MilitaryDrain

Handsome Lake Cult

2005-04-04T17:57:00.000-07:00

Also called Longhouse Religion , or Gai'wiio (Seneca: “Good Message”) longest-established prophet movement in North America. Its founder was Ganioda'yo (q.v.), a Seneca chief whose name meant “Handsome Lake”; his heavenly revelations received in trance in 1799 rapidly transformed both himself and the demoralized Seneca. Their Christian beliefs, which came primarily from Quaker contacts, included a personal creator-ruler, a devil, heaven, hell,

Aymaran Languages

2005-04-04T01:53:00.000-07:00

A group of South American Indian languages spoken over a fairly large region in the southern Peruvian highlands and adjacent areas of Bolivia. Some scholars classify the Aymaran group and the Quechuan group together in the Quechumaran stock. See Quechuan languages.

Selene

2005-04-03T00:12:00.000-08:00

Latin Luna, in Greek and Roman religion, the personification of the moon as a goddess. She was worshiped at the new and full moons. Her parents were the Titans Hyperion and Theia; her brother was Helios, the sun god (sometimes called her father); her sister Eos (Dawn); and her husband Zeus. She is most identified with Endymion, whom she loved and whom Zeus cast into eternal sleep in a cave

Tino Di Camaino

2005-04-02T07:26:00.000-08:00

Tino was a follower, and possibly a pupil, of Giovanni Pisano. In 1315 he became capomaestro of the Cathedral of Pisa and was commissioned to make a tomb for the Holy Roman emperor Henry VII. He succeeded his father as the capomaestro of the Siena cathedral in 1320 and designed

Ariosto, Ludovico

2005-04-01T05:00:00.000-08:00

Ariosto's father, Count Niccolò, was commander of the citadel at Reggio Emilia. When Ludovico was 10, the family

Priestley, J(ohn) B(oynton)

2005-03-31T22:04:00.000-08:00

Priestley served in the infantry in World War I (1914–19) and then studied English literature at Trinity College, Cambridge (B.A., 1922). He thereafter worked as a journalist and first

Dagger

2005-03-30T16:53:00.000-08:00

Short stabbing knife, ostensibly the diminutive of the sword, though in ancient and medieval times the distinction between a long dagger and a short sword was often obscure. From approximately 1300 the European dagger was consistently differentiated from the sword; in the 16th century a school of fencing developed in which a specially designed dagger with a large guard

Nagauta

2005-03-27T10:06:00.000-08:00

The standard complete instrumentation of a nagauta piece consists of singers; players of the three-stringed, plucked samisen; and performers

International Relations, Science and technology in wartime

2005-03-26T16:48:00.000-08:00

Of the many wartime innovations, those in macroeconomics and management techniques were among the most important, for the rapid increase achieved in labour productivity would make possible the economic miracles of many nations after the war as well. U.S. merchant vessels that took 35 weeks to build before the war were being launched in 50 days by 1943. The Soviet Ilyushin

Tasso, Bernardo

2005-03-25T16:17:00.000-08:00

Bernardo Tasso was a cultivated man who served various noblemen during his career. His son Torquato was born in 1544 while he was in the service of Ferrante Sanseverino, prince of Salerno,

Arabia, History Of, Arabian and Islamic expansion

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

In the 6th century Quraysh—the noble and holy house of the confederation of the Hejaz controlling the sacred enclave (haram) of Mecca—contrived a chain of agreements with the northern and southern tribes that opened the highways of Arabia to commerce. Under Quraysh aegis, caravans moved freely from the southern Yemen coast to Mecca and thence northward to Byzantium

Margaret Of Anjou

2005-03-23T11:54:00.000-08:00

Margaret was the daughter of René I

Bulb Rot

2005-03-22T05:08:00.000-08:00

Widespread disease that can infect all flower and crop bulbs and is caused by a variety of fungi and a few bacteria. Shoots fail to emerge or leaves are stunted, yellow to reddish or purplish, and they later wilt and die; roots, usually few, are discoloured and decayed. The rot often starts at the bulb base (root plate), progressing upward and outward. Fungal rots are usually

Nerchinsk, Treaty Of

2005-03-19T01:25:00.000-08:00

(1689), peace settlement between Russia and the Manchu Chinese empire that checked Russia's eastward expansion by removing its outposts from the Amur River basin. By the treaty's terms Russia lost easy access to the Sea of Okhotsk and Far Eastern markets but secured its claim to Transbaikalia (the area east of Lake Baikal) and gained the right of passage to Beijing for its

Papineau, Louis Joseph

2005-03-18T11:05:00.000-08:00

Papineau was elected a member of the House of Assembly of Lower Canada in 1808. During the War of 1812 against the United States, he served as an officer in the

Xenicidae

2005-03-18T01:13:00.000-08:00

Formerly Acanthisittidae, bird family of the order Passeriformes; its members are commonly known as New Zealand wrens. The three living species are the rock wren (Xenicus gilviventris) and the rare bush wren (X. longipes) on South Island and, common to both islands, the rifleman (Acanthisitta chloris). A fourth species, the Stephen Island wren (X. lyalli), was discovered in 1894 by a lighthouse keeper and

Chain

2005-03-17T18:31:00.000-08:00

Public broadcasting service over AM and FM radio networks and television networks in English and French, two national cable television channels, and shortwave radio, among other media in Canada. Advertising sales and, primarily, annual appropriations from Parliament finance the CBC's operations. It is especially noted for the high quality of its news and public

Campa

2005-03-17T02:36:00.000-08:00

Campa is often mentioned in early Buddhist literature as a city of importance and was one

Steer Roping

2005-03-15T21:57:00.000-08:00

Rodeo event in which a mounted cowboy pursues a full-grown steer; lassos it with his rope, catching the animal by the horns; fastens the rope to his saddle; and stops his horse suddenly, throwing the steer to the ground. The cowboy then quickly dismounts and ties three of the steer's feet, raising both hands to signal completion. The event is timed, and the contestant with

Usa

2005-03-15T21:38:00.000-08:00

City, Oita ken (prefecture), northern Kyushu, Japan; it lies 24 miles (39 km) northwest of the prefectural capital Oita. The city developed around the site of the first and most famous of shrines dedicated to the Shinto god Hachiman, Usa Hachiman Shrine, which dates to about 717–724. An annual festival is held on March 18, and the Shinkosai festival, with a procession of portable shrines (mikoshi

Literature, United States.

2005-03-15T10:22:00.000-08:00

One might wonder, however,

Bone Black

2005-03-14T22:14:00.000-08:00

Also called Bone Char, or Bone Charcoal, a form of charcoal (q.v.) produced by heating bone in the presence of a limited amount of air. It is used in removing coloured impurities from liquids, especially solutions of raw sugar. Bone black contains only about 12 percent elemental carbon, the remainder being made up principally of calcium phosphate and calcium carbonate.

Pamirs, Animal life

2005-03-13T16:22:00.000-08:00

The high tablelands of the eastern Pamirs are the prime breeding area of the mountain goat and the argali (Marco Polo) wild sheep; occasional sightings of blue sheep and urial are reported. Ibex are common where human activity is minimal, and markhor inhabit the lower ranges between the Panj and Vakhsh rivers. Brown bear feed on the abundant marmots, as do wolves. Relatively

Westchester

2005-03-12T20:04:00.000-08:00

The original inhabitants of Westchester, Algonquian-speaking Wappinger Indians, were displaced in the 1640s by Dutch colonists along the Hudson and by colonists

Gracián, Baltasar

2005-03-12T19:42:00.000-08:00

After studying at Calatayud and Zaragoza, Gracián entered the Jesuit order at the age of 18 and later became rector of the Jesuit college

Pendred's Syndrome

2005-03-12T18:39:00.000-08:00

Hereditary metabolic condition that is characterized by deafness and defective incorporation of iodine into thyroid hormone, resulting in goitre or enlargement of the thyroid gland. Pendred's syndrome is a major cause of congenital deafness. It does not produce symptoms of hypothyroidism (deficiency of thyroid activity) in most patients, nor does the condition

World War I, Greek affairs

2005-03-10T13:34:00.000-08:00

Greece's attitude toward the war was long uncertain: whereas King Constantine I and the general staff stood for neutrality, Eleuthérios Venizélos, leader of the Liberal Party, favoured the Allied cause. As prime minister from 1910, Venizélos wanted Greece to participate in the Allies' Dardanelles enterprise against Turkey in 1915, but his arguments were overruled by the

Wisconsin, Settlement patterns

2005-03-10T07:58:00.000-08:00

The majority of the people live in clusters of cities in the southeast, the area first reached and settled by migrants from the East. There they found soils and climate favourable for agriculture. Those who moved farther on across the state, seeking farmland, in time spread themselves fairly evenly except in the southern part of the Central Plain and the Northern

John, Sir Elton

2005-03-09T15:59:00.000-08:00

A child prodigy on the piano, John was awarded a scholarship

Top

2005-03-09T08:20:00.000-08:00

A toy having a body of conical, circular, or oval shape, often hollow, with a point or peg on which it turns or is made to whirl. If given a knock, a spinning top will go around in a circle at a slant; if spun with a slant at the start, it will quickly stand upright until halted by friction. Its physical properties are similar to those of the gyroscope. Some tops, as the common peg top,

Mosconi, Willie

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

The son of a billiards parlour owner, Mosconi showed a precocious talent for the game. When his father forbade him to play, hoping that

Boito, Arrigo

2005-03-07T19:02:00.000-08:00

The son of an Italian painter of miniatures and a Polish countess, Boito attended the Milan Conservatory and travelled to Paris on a scholarship. There he met Verdi, for whom, in 1862, he wrote

Mercury Processing, Metallurgical uses

2005-03-06T21:11:00.000-08:00

Mercury amalgamates, or mixes, readily with many metals. Amalgams of mercury, silver, and tin have been the most successful material for repairing dental cavities. Gold and silver

Zanzibar Treaty

2005-03-06T11:53:00.000-08:00

The

Ushabti Figure

2005-03-05T13:14:00.000-08:00

Any of the small statuettes made of wood, stone, or faience that are often found in large numbers in ancient Egyptian tombs. The figures range in height from 4 to 9 inches (10 to 23 cm) and often held hoes in their arms. Their purpose was to act as a magical substitute for the deceased owner when the gods requested him to undertake menial tasks in the afterlife. The word ushabti is

Paleoclimatology

2005-03-05T02:51:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Palaeoclimatology, scientific study of the extended climatic conditions of past geologic ages. Paleoclimatologists seek to explain climate variations for all parts of the Earth during any given geologic period, beginning with the time of the Earth's formation. Many related fields contribute to the field of paleoclimatology, but the basic research data are drawn mainly from geology

Henley, William Ernest

2005-03-03T20:49:00.000-08:00

As a child Henley contracted a tubercular disease that later necessitated the amputation of one foot. His other leg was saved only through the skill and radical new methods of the surgeon

Tiger Moth

2005-03-03T05:15:00.000-08:00

The fall webworm (Hyphantria cunea) is a serious pest. These

Lahaina

2005-03-03T02:27:00.000-08:00

Lahaina was actively associated during the 19th century with the Hawaiian royal family, European whalers, and American missionaries.

Vega, Lope De

2005-03-02T11:35:00.000-08:00

Outstanding dramatist of the Spanish Golden Age, author of as many as 1,800 plays and several hundred shorter dramatic pieces, of which 431 plays and 50 shorter pieces are extant.

Ayllón, Lucas Vázquez De

2005-03-02T01:58:00.000-08:00

Going to the West Indies in 1502, he became a judge in the colonial administration of Hispaniola (Santo Domingo). In 1520 he went to Mexico to mediate the dispute between the Spanish commanders Hernán Cortés and Diego Velázquez. An expedition sent by him under

Earth, Nucleosynthetic processes

2005-02-28T20:03:00.000-08:00

The astrophysical concept of nucleosynthesis remains the starting point in tracing planetary evolution. This includes the nuclear processes by which the light elements—hydrogen through boron—were produced at the birth of the universe, some 10,000,000,000 to 20,000,000,000 years ago. By analogy with what astronomers presently observe to happen, it is thought that the solar system represents

Malakbel

2005-02-28T10:38:00.000-08:00

West Semitic sun god and messenger god, worshiped primarily in the ancient Syrian city of Palmyra; he was variously identified by the Greeks with Zeus and with Hermes and by the Romans with Sol. His name may have been of Babylonian origin, and he was considered the equivalent of the Babylonian sun god Shamash. Engravings on the four sides of a marble altar from Palmyra

Basil, Liturgy Of Saint

2005-02-28T02:09:00.000-08:00

The Liturgy of St. Basil, of which two versions—the Alexandrian and the

Hinckley And Bosworth

2005-02-27T23:25:00.000-08:00

Borough (district), administrative and historic county of Leicestershire, England. It comprises the town of Hinckley, an important centre of the hosiery industry since framework knitting was introduced there in 1640, as well as the towns of Market Bosworth and Earl Shilton, which is a centre of both the hosiery and footwear industries. The Battle of Bosworth Field was

Eames, Emma

2005-02-26T02:58:00.000-08:00

Eames was the daughter of a lawyer in the international courts system. She studied voice for four years in Boston, then with Mathilde Marchesi in Paris. Selected by Charles Gounod to sing Juliette in his Romé

Dobson, Austin

2005-02-25T05:40:00.000-08:00

In 1856 Dobson entered the Board of Trade, where he remained until his retirement in 1901. Married in 1868, he became a father of 10 and lived in the London suburb of Ealing until his death at the

Lupino Family

2005-02-24T18:51:00.000-08:00

The earliest traceable Lupino—who spelled his name Luppino—flourished probably in Italy, c. 1612, and billed himself as Signor Luppino. His descendant, George William (1632–93), a singer, reciter, and puppet master, went to England as a political refugee. His son, George Charles (1662–1725), was a performer and puppeteer at the age of eight. After

Ausgleich

2005-02-24T09:11:00.000-08:00

(German: “Compromise”), the compact, finally concluded on Feb. 8, 1867, that regulated the relations between Austria and Hungary and established the Dual Monarchy of Austria-Hungary (q.v.).

Barangay

2005-02-23T02:25:00.000-08:00

Barangay villages sometimes grew to include 30 to

Jeakins, Dorothy

2005-02-22T21:32:00.000-08:00

U.S. Academy Award-winning costume designer whose striking creations for Joan of Arc, Samson and Delilah, and Night of the Iguana merited her three Oscars (b. Jan. 11, 1914--d. Nov. 21, 1995).

Fuji, Mount

2005-02-22T07:43:00.000-08:00

Japanese Fuji-san , also called Fujiyama , or Fuji No Yama highest mountain in Japan, rising to 12,388 feet (3,776 metres) near the Pacific coast in Yamanashi and Shizuoka ken (prefectures), central Honshu, about 60 miles (100 km) west of Tokyo. It is a volcano that has been dormant since its last eruption in 1707 but is still generally classified as active by geologists. The mountain's name, of Ainu origin, means “everlasting life.” Mount Fuji, with its graceful

East African Mountains

2005-02-21T07:04:00.000-08:00

Mountain region of Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Congo (Kinshasa), Rwanda, and Burundi. The mountains are intimately related to the East African Rift System, the fractures of which extend discontinuously between the Zambezi River valley and the Red Sea and are flanked in many areas by highlands. Of the major mountains, all but one group—the Ruwenzori (Rwenzori) Range—are of

Chraïbi, Driss

2005-02-21T00:02:00.000-08:00

Chraïbi was educated first in a Qur'anic school and then in a French school in Casablanca. In 1946 he went to Paris to study chemical engineering, receiving a degree in 1950, after which he did graduate work in neuropsychiatry, only to abandon science just before receiving a

Spanish Literature, Early drama

2005-02-20T15:24:00.000-08:00

The origins of drama in Spain are to be sought, as elsewhere, in the church. The Auto de los reyes magos (“Play of the Three Wise Kings”), an incomplete play of an Epiphany cycle, is the only surviving text of medieval Spanish drama. The characterization of the Magi and of Herod and his advisers was realistic, and the medley of metres foreshadowed one aspect of later development

Benedetto Da Majano

2005-02-20T13:54:00.000-08:00

He was greatly influenced by the Florentine sculptors Desiderio da Settignano and Antonio Rossellino. His earliest surviving work is the shrine of S. Savino (1468–72) in the Faenza cathedral. Between 1470 and 1475 he was engaged on the

Chibougamau

2005-02-18T01:50:00.000-08:00

City, Nord-du-Québec region, central Quebec province, Canada. It lies on the northwest shore of the Lac Doré part of Chibougamau Lake. Gold and copper were discovered in the area by Peter McKenzie in 1903, but his and several subsequent attempts at mining the ore failed because of the region's remoteness. Finally, in the late 1940s, the provincial government began building a road

Dubois, Jean-antoine

2005-02-18T00:32:00.000-08:00

Ordained in 1792, he sailed to India under the Missions Étrangères. Despite his efforts in many parts of South India, his mission failed, and he returned to Paris (1823), convinced that the conversion of the Hindus was impossible. In Paris he became director

Argentina, Mesopotamia

2005-02-17T11:35:00.000-08:00

The northern part of the Mesopotamian region was first settled by Spaniards from Asunción, who in 1588 founded the city of Corrientes near the confluence of the Alto Paraná and Paraguay rivers. In the south settlers from Santa Fe crossed the Paraná River and established what became the city of Paraná. Having founded towns along navigable rivers, the Spanish secured

Montcalm (de Saint-véran), Louis-joseph De Montcalm-grozon, Marquis De

2005-02-16T10:33:00.000-08:00

In the War

Shamanism, Social role

2005-02-15T13:51:00.000-08:00

The extraordinary profession of the shaman naturally distinguishes him socially. The belief that he communicates with the spirits gives him authority. Furthermore, the belief that his actions may not only bring benefit but also harm makes him feared. Even a good (white) shaman may do harm, and a wicked (black) shaman, who is in contact with the spirits of the Lower World,

Saudi Arabia, Transportation

2005-02-15T07:27:00.000-08:00

About one-third of the country's roads are paved. The first coast-to-coast road connection, from Ad-Dammam on the gulf to Jiddah on the Red Sea, by way of Riyadh, was opened in 1967; it includes a spectacular descent of the western escarpment from At-Ta'if to Mecca. Other important connections are from Riyadh northwestward through Najd to Ha'il, from Riyadh southwestward to the

Adams, Charles Follen

2005-02-14T18:20:00.000-08:00

During the American Civil War he was wounded and taken prisoner. In 1872 he began writing humorous verses for periodicals and newspapers in a Pennsylvania German dialect. Collections of his verse are Leedle Yawcob Strauss, and Other Poems (1877) and

Tractatus Coislinianus

2005-02-14T14:12:00.000-08:00

Statement of a Greek theory of comedy found in a 10th-century manuscript (published 1839) in the collection of Henri Charles du Cambout de Coislin. The treatment of comedy displays marked Aristotelian influence, even to the point of paralleling the model offered in the Poetics. The Tractatus is assumed to be either a version of a lost Aristotelian original or a statement

Caucasian Languages, General works

2005-02-13T06:48:00.000-08:00

G. Deeters, G.R. Solta, and Vahan Inglisian, Armenisch und kaukasische Sprachen (1963), a survey, includes a presentation of the structure of the Caucasian languages according to the most characteristic features of phonology, morphology, and syntax, with an extensive bibliography. G.A. Klimov, Kavkazskie iazyki (1965), also available in a German translation, Die kaukasischen Sprachen (1969), offers a brief exposition of the history and structures of the Caucasian languages, with a general characterization of each group and an extensive bibliography, and his Vvedenie v kavkazskoe iazykoznanie, ed. by B.A. Serebrennikov (1986), also available in a German translation, Einführung in die kaukasische Sprachwissenschaft, ed. and trans. by Jost Gippert (1994), is also of interest. A.H. Kuipers, “Caucasian,” in Current Trends in Linguistics, vol. 1 (1963), pp. 315–344, provides a useful brief survey of Caucasian linguistics, with a selected bibliography. Adolf Dirr, Einführung in das Studium der kaukasischen Sprachen (1928, reprinted 1978), contains a survey of the structure of individual Caucasian languages and their interrelationships as well as a linguistic atlas. V.V. Vinogradov (ed.), IAzyki Narodov SSSR, vol. 4, Iberiisko-Kavkazskie IAzyki (1967), is a brief exposition of the structures of all the Caucasian languages, with a selected bibliography. Much of the more recent scholarship is published in Georgian or Russian. Recent works in English include John A.C. Greppin (ed.), The Indigenous Languages of the Caucasus (1991– ); and Howard I. Aronson (ed.), Non-Slavic Languages of the U.S.S.R.: Papers from the Fourth Conference (1994).

Clanvowe, Sir Thomas

2005-02-12T23:04:00.000-08:00

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

Qeqertarsuaq

2005-02-12T03:06:00.000-08:00

Formerly Disko Island, Disko also spelled Disco, island in Davis Strait off western Greenland, northwest of Qeqertarsuup (Disko) Bay and southwest of Vaigat Strait. It is 80 miles (130 km) long, 20–75 miles (32–120 km) wide, and 3,312 square miles (8,578 square km) in area and has a maximum elevation of 6,296 feet (1,919 m). There are coal and iron deposits, and some lignite is mined around Qullissat in the northeast. Qeqertarsuaq (Danish: Godhavn), the largest settlement,

Yungang Caves

2005-02-11T20:01:00.000-08:00

The caves are among the earliest remaining examples of the first major flowering of Buddhist art in China. About 20 major cave temples and many smaller

Zadkine, Ossip

2005-02-10T23:15:00.000-08:00

As a boy, Zadkine, son of a professor of Greek and Latin, much preferred clay modeling to his studies.

Dual Organization

2005-02-10T15:21:00.000-08:00

A social structure characterized by the division of society into two complementary parts called moieties. According to a strict definition, moieties are groups that are exogamous (i.e., marriage between members of the same moiety is forbidden), of unilineal descent, and in some sense opposed. Sometimes the term moiety is used more loosely to refer simply to one of two

Skimmer

2005-02-10T02:03:00.000-08:00

By day the skimmer rests onshore, and at twilight the bird feeds, skimming calm, shallow water with the bill tip submerged;

Colby, Frank Moore

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

Early in his career Colby taught history and economics at Columbia University, Amherst College (Amherst, Mass.), and New York University (New York City). To supplement his income, he began writing for encyclopaedias, and so began his lifelong career. In 1898 he became editor of the International

K'uei Hsing

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

K'uei Hsing, whose name before deification was Chung K'uei, is said to have passed his own examination with remarkable success but was denied the usual honours when the emperor beheld his ugly features. Brokenhearted, K'uei attempted

United States, Bank Of The

2005-02-07T21:04:00.000-08:00

Central bank chartered in 1791 by the U.S. Congress at the urging of Alexander Hamilton and over the objections of Thomas Jefferson. Extended debate over its constitutionality contributed significantly to the evolution of pro- and anti-bank factions into the first American political parties—respectively, the Federalists and the Democratic-Republicans. Antagonism

Altitude Sickness

2005-02-07T07:28:00.000-08:00

The symptoms of altitude sickness fall into four main categories:

Hale, Edward Everett

2005-02-05T22:14:00.000-08:00

A grandnephew of the Revolutionary hero Nathan Hale and a nephew of Edward Everett, the orator, Hale trained on his father's newspaper, the Boston Daily Advertiser, and turned early to writing. For 70 years newspaper articles, historical

Shimane

2005-02-05T05:29:00.000-08:00

Because of its distance from central Honshu and its unfavourable

Self-determination

2005-02-04T08:08:00.000-08:00

The process by which a group of people, usually possessing a certain degree of national consciousness, form their own state and choose their own government. As a political principle, the idea of self-determination evolved at first as a by-product of the doctrine of nationalism, to which early expression was given by the French and American revolutions. In World War

Sacasa, Juan Bautista

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

Sacasa studied in the United States from 1889 to 1901, earning an M.D. from Columbia University. In 1924 he was elected vice president of Nicaragua as leader of the Liberal Party in a coalition government. The following year a coup d'état installed General Emiliano Chamorro

Lira

2005-02-03T09:58:00.000-08:00

Plural lire the former monetary unit of Italy. The lira was introduced in Europe by Charlemagne, who based it on the pound (libra) of silver. No lira coins were struck during the Middle Ages, and the lira remained strictly a money of account. By the 16th century several of the Italian states actually struck lira coins, but they varied considerably in weight. One of the states that used

Rectocele

2005-02-03T09:34:00.000-08:00

Disorder in which the rectum bulges into the back wall of the vagina. It is caused when the muscles and connective tissues supporting the rectum and back wall of the vagina are weakened, usually due to repeated childbirth or to aging, and the rectum sags until it abuts the vagina. A rectocele often occurs together with an enterocele, which is a bulge of the small

Kammatthana

2005-02-01T22:22:00.000-08:00

Sanskrit Karmasthana in Theravada Buddhist tradition, one of the objects of mental concentration or a stage of meditation employing it. According to Visuddhi-magga (a 5th-century CE Pali text by Buddhaghosa), there are 40 kammatthanas; an individual should choose the object of mental concentration that is in accordance with his own character or inclination. Each type of disposition has its

Suggs, Louise

2005-02-01T21:12:00.000-08:00

One of the hotels in Suggs's hometown of Lithia Springs had a nine-hole golf course, and it was there that she displayed an early aptitude for the game. She began playing as an amateur in 1939 and was noted for her excellent

Pietermaritzburg

2005-01-31T05:15:00.000-08:00

City, south-central KwaZulu/Natal province, South Africa. It lies in the Umsindusi River valley, at the base of a tree-covered escarpment, inland from Durban. Boers from the Cape Colony, who founded it in 1839 after a victory over the Zulus at Blood River, named it to honour their dead leaders Piet Retief and Gerrit Maritz. The British took control in 1843 and built Fort Napier (now

Sorb

2005-01-31T05:02:00.000-08:00

German Sorben, any member of a Slavic minority living in eastern Germany. The Sorbs are concentrated in the Spree River valley, in the area of Bautzen (Budyšin) and Cottbus. This area was part of the traditional region of Lusatia (q.v.), whose history is intimately bound up with the Sorbs. The Sorbs are descendants of two small Slavic tribes, the Luzici and the Milcani, who were subgroups of the

Puerto Rico, Flag Of

2005-01-31T03:16:00.000-08:00

In the late 19th century, as pro-independence sentiment grew in the Caribbean islands under Spanish dominion, many activists in Cuba and Puerto Rico were exiled to the United States or elsewhere. In New York City a flag was chosen in exile by the Puerto Rican section of the Cuban Revolutionary Party on December 22, 1895. The design was simply the Cuban flag with a reversal of the

Plutus

2005-01-30T23:19:00.000-08:00

In Greek religion, god of abundance or wealth, a personification of ploutos (Greek: “riches”). According to Hesiod, Plutus was born in Crete, the son of the goddess of fruitfulness, Demeter, and the Cretan Iasion. In art he appears chiefly as a child with a cornucopia. He was sometimes confused with Pluto (Hades), god of the underworld.

Bashi-bazouk

2005-01-29T07:00:00.000-08:00

Turkish Basibozuk (“corrupted head,” or “leaderless”), mercenary soldier belonging to the skirmishing or irregular troops of the Ottoman Empire, notorious for their indiscipline, plundering, and brutality. Originally describing the homeless beggars who reached Istanbul from the provinces of the Ottoman Empire, the term bashi-bazouk was later applied to all Muslim subjects who were

American Academy Of Arts And Sciences

2005-01-28T22:28:00.000-08:00

Honorary society incorporated on May 4, 1780, in Boston, Mass., U.S., for the purpose of cultivating “every art and science.” Its membership—some 3,300 fellows in the United States and about 550 foreign honorary fellows (all scholars and national leaders)—is divided into four classes: the physical sciences, the biological sciences, the social arts and sciences, and the humanities and fine

Saint Boniface

2005-01-27T17:22:00.000-08:00

Historic district of Winnipeg, southern Manitoba, Canada, at the confluence of the Seine and Red rivers. It was founded in 1818 by a group of French missionaries led by Bishop Joseph Norbert Provencher upon the site of an earlier, unsuccessful settlement by Swiss mercenaries; a chapel was built there under the patronage of St. Boniface. Since then, St. Boniface, with its famous

Locke, John, Empiricism

2005-01-27T06:31:00.000-08:00

As for “the original,” the answer was plain. Knowledge of the world began in sense perception, and self-knowledge in introspection, or “reflection” in Locke's language. It did not begin in innate knowledge of maxims or general principles, and it did not proceed by syllogistic reasoning from such principles. In the 17th century there had been much vague talk about innate knowledge,

Children's Literature, The discovery of the child

2005-01-27T04:46:00.000-08:00

A self-aware literature flows from a recognition of its proper subject matter. The proper subject matter of children's literature, apart from informational or didactic works, is children. More broadly, it embraces the whole content of the child's imaginative world and that of his daily environment, as well as certain ideas and sentiments characteristic of it. The

Corcoran Gallery Of Art

2005-01-25T23:32:00.000-08:00

The museum also houses the private collection of

'abd Al-wadid Dynasty

2005-01-25T21:24:00.000-08:00

Also called Zayyanid Dynasty , or Banu Zayyan dynasty of Zanatah Berbers (1236–1550), successors to the Almohad empire in northwestern Algeria. In 1236 the Zanatahs, loyal vassals to the Almohads, gained the support of other Berber tribes and nomadic Arabs and set up a kingdom at Tilimsan (Tlemcen), headed by the Zanatah amir Yaghmurasan (ruled 1236–83). Yaghmurasan was able to maintain internal peace through the successful control of the rival

Ada

2005-01-25T19:28:00.000-08:00

City, seat (1907) of Pontotoc county, south-central Oklahoma, U.S. It lies along Clear Boggy Creek, south of the Canadian River, and was named for the daughter of the first postmaster, William J. Reed, who built a log store there in 1889. The railroad arrived in 1900, and the city developed as a marketing and trading centre for a large cattle and grain area. The discovery of oil in the vicinity

Sculpture, Primary

2005-01-24T07:14:00.000-08:00

Throughout history, stone has been the principal material of monumental sculpture. There are practical reasons for this: many types of stone are highly resistant to the weather and therefore suitable for external use; stone is available in all parts of the world and can be obtained in large blocks; many stones have a fairly homogeneous texture and a uniform hardness

Dielectric

2005-01-23T06:20:00.000-08:00

Insulating material or a very poor conductor of electric current. When dielectrics are placed in an electric field, practically no current flows in them because, unlike metals, they have no loosely bound, or free, electrons that may drift through the material. Instead, electric polarization occurs. The positive charges within the dielectric are displaced minutely

Arab Monetary Fund

2005-01-22T15:46:00.000-08:00

Arabic As-sanduq Al-mali Al-'arabi, fund that aims to assist its participants, nearly all of the members of the Arab League, by developing their capital markets, balancing payment difficulties, and helping with foreign-exchange rates. Established in April 1976, the agreement entered into force in February 1977. During its annual meeting, the board of governors of the fund formulates policy aimed at integrating

Chabrias

2005-01-22T06:14:00.000-08:00

Chabrias defeated the Spartans in 388 and again in 378, when Athens joined Thebes against Sparta. On the latter occasion he invented a new defensive technique: he ordered each soldier to receive a charge kneeling on his left knee, with his shield

Belaya River

2005-01-21T10:07:00.000-08:00

River in Bashkortostan republic, west-central Russia. The Belaya is the largest tributary of the Kama River, which is itself an important tributary of the Volga. The Belaya rises in the southern Urals at the foot of Mount Iremel, and after flowing southwestward through a narrow mountain valley, the river turns sharply north and its valley becomes broad and terraced.