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2007-01-25T11:25:00.000-08:00

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Outcaste

2005-03-19T22:01:00.000-08:00

In the Hindu caste system, an individual or group that has been thrown out of caste, usually for some ritual offense. The outcasting may be temporary or permanent. In the 19th century, a Hindu faced excommunication for going abroad, where it was presumed he would be forced to break caste restrictions and, as a result, become polluted. Such an offender would be reinstated

Lahun, Al-

2005-03-16T21:43:00.000-08:00

Also spelled El Lahun, or Illahun, ancient Egyptian site situated just north of the turn of the Bahr Yusuf canal into the Fayum in al-Fayyum muhafazah (governorate); it was the location of a Middle Kingdom (1938–c. 1600? BC) pyramid and of a workmen's village of approximately the same date. The pyramid, built by King Sesostris II (reigned 1844–37 BC), fourth of the eight kings of the 12th dynasty, was unusual in that the entrance to the burial chamber

Fair

2005-03-15T19:59:00.000-08:00

Temporary market where buyers and sellers gather to transact business. A fair is held at regular intervals, generally at the same location and time of year, and it usually lasts for several days or even weeks. Its primary function is the promotion of trade. Historically, fairs displayed many different kinds of products in specific commodity or industrial groupings.

Bond

2005-03-12T13:24:00.000-08:00

Bonding may be achieved by overlapping alternate courses (rows or layers) in brickwork, by using metal ties, and by inserting units vertically

Bond

2005-03-10T16:05:00.000-08:00

Oceanographic study platform developed in the United States. It combines the advantages of extreme stability while floating on site and ease of movement to new areas. In the horizontal position, FLIP, 109 m (357 feet) long, can be towed behind a ship. When FLIP's ballast tanks are flooded, the platform tilts to an upright position with 17 m (55 feet) of its length above water. Above-water

Zambales Mountains

2005-03-09T02:37:00.000-08:00

Volcanic range in the southwestern part of northern Luzon in the Philippines. The range stretches northwest-southeast from Lingayen Gulf in the north to the Bataan Peninsula and the entrance to Manila Bay in the south. Its greatest elevation is High Peak (6,683 feet [2,037 m]). Lying farther south and across the bay from Manila is Mount Mariveles (4,659 feet [1,420 m]), which marks the southern

Bernard, Jean-jacques

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

French playwright and chief representative of what became known as l'école du silence (the “school of silence”) or, as some critics called it, the “art of the unexpressed,” in which the dialogue does not express the characters' real attitudes. As in Martine(1922), perhaps the best example of his work, emotions are implied in gestures, facial

Staines

2005-03-04T06:07:00.000-08:00

Town in Spelthorne borough, administrative county of Surrey, historic county of Middlesex, England, on the left bank of the River Thames. A residential community on the western fringe of Greater London, Staines marks a crossing of the Thames used since Roman times by the major road from London to the southwest of Britain. Nearby are large reservoirs where Thames water

Staines

2005-03-02T10:46:00.000-08:00

Organization that evolved out of an international protest against atmospheric nuclear testing held on November 1, 1961. On that day between 12,000 and 50,000 women in various nations demonstrated to protest nuclear testing and to voice concern, in particular, about the hazards posed by such testing to children's health. In the United States some 1,500 women marched in Washington, D.C., to make

Anser

2005-02-28T18:38:00.000-08:00

Bird genus of the family Anatidae (order Anseriformes). For a general discussion of the genus, see goose; for A. Albifrons, see white-fronted goose; for A. anser, see greylag; for A. caerulescens, see snow goose.

Yap Ah Loy

2005-02-26T18:49:00.000-08:00

Yap Ah Loy arrived in the Malay state of Selangor in 1856 at the age of 19. He spent his first years in the peninsula as a miner and petty trader, but in 1862 his fortunes

Iri

2005-02-24T09:55:00.000-08:00

City, Cholla-pukto (North Cholla Province), western South Korea, 16 mi (26 km) east of the port city of Kunsan. In the northern part of the Honam-p'yongya (plain), the largest granary of South Korea, it is the market centre for the agricultural products, particularly rice, of the area. The city is also the transportation junction of rail lines leading to Mokp'o, Mok'o, Taejon, and Kunsan. Despite

Lipa

2005-02-23T03:01:00.000-08:00

Chartered city, Batangas province, southwestern Luzon, Philippines. Formerly a Spanish military headquarters, it is a market town for a fruit-growing region. Lipa was rebuilt (including its cathedral) after a disastrous volcanic eruption in 1754 and again after its virtual destruction under Japanese occupation in World War II. Industries include clothing manufacture

Hypopituitarism

2005-02-20T21:44:00.000-08:00

Deficiency of pituitary secretions, caused by various forms of injury to or damage of the pituitary gland. Removal of the entire gland or deficiency of all pituitary secretions produces the condition known as panhypopituitarism, which is sometimes manifested as Simmonds' disease (q.v.).

Clanny, William Reid

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

Educated at the University of Edinburgh (M.D.), Clanny served with the navy before becoming a private practitioner. In

Roberts, Richard J.

2005-02-15T19:53:00.000-08:00

Roberts received a Ph.D. in organic chemistry from the University of Sheffield, Eng., in 1968. After postdoctoral research at Harvard University, he took a post at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory in New York in 1972. In 1992 he

Nitrogen Fixation

2005-02-12T00:55:00.000-08:00

Under ordinary conditions nitrogen does not react with other elements. Yet nitrogenous compounds are found in all fertile soils,

La Fontaine

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

Before La Fontaine's debut in 1681 at the Paris Opéra as première danseuse in Jean-Baptiste Lully's ballet Le Triomphe de l'amour, girls' roles on the public stage had been taken by young men. Although hampered by the long, confining costumes and limited ballet technique of the

Huynh Tan Phat

2005-02-09T02:48:00.000-08:00

While

Johnson, Kelly

2005-02-07T10:20:00.000-08:00

Johnson received his B.S. (1932) and M.S. (1933) degrees from the University of Michigan before beginning his career with the Lockheed Corporation in 1933. As head of the “Skunk Works,” Lockheed's secret development unit, he helped design more than 40 airplanes. Among them were the P-38 Lightning

Addams, Charles (samuel)

2005-02-04T14:12:00.000-08:00

Addams attended various schools from 1929 to 1932; thereafter, aside from a brief period as a commercial artist, he was a free-lance cartoonist, selling his first work to The New Yorker in 1933. His cartoons

Moloch

2005-01-31T16:53:00.000-08:00

The laws given to Moses by God expressly forbade the Jews to do what was done in Egypt or

Bonar, Horatius

2005-01-29T01:23:00.000-08:00

Ordained minister of North Parish church in Kelso, Roxburghshire (1837), Bonar remained there until appointed minister of the Chalmers Memorial Church in Edinburgh (1866). At the disruption of 1843, when the Evangelical party left

Man Orchid

2005-01-28T03:35:00.000-08:00

The flower spike, about 10 to 45 cm (4 to 18 inches) tall, may bear up to 90 greenish or yellowish flowers, which have an unpleasant odour.

Fishhook Cactus

2005-01-26T08:37:00.000-08:00

Mammillaria, native from southwestern North America to the Caribbean, Colombia, and Venezuela, is a large and complex genus of about 150 species. Its species are

Neuropteran

2005-01-24T17:04:00.000-08:00

All three orders may have evolved from an early mecopteran (scorpionfly) ancestral stem, prior to the Trichoptera–Lepidoptera offshoot (see section on Trichoptera). Carnivorous insects of varied structure and habit, both freshwater and terrestrial members of the three orders, are widely distributed with the exception of the snakeflies (which are confined to the

Alder, Kurt

2005-01-22T15:01:00.000-08:00

Alder studied chemistry at the universities of Berlin and Kiel, where he received his doctorate

Fibonacci Numbers

2005-01-19T03:04:00.000-08:00

The elements of the sequence of numbers 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, , each of which, after the second, is the sum of the two previous numbers. These numbers were first noted by the medieval Italian mathematician Leonardo Pisano (“Fibonacci”) in his Liber abaci (1202; “Book of the Abacus”), which also popularized Hindu-Arabic numerals and the decimal number system in Europe. For information on the interesting

Argyll, Archibald Campbell, 1st Marquess And 8th Earl Of, Lord Campbell, Lord Lorne, Lord Of Kintyre

2005-01-17T16:18:00.000-08:00

He was the eldest son of Archibald, 7th Earl of Argyll, and took over the management of the family estates in 1619 after his father had

Digestive System Disease, Roundworms

2005-01-16T04:20:00.000-08:00

Roundworms, particularly Ascaris lumbricoides, may cause intestinal obstruction if present in sufficient numbers. As they mature from the larval state to the adult worm, roundworms migrate through the body, causing ascariasis, an infection characterized by fever, pneumonitis (lung inflammation), cholangitis (inflammation of the bile ducts), and pancreatitis

Appleton

2005-01-14T04:15:00.000-08:00

City, seat (1851) of Outagamie county, east-central Wisconsin, U.S. The city lies along the Fox River near its outflow from Lake Winnebago, 31 miles (48 km) southwest of Green Bay. The settlement of the area was encouraged by the presence of Lawrence College (chartered 1847, now a university), founded by Amos A. Lawrence of Boston, and of abundant waterpower. First called Grand Chute, the settlement

Murdoch, Dame Iris

2005-01-12T15:38:00.000-08:00

After an early childhood spent in London, Murdoch went to Badminton School, Bristol, and from 1938 to 1942 studied at Somerville College, Oxford. Between 1942 and 1944 she worked in the British Treasury and

Tragedy, Aeschylus: the first great tragedian

2005-01-09T23:35:00.000-08:00

It is this last question that Aeschylus asks most insistently in his two most famous works, the Oresteia (a trilogy comprising Agamemnon, Choephoroi, and Eumenides) and Prometheus Bound (the first part of a trilogy of which the last two parts have been lost): is it right that Orestes, a young man in no way responsible for his situation, should be commanded by a god, in the name

Kirov

2005-01-08T04:42:00.000-08:00

Oblast (province), western Russia. The oblast covers an area of 46,650 square miles (120,800 square km) and occupies almost the entire basin of the Vyatka River. It is a rolling morainic plain rising from the broad, central valley of the Vyatka to the dissected limestone uplands of the Severnye Hills in the north and the Vyatsky Hills and Verkhne (Upper) Kama upland in the east. Nearly all

Heinemann, William

2005-01-05T17:04:00.000-08:00

Heinemann studied music in England and Germany but decided instead to become

Anzali, Bandar-e

2005-01-03T13:18:00.000-08:00

Founded in the early 19th century, the town lies on both sides of the entrance to Mordab Lagoon. It was occupied by the Russians in 1920; they declared a Soviet Republic of Gilan, but that entity

Savannakhét

2005-01-02T05:27:00.000-08:00

Town in the central southern panhandle of Laos, on the left bank of the Mekong River. It had a teacher-training school (1911), a public high school (1946), a Buddhist secondary school, a trade school, and the Savannakhét Technical College before the 1975 communist takeover. Industries in the town included manufacturing of soft drinks, ice making, and a sawmill. There is an airport, and a road

Aufbau Principle

2004-12-31T14:09:00.000-08:00

(from German Aufbauprinzip, “building-up principle”), rationalization of the distribution of electrons among energy levels in the ground (most stable) states of atoms. The principle, formulated by the Danish physicist Niels Bohr about 1920, is an application of the laws of quantum mechanics to the properties of electrons subject to the electric field created by the positive

Pacher, Michael

2004-12-28T04:29:00.000-08:00

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

Lahij

2004-12-26T23:03:00.000-08:00

Under the former Aden Protectorate, a British-ruled area, it was capital of the 'Abdali Sultanate, abolished when Yemen (Aden) became independent in 1967. The sultan's palace is

Leaning Tower Of Pisa

2004-12-24T10:55:00.000-08:00

Italian Torre Pendente di Pisa medieval structure in Pisa, Italy, that is famous for the settling of its foundations, which caused it to lean 5.5 degrees (about 15 feet [4.5 metres]) from the perpendicular by the late 20th century. The bell tower, begun in 1173 as the third and final structure of the city's cathedral complex, was designed to stand 185 feet (56 metres) high and was constructed of white marble. Three of its eight stories

Hull, Clark L.

2004-12-23T00:43:00.000-08:00

In full Clark Leonard Hull American psychologist known for his experimental studies on learning and for his attempt to give mathematical expression to psychological theory. He applied a deductive method of reasoning similar to that used in geometry, proposing that a series of postulates about psychology could be developed, from which logical conclusions

Scandinavian Literature, Faeroese

2004-12-20T15:30:00.000-08:00

Faeroese literature came into its own after the turn of the century. Jens H.O. Djurhuus, who created rhetorical poetry of splendid resonance, was the first to emerge as a writer of international stature. His brother, Hans Andrias Djurhuus, wrote in a more naive manner, producing poems, fairy tales, and plays, which were based on native historical traditions and

Carton De Wiart, Henri(-victor), Comte (count)

2004-12-18T21:54:00.000-08:00

Elected in 1896 to the Belgian House of Representatives as a member of the Catholic Party's reform-oriented left wing, he served as minister of justice (1911–18) and helped secure passage of child-welfare legislation (1912). Subsequently, he served

Lamballe, Marie-thérèse-louise De Savoie-carignan, Princess (princesse) De

2004-12-17T15:59:00.000-08:00

The daughter of Prince Louis-Victor de Savoie-Carignan, she was married in 1767 to Louis-Alexandre-Stanislas de Bourbon, Prince de Lamballe,

Davidson (of Lambeth), Randall Thomas Davidson, Baron

2004-12-14T21:21:00.000-08:00

Ordained in 1875, Davidson became resident chaplain two years later to the archbishop of Canterbury, Archibald C. Tait. He soon won the trust of Queen Victoria, whose influence

Judaism, In eastern Europe

2004-12-13T02:07:00.000-08:00

By the mid-18th century Orthodoxy in eastern Europe, having been convulsed by frantic messianism and stifled by the sterility of purely legalistic scholarship, was ripe for revival. The experience of Shabbetaianism (the first messianic movement to excite virtually all of world Jewry) had revealed in the mid-17th century the pervasiveness of Jewish exhaustion with

Aytmatov, Chingiz

2004-12-11T05:50:00.000-08:00

Aytmatov achieved major literary recognition with his collection of short stories, Povesti gor i stepey (1963; Tales of Mountains and Steppes), for which he was awarded the Lenin Prize in 1963. His most important works

Alegría, Claribel

2004-12-09T18:38:00.000-08:00

Poet, essayist, and journalist who was a major voice in the literature of contemporary Central America. Noted for her testimonio (testament) concerning the Sandinista revolution in Nicaragua, she was best known in the United States for the bilingual edition of her volume of poetry, Flores del volcán/Flowers from the Volcano (1982), translated by the

Swamp Pheasant

2004-12-07T17:06:00.000-08:00

Also called Pheasant Coucal, bird species of the cuckoo family (Cuculidae). See coucal.

Pius Iv

2004-12-05T11:19:00.000-08:00

After a long conclave Giovanni was elected pope on Dec. 25, 1559, as Pius IV. Though he had long agreed with those who saw a need for

Awaji Island

2004-12-02T01:53:00.000-08:00

Japanese Awaji-shima island, Hyogo ken (prefecture), Japan. The island lies at the eastern end of the Inland Sea, between west-central Honshu and eastern Shikoku. The narrow straits of Akashi (north) and Kii (southeast) separate it from the city of Kobe on Honshu, while Naruto Strait to the southwest, well known for its whirlpools, separates it from Shikoku. Most of the island's area of 229 square miles

Toch, Ernst

2004-12-01T22:53:00.000-08:00

Composer whose works, noted for their perfection of form, fused elements from the classical tradition with modern musical ideas. Although he rarely carried innovation to great lengths, he was considered a leader of the avant-garde composers in pre-Nazi Germany and, like many of them, went into exile when Adolf Hitler came

Portugal, Pre-Roman, Roman, Germanic, and Muslim periods

2004-11-27T20:06:00.000-08:00

The earliest human remains found in Portugal are Neanderthal-type bones from Furninhas. A distinct culture first emerges in the Mesolithic middens of the lower Tagus valley, dated about 5500 BC. Neolithic cultures entered from Andalusia. There are varied types of beehive huts and passage graves: agriculture, pottery, and the working of soft metals followed by the same

Utsunomiya

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

Capital, Tochigi ken (prefecture), Honshu, Japan. The city is situated on the alluvial plain between the Ta River and the Kinu River. A castle town in the 11th century, it later served as a post town on the Nikko Highway during the Tokugawa era (1603–1867). The city became the prefectural administrative centre in 1884. During World War II industries were relocated to Utsunomiya from Tokyo, producing

Mole Valley

2004-11-21T19:51:00.000-08:00

District, administrative and historic county of Surrey, England. The River Mole, from which the district takes its name, flows northward across it to join the Thames at Hampton Court, west of London; the river cuts through a line of chalk hills (the North Downs) in a steep-sided valley that is followed by road and rail routes. South of the Downs is a narrow lowland and then

Chemical Compound, Adrenal hormones

2004-11-18T04:30:00.000-08:00

The adrenal cortex of vertebrates synthesizes oxygenated progesterone derivatives. These compounds are hormones that are vital to survival and are classified according to their biological activity. The glucocorticoids promote deposition of glycogen in the liver and the breakdown of body proteins. Mineralocorticoids stimulate retention of sodium in

Koussevitzky, Serge

2004-11-16T02:14:00.000-08:00

Koussevitzky studied the double bass in Moscow, becoming a virtuoso, and in Russia, Germany, and England gave recitals at which he played his own compositions;

Con Son

2004-11-14T01:10:00.000-08:00

The

Augustana Evangelical Lutheran Church

2004-11-13T01:53:00.000-08:00

Church organized by Norwegian and Swedish immigrants in 1860 in Jefferson Prairie, Wis., as the Scandinavian Augustana Evangelical Lutheran Synod. Tufve Nilsson Hasselquist, an ordained minister in the Church of Sweden, was the first president. It took its name from Confessio Augustana, the Latin name for the Augsburg Confession, written in 1530 by German Lutheran Reformers.

Lens

2004-11-10T11:29:00.000-08:00

Industrial town, Pas-de-Calais département, Nord-Pas-de-Calais région, northern France, south-southwest of Lille. It is the chief urban centre of the Pas-de-Calais coal basin (a portion of which was scheduled to be abandoned after 1983); the urban agglomeration includes the mining settlements of Liévin, Bruay-en-Artois, and Hénin-Liétard. The town is active in both service industries

Ring

2004-11-08T08:33:00.000-08:00

Basically, a ring consists of three parts: the circle, or hoop;

Sabre-toothed Cat

2004-11-07T02:11:00.000-08:00

Any of the extinct carnivores forming the subfamily Machairodontinae of the cat family, Felidae. Sabre-toothed cats are named for the pair of elongated, bladelike canine teeth they possessed in the upper jaw. They are often called sabre-toothed tigers or sabre-toothed lions, although the lion and tiger are of a different subfamily of felids, the true cats

Heilbrun, Carolyn

2004-11-05T18:00:00.000-08:00

Heilbrun attended Wellesley (Massachusetts) College (B.A., 1947) and Columbia University in New York City (M.A., 1951; Ph.D., 1959) and in 1960 joined the faculty of Columbia, where she taught until 1992. Among her scholarly

Gynecomastia

2004-11-02T17:03:00.000-08:00

Enlargement of the breasts in the male, usually because of hormone imbalance. The growth and development of male breasts are like those of the female until puberty. The male reproductive organs (testes) then begin secreting male hormones (androgens), which normally suppress further breast development. The breasts of the female continue to grow owing to the presence

Basidiomycetes

2004-10-31T01:58:00.000-08:00

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

árpád Dynasty

2004-10-29T02:49:00.000-07:00

Rulers of Hungary from the late 9th century until 1301, under whom the Hungarian nation was transformed from a confederation of Hungarian tribes into a powerful state of east-central Europe. The dynasty was named after Árpád (d. 907), who was chosen by seven Hungarian tribes to lead them westward from their dwelling place on the Don River (889). Having crossed the Carpathian Mountains

Cataract

2004-10-27T22:12:00.000-07:00

In medicine, opacity of the crystalline lens of the eye. If the opaque areas are minute, scattered dots (a condition known as blue dot cataract, or punctate cataract) or if only the periphery of the lens is affected (this type, called coronary cataract, is said to affect 25 percent of the population), there may be no appreciable diminution of vision. In instances of cataracts

Ogier The Dane

2004-10-26T23:13:00.000-07:00

French Ogier De Danemarche , Danish Holger Danske an important character in the French medieval epic poems called chansons de geste. His story is told in a cycle of these poems known as Geste de Doon de Mayence, which deals with the wars of the feudal barons against the emperor Charlemagne. The character of Ogier has a historical prototype in Autcharius, a follower of Carloman, Charlemagne's younger brother, whose

Insurance, Costs

2004-10-24T05:28:00.000-07:00

Following the publication in the early 1970s of about 40 studies revealing inadequacies in workers' compensation in the United States, most states passed laws increasing the number of workers covered, raising weekly benefits to equal or exceed 66 2/3 percent of the average weekly wage, and making other improvements. Compensable claims now include those involving back pain,

Mammal, The evolution of the mammalian condition

2004-10-22T02:02:00.000-07:00

Mammals were derived in the Triassic Period from members of the reptilian order Therapsida. The therapsids, members of the subclass Synapsida (sometimes called the mammal-like reptiles), generally were unimpressive in relation to other reptiles of their time. Synapsids were present in the Carboniferous Period (about 280,000,000 to 345,000,000 years ago) and are one of the earliest known

Badminton

2004-10-20T14:30:00.000-07:00

The temporary retirement of reigning Olympic badminton gold medalist Gong Zhichao opened the door for Denmark's Camilla Martin at the All England championships in Birmingham, Eng., in March 2002. Nevertheless, Martin had to overcome four formidable Chinese opponents on her way to her first All England title, including a semifinal victory over Dai Yun and a final-round

Ma Yuan

2004-10-18T04:59:00.000-07:00

By the late 12th century, however, this style was changing, and the new elements that were appearing reflected the nostalgic and somewhat precious atmosphere of the exiled court at Lin'an. In some hanging scrolls attributed to Ma, and in many of the exquisite small album and fan paintings, the mountains are pushed to one side, creating a “one corner” composition; between

Earth Sciences, Prospecting for groundwater

2004-10-16T20:04:00.000-07:00

Although the origin of the water in the Earth that seeps or springs from the ground was long the subject of much fanciful speculation, the arts of finding and managing groundwater were already highly developed in the 8th century BC. The construction of long, hand-dug underground aqueducts (qanats) in Armenia and Persia represents one of the great hydrologic achievements

Subjective Idealism

2004-10-11T17:54:00.000-07:00

A philosophy based on the premise that nothing exists except minds and spirits and their perceptions or ideas. A person experiences material things, but their existence is not independent of the perceiving mind; material things are thus mere perceptions. The reality of the outside world is contingent on a knower. The 18th-century Anglo-Irish philosopher George

Bélain, Pierre, Sieur D'esnambuc

2004-10-10T08:20:00.000-07:00

Born in Normandy, Bélain founded (1625 or 1627) a short-lived French colony on St. Kitts, which was then occupied by the British. He landed on the site of Saint-Pierre, Martinique, on Sept.

New England

2004-10-07T22:45:00.000-07:00

The region was named by Captain John Smith, who explored its shores in 1614 for some London merchants. New England was soon settled by English Puritans whose aversion to idleness and luxury served admirably the need of fledgling communities

Mercer, Johnny

2004-10-05T22:15:00.000-07:00

Educated in Virginia, Mercer arrived in New York City in the late 1920s and acted in bit parts until his collaboration with Everett Miller on “Out of Breath and Scared to Death of You” was accepted for the revue Garrick

West Indies, History Of

2004-10-03T07:23:00.000-07:00

Hispanic control of the West Indies began in 1492 with Christopher Columbus' first landing in the New World and was followed by the partitioning of the region by the Spanish, French, British, Dutch, and Danish during the 17th and 18th centuries. U.S. intervention in the Greater Antilles started in the early 19th

Kiribati, Flag Of

2004-10-02T00:17:00.000-07:00

The British acquired extensive colonies and protectorates in the Pacific Ocean during the 19th century, including the Gilbert Islands, with their Micronesian population, and the nearby Ellice Islands, which were dominated by Polynesians. In anticipation of independence from Britain, a referendum was held and the two territories were separated in 1976. The former Gilbert

Bonnie And Clyde

2004-09-29T00:33:00.000-07:00

Barrow had been a criminal long before he met Parker in January 1930. After 20 months in prison

Turkey

2004-09-28T19:14:00.000-07:00

Either of two species of birds in the family Meleagrididae (order Galliformes). The best known is the common turkey (Meleagris gallopavo; see photograph), a native game bird of North America but widely domesticated for the table. The other species is Agriocharis (or Meleagris) ocellata, the ocellated turkey. For unrelated but similar birds, see bustard

Athol

2004-09-25T08:58:00.000-07:00

Town (township), Worcester county, north-central Massachusetts, U.S. It lies on the Millers River, north of Quabbin Reservoir. Settled in 1735, it was known by the Algonquian name of Pequoiag until it was incorporated in 1762 and renamed for Blair Atholl, the Scottish home of the dukes of Atholl. An early industrial centre, it had lumber, textile, and tanning mills. Its modern economy

Tasmania, Education

2004-09-23T14:50:00.000-07:00

School attendance is compulsory for children between the ages of 6 and 16. Government-supported schools include infant, primary (some with preschool facilities), area, district, and high schools (nonselective, comprehensive, mostly coeducational), together with matriculation colleges (secondary colleges that prepare students in their final one or two years for the

Rabin, Yitzhak

2004-09-22T13:25:00.000-07:00

Israeli statesman and soldier who, as prime minister of Israel (1974–77, 1992–95), led his country toward peace with its Palestinian and Arab neighbours. He was chief of staff of Israel's armed forces during the Six-Day War (June 1967). Along with Shimon Peres, his foreign minister, and Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) chairman

M.b.e.

2004-09-20T15:50:00.000-07:00

Member of the British Empire, member of a British order of knighthood, though this rank does not confer knighthood. See British Empire, The Most Excellent Order of the.

Extraterritoriality

2004-09-17T21:39:00.000-07:00

Also called Exterritoriality, or Diplomatic Immunity, in international law, the immunities enjoyed by foreign states or international organizations and their official representatives from the jurisdiction of the country in which they are present. Extraterritoriality extends to foreign states or international organizations as entities and to their heads, legations, troops in passage, war vessels, mission premises,

Uruguay River

2004-09-16T16:58:00.000-07:00

Portuguese Rio Uruguai, Spanish Río Uruguay, river in southern South America that rises in the coastal range of southern Brazil. Its chief headstream, the Pelotas River, rises just 40 miles (64 km) from the Atlantic coast at Alto do Bispo in Santa Catarina state, Brazil, and takes the name Uruguay after it is joined by the Canoas River near Piratuba. Flowing west through the coastal range of Brazil (separating Santa Catarina

Heulandite

2004-09-14T01:24:00.000-07:00

Hydrated sodium and calcium aluminosilicate mineral in the zeolite family, formulated (Ca,Na2)Al2Si7O18×6H2O. It forms brittle, transparent, coffin-shaped crystals in various shades of white through red, gray, or brown. Heulandite's molecular structure is an open framework containing six-membered rings of silicate tetrahedra (four oxygen atoms arranged at the points of

China, Confucianism

2004-09-11T11:01:00.000-07:00

Confucianism was perceived by the Mongols as a Chinese religion, and it had mixed fortunes under their rule. The teachings of the Neo-Confucian school of Chu Hsi from the Sung period were introduced to the Mongol court at Chung-tu in the late 1230s but were confined to limited circles there and in North China. Confucian scholars enjoyed the benefits extended to the clergy

Scythe

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

One of the most important of all agricultural hand tools, consisting of a curved blade fitted at an angle to a long, curved handle and used for cutting grain. In modern scythes the handle has a projecting peg that is grasped by one hand, facilitating control of the swinging motion by which grass and grain are cut. The exact origin of the scythe is unknown, but it was little

Industrial Ceramics

2004-09-07T18:42:00.000-07:00

Ceramics are broadly defined as inorganic, nonmetallic materials that exhibit such useful properties as high strength and hardness, high melting temperatures, chemical inertness, and low thermal and electrical conductivity but that also display brittleness and sensitivity to flaws. As practical materials, they have a history almost as old as the human race.

Insurance

2004-09-06T01:28:00.000-07:00

International insurance is surveyed in Paul P. Rogers, Bruno Schönfelder, and Ehrenfried Schütte, Insurance in Socialist East Europe (1988); Bernard Wasow and Raymond D. Hill (eds.), The Insurance Industry in Economic Development (1986); Robert M. Crowe (ed.), Insurance in the World's Economies (1982); Michael E. Hogue and Douglas G. Olson (eds.), World Insurance Outlook (1982); Wenlee Ting, Multinational Risk Assessment and Management: Strategies for Investment and Marketing Decisions (1988); Werner Pfenningstorf and Donald G. Gifford, A Comparative Study of Liability Law and Compensation Schemes in Ten Countries and the United States (1991); and Norman A. Baglini, Global Risk Management: How U.S. International Corporations Manage Foreign Risks (1983).

Textile, Napping and shearing

2004-09-04T06:48:00.000-07:00

Napping is a process that may be applied to woollens, cottons, spun silks, and spun rayons, including both woven and knitted types, to raise a velvety, soft surface. The process involves passing the fabric over revolving cylinders covered with fine wires that lift the short, loose fibres, usually from the weft yarns, to the surface, forming a nap. The process, which increases

Fischhof, Adolf

2004-09-01T08:17:00.000-07:00

As a young assistant physician, Fischhof was the first speaker to address the crowd assembled outside the building of the Austrian estates in Vienna on the morning of March 13, 1848—the first day of the revolution. Rising in

China, The Taiping Rebellion

2004-08-30T18:02:00.000-07:00

In the first half of the 19th century the province of Kwangtung, the homeland of the Taiping people, was beset with accelerating social unrest. After the first Opium War, government prestige declined, and officials lost their capacity to reconcile communal feudings. The greatest among such conflicts was that between the native settlers and the so-called guest

Oran

2004-08-28T00:38:00.000-07:00

Oran was founded at the beginning of the 10th century

Jacques Cartier, Mount

2004-08-25T06:15:00.000-07:00

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.

Mitford, Mary Russell

2004-08-23T18:57:00.000-07:00

She was the only daughter of George Mitford, a dashing, irresponsible character whose extravagance compelled the family, in 1820, to leave their house in Reading (built when Mary, at the age of 10, won £20,000 in a lottery)