MilitaryWall

Breckland

2005-04-03T10:47:00.000-07:00

The name Breckland was first applied in 1894 by the Norfolk naturalist W.G.

Biblical Literature, The Book of Jubilees

2005-04-03T00:08:00.000-08:00

The book is written in the form of a revealed history of Israel from the creation until the dwelling of Moses on Mt. Sinai, where the content of the book was

Pisano, Nicola

2005-04-02T11:23:00.000-08:00

Pisano's origins are unclear. He is first recorded in 1260 in Pisa (or perhaps 1259, if corrections are made for the medieval Pisan calendar), but documents of 1266 twice

Can Tho

2005-04-01T08:34:00.000-08:00

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.

Economic Affairs

2005-03-30T13:17:00.000-08:00

Industrywide consolidation, including significant cross-border transactions involving European banks and American securities firms, continued to reshape the global banking and financial services landscape in 2000. At the same time, however, enactment of sweeping financial modernization legislation in the United States did not trigger significant merger

Juan Carlos

2005-03-30T06:58:00.000-08:00

Juan Carlos was the grandson of the last king, Alfonso XIII, who left Spain in 1931 and died in exile 10 years later, after renouncing his rights in favour of his third son, Juan Carlos Teresa Silverio Alfonso de Borbón y Battenberg, conde de

Kuwait

2005-03-29T22:05:00.000-08:00

Low oil prices caused 1998 to be an extremely difficult year for all oil producers, and Kuwait was obliged to take a hard look at its industry and initiate some significant

Lanchester, Frederick William

2005-03-28T18:44:00.000-08:00

In 1891, after attending Hartley University College (now the University of Southampton) and the National School of Science, Lanchester went to work for a gas-engine works in Birmingham. During his employment at the firm he improved its products

'alawite

2005-03-27T04:30:00.000-08:00

The roots of 'Alawism lie in the teachings of Muhammad ibn Nusayr an-Namiri (fl. 850), a Basran contemporary of the 10th Shi'ite imam, and the sect was chiefly established by Husayn ibn Hamdan al-Khasibi (d. 957 or 968) during the period of the Hamdanid dynasty (905–1004), at which time the 'Alawites had great influence in Aleppo. With the fall of

Bashkortostan

2005-03-26T23:05:00.000-08:00

From Mount Yamantau, the highest peak in the southern Urals, elevation generally decreases southward and westward, with the heavily forested mountains giving way to open steppe interspersed with islands

Petén

2005-03-25T08:44:00.000-08:00

Region of northern Guatemala, bounded on the north and west by Mexico and on the east by Belize. It constitutes more than one-third of the nation's territory. Petén is a low limestone plateau, varying in elevation between 500 and 700 feet (150 and 210 m) above sea level at the base of the Yucatán Peninsula. Except for areas of savanna vegetation, the region is covered by dense tropical rain

Trans-kalahari Highway

2005-03-24T11:44:00.000-08:00

In March 1998 the residents of Botswana and Namibia met at Buitepos on the border between the two countries to inaugurate formally the Trans-Kalahari Highway. The new road formed part of the strategic coast-to-coast route that linked Maputo, Mozambique, on the Indian Ocean to Walvis Bay on the Atlantic coastline of Namibia. It was designed to serve as the backbone of an

Ba Maw

2005-03-23T09:53:00.000-08:00

Ba Maw was educated at Rangoon College, Calcutta University, the University of Cambridge, and the University of Bordeaux, Fr., where he received a doctorate in 1924. Admitted to

Ibn Sa'ud

2005-03-20T08:04:00.000-08:00

Tribal and Muslim religious leader who formed the modern state of Saudi Arabia and initiated the exploitation of its oil.

Mandalay

2005-03-20T05:16:00.000-08:00

Mandalay was built mainly in 1857–59 by King Mindon to replace Amarapura as his capital. It was the last capital of the Myanmar kingdom and

Domino Whist

2005-03-19T22:05:00.000-08:00

Domino game for four players. Partners are drawn for as in the card game whist; the player drawing the highest domino leads. Each player takes seven dominoes, or bones. There are no tricks, trumps, or honours. The bones are played as in ordinary dominoes, a hand being finished when one of the players plays his last bone or when both ends are blocked. Pips are then counted, and

Lilar, Suzanne

2005-03-19T03:06:00.000-08:00

Lilar was of Flemish origins. She began her career as

Cyperaceae

2005-03-18T20:58:00.000-08:00

Sedge family of monocotyledonous flowering plants, a division of the order Cyperales. The Cyperaceae are grasslike herbaceous plants found especially in wet regions throughout the world.

Adams, John

2005-03-17T19:49:00.000-08:00

Early advocate of American independence from Great Britain, major figure in the Continental Congress (1774–77), author of the Massachusetts constitution (1780), signer of the Treaty of Paris (1783), first American ambassador to the Court of St. James (1785–88), first vice president (1789–97) and second president (1797–1801) of the United States. Although Adams was regarded by his contemporaries as one of the most significant statesmen of the revolutionary era, his reputation faded in the 19th century, only to ascend again during the last half of the 20th century. The modern edition of his correspondence prompted a rediscovery of his bracing honesty and pungent way with words, his importance as a political thinker, his realistic perspective on American foreign policy, and his patriarchal role as founder of one of the most prominent families in American history. (For a discussion of the history and nature of the presidency, see presidency of the United States of America. See also Cabinet of President John Adams.)

Celluloid

2005-03-17T17:51:00.000-08:00

The first synthetic plastic material, developed by the American inventor John Wesley Hyatt in the late 1860s from a homogeneous colloidal dispersion of cellulose nitrate and camphor. A tough material, with great tensile strength, resistance to water, oils, and dilute acids, capable of low-cost production in a variety of colours, it found a great variety of applications

Bradley, Joseph P.

2005-03-16T17:06:00.000-08:00

Associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court from 1870. Bradley was appointed to fill a vacancy on the Electoral Commission of 1877, and his vote elected Rutherford B. Hayes president of the United States. As a justice he emphasized the power of the federal government to regulate commerce. His decisions reflecting this view, rendered during

Pierce, John Davis

2005-03-15T16:29:00.000-08:00

Though denied an extensive education as a youth because of his father's early death and consequent family financial limitations, Pierce decided at age 20 to educate himself. He succeeded so well that he was

Sabatier, (louis-) Auguste

2005-03-14T14:58:00.000-08:00

French Protestant theologian and educator who helped revolutionize biblical interpretation by applying methods of historical criticism and promoted the development of liberal theology and the Roman Catholic Modernist movement by his interpretation of Christian doctrine as the symbolism of religious feelings. Among his principal

Eddison, E.r.

2005-03-14T01:30:00.000-08:00

Syria, From the 9th to the 12th century

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

As the 'Abbasid caliphate disintegrated in its turn, Syria drifted out of the sphere of influence of Baghdad. In 877 it was annexed by the Tulunid dynasty of Egypt, and this began a political connection that was to last with intervals for more than six centuries. In northern Syria the Tulunids were succeeded by a local Arab dynasty, the Hamdanids of Aleppo, founded by Sayf ad-Dawlah

Haworth, Sir Norman

2005-03-12T09:45:00.000-08:00

Haworth graduated from the University of Manchester in 1906 and received a Ph.D. degree from the University of Göttingen in 1910. He taught at the University

Mondale, Walter F.

2005-03-12T01:20:00.000-08:00

Mondale, a “flexible liberal,” won election to the Senate in 1966 and reelection in 1972. He served on the Senate Finance and Budget committees and the Committee on Labor and Public Welfare. Elected vice president as Carter's running mate in 1976, he was a key participant in the negotiations between Egyptian president Anwar el-Sadat and Israeli prime minister Menachem Begin that resulted in the Camp David Accords. The Carter-Mondale ticket was defeated for reelection in 1980 by Ronald Reagan and George Bush. Mondale captured the Democratic presidential nomination in 1984 and chose Geraldine A. Ferraro as his running mate, the first woman vice presidential candidate for a major party. They lost the election overwhelmingly to Reagan-Bush. Afterward Mondale practiced law until he was appointed ambassador to Japan (1993–96) by President William J. Clinton. In 2002 Paul Wellstone, the Democratic senator from Minnesota, was killed in a plane crash while campaigning to retain his seat, and the Democratic Party nominated Mondale to take Wellstone's place on the ballot. Mondale accepted the nomination but was narrowly defeated by Republican Norm Coleman.

Janissary

2005-03-11T15:23:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Janizary, Turkish Yeniçeri (New Soldier, or Troop), member of an elite corps in the standing army of the Ottoman Empire from the late 14th century to 1826. Highly respected for their military prowess in the 15th and 16th centuries, the Janissaries became a powerful political force within the Ottoman state. The Janissary corps was originally staffed by Christian

Wandiwash, Battle Of

2005-03-10T21:50:00.000-08:00

Lally, cut off from sea support by the withdrawal of Admiral d'Aché's fleet and hampered by lack of funds and dissensions among his troops, tried

Bridgettine

2005-03-10T18:53:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Brigittine , member of Order of the Most Holy Savior (O.SS.S.) a religious order of cloistered nuns founded by St. Bridget of Sweden in 1344 and approved by Pope Urban V in 1370. Bridget believed that she was called by Christ to found a strictly disciplined religious order that would contribute to the reform of monastic life. She went to Rome to gain approval of her order and died there in 1373. Her foundation began to grow and contributed greatly

Soria

2005-03-09T19:04:00.000-08:00

Town, capital of Soria province, in the Castile-León comunidad autónoma (“autonomous community”), north-central Spain, on the western bank of the Duero (Portuguese: Douro) River, about 110 miles (175 km) northeast of Madrid. Restored by Alfonso I the Warrior of Aragon after the Moorish invasion, the city was later given to Alfonso VII of Castile. Medieval Soria was ruled by the unique

Quincy

2005-03-09T01:43:00.000-08:00

City, seat (1825) of Adams county, western Illinois, U.S., on the Mississippi River, there bridged to Missouri. Settled in 1822 by John Wood (12th governor of Illinois, 1860–61), it was first known as Bluffs. It became the county seat on March 4, 1825, the day that President John Quincy Adams was inaugurated, and was renamed in his honour. As a river town, Quincy was an important stop for travelers. It became a

South American Nomad, Shellfish gatherers

2005-03-08T20:37:00.000-08:00

In the south the Chono, Alacaluf, and Yámana Indians occupied the whole Chilean archipelago southward to Cape Horn. This is a rugged terrain of islands and fjords with heavy rainfall, an average winter temperature of 32° F (0° C), and an average summer temperature of 50° F (10° C). The dense forests make land travel extremely difficult and horticulture impracticable. The area is poor

Caucasian Languages, Georgian

2005-03-06T09:23:00.000-08:00

Georgian (self-designation: kartuli ena), used as the language of literature and instruction, is the state language of the Republic of Georgia. It is common to all speakers of the Kartvelian languages within Georgia. Beyond the borders of Georgia, Georgian is spoken in the adjacent regions of Azerbaijan and northeastern Turkey. There are also 14 villages of Georgian

Mormon, Book Of

2005-03-06T08:51:00.000-08:00

The Book of Mormon relates

Astorga, Emanuele D'

2005-03-06T05:37:00.000-08:00

Astorga belonged to a family of Spanish descent that won a barony in Sicily in the 17th century. The family eventually settled in Palermo. Astorga's first opera, La moglie nemica (“The Hostile Wife”), was

Basra

2005-03-05T23:09:00.000-08:00

Basra

Maucherite

2005-03-04T18:48:00.000-08:00

A nickel arsenide mineral with chemical composition approximating Ni3As2 or Ni11As8, assigned to the group of sulfide minerals. It often occurs with niccolite (to which it alters), as at Mansfeld, Ger.; Los Jarales, Málaga, Spain; and Ontario, Can. Its crystals belong to the tetragonal system. It is identical to the furnace product placodine. For chemical formula and detailed

Coleraine

2005-03-04T09:58:00.000-08:00

Irish Cúil Raithin town, seat, and district (established 1973; formerly astride Counties Antrim and Londonderry), Northern Ireland. Coleraine town is located near the mouth of the River Bann. Flint implements dating back to nearly 7000 BC have been found in the vicinity; they provide the earliest evidence of human occupation in Ireland. The main town on the east bank radiates from a central square,

Rove Beetle

2005-03-03T18:16:00.000-08:00

Rove beetles are usually found around decaying animal and vegetable matter, preying on carrion-feeding insects. Most of them are slender and small (usually less than 3 mm, or 1/8 inch); the largest species, such as the devil's coachhorse (Staphylinus olens), are usually no

Durand, Guillaume

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

After receiving a doctorate in canon law at Bologna, Italy, Durand taught briefly there and later at Modena, Italy. Some time after 1260 he was appointed auditor (a judge commissioned to hear cases of appeal brought to the Holy See). At the second Council of Lyon (1274), he helped draft the statutes

Weill, Kurt

2005-03-02T23:20:00.000-08:00

Weill studied with Albert Bing and at the Staatliche Hochschule für Musik in Berlin with Engelbert Humperdinck. He gained some experience as an opera coach and conductor at Dessau

Irish Wolfhound

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

Tallest of all dog breeds, a keen-sighted hound used in Ireland for many years to hunt wolves and other game. An ancient breed, first mentioned about the 2nd century AD, it is similar in build to the greyhound but far more powerful. The female, which is smaller than the male, stands a minimum of 76 cm (30 inches) and weighs a minimum of 48 kg (105 pounds); male wolfhounds may greatly exceed this

Degree

2005-03-01T17:16:00.000-08:00

The hierarchy of degrees dates back to the universities of 13th-century Europe, which had faculties organized into guilds. Members of the faculties were licensed to teach, and degrees were in effect the professional

Marcello, Benedetto

2005-03-01T11:32:00.000-08:00

Italian composer and writer, especially remembered for two works: the satirical pamphlet Il teatro alla moda (1720); and Estro poeticoarmonico (1724–26), a setting for voices and instruments of the first 50 psalms in an Italian paraphrase by G. Giustiniani. Il teatro alla moda is an amusing pamphlet in which Marcello vented his opinions on the

Great Artesian Basin

2005-03-01T10:44:00.000-08:00

Also called Great Australian Basin, one of the largest areas of artesian water in the world, underlying about one-fifth of Australia. It includes most of the Darling and Lake Eyre catchments and extends northward to the Gulf of Carpentaria. Most of its 676,250 square miles (1,750,000 square km) underlies Queensland, with smaller segments extending under New South Wales, South Australia, and Northern Territory. Its floor

Antaeus

2005-02-28T00:07:00.000-08:00

In Greek mythology, a giant of Libya, the son of the sea god Poseidon and the Earth goddess Gaea. He compelled all strangers who were passing through the country to wrestle with him. Whenever Antaeus touched the Earth (his mother), his strength was renewed, so that even if thrown to the ground, he was invincible. Heracles, in combat with him, discovered the source of his strength

China, Administration, social conditions, and cultural life

2005-02-27T23:30:00.000-08:00

The following periodicals give current information on social, political, cultural, and economic affairs: The China Quarterly; Far Eastern Economic Review (weekly); The China Business Review (bimonthly); China Today (monthly); China Pictorial (monthly); and China News Analysis (biweekly).

Yuga

2005-02-27T11:45:00.000-08:00

In Hindu cosmology, an age of mankind. Each yuga is progressively shorter than the preceding one, corresponding to a decline in the moral and physical state of humanity. Four such yugas (called Krta, Treta, Dvapara, and Kali after throws of an Indian game of dice) make up the mahayuga (“great yuga”), and 2,000 mahayugas make up the basic cosmic cycle, the kalpa. The first yuga (Krta) was an age

Madeira Islands

2005-02-26T06:54:00.000-08:00

Also called Funchal Islands, Portuguese Arquipélago Da Madeira, archipelago of volcanic origin in the North Atlantic Ocean, belonging to Portugal and comprising two inhabited islands, Madeira and Porto Santo, and two uninhabited groups, the Desertas and the Selvagens. The islands are the summits of mountains that have their bases on an abyssal ocean floor. Administratively they form the autonomous region of Madeira. The islands

Dielectric

2005-02-26T04:50:00.000-08:00

Insulating material or a very poor conductor of electric current. When dielectrics are placed in an electric field, practically no current flows in them because, unlike metals, they have no loosely bound, or free, electrons that may drift through the material. Instead, electric polarization occurs. The positive charges within the dielectric are displaced minutely

Mammal, Social behavior

2005-02-25T20:22:00.000-08:00

The dependence of the young mammal on its mother for nourishment has made possible a period of training. Such training permits the nongenetic transfer of information between generations. The ability of young mammals to learn from the experience of their elders has allowed a behavioral plasticity unknown in any other group of organisms and has been a primary

Spallation

2005-02-25T08:13:00.000-08:00

High-energy nuclear reaction in which a target nucleus struck by an incident (bombarding) particle of energy greater than about 50 million electron volts (MeV) ejects numerous lighter particles and becomes a product nucleus correspondingly lighter than the original nucleus. The light ejected particles may be neutrons, protons, or various composite particles equivalent

Housman, Laurence

2005-02-25T02:09:00.000-08:00

Among Housman's earliest works were illustrations for Christina Rossetti's Goblin

China, Political developments

2005-02-24T04:17:00.000-08:00

Gaddi, Taddeo

2005-02-23T06:37:00.000-08:00

His earliest authenticated work is a small triptych with the Virgin enthroned with Child and saints, signed and

Switzerland, Architecture

2005-02-22T18:09:00.000-08:00

The 12th-century Romanesque style found particularly rich expression in the cathedrals of Geneva, Basel, Lausanne, Sion, and Chur and in the many castles and fortresses. The Gothic style was expressed in the cathedrals of Zug, Zürich, and Schaffhausen. Notable examples of Baroque churches are located in Einsiedeln, east of Zug, and in St. Gall. In the Renaissance period

Chandler, William Eaton

2005-02-22T04:28:00.000-08:00

After graduating from Harvard Law School in 1854, Chandler began a dual career in law and journalism. In 1863 he was elected to the New Hampshire legislature. He entered national politics when President

Furniture, Wood

2005-02-22T00:31:00.000-08:00

A relatively cheap material, wood lends itself to various kinds of treatment; for example, it can be stained, painted, gilded, and glued.

Manassas

2005-02-21T18:02:00.000-08:00

During the American Civil

Novel, Picaresque

2005-02-20T18:21:00.000-08:00

In Spain, the novel about the rogue or pícaro was a recognized form, and such English novels as Defoe's The Fortunate Mistress (1724) can be regarded as picaresque in the etymological sense. But the term has come to connote as much the episodic nature of the original species as the dynamic of roguery. Fielding's Tom Jones, whose hero is a bastard, amoral, and very nearly gallows-meat,

Condottiere

2005-02-20T11:25:00.000-08:00

The first mercenary armies in Italy (often called free companies) were made up of foreigners. The earliest (1303) was composed

God Save The Queen

2005-02-19T20:36:00.000-08:00

Also called (during a kingship) God Save the King British royal and national anthem. The origin of both the words and the music is obscure. The many candidates for authorship include John Bull (c. 1562–1628), Thomas Ravenscroft (c. 1583–c. 1633), Henry Purcell (c. 1639–95), and Henry Carey (c. 1687–1743). The earliest copy of the words appeared in Gentleman's Magazine in 1745; the tune appeared about the same time in an anthology, Thesaurus Musicus—in both instances without

Mormon

2005-02-18T19:36:00.000-08:00

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the principal formal body embracing

1945--a Watershed Year

2005-02-18T17:41:00.000-08:00

The Test.--The first atomic bomb in the history of mankind was exploded at 5:30 A.M. on July 16, 1945, at the Alamogordo air base in the desert 120 mi. southeast of Albuquerque, N.M. The bomb had been placed on a tall steel tower while scientists and military experts occupied

Abbott, Lyman

2005-02-18T17:08:00.000-08:00

Abbott left law practice to study theology and was ordained in 1860. After serving in two pastorates he became associate editor of Harper's Magazine and in 1870 editor of the Illustrated Christian Weekly. In 1876 he joined Henry Ward Beecher's Christian

Carúpano

2005-02-17T23:31:00.000-08:00

City, northern Sucre estado (“state”), northeastern Venezuela. On the Caribbean Sea, near the centre of the twin peninsulas Araya and Paria, Carúpano is the commercial nucleus and principal port of an agricultural area, the principal export of which is cacao. Many fertile valleys in the highlands around Carúpano and throughout Sucre (representing a high percentage

Animal

2005-02-17T23:07:00.000-08:00

(kingdom Animalia), any of a group of multicellular eukaryotic organisms (i.e., as distinct from bacteria, their deoxyribonucleic acid, or DNA, is contained in a membrane-bound nucleus). They are thought to have evolved independently from the unicellular eukaryotes. Animals differ from members of the two other kingdoms of multicellular eukaryotes, the plants (Plantae)

Husband, Rick D.

2005-02-17T18:37:00.000-08:00

American astronaut (b. July 12, 1957, Amarillo, Texas—d. Feb. 1, 2003, over Texas), was commander of the space shuttle Columbia's mission. Husband was educated at Texas Tech University and at California State University at Fresno, where he earned a master's degree in 1990. He joined the U.S. Air Force in 1980. In 1999 he flew on the Discovery on the first space shuttle mission to dock with the International Space

Dózsa Rebellion

2005-02-16T22:33:00.000-08:00

During the reign of King Vladislas II (1490–1516), royal power declined in favour of the magnates, who used their power to curtail the peasants' freedom. When the cardinal Tamás Bakócz called for volunteers to go on a crusade against

Cabarrus, François, Conde De

2005-02-15T16:21:00.000-08:00

Cabarrus originally settled in Madrid as a soap manufacturer but soon became conspicuous within a circle of enlightened reformers who advised the king. His ideas were crucial in the creation of the first Spanish central bank in 1783. He also was involved

Haddock

2005-02-15T01:27:00.000-08:00

(Melanogrammus aeglefinus), valuable North Atlantic food fish of the cod family, Gadidae, that is often smoked and sold as “finnan haddie.” The haddock is a bottom dweller and a carnivore, feeding on invertebrates and some fishes. It resembles the cod and, like its relative, has a chin barbel and two anal and three dorsal fins. It is identified, however, by a dark, rather than

France, History Of, Principalities north of the Loire

2005-02-14T21:37:00.000-08:00

The northernmost of these was Flanders, whose founder, Baldwin I Iron-Arm (862–879), managed not only to abduct the Carolingian king's daughter and marry her but also to win that king's approval as count of Ghent. His authority

Sunbury

2005-02-14T14:26:00.000-08:00

Town, south-central Victoria, Australia, on the road and rail route between Bendigo and the state capital, Melbourne, 24 miles (39 km) to the southeast. The Aboriginal name for the area was Koora Kooracup, but, when a gold rush to Bendigo began in 1851, a hotel (built on Jacksons Creek to house travelers to the goldfield) was named Sunbury, after Sunbury, Middlesex, England; the town took

Tara

2005-02-12T15:49:00.000-08:00

Tibetan Sgrol-ma Buddhist saviour-goddess with numerous forms, widely popular in Nepal, Tibet, and Mongolia. She is the feminine counterpart of the bodhisattva (“Buddha-to-be”) Avalokitesvara. According to popular belief, she came into existence from a tear of Avalokitesvara, which fell to the ground and formed a lake. Out of its waters rose up a lotus, which, on opening, revealed the goddess.

Indochina Wars

2005-02-12T14:19:00.000-08:00

In the latter half of the 19th century, Vietnam was gradually conquered by the French,

Aqueous Humour

2005-02-12T05:34:00.000-08:00

Watery, alkaline liquid that occupies the anterior and posterior chambers of the eye—the space in front of the iris and lens and the ringlike space encircling the lens. The aqueous humour resembles blood plasma in composition, but contains much less protein, less glucose, more lactic acid, and much more ascorbic acid. Aqueous humour is formed from the blood by filtration

Mahaweli Ganga

2005-02-12T01:33:00.000-08:00

(Sinhalese: “Great Sandy River”), river, central and eastern Sri Lanka. At 208 mi (335 km) in length, it is Sri Lanka's longest river. It rises on the Hatton Plateau on the western side of the island's hill country, flows north through a tea- and rubber-growing region, and turns east near Kandy; it then turns north across the lowlands, receives its principal tributary, the Amban Ganga, and flows

Kinguélé

2005-02-11T21:09:00.000-08:00

Waterfall and site of a hydroelectric complex on the Mbei River of Gabon. Kinguélé is situated near Kango and is about 95 miles (150 km) by road east of Libreville, the national capital. There are actually two sets of waterfalls. The upper Kinguélé falls drop a total of 115 feet (35 m) in three consecutive leaps. The larger, lower falls drop 148 feet (45 m). Below the lower falls, the Mbei River continues

Arts, Central Asian

2005-02-11T17:56:00.000-08:00

In the latter half of the 19th century, Vietnam was gradually conquered by the French,

Loyalist

2005-02-11T14:54:00.000-08:00

Also called Tory colonist loyal to Great Britain during the American Revolution. Loyalists constituted about one-third of the population of the American colonies during that conflict. They were not confined to any particular group or class, but their numbers were strongest among the following groups: officeholders and others who served the British crown and had a vested interest

Aldrich, Robert

2005-02-10T19:11:00.000-08:00

Aldrich entered the motion-picture industry as a production clerk at RKO in 1941 and was made assistant director and production manager at Enterprise Studios in the late 1940s. After working with such directors as Jean

Basic English

2005-02-09T20:10:00.000-08:00

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

Gabon

2005-02-09T05:54:00.000-08:00

Amid a rising wave of urban crime, on March 1, 2001, Gabon's minister of the interior suspended the import and sale of firearms. Prime Minister Jean-François Ntoutoume-Emane addressed the National Assembly on May 16 to answer deputies' concerns about public safety. Despite the creation during the year of a special crime squad, the incidents of armed robbery and other violent

Mures River

2005-02-09T01:59:00.000-08:00

Hungarian Maros, river, rising in the Giurgeu Range in the Eastern Carpathian Mountains, east-central Romania. It cuts a gorge between the Caliman and Gurghiu ranges, crosses the Transylvanian Basin southwestward, and then cuts across the Western Carpathians between the Poiana Ruscai and the Bihoru mountains and emerges onto the Tisa Plain to join the Tisa (Tisza) River at Szeged, Hung.,

Flocculation

2005-02-08T09:41:00.000-08:00

In physical chemistry, separation of solid particles from a liquid to form loose aggregations or soft flakes. These flocculates are easily disrupted, being held together only by a force analogous to the surface tension of a liquid. In industrial processes, flocculation may be a desired or an undesirable phenomenon, and various methods may be used to cause or eliminate

'abbas Mirza

2005-02-07T07:03:00.000-08:00

Although he was not the eldest son of Fath 'Ali Shah (1797–1834), 'Abbas Mirza was named crown prince and appointed governor of the province of Azerbaijan in 1798 or 1799. When war broke out between Russia and Iran in 1804, he was made commander of the Iranian expeditionary

Condensation

2005-02-06T19:57:00.000-08:00

Deposition of a liquid or a solid from its vapour, generally upon a surface that is cooler than the adjacent gas. A substance condenses when the pressure exerted by its vapour exceeds the vapour pressure of the liquid or solid phase of the substance at the temperature of the surface where condensation occurs. Heat is released when a vapour condenses. Unless this heat

Gir Range

2005-02-06T05:44:00.000-08:00

Low mountain range in western Gujarat state, west-central India, on the southern Kathiawar Peninsula. The range is extremely rugged with a steep slope seaward to the south and a gradual slope inland to the north. From it to the north runs a low, narrow, dissected range rising to Gorakhnath (3,665 feet [1,117 m], believed to be an extinct volcano) in the broad mass of the Girnar Hills. The Gir Range

Strafford, Thomas Wentworth, 1st Earl Of, Baron Of Raby

2005-02-06T02:18:00.000-08:00

Leading adviser of England's King Charles I. His attempt to consolidate the sovereign power of the king led to his impeachment and execution by Parliament.

Cornelius, Peter

2005-02-05T18:18:00.000-08:00

German composer and author, known for his comic opera Der Barbier von Bagdad (The Barber of Bagdad). The son of an actor and an actress, he acted at Mainz and at Wiesbaden in his youth. In 1845 he studied composition and was later music critic for two Berlin journals. From 1853 to 1858 he lived at Weimar in the circle of Liszt and the Princess Sayn-Wittgenstein

Biblical Literature, Biblical literature in the liturgy of Judaism

2005-02-04T08:18:00.000-08:00

Because the synagogue arose in a land separated from the Jerusalem Temple with its sacrificial

Corato

2005-02-04T01:59:00.000-08:00

Town, Bari province, Puglia (Apulia) region, southeastern Italy, on a slope descending to the Adriatic Sea, west of Bari. Founded by the Normans, Corato became subject to Alfonso V, king of Aragon, at the end of the 15th century, and later to the Carafa family. The chief features of the ancient centre of the town, which is surrounded by modern buildings, are the Romanesque church

Kabbala

2005-02-04T00:39:00.000-08:00

Spain also

Salchow, Ulrich

2005-02-03T18:28:00.000-08:00

Salchow was a generous competitor, and he acknowledged the talents of others. At the 1902 World Championships, Madge Syers finished second

Epistilbite

2005-02-03T11:24:00.000-08:00

Hydrated sodium and calcium aluminosilicate mineral in the zeolite family. It forms piezoelectric crystals of monoclinic symmetry and platy habit; the latter property has caused epistilbite to be assigned to a group typified by heulandite (q.v.). More recently, X-ray diffraction studies have shown that the three-dimensional structure of epistilbite's aluminosilicate

Canada Act

2005-02-02T16:41:00.000-08:00

Also called Constitution Act 1982, Canada's constitution approved by the British Parliament on March 25, 1982, and proclaimed by Queen Elizabeth II on April 17, 1982, making Canada wholly independent. The document contains the original statute that established the Canadian Confederation in 1867 (the British North America Act), the amendments made to it by the British Parliament over the years, and new material resulting

Pietro Della Vigna

2005-02-02T15:53:00.000-08:00

Born in the mainland part of the kingdom of Sicily to a poor family (his parents were said to have been

Earthquake

2005-02-01T13:30:00.000-08:00

Any sudden disturbance within the Earth manifested at the surface by a shaking of the ground. This shaking, which accounts for the destructiveness of an earthquake, is caused by the passage of elastic waves through the Earth's rocks. These seismic waves are produced when some form of stored energy, such as elastic strain, chemical energy, or gravitational energy, is

Fargo

2005-02-01T08:58:00.000-08:00

Seat (1873) of Cass county and the largest city of North Dakota, U.S., on the Red River of the North, opposite Moorhead, Minn. Founded in 1871 by the Northern Pacific Railway, it served as an outfitting post for settlers, with its rail, steamboat, and stagecoach facilities. It was named for William George Fargo (of Wells, Fargo & Company), a pioneer in the shipment of goods by express. The development