RightEarth

Jena Glass

2005-04-03T23:15:00.000-07:00

Jena glass was first produced by the German glass chemist Friedrich Otto Schott, who, with Ernst Abbe and Carl Zeiss, founded a glassworks in Jena, Ger., in 1884. The early Jena

Fernández De Avellaneda, Alonso

2005-04-03T03:36:00.000-07:00

Probably the pseudonym of the otherwise unknown author of Segundo tomo del ingenioso hidalgo Don Quijote de la Mancha (1614; “Second Book of the Ingenious Knight Don Quixote of La Mancha”), a fraudulent sequel to the first volume of Miguel de Cervantes' Don Quixote (1605). In the 59th chapter of the second volume of Don Quixote (1615), Cervantes mocks the spurious book. Suggestions of the author's

Mitsui Group

2005-04-02T20:07:00.000-08:00

The original enterprise dates from 1673, when Mitsui Takatoshi (1622–94), the son

Chatham

2005-04-02T14:07:00.000-08:00

Town, Northumberland county, eastern New Brunswick, Canada. It lies near the mouth of the Miramichi River opposite Newcastle, 84 miles (135 km) north-northwest of Moncton. Founded about 1800 by Francis Peabody, it was probably named in honour of William Pitt, Earl of Chatham. It has pulp and paper mills, foundries, and shipyards and is a lumber-shipping and salmon-fishing port. In the

Hindustani Music

2005-03-31T00:47:00.000-08:00

The music of northern India and Pakistan that developed as a distinct type from the late 12th or early 13th century, when the Islamic conquest of the northern parts of the subcontinent brought special emphasis to Arabic and Iranian musical practices, which merged with ancient Hindu traditions. The latter traditions, less affected by foreign influences, remain in the

Socrates, Xenophon

2005-03-30T16:25:00.000-08:00

Among the compositions of Xenophon, the one that gives the fullest portrait of Socrates is Memorabilia. The first two chapters of Book I of this work are especially important, because they explicitly undertake a refutation of the charges made against Socrates at his trial; they are therefore a valuable supplement to Xenophon's Apology, which is devoted entirely

Pacific Ocean, Minerals from seawater and alluvial deposits

2005-03-28T23:12:00.000-08:00

Common salt (sodium chloride) is the most important mineral obtained directly from seawater. Mexico leads the Pacific nations in salt extraction from the sea, mostly by solar evaporation. Bromine extracted from seawater is used in the food, dye, pharmaceutical, and photo industries. The United States and Japan lead in its production among Pacific riparian nations.

Hydrologic Sciences, Groundwater

2005-03-28T01:28:00.000-08:00

Some rocks allow little or no water to flow through; these are known as impermeable rocks, or aquicludes. Others are permeable and allow considerable storage of water and act as major sources of water supply; these are known as aquifers. Aquifers overlain by an impermeable layer are called confined aquifers; aquifers overlain by an unsaturated, or vadose, zone of permeable

Cohoba

2005-03-27T01:53:00.000-08:00

Also called Yopo, hallucinogenic snuff made from the seeds of a tropical American tree (Piptadenia peregrina) and used by Indians of the Caribbean and South America at the time of early Spanish explorations. DMT (N,N-dimethyltryptamine) and bufotenine (qq.v.) are thought to have been the active principles. Cohoba was inhaled deeply by means of special bilateral tubes.

Thomas, W(illiam) I(saac)

2005-03-26T14:40:00.000-08:00

Thomas taught sociology at the University of Chicago (1895–1918), the New School for Social Research, New York City (1923–28), and Harvard University (1936–37). His Sex and

Lead-210 Dating

2005-03-24T15:16:00.000-08:00

Method of age determination that makes use of the ratio of the radioactive lead isotope lead-210 to the stable isotope lead-206. The method has been applied to the ores of uranium. In the series of unstable products from the radioactive decay of uranium-238, lead-210 results from the decay of radon-222 and is a precursor of the stable isotope lead-206. Lead-210 dating is particularly useful for

Gastronomy, The Italian influence on France

2005-03-24T03:34:00.000-08:00

Italy has been called the mother of the Western cuisines, and perhaps its greatest contribution was its influence on France. The crucial event was the arrival of Catherine de Médicis in France in the 16th century. The great-granddaughter of Lorenzo the Magnificent, Catherine married the young man who later was to become Henry II of France. She brought with her a retinue

Wells, David Ames

2005-03-23T16:06:00.000-08:00

A graduate of Williams College (1847), Wells later studied under Louis Agassiz at the

Talc

2005-03-23T08:18:00.000-08:00

Since ancient times, soapstones

China, Education

2005-03-21T08:13:00.000-08:00

The educational system in China is a major vehicle for both inculcating values in and teaching needed skills to its people. Traditional Chinese culture attached great importance to education as a means of enhancing a person's worth and career. In the early 1950s the Chinese Communists worked hard to increase the country's rate of literacy, an effort that won them considerable

Wang Xizhi

2005-03-20T19:00:00.000-08:00

It is said that even in his lifetime a few of Wang's characters or his signature were priceless; down through the ages, aspiring students of that most basic yet highest art in China, calligraphy, have copied and preserved traces of his style. The most famous example of his writing is the

Earth Sciences, Glacier motion and the high-latitude ice sheets

2005-03-19T05:45:00.000-08:00

Beginning around 1948, principles and techniques in metallurgy and solid-state physics were brought to bear on the mechanics of glacial movements. Laboratory studies showed that glacial ice deforms like other crystalline solids (such as metals) at temperatures near the melting point. Continued stress produces permanent deformation. In addition to plastic deformation

Pencil Fish

2005-03-18T18:22:00.000-08:00

Any of several slender South American fishes belonging to three groups of characins, treated by some authorities as three separate families and by others as a single family, Characidae. Pencil fish pick animal food from the bottom or from plant surfaces. Most species inhabit slow-moving water and all live in fresh water. Some habitually swim at an angle, tail down,

Biblical Literature, The canon of the Prophets

2005-03-18T15:28:00.000-08:00

The Hebrew canon of the section of the Old Testament known as the Nevi'im, or the Prophets, is divided into two sections: the Former Prophets and the Latter Prophets. The Former Prophets contains four historical books—Joshua, Judges, Samuel, and Kings; the Latter Prophets includes four prophetic works—the books of Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and the Twelve (Minor) Prophets.

Plotinus

2005-03-17T16:02:00.000-08:00

Ancient philosopher, the centre of an influential circle of intellectuals and men of letters in 3rd-century Rome, who is regarded by modern scholars as the founder of the Neoplatonic school of philosophy.

'brog-mi

2005-03-16T18:14:00.000-08:00

'Brog-mi studied for one year in Nepal and for eight years at Vikramashila (Bihar, India). Coming under the influence of Atisa, an Indian Buddhist who arrived in Tibet about 1042, 'Brog-mi was a leader in the revival of Tibetan Buddhism. He founded a new and powerful order known as Sa-skya-pa. In 1073 his disciple Dkon-mchog rgyal-po established the

Earth Sciences, Pressure, temperature, and atmospheric circulation

2005-03-15T07:01:00.000-08:00

If clouds are essentially multicompartmented balloons, their motions could be explained by the movements of winds blowing on them. Descartes suggested that the winds might blow upward as well as laterally, causing the clouds to rise or at least preventing them from descending. In 1749 Benjamin Franklin explained updrafts of air as due to local heating of the atmosphere

Chandler, Seth Carlo

2005-03-14T14:13:00.000-08:00

Chandler initially worked for the U.S. Coast Survey (1864–70). He then worked as an actuary until he joined the Harvard University Observatory in 1881. From 1896 to 1909 he edited

Pembroke, Mary Herbert, Countess Of

2005-03-14T06:31:00.000-08:00

In 1575 Queen Elizabeth I invited Mary to court, promising “a speciall care” of her. Two

Heisman Trophy

2005-03-13T18:01:00.000-08:00

Cup awarded annually to the outstanding college gridiron football player in the United States as determined by a poll of sportswriters. The trophy was instituted in 1935 by the Downtown Athletic Club of New York City and the next year was named in honour of its first athletic director, John Heisman, a player and successful coach of the 1890s and early 1900s. The first winner of the

Soga

2005-03-13T06:42:00.000-08:00

An Interlacustrine Bantu-speaking people inhabiting the area east of the Nile River between Lakes Victoria and Kyoga. They are the fourth largest ethnic group in Uganda. Culturally, they are very similar to the Ganda, who inhabit the region immediately to the west. Prosperous by national standards, the Soga are primarily agriculturists, growing bananas and millet

Ashrawi, Hanan

2005-03-12T06:54:00.000-08:00

The youngest daughter of a prominent physician, who was a founder of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), she grew up in an Anglican family. In the late 1960s Ashrawi joined the General Union of Palestinian

Artabanus

2005-03-11T02:33:00.000-08:00

Also called Ardaban minister of the Achaemenid king Xerxes I of Persia, whom he murdered in 465. According to one Greek source, Artabanus had previously killed Xerxes' son Darius and feared that the father would avenge him; other sources relate that he killed Xerxes first and then, pretending that Darius had done so, induced Darius' brother Artaxerxes I to avenge the “parricide.” Artabanus was

Mammal

2005-03-10T11:51:00.000-08:00

Some widely known journals that publish papers dealing exclusively with mammals are: Journal of Mammalogy, Mammalia, and Säugetierkundliche Mitteilungen (all issued quarterly), and Zeitschrift für Säugetierkunde (6/yr.). Additional technical literature is published by university and public museums and government agencies. Semitechnical and popular accounts of mammals appear in a wide variety of publications of state game departments, museums, and zoological gardens.

Acrostic

2005-03-10T07:59:00.000-08:00

The word was first applied to the prophecies of the Erythraean Sibyl, which were written on leaves and arranged so that the initial letters of the leaves always formed a word.

Epistemology, John Locke

2005-03-09T23:42:00.000-08:00

An Essay Concerning Human Understanding by John Locke (1632–1704) is often taken to be the first major empiricist work. Book I discusses innate ideas in order to deny that there are any; Book II discusses various genuine kinds of ideas; Book III discusses language with an emphasis on the meaning of words; and Book IV discusses knowledge and related cognitive states and

Fu-an

2005-03-09T00:07:00.000-08:00

Pinyin Fu'an, city in northeastern Fukien sheng (province), China. It is situated on the east bank of the Chiao River, with highway communications running north into Chekiang and south along the coast to Fu-chou, some 90 miles (150 km) away. It is in an area of Fukien that was developed comparatively late, since it is somewhat less productive than the south of the province. Fu-an is above all a market

Edward

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

Edward ascended the throne upon his father's death in October 899, and in a battle in 902 his forces killed a rival claimant,

Badminton

2005-03-07T09:58:00.000-08:00

Many badminton experts were surprised when 20-year-old Peter Gade Christensen of Denmark finished 1997 on top of the men's singles world rankings. At the Japan Open in January 1998, however, Gade Christensen easily defeated Luo Yigang of China to win the sport's first major event of the year and proved his number-one status was no accident. Gong Zhichao of China rose to the top of

Anius

2005-03-06T11:38:00.000-08:00

In Greek mythology, the son of the god Apollo and of Rhoeo, who was herself a descendant of the god Dionysus. Rhoeo, when pregnant, had been placed in a chest and cast into the sea by her father; floating to the island of Delos, she gave birth to Anius, who became a seer and a priest of Apollo. Anius' three daughters, Oeno, Spermo, and Elais—that is, Wine, Grain Seed, and Oil—were granted

Arts, East Asian, Painting

2005-03-06T02:07:00.000-08:00

The development of painting during the Edo period drew energy from innovations and changes precipitated during the Momoyama period. Thematic interests, including Confucian subjects and a continuing fascination with Japanese classical themes, were already apparent in the years preceding national consolidation. Genre themes celebrating urban life became

Cyprus, The Lusignan kingdom, Genoese rule, and Venetian rule

2005-03-05T19:16:00.000-08:00

Guy, a Frenchman who called himself lord of Cyprus, invited families that had lost their lands in Palestine after the fall of Jerusalem to settle in Cyprus, thereby laying the basis for a feudal monarchy that survived to the end of the Middle Ages. His brother and successor, Amalric, obtained the title of king from the Holy Roman emperor Henry VI. The earliest kings of

Brunei, Flag Of

2005-03-05T10:29:00.000-08:00

Although a few countries have half of their national flag in yellow, Brunei alone has a yellow background. The avoidance of yellow in other flags may in part be due to the association of the colour with royalty, as in the former imperial flags of Austria and Russia, and with disease (yellow flags are internationally recognized as symbols of quarantine). Among the smaller

Gamburtsev Mountains

2005-03-04T19:53:00.000-08:00

Russian Gory Gamburtseva, subglacial range in the central part of eastern Antarctica, extending 750–800 miles (1,200–1,300 km). The mountains attain their greatest height at 11,120 feet (3,390 m). Completely buried under more than 1,970 feet (600 m) of the Antarctic ice cap, they were discovered in 1958 by a Soviet expedition and mapped by seismic reflections.

Carnivore

2005-03-03T13:13:00.000-08:00

For general information on the biology of the carnivores, see E.P. Walker et al., Mammals of the World, 3 vol. (1964), in which each genus is described and illustrated, along with a brief summation of its biology. The taxonomy of carnivores is discussed in G.G. Simpson, “Principles of Classification and a Classification of Mammals,” Bull. Am. Mus. Nat. Hist., vol. 85 (1945), a classic work on classification, followed by most recent mammalogists; and H.J. Stains, “Carnivores and Pinnipeds,” in S. Anderson and J.K. Jones, Jr. (eds.), Recent Mammals of the World: A Synopsis of Families (1967). F.E. Beddard, Mammalia (1902, reprinted 1958), is a definitive early work on mammalian anatomy. The paleontology of the Carnivora is summarized in two works by A.S. Romer: Vertebrate Paleontology, 3rd ed. (1966), fundamental to an understanding of fossil forms, and Notes and Comments on Vertebrate Paleontology (1968), containing additional information not found in the general text. Books devoted to particular subgroups of the carnivores include A. Denis, Cats of the World (1964), an excellent summary of the status of all members of the Felidae; C.J. Harris, Otters (1968), a fine summary of the status of the otters around the world; H.E. Hinton and A.M.S. Dunn, Mongooses: Their Natural History and Behaviour (1967), which contains much interesting information that is difficult to find elsewhere, except in scattered literature; R.J. Harrison et al. (eds.), The Behavior and Physiology of Pinnipeds (1968), an excellent summation of knowledge on these aquatic carnivores; and V.B. Scheffer, Seals, Sea Lions, and Walruses: A Review of the Pinnipedia (1958), a major work on the taxonomy of the Pinnipedia.

Lurie, Alison

2005-03-02T19:09:00.000-08:00

Lurie graduated from Radcliffe College in 1947 and later taught English and then children's literature at Cornell University. One of her best-known books, The War Between the Tates (1974; filmed 1977), concerns the manner in which the wife of a professor

Gumma

2005-03-02T06:41:00.000-08:00

Soft, granulomatous, tumourlike mass, sometimes appearing during the late stages of syphilis, that occurs most often beneath the skin and mucous membranes but that may also be found in the bones, nervous system, and other organs and tissues. See also syphilis.

Dadra And Nagar Haveli

2005-02-28T08:13:00.000-08:00

Union territory of India, located in the western part of the country between the states of Gujarat and Maharashtra, some 15 miles (24 kilometres) from the Arabian Sea and 80 miles north of Bombay. It consists of two sections: Dadra, with three villages, and Nagar Haveli, with 69 villages. Occupying 190 square miles (491 square kilometres), it is administered by the governor of Goa. The capital is

Furniture, Upholstery and covers

2005-02-28T00:42:00.000-08:00

Upholstery and covers belong to the sphere of furniture designed for sitting or lying on. From the Orient, Europeans learned the use of wickerwork, which provided a ventilated and resilient background for loose cushions. The upholstered chair is a genuinely European phenomenon that achieved its most distinguished and logical form in England during the 18th century.

Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Company, Inc.

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

The company's history traces to 1859, when George F. Gilman and George Huntington Hartford founded the Great American Tea Co. in New York City to trade in tea bought from the cargoes of the clipper ships. It became largely

Gravitational Radius

2005-02-27T00:08:00.000-08:00

The gravitational radius (Rg) of an object of mass M is given by the following formula, in which G is the universal gravitational

Biblical Literature

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

The Old Testament is a collection of writings that was first compiled and preserved as the sacred books of the ancient Hebrew people. As the Bible of the

Minden

2005-02-26T06:29:00.000-08:00

City, seat of Kearney county, southern Nebraska, U.S., on a branch of the Little Blue River, 16 miles (26 km) south-southeast of Kearney city. Founded in 1876 and named for Minden, Ger., it became a service point for a diversified farming area (grain, livestock, dairying, poultry). Minden is mainly known for the Harold Warp Pioneer Village, which is one of the state's top tourist attractions

Communist Party Of Cuba

2005-02-25T22:43:00.000-08:00

The Cuban Communist Party (Partido Comunista Cubano) was

Denmark's Aquarium

2005-02-25T22:32:00.000-08:00

Danish Danmarks Akvarium largest aquarium in Denmark, located in Charlottenlund, outside of Copenhagen. It is noted for its collection of unusual fishes. Included among the more than 3,000 specimens of nearly 200 species of marine and freshwater fishes are lungfish, blind cave fish, mudskippers, and the primitive paddlefish from the United States. The aquarium also has some noteworthy exhibits

Peter Iii

2005-02-24T21:47:00.000-08:00

King consort of Portugal from 1777, with Queen Maria I. The younger son of John V of Portugal, he was married in July 1760 to the daughter of his elder brother, King Joseph. When she became queen as Maria I (February 1777), Peter became nominally king. He devoted himself entirely to religious practices.

Pax

2005-02-23T06:40:00.000-08:00

In Roman religion, personification of peace, probably recognized as a deity for the first time by the emperor Augustus, in whose reign much was made of the establishment of political calm. An altar of Pax Augusta (the Ara Pacis) was dedicated in 9 BC and a great temple of Pax completed by the emperor Vespasian in AD 75.

Bothnia, Gulf Of

2005-02-22T09:10:00.000-08:00

Swedish Bottniska Viken, Finnish Pohjan Lahti, northern arm of the Baltic Sea, between Sweden (west) and Finland (east). Covering an area of about 45,200 square miles (117,000 square km), the gulf extends for 450 miles (725 km) from north to south but only 50 to 150 miles (80 to 240 km) from east to west; it is nearly closed off by the Åland (Ahvenanmaa) Islands (south). Its maximum depth is 965 feet (295 m) in the west-central portion; its average depth is only about 200 feet (60 m). Because

Augustana College

2005-02-22T07:48:00.000-08:00

Private, coeducational liberal arts college located in Rock Island, Ill., U.S. The college is affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. Augustana offers only Bachelor of Arts degrees and has a curriculum of education, business, and the liberal arts and sciences. It operates study-abroad programs in Latin America, Asia, Israel, and Europe. The campus

Harald Iv

2005-02-21T16:00:00.000-08:00

Byname Harald Gille, or Gilchrist king of Norway (1130–36), a ruthless sovereign whose feud with his fellow king Magnus IV the Blind over the Norwegian throne marked the beginning of a period of civil wars (1130–1240) during which the right to rule was constantly in dispute. Harald's weak character helped lay the foundation for the increasingly powerful role played by the aristocracy in the civil war

Bothnia, Gulf Of

2005-02-21T06:32:00.000-08:00

Former union of garment and apparel workers in the United States and Canada. It was formed in 1976 by the merger of the Amalgamated Clothing Workers of America (ACWA), a large union representing workers in the men's clothing industry, with the Textile Workers Union of America, a smaller union founded in 1939. The ACWA was originally formed when militant elements within the United

Dog, Ailments

2005-02-20T10:45:00.000-08:00

Fleas and ticks are sources of irritation and disease in every climate of the world (with the possible exception of the Arctic). Regular bathing and grooming helps to keep these and other external parasites under control. Treatment of the animal and its environment are essential to eliminate these pests. In some areas this is a yearlong process, whereas in other climates

Latitudinarian

2005-02-19T18:31:00.000-08:00

Any of the 17th-century Anglican clerics whose beliefs and practices were viewed by conservatives as unorthodox or, at best, heterodox. After first being applied to the Cambridge Platonists, the term was later used to categorize churchmen who depended upon reason to establish the moral certainty of Christian doctrines rather than argument from tradition. Limiting

Alligator Apple

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

Fruit tree of tropical America valued for its wood. See custard apple.

Cherub

2005-02-18T15:51:00.000-08:00

Plural Cherubim, in Jewish, Christian, and Islamic literature, a celestial winged being with human, animal, or birdlike characteristics who functions as a throne bearer of the deity. Derived from ancient Middle Eastern mythology and iconography, these celestial beings serve important liturgical and intercessory functions in the hierarchy of angels. The term most likely derives

China, Formation of a rival southern government

2005-02-17T18:04:00.000-08:00

Meanwhile, in July Sun Yat-sen, supported by part of the Chinese navy and followed by some 100 members of parliament, attempted to organize a rival government in Canton. The initial costs of this undertaking, termed the Movement to Protect the Constitution, probably were supplied by the German consulate in Shanghai. On August 31 the rump parliament in Canton established

Jewish Daily Forward

2005-02-17T03:24:00.000-08:00

The Forward was founded in 1897 by the Jewish Socialist Press Federation as a civic aid and a cohesive device for Jewish immigrants from Europe. It quickly became the leading Yiddish-language newspaper in the United States. Under the guidance of Abraham Cahan, who was

Smith, Gerrit

2005-02-16T14:25:00.000-08:00

Smith was born into a wealthy family. In about 1828 he became an active worker in the cause of temperance, and in his home village, Peterboro, he built one of the first temperance hotels in the country. He became

Kiraly, Karch

2005-02-15T20:50:00.000-08:00

When Kiraly was four years old, he moved with his family to Santa Barbara, California. His father, Laszlo Kiraly, had played on the Hungarian national

Sano

2005-02-14T19:25:00.000-08:00

City, Tochigi ken (prefecture), Honshu, Japan, on the Watarase River, a tributary of the Ione River. Sano is surrounded by low hills and occupies a plain, a plateau, and alluvial lowlands. Sano was a castle town during the Middle Ages and a post town and market centre during the Tokugawa era (1603–1867). Industry developed after the late 19th century, and the city now produces concrete, roof

Babrius

2005-02-14T03:53:00.000-08:00

Most of the Babrius

Adams, John

2005-02-13T16:15:00.000-08:00

Adams remained the central figure of the Continental Congress for the following two years. He drafted the Plan of Treaties in July 1776, a document that provided the framework for a treaty with France and that almost inadvertently identified the strategic priorities that would shape American foreign policy over the next century. He was the unanimous choice to head the Board of War and Ordnance and was thereby made in effect a one-man war department responsible for raising and equipping the American army and creating from scratch an American navy. As the prospects for a crucial wartime alliance with France improved late in 1777, he was chosen to join Benjamin Franklin in Paris to conduct the negotiations. In February 1778 he sailed for Europe, accompanied by 10-year-old John Quincy.

Takeda Shingen

2005-02-13T10:44:00.000-08:00

Original name Takeda Harunobu one of the most famous of the military leaders who struggled for mastery of the strategic Kanto Plain in central Japan during the chaotic period of civil unrest in the 16th century. Takeda is especially well known for his series of battles with the noted warrior Uesugi Kenshin, not only famous in the annals of Japanese

Biblical Literature, The Geneva Bible

2005-02-13T07:04:00.000-08:00

The brief efflorescence of the Protestant movement during the short reign of Edward VI (1547–53) saw the reissue of the Scriptures, but no fresh attempts at revision. The repressive rule of Edward's successor, Mary, a Roman Catholic, put an end to the printing of Bibles in England for several years. Their public reading was proscribed and their presence in the churches

Gondomar, Diego Sarmiento De Acuña, Count (conde) De

2005-02-11T15:40:00.000-08:00

Gondomar's diplomatic fame rests largely on two missions to England (1613–18 and 1620–22). The chief objective of his first mission was to persuade James I to abandon his alliance with France and the Protestant countries on the Continent and to form an alliance

Venationes

2005-02-11T02:07:00.000-08:00

Contests between beasts or between men and beasts were staged in an amphitheatre, usually in connection with gladiator shows. The men used in these exhibitions were either captives, condemned criminals, or professional animal hunters. Originating in the 2nd century BC as part

Coast Ranges

2005-02-10T15:19:00.000-08:00

Also called Pacific Coast Ranges, segment of the Pacific mountain system (q.v.) of western North America, consisting of a series of ranges in the United States running parallel to the Pacific coast for more than 1,000 miles (1,600 km) from west-central Washington in the north to southern California in the south. The Coast Ranges are separated from the higher mountains of the Cascade Range and the Sierra Nevada to

Alakol, Lake

2005-02-09T22:04:00.000-08:00

Kazak Alaköl , Russian Ozero Alakol , also called Ozero Ala-Kul salt lake in Kazakstan, 110 miles (180 km) east of Lake Balqash, near the border with the Uighur Autonomous Region of Sinkiang, China. Lake Alakol has a drainage basin of about 26,500 square miles (68,700 square km), an area of 1,025 square miles, reaches a depth of about 148 feet (45 m), and receives the Urdzhar River (north).

Jacques Cartier, Mount

2005-02-09T11:18:00.000-08:00

French Mont Jacques-cartier, also called Tabletop, mountain on the north side of the Gaspé Peninsula in Gaspesian Provincial Park, eastern Quebec province, Canada. The highest peak in the well-forested Monts Chic-Choc (Shickshock Mountains), an extension of the Appalachians, is Mount Jacques Cartier, which has an elevation of 4,160 feet (1,268 m). The name Tabletop indicates its flat summit.

Baccarat Glass

2005-02-08T21:45:00.000-08:00

Glassware produced by an important glasshouse founded in 1765 at Baccarat, Fr. Originally a producer of soda glass for windows, tableware, and industrial uses, Baccarat was acquired by a Belgian manufacturer of lead crystal in 1817 and since then has specialized in producing this type of glass. In 1823 the firm won its first gold medal in an international exposition for glass, and

Airplane, Primary flight controls

2005-02-07T10:22:00.000-08:00

All four forces—lift, thrust, drag, and weight—interact continuously in flight and are in turn affected by such things as the torque effect of the propeller, centrifugal force in turns, and other elements, but all are made subject to the pilot by means of the controls.

Pittacus Of Mytilene

2005-02-06T20:56:00.000-08:00

Statesman and sage who is known as one of the Seven Wise Men of ancient Greece. He collaborated with the brothers of the poet Alcaeus in the overthrow of the tyrant Melanchrus (612/611?) and distinguished himself as a commander in the war against Athens for Sigium, killing the Athenian commander, Phrynon, single-handedly. He was elected aisymnetes (dictator appointed during

Beskid Mountains

2005-02-06T20:14:00.000-08:00

Czech Beskydy , Polish Beskidy discontinuous series of forested mountain ranges lying in the eastern Czech Republic, northwestern Slovakia, and southern Poland. The Czech sections at the western end of the Carpathian Mountains lie south and east of the Moravian Gate and are identified locally by smaller units. The Moravian-Silesian Beskid Mountains, which extend from the eastern Czech Republic

Actor-manager System

2005-02-05T18:12:00.000-08:00

Method of theatrical production dominant in England and the U.S. in the 19th century, consisting of a permanent company formed by a leading actor who chose his own plays, took a leading role in them, and handled business and financial arrangements. The advantages of this system became apparent in the 18th century when successful actor-managers such as Colley Cibber and

Grabski, Wladyslaw

2005-02-05T06:14:00.000-08:00

A Socialist in his youth, Grabski later joined the National Democracy Party and was elected a member of three successive sessions of the Duma (1906–12), the legislative body of the Russian Empire, of which

Fabales

2005-02-04T10:50:00.000-08:00

O.N. Allen and Ethel K. Allen, The Leguminosae: A Source Book of Characteristics, Uses, and Nodulation (1981), a descriptive summary, with an alphabetical listing of legume genera; J.B. Harborne, D. Boulter, and B.L. Turner (eds.), Chemotaxonomy of the Leguminosae (1971); R.M. Polhill and P.H. Raven (eds.), Advances in Legume Systematics (1981– ), an updated evolutionary classification of the Fabales; R.J. Summerfield and A.L. Bunting (eds.), Advances in Legume Science (1980); C.H. Stirton and J.L. Zarucchi (eds.), Advances in Legume Biology (1989); James A. Duke, Handbook of Legumes of World Economic Importance (1981), also with an alphabetical listing of genera; D. Isely, “Leguminosae and Homo sapiens,” Economic Botany, 36(1):46–70 (1982), a succinct summary of the contributions of legumes to human welfare; National Research Council (U.S.), Advisory Committee on Technology Innovation, Tropical Legumes: Resources for the Future (1979), a descriptive listing of utilized but undeveloped tropical legumes; J. Smartt, Tropical Pulses (1976); Harold J. Evans (ed.), Enhancing Biological Nitrogen Fixation (1975); J.R. Postgate, The Fundamentals of Nitrogen Fixation (1982); R.O.D. Dixon and C.T. Wheeler, Nitrogen Fixation in Plants (1986); J.M. Vincent (ed.), Nitrogen Fixation in Legumes (1982); W.J. Broughton (ed.), Nitrogen Fixation, vol. 3, Legumes (1982); J. Smartt, Grain Legumes: Evolution and Genetic Resources (1990); A. Geoffrey Norman (ed.), Soybean Physiology, Agronomy, and Utilization (1978); C. Webb and G. Hawtin (eds.), Lentils (1981).

Medicine

2005-02-03T00:27:00.000-08:00

The subject of medicine is treated in a number of articles, the principal of which is medicine, history of. For a treatment of general considerations and current techniques in the diagnosis and treatment of disease, see diagnosis and therapeutics. For fields

Byas, Don

2005-02-02T05:19:00.000-08:00

During the late 1930s Byas played in several swing bands, including those of Don Redman and Andy Kirk, and in 1941 he became a tenor saxophone soloist (as in “Harvard Blues”) with Count Basie. He also became

Vienna, Congress Of

2005-02-02T00:56:00.000-08:00

Austria, Prussia

Gabon, Plant and animal life

2005-02-01T21:25:00.000-08:00

About 75 percent of the country is covered by a dense equatorial rain forest containing more than 3,000 species of vegetation, including the okoume, a hardwood tree that forms the backbone of Gabon's wood industry. The rain forest is inhabited by antelope, monkeys, gorillas, numerous tropical birds, and several varieties of elephants.

Dehmelt, Hans Georg

2005-01-31T18:49:00.000-08:00

German-born American physicist who shared one-half of the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1989 with the German physicist Wolfgang Paul. (The other half of the prize was awarded to the American physicist Norman F. Ramsey.) Dehmelt received his share of the prize for his development of the Penning trap, an electromagnetic device that can hold small numbers

Abortion

2005-01-31T11:32:00.000-08:00

Spontaneous abortions, or miscarriages, occur for many

Lanciani, Rodolfo Amadeo

2005-01-30T11:20:00.000-08:00

At 20 Lanciani assisted in the excavation of Emperor Trajan's harbour at Porto, and his description (1868) of that site remains

Mckay, Donald

2005-01-30T03:33:00.000-08:00

After emigrating to New York City in 1827, he worked as an apprentice to the ship carpenter Isaac Webb. In 1845 he established a shipyard at East Boston, Mass.; there he designed and built his great clipper ships. His first, the Stag Hound, launched in 1850, was

Jacob, Max

2005-01-29T09:57:00.000-08:00

Jacob departed his native Brittany in 1894 to go to Paris, where he lived in extreme poverty but eventually became an important

Triclinius, Demetrius

2005-01-28T16:22:00.000-08:00

Triclinius' editions incorporated notes by other scholars as well as scholia from earlier traditions. He was the first Byzantine scholar to examine closely the metrical structure

Abbott, Berenice

2005-01-27T15:48:00.000-08:00

Abbott studied briefly at Ohio State University before moving in 1918 to New York City, where she explored sculpture and drawing on her own for four years. She continued these pursuits

Sangamon Interglacial Stage

2005-01-27T05:41:00.000-08:00

Major division of Pleistocene time and deposits in North America (the Pleistocene Epoch began about 1,600,000 years ago and ended about 10,000 years ago). The Sangamon Interglacial follows the Illinoian Glacial Stage and precedes the Wisconsin Glacial Stage, both periods of widespread continental glaciation and severe climatic conditions, as opposed to the moderate conditions

Union Of Soviet Socialist Republics

2005-01-26T06:12:00.000-08:00

(U.S.S.R.) also called Soviet Union Russian Soyuz Sovetskikh Sotsialisticheskikh Respublik , or Sovetsky Soyuz former northern Eurasian empire (1917/22–1991) stretching from the Baltic and Black seas to the Pacific Ocean and, in its final years, consisting of 15 Soviet Socialist Republics (S.S.R.'s)–Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belorussia (now Belarus), Estonia, Georgia, Kazakstan, Kirgiziya (now Kyrgyzstan), Latvia, Lithuania, Moldavia (now Moldova), Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, and Uzbekistan.

Län

2005-01-25T09:02:00.000-08:00

Administrative subdivision (county) of Sweden; see landskap.

Aedile

2005-01-25T01:58:00.000-08:00

Latin Aedilis, plural Aediles (from Latin aedes, “temple”), magistrate of ancient Rome who originally had charge of the temple and cult of Ceres. At first the aediles were two officials of the plebeians, created at the same time as the tribunes (494 BC), whose sanctity they shared. These magistrates were elected in the assembly of the plebeians. In 366 two curule (“higher”) aediles were created. These were at first patricians;

Activity

2005-01-24T09:45:00.000-08:00

In radioactive-decay processes, the number of disintegrations per second, or the number of unstable atomic nuclei that decay per second in a given sample. Activity is determined by counting, with the aid of radiation detectors and electronic circuits, the number of particles and photons (pulses of electromagnetic energy) ejected from a radioactive material during

Land Mine

2005-01-23T07:28:00.000-08:00

Stationary explosive charge used against military troops or vehicles. See mine.

Interior Design, Windows and doors

2005-01-23T06:36:00.000-08:00

Windows and doors in contemporary design are not placed as decorative elements or as parts of symmetrical compositions but are primarily considered as functional elements and are expressed as such. If windows are carefully designed and placed for light, for ventilation, for air, and for view, decorative treatment is often unnecessary and a simple device such

Adolf

2005-01-22T19:56:00.000-08:00

Adolf, who was count of Nassau from 1277 and a mercenary soldier of repute, was chosen king at Frankfurt by the German electors, who preferred him to Albert as successor to Albert's father, Rudolf I, the first Habsburg king. After his coronation at Aachen