SameLeaf

Estate Agent London

2006-10-26T17:05:00.000-07:00

Robert Irving Burns specialise in London Commercial and Residential property services, including estate agent london and estate agent central london. Their centrally located ground floor offices, minutes from Oxford Circus offer an ideal marketing base for your property.

Nord-trøndelag

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

Fylke (county), central Norway. It extends from the Norwegian Sea (west) to the Swedish border (east), with the southern boundary running in a general northwest-southeast direction south of Trondheims Fjord. The fylke has an area of 8,673 square miles (22,463 square km); the county seat is at Steinkjer (q.v.). The major road and rail links between Trondheim and northern Norway pass through

Pas D'élévation

2005-04-03T11:53:00.000-07:00

(French: “high steps”), all jumping and leaping movements in classical ballet. The steps are admired for the height at which they are performed and for the dancer's ability to ascend without apparent effort and to land smoothly. Dancers famed for aerial maneuvers of this kind include Jean Balon, a French dancer of the late 17th century, and Vaslav Nijinsky, reportedly an early

Joyeuse, Anne, Duke (duc) De

2005-04-03T07:57:00.000-07:00

The eldest son of Guillaume, Viscount de Joyeuse, Anne when very young was admitted to the royal court, where he carried the title of Marquis d'Arques (after one of his father's lands). King Henry III,

Kamakura Period

2005-04-02T16:25:00.000-08:00

In Japanese history, the period from 1192 to 1333 during which the basis of feudalism was firmly established. It was named for the city where Minamoto Yoritomo set up the headquarters of his military government, commonly known as the Kamakura shogunate. After his decisive victory over the rival Taira family at the battle of Dannoura (1185), Yoritomo created his own military administration

Howell, James

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

Anglo-Welsh writer known for his Epistolae Ho-Elianae, 4 vol. (1645–55), early and lively essays in letter form. Though vividly recording contemporary phenomena, they lack historical reliability because of plagiarizing and the addition of fictitious dates—despite the author's position as historiographer royal, a post

Duroc

2005-04-02T05:33:00.000-08:00

Breed of pig developed between 1822 and 1877 from the Old Duroc pig of New York and the Red Jersey pig of New Jersey; it was formerly called the Duroc-Jersey. The Duroc proved particularly suitable for feeding in the United States Corn Belt; by the 1930s it was the predominant breed in the United States, a distinction it held intermittently throughout the century. Exportation has

Spacecraft

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

Although early conceptions of spaceflight usually depicted streamlined spacecraft, streamlining has no particular advantage in the vacuum of space. Actual vehicles are designed with a variety of shapes depending on the mission. The first spacecraft,

Feline Leukemia

2005-03-30T21:52:00.000-08:00

Also called Feline Lymphosarcoma, viral disease of cats, one of the most serious diseases affecting small domestic animals. Symptoms include enlargement of the lymph nodes, depression, emaciation, and, frequently, diarrhea; there is no known treatment, and the outcome is usually fatal. A fluorescent antibody test developed in the 1970s produced evidence that the virus is present in many apparently healthy

Beagle

2005-03-30T19:22:00.000-08:00

Small hound-dog breed popular as both a pet and a hunter. It looks like a small foxhound and has large brown eyes, hanging ears, and a short coat, usually a combination of black, tan, and white. The beagle is a solidly built dog, heavy for its height. It generally excels as a rabbit hunter and is typically an alert, affectionate dog. There are two sizes recognized in the breed: beagles

Amphipolis

2005-03-29T14:51:00.000-08:00

Ancient Greek city on the Strymon (Strimón) River about three miles from the Aegean Sea, in Macedonia. A strategic transportation centre, it controlled the bridge over the Strymon and the route from northern Greece to the Hellespont, including the western approach to the timber, gold, and silver of Mount Pangaeum in Thrace. Originally a Thracian town (Ennea Hodoi, “Nine

Aureate

2005-03-29T07:12:00.000-08:00

A writing style that is affected, pompous, and heavily ornamental, that uses rhetorical flourishes excessively, and that often employs interlarded foreign words and phrases. The style is usually associated with the 15th-century French, English, and Scottish writers. The word is from the Middle English aureat, “golden” or “splendid,” and was probably coined on the basis

Elizabeth Of Hungary, Saint

2005-03-28T10:44:00.000-08:00

The daughter of King Andrew II of Hungary, she was betrothed in infancy to Louis IV, son of Hermann I, landgrave of Thuringia,

Spoon

2005-03-27T15:41:00.000-08:00

An implement consisting of a small, shallow, bowl-shaped receptacle supported by a handle, used for eating, serving, and cooking foods. Spoons, together with forks, are known as flatware (q.v.).

Halberd

2005-03-26T22:58:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Halbert, or Halbard, weapon consisting of an ax blade balanced by a pick with an elongated pike head at the end of the staff. It was usually about 1.5 to 1.8 m (5 to 6 feet) long. The halberd was an important weapon in middle Europe in the 15th and early 16th centuries. It enabled a foot soldier to contend with an armoured man on horseback; the pike head was used to keep the horseman at a distance, and the ax blade

La Libertad

2005-03-26T03:59:00.000-08:00

City, southwestern El Salvador. Its open roadstead port as well as its location south of San Salvador encouraged La Libertad's development in the 19th century as a shipping outlet for balsam produced in Peru—a variety of balsam yielded from El Salvador's coastal forests. During the early 20th century La Libertad was one of the nation's largest ports, but in 1976 it was closed

Swahili Language

2005-03-25T20:05:00.000-08:00

People who speak Swahili as their sole mother tongue are usually

Maclaine, Shirley

2005-03-25T17:44:00.000-08:00

After graduating from high school, MacLaine, who had studied ballet since age three, moved to New York City, where she worked as a dancer and model. In 1954 she was hired as a chorus girl and understudy

Bacillus

2005-03-24T08:03:00.000-08:00

(genus Bacillus), any of a group of rod-shaped, gram-positive, aerobic or (under some conditions) anaerobic bacteria widely found in soil and water. The term bacillus in a general sense has been applied to all cylindrical or rodlike bacteria. The largest species are about 2 mm (micrometres; 1 mm = 10-6 m) across by 7 mm long and frequently occur in chains. Bacillus species form dormant spores

Beyer, Jinny

2005-03-23T23:57:00.000-08:00

Beyer received a B.A. in speech and French from the University of the Pacific in Stockton, California, and an

Gumel

2005-03-23T07:34:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Gummel town and traditional emirate, northern Jigawa state, northern Nigeria. The emirate was founded about 1750 by Dan Juma of Kano city (75 miles [121 km] southwest) and his followers of the Manga (Mangawa) tribe. Shortly after his death in 1754, it became a tributary state of the Bornu kingdom. The emirate survived the Fulani attacks of Usman dan Fodio's jihad (“holy war”) in the early 19th century and

Crocker, Lucretia

2005-03-22T17:21:00.000-08:00

Crocker graduated from the State Normal School in West Newton, Massachusetts, in 1850 and remained there for four more years as an instructor

Chandra Shekhar

2005-03-21T06:07:00.000-08:00

Shekhar was a leading member of the Socialist Party before he joined the ruling Congress Party in 1964. He was a member of India's upper legislative chamber, the Rajya Sabha, from 1962 to 1967, and he held a seat in the lower chamber, the Lok Sabha, in 1977–79, 1980–84, and from 1989 until he became prime

Switzerland, Tourism

2005-03-20T14:58:00.000-08:00

International tourist receipts amount to a considerable sum in Switzerland, but expenditures by Swiss abroad are also significant. Whatever surplus occurs is used to cover any deficit in the Swiss balance of payments. During the Middle Ages healing spas such as Baden, Bad Pfäfers, Leukerbad, and Rheinfelden flourished, while mountain-pass hospices such as those

Christ, Church Of

2005-03-20T11:29:00.000-08:00

Any of several conservative Protestant churches, found chiefly in the United States. They are strongest in parts of the Midwest and in the western and southern parts of the United States. Each church is known locally as a Church of Christ, and its members as Christians; and each church is autonomous in government, with elders, deacons, and a minister or ministers. There

Korea, History Of, Chinese intervention

2005-03-19T03:32:00.000-08:00

The Chinese, who had moved troops along the Yalu after the Inch'on landing, entered Korea in November in overwhelming numbers. By the end of 1952, 1,200,000 Chinese were engaged in the war under the command of Peng Dehuai (P'eng Te-huai). They forced the UN forces to retreat in disorder, and Seoul was reevacuated on Jan. 4, 1951. But the Chinese were halted around P'yongt'aek (about 30 miles south of Seoul),

Merchant Taylors' School

2005-03-18T22:26:00.000-08:00

One of the major public (privately endowed) schools in England. Since 1933 it has been located at Sandy Lodge, at the northwestern extreme of London. The school was founded (1561) by the Merchant Taylors' Company of London, an incorporated group of craftsmen tailors. It was located at Suffolk Lane until 1875, when it was moved to Charterhouse Square. Richard Mulcaster was the first headmaster,

Lens

2005-03-18T14:55:00.000-08:00

In optics, piece of glass or other transparent substance that is used to form an image of an object by focusing rays of light from the object. A lens is a piece of transparent material, usually circular in shape, with two polished surfaces, either or both of which is curved and may be either convex (bulging) or concave (depressed). The curves are almost always spherical, i.e.,

Stakman, Elvin Charles

2005-03-18T08:53:00.000-08:00

Stakman received his B.A. (1906), M.A. (1910), and Ph.D. (1913) from the University of Minnesota. In 1909 he became instructor in the newly established department of plant pathology, and in 1940 he became

Uralic Languages

2005-03-16T21:40:00.000-08:00

The two major branches of Uralic are themselves composed of numerous subgroupings of member languages on the basis of closeness of linguistic relationship. Finno-Ugric can first be divided into the most distantly related Ugric and Finnic (sometimes called Volga-Finnic) groups, which may have separated as long ago as five millennia. Within these, three relatively

Catastrophe

2005-03-16T13:51:00.000-08:00

In literature, the final action that completes the unraveling of the plot in a play, especially in a tragedy. Catastrophe is a synonym of denouement. The term is sometimes applied to a similar action in a novel or story.

Puerto Cabello

2005-03-16T07:35:00.000-08:00

Port city, northern Carabobo state, north-central Venezuela, situated on the Caribbean Sea. In colonial times, the waters of its well-protected harbour were said to be so smooth that a single hair (Spanish cabello) could moor a vessel to the dock, hence the name. The settlement has played a prominent part in Venezuelan history as a target of pirate attacks, a smuggling centre,

Domett, Alfred

2005-03-16T02:08:00.000-08:00

Following study at Cambridge and being admitted to the bar, Domett travelled to New Zealand (1842) and, after a half-hearted attempt at farming, devoted his time to

San Carlo Alle Quattro Fontane

2005-03-15T17:27:00.000-08:00

Also called San Carlino, influential Baroque church in Rome that was designed by Francesco Borromini. It was commissioned in 1634 and was built during 1638–41, except for the tall facade, which was added in about 1667. Built to fit in a cramped and difficult site, the church has an unusual and somewhat irregular floor plan in the shape of a Greek cross defined by convex curves. The facade is similarly undulating

Graf Spee

2005-03-15T15:45:00.000-08:00

After sinking several merchant ships in the Atlantic, the Graf Spee was sighted on Dec. 13, 1939, off the Río de la Plata estuary by a British search group consisting of the cruisers Exeter, Ajax, and Achilles, commanded by

Osei Tutu

2005-03-14T09:29:00.000-08:00

Osei Tutu had been a hostage in the Denkyera court but had escaped eastward to the powerful state of

Hydrogenation

2005-03-14T07:02:00.000-08:00

Chemical reaction between molecular hydrogen and an element or compound, ordinarily in the presence of a catalyst. The reaction may be one in which hydrogen simply adds to a double or triple bond connecting two atoms in the structure of the molecule or one in which the addition of hydrogen results in dissociation (breaking up) of the molecule (called hydrogenolysis,

San Felipe

2005-03-13T23:28:00.000-08:00

City, capital of Yaracuy estado (“state”), northwestern Venezuela. It lies on the flanks of the eastern portion of the Segovia Highlands, at an elevation of 1,800 feet (550 m) above sea level. San Felipe is a commercial and manufacturing centre in the fertile Yaracuy River valley. Much of the sugarcane, cotton, cacao, corn (maize), fruit, rice, and hides produced there are sent to Barquisimeto

Saisunaga Dynasty

2005-03-13T17:42:00.000-08:00

Sisunaga, or Susunaga, the founder, was of obscure origin and may have initially served as Magadhan

Antalya

2005-03-13T16:35:00.000-08:00

Ancient Greek Attalia, city and Mediterranean port, southwestern Turkey, on the Gulf of Antalya. Attalia was founded as a seaport in the 2nd century BC by Attalus II, a king of Pergamum. It was bequeathed to the Romans by his successor, Attalus III. St. Paul and St. Barnabas embarked from the seaport on their evangelical mission to Antioch. The “Hadrian Gate,” a marble portal of three identical arches,

Fable, Parable, And Allegory, Influence of Jean de La Fontaine

2005-03-13T02:51:00.000-08:00

The fable has normally been of limited length, however, and the form reached its zenith in 17th-century France, at the court of Louis XIV, especially in the work of Jean de La Fontaine. He published his Fables in two segments: the first, his initial volume of 1668, and the second, an accretion of “Books” of fables appearing over the next 25 years. The 1668 Fables follow the Aesopian pattern,

Nova Scotia, Cultural life

2005-03-10T11:34:00.000-08:00

Its geographic position has kept Nova Scotia somewhat removed from the mainstream of Canadian life, centred in Ontario and Quebec. The improvement of transportation, however, and the growing impact of the nationwide communications media have brought the province closer to the mainstream, enhancing a modern life-style in the province and eroding some features

Taeniodont

2005-03-10T09:33:00.000-08:00

Any member of an extinct order (Taeniodonta) of mammals that lived in North America throughout the Paleocene and into the middle Eocene Epoch (66.4 to 43 million years ago). The taeniodonts may have been related to early edentates (insect-eating mammals) and probably evolved from an insectivorous to an herbivorous diet. They were distinguished by high-crowned teeth extending

David De Mayrena, Marie-charles

2005-03-10T02:49:00.000-08:00

After defrauding French authorities in Saigon, David de Mayrena fled to Kontum in the Central Highlands, where he impressed the French missionaries and persuaded the members

Ruiz De Alarcón (y Mendoza), Juan

2005-03-10T02:20:00.000-08:00

Born into a prosperous family in Mexico, Ruiz de Alarcón went to Spain in 1600 to study at the University of Salamanca, from which he graduated in about 1602. After studying further at the University of Mexico,

Biblical Literature, Baruch

2005-03-09T16:26:00.000-08:00

The apocryphon of Baruch, which is extant in Greek and was included in the Septuagint, is attributed to Baruch, secretary to the Old Testament prophet Jeremiah (7th–6th century BCE). It was Baruch who read Jeremiah's letter to the exiles in Babylon. After hearing his words, the Jews repented and confessed their sins. The first part of the book of Baruch (1:1–3, 8), containing a confession

Ardashir Ii

2005-03-09T05:15:00.000-08:00

King of the Sasanian empire in ancient Persia (reigned AD 379–383). During the reign of his brother Shapur II, he had been king of Adiabene (now a region of northeast Iraq), where he took part in the persecution of Christians. After Shapur's death, he was set on the throne by the nobles, presumably at an advanced age. His investiture is commemorated in a rock carving at Taq-e Bostan. His attempts

Hyacinthus

2005-03-08T15:04:00.000-08:00

In Greek legend, a young man of Amyclae in Laconia. According to the usual version, his great beauty attracted the love of Apollo, who killed him accidentally while teaching him to throw the discus; others related that Zephyrus (or Boreas) out of jealousy deflected the discus so that it hit Hyacinthus on the head and killed him. Out of his blood there grew the flower called

Essen

2005-03-07T19:53:00.000-08:00

City, North Rhine-Westphalia Land (state), western Germany, between the Rhine-Herne Canal and the Ruhr River. It was originally the seat of an aristocratic convent (founded 852), still represented by the cathedral (the seat of a Roman Catholic bishop), completed in the 15th century. In the suburb of Werden, the abbey church was founded in 796 as part of a monastery. The convent and the

Children's Game

2005-03-06T18:49:00.000-08:00

Some children's games have been played for centuries. Swings existed on the island of Crete in

Amorphous Solid, Transparent glasses

2005-03-06T06:11:00.000-08:00

The terms glass and window glass are often used interchangeably in everyday language, so familiar is this ancient architectural application of amorphous solids. Not only are oxide glasses, such as those characterized in the Table, excellent for letting light in, they are also good for keeping cold out, because (as mentioned above) they are efficient thermal

Bottom Water

2005-03-06T03:30:00.000-08:00

Dense, lowermost layer of ocean water that can be distinguished clearly from overlying waters by its characteristic temperature, salinity, and oxygen content. Most bottom waters of the South Pacific, southern Indian Ocean, South Atlantic, and portions of the North Atlantic are formed near Antarctica during the southern winter. The partial freezing of seawater

Adam, Adolphe

2005-03-05T17:24:00.000-08:00

Adam wrote 71 operas, the best of which are generally considered to be Le Postillon de Longjumeau (1836) and Giralda (1850). In his ballets—which he composed for production in London, Berlin,

Bottom Water

2005-03-05T11:47:00.000-08:00

Any of three species of large, slow aquatic mammals found along tropical and subtropical Atlantic coasts and associated inland waters. Dull gray, blackish, or brown in colour, all three manatee species have stout, tapered bodies ending in a flat, rounded tail used for forward propulsion. The forelimbs are modified into flippers; there are no hind

Volkswagen Ag

2005-03-05T06:09:00.000-08:00

The company was originally operated by the German Labour Front (Deutsche Arbeitsfront), a Nazi organization; and Ferdinand Porsche was brought in to design the car. Production was interrupted by World War II, and by the

Piceni

2005-03-04T16:17:00.000-08:00

English Picenes Early Iron Age inhabitants of the Adriatic coast of Italy from Rimini to the Sangro River. Men and women dressed in wool; men wore armour, weapons, and ornaments of bronze or iron; women had numerous fibulae, torques, bracelets, girdles, and ornamental pendants. They had two main centres, one at Novilara in the north, and another around Belmonte and Fermo farther south. The

Mosca, Gaetano

2005-03-02T18:41:00.000-08:00

Italian jurist and political theorist who, by applying a historical method to political ideas and institutions, elaborated the concept of a ruling minority (classe politica) present in all societies. His theory seemed to have its greatest influence on apologists for fascism who

Guanacaste

2005-03-02T13:41:00.000-08:00

Province, northwestern Costa Rica, bounded on the north by Nicaragua, on the east by Alajuela province, and on the west and south by the Pacific Ocean. Occupying one-fifth of the national territory, Guanacaste's 4,000 sq mi (10,400 sq km) were formerly open deciduous forest, which have been turned into savanna grasslands, with dry forests in the north. It rises into the Guanacaste Cordillera

Sangha

2005-03-02T10:42:00.000-08:00

The sangha originated in the group of disciples who renounced the worldly life to wander with the Buddha and listen to his teachings. After the Buddha's

Adipose Cell

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

Also called Fat Cell, connective-tissue cell specialized to synthesize and contain large globules of fat. The chief chemical constituents of this fat are the neutral glycerol esters of stearic, oleic, and palmitic acids. The fat stored in these cells in part comes directly from the fats eaten and in part is manufactured within the body from fats and carbohydrates in the food and sometimes

China, The Loess Plateau

2005-03-01T18:30:00.000-08:00

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,

Metaphysics

2005-03-01T18:29:00.000-08:00

The philosophical study whose object is to determine the real nature of things—to determine the meaning, structure, and principles of whatever is insofar as it is. Although this study is popularly conceived as referring to anything excessively subtle and highly theoretical and although it has been subjected to many criticisms, it is presented by metaphysicians

Wailuku

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

City, seat of Maui county, northern Maui Island, Hawaii, U.S. It is situated on an isthmus at the mouth of the valley of Iao and the base of the western mountains. With Kahului (east) it forms a contiguous area that is the most densely populated and busiest on the island. Iao Stream flows through the western part of the city. Wailuku (Hawaiian: “Water of Destruction”) recalls the

Basra

2005-02-28T10:48:00.000-08:00

Basra

Biblical Literature, Old Testament history

2005-02-27T05:59:00.000-08:00

Two current histories of Israel exhibit the full range of historiographical problems and methods relating to the subject: John Bright, A History of Israel (1959); and Martin Noth, Geschichte Israels, 3rd ed. (1956; Eng. trans., The History of Israel, 1958). They differ mainly in where they begin; Bright begins with Abraham, Noth with the federation of tribes that calls itself Israel in the land of Canaan. They disagree about the demonstrability of such a community in the pre-Canaanite times because of their respective assessment of the character of the Pentateuch. Bright assumes that it was intended as a history concerned to record the early past, while Noth assumes that its thematic traditions were intended to define and celebrate the identity of the later Israel and hence do not constitute a usable historical resource about its earliest beginnings. This whole methodological problem in Israelite historiography is lucidly discussed and illustrated in a little book by John Bright—Early Israel in Recent History Writing: A Study in Method (1956). For the use of archaeology, geography, and history of religion in the study of the history of Israel, see George Ernest Wright. Biblical Archaeology, rev. ed. (1962); Luc H. Grollenberg, Atlas van de Bijbel, 3rd ed. (1954; Eng. trans., Atlas of the Bible, 1956); Yehezkel Kaufmann, The Religion of Israel, from Its Beginnings to the Babylonian Exile (1960); and Helmer Ringgren, Israelitische Religion (1963; Eng. trans., 1966).

Antarctica, Plant life

2005-02-26T19:00:00.000-08:00

The cold desert climate of Antarctica supports only an impoverished community of cold-tolerant land plants that are capable of surviving lengthy winter periods of total or near-total darkness during which photosynthesis cannot take place. Growth must occur in short summer bursts lasting only a few days, a few weeks, or a month or two, depending upon such diverse

China, The Loess Plateau

2005-02-26T14:48:00.000-08:00

A soft, silvery-white or grayish metal in Group IVa of the periodic table. Lead is very malleable, ductile, and dense and is a poor conductor of electricity. Known in antiquity and believed by the alchemists to be the oldest of metals, lead is highly durable and resistant to corrosion, as is indicated by the continuing use of lead water pipes installed by the ancient

Culbertson, Ely

2005-02-26T04:40:00.000-08:00

Culbertson was the son of an American oil explorer and lived as a boy in Russia. He was educated in Geneva and Paris. In his youth he was a revolutionary agent in the Russian Caucasus, Mexico, and Spain. When his father's

Azhar University, Al-

2005-02-24T20:04:00.000-08:00

Chief centre of Islamic and Arabic learning in the world, centred on the mosque of that name in the medieval quarter of Cairo, Egypt. It was founded by the Fatimids in AD 970 and was formally organized by 988. The basic program of studies was, and still is, Islamic law, theology, and the Arabic language. Late in the European Middle Ages philosophy and medicine were added to the curriculum,

Vriesea

2005-02-24T13:05:00.000-08:00

The stiff, sword-shaped, fleshy green leaves grow in a rosette and often are mottled or banded with brown. The pink,

Absaroka Range

2005-02-24T04:12:00.000-08:00

Mountain segment of the northern Rocky Mountains, in northwestern Wyoming and southern Montana, U.S. Extending in a northwest-southeast direction, the range is 170 miles (270 km) long and 50 miles wide. A large plateau, the result of volcanic action, was uplifted in the area, and stream and glacial erosion have produced spectacular features. Eight summits exceed 12,000 feet (3,700 m), including

Anne Boleyn

2005-02-24T02:41:00.000-08:00

A full biography is Marie Louise Bruce, Anne Boleyn (1972).

Abstract Expressionism

2005-02-23T15:33:00.000-08:00

Broad movement in American painting that began in the late 1940s and became a dominant trend in Western painting during the 1950s. The most prominent American Abstract Expressionist painters were Jackson Pollock, Willem de Kooning, Franz Kline, and Mark Rothko. Others included Clyfford Still, Philip Guston, Helen Frankenthaler, Barnett Newman, Adolph Gottlieb, Robert

Jackson, John Hughlings

2005-02-23T00:18:00.000-08:00

Jackson was physician to the National Hospital for the Paralyzed and Epileptic, London

Philip I

2005-02-22T09:30:00.000-08:00

Philip was the son of the future Holy Roman emperor Maximilian I of Habsburg and Mary of Burgundy. At his mother's death (1482) he succeeded to her Netherlands dominions, with Maximilian acting as regent for him during his minority. When Philip

Hawera

2005-02-22T04:01:00.000-08:00

Town, Taranaki local government region, western North Island, New Zealand. The original settlement, situated on the east Waimate Plain, 2 miles (3 km) from the coast of South Taranaki Bight, on the Tasman Sea, grew around a blockhouse built in 1870 for protection from hostile Maoris. The settlement became a borough in 1882, and in the late 1970s the borough was amalgamated with the surrounding

Insurance, Liability insurance

2005-02-21T09:37:00.000-08:00

There are at least four major types of liability insurance contracts:

Essexite

2005-02-21T00:19:00.000-08:00

Dark gray to black, fine-grained, intrusive igneous rock that occurs in Essex County, Mass.; at Mount Royal, near Montreal; near Oslo, Nor.; at Roztoky, Czech Republic; and at Carclout, Scot. It contains plagioclase as the dominant feldspar, as well as orthoclase feldspar, augite, biotite, hornblende, olivine, and nepheline. As the proportion of nepheline increases, essexite

Thomas The Rhymer

2005-02-20T18:55:00.000-08:00

Also called Thomas Learmont , or Thomas Of Erceldoune Scottish poet and prophet who was likely the author of the metrical romance Sir Tristrem, a version of the widely diffused Tristan legend. The romance was first printed in 1804 by Sir Walter Scott from a manuscript of about 1300. Thomas is now probably best known through the ballad “Thomas the Rhymer,” included by Scott in his Minstrelsy of the Scottish Border (1802). In popular lore

Zápotocký, Antonín

2005-02-19T16:56:00.000-08:00

Zápotocký was a member of the Social Democratic Party for 20 years before the

Calchas

2005-02-19T16:05:00.000-08:00

In Greek mythology, the son of Thestor (a priest of Apollo) and the most famous soothsayer among the Greeks at the time of the Trojan War. He foretold the duration of the siege of Troy, demanded the sacrifice of Iphigeneia, daughter of Agamemnon (king of Mycenae), and advised the construction of the wooden horse with which the Greeks finally took Troy. It had been predicted

Chantal, Saint Jane Frances Of

2005-02-18T22:58:00.000-08:00

In 1592 she married Baron de Chantal, who was killed in a hunting accident (1601), leaving her with four children. In 1604 she heard St. Francis de Sales preach the Lent at Dijon and placed herself under his direction. In 1610, after her eldest daughter had married and her 14-year-old son was provided

Wakan

2005-02-18T05:54:00.000-08:00

Also called Wakonda, or Wakanda, among various American Indian groups, a great spiritual power of supernatural origin belonging to some natural objects. Wakan may be conceived of as a weak or strong power; the weak powers can be ignored, but the strong ones must be placated. Poisonous plants and reptiles can contain wakan, as can intoxicating drinks. Wakan beings are the immortal supernatural powers

Voyager

2005-02-17T10:43:00.000-08:00

Voyager 2, launched on Aug. 20, 1977, traveled more slowly than its

Trinidad And Tobago, Plant and animal life

2005-02-17T05:44:00.000-08:00

Vegetation zones are well defined on both islands. In general, the highest areas coincide with the most luxuriant tropical rain forest vegetation. Cultivated estates or small settlements are established in clearings on the hills. In the dry season the hills are dotted with the orange flowers of the mountain immortelle, a large flowering tree that grows to a height

New Comedy

2005-02-17T02:19:00.000-08:00

Greek drama from about 320 Bc to the mid-3rd century BC that offers a mildly satiric view of contemporary Athenian society, especially in its familiar and domestic aspects. Unlike Old Comedy, which parodied public figures and events, New Comedy features fictional average citizens and has no supernatural or heroic overtones. Thus, the chorus, the representative of forces larger than life, recedes

Nigeria

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

At the beginning of 1998, Nigeria teetered on a precipice. Gen. Sani Abacha, the country's head of state, maintained his iron grip on the

Eusebius Of Emesa

2005-02-15T13:48:00.000-08:00

A friend of the Roman emperor Constantius II, whom he often accompanied on expeditions against the Persians, Eusebius was appointed (c. 339) to the see

Han-yang

2005-02-14T16:22:00.000-08:00

Also called Ts'ai-tien , Pinyin Hanyang , or Caidian urban area and industrial city in Hupeh Province (sheng), central China. Located on the right bank of the Han Shui (river) at its confluence with the Yangtze, opposite Han-k'ou, it is the westernmost of the three cities of the Wu-han (q.v.) conurbation (Han-k'ou, Han-yang, Wu-ch'ang). Han-yang was founded under the Sui dynasty (AD 581–618) but was of little importance until modern times. In the early

Habeneck, François-antoine

2005-02-14T13:27:00.000-08:00

Habeneck studied violin first with his father, a military bandsman of German descent, and then with Pierre Baillot at the Paris Conservatory. In 1804 he won the institution's first prize for violin and took a position with the Opéra. Through a series of promotions, he attained the title of premier chef, his

Balance

2005-02-14T13:22:00.000-08:00

The invention of the equal-arm balance dates back at least to the time of the ancient Egyptians, possibly as early as 5000 BC. In the earliest types, the beam was supported at the centre and the pans were hung from the ends by cords. A later improvement

Kwajalein Atoll

2005-02-13T19:43:00.000-08:00

Also called Kwajalong, coral formation in the Ralik (western) chain of the Republic of the Marshall Islands, in the western Pacific Ocean. The string of some 90 islets has a total land area of 6 square miles (16 square km) and surrounds the world's largest lagoon (655 square miles [1,722 square km]). The islets of Kwajalein, Roi, and Namur were the first of the Marshall Islands captured by U.S. troops in World War II. The

Philae

2005-02-13T15:17:00.000-08:00

Arabic Jazirat Filah (“Philae Island”), or Jazirat al-Birba (“Temple Island”),

Basic English

2005-02-13T09:48:00.000-08:00

Basic English derives its vocabulary and grammar from English but reduces both to a remarkable extent: there

Asalluhe

2005-02-12T04:01:00.000-08:00

In Mesopotamian religion, Sumerian deity, city god of Ku'ara, near Eridu in the southern marshland region. Asalluhe was active with the god Enki (Akkadian: Ea) in rituals of lustration (purification) magic and was considered his son. He may have originally been a god of thundershowers and would thus have corresponded to the other Sumerian gods Ishkur and Ninurta. In incantations

Pre-columbian Civilizations, The earliest Maya civilization of the lowlands

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

By the Late Formative, the lowland Maya had begun to shape a civilization that was to become the greatest in the New World. The Petén-Yucatán Peninsula lacks many raw materials and has a relatively low agricultural potential. But what it does have in limitless quantities is readily quarried limestone for building purposes and flint for stonework. Cement and plaster

Avon, River

2005-02-11T05:27:00.000-08:00

Also called East Avon or Hampshire Avon river that rises 3 miles (5 km) east of Devizes, Wiltshire, England, on the north side of the Vale of Pewsey and flows generally southward for 48 miles (77 km) to the English Channel. The river shares the name Avon (derived from a Celtic word meaning “river”) with several other rivers in Great Britain, including the Avon of Bristol (or Lower Avon) and the Avon of Warwickshire (or Upper

Tarasov, Anatoly

2005-02-10T11:21:00.000-08:00

When Tarasov began coaching in the early 1940s, Canada was the premier team in

Checkers

2005-02-09T17:20:00.000-08:00

Also called Draughts, board game, one of the world's oldest games. Checkers is played by two persons who oppose each other across a board of 64 light and dark squares, the same as a chessboard. The 24 playing pieces are disk-shaped and of contrasting colours (whatever their colours, they are identified as black and white). At the start of the game, each contestant has 12 pieces arranged on the board. While

Briand, Aristide

2005-02-09T11:22:00.000-08:00

As a law student, Briand became associated with left-wing causes,