NormalStocking

Estate Agent Covent Garden

2006-10-26T01:40:00.000-07:00

Robert Irving Burns specialise in London Commercial and Residential property services. They are an estate agent covent garden amongst other London areas such as Soho and Oxford Circus.

Space Law

2005-04-05T02:06:00.000-07:00

The evolution of space law began with U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower's introduction of the concept into the United Nations in 1957, in connection with disarmament negotiations. Following the successful launchings of the Soviet satellite

John Birch Society

2005-04-03T03:39:00.000-07:00

Private organization founded in the United States on Dec. 9, 1958, by Robert H.W. Welch, Jr. (1899–1985), a retired Boston candy manufacturer, for the purpose of combating Communism and promoting various ultraconservative causes. The name derives from John Birch, an American Baptist missionary and U.S. Army intelligence officer who was killed by Chinese Communists on Aug. 25, 1945, making him, in

Cladonia

2005-03-31T03:24:00.000-08:00

Genus of lichens that includes those species commonly known as cup lichen, reindeer moss, and British soldiers (qq.v.).

Lipchitz, Jacques

2005-03-29T04:56:00.000-08:00

As a youth Lipchitz studied engineering in Vilnius, Lithuania. When he moved to Paris in 1909, however, he was wonder struck by French avant-garde art, especially

Altona

2005-03-18T00:58:00.000-08:00

Northwest district of the city and Land (state) of Hamburg, northwestern Germany. It lies on cliffs above the right bank of the Elbe River. The name may have come originally from allzu-nah (“all too near”), which was the Hamburgers' designation for an inn that lay too close to their territory and was for long the only building. As a small fishing village called Altwasser, it fell

Chaco Boreal

2005-03-16T14:07:00.000-08:00

Region of distinctive vegetation occupying about 100,000 square miles (259,000 square km) in northwestern Paraguay, southeastern Bolivia, and northern Argentina. The region is part of the vast, arid lowland known as the Gran Chaco (q.v.). The Chaco Boreal's land is flat and is marked by deciduous scrub woodlands to the west of the Paraguay River that include the quebracho, a tree valuable

Antarctic Peninsula

2005-03-14T01:22:00.000-08:00

Also called Palmer Peninsula, Graham Land , or Tierra de O'Higgins peninsula claimed by Britain as part of the British Antarctic Territory and also claimed by Chile and Argentina. It forms an 800-mile (1,300-kilometre) northward extension of Antarctica toward the southern tip of South America. The peninsula is ice-covered and mountainous, the highest point being Mount Jackson (13,750 feet [4,191 m]). Marguerite Bay indents the west coast, and Bransfield

Domenico Veneziano,

2005-03-13T22:57:00.000-08:00

Domenico was probably first trained in the International Gothic manner in Venice, where it is likely he saw paintings by northern European artists. He settled in Florence about 1439 and, except for brief periods, worked there until his

Biblical Literature, Samuel: the rise and significance of David

2005-03-10T20:34:00.000-08:00

The next section contains the account of Saul's fall from power and David's rise to the position of king over all Israel. Samuel, still a charismatic and political power of great consequence, received from Yahweh the message that he was to go to Bethlehem to anoint a new ruler. Because he feared reprisal from Saul, Samuel went to Bethlehem (whose elders had the same fears)

Middelburg

2005-03-08T22:27:00.000-08:00

Gemeente (commune) and capital, Zeeland provincie, southwestern Netherlands, on the former Walcheren Island. Named for its central position on the island, Middelburg was a flourishing medieval town that traded in wine and cloth and that later prospered through the activities of the Dutch East India Company. It was one of the first towns captured by the Sea

Addison Disease

2005-03-06T16:20:00.000-08:00

The adrenal cortex produces numerous hormones called corticosteroids, which are involved in important functions of the body such as regulation of metabolism, blood pressure, and sodium and potassium levels. Damage to the

Rocky Mountain National Park

2005-03-04T06:24:00.000-08:00

National park, in north central Colorado, U.S., established in 1915. Enclosing part of the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains, it is 262,191 ac (106,109 ha) in area. The park contains numerous high peaks exceeding 10,000 ft (3,000 m), including Longs Peak (14,256 ft), as well as broad valleys, gorges, alpine lakes, and plunging streams. Ice Age glacial deposition is evidenced by meadows and rolling moraines. A great variety

Braak, Menno Ter

2005-03-03T07:23:00.000-08:00

In 1932 ter Braak founded, with Edgar du Perron, the magazine Forum, which called for a rejection of contemporary aestheticism (with its emphasis on elegance and form) and a return to sincerity and substance

Silk

2005-02-28T19:31:00.000-08:00

Animal fibre produced by certain insects as building material for cocoons and webs. In commercial use it is almost entirely limited to filament from cocoons produced by the caterpillars of several moth species belonging to the genus Bombyx and commonly called silkworms.

Romanche Gap

2005-02-27T10:30:00.000-08:00

The Romanche Gap is one of the

Yamagata Aritomo, Koshaku

2005-02-25T05:34:00.000-08:00

Japanese soldier and statesman who exerted a strong influence in Japan's emergence as a formidable military power at the beginning of the 20th century. He was the first prime minister under the parliamentary regime, serving 1889–91 and 1898–1900.

Submarine Fan

2005-02-23T19:26:00.000-08:00

Accumulation of land-derived sediment on the deep seafloor; in configuration, a fan is like the section of a very low cone, with its apex at the lower mouth of a submarine canyon incised into a continental slope. Submarine canyons have steep courses with high walls and funnel occasional dense slurries of water and terrigenous sediment (turbidity currents) to the abyssal

Costa Rica, Ethnic and religious groups

2005-02-21T06:18:00.000-08:00

Costa Rica is noted for having the largest percentage of Spanish population in Central America. The Meseta Central, with more than half the nation's population, is the most predominantly Spanish region in both its manner of living and its ancestry. Spanish is spoken with distinctive national accents and usages. In Central America, a Costa Rican is called a Tico, for

Hyaluronidase

2005-02-18T05:54:00.000-08:00

Any of a group of enzymes that catalyze the hydrolysis (chemical decomposition involving the elements of water) of certain complex carbohydrates such as hyaluronic acid and chondroitin sulfates. The enzymes have been found in insects, leeches, snake venom, mammalian tissues (testis being the richest mammalian source), and in bacteria.

Alloy

2005-02-16T18:27:00.000-08:00

Alloys are usually produced by melting the mixture of ingredients. The value of alloys was discovered in very ancient times; brass (copper and zinc) and bronze

Atbara River

2005-02-15T10:41:00.000-08:00

Arabic Nahr 'atbarah, river joining the Nile as its last tributary at the town of 'Atbarah in The Sudan. The Atbara River rises in the Ethiopian highlands north of Lake Tana and flows westward into The Sudan, turning north to receive the Angareb and Satit (Takaze) rivers before heading northwestward to the Nile. It flows for a total of 500 miles (805 km). A dam at the rapids of Khashm al-Qirbah was built for

Ukulele

2005-02-12T08:48:00.000-08:00

The ukulele has been played in Europe and the United States as a jazz and solo instrument in the 20th century. It is tuned (in the middle-C octave) g¢–c¢–e¢–a¢ or d¢–f¢–a¢–b¢.

Scandinavian Literature

2005-02-11T03:31:00.000-08:00

Recommended anthologies are Elias Bredsdorff (ed.), Contemporary Danish Plays (1955, reissued 1970), and Contemporary Danish Prose (1958, reprinted 1974); Modern Nordic Plays: Denmark (1974); Hedin Brønner (trans. and ed.), Faroese Short Stories, trans. from Faroese and Danish (1972); Janet Garton and Henning Sehmsdorf (trans. and eds.), New Norwegian Plays (1989); Frederic Fleisher (trans. and ed.), Seven Swedish Poets (1963); and Gunilla M. Anderman (compiler), New Swedish Plays (1992).

Kirby, Rollin

2005-02-09T20:04:00.000-08:00

Kirby studied painting in New York City and Paris as a young man but switched to magazine illustrating and then cartooning. Kirby made his reputation during the 18 years (1913 to 1931) he spent on the New York

Kudamatsu

2005-02-06T03:10:00.000-08:00

Kudamatsu revived during World War I as an industrial city, assisted by its natural

Acacian Schism

2005-02-02T03:21:00.000-08:00

With the support of the Byzantine emperor Zeno, Acacius in 482 drew up an edict, the Henotikon (Greek: “Edict of Union”), by which he attempted to secure unity between orthodox Christians

Acacian Schism

2005-02-01T14:24:00.000-08:00

Also called spiny anteater any of three species of peculiar egg-laying mammals from Australia, Tasmania, and New Guinea that eat and breathe through a bald, tubular beak protruding from a dome-shaped body covered in spines. Echidnas have beady eyes and mere slits for ears, and at the end of their beaks are two small nostrils and a tiny mouth. Electroreceptors in the skin

Cermak, Anton J.

2005-01-30T22:51:00.000-08:00

Cermak was born about 50 miles (80 km) from Prague but celebrated his first birthday on Ellis Island in New York harbour. His parents settled in Braidwood, Ill., where,

Dubus, Andre

2005-01-28T07:57:00.000-08:00

After graduating from McNeese State College (now University), Lake Charles (B.A., 1958), Dubus served six years in the U.S. Marine Corps and then took an M.F.A. degree from the

Cystitis

2005-01-26T06:25:00.000-08:00

Acute or chronic inflammation of the urinary bladder. The bladder, the storage sac for urine, is lined with a mucous membrane and is highly resistant to infection. Occasionally, however, infections arise from such neighbouring organs as the kidneys and (in females) the vagina and urethra and (in males) the urethra and the prostate. Other conditions such as obstructions,

Wright Flyer Of 1903

2005-01-24T21:26:00.000-08:00

First powered airplane to demonstrate sustained flight under the full control of the pilot. Designed and built by Wilbur and Orville Wright in Dayton, Ohio, it was assembled in the autumn of 1903 at a camp at the base of the Kill Devil Hills, near Kitty Hawk, a village on the Outer Banks of North Carolina. After a first attempt failed on December 14, the machine was flown four times

Kahn, Louis I.

2005-01-22T20:46:00.000-08:00

Kahn's parents immigrated to the United States when he was a child. He graduated from the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, in 1924 and later toured Europe,

Melito Of Sardis

2005-01-20T03:37:00.000-08:00

The 4th-century chronicles of Eusebius of Caesarea identify Melito as a bishop who addressed a discourse to the Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius, arguing that Christianity

Cyrenaic

2005-01-18T10:41:00.000-08:00

The school was called Cyrenaic because Cyrene in North Africa was the

Melancholia

2005-01-16T19:12:00.000-08:00

A mental condition characterized by extreme depression (q.v.) and feelings of hopelessness and worthlessness. It is especially a part of manic-depressive psychosis (q.v.).

Russell, Henry Norris

2005-01-13T19:54:00.000-08:00

American astronomer—one of the most influential during the first half of the 20th century—who played a major role in the establishment of modern theoretical astrophysics by making physics the core of astrophysical practice. Bearing his name is the Hertzsprung-Russell diagram, a graph that demonstrates the relationship between

Saint Austell

2005-01-12T14:59:00.000-08:00

Town, Restormel borough, administrative and historic county of Cornwall, southwestern England. St. Austell was originally called Trenance and takes its present name from a hermit named St. Austol. England's most important kaolin (china clay) deposits are dug in the area, then processed at St. Austell, and shipped from the nearby port of Fowey. Many people are employed

Froebel, Friedrich (wilhelm August)

2005-01-09T17:10:00.000-08:00

Froebel was the fifth child in a clergyman's family. His mother died when he was only nine months old, and he was neglected as a

Chang Chih-tung

2005-01-07T07:41:00.000-08:00

Chang was born to a family of scholar–officials in Kweichow Province, but, in accordance with Chinese custom, he was considered native to Nan-p'i, Chihli (modern Hopeh) Province, where his ancestors had settled in the 15th century. He was unusually

Libya, Resources

2005-01-06T21:15:00.000-08:00

Petroleum is Libya's most important mineral resource. First discovered in 1956 near the Algerian border, it has since been located mainly in the Surt Basin. The major oil fields are Zaltan, Amal, and Intisar A in the vicinity of Banghazi; the Dahra field is located near Misratah, and the Sarir field is near Darnah. Deposits have been located near Ghadamis on the western border, Murzuq in

Wilder, Gene

2005-01-03T15:05:00.000-08:00

As a youth in Milwaukee, Wilder was a student of the renowned acting instructor Herman Gottlieb, and in 1955 he graduated from the University of Iowa with a degree in theatre. In 1961 he joined the Actors Studio in New York City, where he studied under Lee

Davenport, Thomas

2005-01-02T02:53:00.000-08:00

A blacksmith in Brandon, Vt., Davenport began experimenting with electromagnets after observing one in use at an ironworks in Crown Point, N.Y., in 1831. By 1834 he had

Sannar Dam

2004-12-30T09:54:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Sennar Dam, dam impounding the Blue Nile River for irrigation at the town of Sannar in The Sudan. Completed in 1925, it is 9,925 feet (3,025 m) long with a maximum height of 130 feet (40 m) and irrigates cotton and other crops of the plain of al-Jazirah (Gezira).

Straits Times, The

2004-12-28T02:49:00.000-08:00

It was founded in 1845 as a single-sheet weekly by Robert Carr Woods to provide commercial information needed by Singapore's bustling port community. The paper became a daily in 1858. Its facilities were destroyed by fire in 1869, but the paper

Arts, East Asian, Painting and pictorial arts

2004-12-26T06:53:00.000-08:00

Practically nothing survives of Chou painting, although from literary evidence it seems that the art developed considerably, particularly during the period of the Warring States. Palaces and ancestral halls were decorated with wall paintings. Late Chou texts tell of a craftsman working for the Duke of Chou (Chou Kung) who covered the stock of a whip with minute

Gabar

2004-12-24T14:49:00.000-08:00

Any member of the small Zoroastrian minority in Iran. The name Gabar was formerly applied derogatorily to the Iranian Zoroastrians; the term is linguistically related to the Arabic kafir, meaning “infidel.” The Zoroastrians who remained in Persia (modern Iran) after the Arab–Muslim conquest (7th century AD) had a long history as outcasts. Although they purchased some toleration

Francien Dialect

2004-12-23T01:49:00.000-08:00

The medieval dialect of Old French that furnishes the basis for the literary and official form of the modern French language. Francien was spoken in the region of Île-de-France, which included the city of Paris, and its preeminence is an indication of the political and intellectual prominence of Paris in the 13th and 14th centuries. Despite its importance, the dialect

Argyll, Archibald Campbell, 9th Earl Of, Lord Campbell, Lorne, And Kintyre

2004-12-20T08:37:00.000-08:00

In his youth Campbell studied abroad but returned to Scotland in 1649. He fought at Dunbar (Sept. 3, 1650) and, after the Battle of Worcester, joined the Royalist leader Glencairn in the Highlands. Ultimately he fell foul of

Furniture, Wood

2004-12-19T00:25:00.000-08:00

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

Liquid

2004-12-16T03:58:00.000-08:00

In physics, one of the three principal states of matter, intermediate between gas and crystalline solid.

'abd Al-wadid Dynasty

2004-12-15T08:27:00.000-08:00

Also called Zayyanid Dynasty , or Banu Zayyan dynasty of Zanatah Berbers (1236–1550), successors to the Almohad empire in northwestern Algeria. In 1236 the Zanatahs, loyal vassals to the Almohads, gained the support of other Berber tribes and nomadic Arabs and set up a kingdom at Tilimsan (Tlemcen), headed by the Zanatah amir Yaghmurasan (ruled 1236–83). Yaghmurasan was able to maintain internal peace through the successful control of the rival

Wolof

2004-12-13T17:37:00.000-08:00

The typical rural community is small (about 100 persons). Most Wolof are farmers, growing peanuts (groundnuts) as a cash crop and millet and sorghum as staples; many, however, live and work in Dakar and Banjul as traders, goldsmiths, tailors, carpenters,

Dadra And Nagar Haveli

2004-12-11T08:40:00.000-08:00

Works dealing specifically with the west and west-central area prior to its annexation by India are mainly in Portuguese; see Henry Scholberg, Archana Ashok Kakodker, and Carmo Azevedo, Bibliography of Goa and the Portuguese in India (1982). See also M.N. Pearson, Merchants and Rulers in Gujarat: The Response to the Portuguese in the Sixteenth Century (1976); and K.S. Mathew, Portuguese and the Sultanate of Gujarat, 1500–1573 (1986). Ganesh Dass, Socio-economic Profile of Dadra and Nagar Haveli, ed. by K.D. Ballal (1974); and P.S. Lele, Dadra and Nagar Haveli (1987), provide useful overviews. S.S. Desai, Goa, Daman and Diu, Dadra and Nagar Haveli (1976), is a study of the three union territories.

May, Phil

2004-12-09T19:20:00.000-08:00

His father, an engineer, died when May was nine years old. Three years later he began to earn his living; he worked as a timekeeper in a foundry, as a jockey, and then on the stage.

Ossetic Language

2004-12-06T05:49:00.000-08:00

Eastern Iranian language spoken in the northern Caucasus by the Ossetes. There are two major dialects: (1) eastern, called Iron, and (2) western, called Digor. The majority of the Ossetes speak Iron, which is the basis of the literary language now written in the Cyrillic alphabet. Ossetic is the modern descendant of the language of the ancient Alani, a Sarmatian people, and the

Frederick Iii

2004-12-04T04:51:00.000-08:00

Succeeding his father, the elector Ernest, in 1486, Frederick allied himself with Berthold, archbishop of Henneberg, to promote imperial reforms that would increase the

Lena River

2004-12-02T18:38:00.000-08:00

Among the peoples living in the Lena basin, mainly on the banks of the river and its tributaries, Russians are most numerous, followed by the Sakha (Yakut; a Turkic-speaking people), Evenk, and Yukaghir. There are several industrial and cultural centres and farming communities. Most of the Lena River basin lies within Sakha (Yakutia) republic of northeastern Siberia, whose

Sharman, Bill

2004-12-01T13:55:00.000-08:00

After graduation from the University of Southern California, Los Angeles (1950), Sharman played minor-league baseball before beginning his basketball career. He first played basketball with the Washington Capitols (1950–51). In his

Economic Affairs

2004-11-28T16:53:00.000-08:00

Amid a global financial crisis and intense efforts to prepare for the introduction of the European Union common currency (the euro) and the computer problem caused by the year 2000 date change, industrywide consolidation both within and across national borders continued to reshape the financial services landscape in 1998. At the same time, 1998 was marked by ongoing efforts

Shieldtail Snake

2004-11-26T17:17:00.000-08:00

The

Shieldtail Snake

2004-11-25T18:19:00.000-08:00

Thomas E. Watson,

Aryballos

2004-11-23T10:43:00.000-08:00

Small, narrow-necked, spherical or globular Greek vase. Commonly used as a scent or oil bottle, particularly by athletes at the baths, the aryballos derives from the globular wine pourer (oinochoe) of the Geometric style (9th century BC), evolving its distinctive shape in the early Proto-Corinthian style (8th century BC). From the many aryballoi that have been found dating from

Colette, Saint

2004-11-20T18:41:00.000-08:00

The daughter of a carpenter at the monastery of Corbie, she was orphaned at 17 and entered the third order of St. Francis, living in a hermitage given her by the abbot of Corbie. In a vision, St. Francis directed Colette to restore the Poor Clares

Vaisali

2004-11-19T09:57:00.000-08:00

Pali Vesali city of ancient India, north of Patna, northwestern Bihar state, on the Gandak River. In antiquity Vaisali was the capital of the Licchavi republic and was closely associated with the early histories of both Buddhism and Jainism. Roads connected it with Rajagrha to the south and Kapilavastu and Sravasti to the north. Mahavira, the founder of Jainism, was born in Vaisali and spent much

Endive

2004-11-16T09:44:00.000-08:00

(Cichorium endivia), edible annual leafy plant of the family Asteraceae, variously believed to have originated in Egypt and Indonesia and cultivated in Europe since the 16th century. Its many varieties form two groups, the curly-leaved, or narrow-leaved, endive (crispa), and the Batavian, or broad-leaved, endive (latifolia). The former is mostly used for salads, the latter for

Policy

2004-11-14T08:44:00.000-08:00

Policy, a true lottery initiated in the United States by Italian-Americans, derives its name from the Italian polizza (“receipt,” or “ticket”) and retains only occasional

Sacramento Mountains

2004-11-12T09:12:00.000-08:00

Segment of the southern Rockies, extending southward for 160 mi (260 km) from Ancho, in south central New Mexico, into Culberson County, western Texas, U.S. They include the Sierra Blanca and the Guadalupe and Jicarilla mountains, with heights averaging from 8,000 to 10,000 ft (2,400 to 3,000 m). The Sierra Blanca Peak (12,003 ft) is the highest in the group, and Guadalupe Peak (8,749 ft) is the highest in Texas. Features include

Ann Arbor

2004-11-10T02:50:00.000-08:00

City, seat (1827) of Washtenaw county, southeastern Michigan, U.S., on the Huron River. John Allen and Elisha W. Rumsey founded the community in 1824, which they named for their wives (both called Ann) and the local natural groves, or arbors. The settlement developed as an agricultural trading centre after the arrival in 1839 of the Michigan Central Railroad, which connected it with Detroit

Lut Desert

2004-11-08T14:51:00.000-08:00

Persian Dasht-e Lut, also spelled Dasht-i Lut, desert in eastern Iran. It stretches about 200 miles (320 km) from northwest to southeast and is about 100 miles wide. In the east a great massif of dunes and sand rises, while in the west an extensive area of high ridges is separated by wind-swept corridors. In its lowest, salt-filled depression—less than 1,000 feet (300 m) above sea level—the summer heat and low humidity are believed to be unsurpassed

Jacobs, Helen Hull

2004-11-06T09:59:00.000-08:00

Jacobs was the national junior tennis champion in 1924–25 and attended the University of California, Berkeley, from 1926 to 1929. She was defeated by Helen Wills in the 1928 finals at Forest Hills, New York, and in the Wimbledon

More, Paul Elmer

2004-11-05T15:26:00.000-08:00

More was educated at Washington University, St. Louis, Mo., and at Harvard, where he met Irving Babbitt and where, from 1894 to 1895, he was assistant in Sanskrit. In 1895–97 he was associate in Sanskrit and classical literature at Bryn Mawr

Stakman, Elvin Charles

2004-11-03T22:56:00.000-08:00

Stakman received his B.A. (1906), M.A. (1910), and Ph.D. (1913) from the University of Minnesota. In 1909 he became instructor in the newly established department of plant pathology, and in 1940 he became

Housman, A(lfred) E(dward)

2004-10-31T09:42:00.000-08:00

Housman, whose father was a solicitor, was one of seven children. He much preferred his mother; and her death on his 12th birthday was a cruel blow, which is surely one source of the pessimism his poetry expresses. While

G.c.b.

2004-10-29T00:27:00.000-07:00

Knight grand cross, or dame grand cross, of the Bath, member of the highest rank of knightly class in a British order of knighthood. See Bath, The Most Honourable Order of the.

Tsushima

2004-10-27T11:23:00.000-07:00

Archipelago, Nagasaki ken (prefecture), off the coast of southeastern Japan. The islands lie in the Korea Strait separating Japan and Korea, and divide the strait into the Tsushima Strait (west) and the Korea Strait (east). The archipelago consists principally of two rocky islands, Kami and Shimo, which are separated at one point by only a narrow channel. Kami has an area

'ashura'

2004-10-25T21:15:00.000-07:00

Muslim holy day observed on the 10th of Muharram, the first month of the Islamic year (Gregorian date variable). 'Ashura' was originally designated in AD 622 by Muhammad, soon after the Hijrah (Hegira), as a day of fasting from sunset to sunset, probably patterned on the Jewish Day of Atonement, Yom Kippur. When Jewish-Muslim relations became strained, however, Muhammad made Ramadan the

Sackbut

2004-10-23T18:16:00.000-07:00

The sackbut answered the need for a lower-pitched trumpet that composers of the time sought. Its telescoping slide mechanism is retained in the modern trombone.

Rialto Bridge

2004-10-21T18:07:00.000-07:00

Crossing over the narrowest point of the Grand Canal in the heart of Venice, built in the closing years of the 16th century, renowned as an architectural and engineering achievement of the Renaissance. It was designed and built following a design competition by Antonio da Ponte and his nephew, Antonio Contino. A single stone-arch span supports a broad, rectangular deck

Tarsal

2004-10-20T22:04:00.000-07:00

Any of several short, angular bones that in humans make up the ankle and that—in animals that walk on their toes (e.g., dogs, cats) or on hoofs—are contained in the hock, lifted off the ground. The tarsals correspond to the carpal bones of the upper limb. In humans the tarsals, in combination with the metatarsal bones, form a longitudinal arch in the foot—a shape well adapted for

Hugenberg, Alfred

2004-10-17T21:48:00.000-07:00

German industrialist and political leader. As the head of a huge newspaper and film empire and a prominent member of the conservative German National Peoples' Party, he exercised a profound influence on German public opinion during the Weimar Republic period (1918–33) and materially contributed to Adolf Hitler's rise

Koenig, Marie-pierre (-joseph-françois)

2004-10-15T17:32:00.000-07:00

After active duty during World War I and later in North Africa, Koenig campaigned in Norway and France during the early part of World War II. Evacuated to England in June 1940, he joined de Gaulle's movement and rose

Arias Sánchez, Oscar

2004-10-13T01:01:00.000-07:00

Born into one of the wealthiest coffee-growing families in Costa Rica, Arias studied economics at the University of Costa Rica and earned a Ph.D. from the University of Essex in England. In the 1960s he began working for the moderate socialist

Hawk Owl

2004-10-11T23:27:00.000-07:00

The northern hawk owl (Surnia ulula) is approximately 40 cm (about 16 inches) long. Its tail is long, and its wings are short and pointed like those of a hawk. The facial disk of the northern hawk owl does not extend above the eyes, and it has no ear tufts. It feeds on small mammals, birds, and insects, hunting during

Jabavu, Davidson Don Tengo

2004-10-07T07:32:00.000-07:00

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

Berdychiv

2004-10-05T11:08:00.000-07:00

Russian Berdichev, or Berdicev, city, Zhytomyr oblast (province), northwestern Ukraine. Founded in 1482 as a Lithuanian fortress, Berdychiv was Polish from 1569 until 1793. The 16th-century fortress walls survive, as does the Roman Catholic church in which the French novelist Honoré de Balzac married Eveline Hanska, a wealthy Russian widow, in 1850 after an 18-year courtship. Before 1917 an important trading centre, Berdychiv

Alonso, Dámaso

2004-10-04T14:34:00.000-07:00

Educated at the University of Madrid, Alonso taught at the Centre of Historical Studies, Madrid (1923–36), and was a professor at the University of Valencia (1933–39) and the University of Madrid (1939–68). He was also a lecturer or visiting professor at universities in

Akure

2004-10-02T05:32:00.000-07:00

Town, capital of Ondo state, southwestern Nigeria. It lies in the southern part of the forested Yoruba Hills and at the intersection of roads from Ondo, Ilesha, Ado-Ekiti, and Owo. Akure is an agricultural trade centre for the yams, cassava, corn (maize), bananas, rice, palm oil and kernels, okra, and pumpkins grown by the Ondo branch of the Yoruba people. Although cocoa is by far

Sun Bear

2004-09-29T11:16:00.000-07:00

Also called Bruang, Honey Bear, or Malayan Sun Bear (species Helarctos, or Ursus, malayanus), smallest member of the family Ursidae, found in Southeast Asian forests. The bear is often tamed as a pet when young but becomes bad-tempered and dangerous as an adult. It weighs only 27–65 kg (59–143 pounds) and grows 1–1.2 m (3.3–4 feet) long with a 5-centimetre (2-inch) tail. Its large forepaws bear long, curved claws, which it uses for tearing

Silhouette Island

2004-09-29T08:46:00.000-07:00

Granitic island, third largest of the Seychelles archipelago, Republic of Seychelles, in the western Indian Ocean. It has an area of 7.6 sq mi (20 sq km), rises to 2,467 ft (751 m), and is 12 mi (19 km) northwest of Mahé Island. Virgin forests still grow in the more inaccessible parts of its mountainous terrain. The island is protected as a national park. Copra and fish are the main products. Pop. (1982 est.) 255.

Cartography

2004-09-27T23:28:00.000-07:00

Cartography is an ancient discipline that dates from the prehistoric depiction of hunting and fishing

Wicomico

2004-09-26T15:19:00.000-07:00

County, southeastern Maryland, U.S., bordered by Delaware to the north, the Pocomoke River to the east, the Wicomico River to the southwest, and the Nanticoke River to the west and northwest. Salisbury, the county seat, developed as the commercial centre of the Delmarva Peninsula and became one of the largest ports in Maryland. Parklands include Wicomico Demonstration

Usakligil, Halit Ziya

2004-09-25T19:23:00.000-07:00

He was educated at a French school in Izmir, where he became devoted to the works of the 19th-century French novelists. A journey to France also contributed to his knowledge of European culture,

Molar Gas Constant

2004-09-25T07:31:00.000-07:00

(symbol R), fundamental physical constant arising in the formulation of the general gas law. For an ideal gas (approximated by most real gases that are not highly compressed or not near the point of liquefaction), the pressure p times the volume V of the gas divided by its absolute temperature T is a constant. When one of these three is altered for a given mass of gas, at least

Zoetermeer

2004-09-23T20:29:00.000-07:00

Gemeente (commune), Zuid-Holland provincie, western Netherlands. Zoetermeer is located about 10 miles (16 km) north of Rotterdam and is situated on a polder created during the 17th century. Industries in the town produce machinery, tobacco products, and foodstuffs, the latter using cereals and livestock raised in the vicinity. Oil and gas fields are exploited nearby. Zoetermeer

Abe Kobo

2004-09-23T00:43:00.000-07:00

He grew up in Mukden (now Shen-yang), in Manchuria, where his father, a physician, taught at the medical college. The youngster was interested in insect collecting, mathematics, and the writings of Fyodor

Cloture

2004-09-22T06:42:00.000-07:00

A cloture's

Calamites

2004-09-20T04:48:00.000-07:00

Originally, a stem fragment of a fossil plant prominent during the coal age, the Carboniferous Period (from 286 million to 360 million years ago). As such, it was termed a form genus. Later, the connotation was broadened to include an idealized treelike plant, and it became a full genus designation. Furthermore, the term calamite is used for any member of the family to which the

Switzerland, Avalanches

2004-09-19T14:02:00.000-07:00

With the increase in winter tourism, the study of avalanches has developed as a branch of Alpine climatology, and during threatening weather the research station near Davos publishes daily avalanche bulletins, which are also available by phone, as a warning for villagers and tourists. The Alpine cantons have about 10,000 avalanches annually, more than 8,000 of them in February,

Mercier, Louis-sébastien

2004-09-18T18:33:00.000-07:00

One of the first French writers of drame bourgeois (middle-class drama). In Du théâtre (1773; “About the Theatre”), he emphasized the didactic function of the theatre, and in his plays he presented a thesis, subordinating dramatic considerations to the didactic end. He criticized traditional French tragedy as artificial and sterile, though he