QuietPlate

Kalahari, Animal life

2005-11-18T21:15:00.000-08:00

The animal life of the Kalahari is also richer and more varied in the north than in the south. Yet even in the arid south, many individuals of several species stay for long periods of the year despite the absence of surface water. The principal species found in the south are springbok, gnu (wildebeest), and hartebeest—all of which occasionally are present in great

Pork

2005-10-16T18:05:00.000-07:00

Flesh of hogs, usually slaughtered between the ages of six months and one year. The most desirable pork is grayish pink in colour, firm and fine-grained, well-marbled, and covered with an outer layer of firm white fat. About 30 percent of the meat is consumed as cooked fresh meat; the remainder is cured or smoked for bacon and ham, used in sausage, and rendered to produce lard.

Coin Glass

2005-07-27T20:45:00.000-07:00

Glassware usually in the form of wineglasses, goblets, or tankards enclosing a coin either in the foot, or in the hollow knop of the stem, rarely in an interior bulb. A Venetian specimen of coin glass dated 1647 is known, but the principal occurrence is in English glass from about 1650 onward. It was a useful device for expressing Jacobite or anti-Jacobite sympathies with either

Elizabeth Stuart

2005-07-26T02:15:00.000-07:00

The daughter of James VI of Scotland (later James I of Great Britain) and Anne of Denmark, Elizabeth in 1606 came to the British royal court, where her beauty and charm attracted much attention and where she soon became a favourite subject of the poets. Gustavus

Wrought Iron

2005-07-23T14:50:00.000-07:00

One of the two forms in which iron is obtained by smelting; the other is cast iron (q.v.). Wrought iron is a soft, ductile, fibrous variety that is produced from a semifused mass of relatively pure iron globules partially surrounded by slag. It usually contains less than 0.1 percent carbon and 1 or 2 percent slag. It is superior for most purposes to cast iron, which is overly hard and

Byas, Don

2005-07-08T00:15:00.000-07:00

During the late 1930s Byas played in several swing bands, including those of Don Redman and Andy Kirk, and in 1941 he became a tenor saxophone soloist (as in “Harvard Blues”) with Count Basie. He also became

Amoeba

2005-07-06T16:40:00.000-07:00

Also spelled Ameba, plural Amoebas, or Amoebae, any of the microscopic unicellular protozoans of the rhizopodan order Amoebida. The well-known type species, Amoeba proteus, is found on decaying bottom vegetation of freshwater streams and ponds. There are numerous parasitic amoebas. Of six species found in the human alimentary tract, Entamoeba histolytica causes amebic dysentery. Two related free-living

Telephone And Telephone System, Analog telephone facsimile

2005-06-30T18:25:00.000-07:00

Further deployment of fax transmission had to await the development of improved long-distance telephone service. Between 1920 and 1923 the American Telephone & Telegraph Company (AT&T) worked on telephone facsimile technology, and in 1924 the telephotography machine was used to send pictures from political conventions in Cleveland, Ohio, and Chicago to New York City for publication

Mountain, Heating and thermal expansion

2005-06-16T10:00:00.000-07:00

Rocks, like most materials, expand when they are heated. Some mountain ranges and plateaus are high simply because the crust and upper mantle beneath them are unusually hot. Most broad variations in the topography of the ocean floor, the mid-ocean ridges and rises, are due to horizontal variations in temperature in the outer 100 kilometres of the Earth. Hot areas stand

Spontaneous Combustion

2005-06-13T04:55:00.000-07:00

The outbreak of fire without application of heat from an external source. Spontaneous combustion may occur when combustible matter, such as hay or coal, is stored in bulk. It begins with a slow oxidation process (as bacterial fermentation or atmospheric oxidation) under conditions not permitting ready dissipation of heat—e.g., in the centre of a haystack or a pile of

Arts, Islamic, Other classic mosques

2005-06-01T13:35:00.000-07:00

Either in its simplest form, as in Medina, or in its more formalized shape, as in Damascus, the hypostyle tradition dominated mosque architecture from 715 to the 10th century. As it occurs at Nishapur in northeastern Iran, Siraf in southern Iran, al-Qayrawan (Kairouan) in Tunisia, and Córdoba in Spain, it can indeed be considered as the classic early Islamic type. Its masterpieces occur

Grappelli, Stéphane

2005-05-18T04:45:00.000-07:00

French violinist (b. Jan. 26, 1908, Paris, France--d. Dec. 1, 1997, Paris), was one of the few notable jazz improvisers on violin and one of the first popular European jazz musicians; he played with a lilting swing and quick wit that made him an international favourite for over 60 years. With the great Gypsy guitarist Django Reinhardt, he formed (1934) the first Quintette du Hot Club de France, a Paris-based

Clapper

2005-05-16T10:00:00.000-07:00

Clappers

Medicine, China

2005-05-14T07:50:00.000-07:00

Health services in China since the Cultural Revolution have been characterized by decentralization and dependence on personnel chosen locally and trained for short periods. Emphasis is given to selfless motivation, self-reliance, and to the involvement of everyone in the community. Campaigns stressing the importance of preventive measures and their implementation

Abseron Peninsula

2005-03-15T16:55:00.000-08:00

Also spelled �Apsheron�, Azerbaijani �Abseron Yasaqligi� peninsula in Azerbaijan that extends 37 miles (60 km) eastward into the Caspian Sea and reaches a maximum width of 19 miles (30 km). An eastern extension of the Caucasus Mountains, the Abseron Peninsula consists of a gently undulating plain, in part dissected by ravines and characterized by frequent salt lakes and lands flooded by tides. Vineyards and tea plantations are features

New England Confederation

2005-03-14T06:47:00.000-08:00

Also called �United Colonies of New England� in British American colonial history, a federation of Massachusetts, Connecticut, New Haven, and Plymouth established in May 1643 by delegates from those four Puritan colonies. Several factors influenced the formation of this alliance, including the solution of trade, boundary, and religious disputes, but the principal impetus was a concern over defense against attacks

Wild Mango

2005-03-11T05:30:00.000-08:00

Also called �Dika� (Irvingia gabonensis), tropical African tree, of the family Ixonanthaceae (Irvingiaceae), notable for its edible yellow fruit, which somewhat resembles the mango. The seed is rich in a fat used locally to make both bread and a type of butter. The wood is very hard and is used locally in building construction.

Piura

2005-03-03T17:33:00.000-08:00

Department (formed 1861) of northern Peru, consisting of coastal desert, particularly in the west and south, and low, forested Andean mountains in the east. It is drained by the Chira River in the north and the Piura River in the south. The irrigated valleys of these two rivers are used chiefly for the production of cotton. Upstream on the Piura River, sugarcane, rice, tobacco,

Nagoya

2005-03-02T17:17:00.000-08:00

The history of Nagoya dates from 1610, when a great castle was erected by the Owari branch of the powerful Tokugawa shogunate. After the Meiji Restoration (1868), which marked the end of shogunal government, Nagoya continued as a commercial

Balas, Iolanda

2005-03-01T01:20:00.000-08:00

Balas cleared the bar in a variation of the scissors method; her coach was Ion S�ter, an outstanding high-jumper whom she later married. She already held the women's

Ben Jelloun, Tahar

2005-02-28T19:26:00.000-08:00

Ben Jelloun's first collection of poetry, Hommes sous linceul de silence (1971; �Men Under

Ben Jelloun, Tahar

2005-02-27T08:44:00.000-08:00

Ben Jelloun's first collection of poetry, Hommes sous linceul de silence (1971; �Men Under

Eye Dialect

2005-02-25T14:47:00.000-08:00

The use of misspellings that are based on standard pronunciations (such as sez for says or kow for cow) but are usually intended to suggest a speaker's illiteracy or his use of generally nonstandard pronunciations. It is sometimes used in literature for comic effect.

Waite, Morrison Remick

2005-02-24T09:49:00.000-08:00

Seventh chief justice of the United States (1874 - 88), who frequently spoke for the Supreme Court in interpreting the post-Civil War constitutional amendments and in redefining governmental jurisdiction over commerce in view of the great expansion of American business. Reacting against the extreme nationalism predominant during

Ashmore And Cartier Islands

2005-02-23T01:20:00.000-08:00

Officially �Territory of Ashmore and Cartier Islands� external territory of Australia, in the Indian Ocean. The islands lie 200 miles (320 km) northwest of Western Australia. The Ashmore Islands, comprising Middle, East, and West islands, are coral islets within a reef. Cartier Island, also lying within a reef, is more sandy in composition. Created in 1934, the territory was administratively linked to the Northern Territory of Australia

Songhai Empire

2005-02-22T14:51:00.000-08:00

Though the Songhai people are said to have established themselves in the city of Gao about AD 800, they did not regard it as their capital until the beginning of

Siwa Oasis

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

Arabic �Wahat Siwah� oasis in Matruh muhafazah (governorate), western Egypt. It lies near the Libyan frontier, 350 miles (560 km) west-southwest of Cairo. The oasis is 6 miles (10 km) long by 4 - 5 miles (6 - 8 km) wide and has about 200 springs. Two rock outcrops provide the sites of the old walled settlements of Siwa and Aghurmi, which are veritable fortresses. The oasis is inhabited by Berber-speaking Sudanic peoples who live in mud-brick

Anthropoidea

2005-02-20T02:04:00.000-08:00

Suborder of primates including the families Callitrichidae (marmoset, q.v.), Cebidae (New World monkeys), Cercopithecidae (Old World monkeys), Hylobatidae (gibbon and siamang, qq.v.), Pongidae (gorilla, chimpanzee, and orangutan, qq.v.), Hominidae (humans and fossil relatives), and the fossil group Parapithecidae.

Anti-lebanon Mountains

2005-02-19T19:07:00.000-08:00

Arabic �Al-jabal Ash-sharqi, or Lubnan Ash-sharqi, �French �Anti-liban, � mountain range that runs northeast-southwest along the Syrian-Lebanese border parallel to the Lebanon Mountains, from which they are separated by the al-Biqa' Valley. The range averages 6,500 feet (2,000 m) above sea level, with several peaks exceeding 8,000 feet (2,400 m). As it runs south, the Anti-Lebanon range is interrupted by a broad shoulder (the Zabadani Saddle) of Mount Hermon, 9,232 feet (2,814 m) high,

Carnivore, Importance to humans

2005-02-18T11:55:00.000-08:00

The seal is of significant importance to the survival of the Eskimos and other inhabitants of the north, who use almost every part of the animal: the meat is eaten; bones used for implements; tendons for sewing; hides for leather to make footwear, boats, shelters, bags, clothing, and ornaments; and the oil and fat for fuel, lubrication, and tanning. The ivory tusks of the walrus

Jibril

2005-02-17T20:33:00.000-08:00

Muhammad himself could not at first identify the spirit that possessed him, and the Qur'an mentions him by name only three times. Jibril, however, became Muhammad's constant helper.

Chesnutt, Charles W.

2005-02-16T16:19:00.000-08:00

Chesnutt was the son of free blacks who had left their native city of Fayetteville, N.C., prior to the American Civil War. Following the war his parents moved back to Fayetteville, where Chesnutt completed his education and began teaching. He was named assistant principal (1877 - 80) and then principal

Percy, Thomas

2005-02-15T23:23:00.000-08:00

The basis of Percy's collection was a tattered 15th-century manuscript of ballads (known as the Percy folio) found in the house of a friend

Earth Sciences, Water resources and seawater chemistry

2005-02-14T04:53:00.000-08:00

Quantitative studies of the distribution of water have revealed that an astonishingly small part of the Earth's water is contained in lakes and rivers. Ninety-seven percent of all the water is in the oceans; and, of the fresh water constituting the remainder, three-fourths is locked up in glacial ice and most of the rest is in the ground. Approximate figures are also

Mosby, John Singleton

2005-02-13T07:27:00.000-08:00

Reared near Charlottesville, Va., Mosby entered the University of Virginia in 1849 and graduated in 1852. While there, he shot at and wounded a few students, but his resulting jail sentence

Arecibo River

2005-02-12T10:14:00.000-08:00

Spanish �in full R�o Grande De Arecibo, � river in west-central Puerto Rico. The Arecibo River rises in the Cordillera Central just east of Mount Guilarte. It flows north-northeast about 40 miles (65 km) through a coffee-growing region and descends across the northern coastal plain to empty into the Atlantic Ocean just east of the port of Arecibo. At the northern edge of the cordilleran foothills, the river is impounded

Ijsselmeer Polders

2005-02-11T00:55:00.000-08:00

The Zuiderzee project, which involved the construction of a dam (Afsluitdijk; completed 1932) enclosing the IJsselmeer

Eugenikos, Markos

2005-02-10T18:11:00.000-08:00

After a classical and theological education under tutors antagonistic to Rome, Eugenikos at 26 gave his property to the poor and became a monk

Pappenheim, Gottfried Heinrich, Count (graf) Zu

2005-02-09T08:33:00.000-08:00

Pappenheim served with the Catholic League, headed by the elector Maximilian I of Bavaria and commanded by Johann Tserclaes, Graf von Tilly. Idolized by his regiment of cuirassiers, the Pappenheimers, he proved a tempestuous cavalry officer, always

Amsterdam

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

To the scores of tourists who visit each year, Amsterdam is known for its historical attractions, for its collections of great art, and for the distinctive colour and flavour of its old

Blois

2005-02-07T19:58:00.000-08:00

City, capital of Loir-et-Cher d�partement, Centre region, central France, on the Loire River, northeast of Tours. First mentioned in the 6th century by Gregory of Tours, it was by the early Middle Ages seat of the powerful counts of Blois, from whom descended the Capetian kings of France. At the end of the 14th century, Blois was acquired by Louis de France, duc d'Orl�ans. Joan of

Sackler, Arthur M.

2005-02-06T18:41:00.000-08:00

Sackler studied at New York University (B.S., 1933; M.D., 1937) and worked as a psychiatrist at Creedmore State Hospital in Queens, New York (1944 - 46), where in 1949 he founded the Creedmore Institute of Psychobiological Studies, a field in

Amnesty International

2005-02-05T04:53:00.000-08:00

(AI), � international organization headquartered in London that seeks to inform public opinion about violations of human rights, especially the abridgments of freedom of speech and of religion and the imprisonment and torture of political dissidents, and which actively seeks the release of political prisoners and the relief, when necessary, of their families. In

Lima

2005-02-03T17:21:00.000-08:00

City, capital of Peru and of Lima department. It is the country's commercial and industrial centre. Central Lima is located at an elevation of 512 feet (156 metres) on the south bank of the R�o R�mac, about eight miles (13 km) inland from the Pacific Ocean port of Callao, and has an area of 27 square miles (70 square km). Its name is a corruption of the Quechua Indian name R�mac, meaning �Talker.� The

Peter, Gospel Of

2005-02-02T04:48:00.000-08:00

Pseudepigraphal (noncanonical and unauthentic) Christian writing of the mid-2nd century AD, the extant portion of which covers the condemnation, Crucifixion, and Resurrection of Jesus. Because the work reflects the view that Christ's body had only the appearance of reality, Serapion, bishop of Antioch c. AD 190, believed it was written by a member of the heretical Docetist sect.

Stingray

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

The dasyatid

Denbighshire

2005-01-31T22:05:00.000-08:00

Welsh �Sir Ddinbych� county of northern Wales extending inland from the Irish Sea coast. The present county of Denbighshire includes the Vale of Clwyd along the River Clwyd and an inland area between the Clwydian Range in the east and the Clocaenog Forest in the west that ascends to the Berwyn mountains in the south. The lower Vale of Clywd and the seacoast are part of the historic county

Novi Ligure

2005-01-30T17:19:00.000-08:00

Town, Alessandria provincia, Piedmont regione, northwestern Italy, north of Genoa. A free commune until 1192, it then fell successively to Tortona and Milan before passing to Genoa in 1447. It was the scene of an Austro-Russian army's defeat of the French in 1799. Novi Ligure is now an important rail and road junction with iron and steel, food, and textile industries. Pop. (1993 est.) mun., 29,653.

Sokol

2005-01-29T00:28:00.000-08:00

(Czech: �Hawk,� or �Falcon�), gymnastic society, originating in Prague in 1862 to develop strength, litheness, alertness, and courage. Originally patterned after the German turnverein, the Sokol traditionally emphasized mass calisthenics as a means of promoting communal spirit and physical fitness. Banned during the Nazi occupation, the Sokol movement was revived in 1945 but

Egypt, The Kingdom of Egypt (1922 - 52)

2005-01-28T06:54:00.000-08:00

The new kingdom was in form a constitutional monarchy. The constitution, based on that of Belgium and promulgated in April 1923, defined the King's executive powers and established a bicameral legislature. An electoral law provided for universal male suffrage and the indirect election of deputies to the lower house: the Senate was half elected and half appointed. But

Fabius Pictor, Quintus

2005-01-27T02:15:00.000-08:00

A member of the Senate, he fought against the Carthaginians in the Second Punic War (218 - 201) and was sent on a mission to the Oracle of Delphi after the disastrous Roman defeat at Cannae (216). His history, now lost, was an account of the development of Rome from the earliest times. Fabius wrote it in Greek, partly because he sought to justify Roman

Disjunction

2005-01-26T16:41:00.000-08:00

In logic, relation or connection of terms in a proposition to express the concept �or�; it is a statement of alternatives (sometimes called �alternation�). For clarity, exclusive disjunction (either x or y but not both), symbolized x �� y, x � y, or x �/y, must be distinguished from inclusive disjunction (either x or y or both x and y), symbolized x � y. See also implication.

Asahi Shimbun

2005-01-25T21:03:00.000-08:00

Founded in Osaka in 1879, Asahi has been in the hands of the Murayama and Ueno families since 1881. Asahi is particularly noted for its political coverage and its foreign news.

Ford, Edmund Brisco

2005-01-24T08:09:00.000-08:00

Ford joined the faculty at the University of Oxford in 1927; he was made professor of ecological genetics in 1963, becoming emeritus professor in 1969. He

Kirk Range

2005-01-23T09:52:00.000-08:00

Plateau in southwestern Malawi, extending in a north-south direction and skirting the southwestern shore of Lake Nyasa and the western border of the Shire River valley. The northern scarp overlooks the Central Region Plateau, while the southern limits merge into the lower Shire Highlands. The plateau's height decreases in a southerly direction, from 5,500 feet (1,676 m) at Dedza

Affenpinscher

2005-01-22T23:42:00.000-08:00

Also called �Monkey Terrier, � breed of toy dog known since the 17th century. The affenpinscher stands 26 cm (10 inches) or less and weighs 3 to 3.5 kg (7 to 8 pounds). A sturdily built, terrier-like dog, it has small, erect ears, round black eyes, and a short, docked tail. Its wiry, preferably black coat is short on parts of the body but longer on the legs and on the face, where it produces the monkey-like expression for which the

Igboid Languages

2005-01-21T18:29:00.000-08:00

A language cluster that constitutes a subbranch of the Benue-Congo branch of the Niger-Congo language family. There are nearly 20 million speakers of Igboid languages in southeastern Nigeria. In the early years of the 20th century an attempt to develop an artificial form of Igbo called Union-Igbo, based on four Igbo dialects, was not successful. Later a standard literary

Kilby, Jack

2005-01-20T19:46:00.000-08:00

In full �Jack St. Clair Kilby� American engineer and one of the inventors of the integrated circuit, a system of interconnected transistors on a single microchip. In 2000 Kilby was awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics.

Electrical And Electronics Engineering

2005-01-18T14:10:00.000-08:00

The branch of engineering concerned with the practical applications of electricity in all its forms, including those of the field of electronics. Electronics engineering is that branch of electrical engineering concerned with the uses of the electromagnetic spectrum and with the application of such electronic devices as integrated circuits, transistors,

De La Mare, Walter

2005-01-17T04:10:00.000-08:00

De la Mare was educated at St. Paul's Cathedral Choir School in London, and from 1890 to 1908 he worked in the London office of the Anglo-American Oil Company. From 1902, however, when his poetry collection Songs of Childhood appeared

Andr� Le Chapelain,

2005-01-16T06:17:00.000-08:00

Latin �Andreas Capellanus � French writer on the art of courtly love, best known for his three-volume treatise Liber de arte honeste amandi et reprobatione inhonesti amoris (c. 1185; �Book of the Art of Loving Nobly and the Reprobation of Dishonourable Love�). He is thought to have been a chaplain at the court of Marie, Countess of Champagne, daughter of Eleanor of Aquitaine. At Marie's request

Religion

2005-01-15T18:35:00.000-08:00

During January and February 1995, an estimated 18 million Hindu pilgrims from around the world journeyed to Allahabad to bathe in the sacred Ganges River as part of the triennial Kumbh Mela, "Festival of the Pot." Allahabad is regarded as particularly holy because it lies

Drame Bourgeois

2005-01-14T21:21:00.000-08:00

Type of play that enjoyed brief popularity in France in the late 18th century. Written for and about the middle class and based upon the theories of the French essayist and encyclopaedist Denis Diderot (1713 - 84), the drame bourgeois was conceived of as occupying a place between tragedy and comedy; it was designed as a serious depiction of middle-class problems, especially social

East Greenland Orogen

2005-01-13T16:00:00.000-08:00

Also called �East Greenland Geosyncline� a linear orogenic (mountain) belt that developed from late Precambrian time to the middle of the Paleozoic Era (roughly 650 million to 350 million years ago) along a portion of the eastern coast of Greenland. Deformation occurred during several phases of the Caledonian orogeny (mountain-building episode) between Late Silurian and Late Devonian times (about 423 million to 354 million

Craigavon

2005-01-12T23:43:00.000-08:00

New town (built after 1966), Craigavon district, Northern Ireland, southwest of Belfast. Craigavon new town was developed under the New Towns Act of 1965 as a commercial, light industrial, and residential centre linking the older towns of Lurgan and Portadown. It was named after James Craig, 1st Viscount Craigavon, the first prime minister (1921 - 40) of Northern Ireland. The new town's planning

Caucasian Languages, North Caucasian languages

2005-01-11T21:30:00.000-08:00

P.K. Uslar, Etnografiia Kavkaza: IAzykoznanie, 6 vol. in 3 (1887 - 96), and a more recent volume, published from the author's manuscript, vol. 7 (1979), contains descriptive grammars of the individual North Caucasian languages. A. Tschikobava, �Die ibero-kaukasischen Gebirgssprachen und der heutige Stand ihrer Erforschung in Georgien,� Acta Orientalia Academiae Scientiarum Hungaricae, 9:109 - 161 (1959), a brief survey of the North Caucasian languages, includes an extensive bibliography. N. Trubetzkoy, �Nordkaukasische Wortgleichungen,� Wiener Zeitschrift f�r die Kunde des Morgenlandes, vol. 37 (1930), pp. 79 - 92, establishes sets of sound correspondences between the West and East Caucasian languages and deals with the history of their consonantism. Georges Dum�zil, �tudes comparatives sur les langues caucasiennes du nord-ouest (morphologie) (1932), offers a comparative analysis of the grammatical structure of the Abkhazo-Adyghian languages. A.H. Kuipers, Phoneme and Morpheme in Kabardian (East Adyghe) (1960), analyzes in detail the phonemic structure of morphemes in Kabardian and includes a typological comparison with other linguistic systems. W.S. Allen, �Structure and System in the Abaza Verbal Complex,� Transactions of the Philological Society (1956), pp. 127 - 176, comprehensively analyzes the verb structure in Abaza.Two essays by Alf Sommerfelt in Norsk Tidsskrift for Sprogvidenskap, ��tudes comparatives sur le caucasique du Nord-ouest,� 7:178 - 210 (1934), and ��tudes comparatives . . . Nord-est,� 9:115 - 143 (1938), compare the sound systems of the Nakh languages. Henricus Joannes Smeets, Studies in West Circassian Phonology and Morphology (1984); John Colarusso, The Northwest Caucasian Languages: A Phonological Survey (1988), and A Grammar of the Kabardian Languages (1992); and Martin Haspelmath, A Grammar of Lezgian (1993). T.E. Gudava, Konsonantizm andiiskikh iaazykov (1964), reconstructs the original consonant system of the Avar-Andi-Dido languages. B.K. Gigineishvili, Sravnitel'naia fonetika dagestanskikh iazykov (1977), presents a comparative phonetic study of Dagestanian languages. Two essays in N.I. Konrad et al. (eds.), IAzyki Azii i Afriki, vol. 3, IAzyki drevnei Perednei Azii (nesemitskie) (1979), are also of interest: E.A. Bokarev, �Dagestanskie iazyki,� pp. 161 - 172; and M.A. Kumakhov and A.K. Shagirov, �Abkhazo-adygskie iazyki,� pp. 133 - 160.

Dge-lugs-pa

2005-01-10T18:03:00.000-08:00

The Dge-lugs-pa sect was founded in the late 14th century by Tsong-kha-pa, who was himself a member of the austere Bka'-gdams-pa school. Tsong-kha-pa's reforms represented a return to tradition. He enforced strict monastic discipline, restored celibacy and the prohibition

Yupik Language

2005-01-09T07:23:00.000-08:00

The western division of the Eskimo languages, spoken in southwestern Alaska and in Siberia.

Lahti

2005-01-08T00:36:00.000-08:00

City, H�meen (H�me) l��ni (province), southern Finland. It lies at the southern end of Vesi Lake, northeast of Helsinki. Founded in 1878, it was incorporated in 1905. A developing industrial centre linked to the rest of Finland by major rail, road, and lake routes, it produces most of the nation's furniture, as well as numerous other wood products, and has glassworks, breweries, and clothing

Forage

2005-01-07T06:29:00.000-08:00

Vegetable food of wild or domestic animals. In agriculture, harvested, processed, and stored forage is called silage (q.v.).

Hugo, Victor (-marie)

2005-01-06T16:31:00.000-08:00

Poet, novelist, and dramatist who was the most important of the French Romantic writers. Though regarded in France as one of that country's greatest poets, he is better known abroad for such novels as Notre-Dame de Paris (1831) and Les Mis�rables (1862).

Uyuni

2005-01-05T14:15:00.000-08:00

Town, southwestern Bolivia. It lies on the cold, windswept Altiplano, a high intermontane plateau, at 12,024 feet (3,665 m) above sea level, just east of the vast Uyuni Salt Flat. Founded in 1890, it prospered, with the assistance of Slav and Syrian colonists, as a railroad junction and mining and market centre. Northeast of the town are the Pulacayo and Huanchaca silver mines. From Uyuni a branch

Dennie, Joseph

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

Dennie graduated from Harvard College in 1790 and spent three years as a law clerk before being admitted to the bar in 1794. His practice failed to flourish, however, and in the meantime he had turned to writing. He and Royall Tyler formed a literary

Danegeld

2005-01-03T02:12:00.000-08:00

A tax levied in Anglo-Saxon England to buy off Danish invaders in the reign of Ethelred II (978 - 1016); it also designates the recurrent gelds, or taxes, collected by the Anglo-Norman kings. The word is not recorded before the Norman Conquest, the usual earlier (Old English) term being gafol (�gavel,� or �tribute�). Though the Danes were sometimes bought off in the 9th century, the word Danegeld

Conner, Mount

2005-01-02T10:34:00.000-08:00

Most easterly of central Australia's giant tors, or monoliths, which include Ayers Rock (called Uluru by the region's Aborigines) and the Olga Rocks rising above the desert plain southeast of Lake Amadeus in southwestern Northern Territory. Mount Conner is flat-topped and horseshoe-shaped and reaches to 2,500 feet (760 m) above sea level; its lower 500 feet (150 m) are covered by a talus

Accordion

2005-01-01T13:59:00.000-08:00

The advent of the accordion is the subject of debate among researchers. Many credit C. Friedrich L. Buschmann, whose Hand�oline was patented in Berlin in 1822, as the

Accordion

2004-12-31T08:24:00.000-08:00

The advent of the accordion is the subject of debate among researchers. Many credit C. Friedrich L. Buschmann, whose Hand�oline was patented in Berlin in 1822, as the

Quantum Mechanics, Electron spin and antiparticles

2004-12-30T04:48:00.000-08:00

In 1928 the English physicist Paul A.M. Dirac produced a wave equation for the electron that combined relativity with quantum mechanics. Schr�dinger's wave equation does not satisfy the requirements of the special theory of relativity because it is based on a nonrelativistic expression for the kinetic energy (p2/2me). Dirac showed that an electron has an additional quantum

Abbey Theatre

2004-12-29T13:28:00.000-08:00

Dublin theatre, established in 1904. It grew out of the Irish Literary Theatre (founded in 1899 by William Butler Yeats and Isabella Augusta, Lady Gregory, and devoted to fostering Irish poetic drama), which in 1902 was taken over by the Irish National Dramatic Society, led by W.G. and Frank J. Fay and formed to present Irish actors in Irish plays. In 1903 this became the Irish National Theatre

Asteroid

2004-12-28T17:30:00.000-08:00

Also called �minor planet, �or �planetoid, � any of a host of small rocky bodies, about 1,000 km or less in diameter, that orbit the Sun primarily between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter. It is because of their small size and large numbers relative to the nine major planets that asteroids are also called minor planets. The two designations are frequently used interchangeably, though dynamicists, astronomers who study

China, Railways

2004-12-27T09:52:00.000-08:00

Railway construction began in China in 1876. Because railways can conveniently carry a greater volume of goods over long distances than can road transport, they are of especial importance in China's transportation system. All trunk railways in China are under the administration of the Ministry of Railways. The central government operates a major rail network in the

Medicine, Military practice

2004-12-26T19:57:00.000-08:00

The main means of preventing

Amino Acid

2004-12-25T20:00:00.000-08:00

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

Chi-ning

2004-12-24T02:12:00.000-08:00

Pinyin �Jining�, Pinyin (Mongolian) �Ulan Qab� town, Inner Mongolia autonomous ch'� (region), China. Before the Communist Revolution of 1949, the town was a minor station named P'ing-ti-ch'�an and was a collecting point on the east-west Peking - Pao-t'ou railway. It experienced phenomenal growth after the completion in 1955 of a trunk railway northward to Erh-lien-hao-t'e on the Mongolian border, linking it with Ulaanbaatar (capital

Great Attractor

2004-12-23T22:54:00.000-08:00

Proposed concentration of mass that influences the movement of many galaxies, including the Milky Way. In 1986 a group of astronomers observing the motions of the Milky Way and neighbouring galaxies noted that the galaxies were moving toward the Hydra-Centaurus superclusters in the southern sky with velocities significantly different from those predicted by

Potsdam Conference

2004-12-22T17:48:00.000-08:00

The conferees discussed the substance and procedures of the peace settlements in Europe

Potsdam Conference

2004-12-21T19:26:00.000-08:00

The conferees discussed the substance and procedures of the peace settlements in Europe

Bach, Johann Christian

2004-12-20T07:00:00.000-08:00

At the age of 20 he made his way

Diels, Otto Paul Hermann

2004-12-19T03:34:00.000-08:00

Diels studied chemistry at the University of Berlin under Emil Fischer and after various appointments was made professor of chemistry at the University of Kiel

Bohemian Massif

2004-12-18T06:01:00.000-08:00

Dissected quadrangular plateau, with an area of about 60,000 square miles (about 158,000 square km), occupying Bohemia, Czech Republic. Centring on Prague, it reaches a maximum elevation of 5,256 feet (1,602 m) and is bounded by four ranges: the Ore Mountains (Kru

Early Christian Art

2004-12-17T06:35:00.000-08:00

Also called �Paleo-christian Art, or Primitive Christian Art, � architecture, painting, and sculpture from the beginnings of Christianity until about the early 6th century, particularly the art of Italy and the western Mediterranean. (Early Christian art in the eastern part of the Roman Empire is usually considered to be part of Byzantine art; q.v.) The Christian religion was part of a general trend in the late Roman Empire toward

Kiswah

2004-12-16T06:17:00.000-08:00

Black brocade cloth that covers the most sacred shrine of Islam, the Ka'bah (q.v.) in Mecca. A new kiswah is made in Egypt every year and carried to Mecca by pilgrims. On it is embroidered in gold the Muslim profession of faith (shahadah) and a gold band of ornamental calligraphy carrying Qur'anic verses. Each year during the major pilgrimage (hajj), the kiswah is replaced with a white

Training, Transfer Of

2004-12-15T14:22:00.000-08:00

Influence the learning of one skill has on the learning or performance of another. Will knowledge of English help a person learn German? Are skillful table-tennis (Ping-Pong) players generally good court-tennis players? Can a child who does not know how to add learn to multiply? Such questions represent the problems of transfer of training.

Alabaster, William

2004-12-14T04:44:00.000-08:00

Alabaster was educated at the University of Cambridge and in 1596 accompanied the

Wright, Joseph

2004-12-13T16:41:00.000-08:00

Wright was trained as a portrait painter by Thomas Hudson in the 1750s. Wright's home was Derby, one of the great centres of the birth of the Industrial Revolution, and his depictions

Nervous System Disease, Disorders of fat and fatty acid metabolism

2004-12-12T13:59:00.000-08:00

Many of the conditions mentioned in this and the next section are caused by a genetically determined enzyme

Cockaigne

2004-12-11T00:21:00.000-08:00

References to Cockaigne are especially prominent in medieval European lore. These accounts describe rivers of wine, houses built of cake and barley sugar, streets paved with pastry, and shops that gratuitously give goods to everyone. Roast geese wander

Koch, Kenneth Jay

2004-12-10T18:37:00.000-08:00

American poet, writer, and teacher (b. Feb. 27, 1925, Cincinnati, Ohio - d. July 6, 2002, New York, N.Y.), was known for verse that combined modernism with lyricism and that conveyed a sense of enthusiasm and fun. The subject matter was wide in range and included ordinary objects and references to popular culture. At the same time, Koch's poetry could be learned and technically sophisticated, reflecting

Great Bend

2004-12-09T22:33:00.000-08:00

City, seat (1872) of Barton county, central Kansas, U.S. Great Bend lies on the Arkansas River where the High Plains begin to shade into tallgrass prairie. Situated in the alleged locality of the mythical city of Quivira sought by Francisco Coronado in the 16th century, the site was visited by the American explorer Zebulon Pike in 1806 and became a stopping point on the Santa Fe

Hypolydian Mode

2004-12-08T06:29:00.000-08:00

In music, sixth of the eight medieval church modes. See church mode.