LeftSun

Radio, Antennas

2005-03-24T21:50:00.000-08:00

The size of the antenna relative to the wavelength of the electromagnetic radiation

Obando, José María

2005-03-21T00:07:00.000-08:00

Obando fought for the Spanish crown during most of the Latin-American war for independence. He finally joined Simón Bolívar's revolutionary forces but opposed Bolívar's centralist

Basil

2005-03-20T01:14:00.000-08:00

Albanian in origin, Basil acceded to the throne of Moldavia in the spring of 1634. He intrigued throughout his reign to acquire the Walachian throne as well, and in 1637 and 1639 led unsuccessful expeditions against the ruling prince

Russell's Viper

2005-03-17T03:53:00.000-08:00

Also called Daboia, or Tic Polonga (species Vipera russelli), abundant, highly venomous terrestrial snake of the family Viperidae. It is found from India to Taiwan and Java, most often in open country. It is a major cause of snakebite deaths within its range. The viper grows to a maximum of about 1.5 m (5 feet) and is marked with three rows of reddish brown spots outlined in black and again in white.

Vendôme, César, Duke (duc) De

2005-03-16T20:18:00.000-08:00

The elder son of King Henry IV by his mistress, Gabrielle d'Estrées, Vendôme was legitimized in 1595 and created Duke de Vendôme in 1598. In 1609 he married Françoise, daughter of Philippe-Emmanuel de Lorraine, Duke de Mercoeur, to whose governorship he succeeded at that

Nicephorus Iii Botaneiates

2005-03-13T18:12:00.000-08:00

Nicephorus, who belonged to the military aristocracy of Asia Minor and who was related to the powerful Phocas family, became commander of the Anatolian theme (administrative district). When discontent against the government of

Eckhel, Joseph Hilarius

2005-03-09T04:50:00.000-08:00

Eckhel was educated at the Jesuit gymnasium in Vienna, where he had entered the Jesuit order at age 14. He taught grammar at various collegiate schools, but because of poor health he gave up teaching to

Allendale

2005-03-07T08:29:00.000-08:00

Rybakov, Anatoly

2005-03-06T02:30:00.000-08:00

In 1934 Rybakov completed his studies in transport engineering and soon after was arrested for making

Bert, Paul

2005-03-04T13:06:00.000-08:00

French physiologist, politician, and diplomat, founder of modern aerospace medicine, whose research into the effects of air pressure on the body helped make possible the exploration of space and the ocean depths. While professor of physiology at the Sorbonne (1869–86), he found that the illness suffered by animals at high altitudes is caused

Godarpura

2005-03-01T07:59:00.000-08:00

Also called Mandhata , or Omkarji pilgrimage centre, western Madhya Pradesh state, central India. It lies along the Narmada River southeast of Indore. Godarpura has noted Saivite, Vaisnavite, and Jaina temples, mostly of the 14th and 18th centuries. The Omkar temple, on an island in the river, contains one of the 12 great Siva (Shiva) phallic symbols, or lingas; another linga stands outside the Gauri Somnath temple. The

Rhyl

2005-02-27T10:24:00.000-08:00

Seaside town, Denbighshire (Sir Ddinbych) county, historic county of Flintshire (Sir Fflint), Wales, at the mouth of the River Clwyd. The town is predominantly a holiday resort, with extensive sandy beaches and excellent rail and road links with Lancashire and the English Midlands. Its promenade stretches for 3 miles (5 km), with a domed pavilion and the all-glass Royal Floral

Arnold, Benedict

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

Upon the outbreak of hostilities at Lexington, Massachusetts (April 1775), Arnold volunteered for service and participated with

Amazon River, Early European exploration

2005-02-23T17:07:00.000-08:00

In the early days the river was the only means of access into the forest. Francisco de Orellana descended the main course of the river from the Peruvian Andes to the Atlantic in 1541–42. Nearly a century later, Pedro Teixeira went from Belém to Quito, Ecuador, and the region increasingly became known through the explorations of the Portuguese. In 1743 the French naturalist Charles-Marie

Hooker, Sir Joseph Dalton

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

Hooker,

Eastern Orthodoxy, Theological and monastic renaissance

2005-02-19T03:01:00.000-08:00

Paradoxically, the pitiful history of Byzantium under the Palaeologan emperors coincided with an astonishing intellectual, spiritual, and artistic renaissance that influenced the entire Eastern Christian world. The renaissance was not without fierce controversy and polarization. In 1337 Barlaam the Calabrian, one of the representatives of Byzantine Humanism,

Cylinder Machine

2005-02-17T02:46:00.000-08:00

Device for producing paper, paperboard, and other fibreboards, invented in 1809 by John Dickinson. It consists of one or more tubes of wire screen partially immersed and rotated in a vat containing a mixture of pulp and water; the screen picks up a film from which the water drains, leaving a wet sheet that is transferred from the cylinder onto a felt in a continuous web. Cylinders

Amadeus Vi

2005-02-15T11:51:00.000-08:00

Son of Aimone the Peaceful, count of Savoy, Amadeus ascended the throne at the age of nine. He crossed the Alps in 1348 to put down a revolt of Piedmontese cities and won a victory over rebellious inhabitants of the Valais (east of Geneva) in 1352. In 1355 he married

Can Tho

2005-02-14T21:58:00.000-08:00

Municipality and provincial seat of Hau Giang tinh (province), Mekong delta region, southeastern Vietnam. Situated on the left bank of the Song (river) Hau Giang, 90 mi (145 km) southwest of Ho Chi Minh City (formerly Saigon), it is an industrial centre and the largest city of the flat delta region, which includes the Ca Mau Peninsula and the principal rice-growing areas of the country.

Ghee

2005-02-11T10:22:00.000-08:00

Ghee is produced as follows. Butter made from cow's milk is melted over a slow fire and then heated slowly until the separated water boils off. The vessel holding the butter is then allowed to cool; semifluid, clear butterfat, which

Durante, Francesco

2005-02-10T17:44:00.000-08:00

Durante studied in Rome and probably in Naples and in 1710 taught at the San Onofrio Conservatory. He was chapelmaster at the Conservatorio dei Poveri in Naples (1728–39) and from 1742 taught at the Santa Maria di Loreto Conservatory. In 1745 he succeeded L. Leo as principal

Jabavu, Davidson Don Tengo

2005-02-07T19:18:00.000-08:00

The son of John Tengo Jabavu, editor of the first Bantu-language newspaper in South Africa, Davidson Jabavu was educated in South Africa, in Wales, and at the universities of London and Birmingham. In 1916 he began teaching at Fort Hare Native

Amiot, Jean-joseph-marie

2005-02-06T07:48:00.000-08:00

Amiot entered the Society of Jesus in 1737 and was sent as a missionary to China in 1750. He soon won the confidence of the emperor Qianlong and spent the remainder of his life at Beijing. Among his achievements was the compilation

Elizabethton

2005-02-03T08:25:00.000-08:00

City, seat (1796) of Carter county, northeastern Tennessee, U.S. It lies at the confluence of the Doe and Watauga rivers, in the southern Appalachian Mountains, about 105 miles (170 km) northeast of Knoxville and just east of Johnson City. Situated in the valley of the Watauga, it is one of the region's oldest settlements, where a compact for self-government (the Watauga Association) was

Aldecoa, Ignacio

2005-02-01T10:55:00.000-08:00

Aldecoa studied at the University of Madrid, became a newspaper writer, and from 1947 to 1956 was a broadcaster for the radio station Voice of the Falange. He published essays on politics, several collections of short stories, and two books of poems, Todavía la vida

Armfelt, Gustaf Mauritz

2005-01-30T18:28:00.000-08:00

Appointed gentleman to Gustav III of Sweden in 1781, Armfelt was employed in the negotiations with Catherine II of Russia (1783) and with the Danish government (1787) and was one of the king's

Extensor Muscle

2005-01-28T20:50:00.000-08:00

Any of the muscles that increase the angle between members of a limb, as by straightening the elbow or knee or bending the wrist or spine backward. The movement is usually directed backward, with the notable exception of the knee joint. In humans, certain muscles of the hand and foot are named for this function. In the hand these include the extensor carpi radialis brevis,

East Sea

2005-01-26T19:12:00.000-08:00

(Pacific Ocean): see Japan, Sea of.

Lancaster

2005-01-25T06:19:00.000-08:00

Lancaster grew on the site of a Roman station, and traces of the Roman fortification walls remain. In the 11th century a feudal landowner, Roger of Poitou, founded or enlarged a castle on an eminence there and also

Vulgate

2005-01-22T06:22:00.000-08:00

(from the Latin editio vulgata: “common version”), Latin Bible used by the Roman Catholic Church, primarily translated by St. Jerome. In 382 Pope Damasus commissioned Jerome, the leading biblical scholar of his day, to produce an acceptable Latin version of the Bible from the various translations then being used. His revised Latin translation of the Gospels appeared about

Felting

2005-01-20T11:05:00.000-08:00

Consolidation of certain fibrous materials by the application of heat, moisture, and mechanical action, causing the interlocking, or matting, of fibres possessing felting properties. Such fibres include wool, fur, and certain hair fibres that mat together under appropriate conditions because of their peculiar structure and high degree of crimp (waviness). Wool

Quietism

2005-01-18T21:42:00.000-08:00

A doctrine of Christian spirituality that, in general, holds that perfection consists in passivity (quiet) of the soul, in the suppression of human effort so that divine action may have full play. Quietistic elements have been discerned in several religious movements, both Christian and non-Christian, through the centuries; but the term is usually identified with

Grand River

2005-01-16T04:56:00.000-08:00

River rising near Creston, Union county, south-central Iowa, U.S., and flowing in a southerly direction into Missouri. It merges with the Thompson River and Shoal, Medicine, and Locust creeks near Chillicothe, Mo., before joining the Missouri River near Brunswick after a course of 215 miles (346 km). As early as 1723 the Grand was referred to by the French as “La Grande Riviére,” and in that

Catanzaro

2005-01-15T09:58:00.000-08:00

City, capital of Catanzaro provincia and of Calabria regione, southern Italy, at an elevation of 1,125 feet (343 m) overlooking the Gulf of Squillace, southeast of Cosenza. Founded about the 10th century as Catasarion, a Byzantine town, it was taken in 1059 by the Norman leader Robert Guiscard. Invading peoples from the Saracens to the Swiss, Normans, and Angevins (house of Anjou) recognized

Visalia

2005-01-13T04:34:00.000-08:00

City, seat (1853) of Tulare county, south-central California, U.S. It lies on the Kaweah River delta in the San Joaquin Valley, 42 miles (68 km) southeast of Fresno. Founded in 1852 by Nathaniel Vise, it developed as an agricultural (olives, grapes, cotton) and livestock-shipping centre, now supplemented by light manufacturing. It is the seat of the College of the Sequoias (1925). Sequoia and Kings Canyon

Paarl

2005-01-10T13:55:00.000-08:00

Town, Western Cape province, South Africa, east of Cape Town, on the Groot-Berg River between the Paarl Mountain and the Drakenstein Range. Settled in 1688 by Huguenots, who introduced viticulture, it is still known for its vineyards and wine making; it also produces citrus fruits, tobacco, and olives. Manufactures include cigarettes, textiles, and processed foods. Paarl is

Lima

2005-01-09T04:46:00.000-08:00

Department of central Peru and site of the national capital of Lima. The department stretches from the Pacific Ocean in the west to the Cordillera Occidental of the Andes in the east. There is little rainfall along its coastal section, and irrigation is possible only where rivers descend from the Andes. Fog often blankets the coast, especially from June to October;

Toledo, Alejandro

2005-01-06T02:18:00.000-08:00

On July 28, 2001, nearly five centuries after Europeans conquered the Incas—and after two years of campaigning—Alejandro Toledo was sworn in as Peru's first democratically elected president of Quechua ethnicity. Although easily half of Peruvians were Amerindians, the white and mestizo minorities had held the key to economic, scholastic, and political power since colonial

Maywood, Augusta

2005-01-05T23:16:00.000-08:00

Augusta Williams was the daughter of itinerant English actors. She acquired the name of her stepfather, the theatrical manager Robert Campbell Maywood, when she was three. She began studying ballet under Paul H. Hazard in 1836, and in 1837 she made

Texas Christian University

2005-01-02T19:52:00.000-08:00

Private, coeducational institution of higher education in Fort Worth, Texas, U.S. It is affiliated with the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). It grants about 14 undergraduate degrees in more than 80 areas and about 14 graduate degrees in more than 30 fields, including research-oriented doctoral programs and a professional degree in ministry. Texas Christian comprises

Brother Adam

2004-12-31T06:49:00.000-08:00

(KARL KEHRLE), German-born Benedictine monk and bee breeder (b. Aug. 3, 1898, Mittlebiberach, Ger.--d. Sept. 1, 1996, Buckfast, South Devon, Eng.), was regarded as an authority on bees for his revolutionary work, most notably the development of the Buckfast bee, a breed that was considered one of the hardiest and most prolific producers of honey ever bred. At the age of 11 he was sent from his home in Germany

Spraying And Dusting

2004-12-30T10:21:00.000-08:00

In agriculture, the standard methods of applying pest-control chemicals and other compounds. In spraying, the chemicals to be applied are dissolved or suspended in water or, less commonly, in an oil-based carrier. The mixture is then applied as a fine mist to plants, animals, soils, or products to be treated. In dusting, as an alternative method, dry, finely powdered chemicals

Amphora

2004-12-27T20:10:00.000-08:00

One of the principal vessel shapes in Greek pottery, a two-handled pot with a neck narrower than the body. There are two types of amphora: the neck amphora, in which the neck meets the body at a sharp angle; and the one-piece amphora, in which the neck and body form a continuous curve. The first is common from the Geometric period (c. 900 BC) to the decline of Greek pottery; the second appeared

Anshar And Kishar

2004-12-26T16:31:00.000-08:00

In Mesopotamian mythology, the male and female principles, the twin horizons of sky and earth. Their parents were either Apsu (the watery deep beneath the earth) and Tiamat (the personification of salt water) or Lahmu and Lahamu, the first set of twins born to Apsu and Tiamat. Anshar and Kishar, in turn, were the parents of Anu (An), the supreme heaven god.

Chile

2004-12-24T11:05:00.000-08:00

Language and a common history have promoted cultural homogeneity in the country. Even the Araucanians and certain Aymara minorities in the north share the values of the Chilean identity, while continuing to cherish their own cultural heritage. Chileans have always displayed a high degree of tolerance toward the customs and traditions of minority groups, as

Ogaden

2004-12-22T08:07:00.000-08:00

The region is sparsely populated

Andania Mysteries

2004-12-20T20:18:00.000-08:00

Ancient Greek mystery cult, held in honour of the earth goddess Demeter and her daughter Kore (Persephone) at the town of Andania in Messenia. A long inscription of 92 BC gives elaborate directions for the conduct of the rites, although it relates no details of the initiation ceremonies. The ritual was performed by certain “holy ones” of both sexes, who were chosen from the

Ducetius

2004-12-18T03:53:00.000-08:00

A Hellenized leader of the Siculi, an ancient people of Sicily, who for a short time welded the native communities of east Sicily into a powerful federation. He seized his opportunity during the confusion that followed the collapse of tyranny in Syracuse and other Sicilian states in 460. Enjoying the goodwill of the Syracusan democracy, he enlisted its help in driving

Nadig, Marie-thérèse

2004-12-16T18:35:00.000-08:00

At 17, Nadig had never won a World Cup race and was not considered a threat to the favoured Pröll. When Nadig finished the downhill course with a time of 1 min 36.68 sec,

Sol

2004-12-13T20:36:00.000-08:00

The worship of Sol assumed an entirely

Alcaraz Carpet

2004-12-12T22:39:00.000-08:00

There are several different patterns of carpet with “wheels” in rectangular compartments. Other carpets imitate a wide range of brocade

Canaan

2004-12-09T04:59:00.000-08:00

Area variously defined in historical and biblical literature, but always centred on Palestine. Its original pre-Israelite inhabitants were called Canaanites. The names Canaan and Canaanite occur in cuneiform, Egyptian, and Phoenician writings from about the 15th century BC as well as in the Old Testament. In these sources, “Canaan” refers sometimes to an area encompassing

Sesostris I

2004-12-07T03:17:00.000-08:00

Sesostris became coregent in 1918 BC with his aging father, Amenemhet I, who had founded the 12th dynasty. While his father completed his domestic reforms, Sesostris undertook the conquest of Nubia, to the south of Egypt, and in the year 30 of his father's reign

Alaca Hüyük

2004-12-05T22:48:00.000-08:00

Ancient Anatolian site northeast of the old Hittite capital of Hattusa at Bogazköy, north-central Turkey. Its excavation was begun by Makridi Bey in 1907 and resumed in 1935 by the Turkish Historical Society. Inside a sphinx gate, traces of a large Hittite building were discovered. Below the Hittite remains was a royal necropolis of 13 tombs dating from about 2500 BC. Although material

Amphibian, Habitat

2004-12-03T02:14:00.000-08:00

Because of their diverse reproductive and feeding strategies as well as their structural and functional adaptations, amphibians are found in deserts, swamps, lowland tropical rain forests, and above the tree line in high mountain areas. The three orders of living amphibians all contain species that have independently made transitions from aquatic to terrestrial

Arts, Islamic, The 'Abbasids

2004-12-01T19:48:00.000-08:00

It was not until the 'Abbasids assumed power in 750, settling in Baghdad, that the golden age of Arabic literature began. The influx of foreign elements added new colour to cultural and literary life. Hellenistic thought and the influence of the ancient cultures of the Near East, for example, contributed to the rapid intellectual growth of the Muslim community. Its members,

Jordan, The Latin kingdom and Muslim domination

2004-11-30T14:13:00.000-08:00

The area was devastated in the 6th and 7th centuries by the intermittent warfare between Byzantium and Sasanian Persia. In 627 the emperor Heraclius finally defeated the Persians and reestablished order, but Byzantium, gravely weakened by the long struggle, was unable to face the unexpected menace of a new power that had arisen in Arabia. In 636 the Muslims, led by the famous

Ortega, Daniel

2004-11-28T14:43:00.000-08:00

Son of a veteran of the peasant army of César Augusto Sandino, Ortega moved with his family to Managua in the mid-1950s. He briefly attended the Central American University in Managua, then in 1963 he went

La Junta

2004-11-26T09:01:00.000-08:00

City, seat (1889) of Otero county, southeastern Colorado, U.S. It lies along the Arkansas River at the northern edge of the Comanche National Grassland, at an elevation of 4,052 feet (1,235 metres). Founded in 1875, it was first called Otero, after a Spanish settler; its present name is Spanish for “the junction,” referring to its location at the convergence of the old Santa Fe and Navajo trails. La Junta

Ts'ao Kuo-chiu

2004-11-24T01:20:00.000-08:00

Pinyin Cao Guojiu, in Chinese mythology, one of the Pa Hsien, the Eight Immortals of Taoism. Ts'ao is sometimes depicted in official robes and hat and carrying a tablet indicative of his rank and of his right to palace audiences. He was a man of exemplary character who often reminded a dissolute brother that though one can escape the laws of man, one cannot avoid the nets of heaven. In another

Detaille, édouard

2004-11-22T04:22:00.000-08:00

Detaille studied with Ernest Meissonier and employed a technique of literal exactitude based on that of his teacher. Detaille developed a wide knowledge of military detail, which made his work an important source for the study of late-19th-century

X-trisomy

2004-11-20T21:22:00.000-08:00

Sex chromosome disorder of human females, in which three X chromosomes are present, rather than the normal pair. More common than Turner's syndrome, where only one X chromosome is present, X-trisomy usually remains undetected because affected individuals appear normal, experience puberty, and are usually fertile. Statistical studies suggest a slightly increased

Crocidolite

2004-11-17T18:01:00.000-08:00

Crocidolite is often replaced

Pushkin, Aleksandr Sergeyevich

2004-11-16T21:35:00.000-08:00

Russian poet, novelist, dramatist, and short-story writer; he has often been considered his country's greatest poet and the founder of modern Russian literature.

Ankara

2004-11-13T20:44:00.000-08:00

While the date of the city's foundation is uncertain, archaeological evidence indicates habitation at least since the Stone Age, and a thriving Phrygian town was located in the area at the end of the 2nd millennium

Omen

2004-11-11T18:43:00.000-08:00

Observed phenomenon that is interpreted as signifying good or bad fortune. In ancient times omens were numerous and varied and included, for instance, lightning, cloud movements, the flight of birds, and the paths of certain sacred animals. Within each type of sign were minor subdivisions, such as the different kinds of bird in flight or the direction of flight in relation

Skat

2004-11-10T05:15:00.000-08:00

Skat is for three players. A pack of 32 cards, omitting the 2s, 3s, 4s, 5s, and 6s, is used. Each player receives 10 cards; the remaining 2 are

Marenzio, Luca

2004-11-07T07:33:00.000-08:00

Marenzio published a large number of madrigals and villanelles and five books of motets. He developed an individual technique and was skilled in evoking moods and images suggested by

Stainer, Sir John

2004-11-05T14:19:00.000-08:00

As a boy Stainer sang in the choir of St. Paul's Cathedral (1847–56). At the age of 16 he was appointed organist at the newly opened St. Michael's College, Tenbury, a school for church musicians. Named organist at St. Paul's in 1872, Stainer served in that prestigious position until 1888, when

Women's Equality Day

2004-11-03T05:48:00.000-08:00

Annual event in the United States, observed on August 26 since its inception in 1971, marking women's advancements toward equality with men. August 26, 1970, marked the 50th anniversary of the passage of the Nineteenth Amendment, which granted American women full suffrage. On that anniversary the National Organization for Women (NOW) called upon women nationwide to “strike for

Powell, Michael (latham)

2004-11-01T18:42:00.000-08:00

Powell attended Dulwich College, London (1918–21). He directed his first film, Two Crowded Hours, in 1931. During the 1930s he directed over 20 low-budget, quickly made films before producer Alexander Korda teamed him with Hungarian-born screenwriter Emeric

Irene Ducas

2004-10-30T07:14:00.000-07:00

When Alexius became emperor in April 1081 he reportedly planned to repudiate Irene and wed Mary, who had been married to the former emperors Michael VII

Atlantic Monthly, The

2004-10-29T10:07:00.000-07:00

Monthly journal of literature and opinion, published in Boston, one of the oldest and most respected of American reviews. The Atlantic Monthly was founded in 1857 by Moses Dresser Phillips and Francis H. Underwood. It has long been noted for the quality of its fiction and general articles, contributed by a long line of distinguished editors and authors that includes James

Alimentary Canal

2004-10-27T06:36:00.000-07:00

Also called digestive tract pathway by which food enters the body and solid wastes are expelled. The alimentary canal includes the mouth, pharynx, esophagus, stomach, small intestine, large intestine, and anus. See digestion.

Sanjo, Go-

2004-10-25T09:21:00.000-07:00

One of the few Japanese rulers of the period not born of a Fujiwara mother, Takahito became emperor in 1068, taking the reign name Go-Sanjo

Artificial Organ

2004-10-22T21:38:00.000-07:00

Any machine, device, or other material that is used to replace the functions of a faulty or missing organ or other part of the human body. Artificial organs include the artificial heart and pacemaker (qq.v.), the use of dialysis (q.v.) to perform kidney functions, and the use of artificial substitutes for missing limbs (see prosthesis).

Allée

2004-10-21T09:09:00.000-07:00

The allée normally passed through a planted boscage (a small wood); in the 17th century the boscage was square-trimmed at the sides and on top; later the sides were

Uzbekistan, Flag Of

2004-10-18T22:07:00.000-07:00

Uzbekistan legalized the design of its new national flag on November 18, 1991. More than 200 proposals had been submitted in a flag design contest; the winning pattern had five unequal horizontal stripes, as in the flag adopted in 1952 when the country was known as the Uzbek Soviet Socialist Republic. The former flag's horizontal stripes of red-blue-red with white fimbriations symbolized

Adams, Franklin Pierce

2004-10-17T03:14:00.000-07:00

Adams' newspaper career began in 1903, with the Chicago Journal. The next year he went to New York, where

Dahn, (julius Sophus) Felix

2004-10-14T02:46:00.000-07:00

Dahn's most substantial

Crocodile

2004-10-13T10:23:00.000-07:00

The

Auersperg, Johann Weikhart, Prince (fürst) Von

2004-10-11T04:21:00.000-07:00

After serving briefly as a Habsburg court councillor, Auersperg was sent to The Hague (1641), and later he took part in peace negotiations at Osnabrück, which ultimately ended the Thirty Years'

Puerto De San José

2004-10-08T23:20:00.000-07:00

Port town, south-central Guatemala, situated along the Pacific Ocean. Opened in 1853 and now the nation's third largest port, it is a roadstead with a long wharf; passengers and cargo are transferred from ships anchored 1 mile (1.6 km) offshore. San José handles a considerable portion of Guatemala's imports, especially petroleum; the port's chief exports are molasses, coffee, cotton,

Drame Bourgeois

2004-10-07T21:36:00.000-07:00

Type of play that enjoyed brief popularity in France in the late 18th century. Written for and about the middle class and based upon the theories of the French essayist and encyclopaedist Denis Diderot (1713–84), the drame bourgeois was conceived of as occupying a place between tragedy and comedy; it was designed as a serious depiction of middle-class problems, especially social

Candidiasis

2004-10-05T13:51:00.000-07:00

Also called moniliasis infectious disease produced by the yeastlike fungus Candida albicans and closely related species. A common inhabitant of the mouth, vagina, and intestinal tract, Candida ordinarily causes no ill effects, except among infants and in persons debilitated by illness such as diabetes. There is evidence that prolonged treatment with broad-spectrum antibiotics, such

Subarnarekha River

2004-10-01T21:40:00.000-07:00

River in northeastern India, rising in southern Bihar state. The Subarnarekha (meaning “streak of gold”) flows east through a copper-mining region and leaves the Chota Nagpur plateau by the Hundrugbagh waterfall. Continuing eastward, it flows across West Bengal state to enter the Bay of Bengal after a 290-mile (470-kilometre) course. The Kanchi and Karkari rivers are its chief

Athens

2004-09-28T07:10:00.000-07:00

City, seat (1871) of Clarke county (with which it was consolidated in 1990), northeastern Georgia, U.S., on the Oconee River. Founded in 1801 as the seat of the University of Georgia (chartered 1785), it was probably named for Athens, Greece. The city grew with the university, was spared the destruction that accompanied Union General William Tecumseh Sherman's march through Georgia in 1864, and became

Armoury Museum

2004-09-26T18:32:00.000-07:00

Russian Oruzheinaya Palata, in Moscow, oldest museum in Russia. It is housed in a building between the Great Kremlin Palace and the Kremlin wall, was designed by Konstantin A. Thon, and was built between 1844 and 1851. The museum was originally founded to house the treasures accumulated over the centuries by Russia and is Russo-Byzantine in style. The treasures of the Kremlin cathedrals and the Synodal Treasury

Pacific Mountain System

2004-09-25T11:58:00.000-07:00

Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo, a Portuguese explorer in the service of Spain, probably was the first European to explore the coast of California. He is thought to have sailed north in 1542, and his pilot, Bartolomé Ferrelo, may have reached as far as the present southern border of Oregon. Sir Francis Drake sailed the coast in 1579 and may have landed in Oregon. Juan Pérez landed on the

Necker, Suzanne

2004-09-23T22:12:00.000-07:00

Née Curchod Swiss wife of the French finance minister under Louis XVI, Jacques Necker; mother of Madame de Staël; and mistress of a brilliant Parisian salon. At first she was engaged to the English historian Edward Gibbon, but his father broke off the match. In 1764 she married Necker, then a banker, and encouraged him in his political career.

Alcobaça

2004-09-21T06:27:00.000-07:00

Town and concelho (township), Leiria distrito (“district”), west-central Portugal. It lies at the confluence of the Alcoa and Baça rivers, just south-southwest of the city of Leiria. Alcobaça is notable for its Cistercian monastery (Mosteiro de Santa Maria), founded in 1152 by King Afonso I in thanksgiving for the reconquest of Santarém from the Moors and rebuilt in the 13th century.

Iapetus

2004-09-18T02:26:00.000-07:00

Exterior moon in the Saturn system, extraordinary because of its surface markings. Discovered by Gian Domenico Cassini in 1671, Iapetus orbits Saturn once every 79.33 Earth days at a distance of 3,561,000 km (2,212,800 miles). The satellite's radius and mass are, respectively, 730 ± 10 km (454 ± 6 miles) and 1.88 ± 0.12 ´ 1024 grams, implying a bulk density of 1.16 ± 0.09 grams per cubic centimetre. A solid object with so low a density must be composed

Abacha, Sani

2004-09-16T11:21:00.000-07:00

Abacha received his formal military training at Nigerian and British military training colleges. He rose through the ranks in the Nigerian military and by 1983 had achieved the rank of brigadier when he assisted Ibrahim Babangida in overthrowing Shehu Shagari, who had been elected

Wu-kung Mountains

2004-09-14T01:57:00.000-07:00

Wade–Giles romanization Wukung Shan, Pinyin Wugong Shan, mountain range, chiefly in west-central Kiangsi Province, China, forming a part of the frontier area between Kiangsi and Hunan provinces. The range is about 80 miles (130 km) long and extends northeastward from Ch'a-ling in Hunan to near I-ch'un in Kiangsi, being divided from the Chiu-ling Mountains farther north by the valley route between Chu-chou and I-ch'un. The western section

Qanat

2004-09-12T20:27:00.000-07:00

Also spelled kanat (Arabic), Persian karez , Berber Arabic foggara ancient type of water-supply system developed and still used in arid regions of the world. A qanat taps underground mountain water sources trapped in and beneath the upper reaches of alluvial fans and channels the water downhill through a series of tunnels, often several kilometres long, to the places where it is needed for irrigation and domestic use. The development

Zen

2004-09-10T00:33:00.000-07:00

Chinese Ch'an (from Sanskrit dhyana, “meditation”), important school of Buddhism in Japan that claims to transmit the spirit or essence of Buddhism, which consists in experiencing the enlightenment (bodhi) achieved by Gautama the Buddha. The school arose in the 6th century in China as Ch'an, a form of Mahayana Buddhism; though introduced centuries earlier, Zen did not fully develop in Japan

Yampi Sound

2004-09-09T02:28:00.000-07:00

Portion of the Indian Ocean off the north coast of Western Australia, between King Sound and Collier Bay. It contains the four island clusters of the Buccaneer Archipelago, named for the buccaneer William Dampier. High-grade iron-ore deposits occur on the islands, the largest of which are Koolan, Irvine (with extensive underwater iron deposits), and Cockatoo. On Cockatoo,

Dryden, John

2004-09-06T06:56:00.000-07:00

The abdication of James II in 1688 destroyed Dryden's political prospects, and he lost his

Accoramboni, Vittoria

2004-08-31T07:18:00.000-07:00

She was the 10th child in a well-to-do but not illustrious family that hoped to better its position by marrying Vittoria,

Mother Goddess

2004-08-30T13:08:00.000-07:00

Any of a variety of feminine deities and maternal symbols of creativity, birth, fertility, sexual union, nurturing, and the cycle of growth. The term also has been applied to figures as diverse as the so-called Stone Age Venuses and the Virgin Mary. Because motherhood is one of the universal human realities, there is no culture that has not employed some maternal symbolism