AcidCake

Organic Underwear

2006-10-29T07:00:00.000-08:00

Natural soft Organic Clothinggoods are hard to find as they can often be a little course. Liv Organic Cotton Goodsare soft and luxurious and their Organic Underwear is to die for.

Integrated Circuit

2005-04-04T23:59:00.000-07:00

(IC), also called microcircuit, an assembly of electronic components, fabricated as a single unit, in which active semiconductor devices (transistors and diodes) and passive devices (capacitors and resistors) and their interconnections are built up on a chip of material called substrate. The circuit thus consists of a unitary structure with no connecting wires. The individual circuit elements

Coraciiform

2005-04-04T23:28:00.000-07:00

Also called rollerlike bird any member of the order Coraciiformes, including the kingfishers, todies, motmots, bee-eaters, rollers, hoopoes (see photograph), and hornbills (see photograph). Among the members of the order that have attracted special attention are certain kingfishers that plunge headfirst into water for fish and are associated with classical

Syrian Catholic Church

2005-04-03T11:10:00.000-07:00

An Eastern Catholic church of the Antiochene rite, in communion with Rome since the 17th century. The Christians of Syria had been Monophysites since the 5th century; that is, they rejected the rulings of the Council of Chalcedon (451) and believed in the existence of only one nature in Christ. Attempts at unification with Rome were made, without success, in 1237 and 1247. With the establishment

Eliot, Jared

2005-04-02T20:03:00.000-08:00

Eliot, the grandson of John Eliot, noted New England missionary, was graduated from the Collegiate School of Connecticut (Yale College) in 1706. He taught for two years and then received a call as pastor of the Congregational Church in Killingworth (Clinton), Conn. He served

Xipe Totec

2005-04-01T16:13:00.000-08:00

As a symbol of the new vegetation, Xipe Totec wore the skin of a human victim—the “new skin” that covered the Earth in the spring. His statues and stone masks always show him wearing a freshly flayed skin. Described

Animal Development, Amphioxus, echinoderms, and amphibians

2005-04-01T00:10:00.000-08:00

Gastrulation does not always proceed exactly as described above. In the course of evolution, certain animal groups have modified this critical stage of embryonic development, and these modifications have undoubtedly contributed to the successful continuation of species. In the primitive fishlike chordate amphioxus, for example, the invaginating blastoderm

Murom

2005-03-31T15:46:00.000-08:00

City, Vladimir oblast (province), western Russia. Murom lies along the Oka River. It is one of the oldest Russian towns and was first mentioned in the chronicles of 862. Surviving historic buildings include the Trinity and Annunciation monasteries and the churches of the Resurrection and Transfiguration, all from the 17th century. The contemporary city has engineering,

Antarctica, Economic resources

2005-03-31T13:00:00.000-08:00

J.F. Lovering and J.R.V. Prescott, Last of Lands: Antarctica (1979), examines resources, discovery and exploration, political geography, and future prospects. Barbara Mitchell, Frozen Stakes: The Future of Antarctic Minerals (1983), presents an account of polar politics and minerals and discusses possible regimes for regulating resource development. Francisco Orrego Vicuña (ed.), Antarctic Resources Policy: Scientific, Legal, and Political Issues (1983), contains reports from the first symposium of its kind, a meeting of scientists, diplomats, and international lawyers at an Antarctic scientific station. More recent works are Deborah Shapley, The Seventh Continent: Antarctica in a Resource Age (1985); and John F. Splettstoesser and Gisela A.m. Dreschoff (eds.), Mineral Resources Potential of Antarctica (1990).

Mordant Dye

2005-03-30T14:41:00.000-08:00

Colorant that can be bound to a material for which it otherwise has little or no affinity by the addition of a mordant, a chemical that combines with the dye and the fibre. As the principal modern mordants are dichromates and chromium complexes, mordant dye usually means chrome dye. Most mordant dyes yield different colours with different mordants. Mordant dyes can

Graf Spee

2005-03-29T20:22:00.000-08:00

After sinking several merchant ships in the Atlantic, the Graf Spee was sighted on Dec. 13, 1939, off the Río de la Plata estuary by a British search group consisting of the cruisers Exeter, Ajax, and Achilles, commanded by

Porpora, Nicola (antonio Giacinto)

2005-03-29T14:36:00.000-08:00

Porpora was maestro

Haarlemmermeer

2005-03-28T06:30:00.000-08:00

Gemeente (commune), Noord-Holland provincie, The Netherlands, occupying the reclaimed Haarlem Lake, which was drained between 1840 and 1852. There is a network of roads and ditches at right angles within the enclosing canal and dike. The population is concentrated in the villages of Hoofddorp, Nieuw-Vennep, Badhoevedorp, and Zwanenburg, which are situated along the dike and

Brucite

2005-03-27T18:36:00.000-08:00

Mineral composed of magnesium hydroxide, Mg(OH)2. It generally forms soft, waxy to glassy, white or pale-green, gray, or blue crystals, plate aggregates, or fibrous masses associated with other magnesium minerals (e.g., magnesite and dolomite). It commonly is present in serpentine and sometimes in phyllites, crystalline schists, and metamorphosed magnesian limestone. Notable

Clarke, T.e.b.

2005-03-27T05:33:00.000-08:00

Clarke worked as a free-lance journalist and novelist before joining Ealing Studios as a writer in 1943. He scripted several dramatic motion pictures, notably The Blue Lamp (1950), but received international fame

Galashiels

2005-03-27T03:34:00.000-08:00

Town, Scottish Borders council area, southeastern Scotland. It is on Gala Water near its junction with the River Tweed, 33 miles (53 km) south-southeast of Edinburgh. The part of the town on the west bank of the Gala lies within the historic county of Selkirkshire, while the east bank belongs to the historic county of Roxburghshire. Woolen manufacture dates from the close of

Berain, Jean, The Elder

2005-03-25T22:28:00.000-08:00

Trained under the great French decorator Charles Le Brun, Berain was working at the Louvre when appointed, in 1674, royal designer to King Louis XIV of France. After the death

Chatti

2005-03-25T13:28:00.000-08:00

Germanic tribe that became one of the most powerful opponents of the Romans during the 1st century AD. At that time the Chatti expanded from their homeland near the upper Visurgis (Weser) River, across the Taunus highlands to the Moenus (Main) River valley, defeating the Cherusci and other neighbouring tribes. In AD 83 the emperor Domitian drove them back from the Taunus. They

Trade Organization

2005-03-24T00:07:00.000-08:00

The oldest

Chase Manhattan Corporation, The

2005-03-23T19:43:00.000-08:00

The firm originated in the final days of the 18th century. On April 2, 1799, at the urging of such civic leaders as Aaron Burr and Alexander Hamilton (later noted rivals), the New York state legislature chartered the Manhattan Company to build a water supply system for New York City. The original

Chandler, Happy

2005-03-23T14:19:00.000-08:00

Chandler attended Transylvania College, Lexington, Ky. (A.B., 1921), and, after a year at the Harvard Law School, attended the University of Kentucky (LL.B., 1924). Turning to politics after a brief stint in private law practice, he was elected to the Kentucky Senate

'umar Ii

2005-03-23T06:39:00.000-08:00

His father, 'Abd al-'Aziz, was a governor of Egypt, and through his mother he was a descendant of 'Umar I (second caliph, 634–644). He received

Hawaii, Industry

2005-03-21T10:42:00.000-08:00

Hawaii has several hundred companies engaged in diversified manufacturing. Heavy-manufacturing plants, using raw materials for the most part imported from the U.S. mainland, include an oil refinery that produces a variety of petroleum products and chemical compounds, a steel mill manufacturing reinforcing bars, several cement plants, a concrete-pipe plant, and

Ch'i

2005-03-21T03:32:00.000-08:00

Neo-Confucian philosophers

Asuka Period

2005-03-21T00:13:00.000-08:00

In Japanese history and art, era from Ad 552 to 645 that began with the introduction of Buddhism from Korea and culminated in the adoption of a Chinese pattern of government. Initially opposed by conservative clans, Buddhism found favour with the powerful Soga family which defeated its rivals in a succession dispute in 587. As Imperial regent, Shotoku Taishi gave Buddhism official support, and his famous Seventeen

Olmi, Ermanno

2005-03-19T17:46:00.000-08:00

Olmi attended a science high school and took courses in acting at the Academy of Dramatic Arts in Milan. He learned filmmaking while employed at Edisonvolta, a major Milanese electric

Philip I

2005-03-19T08:58:00.000-08:00

Son of Philip of Burgundy, he inherited the duchy upon the death of his grandfather, Eudes IV, and inherited the countships upon the death of his grandmother, Joan of France. His mother, Joan of Boulogne, who subsequently married the king of France, John II, ruled Philip's

Beskid Mountains

2005-03-18T11:43:00.000-08:00

Czech Beskydy , Polish Beskidy discontinuous series of forested mountain ranges lying in the eastern Czech Republic, northwestern Slovakia, and southern Poland. The Czech sections at the western end of the Carpathian Mountains lie south and east of the Moravian Gate and are identified locally by smaller units. The Moravian-Silesian Beskid Mountains, which extend from the eastern Czech Republic

Ch'i

2005-03-18T00:07:00.000-08:00

Any of 21 species of medium-sized toothed whales with extended snouts, including the bottlenose whales. Little is known about this family of cetaceans; one species was first described in 1995, two others are known only from skeletal remains, and the bodies of undescribed species occasionally drift ashore.

Seleucia Tracheotis

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

Greek Seleukeia city in Cilicia (in present-day southern Turkey), on the Calycadnus River (modern Goksu Nehri), a few miles from that stream's mouth; the site was doubtless selected as a protection against attacks from the sea. There are ruins of a castle on the acropolis, and the city fortifications, a large rock-cut tank, and an extensive necropolis are all well preserved. The city was at

Villahermosa

2005-03-16T17:58:00.000-08:00

City, capital of Tabasco state, southeastern Mexico. It is in the Gulf lowlands at 33 ft (10 m) above sea level, on the Río Grijalva. Founded in 1596 as Villa Felipe II, the settlement has also been known as San Juan de Villa Hermosa and as San Juan Bautista; it was given its present name, meaning “beautiful city,” in 1915. The city's cathedral was built in 1614; its archaeological museum is one of the

Spondee

2005-03-16T08:22:00.000-08:00

Metrical foot consisting of two long (as in classical verse) or stressed (as in English verse) syllables occurring together. The term was derived from a Greek word describing the two long musical notes that accompanied the pouring of a libation. Spondaic metre occurred occasionally in classical verse. It does not, however, form the basis for any English verse, as there

Camp, Walter

2005-03-16T07:36:00.000-08:00

As an undergraduate and then as a medical student at Yale (1876–81), Camp played halfback,

Paracel Islands

2005-03-15T08:21:00.000-08:00

Wade-Giles romanization Hsi-sha Ch'ün-tao , Pinyin Xisha Qundao , Vietnamese Quan Dao Hoang Sa group of about 130 small coral islands and reefs in the South China Sea. They lie about 250 miles (400 km) east of central Vietnam and about 220 miles (350 km) southeast of Hainan Island, China. Apart from a few isolated, outlying islands (Triton in the south, Lincoln in the east), they are divided into the Amphitrite group in the northeast and the Crescent group in the west. The low, barren islands,

Kea

2005-03-14T14:32:00.000-08:00

New Zealand parrot species of the subfamily Nestorinae. See parrot.

Canaanite Inscriptions

2005-03-14T13:32:00.000-08:00

A group of 11 inscriptions recovered from bowls and other utensils found in several archaeological sites in Palestine dating from approximately the 16th to 13th century BC. Because they have not as yet been satisfactorily deciphered, it is unclear whether or not the writing system used in these inscriptions is related to the North Semitic alphabet, which has been positively

Nervous System, Human, Facial nerve (CN VII or 7)

2005-03-14T08:39:00.000-08:00

From the facial nucleus in the pons, facial motor fibres enter the internal auditory meatus, pass through the temporal bone, exit the skull via the stylomastoid foramen, and fan out over each side

Cineraria

2005-03-13T11:29:00.000-08:00

Greenhouse cinerarias may be

Stanley Cup

2005-03-13T04:40:00.000-08:00

Trophy awarded to the winner of the world's professional ice hockey championship, an annual play-off that culminates the season of the National Hockey League. The Stanley Cup was first awarded in the 1893–94 season and is the oldest trophy that can be won by professional athletes in North America. The cup's donor was a governor-general of Canada, Frederick Arthur, Lord Stanley

White River

2005-03-12T16:03:00.000-08:00

River formed by the confluence of its West and East forks near Petersburg in southwestern Indiana, U.S., and flowing in a southwesterly direction for 52 miles (84 km) before entering the Wabash River, opposite Mt. Carmel, Ill. Its 255-mile (410-km) West Fork rises in Randolph county, eastern Indiana; its 282-mile (454-km) East Fork (sometimes called Driftwood) is a combination of streams that join

Alabama, The Indians

2005-03-12T02:00:00.000-08:00

The earliest and longest established inhabitants of the present-day state of Alabama were Indians. Visible traces of their occupancy, which spanned almost 10,000 years, may be seen in the great mounds that snake across the landscape near the river valleys. Many placenames in the state also indicate an Indian origin. The name Alabama itself derives from an Indian word meaning

Mauritania, Transportation

2005-03-11T19:33:00.000-08:00

Transport by pack animals—camels in the north, oxen and donkeys in the south—has retained considerable importance in a society in which a subsistence and barter economy prevails, although transport between cities and regions is increasingly by truck. Considerable hazards, however, confront road builders; among these are moving sand dunes, flash floods in the south,

Swaziland, Flag Of

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

The Swazi, famed as warriors, have a traditional shield that is made of black-and-white ox hide stretched over a wooden frame. A representation of such a shield appeared briefly on a Swazi flag flown in the late 19th century when they administered their land jointly with the (Boer) South African Republic and the British. The current national flag, however, dates to 1941. At that

Spain, Literature

2005-03-11T17:44:00.000-08:00

The most famous writer of the century, however, was poet and playwright Federico García Lorca (1898–1936). He was executed

Robert De Torigni

2005-03-10T16:29:00.000-08:00

Robert was born to a family apparently of high rank. In 1128 he joined the monastery at Bec, where he was ordained deacon (1131) and elected prior (1149). He became abbot of Mont-Saint-Michel in

La Farge, John

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

Royal Cortissoz, John La Farge: A Memoir and a Study (1911; reissued 1971); Henry Adams et al., John La Farge (1987).

Muhly

2005-03-08T08:34:00.000-08:00

Most muhlys are perennials, and all species have only one floret on each branch,

Condottiere

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

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

Spaatz, Carl

2005-03-07T21:44:00.000-08:00

A graduate (1914) of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, N.Y., Spaatz served as a combat pilot during World War I and then acquired extensive staff and command experience between 1919 and 1942. He went to England in 1940 to evaluate German military

Anderson, Helen Eugenie Moore

2005-03-07T18:27:00.000-08:00

Eugenie Moore attended Stephens College (Columbia, Missouri) in 1926–27, Simpson College (Indianola, Iowa) in 1927–28, and Carleton College (Northfield, Minnesota) in 1929–30; she took no degree. In 1930 she married John P. Anderson. During two years in New York City she studied piano at the Juilliard

Skara Brae

2005-03-07T09:21:00.000-08:00

One of the most perfectly preserved Stone Age villages in Europe, which was covered for hundreds of years by a sand dune on the shore of the Bay of Skaill, Mainland, Orkney Islands, Scot. Exposed by a great storm in 1850, four buildings were excavated during the 1860s by William Watt. After another storm in 1926, further excavations were undertaken by the Ancient Monuments branch of

Obscene Publications Act

2005-03-07T00:20:00.000-08:00

In British law, either of two codifications of prohibitions against obscene literature adopted in 1857 and in much revised form in 1959. The earlier act, also called Lord Campbell's Act (one of several laws named after chief justice and chancellor John Campbell, 1st Baron Campbell), not only outlawed obscene publications but empowered police to search premises on which obscene

East Flanders

2005-03-05T15:16:00.000-08:00

Flemish Oost-Vlaanderen , French Flandre Orientale province, northwestern Belgium, extending southward from the Netherlands border. Drained by the Leie, Schelde (Escaut or Scheldt), and Dender (Dendre) rivers, it is divided into six administrative arrondissements (Aalst, Dendermonde, Eeklo, Ghent, Oudenaarde, and Sint-Niklaas). It was formerly part of the old principality of Flanders, other parts of which are contained

Toccoa

2005-03-05T05:24:00.000-08:00

City, seat (1905) of Stephens county, northeastern Georgia, U.S. It lies on the Dahlonega Upland, northwest of Hartwell Dam and Lake near the South Carolina border, about 50 miles (80 km) north of Athens. Toccoa was laid out in 1873 and is at the edge of Chattahoochee National Forest in a prosperous agricultural area. The city has some industry, including the manufacture of textiles, heavy

Price, Richard

2005-03-05T04:11:00.000-08:00

A Dissenter like his father, he ministered to Presbyterians near London. His Review of the Principal

Earth Sciences, The chemical analysis of rocks and minerals

2005-03-04T18:43:00.000-08:00

The successive stages in the plate-tectonic cycle (see below) produce igneous rocks that have geochemical patterns distinctive for each stage. Consequently, the igneous petrologist is able to use both the major and trace element abundances of rocks to define the possible tectonic environment in which they formed. The metamorphic petrologist can use the bulk

Wolf, Christa

2005-03-03T23:29:00.000-08:00

Wolf was reared in a middle-class, pro-Nazi family. With the defeat of Germany in 1945, she moved with her family to East Germany. She studied at the Universities of Jena and Leipzig (1949–53), thereafter working as editor of the

Osler, Sir William, Baronet

2005-03-03T09:27:00.000-08:00

Canadian physician and professor of medicine who practiced and taught in Canada, the United States, and Great Britain and whose book The Principles and Practice of Medicine (1892) was a leading textbook. Osler played a key role in transforming the organization and curriculum of medical education, emphasizing

Closed Shop

2005-03-03T08:26:00.000-08:00

By the 1930s the closed shop had become a commonly negotiated agreement meant to protect labour organizations. This and other

Rehan, Ada

2005-03-02T20:50:00.000-08:00

Ada Crehan grew up in Brooklyn, New York, where her family settled shortly after the Civil War. She followed her older sisters onto the stage, making her debut at

Järta, Hans

2005-03-01T10:15:00.000-08:00

In the 1790s Hans Hierta began his career as a publicist and a left-wing member of the noble estate of the Riksdag (estates general). In sympathy with the French Revolution

Gabriel, Ange-jacques

2005-03-01T01:58:00.000-08:00

The most celebrated member of a family of architects, he was the son of Jacques V (1667–1742), whom he succeeded as premier architect to Louis XV

Farlow, William Gilson

2005-02-28T19:20:00.000-08:00

After receiving the M.D. degree from Harvard University (1870), Farlow studied in Europe until 1874, when he became professor of cryptogamic botany (the study of flowerless and seedless plants)

Encke, Johann Franz

2005-02-28T01:21:00.000-08:00

Encke was educated at Hamburg and the University of Göttingen, where he worked under the direction of Carl Friedrich Gauss. In 1816 Encke became assistant at the Seeberg Observatory near Gotha, Ger., where he was made vice director in 1820 and director

Arabia, Geology

2005-02-27T10:45:00.000-08:00

The bulk of Arabia consists of two main geomorphological areas: the Arabian shield in the west; and sedimentary areas dipping away from the shield to the northeast, east, and southeast into the great basin consisting of lower Iraq, the Persian Gulf, and the eastern part of the Rub' al-Khali (the Empty Quarter) desert. The eastern edge of the shield curves eastward from the

France, History Of, Mitterrand's second term

2005-02-26T22:54:00.000-08:00

Restraint paid dividends when Mitterrand ran for a second term in April–May 1988. In the first round of balloting, Chirac managed to defeat his conservative rivals (Giscard, Barre, and Le Pen), but in the second round Mitterrand scored a clear victory (54 to 46 percent). The resurgent president chose the Socialist Michel Rocard as prime minister and once again dissolved the National

Mahabaleshwar

2005-02-26T10:27:00.000-08:00

Resort town, southwestern Maharashtra state, western India. It lies about 40 miles (64 km) southeast of Bombay and northwest of the town of Satara at an elevation of 4,718 feet (1,438 m), in the Sahyadri Hills of the Western Ghats. The town commands an excellent view over the coastal Konkan Plain from the steep scarp slope of the hills. Recognized in ancient times as the site of the source of the Krishna

Hooker, Thomas

2005-02-26T04:43:00.000-08:00

After preaching briefly in the parish of Esher in Surrey, Eng., Hooker about 1626 became lecturer to the Church of St. Mary at Chelmsford, Essex, where he delivered fervent evangelical

Powys, John Cowper

2005-02-25T19:53:00.000-08:00

Educated at Sherborne School and the University of Cambridge, Powys was a university extension

Balbinus, Decimus Caelius Calvinus

2005-02-25T16:54:00.000-08:00

A patrician, Balbinus was a Salian priest, twice a consul, and proconsul in Asia. In 238, when the Senate led a rebellion of the Italian cities against Maximinus (emperor 235–238), it placed the government in the hands of a board of 20, one of whom was Balbinus, and then chose Balbinus and Pupienus Maximus to be joint emperors. Pupienus, a former city prefect,

Isidore Of Kiev

2005-02-25T08:21:00.000-08:00

Abbot of St. Demetrius

Pacific Mountain System

2005-02-24T01:54:00.000-08:00

The Pacific mountain region had a large American Indian population before the arrival of white explorers and settlers. Hunting, the gathering of berries, roots, and nuts, and fishing were the major economic activities. Trade and barter were common among tribes, especially in the north, where peoples from the interior traded hides, meat, and roots for salmon caught

Alexander Ii

2005-02-23T13:15:00.000-08:00

Alexander came to the throne on the death of his father, William I (the Lion; reigned 1165–1214). When the English barons rebelled against King John (reigned 1199–1216) in 1215, Alexander sided

Ryazan

2005-02-22T20:46:00.000-08:00

Medieval Russian principality from the 12th to the early 16th century. Ryazan became an independent princedom early in the 12th century under Yaroslav, the son of the grand prince Svyatoslav of Kiev. Its capital city was Old Ryazan on the Oka River, about 150 miles (240 km) southeast of Moscow. For the next century it was often in conflict with the principality of Vladimir, which was

Athanasius, Saint

2005-02-22T08:54:00.000-08:00

Athanasius received his philosophical and theological training at Alexandria; in 325 he attended Bishop Alexander of Alexandria as deacon at the Council of Nicaea. A recognized theologian and ascetic, Athanasius was the obvious candidate to succeed Alexander when the latter died in 328. The first years of his episcopate were devoted to visitation of his extensive

Smendes

2005-02-21T00:36:00.000-08:00

Smendes, a native of the delta, probably secured his right to rule though his queen, Tentamon, who was possibly related to the previous dynasty. Though the high priests of Amon held

Oliver, King

2005-02-20T09:39:00.000-08:00

Born on a plantation, Oliver went to New Orleans

Cambridge

2005-02-20T07:39:00.000-08:00

City, Middlesex county, eastern Massachusetts, U.S., situated on the north bank of the Charles River, partly opposite Boston. Originally settled as New Towne in 1630 by the Massachusetts Bay Company, it was organized as a town in 1636 when it became the site of Harvard College (now an undergraduate school of Harvard University). The town was renamed for Cambridge, England, in 1638 and became

Bridalveil Fall

2005-02-18T16:24:00.000-08:00

Cataract on the west slope of the Sierra Nevada in Yosemite National Park, east-central California, U.S. Fed mainly by melting snow, the waterfall has a height of 620 feet (189 m) and forms one of the most scenic features in the park.

Infection, Dacryocystitis and dacryoadenitis

2005-02-18T13:33:00.000-08:00

Inflammation of the tear sac, called dacryocystitis, is a common pediatric infection. It usually occurs after a long-term obstruction of the nasolacrimal duct (a tube that connects the eye with the nose, allowing proper drainage of the eye's secretions). This infection, caused by staphylococci or streptococci, produces tender swelling in the inner corner of the eye

Augustine Of Canterbury, Saint

2005-02-18T10:11:00.000-08:00

F.A. Gasquet, The Mission of St. Augustine and Other Addresses (1924); Margaret Deanesly, Augustine of Canterbury (1964, reissued 1997).

Gong

2005-02-18T07:44:00.000-08:00

A circular metal plate-like percussion instrument having a turned-down rim. It is struck in the centre with a felt- or leather-covered beater, producing a sound of either definite or indefinite pitch. Its vibrations issue from the centre, in contrast to bells, which vibrate principally at the rim.

Esso

2005-02-17T20:28:00.000-08:00

Any of several foreign affiliates of the Exxon Corporation (q.v.).

Accidental

2005-02-17T02:12:00.000-08:00

In music, sign placed immediately to the left of a note to show that the note must be changed in pitch. A sharp () raises a note by a semitone; a flat () lowers it by a semitone; a natural ({natural}) restores it to the original pitch. Double sharps (´) and double flats () indicate that the note is raised or lowered by two semitones. A single natural cancels a double sharp or flat; a natural next

Fu

2005-02-16T22:35:00.000-08:00

Chinese literary form combining elements of poetry and prose. The form developed during the Han dynasty (206 BC–AD 220) from its origins in the long poem Li sao (“On Encountering Sorrow”) by Qu Yuan (Ch'ü Yüan; c. 343–c. 289 BC). It was particularly suitable for description and exposition, in contrast to the more subjective, lyrical sao. Its prosody was freer than that of the sao, the rhyme pattern being

Madhya Pradesh, Industry

2005-02-16T16:22:00.000-08:00

Overall, Madhya Pradesh remains an industrially underdeveloped state. In 1981 the Madhya Pradesh Industrial Development Corporation Ltd. was established to improve the infrastructure in the state's identified growth centres. Before this planned development took place, western Madhya Pradesh was the main industrial area—primarily producing consumer goods—but

Holderness

2005-02-15T11:23:00.000-08:00

Low-lying peninsula and geographic region, geographic county of East Riding of Yorkshire, historic county of Yorkshire, England, between the River Humber estuary and the North Sea. The plain of Holderness terminates in a line of unstable clay cliffs along the coast of the North Sea to the east, where erosion is a serious problem north of Spurn Head, which is the peninsula's

Earth, Reversals of the main field

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

The Earth's internal magnetic field has not always been oriented as it is today. The direction of the dipole component reverses, on an average, about every 300,000 to 1,000,000 years. This reversal is very sudden on a geologic time scale, apparently taking about 5,000 years. The time between reversals is highly variable, sometimes occurring in less than 40,000 years and at other times remaining steady

Water

2005-02-15T02:20:00.000-08:00

A substance composed of the chemical elements hydrogen and oxygen and existing in gaseous, liquid, and solid states. Water is one of the most plentiful and essential of compounds. It is vital to life, participating in virtually every process that occurs in plants and animals. Although the molecules of water are simple in structure (H2O), the physical and chemical properties

Andaman And Nicobar Islands, The land

2005-02-14T20:28:00.000-08:00

The terrain of the Andamans is rough, with hills enclosing narrow longitudinal valleys. The highest elevation is 2,418 feet (737 metres) at Saddle Peak on North Andaman. Dense tropical forest covers the islands. No rivers and few perennial streams exist. The coral-fringed coasts of the Andamans are deeply indented, forming safe harbours and tidal creeks, often surrounded by

Aerospace Industry

2005-02-13T19:48:00.000-08:00

The product line of the aerospace industry is, by necessity, broad because its primary products—flight vehicles—require up to millions of individual parts. In addition, many support systems are needed to operate and maintain the vehicles. In terms of sales, military aircraft have the largest market share, followed by space systems and civil aircraft, with missiles

Flavius, Gnaeus

2005-02-12T16:56:00.000-08:00

Roman legal writer and politician who made public the technical rules of legal procedure, which had been kept secret by the patricians and the pontifices (advisers to the king, dictator, or emperor) so that they could maintain their advantage over the plebeians. Flavius learned procedure while serving as secretary to the censor and consul Appius

Iraq, Housing

2005-02-12T04:27:00.000-08:00

The availability of adequate housing remained a problem in Iraq at the beginning of the 21st century. This was partly attributable to the major demographic shifts that had occurred in preceding decades, with large numbers of Shi'ites fleeing the south to overcrowded Baghdad and large groups of Kurds, Turkmens, and Assyrians being displaced by government policy in

Masaoka Shiki

2005-02-12T01:55:00.000-08:00

Masaoka was born into a samurai (warrior) family. He went to Tokyo to study in 1883 and began to write poetry in 1885. After studying at Tokyo Imperial University from 1890 to 1892, he joined a publishing firm. During his brief service with the Japanese army as a correspondent

Xánthi

2005-02-11T09:33:00.000-08:00

Though the city's origins are obscure, it grew up beneath the Byzantine fortress of Xanthea and later became a summer colony of

Rousseau, Jean-jacques

2005-02-10T21:27:00.000-08:00

Rousseau was the least academic of modern philosophers and in many ways was the most influential. His thought marked the end of the Age of Reason. He propelled political

Aulard, François-alphonse

2005-02-10T03:45:00.000-08:00

Aulard obtained his doctorate in 1877 and until 1884 taught French literature in various provincial universities. In 1879 he

Baltic Sea

2005-02-10T03:20:00.000-08:00

The largest expanse of brackish water in the world, the semienclosed and relatively shallow Baltic Sea is of great interest to scientists, while to historians it

Stefansson, Vilhjalmur

2005-02-09T09:09:00.000-08:00

Of Icelandic descent, Stefansson lived for a year among the Eskimo in 1906–07, acquiring an intimate knowledge of their language and culture and forming the belief that

Johnson, Kelly

2005-02-09T00:07:00.000-08:00

Johnson received his B.S. (1932) and M.S. (1933) degrees from the University of Michigan before beginning his career with the Lockheed Corporation in 1933. As head of the “Skunk Works,” Lockheed's secret development unit, he helped design more than 40 airplanes. Among them were the P-38 Lightning