SlowShoe

Pietas

2005-04-04T09:22:00.000-07:00

In Roman religion, personification of a respectful and faithful attachment to gods, country, and relatives, especially parents. Pietas had a temple at Rome, dedicated in 181 BC, and was often represented on coins as a female figure carrying a palm branch and a sceptre or as a matron casting incense upon an altar, sometimes accompanied by a stork, the symbol of filial piety.

Ghassulian Culture

2005-04-03T15:30:00.000-07:00

Archaeological stage dating to the Middle Chalcolithic Period in southern Palestine (c. 3800–c. 3350 BC). Its type-site, Tulaylat al-Ghassul, is located in the Jordan Valley near the Dead Sea in modern Jordan and was excavated (1929–38) by the Jesuits. The Ghassulian stage was characterized by small settlements of farming peoples, immigrants from the north, who built mud-brick, trapezoid-shaped

Ukemochi No Kami

2005-04-01T17:43:00.000-08:00

According to the legend recounted in the Nihon shoki (“Chronicles of

Monsignor

2005-03-31T20:34:00.000-08:00

Italian Monsignore, a title of honour in the Roman Catholic Church, borne by persons of ecclesiastic rank and implying a distinction bestowed by the pope, either in conjunction with an office or merely titular. All those who bear the title of monsignor belong to the “papal family” and are entitled to be present in the Cappella Pontificia (when the pope celebrates solemn mass) and to participate

Gage, Frances Dana Barker

2005-03-29T11:17:00.000-08:00

Gage began her public involvement in the three prominent reform causes of the time—the abolition of slavery, temperance, and women's rights—by contributing letters to newspapers and speaking

Paleogene Period

2005-03-28T13:46:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Palaeogene Period older of the two stratigraphic divisions of the Cenozoic Era (the Cenozoic Era began about 66.4 million years ago and extends to the present). The Paleogene, whose beginning coincides with that of the Cenozoic Era, ended 23.7 million years ago and was followed by the Neogene Period. The Paleogene, which means “ancient-born,” includes the Paleocene (Palaeocene), Eocene, and Oligocene

Sea Lily

2005-03-27T23:13:00.000-08:00

Sea lilies occur chiefly in deep waters, where they feed

Nagasaki

2005-03-26T22:33:00.000-08:00

Capital and largest city, Nagasaki ken (prefecture), western Kyushu, Japan, at the mouth of the Urakami-gawa (Urakami River) where it empties into Nagasaki-ko (Nagasaki Harbour). The harbour is composed of a narrow, deep-cut bay, formed at the meeting point of Nomo-saki (Cape Nomo; south) and Nishisonoki-hanto (Nishisonoki Peninsula; northwest). The city is shaped like an amphitheatre,

Karak, Al-

2005-03-25T15:38:00.000-08:00

The siege of the ancient

Zanjan

2005-03-24T13:25:00.000-08:00

Geographic region of northwestern Iran. It lies west of Tehran and is bordered on the northwest by Azerbaijan and on the southwest by Kordestan. The region constitutes one of the uplands that frame central Iran and has an average elevation of 8,200 feet (2,500 m). It forms part of the Caspian Sea basin. The Zanjan River is the only major river in the region. Agriculture is the principal

Follen, Karl

2005-03-23T16:13:00.000-08:00

Graduated from the University of Giessen as a doctor of civil and canonical law (1818), Follen taught there and in the

Christian And Missionary Alliance

2005-03-22T22:36:00.000-08:00

Missionary and evangelistic movement that developed from the work of Albert B. Simpson (d. 1919), a Presbyterian minister who left that church to become an independent evangelist in New York City. In 1887 Simpson and others organized two societies, one for home and one for foreign missions. The two societies were merged into the Christian and Missionary Alliance in 1897. The organization

Devadatta

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

Devadatta is said to have joined the sangha along with Ananda, who was possibly his brother, in the 20th year of Gautama's ministry. Fifteen years later, strengthened by his friendship with the Crown Prince

Lijia

2005-03-20T01:59:00.000-08:00

Wade-Giles li-chia system of social organization in Ming-dynasty China. See pao-chia.

Metal Cut

2005-03-19T23:56:00.000-08:00

The English poet and artist William Blake (1757–1827) experimented with metal cuts, but the technique's greatest exponent was the Mexican

Francesca Da Rimini

2005-03-19T15:17:00.000-08:00

Dante was the first to make a literary

China, Invasion of the Sung

2005-03-18T20:19:00.000-08:00

During the next decades there was an uneasy coexistence between the Mongols in northern China and the Sung state in the south. The Mongols resumed their advance in 1250 under the grand khan Möngke and his brother Kublai Khan—grandsons of Genghis Khan. Their armies outflanked the main Sung defenses on the Yangtze River and penetrated deeply into southwestern China,

Falange

2005-03-17T17:47:00.000-08:00

In full Falange Española (Spanish: “ Spanish Phalanx”), or (1937–77) Falange Española Tradicionalista Y De Las Juntas De Ofensiva Nacional-sindicalista (“Traditionalist Spanish Phalanx of the Juntas of the National Syndicalist Offensive”), extreme nationalist political group founded in Spain in 1933 by José Antonio Primo de Rivera, son of the former dictator Miguel Primo de Rivera. Influenced by Italian fascism, the Falange joined forces (February 1934) with a like-minded group, Juntas de Ofensiva Nacional Sindicalista, and

Gillars, Mildred

2005-03-17T14:46:00.000-08:00

Gillars was an aspiring actress who played minor parts in some American theatrical touring companies. She attended Ohio Wesleyan University but left in 1922. In 1929 she traveled to North Africa, with the intention of going on to Europe. In 1934 she

Amiot, Jean-joseph-marie

2005-03-16T17:43:00.000-08:00

Amiot entered the Society of Jesus in 1737 and was sent as a missionary to China in 1750. He soon won the confidence of the emperor Qianlong and spent the remainder of his life at Beijing. Among his achievements was the compilation

Cheetah

2005-03-15T03:36:00.000-08:00

Also called hunting leopard (Acinonyx jubatus) slender, long-legged cat, of the family Felidae, that lives on the open plains of southern, central, and eastern Africa and in the Middle East, where it is all but extinct. The cheetah is the fastest land animal in the world over short distances, capable of attaining speeds as great as 100 km (60 miles) per hour. As its long legs

Kwangju

2005-03-14T21:01:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Gwangju, city and provincial capital, South Cholla do (province), southwestern South Korea. It has the status of a special city (area 193 square miles [501 square km]) under the direct control of the home minister, with administrative status equal to that of a province. An old city on the edge of the mountainous area of South Cholla province, it has been a centre of trade and of local administration

Canada, Flag Of

2005-03-13T05:43:00.000-08:00

The establishment of the Canadian federation in 1867 was not accompanied by the creation of a special flag for the country. The imperial Union Jack and other British flags were considered sufficient, although a coat of arms (in the form of a heraldic shield) was granted by Queen Victoria in 1868. The Canadian shield was composed of the arms of the four original provinces—Ontario,

Ursa Major

2005-03-12T06:24:00.000-08:00

Also called The Great Bear, in astronomy, a constellation of the Northern Hemisphere, at about 10 hours 40 minutes right ascension (the coordinate on the celestial sphere analogous to longitude on the Earth) and 56° north declination (angular distance north of the celestial equator). It was referred to in the Old Testament (Job 9:9; 38:32) and mentioned by Homer in the Iliad (xviii, 487). The Greeks identified this constellation

Rupa-loka

2005-03-11T09:34:00.000-08:00

Also called Rupa-dhatu, in Buddhist thought, the world, or realm, of form. See arupa-loka.

New England Range

2005-03-11T08:48:00.000-08:00

Also called Northern Tableland, section of the Eastern Highlands, or Great Dividing Range, northeastern New South Wales, Australia. The range extends 200 mi (320 km) north from the Moonbi Range (near Tamworth) to the Queensland border and 80 mi from east to west (10–50 mi inland from the coast). It is Australia's largest plateau, having 9,000 sq mi (23,000 sq km) above an elevation of 3,000 ft (900 m). The loftiest point is at Round Mountain (5,300 ft) on the eastern

Jubayl, Al-

2005-03-10T03:13:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Jubail, also called Jubail Industrial City, port city, eastern Saudi Arabia, on the Persian Gulf north of az-Zahran, near the 'Abd al-'Aziz naval base. In the early 1970s the Saudi government chose al-Jubayl, an ancient fishing and pearling village, to be the site of a major industrial complex. Its location on the Persian Gulf would yield an ample water supply for cooling the large industrial plants and would also promote ease

Aselli, Gaspare

2005-03-09T10:45:00.000-08:00

Aselli became professor of anatomy and surgery at the University of Pavia and practiced at Milan. His discovery of the lacteals (lymph vessels that take up the end products of fat digestion from the intestine) occurred

Ebullism

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

In the atmospheric pressure at sea level (760 mm of mercury), water boils at 212° F (100° C). When the pressure on a liquid

Quintana Roo

2005-03-08T16:07:00.000-08:00

State, Yucatán Peninsula, southeastern Mexico. Situated on the eastern side of the peninsula, it is bounded by the Caribbean Sea (east), by Belize (south), and by Campeche and Yucatán (west); its northern shore is on the Yucatán Channel between the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean. Quintana Roo, with an area of 19,397 square miles (50,212 square km), is a hot, humid, and heavily forested limestone

Adamkus, Valdas

2005-03-07T23:40:00.000-08:00

During World War II Adamkus fought with Lithuanian insurrectionists against Soviet rule, published an underground newspaper during the Nazi occupation, and then resumed the fight against the returning Soviet army. In 1944 he fled to Germany, where he attended the University of

Caucasian Languages, Languages of the group

2005-03-06T04:41:00.000-08:00

The Kartvelian (South Caucasian or Iberian) language family comprises Georgian, Mingrelian (Megrelian), Laz (or Chan), and Svan. The speakers of these languages constitute the Georgian nation and numbered 4.2 million in the mid-1990s.

Antarctic Ocean

2005-03-06T02:40:00.000-08:00

Also called Southern Ocean, the southern portions of the Pacific, Atlantic, and Indian oceans and their tributary seas surrounding Antarctica. Unbroken by any other continental landmass, the Antarctic Ocean's narrowest constriction is the Drake Passage, 600 miles (1,000 km) wide, between South America and the tip of the Antarctic Peninsula. The structure of the ocean floor includes a continental shelf

Hugo, Victor (-marie)

2005-03-04T09:15:00.000-08:00

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

Frundsberg, Georg Von

2005-03-04T08:03:00.000-08:00

In 1499 Frundsberg took part in Maximilian's struggle against the Swiss, and, in the same year, he was among the imperial troops sent to assist Ludovico Sforza, duke of Milan,

Fairfax (of Cameron), Ferdinando Fairfax, 2nd Baron

2005-03-03T16:59:00.000-08:00

The son of the 1st Baron Fairfax, he was trained as a soldier in the Netherlands. He commanded a foot regiment in the first Bishop's War (1639) but took no part in the campaign

Japanese Literature, The novel between 1905 and 1941

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

The dominant stream in Japanese fiction since the publication of Hakai (1906; The Broken Commandment), by Shimazaki Toson, and Futon (1907; The Quilt), by Tayama Katai, has been naturalism. Although the movement was originally inspired by the works of the 19th-century French novelist Émile Zola and other European naturalists, it quickly took on a distinctively Japanese colouring,

Hailar

2005-03-03T06:05:00.000-08:00

The area was occupied by the Chinese in the 7th century AD under the early T'ang dynasty, when it was part of the Hei-shui protectorate general. Chinese occupation, however, was short-lived and never very

Aleixandre, Vicente

2005-03-01T21:41:00.000-08:00

Kessel Schwartz, Vicente Aleixandre (1970), introduces his life and writings. Santiago Daydí-Tolson (ed.), Vicente Aleixandre: A Critical Appraisal (1981), is a collection of essays that examine his work.

Poel, William

2005-02-28T18:30:00.000-08:00

Poel was reared among the Pre-Raphaelite artists, and as a boy he posed for William Holman Hunt. He early decided to go on the stage. After working for a time as an actor, stage manager, and theatre manager, he

Iron Crown Of Lombardy

2005-02-28T11:57:00.000-08:00

The Iron Crown of Lombardy is composed of a broad circle of six plates of gold joined to each other by hinges and

Mercantile Agency

2005-02-27T13:55:00.000-08:00

Specialized organization engaged in supplying information on the creditworthiness and financial strength of business firms in highly developed economies. The first such agency, the Mercantile Agency, was founded in New York City in 1841 to reduce credit losses. As businesses expanded from their local area to a national scale, many of them found it impossible to judge

Patagonia

2005-02-27T02:32:00.000-08:00

Semiarid scrub plateau that covers nearly all of the southern portion of mainland Argentina. With an area of about 260,000 square miles (673,000 square kilometres), it constitutes a vast area of steppe and desert that extends from latitude 37° to 51° S. It is bounded, approximately, by the Patagonian Andes to the west, the Colorado River to the north (except where the region extends north of

Norwegian Language

2005-02-26T20:30:00.000-08:00

Norwegian Norsk, North Germanic language of the West Scandinavian branch, existing in two distinct and rival norms—Dano-Norwegian (Bokmål, or Riksmål) and New Norwegian (Nynorsk). Dano-Norwegian stems from the written Danish introduced during the union of Denmark and Norway (1380–1814). New Norwegian was created by the language scholar Ivar Aasen during the mid-19th century, primarily from the

Bristol Bay

2005-02-25T21:10:00.000-08:00

Arm of the Bering Sea, indenting for 200 mi (320 km) the southwest coast of Alaska, U.S.; its mouth extends for 270 mi between Cape Newenham (north) and the southwest end of the Alaska Peninsula (south). Its shoreline includes the individually named bays at the mouths of the Togiak, Nushagak, Kvichak, and Ugashik rivers. The shallowness of Bristol Bay limits navigation to small salmon-fishing

Amado, Jorge

2005-02-25T09:24:00.000-08:00

Fred P. Ellison, Brazil's New Novel: Four Northeastern Masters (1954; reprinted 1979); Bobby J. Chamberlain, Jorge Amado (1990).

Euripides

2005-02-24T06:21:00.000-08:00

It is possible to reconstruct only the sketchiest biography of Euripides. His mother's name was Cleito; his father's name was Mnesarchus or Mnesarchides. One tradition states that his mother was a greengrocer who sold herbs in the marketplace. Aristophanes joked about this in comedy after comedy; but there is better indirect evidence that Euripides came of a well-off

Amado, Jorge

2005-02-23T05:48:00.000-08:00

PABA is not an essential nutrient for vertebrates,

Shih Tzu

2005-02-23T00:13:00.000-08:00

Tibetan dog breed developed from the Pekingese and the Lhasa apso. Listed in the toy group by the American Kennel Club, the Shih tzu, called in Chinese Shih-tzu kou (“lion dog”), is a long-haired, characteristically active and alert little dog standing about 10 inches (26 cm) and weighing 18 pounds (8 kg) or less. It is longer than it is tall, sturdily built and short-legged, with a short muzzle,

Aldrin, Edwin Eugene, Jr.

2005-02-22T03:55:00.000-08:00

A graduate of the U.S. Military Academy, West Point, N.Y. (1951), Aldrin became an air force pilot. He flew 66 combat missions in Korea and later served in West Germany. In 1963 he wrote a dissertation on orbital mechanics to earn his Ph.D. from the Massachusetts Institute

Ghelderode, Michel De

2005-02-21T14:59:00.000-08:00

Ghelderode was the son of Flemish parents who favoured bilingualism. His early education was cut short by

Dwight, John

2005-02-20T16:58:00.000-08:00

After taking the degree of bachelor of civil law at Christ Church, Oxford, Dwight was appointed registrar and scribe to the diocese of Chester. In 1665 he moved to Wigan and sometime between 1671 and 1674 moved to Fulham, London. In 1671 Dwight took out a patent for “transparent earthenware, commonly knowne

Xhosa

2005-02-20T03:28:00.000-08:00

In the late 18th and the 19th centuries, a series of conflicts popularly called

Mahar

2005-02-19T07:38:00.000-08:00

A caste-cluster, or group of many endogamous castes, living chiefly in Maharashtra state, India, and in adjoining states. They mostly speak Marathi, the official language of Maharashtra. In the early 1980s the Mahar community was believed to constitute about 9 percent of the total population of Maharashtra—by far the largest, most widespread, and most important of all the officially

Trichur

2005-02-19T01:02:00.000-08:00

Town, administrative headquarters of Trichur district, central Kerala state, southwestern India. The town is located 12 mi (19 km) inland on an extensive lagoon system. A commercial and cultural centre, it is considered to be the oldest town on the west coast of India; its name means “small sacred place.” Trichur is built around a hillock topped by the Vatakkunatha temple, the focus

Myanmar (burma)

2005-02-18T09:37:00.000-08:00

In late May Myanmar's military junta, the State

Computers, The Difference Engine

2005-02-16T10:19:00.000-08:00

Charles Babbage was an English mathematician and inventor: he invented the cowcatcher, reformed the British postal system, and was a pioneer in the fields of operations research and actuarial science. It was Babbage who first suggested that the weather of years past could be read from tree rings. He also had a lifelong fascination with keys, ciphers, and mechanical

Basidiomycetes

2005-02-16T09:59:00.000-08:00

A large and diverse class of fungi (division Mycota) including jelly and shelf, or bracket, fungi; mushrooms, puffballs, and stinkhorns; and the rusts and smuts. The club-shaped spore-bearing organ (basidium) usually produces four sexual spores (basidiospores). Basidia are borne on fruiting bodies (basidiocarps), which are large and conspicuous in

'amr Ibn Kulthum

2005-02-16T02:37:00.000-08:00

'Amr ibn Kulthum lived to a very advanced age, highly respected

Percé

2005-02-15T17:55:00.000-08:00

City, Gaspésie–Îles-de-la-Madeleine region, eastern Quebec province, Canada. It lies along the Gulf of St. Lawrence, at the east end of the Gaspé Peninsula. First visited in 1534 by Jacques Cartier, it has been the site of a Roman Catholic mission since 1670. Percé is now a fishing port and summer resort. Offshore, but connected by a sandbar at low tide, is famed Rocher-Percé (“Pierced

Arias Navarro, Carlos

2005-02-15T06:45:00.000-08:00

After receiving a doctorate in law, Arias Navarro began his service with the Ministry of Justice in 1929. During the Spanish Civil War (1936–39), he was imprisoned by the Republicans, a group loyal to the republic, but he was freed by Franco's forces,

Kiribati

2005-02-14T09:34:00.000-08:00

In October 2000, in anticipation of hosting the Pacific Islands Forum (formerly the South Pacific Forum), Kiribati completed construction of its new parliamentary complex. The Forum, a meeting of heads of government of 16 countries in the region, including Australia and New Zealand, adopted the Biketawa Declaration, which addressed issues of political instability in

Clouet, François

2005-02-13T13:59:00.000-08:00

The son of Jean Clouet, he was known also under his father's byname, Janet, a circumstance that created a persistent confusion between the works of these two painters. François worked with Jean possibly as early as 1536 and replaced him in 1540 as official painter

Xie He

2005-02-13T04:10:00.000-08:00

The “Six Principles” introduce Xie's Gu Huapin Lu (“Classified Record of Painters of Former Times”), which rates 27 painters in three classes of descending merit, each with three subdivisions. The “Six Principles” have inevitably

Tapestry, General works

2005-02-13T00:29:00.000-08:00

W.G. Thomson, A History of Tapestry from the Earliest Times to the Present Day, 3rd ed. rev. and ed. by F.P. Thomson and E.S. Thomson (1973), a standard work on the history of tapestry, which has been updated by F.P. Thomson, Tapestry: Mirror of History (1980); M.J. Guiffrey, E. Muntz, and A. Pinchart, Histoire generale de la tapisserie, 3 vol. (1978–85), French tapestries discussed by Guiffrey, Italian tapestries by Muntz, Flemish tapestries by Pinchart; M. Fenaille, État general des tapisseries de la manufacture des Gobelins depuis son origine jusqu'a nos jours, 1600–1900, 6 vol. (1903–23), a work of primary importance, presenting a detailed history of the Gobelins factory; J. Badin, La Manufacture de tapisseries de Beauvais, depuis ses origines jusqu'a nos jours (1909), a basic reference for the history of tapestry production at the Beauvais factory; Wandteppiche, 6 vol. (1923–34; Eng. trans. of pt. 1, Tapestries of the Lowlands, 1924), a general worldwide treatment of tapestry, with numerous black and white illustrations, although many of the European medieval attributions have been questioned or rejected; G.L. Hunter, The Practical Book of Tapestries (1925), precise and useful descriptions, with numerous reproductions; C.G. Janneau, Évolution de la tapisserie (1947), illustrations and technical information on collections of European tapestries, some of which have been subsequently disbanded with works relocated; D. Heinz, Europäische Wandteppiche, vol. 1, Von den Anfängen der Bildwirkerei bis zum Ende des 16. Jahrhunderts (1963), a thorough treatment of tapestry up to the end of the 16th century, with a typological index, an extensive bibliography, and numerous illustrations; R.A. Weigert, La Tapisserie et le tapis en France (1964), a scholarly discussion of the history of French tapestry; P. Verlet et al., La Tapisserie: histoire et technique du 14e au 20e siecle (1977; Eng. trans., The Book of Tapestry: History and Technique, 1978), a well-illustrated volume on Western tapestry from the Middle Ages to the 20th century; Madeleine Jarry, La Tapisserie des origines a nos jours (1968; Eng. trans., World Tapestry, 1969), a well-documented study of tapestry throughout the world, including an extensive bibliography and many black and white and colour illustrations, and La Tapisserie: art du 20e siecle (1974), a study of the worldwide renascence of tapestry during the 20th century; V. Fougre, Tapisseries de notre temps (1969), a brief study of contemporary French tapestry, with an index of tapestry artists and illustrated with black and white and colour reproductions; R.A. d'Hulst, Flemish Tapestries (1967), an elaborate study of Flemish tapestry from the Middle Ages to the Baroque periods, with many colour illustrations; R. Kaufmann, The New American Tapestry (1968), a well-illustrated text dealing with technique as well as with the works of leading American tapestry designers and weavers; G. Sutherland, Coventry Tapestry (1964), an interesting account of the design, weaving, and installation of Sutherland's tapestry for Coventry cathedral; M.B. Freeman, The Unicorn Tapestries (1976), a detailed and well-illustrated history of these tapestries, which are housed at the Cloisters, a branch of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City; P. Ackerman, Tapestry: The Mirror of Civilization (1933, reprinted 1970), one of the classic works in English dealing with the historical development of European tapestry. Laya Brostoff, Weaving a Tapestry (1982), is a brief overview with bibliography.

Zambezi River, Hydrology

2005-02-11T21:17:00.000-08:00

The Zambezi, according to measurements taken at Maramba (formerly Livingstone), Zambia, experiences its maximum flow in March or April. In October or November the discharge diminishes to less than 10 percent of the maximum. The annual average flow reaches about 247,000 cubic feet (7,000 cubic metres) per second. Measurements taken at Kariba Dam reflect the same seasonal pattern; the

Algeria, Manufacturing

2005-02-11T10:49:00.000-08:00

The manufacturing sector was mainly confined to food processing, textiles, cigarettes, and clothing before independence. Since 1967, however, the main emphasis has shifted toward heavy industry. The state steel corporation, for example, completed its large El-Hadjar steelworks complex at Annaba in the early 1970s and has constructed a zinc electrolysis plant near the El-Abed

Tokyo

2005-02-10T17:56:00.000-08:00

The site of Tokyo has been inhabited since ancient times; the small fishing village of Edo existed there for

Egypt, The Valley

2005-02-09T22:16:00.000-08:00

The cultivated portion of the Nile Valley between Cairo and Aswan varies from five to 10 miles in width, although there are places where it narrows to a few hundred yards and others where it broadens to 14 miles. Since the completion of the Aswan High Dam in 1970, the 2,500,000-acre valley has been under perennial irrigation. The inhabitants of the Valley from Cairo up to Aswan muhafazah are referred

Clapp, Cornelia Maria

2005-02-08T17:51:00.000-08:00

Clapp graduated from Mount Holyoke Female Seminary in 1871, and after a year of teaching elsewhere she returned to Mount Holyoke as an instructor in mathematics. Later she also taught

Schaerbeek

2005-02-08T02:41:00.000-08:00

Flemish Schaarbeek municipality, Brabant province, central Belgium. A village until 1795, it is now an industrial suburb northeast of Brussels and one of the 19 communes that make up Greater Brussels. A rail junction with switch and freight yards, it has an electric power station and manufactures clothing, chemicals, and machinery. The conspicuous domed Church of Sainte-Marie (1845–53) is built in the

Tacloban

2005-02-07T10:55:00.000-08:00

Chartered city, northeastern Leyte, Philippines, on San Pedro Bay at the southern entrance to San Juanico Strait. It is the largest city and distributing centre in the eastern Visayas (Leyte and Samar). A port since 1874, Tacloban has a long deepwater wharf, a bulk petroleum depot, and an airport. Hemp, copra, and lumber are exported, and commercial fishing is important. The city

Felix

2005-02-07T06:55:00.000-08:00

When Archbishop Elipandus of Toledo promulgated the Adoptionist doctrine, he was condemned by Pope Adrian I. Elipandus then sought the support of Felix, who expressed agreement, whereupon Charlemagne in 792 summoned Felix to the Council of Ratisbon (Regensburg, Bavaria [Germany]), where Felix was induced

Norfolk Island

2005-02-06T06:05:00.000-08:00

Officially Territory of Norfolk Island external territory of Australia, in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, 1,041 miles (1,676 km) northeast of Sydney. The island, with an area of 13 square miles (35 square km), is about 5 miles (8 km) long and 3 miles (5 km) wide. It is volcanic in origin, and its generally rugged terrain, with a mean elevation of 360 feet (110 m) above sea level, rises to Mount Bates (1,047 feet [319 m]) and Mount Pitt (1,043 feet [318 m]). Kingston, in the south, is the

Teramo

2005-02-05T08:57:00.000-08:00

City, capital of Teramo provincia, Abruzzi regione, central Italy. It lies at the confluence of the Tordino and Vezzola rivers, between the Adriatic Sea and the Gran Sasso d'Italia mountain group, northwest of Pescara. Teramo was built on the site of Interamna (Interamnia), a town of the ancient Praetuttii tribe, and was destroyed during the barbarian invasions. It was

Talcahuano

2005-02-05T07:04:00.000-08:00

City, Concepción provincia, Bío-Bío región, south-central Chile, lying on a small peninsula that forms the southwestern shore of Concepción Bay, just north-northwest of the city of Concepción (q.v.), for which it became the outport after an earthquake in 1730. Talcahuano is now a major port and Chile's main naval station; it is also an important commercial, fishing, and manufacturing

Jabalpur

2005-02-04T23:42:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Jubbulpore city, central Madhya Pradesh state, central India. Jabalpur lies just north of the Narmada River in a rocky basin surrounded by low hills that are dotted with lakes and temples. On one of the hills stands the Madan Mahal, an old Gond castle. Garha, just west, was the chief city of the four independent Gond kingdoms that arose in the 14th century. Jabalpur was selected as Maratha headquarters

Epistemology, Cause and effect

2005-02-03T21:28:00.000-08:00

Although people gain much information from their impressions, most matters of fact depend upon reasoning about causes and effects, even though people do not directly experience causal relations. What, then, are causal relations? According to Hume they have three components: contiguity of time and place, temporal priority of the cause, and constant conjunction.

Henequen

2005-02-03T04:27:00.000-08:00

(Agave fourcroydes), plant of the family agave (Agavaceae) and its fibre, third in importance among the leaf fibre (q.v.) group. Varieties of A. fourcroydes include ixtli, longifolia, minima, and rigida. The henequen plant is native to Mexico, where it has been a source of textile fibre since pre-Columbian times. It was introduced to Cuba in the 19th century, becoming the country's

Pig Iron

2005-02-02T07:15:00.000-08:00

Crude iron obtained directly from the blast furnace and cast in molds. See cast iron.

Surin

2005-02-01T20:16:00.000-08:00

Town, east-central Thailand. The town is located on the railway between Nakhon Ratchasima and Ubon Ratchathani and is a trade and production centre for rice, lacquerware, and silk. It has an agricultural college and attracts tourists with its annual Elephant Round-Up. The town lies about 35 miles (56 km) north of the border with Cambodia, and many of its residents speak the

Valdemar Birgersson

2005-02-01T05:03:00.000-08:00

King of Sweden (1250–75) who governed jointly with his father Birger Jarl (q.v.) until the latter's death in 1266 and then reigned alone. Because of an extramarital affair with his wife's sister, a postulant nun, by whom he had a child, Valdemar in 1274 made a pilgrimage to Rome to gain forgiveness. Pope Gregory X exacted concessions, whereby Valdemar acknowledged papal overlordship and

Muslim Ibn Al-hajjaj

2005-01-31T02:17:00.000-08:00

Muslim traveled widely; his great work, the Sahih (“The Genuine”), is said to have been compiled from about 300,000 traditions, which he collected in Arabia, Egypt, Syria, and Iraq. The Sahih has been unanimously acclaimed as authoritative and is one of the six

Interior Design, Concepts of design

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

The scale and proportion of any interior must always relate to the architecture within which the interior exists, but the other important factor in considering the scale of man's environment is the human body. Throughout the ages, designers and architects have attempted to establish ideal proportions. The most famous of all axioms about proportion was the golden

Lancaster

2005-01-30T16:18:00.000-08:00

City, Los Angeles county, southwestern California, U.S., in the Antelope Valley at the western edge of the Mojave Desert. It began as a Scottish settlement organized by M.L. Wicks (1882), who perhaps named it for his hometown in Pennsylvania. The valley largely supported cattle ranching until the early 1900s, when water, pumped by gasoline engines, transformed it into an agricultural

Puerto Real

2005-01-30T03:43:00.000-08:00

Ancient (Latin) Portus Gaditanus town, Cádiz provincia, Andalusia comunidad autónoma (“autonomous community”), southern Spain. It is on the north shore of the inner arm of the Bay of Cádiz and lies 5 miles (8 km) east of Cádiz. Known to the Romans, it was probably the most ancient trading station on the Bay of Cádiz and took its modern name (meaning “royal port”) when rebuilt in 1488 by the Spanish monarchs Ferdinand and

Mufaddaliyat, Al-

2005-01-28T00:09:00.000-08:00

(Arabic: “The Examination of al-Mufaddal”), an anthology of ancient Arabic poems, compiled by al-Mufaddal ibn Muhammad ibn Ya'lah between 762 and 784. It is of the highest importance as a record of the thought and poetic art of Arabia in the last two pre-Islamic centuries. Not more than five or six of the 126 poems appear to have been composed by poets born under Islam, and, though a certain number

Franciabigio

2005-01-26T07:56:00.000-08:00

Also called Francesco Di Cristofano, Francesco Giudini, or Giudici Italian Renaissance painter, best known for his portraits and religious paintings, whose style included early Renaissance, High Renaissance, and Proto-Mannerist elements. His early style is filled with movement and attention to descriptive detail, strongly reminiscent of 15th-century Italian painting. Later, he was attracted to the Florentine

Palatka

2005-01-25T17:35:00.000-08:00

City, seat (1849) of Putnam county, northeastern Florida, U.S., on the broad St. Johns River, about 50 miles (80 km) south of Jacksonville. Beginning in the 17th century the area was used for cattle ranching, and the city site was a crossing point of the river. James Marver established a trading post (c. 1821) on the site of a Seminole village. The city's name came from Pilatka, a Seminole term meaning

Yerkes, Robert M.

2005-01-25T16:12:00.000-08:00

After graduating from Ursinus College, Yerkes took his Ph.D. degree at Harvard University in 1902 and then served first as instructor and then as professor of psychology at Harvard until 1917. His early studies of the behaviour

Grace, William R.

2005-01-24T17:05:00.000-08:00

Grace ran away to New York at the age of 14 but later returned to Ireland. In 1850 he visited Callao, Peru, where he entered

Metacom

2005-01-24T13:14:00.000-08:00

Metacom was the second son of Massasoit, a Wampanoag chief who had managed to keep peace with the Massachusetts and Rhode Island settlers for many decades. Upon Massasoit's

Bridge Whist

2005-01-23T20:01:00.000-08:00

Card game popular from the 1890s through 1910, and the second step in the historical progression from whist to bridge whist to auction bridge to contract bridge. See whist.

Beyla

2005-01-22T19:48:00.000-08:00

Town, southeastern Guinea, western Africa, in the Guinea Highlands. The town was founded by Dyula traders in the early 13th century as a collecting point for slaves and kola nuts and is now the chief trading centre for rice, cattle, tobacco, coffee, and palm oil and kernels. It is connected by road with Nzérékoré (south) and Kankan (north). Beyla is the site of a hospital and a tobacco

Esquirol, Jean-étienne-dominique

2005-01-21T08:49:00.000-08:00

A student of Philippe Pinel, Esquirol succeeded his distinguished teacher as physician in chief at the Salpêtrière Hospital in Paris in 1811, further developing Pinel's diagnostic techniques and

Tlalnepantla

2005-01-20T07:02:00.000-08:00

In full Tlalnepantla De Comonfort, city, northeastern México state, central Mexico. At an altitude of 7,474 ft (2,278 m) above sea level on the Río Tlalnepantla, it was founded by the Otomi Indians and conquered by the Aztecs; archaeological remains have been found on the site, and two Aztec pyramids are nearby. The city's church was begun in 1583. Originally an agricultural and livestock-raising centre, Tlalnepantla has

tefánik, Milan (rastislav)

2005-01-20T00:48:00.000-08:00

After study at the University of Prague, from which he received a doctorate of philosophy in 1904, Štefánik went to Paris. Joining the staff of the astronomical

Madison

2005-01-19T04:49:00.000-08:00

Borough (town), Morris county, northeastern New Jersey, U.S. It lies 18 miles (29 km) west of Newark. The borough of Madison includes the communities of Montville, Wood Ridge, and Hopewell Valley. The centre of a greenhouse industry and nicknamed the “Rose City,” it is the site of Drew University (chartered 1868) and the Florham-Madison Campus of Fairleigh Dickinson University. The College

Fargo

2005-01-18T20:10:00.000-08:00

Seat (1873) of Cass county and the largest city of North Dakota, U.S., on the Red River of the North, opposite Moorhead, Minn. Founded in 1871 by the Northern Pacific Railway, it served as an outfitting post for settlers, with its rail, steamboat, and stagecoach facilities. It was named for William George Fargo (of Wells, Fargo & Company), a pioneer in the shipment of goods by express. The development

Sail

2005-01-18T08:09:00.000-08:00

The first sails were most likely animal skins that were used to harness wind power for rafts or boats consisting of a single log. The next probable step was the use of woven reed mats stretched between poles. Depictions of cloth sails appear in predynastic (c. 3300 BC) Egyptian art, and