SlowArm

organic bed linen

2006-10-29T16:25:00.000-08:00

Livs range of soft luxurious bed linenis sourced ethically from India and using a fair trade policy. Liv also provide duvet cover set and bath towel set.

Mahapurusa

2005-04-04T05:12:00.000-07:00

Also called Salakapurusa, in Hindu, Jaina, and Buddhist belief, an individual of extraordinary destiny, distinguished by certain physical traits or marks (laksanas). Such men are born to become either universal rulers (cakravartins) or great spiritual leaders (such as buddhas or the Jaina spiritual leaders, the Tirthankaras). In the case of Gautama Buddha, soothsayers were able to recognize the

Arabesque

2005-04-02T06:00:00.000-08:00

In literature, a contrived intricate pattern of verbal expression, so called by analogy with a decorative style in which flower, fruit, and sometimes animal outlines appear in elaborate patterns of interlaced lines. That these designs can sometimes suggest fantastic creatures may have given rise to another sense of the term, denoting a tale of wonder or of the supernatural.

Oder River

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

Polish and Czech Odra, river of east-central Europe. It is one of the most significant rivers in the catchment basin of the Baltic Sea, second only to the Vistula in discharge and length. For the first 70 miles (112 kilometres) from its source, it passes through the Czech Republic. For a distance of 116 miles in its middle reach, it constitutes the boundary between Poland and Germany before reaching the

Daddah, Moktar Ould

2005-03-29T06:10:00.000-08:00

Mauritanian politician (b. Dec. 25, 1924, Boutilimit, French West Africa—d. Oct. 15, 2003, Paris, France), as Mauritania's first postindependence president (1961–78), secured international recognition and respect for the new country while he reconciled the varied interests of Mauritania's widely dispersed, partly nomadic, and religiously diverse Arab and black African populations. Daddah trained

Roberts, Kate

2005-03-27T16:12:00.000-08:00

Roberts set her works in the quarrying districts of North Wales and in the mining villages of South Wales, where poverty is usually the harsh determinant

Myanmar, The military regime

2005-03-25T03:51:00.000-08:00

U Ne Win retired as president and chairman of the Council of State in November 1981 but remained in power until July 1988, when he resigned as chairman of the BSPP amid violent protests. Student and worker unrest had erupted periodically throughout the 1980s, but the intensity of the protests in the summer of 1988 made it seem as if the country was on the verge of revolution. In September

Kebbi

2005-03-24T03:11:00.000-08:00

State, northwestern Nigeria. It was created in 1991 from the southwestern half of Sokoto (q.v.) state. Kebbi borders the nations of Niger to the west and Benin to the southwest, and it borders the Nigerian states of Sokoto to the north and east and Niger to the south. Kebbi's area consists of short-grass savanna that is drained southwestward by the Niger River and its tributary,

Rasmussen, Poul Nyrup

2005-03-22T15:49:00.000-08:00

When Prime Minister Poul Schlüter was forced from office by Denmark's ongoing "Tamilgate" affair on Jan. 14, 1993, Poul Nyrup Rasmussen, the leader of the Social Democrats, was faced not only with the challenge of forming a new government but also with the task of overseeing Denmark's key second referendum on the Maastricht Treaty. Furthermore, the country had just taken over

Goblin Shark

2005-03-20T02:49:00.000-08:00

Rare species of shark belonging to the family Mitsukurinidae (order Lamniformes). Only one extant species (Mitsukurina owstoni) is known, on the basis of a few specimens, although fossils of extinct species have been found. The goblin shark is closely related to the sand shark. Most specimens have been taken from deep marine waters near Japan. They have a long, protruding

Orvieto

2005-03-18T08:17:00.000-08:00

Town, Terni provincia, in the Umbria regione of central Italy. The town is situated atop an isolated rock 640 feet (195 m) above the junction of the Paglia and Chiana rivers. An Etruscan and later a Roman city (in late Roman times it was called Urbs Vetus, from which its Italian name is derived), Orvieto was the seat of a Lombard duchy and of a Tuscan countship before becoming an independent

Ibycus

2005-03-18T00:48:00.000-08:00

Ibycus left Sicily for the Aegean island of Samos, where the tyrant Polycrates became his patron. Ancient authorities found it hard to distinguish his early work from that of Stesichorus, but even in the few surviving

Veneti

2005-03-17T10:57:00.000-08:00

Ancient Celtic people who lived in what is now the Morbihan district of modern Brittany. By the time of Julius Caesar they controlled all Atlantic trade to Britain. They submitted to Caesar in 57 BC; but the next winter, disturbed by his interest in Britain, they seized some Roman commissariat officers and, with the support of several maritime states, attempted to regain

Mountain

2005-03-15T07:50:00.000-08:00

Mountain belts differ from one another in various respects, but they also have a number of similarities that enable Earth scientists to group them into certain distinct categories. Each of these categories is characterized by the principal process that created a representative belt. Moreover, within individual belts different tectonic processes can prevail

Pithom

2005-03-14T03:22:00.000-08:00

Egyptian Per-Atum , or Per Tum (“Estate of Atum”) , probably modern Tall al-Maskhutah ancient Egyptian city located near Ismailia in al-Isma'iliyah muhafazah (governorate). Mentioned in the Bible (Exodus 1:11) as one of the treasure cities built for the pharaoh by the Hebrews, it was known to have been enlarged by the Ramesside pharaohs, especially by Ramses II (reigned 1279–13 BC), in whose reign the Exodus of the Hebrews may have taken place. The site has yielded sphinxes and

Aguascalientes

2005-03-13T11:33:00.000-08:00

State, central Mexico. One of the country's smallest states (2,112 square miles [5,471 square km]), it occupies part of the central plateau between 3,300 and 10,000 feet (1,000 and 3,000 metres) above sea level, extending from two spurs of the Sierra Madre eastward and southward to rolling fertile plains. It is well watered and has a mild climate with light rainfall. The name, from the Spanish for “hot waters,” stems

France, History Of, The church

2005-03-13T01:16:00.000-08:00

The organized church, despite losses from war and plague, continued to be better endowed economically than morally. The popes of Avignon were less distant and—save perhaps to their French relatives, merchants, and artists—less admirable than the reformer popes of the past; as the prestige of their schismatic successors plummeted, the higher clergy were confirmed

Judo

2005-03-11T11:01:00.000-08:00

During the Olympic Games in Atlanta, Ga., in July 1996, David Douillet (France) won the over-95-kg championship and Djamel Bouras (France) the 78-kg title (1 kg = 2.2 lb). Kenzo Nakamura (Japan) captured gold in the 71-kg competition, and Tadahiro Nomura (Japan) finished first in the 60-kg class. Other gold medals were awarded to Pawel Nastula of Poland (95-kg), Jeon Ki Young of South Korea (86-kg), and Udo Quellmalz

Linus

2005-03-11T07:52:00.000-08:00

According to the Argive story, Linus, child of Apollo (god of light, truth, and prophecy) and Psamathe (daughter of Crotopus, king of Argos),

Sanidinite Facies

2005-03-09T11:53:00.000-08:00

One of the major divisions of the mineral facies classification of metamorphic rocks, the rocks of which form under the most intense conditions of contact metamorphism—either at the contacts of igneous intrusions with the surrounding rocks or in inclusions of other rocks in intrusions. Temperatures approaching the melting point of the rock may be reached; the

Half-timber Work

2005-03-09T07:50:00.000-08:00

Method of building in which external and internal walls are constructed of timber frames and the spaces between the structural members are filled with such materials as brick, plaster, or wattle and daub. Traditionally, a half-timbered building was made of squared oak timbers joined by mortises, tenons, and wooden pegs; the building's cagelike structural skeleton

Rio Branco

2005-03-08T10:05:00.000-08:00

City, capital of Acre estado (“state”), western Brazil. It lies on the west bank of the Acre River, and just north where the Branco River (Rio Branco) flows into the Acre. A commercial and distribution centre, Rio Branco exports rubber, metals, medicinal plants, Brazil nuts, and timber. Petroleum and alcohol fuels are processed there. The Federal University of Acre (1971) is located

Sa'adia Ben Joseph

2005-03-07T15:33:00.000-08:00

Sa'adia's opus magnum was on exegesis. He prepared

Cambridge

2005-03-05T18:23:00.000-08:00

City (district), administrative and historic county of Cambridgeshire, England, home of the internationally known University of Cambridge. The city lies immediately south of the fen country (a flat alluvial region only slightly above sea level) and is itself only 20 to 80 feet (6 to 24 metres) above sea level. Most of the city is built on the east bank of the River Cam, a tributary

Atkins, Chet

2005-03-04T20:49:00.000-08:00

Born into a musical family, Atkins began playing the guitar as a child and during his teen years performed professionally as a fiddler. By the late 1940s he had become a sought-after

Hába, Alois

2005-03-04T10:34:00.000-08:00

A striking innovator and important teacher and writer,

Toponymy

2005-03-02T21:10:00.000-08:00

Taxonomic study of place-names, based on etymological, historical, and geographical information. A place-name is a word or words used to indicate, denote, or identify a geographic locality such as a town, river, or mountain. Toponymy divides place-names into two broad categories: habitation names and feature names. A habitation name denotes a locality that is peopled

Chondrichthian, Food habits

2005-03-02T14:58:00.000-08:00

All sharks are carnivorous and, with a few exceptions, have broad feeding preferences, governed largely by the size and availability of the prey. The recorded food of the tiger shark (Galeocerdo cuvieri), for example, includes a wide variety of fishes (including other sharks, skates, and stingrays), sea turtles, birds, sea lions, crustaceans, squid, and even carrion such as

Danelaw

2005-03-01T15:03:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Danelagh, or Danelaga, the northern, central, and eastern region of Anglo-Saxon England colonized by invading Danish armies in the late 9th century. In the 11th and 12th centuries, it was recognized that all of eastern England between the Rivers Tees and Thames formed a region in which a distinctive form of customary law prevailed in the local courts, differing from West Saxon law to the south

Ussher, James

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

Ordained priest in 1601, Ussher became professor (1607–21) and twice vice-chancellor (1614, 1617) at the university where he had received his B.A., Trinity College, Dublin.

Kogalniceanu, Mihail

2005-02-27T00:56:00.000-08:00

In 1840 Kogalniceanu undertook the publication of a national literary review (Dacia literara) and a scientific

Taconite

2005-02-26T13:19:00.000-08:00

A low-grade siliceous iron formation in Minnesota, U.S., from which high-grade iron ore is derived. The iron formation consists of fine-grained silica with variable ratios of hematite and magnetite totaling less than 30 percent iron. Recovery of the iron requires fine grinding and concentration of iron-bearing phases, which in turn are formed into pellets suitable for

China, Tung (Eastern) Han

2005-02-24T20:06:00.000-08:00

The Han house was restored by Liu Hsiu, better known as Kuang-wu ti, who reigned from AD 25 to 57/58. His claim had been contested by another member of the Liu house, Liu Hsüan—better known as Liu Keng-shih—who had been actually enthroned for two years, until his death in the course of turbulent civil fighting. Ch'ang-an had been virtually destroyed by warfare, and Kuang-wu ti established

Kourouma, Ahmadou

2005-02-23T04:12:00.000-08:00

Kourouma spent his early years in Guinea and attended secondary school in Bamako, Mali, until he was expelled and was drafted into the army by the French. He was sent to Indochina and served in Saigon. Later he continued

Pausanias

2005-02-23T01:11:00.000-08:00

Before visiting Greece, Pausanias had traveled widely in Asia Minor, Syria, Palestine, Egypt, Macedonia, Epirus (now in Greece and Albania), and parts of Italy. His Description takes the form of a tour of Greece starting from Attica.

Ligurian

2005-02-21T09:11:00.000-08:00

No ancient texts speak of Ligurians in southern Gaul as nations or attribute definite racial characteristics to them. They were apparently an indigenous collection

China, Trade

2005-02-20T21:26:00.000-08:00

Trade constitutes a fairly small portion of China's overall economy. It became important, however, in the country's attempt to modernize its economy, especially before 1985, when China consistently ran trade surpluses. The direction of China's foreign trade has undergone marked changes since the early 1950s. In 1950 more than 70 percent of the total was accounted for by trade with

Military Aircraft, Day fighters

2005-02-20T14:22:00.000-08:00

Air superiority was crucial to the outcome of most of the decisive campaigns of World War II, and here the performance of single-seat fighters was generally the critical factor. First-class fighters required extremely powerful aero engines suitable for compact, low-drag installation, and in this respect Britain, Germany, and the United States were in a class by themselves.

Opus Interassile

2005-02-19T11:05:00.000-08:00

Metalwork technique developed in Rome and widely used during the 3rd century AD, especially appropriate for making arabesques and other nonrepresentational ornamental designs. Probably of Syrian origin, the technique consists of piercing holes in the metal to create an openwork design suggesting lacework. Opus interassile was often used for large wheels placed

Biblical Literature, The Vulgate

2005-02-17T19:20:00.000-08:00

Jerome produced three revisions of the Psalms, all extant. The first was based on the Septuagint and is known as the Roman Psalter because it was incorporated into the liturgy

Jhalawar

2005-02-17T09:50:00.000-08:00

Town, administrative headquarters of Jhalawar district, Rajasthan state, northwestern India. The town—sometimes called Jhalrapatan, Jhalrapatan Chhaoni (cantonment), or Brijnagar—is a major road junction and agricultural market centre. The old town of Jhalrapatan (Patan) was founded in 1796. The new town, including the palace and cantonment, lies just to the north. Jhalawar, the capital

Kahn, Gustave

2005-02-16T11:11:00.000-08:00

After study in Paris, Kahn spent four years in North Africa, returning to Paris in 1885. He helped found or edit several literary reviews, including La Vogue, Le Symboliste, and La Revue Indépendante, which printed his poems and discussed the various theories

Jhalawar

2005-02-15T18:55:00.000-08:00

The member countries of the Organisation for European Economic

Latissimus Dorsi

2005-02-13T14:30:00.000-08:00

The action of the latissimus dorsi draws the upper arm downward and backward

Furniture, India

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

India's place in the history of furniture is that of an adapter or transformer of imported Western styles rather than a creator of independent styles of its own. Domestic furniture in the sense in which it is known in Europe was not traditional in India before the 16th century, and even such familiar objects as tables and chairs were rarely used until the spread of Portuguese,

Great Alfold

2005-02-11T18:25:00.000-08:00

Hungarian Nagy-Alföld, Nagy Magyar Alföld , or Alföld , English Great Hungarian Plain a flat, fertile lowland, southeastern Hungary, also extending into eastern Croatia, northern Yugoslavia, and western Romania. Its area is 40,000 square miles (100,000 square km), about half in Hungary. In its natural state the Great Alfold is a steppeland broken up with floodplain groves and swamps—a southwestern projection of the Russian steppes. In Hungary flood control, irrigation,

Jackson, Andrew

2005-02-11T15:24:00.000-08:00

Byname Old Hickory military hero and seventh president of the United States (1829–37). He was the first U.S. president to come from the area west of the Appalachians and the first to gain office by a direct appeal to the mass of voters. His political movement has since been known as Jacksonian Democracy. (For a discussion of the history and nature of the presidency, see presidency of the United States of America. See also Cabinet of President Andrew Jackson.)

San Fernando

2005-02-09T00:27:00.000-08:00

Capital of Colchagua provincia, O'Higgins región, central Chile, lying on the Rapel River, at 1,112 feet (339 m) above sea level, in a fertile longitudinal valley. Founded in 1742, it became the provincial capital in 1840. San Fernando's rodeos rank among Chile's best, for the city is in the heart of huaso (“cowboy”) country. In addition to livestock, the surrounding region yields wheat, forage crops,

Gyges

2005-02-07T18:45:00.000-08:00

According to all the ancient sources, Gyges came to the throne after slaying King Candaules and marrying his queen, but there are several versions of the event itself. Herodotus wrote that Candaules, who was inordinately proud of

Earth Sciences, Weather forecasting

2005-02-07T03:22:00.000-08:00

Efforts at incorporating numerical data on weather into mathematical formulas that could then be used for forecasting were initiated early in the century at the Norwegian Geophysical Institute. Vilhelm Bjerknes and his associates at Bergen succeeded in devising equations relating the measurable components of weather, but their complexity precluded the

Komárom-esztergom

2005-02-05T07:55:00.000-08:00

Megye (county), northwestern Hungary. The megye extends southward from the Danube River and the Slovakian frontier. It has a mixed agricultural-industrial economic base. Sugar beets and peaches are important crops, and there is a sugar beet mill at Ács. Tatabánya (q.v.), the megye seat, is Hungary's chief mining (lignite) centre. Considerable industrial activity is concentrated

Annaba

2005-02-04T15:51:00.000-08:00

Formerly Bône , or Bona town and Mediterranean port, northeastern Algeria. It lies near the mouth of the Wadi Seybouse, close to the Tunisian border. Its location on a natural harbour (Annaba Gulf) between Capes Garde and Rosa early attracted the Phoenicians, probably in the 12th century BC. It passed to the Romans as Hippo Regius, was the residence of the Numidian kings, and achieved independence

Arts, Central Asian, Emirate of Bukhara

2005-02-03T15:29:00.000-08:00

Although fine-quality pottery decorated with animal, bird, and figural designs was being made in New Nisa in the 15th century, the artistic revival of the Mongol period that Timur had launched in western Turkistan had died out by the 16th century, when the emirate of Bukhara, incorporating much of Sogdiana, was established. Except for gold-thread embroidery and carpet

Mascagni, Pietro

2005-02-03T15:01:00.000-08:00

Mascagni studied at the conservatory at Milan, but, unable to submit to the discipline of his master, Amilcare Ponchielli, he left to join a traveling

Alcalde

2005-02-02T16:39:00.000-08:00

(from Arabic al-qadi, “judge”), the administrative and judicial head of a town or village in Spain or in areas under Spanish control or influence. The title was applied to local government officials whose functions were various but always included a judicial element. Types of alcaldes were differentiated according to the specialized nature of their judicial functions:

Radha

2005-02-01T18:58:00.000-08:00

The allegorical

Uguccione Della Faggiuola

2005-01-31T23:55:00.000-08:00

A member of an old Ghibelline (pro-imperial) family, Uguccione had served as podestà (chief magistrate) and captain general in several Italian cities when the sudden death of Holy Roman Emperor

Metamorphic Rock, Pyroxene-hornfels facies

2005-01-30T01:32:00.000-08:00

Rocks of the pyroxene-hornfels facies are characteristically formed near larger granitic or gabbroic bodies at depths of a few kilometres or at pressures of a few hundred bars. The mineral assemblages are again largely anhydrous, but, unlike the sanidinite facies, the minerals reflect distinctly lower temperatures. One of the classic descriptions of such rocks

New Forest

2005-01-28T11:25:00.000-08:00

District, administrative and historic county of Hampshire, England, comprising the New Forest and its urbanized coastal fringe flanking Southampton Water and The Solent, together with rural areas around Ringwood and Fordingbridge in the west of the county. The old harbour of Hythe and the modern oil terminal of Fawley on Southampton Water are economically linked

Sa-skya-pa

2005-01-28T03:54:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Sakyapa Tibetan Buddhist sect that takes its name from the great Sa-skya (Sakya) monastery founded in 1073, 50 miles (80 km) north of Mount Everest. The sect follows the teachings of the noted traveler and scholar 'Brog-mi (992–1072). He translated into Tibetan the important Tantric work Hevajra Tantra, which remains one of the basic texts of the order. He also transmitted into Tibet from India the teachings

Allégret, Marc

2005-01-27T14:14:00.000-08:00

Allégret was educated in law in Paris, but while accompanying his uncle André Gide on a trip to Africa, he recorded the trip on film. He served as an assistant director to Robert Florey and Augusto Genina and in 1931 directed his first feature, Mam'zelle Nitouche. It was

Saco

2005-01-26T03:16:00.000-08:00

City, York county, southwestern Maine, U.S., at the mouth of the Saco River opposite Biddeford. Founded with Biddeford in 1631 as a single plantation, it was the seat of Sir Ferdinando Gorges' government (1636–53) before passing to Massachusetts. It was called Saco until 1718 and Biddeford until it was separately incorporated (1762) as Pepperellboro Township. It developed a lumbering and seaport

Régence Style

2005-01-24T08:57:00.000-08:00

Transition in the decorative arts from the massive rectilinear forms of Louis XIV furniture to those prefiguring the Rococo style of Louis XV. The style encompasses about the first 30 years of the 18th century, when Philippe II, duc d'Orléans, was regent of France. The restraint arrived at during this period resulted from a strong reaction against the pomposity of the

Basalt

2005-01-23T13:22:00.000-08:00

Some basalts are quite glassy (tachylytes), and many are very fine-grained and compact; it is more usual, however, for them to exhibit porphyritic structure, with larger crystals (phenocrysts) of olivine, augite, or feldspar in a finely crystalline

Omdurman

2005-01-23T04:41:00.000-08:00

Arabic Umm Durman, one of the Three Towns (with Khartoum and Khartoum North), east-central Sudan. Situated on the left bank of the main Nile River just below the confluence of the Blue and White Niles, Omdurman was an insignificant riverine village until the victory of Muhammad Ahmad, known as al-Mahdi, over the British in 1885. Al-Mahdi and his successor, the caliph 'Abd Allah, made it their capital,

Balatonfüred

2005-01-22T14:26:00.000-08:00

Resort town, Veszprém megye (county), central Hungary, on the north shore of Lake Balaton. The town has been known for at least 250 years as a health spa and resort. In the town centre is Gyógy Tér (“Healing Square”), where the waters of volcanic springs rise up under a pavilion. There are 11 medicinal springs in the area that are said to have a stimulating effect on the heart and nerves.

Qatif, Al-

2005-01-21T02:01:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Katif, town and oasis, northeastern Saudi Arabia. It lies along the Persian Gulf, over Al-Qatif petroleum field. Since the development of the oil fields in the late 1940s, Al-Qatif has lost its status as an important port to Ad-Dammam. In addition to several oil wells, Al-Qatif has oil-gas separator plants, pipelines, and large residential quarters for workers. A major irrigation project (completed

Père David's Deer

2005-01-20T18:09:00.000-08:00

The deer is about 1.1 metres (43 inches) tall at the shoulder and is characterized

Haden, Charlie

2005-01-19T13:02:00.000-08:00

From the age of two Haden sang with his family's country music band on midwestern radio and television programs. He moved to Los Angeles and began to play jazz with Art Pepper and others. While working (1957–59) in pianist Paul

Utrecht, State University Of

2005-01-18T04:46:00.000-08:00

The largest Netherlands state university, Utrecht has faculties of theology, law, medicine, science,

France, History Of, The influence of the church on society and legislation

2005-01-17T11:21:00.000-08:00

The progressive Christianization of society influenced Frankish institutions significantly. The introduction of royal consecration and the creation of the empire afforded the clergy an opportunity to elaborate a new conception of power based on religious principles. The church was involved in trying to discourage slavery and in ameliorating the legal

Pa Sak River

2005-01-16T11:59:00.000-08:00

River in central Thailand. It rises in the northern portion of the Phetchabun Range and flows south through a narrow valley for 319 miles (513 km). It empties into the Lop Buri River at the city of Ayutthaya, north of Bangkok. Lomsak, Phetchabun, and Sara Buri are the main towns on its banks. Below Sara Buri, the Pa Sak is dammed for irrigation.

Jew's Harp

2005-01-14T17:02:00.000-08:00

Also called Jaw's Harp, or Guimbarde, musical instrument consisting of a thin wood or metal tongue fixed at one end to the base of a two-pronged frame. The player holds the frame to his mouth, which forms a resonance cavity, and plucks the instrument's tongue. The notes produced are limited to the fourth through tenth tones of the harmonic series (in relative pitch, c–e–g–b [approximately]–c¢–d¢–e¢). The tongue produces

Orlov, Aleksey Grigoryevich, Count (graf)

2005-01-11T11:38:00.000-08:00

Having entered the cadet corps in 1749, Orlov became an officer in the Russian guards as well as a close adviser to his brother Grigory Grigoryevich Orlov, who about 1760 became the lover of Catherine,

Ogaden

2005-01-10T21:59:00.000-08:00

The region is sparsely populated

Rabbit Hair

2005-01-07T11:49:00.000-08:00

The fibre of the Angora rabbit (so named for the resemblance of its pelt to that of the Angora goat) is produced mainly in France and England. A silky, delicate white fibre, it is prized

Blood

2005-01-06T10:22:00.000-08:00

A literary term of British origin referring to a lurid work of fiction, especially a cheap and ill-written book of adventure or crime. The word is a short form of “blood-and-thunder book.”

Ibn 'aqil

2005-01-03T06:19:00.000-08:00

In 1055–66 Ibn 'Aqil received instruction in Islamic law according to the tenets of the

Chaga

2005-01-02T03:55:00.000-08:00

Their methods of cultivation support a very dense population. They practice an intensive irrigated agriculture on terraced fields, keeping them under permanent cultivation through

Baxter, George

2004-12-31T14:53:00.000-08:00

He was the son of John Baxter (1781–1858), printer and publisher at Lewes, who issued the popular illustrated “Baxter” Bible. George Baxter went to London in 1827. There he supplied colour illustrations

English Oak

2004-12-28T17:25:00.000-08:00

Also called Brown Oak (Quercus robur), ornamental and timber tree of the beech family (Fagaceae) that is native to Eurasia but also cultivated in North America and Australia. The tree has a short, stout trunk with wide-spreading branches and may grow to a height of 25 m (82.5 feet). The short-stalked leaves, 13 cm (5 inches) or more long, have three to seven pairs of rounded lobes; they are dark green

La Rive, Auguste-arthur De

2004-12-27T04:14:00.000-08:00

La Rive was elected to the chair of natural philosophy at the Academy of Geneva in 1823, and for the next seven years he conducted studies on the specific heat of various gases and the temperature of the Earth's crust. His experiments in 1836 on the voltaic

Biblical Literature, Purification laws

2004-12-24T23:35:00.000-08:00

With chapter 11 begin the regulations on ritual cleanness and uncleanness, starting with animals and other living things fit and unfit to eat—the basis of the famous Jewish dietary laws. Then come the uncleanness and required purification of women after childbirth, skin diseases, healed lepers, infected houses, and genital discharges. Chapter 16, which belongs in the

Powder-post Beetle

2004-12-22T18:09:00.000-08:00

Any member of the approximately 90 species of the small, widely distributed insect family Lyctidae (order Coleoptera). These beetles range in colour from reddish brown to black and in size from 1 to 7 mm (up to 0.3 inch). The larvae bore through seasoned wood, reducing it to a dry powder; they do not, however, enter varnished or painted wood. Powder-post beetle holes are often erroneously

Fareham

2004-12-20T15:11:00.000-08:00

Town and borough (district), county of Hampshire, England, at the head of a creek opening into the northwestern corner of Portsmouth Harbour. The district embraces the market town of Fareham and several outlying historic localities. These include Portchester, which was the site of extensive Saxon occupation, a Roman fortress, and a castle built in 1160–72 by Henry II; and Titchfield,

Nariño

2004-12-19T04:22:00.000-08:00

Departamento, southwestern Colombia, bounded by the Pacific Ocean on the west and Ecuador on the south. Its population is concentrated principally in the volcanic Andean highlands above 5,000 feet (1,500 m). The densely settled Altiplano (high plateau) of Túquerres-Ipiales, which is situated on the Ecuadoran frontier, is separated by the Guáitara River from that of the departmental

Biblical Literature, Manuscripts and printed editions of the Septuagint

2004-12-16T10:57:00.000-08:00

The manuscripts are conveniently classified by papyri uncials (capital letters) and minuscules (cursive script). The papyri fragments run into the hundreds, of varying sizes and importance, ranging from the formative period of the Septuagint through the middle of the 7th century. Two pre-Christian fragments of Deuteronomy from Egypt are of outstanding significance.

Elista

2004-12-15T01:39:00.000-08:00

Formerly (1944–57) Stepnoy, city and capital of Kalmykia republic, southwestern Russia. It was founded in 1865 and became a city in 1930. In 1944, when the Kalmyks were exiled by Joseph Stalin for their alleged collaboration with the Germans, the republic was dissolved and the city became known as Stepnoy (“Steppe”). The Kalmyk A.S.S.R. and the name Elista were restored in 1957. Agriculture employs the most workers, though

Mitchell, Joan

2004-12-13T03:40:00.000-08:00

Mitchell attended Smith College (1942–44), Northampton, Mass., U.S., and then studied at the Art Institute of Chicago, receiving a bachelor of fine arts degree (1947) and, after scholarship study in France, a master of fine arts degree (1950). In the early 1950s she studied art briefly

Kazvin

2004-12-10T06:43:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Qazvin city, Markazi (Tehran) ostan (province), north-central Iran, in a wide, fertile plain at the southern foot of the Elburz Mountains. Originally called Shad Shahpur, it was founded by the Sasanian king Shapur I about AD 250. It flourished in early Muslim times (7th century), serving as a base for Islamization, and was surrounded by strong fortifications by Harun al-Rashid. Genghis Khan laid waste the

Accentor

2004-12-09T11:03:00.000-08:00

Accentors breed chiefly in mountains but winter at lower elevations. A widespread lowland species is

Powell, William

2004-12-07T10:21:00.000-08:00

After graduating from the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York City in 1912, Powell debuted

Somalia, Forestry

2004-12-04T05:52:00.000-08:00

The acacia species of the thorny savanna in southern Somalia supply good timber and are the major source of charcoal, but charcoal production has long exceeded ecologically acceptable limits. More efficient and careful handling of Boswellia, Commiphora, and other resin-exuding trees could increase yields of aromatic gums.

Cloak And Sword Drama

2004-12-03T10:17:00.000-08:00

Also called cloak and dagger theatre , Spanish comedia de capa y espada 17th-century Spanish plays of upper middle class manners and intrigue. The name derives from the cloak and sword that were part of the typical street dress of students, soldiers, and cavaliers, the favourite heroes. The type was anticipated by the plays of Bartolomé de Torres Naharro, but its popularity was established by the inventive dramas of Lope de Vega and Tirso

Indeterminate Sentence

2004-12-01T03:51:00.000-08:00

In law, term of imprisonment with no definite duration within a prescribed maximum. Eligibility for parole is determined by the parole authority. In this respect, an indeterminate sentence differs from a definite one in that statutes prescribing the latter usually provide for parole eligibility after a specified fraction of the full term—in most countries, from

Gong

2004-11-28T22:17:00.000-08:00

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.

Biography

2004-11-27T22:47:00.000-08:00

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.

House, Edward M.

2004-11-24T16:05:00.000-08:00

Independently wealthy, House turned from business to politics and between 1892 and 1904 served as an adviser to Texas governors, one of whom gave him the honorary title of colonel. Thereafter

Basel, Council Of

2004-11-22T08:23:00.000-08:00

A general council of the Roman Catholic church held in Basel, Switz. It was called by Pope Martin V a few weeks before his death in 1431 and then confirmed by Pope Eugenius IV. Meeting at a time when the prestige of the papacy had been weakened by the Great Schism (1378–1417), it was concerned with two major problems: the question of papal supremacy and the Hussite heresy. (The Hussites were

Abbott, Bud; And Costello, Lou

2004-11-21T11:26:00.000-08:00

Abbott was born into a circus