KindFowl

Vale Of Glamorgan

2005-04-04T19:23:00.000-07:00

County, southern Wales, extending along the Bristol Channel coast west of Cardiff and lying entirely within the historic county of Glamorgan (Morgannwg). It comprises an undulating coastal platform, with an average elevation of about 200 feet (60 metres), that often terminates abruptly in cliffs at the coast. Along other sections of the coast, however, there are sand

Istihsan

2005-04-04T02:30:00.000-07:00

(Arabic: “to approve,” or “to sanction”), among Muslim theologians, the use of one's own judgment to determine the best solution to a religious problem that cannot be solved by citing sacred texts. This approach to religious problems found special application as Islam spread to new lands and encountered new environments. Proponents of istihsan believe Muhammad sanctioned

Gahadavala Dynasty

2005-04-03T15:49:00.000-07:00

One of the many ruling families of North India on the eve of the Muslim conquests in the 12th–13th century. Its history, ranging between the second half of the 11th century and the mid-13th century, illustrates all the features of early medieval North Indian polity—dynastic hostilities and alliances, feudal-state structure, absolute dependence on Brahminical social ideology,

Writ

2005-04-03T11:16:00.000-07:00

In common law, order issued by a court in the name of a sovereign authority requiring the performance of a specific act. The most common modern writs are those, such as the summons, used to initiate an action. Other writs may be used to enforce the judgment of a court (attachment, delivery) or to require a lower court to furnish certain records (error) or perform a certain act

Karakul

2005-04-01T13:04:00.000-08:00

Sheep breed of central or west Asian origin, raised chiefly for the skins of very young lambs, which are covered with glossy, tightly curled black coats and are called Persian lamb in the fur trade. The wool of mature Karakul sheep, classified as carpet wool, is a mixture of coarse and fine fibres, from 6 to 10 inches (15 to 25 cm) long, of colours varying from black to various shades

Powder Metallurgy

2005-04-01T06:36:00.000-08:00

Fabrication of metal objects from a powder rather than casting from molten metal or forging at softening temperatures. In some cases the powder method is more economical, as in fashioning small metal parts such as gears for small machines, in which casting would involve considerable machining and scrap loss. In other cases melting is impractical because of the

Episcopal Church In Scotland

2005-03-30T02:00:00.000-08:00

The development of Protestantism in Scotland went through confusing periods, with control alternating between the Presbyterian Party (those who believed in the presbyterian form of church government) and the Episcopal Party (those who

Fracture

2005-03-30T00:32:00.000-08:00

In mineralogy, appearance of a surface broken in directions other than along cleavage planes. There are several kinds of fractures: conchoidal (curved concavities resembling shells—e.g., flint, quartz, glass); even (rough, approximately plane surfaces); uneven (rough and completely irregular surfaces, the commonest fracture type); hackly (sharp edges and jagged points

Atacama Plateau

2005-03-27T19:48:00.000-08:00

The peaks of the

Li Tang

2005-03-27T13:52:00.000-08:00

He earned the highest rank in the academy of painting of Emperor Huizong, and, after the North fell to the Mongols, went to the South

Gaffney

2005-03-26T15:41:00.000-08:00

City, seat of Cherokee county, northern South Carolina, U.S., near the Broad River. Named for Michael Gaffney, an Irish settler who arrived in 1803, it early developed as a resort where plantation owners sought therapeutic treatment at local limestone springs. Its growth as a market centre for cotton (now peaches) and farm produce was sustained by the coming of the Southern

Chrestien, Florent

2005-03-25T22:19:00.000-08:00

The son of Guillaume Chrestien, an eminent physician and writer on physiology, he became a pupil of Henri Estienne, the Hellenist, at an early age. Later, he was appointed tutor to Henry of Navarre, afterward Henry IV of France, who made him his librarian.

Danané

2005-03-24T07:21:00.000-08:00

Town, western Côte d'Ivoire. It lies along the Boan River, a tributary of the Nuon (Nipoué, Cestos) River, and at the intersection of roads from Liberia, Guinea, and the Ivoirian town of Man. It is the chief trade centre (rice, coffee, and kola nuts) of a forested region mainly inhabited by the Dan people. Pop. (1975) town, 19,608.

Waiuku

2005-03-23T19:27:00.000-08:00

Town, Auckland local government region, northern North Island, New Zealand. It lies along the Waiuku estuary, which is the southern arm of Manukau Harbour. The settlement was founded in 1843 as a port on the route between Auckland and the agricultural area of the Waikato River to the south. Its function as a trading centre ceased with the Waikato War of 1863–64, when it was made a stockade.

Orange River

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

The high valleys of the Orange River's headwaters are uninhabited, though the adjacent plateaus are used by the southern Sotho (Basuto) people for grazing land. Between the Lesotho border and the town of Aliwal North, corn (maize) is cultivated, and this region is also used as pasturage for cattle and sheep. The dry shrub country farther downstream is in general suitable

Avison, Charles

2005-03-22T20:02:00.000-08:00

Little is known of Avison's life until he took positions as organist at St. John's and St. Nicholas' churches in Newcastle in 1736. He also taught harpsichord, violin, and flute and conducted some of the first subscription concerts in

Biblical Literature, The New English Bible

2005-03-21T18:55:00.000-08:00

The New English

Argentina, Mesopotamia

2005-03-21T14:54:00.000-08:00

East of the Gran Chaco, in a narrow depression 60 to 180 miles (100 to 300 km) wide, lies Mesopotamia, which is bordered to the north by the highlands of southern Brazil. The narrow lowland stretches for 1,000 miles (1,600 km) southward, finally merging with the Pampas south of the Río de la Plata. Its designation as Mesopotamia (Greek: “Between the Rivers”) reflects the fact that its western and eastern

Masolino

2005-03-20T20:27:00.000-08:00

Masolino came from the same district of Tuscany

Argentina, Mesopotamia

2005-03-20T14:58:00.000-08:00

Organization formed in New York City in 1911 during a convention of state antisuffrage groups. Led by Josephine Dodge, the founder and first president, the NAOWS believed that woman suffrage would decrease women's work in communities and their ability to effect societal reforms. Active on a state and federal level, the group also established a newsletter, Woman's

Biblical Literature, The New English Bible

2005-03-19T09:56:00.000-08:00

Any member of the mammalian order made up of the relatively well-known rabbits and hares (family Leporidae) and also the less frequently encountered pikas (family Ochotonidae). Rabbits and hares characteristically have long ears, a short tail, and strong hind limbs that provide a bounding locomotion. In contrast, the smaller pikas have shorter, rounded ears, no external

Avilés

2005-03-17T10:49:00.000-08:00

City, Asturias provincia and comunidad autónoma (“autonomous community”), northwestern Spain. It lies along the Ría (inlet) de Avilés, an inlet of the Bay of Biscay. A summer resort with beaches at nearby Salinas, the city has an iron and steel industry and a fishing fleet, and it exports coal from the Asturias mines. Avilés is rich in medieval architecture, its outstanding

Neustadt An Der Weinstrasse

2005-03-17T08:16:00.000-08:00

Formerly Neustadt An Der Haardt, city, Rhineland-Palatinate Land (state), southwestern Germany. It lies on the eastern slope of the Haardt Mountains, at the mouth of the Speyer-Bach. Founded in 1220 and chartered in 1275, its historic buildings include the Casimirianum (the seat of Heidelberg University, 1578–83, now a convention hall), the town hall (formerly a Jesuit college), and the Stiftskirche (“Collegiate Church”), which

Mahal, Taj

2005-03-17T07:01:00.000-08:00

Taj Mahal (the name came to him in a dream) grew up in a musical family. His father, of Jamaican background, was a jazz

Lorain, John

2005-03-16T04:52:00.000-08:00

Lorain apparently went to the North American colony of Maryland when he was a child. After managing a farm there for many years; he moved in 1795 to

Parabasis

2005-03-15T20:17:00.000-08:00

Plural parabases an important choral ode in Greek Old Comedy delivered by the chorus at an intermission in the action while facing and moving toward the audience. It was used to express the author's views on political or religious topics of the day.

X Ray

2005-03-15T15:07:00.000-08:00

There are two methods in general use for detecting X rays. The first method relies on the X rays producing a photochemical change in a photographic emulsion. The blackening of the film is related to the

Gondophernes

2005-03-14T18:28:00.000-08:00

Gondophernes was first known from the apocryphal

Arrowroot

2005-03-14T04:47:00.000-08:00

Any of several species of the genus Maranta, members of the family Marantaceae (q.v.), the rhizomes, or rootstocks, of which yield an edible starch; the chief among these is M. arundinacea, the source of genuine, or West Indies, arrowroot. This herbaceous perennial, probably a native of Guyana and western Brazil, is cultivated throughout the West Indies,

Ashton-warner, Sylvia (constance)

2005-03-13T22:11:00.000-08:00

Married name Sylvia Henderson New Zealand educator and writer of fiction, nonfiction, and poetry. In the field of education, she became known for her innovative work in adapting traditional British teaching methods to the special needs of Maori children. Her aim was peace and communication between two radically different cultures, and most of her writing,

Amorphous Solid

2005-03-12T05:47:00.000-08:00

Solids and liquids are both forms of condensed matter; both are composed of atoms in close proximity to each other. But their properties are, of course, enormously different. While a solid material has both a well-defined

Newton

2005-03-11T07:42:00.000-08:00

City, seat (1846) of Jasper county, central Iowa, U.S., about 30 miles (50 km) east of Des Moines. It was settled in 1846 as the county seat and was named for John Newton, a soldier of the American Revolution. The railroad arrived in the 1860s and the community developed as a lumber-milling and agricultural trading centre. In 1898 the washing machine industry began there with the manufacture of ratchet-slat

Vaginitis

2005-03-10T18:57:00.000-08:00

Inflammation of the vagina, usually owing to infection. The chief symptom is leukorrhea, i.e., the abnormal flow of a whitish or yellowish discharge from the vagina. The treatment of vaginitis depends on the cause of the inflammation. Several different microorganisms can produce vaginitis in women of reproductive age; atrophic vaginitis, caused by reduced estrogen

Astronomy

2005-03-10T07:24:00.000-08:00

Until the invention of the telescope and the discovery of the laws of motion and gravity in the 17th century, astronomy was primarily

Cystitis

2005-03-09T19:41:00.000-08:00

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,

Ahsa'i, Al-

2005-03-08T03:35:00.000-08:00

After spending his early years studying the Islamic religion and traveling widely in Persia and the Middle East, al-Ahsa'i in 1808 settled in Yazd, Persia, where he taught religion. His interpretation of the Shi'ite faith (one of the two major branches of Islam) soon attracted

Abdulla, Muhammed Said

2005-03-08T00:12:00.000-08:00

Abdulla, after completing his formal education, began his career as an inspector in the Colonial Health Department. After 10 years there, however, he decided to become a journalist. In 1948 he was made editor of the newspaper Zanzibari, and during the next decade he also

Consideration

2005-03-07T02:29:00.000-08:00

In contract law, an inducement given to enter into a contract that is sufficient to render the promise enforceable in the courts. The technical requirement is either a detriment incurred by the person making the promise or a benefit received by the other person. Thus, the person seeking to enforce the promise must have paid, or bound himself to pay, money, parted with

Bank One

2005-03-06T05:40:00.000-08:00

Former U.S. bank holding company that merged with J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. in 2004. Bank One had been created through the 1998 merger of First Chicago NBD Corp. and Banc One. Although the 1998 merger created one of the country's largest banks, it performed poorly until Jamie Dimon, a former Citigroup executive, became chief executive officer and revamped operations. Based in Chicago, Bank

Ahern, Bertie

2005-03-06T02:15:00.000-08:00

Ahern was educated at St. Aidan's Christian Brothers secondary school, Rathmines College of Commerce, University College in Dublin, and the London School of Economics, obtaining degrees in taxation, business administration, and computer science. He was elected to the Dáil (lower house of Parliament)

Cereal Farming, Weeds

2005-03-05T01:15:00.000-08:00

Weeds present difficulties, as they compete with cereal crops for water, light, and mineral nutrients. The infestation of annual seeds planted in a field may cause many weeds in that field for successive years. Charlock or wild mustard, wild oats, crouch grass, and other common weeds are disseminated by wind, water, and birds.

Cajàzeiras

2005-03-04T19:11:00.000-08:00

City, western Paraíba state, northeastern Brazil. Founded in about 1700, Cajàzeiras is a transportation and commercial centre for the surrounding agricultural lands. The principal commodities include cotton, sugar, oiticica oil (used in paint and varnish), and fruit. It is the terminus of a short railroad spur leading southward for 13 mi (21 km) from Antenor Navarro, on the

Gadifer De La Salle

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

Gadifer won renown in the French campaigns against England during the Hundred Years' War (1337–1453). While on a crusade against Tunis in 1390, he met Béthencourt, who later pledged his lands to finance their expedition to the Canary Islands. In 1402 they occupied Lanzarote, the northernmost inhabited

West Bromwich

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

Locality in the metropolitan borough of Sandwell, metropolitan county of West Midlands, historic county of Staffordshire, England. It lies about 5 miles (8 km) northwest of the city of Birmingham. Though the town is of ancient origin, its appearance is modern and industrial. Coal was long mined in and around the locality until the end of the 20th century, and West Bromwich

France, History Of, The Civil Code

2005-03-02T18:15:00.000-08:00

The Napoleonic Civil Code, however, had a far greater impact on postrevolutionary society than did the social innovations. This ambitious work of legal codification, perhaps the crowning glory of the Council of State, consolidated certain basic principles established in 1789: civil equality and equality before the law; the abolition of feudalism in favour of modern

Alcohol Consumption

2005-03-01T09:45:00.000-08:00

Alcoholic beverages include wines, beers, and spirits. Wines are fermented

Augustus, Caesar

2005-03-01T08:06:00.000-08:00

Remembering, however, that Caesar had been assassinated because of his resort to naked power, Octavian realized that the governing class would welcome him as the terminator of civil war only if he concealed his autocracy beneath provisions avowedly harking back to republican traditions. From 31 until 23 BC the constitutional basis of his power remained a continuous

May, Phil

2005-02-28T19:51:00.000-08:00

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.

Lena River, Physiography

2005-02-28T04:32:00.000-08:00

In the section from the headwaters to the Vitim River, the Lena flows in a deep-cut valley, the rocky and steep slopes of which rise

Katsuta

2005-02-28T03:35:00.000-08:00

City, Ibaraki ken (prefecture), Honshu, Japan. It lies along the Naka River, northeast of Mito, the prefectural capital. The city developed rapidly as an industrial site for the Hitachi Company, Ltd., after 1940, mainly producing electric locomotives and other electric machinery. Pop. (1992 est.) 112,650.

Vulvitis

2005-02-26T10:15:00.000-08:00

Inflammation and infection of the vulva—the external genitalia of the female. The external organs of the vulva include the labia majora and minora (folds of skin), the clitoris, and the vestibular glands. The basic symptoms of vulvitis are superficial red, swollen, and moisture-laden lesions on the skin of the vulva. Itching sensations are a particularly prominent

Caccia

2005-02-25T14:26:00.000-08:00

(Italian: “hunt,” or “chase”), one of the principal Italian musical forms of the 14th century. It consisted of two voices in strict canon at the unison (i.e., in strict melodic imitation at the same pitch), and often of a non-canonic third part, composed of long notes that underlay the canonic voices, followed by a ritornello. Caccia texts were typically realistic, animated scenes such

Indo-gangetic Plain

2005-02-25T14:23:00.000-08:00

Also called North Indian Plain, extensive north-central section of the Indian subcontinent, stretching westward from (and including) the Brahmaputra River valley and the Ganges Delta to the Indus River valley. The region contains the subcontinent's richest and most densely populated areas. The greater part of the plain is made up of alluvial soil, deposited by the Ganges and Brahmaputra rivers

Lock Haven

2005-02-24T21:24:00.000-08:00

City, seat (1839) of Clinton county, north-central Pennsylvania, U.S. It lies along the West Branch Susquehanna River (a major tributary of the Susquehanna), on the southern slope of Bald Eagle Mountain, 26 miles (42 km) southwest of Williamsport. Founded in 1834 by Jeremiah Church, a land speculator, it was laid out on the site of the frontier post, Fort Reed, and developed as a lumbering centre.

Austin, Herbert Austin, Baron

2005-02-23T15:43:00.000-08:00

Founder and first chairman of the Austin Motor Company, whose Austin Seven model greatly influenced British and European light-car design. An engineer and engineering manager in Australia (1883–90), he became manager and later director of the Wolseley Sheep-Shearing Company in England. In

Bhandara

2005-02-23T07:34:00.000-08:00

Town, northeastern Maharashtra state, western India, on the Wainganga River, east of Nagpur. As a fording place across the river, it developed as a commercial centre; industries include the manufacture of brassware and cigarettes. It houses a college affiliated with the University of Nagpur. Rice covers most of the surrounding cultivated area. The area is rich in mineral

Cabrera, Ramón

2005-02-22T14:19:00.000-08:00

After the death (1833) of Ferdinand VII, those who supported the claim to the throne of Ferdinand's brother, Don Carlos, against that of Ferdinand's daughter, Queen Isabella II, rose in rebellion; Cabrera became a leading insurgent, soon dominating the

Sea, Law Of The

2005-02-22T08:33:00.000-08:00

Law codified in a treaty signed Dec. 10, 1982, by 117 nations (and two republics of the U.S.S.R., Belorussia and Ukraine) in Montego Bay, Jamaica. It represented an attempt to codify international law regarding territorial waters, sea lanes, and ocean resources. It was not signed by the United States, the United Kingdom, West Germany, Israel, Italy, and several other industrialized or developing

Actor-manager System

2005-02-20T18:23:00.000-08:00

Method of theatrical production dominant in England and the U.S. in the 19th century, consisting of a permanent company formed by a leading actor who chose his own plays, took a leading role in them, and handled business and financial arrangements. The advantages of this system became apparent in the 18th century when successful actor-managers such as Colley Cibber and

Montpensier, Anne-marie-louise D'orléans, Duchess (duchesse) De

2005-02-20T08:42:00.000-08:00

Byname La Grande Mademoiselle princess of the royal house of France, prominent during the Fronde and the minority of Louis XIV. She was known as Mademoiselle because her father, Gaston de France, Duke d'Orléans and uncle of Louis XIV, had the designation of Monsieur. From her mother, Marie de Bourbon-Montpensier, she inherited a huge fortune, including Eu and Dombes as well

Antiarch

2005-02-19T16:12:00.000-08:00

Any of an order of extinct, mainly freshwater, jawed fishes, class Placodermi, abundant during Middle and Late Devonian times (387 to 360 million years ago). Members of such genera as Bothriolepis and Pterichthys were representative. Antiarchs were small and weak-jawed and had closely set eyes on top of the head. Armour shields covered the front part of the body, and armoured,

Biogeochemical Cycle

2005-02-18T02:19:00.000-08:00

Any of the natural circulation pathways of the essential elements of living matter. These elements in various forms flow from the nonliving (abiotic) to the living (biotic) components of the biosphere and back to the nonliving again. In order for the living components of a major ecosystem (e.g., a lake or forest) to survive, all the chemical elements that make up living cells

ar Mountains

2005-02-17T21:29:00.000-08:00

Serbo-Croatian Šar Planina mountain range in western Macedonia, one of the most rugged and impassable in the Balkans, extending northeast–southwest for about 47 miles (75 km). A southern continuation along the Albanian frontier, which includes the Korab, Bistra, Jablanica, and Galicica massifs, makes the total length of about 100 miles (160 km). The Pindus mountain system in Greece is the southward extension

Gabelich, Gary

2005-02-17T17:21:00.000-08:00

Gabelich began racing hot-rod cars while he was in high school. In the late 1950s he competed as a drag racer of both automobiles and boats. In 1969 he set a drag-boat record of 200.44 miles per hour (322.38 km/h). He achieved his 1970 one-mile land-speed record

Academy Award

2005-02-16T17:32:00.000-08:00

In full Academy Award of Merit , byname Oscar any of several awards presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, located in Beverly Hills, California, U.S., to recognize achievement in the film industry. The award, a gold-plated statuette, is bestowed upon winners in the following 25 categories: best picture, actor, actress, supporting actor, supporting actress, directing, original screenplay,

Paper Folding

2005-02-16T01:14:00.000-08:00

In Japan, origami has reached its greatest development, with hundreds of traditional folds and an extensive literature dealing with the art. Japanese folds divide roughly into two categories:

Heron

2005-02-15T13:19:00.000-08:00

Any of about 60 species of long-legged wading birds of the subfamily Ardeinae of the family Ardeidae (order Ciconiiformes) and generally including several species usually called egrets (see egret). The Ardeidae also include the bitterns (subfamily Botaurinae). Herons are widely distributed over the world but are most common in the tropics. They usually feed while wading

Smith, Kate

2005-02-14T20:07:00.000-08:00

Smith started singing before audiences as a child, and by age 17 she had decided on a career in show business. She went to New York City in 1926 and landed a role in a Broadway musical, Honeymoon Lane, the same year. In a succession of Broadway shows she had little chance

La Rive, Auguste-arthur De

2005-02-14T18:03:00.000-08:00

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

Performing Arts, Spain and Portugal.

2005-02-14T11:34:00.000-08:00

Spain maintained a substantial popular production. Notable films included José Luis Garci's Una historia de entonces (You're the One), the story of an aspiring woman writer in the 1940s who returns to her home village after the death of her lover; Álex de la Iglesia's high-spirited comic group portrait of the denizens of a rundown old Madrid tenement, La comunidad; and

Asceticism

2005-02-14T02:35:00.000-08:00

(from Greek askeo: “to exercise,” or “to train”), the practice of the denial of physical or psychological desires in order to attain a spiritual ideal or goal. Hardly any religion has been without at least traces or some features of asceticism.

López De Ayala, Pedro

2005-02-12T13:05:00.000-08:00

Ayala had a long and distinguished civil

Great Dionysia

2005-02-11T20:45:00.000-08:00

The

Sentimental Comedy

2005-02-11T03:17:00.000-08:00

A dramatic genre of the 18th century, denoting plays in which middle-class protagonists triumphantly overcome a series of moral trials. Such comedy aimed at producing tears rather than laughter. Sentimental comedies reflected contemporary philosophical conceptions of humans as inherently good but capable of being led astray through bad example. By an appeal

Ramkhamhaeng

2005-02-10T15:28:00.000-08:00

On the death of his brother, King Ban Muang, about 1279, Ramkhamhaeng inherited his tiny kingdom of only a few hundred square miles. Over the next two decades—by careful diplomacy, shrewd alliances, and military

Mareeba

2005-02-10T10:56:00.000-08:00

Town, northeastern Queensland, Australia, on the Barron River, 40 mi (65 km) west of the port of Cairns on the Coral Sea. It was the earliest European settlement on the Atherton Plateau; at its founding it was called Granite Creek and served as a stop for miners on their way to goldfields in the interior. Its present name is derived from an Aboriginal term meaning “meeting of the

Charadriiform, Annotated classification

2005-02-09T10:58:00.000-08:00

Palate schizognathous; upper jaw schizorhinal (except Burhinidae and Pluvianus); lachrymal bone fused to ectethmoid; cervical vertebrae 15 or 16; dorsal vertebrae opisthocoelous or heterocoelous;

Luxembourg, François-henri De Montmorency-bouteville, Duc De

2005-02-09T04:52:00.000-08:00

The posthumous son of François de Montmorency-Bouteville, he was reared by a distant relative, Charlotte de Montmorency, princesse de Condé. Although Bouteville was hunchbacked and physically weak, the princesse's son Louis II de Bourbon,

Italian Literature, Poetry after World War II

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

Paradoxically, of all the forms of writing, poetry seems to be the form most thriving, although one late 20th-century critic remarked that there may be more poets in Italy than readers of poetry. Furthermore, the more recent the author, the more arguable his or her place in the canon. An authoritative 1,200-page anthology by two experts in the field, poet Maurizio Cucchi and critic

Masamune Hakucho

2005-02-07T20:57:00.000-08:00

Early influenced by Christianity, Masamune went to Tokyo in 1896 to

Celaya

2005-02-07T17:13:00.000-08:00

City, south-central Guanajuato estado (“state”), north-central Mexico. It is in the fertile Bajío region on the Mexican Plateau, 2.5 miles (4 km) north of the Laja River and 5,774 feet (1,760 m) above sea level. Founded as Purísima Concepción de Celaya in 1571, the city played an important role in 19th-century Mexican history when it changed hands several times during Mexico's struggle for independence

Leaf-nosed Snake

2005-02-07T14:58:00.000-08:00

Any of four species of small burrowing snakes of the family Colubridae that have the nose shield enlarged and flattened, with free edges. Several subspecies of each also exist. The two members of the genus Phyllorhynchus are found in creosote-bush deserts of the southwestern United States and Mexico, where they hunt at night for lizards and insects. The two species

Buyantu

2005-02-06T14:52:00.000-08:00

Also known as Ayurparibhadra , Chinese temple name (yüan) Jen Tsung , Pinyin romanization Yuan Renzong (reigned 1311–20), Mongol emperor of the Yüan dynasty of China, who was a patron of literature. He distributed offices more equitably between Chinese and Mongols than had his predecessors, and during his reign commercial ties with Europe increased.

Pembroke, Mary Herbert, Countess Of

2005-02-06T05:18:00.000-08:00

In 1575 Queen Elizabeth I invited Mary to court, promising “a speciall care” of her. Two

Dahlgren, John Adolphus Bernard

2005-02-05T09:20:00.000-08:00

American inventor of the smooth-bore cannon that was, from its shape, familiarly known as the “soda-water bottle.” The shape resulted from a design in which the thickness of metal was varied to match the differences in internal pressure occurring when the cannon was fired. The pressures were determined by boring holes in the

Indonesia, Volcanoes

2005-02-05T05:07:00.000-08:00

Volcanoes play a major role in soil development and enrichment,

Veneto

2005-02-04T21:41:00.000-08:00

Also called Venezia Euganea regione, northern and northeastern Italy, comprising the provincie of Venezia, Padova, Rovigo, Verona, Vicenza, Treviso, and Belluno. It is bounded by Trentino-Alto Adige (north), Emilia-Romagna (south), Lombardia (west), Austria (northeast), and Friuli-Venezia Giulia and the Adriatic Sea (east). The northern limit of Veneto is marked by a mountainous area, including the Dolomites,

Levertov, Denise

2005-02-03T20:10:00.000-08:00

Levertov's father was an immigrant Russian Jew who converted to Christianity, married a Welsh woman, and became an Anglican clergyman.

Desert Fathers

2005-02-03T05:05:00.000-08:00

Early Christian hermits whose practice of asceticism in the Egyptian desert, beginning in the 3rd century, formed the basis of Christian monasticism. One of these hermits, Pachomius of the Thebaid (c. AD 290–346; see Pachomius, Saint), who organized nine monasteries for men and two for women, is credited with being the founder of cenobitic (communal) monasticism in the Western

Permafrost, Effects of solar radiation, vegetation, and snow cover

2005-02-01T17:19:00.000-08:00

Inasmuch as south-facing hillslopes receive more incoming solar energy per unit area than other slopes, they are warmer; permafrost is generally absent on these in the discontinuous zone and is thinner in the continuous zone. The main role of vegetation in permafrost areas is to shield perennially frozen ground from solar energy. Vegetation is an excellent insulating

Gray, Walter De

2005-02-01T13:44:00.000-08:00

He became chancellor of England in 1205 and, after John had made his peace with the church, was elected bishop of Worcester (1214). In 1215 John advanced him as a candidate for the see of York against the wishes of the cathedral chapter, and Pope Innocent

Van Zandt, Marie

2005-02-01T07:50:00.000-08:00

Van Zandt was apparently taken to Europe as a small child by her mother, who pursued a successful career as a concert and operatic singer under the name Madame Vanzini. Marie soon displayed vocal abilities as

Aroostook War

2005-02-01T01:36:00.000-08:00

(1838–39), bloodless conflict over the disputed boundary between the U.S. state of Maine and the British Canadian province of New Brunswick. The peace treaty of 1783 ending the American Revolution had left unclear the location of a supposed “highlands,” or watershed, dividing the two areas. Negotiators from Britain and the United States in subsequent years failed to come to an agreement,

Prichard

2005-01-31T17:19:00.000-08:00

City, Mobile county, southwestern Alabama, U.S., a northern industrial suburb of Mobile. It was named for Cleveland Prichard, who purchased a tract of land (1879) on the east side of the Mobile and Ohio Railroad track and developed it into a vegetable-shipping point for markets in the North and East. The city's industries now include shipbuilding and the manufacture of chemicals,

Metauro River

2005-01-31T15:23:00.000-08:00

Italian Fiume Metauro, also called Metro, Latin Metaurus, river, Marche region, central Italy, rising in the Etruscan Apennines (Appennino Tosco-Emiliano) and flowing for 68 mi (109 km) east-northeast into the Adriatic Sea just south of Fano. The lower valley of the river (the ancient Metaurus) was the scene of a great Roman victory over the Carthaginians in 207 BC, when the consuls Marcus Livius Salinator and Claudius Nero defeated and slew

Teapot Dome Scandal

2005-01-31T08:37:00.000-08:00

Also called the Oil Reserves, or Elk Hills, Scandal, in American history, scandal of the early 1920s surrounding the secret leasing of federal oil reserves by the secretary of the interior, Albert B. Fall. After President Warren G. Harding transferred supervision of the naval oil reserve lands from the navy to the Department of the Interior in 1921, Fall secretly granted to Harry F. Sinclair of the Mammoth Oil Company exclusive

Aqueduct

2005-01-30T05:56:00.000-08:00

Although

Hydrologic Sciences, Groundwater

2005-01-29T16:21:00.000-08:00

Some rocks allow little or no water to flow through; these are known as impermeable rocks, or aquicludes. Others are permeable and allow considerable storage of water and act as major sources of water supply; these are known as aquifers. Aquifers overlain by an impermeable layer are called confined aquifers; aquifers overlain by an unsaturated, or vadose, zone of permeable

Aviary

2005-01-29T14:45:00.000-08:00

A structure for the keeping of captive birds, usually spacious enough for the aviculturist to enter. Aviaries range from small enclosures a metre or so on a side to large flight cages 30 m (100 feet) or more long and as much as 15 m high. Enclosures for birds that fly only little or weakly (e.g., rails, pheasants) are often only one metre high. The private aviary often consists of a room

Xenakis, Iannis

2005-01-29T13:53:00.000-08:00

Mario Boris, Iannis Xenakis (1967); Iannis Xenakis, Formalized Music (1971, revised 1992); Nouritza Matossian, Iannis Xenakis (1986); Bálint András Varga, Conversations with Iannis Xenakis (1996).

KindFowl

Vale Of Glamorgan

Istihsan

Gahadavala Dynasty

Writ

Karakul

Powder Metallurgy

Episcopal Church In Scotland

Fracture

Atacama Plateau

Li Tang

Gaffney

Chrestien, Florent

Danané

Waiuku

Orange River

Avison, Charles

Biblical Literature, The New English Bible

Argentina, Mesopotamia

Masolino

Argentina, Mesopotamia

Biblical Literature, The New English Bible

Avilés

Neustadt An Der Weinstrasse

Mahal, Taj

Lorain, John

Parabasis

X Ray

Gondophernes

Arrowroot

Ashton-warner, Sylvia (constance)

Amorphous Solid

Newton

Vaginitis

Astronomy

Cystitis

Ahsa'i, Al-

Abdulla, Muhammed Said

Consideration

Bank One

Ahern, Bertie

Cereal Farming, Weeds

Cajàzeiras

Gadifer De La Salle

West Bromwich

France, History Of, The Civil Code

Alcohol Consumption

Augustus, Caesar

May, Phil

Lena River, Physiography

Katsuta

Vulvitis

Caccia

Indo-gangetic Plain

Lock Haven

Austin, Herbert Austin, Baron

Bhandara

Cabrera, Ramón

Sea, Law Of The

Actor-manager System

Montpensier, Anne-marie-louise D'orléans, Duchess (duchesse) De

Antiarch

Biogeochemical Cycle

ar Mountains

Gabelich, Gary

Academy Award

Paper Folding

Heron

Smith, Kate

La Rive, Auguste-arthur De

Performing Arts, Spain and Portugal.

Asceticism

López De Ayala, Pedro

Great Dionysia

Sentimental Comedy

Ramkhamhaeng

Mareeba

Charadriiform, Annotated classification

Luxembourg, François-henri De Montmorency-bouteville, Duc De

Italian Literature, Poetry after World War II

ar Mountains