borough, including the lower Ribble valley and the two largest towns, Clitheroe and Longridge, lies in the historic county of Lancashire. The remainder of the mostly rural borough, including

Coleopteran

2005-02-23T19:58:00.000-08:00

Any member of the insect order Coleoptera, which includes the beetles and weevils. It is the largest order of insects, representing about 40 percent of the known insect species. Among the approximately 250,000 species of Coleoptera are many of the largest and most conspicuous insects, some of which also have brilliant metallic colours, showy patterns, or striking form. Beetles

Kean, Edmund

2005-02-22T21:09:00.000-08:00

Though no official record of his birth exists, it has been well established that he was the bastard son of Ann Carey, who described herself as an itinerant

Dominion

2005-02-22T18:27:00.000-08:00

The status, prior to 1939, of each of the British Commonwealth countries of Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the Union of South Africa, Eire, and Newfoundland. Although there was no formal definition of dominion status, a pronouncement by the Imperial Conference of 1926 described Great Britain and the dominions as “autonomous communities within the British Empire, equal in status,

Oglethorpe, James Edward

2005-02-21T08:46:00.000-08:00

Educated at the University of Oxford, he entered the army in 1712 and joined the Austrian army fighting the Turks in 1717. On his return to England in 1722, he entered Parliament. In 1729 he presided over a committee that brought about prison reforms.

Leitrim

2005-02-21T00:33:00.000-08:00

Irish Liatroim (Gray Ridge) county in the province of Connaught (Connacht), Ireland. With an area of 589 square miles (1,525 square km), it is bounded on the north by County Donegal, on the east by Northern Ireland and Cavan, on the south by Longford, and on the west by Roscommon and Sligo. The southern part of the county is a lowland covered by glacial drifts; most of it is used as farmland, though there are peat bogs

Gullstrand, Allvar

2005-02-20T22:49:00.000-08:00

Gullstrand studied in Uppsala, Vienna, and Stockholm, earning a doctorate in 1890. He became professor of diseases of the eye at Uppsala in 1894 and in 1913 was appointed professor of physiological

The Revolution

2005-02-20T22:41:00.000-08:00

A scant three years after the end of the Civil War, the United States was embroiled in the issue of suffrage for African-American men, and many suffragists—notably those who formed the American

Agricola, Georgius

2005-02-20T19:14:00.000-08:00

(Latin), German Georg Bauer German scholar and scientist known as “the father of mineralogy.” While a highly educated classicist and humanist, well regarded by scholars of his own and later times, he was yet singularly independent of the theories of ancient authorities. He was indeed among the first to found a natural

Marsh, George Perkins

2005-02-20T02:43:00.000-08:00

Educated at Dartmouth College, Hanover, N.H., Marsh developed a successful law practice, but his wide-ranging mind led him into the study of

Walker, Alice

2005-02-18T23:47:00.000-08:00

Walker was the eighth child of African American sharecroppers. While growing up she was accidentally blinded in one eye, and her mother gave her a typewriter,

Beamon, Bob

2005-02-18T10:05:00.000-08:00

Beamon began jumping at Jamaica High School (Long Island, New York) and attended North Carolina Agricultural and Technical College (Greensboro), the University of Texas

Stein, Johann Andreas

2005-02-17T08:58:00.000-08:00

The son of an organ builder, Stein apprenticed with the famous instrument maker Johann Andreas Silbermann in 1748–49. For a time he evidently lived in Paris, but he was most active in Augsburg,

Mcmurdo Sound

2005-02-16T22:35:00.000-08:00

Bay off Antarctica that forms the western extension of Ross Sea, lying at the edge of Ross Ice Shelf, west of Ross Island and east of Victoria Land. The channel, 92 miles (148 km) long and up to 46 miles (74 km) wide, has been a major centre for Antarctic explorations. First discovered in 1841 by the Scottish explorer Sir James Clark Ross, it thereafter served as one of the main access routes to

Tasmania, Climate

2005-02-16T08:58:00.000-08:00

Tasmania, located in the mid-latitude westerly wind belt and dominated by southern maritime air masses, enjoys a moist, equable climate, with mild to warm summers, mild winters in most settled areas, and rain during all seasons. Yet the occasional incursion, in summer, of tropical continental air masses and, in spring and autumn, of tropical Tasman air masses along the

Balanophoraceae

2005-02-15T14:50:00.000-08:00

The balanophora family of flowering plants, which includes about 18 genera containing more than 100 species of root parasites that are distributed primarily throughout the tropics. The Balanophoraceae are sometimes placed in their own order, Balanophorales, although they are usually considered to be members of the sandalwood order (Santalales). The club-shaped flower

Hal

2005-02-15T13:24:00.000-08:00

Plural Ahwal, in Sufi Muslim mystical terminology, a spiritual state of mind that comes to the Sufi from time to time during his journey toward God. The ahwal are graces of God that cannot be acquired or retained through an individual's own efforts. When the soul is purified of its attachments to the material world, it can only wait patiently for those spiritual gifts of God, which, when they

Gia Dinh

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

Town just north of Ho Chi Minh City (formerly Saigon), southern Vietnam, in an area of intensive rice cultivation. It has several hospitals and an institution of higher learning. The Gia Dinh industrial park includes rubber tire and textile plants. It was largely ruined during the 1968 Viet Cong Tet offensive but subsequently rebuilt. Pop. (1971 est.) 400,109.

Levassor, émile

2005-02-14T11:56:00.000-08:00

Levassor took over a firm that made woodworking machinery. When René Panhard joined the firm in 1886, the renamed firm of Panhard and Levassor began to make metal-sawing machines as well. Around 1890 Levassor managed to gain control of the French licenses to the automobile engine

úbeda

2005-02-14T04:26:00.000-08:00

City, Jaén province, in the comunidad autónoma (“autonomous community”) of Andalusia, southern Spain. Úbeda lies northeast of the city of Jaén, on the Úbeda Hills in the Guadalimar Valley. Originally an Iberian settlement, the city was occupied by the Arabs in 711 and was reconquered by Ferdinand III of Castile in 1234. It is renowned for its architecture, particularly of the Renaissance

Restell, Madame

2005-02-13T18:49:00.000-08:00

Ann Trow was born into a poor family. In 1831 she moved to New York City with her husband, who died a few years later, and in 1836 she married Charles R. Lohman. Her husband had established himself as a purveyor of various concoctions that purportedly prevented

Tasmanian Languages

2005-02-12T15:50:00.000-08:00

Extinct languages spoken before 1877 by the indigenous people of Tasmania, who are also now extinct. No relationship between the Tasmanian languages and any other languages of the world has been discovered. Scholars originally divided the Tasmanian languages, all of which were related to each other, into two groups, a western group, spoken in western Tasmania and northern

Chandrasekhar Limit

2005-02-12T01:14:00.000-08:00

This limiting value was named for the Indian-born astrophysicist Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar, who formulated it in 1930. Using Albert Einstein's special theory of relativity and the principles of quantum physics, Chandrasekhar showed that it is impossible for a white dwarf star, which

Lead Poisoning

2005-02-11T21:03:00.000-08:00

In the home, the main sources of lead are usually lead-based paint and drinking water carried through lead pipes; lead-based paints are especially harmful to children who chew on painted toys and furnishings and eat paint peelings

Seven Against Thebes

2005-02-11T14:02:00.000-08:00

In Greek mythology, the seven champions who were killed fighting against Thebes after the fall of Oedipus, the king of that city. The twins Eteocles and Polyneices, who had been cursed by their father, Oedipus, failed to agree on which of them was to succeed to the Theban throne and decided to rule in alternate years. As Eteocles' turn came first, Polyneices withdrew to

Topographic Map

2005-02-10T22:55:00.000-08:00

Cartographic representation of the Earth's surface at a level of detail or scale intermediate between that of a plan (small area) and a chorographic (large regional) map. Within the limits of scale, it shows as accurately as possible the location and shape of both natural and man-made features. Natural features include relief, which is sometimes mistakenly understood

Aalto, Alvar

2005-02-10T09:15:00.000-08:00

Aalto's commissions after 1950, in addition to being greater in number, were more varied and widely dispersed: a high-rise apartment building in Bremen, W.Ger. (1958), a church in Bologna, Italy (1966), an art museum

Cinerama

2005-02-09T23:37:00.000-08:00

In motion pictures, a process in which three synchronized movie projectors each project one-third of the picture on a wide, curving screen. Many viewers believe that the screen, which thus annexes their entire field of vision, gives a sense of reality unmatched by the flat screen. Invented by the New York City photographer Fred Waller, the first Cinerama movie, This

Yogacara

2005-02-09T21:39:00.000-08:00

Also called Vijñanavada (“Doctrine of Consciousness”), an important idealistic school of Mahayana Buddhism. Yogacara attacked both the complete realism of Theravada Buddhism and the provisional practical realism of the Madhyamika school of Mahayana Buddhism. The name of the school is derived from the title of an important 4th- or 5th-century text of the school, the Yogacarabhumi-sastra (“The Science of the