FertileCloud

Felixstowe

2005-04-05T03:59:00.000-07:00

Town (“parish”) and seaport, Suffolk Coastal district, administrative and historic county of Suffolk, England. Although situated on the east coast, the town in fact faces south and has a frontage to the estuary of the River Orwell opposite Harwich. Felixstowe is a busy, modern container port. It is the nearest British port to Europoort and Rotterdam, Netherlands, and has

Dzerzhinsky, Feliks Edmundovich

2005-04-03T20:56:00.000-07:00

Son of a Polish nobleman, Dzerzhinsky joined the Kaunas (Kovno) organization of the Lithuanian Social Democratic Party in 1895. He became a party organizer, and, although he was arrested by

Procellariiform

2005-03-31T08:58:00.000-08:00

Also called tubinares (order Procellariiformes), any of the seabirds that include the albatrosses (family Diomedeidae); shearwaters, fulmars, prions, and large petrels (Procellariidae); storm petrels (Hydrobatidae); and diving petrels (Pelecanoididae). There are approximately 87 living and 36 fossil species of diverse sizes and ranges. All Procellariiformes are recognizable by their conspicuous

Mcqueen, Steve

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

McQueen drifted through odd jobs and three years of service in the marines before he began performing at New York's Neighborhood Playhouse in 1952. He did occasional theatre work, making his screen

Red River

2005-03-28T00:41:00.000-08:00

Also called Red River Of The South, navigable river rising in the high plains of eastern New Mexico, U.S., and flowing southeast across Texas and Louisiana to a point northwest of Baton Rouge, where it enters the Atchafalaya River (q.v.), which flows south to Atchafalaya Bay and the Gulf of Mexico. Until the mid-20th century, the Red River contributed flow to both the Atchafalaya and, via the Old River, the Mississippi.

Topology

2005-03-26T09:48:00.000-08:00

Offshoot of geometry that originated during the 19th century and that studies those properties an object retains under deformation—specifically, bending, stretching and squeezing, but not breaking or tearing. Thus, a triangle is topologically equivalent to a circle but not to a straight line segment. Similarly, a solid cube made of modeling clay could be deformed

Rupert

2005-03-23T10:53:00.000-08:00

A member of the Wittelsbach dynasty, he was chosen king by the German ecclesiastical electors on Aug. 22, 1400, to succeed Wenceslas, who had been deposed the day before by the German princes. After being crowned at Cologne on Jan.

Switzerland, Economic development

2005-03-22T10:54:00.000-08:00

A major period of economic growth began after 1815. There was a general improvement in agriculture, and tourism, especially from England, began to develop. But the industrial sector of the economy made the most significant gains. The exclusion of the English from European markets by the continental blockade, while initially detrimental to the textile industry, forced

Strain Theory

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

In chemistry, a proposal made in 1885 by the German chemist Adolf von Baeyer that the stability of carbocyclic compounds (i.e., those of which the molecular structure includes one or more rings of carbon atoms) depends on the amount by which the angles between the chemical bonds deviate from the value (109°28¢) observed in compounds not containing such rings. The amount of deviation

Fibrous Dysplasia

2005-03-19T05:29:00.000-08:00

Also called Mccune-Albright syndrome rare congenital developmental disorder beginning in childhood, characterized by cyst formation and replacement of solid, calcified bone with fibrous tissue, often only on one side of the body, in the long bones and pelvis. Other signs include unilateral (one-sided) enlargement of the bones of the face and base of the skull, café au lait (pale brown) spots on the skin, and

Clemens, Jacobus

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

In 1544 he was probationary choirmaster of Saint-Donatien in Brugge (Bruges) and in 1550 was singer

Pitchstone

2005-03-17T03:38:00.000-08:00

Most pitchstone occurs as dikes or marginal phases of dikes and therefore may grade into porphyry. Pitchstone porphyry (vitrophyre)

Water Milfoil

2005-03-16T08:47:00.000-08:00

Any member of the genus Myriophyllum (family Haloragaceae), about 45 widely distributed species of submerged freshwater plants with whorls of feathery leaves and emergent, wind-pollinated flowers. Some species are cultivated in pools and aquariums, especially the parrot's feather, or water feather, (M. aquaticum) and the myriad leaf (M.

Naga

2005-03-15T23:01:00.000-08:00

Sanskrit Naga (“serpent”), in Hindu and Buddhist mythology, a member of a class of semidivine beings, half human and half serpentine. They are considered to be a strong, handsome race who can assume either human or wholly serpentine form. They are regarded as being potentially dangerous but in some ways are superior to humans. They live in an underground kingdom called Naga-loka, or Patala-loka,

Asylum Records

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

The driving force behind Asylum Records, the musical embodiment of the “Me Decade” (writer Tom Wolfe's characterization of the 1970s), was New York City-born David Geffen, who nurtured most of the major figures in the wave of singer-songwriters who followed Bob Dylan's lead. Having learned the ropes with the William Morris Agency, Geffen and Elliot Roberts left that company

Guayaquil

2005-03-12T21:58:00.000-08:00

In full Santiago De Guayaquil, largest city and chief port of Ecuador. It is situated on the west bank of the Guayas River, 45 miles (72 km) upstream from the Gulf of Guayaquil of the Pacific Ocean. The original settlement was founded in the 1530s at the mouth of the Babahoyo River, just east of the present site, by Sebastián de Belalcázar, a lieutenant of the Spanish conquistador Francisco Pizarro, but Indians

Halftone Process

2005-03-12T21:51:00.000-08:00

In printing, a technique of breaking up an image into a series of dots so as to reproduce the full tone range of a photograph or tone art work. Breaking up is usually done by a screen inserted over the plate being exposed. The screens are made with a varying number of lines per inch, depending on the application; for newspapers, the range is 50 to 85, and for magazines, 100 to 120. The highest

Nguyen Tri Phuong

2005-03-11T11:51:00.000-08:00

The son of a provincial administrator, Nguyen Tri Phuong entered the military service and distinguished himself by repelling the Siamese invasion

Puerto Berrío

2005-03-10T13:57:00.000-08:00

City, eastern Antioquia department, northwestern Colombia, situated on the Magdalena River. It has been an important transportation hub almost since its founding in 1875 and a commercial and manufacturing centre for the agricultural and forest products of its hinterland. A cement factory and marble quarries are located nearby. Puerto Berrío is the major river port

Uitenhage

2005-03-09T19:15:00.000-08:00

Town, Eastern province, South Africa, near the Indian Ocean, northwest of Port Elizabeth. It was founded in 1804 by J.A. Uitenhage de Mist, a Dutch governmental official sent to the Cape Colony by the government of the Batavian Republic, and it contains a number of 19th-century buildings, including the Drostdy (1815), Town Hall (1882, extended in 1952), and Court House (1898). Uitenhage is an industrial town,

Eitner, Robert

2005-03-07T02:38:00.000-08:00

In 1868 Eitner founded the Gesellschaft

New Guinea

2005-03-06T10:01:00.000-08:00

Holocaust Remembrance Days

2005-03-06T00:45:00.000-08:00

Although Jews were the first group to seek a fitting commemoration

Eliot, Jared

2005-03-04T15:35:00.000-08:00

Eliot, the grandson of John Eliot, noted New England missionary, was graduated from the Collegiate School of Connecticut (Yale College) in 1706. He taught for two years and then received a call as pastor of the Congregational Church in Killingworth (Clinton), Conn. He served

New Clean Government Party

2005-03-03T19:34:00.000-08:00

After the 1962 elections to the upper house of the Japanese Diet, Soka-gakkai members held 15 seats and replaced the Democratic Socialist Party as the party or group with the third largest representation. In 1964 the Clean Government Party, or Komeito, was founded; and in July

Ghent

2005-03-03T19:28:00.000-08:00

One of Belgium's oldest cities and the historic capital of Flanders, Ghent was powerful, well-organized in its wealthy trade

Epistemology, St. Augustine

2005-03-02T03:13:00.000-08:00

St. Augustine of Hippo (354–430) claimed that human knowledge would be impossible if God did not illumine the human mind and thereby allow it to see, grasp, or understand ideas. There are two components to his theory: ideas and illumination. Ideas as Augustine construed them are the same as Plato's; they are timeless, immutable, and accessible only to the mind, not to the senses. They

Lat, Al-

2005-03-01T02:36:00.000-08:00

North Arabian goddess of pre-Islamic times to whom a stone cube at at-Ta'if (near Mecca) was held sacred as part of her cult. Two other North Arabian goddesses, Manat (Fate) and al-'Uzza (Strong), were associated with al-Lat in the Qur'an (Islamic sacred scriptures). The Prophet Muhammad once recognized these three as goddesses, but a new revelation led him to abrogate the approving verses

Ibn Miskawayh

2005-02-27T17:28:00.000-08:00

Little is known of Ibn Miskawayh's personal life. It is believed he converted to Islam from Zoroastrianism, the religion of pre-Islamic Iran. His interests included alchemy and

Esterhazy

2005-02-26T10:17:00.000-08:00

Town, southeastern Saskatchewan, Canada. It lies in the Qu'Appelle River valley, 132 miles (212 km) east of Regina. It is named after Count Paul Otto d'Esterházy (1830–1912), a French-Hungarian nobleman who promoted settlement in the area. Esterhazy is a marketing town for a mixed-farming (especially wheat) and stock-raising region and has flour-milling and dairying industries. Since 1962, however,

Dzhezkazgan

2005-02-26T03:43:00.000-08:00

Kazak Zhezqazghan , also spelled Dzezkazgan city, central Kazakstan, on a reservoir of the Kara-Kengir River. The city was created in 1938 in connection with the exploitation of the rich local copper deposits. In 1973 a large mining and metallurgical complex was constructed to the southeast to smelt the copper that until then had been sent elsewhere for processing. The city has a rail link with Qaraghandy. Its urban area

Hadejia

2005-02-24T23:02:00.000-08:00

Town and traditional emirate, eastern Jigawa state, northern Nigeria. It lies on the northern bank of the Hadejia River (a seasonal tributary of the Komadugu Yobe, which flows into Lake Chad). The emirate's savanna area originally included Hadejia and six other small Hausa kingdoms that paid tribute to the kingdom of Bornu. About 1805, Umaru, a Fulani leader who held the title

Silicon Carbide

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

Exceedingly hard, synthetically produced crystalline compound of silicon and carbon. Its chemical formula is SiC. Since the late 19th century silicon carbide has been an important material for sandpapers, grinding wheels, and cutting tools. More recently, it has found application in refractory linings and heating elements for industrial furnaces, in wear-resistant

Communist Party Of Cuba

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

The Cuban Communist Party (Partido Comunista Cubano) was

Madagascar

2005-02-22T01:58:00.000-08:00

In spite of Madagascar's proximity to the

Prosody

2005-02-19T20:54:00.000-08:00

Ancient critics like Aristotle and Horace insisted that certain metres were natural to the specific poetic genres; thus, Aristotle (in the Poetics) noted that “Nature herself, as we have said, teaches the choice of the proper measure.” In epic verse the poet should use the heroic measure (dactylic hexameter) because this metre most effectively represents or imitates

Siskind, Aaron

2005-02-19T04:16:00.000-08:00

Siskind began to photograph in 1932, while he was an English teacher in the New York City public-school system. As a member of the Photo League, he participated in projects designed to document

Alfonso V

2005-02-17T19:01:00.000-08:00

Byname Alfonso the Magnanimous , Spanish Alfonso el Magnánimo king of Aragon (1416–58) and king of Naples (as Alfonso I, 1442–58), whose military campaigns in Italy and elsewhere in the central Mediterranean made him one of the most famous men of his day. After conquering Naples, he transferred his court there.

Dan Takuma

2005-02-16T22:13:00.000-08:00

Manager of the giant Mitsui zaibatsu, the greatest of the family-owned combines in pre-World War II Japan. A graduate of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and an important member of Japan's business elite, Dan was assassinated by right-wing nationalists who regarded him as a symbol of the evil power of high

Theism, Hindu theism

2005-02-15T05:40:00.000-08:00

It was noted, for example, that the Vedic hymns that appear in the earliest Hindu scriptures contain significant intimations of a sense of “the wonder of existence,” “the outpourings,” as Savepalli Radhakrishnan, the former philosopher-president of India, has expressed it, “of poetic minds who were struck by the immensity of the universe and the inexhaustible mystery

Ryde

2005-02-14T18:19:00.000-08:00

Town on the northeastern coast of the Isle of Wight, historic county of Hampshire, England, opposite Portsmouth on the mainland. It is located on the site of a former village called La Rye, which the French destroyed early in the 14th century. Still a small fishing hamlet by 1800, Ryde grew rapidly in the railway age as an attractive holiday resort (being incorporated in 1868). It is

Ashide-e

2005-02-13T11:26:00.000-08:00

(Japanese: “reed-script picture”), decorative, cursive style of Japanese calligraphy, the characters of which resemble natural objects, that is used to decorate scrolls, stationery, and lacquerware. The typical ashide-e is a decorative representation of a poem, in which stylized characters serve as both

Aesopus, Claudius

2005-02-10T16:18:00.000-08:00

Claudius also spelled Clodius most eminent of the Roman tragedians, contemporary and intimate friend of Cicero, whom he instructed in elocution, and regarded by Horace as the equal of the great Roman comic actor Roscius. Aesopus became completely absorbed in his roles; the biographer Plutarch mentions that, while playing the part of Atreus deliberating revenge, Aesopus forgot himself

Water-supply System

2005-02-08T10:06:00.000-08:00

There is much archaeological evidence to indicate

Middle Passage

2005-02-06T09:34:00.000-08:00

In the days of the African slave trade to the New World, the middle part of the slave's journey—i.e., the crossing of the Atlantic Ocean. From about 1518 to the mid-19th century, millions of African men, women, and children made the 21-to-90-day voyage aboard grossly overcrowded sailing ships manned by crews mostly from Great Britain, the Netherlands, Portugal, and France. Slaver captains

Earth, Temperature distribution

2005-02-05T13:56:00.000-08:00

The temperature distribution through the Earth is mainly constrained by the seismological observations of which regions are solid and which are liquid—i.e., which regions transmit shear waves and which do not (Figures 15 and 17 ). Thus, the average temperature in the solid crust and mantle must be lower than the melting point of rocks that make up these regions. Similarly,

Epistemology, Modern

2005-02-03T14:55:00.000-08:00

Two excellent and now classic histories of early modern philosophy from different perspectives are Edwin Arthur Burtt, The Metaphysical Foundations of Modern Physical Science, rev. ed. (1972), which emphasizes the effect of modern science on philosophy; and Richard H. Popkin, The History of Scepticism from Erasmus to Spinoza, rev. and expanded ed. (1979), which emphasizes the rediscovery of skepticism in the 16th century. René Descartes's greatest work is Meditations on First Philosophy, trans. by John Cottingham (1986; originally published in Latin, 1641). John Locke attacks the doctrine of innate ideas in Book I of his An Essay Concerning Human Understanding, ed. by Peter H. Nidditch (1975), while his position on knowledge is developed in Books II and IV. A good introduction to Locke's thought is John W. Yolton, Locke: An Introduction (1985). The best work of George Berkeley is A Treatise Concerning the Principles of Human Knowledge, ed. by Kenneth Winkler (1982); a more popular presentation of his views is Three Dialogues Between Hylas and Philonous, ed. by Robert Merrihew Adams (1979). Daniel E. Flage, Berkeley's Doctrine of Notions: A Reconstruction Based on His Theory of Meaning (1987), discusses a central but neglected aspect of Berkeley's epistemology. David Hume's most expansive discussion of knowledge is in Book I of A Treatise of Human Nature, 2nd ed., edited by L.A. Selby-Bigge and rev. by P.H. Nidditch (1978). A later and more accessible statement of Hume's view is presented in An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding, ed. by Eric Steinberg (1977). Immanuel Kant, Critique of Pure Reason, trans. by Norman Kemp Smith (1929, reissued 1978; originally published in German, 1781), is Kant's greatest work. The best clear, brief, and accurate explanation of Kant's epistemology is A.C. Ewing, A Short Commentary on Kant's “Critique of Pure Reason” (1938, reprinted 1987). An important book that rejects the view of Kant as a phenomenalist or subjective idealist is Henry E. Allison, Kant's Transcendental Idealism: An Interpretation and Defense (1983). For G.F.W. Hegel's criticisms of Kant, see his Lectures on the History of Philosophy, trans. from German by Elizabeth S. Haldane and Frances H. Simson (1896, reprinted 1974), part III, section iii, B. A major study on the relationship between Kant and Hegel is Robert B. Pippin, Hegel's Idealism: The Satisfactions of Self-Consciousness (1989).

Lea, River

2005-01-31T13:42:00.000-08:00

River rising north of Luton in the county of Bedfordshire, England. It flows for 46 miles (74 km) east and then south to enter the River Thames near Bromley-by-Bow, in the London borough of Tower Hamlets. In the 17th century an important aqueduct known as the New River was constructed in the valley of the Lea. Much of the valley has seen considerable industrial development, and many

New Iberia

2005-01-30T02:03:00.000-08:00

City, seat (1868) of Iberia parish, southern Louisiana, U.S., on Bayou Teche (connected via canal with the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway), 23 miles (37 km) southeast of Lafayette. Founded in the late 18th century by French, Spanish, and Acadian settlers, it was laid out in 1835. It was first called Iberia, the ancient name for Spain, but the name was changed when the parish was created. The city was occupied

Muhammad Ibn Tughluq

2005-01-28T05:09:00.000-08:00

Second sultan of the Tughluq dynasty (reigned 1325–51), who briefly extended the rule of the Delhi sultanate of northern India over most of the subcontinent. As a result of misguided administrative actions and unexampled severity toward his opponents, he eventually lost his authority in the south; at the end of his reign, the sultanate had begun to

Switzerland

2005-01-25T14:45:00.000-08:00

With political maneuvering for the next general elections--scheduled

Portsmouth

2005-01-23T07:02:00.000-08:00

City, Rockingham county, southeastern New Hampshire, U.S., across the Piscataqua River from Kittery, Maine, on the Atlantic coast. It is New Hampshire's oldest settlement, second oldest city, first capital, and only seaport. In 1623 a fishing settlement was built at the river's mouth. First called Piscataqua and then Strawbery Banke, it became a bustling colonial port. The town,

Augustine, Saint

2005-01-21T21:45:00.000-08:00

Augustine was born in Tagaste, a modest Roman community in a river valley 40 miles (64 km) from the African coast. It lay just a few miles short of the point where the veneer of Roman civilization thinned out in the highlands of Numidia in the way the American West opens before a traveler leaving the Mississippi River valley. Augustine's parents were of the respectable class

Mon

2005-01-20T00:06:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Mun , Burmese Talaing people living in the eastern delta region of Myanmar (Burma) and in west-central Thailand, numbering in the late 20th century more than 1.1 million. The Mon have lived in their present area for the last 1,200 years, and it was they who gave Myanmar its writing (Pali) and its religion (Buddhism). The Mon are believed to have spread from western China over the river lowlands from the Irrawaddy

Alembert, Jean Le Rond D'

2005-01-18T16:48:00.000-08:00

Posterity has not confirmed the judgment of those contemporaries who placed d'Alembert's reputation next to Voltaire's. In spite of his original contributions to the mathematical sciences, intellectual timidity prevented his literary and philosophical work from attaining true greatness. Nevertheless, his scientific background enabled him to elaborate

Sea Cave

2005-01-16T14:05:00.000-08:00

Cave formed in a cliff by wave action of an ocean or lake. Sea caves occur on almost every cliffed headland or coast where the waves break directly on a rock cliff and are formed by mechanical erosion rather than the chemical solution process that is responsible for the majority of inland caves. Zones of weakness in the cliff give way under the force of the waves and

Carloforte

2005-01-13T18:40:00.000-08:00

Only town on the small Isola di San Pietro (area 20 sq mi [52 sq km]), just off the southwest coast of Sardinia, Italy. The island is administratively part of Cagliari province. The town was named after Charles Emmanuel III of Savoy, who resettled the island in 1738, after centuries of desertion, with Genoese fugitives from the North African island of Tabarka. It has an observatory, set

Ascham, Roger

2005-01-11T08:45:00.000-08:00

As a boy of 14, Ascham entered the University of Cambridge, where he later took his M.A. and was elected a fellow of St. John's and appointed reader in Greek. The new Renaissance enthusiasm for the classics, especially

Coil

2005-01-10T21:04:00.000-08:00

In an electric circuit, one or more turns, usually roughly circular or cylindrical, of current-carrying wire designed to produce a magnetic field or to provide electrical resistance or inductance; in the latter case, a coil is also called a choke coil (see also inductance). A soft iron core placed within a coil produces an electromagnet. A cylindrical coil that moves

Mole

2005-01-08T00:51:00.000-08:00

In dermatology, pigmented, flat or fleshy skin lesion, composed for the most part of an aggregation of melanocytes, the cells of the skin that synthesize the pigment melanin. In thicker moles, nerve elements and connective tissue are also present. Moles vary in colour from light to dark brown or black; when deposition of melanin occurs in the dermis, the deeper layer

Yamm

2005-01-06T18:47:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Yam ancient West Semitic deity who ruled the oceans, rivers, lakes, and underground springs. He also played an important role in the Baal myths recorded on tablets uncovered at Ugarit, which say that at the beginning of time Yamm was awarded the divine kingship by El, the chief god of the pantheon. One day, Yamm's messengers requested that the gods surrender Baal to be a bond

Berenice Iii

2005-01-03T19:07:00.000-08:00

Daughter of either Cleopatra Selene or Cleopatra IV, Berenice first married her uncle, Ptolemy X, sometime before 101. After the death in 101 of the dowager queen, Cleopatra III, the widow of Ptolemy VIII, Berenice became full queen. In 87 Ptolemy

Abu Qir Bay

2005-01-01T04:34:00.000-08:00

Also called Abukir Bay , or Aboukir Bay semicircular inlet of the Mediterranean Sea, lying between Abu Qir Point (southwest) and the mouth of the Rosetta Branch (northeast) of the Nile River delta, in Lower Egypt. The bay was the scene of the Battle of the Nile (1798), in which an English fleet under Rear Admiral Sir Horatio Nelson defeated the Napoleonic fleet. A natural-gas field, developed offshore in the late 1970s, provides

Soria

2004-12-28T20:09:00.000-08:00

Province, in the comunidad autónoma (“autonomous community”) of Castile-León, north-central Spain. Formed from part of Old Castile in 1833, it has an area of 3,972 square miles (10,287 square km). The terrain is varied: to the north are the Moncayo and Urbión mountain ranges; in the centre, around Soria city, the provincial capital, is a flat plain watered by the Duero (Portuguese: Douro) River; and

Devaraja

2004-12-27T20:13:00.000-08:00

The devaraja cult grew out of both Hindu and indigenous traditions. It taught that the king was a divine universal ruler, a manifestation

Bahraich

2004-12-25T13:16:00.000-08:00

City, east-central Uttar Pradesh state, northern India, located on a tributary of the Ghaghara River and on a rail line between Lucknow and Nepalganj, Nepal. Bahraich is a centre of trade (agricultural products and timber) with Nepal; there is also some sugar processing. The tomb of Sayyid Salar Mas'ud, an Afghan warrior-saint who died there in 1033, is visited by Muslim and Hindu pilgrims.

Stuttgart

2004-12-23T02:32:00.000-08:00

City, northern district seat of Arkansas county (the southern seat is De Witt), east-central Arkansas, U.S., about 50 miles (80 km) southeast of Little Rock. Settled in 1878 by Lutheran minister Adam Buerkle (born in Stuttgart, Germany) and his congregation, the city was incorporated in 1889, raised to a city of the second class in 1897, and to that of the first class in 1917. Stuttgart has long been an agricultural

Far Eastern Economic Review

2004-12-19T11:02:00.000-08:00

Former weekly news magazine covering general, political, and business and financial news of East and Southeast Asia. It was published in Hong Kong, where it was established in 1946. The magazine carried feature articles on the major developments in the region and on outside developments that affected it. The Far Eastern Economic Review was noted for its objectivity

Development

2004-12-14T18:27:00.000-08:00

The simplest form of development is a change (usually an increase) in size of an organ system or structure; simple growth, however, seldom occurs without accompanying chemical

Little Saint Bernard Pass

2004-12-13T07:30:00.000-08:00

Italian Colle Del Piccolo San Bernardo, French Col Du Petit-saint-bernard, pass (7,178 ft [2,188 m]) situated just southwest of the Italian border in Savoie département of southeastern France; it lies between the Mont Blanc Massif (north) and the Graian Alps (q.v.; south-southeast). The road across the pass connects Bourg-Saint-Maurice (7 mi [11 km] southwest) in the Isère River Valley, France, with Morgex (10 mi northeast) in the Valle d'Aosta, Italy. Until the Treaty of Paris

Aelianus

2004-12-10T17:34:00.000-08:00

Probably written in AD 106, Aelianus' Taktike theoria (“Tactical Theory”), based on the art of warfare as practiced by the Hellenistic successors of Alexander the Great, was an instruction manual on arming, organizing, deploying,

Kantianism, Psychological Neo-Kantianism

2004-12-08T14:21:00.000-08:00

An initial attempt to interpret Kantian transcendentalism in psychological terms was made by the Friesian Empiricist Jürgen Bona Meyer in his Kants Psychologie (1870). Later, a more important contribution in this field was made by the Göttingen philosopher of ethics and law Leonard Nelson and published in the Abhandlungen der Fries'schen Schule (1904 ff; “Acts of the Friesian

Interior Lowlands

2004-12-06T01:06:00.000-08:00

The broad, generally flat areas of the central part of the North American continent. The name is used in regional geologic and physiographic descriptions of North America and the conterminous United States. From the tectonic view, the continental Interior Lowlands are areas largely undisturbed by mountain building in past geologic time. They extend from central

China, Philosophy and religion

2004-12-04T16:30:00.000-08:00

Taoism and Buddhism by Ming times had declined into ill-organized popular religions, and what organization they had was regulated by the state. State espousal of Chu Hsi thought, and state repression of noted early Ming litterateurs, such as the poet Kao Ch'i and the thinker Fang Hsiao-ju, made for widespread philosophical conformity during the 15th century. This was

Volsci

2004-12-02T13:49:00.000-08:00

Knowledge of the Volsci depends largely upon Roman accounts of their mutual

Minehead

2004-12-01T06:43:00.000-08:00

Town (“parish”), West Somerset district, administrative and historic county of Somerset, England. The town owes its origin and growth to its harbour. Minehead was first incorporated in 1558. Its older buildings include St. Michael's Church (1450), the almshouses (1630), the old manor office, and the 17th-century cottages along Quay Street. The present harbour was built in 1616. Minehead's trade with

Marechal, Leopoldo

2004-11-28T22:27:00.000-08:00

In the early 1920s, Marechal was part of the literary group responsible for Martín Fierro and Proa, Ultraista journals that revolutionized Argentine letters. His first book of poems, Aguiluchos (1922; “Eaglets”), employed Modernista techniques in the treatment

Hou Chi

2004-11-27T03:44:00.000-08:00

Pinyin Hou Ji, in Chinese mythology, Lord of Millet Grains, who was worshiped for the abundant harvests that he graciously provided for his people. The Chinese honoured him not only for past favours but in the hope that devotion to the deity would guarantee continued blessings. An old tradition explained that Hou Chi was miraculously conceived when his childless mother stepped

Madison

2004-11-25T23:47:00.000-08:00

County, central New York state, U.S., mostly comprising a rugged upland, bounded by Oneida Lake and Chittenango and Oneida creeks to the north and the Unadilla River to the southeast. Other waterways include the Chenango and Sangerfield rivers and Cazenovia and Tuscarora lakes. Wooded areas feature maple, elm, birch, and beech trees. Public lands include Chittenango

Great Auk

2004-11-20T09:32:00.000-08:00

The

Sakha

2004-11-18T16:11:00.000-08:00

Also called Yakutia or Yakut-Sakha republic in far northeastern Russia, in northeastern Siberia. The republic occupies the basins of the great rivers flowing to the Arctic Ocean—the Lena, Yana, Indigirka, and Kolyma—and includes the New Siberian Islands between the Laptev and East Siberian seas. Sakha was created an autonomous republic of the Soviet Union in 1922; it is now the second largest republic in

Wang Wei

2004-11-17T23:28:00.000-08:00

Pinyin Wang Wei, also called Wang Mo-ch'i one of the most famous men of arts and letters during one of the golden ages of Chinese cultural history. Wang Wei is popularly known as a model of humanistic education as expressed in poetry, music, and painting. In the 17th century, the writer on art Tung Ch'i-ch'ang (q.v.) established him as the founder of the revered Southern school of painter-poets,

Narasimha

2004-11-15T20:07:00.000-08:00

(Sanskrit: “Man-Lion”), fourth of the 10 avatars (incarnations) of the Hindu god Vishnu. The demon Hiranyakasipu, twin brother of the demon overthrown by Vishnu in his previous incarnation as Varaha, obtained a boon from Brahma that he could not be killed by man or beast, from inside or outside, by day or by night, and that no weapon could harm him. Thus, feeling secure, he began to trouble

Sino-tibetan Languages, Burmic languages

2004-11-13T11:20:00.000-08:00

A number of Tibeto-Burman languages that are difficult to classify have marginal affiliations with Burmic. The Luish languages (Andro, Sengmai, Kadu, Sak, and perhaps also Chairel) in Manipur, India, and adjacent Myanmar resemble Kachin; Nung (including Rawang and Trung) in Kachin state in Myanmar and in Yunnan,

Awan

2004-11-10T07:51:00.000-08:00

Ancient city and region of the land of Elam, prominent throughout early Mesopotamian history and especially in the second half of the 3rd millennium BC. Although it was probably situated near Susa, in southwestern Iran, Awan's exact location is unknown. A coalition of four rulers of southwestern Persia, led by the king of Awan, provided vigorous resistance to the eastern

Bhagirathi River

2004-11-08T14:52:00.000-08:00

River in West Bengal state, northeastern India, forming the western boundary of the Ganges (Ganga) Delta. A distributary of the Ganges, it leaves that river just northeast of Jangipur, flows south, and joins the Jalangi at Nabadwip to form the Hooghly River after a total course of 120 miles (190 km). Until the 16th century, when the Ganges shifted eastward to the Padma, the Bhagirathi formed

Nova Friburgo

2004-11-06T19:08:00.000-08:00

Nova Friburgo has textile mills but is best known as a summer mountain resort built in Swiss Alpine style. It can be reached by railroad and highway from Niterói, southwest, and from Rio de Janeiro, the state capital. Pop. (1991 prelim.) mun., 166,941.

Scandinavian Literature, Swedish poetry and prose

2004-11-05T02:51:00.000-08:00

In the first half of the 17th century, Swedish literature remained limited in scope and quantity. A unique contribution, however, was made by Lars Wivallius, whose lyrics revealed a feeling for nature new to Swedish poetry. With its intervention in the Thirty Years' War, Sweden established itself as a European power, and this led to a development of national pride and culture,

Valdés Leal, Juan De Nisa

2004-11-03T01:43:00.000-08:00

His father was Portuguese, and Valdés Leal was educated in Córdoba under the guidance of Antonio del Castillo and worked there until 1653. For the next few years he

Sibsagar

2004-11-01T18:00:00.000-08:00

Town, eastern Assam state, northeastern India. Sibsagar lies on the Dikhu River, a tributary of the Brahmaputra, 30 miles (50 km) east-northeast of Jorhat. The Tai-speaking Ahoms came to the area from Yunnan, China, in the 13th century AD. Sibsagar was the capital of the Ahom kingdom in the 18th century, when it was called Rangpur; several temples remain from that period. The town is now a tea-processing

Li Tang

2004-10-29T20:22:00.000-07:00

He earned the highest rank in the academy of painting of Emperor Huizong, and, after the North fell to the Mongols, went to the South

China, Late Shang divination and religion

2004-10-28T08:05:00.000-07:00

Although certain complex symbols painted on Late Neolithic pots from Shantung suggest that primitive writing was emerging in the east in the 3rd millennium, the Shang divination inscriptions that appear at Hsiao-t'un form the earliest body of Chinese writing yet known. In Late Shang divination as practiced during the reign of Wu-ting (c. 1200–1180 BC), cattle scapulae or turtle

Inter-american Regional Organization Of Workers

2004-10-25T21:50:00.000-07:00

Spanish Organización Regional Interamericana de Trabajadores (ORIT) ,Latin-American labour union federation that was established in 1951 as a regional organization for the Latin-American members of the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions, which had been founded in 1949 primarily by the American Federation of Labor–Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL–CIO) of the United States and the Trades Union Congress of Great Britain.

Nabis

2004-10-23T13:50:00.000-07:00

Last ruler (207–192) of an independent Sparta. Nabis carried on the revolutionary tradition of Kings Agis IV and Cleomenes III. Since ancient accounts of him are mainly abusive, the details of his laws remain obscure, but it is certain that he confiscated a great deal of property and enfranchised many helots (Spartan serfs). He undoubtedly was not the monster depicted by the

Lateran Treaty

2004-10-21T23:50:00.000-07:00

Upon ratification of the Lateran Treaty, the papacy recognized the state of Italy, with Rome as its capital. Italy in return recognized papal

Perec, Georges

2004-10-20T04:02:00.000-07:00

Perec was orphaned at an early age: his father was killed in action in World War II, and his mother died in a concentration camp. He was reared by an aunt and uncle and eventually attended the Sorbonne for several years. His best-selling first novel, Les Choses: une

China, Western challenge, 183960

2004-10-18T20:09:00.000-07:00

The opium question, the direct cause of the first Sino-British clash in the 19th century, began with a late 18th-century British attempt to counterbalance their unfavourable China trade with traffic in Indian opium. After monopolizing the opium trade in 1779, the East India Company's government began to sell the drug at auction to private British traders in India, who shipped

Ocean Ranching

2004-10-16T23:24:00.000-07:00

The rearing of fish and shellfish under artificially controlled conditions to restock the sea. See aquaculture.

Ibn Shem Tov, Joseph Ben Shem Tov

2004-10-13T04:31:00.000-07:00

Jewish philosopher and Castilian court physician who attempted to mediate the disdain shown for philosophy by contemporary Jewish scholars by undertaking a reconciliation of Aristotelian ethical philosophy with Jewish religious thought, best exemplified by his influential Kevod Elohim (written 1442; “The Glory of God”). Here he expounded his belief that answers

Sea Fan

2004-10-12T15:42:00.000-07:00

(Gorgonia), any of a genus of invertebrate marine animals of the order Gorgonacea (class Anthozoa, phylum Cnidaria). It is a variety of coral composed of polyps, cylindrical sessile (attached) forms, that grow together in a flat, fanlike pattern; hence, the name sea fan. Each polyp in the colony has some multiple of six tentacles, as opposed to the eightfold symmetry of the similar