ComplexTicket

Amphibian, Distribution and abundance

2005-04-05T04:35:00.000-07:00

Found in almost every type of environment except the high latitudes in the Arctic, Antarctica, various oceanic islands, and some extremely xeric (dry) deserts, frogs and toads show the greatest diversity in humid tropical environments. Salamanders primarily inhabit the Northern Hemisphere and are most abundant in cool, moist, montane forests;

O Dalaigh, Cearbhall

2005-04-04T21:39:00.000-07:00

Son of parents active in the struggle for Irish independence, O Dalaigh studied at University College, Dublin, earning a degree in Celtic studies in 1931. He was an Irish-language editor on The Irish Press (1931–42), meanwhile becoming a lawyer (1935). In 1945 he became Ireland's

Lutetian Stage

2005-04-02T17:42:00.000-08:00

The stage's name is derived from Lutetia, the ancient Latin name for Paris, France, whose surrounding area is usually considered

Toynbee Hall

2005-04-02T15:02:00.000-08:00

Pioneering social settlement in the East End of London. It was founded on Commercial Street, Whitechapel (now in Tower Hamlets), in 1884 by the canon Samuel Augustus Barnett and named for the 19th-century English social reformer Arnold Toynbee. During his early years at St. Jude's Church, Barnett invited members of the universities of Oxford and Cambridge to the impoverished

Metatarsal

2005-04-02T02:31:00.000-08:00

Any of several tubular bones between the ankle (tarsal) bones and each of the hindlimb digits, in land vertebrates corresponding to the metacarpal bones of the hand (forepaw). In humans the five metatarsal bones help form longitudinal arches along the inner and outer sides of the foot and a transverse arch at the ball of the foot. The first metatarsal (which adjoins the

Ismailia

2005-04-01T06:29:00.000-08:00

The city was founded in 1863 by the French engineer Ferdinand de Lesseps, builder of the Suez Canal, as a base camp. It was

Nigeria, Igbo Ukwu

2005-03-31T15:32:00.000-08:00

The bronzes found at Igbo Ukwu, which have been dated to about AD 900, reveal not only a high artistic tradition but also a well-structured society with wide-ranging economic relationships. Of particular interest is the source of the copper and lead used to make the bronzes, which may have been Tadmekka in the Sahara, and of the coloured glass beads, which may have come from

Antarctic Circumpolar Current

2005-03-31T05:31:00.000-08:00

Also called West Wind Drift, surface oceanic current encircling Antarctica and flowing from west to east. Affected by adjacent landmasses, submarine topography, and prevailing winds, the Antarctic Circumpolar Current is irregular in width and course. Its motion is further complicated by continuous exchange with other water masses at all depths. The volume of transport south of latitude

Niven, David

2005-03-29T16:22:00.000-08:00

Born to a longtime military family, Niven attended Sandhurst Military Academy. He made his way to Hollywood in the mid-1930s and began performing as an extra. His first major roles were in Dawn Patrol (1938) and Wuthering Heights (1939). He rapidly became known

Radcliffe, Ann

2005-03-29T09:20:00.000-08:00

Radcliffe's father was in trade, and the family lived in well-to-do gentility. In 1787, at the age of 23, she married William Radcliffe, a journalist who encouraged her literary pursuits.

Selim Ii

2005-03-29T07:39:00.000-08:00

Selim,

Augustus Iii

2005-03-28T10:02:00.000-08:00

Also called Augustus Frederick , Polish August Fryderyk , German August Friedrich king of Poland and elector of Saxony (as Frederick Augustus II), whose reign witnessed one of the greatest periods of disorder within Poland. More interested in ease and pleasure than in affairs of state, this notable patron of the arts left the administration of Saxony and Poland to his chief adviser, Heinrich von Brühl, who in turn left

Koerber, Ernest Von

2005-03-28T07:43:00.000-08:00

Entering the Austrian administration in 1874, Koerber rose steadily

Loredan, Pietro

2005-03-27T23:31:00.000-08:00

As captain of the Venetian fleet he defeated the Ottoman Turks, who had been threatening Venetian shipping, in a

Earthnut

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

Also called Pignut, or Hognut (Conopodium majus), European plant of the carrot family (Apiaceae), so called because of its edible tubers. It grows in woods and fields in the British Isles and from Norway, France, Spain, and Portugal to Italy and Corsica. The slender, smooth perennial, growing 750 mm to 1 m (30 to 39 inches) high, has much-divided leaves and small, white flowers in compound umbels. The tubers, reaching 25 mm

Lord Chief Justice

2005-03-25T22:36:00.000-08:00

In England and Wales, the head of the Queen's (or King's) Bench Division of the High Court of Justice and next in rank to the lord chancellor. Appointed by the crown on the nomination of the prime minister, he usually presides over the Court of Criminal Appeal and is an ex officio member of the Court of Appeal. He is invariably raised to the peerage on appointment and so is able

Almanac

2005-03-25T10:47:00.000-08:00

Book or table containing a calendar of the days, weeks, and months of the year; a record of various astronomical phenomena, often with weather predictions and seasonal suggestions for farmers; and miscellaneous other data. An almanac provides data on the rising and setting times of the Sun and Moon, the phases of the Moon, the positions of the planets, schedules of high

Gamaliel Ii

2005-03-24T19:37:00.000-08:00

In the ancient biblical city of Jabneh, many Jews had taken refuge from the Roman siege of Jerusalem in AD 70. Gamaliel

Water

2005-03-24T17:31:00.000-08:00

A substance composed of the chemical elements hydrogen and oxygen and existing in gaseous, liquid, and solid states. Water is one of the most plentiful and essential of compounds. It is vital to life, participating in virtually every process that occurs in plants and animals. Although the molecules of water are simple in structure (H2O), the physical and chemical properties

Fable, Parable, And Allegory

2005-03-24T13:53:00.000-08:00

Any form of imaginative literature or spoken utterance constructed in such a way that readers or listeners are encouraged to look for meanings hidden beneath the literal surface of the fiction. A story is told or perhaps enacted whose details—when interpreted—are found to correspond to the details of some other system of relations (its hidden, allegorical sense).

Anode

2005-03-22T14:14:00.000-08:00

The terminal or electrode from which electrons leave a system. In a battery or other source of direct current the anode is the negative terminal, but in a passive load it is the positive terminal. For example, in an electron tube electrons from the cathode travel across the tube toward the anode, and in an electroplating cell negative ions are deposited at the anode.

Sénégal River, Plant and animal life

2005-03-22T02:32:00.000-08:00

Typical trees of the Sénégal valley are acacias, notably Acacia nilotica, which grows profusely on banks, and A. senegal, which provides the gum arabic of commerce and grows on drier slopes. The grass Vetiveria nigritiana grows in tufts in wet depressions. In dry areas near the valley sides A. albida, Balanites aegyptiaca (a tree with thorny branches), and grasses are

Kabbala

2005-03-20T06:13:00.000-08:00

Spain also

Fiddler Crab

2005-03-19T09:49:00.000-08:00

Also called calling crab any of the approximately 65 species of the genus Uca (order Decapoda of the subphylum Crustacea). They are named “fiddler” because the male holds one claw, always much larger than the other, somewhat like a violin. Both claws in the female are relatively small. If a male loses his large claw, the small one develops into a large claw, and a small one replaces the lost large

Gray

2005-03-19T02:48:00.000-08:00

Unit of absorbed dose of ionizing radiation, defined in the 1980s by the International Commission on Radiation Units and Measurements. One gray is equal approximately to the absorbed dose delivered when the energy per unit mass imparted to matter by ionizing radiation is one joule per kilogram. As a unit of measure, the gray is coherent with the units of measure in the

Japan

2005-03-17T16:59:00.000-08:00

On June 9 in Tokyo, Crown Prince Naruhito married Masako Owada (see BIOGRAPHIES), a career woman from the Foreign Ministry. Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko began an unprecedented four-day visit to Okinawa on April 23 to pay respect to nearly 200,000 soldiers and civilians killed in the Pacific war. After the empress collapsed on October 20, her 59th birthday, the only medical information

Table Tennis

2005-03-17T10:23:00.000-08:00

In the years between the biennial world championships, attention focused on regional events, the largest of which were the European championships. At the 19th staging of this tournament, in Birmingham, England, during March-April 1994, Jean-Michel Saive of Belgium became the new European men's singles champion by defeating Olympic gold medalist Jan-Ove Waldner of Sweden

Denner, Johann Christoph

2005-03-16T23:04:00.000-08:00

Denner's father, Heinrich, made horns and animal calls; from him Christoph learned instrument building, at the same time becoming an excellent performer. His energy was mainly devoted to improving already existing woodwind instruments, and his well-tuned

Hesperides

2005-03-15T15:35:00.000-08:00

Singular Hesperis, in Greek mythology, clear-voiced maidens who guarded the tree bearing golden apples that Gaea gave to Hera at her marriage to Zeus. According to Hesiod, they were the daughters of Erebus and Night; in other accounts, their parents were Atlas and Hesperis or Phorcys and Ceto. They were usually three in number, Aegle, Erytheia, and Hespere (or Hesperethusa), but by some accounts

Gateshead

2005-03-15T10:31:00.000-08:00

Town and metropolitan borough, metropolitan county of Tyne and Wear, historic county of Durham, England. It was initially a small settlement that developed at the southern end of a medieval bridge, opposite the fortress (later city) of Newcastle upon Tyne; at that time it was under the jurisdiction of the bishop of Durham. During the Industrial Revolution, locally mined

Furniture, Fireplaces

2005-03-15T08:23:00.000-08:00

The heating of rooms and large halls remained a major problem until the advent of modern central heating systems. The open hearth was replaced during the late Middle Ages by the fireplace, which is merely an architectonic way of framing the burning logs. During the period when it was important as a source of heat, the fireplace became the object of design work by significant

Luks, George

2005-03-14T05:04:00.000-08:00

Born in a coal-mining region of north-central Pennsylvania, Luks studied first at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Philadelphia, and later in Germany,

Mascagni, Pietro

2005-03-14T01:58:00.000-08:00

Mascagni studied at the conservatory at Milan, but, unable to submit to the discipline of his master, Amilcare Ponchielli, he left to join a traveling

Clouet, François

2005-03-13T17:02:00.000-08:00

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

Alkali Feldspar

2005-03-11T18:46:00.000-08:00

Any of several common silicate minerals that often occur as variously coloured, glassy crystals. They are used in the manufacture of glass and ceramics; transparent, highly coloured, or iridescent varieties are sometimes used as gemstones. The alkali feldspars are primarily important as constituents of rocks; they are very widespread and abundant in alkali and

World War I, Air warfare

2005-03-11T01:57:00.000-08:00

At the start of the war the land and sea forces used the aircraft put at their disposal primarily for reconnaissance, and air fighting began as the exchange of shots from small arms between enemy airmen meeting one another in the course of reconnoitering. Fighter aircraft armed with machine guns, however, made their appearance in 1915. Tactical bombing and the bombing

Buys Ballot, Christophorus H(enricus) D(idericus)

2005-03-10T14:57:00.000-08:00

Buys Ballot studied and taught at the University of Utrecht, attaining

Zaanstad

2005-03-10T11:54:00.000-08:00

Gemeente (commune), Noord-Holland provincie, western Netherlands. It lies along the Zaan River near its junction with the North Sea Canal. An industrial area 6 miles (10 km) northwest of Amsterdam, Zaanstad was created in 1974 at the merger of the former gemeenten (communes) of Zaandam, Koog aan de Zaan, Zaandijk, Wormerveer, Krommenie, Assendelft, and Westzaan. Zaandam was an important

Guhyasamaja-tantra

2005-03-10T04:20:00.000-08:00

The Guhyasamaja

Ré Island

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

French Île De Ré, island in the Bay of Biscay, Charente-Maritime département, off the west coast of France, opposite La Pallice and La Rochelle. It was for long separated from the mainland by the shallow water of Pertuis Breton, 2 miles (3.2 km) wide at the narrowest point, but a 2-mile bridge was constructed in the late 1970s. The island is 18 miles (29 km) long and 2 to 3 miles wide; it has an area of 33 square miles (85 square

Tordesillas, Treaty Of

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

In 1493, after reports of Columbus' discoveries had reached them, the Spanish rulers Ferdinand and Isabella enlisted papal support for their claims to the New World in order to inhibit the

Cha-shitsu

2005-03-07T10:39:00.000-08:00

Small Japanese garden pavilion or room within a house, specifically designed for the tea ceremony. Ideally, the cha-shitsu, or tea house, is separated from the house and is approached through a small garden called a roji (“dewy path”), the first step in breaking communication with the outer world. The tea house is usually a small, thatched-roof structure with plain plaster

Ghaznavid Dynasty

2005-03-06T06:50:00.000-08:00

The founder of the dynasty was Sebüktigin (ruled 977–997), a former Turkish slave who was recognized by the Samanids (an Iranian Muslim dynasty) as governor of Ghazna (modern Ghazni, Afg.). As the Samanid dynasty weakened, Sebüktigin consolidated his position and expanded his domains as far

Cellarette

2005-03-06T02:56:00.000-08:00

Small, movable wine cooler and, later, also a deep, metal-lined tray with compartments for holding bottles in a sideboard. The term was first used by 18th-century cabinetmakers. Most movable cellarettes were made of mahogany, and designs were varied, the shape governed to some degree by the shapes of wine bottles. Early wine bottles were short and squat, but in the late 18th

Clanvowe, Sir Thomas

2005-03-05T17:33:00.000-08:00

English courtier and poet, the reputed author of The Cuckoo and the Nightingale, a poetic debate about love, long attributed to Geoffrey Chaucer. The poem is a traditional dialogue between the two birds on the power of love, with delicate and attractive descriptions of spring, and a verse style that, though faulty at times, is Chaucerian in inspiration. The Cuckoo and

Computers, Von Neumann's Preliminary Discussion

2005-03-05T01:00:00.000-08:00

But the design of the modern, or classical, computer did not fully crystallize until the publication of a 1946 paper by Arthur Burks, Herman Goldstine, and John von Neumann titled “Preliminary Discussion of the Logical Design of an Electronic Computing Instrument.” Although many researchers contributed ideas directly or indirectly to the paper, von Neumann was the principal

World War I, Italy and the Italian front, 191516

2005-03-03T11:26:00.000-08:00

Great Britain, France, and Russia concluded on April 26, 1915, the secret Treaty of London with Italy, inducing the latter to discard the obligations of the Triple Alliance and to enter the war on the side of the Allies by the promise of territorial aggrandizement at Austria-Hungary's expense. Italy was offered not only the Italian-populated Trentino and Trieste but also South

United Nations

2005-03-03T06:56:00.000-08:00

Though UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan's term was scheduled to end on Dec. 31, 2001, he announced on March 22 his availability for five more years. UN delegates credited him with having strengthened internal management, gained control over the organization's budget, and improved ties with the U.S., and they reelected him by acclamation on June 29. He was praised for his levelheadedness,

Brabant

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

The remnant of the duchy of Lower Lorraine was

Ham Nghi

2005-03-02T16:37:00.000-08:00

Ung Lich was a nephew of the emperor Tu Duc, whose death in 1883 led to a disputed succession. After several equally legitimate heirs had been assassinated or deposed, Ung Lich ascended the throne through the intricate intrigues of two mandarin power

Andrew Of Caesarea

2005-03-01T11:39:00.000-08:00

Andrew's exposition of the book of Revelation is marked by a specific Christian interpretation of history which

Hooded Seal

2005-02-28T23:03:00.000-08:00

Also called Bladdernose Seal (Cystophora cristata), dark-faced seal of the family Phocidae, found in open waters of the North Atlantic and Arctic oceans. It is characterized by a large “hood” on the top of the snout. Grayish with either light or dark blotches (less distinct in the female), the hooded seal is gregarious and apparently feeds mainly on fish. The adult male may be about 3.5 metres (12 feet) long and

Mu'tamid, Al-

2005-02-28T07:40:00.000-08:00

At age 13 al-Mu'tamid commanded a military expedition that had been sent against the city of Silves. The venture was successful, and he was appointed governor

Finsen, Niels Ryberg

2005-02-28T03:29:00.000-08:00

Finsen was born into a prominent Icelandic family that was involved in the administration of

Fustic

2005-02-27T08:00:00.000-08:00

The dye termed young fustic (zante fustic, or Venetian sumac) is derived from the wood

De Toth, André

2005-02-26T16:09:00.000-08:00

Hungarian-born film and television director (b. May 15, 1913?, Mako, Austria-Hungary—d. Oct. 27, 2002, Burbank, Calif.), made a number of raw, violent, and psychologically disturbing B movies, including Ramrod (1947), Pitfall (1948), and Crime Wave (1954), that gained him a cult following, but he became best known to the general public for House of Wax (1953), considered the best of the 3-D films.

Pigweed

2005-02-25T14:58:00.000-08:00

Any of several coarse annual plants of cosmopolitan distribution that are often troublesome weeds. Several of them belong to the genus Amaranthus, of the family Amaranthaceae. Prostrate pigweed, or mat amaranth (A. graecizans), grows along the ground surface with stems rising at the tips; spiny pigweed, or spiny amaranth (A. spinosus), has spines at the base of the leafstalks;

Póros

2005-02-24T10:24:00.000-08:00

Island of the Saronic group, lying close to the Argolis peninsula of the Peloponnese, part of the nomós (department) of Attikí, Greece. It actually comprises two islands totaling 9 square miles (23 square km), the larger of which is the wooded, limestone island of Kalávria, separated from the village of Galatás on the mainland by a narrow channel, or poros, whence the collective

Yohannes Iv

2005-02-24T02:18:00.000-08:00

Superior weaponry allowed Yohannes, a dejazmatch (earl) of Tigray in northern Ethiopia, to fight his way to the Ethiopian throne on January

Computers, Early history and overviews

2005-02-23T14:15:00.000-08:00

Charles Eames and Ray Eames, A Computer Perspective, ed. by Glen Fleck (1973, reprinted 1990), is a pictorial record of the authors' creation of a computer exhibition for IBM that covered developments from the 1890 U.S. Census up to the stored-program computer, 1890–1950.

Atmosphere, Ionospheric physics and chemistry

2005-02-23T04:46:00.000-08:00

Most of the ionization in the ionosphere is effected by photoionization. Photons of short wavelength (i.e., high energy) are absorbed by atmospheric gases. A portion of the energy is used to eject an electron, converting a neutral atom or molecule to a pair of charged species: an electron, which is negatively charged, and a companion positive ion. Ionization in the F1 region

Aerospace Engineering

2005-02-21T20:15:00.000-08:00

Also called aeronautical engineering, or astronautical engineering, field of engineering concerned with the design, development, construction, testing, and operation of vehicles operating in the Earth's atmosphere or in outer space. In 1958 the first definition of aerospace engineering appeared, considering the Earth's atmosphere and the space above it as a single realm for development of flight vehicles. Today the more encompassing

Pyrrhus

2005-02-21T18:13:00.000-08:00

Upon becoming ruler at the age of 12, Pyrrhus allied himself with Demetrius, son of Antigonus I Monophthalmus of Macedonia.

Caucasian Languages, Grammatical characteristics

2005-02-21T17:15:00.000-08:00

In a number of languages (Lezgi, Udi) noun differentiation by classes has disappeared. The class of

Botswana, Resources

2005-02-20T04:47:00.000-08:00

Diamonds, the major economic resource of the country, have been exploited on a large scale since 1970. They are mined from some of the world's largest diamond pipes at Orapa and Letlhakane, south of the Makgadikgadi pans, and at Jwaneng in the southeastern sandveld. Nickel and copper have been mined at Selebi-Phikwe near the Motloutse River since 1974. Coal is mined for power generation

Kwangsi, The revolution

2005-02-19T14:05:00.000-08:00

Together with neighbouring Kwangtung, Kwangsi in the early years of the 20th century became the base of the nationalist revolution led by Sun Yat-sen. Between 1906 and 1916 the provincial leaders of Kwangsi supported the establishment of a republic, and during the following decade played an active role in the reorganization of the Chinese Nationalist Party (Kuomintang). Following

Pacific Coast

2005-02-19T14:00:00.000-08:00

Region, western North America, possessing two unifying geologic and geographic properties—the Pacific Ocean, which constitutes a natural western border, and the coastal mountain ranges that form the eastern border of the region. The most commonly accepted definition of the Pacific Coast is largely a political one: it defines the region as comprising the U.S. states

Dubuffet, Jean(-philippe-arthur)

2005-02-18T23:42:00.000-08:00

After World War II, as one of

Dependent States

2005-02-17T16:14:00.000-08:00

There was a focus on the French Pacific territories in 2003, with French Pres. Jacques Chirac's first visit to the region and constitutional changes that would increase French Polynesia's representation in the French Senate and open the way to greater autonomy. In July Chirac met Pacific islands leaders in Papeete, on

Plow

2005-02-16T21:57:00.000-08:00

The antecedent of the plow is the prehistoric digging stick. The earliest plows were doubtless digging sticks fashioned with handles for pulling or pushing. By Roman times, light, wheelless plows with iron shares (blades)

Pacher, Michael

2005-02-16T14:28:00.000-08:00

Little is known of Pacher's early life, but he is thought to have gone to Italy, where he was much impressed by the experiments in perspective of two eminent northern Italian

Elk

2005-02-15T10:25:00.000-08:00

Elk county was created in 1843. The principal communities are St. Marys, Johnsonburg, and Ridgway, which is the county seat.

Daikoku

2005-02-15T07:26:00.000-08:00

In Japanese mythology, one of the Shichi-fuku-jin (Seven Gods of Luck); the god of wealth and guardian of farmers. He is depicted in legend and art as dark-skinned, stout, carrying a wish-granting mallet in his right hand, a bag of precious things slung over his back, and sitting on two rice bags. Rats are sometimes shown nibbling at the rice, further emphasizing the theme of

Toreva Block

2005-02-14T18:14:00.000-08:00

Landslide product consisting of a very large block of undisturbed material that has been tilted backward toward the parent cliff during movement down a gentle slope. In northeastern Arizona such blocks are thought to have formed during more humid periods of the last glacial advance of the Pleistocene Epoch (1,600,000 to 10,000 years ago). Toreva blocks also occur, however, as a simple

Liszt, Franz

2005-02-13T04:41:00.000-08:00

In 1869 Liszt was invited to return to Weimar by the grand duke to give master classes in piano playing, and two years later he was asked to do the same in Budapest. From then until the end of his life he divided his time between Rome, Weimar, and Budapest. After a reconciliation with Wagner in 1872, Liszt regularly attended the Bayreuth festivals. He appeared occasionally as a pianist

Performing Arts, Spain and Portugal.

2005-02-13T03:17:00.000-08:00

Spain maintained a substantial popular production. Notable films included José Luis Garci's Una historia de entonces (You're the One), the story of an aspiring woman writer in the 1940s who returns to her home village after the death of her lover; Álex de la Iglesia's high-spirited comic group portrait of the denizens of a rundown old Madrid tenement, La comunidad; and

Nabis

2005-02-12T03:53:00.000-08:00

Last ruler (207–192) of an independent Sparta. Nabis carried on the revolutionary tradition of Kings Agis IV and Cleomenes III. Since ancient accounts of him are mainly abusive, the details of his laws remain obscure, but it is certain that he confiscated a great deal of property and enfranchised many helots (Spartan serfs). He undoubtedly was not the monster depicted by the

Gerzean Culture

2005-02-12T03:20:00.000-08:00

Also called Naqadah Ii Culture, predynastic Egyptian cultural phase given the sequence dates 40–65 by Sir Flinders Petrie and later dated c. 3400–c. 3100 BC. Evidence indicates that the Gerzean culture was not brought by invaders but was rather a further development of the culture of the Amratian period, which immediately preceded the Gerzean. Centred primarily at Naqadah and Hierakonpolis in Upper Egypt, and Sayala

Orange River, Physiography

2005-02-10T02:51:00.000-08:00

The headwaters of the Orange River rise at an altitude of about 10,800 feet (3,300 metres) above sea level on a dissected plateau formed by the Lesotho Highlands that extends from the Drakensberg escarpment in the east to the Maloti (Maluti) Mountains in the west. The main source of the Orange River is officially recognized as the Sinqu (Senqu) River, which rises near the plateau's

Simeon I

2005-02-09T23:36:00.000-08:00

His dominant ambition, which was to himself ascend the imperial throne of Byzantium—an aspiration

Anchura

2005-02-09T08:57:00.000-08:00

Genus of extinct marine gastropods (snails) found as fossils only in marine deposits of Cretaceous age (between 144 and 66.4 million years old). It is thus a useful guide or index fossil because it is easily recognizable. The shell whorls are globular and ornamented with raised crenulations; the spire is sharply pointed; the body whorl, the final and largest whorl, has

Dvur Králové Nad Labem

2005-02-07T23:24:00.000-08:00

City, Východoceský kraj (region), Czech Republic. The city lies just north of Hradec Králové, on the left bank of the Elbe (Czech: Labe) River. The name in both Czech and German (Königinhof an der Elbe) means ”the court of the queen on the Elbe,” recalling the founding of the town by King Wenceslas II at the end of the 13th century and the gift of the place to his queen, Elisabeth. It was the

Middleton, Arthur

2005-02-06T21:58:00.000-08:00

After completing his education in England, Middleton returned to South Carolina in 1763 and was elected to the colonial legislature. In 1775–76 he was a member of the Council

Tasmania, Ethnic and religious groups

2005-02-06T16:57:00.000-08:00

The original Tasmanians were an anthropologically interesting Negritoid people, with the widest nasal index ever recorded and shorter and broader heads than the Aboriginal peoples of the continental mainland. They may originally have drifted across from the mainland or arrived from as far as the New Hebrides, several thousand miles to the northeast. Estimates

Benedict (xiii)

2005-02-05T09:33:00.000-08:00

Of noble birth, he was professor of canon law at Montpellier University in southern France before he was

Andhra Pradesh

2005-02-04T19:19:00.000-08:00

State of India, located in the southeastern part of the subcontinent. It is bounded by the states of Tamil Nadu (formerly Madras) to the south, Karnataka (Mysore) to the west, Maharashtra to the northwest and north, and Madhya Pradesh and Orissa to the northeast; the eastern boundary is a 600-mile (970-kilometre) coastline along the Bay of Bengal. The state has an area of 106,195 square miles (275,045 square

Palacio Valdés, Armando

2005-02-04T06:42:00.000-08:00

After studying law at the University of Madrid, Palacio Valdés began his literary career as a critic but soon turned to the novel. His novels are largely autobiographical,

Program Music

2005-02-03T21:25:00.000-08:00

Instrumental music that carries some extramusical meaning, some “program” of literary idea, legend, scenic description, or personal drama. It is contrasted with so-called absolute, or abstract, music, in which artistic interest is supposedly confined to abstract constructions in sound. It has been stated that the concept of program music does not represent a genre

Malabar Coast

2005-02-02T19:32:00.000-08:00

Name long applied to the southern part of India's western coast, approximately from Goa southward, which is bordered on the east by the Western Ghats range. The name has sometimes encompassed the entire western coast of peninsular India. It now includes most of Kerala state and the coastal region of Karnataka state. The coast consists of a continuous belt of sand dunes.

Wilde, Oscar (fingal O'flahertie Wills)

2005-02-01T17:51:00.000-08:00

Irish wit, poet, and dramatist whose reputation rests on his comic masterpieces Lady Windermere's Fan (1892) and The Importance of Being Earnest (1895). He was a spokesman for the late 19th-century Aesthetic movement in England, which advocated art for art's sake; and he was the object of celebrated civil and criminal suits involving homosexuality and ending

Fairchild, Mary Salome Cutler

2005-02-01T13:18:00.000-08:00

Salome Cutler graduated from Mount Holyoke Female Seminary (now Mount Holyoke College) in South Hadley, Massachusetts, in 1875 and taught there from 1876 to 1878. After a period of ill health, she became interested in the

F-117

2005-02-01T13:17:00.000-08:00

Also called Nighthawk, single-seat, twin-engine jet fighter-bomber built by the Lockheed Corporation (now part of the Lockheed Martin Corporation) for the U.S. Air Force. It was the first stealth aircraft—i.e., an aircraft designed entirely around the concept of evading detection by radar and other sensors. After a difficult development period, during which several prototypes crashed during

Arrian

2005-01-31T14:10:00.000-08:00

Latin in full Flavius Arrianus Greek historian and philosopher who was the author of a work describing the campaigns of Alexander the Great. Entitled Anabasis, presumably in order to recall Xenophon's work of that title, it describes Alexander's military exploits in seven books; an eighth, the Indica, tells of Indian customs and the voyage of Nearchus in the Persian

Nitrocellulose

2005-01-31T07:47:00.000-08:00

Also called Cellulose Nitrate, a mixture of nitric esters of cellulose, and a highly flammable compound that is the main ingredient of modern gunpowder. Nitrocellulose is a fluffy white substance that retains some of the fibrous structure of untreated cellulose. It is not stable to heat, and even carefully prepared samples will ignite on brief heating to more than about 150° C (300° F). When nitrocellulose

Ahmad Ibn Hanbal

2005-01-30T06:19:00.000-08:00

The most important of Ibn Hanbal's works is his collection of the Traditions of the Prophet Muhammad. This collection was heretofore believed to have been compiled by the author's son ('Abd Allah), but there is now evidence that the work was compiled and arranged by Ibn Hanbal himself. These Traditions were considered by Ibn Hanbal as a sound basis for argument in law and

Alliterative Verse

2005-01-29T18:06:00.000-08:00

Early verse of the Germanic languages in which alliteration, the repetition of consonant sounds at the beginning of words or stressed syllables, is a basic structural principle rather than an occasional embellishment. Although alliteration is a common device in almost all poetry, the only Indo-European languages that used it as a governing principle, along with

Orlov, Aleksey Grigoryevich, Count (graf)

2005-01-29T17:13:00.000-08:00

Having entered the cadet corps in 1749, Orlov became an officer in the Russian guards as well as a close adviser to his brother Grigory Grigoryevich Orlov, who about 1760 became the lover of Catherine,

Abu Madi, Iliya

2005-01-28T01:28:00.000-08:00

When he was 11 years old, Abu Madi moved with his family from their mountain village in Lebanon to Alexandria, Egypt. As a young man he earned money selling cigarettes. He published his first collection of poetry in Alexandria in 1911. The following year he migrated to the United

Toccata

2005-01-27T20:22:00.000-08:00

In the late 16th century in Venice such composers as Giovanni Gabrieli and Claudio Merulo wrote organ toccatas (many with such titles as Fantasia and Intonazione), often

Wrangel, Pyotr Nikolayevich, Baron

2005-01-27T05:05:00.000-08:00

A member of an old German baronial family, he served in the Russian imperial guards and became commander of a Cossack division during World War I. He continued to serve in the army after the February