LikeBrake

Estate Agent London

2006-10-26T11:55:00.000-07:00

Robert Irving Burns specialise in London Commercial and Residential property services, including Estate Agent Covent Garden and Estate Agent London. Their centrally located ground floor offices, minutes from Oxford Circus offer an ideal marketing base for your property.

Jackson, Mahalia

2005-04-04T22:24:00.000-07:00

Jackson was brought up in a strict religious atmosphere. Her father's family included several entertainers, but she was forced to confine her own musical activities to singing in the church choir and listening—surreptitiously—to recordings

Biblical Literature, Analogical interpretation

2005-04-04T10:14:00.000-07:00

Analogical interpretation traditionally includes not only interpretation according to the analogy of Scripture (parallelism, in other words) but also interpretation according to the “analogy of faith”—an expression that misapplies the language of Rom. 12:6 in the King James Version of 1611. It has at times been pressed to mean that no biblical interpretation is valid unless

Arabia, History Of, Struggle for leadership

2005-04-03T08:45:00.000-07:00

In Arabia offices were generally hereditary and elective; but on Muhammad's death, Abu Bakr, the first caliph, aided by his own eventual successor, 'Umar, gained the leadership that Quraysh might have lost to others. They were not of the house of Hashim, which, from the outset, felt cheated of its rights. 'Ali, Muhammad's stepbrother and son-in-law, became the focus of legitimist

Essen

2005-04-02T17:30:00.000-08:00

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

Delors, Jacques

2005-04-02T03:26:00.000-08:00

The son of a courier at the Banque de France, Delors himself joined the bank in 1945, later earning a degree in economics from the Sorbonne. He became active in the Christian Trade Union Confederation (renamed the Democratic Trade Union

Spodosol

2005-03-31T08:29:00.000-08:00

One of the 12 soil orders in the U.S. Soil Taxonomy. Spodosols are ashy gray, acidic soils with a strongly leached surface layer. Their suitability for cultivation is limited to acid-tolerant crops and orchards, provided that sufficient lime and fertilizer are applied. Covering about 3.5 percent of the nonpolar continental land area on Earth, they are mainly found bordering

Delors, Jacques

2005-03-30T22:30:00.000-08:00

The BJP traces its roots to the Bharatiya Jana Sangh (BJS; Indian People's Association), which was established in 1951 as the political wing of the Hindu paramilitary group Rashtriya Swayamesevak Sangh (RSS; National Volunteers Corps) by Shyama Prasad Mukherjee. The BJS advocated the rebuilding of India in accordance

Germanic Religion And Mythology, Minor Aesir

2005-03-30T13:49:00.000-08:00

A number of minor deities are also ranked among the Aesir. The god Heimdall (Heimdal[l]r) is particularly interesting, but rather enigmatic. His antagonism with Loki, with whom he struggles for the possession of the Brísingamen necklace, results in their killing each other in the Ragnarök, according to Snorri. Heimdall is of mysterious origin: he is the son of nine mothers,

Abelson, Philip Hauge

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

After receiving a Ph.D. (1939) in nuclear physics from the University of California at Berkeley, Abelson worked

Land Bridge

2005-03-28T15:33:00.000-08:00

Any of several isthmuses that have connected the Earth's major landmasses at various times, with the result that many species of plants and animals have extended their ranges to new areas. A land bridge that had a profound effect on the fauna of the New World extended from Siberia to Alaska during most of the Tertiary and Quaternary periods (beginning 66.4 million years

Amon

2005-03-28T09:54:00.000-08:00

Amon may have been originally a local deity at Khmun (Hermopolis) in Middle Egypt; his cult reached Thebes, where he became the patron of the pharaohs by the reign of Mentuhotep I (2008–1957 BC). At that date he was already identified with the sun god Re of Heliopolis and, as Amon-Re, was received as a national god. Represented in human form,

Carnivore, Importance to humans

2005-03-27T18:39:00.000-08:00

If taken when young, the grizzly can be tamed quite easily and is not uncommon in circus acts. Unfortunately, man has come to picture the bear as being quite tame and harmless, with the result that the bear is viewed without the respect that this potentially dangerous creature deserves. The grizzly is the most dangerous of the bears to man, of the most interest economically

Biography

2005-03-27T17:52:00.000-08:00

Form of nonfictional literature, the subject of which is the life of an individual. One of the oldest forms of literary expression, it seeks to recreate in words the life of a human being, that of the writer himself or of another person, drawing upon the resources, memory and all available evidences—written, oral, pictorial.

Udmurtiya

2005-03-27T14:45:00.000-08:00

From the republic's highest point, a low (1,080 feet [330 m]) outlier of the Ural Mountains

Mathematics, Foundations Of, Abstraction in mathematics

2005-03-25T23:49:00.000-08:00

One recent tendency in the development of mathematics has been the gradual process of abstraction. The Norwegian mathematician Niels Henrik Abel (1802–29) proved that equations of the fifth degree cannot, in general, be solved by radicals. The French mathematician Évariste Galois (1811–32), motivated in part by Abel's work, introduced certain groups of permutations to determine

Cheng Ch'eng-kung

2005-03-24T11:19:00.000-08:00

Earl Swisher, “Chêng Ch'êng-kung,” in A.W. Hummel (ed.), Eminent Chinese of the Ch'ing Period, 1644–1912, vol. 1, pp. 108–110 (1943, reprinted 1970), is a very brief but reliable biography. See also the articles on Cheng Ching and Cheng Chih-lung. W. Campbell, Formosa Under the Dutch (1903), is still the most detailed English-language account of the Cheng regime on Taiwan.

Problem Play

2005-03-24T05:26:00.000-08:00

Type of drama that developed in the 19th century to deal with controversial social issues in a realistic manner, to expose social ills, and to stimulate thought and discussion on the part of the audience. The genre had its beginnings in the work of the French dramatists Alexandre Dumas fils and Émile Augier, who adapted the then-popular formula of Eugène Scribe's “well-made

Music, Opera.

2005-03-23T02:20:00.000-08:00

The Finnish National Opera opened a new house in Helsinki, and the Opéra de Lyon (France) inaugurated a bold new home set within and above the walls of an 1831 theatre. With Glyndebourne's theatre under construction, the British company's productions were transferred to the Royal Festival Hall in London and the new Symphony Hall in Birmingham. The Metropolitan Opera in

Jewfish

2005-03-22T13:57:00.000-08:00

Any of several large fishes of the sea bass (q.v.) family (Serranidae), especially Epinephelus itajara, found on the Atlantic coast of tropical America. This species sometimes attains a length of 2.5 metres (8 feet) and a weight of about 320 kilograms (700 pounds). The adult is dull olive-brown with faint spots and bands. Adult jewfish are usually solitary and typically remain in the same

Azariah, The Prayer Of

2005-03-21T17:50:00.000-08:00

The Prayer of Azariah and the accompanying Song of the Three Young Men form part of chapter three and embellish the story of Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, three young Jewish men who were bound and

Quintana, Manuel José

2005-03-21T15:31:00.000-08:00

After studying law at the University of Salamanca, he went to Madrid to begin his

World War I, Eastern Front strategy, 1914

2005-03-21T02:46:00.000-08:00

Russian Poland, the westernmost part of the Russian Empire, was a thick tongue of land enclosed to the north by East Prussia, to the west by German Poland (Poznania) and by Silesia, and to the south by Austrian Poland (Galicia). It was thus obviously exposed to a two-pronged invasion by the Central Powers; but the Germans, apart from their grand strategy of crushing France

Chaffinch

2005-03-19T19:14:00.000-08:00

(Fringilla coelebs), songbird of the family Fringillidae (order Passeriformes) that breeds in gardens and farmlands of Europe and northern Africa to central Asia (and, by introduction, South Africa). It is the commonest finch in western Europe. The 15-centimetre (6-inch) male is bluish crowned, with rust-brown back, greenish rump, and pinkish to rust face and

Elf Owl

2005-03-19T11:57:00.000-08:00

(Micrathene whitneyi), tiny bird of prey of the family Strigidae (order Strigiformes) of Mexico and the southwestern United States. It is the smallest owl and is about the size of a sparrow. In the cactus deserts, elf owls are among the most common birds, but they also inhabit forested areas, dry grasslands, and wet savanna. They nest in holes in cacti

China, From Ch'eng-ti to Wong Mang

2005-03-19T03:09:00.000-08:00

In the reigns of Ch'eng-ti (33/32–7/6), Ai-ti (7/6–1 BC), and P'ing-ti (1 BC–AD 6) the conduct of state affairs and the atmosphere of the court were subject to the weakness or youth of the emperors, the lack of an heir to succeed Ch'eng-ti, and the rivalries between four families of Imperial consorts. It was a time when considerable attention was paid to omens. Changes that were first introduced in the state religious

Clovis

2005-03-18T06:21:00.000-08:00

City, seat (1909) of Curry county, eastern New Mexico, U.S., in the High Plains (4,260 feet [1,298 metres] above sea level) near the Texas state line. It was founded in 1906 as a division point for the Santa Fe Railway. Centre of an irrigated farm and ranch area, it has extensive livestock-auction and cattle-feeding facilities and also markets sugar beets, sorghum, wheat, cotton, vegetables, poultry, and

Booth, Catherine

2005-03-17T23:17:00.000-08:00

Her father was a carriage builder and sometime Methodist lay preacher, her mother a deeply religious woman of Puritan type. Catherine, in adolescence an invalid, was educated principally at home,

Interior Design, Furniture and accessories

2005-03-17T19:31:00.000-08:00

To the layman, furniture is the most important aspect of interior design. It is a significant component of design to the professional as well, since it is the most personal and intimate product relating man to a building. It is also personal because it can be moved from one home to the next and handed on from generation to generation, and often furniture takes on important

Actors Studio, The

2005-03-17T15:14:00.000-08:00

Prestigious professional actors' workshop in New York City whose members have been among the most influential performers in American theatre and film since World War II. It is one of the leading centres for the Stanislavsky method of dramatic training. Founded in New York City in 1947 by directors Cheryl Crawford, Elia Kazan, and Robert Lewis, it provides a place where

Baha' Ad-din Zuhayr

2005-03-16T22:37:00.000-08:00

Baha' ad-Din Zuhayr studied at Qus, a centre of trade and scholarship in Upper Egypt, and eventually moved to Cairo. There he entered the service of the Ayyubid prince as-Salih Ayyub, serving as the prince's secretary on a campaign in Syria in 1232. During an Ayyubid family dispute in 1239, as-Sali

Nabis

2005-03-15T21:04:00.000-08:00

Group of artists who, through their widely diverse activities, were a major influence on the art produced in France during the late 19th century. Preaching that a work of art is the end product and visual expression of an artist's synthesis of nature into personal aesthetic metaphors and symbols, they paved the way for the early 20th-century development of abstract and

Dubinsky, David

2005-03-15T04:00:00.000-08:00

The son of a baker in Russian Poland, Dubinsky was sent to Siberia in 1908 for his union activities. He escaped and emigrated to the United States in 1911. While working as a garment cutter in New

Wake

2005-03-15T02:11:00.000-08:00

Watch or vigil held over the body of a dead person before burial and sometimes accompanied by festivity; also, in England, a vigil kept in commemoration of the dedication of the parish church. The latter type of wake consisted of an all-night service of prayer and meditation in the church. These services, officially termed Vigiliae by the church, appear to have existed

Ahmad Ibn Hanbal

2005-03-14T14:28:00.000-08:00

Muslim theologian, jurist, and martyr for his faith. He was the compiler of the Traditions of the Prophet Muhammad (Musnad) and formulator of the Hanbali, the most strictly traditionalist of the four orthodox Islamic schools of law. His doctrine influenced such noted followers as the 13th–14th-century theologian Ibn Taymiyah, the Wahhabiyah, an 18th-century reform

Monemvasía

2005-03-13T07:13:00.000-08:00

Ancient Minoa town, Laconia nomós (department), southern Greece, on the southeastern coast of the Peloponnese. Monemvasía lies at the foot of a rock that stands just offshore and that is crowned by the ruins of a medieval fortress and a 14th-century Byzantine church. It is joined to the mainland by a causeway, from which it derives its modern name meaning “city of the single approach.” The

Ramakrishna Mission

2005-03-13T06:13:00.000-08:00

The society was founded in Calcutta by Vivekananda (q.v.) in 1897 with a twofold purpose: to spread the teachings of Vedanta as embodied in the life

Amphibian, Food and feeding

2005-03-12T21:39:00.000-08:00

Adult amphibians consume a wide variety of foods. Earthworms are the main diet of burrowing caecilians, anurans feed primarily on insects and other arthropods, and large salamanders and some large anurans eat small vertebrates, including birds and mammals. Most anurans and salamanders locate prey by sight, although some use their sense of smell. The

Sino-tibetan Languages, Burmic languages

2005-03-12T06:07:00.000-08:00

A number of Tibeto-Burman languages that are difficult to classify have marginal affiliations with Burmic. The Luish languages (Andro, Sengmai, Kadu, Sak, and perhaps also Chairel) in Manipur, India, and adjacent Myanmar resemble Kachin; Nung (including Rawang and Trung) in Kachin state in Myanmar and in Yunnan,

Great Barrier Reef

2005-03-11T08:02:00.000-08:00

Ribera, José De

2005-03-11T05:37:00.000-08:00

He was born in Spain but spent most of his life in Italy. Little is known of his life in Spain, though he is said by the painter and biographer Antonio Palomino to have received his

Haberler, Gottfried Von

2005-03-10T11:15:00.000-08:00

Haberler studied economics at the University of Vienna under Friedrich von Wieser and Ludwig von Mises, receiving his doctorate in 1925. After further study in England and the United

Pietermaritzburg

2005-03-10T01:40:00.000-08:00

City, south-central KwaZulu/Natal province, South Africa. It lies in the Umsindusi River valley, at the base of a tree-covered escarpment, inland from Durban. Boers from the Cape Colony, who founded it in 1839 after a victory over the Zulus at Blood River, named it to honour their dead leaders Piet Retief and Gerrit Maritz. The British took control in 1843 and built Fort Napier (now

Austenite

2005-03-09T20:01:00.000-08:00

Solid solution of carbon and other constituents in a particular form of iron known as g (gamma) iron. This is a face-centred cubic structure formed when iron is heated above 910° C (1,670° F); gamma iron becomes unstable at temperatures above 1,390° C (2,530° F). Austenite is an ingredient of a kind of stainless steel used for making cutlery, hospital and food-service equipment, and tableware.

Rocket And Missile System

2005-03-09T19:10:00.000-08:00

Strategic missiles represent a logical step in the attempt to attack enemy forces at a distance. As such, they can be seen as extensions of either artillery (in the case of ballistic missiles) or manned aircraft (in the case of cruise missiles). Ballistic missiles are rocket-propelled weapons that travel by momentum in a high, arcing trajectory after they have been launched

Tihamat 'asir

2005-03-08T20:41:00.000-08:00

Coastal plain of the Asir region, southwestern Saudi Arabia. It is the central southern section of the great Tihamah (coastal plain), running down the west coast of the Arabian Peninsula. It is situated between the mountains of western Saudi Arabia and the Red Sea and is immediately north of Yemen. Approximately 40 miles (64 km) in width, its salty tidal plain is of limited agricultural

Tulancingo

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

City, southeastern Hidalgo estado (“state”), north-central Mexico. Tulancingo lies along the Río Grande de Tulancingo, at 7,290 feet (2,222 m) above sea level. It was taken from the Toltec Indians by the Spaniards in the 1520s. The city, which contains several colonial churches, became the seat of a bishopric in 1862. It is an agricultural (barley and alfalfa) and industrial centre and has several

Marrah Mountains

2005-03-07T17:40:00.000-08:00

Arabic Jabal Marra, mountain range, a rugged volcanic chain extending for 100 miles (160 km) west-southwest of Al-Fashir, in west-central Sudan. The highest point of the Nile-Lake Chad watershed, the mountains reach heights of more than 10,000 feet (3,000 m). Some intermittent tributaries of the Al-'Arab River rise on the southern flanks.

Savannakhét

2005-03-06T18:38:00.000-08:00

Town in the central southern panhandle of Laos, on the left bank of the Mekong River. It had a teacher-training school (1911), a public high school (1946), a Buddhist secondary school, a trade school, and the Savannakhét Technical College before the 1975 communist takeover. Industries in the town included manufacturing of soft drinks, ice making, and a sawmill. There is an airport, and a road

Romanov Dynasty

2005-03-06T03:47:00.000-08:00

Rulers of Russia from 1613 until the Russian Revolution of February 1917. Descendants of Andrey Ivanovich Kobyla (Kambila), a Muscovite boyar who lived during the reign of the grand prince of Moscow Ivan I Kalita (reigned 1328–41), the Romanovs acquired their name from Roman Yurev (d. 1543), whose daughter Anastasiya Romanovna Zakharina-Yureva was the first wife of Ivan IV the Terrible (reigned

Vierordt, Karl Von

2005-03-06T01:11:00.000-08:00

Vierordt studied at the universities of Berlin, Göttingen, Vienna, and Heidelberg and started a practice at Karlsruhe in 1842. His first papers, on respiration and strabismus

As If, Philosophy Of

2005-03-05T11:02:00.000-08:00

The system espoused by Hans Vaihinger in his major philosophical work Die Philosophie des Als Ob (1911; The Philosophy of “As If”), which proposed that man willingly accept falsehoods or fictions in order to live peacefully in an irrational world. Vaihinger, who saw life as a maze of contradictions and philosophy as a search for means to make life livable, began by accepting

Hesychasm

2005-03-05T09:04:00.000-08:00

In Eastern Christianity, type of monastic life in which practitioners seek divine quietness (Greek hesychia) through the contemplation of God in uninterrupted prayer. Such prayer, involving the entire human being—soul, mind, and body—is often called “pure,” or “intellectual,” prayer or the Jesus prayer. St. John Climacus, one of the greatest writers of the Hesychast tradition,

Mills, Florence

2005-03-04T11:35:00.000-08:00

Born into poverty, Mills early demonstrated a talent for singing and dancing. Under the name “Baby Florence,” she

A'sha, Al-

2005-03-04T06:41:00.000-08:00

Al-A'sha spent his youth in travels through Mesopotamia,

Cosmic Ray

2005-03-03T19:56:00.000-08:00

A high-speed particle—either an atomic nucleus or an electron—that travels throughout the Milky Way Galaxy, including the solar system. Some of these particles originate from the Sun, but most come from sources outside the solar system and are known as galactic cosmic rays (GCRs). Cosmic-ray particles that arrive at the top of the Earth's atmosphere are termed primaries;

Anthony, Michael

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

In the mid-1950s Anthony left Trinidad to live in England, where he worked at Reuters News Agency

Gaelic Revival

2005-03-02T22:53:00.000-08:00

Resurgence of interest in Irish language, literature, history, and folklore inspired by the growing Irish nationalism of the early 19th century. By that time Gaelic had died out as a spoken tongue except in isolated rural areas; English had become the official and literary language of Ireland. The discovery by philologists of how to read Old Irish (written prior to 900) and

Arbus, Diane

2005-03-02T22:50:00.000-08:00

Diane Nemerov was the daughter of Gertrude Russek and David Nemerov, proprietors of a department store. Her older brother was the poet and critic Howard Nemerov. At age 18 she married Allan Arbus (divorced

Chang Ping-lin

2005-03-01T07:58:00.000-08:00

Chang received a traditional education during which he was influenced by Ming dynasty (1368–1644) loyalist writers who had refused to serve the foreign Ch'ing dynasty (1644–1911/12) established by the Manchu tribes of Manchuria.

Novaya Zemlya

2005-02-28T17:01:00.000-08:00

Novaya Zemlya (“New Land”) consists of two large islands, Severny (northern) and Yuzhny (southern), aligned for 600 miles (1,000 km) in a southwest-northeast direction, plus several smaller islands. The two major islands are separated by a narrow strait, Matochkin Shar, only about

Table Tennis

2005-02-28T14:39:00.000-08:00

At the 1997 world table tennis championships in Manchester, Eng., China again dominated play, winning six of the seven titles. The men's team from China defeated France (the first time since 1948 France had reached the final), while the women's team downed North Korea. Deng Yaping, the 24-year-old 1992 and 1996 Olympic champion, won her third world singles championship, then announced her retirement.

Absolution

2005-02-28T11:20:00.000-08:00

In the Christian religion, a pronouncement of remission (forgiveness) of sins to the penitent. In Roman Catholicism, penance is a sacrament and the power to absolve lies with the priest, who can grant release from the guilt of sin to the sinner who is truly contrite, confesses his sin, and promises to perform satisfaction to God. In the New Testament the grace of forgiveness

Philip V

2005-02-27T20:36:00.000-08:00

Philip was the second son of Philip IV, who made him count of Poitiers in 1311. When his elder brother, King Louis X, died in 1316, leaving an infant daughter Joan by his adulterous first wife, and a pregnant widow, Philip won

Goblin

2005-02-27T18:15:00.000-08:00

In Western folklore, a wandering sprite that is usually mischievous but often malicious. Goblins supposedly live in grottoes but attach themselves to households, where they are believed to bang upon pots and pans, snatch nightclothes off the bodies of sleeping people, move furniture at night, and flee after rapping on walls and doors. They are

Latin Literature, Early writers

2005-02-27T07:52:00.000-08:00

The ground for Roman literature was prepared by an influx from the early 3rd century BC onward of Greek slaves, some of whom were put to tutoring young Roman nobles. Among them was Livius Andronicus, who was later freed and who is considered to be the first Latin writer. In 240 BC, to celebrate Rome's victory over Carthage, he composed a genuine drama adapted from the Greek. His success

Xenophon

2005-02-26T00:29:00.000-08:00

As a writer of prose, Xenophon ranked with his fellow historians Herodotus and Thucydides in the opinion of literary critics of antiquity and had a stronger influence on Latin literature than either. His works were translated into many European languages in the 16th century, and, until comparatively recently, his reputation stood high. He was the first journalist

Differential Psychology

2005-02-25T01:55:00.000-08:00

Branch of psychology that deals with individual and group differences in behaviour. Charles Darwin's studies of the survival capabilities of different species and Sir Francis Galton's researches on individual visual and auditory skills, as well as more recent experiments, have shown that both individual and group differences are quantitative rather than

Cumberland

2005-02-25T00:37:00.000-08:00

County, south-central Pennsylvania, U.S. It consists of a hilly region in the Appalachian Ridge and Valley physiographic province bounded to the north by Blue Mountain, to the east by the Susquehanna River, to the southeast by Yellow Breeches Creek, and to the south by the Blue Ridge Mountains. Conodoguinet Creek and the Appalachian National Scenic Trail cross the

Lipset, Seymour Martin

2005-02-24T18:15:00.000-08:00

After receiving his B.S. from City College of New York (1943), Lipset was a lecturer at the University of Toronto (1946–48) and then an assistant professor at the University of California,

Brechin

2005-02-23T14:44:00.000-08:00

Small royal burgh (town), council area and historic county of Angus, Scotland, situated on the River South Esk in the fertile vale of Strathmore. One of Scotland's three round towers (10th-century) adjoins the 12th-century cathedral. In 1296 Scotland was ceded temporarily to the English at Brechin. Brechin Castle subsequently made a gallant stand against the English forces of

Taegu

2005-02-22T23:42:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Taiku, or Daegu, city and provincial capital, Kyongsang-puk do (province), southeastern South Korea. Taegu is Korea's third largest city and has the status of a special city, with administrative status equal to that of a province. It lies east of the confluence of the Naktong and the Kumho rivers and 55 miles (90 km) north-northwest of Pusan. The city lies in a valley rimmed by low mountains that reach

Bend

2005-02-22T02:13:00.000-08:00

City, seat (1916) of Deschutes county, central Oregon, U.S. It lies along the Deschutes River, in the eastern foothills of the Cascade Range (west), and is bordered by Pilot Butte (east). Laid out in 1904, the community grew after the Deschutes Irrigation and Power Company opened farmland for settlement in 1909. Vast timber resources influenced a railroad boom (1911), sawmills were built, and wood

Atacama

2005-02-21T13:37:00.000-08:00

In their widely scattered settlements the Atacama cultivated crops such as corn (maize), beans, quinoa, and squash with the aid of irrigation. They herded llama

Russell, Ken

2005-02-21T09:44:00.000-08:00

The son of a shoe-store owner, Russell became a cadet at the Nautical College at Pangbourne and subsequently joined the British Merchant Navy. After training as an electrician in the

Benedict (xiv)

2005-02-21T07:19:00.000-08:00

In 1417 the Council of Constance deposed the antipope Pope Benedict (XIII) and elected Martin V, thus officially terminating the Western Schism between Avignon and Rome. However, Benedict, protected in his castle of Peñíscola in Valencia, resisted until his death in 1423 and even reconstituted his court by creating four new cardinals. The intrigues

Zakrzewska, Marie Elizabeth

2005-02-20T01:32:00.000-08:00

Zakrzewska early developed a strong interest in medicine, and at age 20 she was admitted to the school for midwives at the

Hooker, Isabella Beecher

2005-02-19T07:56:00.000-08:00

Isabella Beecher was a daughter of the Reverend Lyman Beecher and a half sister of Henry Ward Beecher, Catharine Beecher, and Harriet Beecher Stowe. She was educated mainly in schools founded by Catharine. In 1841 she married John Hooker,

China, Phase one

2005-02-18T22:23:00.000-08:00

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

ávila

2005-02-18T20:42:00.000-08:00

In full Ávila De Los Caballeros, city and capital of Ávila province, in the Castile-León comunidad autónoma (“autonomous community”), central Spain. The city of Ávila is situated on the Adaja River at 3,715 feet (1,132 m) above sea level and is surrounded by the lofty Sierra de Gredos (south) and the Sierra de Guadarrama (east). The city lies 54 miles (87 km) west of Madrid. A pre-Roman settlement on the site became part of Roman Lusitania

Anthony, Susan B.

2005-02-18T01:31:00.000-08:00

Anthony was reared in the Quaker tradition in a home pervaded by a tone of independence

Smith, Hannah Whitall

2005-02-17T16:55:00.000-08:00

Hannah Whitall grew up in a strict Quaker home and had from childhood a deep concern with religion and a habit of introspection. In 1851 she married Robert P. Smith, also a Quaker, and in 1865 they moved to Millville,

Indian Philosophy, Metaphysics and epistemology

2005-02-17T14:45:00.000-08:00

For Vacaspati, creation was viewed in terms of the mere presence of the selves and the mere presentation to them of Matter (the undifferentiated primeval stuff). Such a view has obvious difficulties, for it would make creation eternal, because the selves and Matter are eternally copresent. Vijñanabhiksu considered the relation between the selves and Matter to be a real

Bükk Mountains

2005-02-16T04:55:00.000-08:00

A southward-projecting spur of the Carpathian Mountains, in northeastern Hungary. It comprises a forested highland area extending some 30 miles (50 km) from the Tarna River on the west to the Sajó River in the east and 20 miles (32 km) from north to south. Maximum elevation is reached at Mount Istállósko (3,146 feet [959 m]). The central core of the Bükk is a 12.5-by-4.5-mile (20-by-7-kilometre) limestone plateau

Afro-asiatic Languages, Northern Central Semitic

2005-02-16T00:14:00.000-08:00

The Northern Central Semitic group includes the Canaanite, Ugaritic, and Amorite languages of the Ancient Stage, which were spoken in Palestine, Phoenicia, Syria, and Mesopotamia from the 3rd to the 2nd millennium BC. To the Middle Stage belongs Phoenician-Punic, spoken in Phoenicia, on islands of the Mediterranean, and in North Africa, from the 2nd millennium BC to the 1st millennium

Ear Disease

2005-02-15T06:11:00.000-08:00

Diseases of the outer ear are those that afflict skin, cartilage, and the glands and hair follicles in the outer-ear canal. The sound-transmitting function of the outer ear is impaired when the ear canal becomes filled with tumour, infected material, or earwax (cerumen), so that sound cannot reach the tympanic membrane, or eardrum. The most common diseases of the outer

Earth, Paleoclimatological data

2005-02-14T17:30:00.000-08:00

Alfred Wegener was a meteorologist who was particularly interested in the study of ancient climates (paleoclimatology). He noticed that sedimentary rocks indicative of having been deposited in warm climates are now found in cold climates and vice versa. He felt that these observations were best explained if the continents had moved relative to each other and

Roosevelt, Franklin D., Declining health and death

2005-02-14T11:41:00.000-08:00

Roosevelt had been suffering from advanced arteriosclerosis for more than a year before the Yalta Conference. His political opponents had tried to make much of his obviously declining health during the campaign of 1944, when he ran for a fourth term against Governor Thomas E. Dewey of New York. But Roosevelt campaigned actively and won the election by a popular vote of 25 million to 22 million and an electoral college vote of 432 to 99. (See primary source document: Fourth Inaugural Address.) By the time of his return from Yalta, however, he was so weak that for the first time in his presidency he spoke to Congress while sitting down. Early in April 1945 he traveled to his cottage in Warm Springs, Georgia—the “Little White House”—to rest. On the afternoon of April 12, while sitting for a portrait, he suffered a massive cerebral hemorrhage, and he died a few hours later. With him at his death were two cousins, Laura Delano and Margaret Suckley, and Lucy Mercer Rutherfurd (by then a widow), with whom he had renewed his relationship a few years before.

Eagles, The

2005-02-14T08:05:00.000-08:00

Marc Shapiro, The Story of the Eagles: The Long Run (1995), is a biography. Marc Eliot, To the Limit: The Untold Story of the Eagles (1997), contains copious information on the band's formation and business dealings. James Hunter, “The Eagles,” in Paul Kingsbury (ed.), Country on Compact Disc (1993), pp. 55–56, is an evaluative recordings entry with special emphasis on how the Eagles' studio style affected some Nashville artists during the 1990s. “The Eagles,” in Patricia Romanowski, Holly George-Warren, and Jon Pareles (eds.), The New Rolling Stone Encyclopedia of Rock & Roll, completely rev. and updated (1995), pp. 293–295, includes a discography, career chronologies, and band history.

Biblical Literature, Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs

2005-02-13T03:24:00.000-08:00

The third pseudepigraphon that shows important affinities with the Dead Sea sect is the Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs, the last speeches of the 12 sons of the Hebrew patriarch Jacob. In its extant form, containing Christian passages, the book was written in Greek. Fragments of two original Semitic sources of the book were found among the Dead Sea Scrolls: the Aramaic

Ganymede

2005-02-12T17:47:00.000-08:00

Greek Ganymedes, Latin Ganymedes, or Catamitus, in Greek legend, the son of Tros (or Laomedon), king of Troy. Because of his unusual beauty, he was carried off either by the gods or by Zeus, disguised as an eagle, or, according to a Cretan account, by Minos, to serve as cupbearer. In compensation, Zeus gave Ganymede's father a stud of immortal horses (or a golden vine). From early times it was believed that Ganymede's kidnapper had

Honolulu

2005-02-12T09:48:00.000-08:00

Capital and principal port of Hawaii, U.S., seat of Honolulu county. A modern city, it extends about 10 miles (16 km) along the southeastern shore of Oahu Island and 4 miles (6 km) inland across a plain into the Koolau Mountain foothills. It is the crossroads of trans-Pacific shipping and air routes, the focus of interisland services, and the commercial and industrial centre of the

Liri River

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

Latin Liris, river in central Italy, made up of two streams, the Rapido (or Gari) and the Liri, and having a total length of 98 mi (158 km) and a drainage basin of 1,911 sq mi (4,950 sq km). It has its sources near Cappadocia, in the Monti Simbruini east of Rome, and flows south and southeast through a long, narrow, scenic valley in its upper course as far as Arce, where it enters its wide lower valley and receives the

Burgh Family

2005-02-11T17:31:00.000-08:00

Originally Burgo, also spelled Bourke, Burke, a historic Anglo-Irish family associated with Connaught. Its founder was William de Burgo, of a knightly family from eastern England; he and his descendants were granted much of Connaught in the late 12th century, and his grandson Walter was also granted Ulster. Although Walter's great-grandson, William, left no male heir, his kinsmen succeeded in holding the bulk of the

Earth, Age of the oldest marine sediments

2005-02-11T07:07:00.000-08:00

Samples of sediments have been recovered as a result of deep drilling and piston coring from many parts of the world's ocean basins. These sediments have been dated by means of the fossils they contain. Such studies have shown that no old sediments are present (at least in the areas sampled) near mid-oceanic ridges. Moreover, the studies also have revealed that the age

China, From Wu-ti to Yüan-ti

2005-02-10T07:53:00.000-08:00

The third emperor of the Hsi Han to be singled out for special praise by traditional Chinese historians was Wu-ti (reigned 141/140–87/86 BC), whose reign was the longest of the whole Han period. His reputation as a vigorous and brave ruler derives from the long series of campaigns fought chiefly against the Hsiung-nu (northern nomads) and in Central Asia. But Wu-ti never took a personal

Mammal, Circulatory system

2005-02-10T06:42:00.000-08:00

In mammals, as in birds, right and left ventricles of the heart are completely separated, so that pulmonary (lung) and systemic (body) circulations are completely independent. Oxygenated blood arrives in the left atrium from the lungs and passes to the left ventricle, whence it is forced through the aorta to the systemic circulation. Deoxygenated blood from the tissues

Tetmajer, Kazimierz

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

Tetmajer belonged to a landowner's family from the foothills of the Tatra Mountains. He studied philosophy in Kraków and in Heidelberg, Germany. Much of his lyric poetry received publication in the Kraków periodical Zycie (“Life”). His nostalgic

Camaldolese

2005-02-09T02:40:00.000-08:00

Member of Congregation of Monk Hermits of Camaldoli an independent offshoot of the Benedictine order, founded about 1012 at Camaldoli near Arezzo, Italy, by St. Romuald as part of the monastic-reform movement of the 11th and 12th centuries. The order combined the solitary life of the hermit with an austere form of the common life of the monk. The monastery and the hermitage formed one unit. Beginners resided in the monastery; the

Ironstone China

2005-02-08T23:57:00.000-08:00

Type of stoneware introduced in England early in the 19th century by Staffordshire potters who sought to develop a porcelain substitute that could be mass-produced. The result of their experiments was a dense, hard, durable stoneware that came to be known by several names—e.g., semiporcelain, opaque porcelain, English porcelain, stone china, new stone—all of which were