SweetPencil

Arts, Central Asian, Dance and theatre

2005-04-05T13:22:00.000-07:00

Mircea Eliade, Le Chamanisme et les techniques archaïques de l'extase (1951; 2nd ed., 1968; Eng. trans., Shamanism: Archaic Techniques of Ecstasy, rev. ed., 1964), a classic study of the rituals, costumes, and symbolisms of shamanic performances; Luther G. Jerstad (op. cit.), an analytical and descriptive study of 'cham as performed in the Tengpoche monastery of northern Nepal. Materials and translations of some morality plays have been published by Marion H. Duncan in his Harvest Festival Dramas of Tibet (1955) and More Harvest Festival Dramas of Tibet (1967); and a study of the “Moon-cuckoo” play of the Mongols has been published in Japanese by Hidehiro Okada. Information on the performing arts may be found scattered in various other publications, but it is usually descriptive in nature and deals with only one genre. As yet no scholar has carried out a comprehensive analytical study of the origins and interrelations of dance and theatre in Central Asian regions.

Computers, UNIVAC

2005-04-04T18:40:00.000-07:00

After leaving the Moore School, Eckert and Mauchly struggled to obtain capital to build their latest design, a computer they called the Universal Automatic Computer, or UNIVAC. (In the meantime, they contracted with the Northrop Corporation to build the Binary Automatic Computer, or BINAC, which, when completed in 1949, became the first American stored-program computer.)

Priest

2005-04-03T03:51:00.000-07:00

A priesthood developed gradually in the early Christian church as first bishops and then elders, or “presbyters,” began to exercise certain priestly functions, mainly in connection with celebration of the Eucharist. By the end of the

Ibiza

2005-04-02T10:15:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Iviza, or Ivica, island, Balearic Islands provincia and comunidad autónoma (“autonomous community”), Spain, one of the Balearic Islands in the western Mediterranean. It lies 50 mi (80 km) southwest of Majorca and has an area of 221 sq mi (572 sq km). A strategic point of great importance in ancient times, the island was inhabited by the Phoenicians and Carthaginians and has some notable archaeological

Welsh Corgi

2005-04-01T04:03:00.000-08:00

The Cardigan Welsh corgi (see photograph), named after Cardiganshire, can be traced back to dogs brought to Wales by the Celts about 1200 BC. The original type was known as the Bronant and

Columbus

2005-03-31T23:44:00.000-08:00

City, seat of Platte county, eastern Nebraska, U.S., on the Loup River near its confluence with the Platte. It was founded (1856) at the North Fork Ferry of the Oregon Trail by settlers from Columbus, Ohio. With the coming of the Union Pacific Railroad (1860), it became an outfitting post for wagon trains and a centre for cattle feeding. Its modern economy is based on agriculture and the

Bulbil

2005-03-30T02:07:00.000-08:00

Also spelled bulbel , also called bulblet, in botany, tiny secondary bulb that forms in the angle between a leaf and stem or in place of flowers on certain plants. Bulbils, called offsets when full-sized, fall or are removed and planted to produce new plants. They are especially common among such plants as onions and lilies.

Duars

2005-03-29T21:11:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Dwars, or Dooars, region of northeastern India, at the foot of the west Assam Himalayas. Its 3,400-square-mile (8,800-square-kilometre) area is divided by the Sankosh River into the Western and Eastern Duars. Both were ceded by Bhutan to the British at the end of the Bhutan War (1864–65). The Eastern Duars, in western Assam state, comprises a level plain intersected by numerous rivers and only slightly populated.

Cozzi Porcelain

2005-03-27T15:23:00.000-08:00

Soft-paste porcelain made in Venice by Geminiano Cozzi from about 1764 to 1812. Cozzi products, often freely adapted versions of Meissen porcelain, consisted mainly of figures, vases, and tablewares with Rococo decoration that was frequently distinguished by an imaginative interpretation wholly Italian in style. Rich colours, including red, bluish purple, and emerald

Valdés, Juan De

2005-03-27T08:26:00.000-08:00

Juan studied under Spain's leading Humanists and developed religious views that closely followed the ideas of Erasmus of Rotterdam, with

Hondecoeter, Melchior De

2005-03-26T02:49:00.000-08:00

Hondecoeter was the grandson of Gilles and the son of Gijsbrecht de Hondecoeter, as well as the nephew by marriage of J.B. Weenix, all of whom were painters of animals and still lifes. Hondecoeter was greatly favoured by the magnates of the Netherlands and in 1659 was made a

Badminton

2005-03-24T21:26:00.000-08:00

Poul-Erik Hoyer-Larsen, known as the "Great Dane," laid claim to badminton's two most important titles in 1996, a gold medal in men's singles at the Olympic Games in Atlanta, Ga., and a second consecutive men's singles All-England championship in March in Birmingham, Eng. He won in a sport almost completely dominated by Asia. At the Olympics he was the only European to place first, second,

Silvassa

2005-03-24T16:26:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Silvasa town, capital of Dadra and Nagar Haveli Union Territory, western India. The town is located about 13 miles (21 km) southeast of Daman on the Daman Ganga River some 15 miles (25 km) inland from the Arabian Sea. It is the economic centre of the territory, which is primarily agricultural and produces rice, pulses, and fruit crops. Pop. (1991 prelim.) 11,720.

Yam

2005-03-23T09:13:00.000-08:00

True yams are botanically distinct

Biblical Literature, Jeremiah

2005-03-22T21:56:00.000-08:00

The prophet Jeremiah began to prophesy about 626 BCE during the reign of the Judaean king Josiah. From the town of Anathoth and probably from the priestly family of Eli, this prophet, who may have been instrumental in the Deuteronomic reform, dictated his oracles to his secretary Baruch. Only a youth in his late teens when he experienced the call by Yahweh to be a “prophet to

Aholehole

2005-03-22T13:24:00.000-08:00

Any of several species of fishes constituting the family Kuhliidae (order Perciformes). Various members of the genus Kuhlia inhabit marine or fresh waters in the Indo-Pacific region, whereas representatives of the other two genera are restricted to freshwater or brackish habitats of Australia. Superficially the aholeholes resemble the freshwater sunfishes

Biblical Literature, The Story of Ahikar

2005-03-22T01:15:00.000-08:00

According to the book of Tobit, Ahikar, the cupbearer of the Assyrian king Esarhaddon, was Tobit's nephew; he is a secondary personage in the plot, and his own story is mentioned. Ahikar is the hero of a Near Eastern non-Jewish work, The Story of Ahikar. The book exists in medieval translations, the best of them in Syriac. The story was known in the Persian period in the Jewish

Marquess

2005-03-20T20:50:00.000-08:00

In western Europe the Carolingian marchiones or margraves had been royal officials whose

Canals And Inland Waterways

2005-03-19T17:57:00.000-08:00

Despite modern technological advances in air and ground transportation, inland waterways continue to fill a vital role and, in many areas, to grow substantially. This article traces the history of canal building from the earliest times to the present day and describes

Gray, Thomas

2005-03-19T16:49:00.000-08:00

Born into a prosperous but unhappy home, Gray was the sole survivor of 12 children

Probation

2005-03-18T23:15:00.000-08:00

The probation

Asher

2005-03-18T13:56:00.000-08:00

One of the 12 tribes of Israel that in biblical times constituted the people of Israel who later became the Jewish people. The tribe was named after the younger of two sons born to Jacob (also called Israel) and Zilpah, the maidservant of Jacob's first wife, Leah. After the Israelites took possession of the Promised Land, Joshua assigned territory to each of the 12 tribes. The

Half-way Covenant

2005-03-17T07:27:00.000-08:00

Religious-political solution adopted by 17th-century New England Congregationalists, also called Puritans, that allowed the children of baptized but unconverted church members to be baptized and thus become church members and have political rights. Early Congregationalists had become members of the church after they could report an experience of conversion.

Gabelle

2005-03-16T03:24:00.000-08:00

In the 14th century the gabelle denoted any tax on the sale of consumer goods; an ordinance of 1360 made it a permanent tax. In the 15th century the gabelle began to mean specifically the salt tax, that is, a tax on consumption of salt. The nobility, the clergy, and certain other privileged

China, Prelude to the Han

2005-03-15T03:02:00.000-08:00

From 403 BC onward seven kingdoms other than Chou constituted the ruling authorities in different parts of China, each of which was led by its own king or duke. In theory, the king of Chou, whose territory was by now greatly reduced, was recognized as possessing superior powers and moral overlordship over the other kingdoms, but practical administration lay in the hands

Ahir

2005-03-15T00:02:00.000-08:00

Cattle-tending caste widespread in northern and central India. Considerable historical interest attaches to this caste, because its members are thought to be identical with the Abhiras of Sanskrit literature, who are mentioned repeatedly in the great epic the Mahabharata. Some scholars contend that these cattlemen, scattered over southern Rajasthan and Sind (now

Dorsey, Thomas Andrew

2005-03-14T13:29:00.000-08:00

U.S. songwriter, singer, and pianist (b. July 1, 1899, Villa Rica, Ga.--d. Jan. 23, 1993, Chicago, Ill.), as the "father of gospel music," blended elements of soulful blues with the traditional sacred music of his religious upbringing to create a new genre called gospel, which infused an uplifting, foot-stomping sound into black congregations, primarily of Baptist and Holiness churches. Dorsey, the

Mac Family

2005-03-14T03:32:00.000-08:00

The Mac family began as ministers to the Le kings of the Vietnamese Later Le dynasty (1428–1787). By the early 16th century, however, the Later Le rulers had become virtually powerless, and in 1527 Mac Dang Dung, the head of the family, usurped the throne. Eight years later the powerful Nguyen family

Powers, Separation Of

2005-03-13T21:52:00.000-08:00

The doctrine may be traced to ancient and

China, Early T'ang (618626)

2005-03-13T18:02:00.000-08:00

When Kao-tsu became emperor (reigned 618–626), he was still only one among the contenders for control of the empire of the Sui. It was several years before the empire was entirely pacified. After the suppression of Hsüeh Chü and the pacification of the northwest, the T'ang had to contend with three principal rival forces: the Sui remnants commanded by Wang Shih-ch'ung at Lo-yang,

China, The Loess Plateau

2005-03-12T21:25:00.000-08:00

This plateau forms a unique region of loess-clad hills and barren mountains situated between the North China Plain and the deserts of the west. In the north, the Great Wall of China forms the boundary, while the southern limit is the Tsinling Mountains, in Shensi Province. The average altitude of the surface is between 4,000 and 5,000 feet, but individual ranges of bedrock are higher,

Kiarostami, Abbas

2005-03-12T18:49:00.000-08:00

Kiarostami was hired in 1969 by the Institute for the Intellectual Development of Children and Young Adults to establish its film division. The institute produced his first film as a director, the lyrical short Nan va kucheh (1970; “Bread and Alley”), which featured

Acting

2005-03-12T02:34:00.000-08:00

Acting is generally agreed to be a matter less of mimicry, exhibitionism, or imitation than of the ability to react to imaginary stimuli. Its essential elements remain the twin requisites enunciated by the French

Fischer, Kuno

2005-03-10T21:29:00.000-08:00

With other writings on Gotthold Lessing, Friedrich Schiller, and J.W. von Goethe, Fischer contributed to the philosophy of aesthetics. Eventually he subscribed to Hegelian

Yerby, Frank

2005-03-10T02:31:00.000-08:00

Yerby's story “Health Card” won the O. Henry Memorial Award for best first published short story in 1944. In 1946 his first novel, The Foxes of Harrow, was an immediate success. His novels are action-packed, usually featuring a strong hero in an earlier period. The stories unfold in colourful language

Reston

2005-03-09T18:34:00.000-08:00

Urban community, in Fairfax county, northeastern Virginia, U.S. It lies adjacent to Herndon, 22 miles (35 km) west-northwest of Washington, D.C. The community was developed after 1962 by Robert E. Simon, whose initials form the first syllable of its name; it opened in 1965. Reston, an original concept in urban planning, consists of a number of villages (separated by woodland tracts), each with

Easel Painting

2005-03-09T11:14:00.000-08:00

Painting executed on a portable support such as a panel or canvas, instead of on a wall. It is likely that easel paintings were known to the ancient Egyptians, and the 1st-century-AD Roman scholar Pliny the Elder refers to a large panel placed on an easel; it was not until the 13th century, however, that easel paintings became relatively common, finally superseding in popularity

Orangeburg

2005-03-08T07:57:00.000-08:00

City, seat of Orangeburg county, central South Carolina, U.S. It is situated on the North Fork Edisto River. In 1735 Germans, Swiss, and Dutch established a settlement, naming it for William IV, prince of Orange. The Donald Bruce House (c. 1735), on nearby Middlepen Plantation, served as the headquarters for Governor John Rutledge, General William Moultrie, and Lord Rawdon during the

Biblical Literature, The united monarchy

2005-03-07T08:12:00.000-08:00

The monarchy was initiated during the career of Samuel, a prophet of great influence and authority who was also recognized as a judge and is depicted in varying biblical accounts as either favouring or not favouring the reign of a human king over Israel. In any case, he anointed Saul, a courageous military leader of the tribe of Benjamin, as king (c. 1020 BCE). Saul won substantial

Painting, Western, The 17th century

2005-03-07T00:46:00.000-08:00

English painting during the 17th century had been dominated by a series of foreign-born practitioners, mostly portraitists (e.g., Rubens and Van Dyck), even before the Civil War. Sir Peter Lely and Sir Godfrey Kneller continued this trend after the Restoration. The vast majority of the painting executed by native artists remained thoroughly provincial. Lely began his

Midgard

2005-03-06T22:19:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Midgardr (Old Norse: Middle Abode) , also called Manna-Heim (“Home of Man”) in Norse mythology, the Middle Earth, the abode of mankind, made from the body of the first created being, the giant Aurgelmir (Ymir). According to legend, the gods killed Aurgelmir, rolled his body into the central void of the universe, and began fashioning the Midgard. Aurgelmir's flesh became the land, his blood the oceans, his bones the mountains, his teeth the cliffs, his

Mental Disorder, Major affective disorders

2005-03-06T16:01:00.000-08:00

The DSM-III defines two major, or severe, affective disorders: bipolar disorder and major depression. A person with bipolar disorder, which has traditionally been called manic-depressive psychosis, typically experiences discrete episodes of depression and then of mania lasting for a few weeks or months, with intervening periods of complete normality. The sequence

Cinemascope

2005-03-06T14:58:00.000-08:00

Film-making process in which a motion picture is projected on a screen, with the width of the image two and a half times its height. The French physicist Henri Chrétien (1879–1956) invented the technique in the late 1920s by which a camera, with the addition of a special lens, can “squeeze” a wide picture onto standard 35-millimetre film. Then, by the use of a special projection lens, the image

Religious Symbolism And Iconography, Relation to the literary and visual arts

2005-03-05T19:22:00.000-08:00

Religious symbols and pictures may be identical with, related to, or similar to those of language (metaphors) and to pictorial expressions in prose and poetry. They are related in allegory, parable, fairy tales, fables, and legends in which they can appear in a form that is closely related to that of religious symbolism. Religious symbols are used in the plastic arts, in

Carlisle, Charles Howard, 3rd Earl Of

2005-03-04T01:40:00.000-08:00

The eldest son of Edward Howard, the 2nd earl (1646?–92), he was a member of Parliament from 1690 until he succeeded his father as earl in 1692. Throughout his life he held a variety of crown-appointed posts, most notably as first lord of the Treasury (then the chief, or “prime,” ministry) under Queen Anne and King

Ciliate

2005-03-04T00:11:00.000-08:00

The cilia are usually arranged in rows, known as

Heinicke, Samuel

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

After receiving only a village school education, Heinicke enlisted in the army, where he found time to indulge his intense fondness for books and his interest in languages. He studied Latin and French and began to teach both languages. He was stirred

Heiberg, Johan Ludvig

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

Playwright, poet, literary historian, and critic whose romantic idealism in a sense epitomized the Danish Romantic school, which he helped bring to an end when he established a new era of topical, sophisticated, and satirical literature. Heiberg also introduced both Hegelian philosophy and vaudeville, or ballad opera,

Biblical Literature, The role of Samson

2005-03-02T21:52:00.000-08:00

The exploits of the great Israelite strongman judge, Samson (a member of the tribe of Dan), are related in chapters 13–16. Dedicated from birth by his mother to Yahweh, Samson became a member of the Nazirites, an anti-Canaanite reform movement. As a Nazirite, he was required never to cut his hair, drink wine, or eat ritually unclean food. He married a Philistine woman whom he then

Stephen F. Austin State University

2005-03-02T08:38:00.000-08:00

Public, coeducational institution of higher education in Nacogdoches, Texas, U.S. It comprises the Graduate School, the Arthur Temple College of Forestry, and colleges of applied arts and sciences, business, education, fine arts, liberal arts, and sciences and mathematics. Bachelor's and master's degrees are offered in a range of fields, and doctoral degrees are available

Haratin

2005-03-01T21:23:00.000-08:00

Scholars speculate that the Haratin came into being as a result of ancient interbreeding between indigenous blacks and Indo-Europeans, possibly Berbers. In the 17th century they were forcibly recruited

Grumman, Leroy Randle

2005-03-01T10:38:00.000-08:00

After graduating from Cornell University, Grumman joined the U.S. Navy and served as a flight instructor and later as a test pilot. Following World War I he worked for the Loening

Argentina, Other recreation

2005-02-28T22:42:00.000-08:00

A majority of Argentines enjoy viewing televised sporting events as well as dramas, game shows, and other television programs, including North American comedies dubbed into Spanish. Telenovelas (soap operas) made in Argentina and other Latin American countries are particularly popular, and many locally produced serials are exported throughout the region. Movies,

Karun River

2005-02-28T14:29:00.000-08:00

Persian Rud-e Karun , ancient Ulai , or Eulaeus river in southwestern Iran, a tributary of the Shatt al-Arab, which it joins at Khorramshahr. It rises in the Bakhtiari Mountains west of Esfahan and follows a tortuous course trending basically southwest. The Karun's total length is 515 miles (829 km), though the direct distance from its source to the junction with the Shatt al-Arab is only 180 miles (290 km). Its catchment basin up to Ahvaz has an

Valens

2005-02-28T09:41:00.000-08:00

Eastern Roman emperor from 364 to 378. He was the younger brother of Valentinian I, who assumed the throne upon the death of the emperor Jovian (Feb. 17, 364). On March 28, 364, Valentinian appointed Valens to be co-emperor. Valens was assigned to rule the Eastern part of the empire, while Valentinian took the throne in the West. Soon Valens was challenged by the pagan Procopius, who had himself

Differential Gear

2005-02-27T04:14:00.000-08:00

In automotive mechanics, gear arrangement that permits power from the engine to be transmitted to a pair of driving wheels, dividing the force equally between them but permitting them to follow paths of different lengths, as when turning a corner or traversing an uneven road. On a straight road the wheels rotate at the same speed; when turning a corner the outside

Eyespot

2005-02-25T07:20:00.000-08:00

In the green one-celled organism Euglena, the eyespot is located in the gullet, at the base of the flagellum (a whiplike locomotory

Farinacci, Roberto

2005-02-25T06:15:00.000-08:00

After dropping out of school to work for the railroad in Cremona (1909), Farinacci became an ardent Socialist. When World War I broke out, he advocated Italian intervention,

Celtic Literature, Prose

2005-02-25T05:06:00.000-08:00

The early Irish epic was a prose narrative that usually contained non-narrative poetic passages, often in dialogue form. The resemblance between this and the type of epic found in early Sanskrit suggests that the tradition went back to Indo-European times. The oldest sagas probably were first written down in the 7th and 8th centuries, from an oral tradition. These were

Puerto Carreño

2005-02-25T04:37:00.000-08:00

Capital of Vichada departamento, eastern Colombia, situated at the junction of the Meta and Orinoco rivers, across from Puerto Páez, Venezuela. The easternmost of Colombia's urban centres and a potentially important port on the Orinoco River, the city is a collection centre for the cattle and livestock products, corn (maize), gums, and resins that are produced in the

Atherosclerosis

2005-02-24T17:05:00.000-08:00

An arteriosclerosis characterized by the deposition of fatty substances in and fibrosis of the inner layer of the arteries. See arteriosclerosis.

Scaliger, Joseph Justus

2005-02-24T07:42:00.000-08:00

The son of an Italian physician and philosopher, Julius Caesar Scaliger, who immigrated to Agen in 1525, the young Joseph entered school at Bordeaux and

La Orotava

2005-02-23T00:21:00.000-08:00

Town, northern Tenerife island, Santa Cruz de Tenerife provincia, Canary Islands comunidad autónoma (“autonomous community”), Spain, just southwest of Santa Cruz de Tenerife city. The town is a health resort with its port, Puerto de la Cruz, on the coast immediately to the northwest. It lies in the Orotava Valley, known for its luxuriant vegetation and called the most beautiful

Cambrai, Battle Of

2005-02-22T04:32:00.000-08:00

Carried out by the 3rd Army under General Sir Julian Byng in order to relieve pressure on the French front, the offensive consisted of an assault against the Germans' Hindenburg line along a 10-mile (16-kilometre) front some 8 miles

Antony, Mark

2005-02-21T22:35:00.000-08:00

Mark Antony was the son and grandson of men of the same name. His father was called Creticus because of his military operations in Crete, and his grandfather, one of the leading orators of his day, was vividly portrayed as a speaker in Cicero's De oratore. After a somewhat dissipated youth, the future triumvir served with distinction in 57–54 as a cavalry commander under Aulus

Defense Of Rights, Associations For The

2005-02-21T14:38:00.000-08:00

The league was actually a coalition of middle-class organizations,

Kerschensteiner, Georg

2005-02-21T00:20:00.000-08:00

Kerschensteiner studied physics and mathematics in Munich and taught mathematics in Nürnberg and Schweinfurt before being named director of public schools in Munich in 1895. In that post, which he held until 1919, and as

Armidale

2005-02-20T09:32:00.000-08:00

City, northeastern New South Wales, Australia. It lies on the valley slopes of Dumaresq Creek in the New England Range. Founded in 1839 by G.J. Macdonald, commissioner of crown lands, and named for his father's Scottish baronial estate on the Isle of Skye, it developed a pastoral-agricultural economy. It has become a regional cultural centre with Anglican and Roman Catholic

Perceval

2005-02-20T04:34:00.000-08:00

Hero of Arthurian romance, distinguished by his quality of childlike (often uncouth) innocence, which protected him from worldly temptation and set him apart from other knights in Arthur's fellowship. This quality also links his story with the primitive folktale theme of a great fool or simple hero. In Chrétien de Troyes's poem Le Conte du Graal (12th century), Perceval's

Biblical Literature, Amos

2005-02-19T23:27:00.000-08:00

The Book of Amos, the third of the Twelve (Minor) Prophets, has been one of the most significant and influential books of the Bible from the time it was written (8th century BCE) down to the 20th century. Comprising only nine chapters of oracles, it was composed during the age of Jeroboam II, king of Israel from 786 to 746 BCE. His reign was marked by great economic prosperity, but the rich were

Haakon Iv Haakonsson

2005-02-19T19:51:00.000-08:00

Acknowledged as the illegitimate posthumous son of Haakon III and the grandson of Sverrir of Norway,

Fable, Parable, And Allegory, Renaissance

2005-02-18T21:41:00.000-08:00

Romance and romantic forms provide the main vehicle for the entrance of allegory into the literature of the Renaissance period. The old Arthurian legends carry a new sophistication and polish in the epics of the Italians Boiardo, Ariosto, and Tasso and in the work of Edmund Spenser. By interlacing several simultaneous stories in one larger narrative, the literary

Parnaíba

2005-02-18T15:46:00.000-08:00

Port city, northwestern Piauí state, northeastern Brazil, on the Rio Igaraçu, an outlet of the Rio Parnaíba, 9 mi (14 km) upstream from the Atlantic Ocean. Founded in 1761 and given city status in 1884, Parnaíba is the most important trade and distributing centre of the river valley. The chief products shipped from Parnaíba and its outport, Luís Correia (just to the northeast), are carnauba

Amorphous Solid, Polymeric structural materials

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

Polystyrene, the organic polymer listed in the Table, is a prototypical example of a polymeric glass. These glasses, whose atomic-scale structure has been discussed in connection with Figure 7B, make up a broad class of lightweight structural materials important in the automotive, aerospace, and construction industries. These materials are also ubiquitous in everyday

Aurangzeb

2005-02-17T04:22:00.000-08:00

Aurangzeb was the third son of the emperor Shah Jahan and Mumtaz Mahal (for whom the Taj Mahal was built). He grew up as a serious-minded and devout youth, wedded to the Muslim orthodoxy of the day and free from the royal Mughal traits of sensuality and drunkenness. He early showed signs of military and administrative ability; and these qualities, combined with a taste for power,

Heifetz, Jascha

2005-02-16T06:55:00.000-08:00

Heifetz studied violin from age three and at six performed Felix Mendelssohn's Violin

Bobbin Furniture

2005-02-16T02:52:00.000-08:00

Also called Spool Furniture, heavy furniture made in the late 17th century, whose legs and other parts were lathe-turned to ornamental shapes; also lighter, less boldly turned pieces made in 19th-century cottage style (see cottage furniture). Bobbin turning was a type of ornament consisting of a series of small knobs resembling spools, or bobbins, used on the legs and stretchers of chairs and tables,

Ecuador, Domination of Velasco Ibarra (post-World War II)

2005-02-15T22:49:00.000-08:00

Politics and government after World War II presented contradictions. Ecuador enjoyed a long period of constitutional government and relatively free elections following the presidency of the Radical Liberal leader Galo Plaza (1948–52). There were also two long interludes of military government (1963–66; 1972–79), but the period was dominated by one of Latin America's great caudillos,

Switzerland, Relief and drainage

2005-02-15T06:39:00.000-08:00

Situated at the hydrographic centre of Europe, Switzerland is the source of many major rivers. The two most important are the Rhône, which flows into the Mediterranean, and the Rhine, which empties into the North Sea. Switzerland's small area contains an unusual diversity of topographic elements, which are divisible into three distinct regions: the Jura

Political System, Leagues

2005-02-14T17:23:00.000-08:00

One of the commonest forms of supranational organization in history is that of leagues, generally composed of states seeking to resist some common military or economic threat by combining their forces. This was the case with the early city leagues, such as the Achaean and Aetolian leagues in ancient Greece and the Hanseatic and the Swabian leagues in Europe; and

Tigray

2005-02-14T08:39:00.000-08:00

Tigray contains the core of the ancient Aksumite kingdom and the

Silver

2005-02-14T01:13:00.000-08:00

In the majority of silver compounds the element has a valence of one. These compounds include such familiar substances as silver chloride (AgCl), silver bromide (AgBr), and silver iodide (AgI). Each of these salts is used extensively in photography. Silver chloride serves as the light-sensitive material in photographic printing papers and, together with silver bromide,

Buli Style

2005-02-13T04:17:00.000-08:00

Also called long-faced style of Buli African wood sculpture made by the Luba peoples (Baluba) of Congo (Kinshasa). Because the carvings—which were made in the village of Buli (now in Katanga province)—are almost identical to each other and differ from other Luba carvings, they were originally presumed to have been the work of a single artist, called the Master of Buli. Later, it was determined that the sculptures

Tectogene

2005-02-12T03:49:00.000-08:00

Great downbuckle of the Earth's crust into the mantle below deep-sea trenches that are filled with marine sediments. The sediments become crumpled and folded within the deep downbuckle; some portions are squeezed downward into the mantle, while others are squeezed upward in highly deformed and dislocated strata. According to the theory of Dutch geophysicists

Performing Arts, Eastern and Southeastern Europe.

2005-02-11T21:56:00.000-08:00

One of the most original and most perfectly achieved films of the year, Aleksandr Sokurov's Russky kovcheg (Russian Ark) used digital resources to make a 96-minute film in a single shot as the camera explored the endless galleries of St. Petersburg's Hermitage Museum. Pavel Lungin's Oligarkh (Tycoon) was a ferocious portrayal of corruption that instilled and linked big

Kirchhoff, Gustav Robert

2005-02-11T19:03:00.000-08:00

In 1845 Kirchhoff first announced Kirchhoff's

Ear Disease, Cyst of the ear

2005-02-11T04:45:00.000-08:00

A cyst is a sac filled with liquid or semisolid material. A cyst of the ear is most often caused by a gland that lubricates the skin behind the earlobe, less often at the entrance of the ear canal. If the duct of this gland becomes stopped, the lubricating fatty material accumulates as a soft, rounded nodule in the skin. Infection of the cyst causes a tender abscess to form

Biblical Literature, Background and overview

2005-02-10T16:01:00.000-08:00

In the New Testament canon of 27 books, 21 are called “letters,” and even the Revelation to John starts and ends in letter form. Of the 21, 13 belong to the Pauline corpus; the Letter to the Hebrews is included in the Pauline corpus in the East but not, however, in the West. Three letters of this corpus, the Pastoral Letters, are pseudonymous and thus are not considered here. Of the remaining

Velasco Ibarra, José María

2005-02-10T08:45:00.000-08:00

Velasco Ibarra was born into a wealthy family and educated in Quito and Paris. He held various public posts before being elected president as the Conservative Party's candidate in 1933, assuming office in 1934. His economic-development plans, which

Hope

2005-02-10T07:21:00.000-08:00

City, seat (1939) of Hempstead county, southwestern Arkansas, U.S., about 35 miles (56 km) northeast of Texarkana. It was founded in 1852 as a station on the Cairo and Fulton (now Union Pacific) Railroad and was named for the daughter of James Loughborough, a railroad land commissioner who laid out the town site. It developed as a shipping centre for timber and agricultural products, notably

China

2005-02-09T19:06:00.000-08:00

A true Painted Pottery culture developed in the northwest partly from the Wei Valley and Pan-p'o traditions of the 5th millennium. The Miao-ti-kou I horizon, dated from the first half of the 4th millennium, produced burnished bowls and basins of fine red pottery, some 15 percent of which were painted, generally in black, with dots, spirals, and sinuous lines. It was succeeded

Porcupine Fish

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

Porcupine fishes are short and broad-bodied, with large eyes, beaklike teeth, and skins set with spines, hence the name. These spines are short and permanently

Lima

2005-02-07T10:26:00.000-08:00

City, capital of Peru and of Lima department. It is the country's commercial and industrial centre. Central Lima is located at an elevation of 512 feet (156 metres) on the south bank of the Río Rímac, about eight miles (13 km) inland from the Pacific Ocean port of Callao, and has an area of 27 square miles (70 square km). Its name is a corruption of the Quechua Indian name Rímac, meaning “Talker.” The

Szechwan Basin

2005-02-07T05:59:00.000-08:00

Wade–Giles romanization Ssu-ch'uan P'en-ti, Pinyin Sichuan Pendii, also called Red Basin, basin comprising the greater part of eastern Szechwan Province (sheng), southwest China. It is surrounded by high mountains, including the Tsinghai–Tibet Plateau on the south, the Yunnan–Kweichow Plateau on the south, Wu Shan (mountains) on the east, and the Ta-pa Shan on the north, which protect the interior from temperature extremes. The basin covers 88,600 sq mi (229,500 sq km) of red-brick

Afonso I

2005-02-07T01:38:00.000-08:00

Alfonso VI, emperor of Leon, had granted the county of Portugal to Afonso's father, Henry of Burgundy, who successfully defended it against the Muslims (1095–1112). Henry married Alfonso VI's illegitimate daughter, Teresa, who

Yemen

2005-02-06T16:01:00.000-08:00

A republic of the southwestern Arabian Peninsula, Yemen has coastlines on the Red Sea, the Gulf of Aden, and the Arabian Sea. Area: 555,000 sq km (214,300 sq mi), including the undemarcated area bordered by Saudi Arabia and claimed by Yemen. Pop. (1996 est.): 16.6 million. Cap.: San'a`. Monetary unit: Yemen Rial, with (Oct. 11, 1996) a free rate of YRls 100 to U.S. $1 (YRls 157.53 = £1 sterling). President in 1996, Maj. Gen. Ali Abdallah Salih; prime minister,

Chicago

2005-02-06T10:53:00.000-08:00

Rock band, among the most popular American recording artists of all time, with sales of more than 100 million records. Initially a jazz-rock unit, Chicago thrived as it moved toward a lighter, ballad-oriented rock style. Its original members were Terry Kath (b. Jan. 31, 1946, Chicago, Ill., U.S.— d. Jan. 23, 1978, Los Angeles, Calif.), Peter Cetera (b. Sept. 13, 1944, Chicago), Robert Lamm (b. Oct. 13, 1944, New York, N.Y.), Walter

Biblical Literature, The Second Letter of Paul to the Thessalonians

2005-02-05T09:48:00.000-08:00

A feature of II Thessalonians that resembles the otherwise most unusual feature of I Thessalonians is its excessively long thanksgiving. Within this thanksgiving there is an excursus dealing with the timing of the Parousia, but in II Thessalonians Paul aggressively argues against any expectation of an imminent coming of Christ that might be expected from

Technical Assistance

2005-02-05T05:09:00.000-08:00

Form of aid given to less-developed countries by international organizations such as the United Nations (UN) and its agencies, individual governments, foundations, and philanthropic institutions. Its object is to provide those countries with the expertise needed to promote development. Most technical-assistance programs began after World War II, when much of

Argall, Sir Samuel

2005-02-04T22:18:00.000-08:00

Employed by the Virginia Company of London, Argall was commissioned in 1609 to discover a shorter route to Virginia and to fish for sturgeon. In 1610 he was named admiral of Virginia and commissioned to expel the French from all territory granted