ClearTown

Chattanooga, Battle Of

2005-03-21T22:45:00.000-08:00

(November 23–25, 1863), in the American Civil War, a decisive engagement fought at Chattanooga on the Tennessee River in late November 1863, which contributed significantly to victory for the North. Chattanooga had strategic importance as a vital railroad junction for the Confederacy. In September 1863 a Federal army led by General William S. Rosecrans was besieged there by a Southern

Amorphous Solid

2005-03-19T06:20:00.000-08:00

On amorphous solids in particular, a lucid introductory text accessible to a nontechnical reader is Richard Zallen, The Physics of Amorphous Solids (1983), with coverage of structural models for the various classes of amorphous solids as well as percolation theory, a modern paradigm for disordered systems. A classic advanced work is N.F. Mott and E.A. Davis, Electronic Processes in Non-crystalline Materials, 2nd ed. (1979), which features many of the theoretical contributions of Nobel Laureate coauthor Mott. A text providing a thorough treatment of oxide glasses is J. Zarzycki, Glasses and the Vitreous State (1991; originally published in French, 1982). A reference work with wide coverage of recent research topics, including detailed treatment of chalcogenide glasses, is S.R. Elliott, Physics of Amorphous Materials, 2nd ed. (1990). A comprehensive collection of detailed reviews is contained in R.W. Cahn, P. Haassen, and E.J. Kramer (eds.), Materials Science and Technology, vol. 6, Glasses and Amorphous Materials, ed. by J. Zarzycki (1991), including coverage of glass technology, formation, and structure, oxide glasses, chalcogenide glasses, metallic glasses, polymeric glasses, and the optical, electric, and mechanical properties of glasses. Amorphous silicon is treated in detail in another work, R.A. Street, Hydrogenated Amorphous Silicon (1991).

Ear Disease, Ménière's disease

2005-03-17T22:25:00.000-08:00

Ménière's disease, also called endolymphatic hydrops, is a fairly common disorder of the labyrinth of the inner ear that affects both the vestibular nerve, with resultant attacks of vertigo, and the auditory nerve, with impairment of hearing. It was first described in 1861 by a French physician, Prosper Ménière. It is now known that the symptoms are caused by an excess of

Botsaris, Markos

2005-03-17T15:39:00.000-08:00

Botsaris' early years were spent in the struggle between the Souliots of southern Epirus and Ali Pasa, who had made himself ruler of Ioánnina (Janina) in Epirus in 1788. After Ali Pasa succeeded in capturing the Souliot strongholds in 1803, Botsaris and most of his surviving

Rydberg Constant

2005-03-15T10:12:00.000-08:00

(symbol R¥), fundamental constant of atomic physics that appears in the formulas developed (1890) by the Swedish physicist J. R. Rydberg, describing the wavelengths or frequencies of light in various series of related spectral lines, such as those emitted by hydrogen atoms. The value of this constant is based on the premise that the nucleus of the atom emitting light is exceedingly

Segovia Aqueduct

2005-03-15T08:09:00.000-08:00

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

Ramillies, Battle Of

2005-03-14T11:55:00.000-08:00

The battle was fought at the village of Ramillies, 13 miles north of Namur (in modern Belgium), between a 62,000-man Allied army under Marlborough and a 60,000-man

Alkaline-earth Metal

2005-03-13T23:34:00.000-08:00

Prior to the 19th century, substances that were nonmetallic, insoluble in water, and unchanged by fire were known as earths. Those earths, like lime, that resembled the alkalies (soda ash and

Orage, Alfred Richard

2005-03-12T02:18:00.000-08:00

Orage became an elementary school teacher at Leeds, Yorkshire, in 1893, lectured on theosophy, and in 1900 helped found the avant-garde Leeds Arts Club. He moved to London in 1906 and became joint editor in 1907 of The New Age, a periodical of which from 1909 on he was the sole editor and dominant spirit. The New

Catastrophe Theory

2005-03-11T20:52:00.000-08:00

In mathematics, a set of methods used to study and classify the ways in which a system can undergo sudden large changes in behaviour as one or more of the variables that control it are changed continuously. Catastrophe theory is generally considered a branch of geometry because the variables and resultant behaviours are usefully depicted as curves or surfaces,

Juan-juan

2005-03-09T03:18:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Jwen-jwen, Jou-jan, Jeu-jen, or Geougen, Central Asian people of historical importance. Because of the titles of their rulers, khan and khagan, scholars believe that the Juan-juan were Mongols or Mongol-speaking peoples. The empire of the Juan-juan lasted from the beginning of the 5th century AD to the middle of the 6th century, embracing a wide belt north of China from Manchuria to Turkistan. They were allies of

Italo-ethiopian War

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

Ethiopia (Abyssinia), which Italy had unsuccessfully tried to conquer in the 1890s, was in 1934 one of

Agoult, Marie (-catherine-sophie) De Flavigny, Comtesse D'

2005-03-08T13:47:00.000-08:00

Mme d'Agoult was the daughter of the émigré Comte de Flavigny. In 1827 she married Col. Charles d'Agoult, 20 years her senior. She had early shown strength of will and enthusiasm for justice and freedom, and her marriage disappointed

Basalt

2005-03-06T05:31:00.000-08:00

Some basalts are quite glassy (tachylytes), and many are very fine-grained and compact; it is more usual, however, for them to exhibit porphyritic structure, with larger crystals (phenocrysts) of olivine, augite, or feldspar in a finely crystalline

Loralai

2005-03-05T08:33:00.000-08:00

Loralai district (area 7,364 sq mi [19,073 sq km]), constituted in 1903, consists of a series of long, narrow valleys hemmed in by rugged mountains

Agricola, Johann

2005-03-04T10:48:00.000-08:00

Original name Johann Schneider, Schneider also spelled Schnitter, Latin Sartor Lutheran Reformer, friend of Martin Luther, and advocate of antinomianism, a view asserting that Christians are freed by grace from the need to obey the Ten Commandments. At Wittenberg, Agricola was persuaded by Luther to change his course of study from medicine to theology. Increasingly under Luther's influence, Agricola accompanied

Sea Bass

2005-03-03T17:15:00.000-08:00

Any of the numerous fishes of the family Serranidae (order Perciformes), most of which are marine and found in the shallower regions of warm and tropical seas. The family includes about 400 species, many of them well-known food and sport fishes. Although the term sea bass may be used for the family as a whole, the fishes themselves

Land Of Ten Thousand Sinks

2005-03-02T22:26:00.000-08:00

In west-central Kentucky, U.S., area of numerous sinkholes and caves in the Pennyrile (or Pennyroyal) region. The area includes the interconnected caves of Mammoth Cave National Park and Flint Ridge Cave System. Abundant surface and underground water together with limestones deposited during the Early Carboniferous Epoch (360 to 320 million years ago) have combined to create

Ventnor

2005-03-02T06:50:00.000-08:00

Town (“parish”), Isle of Wight, historic county of Hampshire, England. The town lies along the southeastern coast of the Isle of Wight. From a small fishing hamlet it grew in the 19th century into a fashionable resort, noted for its mild climate and long hours of sunshine. The novelist Charles Dickens lived for a time nearby, and the poet Algernon Swinburne is buried in

Muromachi Period

2005-02-28T08:22:00.000-08:00

The most successful of the Ashikaga rulers, the third shogun Yoshimitsu, managed

Eymeric, Nicholas

2005-02-28T06:35:00.000-08:00

After joining the Dominican Order in 1334, Eymeric wrote on theology and philosophy. Appointed grand inquisitor about 1357, he performed his duties zealously and made so many enemies that he was removed from office in 1360. He continued to teach and write

Sha'nabi, Mount Ash-

2005-02-27T17:36:00.000-08:00

Arabic Jabal Ash-sha 'nabi, also spelled Djebel Chambi, mountain (5,066 feet [1,544 m]) that is the highest in Tunisia. It is part of a spur of the Tebéssa (Tabassah) Mountains, which are part of the Saharan Atlas Mountains. The mountain lies near the Algerian border, 6 miles (10 km) west-northwest of Al-Qasrayn (Kasserine).

Ares

2005-02-25T23:14:00.000-08:00

In Greek religion, god of war or, more properly, the spirit of battle. Unlike his Roman counterpart, Mars (q.v.), he was never very popular, and his worship was not extensive in Greece. He represented the distasteful aspects of brutal warfare and slaughter. From at least the time of Homer, who established him as the son of the chief god, Zeus, and Hera, his consort, Ares was one of the

X-ray Tube

2005-02-25T14:40:00.000-08:00

Also called Roentgen Tube, vacuum tube that produces X rays by accelerating electrons to a high velocity with a high-voltage field and causing them to collide with a target, the anode. Because X rays can penetrate solid substances to varying degrees, they are applied in medicine and dentistry, in the exploration of the structure of crystalline materials, and in research. The tube consists of

Sunday

2005-02-24T05:09:00.000-08:00

First day of the week; in Christianity, the Lord's Day, the weekly memorial of Jesus Christ's Resurrection from the dead. The practice of Christians gathering together for worship on Sunday dates back to apostolic times, but details of the actual development of the custom are not clear. Before the end of the 1st century AD, the author of Revelation gave the first day its name

Land Snail

2005-02-22T07:32:00.000-08:00

Any of the approximately 22,000 species of snails adapted to life away from water. Most are members of the subclass Pulmonata (class Gastropoda); a few are members of the subclass Prosobranchia. Typically, land snails live on or near the ground, feed on decaying plant matter, and lay their eggs in the soil. They are most common on tropical islands but occur also

Canada Goose

2005-02-22T01:01:00.000-08:00

(species Branta canadensis), a brown-backed, light-breasted goose with black head and neck and white cheeks that flash when the bird shakes its head before taking wing. It belongs to the family Anatidae (order Anseriformes). The subspecies vary greatly in size, from 1.3 kg (3 pounds) in the cackling goose (B. canadensis minima), to about 8 kg (20 pounds)

Tale Of Genji, The

2005-02-21T04:10:00.000-08:00

Japanese Genji Monogatari, masterpiece of Japanese literature by the Lady Murasaki Shikibu, written toward the start of the 11th century. It is considered the oldest full novel in the world and one of the finest. Most of the story is concerned with the loves of Prince Genji and the different women in his life, each of whom is exquisitely delineated. The work is supremely sensitive to human emotions

Floral Decoration, Middle Ages

2005-02-20T10:43:00.000-08:00

Illuminated manuscripts of the Gothic period (from the

Abdülmecid Ii

2005-02-18T18:23:00.000-08:00

Following Ottoman custom, Abdülmecid was confined to the palace until he was 40, during which time his father, Abdülaziz, and three of his cousins reigned. When his fourth cousin took the throne as Mehmed VI in 1918, Abdülmecid became crown prince.

Gaulle, Charles De

2005-02-17T15:54:00.000-08:00

In full Charles André Joseph Marie de Gaulle French soldier, writer, statesman, and architect of France's Fifth Republic.

Hen-and-chickens

2005-02-17T03:14:00.000-08:00

Also called Hen-and-chicks, any of a number of succulent plants of the genera Echeveria (q.v.) and Sempervivum, the latter commonly known as houseleek (q.v.).

Charles

2005-02-16T14:02:00.000-08:00

The son of Duke Philip III the Good of Burgundy, Charles was brought up in the French manner as a friend of the French dauphin, afterward Louis XI of France, who spent five years in Burgundy before his accession. Although he had shown no hostility toward France before taking over the government of Burgundy during his father's last illness, he thereupon gave rein to an

African Literature, English

2005-02-15T21:56:00.000-08:00

Although a genuine African literature in English did not emerge until the 1950s, writing in English by Africans goes back to the 18th century. Many slave narratives were published in English between 1760 and 1865, when the Civil War ended in the United States. Perhaps the most remarkable is The Interesting Narrative of the Life and Adventures of Olaudah Equiano or Gustavus Vassa,

North Germanic Languages, Vocabulary

2005-02-13T13:04:00.000-08:00

The everyday stock of Scandinavian words, including most of the high-frequency words, is Indo-European and Germanic in its core. Of the 200,000 or more entries in the large dictionaries of each language, the vast majority are either compounds and derivatives of the simpler words or else borrowings from other languages—mostly of a scientific and cultural nature. At the end

La Fontaine, Jean De

2005-02-13T03:12:00.000-08:00

La Fontaine's many miscellaneous writings include much occasional verse in a great variety of poetic forms and dramatic or pseudodramatic pieces such as his first published work, L'Eunuque (1654), and Climène (1671), as well as poems on subjects as different as Adonis (1658, revised 1669), La Captivité de saint Malc (1673), and Le Quinquina (1682). All these are, at best, works of uneven quality. In relation

Sunday, Billy

2005-02-11T10:50:00.000-08:00

Sunday grew up as an orphan and worked as an undertaker's assistant before entering professional baseball in 1883. In 1891 he gave up baseball to become a YMCA worker but turned in 1896 to conducting

Tibet, Festivals

2005-02-10T10:54:00.000-08:00

The first day of the first month of the Tibetan calendar (February or March of the Gregorian calendar) is marked by New Year celebrations all over Tibet. Monasteries, temples, stupas (outdoor shrines),

Dandakaranya

2005-02-09T01:17:00.000-08:00

Physical region in east-central India. Extending over an area of about 35,600 square miles (92,300 square km), it includes the Abujhmar Hills in the west and borders the Eastern Ghats in the east. The Dandakaranya includes parts of Madhya Pradesh, Orissa, and Andhra Pradesh states. It has dimensions of about 200 miles (320 km) from north to south and about 300 miles (480 km) from east to west. The region derives

Sari

2005-02-08T09:47:00.000-08:00

Situated

Sea, Law Of The

2005-02-07T18:53:00.000-08:00

Law codified in a treaty signed Dec. 10, 1982, by 117 nations (and two republics of the U.S.S.R., Belorussia and Ukraine) in Montego Bay, Jamaica. It represented an attempt to codify international law regarding territorial waters, sea lanes, and ocean resources. It was not signed by the United States, the United Kingdom, West Germany, Israel, Italy, and several other industrialized or developing

Venezuela, Climate

2005-02-06T02:03:00.000-08:00

Venezuela lies well within the tropics, and the country's temperatures are relatively uniform with little seasonal variation. Elevation, however, produces significant local differences in temperature, precipitation, and vegetation. More than nine-tenths of Venezuela has a mean annual temperature above 75 °F (24 °C). The average mean temperature for Caracas, lying in a

Sakaida Family

2005-02-05T09:36:00.000-08:00

Also called Kakiemon Family, celebrated family of Japanese potters whose founder, Sakaida Kizaemon (1596–1666), was awarded the name Kakiemon in recognition of his capturing the delicate red colour and texture of the persimmon (kaki) in porcelain. See Kakiemon ware.

Scalia, Antonin

2005-02-05T03:26:00.000-08:00

Scalia's father, a Sicilian immigrant, taught Romance languages at Brooklyn College, and his Italian American mother taught elementary school. Scalia received a Roman

Nordic Council Of Ministers

2005-02-04T07:55:00.000-08:00

Organization of the Nordic states of Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden for the purpose of consultation and cooperation on matters of common interest. The Council was established in February 1971 under an amendment to the Helsinki Convention (1962) between the Nordic countries. It consists of the ministers of state of the member countries, as well as other ministers

Scalia, Antonin

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

The first regionwide Asia-Pacific multilateral forum for official consultations on peace and security issues. An outgrowth of the annual ministerial-level meeting of members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the states serving as ASEAN's “dialogue partners,” the ARF provides a setting for discussion and diplomacy and the development of

Arrowroot

2005-02-02T08:47:00.000-08:00

Any of several species of the genus Maranta, members of the family Marantaceae (q.v.), the rhizomes, or rootstocks, of which yield an edible starch; the chief among these is M. arundinacea, the source of genuine, or West Indies, arrowroot. This herbaceous perennial, probably a native of Guyana and western Brazil, is cultivated throughout the West Indies,

Gsung-'bum

2005-02-01T05:53:00.000-08:00

The writings of the lamas include commentaries on Indian texts together with essays on

Châtelet

2005-01-31T19:42:00.000-08:00

In Paris, the principal seat of common-law jurisdiction under the French monarchy from the Middle Ages to the French Revolution. Located on the right bank of the Seine River, the building was originally a small fort that guarded the northern approach to the Île de la Cité. Frequently rebuilt, it was known as the Grand Châtelet to distinguish it from the Petit Châtelet

Selby

2005-01-30T21:54:00.000-08:00

The district includes pre-Norman settlements along the right bank of the River Ouse, the main waterway, and the Norman abbey at Selby town. Farther west an old land route, following a limestone

Norway, Union with Sweden

2005-01-29T14:36:00.000-08:00

Norwegian independence got no support from the Great Powers, and Sweden attacked Norway in late July 1814. After a brief war of 14 days, Christian resigned. Jean Bernadotte (later known as Charles XIV John; called Karl Johan in Sweden and Norway), the Swedish crown prince, accepted the Norwegian constitution and thus could no longer argue on the basis of the Treaty of Kiel. This

F-117

2005-01-28T07:54:00.000-08:00

Also called Nighthawk, single-seat, twin-engine jet fighter-bomber built by the Lockheed Corporation (now part of the Lockheed Martin Corporation) for the U.S. Air Force. It was the first stealth aircraft—i.e., an aircraft designed entirely around the concept of evading detection by radar and other sensors. After a difficult development period, during which several prototypes crashed during

Yozgat

2005-01-25T00:06:00.000-08:00

City, central Turkey. The city lies on the site of a Bronze Age settlement 100 miles (160 km) east of Ankara in a valley of the Ak Mountains, at an elevation of 4,360 feet (1,329 m). The main road between Sivas and Ankara passes through it, but the rail line bypasses it to the southwest, and the city functions primarily as a local market and administrative centre. Mohair, wool, grain, gum, and lead are

Arts, The

2005-01-24T22:46:00.000-08:00

Traditional categories within the arts include literature (including poetry, drama, story, and so on), the visual arts (painting, drawing, sculpture, etc.), the graphic arts (painting, drawing, design, and other forms expressed

Abijah

2005-01-23T16:29:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Abia, Hebrew Abiyyah, or Abiyyahu (“Yahweh Is My Father”), any of nine different persons mentioned in the Bible, of whom the most noteworthy are the following: (1) The son and successor of Rehoboam, king of Judah (II Chronicles 12:16, 13), who reigned about two years (c. 915–913 BC). (2) The second son of Samuel (I Samuel 8:2; I Chronicles 6:28), who, with his brother Joel, served as a judge at Beersheba. The elders of Israel made the pair's misconduct a pretext

Argentina, The conservative restoration and the Concordancia, 193043

2005-01-23T03:12:00.000-08:00

During the next 13 years, which have often been termed “the Infamous Decade,” the armed forces sponsored a conservative restoration. After expelling Irigoyen, they installed General José Félix Uriburu in the presidency (1930–32). Uriburu was a descendent of an old, conservative northern family, and he leaned toward fascism. His influence with the army, however, was not as great

Roiphe, Anne

2005-01-22T06:28:00.000-08:00

Anne Roth graduated from Sarah Lawrence College in 1957 and married Jack Richardson in 1958. The marriage ended in divorce in 1963, and in 1967 she married Herman Roiphe. That year she also published

Chraïbi, Driss

2005-01-20T02:04:00.000-08:00

Chraïbi was educated first in a Qur'anic school and then in a French school in Casablanca. In 1946 he went to Paris to study chemical engineering, receiving a degree in 1950, after which he did graduate work in neuropsychiatry, only to abandon science just before receiving a

Gorbachev, Mikhail

2005-01-20T00:35:00.000-08:00

In full Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev Soviet official, the general secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU) from 1985 to 1991 and president of the Soviet Union in 1990–91. His efforts to democratize his country's political system and decentralize its economy led to the downfall of communism and the breakup of the Soviet Union in 1991. In part because he ended the Soviet

Earth, Magnetic reconnection

2005-01-18T13:59:00.000-08:00

The observed dependence of geomagnetic activity on the orientation of the IMF is explained by most researchers as a consequence of magnetic reconnection. In reconnection, two oppositely directed magnetic fields are brought together by flowing plasmas at an x-type neutral line. Far from the neutral line the magnetic field is frozen in the plasma; however, near

Palaic Language

2005-01-17T22:46:00.000-08:00

Ancient Indo-European language of northwest Anatolia. Modern knowledge of the language comes from 21 passages dealing with the cult of the deity Ziparwa that appear in the cuneiform tablets found in the ruins of the Hittite archives at Bogazköy (the ancient Hattusa, in modern Turkey). In its inflectional systems and pronoun forms, it appears to be very close to the Hittite

Sup'ung Dam

2005-01-16T21:13:00.000-08:00

Korean Sup'ung-Dam , Chinese (Wade-Giles) Shui-feng Shui-pa , or (Pinyin) Shuifeng Shuiba hydroelectric project on the Yalu River at the Korean border with Liaoning sheng (province), China, upstream from Tan-tung. It was originally designed as a joint project of the Japanese-controlled Manchukuo government, which administered Manchuria from 1931 to 1945, and the Japanese administration in Korea to supply power for the industrial developments in Manchuria and

Gharyan

2005-01-15T09:14:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Garyan , or Garian town, in the Tripolitania region of northwestern Libya. It lies at the foot of the plateau Jabal Nafusah, 50 miles (80 km) south of Tripoli, and was a major centre of Italian colonization in the early 1910s. After the Turko-Italian war (1911–12) and the defeat of Turkey, the Gebel, Berber, and Fezzanese peoples in Libya continued to fight but could not stem the Italian advance. Gharyan fell to the

Edmund I

2005-01-15T04:45:00.000-08:00

He was the son of the West Saxon king Edward the Elder (reigned 899–924) and the half brother of King Athelstan (reigned 924–939), under whom the political unification of England had been accomplished. On Athelstan's death (939), Olaf Guthfrithson, the Norse king of Dublin,

Switzerland, Geography

2005-01-14T06:45:00.000-08:00

Emil Egli, Switzerland: A Survey of Its Land and People, trans. from German (1978), provides a description of landscape, climate, settlement patterns, and economy. Swiss National Tourist Office, Switzerland and Her Glaciers: From the Ice Age to the Present (1981), gives a vivid portrayal, with detailed text and excellent colour photographs. Jaro Stvan, Les Alpes apprivoisées (1991), is an illustrated analysis of the infrastructural impact on the Swiss Alpine environment. Max Iklé, Switzerland: An International Banking and Finance Center (1972; originally published in German, 1970), chronicles the history of the country's financial institutions. Kenneth D. McRae, Conflict and Compromise in Multilingual Societies, vol. 1, Switzerland (1983); and Carol L. Schmid, Conflict and Consensus in Switzerland (1981), offer historical insight into the reasons why relative social and political stability exists in Switzerland.

Gulf War Syndrome

2005-01-13T23:00:00.000-08:00

Cluster of illnesses in veterans of the Persian Gulf War (1990–91) characterized not by any definable medical condition or diagnostic test but by variable and nonspecific symptoms such as fatigue, anxiety, muscle and joint pains, headaches, memory loss, and posttraumatic stress reactions. The cause of Gulf War syndrome is unknown. The disorder does not appear to be fatal

World War I, The Eastern Front, 1915

2005-01-11T23:58:00.000-08:00

The Russians' plans for 1915 prescribed the strengthening of their flanks in the north and in Galicia before driving westward again toward Silesia. Their preparations for a blow at East Prussia's southern frontier were forestalled, as Ludendorff, striking suddenly eastward from East Prussia, enveloped four Russian divisions in the Augustów forests, east of the Masurian

Eunomius

2005-01-11T20:28:00.000-08:00

After serving as secretary to Aëtius in Alexandria, Eunomius

Thomas, Ambrose

2005-01-09T23:09:00.000-08:00

Thomas attended the Paris Conservatory, concluding his studies by winning the Prix de Rome in 1832 for his cantata Hermann et Ketty. Upon his return from Rome in 1835 he launched himself on a career as an opera composer and began teaching at the conservatory

Fischer, Johann Michael

2005-01-08T06:30:00.000-08:00

Fischer was trained by his father, a mason. As an apprentice in Bohemia and Moravia beginning in 1713, he became familiar with the churches of the Dientzenhofer family and returned to Munich in 1718 to become

Rama Ii

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

The second ruler (1809–24) of the present Chakkri dynasty, under whose rule relations were reopened with the West and Siam began a forward policy on the Malay peninsula. A gifted poet and dramatist, Rama II wrote a famous version of Inao, dramatic version of a popular traditional story, as well as episodes of

Alunite

2005-01-06T23:57:00.000-08:00

Also called Alum Stone, a widespread rock-forming sulfate mineral that occupies pockets or seams in volcanic rocks such as rhyolites, trachytes, and andesites, where it presumably formed through their chemical reaction with escaping sulfurous vapours. It has been used as a source of potash (during World War I) and as a source of alumina (during World War II); in Europe it was once used extensively

Spoonbill

2005-01-05T20:45:00.000-08:00

Also called Spoonbill Cat, primitive North American fish, a species of paddlefish (q.v.).

Aluminum Company Of America

2005-01-05T04:24:00.000-08:00

(Alcoa), American corporation founded in 1888 (as the Pittsburgh Reduction Company) and now a leading producer of aluminum. Its operations range from mining bauxite and other ores to smelting and processing aluminum, fabricating aluminum products, and marketing and shipping. It has majority ownership of Alcoa of Australia Limited, a leading producer of aluminum oxide

Incest

2005-01-03T05:35:00.000-08:00

Sexual relations between persons who, because of the nature of their kin relationships, are prohibited by law or custom from intermarrying. Because, cross-culturally, incest is more an emotional than a legal issue, the term taboo is generally preferred over prohibition. The incest taboo is acknowledged in anthropology as universal, although it is imposed differently

Cohnheim, Julius Friedrich

2005-01-02T04:56:00.000-08:00

At the Pathological Institute, Berlin (1865–68), Cohnheim was an outstanding pupil of Rudolf Virchow, founder of the science of pathology. While assisting him, Cohnheim

Alençon Lace

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

French Point D'alençon, needle lace made in the French city of Alençon, one of the centres designated by Jean-Baptiste Colbert, minister of finance under Louis XIV, for aid in his effort to make French laces financially and artistically competitive with imported laces. Venetian workers, experts in making point de Venise, were brought in to instruct the local needlewomen, who quickly learned

Aragats, Mount

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

Russian Gora Aragats, also spelled Gora Aragac, mountain in Armenia, northwest of Yerevan and north of the Ararat Plain. The highest point in both Armenia and the Lesser Caucasus range (13,418 feet [4,090 m]), Aragats is a circular, shieldlike mountain composed of both lavas and tufas. A volcanic cone of recent geologic age lies atop far older rocks. The crater of the volcano has become the steep-walled basin, or cirque, of a glacier,

Escher (von Der Linth), Hans Conrad

2004-12-31T11:29:00.000-08:00

With his friend and political colleague Paul Usteri, Escher founded the Schweizer Republikaner, a journal of moderately reformist opinion. Elected

I Li

2004-12-30T09:39:00.000-08:00

Pinyin Yi li collection of Chinese rituals probably compiled during Western Han times (206 BC–AD 8) and listed, along with two other ritual texts (Li chi, “Collection of Rituals”; Chou li, “Rites of Chou”), among the Nine, Twelve, and Thirteen Classics of Confucianism. Its subject matter is somewhat different from the other ritual classics in that it gives special emphasis to such events as weddings,

Vung Tau

2004-12-27T18:56:00.000-08:00

French Cap Saint-jacques, port, southern Vietnam. It is situated near the tip of an 11-mile- (18-kilometre-) long projection into the South China Sea, which trends southwest and partially encloses Ganh Rai Bay. The bay receives the Saigon River on the northeastern Mekong delta. The port of Vung Tau has a pilot station, fuel depot, and sea harbour to serve vessels using the port of Ho Chi Minh City (formerly

Xie Jun

2004-12-27T18:16:00.000-08:00

Cathy Forbes, Meet the Masters (1994), contains a collection of interviews with many notable chess players.

Sucre, Antonio José De

2004-12-26T06:51:00.000-08:00

At the age of 15 Sucre entered the

Balaguer, Joaquín

2004-12-24T19:05:00.000-08:00

Balaguer earned a law degree from the University of Santo Domingo and a Ph.D. from the University of Paris. Between 1932 and 1957, he held numerous executive

Celaya

2004-12-23T18:23:00.000-08:00

City, south-central Guanajuato estado (“state”), north-central Mexico. It is in the fertile Bajío region on the Mexican Plateau, 2.5 miles (4 km) north of the Laja River and 5,774 feet (1,760 m) above sea level. Founded as Purísima Concepción de Celaya in 1571, the city played an important role in 19th-century Mexican history when it changed hands several times during Mexico's struggle for independence

Davidescu, Nicolae

2004-12-22T19:40:00.000-08:00

Romanian poet and novelist whose early poems, Inscriptii (1916), showed the influence of Charles Baudelaire. Among his prose works the novel Zâna din fundul lacului (1912; “The Fairy at the Bottom of the Lake”) was an exercise in symbolism, and Vioara muta (1928; “The Muted Violin”), in social psychology. In the epic Cântecul omului (1928–37; “The Song of Man”), he aimed at re-creating world history.

Calculus Of Variations

2004-12-22T15:18:00.000-08:00

The isoperimetric problem—that of finding,

Arabia, Plant life

2004-12-20T18:54:00.000-08:00

The date palm grows almost everywhere, except at very high elevations and in Dhofar, on the coast of which it is replaced by the coconut palm. The date is a source of food, and uses are found for the trunk, branches, and fibre of the date palm. Among places noted for high-quality date-palm production are Medina, Bishah, and Al-Hasa. Alfalfa (lucerne), widely used as fodder, often fills

Aldrich, Nelson W.

2004-12-19T15:36:00.000-08:00

Nathaniel Wright Stephenson, Nelson W. Aldrich, a Leader in American Politics (1930, reprinted 1971).

Bejel

2004-12-19T08:29:00.000-08:00

Although endemic syphilis differs clinically from sporadic (venereal) syphilis, both are diagnosed by the same tests, treated by the same drugs, and caused by the same parasite (Treponema pallidum); both cause the same fundamental pathological changes in the tissues.

Sangrur

2004-12-18T04:45:00.000-08:00

City, in southeastern Punjab state, northwestern India. The city was founded in the 17th century and became the capital of the former independent state of Jind. In 1948 it became part of India. Sangrur is an agricultural market with some light industry, including handloom weaving and handicrafts. There are good road and rail connections with the rest of Punjab and with neighbouring

Smenkhkare

2004-12-16T15:38:00.000-08:00

As shown by medical and serological analysis of his mummy, Smenkhkare was almost certainly a brother

Egypt, Arabization

2004-12-16T02:42:00.000-08:00

The Arabization of Egypt continued at a gradual pace. The early Fatimids' reliance on Berber troops was soon balanced by the importation of Turkish, Sudanese, and Arab contingents. The Fatimids are said to have used thousands of nomadic Arabs in the Egyptian cavalry and to have further stimulated Arabization by settling large numbers of Arabian tribesmen in Upper Egypt

France, History Of, Economic life

2004-12-14T04:05:00.000-08:00

Agriculture was the principal economic activity, and during the entire Frankish age the great estate, inherited from antiquity, remained the predominant characteristic of rural life. These estates were the residence and principal source of income of the aristocracy. The estates appear to have long been placed under cultivation by servile labour, which was abundant

Puu Kukui

2004-12-13T17:56:00.000-08:00

Volcanic peak, Maui county, western Maui Island, Hawaii, U.S. It is the highest peak (5,788 feet [1,764 m]) of an 18-mile (29-kilometre) stretch of mountains, the Honolua volcanic series, which dominates the western peninsula of Maui. Puu Kukui (meaning “candlenut hill”) was formed by a volcano whose caldera has eroded into the scenic valley of Iao.

Agrimony

2004-12-12T03:03:00.000-08:00

Any plant of the genus Agrimonia, of the rose family (Rosaceae). The name particularly denotes A. eupatoria, an herbaceous, hardy perennial that is native to Europe but is widespread in other northern temperate regions, where it grows in hedge banks and the borders of fields. A. eupatoria grows to about 120 cm (4 feet) tall and has alternate feather-formed

Gates, Frederick T.

2004-12-11T21:25:00.000-08:00

During his college days at the University of Rochester, N.Y., Gates worked as a bank clerk. His undergraduate studies were followed by three years at the Rochester Theological

Mental Disorder, Affective personality disorder

2004-12-11T01:15:00.000-08:00

Three particular types of persistent mood disturbance can be described under this heading: (1) the trait of anxiety may be persistent and highly developed, so that the person encounters all new circumstances with fearful anticipation; (2) the chronic depressive personality is a gloomy pessimist who is skeptical in outlook and who may regard suffering as meritorious;

Induction

2004-12-10T23:37:00.000-08:00

In logic, method of reasoning from a part to a whole, from particulars to generals, or from the individual to the universal. As it applies to logic in systems of the 20th century, the term is obsolete. Traditionally, logicians distinguished between deductive logic (inference in which the conclusion follows necessarily from the premise, or drawing new propositions out

Biblical Literature, The conclusion of the Sinai sojourn

2004-12-08T18:30:00.000-08:00

The book opens with a command from God to Moses, early in the second year after the Exodus, to take a census of the arms-bearing men over 20 in each of the clans of Israel. Moses and Aaron, aided by the clan chiefs, take the count, clan by clan, and reach a total of 603,550 men—according to critical scholars, an unbelievably large total for the time and conditions. The Levites, to whom is entrusted

ClearTown

Chattanooga, Battle Of

Amorphous Solid

Ear Disease, Ménière's disease

Botsaris, Markos

Rydberg Constant

Segovia Aqueduct

Ramillies, Battle Of

Alkaline-earth Metal

Orage, Alfred Richard

Catastrophe Theory

Juan-juan

Italo-ethiopian War

Agoult, Marie (-catherine-sophie) De Flavigny, Comtesse D'

Basalt

Loralai

Agricola, Johann

Sea Bass

Land Of Ten Thousand Sinks

Ventnor

Muromachi Period

Eymeric, Nicholas

Sha'nabi, Mount Ash-

Ares

X-ray Tube

Sunday

Land Snail

Canada Goose

Tale Of Genji, The

Floral Decoration, Middle Ages

Abdülmecid Ii

Gaulle, Charles De

Hen-and-chickens

Charles

African Literature, English

North Germanic Languages, Vocabulary

La Fontaine, Jean De

Sunday, Billy

Tibet, Festivals

Dandakaranya

Sari

Sea, Law Of The

Venezuela, Climate

Sakaida Family

Scalia, Antonin

Nordic Council Of Ministers

Scalia, Antonin

Arrowroot

Gsung-'bum

Châtelet

Selby

Norway, Union with Sweden

F-117

Yozgat

Arts, The

Abijah

Argentina, The conservative restoration and the Concordancia, 193043

Roiphe, Anne

Chraïbi, Driss

Gorbachev, Mikhail

Earth, Magnetic reconnection

Palaic Language

Sup'ung Dam

Gharyan

Edmund I

Switzerland, Geography

Gulf War Syndrome

World War I, The Eastern Front, 1915

Eunomius

Thomas, Ambrose

Fischer, Johann Michael

Rama Ii

Alunite

Spoonbill

Aluminum Company Of America

Incest

Cohnheim, Julius Friedrich

Alençon Lace

Aragats, Mount

Escher (von Der Linth), Hans Conrad

Argentina, The conservative restoration and the Concordancia, 193043