TrueNail

Olympic Games, Los Angeles, California, U.S., 1932

2005-04-04T11:21:00.000-07:00

Only about 1,300 athletes, representing 37 countries, competed in the 1932 Games. The poor participation was the result of the worldwide economic depression and the expense of traveling to California. The Los Angeles Games featured the first Olympic Village. The village was located in Baldwin Hills, a suburb of Los Angeles, and covered 321 acres (130 hectares). The male athletes were housed

Maderno, Carlo

2005-04-03T18:51:00.000-07:00

Maderno began his architectural career in Rome assisting his uncle Domenico Fontana. His first major Roman commission, the facade of Santa Susanna (1597–1603), led to his appointment in 1603 as the chief architect for Saint Peter's. In 1607 he designed the nave

Cumberland, Richard

2005-04-01T21:32:00.000-08:00

In 1658 Cumberland left the study of medicine at the University of Cambridge to serve in the rectory of Brampton House in Northamptonshire and three years later became one of the 12 official preachers at Cambridge. In 1667 he joined the rectory of Allhallows at

Sacrament

2005-04-01T21:10:00.000-08:00

The Latin word sacramentum, which etymologically is an ambiguous theological term, was used in Roman law to describe a legal sanction in which a man placed his

Sardinian Language

2005-03-31T19:42:00.000-08:00

Sardinian Sardo Romance language spoken on the Italian-ruled island of Sardinia; it is most similar to Vulgar Latin of all the modern Romance languages. Major dialects of Sardinian are Logudorian, spoken in central Sardinia; Campidanian, spoken in the south; Sassarian, spoken in the northwest; and Gallurian, spoken in the northeast. There is no standard form of Sardinian except the

Cilicia

2005-03-31T07:04:00.000-08:00

Ancient district of southern Anatolia, bounded on the north and west by the Taurus Mountain Range, on the east by the Anti-Taurus, and on the south by the Mediterranean Sea. It is geographically divided into two contrasting regions, the western portion being wild and mountainous and the eastern consisting of rich plainland. In ancient times the only route from Anatolia

Great Abaco

2005-03-28T06:31:00.000-08:00

Island, The Bahamas, located about 55 miles (86 km) north of the capital city, Nassau, on New Providence island. It is separated from Little Abaco to the northwest by a narrow, shallow channel. Great Abaco occupies an area of 372 square miles (963 square km). It is shaped like a right angle, with one side of the angle pointing northwest and the other southwest. Its major city, Marsh Harbour,

Anderson, Laurie

2005-03-28T00:32:00.000-08:00

Anderson began studying classical violin at five years of age and later performed with the Chicago Youth Symphony. In 1966 she moved to New York City, where she attended Barnard College (B.A., 1969) and Columbia University

Hess, Germain Henri

2005-03-27T15:42:00.000-08:00

After practicing medicine for several years in Irkutsk, Russia, Hess became professor of chemistry in 1830 at the Technological Institute, University of St. Petersburg. His early investigations concerned minerals and the natural

Bruise

2005-03-26T10:33:00.000-08:00

A visible bluish or purplish mark or patch occurring beneath the surface of unbroken skin, resulting from the rupture of blood vessels in the deeper layers of subcutaneous tissues. Bruises are usually caused by a blow or pressure but, in aged persons, may occur spontaneously. In healing, the colour of the bruise gradually fades away into a yellowish hue, as a result

Teaching Machine

2005-03-25T23:52:00.000-08:00

There are many types of teaching machines. In general, they all work on the same method, which is to present a question, have the user indicate the answer, and then provide the user with the correct answer. Some machines may be extremely simple, such as test sheets or books so programmed that

Rysbrack, John Michael

2005-03-24T14:12:00.000-08:00

Rysbrack worked in a classical, sometimes eclectic

Cypress

2005-03-23T17:06:00.000-08:00

Any of about 20 species of ornamental and timber evergreen conifers constituting the genus Cupressus of the family Cupressaceae, distributed throughout warm-temperate and subtropical regions of Asia, Europe, and North America. Many resinous, aromatic evergreen trees called cypress belong to other genera of the same family, especially

Bottle Tree

2005-03-22T23:04:00.000-08:00

Any of various trees of the genus Brachychiton, within the cacao, or chocolate, family (Sterculiaceae), native to Australia. They grow to a height of 18 m (60 feet). They are cultivated in other warm regions as ornamentals. The name refers to the peculiar shape of the trunk.

Furniture, India

2005-03-20T23:15:00.000-08:00

India's place in the history of furniture is that of an adapter or transformer of imported Western styles rather than a creator of independent styles of its own. Domestic furniture in the sense in which it is known in Europe was not traditional in India before the 16th century, and even such familiar objects as tables and chairs were rarely used until the spread of Portuguese,

Elgin Marbles

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

Collection of ancient Greek sculptures and architectural details in the British Museum, London. The objects were removed from the Parthenon at Athens and from other ancient buildings and shipped to England by arrangement of Thomas Bruce, 7th Lord Elgin, who was British ambassador to the Ottoman Empire (1799–1803). The removal created a storm of controversy in England that

Medicine, In the developing countries

2005-03-20T19:39:00.000-08:00

The developing countries differ from one another culturally, socially, and economically, but what they have in common is a low average income per person, with large percentages of their populations living at or below the poverty level. Although most have a small elite class, living mainly in the cities, the largest part of their populations live in rural areas. Urban

D.s.o.

2005-03-18T19:39:00.000-08:00

Recipient of the Distinguished Service Order, a British military decoration. See Distinguished Service Order.

Furniture, France

2005-03-18T14:21:00.000-08:00

The Neoclassical style, sometimes called Louis Seize, or Louis XVI, began in the 1750s. Tiring of the Rococo style, craftsmen of the 18th century turned for inspiration to classical art. The movement was stimulated by archaeological discoveries, by travel in Italy, Greece, and the Near East, and by the publication, all over Europe, of works on the classical monuments. The Neoclassical

Backhaus, Wilhelm

2005-03-18T06:06:00.000-08:00

Backhaus studied piano in Leipzig and in Frankfurt am Main. His first concert appearance took place when he was eight years of age, and in 1905 he won the Rubinstein prize in Paris. He held teaching appointments at the Royal Manchester College

Rupnarayan River

2005-03-18T02:47:00.000-08:00

River in West Bengal state, northeastern India. It rises as the Dhaleswari (Dhalkisor) in the Chota Nagpur plateau foothills northeast of Purulia town and follows a tortuous southeasterly course past the town of Bankura, where it is known as the Dwarkeswar. It is joined by the Silai near the town of Ghatal, where it takes the name Rupnarayan. The river then joins the Hooghly after completing

Human Evolution, Ngaloba man

2005-03-17T13:39:00.000-08:00

In 1976 a skull was found in the Ngaloba beds at the Laetoli site in Tanzania. These beds consist of deposits of sandstone and clay stone that are preserved in patches; these patches are made up of redeposited detritus that has been eroded from the underlying Ndolanya and Laetoli beds. In the upper Ngaloba beds, stone tools have been recovered that have been attributed

California, Industry

2005-03-17T07:28:00.000-08:00

The aircraft plants and shipyards were supplemented after World War II by branch plants of many Eastern and Midwestern industries. Federal research-and-development funds allocated to California organizations also contributed to the postwar economy. By the 1970s and '80s, California's industries had diversified to include computer sciences, biotechnology, and health

Qafsah

2005-03-17T05:05:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Gafsa, Latin Capsa, town, west-central Tunisia. The ancient name of the locality is applied to the Mesolithic Capsian industry (here dated about 6250 BC) of the earliest inhabitants. The original Numidian town was destroyed (106 BC) by the Romans; it was rebuilt later by Trajan and was then successively a centre of Byzantine, Arab, Berber, and Ottoman rulers. Qafsah is a noted irrigated fruit-growing oasis

Oeuvre, Théâtre De L'

2005-03-16T11:53:00.000-08:00

French Symbolist theatre founded in Paris in 1893 by Aurélien Lugné-Poë and directed by him until 1929. An actor and stage manager with André Antoine's Théâtre Libre, Lugné-Poë was introduced to Symbolist theatre at Paul Fort's Théâtre d'Art in the 1890s. When Fort retired from the theatre, Lugné-Poë assumed leadership in Symbolist production by opening what would become the Thé

Capone, Al

2005-03-15T17:39:00.000-08:00

Capone's parents immigrated to the United States from Naples in 1893; Al, the fourth of nine children, quit school in Brooklyn after the sixth grade and joined Johnny Torrio's James Street Boys gang, rising eventually to the Five Points Gang. In a youthful

Probenecid

2005-03-15T11:54:00.000-08:00

Drug used in the treatment of chronic gout, a disorder that is characterized by recurrent acute attacks of inflammation in one or more joints of the extremities. Probenecid inhibits the transport of most organic acids in the renal tubules of the kidneys. It was used in medicine originally to prolong the action of the antibiotic penicillin by preventing its loss

Paul Karadjordjevic, Prince

2005-03-14T14:06:00.000-08:00

When Yugoslavia's king Alexander I was assassinated (Oct. 9, 1934), Paul was appointed regent for his 11-year-old nephew Peter II. Although Paul's sympathies lay with the British-French entente, he was forced to submit to Hitler's demands and align his country

Stuttgart Ballet

2005-03-14T02:10:00.000-08:00

German Stuttgarter Ballett, resident ballet company of Stuttgart, Ger., that emerged in the 1960s as an internationally prominent group. The modern Stuttgart Ballet evolved from the royal ballet that resided at the court of the Duke of Württemberg as early as 1609. A municipally supported company under the royal patronage from the 17th through the 19th century, it occasionally attracted such prominent

Claudius Pulcher, Appius

2005-03-13T22:31:00.000-08:00

From 72 to 70 Claudius served in Anatolia under his brother-in-law, Lucius Licinius Lucullus, in the war against Mithradates VI, king of Pontus. He was praetor in 57, governor in Sardinia in 56–55, and consul in 54. Although Claudius had opposed the return of Cicero from exile in 57, the

Pauls Valley

2005-03-13T09:34:00.000-08:00

City, seat (1907) of Garvin county, south-central Oklahoma, U.S. The area, on the Washita River, was first settled by white North Carolinian Smith Paul, who arrived with a group of relocated Chickasaw Indians in 1837. He began to cultivate the fertile bottomland in 1857, and when the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad reached the settlement in 1887 it designated the area Smith Paul's Valley,

Algeria, Nationalist movements

2005-03-12T21:35:00.000-08:00

Algerian nationalism developed out of three different tendencies. The first consisted of Algerians who had gained access to French education and earned their living in the French sector. Often called assimilationists, they pursued gradualist, reformist tactics, shunned illegal actions, and were prepared to consider permanent union with France if the rights

Hong Gai

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

Also spelled Hon Gai, port city, northeastern Vietnam. Hong Gai lies along Ha Long Bay of the Gulf of Tonkin, about 25 miles (40 km) northeast of Haiphong. It is an export centre for coal mined at nearby Quang Yen, the site of anthracite deposits that are the largest in Southeast Asia. Other economic activities in the area are rice farming and fishing. Ha Long Bay is noted for its many strangely shaped

Yoshiyuki, Junnosuke

2005-03-11T02:33:00.000-08:00

Japanese novelist and short-story writer (b. April 1, 1923, Okayama, Japan--d. July 26, 1994, Tokyo, Japan), explored human sexuality and prostitution as a means of understanding human relationships. His prize-winning works include the short story "Shuu" (1954; "Sudden Shower," 1972), and the novels Anshitsu (1969: The Dark Room, 1975) and Yugure made (1978: "Until Evening"), the latter of which won the Noma Literary Prize. Yoshiyuki,

Amaravati Sculpture

2005-03-10T22:12:00.000-08:00

In addition to the ruins of the great stupa, or relic mound, at Amaravati, the style is also seen

Pacific, War Of The

2005-03-10T05:15:00.000-08:00

Spanish Guerra Del Pacífico (1879–83), conflict involving Chile, Bolivia, and Peru, which resulted in Chilean annexation of valuable disputed territory on the Pacific coast. It grew out of a dispute between Chile and Bolivia over control of a part of the Atacama Desert that lies between the 23rd and 26th parallels on the Pacific coast of South America. The territory contained valuable mineral resources, particularly

Shamanism, American Indians

2005-03-10T02:24:00.000-08:00

Among many North American tribes shamanism constitutes the most important aspect of the religious life. The shaman is characterized by the supernatural power he acquires as the result of a direct personal experience. This power is obtained either spontaneously or after a voluntary quest, but in either case the future shaman has to undergo certain initiatory

Kunlun Mountains

2005-03-09T23:19:00.000-08:00

Despite the extreme climatic and topographic conditions, the Kunluns and adjacent areas support permanent and migratory populations. On the northern slopes are found Uighur, up from the oases, and occasional Mongols; and, south to the northern areas of Tibet, Tibetan pastoral nomads have commandeered large expanses of formerly abandoned steppe grazing lands.

Iris

2005-03-09T16:22:00.000-08:00

Genus of about 300 species of plants in the family Iridaceae including some of the world's most popular and varied garden flowers, centred in the North Temperate Zones. Some of its most handsome species, however, are native to the Mediterranean and central Asian areas. The iris is the fleur-de-lis of the French royalist standard. It is a popular subject of

Dulany, Daniel

2005-03-08T14:32:00.000-08:00

Daniel Dulany went to Maryland in 1703, studied law, and was admitted to the bar in 1709. He soon became prominent and wealthy from his legal practice. A year after Dulany moved to Annapolis, he was elected to represent the town in the Maryland Assembly. At first, Dulany became

Abéché

2005-03-08T09:18:00.000-08:00

Town, eastern Chad, between the wadis Chao and Sao. Historically it was the site of the capital of the Muslim sultanate of Ouaddaï (q.v.), which dominated much of the area of Chad before French conquest was accomplished in 1912. The remains of the ancient capital include a palace, tombs of former sultans, and the ruins of a mosque, all surrounded by a thick wall. The town has many

Driver Ant

2005-03-06T22:49:00.000-08:00

Using their powerful cutting jaws, driver ants attack everything in their path, including snakes, birds, mammals,

Yahweh

2005-03-06T21:47:00.000-08:00

The God of the Israelites, his name being revealed to Moses as four Hebrew consonants (YHWH) called the tetragrammaton. After the Exile (6th century BC), and especially from the 3rd century BC on, Jews ceased to use the name Yahweh for two reasons. As Judaism became a universal religion through its proselytizing in the Greco-Roman world, the more common noun Elohim, meaning “god,

Domestic Service

2005-03-06T17:22:00.000-08:00

In ancient Greece, Rome, and various other early civilizations, domestic

Earth, Measurement of the field

2005-03-06T11:41:00.000-08:00

Magnetic fields can be measured in various ways. The simplest measurement technique still employed today involves the use of the compass, a device consisting of a permanently magnetized needle that is balanced to pivot in the horizontal plane. In the presence of a magnetic field and in the absence of gravity, a magnetized needle aligns itself exactly along the

Catalan Literature

2005-03-05T16:34:00.000-08:00

The oldest extant text in Catalan is the Homilies d'Organyà, a collection of sermons dating from the 12th or early 13th century but now appreciated more for their linguistic than for their literary value. Early kings of Aragon and counts

Eurythmics

2005-03-05T11:11:00.000-08:00

Eurythmics was developed about 1905 by the Swiss musician Émile Jaques-Dalcroze, a professor of harmony at the Geneva Conservatory, who was convinced that the conventional system of

Merchant Taylors' School

2005-03-04T19:28:00.000-08:00

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,

Burgkmair, Hans, The Elder

2005-03-04T10:16:00.000-08:00

The son of a painter, he became a member of the painters' guild in Strasbourg in 1490 and in Augsburg in 1498. Some 700 woodcuts are ascribed to him, including his principal work, a series of 135 prints celebrating the triumphs of the emperor Maximilian I. His

Cosimo I

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

Cosimo was the great-great-grandson of Lorenzo the Elder, the son of Giovanni di Bicci and brother of Cosimo the Elder, and was thus a member of a branch of the Medici family that had taken an active part in Medici affairs but had played no political role. Nevertheless, when

Interior Design, Mesopotamia

2005-03-03T01:37:00.000-08:00

Very little furniture survives from ancient Mesopotamia, principally because climatic conditions are not conducive to the preservation of wood. What is known has been learned principally from reliefs and cylinder seals. Furniture mounts of bronze and ivory have been excavated, however, and fragments of furniture were uncovered in the royal tombs at the city

Alyattes

2005-03-02T15:22:00.000-08:00

Soon after succeeding his father, King Sadyattes, Alyattes started five consecutive years of raids that devastated the farmland around the Greek city of Miletus on the southwestern coast of Anatolia. He moved eastward, battling the Medes for five

Balaam

2005-03-01T15:46:00.000-08:00

A non-Israelite prophet described in the Old Testament (Num. 22–24) as a diviner who is importuned by Balak, the king of Moab, to place a malediction on the people of Israel, who are camped ominously on the plains of Moab. Balaam states that he will utter only what his god Yahweh inspires, but he is willing to accompany the Moabite messengers to Balak. He is met en route by an angel

Diego Garcia

2005-03-01T01:36:00.000-08:00

Discovered by the Portuguese in the early 16th century, it was for

Molfetta

2005-02-28T03:30:00.000-08:00

Town and episcopal see, Bari provincia, Puglia (Apulia) regione, southeastern Italy. It lies along the Adriatic Sea, northwest of Bari city. An important port in the Middle Ages and a free city for a time, it was sacked by the French in 1529. Although Molfetta is mainly modern, its outstanding Romanesque–Apulian-style Duomo Vecchio (“Old Cathedral”), a national monument, dates from

Thomas, J.h.

2005-02-28T02:42:00.000-08:00

In full James Henry Thomas British trade-union leader and politician, a shrewd and successful industrial negotiator who lost his standing in the labour movement when he joined Ramsay MacDonald's coalition government (August 1931). Later (May 1936) he was found responsible for the leakage of details of a proposed national budget to Stock Exchange speculators,

Tank

2005-02-26T18:39:00.000-08:00

The need to cross rivers and other water obstacles led to the development of amphibious tanks, beginning with the British Medium D, designed in 1918. Amphibious tanks built during 1920s and '30s sacrificed armament and armour to achieve low weight in relation to their bulk and, therefore, sufficient buoyancy to float. This confined their usefulness to reconnaissance. A late

Alfonso Vi

2005-02-26T06:53:00.000-08:00

Byname Alfonso the Brave , Spanish Alfonso el Bravo king of Leon (1065–70) and king of reunited Castile and Leon (1072–1109), who by 1077 had proclaimed himself “emperor of all Spain” (imperator totius Hispaniae). His oppression of his Muslim vassals led to the invasion of Spain by an Almoravid army from North Africa (1086). His name is also associated with the national hero of Spain, Rodrigo Díaz de Vivar (El Cid), who was alternatively

Gull

2005-02-26T03:35:00.000-08:00

Adult gulls are mainly gray or white, with variable head markings. In breeding season the

Bahram Vi Chubin

2005-02-26T01:01:00.000-08:00

Prominent as master of the household in the Byzantine wars of the Sasanian king Hormizd IV, Bahram later received the supreme command in Khorasan and was able to repel a Turkish invasion.

Adcock, Fleur

2005-02-25T10:02:00.000-08:00

Adcock received her early education in England and later earned degrees at Wellington Girls' College and Victoria University of Wellington. She served as lecturer and librarian at a number of New Zealand

Iran, Ancient, Xerxes I

2005-02-24T07:09:00.000-08:00

Xerxes (reigned 486–465 BC), Darius's eldest son by Queen Atossa, was born after his father had come to the throne; he had been designated official heir perhaps as early as 498, and while crown prince he had ruled as the king's governor in Babylon. The new king quickly suppressed the revolt in Egypt in a single campaign in 484. Xerxes then broke with the policy followed by Cyrus and Darius of

Qalyub

2005-02-24T06:41:00.000-08:00

Qalyub was reputedly constructed with materials taken from the ruins of Heliopolis (modern Misr al-Jadidah), a few

Mukhtar Ibn Abu 'ubayd At-thaqafl, Al-

2005-02-24T04:58:00.000-08:00

In his call for revolt, Mukhtar appealed to the pro-Shi'ite sentiments of Iraq's Arab tribesmen. He also rallied the mawali, non-Arab (mainly

Earth Sciences, Charles Lyell and uniformitarianism

2005-02-23T21:31:00.000-08:00

In opposition to the catastrophist school of thought, the British geologist Charles Lyell proposed a uniformitarian interpretation of geologic history in his Principles of Geology (3 vols., 1830–33). His system was based on two propositions: the causes of geologic change operating include all the causes that have acted from the earliest time; and these causes have always

Toots And The Maytals

2005-02-22T20:19:00.000-08:00

Formed in 1962 as a ska group fronted by the charismatic Hibbert, the Maytals (originally known as the Vikings, then as

Computers, The first computer network

2005-02-22T01:04:00.000-08:00

Between 1940 and 1946 George Stibitz and his team at Bell Laboratories built a series of machines with telephone technologies, i.e., employing electromechanical relays. These were the first machines to serve more than one user and the first to work remotely over telephone lines. However, because they were based on slow mechanical relays rather than electronic switches, they

Hinduism

2005-02-20T17:52:00.000-08:00

The beliefs, practices, and socioreligious institutions of the Hindus (originally, the inhabitants of the land of the Indus River). Introduced in about 1830 by British writers, the term properly denotes the Indian civilization of approximately the last 2,000 years, which evolved from Vedism, the religion of the Indo-European peoples who settled in India in the last centuries

Papyrus Column

2005-02-20T06:49:00.000-08:00

In Egyptian religion, amulet that conveyed freshness, youth, vigour, and the continuance of life to its wearer. The amulet, made of glazed ware or various types of stone, was shaped like a papyrus stem and bud. Its significance was perhaps derived from its ideographic value (Egyptian wadj, “green, fresh, vigorous”); for, just as the plant itself was vigorous and growing, so also

Swansea

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

In the early 12th century the Norman Henry de Newburgh built a castle there, which was later destroyed by the Welsh rebel Owen Glendower. Up to the early 18th century Swansea

Caucasian Languages, Grammatical characteristics

2005-02-20T02:35:00.000-08:00

In a number of languages (Lezgi, Udi) noun differentiation by classes has disappeared. The class of

Nicetas Of Remesiana

2005-02-19T22:35:00.000-08:00

After becoming bishop of Remesiana (later the Serbian village of Bela Palanka, near the town of Niš) c. 366, Nicetas twice

Acoustics

2005-02-19T07:02:00.000-08:00

The origin of the science of acoustics is generally attributed to the Greek philosopher Pythagorus (6th century BC), whose experiments on the properties of vibrating strings that produce pleasing musical intervals were of such merit that they led to a tuning system that bears his name. Aristotle (4th century BC) correctly suggested that a sound wave propagates in air through

Latent Heat

2005-02-19T01:39:00.000-08:00

For

Frank, Jacob

2005-02-18T08:56:00.000-08:00

Frank often traveled in the Balkans and there met followers of Shabbetai. An uneducated visionary,

Severoceský

2005-02-17T13:03:00.000-08:00

Also called Severní Cechy , English Northern Bohemia kraj (region), northwestern Czech Republic. It is the smallest of the country's regions. Severoceský is bounded on the north by Germany and Poland, on the east by Východoceský kraj, on the south by Stredoceský kraj, and on the west by Západoceský kraj. The north of the region is dominated by the Ore (Krušné), Ceské Stredo, Lusatian (Luzické), and Jizera (Jizerské) mountains. Through a gap in

Bernese Alps

2005-02-17T10:51:00.000-08:00

Also called Bernese Oberland, German Berner Alpen, or Berner Oberland, French Alpes Bernoises, segment of the Central Alps lying north of the Upper Rhône River and south of the Brienzer and Thunersee (lakes) in Bern and Valais cantons of southwestern Switzerland. The mountains extend east-northeastward from the bend of the Rhône near Martigny-Ville to Grimsel Pass and Haslital (valley of the upper Aare River). Many peaks rise to more than 12,000 ft (3,660 m); Finsteraarhorn

Merced

2005-02-16T21:54:00.000-08:00

City, Merced county, central California, U.S., on Bear Creek in the San Joaquin valley, 55 miles (89 km) northwest of Fresno. It was founded in 1872 by the Central Pacific Railroad, and it became county seat in the same year. It was named for the Nuestra Señora de la Merced River. It developed as a processing and shipping point for agricultural produce of the valley, irrigated by the Tri-Dam

Marie, Pierre

2005-02-16T06:01:00.000-08:00

A student of the neurologist Jean Charcot at the Salpêtrière Hospital, Paris (1885), Marie published the first description of acromegaly (1886), a condition characterized by overgrowth of bone tissue such

Lipscomb, Gene

2005-02-15T21:50:00.000-08:00

Byname of Eugene Allen Lipscomb American gridiron football player and larger-than-life “character” whose exploits helped make professional football the most popular sport in the United States during the late 1950s. A 6-foot 6-inch (2-metre), 284-pound (129-kg) defensive tackle, Lipscomb joked that he gathered up all the opponent's players and “peeled them off” until

Anion

2005-02-15T21:30:00.000-08:00

Atom or group of atoms carrying a negative electric charge. See ion.

Alvar

2005-02-14T21:00:00.000-08:00

The name Alvar means, in the Tamil language in which they sang, “one who is immersed

Januarius, Saint

2005-02-14T01:23:00.000-08:00

Italian San Gennaro bishop of Benevento and patron saint of Naples. He is believed to have been martyred during the persecution under the Roman emperor Diocletian in 305. His fame rests on the relic, allegedly his blood, which is kept in a glass vial in the Naples Cathedral. Of solid substance, it liquefies 18 times each year. While no natural explanation has

Strain Theory

2005-02-13T20:27:00.000-08:00

In chemistry, a proposal made in 1885 by the German chemist Adolf von Baeyer that the stability of carbocyclic compounds (i.e., those of which the molecular structure includes one or more rings of carbon atoms) depends on the amount by which the angles between the chemical bonds deviate from the value (109°28¢) observed in compounds not containing such rings. The amount of deviation

Safid Mountain Range

2005-02-13T13:53:00.000-08:00

Also called Morga Range, Pashto Selseleh-ye Safid Kuh, or Selseleh-ye Spin Ghar, mountain range forming a natural frontier between Pakistan and Afghanistan, extending westward for 100 miles (160 km) from the Vale of Peshawar (Pakistan) to the Lowrah Valley (Afghanistan). The boundary between the two countries runs along the summit of the range, which reaches a height of 15,600 feet (4,760 m) in the west at the point where the boundary turns southward. The range forms an almost

Beas River

2005-02-13T13:44:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Bias , ancient (Greek) Hyphasis , Sanskrit Vipasa river in Himachal Pradesh and Punjab states, northwestern India. It is one of the five rivers that give the Punjab (“Five Rivers”) its name. It rises at an elevation of 14,308 feet (4,361 m) in the Rohtang Pass in the Punjab Himalayas, in central Himachal Pradesh. From there it flows south through the Kulu valley, receiving tributaries from the flanking mountains, and then turns west to flow

Ma Yuan

2005-02-12T18:29:00.000-08:00

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

Tuapse

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

City and seaport of Krasnodar kray (region), southwestern Russia. It lies on a sheltered bay of the Black Sea. Founded in 1838 around a fortress established in 1828, it grew in the 20th century as a major ship-repairing, oil-refining, and oil-export centre. It is linked by pipeline to Grozny and the north Caucasian oil fields. Other industries include food processing and the manufacture

Moskva River

2005-02-11T11:53:00.000-08:00

English Moscow River river flowing through Moscow oblast (province) and part of Smolensk oblast, in western Russia. It is a left-bank tributary of the Oka River in the Volga basin. Rising in the Smolensk-Moscow Upland, the river flows 312 mi (502 km) in a southeasterly direction and drains an area of 6,800 sq mi (17,600 sq km). It is an important source of Moscow's water supply. Major cities along the river include Moscow,

Medicine, Japan

2005-02-11T00:30:00.000-08:00

Japan's Ministry of Health and Welfare directs public health programs at the national level, maintaining close coordination among the fields of preventive medicine, medical care, and welfare and health insurance. The departments of health of the prefectures and of the largest municipalities operate health centres. The integrated community health programs

China, Port facilities and shipping

2005-02-10T08:30:00.000-08:00

China's 8,700-mile-long coastline is indented by some 100 large and small bays and has some 20 deepwater harbours, most of which are ice-free throughout the year. Coastal shipping is divided into two principal navigation zones, the northern and southern marine districts. The northern district extends north from Amoy to the North Korean border, with Shanghai as its administrative

Venera

2005-02-09T19:51:00.000-08:00

Any of a series of unmanned Soviet planetary probes that were sent to Venus. Venera 2 (launched in 1965) flew to within 25,000 miles (40,200 km) of Venus in February 1966, and Venera 3 crash-landed on its surface the following month, becoming the first spacecraft to strike another planet. Venera 4 (1967) analyzed the chemical composition of Venus' upper atmosphere and provided the scientific community

Atheism

2005-02-09T11:13:00.000-08:00

In general, the critique and denial of metaphysical beliefs in God or spiritual beings. As such, it is usually distinguished from theism, which affirms the reality of the divine and often seeks to demonstrate its existence. Atheism is also distinguished from agnosticism, which leaves open the question whether there is a god or not, professing to find the questions

Quaestor

2005-02-08T23:38:00.000-08:00

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

Mormon

2005-02-08T20:45:00.000-08:00

Mormon doctrine diverges from the orthodoxy of established Christianity, particularly in its polytheism, in affirming that God has evolved from man and that men might evolve into gods, that the Persons of the Trinity are distinct beings, and that human souls have preexisted. Mormons accept that Christ came to earth so that all might be saved and raised from the dead

Priesthood

2005-02-07T14:51:00.000-08:00

The function of the priest as the mediator and maintainer of the equilibrium between the sacred and the profane in human society, and as the stabilizer of the social structures and the cultic organizations, determines the various criteria for holding the priestly office. In preliterate society the functions are accomplished by ritual experts who are trained

Uruguaiana

2005-02-07T09:46:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Uruguayana, city, western Rio Grande do Sul estado (“state”), southern Brazil. It lies along the Uruguay River, across the bridge from the town of Paso de los Libres, Arg. Founded in 1839 as Sant' Ana do Uruguai, Uruguaiana was made a town and renamed in 1846; city status was accorded in 1874. Uruguaiana is a livestock (sheep and cattle) centre and processes meat and animal by-products. It is also a river port

Tara Singh

2005-02-06T18:50:00.000-08:00

Tara Singh was born a Hindu, but while a student in Rawalpindi he became attracted to Sikhism and underwent the required initiation ceremony.

Gnateater

2005-02-06T01:19:00.000-08:00

Any of certain bird species (genus Conopophaga) usually classified with the antbirds. See antbird; antpipit.

West Germany

2005-02-05T15:45:00.000-08:00

From 1949 to 1990, a republic consisting of the western two-thirds of what is now Germany. West Germany was created in 1949 when the United States, Great Britain, and France consolidated those zones, or portions, of Germany that they had occupied at the end of World War II. When West and East Germany were reunited in 1990, West Germany's constitution and official name (Federal Republic of Germany)