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Sarawak

2005-03-17T01:59:00.000-08:00

Historic region that is now a state of Malaysia. It comprises the northwestern part of the island of Borneo and is bounded by the sultanate of Brunei and Sabah (Malaysia) on the north and by Indonesian Borneo (Kalimantan) on the east and south. Sarawak has a low-lying and heavily indented coastline along the South China Sea. Much of its area is covered by primary rain forest.

Connolly, Maureen Catherine

2005-03-15T16:09:00.000-08:00

Connolly began playing tennis at the age of 10. After a few months of training under a professional teacher, she entered her first tournament and in 1947 won the girl's 15-and-under

Paschasius Radbertus, Saint

2005-03-13T04:02:00.000-08:00

Abandoned as an infant, Paschasius was raised by the monks of St. Peter's, Soissons. Later, he joined the Benedictine abbey of Corbie, near Amiens, under St. Adalhard

Mckinney

2005-03-11T10:36:00.000-08:00

City, seat (1848) of Collin county, northeastern Texas, U.S., near the East Fork of Trinity River. Named for one of the signers of the Texas Declaration of Independence, it was platted in 1848. McKinney's home, formerly 17 miles (27 km) north, was moved in 1936 to Finch Park, where it was restored as a memorial. Many of the city's residents commute to work in Dallas or Plano, both located south of McKinney;

Scandinavian Literature, 20th-century literary trends

2005-03-08T18:19:00.000-08:00

The two greatest early 20th-century novelists

Buir Lake

2005-03-05T13:37:00.000-08:00

Wade–Giles romanization Pei-erh Hu, Mongol Pinyin Buir Nur, lake on the border of the Mongolian People's Republic and China. It has an area of 235 square miles (609 square km). It receives the Ha-lo-hsin River from the southeast, and its outlet, the Orchun River, flows into Hu-lun Lake to the north.

Asti

2005-03-03T04:37:00.000-08:00

City, capital of Asti province, Piemonte (Piedmont) region, northwestern Italy. It lies at the confluence of the Tanaro and Borbera rivers, 28 miles (45 km) southeast of Turin. Asti was the Hasta, or Colonia, of the Romans and was the seat of a bishopric from AD 932. It reached its zenith as an independent commune in the 13th century, after which it fell to several overlords before coming under

United Kingdom, Flag Of The

2005-02-28T06:38:00.000-08:00

The earliest form of the flag of Great Britain, developed in 1606 and used during the reigns of James I (1603–25) and Charles I (1625–49), displayed the red cross of England superimposed on the white cross of Scotland, with the blue field of the latter. Because in heraldry a red on blue is not considered permissible, the red cross had to be bordered with white, its own correct field. During the Commonwealth

Biblical Literature, The Armenian version

2005-02-26T16:40:00.000-08:00

The Armenian version is an expression of a nationalist movement that brought about a separation from the rest of the Church (mid-5th century), the discontinuance of Syriac in Greek worship, and the invention of a national alphabet by St. Mesrob, also called Mashtots (c. 361–439/440). According to tradition, St. Mesrob first translated Proverbs from the Syriac. Existing manuscripts

Drug, Anthelmintics

2005-02-24T17:10:00.000-08:00

Helminths (worms) can be divided into three groups: cestodes, or tapeworms; nematodes, or roundworms; and trematodes, or flukes. The helminths differ from other infectious organisms in that they have a complex body structure. They are multicellular and have partial or complete organ systems (e.g., muscular, nervous, digestive, and reproductive). Several of the drugs used

Christensen, Benjamin

2005-02-23T06:05:00.000-08:00

Christensen began his career as an opera singer in 1902 but later became an actor and then a director. By 1913 he was known as the writer, star, and director of a film exploring the unknown, Det Hemmeligheds fulde X (The Mysterious X), his first investigation of the horror of

Gyumri

2005-02-21T16:55:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Kumayri , (1924–90) Leninakan , or (until 1924) Alexandropol city, western Armenia. It is believed to have been founded by the Greeks in 401 BC, but it did not have a continuous existence. A fortress was constructed on the site by the Russians in 1837, and in 1840 the town of Alexandropol was founded nearby. Alexandropol was a trading and administrative centre but subsequently underwent industrial development and was renamed Leninakan for

Mahavairocana-sutra

2005-02-18T17:38:00.000-08:00

Japanese Dainichi-kyo, text of late Tantric Buddhism and a principal scripture of the large Japanese Buddhist sect known as Shingon (“True Word”). The text received a Chinese translation, under the title Ta-jih Ching, about AD 725, and its esoteric teachings were propagated a century later in Japan by Kukai. These teachings, which have been called cosmotheism, centre upon Mahavairocana (in Japanese,

Carnivore, Natural history

2005-02-16T19:41:00.000-08:00

The family Procyonidae includes raccoons (see photograph), coatis or coatimundis, olingos, and the ringtailed cat, kinkajou, and lesser panda. Procyonids, like bears, are omnivorous, eating numerous types of insects, crayfish, crabs, fishes, amphibians, reptiles, birds, small mammals, and a variety of fruits, nuts, roots, and young plants. A characteristic of

Pyralid Moth

2005-02-14T17:02:00.000-08:00

Cosmopolitan

Lightning Rod

2005-02-12T21:11:00.000-08:00

Metallic rod (usually copper) that protects a structure from lightning damage by intercepting flashes and guiding their currents into the ground. Because lightning tends to strike the highest object in the vicinity, rods are typically placed at the apex of a structure and along its ridges; they are connected to the ground by low-impedance cables. In the case of a building,

World War Ii, The Atlantic, the Mediterranean, and the North Sea, 194245

2005-02-10T02:04:00.000-08:00

The year 1942 was, on the whole, a favourable one for the German U-boats. First, the U.S. entry into the war entitled them to infest the U.S. coast of the North Atlantic; and it was not until the middle of the year that the Allies' introduction of the convoy system from the Caribbean northward constrained the raiders to go so far afield as the waters between Brazil and West Africa. Second,

A-pao-chi

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

Elected to a three-year term as great khan of the Khitans, A-pao-chi refused to resign at the end of his term but made himself king of the Khitan nation. After the collapse in 907 of T'ang rule in China, A-pao-chi made himself emperor and by 916 had set up a Chinese-style dynasty, with

Conservative Party

2005-02-07T00:27:00.000-08:00

Byname Tories in the United Kingdom, a political party whose guiding principles include the promotion of private property and enterprise, the maintenance of a strong military, and the preservation of traditional cultural values and institutions. Since World War I the Conservative Party and its principal opponent, the Labour Party, have dominated British political life.

Chagatai

2005-02-04T22:24:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Tsagadai, Jagatai, or Chaghatai the second son of Genghis Khan who, at his father's death, received Kashgaria (now the southern part of Uighur Autonomous Region of Sinkiang, China) and most of Transoxania between the Amu Darya and the Syr Darya (ancient Oxus and Jaxartes rivers) as his vassal kingdom. His capital was at Almarikh near the present Kuldja (I-ning), in western Sinkiang. Chagatai appears to have

Augier, émile

2005-02-03T19:58:00.000-08:00

Augier was an unbending moralist, and all of his plays are to some extent didactic in purpose. His verse play Gabrielle (1849) attacks the

Van Doren, Carl (clinton)

2005-01-31T10:37:00.000-08:00

Educated at Columbia University (Ph.D., 1911), Van Doren taught there until 1930. In that period he was one of a group of academicians who helped to establish American literature and history as an integral part of university programs.

Iberville

2005-01-30T15:20:00.000-08:00

Town, Montérégie region, southern Quebec province, Canada, on the east bank of the Richelieu River, opposite Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu. Originally called Christieville, it was renamed in 1854 for the French explorer Pierre Le Moyne d'Iberville. The town is a rail and highway hub and a residential district of Saint-Jean. Economic activities include woodworking, dairying,

Berkhamsted

2005-01-28T20:35:00.000-08:00

Town (“parish”), Dacorum borough, administrative and historic county of Hertfordshire, England, 28 miles (45 km) northwest of London on an old coaching route along the Bulbourne Valley of the Chiltern Hills, which now contains modern road, rail, and canal routes. A moated Norman castle has been thoroughly excavated and is preserved. Diversified light industry includes paper

Econometrics

2005-01-25T20:20:00.000-08:00

The statistical and mathematical analysis of economic relationships, often serving as a basis for economic forecasting. Such information is sometimes used by governments to set economic policy and by private business to aid decisions on prices, inventory, and production. It is used mainly, however, by economists to study relationships between economic

Arguedas, Alcides

2005-01-22T03:42:00.000-08:00

Arguedas studied sociology in Paris and pursued an active career in government. He represented

Arab Legion

2005-01-19T14:45:00.000-08:00

Arabic Al-jaish Al-'arabi, police force raised in 1921 by British Lieutenant Colonel Frederick Gerard Peake in what was then the British protectorate of Transjordan, to keep order among Transjordanian tribes and to safeguard Transjordanian villagers from Bedouins. In 1939 Major (later General) John Bagot Glubb, called Glubb Pasha, became the legion's commander and transformed it into the most effective

Telescope, Gamma-ray telescopes

2005-01-17T06:10:00.000-08:00

These instruments require the use of grazing-incidence techniques similar to those employed with X-ray telescopes. Gamma rays are the shortest (about 0.1 angstrom or less) known waves in the electromagnetic spectrum. As mentioned above, HEAO-3 was developed to collect data from cosmic gamma-ray sources. NASA and collaborative international agencies have numerous

Murrumbidgee River

2005-01-16T10:27:00.000-08:00

Major right-bank tributary of the Murray River, rising on the western slope of the Eastern Highlands (20 mi [32 km] north of Kiandra), in southeastern New South Wales, Australia. It flows at first southeastward and then, after a remarkable fishhook bend, directly northward through the Australian Capital Territory. At Yass it trends westward, being joined by the Lachlan between

Enciclopedia Universal Ilustrada Europeoamericana

2005-01-13T23:31:00.000-08:00

Spanish and Spanish-American biography and gazetteer information are especially strong. Major articles—e.g., on countries—are quite long and include lengthy bibliographies of international scope. Although coverage is considered

Frederick V

2005-01-12T04:53:00.000-08:00

After receiving a French education, Frederick succeeded his father, the elector Frederick IV, in 1610. When the Protestant Bohemian estates revolted against the Catholic

Zamboanga Peninsula

2005-01-07T16:48:00.000-08:00

The peninsula is drained in the north by the Lubungan, Dipolog, and Quipit rivers, and its northern highlands

Qabis

2005-01-05T03:49:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Gabès, Latin Tacapa, town, southeastern Tunisia. The town is located at the mouth of the Qabis River, which has its source 6 miles (10 km) upstream at the Ras al-Oued (springs), the town's main water source. Situated on a Mediterranean oasis along the Gulf of Gabes, Qabis was founded as the Roman trading centre of Tacapa. Declining somewhat under Turkish rule, it experienced a modest revival during the

Gospel Music

2005-01-04T15:58:00.000-08:00

The immediate impetus for gospel music seems to have been the rise of Pentecostal churches

Arecidae, The leaf

2005-01-02T02:16:00.000-08:00

Leaf structure is different and distinctive in each of the six families of the subclass. In Acoraceae both the leaves and the scapes are ensiform (sword-shaped). Leaves in Araceae usually have a basal sheath, a petiole, and a flat blade. The blade is lanceolate to broadly ovate or rarely linear or strap-shaped. The base of the blade may be heart-shaped (cordate), arrowhead-shaped

Daghur

2004-12-30T19:08:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Daghor , or Dagur , Manchu Dahur , Russian Daur , Chinese (Wade-Giles) Ta-wo-erh , or (Pinyin) Dawoer , or Daur Mongol people living mainly in the northeastern portion of Inner Mongolia autonomous region and western Heilungkiang province of China and estimated to number about 121,000. Their language, once thought to be Tungusic or a mixture of Mongolian and Tungus, is now known to be an archaic Mongolian dialect preserving features found in 13th-century documents. Their own name

National Anthem

2004-12-28T15:34:00.000-08:00

Hymn or song expressing patriotic sentiment and either governmentally authorized as an official national hymn or holding that position in popular feeling. The oldest national anthem is Great Britain's “God Save the Queen,” which was described as a national anthem in 1825, although it had been popular as a patriotic song and used on occasions of royal ceremonial since

Sevareid, Eric

2004-12-26T22:02:00.000-08:00

After graduating from the University of Minnesota (1935), Sevareid worked as a reporter for the Minneapolis Journal (1936–37), which had

France, History Of, Collective security

2004-12-24T00:30:00.000-08:00

Poincaré, in his final term of office (1926–29), retained as foreign minister Aristide Briand, who had been named to that post by the Cartel in 1925 and who was to remain there for seven years almost without interruption. Briand sensed a change in the public mood after the Ruhr episode and proclaimed himself “the apostle of peace”; he formulated a policy that he called apaisement. His

Arts, Native American, Wind instruments: aerophones

2004-12-22T18:26:00.000-08:00

In North America, flutes are limited to courtship, except for a whistle in an Iroquois medicine rite and in a gens (kinship-group) ceremony of the Meskwaki. In Mexico and southward, wind instruments provide colour and symbolic significance. At least two dances feature a one-man drummer-flutist who holds a flute in his left hand and plays a drum with his right. These are

Earth, Paleomagnetism

2004-12-20T11:48:00.000-08:00

All rocks contain what is referred to as natural remanent magnetism. This property is due to magnetism acquired by iron-bearing minerals during the cooling and crystallization of an igneous rock, to the formation of iron-bearing minerals at low temperatures during the weathering of previously formed minerals, to the rotation of iron-bearing minerals during

Turina, Joaquín

2004-12-19T01:05:00.000-08:00

After studying in Sevilla (Seville) and Madrid, Turina went in 1905 to Paris, where he was a pupil of Moritz Moszkowski for piano and Vincent d'Indy for composition. Though he absorbed elements of the French style, he was inspired in Paris by Isaac

Nepos, Julius

2004-12-16T07:13:00.000-08:00

Born of a distinguished family, Nepos was sent by the Eastern ruler Leo I to govern Italy as augustus (emperor). He at once deposed the Western emperor, Glycerius, whom Leo regarded as a usurper. Nepos proclaimed himself emperor in June 474. A year later he was obliged to recognize the independence of the Visigothic kingdom

Ruwenzori Range

2004-12-14T13:42:00.000-08:00

Lying slightly north of the Equator, the Ruwenzori Range has a maximum breadth of 30 miles (50 km) and extends south-north for 80 miles (130 km) between

Oscillograph

2004-12-12T16:30:00.000-08:00

Instrument for indicating and recording time-varying electrical quantities, such as current and voltage. The two basic forms of the instrument in common use are the electromagnetic oscillograph and the cathode-ray oscillograph; the latter is also known as a cathode-ray oscilloscope (q.v.), which, strictly speaking, is purely an indicating instrument, while the oscillograph

Farinelli

2004-12-08T09:24:00.000-08:00

He studied in Naples under Nicola Porpora, one of the leading 18th-century opera composers and the outstanding voice teacher of the century. At 16 he

Water Boatman

2004-12-06T04:57:00.000-08:00

Any insect of the family Corixidae (order Heteroptera), with over 300 species. The water boatman has a flat, boat-shaped body and long, fringed, oarlike hindlegs. Members of this cosmopolitan family, usually less than 13 mm (0.5 inch) long, occur as high as the Himalayas, as deep as Death Valley, and in fresh, brackish, and salt waters. The water boatman is lighter than water; it generally

Oberon, Merle

2004-12-04T05:40:00.000-08:00

The daughter of an Indian mother and a British army officer, Arthur Thompson, stationed in India,

Santa Rosa De Cabal

2004-12-03T20:03:00.000-08:00

City, Risaralda department, west central Colombia, on the western slopes of the Andean Cordillera (mountains) Central. It is a commercial and manufacturing centre for the fertile agricultural and pastoral hinterland. Silkworms are raised in the vicinity, and there are silver, gold, and mercury mines nearby. The city is on a highway and railroad linking Pereira, the

Diebitsch, Johann (karl Friedrich Anton), Graf

2004-11-30T21:03:00.000-08:00

Although he was of German parentage and was educated at the Berlin cadet school, Diebitsch joined the Russian Army in 1801, and, after fighting against Napoleon in the battles of Austerlitz, Eylau, Friedland,

Bailey, Ann

2004-11-28T16:09:00.000-08:00

Ann Hennis moved to America, probably as an indentured servant, in 1761. Her first husband, Richard Trotter, a Shenandoah Valley settler and survivor of General Edward Braddock's disastrous expedition of 1755, was killed

Orange

2004-11-26T02:18:00.000-08:00

City, east-central New South Wales, Australia. It is located near the slopes of Mount Canobolas, an extinct volcano. In 1828 the area was named by Sir Thomas Mitchell in memory of the Prince of Orange, his commander during the Peninsular War, and the village of Orange was proclaimed in 1846. It grew after the announcement in 1851 of payable gold deposits at nearby Ophir. Farming replaced

Pacific Islands, Climate

2004-11-24T11:00:00.000-08:00

To describe the climate as tropical and oceanic is to stress the influence of the lower latitudes and the tremendous expanse of the sea. Humidity and temperature tend to be high and are generally uniform throughout the year. Regional differentiation in climate is linked principally to rainfall patterns. Here, factors of altitude and longitude, as well as latitude,

Great Abaco

2004-11-23T16:11:00.000-08:00

Island, The Bahamas, located about 55 miles (86 km) north of the capital city, Nassau, on New Providence island. It is separated from Little Abaco to the northwest by a narrow, shallow channel. Great Abaco occupies an area of 372 square miles (963 square km). It is shaped like a right angle, with one side of the angle pointing northwest and the other southwest. Its major city, Marsh Harbour,

Earth, Measurement of gravitational acceleration

2004-11-19T08:25:00.000-08:00

For the study of the shape of the geoid or of large-scale structures in the Earth, values of g are required with a precision of one milligal or better. This implies a measurement accurate to one part in 106 of g itself. For more local studies, as in the use of gravity measurements for geophysical petroleum and mineral prospecting and for the study of the tidal variation of g at

Gaon

2004-11-16T23:54:00.000-08:00

Plural Geonim, the title accorded to the Jewish spiritual leaders and scholars who headed Talmudic academies that flourished, with lengthy interruptions, from the 7th to the 13th century in Babylonia and Palestine. The chief concern of the geonim was to interpret and develop Talmudic Law and to safeguard Jewish legal traditions by adjudicating points of legal controversy. Their

Andreotti, Giulio

2004-11-14T19:46:00.000-08:00

Andreotti took a degree in law at the University of Rome and was president of the Catholic students' federation. In 1942 he became a protégé of Alcide De

Austenite

2004-11-12T04:28:00.000-08:00

Solid solution of carbon and other constituents in a particular form of iron known as g (gamma) iron. This is a face-centred cubic structure formed when iron is heated above 910° C (1,670° F); gamma iron becomes unstable at temperatures above 1,390° C (2,530° F). Austenite is an ingredient of a kind of stainless steel used for making cutlery, hospital and food-service equipment, and tableware.

Floor Covering, Construction

2004-11-11T21:59:00.000-08:00

The basic structure of traditionally manufactured carpets consists of the backing fabric and the pile, which is bound under and between the weft. Pile is formed on Axminster looms by inserting weft, with reciprocating needles, across the warp chain yarns. A central stuffer warp usually separates top from bottom weft. In Jacquard Wilton and Brussels carpet, the pile

Moschops

2004-11-08T08:47:00.000-08:00

Extinct genus of mammallike reptiles found as fossils in rocks of Permian age (286 to 245 million years ago) in southern Africa. Moschops, which is representative of a group of mammallike reptiles (see therapsid) that became adapted to a diet of plant food, was about 2.6 m (8 feet) long. The body was massive; the skull was high and shortened front to back. Numerous chisel-edged teeth suitable

Cheduba Island

2004-11-06T07:49:00.000-08:00

Also called Manaung Island, island in the Bay of Bengal, southwestern Myanmar (Burma). It lies about 30 miles (50 km) west of Taungup on the Arakan Coast and is separated from Ramree Island to the north by the Cheduba Strait. It is 20 miles (32 km) long and 17 miles (27 km) wide and has an area of 202 square miles (523 square km). Cheduba was a stopping place on the historic coastal trade route from Bengal (India) by which Indian civilization

Hugh Of Lincoln, Saint

2004-11-04T04:35:00.000-08:00

On his mother's death when he was eight, Hugh and his father, Lord William of Avalon, joined the canons regular at Villard-Bonnot, France. After his father's death, Hugh joined (c. 1165) the monks at the Carthusian motherhouse

Robert, Henry Martyn

2004-11-02T19:02:00.000-08:00

A graduate (1857) of the U.S. Military Academy, West Point, N.Y., Robert was commissioned in the Corps of Engineers and retired (1901) with the rank of brigadier general. During the Civil War (1861–65) he constructed defenses for Washington,

Tibet, Climate

2004-10-31T00:38:00.000-07:00

Although Tibetans refer to their country as Gangs-ljongs or Kha-ba-can (“Land of Snows”), the climate is generally dry, and most of Tibet receives only 18 inches (460 millimetres) of rain and snow annually. The Himalayas act as a barrier to the monsoon (rain-bearing) winds from the south, and precipitation decreases from south to north. The perpetual snow line lies at about 16,000 feet in

Croker Island

2004-10-29T03:21:00.000-07:00

Island in Northern Territory, Australia, lying 2 miles (3 km) across Bowen Strait in the Arafura Sea from Coburg Peninsula. Low and swampy, the island rises only to 50 feet (15 m). It is 30 miles (50 km) long by 4 miles (6 km) wide and has an area of 126 square miles (326 square km). Visited by Captain Phillip Parker King of the Royal Navy about 1818, the island was probably named for John Wilson Croker, then chief

Clarence, Lionel Of Antwerp, Duke Of

2004-10-27T01:40:00.000-07:00

Before he was four years of age Lionel was betrothed to Elizabeth (d. 1363), daughter and heiress of William de Burgh, earl of Ulster (d. 1333), and he entered nominally into possession of her great Irish inheritance. Having been named as his father's representative in England in

Adelaide, Saint

2004-10-26T17:30:00.000-07:00

The daughter of Rudolf II (d. 937), king of Burgundy, and Bertha of Swabia, Adelaide was married (947) to Lothair, who succeeded his father, Hugh of Arles, as king of Italy

Leverkusen

2004-10-25T02:32:00.000-07:00

City, North Rhine-Westphalia Land (state), west-central Germany, on the Rhine River at the mouth of the Wupper River, in the Dhünn valley just north of Cologne. Formed in 1930 by the union of the villages of Schlebusch, Rheindorf, and Steinbüchel with the town of Wiesdorf, it is well served by highway and rail and is the site of the Bayer Works (chemicals, pharmaceuticals, and photographic

Spahi

2004-10-24T13:27:00.000-07:00

Feudal cavalryman of the Ottoman Empire whose status resembled that of the medieval European knight. The spahi (from Persian for “cavalryman”) was holder of a fief (timar; Turkish: timar) granted directly by the Ottoman sultan and was entitled to all of the income from it in return for military service. The peasants on the land were subsequently attached to the land and

Insurance

2004-10-24T08:18:00.000-07:00

A system under which the insurer, for a consideration usually agreed upon in advance, promises to reimburse the insured or to render services to the insured in the event that certain accidental occurrences result in losses during a given period. It thus is a method of coping with risk. Its primary function is to substitute certainty for uncertainty as regards the

Mckinley

2004-10-23T10:33:00.000-07:00

County, northwestern New Mexico, U.S., bordered on the west by Arizona. It is a scenic region with highly varied terrain, in the Navajo section of the Colorado Plateaus. In the west, a red shale valley lies between red sandstone cliffs; angular rock outcroppings rise amid the near-desert plains in the far west. Buttes and mesas appear throughout McKinley county, including

Anniston

2004-10-22T08:21:00.000-07:00

City, seat (1899) of Calhoun county, eastern Alabama, U.S. It lies in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains, about 60 miles (95 km) east of Birmingham. Founded in 1872 by Samuel Noble, Daniel Tyler, and Tyler's sons as a private industrial community (opened to the public in 1883), it was originally named for the Woodstock Iron Company; to avoid confusion with another Woodstock in Alabama, it was

Lockwood, Belva Ann

2004-10-21T09:42:00.000-07:00

Belva Bennett attended country schools until she was 15 and then taught in them until her marriage in 1848 to Uriah H. McNall, who died in 1853. She then resumed teaching and continued her own education. She graduated from Genesee College

Adding Machine

2004-10-19T18:43:00.000-07:00

A type of calculator (q.v.) used for performing simple arithmetical operations.

Kerkrade

2004-10-17T16:31:00.000-07:00

The former abbey of Rolduc (1104) has a notable Romanesque church; its courtyard buildings now serve as a boys' school. A natural

Christo And Jeanne-claude

2004-10-17T15:04:00.000-07:00

On June 25, 1995, when the last panel of silver fabric fell into place, the biggest artwork of the year was completed in Berlin by site artists Christo and his wife, Jeanne-Claude. But this was a veiling, not an unveiling; "Wrapped Reichstag" covered the 101-year-old German parliament building with 100,000 sq m (1,076,000 sq ft) of fabric held in place by nearly 16 km (10 mi) of blue rope. In a now-familiar pattern, skeptics

Aranjuez

2004-10-16T10:14:00.000-07:00

Ancient (Latin) Ara Jovis town, Madrid provincia and comunidad autónoma (“autonomous community”), central Spain, on the southern bank of the Tagus River near its confluence with the Jarama. The town, which has existed since Roman times, was the headquarters of the Knights of Santiago (1387–1409) and became the seat of a royal summer residence and hunting lodge in the 17th century. It was rebuilt in about 1750 by Ferdinand

Western Literature

2004-10-15T03:45:00.000-07:00

Diverse as they are, European literatures, like European languages, are parts of a common heritage. Greek, Latin, Germanic, Baltic and Slavic, Celtic, and Romance languages

Arales

2004-10-13T20:49:00.000-07:00

The Arales may share common evolutionary ancestors with the palm order (Arecales) and the Panama hat palm order (Cyclanthales) from the immediate ancestors

Narrabri

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

Town, northeastern New South Wales, Australia. It lies along Narrabri Creek (tributary of the Namoi River), just west of the Nandewar Range. Surveyed in 1859 and declared a municipality in 1883, it derives its name from an Aboriginal word meaning “big creek” and “forked sticks.” On the Newell Highway, with regular air and rail service to Sydney (264 miles [425 km] southeast) and Brisbane, Narrabri

Tunisia, Relief and drainage

2004-10-11T07:44:00.000-07:00

Tunisia is characterized by moderate relief. The Tunisian Dorsal, or High Tell, a southwest-to-northeast mountain range that is an extension of the Saharan Atlas (Atlas Saharien) of Algeria, tapers off in the direction of the Cape Bon peninsula in the northeast, south of the Gulf of Tunis. The highest mountain, Mount ash-Sha'nabi (Djebel Chambi), located near the centre of

Dominican Republic, Flag Of The

2004-10-10T15:58:00.000-07:00

Christopher Columbus visited the island of Hispaniola in 1492, claiming it for the Spanish monarchy. However, French colonists in the 17th century established a state known as Saint-Domingue (Saint-Dominique) in the western part of the island, which subsequently became Haiti. The Spanish-speaking area in the east was conquered by the newly independent Republic of Haiti

Wicklow Mountains

2004-10-08T18:49:00.000-07:00

Extensive mountain range in County Wicklow, Ireland, forming part of the Leinster Chain. The mountain area comprises a vast anticline (upwarp of rock strata), with granite exposed at the centre, and also slates and sandstones. Igneous intrusions form the Little Sugar Loaf (1,123 ft [342 m]) and the Great Sugar Loaf (1,654 ft [504 m]). The main summits of the range rise over 2,000 ft and consist of smoothly

Aptian Stage

2004-10-08T03:59:00.000-07:00

The fifth of six main divisions (in ascending order) in the Lower Cretaceous Series, representing all those rocks deposited worldwide during the Aptian Age (119 to 113 million years ago). No global stratotype section and point (GSSP) for the base of the Aptian Stage has been approved by the International Commission on Stratigraphy. The name of the stage is derived from the town

Carleton, Mount

2004-10-06T17:45:00.000-07:00

Highest point (2,680 feet [817 m]) in the Maritime Provinces (New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island) of Canada, 70 miles (110 km) east of Edmundston, N.B., near Nictau and Nepisiguit lakes. Structurally it is a monadnock, or erosional remnant, rising above the 1,000-foot (305-metre) level of the surrounding highlands, which are an extension of the Appalachian region. The mountain, focus of a

Felsenmeer

2004-10-06T04:25:00.000-07:00

(German: “sea of rock”), exposed rock surfaces that have been quickly broken up by frost action so that much rock is buried under a cover of angular shattered boulders. These mantles principally occur in Arctic regions and high mountain areas. Their continuity and depth varies with climate, vegetation, and rock type, but they may be as much as 4 metres (12 feet) deep. Felsenmeer

Canastra Mountains

2004-10-04T17:43:00.000-07:00

Portuguese Serra Da Canastra, mountain range on the Planalto Central (Brazilian Highlands) in western Minas Gerais estado (“state”), southeastern Brazil. Extending 150 miles (240 km) from the Goías state border in the north to the upper Grande River in the south, the Canastra Mountains rise to an average elevation of 6,000 feet (1,800 m) and form the eastern border of the Triângulo Mineiro, a grassland region between the

Biblical Literature, The Letter of Paul to the Philippians

2004-10-04T04:40:00.000-07:00

In its present canonical form Philippians is, according to several scholars, a later collection of fragments of the correspondence of Paul with the congregation in Philippi that was founded by Paul himself. The first of the two major difficulties leading to this conclusion concerning redaction of the letter is created by a discrepancy between chapters 2 and 3—i.e.,

Ibi

2004-10-03T14:33:00.000-07:00

Town and river port, Taraba state, east-central Nigeria, on the south bank of the Benue River, opposite the mouth of the Shemankar River. Founded in the 1850s by a slave of Hamman, the Fulani emir of Muri (to the northeast), it became a post for slave traders from Muri, known as the bayin Fulani. In the late 19th century British merchants of the Royal Niger Company observed Ibi's Hausa

Igbo

2004-10-01T22:53:00.000-07:00

Also called Ibo people living chiefly in southeastern Nigeria who speak Igbo, a language of the Benue-Congo branch of the Niger-Congo language family. The Igbo may be grouped into the following main cultural divisions: northern (Onitsha), southern (Owerri), western (Ika), eastern (Cross River), and northeastern (Abakaliki). Before European colonization, the Igbo were not united as a single

Akita

2004-09-30T18:31:00.000-07:00

Ken (prefecture), northwestern Honshu, Japan, on the Sea of Japan coast. Its area of 4,483 square miles (11,612 square km) is divided between lowlands (west) and a plateau region (east). The Hachiman Plateau is dotted with volcanoes such as Mount Komaga (5,371 feet [1,637 m]), near the eastern border with Iwate prefecture. The plateau is covered with white fir trees and alpine plants that grow amid

Character Writer

2004-09-29T17:42:00.000-07:00

Any writer who produced a type of character sketch that was popular in 17th-century England and France. Their writings stemmed from a series of character sketches that the Greek philosopher and teacher Theophrastus (fl. c. 372 BC) had written, possibly as part of a larger work and probably with the intention of instructing and amusing his students of rhetoric. Theophrastus'

Swaziland System

2004-09-28T22:09:00.000-07:00

Major division of rocks and time in southern Africa in Precambrian Time (3.96 billion to 540 million years ago). The system consists of a great thickness of sedimentary and metamorphic (altered) rocks with numerous intrusions of igneous bodies. Two major subdivisions of the Swaziland System are recognized, an Upper and a Lower series. Many of the units that constitute the

Kahnweiler, Daniel-henry

2004-09-28T13:33:00.000-07:00

Trained for a career in finance, Kahnweiler instead chose art and settled in Paris, where he opened a small gallery in 1907. He became interested in the work of several young artists

Nova Friburgo

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

Nova Friburgo has textile mills but is best known as a summer mountain resort built in Swiss Alpine style. It can be reached by railroad and highway from Niterói, southwest, and from Rio de Janeiro, the state capital. Pop. (1991 prelim.) mun., 166,941.

Blood Vessel

2004-09-26T22:41:00.000-07:00

A vessel in the human or animal body in which blood circulates. The vessels that carry blood away from the heart are called arteries, and their very small branches are arterioles. Very small branches that collect the blood from the various organs and parts are called venules, and they unite to form veins, which return the blood to the heart. Capillaries are minute, thin-walled

Van Depoele, Charles Joseph

2004-09-25T21:10:00.000-07:00

After immigrating to the United States in 1869, Van Depoele became a successful manufacturer of church furniture and then began to pursue his interest in electricity. In addition to his notable

øvre Divi Valley National Park

2004-09-23T14:12:00.000-07:00

Norwegian Øvre Dividal Nasjonalpark, national park in the eastern part of the Divi valley, Troms county, northern Norway. With an area of 286 square miles (741 square km), it was established in 1971. The landscape varies from lowland forests of pine and birch to low hills and mountain plateaus with lakes and bogs interspersed throughout. A sparse pine forest supports bear, lynx, wolverine, and wolf. Large numbers of tame

West Bromwich

2004-09-23T13:16:00.000-07:00

Locality in the metropolitan borough of Sandwell, metropolitan county of West Midlands, historic county of Staffordshire, England. It lies about 5 miles (8 km) northwest of the city of Birmingham. Though the town is of ancient origin, its appearance is modern and industrial. Coal was long mined in and around the locality until the end of the 20th century, and West Bromwich

Nereid

2004-09-21T07:09:00.000-07:00

In Greek religion, any of the daughters (numbering 50 or 100) of the sea god Nereus (eldest son of Pontus, a personification of the sea) and of Doris, daughter of Oceanus (the god of the water encircling the flat Earth). The Nereids were depicted as young girls, inhabiting any water, salt or fresh, and as benign toward humanity. They were popular figures in Greek literature. The best