OldSand

Aerobatics

2005-04-03T03:57:00.000-07:00

For a historical overview of the sport, see Annette Carson, Flight Fantastic: The Illustrated History of Aerobatics (1986). Information on aerobatic techniques may be found in Geza Szurovy and Michael Goulian, Advanced Aerobatics (1997); and Peter Mallinson, The Handbook of Glider Aerobatics (1999). Detailed information on the latest competition events and their formats may be obtained by contacting the International Aerobatics Commission of the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale in Paris.

Port Augusta

2005-03-31T15:56:00.000-08:00

City and former port, southeastern South Australia, at the head of Spencer Gulf. Founded in 1852 and named for the wife of Sir Henry Fox Young, an early colonial governor of South Australia, Port Augusta was incorporated as a town in 1875 and in 1878 was linked by rail to Adelaide, 191 miles (307 km) southeast; it became a city in 1963. Port Augusta is a terminus of both the Central and Trans-Australian

Yin-yang

2005-03-30T16:22:00.000-08:00

Pinyin Yinyang, Japanese In-yo, in Eastern thought, the two complementary forces, or principles, that make up all aspects and phenomena of life. Yin is conceived of as earth, female, dark, passive, and absorbing; it is present in even numbers, in valleys and streams, and is represented by the tiger, the colour orange, and a broken line. Yang is conceived of as heaven, male, light, active, and penetrating; it is present

Ghazan, Mahmud

2005-03-28T13:42:00.000-08:00

Ghazan's early childhood was spent largely in the company of his grandfather, the Il-Khan Abagha (1265–82), and he was brought up in the Buddhist faith that both his father and his grandfather professed. Upon his father's accession to the throne in 1284, Ghazan was appointed viceroy of the provinces of northeastern Persia, where he resided for the next 10 years and defended the frontier against

Christianity, Eschatological expectations and secularization

2005-03-26T03:55:00.000-08:00

In the eyes of some theologians, the very process of secularization, which progressively rules out transcendent explanations of natural and historical conditions, has been a working out of a form of eschatological expectation. Of course, the substance is quite different in the cases where people work in expectation of the Kingdom of God and in the other cases where

Regiment

2005-03-23T16:28:00.000-08:00

In most armies, a body of troops headed by a colonel and organized for tactical control into companies, battalions, or squadrons. French cavalry units were called regiments as early as 1558. The word is derived from the Latin regimen, a rule or system of order, and describes the regiment's functions of raising, equipping, and training troops. As a regiment acquired individuality,

Bream, Julian Alexander

2005-03-22T03:19:00.000-08:00

After studying with his father and performing locally from age 14, Bream attended the Royal College of Music while pursuing private extracurricular study of the guitar. He was much influenced by the styles of Andrés Segovia and

Raymond

2005-03-19T22:17:00.000-08:00

Raymond was the younger son of William VII, count of Poitiers, in west-central France. In 1135 King Fulk of the Latin kingdom of Jerusalem, regent for the heiress Constance of Antioch, sent envoys to offer her in marriage to Raymond,

Annelid, Importance

2005-03-19T19:57:00.000-08:00

Large earthworms, or night crawlers (Lumbricus terrestris), are cultivated and sold as bait for freshwater fishes and as humus builders in gardens. The sludge worm Tubifex, abundant near sewer outlets and thus an indicator of water pollution, is collected and sold as food for tropical fish. Polychaetes play an important role in turning over sediment on the ocean

Ca Mau Peninsula

2005-03-18T11:21:00.000-08:00

Peninsula, the southernmost projection of Vietnam, lying between the South China Sea on the east and the Gulf of Thailand on the west, with drainage to each. The flat, triangular peninsula, with lengths ranging from 110 to 130 miles (180 to 210 km), averages about 7 feet (2 m) above sea level and owes its configuration largely to shore deposits of the Mekong River, which are also responsible

Icaza, Jorge

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

Icaza started writing for the theatre, but when he was censured for a 1933 dramatic script, El dictador, he turned his attention, and his indignation,

Annan, Kofi Atta

2005-03-15T17:43:00.000-08:00

The affable and intelligent Annan, the first person from sub-Saharan

Lira

2005-03-15T14:57:00.000-08:00

The word lira, a misapplication

Berdychiv

2005-03-13T22:44:00.000-08:00

Russian Berdichev, or Berdicev, city, Zhytomyr oblast (province), northwestern Ukraine. Founded in 1482 as a Lithuanian fortress, Berdychiv was Polish from 1569 until 1793. The 16th-century fortress walls survive, as does the Roman Catholic church in which the French novelist Honoré de Balzac married Eveline Hanska, a wealthy Russian widow, in 1850 after an 18-year courtship. Before 1917 an important trading centre, Berdychiv

Ibn Tibbon, Jacob Ben Machir

2005-03-11T20:11:00.000-08:00

Jacob translated into Hebrew a large number

Tragedy, Corneille and Racine

2005-03-11T01:49:00.000-08:00

Another attempt to bring back the ancient form had been going on for some time across the English Channel, in France. The French Classical tragedy, whose monuments are Pierre Corneille's Cid (1637) and Jean Racine's Bérénice (1670) and Phèdre (1677), made no attempt to be popular in the way of the Elizabethan theatre. The plays were written by and for intellectual aristocrats, who came together

Hohenlohe-schillingsfürst, Chlodwig Karl Viktor, Fürst Zu (prince Of)

2005-03-09T17:10:00.000-08:00

A Bavarian Roman Catholic, he was a member of a princely house and

Roba'i

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

The most famous example of this genre known in the Western world

Graviton

2005-03-07T14:19:00.000-08:00

Postulated quantum that is thought to be the carrier of the gravitational field. It is analogous to the well-established photon of the electromagnetic field. Gravitons, like photons, would be massless, electrically uncharged particles traveling at the speed of light and would be emitted only by highly accelerating, extremely massive objects such as stars. Since

China, Phase one

2005-03-07T07:24:00.000-08:00

As never before in modern times, the Chinese united themselves against a foreign enemy. China's standing armies in 1937 numbered some 1,700,000 men, with 500,000 in reserve. Japan's naval and air superiority were unquestioned. But Japan could not commit its full strength to campaigns in China; the main concern of the Japanese Army was the Soviet Union, while for the Japanese Navy it was the

Tiv

2005-03-05T13:53:00.000-08:00

The Tiv are subsistence farmers whose main crops are yams, millet, and sorghum, all of which are eaten as porridge

Uralic Languages

2005-03-05T01:37:00.000-08:00

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

Shaddock

2005-03-04T18:22:00.000-08:00

Also called Pummelo (Citrus grandis), citrus tree of the family Rutaceae, reaching 6–13 m (20–43 feet) in height. Shaddock is allied to the orange and the lemon and is presumably native to Malaysia and Polynesia. The name shaddock is said to have derived from that of a captain who introduced the tree to the West Indies. The leaves are like those of the orange but have broadly winged petioles

Körner, Wilhelm

2005-03-02T03:58:00.000-08:00

German organic chemist who in 1874 showed how to determine the relative positions of two substituents, such as methyl, on the benzene ring. For example, o-xylene forms two different mononitro derivatives; m-xylene forms three; and p-xylene forms only one. This method permitted further advances in the study and development

Pappus Of Alexandria

2005-03-01T06:37:00.000-08:00

The most important mathematical author writing in Greek during the later Roman Empire, known for his Synagoge (“Collection”), a voluminous account of the most important work done in ancient Greek mathematics. Other than that he was born at Alexandria in Egypt and that his career coincided with the first three decades of the 4th century AD, little is known about his life.

La Marche, Olivier De

2005-03-01T06:08:00.000-08:00

After serving as a page to Philip the Good, duke of Burgundy, La Marche entered the service of the Duke's son, the count of Charolais (later called Charles the Bold). He became Charles's secretary and remained in

Rerum Novarum

2005-02-28T21:50:00.000-08:00

Encyclical issued by Pope Leo XIII in 1891 and considered by many conservative Roman Catholics to be extremely progressive. It enunciated the late 19th-century Roman Catholic position on social justice, especially in relation to the problems created by the Industrial Revolution, and it emphasized the church's right to make pronouncements on social issues as they related

Alaskan Mountains

2005-02-27T09:30:00.000-08:00

The mountain ranges of Alaska give their state a rugged and beautiful terrain across its entire expanse. They include the highest peak in North America and are characterized by glaciers, earthquakes, and continuing volcanic activity. Structurally, the ranges are

Antae

2005-02-25T13:59:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Antes federation of eastern Slavic nomadic tribes known by the 3rd century AD, dwelling in southern Russia between the Dnieper and Dniester rivers. A powerful people with highly developed agriculture, handicrafts, and ironwork, the Antae fought the Goths, who were fleeing westward from the Huns in the 4th century. In the early 6th century they joined in Slavic raids against

New Criticism

2005-02-25T13:39:00.000-08:00

The primary technique employed

Hackney

2005-02-24T00:32:00.000-08:00

Hackneys were

Ringed Seal

2005-02-23T04:41:00.000-08:00

(species Pusa, or Phoca, hispida), nonmigratory, earless seal (family Phocidae) of North Polar seas and a few freshwater lakes in Europe and on Baffin Island. Named for the characteristic pale rings on its grayish or yellowish coat, the ringed seal grows to about 1.5 m (5 feet) in length and 90 kg (200 pounds) in weight. It lives near the pack ice and feeds on crustaceans, mollusks, and some

Savora

2005-02-22T15:27:00.000-08:00

Also spelled sabora (Aramaic: “reasoner,” or “one who reflects”) , plural savoraim , or saboraim any of a group of 6th-century-AD Jewish scholars who determined the final internal form of the Babylonian Talmud (Talmud Bavli), a collection of authoritative interpretations and explanations of Jewish oral laws and religious customs. Some experts feel that certain (perhaps many) of the critical textual remarks now found in the Talmud represent the work of savoraim,

Cynodont

2005-02-21T05:12:00.000-08:00

The cynodont skull

Race, Enlightenment philosophers and taxonomists

2005-02-20T08:13:00.000-08:00

The development of the idea and ideology of race coincided with the rise of science in American and European cultures. Much of the inspiration for the growth of science has been credited to the period known as the Enlightenment that spanned most of the 18th century. Many early Enlightenment writers believed in the power of education and fostered very liberal ideals

Peter Martyr D'anghiera

2005-02-18T08:48:00.000-08:00

Italian Pietro Martire D'anghiera, Spanish Pedro Mártir De Anghiera chaplain to the court of King Ferdinand II of Aragon and Queen Isabella I of Castile, and historian of Spanish explorations, who became a member of Emperor Charles V's Council of the Indies (1518). He collected unidentified documents from the various discoverers, including Christopher Columbus, and wrote De Orbe Novo (published 1530; “On

Port Adelaide

2005-02-18T04:17:00.000-08:00

Chief port of South Australia, on an estuarine-tidal inlet of Gulf St. Vincent, just northwest of Adelaide. Visited in 1831 by Capt. Collet Barker, the harbour, sheltered by a long sand spit to the west, was made the port for Adelaide in 1837. Port Adelaide was incorporated as a town in 1855 and became a city in 1901. The Inner Harbour, with extensive wharves, has a minimum depth of 33 ft (10 m) and is reached

T'aebaek Mountains

2005-02-16T02:40:00.000-08:00

Korean T'aebaek-sanmaek main ridge of the Korean Peninsula, stretching along the coast of the Sea of Japan (East Sea), north to Hwangnyong Mountain (4,160 feet [1,268 m]), North Korea, and continuing south as the Kyongsang Range to Tadae-p'o, a suburb of Pusan, South Korea. The T'aebaek range is 300 miles (500 km) long and averages 2,600– 3,300 feet (1,000 m) in height. Peaks include Kumgang (5,374 feet [1,638 m]), Sorak (5,604 feet [1,708 m]), Odae (5,128 feet [1,563 m]), and T'aebaek (5,121 feet [1,561 m]). The eastern

Montgomery (of Alamein, Of Hindhead), Bernard Law Montgomery, 1st Viscount

2005-02-15T04:01:00.000-08:00

Of Ulster stock, Montgomery was educated at St. Paul's School, London, and the Royal Military Academy (Sandhurst). He distinguished himself during World War I and remained in the army, acquiring a reputation as an efficient and tough leader. Early

Degenerate Gas

2005-02-14T09:46:00.000-08:00

In physics, a particular configuration, usually reached at high densities, of a gas composed of subatomic particles with half-integral intrinsic angular momentum (spin). Such particles are called fermions, because their microscopic behaviour is regulated by a set of quantum mechanical rules—Fermi-Dirac statistics (q.v.). These rules state, in particular, that there

Mauritania, Religious groups

2005-02-12T16:22:00.000-08:00

About 99 percent of all Mauritanians are Muslim. Most Moors belong to the Qadiriyah order. The Tukulor and some of the Tagant tribes belong to the Tijaniyah order. Many tariqas (mystical sects) flow from these orders.

Lusatia

2005-02-12T14:35:00.000-08:00

In the 9th century the area settled by the Sorbs, a Slavic people, extended westward to the Saale River and

Hope

2005-02-10T22:39:00.000-08:00

In Christian thought, one of the three theological virtues, the others being faith and charity (love). It is distinct from the latter two because it is directed exclusively toward the future, as fervent desire and confident expectation. When hope has attained its object, it ceases to be hope and becomes possession. Consequently, whereas “love never ends,” hope is confined

Scabies

2005-02-10T00:06:00.000-08:00

The female mite, which attains a length of about 0.35 mm (0.014 inch), burrows beneath the superficial layer of the skin to lay two to three eggs a day within a tunnel several millimetres long. These burrows

Voting Rights Act

2005-02-08T22:29:00.000-08:00

U.S. legislation (August 6, 1965) that aimed to overcome legal barriers at the state and local levels that prevented African Americans from exercising their right to vote under the Fifteenth Amendment (1870) to the Constitution of the United States. The act significantly widened the franchise and is considered among the most far-reaching pieces of civil rights legislation

Drug Use, Amphetamines

2005-02-08T13:45:00.000-08:00

These stimulants are of three types having closely related actions on the nervous system: amphetamine proper (Benzedrine), one of its isomers (Dexedrine), and methamphetamine (Methedrine). The amphetamines have been used to alleviate depression, fatigue, the hyperkinetic behaviour disturbances of children, postencephalitic Parkinsonism, enuresis, nausea of pregnancy,

Shah Diamond

2005-02-07T04:56:00.000-08:00

Yellow-tinged stone of about 89 carats that bears three ancient Persian inscriptions, indicating it was discovered before 1591, probably in the Golconda mines in India. The inscriptions are to Nezam Shah Borhan II, 1591; Shah Jahan, son of Shah Jahangir, 1641; and Fath 'Ali Shah, 1826. Given to Tsar Nicholas I by Fath 'Ali Shah in 1829, it is displayed in the Diamond Fund of Russia in Moscow.

Cartwright, John

2005-02-05T14:37:00.000-08:00

John Cartwright joined the Royal Navy

Ouro Prêto

2005-02-05T11:32:00.000-08:00

Within a decade of its founding in 1698 as a mining settlement, Ouro Prêto became the centre of the greatest gold and silver rush in the Americas to that date. It still resembled a

Jacob Ben Asher

2005-02-03T17:55:00.000-08:00

Little of certainty is known about Jacob's life. In 1303 he immigrated to Spain with his brothers and father, the great codifier Asher ben Jehiel, who became chief rabbi of Toledo.

Minbu

2005-02-02T15:37:00.000-08:00

Although much of the surrounding land is semidesert scrub forming part of Myanmar's dry zone, large areas around Minbu are

Cytochrome

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

Any of a group of hemoprotein cell components that, by readily undergoing reduction and oxidation (gain and loss of electrons) with the aid of enzymes, serve a vital function in the transfer of energy within cells. Hemoproteins are proteins linked to a nonprotein, iron-bearing component. It is the iron (heme) group attached to the protein that can undergo reversible

Switzerland, Leisure

2005-02-01T08:32:00.000-08:00

Living in close proximity to the mountains, which are well linked by road and rail to the urban areas, the Swiss have become extremely sport-conscious and have encouraged the growth of skiing and mountaineering as tourist attractions. Other sports include Swiss-style wrestling, gymnastics, regular Sunday-morning shooting, Hornussen (a kind of Alpine baseball), tennis,

Arundel, Philip Howard, 1st (or 13th) Earl Of, Earl Of Surrey

2005-01-30T20:49:00.000-08:00

Philip was the eldest son of Thomas Howard, 4th duke of Norfolk, executed for high treason in 1572, and of Lady Mary, daughter and heiress of Henry Fitzalan, 12th earl of Arundel. On the death of his maternal grandfather, the 12th earl, in February

Aequi

2005-01-30T03:27:00.000-08:00

Ancient people of Italy originally inhabiting the region watered by the tributaries of the Avens River (modern Velino). Long hostile to Rome, they became especially menacing in the 5th century BC, advancing to the Alban Hills. Although repulsed by the Romans in 431, the Aequi were not completely subdued by Rome until the end of the Second Samnite War (304 BC), when they received civitas

Durant, Will; And Durant, Ariel

2005-01-29T22:47:00.000-08:00

Will Durant's writing career began with the publication of Philosophy and the Social Problem (1917). His second book, The Story of

Birnin Kebbi

2005-01-27T23:58:00.000-08:00

Town and capital of Kebbi state, northwestern Nigeria. It lies along the Sokoto (Kebbi) River at the intersection of roads from Argungu, Jega, and Bunza. An early settlement of the Kebbawa, a subgroup of the Hausa, it was captured about 1516 by Muhammadu Kanta, founder of the Kebbi kingdom; subsequently, it was incorporated into Kebbi, one of the banza bakwai (the seven illegitimate

Arianism

2005-01-26T15:13:00.000-08:00

A Christian heresy first proposed early in the 4th century by the Alexandrian presbyter Arius. It affirmed that Christ is not truly divine but a created being. Arius' basic premise was the uniqueness of God, who is alone self-existent and immutable; the Son, who is not self-existent, cannot be God. Because the Godhead is unique, it cannot be shared or communicated, so the Son

Averno, Lake Of

2005-01-25T21:05:00.000-08:00

Italian Lago D'averno, Latin Lacus Avernus, crater lake in Napoli province, Campania region, southern Italy, in the Campi Flegrei volcanic region, west of Naples. It is 7 ft (2 m) above sea level, 118 ft deep, and nearly 2 mi (more than 3 km) in circumference, with no natural outlet. Its Greek name, Aornos, was interpreted as meaning “without birds,” giving rise to the legend that no bird could fly across it and live because of its poisonous

Van Der Waals Forces

2005-01-25T08:11:00.000-08:00

Relatively weak electric forces that attract neutral molecules to one another in gases, in liquefied and solidified gases, and in almost all organic liquids and solids. The forces are named for the Dutch physicist Johannes van der Waals, who in 1873 first postulated these intermolecular forces in developing a theory to account for the properties of real gases. Solids

Teens

2005-01-24T05:41:00.000-08:00

The years 13 to 19 in the human life span, a period roughly equivalent to adolescence (q.v.).

Horned Owl

2005-01-23T23:51:00.000-08:00

Any owl of the genus Bubo (family Strigidae), with hornlike tufts of feathers. The name refers especially to the great horned owl (B. virginianus) of America. The great horned owl ranges from Arctic tree limits southward to the Strait of Magellan. It is a powerful, mottled-brown predator that is often more than 60 cm (about 2 feet) in length, with a wingspread often approaching

Fellows, Sir Charles

2005-01-22T01:33:00.000-08:00

In 1832 he began travelling through Italy, Greece, and the Middle East, sketching as he went. Many of his drawings were used to

Graz

2005-01-21T16:30:00.000-08:00

City, capital of Bundesland (federal state) Steiermark, southeastern Austria. The country's second largest city, it lies on the Mur River between the Styrian Alps and a wide, fertile valley, the Grazerfeld. In the 9th century there was probably a fortress on the Schlossberg, a rocky cone (1,552 feet [473 m]) that dominates the city. The name Graz is derived from gradec, a Slavic word meaning

Mon Language

2005-01-20T20:25:00.000-08:00

Also called Talaing, or Peguan, Mon-Khmer language spoken by the Mon people of southeastern Myanmar (Lower Burma) and several Mon communities in Thailand. The oldest inscriptions, dating from the 6th century, are found in central Thailand in archaeological sites associated with the Dvaravati kingdom. Numerous Old Mon inscriptions date from the later Mon kingdoms of Thaton and Pegu. The Old Mon

Tactics

2005-01-18T11:29:00.000-08:00

This article discusses the tactics of land warfare. For treatment of tactics on sea, see naval

Philip I

2005-01-17T02:47:00.000-08:00

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

Conrad Von Hötzendorf, Franz (xaver Josef ), Graf (count)

2005-01-16T13:55:00.000-08:00

Advancing rapidly in the Austro-Hungarian army, Conrad became chief of staff in 1906 on the recommendation of the heir to the throne,

Lusignan Family

2005-01-15T22:52:00.000-08:00

Noble family of Poitou (a province of western France) that provided numerous crusaders and kings of Jerusalem, Cyprus, and Lesser Armenia. A branch of the family became counts of La Marche and Angoulême and played a role in precipitating the baronial revolt in England against King Henry III. The castle of Lusignan is associated with the medieval legend of Mélusine.

Houseleek

2005-01-14T23:15:00.000-08:00

Also called Live-forever, any of numerous low-growing succulent plants constituting the genus Sempervivum, about 40 species, in the stonecrop family (Crassulaceae), native to Europe, Morocco, and western Asia. The name houseleek refers to the growth of some species on thatched roofs in Europe; “live-forever” indicates their hardiness and durability. Houseleeks usually have thick fleshy leaves

Puerto Real

2005-01-13T19:41:00.000-08:00

Ancient (Latin) Portus Gaditanus town, Cádiz provincia, Andalusia comunidad autónoma (“autonomous community”), southern Spain. It is on the north shore of the inner arm of the Bay of Cádiz and lies 5 miles (8 km) east of Cádiz. Known to the Romans, it was probably the most ancient trading station on the Bay of Cádiz and took its modern name (meaning “royal port”) when rebuilt in 1488 by the Spanish monarchs Ferdinand and

Halévy, élie

2005-01-12T03:57:00.000-08:00

Halévy was particularly concerned with

Yacht

2005-01-10T02:43:00.000-08:00

Early sailing yachts followed the lines of such naval craft as brigantines, schooners, and cutters from the 17th century until the second half of the 19th century. The design of large yachts was first greatly affected by the success of America, which was designed by George Steers for a syndicate headed by John C. Stevens and was the boat for which the America's Cup (q.v.) was named

Arupa-dhatu

2005-01-09T15:05:00.000-08:00

In Buddhist thought, the realm of formlessness. See arupa-loka.

Kuei

2005-01-08T15:57:00.000-08:00

Kuei are spirits of individuals who were not properly buried or whose families neglected the proper memorial offerings; they lack the means to ascend to the spirit world, hence their malevolent disposition. In traditional China,

Kakongo

2005-01-07T17:50:00.000-08:00

Former African state, founded about the 15th century on the Atlantic coast between the kingdoms of Loango (north) and Ngoy (south). It extended from what is now central Cabinda eastward into Congo (Kinshasa). The main town was Malemba, a port that grew in importance after 1700 as a centre for the export of slaves; port facilities were expanded from that time to handle increasing

Kwangju

2005-01-07T08:15:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Gwangju, city and provincial capital, South Cholla do (province), southwestern South Korea. It has the status of a special city (area 193 square miles [501 square km]) under the direct control of the home minister, with administrative status equal to that of a province. An old city on the edge of the mountainous area of South Cholla province, it has been a centre of trade and of local administration

Animal Behaviour

2005-01-06T19:33:00.000-08:00

A living animal behaves constantly in order to survive, and all animals must solve the same basic problems. They must, for instance, periodically replace their energy source (consume food), avoid dehydration (drink), avoid becoming another animal's energy source (avoid being eaten), maintain their body surfaces (clean and groom), and reproduce.

Wu-han

2005-01-05T06:20:00.000-08:00

Pinyin Wuhan fifth largest city of the People's Republic of China, in Hupeh Province, located at the confluence of the Han and Yangtze rivers. It is a conurbation of three adjacent cities—Han-k'ou (Hankow), Han-yang, and Wu-ch'ang; the last is the capital of Hupeh Province. Han-k'ou lies on the north bank of the Yangtze at the mouth of the Han. Immediately across the Han from it is the older city

I Novel

2005-01-04T22:35:00.000-08:00

The I novel grew out of the naturalist movement that dominated Japanese literature during the early decades of the 20th century. The term is used to describe two different types of novel, the confessional novel (characterized

Rushworth, John

2005-01-03T14:56:00.000-08:00

Rushworth studied law, perhaps at the University of Oxford (from which he received an M.A. in 1649), and in 1638 was made

Homburg

2005-01-02T05:25:00.000-08:00

City, Saarland, southwestern Germany, on the Erbach River, northeast of Saarbrücken. Chartered in 1330 and 1558, it belonged to the counts of Homburg, most of whose territory was divided in 1499 between the houses of Nassau-Saarbrücken and Pfalz-Zweibrücken. It became part of the Bavarian Palatinate in 1815 and was included in the Saar in 1920. The market square is surrounded by fine 17th-century

Andorra La Vella

2005-01-01T00:35:00.000-08:00

Andorra la Vella long remained relatively isolated from the outside world. Its modernization began in the 1930s with the construction of carriage roads, and its population

Transpacific Race

2004-12-30T15:41:00.000-08:00

Also called Honolulu Race, one of the world's oldest major ocean races for sailing yachts, a 2,225-mile (3,580-kilometre) event run from various California harbours to Honolulu, Hawaii. It was first held in 1906 and made a biennial event in 1939 to alternate with the Bermuda Race. Since 1941 the race has been from San Pedro, Calif. (Los Angeles' harbour), to Diamond Head Buoy, off Honolulu. Since the course is mostly downwind and

Suckling, Sir John

2004-12-29T15:26:00.000-08:00

He was educated at Cambridge and inherited his father's considerable estates at the age of 18. He entered Gray's Inn in 1627 and was knighted in 1630. He became a prominent figure at court with a reputation for being “the greatest gallant of his time, and the greatest

Wüthrich, Kurt

2004-12-29T09:46:00.000-08:00

After receiving a Ph.D. in organic chemistry from the University of Basel in 1964, Wüthrich took his postdoctoral training in Switzerland and the United

T Tauri Star

2004-12-27T02:27:00.000-08:00

Any of a class of very young stars having a mass approximately equal to that of the Sun. So called after a prototype identified in a bright region of gas and dust known as the Hind's variable nebula, the T Tauri stars are characterized by erratic changes in brightness. They represent an early stage in stellar evolution, having only recently been formed by the rapid gravitational

Gray, Horace

2004-12-26T22:06:00.000-08:00

Admitted to the bar in 1851, Gray practiced law in Massachusetts and was active in Free-Soil and, later, Republican party affairs. In 1860 he ran unsuccessfully for state attorney general. He served with distinction for many years at the Massachusetts Supreme Court, first as court reporter (1854–61) and later as associate

Wick

2004-12-26T05:18:00.000-08:00

Thread, strip, or bundle of fibres that, by capillary action, draws up the oil of a lamp or the melted wax in a candle to be burned. By 1000 BC, wicks of vegetable fibres were used in saucer-type vessels containing olive oil or nut oil in order to provide light, and by 500–400 BC these wicks were in general domestic use. See lamp.

Insurance, Underwriting principles

2004-12-25T19:21:00.000-08:00

Underwriting has to do with the selection of subjects for insurance in such a manner that general company objectives are met. The main objective of underwriting is to see that the risk accepted by the insurer corresponds to that assumed in the rating structure. There is often a tendency toward adverse selection, which the underwriter must try to prevent. Adverse

Soignies

2004-12-23T17:42:00.000-08:00

(French), Flemish Zinnik town (commune), Hainaut province, south-central Belgium. It lies along the Senne River, just northeast of Mons. There was a Roman castrum (fortress) at the site, and the town was said to have been founded in the 7th century by St. Vincent, who built a monastery there. A procession during Pentecost honours St. Vincent. The former conventual church (10th–13th century), one of Belgium's best-preserved

Tank

2004-12-23T09:12:00.000-08:00

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

Montserrat

2004-12-22T21:41:00.000-08:00

The original Native American inhabitants of Montserrat began to arrive in the Lesser Antilles about 3000 BC. Carib Indians, who arrived later, are said to have named the island Alliouagana (“Land of the Prickly Bush”). However, Montserrat was uninhabited by the time Christopher Columbus sighted it in November 1493, during his second voyage to the Americas. Columbus named the island

Lowes, John Livingston

2004-12-21T10:55:00.000-08:00

Lowes received his A.B. degree from Washington and Jefferson College (Washington, Pa.) in 1888 and taught mathematics there until 1891, when he received his M.A. degree. After

Substitution Reaction

2004-12-20T05:03:00.000-08:00

If the chlorine atom is displaced by other groups—such as the cyanide ion (-CN), the

Amputation

2004-12-18T22:07:00.000-08:00

In medicine, removal of any part of the body. Commonly the term is restricted to mean surgical removal of a part of or an entire limb, either upper or lower extremity. The reasons for surgical amputation in general are injury, infection, tumour, diabetes, or insufficient blood supply. Persons born without a limb or limbs are said to have suffered congenital amputation.

Hydroponics

2004-12-18T02:15:00.000-08:00

Plants have long been grown with their roots immersed in solutions of water and fertilizer for scientific studies of their nutrition. Early commercial hydroponics (from Greek hydro, “water,” and ponos, “labour”) adopted this method of

Anderson, Marian

2004-12-17T08:53:00.000-08:00

U.S. singer (b. Feb. 27, 1897, Philadelphia, Pa.--d. April 8, 1993, Portland, Ore.), maintained a quiet dignity while transcending the racial and cultural barriers imposed on her artistry and used her rich contralto voice brilliantly to interpret the works of Schubert, Schumann, Brahms, Mahler, Verdi, and Richard Strauss as well as spirituals. Though Anderson's birth certificate stated that

Port Dickson

2004-12-15T14:49:00.000-08:00

Town, south-central West Malaysia (Malaya), on the Strait of Malacca. The port, now in decline, was used extensively during the late 19th century to export the tin mined in the foothills of the state. Now chiefly a seaside resort with a fishing village, it is connected by rail with the inland entrepôt of Seremban, 17 miles (27 km) northeast. Oil refineries are concentrated along the

Mabillon, Jean

2004-12-15T07:16:00.000-08:00

He entered Saint-Rémi Abbey, Reims, in 1653 and became a Benedictine monk the following year. He was ordained priest (1660) at Corbie, Fr., before moving in 1664 to St. Germain-des-Prés, Paris, headquarters of the Maurists, a congregation of French