GoodRail

X Club

2005-03-19T01:41:00.000-08:00

Ruth Barton, “ ‘Huxley, Lubbock, and Half a Dozen Others': Professionals and Gentlemen in the Formation of the X Club, 1851–1864,” Isis, 89(3):410–444 (September 1998), discusses the interests and purposes that brought the group together. Two articles survey the importance of the club: Roy MacLeod, “The X-Club: A Social Network of Science in Late-Victorian England,” Notes and Records of the Royal Society of London, 24(2):305–322 (April 1970), is the fuller account; J. Vernon Jensen, “The X Club: Fraternity of Victorian Scientists,” The British Journal for the History of Science, vol. 5, part 1, no. 17, pp. 63–72 (June 1970), is also useful. Ruth Barton, “ ‘An Influential Set of Chaps': The X-Club and Royal Society Politics 1864–85,” The British Journal for the History of Science, vol. 23, part 1, no. 76, pp. 53–81 (March 1990), details how club members achieved and used power within the Royal Society.

Palazzolo Acreide

2005-03-16T00:33:00.000-08:00

Town, Siracusa provincia, southeastern Sicily, Italy. It lies in the Iblei Mountains, west of Syracuse. The successor to the Syracusan colony of Acrae (founded nearby in 663 BC), which was ravaged by the Muslims in the 9th century, the town was ruled by a succession of families in the Middle Ages, later passing to the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies and eventually to the Kingdom of Italy.

Biblical Literature, The Letter of Paul to the Galatians

2005-03-14T11:09:00.000-08:00

Paul's Letter to the Galatians is a forceful and passionate letter dealing with a very specific question: the relation of Jewish Christians and Gentile Christians in the church, the problem of justification through faith not works of the Law, and freedom in Christ. Paul probably wrote from Ephesus c. 53–54 to a church he had founded in the territory of Galatia in Asia

Bolivia, Ethnic and linguistic groups

2005-03-11T16:56:00.000-08:00

The population of Bolivia consists of three groups—Indians (the indigenous peoples), mestizos (of mixed Indian and European descent), and whites of European (mainly Spanish) descent. After centuries of intermixing, it is difficult to determine the proportion of each, but it is estimated that Indians form nearly three-fifths of the total, mestizos nearly one-third, and

Palestine, History Of, The Crusades

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

A year after the capture of Jerusalem by the crusaders, the Latin kingdom of Jerusalem was established (Christmas Day, 1100). Thereafter, there was no effective check to the expansion of the crusaders' power until the capture of their stronghold at Edessa (modern Urfa, Tur.) by the atabeg of Mosul, 'Imad ad-Din Zangi ibn Aq Sonqur, in 1144. Zangi's anticrusader campaign was carried on after

Gabon, Climate

2005-03-07T09:46:00.000-08:00

Gabon has an equatorial climate, with year-round high temperatures and humidity. Rainfall varies from an annual average of 120 inches (3,050 millimetres) at Libreville to 150 inches on the northwest coast, with almost all of it falling between October and May. In the period from June to September there is little, if any, rainfall, but humidity remains high. Temperature shows little

Fick, August

2005-03-04T02:19:00.000-08:00

Fick presented his reconstruction of a parent language of remote prehistoric times in the first edition

Bahmani Sultanate

2005-03-03T09:25:00.000-08:00

The Bahmani sultanate's

Davenport, Charles Benedict

2005-02-28T06:16:00.000-08:00

After receiving a doctorate in zoology at Harvard University in 1892, Davenport taught there until 1899, when

Paradox

2005-02-26T09:36:00.000-08:00

Apparently self-contradictory statement, the underlying meaning of which is revealed only by careful scrutiny. The purpose of a paradox is to arrest attention and provoke fresh thought. The statement “Less is more” is an example. Francis Bacon's saying, “The most corrected copies are commonly the least correct,” is an earlier literary example. In George Orwell's anti-utopian

Trickster Tale

2005-02-24T20:39:00.000-08:00

In oral traditions worldwide, an anecdote of deceit, magic, and violence perpetrated by an animal-human with special or magical powers. Usually grouped in cycles, these tales feature a trickster-hero who within a single society may be regarded as both creator god and innocent fool, evil destroyer and childlike prankster. In psychological terms, the trickster may

X

2005-02-22T04:06:00.000-08:00

American band whose tales of urban decay, corruption, and sleaze, delivered with skilled musicianship and unique vocal harmonies, marked them as important contributors to the punk movement. The original members were Exene Cervenka (original name Christine Cervenka; b. Feb. 1, 1956, Chicago, Ill., U.S.), John Doe (b. Feb. 25, 1954?, Decatur, Ill.), Billy Zoom (b. Feb. 20, 1949?, Illinois), and D.J. Bonebrake (b. Dec. 8, 1955, North

Japanese Cedar

2005-02-20T13:12:00.000-08:00

The Japanese

F-16

2005-02-19T00:40:00.000-08:00

Also called Fighting Falcon, single-seat, single-engine jet fighter built by the General Dynamics Corporation (now part of the Lockheed Martin Corporation) for the United States and more than a dozen other countries. The F-16 originated in an order placed in 1972 for a lightweight, cost-effective air-to-air fighter; current models are also all-weather capable, and it is effective for ground attack as well.

Pithou, Pierre

2005-02-17T03:41:00.000-08:00

Reared as a Calvinist, Pithou received his lawyer's robes at Paris (1560) after he had earned recognition by his essays on Roman laws. On the outbreak of the Second War of Religion against the Protestants in 1567, he fled

Pachacamac

2005-02-15T02:01:00.000-08:00

Large pre-Columbian ruin located in the Lurin Valley on the central coast of present-day Peru. The earliest major occupation and construction of Pachacamac dates to the Early Intermediate Period (c. 200 BC–AD 600) and to a culture generally known as Early Lima (Maranga, Interlocking style). The terraced adobe pyramid and temple known as the Temple of Pachacamac belongs to this time

Amphibole

2005-02-13T09:52:00.000-08:00

Amphiboles are found principally in metamorphic and igneous rocks. They occur in many metamorphic rocks, especially those derived from mafic igneous rocks (those containing dark-coloured ferromagnesian minerals) and siliceous dolomites. Amphiboles also are important constituents in a variety of plutonic and volcanic igneous rocks that range in composition

Seni Pramoj, Mom Rajawong

2005-02-10T16:56:00.000-08:00

Thai diplomat and politician whose refusal to honour Japanese demands that he deliver a Thai declaration of war against the U.S. and the U.K. during World War II kept the U.S. from attacking Thailand and gained U.S. aid in organizing resistance forces (b. May 26, 1905--d. July 28, 1997).

Light, Francis

2005-02-09T01:27:00.000-08:00

Light served in the Royal Navy from 1759 until 1763. In command of a merchant ship, he went in 1771 to the northern Malay state of Kedah, where he won the confidence of the sultan, Mohammed. About that time England,

Ramakrishna Mission

2005-02-07T01:09:00.000-08:00

The society was founded in Calcutta by Vivekananda (q.v.) in 1897 with a twofold purpose: to spread the teachings of Vedanta as embodied in the life

Nagaland, Cultural life

2005-02-05T20:14:00.000-08:00

Tribal organization varies from the autocratic angs (chiefs) of the Konyaks and hereditary chieftainships of the Semas and Changs to the democratic structures of the Angamis, Aos, Lothas, and Rengmas. A prominent village institution is the morung (a communal house or dormitory for young unmarried men), where skulls and other trophies of war formerly were hung. The pillars

Malvaceae

2005-02-03T23:25:00.000-08:00

The mallow family, a large group of flowering plants, in the order Malvales, containing about 95 genera of herbs, shrubs, and trees. Representatives occur in all except the coldest parts of the world but are most numerous in the tropics. Economically, the most important member of the family is cotton (q.v.; Gossypium). Several species of Hibiscus produce fibres that are of lesser

Mason And Dixon Line

2005-02-01T13:56:00.000-08:00

Also called Mason-Dixon Line, originally the boundary between Maryland and Pennsylvania in the United States. In the pre-Civil War period it was regarded, together with the Ohio River, as the dividing line between slave states south of it and free-soil states north of it. Between 1763 and 1767 the 233-mile (375-kilometre) line was surveyed along the parallel 39°43¢ by two Englishmen, Charles Mason and Jeremiah Dixon, to define

Blondel, Georges

2005-01-29T03:30:00.000-08:00

After receiving his doctorate in 1881 and the rank of agrégé (highest teaching degree) in 1883, he was appointed to a chair of law at Lyon in 1884 and 10 years later was named professor of letters at Lille. He later taught at the École des Hautes Études Commerciales and

Earth Sciences, Weather and climate

2005-01-27T21:20:00.000-08:00

Modern meteorology began when the daily weather map was developed as a device for analysis and forecasting, and the instrument that made this kind of map possible was the electromagnetic telegraph. In the United States the first telegraph line was strung in 1844 between Washington, D.C., and Baltimore. Concurrently with the expansion of telegraphic networks, the physicist

Tibet, Early history to the 9th century

2005-01-26T08:08:00.000-08:00

Credible history begins late in the 6th century, when three discontented vassals of one of the princes among whom Tibet was then divided conspired to support the neighbouring lord of Yar-lung, whose title was Spu-rgyal btsan-po. Btsan-po (“mighty”) became the designation of all kings of Tibet (rgyal means “king”; and spu, the meaning of which is uncertain, may refer to a sacral

Tasmania, Plant and animal life

2005-01-24T15:09:00.000-08:00

In general, the wettest areas have temperate rain forest, especially the beech or myrtle; areas having 30 to 60 inches of rain annually carry good-quality eucalypt forest; and the drier areas carry poor-quality eucalypt forest or savanna woodland. In certain areas, particularly in the forest of the south and southwest, an almost impenetrable thicket known as horizontal

Paulician

2005-01-22T08:04:00.000-08:00

The fundamental

Appleton Layer

2005-01-19T00:08:00.000-08:00

Upper layer (called F2) of the F region (q.v.) of the ionosphere.

Niche

2005-01-17T20:04:00.000-08:00

Gothic examples of the decorative recess are ubiquitous, including

Adela

2005-01-15T07:04:00.000-08:00

Adela was married to Stephen, count of Meaux and Brie, in 1080 at Breteuil. Upon the death of his father in 1090, her husband succeeded to the countships of Blois and Chartres. She took an active interest in civil and ecclesiastical affairs and was

Sarapion, Saint

2005-01-13T14:52:00.000-08:00

Sarapion was a champion with St. Athanasius of Alexandria of orthodox doctrine in the 4th-century theological controversy over Arianism. A key figure in early monasticism, together with his Egyptian contemporary, St. Anthony, Sarapion

Jewelry, 19th century

2005-01-12T18:40:00.000-08:00

The Industrial Revolution destroyed forever the ancient role of jewelry as a symbol of social rank. The social evolution created a market for a vast quantity of jewelry at prices the middle class could afford; and so jewelry, too, succumbed to the machine. Hundreds of different components for ornaments were produced by machines, an electric gold-plating technique

Alkaline-earth Metal

2005-01-10T09:13:00.000-08:00

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

Water Buffalo

2005-01-08T14:42:00.000-08:00

(Bubalus bubalis), also called Indian Buffalo, a ruminant mammal of the ox family (Bovidae). The water buffalo was domesticated in Asia from earliest recorded times. Large and massively built, the animal stands 1.5–1.8 m (5–6 feet) or more at the shoulder, reaches a length of 2.4–2.8 m, and weighs about 1,000 kg (2,200 pounds). It has a dull black or dark gray body with little hair and huge horns, which may measure

Thompson

2005-01-06T23:52:00.000-08:00

City, north-central Manitoba, Canada. It lies along the Burntwood River, in the Mystery-Moak lakes area, 130 miles (210 km) north of Lake Winnipeg. Planned in 1956 by the International Nickel Company of Canada and named for John F. Thompson, the company chairman, the community was completed in 1961. Its integrated nickel mining-smelting-refining plant was the first in the Western Hemisphere.

Madonie, Le

2005-01-04T14:55:00.000-08:00

Also called Monti Madonie, mountain range in Palermo provincia, northwest-central Sicily. The range extends for 30 miles (48 km) between the Torto River and the Nebrodi Mountains. Of limestone formation, its highest peaks are Antenna Peak, 6,480 feet (1,975 m), and Carbonara Peak, 6,493 feet (1,979 m). The Madonie is the source of several rivers and is known for its underground drainage system, which provides drinking water for

Mardalsfossen

2005-01-02T01:35:00.000-08:00

Waterfall at the head of Eikesdalsvatnet (lake), east-southeast of Åndalsnes, Nor. It consists of two cataracts in Mardøla district of Møre og Romsdal fylke (county), western Norway. The falls rank among the highest in the world, with their total drop of 1,696 ft (517 m) and individual descents of 974 and 722 ft. During the period of maximum snow melting in the spring, the waterfalls, descending

Eclipse

2004-12-30T11:04:00.000-08:00

The occultation of the Crab Nebula by the solar corona, the extensive outer atmosphere of the Sun, takes place each year in June. The Crab Nebula is a radio source (Taurus A), and, when the occultation occurs, its pattern of radio emission is observed to broaden significantly. The broadening is attributed to scattering of radio-frequency radiation by the density irregularities

Downey, June Etta

2004-12-28T10:06:00.000-08:00

Downey graduated from the University of Wyoming in 1895. After a year of teaching school in Laramie, she resumed her education at the University of Chicago, where in 1898 she took a master's degree in philosophy and

Marquette, Jacques

2004-12-24T19:10:00.000-08:00

Marquette arrived in Quebec in 1666. After a study of Indian languages, he assisted in founding a mission at Sault Ste. Marie (now in Michigan) in 1668, and another at St. Ignace (now in Michigan) in 1671. In mid-May

Tietê River

2004-12-22T22:08:00.000-08:00

Several of the state's

Sila

2004-12-21T23:32:00.000-08:00

Buddhist morality is codified in the form of 10 precepts (dasa-sila), which require

Art And Architecture, Oceanic, Australia

2004-12-16T16:58:00.000-08:00

The Australian continent is liberally dotted with thousands of rock-art sites. They include rock shelters, outcrops of rock, and surface sheets of rock and are decorated with painted, pecked, or engraved figurative and nonfigurative forms in a wealth of styles. These are the main testimonials to the prehistoric art of the Aborigines; the only portable works from

Deformation And Flow

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

Everyday substances are ordinarily classed as either solids, liquids, or gases, and, under normal circumstances, gases and liquids flow relatively freely and solids deform when they are subjected

Padilla, Juan

2004-12-11T15:59:00.000-08:00

After serving as a soldier, Padilla joined the Franciscans in Andalusia. He went to Spanish Mexico in 1528 and in the following year accompanied an expedition to Nueva Galicia (northwestern Mexico). There he spent most of his remaining

Accessory

2004-12-08T14:59:00.000-08:00

In law, a person who becomes equally guilty in the crime of another by knowingly and voluntarily aiding the criminal prior to or after the crime. An accessory is one kind of accomplice (q.v.), the other being an abettor, who aids the criminal during the act itself.

Ibáñez Del Campo, Carlos

2004-12-07T15:27:00.000-08:00

After a military career of 30 years, Ibáñez participated in a revolt in September 1924 against the government of Arturo Alessandri Palma. From 1925 to 1927 Ibáñez in effect controlled Chile while

East African Lakes

2004-12-05T08:05:00.000-08:00

Group of lakes in East Africa. The majority of the East African lakes lie within the East African Rift System, which forms a part of a series of gigantic fissures in the Earth's crust extending northward from the Zambezi River valley through eastern and northeastern Africa and the Red Sea to the Jordan River valley in southwestern Asia. In East Africa itself the southern,

Light-year

2004-12-02T20:06:00.000-08:00

In astronomy, the distance traveled by light moving in a vacuum in the course of one year, at its accepted velocity of 299,792,458 metres per second (186,282 miles per second). A light-year equals about 9.46053 ´ 1012 km (5.878 ´ 1012 miles), or 63,240 astronomical units. About 3.262 light-years equal one parsec (q.v.).

Abbotsford

2004-11-30T15:14:00.000-08:00

Former home of the 19th-century novelist Sir Walter Scott, situated on the right bank of the River Tweed, Scottish Borders council area, historic county of Roxburghshire, Scotland. Scott purchased the original farm, then known as Carley Hole, in 1811 and transformed it (1817–25) into a Gothic-style baronial mansion now known as Abbotsford House. Still the home of Scott's direct descendants,

Gracias

2004-11-29T21:41:00.000-08:00

City, southwestern Honduras. It lies in the valley of the Mejocote River, at the foot of Las Minas Hill in the Celaque Mountains. Founded in 1536, it is one of the oldest cities in Honduras. In the 16th and 17th centuries, it was a major mining and administrative centre, but it declined in the 18th century. Destroyed in 1915 by an earthquake, it has been rebuilt. Gracias is now the commercial

Gobi

2004-11-27T04:11:00.000-08:00

European interest in the region

Bartas, Guillaume De Salluste, Seigneur Du (lord Of)

2004-11-25T15:57:00.000-08:00

Though he tried to avoid participating in the Wars of Religion, du Bartas was an ardent Huguenot and a trusted counsellor of Henry of Navarre. His aim was to use the new poetic techniques introduced into France by the literary group known as La Pléiade for

Allegheny Plateau

2004-11-23T18:42:00.000-08:00

Western section of the Appalachian Mountains, U.S., extending southwestward from the Mohawk River valley in central New York to the Cumberland Plateau in southern West Virginia. Generally sloping toward the northwest, the plateau has been dissected by streams to form the Catskill, Allegheny, and other mountain ranges. The Allegheny, Delaware, and Susquehanna rivers

Siamese Fighting Fish

2004-11-21T17:38:00.000-08:00

(Betta splendens), freshwater tropical fish of the family Belontiidae (classified by some authorities as Anabantidae; order Perciformes), noted for the pugnacity of the males toward one another. The Siamese fighting fish, a native of Thailand, was domesticated there for use in contests. Combat consists mainly of fin nipping and is accompanied by a display of extended

Cable

2004-11-18T03:30:00.000-08:00

The first successful stranded iron wire rope was developed in 1831–34 by Wilhelm Albert, a mining official of Clausthal

Australia, Flag Of

2004-11-13T04:19:00.000-08:00

Thought was given to an all-Australian flag long before confederation was achieved on January 1, 1901. For example, in 1823 a National Colonial Flag displayed four white eight-pointed stars on a red cross on a white field with the Union Jack. From 1831 until as late as the 1920s there was a somewhat similar design known as the Australian Federation Flag, with a blue cross and five white stars.

Lippi, Fra Filippo

2004-11-11T03:03:00.000-08:00

Florentine painter in the second generation of Renaissance artists. While exhibiting the strong influence of Masaccio (e.g., in “Madonna and Child,” 1437) and Fra Angelico (e.g., in “Coronation of the Virgin,” c. 1445), his work achieves a distinctive clarity of expression. Legend and tradition surround his unconventional life.

Christian, William

2004-11-09T23:47:00.000-08:00

Christian was the third son of Ewan Christian, one of the deemsters (judges) of the Isle of Man. In 1648 Christian was appointed to the post of receiver general by the 7th Earl of Derby, lord of the Isle of Man. In 1651 Derby left for England to fight with the armies of Charles II against the forces

Learning Theory

2004-11-07T07:16:00.000-08:00

A common goal in defining any psychological concept is a statement that corresponds to common usage. Acceptance of that aim, however, entails some peril. It implicitly assumes that common language categorizes in scientifically

La Baule-escoublac

2004-11-05T05:42:00.000-08:00

Also called La Baule, fashionable resort, Loire-Atlantique département, Bretagne région, France. It lies along the Atlantic coast near the mouth of the Loire River, west of Saint-Nazaire. Facing south and protected from the north wind by 1,000 acres (400 hectares) of dune-stabilizing maritime pines, it is on a crescent-shaped bay in the centre of a fine sand beach 5 miles (8 km) long. Headlands at each end of

Jacana

2004-11-03T06:48:00.000-08:00

The seven or eight species of the genus Jacana include the American jacana (Jacana

Galiwinku

2004-10-31T13:47:00.000-08:00

Formerly Elcho Island, island in the Arafura Sea, 2 miles (3 km) across Cadell Strait from Napier Peninsula, a part of Northern Territory, Australia, and of the Arnhem Land Aboriginal Reserve. It is low-lying, 30 miles (48 km) long by 7 miles (11 km) wide, and is separated from the Wessel Islands (east) by Brown Strait. The town of Galiwinku, on the southwestern coast, which began as a Methodist mission (established

Andrade, Mário De

2004-10-30T17:23:00.000-07:00

Educated at the conservatory in São Paulo, Andrade helped organize what proved to be a key event in the

Frederick

2004-10-28T20:49:00.000-07:00

City, seat (1748) of Frederick county, north-central Maryland, U.S., on a tributary of the Monocacy River 47 miles (76 km) west of Baltimore. Laid out in 1745 as Frederick Town, it was presumably named for Frederick Calvert, 6th Baron Baltimore, although it may have been for Frederick Louis, prince of Wales. The British Stamp Act received its first repudiation from jurists in the Frederick County

Abney, Sir William De Wiveleslie

2004-10-25T11:47:00.000-07:00

Commissioned in the Royal Engineers (1861), he taught chemistry and photography at the School of Military Engineering at Chatham. He succeeded to various

Ear, Human

2004-10-24T17:31:00.000-07:00

Hearing is the process by which the ear transforms sound vibrations in the external environment into nerve impulses that are conveyed to the brain, where they are interpreted as sounds. Sounds are produced when vibrating objects, such as the plucked string of a guitar, produce pressure pulses of vibrating air molecules, better known as sound waves. The ear can distinguish

Eyzies-de-tayac Caves

2004-10-22T05:43:00.000-07:00

F Region

2004-10-19T01:38:00.000-07:00

Highest region of the ionosphere, at altitudes greater than 160 km (100 miles); it has the greatest concentration of free electrons and is the most important of the ionospheric regions. The charged particles in the F region consist primarily of neutral atoms split into electrons and charged atoms. Although its degree of ionization persists with little change through the

Intelligence

2004-10-17T18:58:00.000-07:00

In government and military operations, evaluated information concerning the strength, activities, and probable courses of action of foreign countries or nonstate actors that are usually, though not always, enemies or opponents. The term also is used to refer to the collection, analysis, and distribution of such information and to secret intervention in the political

Kiribati

2004-10-15T00:57:00.000-07:00

A few of the islands are compact with fringing reefs, but most are atolls. The largest atoll (and one of the largest in the world) is Kiritimati (Christmas Island) in the Line group, which has a land area of 150 square miles (388 square km) and accounts for about one-half of the country's total. Kiritimati was used for U.S. and British nuclear testing in the 1960s; it now has a large coconut plantation

Bail

2004-10-14T20:17:00.000-07:00

Procedure by which a judge or magistrate sets at liberty one who has been arrested or imprisoned, upon receipt of security to ensure the released prisoner's later appearance in court for further proceedings. Release from custody is ordinarily effected by posting a sum of money, or a bond, although originally bail included the delivery of other forms of property,

Earth Sciences, William Smith and faunal succession

2004-10-12T20:11:00.000-07:00

In 1683 the zoologist Martin Lister proposed to the Royal Society that a new sort of map be drawn showing the areal distribution of the different kinds of British “soiles” (vegetable soils and underlying bedrock). The work proposed by Lister was not accomplished until 132 years later, when William Smith published his Geologic Map of England and Wales with Part of

Argentina, Settlement patterns

2004-10-09T04:23:00.000-07:00

The varied topography, climate, and natural resources of Argentina shaped the pattern of European settlement. Although modern transportation and industry have partly effaced regional differences, the organization of life in both city and country still follows patterns that were set in early colonial times.

Caconda

2004-10-07T20:06:00.000-07:00

A Portuguese military post was established at Caconda about 1680 to facilitate expansion of the slave trade. In the late 18th century, a permanent

Dubos, René

2004-10-06T00:03:00.000-07:00

In full René Jules Dubos French-born American microbiologist, environmentalist, and author whose pioneering research in isolating antibacterial substances from certain soil microorganisms led to the discovery of major antibiotics. Dubos is also known for his research and writings on a number of subjects, including antibiotics, acquired immunity,

Nicetas Stethatos

2004-10-03T06:27:00.000-07:00

A monk of the Stoudion monastery in Constantinople (now Istanbul), Nicetas allied himself c. 1020 with his spiritual tutor, Symeon the New Theologian, whose biographer and

Oran

2004-10-02T15:01:00.000-07:00

Oran was founded at the beginning of the 10th century

Chacma

2004-09-30T19:59:00.000-07:00

Species of baboon (q.v.).

Amoy

2004-09-27T07:02:00.000-07:00

Wade-Giles romanization Hsia-men, Pinyin Xiamen, city and port on the coast of southern Fukien sheng (province), China. Amoy is situated on the southwest coast of Hsia-men Island at the mouth of the Chiu-lung River. Known as the “garden on the sea,” it has an excellent harbour, sheltered by a number of offshore islands, the most important of which, Quemoy (Chin-men), in the mouth of the estuary, has remained a fortress in the hands

Leonowens, Anna Harriette

2004-09-25T06:26:00.000-07:00

At age 15 Anna went to Asia, where she married Maj. Thomas Lewis Leonowens of the Indian Army. After the major died in 1858, she lived in Singapore

Producer Goods

2004-09-24T05:52:00.000-07:00

Also called intermediate goods in economics, goods manufactured and used in further manufacturing, processing, or resale. Producer goods either become part of the final product or lose their distinct identity in the manufacturing stream. The prices of producer goods are not included in the summation of a country's gross national product (GNP), because their inclusion would involve double counting

Zakopane

2004-09-22T08:34:00.000-07:00

City, Nowy Sacz województwo (province), south-central Poland. The city is situated in the Carpathian Mountains near the Slovakian border. Its location at the foot of the Alpine-like Tatras Mountains makes it a major winter-sports and health-resort centre. Situated on good rail and highway routes, Zakopane also serves as the cultural centre for the area. The Chalubinski

Florence

2004-09-19T04:15:00.000-07:00

City, seat of Lauderdale county, northwestern Alabama, U.S. It lies on the Tennessee River about 65 miles (105 km) west of Huntsville, forming with Sheffield, Tuscumbia, and Muscle Shoals a four-city metropolitan area in the Muscle Shoals region. Settlers first arrived and established a trading post there about 1779. The area was later purchased by a land company whose stockholders

Céline, Louis-ferdinand

2004-09-18T20:08:00.000-07:00

Pseudonym of Louis-ferdinand Destouches French writer and physician. Céline received his medical degree in 1924 and travelled extensively on medical missions for the League of Nations. In 1928 he opened a practice in a suburb of Paris, writing in his spare time. He became famous with his first novel, Voyage au bout de la nuit (1932; Journey to the End of Night, 1934), the story of a man's tortured

Labour Economics, Orthodox economic theories

2004-09-16T22:56:00.000-07:00

The complex character of labour as a commodity is nowhere more evident than in the relationship between pay and productivity. According to conventional economic theory, productivity should be the straightforward determinant of the employer's demand for labour. An employer who wishes to maximize profits will continue to recruit only up to the point at which

Biblical Literature, The fall of Judah

2004-09-13T11:53:00.000-07:00

The southern kingdom of Judah, under the Davidic monarchy, was able to last about 135 years longer, often only as a weak vassal state. Hezekiah (reigned c. 715–c. 687), with the advice of the prophet Isaiah, managed to avoid conflict with or outlast a siege of the Assyrians. Hezekiah was succeeded by his son Manasseh, an apostate king who stilled any prophetic outcries, reintroduced Canaanite

Flocculation

2004-09-11T04:41:00.000-07:00

In physical chemistry, separation of solid particles from a liquid to form loose aggregations or soft flakes. These flocculates are easily disrupted, being held together only by a force analogous to the surface tension of a liquid. In industrial processes, flocculation may be a desired or an undesirable phenomenon, and various methods may be used to cause or eliminate

Endoderm

2004-09-08T16:14:00.000-07:00

The innermost of the three germ layers, or masses of cells (lying within ectoderm and mesoderm), which appears early in the development of an animal embryo. The endoderm subsequently gives rise to the epithelium (tissue that covers, or lines, a structure) of the pharynx, including the eustachian tube, the tonsils, the thyroid gland, parathyroid glands, and thymus gland;

Bürgi, Joost

2004-09-05T05:55:00.000-07:00

Bürgi served as court watchmaker to Duke Wilhelm IV of Hesse-Kassel from 1579 to 1592 and worked in the royal observatory at Kassel, where he developed geometrical and astronomical instruments. Word of his exceptional instruments

Sacramento Mountains

2004-09-04T05:20:00.000-07:00

Segment of the southern Rockies, extending southward for 160 mi (260 km) from Ancho, in south central New Mexico, into Culberson County, western Texas, U.S. They include the Sierra Blanca and the Guadalupe and Jicarilla mountains, with heights averaging from 8,000 to 10,000 ft (2,400 to 3,000 m). The Sierra Blanca Peak (12,003 ft) is the highest in the group, and Guadalupe Peak (8,749 ft) is the highest in Texas. Features include

Wright, Mickey

2004-09-01T19:42:00.000-07:00

Wright had begun playing golf by age 12. In 1952 she won the U.S. Golfing Association junior girls' championship. She attended Stanford University for one year before deciding to devote full time to golf. She was the 1954 World Amateur champion and also was

Interior Design, Kinds of interiors

2004-08-31T13:44:00.000-07:00

Although the foregoing sections have mentioned different kinds of interiors, in reference to both aesthetic and physical components of design, there has been no specific discussion of different design considerations for varying interiors. The aesthetic criteria suggested in earlier sections are subject to considerable variation, depending on the kind

Alla Rakha Khan

2004-08-29T13:40:00.000-07:00

Indian musician (b. April 29, 1919, Phagwal, Jammu province, India—d. Feb. 3, 2000, Mumbai [Bombay], India), was a maestro of the tabla, small drums used in classical Indian music, and was the first tabla player to give solo concerts. Alla Rakha, who was awarded the honorific ustad (“master”), supplemented his virtuoso classical performances with occasional work in jazz, on the radio, and as music director

Bar Code

2004-08-27T09:12:00.000-07:00

A printed series of parallel bars or lines of varying width that is used for entering data into a computer system. The bars are typically black on a white background, and their width and quantity vary according to application. The bars are used to represent the binary digits 0 and 1, sequences of which in turn can represent numbers from 0 to 9 and be processed by a digital computer.

Pacific Ocean, Relief

2004-08-24T04:33:00.000-07:00

The Pacific basin may conveniently be divided into three major physiographic regions: the eastern, western, and central Pacific regions.

Idemitsu Kosan Co., Ltd.

2004-08-23T00:28:00.000-07:00

The company as originally founded in Moji (now a part of Kita-Kyushu), Japan, by Idemitsu Sazo was a general trading company, dealing in the distribution of various goods, including such commodities as grain and such

Sino-japanese War

2004-08-21T11:08:00.000-07:00

(1937–45), conflict that broke out when China began full-scale resistance to the expansion of Japanese influence in its territory (begun in 1931). In an effort to unseat the Nationalist government of Chiang Kai-shek, the Japanese occupied large areas of eastern China in 1937–38. A stalemate then ensued, and Japanese forces were diverted to Southeast Asia and to the Pacific War against the

Thun Und Hohenstein, Friedrich, Count (graf) Von

2004-08-18T15:17:00.000-07:00

After the suppression of the 1848–49 revolutions in Germany and Austria, Thun, an astute politician, headed