GreyArmy

Uinta Mountains

2005-11-18T06:25:00.000-08:00

Segment of the south-central Rocky Mountains, extending eastward for more than 100 miles (160 km) from the Wasatch Range across northeastern Utah and slightly into southwestern Wyoming, U.S. Many of the range's summits exceed 13,000 feet (4,000 m), including Kings Peak (13,528 feet [4,123 m]), the highest point in Utah. The mountains are a headstream region for the Provo, Bear, and Duchesne rivers and include

China, Foreign policy

2005-07-27T05:55:00.000-07:00

While taking their principal cues in their foreign policies from domestic developments and generally adhering to the initial pro-Soviet line, the Chinese began to act—on the basis of several important lessons gained during the Korean struggle—to reduce Peking's militant and isolationist attitudes in international affairs. Peking had recognized that the great

Morand, Paul

2005-07-24T18:45:00.000-07:00

Morand joined the diplomatic service in 1912, serving as attaché in London, Rome, Madrid, and Siam (Thailand). In his early fiction, Ouvert la nuit (1922; Open All Night), Fermé la nuit (1923; Closed All Night), and Lewis et Irène (1924; Lewis and Irene), he borrowed the cinematic techniques of rapid scene changing and transported the reader

Alabama, Health and welfare

2005-07-07T21:25:00.000-07:00

In rural areas and among nonwhites, educational and economic opportunities are fewer, and health and medical resources and services are less available. Welfare payments in Alabama rank low by national standards. Penal institutions include several prisons and camps for youthful offenders. Controversy over conditions in these institutions has occasionally

La Libertad

2005-07-06T01:35:00.000-07:00

Once the home of the Mochica and Chimú cultures—renowned for their ceramics, irrigation works, and vast urban

Anatomy

2005-06-29T02:00:00.000-07:00

In literature, the separating or dividing of a topic into parts for detailed examination or analysis. Among the better-known examples are John Lyly's Euphues: The Anatomy of Wit and Robert Burton's Anatomy of Melancholy. The literary critic Northrop Frye, in his book Anatomy of Criticism, narrowed the definition of the word to mean a work resembling a Menippean

Hussein

2005-06-15T19:10:00.000-07:00

Educated partly in England,

Wildfowl Trust, The

2005-06-03T03:55:00.000-07:00

Centre of the world's largest collection of waterfowl. It was established in 1946 by Sir Peter Scott on 418 acres (169 hectares) along the River Severn near Slimbridge, Gloucestershire, Eng. Nearly a quarter of the land is fenced off for captive birds and breeding stock; the rest of the refuge is traditional wintering ground for many species of ducks and geese. In addition to accommodating

Baratieri, Oreste

2005-05-31T22:25:00.000-07:00

Baratieri had been a volunteer for Giuseppe Garibaldi, the popular hero of Italian unification, serving

Gulf Oil Corporation

2005-05-17T13:30:00.000-07:00

Gulf Oil was originally incorporated in 1907 but had beginnings going back to the tapping in 1901 of an enormous oil gusher on Spindletop Hill, near Beaumont, Texas. The development of this well was funded by the Mellon family of Pittsburgh banking fame. Following the discovery, Thomas Mellon built

Alderman

2005-05-15T19:15:00.000-07:00

Member of the legislative body of a municipal corporation in England and the United States. In Anglo-Saxon England, ealdormen, or aldermen, were high-ranking officials of the crown who exercised judicial, administrative, or military functions. Earls, the governors of shires (counties), and other persons of distinction were among those who received the title of alderman.

Osborne, Thomas Mott

2005-05-13T16:25:00.000-07:00

Osborne served two terms on the Auburn Board of Education and in 1903 was elected mayor of Auburn, serving one term. In 1913 he became chairman of the New York State Commission

Davidson (of Lambeth), Randall Thomas Davidson, Baron

2005-03-15T08:11:00.000-08:00

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

Robert Of Jumi�ges

2005-03-14T15:37:00.000-08:00

Robert was prior of Saint-Ouen, Rouen, Fr., when elected abbot of the Benedictine abbey of Jumi�ges in 1037. Taken to England by King Edward in 1042, he was made bishop of London in 1044. He became Edward's chief adviser and head of the Norman party and was appointed archbishop of Canterbury

Earth, Composition of the crust

2005-03-11T17:44:00.000-08:00

Most of the Earth's surface is covered by oceanic crust. The composition of this crust is documented on the basis of rocks sampled by deep-sea dredging and by studies of ophiolites, which are slivers of oceanic crust and uppermost mantle that have been tectonically emplaced on land. The oceanic crust is found to be relatively uniform in composition (Table 3). It consists

Monongahela River

2005-03-06T22:09:00.000-08:00

River formed by the confluence of the Tygart and West Fork rivers in Marion county, W.Va., U.S. It flows 128 miles (206 km) in a northerly direction past Morgantown into Pennsylvania, past Brownsville and Charleroi, joining the Allegheny River at Pittsburgh to become a major headwater of the Ohio River. In its upper reaches the river has a swift current and furnishes hydroelectric

Ibn Wahshiyah

2005-03-06T16:13:00.000-08:00

Middle Eastern agriculturist and toxicologist alleged to have written al-Fillahah an-Nabatiyah (�Nabatean Agriculture�), a major treatise dealing with plants, water sources and quality, weather conditions, the causes of deforestation, soils and their improvement, crop cultivation, and other similar subjects. The Arabic text, although not original, having been derived

France, History Of, The partitioning of the Carolingian empire

2005-03-05T17:41:00.000-08:00

After the death of Louis I the Pious (840), his sons continued their plotting to alter the succession. Louis II the German and Charles II the Bald affirmed their alliance against Lothair I (Oath of Strasbourg, 842).

Wesel

2005-03-05T11:15:00.000-08:00

Town, North Rhine-Westphalia Land (state), northwestern Germany. It lies along the Rhine and Lippe rivers and the Lippe-Seiten Canal, northwest of the Ruhr. Chartered in 1241, it joined the Hanseatic League in about 1350 and has long been an important trade and shipping point. It was also a traditional district capital and cultural centre of the border area of the lower Rhine. The

Aerospace Industry, Commercial heavy aircraft

2005-03-04T23:02:00.000-08:00

The need for large-scale air transportation has been central to commercial aircraft manufacturing. As one of the world's most vital industries, airlines are key to many aspects of the world economy, from international business and tourism to routine movement of people and goods ranging from massive machinery to agricultural products and personal items. The United

Bhagirathi River

2005-03-04T21:17:00.000-08:00

River in West Bengal state, northeastern India, forming the western boundary of the Ganges (Ganga) Delta. A distributary of the Ganges, it leaves that river just northeast of Jangipur, flows south, and joins the Jalangi at Nabadwip to form the Hooghly River after a total course of 120 miles (190 km). Until the 16th century, when the Ganges shifted eastward to the Padma, the Bhagirathi formed

Mesopotamia, History Of, Literary and other historical sources

2005-03-03T15:06:00.000-08:00

The picture offered by the literary tradition of Mesopotamia is clearer but not necessarily historically relevant. The Sumerian king list has long been the greatest focus of interest. This is a literary composition, dating from Old Babylonian times, that describes kingship (nam-lugal in Sumerian) in Mesopotamia from primeval times to the end of the 1st dynasty of

Alcor

2005-03-03T14:06:00.000-08:00

Also called �80 Ursae Majoris� star with apparent magnitude of 4.03. The ability to see the dim star Alcor with the unaided eye may have been regarded by the Arabs (and others) as a test of good vision. Alcor makes a visual double with the brighter star Mizar in the middle of the handle of the Big Dipper (Ursa Major); the pair have also been called the Horse and Rider.

China, Western challenge, 1839 - 60

2005-03-02T08:16:00.000-08:00

The opium question, the direct cause of the first Sino-British clash in the 19th century, began with a late 18th-century British attempt to counterbalance their unfavourable China trade with traffic in Indian opium. After monopolizing the opium trade in 1779, the East India Company's government began to sell the drug at auction to private British traders in India, who shipped

Neuserre

2005-03-02T06:38:00.000-08:00

Also spelled �Nyuserre, � sixth king of the 5th dynasty (c. 2465 - c. 2325 BC) of Egypt; he is primarily known for his temple to the sun-god Re at Abu Jirab (Abu Gurab) in Lower Egypt. The temple plan, like that built by Userkaf (the first king of the 5th dynasty), consisted of a valley temple, causeway, gate, and temple court, which contained an obelisk (the symbol of Re) and an alabaster altar. The sun-temple reliefs revealed an exceptionally

Babeuf, Fran�ois-no�

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

John Anthony Scott (ed. and trans.), The Defense of Gracchus Babeuf Before the High Court of Vend�me, trans. from French (1964); R.B. Rose, Gracchus Babeuf: The First Revolutionary Communist (1978).

Balas, Iolanda

2005-03-01T05:33:00.000-08:00

Balas cleared the bar in a variation of the scissors method; her coach was Ion S�ter, an outstanding high-jumper whom she later married. She already held the women's

Jones, Bobby

2005-02-28T23:42:00.000-08:00

Byname of �Robert Tyre Jones, Jr. � U.S. amateur golfer, the first man to achieve the Grand Slam - winning in a single year the four major tournaments of the time. In 1930 he won the British and U.S. Opens and Amateur championships. From 1923 through 1930 he won 13 championships in those four annual tournaments, a feat unequalled until 1973, when Jack Nicklaus surpassed that total in U.S. and British

Euclidean Geometry, Homotheties

2005-02-28T13:18:00.000-08:00

If two nonconcentric circles have centres A, B and unequal radii r, s, there are points I, E with [AIB], AI | IB ~ AE | EB ~ r | s. In consequence, the

Newton

2005-02-27T17:47:00.000-08:00

City, seat (1872) of Harvey county, central Kansas, U.S. Founded in 1871 and named for Newton, Massachusetts, it was a railhead for the Chisholm Trail cattle drives from 1871 to 1873, when it was designated a division point of the Santa Fe Railroad. In the 1870s Russian Mennonite settlers began raising Turkey Red hard winter wheat brought from their homeland, and this variety became Kansas's principal

Gauthey, Emiland-marie

2005-02-27T06:18:00.000-08:00

Gauthey studied at the �cole des Ponts et Chauss�es (School of Bridges and Highways) in Paris, then taught there while making

Buchanan, James M.

2005-02-26T23:30:00.000-08:00

Buchanan attended Middle Tennessee State College (B.S., 1940), the University of Tennessee (M.A., 1941), and - after five years in the navy - the University of Chicago

Babits, Mih�ly

2005-02-26T11:03:00.000-08:00

Babits studied Hungarian and classical literature at the University of Budapest and was a teacher in provincial secondary schools until forced

Abbeville

2005-02-25T06:25:00.000-08:00

City, seat of Abbeville county, northwestern South Carolina, U.S. French Huguenots in 1764 settled the site, which was named for Abbeville, France, by John de la Howe. The city is regarded by some as the �Cradle and the Grave of the Confederacy�; it was there that a secessionist meeting was held (November 22, 1860, on what is now Secession Hill) and there that the Confederate president, Jefferson

Stage Design, Classical theatrical costume

2005-02-25T02:31:00.000-08:00

Theatrical costumes were an innovation of Thespis, in Greece in the 6th century BC, and theatrical costumes are still called �the robes of Thespis.� Athenians spent lavishly on the production and costumes at the annual drama contests since each poet was given a wealthy citizen, the choregos, who, encouraged by the honour of a separate state impresario's prize, tended to make

An-k'ang

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

Pinyin �Ankang, �formerly �Hsing-an, � city in southeastern Shensi sheng (province), China. Situated in the narrow valley of the Han River between the Tsinling and Ta-pa mountain ranges, it has been an important trade centre since antiquity, being situated at the junction of the east-west route via the Han River valley and the route to the north over the mountains to Sian (Ch'ang-an). A rail line, completed in 1978, links

Biblical Literature, Second introductory discourse

2005-02-24T09:01:00.000-08:00

The second discourse, also ascribed to Moses, again refers to the Covenant at Horeb and sets forth the Ten Commandments, which the people are admonished to obey rigorously, emphasizing the mediating function of Moses at Horeb between the awesome divine presence and the awestruck people. Israel is further admonished to obey the law through wholehearted love of

Palenque

2005-02-23T13:31:00.000-08:00

Ruined ancient Mayan city of the Late Classic period (c. AD 600 - 900) in what is now Chiapas state, Mexico, about 80 miles (130 km) south of Ciudad del Carmen. Its original name was lost, and thus it was named for the neighbouring village of Santo Domingo del Palenque. The Palenque builders used plaster to obtain a smooth finish unlike the usual Mayan tooled-limestone construction. They used

Quaestor

2005-02-23T10:43:00.000-08:00

With the advent of the republic in the year 509 BC, each of the two consuls, who at first were called praetors, appointed a quaestor to be the

Clouded Leopard

2005-02-22T21:43:00.000-08:00

(Neofelis nebulosa), �also called �clouded tiger� strikingly marked cat, very similar in colouring and coat pattern to the smaller, unrelated marbled cat (Felis marmorata). The clouded leopard is found in southeastern Asia, Sumatra, Java, Borneo, and Taiwan, particularly in forests and other wooded regions; the population declined sharply in the latter half of the 20th century as a result of hunting

Qajar Dynasty

2005-02-22T17:16:00.000-08:00

In 1779, following the death of Mohammad Karim Khan Zand, the Zand dynasty ruler of southern Iran, Agha Mohammad Khan (reigned 1779 - 97), a leader of the Turkmen Qajar tribe, set out to reunify Iran. By 1794 he had eliminated all his rivals, including Lotf 'Ali Khan, the last of the Zand dynasty, and had reasserted Iranian sovereignty over the former Iranian territories in

Argentina, The crisis of 1890

2005-02-21T22:37:00.000-08:00

The economic expansion led ultimately to inflation, the issuance of too much paper currency, and the onset of a financial crisis. A political crisis also followed. The government of Roca's successor, Miguel Ju�rez Celman (1886 - 90), had avoided launching an unpopular anti-inflationary program, but this inaction sparked criticism both within and outside the official party

Arts, Islamic, Architectural decoration

2005-02-21T02:45:00.000-08:00

Early Islamic architecture is most original in its decoration. Mosaics and wall paintings followed the practices of antiquity and were primarily employed in Syria, Palestine, and Spain. Stone sculpture existed, but stucco sculpture, first limited to Iran, spread rapidly throughout the early Islamic world. Not only were stone or brick walls covered with large panels

Great Atlantic

2005-02-20T22:28:00.000-08:00

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

Shensi, The 19th and 20th centuries

2005-02-20T17:05:00.000-08:00

By the 19th century Shensi was seriously impoverished. Although only marginally affected by the Taiping Rebellion (1850 - 64) in its last stages, eastern and southern Shensi were slightly disturbed by the Nien Rebellion between 1853 and 1868. It then suffered the terrible Muslim rebellion of 1862 to 1878, which affected much of the western and northern parts of the province. Although the effects

Medicine, Other developing countries

2005-02-19T16:48:00.000-08:00

A main goal of the World Health Organization (WHO), as expressed in the Alma-Ata Declaration of 1978, is to provide to all the citizens of the world a level of health that will allow them to lead socially and economically productive lives by the year 2000. By the late 1980s, however, vast disparities in health care still existed between the rich and poor countries of the world. In developing

Alkan, Valentin

2005-02-19T04:48:00.000-08:00

Alkan was born to Jewish parents, and all of his siblings (five brothers and a sister) also assumed the surname Alkan and were musicians. Valentin drew notice at the age of seven, when he won the first of many first

Tyson, Cicely

2005-02-18T19:56:00.000-08:00

Tyson, the daughter of immigrants from the Caribbean island of Nevis, grew up in a devoutly religious household in Harlem. Discovered by a fashion editor at Ebony magazine, she quickly rose to the top of the modeling world. In 1957 she began acting in Off-Broadway

Earth Exploration

2005-02-18T15:57:00.000-08:00

By the beginning of the 20th century most of the Earth's surface had been explored, at least superficially, except for the Arctic and Antarctic regions. Today the last of the unmarked areas on land maps have been filled in by radar and photographic mapping from aircraft and satellites. One of the last areas

Ziyarah

2005-02-17T19:28:00.000-08:00

(Arabic: �visit�), in Islam, a visit to the tomb of the Prophet Muhammad in the mosque at Medina, Saudi Arabia; also a visit to the tomb of a saint or a holy person. The legitimacy of these latter visits has been questioned by many Muslim religious authorities, particularly by the Wahhabiyah, who consider ziyarah a bid'ah (innovation) that should be condemned by all true believers. The

Jones, Howard; And Jones, T.a.d.

2005-02-17T00:55:00.000-08:00

The brothers played football in Middletown, Ohio, and at Phillips Exeter Academy (1903 - 04) in Exeter, New Hampshire, before entering Yale University in 1905. Howard's

Scandinavian Literature, Prose

2005-02-16T22:20:00.000-08:00

Iceland's adoption of Christianity in 1000 opened the way for powerful influences from western Europe. Missionaries taught Icelanders the Latin alphabet, and they soon began to study in the great schools of Europe. One of the first was �sleifr, who after being educated and ordained as a priest was consecrated bishop. His school at Sk�lholt in southern Iceland was for

North Africa, History Of, Morocco under sharifian dynasties

2005-02-16T01:24:00.000-08:00

As a reaction to the Portuguese presence in Agadir, the tribes in southern Morocco were organized by the sharifian Sa'di family - with the active support of Sufi leaders - into a militant religious movement directed against both the Portuguese presence and Morocco's own rulers, the Wattasids. The latter was a branch of the Marinid dynasty that had usurped power in Fez in 1472 and

Hawaii

2005-02-15T07:39:00.000-08:00

Volcanic island, Hawaii, U.S. It lies south of Maui Island and constitutes Hawaii county. Known as the Big Island, it is the largest (area 4,028 square miles [10,433 square km]) and southeasternmost of the Hawaiian Island group. It is the youngest geologically and was formed by five volcanoes connected by lava saddles (ridges). Kilauea is the world's most active volcano. The island is roughly

Biblical Literature, Commutation of vows and tithes

2005-02-15T01:26:00.000-08:00

In the final chapter of Leviticus (27), the P material is resumed with a presentation of the rules for the commutation of votive gifts and tithes. It provides for the release from vows (of offerings of persons, animals, or lands to God) through specified money payments. Some commentators understand the vow to offer persons to refer originally to human sacrifice, others as

Hafiz Ibrahim, Muhammad

2005-02-14T10:06:00.000-08:00

Hafiz was a lawyer and later a lieutenant in the Egyptian army, from which he retired in 1901. During the next 10 years he wrote his well-known odes denouncing imperialism and wrote his nationalistic poems. His superb skill as a reciter of poetry won him a prominent place in society, and he became director of literature

India, The Afghan factor in North India, 1747 - 72

2005-02-14T01:51:00.000-08:00

Unlike Nadir Shah, Ahmad Shah Abdali (or Ahmad Shah Durrani) - as Ahmad Khan came to be known after 1747 - had little interest in the area west of Afghanistan. Rather, his principal endeavour was to create a state that would lie astride the major overland trade routes that passed from northern India to Central and western Asia. Qandahar naturally had an important place in this scheme, but a great

Holbein, Hans, The Younger

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

Holbein was a member of a family of important artists. His father, Hans Holbein

Tsinling Mountains

2005-02-13T03:09:00.000-08:00

Wade-Giles romanization �Ch'in Ling, �Pinyin �Qin Ling, � mountain range in North China, extending east-west from southeast Kansu province into Shensi and Honan provinces. It is considered to be an extension of the Kunlun Mountains. It constitutes a watershed between the Wei and Han rivers and reaches a height of 12,359 feet (3,767 m) at T'ai-pai (mount). The range forms a sharp physical divide, of climatic as well as topographic significance,

Zanzibar

2005-02-12T22:42:00.000-08:00

City and port of the island of Zanzibar, Tanzania. The island's principal port and commercial centre, it is on the western side of the island behind a well-protected natural deepwater harbour. In 1824 Sultan Sa'id ibn Sultan of Oman established his capital there, shifting it from Muscat on the Arabian Peninsula. During the remainder of the 19th century, the city flourished as the

Theatricalism

2005-02-12T05:08:00.000-08:00

In the theatricalists' view, to turn one's back on naturalism was to draw inspiration from the spirit

Ya-lung River

2005-02-11T14:33:00.000-08:00

Wade - Giles romanization �Ya-lung Chiang�, Pinyin �Yalong Jiang� long secondary tributary of the Yangtze River in central and southern China. The Ya-lung rises in the Pa-yen-k'a-la Mountains in Tsinghai Province at an elevation of nearly 16,500 feet (5,000 m). The upper stream flows southeastward to the south of the Pa-yen-k'a-la Mountains into northwestern Szechwan Province. Below Kan-tzu it swings southward to flow along the western side of the

Tholeiite

2005-02-11T13:07:00.000-08:00

Fine-grained extrusive igneous rock, a basalt that contains plagioclase feldspar (labradorite), clinopyroxene (augite with pigeonite or hypersthene), and iron ore (magnetite and ilmenite). Tholeiitic lavas often contain glass, but little or no olivine. Tholeiite occurs as extensive plateaus (volumes on the order of 200,000 to 800,000 cubic km [50,000 to 200,000 cubic miles]) in the Pacific Northwest

Argentina, Mesopotamia

2005-02-10T22:07:00.000-08:00

East of the Gran Chaco, in a narrow depression 60 to 180 miles (100 to 300 km) wide, lies Mesopotamia, which is bordered to the north by the highlands of southern Brazil. The narrow lowland stretches for 1,000 miles (1,600 km) southward, finally merging with the Pampas south of the R�o de la Plata. Its designation as Mesopotamia (Greek: �Between the Rivers�) reflects the fact that its western and eastern

Lusitani

2005-02-10T06:44:00.000-08:00

War broke

Venetian Glass

2005-02-09T08:40:00.000-08:00

Variety of glasswares made in Venice from the 13th century, at the latest, to the present. Although a glassblowers' guild existed in Venice from 1224, the earliest extant specimens that can be dated with certainty are from the mid-15th century. The early history of Venetian glass is therefore largely conjectural. It is known that in 1291 the glasshouses moved across the lagoon to

Radiation Measurement

2005-02-09T04:07:00.000-08:00

The term ionizing radiation refers to those subatomic particles and photons whose energy is sufficient to cause ionization in the matter with which they interact. The ionization process consists of

Piglia, Ricardo

2005-02-08T16:33:00.000-08:00

After attending the National University of La Plata in 1961 - 62, Piglia began to write fiction; his first collection of short stories, La invasi�n (1967), established his reputation as a writer. Another collection, Nombre falso (1975; Assumed Name), includes

Arts, Central Asian, Mongolian literature

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

Mongolian literature begins with the Secret History of the Mongols, an Imperial chronicle dealing with the life and times of Genghis Khan and his successors, written about 1240. �ligers, orally transmitted epic stories in verse, form the bulk of native literary expression. Highly stylized, these tales relate adventures of legendary heroes and villains. In spite of their

K�rner, Theodor

2005-02-07T19:32:00.000-08:00

A colonel in the Austro-Hungarian Army at the outbreak of World War I, K�rner was subsequently appointed chief of staff (May 1915) and successfully helped to stem Italian offensives along the Italian-Slovenian border.

Computers, Handheld computers

2005-02-07T02:45:00.000-08:00

The origins of handheld computers go back to the 1960s, when Alan Kay, a researcher at Xerox's Palo Alto Research Center, promoted the vision of a small, powerful notebook-style computer that he called the Dynabook. Kay never actually built a Dynabook (the technology had yet to be invented), but his vision helped to catalyze the research that would eventually make his dream

Intrinsic Factor

2005-02-06T18:23:00.000-08:00

A glycoprotein (i.e., a complex compound containing both polysaccharide and protein components) with which vitamin B12 (cyanocobalamin) must combine to be absorbed by the gut. Intrinsic factor is secreted by parietal cells of the gastric glands in the stomach, where it binds with the vitamin. Thus bound, intrinsic factor protects vitamin B12 from digestion as it passes

Hystaspes

2005-02-06T03:54:00.000-08:00

According to the 5th-century-BC Greek historian Herodotus, Hystaspes was governor of Persis under Cyrus II the Great and Cambyses II and accompanied Cyrus on his last campaign against the Massagetai in 530 BC. When Darius seized the throne in 522, Hystaspes was governor of Parthia and Hyrcania,

Amadeus Vii

2005-02-05T07:05:00.000-08:00

Son of Amadeus VI and Bonne of Bourbon, Amadeus married (1377) the daughter of Jean, duc de Berry, brother of the king of France. His father, the �Green Count,� wore his customary emerald-green livery at the wedding, and the groom earned his

Hines, Gregory

2005-02-05T00:58:00.000-08:00

By the age of four, Hines and his older brother Maurice were taking tap lessons with renowned dancer and choreographer Henry Le Tang. The brothers soon formed the Hines Kids, a song-and-dance

Aurillac

2005-02-04T19:48:00.000-08:00

Capital of Cantal d�partement, Auvergne r�gion, south-central France. It lies along the Jourdanne River at an elevation of 2,040 feet (622 m) above sea level, southwest of Clermont-Ferrand. Gerbert, the first French pope (known as Sylvester II), was born in the town and was educated at the nearby Saint-G�raud abbey (founded 894). In the Religious Wars of the 16th century, a general massacre

Hei Tiki

2005-02-04T14:35:00.000-08:00

Small neck pendant in the form of a human fetus, used by the Maori of New Zealand as a fertility symbol. Usually carved of green nephrite or a jadelike stone called pounamu that is found along the western coast of the South Island, hei tikis normally are worn only by women. The object is believed to possess magical powers that increase as it is passed on from generation

Prophet's Mosque

2005-02-03T04:18:00.000-08:00

Courtyard of the Prophet Muhammad in Medina, Arabian Peninsula, which was the model for later Islamic architecture. The home of Muhammad and his family was a simple structure, made of raw brick, that opened on an enclosed courtyard where people gathered to hear him. In 634 Muhammad decreed that prayer be directed toward Mecca; against the wall facing Mecca, the qiblah wall, he

Amazon River

2005-02-03T01:32:00.000-08:00

Portuguese, �Rio Amazonas, �Spanish �R�o Amazonas, � the greatest river of South America and the largest drainage system in the world in terms of the volume of its flow and the area of its basin. The total length of the river - measured from the headwaters of the Ucayali-Apur�mac river system in Peru - is about 4,000 miles (6,400 kilometres), which is slightly shorter than the Nile River but still the equivalent of the distance from New

Shah Jahan

2005-02-02T01:51:00.000-08:00

He was the third son of the Mughal emperor Jahangir and the Rajput princess Manmati. Marrying in 1612 Arjumand Banu Baygam, niece of Jahangir's wife Nur Jahan, he became, as Prince Khurram, one of the influential Nur Jahan clique of the middle period of Jahangir's reign. In 1622 Shah Jahan, ambitious to win the succession, rebelled,

Koriyama

2005-02-02T01:06:00.000-08:00

City, Fukushima Prefecture (ken), Honshu, Japan, located at the junction of the Tohoku Line and the Ban-etsu Line (railways), north-northeast of Tokyo. It developed as an industrial and communications centre, producing textiles, chemicals, and machinery. Power is generated with coal from the nearby Joban coalfield and by hydroelectric plants on the Nippashi-gawa (Nippashi

Andean Peoples

2005-02-01T09:22:00.000-08:00

Although the Andes Mountains extend from Venezuela to the southern tip of the continent, it is conventional to call �Andean� only the people who were once part of Tawantinsuyu, the Inca Empire in the Central Andes, or those influenced by it. Even so, the Andean region is very wide. It encompasses

Black River

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

River in southeastern Missouri and eastern Arkansas, U.S., rising in the Ozark Mountains in Reynolds county, Mo. It flows southeasterly to Poplar Bluff, Mo., and then continues southwest to enter the White River near Newport, Ark., after a course of 280 miles (450 km). Limited navigation is possible for shallow-draft vessels in the lower 15 miles (25 km) of its course. Its main tributary is

Marseillaise, La

2005-01-31T07:52:00.000-08:00

After France declared war on Austria on April 20, 1792, P.F. Dietrich, the mayor of Strasbourg (where Rouget de Lisle was then quartered), expressed the need for a marching song for the French troops. �La

Mosquito

2005-01-31T04:22:00.000-08:00

As a night fighter, the Mosquito downed more than 600 Luftwaffe

George

2005-01-30T20:15:00.000-08:00

Byname �George of Podebrady, �Czech� Jir� z Podebrad� king of Bohemia from 1458. As head of the conservative Utraquist faction of Hussite Protestants, he established himself as a power when Bohemia was still under Habsburg rule, and he was thereafter unanimously elected king by the estates. A nationalist and Hussite king of a prosperous state, he incurred the enmity

Constantine

2005-01-30T04:03:00.000-08:00

Constantine upheld Roman supremacy against the insubordination of Felix, archbishop of Ravenna. He received as a pilgrim King Cenred of Mercia, who became a monk at Rome (709). Constantine strongly objected to the canons, several of which opposed Roman customs, established by the largely eastern Trullan (or Quinisext) Council assembled under

Houghton (of Great Houghton), Richard Monckton Milnes, 1st Baron

2005-01-29T20:23:00.000-08:00

At Trinity College, Cambridge, where he took his M.A. degree in 1831, Houghton joined the socially and artistically progressive Apostles Club, which included among its members the poets Alfred Tennyson and Arthur

Sea Islands

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

Low-lying chain of sandy islands off the coasts of South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida, U.S., between the mouths of the Santee and St. Johns rivers and along the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway. The Spaniards claimed and partly occupied the islands in 1568. By the end of the 17th century, the English had made them part of the Carolina colony. In 1717 they were granted to Sir Robert

Ericales

2005-01-28T14:28:00.000-08:00

The fossil record of Ericales is not enormous, especially considering the number of extant species in the order; in fact, many species placed in Ericales require careful reconsideration as their affinities with the order are doubtful. The Cyrillaceae are well documented in the fossil record with pollen grains occurring as far back as the Maastrichtian of the

Henri, Robert

2005-01-28T04:29:00.000-08:00

Henri studied at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Philadelphia, from 1884 to 1888, and at both the Acad�mie Julian and the �cole des Beaux-Arts in Paris. Upon

Ibn Ezra, Abraham Ben Meir

2005-01-27T16:39:00.000-08:00

As a young man, he lived in Muslim Spain. Not much is known about his early life. He was on friendly terms with the eminent poet and philosopher Judah

Dublin, Climate

2005-01-27T08:03:00.000-08:00

With its coastal site on the western seaboard of the Irish Sea, Dublin enjoys a mild climate. The average temperature is lowest in January - February, 42� F (6� C), and highest in July - August, 59� F (15� C). Sunshine averages four hours a day. The mean annual rainfall is 30 - 40 inches (760 - 1,000 millimetres), although the rate is higher in the mountains. The period of maximum rainfall occurs in winter, and there

Gnu

2005-01-26T06:17:00.000-08:00

The gnu, which stands higher at the shoulder than at the rump, attains a shoulder height of 1 - 1.3 metres (3 - 4 feet). The southern African form, the white-tailed gnu, or black wildebeest (C. gnou), is dark brown with long black tufts

India, From Banda Singh Bahadur to Ranjit Singh

2005-01-26T00:17:00.000-08:00

The quelling by Mughal forces of the Sikhs under Banda did not mean an end to Sikh resistance to Mughal claims. In the 1720s and '30s, Amritsar emerged as a centre of Sikh activity, partly because of its preeminence as a pilgrimage centre. Kapur Singh, the most important of the Sikh leaders of the time, operated from its vicinity and gradually set about consolidating a revenue-cum-military

Cell

2005-01-25T11:24:00.000-08:00

In biology, the basic unit of which all living things are composed. As the smallest units retaining the fundamental properties of life, cells are the �atoms� of the living world. A single cell is often a complete organism in itself, such as a bacterium or yeast. Other cells, by differentiating in order to acquire specialized functions and cooperating with other specialized

Tabriz

2005-01-25T07:18:00.000-08:00

The name Tabriz is said to derive from tap-riz (�causing

Gisulph Ii

2005-01-24T09:56:00.000-08:00

In 1052 Gisulph's father, Gaimar V, was assassinated in a revolt. Gisulph, held captive by the assassins, was rescued with the aid of Norman knights, who were rewarded by recognition of their territorial

Leahy, Frank

2005-01-24T09:31:00.000-08:00

Leahy played at Notre Dame under Rockne in 1929, but a knee injury

Raabe, Wilhelm

2005-01-23T01:26:00.000-08:00

After leaving school in Wolfenb�ttel in 1849, Raabe was apprenticed for four years to a Magdeburg book dealer, during which time he read widely. Although he attended lectures at Berlin University, the important product of his time