DearRoot

Estate Agent London

2006-10-26T00:20:00.000-07:00

Robert Irving Burns specialise in London Commercial and Residential property services, including Estate Agent Covent Garden and Estate Agent London. Their centrally located ground floor offices, minutes from Oxford Circus offer an ideal marketing base for your property.

Kelley, Florence

2005-04-03T11:45:00.000-07:00

Kelley graduated from Cornell University in 1882. After a year spent conducting evening classes for working women in Philadelphia, she traveled to Europe, where she attended the University

Froebel, Friedrich (wilhelm August)

2005-04-03T06:56:00.000-07:00

Froebel was the fifth child in a clergyman's family. His mother died when he was only nine months old, and he was neglected as a

Islam, Sacred places and days

2005-04-02T19:40:00.000-08:00

The most sacred place for Muslims is the Ka'bah sanctuary at Mecca, the object of the annual pilgrimage. It is much more than a mosque; it is believed to be the place where the heavenly bliss and power touches the earth directly. According to Muslim tradition, the Ka'bah was built by Abraham. The Prophet's mosque in Medina is the next in sanctity. Jerusalem follows in third

Syllabic Verse

2005-04-02T01:24:00.000-08:00

In prosody, the metrical system that is most commonly used in English poetry. It is based on both the number of stresses, or accents, and the number of syllables in each line of verse. A line of iambic pentameter verse, for example, consists of five feet, each of which is an iamb (an unstressed followed by a stressed syllable). Although accentual-syllabic verse is very strictly

Ruvuma River

2005-03-31T01:31:00.000-08:00

Portuguese Rio Rovuma, perennial river rising in the Matagoro Mountains in southeastern Tanzania. Flowing eastward into the Indian Ocean at a point about 20 miles (32 km) north of Cape Delgado, the Ruvuma River forms the boundary between Tanzania and Mozambique for a length of 400 miles (650 km) from the coast and has a total length of about 475 miles (760 km). Its chief tributaries are the Lugenda, Lucheringo, Likonde,

Mindanao

2005-03-30T02:20:00.000-08:00

Powhatan

2005-03-29T03:39:00.000-08:00

Confederacy of at least 30 Algonkian-speaking North American Indian tribes that once occupied most of what is now tidewater Virginia, the eastern shore of the Chesapeake Bay, and possibly southern Maryland. The confederacy had been formed by and named for a powerful chief, Powhatan, shortly before the colonial settlement of Jamestown in 1607. The tribes of the confederacy

Gambling

2005-03-26T02:56:00.000-08:00

Gambling games may vary in complexity from betting on the outcome of the toss of a coin, in which the

Ikeya-seki, Comet

2005-03-26T02:31:00.000-08:00

One of a group of Sun-grazing comets having similar orbits and including the great comet known as 1882 II. Discovered Sept. 18, 1965, by two Japanese amateur astronomers, Ikeya Kaoru and Seki Tsutomu, Ikeya-Seki made its closest approach to the Sun (470,000 kilometres, or about 290,000 miles; less than the Sun's radius) on Oct. 21, 1965. The comet was then bright enough to be seen with the naked eye in daylight. Like

Xavier, Saint Francis

2005-03-24T11:18:00.000-08:00

James Brodrick, Saint Francis Xavier, 1506–1552 (1952), a standard biography in English; Georg Schurhammer, Franz Xaver: Sein Leben und seine Zeit (1955–71; Francis Xavier: His Life and Times, 1973), the definitive biography.

O'flaherty, Liam

2005-03-24T07:20:00.000-08:00

O'Flaherty abandoned his training

Wolf, Rudolf

2005-03-23T04:19:00.000-08:00

Wolf studied at the universities of Zürich, Vienna, and Berlin and in 1839 went to the University of Bern as a teacher of mathematics and physics; he became professor of astronomy there in 1844. In 1855 he accepted a professorship of astronomy at both the University of Zürich and the Federal

Anne Of Brittany

2005-03-23T03:40:00.000-08:00

Daughter of Duke Francis II of Brittany and Margaret of Foix, Anne succeeded to her father's duchy on Sept. 9, 1488. The future of the duchy depended on her marriage. In desperation Anne allied herself with

San Bernardino Pass

2005-03-21T00:05:00.000-08:00

German Sankt Bernhardinpass, Italian Passo Di San Bernardino, mountain pass (6,775 ft [2,065 m]), in the Lepontine Alps of Graubünden canton, southeastern Switzerland. Although the pass was not mentioned until 941, it is believed to have been in use since prehistoric times. The road over the pass connects the villages of Splügen and Hinterrhein in the Hinterrhein River Valley to the north with the towns of Mesocco and Bellinzona in the Moesa River

Gates, Henry Louis, Jr.

2005-03-20T18:06:00.000-08:00

Gates's father,

Devadasi

2005-03-19T04:13:00.000-08:00

The caste appears to date from the 9th and 10th centuries, the great period of temple building in South India. The women attended the god—fanned the icon, honoured it with lights, and sang and

Great Bahama Canyon

2005-03-18T22:42:00.000-08:00

Submarine canyon in the Atlantic Ocean off the Bahamas, one of the greatest yet discovered. It lies northeast of the Great Bahama Bank, between Great Abaco and Eleuthera islands. Two main branches, the Tongue of the Ocean and Northwest Providence, merge to form the canyon itself. The vertical rock walls of the Great Bahama Canyon rise 14,060 feet (4,285 m) from the canyon floor to the

Gaddi, Agnolo

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

In 1369 he was employed in Rome as an assistant to his brother Giovanni, a minor painter, in the execution of frescoes for

Novikov, Nikolay Ivanovich

2005-03-17T11:13:00.000-08:00

Russian writer, philanthropist, and Freemason whose activities were intended to raise the educational and cultural level of the Russian people and included the production of social satires as well as the founding of schools and libraries. Influenced by Freemasonry, Novikov converted his

Murcia

2005-03-16T20:48:00.000-08:00

Independent Muslim (Moorish) kingdom centred on the city of Murcia (Arabic: Mursiyah), Spain. It came into being on two occasions: first in the 11th century, following the disintegration of the Spanish Umayyad caliphate; and again in the 12th century, as part of the Spanish Muslim reaction against the rule of the North African Almoravids. The kingdom's first ruler, 'Abd ar-Rahman

Shibusawa Eiichi, Shishaku

2005-03-16T07:06:00.000-08:00

Although Shibusawa's

Fen River

2005-03-15T04:24:00.000-08:00

The Fen River and its tributaries

Rajasthan, Education and welfare

2005-03-14T18:24:00.000-08:00

There are a number of educational establishments in Rajasthan, including state-run universities at Jaipur, Udaipur, Jodhpur, and Ajmer; the Open University at Kota; and the Birla Institute of Technology and Science at Pilani. There are several state hospitals and dispensaries. There also are many Ayurvedic, Unani (a medicinal system using prescribed herbs and shrubs), and

Capricornus

2005-03-14T11:16:00.000-08:00

In astrology, Capricornus (also Capricorn) is the 10th sign of the zodiac, considered as

Amorphous Solid

2005-03-13T11:09:00.000-08:00

One of the most important glass formers is silica (SiO2). Pure crystalline silica melts at 1,710° C. In pure form, silica glass exhibits such properties

Music, African

2005-03-12T09:08:00.000-08:00

It is widely acknowledged that African music has undergone frequent and decisive changes throughout the centuries. What is termed traditional music today is probably very different from African music in former times. Nor has African music in the past been rigidly linked to specific ethnic groups. The individual musician, his style and creativity, have always

Palau, Relief and drainage

2005-03-12T06:50:00.000-08:00

All but six of Palau's islands lie within an expansive lagoon, enclosed by the barrier reef, that stretches northeast to southwest for almost 70 miles (113 km). Babelthuap, the largest island (153 square miles [396 square km]), is volcanic, mainly andesite, and is bounded by thick mangrove forests broken occasionally by sandy beaches on the east coast. Its highest point, Rois Ngerekelehuus,

Llano Estacado

2005-03-11T17:36:00.000-08:00

Also called Staked Plains, portion of the High Plains of the United States, along the Texas–New Mexico border. It covers an area of about 30,000 square miles (78,000 square km) and is bounded by the Canadian River valley (north), the “break of the plains” (east), the Edwards Plateau (south), and the Mescalero Ridge overlooking the Pecos River (west). Strikingly level in appearance and averaging 3,000–4,000 feet (900–1,200 m) above sea level, the

Moivre, Abraham De

2005-03-11T16:29:00.000-08:00

A French Huguenot, de Moivre was jailed as a Protestant upon the revocation of the Edict of Nantes in 1685. When he was released shortly thereafter, he fled to England. In London he became a close friend of Sir Isaac Newton and the astronomer

Hystero-epilepsy

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

Hysterical seizures that resemble epilepsy and, in diagnosis, must be distinguished from it. In hystero-epilepsy the reflexes and responses to stimulation in the part of the body affected are normal, and the electroencephalogram shows no significant abnormality in the brain waves. Usually the person affected can be roused by painful stimuli and is never completely

O'brien, Lawrence (francis, Jr.)

2005-03-09T18:58:00.000-08:00

O'Brien received a bachelor of law degree from Northeastern University, Boston (1942). A brilliant political strategist, he managed a victorious (1948) congressional campaign for his boyhood friend Foster Furcolo and then John F. Kennedy's 1952 and 1958 U.S. Senate

Peck, Gregory

2005-03-09T04:53:00.000-08:00

A pharmacist's son, Peck attended military school and San Diego State College before enrolling as a premed student at the University of California at Berkeley. There he developed a taste for

San Andreas Fault

2005-03-08T09:29:00.000-08:00

Major fracture of the Earth's crust in extreme western North America. The fault trends northwestward for more than 800 miles (1,300 km) from the northern end of the Gulf of California through western California, U.S., passing seaward into the Pacific Ocean in the vicinity of San Francisco. Tectonic movement along the fault has been associated with occasional large earthquakes

Henry I

2005-03-07T18:35:00.000-08:00

The son of Otto the Illustrious, the Liudolfing duke of Saxony, Henry became duke at his

Mu'izz, Al-

2005-03-06T05:43:00.000-08:00

He was about 22 years of age when he succeeded his father, al-Mansur, in 953 with the title of al-Mu'izz. His authority was acknowledged over the greater part of the region now comprising Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia, and he soon took the island

Brabant

2005-03-06T05:14:00.000-08:00

The remnant of the duchy of Lower Lorraine was

Refrigeration

2005-03-05T22:19:00.000-08:00

In the industrialized nations and affluent regions in the developing world, refrigeration is chiefly used to store foodstuffs at low temperatures, thus inhibiting the destructive action of bacteria, yeast, and mold. Many perishable products can

Kerang

2005-03-04T23:47:00.000-08:00

Kerang is now on the rail line to Melbourne, 150 miles (240 km) southeast, and is the centre of an area of intensive irrigation

Nagercoil

2005-03-04T15:53:00.000-08:00

City, southernmost Tamil Nadu state, southern India. Nagercoil lies west of the Aramboli Gap in the Western Ghats. It controls the major routes between Madras and Trivandrum and is a commercial centre for a rich agricultural area. Its name, meaning “snake temple,” indicates the early significance of the town's Saiva temple. Although historically a part of the Hindu kingdom

China, The dynasty's founder

2005-03-03T10:51:00.000-08:00

Chu Yüan-chang, founder of the new dynasty, came from a family of physiognomists from K'ai-feng who in Yüan times had deteriorated into itinerant tenant farmers in northern Anhwei Province. Orphaned by famine and plague in 1344, young Chu was taken into a small Buddhist monastery near Feng-yang city as a lay novice. For more than three years he wandered as a mendicant through

Quasicrystal, Quasiperiodicity

2005-03-02T17:05:00.000-08:00

Dov Levine and Paul Steinhardt, physicists at the University of Pennsylvania, proposed a resolution of this apparent conflict. They suggested that the translational order of atoms in quasicrystalline alloys might be quasiperiodic rather than periodic. Quasiperiodic patterns share certain characteristics with periodic patterns. In particular, both are

Daddi, Bernardo

2005-03-02T04:33:00.000-08:00

Early Italian Renaissance painter who was a pupil of Giotto and was influenced by Lorenzetti. Daddi's efforts to fuse the plastic qualities of Giotto's art with some aspects of Sienese art came to represent the dominant style of painting directly after Giotto. Daddi's work, from the period 1328–48, ranges from Madonna images in large church altarpieces

Extracellular Fluid

2005-03-01T18:50:00.000-08:00

In biology, body fluid that is not contained in cells. It is found in blood, in lymph, in body cavities lined with serous (moisture-exuding) membrane, in the cavities and channels of the brain and spinal cord, and in muscular and other body tissues. It differs from intracellular fluid (fluid within the cells) in that it generally has a high concentration of sodium and low concentration

Chanson De Roland, La

2005-02-28T17:56:00.000-08:00

English The Song of Roland Old French epic poem that is probably the earliest (c. 1100) and certainly the masterpiece of chanson de geste (q.v.). The poem's probable author was a Norman poet, Turold, whose name is introduced in the last line of the poem. The song deals with the historical Battle of Roncesvalles (Roncevaux) in 778. Though the encounter was actually an insignificant skirmish against the Basques,

Xiangkhoang

2005-02-28T00:34:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Xieng Khouang, town, north-central Laos. Xiangkhoang lies just south of the Plain of Jarres and is situated in the Xiangkhoang Plateau. Corn (maize) and rice are raised by valley Lao north of Xiangkhoang and by Lao-Theung (Mon-Khmer) and Tai Neua groups in scattered upland areas to the north and east of the town; the Hmong (Miao, or Meo), a highland minority, have traditionally grown opium poppies

Sunbury

2005-02-27T04:38:00.000-08:00

Town, south-central Victoria, Australia, on the road and rail route between Bendigo and the state capital, Melbourne, 24 miles (39 km) to the southeast. The Aboriginal name for the area was Koora Kooracup, but, when a gold rush to Bendigo began in 1851, a hotel (built on Jacksons Creek to house travelers to the goldfield) was named Sunbury, after Sunbury, Middlesex, England; the town took

Arts, Islamic, Early Islamic literature

2005-02-26T21:47:00.000-08:00

With the coming of Islam the attitude of the Arabs toward poetry seems to have changed. The new Muslims, despite their long-standing admiration for powerful language, often shunned poetry as reminiscent of pagan ideals now overthrown. For the Qur'an, in surah 26:225 ff., condemned the poets “who err in every valley, and say what they do not do. Only the perverse follow them!” The Qur'an,

Argentina, The Dirty War and the Falklands dispute

2005-02-26T06:51:00.000-08:00

For vivid accounts of the Dirty War, see Andrew Graham-Yooll, A State of Fear: Memories of Argentina's Nightmare (1986); and Jacobo Timerman, Prisoner Without a Name, Cell Without a Number (1981, reprinted 1993; originally published in Spanish, 1981). Works on the Falkland Islands dispute and the war of 1982 include Raphael Perl, The Falkland Islands Dispute in International Law and Politics: A Documentary Sourcebook (1983); Alejandro Dabat and Luis Lorenzano, Argentina, the Malvinas, and the End of Military Rule (1984; originally published in Spanish, 1982); and Max Hastings and Simon Jenkins, The Battle for the Falklands (1983).

Robbe-grillet, Alain

2005-02-25T00:02:00.000-08:00

Trained as a statistician and agronomist, he claimed to write novels for his time, especially attentive “to the ties that exist between objects, gestures, and situations, avoiding

Karakorum

2005-02-24T20:34:00.000-08:00

The site of Karakorum may have been first settled about 750. In 1220 Genghis Khan, the great Mongol conqueror, established his headquarters there and used it as a base for his invasion of China. In 1267 the capital was moved to Khanbaliq (modern Peking) by Kublai Khan, greatest of

Ibn Kathir

2005-02-24T00:01:00.000-08:00

Ibn Kathir was educated in Damascus and upon completion of his studies obtained his first official appointment in 1341, when he joined an inquisitorial commission formed to determine

Saudi Arabia, Settlement patterns

2005-02-23T04:49:00.000-08:00

Four traditional regions stand out—the Hejaz, Asir, Najd, and Al-Hasa (transliterated more precisely as Al-Hijaz, 'Asir, Najd, and Al-Ahsa'). The Hejaz, in the northwest, contains the two holiest cities of Islam, Mecca and Medina, as well as the kingdom's primary port and diplomatic centre, Jiddah. Asir is the highland region south of the Hejaz; its capital, Abha, lies at an elevation of about

Spontaneous Combustion

2005-02-22T04:39:00.000-08:00

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

Earth, The introduction of triangulation

2005-02-22T02:40:00.000-08:00

A new era in determining the size of the Earth began through the introduction of triangulation. The idea of triangulation was apparently conceived by the Danish astronomer Tycho Brahe before the end of the 16th century, but it was developed as a science by a contemporary Dutch mathematician, Willebrord van Roijen Snell. Snell used a chain of 33 triangles to determine

Gafencu, Grigore

2005-02-21T15:16:00.000-08:00

Educated at Geneva and Paris, Gafencu entered journalism after World War I. In 1924 he became editor and publisher of Argus, a leading economic periodical, and during the 1930s founded Timpul, which soon became

Chiavari

2005-02-20T18:51:00.000-08:00

Town, Genova provincia, Liguria regione, northwestern Italy. It lies on the Riviera di Levante at the mouth of the Entella River, east of Genoa. The town grew up on the traces of a Roman camp on the Via Aurelia. A pre-Roman necropolis dating from the 8th to 7th century BC has been uncovered there. The old town contains numerous arcades and buildings from the 13th century, including

Indo-iranian Languages

2005-02-20T02:59:00.000-08:00

Group of languages constituting the easternmost major branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Indo-Aryan (Indic) languages are spoken by some 800 million persons in India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bangladesh, and other areas of the Himalayan region. In addition, languages of the Indo-Aryan group are spoken by about 5,000,000 people in Europe, Africa, the Americas, and Oceania:

Antigen

2005-02-19T13:56:00.000-08:00

Foreign substance that, when introduced into the body, is capable of stimulating an immune response, specifically activating lymphocytes, which are the body's infection-fighting white blood cells. Virtually any large foreign molecule can act as an antigen, including those contained in bacteria, viruses, protozoa, helminths, foods, snake venoms, egg white, serum components,

North Germanic Languages, Norwegian

2005-02-18T05:13:00.000-08:00

Old Norwegian writing traditions gradually died out in the 15th century after the union of Norway with Denmark and the removal of the central government to Copenhagen. After independence was achieved in 1814, the linguistic union with Danish persisted, but educational problems due to the linguistic distance between Danish and spoken Norwegian and socio-political

Dürer, Albrecht

2005-02-18T03:09:00.000-08:00

Painter and printmaker generally regarded as the greatest German Renaissance artist. His vast body of work includes altarpieces and religious works (see photograph), numerous portraits and self-portraits (see photograph, and copper engravings. His woodcuts, such as the Apocalypse

Ocean, Structure and composition

2005-02-17T01:50:00.000-08:00

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

Yun, Isang

2005-02-16T20:17:00.000-08:00

Yun began composing at the age of 14 and studied music in Japan in Osaka and Tokyo. He returned to Korea, where he was active in the resistance movement against the Japanese during World War

France, Flag Of

2005-02-16T05:55:00.000-08:00

Under the ancien régime, France had a great number of flags, and many of its military and naval flags were elaborate and subject to artistic variations. The royal coat of arms, a blue shield with three golden fleurs-de-lis, was the basis for the state flag. After the Bourbons came to power, this shield was generally displayed against a background of the Bourbon dynastic

Mabini, Apolinario

2005-02-15T03:18:00.000-08:00

Born into a peasant family, Mabini studied at San Juan de Letran College in Manila and won a law degree from the University of Santo Tomás in 1894. In an insurrection organized in August 1896 by nationalists, he joined the

Daffodil

2005-02-14T20:23:00.000-08:00

Also called common daffodil , or trumpet narcissus (species Narcissus pseudonarcissus) bulb-forming flowering plant of the genus Narcissus (q.v.), native to northern Europe and widely cultivated there and in North America. The daffodil grows to about 16 inches (41 cm) in height and has five or six leaves that grow from the bulb and are about 12 inches (30 cm) long. The stem bears one large yellow blossom with a corolla deeply cleft into six lobes and a central bell-shaped

China, Local government

2005-02-13T22:48:00.000-08:00

The Ming state system was built upon a foundation of institutions inherited from the T'ang and Sung dynasties and modified by the intervening dynasties of conquest from the north, especially the Yüan. The distinctive new patterns of social and administrative organization that emerged in Ming times persisted, in their essential features, through the Ch'ing dynasty

Thompson, John Griggs

2005-02-13T01:43:00.000-08:00

Thompson earned a B.A. from Yale University in 1955 and a Ph.D. from the University of Chicago in 1959. After a year at Harvard University (1961–62), he returned to the University of Chicago (1962–68), and he subsequently moved to Churchill College, Cambridge,

China, The North China Plain

2005-02-12T23:08:00.000-08:00

Comparable in size to the Manchurian Plain, most of this plain lies at heights below 150 feet, and the relief is monotonously flat. It was formed by enormous sedimentary deposits brought down by the Huang Ho and Huai River from the Loess Plateau; the Quaternary deposits alone (i.e., those from 10,000 to 2,500,000 years old) reach thicknesses of 2,500 to 3,000 feet. The river channels, which are higher than

Macdonnell, Sorley Boy

2005-02-11T16:40:00.000-08:00

From an ancestor who had married Margaret Bisset, heiress of the district on the Antrim coast known as the Glynns (or Glens), MacDonnell inherited a claim to

Integraph

2005-02-10T04:41:00.000-08:00

Mathematical instrument for plotting the integral of a graphically defined function. Two such instruments were invented independently about 1880 by the British physicist Sir Charles Vernon Boys and the Lithuanian mathematician Bruno Abdank Abakanowicz and were later modified and improved by others. The integraph draws the graph of the integral as the user traces

Masaya

2005-02-10T01:16:00.000-08:00

City, southwestern Nicaragua, at the eastern foot of Masaya Volcano, just east of the small Lake Masaya in the rift valley between Lakes Nicaragua and Managua. Masaya serves as a commercial and manufacturing centre for the rich agricultural hinterland. The large Indian population is known for its handicraft industries and festivals; other manufactures include

Tarhun

2005-02-09T02:22:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Taru, Tarhu, Tarhunt, Tarhunna, or Tarhuis, ancient Anatolian weather god. His name appears in Hittite and Assyrian records (c. 1400–612 BC) and later as an element in Hellenistic personal names, primarily from Cilicia. Tarhunt was the Luwian form and Tarhun (Tarhunna) probably the Hittite, from the common root tarh-, “to conquer.” The weather god was one of the supreme deities of the Hittite pantheon and was regarded as the embodiment

Tagaytay

2005-02-09T00:15:00.000-08:00

City, southwestern Luzon, Philippines. It is located on Tagaytay Ridge at about 2,000 feet (600 m) above sea level, on the northern flank of Mount Taal. The city is a weekend retreat, popular for its cool climate and outstanding view to the south of Taal Lake, with an active volcano on an island. Market gardening for the Manila area to the north is a local activity. Inc. city, 1938. Pop. (1990 prelim.)

Interior Design, Space planning

2005-02-08T16:37:00.000-08:00

Although many designers are engaged in residential interior design, there has been a marked shift away from that field since 1950, and more designers than ever work in the design of public, institutional, and commercial spaces. Space planning for business firms, governmental agencies, and institutions is a significant aspect of office design and is concerned primarily

Social Insurance

2005-02-07T13:04:00.000-08:00

The first compulsory social insurance programs on

Venice Majolica

2005-02-06T20:40:00.000-08:00

Majolica also spelled Maiolica, tin-glazed earthenware made at Venice that reached its stylistic zenith in the 16th century. The workshops of Maestro Ludovico (fl. 1540–45), Domenigo da Venezia (fl. 1550–60), and Jacomo da Pesaro (fl. 1543) produced outstanding ware of this type. Venetian potters excelled in painting arrangements of decorative trophies, globes, musical instruments, and other apparatus, executed in a brilliant

Managua

2005-02-06T00:32:00.000-08:00

City, capital of Nicaragua, lying amid small crater lakes on the southern shore of Lake Managua. One of Central America's warmest capitals, the city is only 163 feet (50 m) above sea level. Throughout the Spanish colonial period, Managua was recognized only as an Indian town, outranked by the relatively nearby Spanish cities of León and Granada. Its choice as a permanent capital

Aerosol

2005-02-05T18:26:00.000-08:00

True

Furniture, Modern

2005-02-04T07:22:00.000-08:00

After World War I, the Bauhaus school in Germany became a creative centre for entirely revolutionary thinking, resulting, for example, in tubular steel chairs designed by the architects Marcel Breuer, Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, and others. During World War II, the aircraft industry accelerated the development of laminated wood and molded plastic furniture. The dominant

Water Scavenger Beetle

2005-02-04T06:11:00.000-08:00

Any of the approximately 2,000 species of the predominately aquatic insect family Hydrophilidae (order Coleoptera). These beetles are found swimming in marshy freshwater ponds throughout the world, especially in warm regions. Water scavenger beetles have smooth, oval, dark-brown or black bodies and short, hairy, clubbed antennae. They range in length from several to

John Henry

2005-02-03T23:58:00.000-08:00

Some factual basis exists for the ballad

Price, George

2005-02-03T18:02:00.000-08:00

As a young man Price did odd jobs in printing offices and did freelance illustrations. During the 1920s he was active in advertising art. Much of the humour in his cartoons lay

Lenz's Law

2005-02-03T13:14:00.000-08:00

Thrusting a pole of a permanent bar magnet through a coil of wire, for example, induces an electric current in the coil; the current in turn sets

Masaka

2005-02-01T23:16:00.000-08:00

Town, southern Uganda, situated about 80 miles (130 km) southwest of Kampala (the national capital), at an elevation of 4,300 feet (1,310 m). Roads connect it with Mbirizi, Lyantonde, and Mbarara. It is a market town and important commercial centre for the surrounding rich coffee-growing area. Its industries produce processed meat and fish, beverages, footwear, furniture, bakery products, glass,

Sudan, The, Muslim peoples

2005-02-01T22:02:00.000-08:00

A major cleavage exists between the northern and the southern parts of the country. The north is dominated by Muslims, most of whom speak Arabic and identify themselves as “Arabs,” while the people of the south are “Africans” (i.e., blacks) who for the most part follow traditional African religions, though there are also some Christians among them. Those who identify themselves

Finland, Ethnic and linguistic composition

2005-02-01T10:54:00.000-08:00

It appears that the ancestors of the Sami were present in Finland by about 7000 BC. As other groups began to enter the area some 3,000 years later, the proto-Sami probably retreated northward. Archaeological remains suggest that this second wave of settlers came from or had contact with what was to become Russia and also Scandinavia and central Europe. Peoples of Uralic (specifically

Kymi

2005-01-30T11:55:00.000-08:00

In full Kymen Lääni, Swedish Kymmene Län, lääni (province), southeastern Finland, bounded by the Gulf of Finland (south) and by Russia (east). The province has a land area of 4,145 square miles (10,736 square km) and includes the southern section of the Saimaa lake system, which is drained by the Kymijoki and Vuoksi rivers. Kymijoki valley industries include timber processing and wood products, iron and steel, textile milling,

Herat School

2005-01-29T16:33:00.000-08:00

15th-century style of miniature painting that flourished in Herat, western Afghanistan, under the patronage of the Timurids. Shah Rokh, the son of the Islamic conqueror Timur (Tamerlane), founded the school, but it was his son Baysunqur Mirza (died 1433) who developed it into an important centre of painting, bringing to his court artists from all over Persia and Afghanistan.

Vakhtangov, Yevgeny Bagrationovich

2005-01-29T03:17:00.000-08:00

A pupil of Konstantin Stanislavsky, Vakhtangov succeeded by the early 1920s in reconciling the naturalistic acting techniques of his master with the bold experiments of Vsevolod Y. Meyerhold. His departure from naturalism in the direction of greater theatricality

Medicine, Public health practice

2005-01-27T10:15:00.000-08:00

The physician working in the field of public health is mainly concerned with the environmental causes of ill health and in their prevention. Bad drainage, polluted water and atmosphere, noise and smells, infected food, bad housing, and poverty in general are all his special concern. Perhaps the most descriptive title he can be given is that of community physician.

Le Poulain, Jean

2005-01-27T03:42:00.000-08:00

Le Poulain spent his childhood in Indochina, where his father was a colonial administrator, and returned to France at the age of 19. He studied in small conservatories before being admitted to the

Porch

2005-01-26T15:35:00.000-08:00

There is little material evidence of the existence of the porch before the period of Classical antiquity, although Egyptian

Alcmaeon

2005-01-26T08:58:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Alcmeon, in Greek legend, the son of the seer Amphiaraus and his wife Eriphyle. When Amphiaraus set out with the expedition of the Seven Against Thebes, which he knew would be fatal to him, he commanded his sons to avenge his death by slaying Eriphyle (who had been bribed by Polyneices with the necklace of Harmonia to persuade her husband to fight) and by undertaking a second expedition

Huysum, Jan Van

2005-01-25T22:52:00.000-08:00

He was the eldest son of Justus van Huysum, a versatile painter whose subjects included landscapes, seascapes, battle scenes, portraits, and flowers. Jan van Huysum studied under his father but soon surpassed him in skill. He specialized in exquisitely detailed, dramatically

Porres, Saint Martín De

2005-01-25T20:15:00.000-08:00

Born of a liaison between a Spanish grandee and a free black woman, Martín de Porres became a Dominican oblate, or lay monastic, in 1601. Although it was not customary then to receive a mulatto into a religious order in Peru, Martín was considered an exception and became a Dominican lay

Galiwinku

2005-01-24T15:25:00.000-08:00

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

Ca River

2005-01-24T05:32:00.000-08:00

Vietnamese Song Ca, also called Lam Giang, river rising in the Loi Mountains of Laos and flowing southeastward through northern Vietnam to enter the Gulf of Tonkin near the city of Vinh after a course of 380 miles (612 km). The coastal riverine lowlands have relief features similar to those of the Red River; wide, level stretches of alluvium predominate with small undulation. There is a high population density in the

Janácek, Leo

2005-01-23T16:33:00.000-08:00

Janácek was a choirboy at Brno and studied at the Prague, Leipzig, and Vienna conservatories. In 1881 he founded a college of organists at Brno, which he directed until 1920. He directed the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra from 1881 to 1888 and in

Macarius Magnes

2005-01-23T09:53:00.000-08:00

Of Macarius' origin and career, nothing is known except that he is probably identified with the bishop of Magnesia, later Manisa, Tur., who, at the Synod of the