ThickWorm

organic cotton goods

2006-10-30T11:20:00.000-08:00

Liv organic cotton goods are soft luxurious nad affordable and they have a huge range of organic clothing.

Velázquez, Diego

2005-04-04T22:03:00.000-07:00

According to Palomino, Velázquez's first master was the Sevillian painter Francisco Herrera the Elder (c. 1576–1656). In 1611 he was formally apprenticed to Francisco Pacheco, whose daughter he married in 1618. “After five years of education and training,” Pacheco writes, “I married him to my daughter, moved by his virtue, integrity, and good parts and by the expectations of his disposition

Seacole, Mary

2005-04-04T05:28:00.000-07:00

Her father was a Scottish soldier and her mother a free black Jamaican woman who was skilled in traditional medicine and provided care for invalids at her boardinghouse. In 1836 Grant married Edwin Horatio Seacole, and, during their trips to

Eliot, Charles William

2005-04-03T13:15:00.000-07:00

Eliot graduated from Harvard in 1853 and was appointed assistant professor of mathematics and chemistry there in 1858. In 1867 he sailed for Europe, where he made a study of European educational systems.

Haratin

2005-04-02T23:51:00.000-08:00

Scholars speculate that the Haratin came into being as a result of ancient interbreeding between indigenous blacks and Indo-Europeans, possibly Berbers. In the 17th century they were forcibly recruited

Wagner, Richard

2005-04-02T02:42:00.000-08:00

For a realistic analysis of Wagner's complex character, see Ernest Newman, The Life of Richard Wagner, 4 vol. (1933–47). Ronald Taylor, Richard Wagner: The Life, Art and Thought (1979), emphasizes the historical background of his life; Charles Osborne, Wagner and His World (1977), is a brief introductory biography. Important sources include The Diary of Richard Wagner, ed. by Joachim Bergfeld (1980); Cosima Wagner's Diaries, ed. by Martin Gregor-Dellin and Dietrich Mack (1978– ); and Wagner's Mein Leben, 2 vol. (1870–81; Eng. trans., My Life, 1911). See also the official German and English biographies by C.F. Glasenapp, Das Leben Richard Wagners, 6 vol. (1894–1911); and W.A. Ellis, Life of Richard Wagner, 6 vol. (1900–08). Robert W. Gutman, Richard Wagner: The Man, His Mind and His Music (1968), is a largely hostile biography. An analytical introduction to Wagner's music dramas is Ernest Newman, The Wagner Operas (1949; republished with the title Wagner Nights, 1950). A detailed study of Wagner's development as a musical dramatist is Jack M. Stein, Richard Wagner and the Synthesis of the Arts (1960). A.O. Lorenz, Das Geheimnis der Form bei Richard Wagner, 4 vol. (1924–33), provides an exhaustive bar-by-bar analysis of the musical construction of his major works. George Bernard Shaw, The Perfect Wagnerite, 4th ed. (1922, reprinted 1967), which has much of value to say about the social, political, and economic ideas behind The Ring; Jungian interpretation of the same work is Robert Donington, Wagner's Ring and Its Symbols, 2nd ed. (1969).

Albert, Lake

2005-03-31T22:34:00.000-08:00

Also called Albert Nyanza and Lake Mobutu Sese Seko, northernmost of the lakes in the Western Rift Valley, in east-central Africa, on the border between Congo (Kinshasa) and Uganda. In 1864 the lake was first visited by a European, Samuel Baker, who was seeking the sources of the Nile; he named it after Queen Victoria's consort and published his experiences in The Albert N'yanza (1866). Romolo Gessi, an Italian soldier and explorer, circumnavigated

Shamanism, American Indians

2005-03-31T11:34:00.000-08:00

Among many North American tribes shamanism constitutes the most important aspect of the religious life. The shaman is characterized by the supernatural power he acquires as the result of a direct personal experience. This power is obtained either spontaneously or after a voluntary quest, but in either case the future shaman has to undergo certain initiatory

Arts, Islamic, Three great mosques

2005-03-30T22:16:00.000-08:00

During the rule of the Umayyad prince al-Walid I (705–715), a number of complex developments within the Muslim community were crystallized in the construction of three major mosques, at Medina, Jerusalem, and Damascus. The very choice of these three cities is indicative: the city in which the Muslim state was formed and in which the Prophet was buried; the city held in common holiness

Narcotic

2005-03-29T11:45:00.000-08:00

The main therapeutic use of narcotics is for pain relief, and hence they are often called narcotic analgesics. The best-known narcotics are the opiates—i.e., compounds

Servite

2005-03-29T07:09:00.000-08:00

Member of Order of the Servants of Mary (O.S.M.) a Roman Catholic order of mendicant friars—religious men who lead a monastic life, including the choral recitation of the liturgical office, but do active work—founded in 1233 by a group of seven cloth merchants of Florence. These men, known collectively as the Seven Holy Founders, left their families and occupations to withdraw outside the gates of Florence and live

Myanmar, The Toungoo dynasty

2005-03-28T15:49:00.000-08:00

In 1531 a dynasty was established at Toungoo by Tabinshwehti, and by then the new kingdom had become powerful enough to conquer northern Myanmar from the Shan and southern Myanmar from the Mon. In 1511 the great trading entrepôt of Malacca (Melaka) on the Malay Peninsula had been conquered by the Portuguese, which led to a renewal of interest in trade in Myanmar's coastal waters.

Step Cut

2005-03-27T14:17:00.000-08:00

Also called Trap Cut, or Cushion Cut, method of faceting coloured gemstones in which the stone produced is rather flat with steps, or rows, of four-sided facets parallel to the girdle (the stone's widest part). Because the facets are parallel to the girdle, they are usually long and narrow, except at the corners of the stone. The angles that the main facets make with the plane of the girdle greatly affect the

Porres, Saint Martín De

2005-03-27T02:51:00.000-08:00

Born of a liaison between a Spanish grandee and a free black woman, Martín de Porres became a Dominican oblate, or lay monastic, in 1601. Although it was not customary then to receive a mulatto into a religious order in Peru, Martín was considered an exception and became a Dominican lay

Shi'ite

2005-03-24T19:58:00.000-08:00

Arabic Shi'i, plural Shi'ah, or Shi'a, member of the smaller of the two major branches of Islam, distinguished from the majority Sunnites. In early Islamic history the Shi'ites were a political faction (shi'at 'Ali, “party of 'Ali”) that supported the power of 'Ali, who was a son-in-law of Muhammad and the fourth caliph (temporal and spiritual ruler) of the Muslim community. 'Ali was killed while trying to maintain his authority

Ahimsa

2005-03-24T17:35:00.000-08:00

In Jainism, ahimsa is the standard

Dog, Skeletal structure

2005-03-24T13:11:00.000-08:00

The skeletal frame of the dog consists of 319 bones. If a dog's tail is docked or absent at birth, there obviously are fewer bones in the skeleton. The muscles and tendons of a dog are similar to those of a human; however, a dog's upper body muscles bear half the weight of the entire body and are better developed than a human's. The weight distribution between the front and the rear

Lath

2005-03-23T14:40:00.000-08:00

One of the most common laths is gypsum lath. It is manufactured with an air-entrained gypsum core sandwiched between two layers of fibrous absorbent

Hyde, Charles Cheney

2005-03-23T05:42:00.000-08:00

Hyde taught at the law school of Northwestern University, Chicago (1907–25), and then became professor of international law and diplomacy at Columbia University (1925–45). He served as solicitor for the U.S.

Switzerland

2005-03-22T05:09:00.000-08:00

Although Switzerland may not rank foremost among the centres of European culture, the country nevertheless can boast an impressive list of contributors to the arts and sciences. On the one hand, because of limited opportunities at home, some of Switzerland's creative minds have chosen to live elsewhere. This has been especially true of architects. On the other hand,

Aerospace Industry, Building of subassemblies

2005-03-20T21:04:00.000-08:00

Assembly of aerospace vehicles at the prime contractor or systems integrator begins with the accumulation of subassemblies. An example of a typical subassembly for a transport aircraft is the rear fuselage section, which is itself composed of several segments. (These segments are often built by subcontractors, who in turn deal with their own suppliers of the

Aerospace Industry

2005-03-20T11:42:00.000-08:00

Aerospace products and the processes by which they are made are complex in nature, and knowledge of the latter is important to an understanding of the industry. A substantial investment in research, involving specialized personnel and facilities, is critical to the aerospace industry, as it is to most industries in which development and productivity play highly

Clonorchiasis

2005-03-19T17:45:00.000-08:00

Chronic infection caused by Clonorchis sinensis, or liver fluke, a parasitic worm some 10 to 25 mm (0.4 to 1 inch) long that lives in the bile ducts of the liver in humans and other mammals. Clonorchiasis is a common disease in China, Vietnam, Korea, and Japan and is acquired by eating freshwater fish containing the fluke larvae. The fish are themselves infected by swallowing the

Amine

2005-03-19T14:54:00.000-08:00

Amines are classified as primary, secondary, or tertiary depending on whether one, two, or three of the hydrogen atoms of ammonia have been replaced by organic groups. Diamines, triamines, and polyamines contain two, three, or more nitrogen

Arne, Thomas (augustine)

2005-03-19T07:49:00.000-08:00

According to tradition, Arne was the son of an upholsterer in King Street, Covent Garden. Educated at Eton, he was intended for the law, but by secretly practicing he acquired such mastery of the violin and keyboard instruments that his father withdrew all objections to a musical career. Except

Lae

2005-03-18T21:24:00.000-08:00

Port city, northeastern Papua New Guinea. It is located near the mouth of the Markham River on Huon Gulf. Commercial activities centre on the export of timber, plywood, and coffee (transported by road from Bulolo and Wau) and the produce from the Central Range, which is airfreighted. Lae is also the marketing centre for the agricultural produce of the surrounding

Barak, Ehud

2005-03-17T21:48:00.000-08:00

Barak was born in a kibbutz that had been founded by his father, an emigrant from Lithuania, in 1932. Barak was drafted into the Israel Defense Forces in 1959, thus beginning a distinguished military career (he changed his name at this time). He

Brie

2005-03-16T11:49:00.000-08:00

Natural region of northern France between the Seine and Marne valleys. It occupies most of Seine-et-Marne département and parts of adjacent départements. The region was historically divided between the king of France (the Brie Française) and the duke of Champagne (the Brie Champenoise) from the 9th to the early 13th century, when the crown took it over. Broken here and there

Qift

2005-03-16T06:06:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Kuft, Greek Coptos, or Koptos, agricultural town, Qina muhafazah (governorate), Upper Egypt. It is situated at the large bend of the Nile below Luxor (al-Uqsur) and lies along the east bank of the river. Known to the ancient Egyptians as Qebtu, the town was of early dynastic foundation. It was important for nearby gold and quartzite mines in the Eastern Desert, worked during the 1st and 2nd dynasties, and as a starting

Selection

2005-03-16T03:07:00.000-08:00

The theory of evolution by natural selection was proposed by Charles Darwin and Alfred Russel Wallace in 1858. They argued that species with useful adaptations

Backcross

2005-03-15T21:26:00.000-08:00

The mating of a hybrid organism (offspring of genetically unlike parents) with one of its parents or with an organism genetically similar to the parent. The backcross is useful in genetics studies for isolating (separating out) certain characteristics in a related group of animals or plants. In animal breeding, a backcross is often called a topcross. Grading usually

Antarctica, Climate

2005-03-15T10:19:00.000-08:00

The unique weather and climate of Antarctica provide the basis for its familiar appellations—Home of the Blizzard and White Desert. By far the coldest continent, Antarctica has winter temperatures that range from -128.6° F (-89.2° C), the world's lowest recorded temperature, measured at Vostok Station (Russia) on July 21, 1983, on the high inland ice sheet to -76° F (-60° C) near sea level. Temperatures

Muhammad Al-mahdi Al-hujjah

2005-03-15T05:52:00.000-08:00

Also called Muhammad Al-muntazar, Hidden Imam, or Twelfth Imam (disappeared 878), 12th and last imam, venerated by the Ithna 'Ashariyah, or Twelver sect, the main body of Shi'ite Muslims. It is believed that Muhammad al-Mahdi al-Hujjah has been concealed by God (a doctrine known as ghaybah, or occultation) and that he will reappear in time as the mahdi, or messianic deliverer. See also Ithna 'Ashariyah.

Goatsbeard

2005-03-14T23:13:00.000-08:00

(species Aruncus dioicus or A. sylvester), herbaceous perennial plant, of the rose family (Rosaceae), native to the North Temperate Zone. It occurs most commonly in rich woods, especially in mountainous regions. The plant grows 1.2 to 1.8 m (4 to 6 feet) tall and has pinnately compound (i.e., feather-formed) leaves up to 50 cm (20 inches) long. Eight to 10 small, stalkless, white flowers are borne on leafless

Alkalosis

2005-03-13T16:59:00.000-08:00

Abnormally low level of acidity, or high level of alkalinity, in the body fluids, including the blood. Metabolic alkalosis (also called alkalemia) results from either acid loss (which may be caused by severe vomiting or by the use of potent diuretics [substances that promote production of urine]) or bicarbonate gain (which may be caused by excessive intake of bicarbonate

France, History Of, Louis's religious policy

2005-03-13T07:58:00.000-08:00

Louis was also on his guard against religious dissent. Like most of his contemporaries, he believed that toleration had no virtue and that unity in the state was extremely difficult to maintain where two or more churches were tolerated. Consequently, especially after 1678, Louis intensified the persecution of Protestants; churches were destroyed, certain professions

Lapse, Doctrine Of

2005-03-13T06:11:00.000-08:00

In Indian history, formula devised by Lord Dalhousie, governor-general of India (1848–56), to deal with questions of succession to Hindu Indian states. It was a corollary to the doctrine of paramountcy, by which Great Britain, as the ruling power of the Indian subcontinent, claimed the superintendence of the subordinate Indian states and so also the regulation of their

Pitchstone

2005-03-12T04:04:00.000-08:00

Most pitchstone occurs as dikes or marginal phases of dikes and therefore may grade into porphyry. Pitchstone porphyry (vitrophyre)

Abo Blood Group System

2005-03-11T03:52:00.000-08:00

Method of classifying human blood on the basis of the inherited properties of red blood cells (erythrocytes) as determined by their possession or lack of the so-called antigens A (including A1 and A2) and B. Persons may, thus, have type A, type B, type O, or type AB blood. (Antigens of other blood group systems may also be present.) The A, B, and O blood groups were first identified by

Taconite

2005-03-10T19:44:00.000-08:00

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

Gulf

2005-03-10T13:07:00.000-08:00

Most existing gulfs were formed or greatly extended as a result of the rise in sea level that accompanied the melting of the last Pleistocene glacial ice mass, as vast sections of the continental margins were drowned. Some pronounced

Somalia, Religion

2005-03-08T16:39:00.000-08:00

Most Somali belong to the Shafi'i rite of the Sunnite sect of Islam. Various Muslim orders (tariqa) are important, especially the Qadiriyah, the Ahmadiyah, and the Salihiyah.

Ito

2005-03-08T13:06:00.000-08:00

City, Shizuoka Prefecture (ken), Honshu, Japan, on the east coast of the Izu-hanto (Izu Peninsula). Although its hot springs were discovered in the late 16th century, the city did not develop as a resort until the arrival of a railway line from Atami in 1938. Ito is now the second largest spa on the peninsula (after Atami), with almost 400 hot springs. It is also an important fishing port and market

Cabimas

2005-03-08T04:39:00.000-08:00

City, northeastern Zulia estado (“state”), northwestern Venezuela. It lies on the northeastern shore of Lake Maracaibo and is an important centre for the Ambrosio oil fields. Just to the south of the city is La Salina refinery. Cabimas is linked by highway to other oil centres on the lakeshore and, via the General Urdaneta Bridge, to Maracaibo, 20 miles (30 km) to the northwest across

Turaco

2005-03-08T03:16:00.000-08:00

Turacos are remarkable for their coloration. Some are predominantly gray, brown, and white, but the 10 species of the

Biblical Literature, Italian versions

2005-03-07T15:05:00.000-08:00

These medieval versions were never made from the original languages. They were influenced by French and Provençal renderings as well as by the form of the Latin Vulgate current

Epistilbite

2005-03-07T08:26:00.000-08:00

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

Kiev

2005-03-07T06:09:00.000-08:00

Ukrainian Kyyiv , Russian Kiyev chief city and capital of Ukraine and capital of Kiev oblast (province). A port on the Dnieper River and a large railroad junction, it is a city with an ancient and proud history. As the centre of Kievan Rus, the first eastern Slavic state, 1,000 years ago it acquired the title “Mother of Rus Cities.” It was severely damaged during World War II, but by the mid-1950s it was fully restored, and

Epistemology, Six distinctions of knowledge

2005-03-06T04:50:00.000-08:00

Mental versus nonmental conceptions of knowledge. Philosophers have asked whether knowledge is a state of mind, i.e., a special kind of awareness of things. That it is has been argued by philosophers since at least the 5th century BC. In The Republic Plato provided the first extensive account of such a view. He regarded knowing as a mental faculty, akin to but different from

Qalamkari Textile

2005-03-05T19:39:00.000-08:00

The textile designs reflect the Persianized tastes of the wealthy ruling class and also

Lewis Glyn Cothi

2005-03-05T16:28:00.000-08:00

Reputedly a native of Carmarthenshire, Lewis was, during the Wars of the Roses, a zealous Lancastrian and partisan of Jasper Tudor, the uncle of Henry VII of England. His awdl (ode) satirizing the men of Chester, his bitterest enemies, is a vigorous composition. (According to tradition

Indian Philosophy, Concepts of bhedabheda

2005-03-04T13:50:00.000-08:00

Among pre-Sankara commentators on the Vedanta-sutras, Bhartrprapañca defended the thesis

Hydroponics

2005-03-04T01:16:00.000-08:00

Plants have long been grown with their roots immersed in solutions of water and fertilizer for scientific studies of their nutrition. Early commercial hydroponics (from Greek hydro, “water,” and ponos, “labour”) adopted this method of

Shieldtail Snake

2005-03-03T08:49:00.000-08:00

The

Cultural Revolution

2005-03-03T07:55:00.000-08:00

In full Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, Wade-Giles romanization Wu-ch'an Chieh-chi Wen-hua Ta Ke-ming, Pinyin Wuchanjieji Wenhua Dageming, upheaval launched by Chinese Communist Party chairman Mao Zedong during his last decade in power (1966–76) to renew the spirit of the Chinese revolution. Fearing that China would develop along the lines of the Soviet model and concerned about his own place in history, Mao threw China's cities into turmoil in a monumental effort to reverse the historic processes

Sesostris Iii

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

During the reigns of his predecessors, the provincial nobles of Middle Egypt had enhanced their power through royal favours and intermarriage with the families of neighbouring potentates. Around the

Francis, Sam

2005-03-02T00:56:00.000-08:00

Francis studied medicine at the University of California at Berkeley in 1941–43 and began painting while in a hospital after being wounded in World War II. He painted his first abstract compositions in 1947. From 1950 to 1957 he lived and worked in Paris,

Sa'id, Aminah Al-

2005-03-01T18:19:00.000-08:00

At age 14, Sa'id joined the youth section of the Egyptian Feminist Union, and in 1931 she became one of the first women to attend the Egyptian University (now Cairo University). After graduating

Jacquard Loom

2005-03-01T16:30:00.000-08:00

The Jacquard system was developed in 1804–05 by Joseph-Marie Jacquard (q.v.) of France, but it soon spread elsewhere.

Fuselage

2005-03-01T13:18:00.000-08:00

Central portion of the body of an airplane, designed to accommodate the crew, passengers, and cargo. It varies greatly in design and size according to the function of the aircraft. In a jet fighter the fuselage consists of a cockpit large enough only for the controls and pilot, but in a jet airliner it includes a much larger cockpit as well as a cabin that has separate decks

Italic

2005-03-01T04:46:00.000-08:00

In printing, a sloping, light-bodied, compact, and almost cursive letter form, which, with roman and black letter shapes, has been one of the three major typefaces in the history of Western printing. Used today almost exclusively as a special function adjunct of roman letters, italic types were used first as body texts in small volumes in which their space-saving, humanistic

Qatar, Resources

2005-02-27T20:32:00.000-08:00

Qatar's petroleum reserves, found both onshore along the western coast at Dukhan and offshore from the eastern coast, are modest by regional standards and are expected to last only until the early decades of the 21st century at present rates of production. Oil continues to dominate Qatar's economy, however, accounting for the great bulk of government revenues and one-third

Glaucoma

2005-02-27T20:26:00.000-08:00

Disease caused by an increase in pressure within the eye as a result of blockage of the flow of aqueous humour, a watery fluid produced by the ciliary body. (The ciliary body is a ring of tissue directly behind the outer rim of the iris; besides being the source of aqueous humour, it contains the muscle that flattens the curvature of the lens for far vision.) The normal flow

Gracchus, Tiberius Sempronius

2005-02-26T19:32:00.000-08:00

Born into an aristocratic Roman family, Tiberius Sempronius was heir to a nexus of political connections with other leading families—most

Literature, Hebrew.

2005-02-26T18:03:00.000-08:00

The main issue of Hebrew fiction since its revival in the 19th century, that of identity, was reflected in 1996 in novels dealing with the early days of Tel Aviv. They included Nathan Shaham's Lev Tel Aviv ("The Heart of Tel Aviv") and the new edition of Dan Tsalka's Filip Arbes. The same topic was explored on the one hand in a novel that went back to the Holocaust--Ori Dromer's O'ri ("My Skin")--and

Dubbing

2005-02-25T18:56:00.000-08:00

In filmmaking, the process of adding new dialogue or other sounds to the sound track of a motion picture that has already been shot. Dubbing is most familiar to audiences as a means of translating foreign-language films into the audience's language. When a foreign language is dubbed, the translation of the original dialogue is carefully matched to the lip movements

Bulb Rot

2005-02-24T22:47:00.000-08:00

Widespread disease that can infect all flower and crop bulbs and is caused by a variety of fungi and a few bacteria. Shoots fail to emerge or leaves are stunted, yellow to reddish or purplish, and they later wilt and die; roots, usually few, are discoloured and decayed. The rot often starts at the bulb base (root plate), progressing upward and outward. Fungal rots are usually

Pacific Ocean, Exploration in the 20th century

2005-02-24T22:21:00.000-08:00

Among the most important 20th-century expeditions to the Pacific were those of the American ship Carnegie (1928–29), the Danish vessel Dana II (1928–1930), the Swedish ship Albatross (1947–48), and the Danish ship Galathea (1950–52). In the late 1950s the Soviet vessel Vityaz carried out detailed soundings of the deep trenches of the western Pacific, and in 1960 the American bathyscaphe Trieste descended to the bottom

Offroad Racing

2005-02-24T01:33:00.000-08:00

Numerous offroad race circuits have developed, notably Score International Off Road Racing, which hosts the

Melamine

2005-02-22T21:33:00.000-08:00

Melamine is manufactured by heating dicyandiamide under pressure. Its most important reaction is that with formaldehyde, forming resinous compounds of high molecular weight.

Priesthood, The ancient Middle East

2005-02-22T11:34:00.000-08:00

In the Nile valley the occupant of the throne (the pharaoh) was regarded as a god incarnate, the sacred king. Because he was believed to be the epitome of all that was divine, he alone was the intermediary between mankind and the gods whom he summed up in his complex personality. Before Menes, founder of the 1st dynasty (c. 3100–2890 BC), centralized the rule of Upper and Lower Egypt, the high

Frame Story

2005-02-22T09:20:00.000-08:00

Also called frame tale overall unifying story within which one or more tales are related. In the single story, the opening and closing constitutes a frame. In the cyclical frame story—that is, a story in which several tales are related—some frames are externally imposed and only loosely bind the diversified stories. For example, the Jataka, a treasury of some 550 ancient Indian folktales, is cast

Arcaro, Eddie

2005-02-22T09:00:00.000-08:00

Byname of George Edward Arcaro American jockey who was the first to ride five Kentucky Derby winners and two U.S. Triple Crown champions (winners of the Kentucky Derby, the Preakness Stakes, and the Belmont Stakes). In 31 years of riding Thoroughbreds (1931–61), he won 549 stakes events, a total of 4,779 races, and more than $30,000,000 in purses. On Feb. 20, 1958, at Santa Anita Race Track in California, he became

Moscow

2005-02-21T15:29:00.000-08:00

Russian Moskva oblast (province), western Russia. The oblast surrounds and includes the city of Moscow, the capital of Russia. Moscow oblast was formed in 1929. The main feature of its relief is the Klin-Dmitrov Ridge, which stretches roughly east-west across the oblast, north of Moscow city. The ridge, a line of terminal moraines, reaches a height of 1,000 feet (300 metres) with a steep northern slope to

Ottonian Art

2005-02-21T06:59:00.000-08:00

Painting, sculpture, and other visual arts produced during the reigns of the German Ottonian emperors and their first successors from the Salic house (950–1050). As inheritors of the Carolingian tradition of the Holy Roman Empire, the German emperors also assumed the Carolingian artistic heritage, the conscientious revival of late antique and Early Christian art forms

Poison, Classification based on physical form

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

Because solids are generally not well absorbed into the blood, they must be dissolved in the aqueous liquid lining the intestinal tract if ingested or the respiratory tract if inhaled. Solids dissolve at different rates in fluids, however. For example,

Berlin, Free University Of

2005-02-20T08:57:00.000-08:00

German Freie Universität Berlin, autonomous, state-financed German university. It was founded in West Berlin in 1948, after Berlin was divided, by a group of professors and students who broke away from East Berlin's Friedrich Wilhelm (now Humboldt) University (founded 1809–10) to seek academic freedom. The Free University was restructured in 1970 and again in 1974. Its governing board includes the government, faculty, and

Clan

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

Kinship group of fundamental importance in the structure of many societies. Membership of a clan is socially defined in terms of actual or purported descent from a common ancestor. This descent is unilineal—i.e., derived only through the male (patriclan) or the female (matriclan). Normally, but not always, the clans are exogamous, marriage within the clan being forbidden

Aeschylus

2005-02-18T23:23:00.000-08:00

Aeschylus' influence on the development of tragedy was fundamental. Previous to him, Greek drama was limited to one actor and a chorus engaged in a largely static recitation. (The chorus was a group of actors who responded to and commented on the main action of a play with song, dance, and recitation.) The actor could assume different roles by changing masks and costumes,

X-ray Style

2005-02-18T04:15:00.000-08:00

Manner of depicting animals by drawing or painting the skeletal frame and internal organs, one of the characteristic styles of the art of prehistoric hunting cultures. The origin of the style can be traced to the Mesolithic art of northern Europe, where the earliest examples were found on fragments of bone in southern France dating from the late Magdalenian Period.

Fishburne, Laurence

2005-02-17T17:49:00.000-08:00

Fishburne began acting as a child, making his

Bacchylides

2005-02-17T11:12:00.000-08:00

Greek lyric poet of the Aegean island of Ceos, nephew of the poet Simonides and a younger contemporary of the Boeotian poet Pindar, whom he rivaled in the composition of epinician poems (odes commissioned by victors at the major athletic festivals). Little was known of Bacchylides' work until the discovery in Egypt of papyrus fragments that reached the

Augustus, Caesar

2005-02-17T11:08:00.000-08:00

Returning to Italy, he was told that in his will Caesar had adopted him as his son and had made him his chief personal heir. He was only 18 when, against the advice of his stepfather and others, he decided to take up this perilous inheritance and proceeded to Rome. Mark Antony (Marcus Antonius), Caesar's chief lieutenant, who had taken possession of his papers and assets and had

Sports, Book Of

2005-02-17T08:15:00.000-08:00

Formally Declaration of Sports order issued by King James I of England for use in Lancashire to resolve a conflict, on the subject of Sunday amusements, between the Puritans and the gentry, many of whom were Roman Catholics. Permission was given for dancing, archery, leaping and vaulting, and for “having of May games, Whitsun ales and morris dances, and the setting up of May-poles and other sports therewith

Wolff, Tobias

2005-02-15T06:20:00.000-08:00

Wolff's parents divorced when he was a child; from age 10 until he joined the U.S. Army, he traveled with his mother, who relocated frequently and finally settled in Seattle, Washington, where she remarried. Wolff wrote about

Spandau

2005-02-14T21:16:00.000-08:00

District of Berlin, Germany, on the Havel River at the mouth of the Spree. Originally the site of a Sorbian (Wendish) fortress, Spandau became German c. 1230 and was granted civic rights in 1232. It was incorporated into Berlin in 1920. The citadel (1560–94, including the 12th-century Julius Tower) is one of the oldest well-preserved Italian-style Renaissance fortifications in northern Germany,

Latrobe, Benjamin (henry)

2005-02-14T14:49:00.000-08:00

Latrobe attended the Moravian college at Niesky, Saxony, and traveled in France and Italy, acquiring a knowledge

Crocoite

2005-02-13T07:34:00.000-08:00

Mineral consisting of lead chromate, PbCrO4, that is identical in composition to chrome yellow, the artificial product used in paint. The element chromium was discovered in this mineral in 1797. Crocoite occurs as long, well-developed, prismatic crystals; the most beautiful specimens are from Dundas, Tasmania. Other localities include the Urals, Brazil, and the southwestern

Wade-giles Romanization

2005-02-12T21:11:00.000-08:00

System of romanizing the modern Chinese written language, originally devised to simplify Chinese language characters for the Western world. Initiated by Sir Thomas Francis Wade (q.v.), the system was modified by the Cambridge professor Herbert Allen Giles in his Chinese–English Dictionary (1912). With Giles's syllabic changes, Wade-Giles became the preferred Chinese

Bone Black

2005-02-12T17:52:00.000-08:00

Also called Bone Char, or Bone Charcoal, a form of charcoal (q.v.) produced by heating bone in the presence of a limited amount of air. It is used in removing coloured impurities from liquids, especially solutions of raw sugar. Bone black contains only about 12 percent elemental carbon, the remainder being made up principally of calcium phosphate and calcium carbonate.

Qatar

2005-02-12T02:48:00.000-08:00

Officially State of Qatar , Arabic Dawlat Qatar independent emirate on the west coast of the Persian Gulf. It occupies a small desert peninsula that extends from the larger Arabian Peninsula north of eastern Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. It has an area of 4,416 square miles (11,437 square km), the total including a number of nearby small islands and the Hawar Islands (which are also claimed by Bahrain) in the Persian

Interior Design, Early medieval Europe

2005-02-10T15:14:00.000-08:00

In the constant warfare that was waged in Europe in the early medieval period, material possessions dwindled to a minimum: a man did not own for long anything he could not defend and had little use or opportunity for interior decoration. If he possessed more than one house, his furniture and possessions would go with him from place to place. During this time, the arts

Philby, Kim

2005-02-10T07:34:00.000-08:00

While a student at the University of Cambridge, Philby became a Communist and in 1933 a Soviet agent. He worked as a journalist until 1940, when Guy Burgess, a British secret agent who was himself a Soviet double agent, recruited Philby

Hale, Horatio (emmons)

2005-02-10T02:56:00.000-08:00

While a student at Harvard University (1833–37), Hale studied the language of some

Segovia Aqueduct

2005-02-10T00:03:00.000-08:00

Byname El Puente (Spanish: “The Bridge”), water-conveyance structure built under the Roman emperor Trajan (reigned AD 98–117) and still in use; it carries water 10 miles (16 km) from the Frío River to the city of Segovia, Spain. One of the best-preserved Roman engineering works, it was built of some 24,000 dark-coloured Guadarrama granite blocks without the use of mortar. The aboveground portion is 2,388 feet (728 metres) long and consists of some

Albanian Language

2005-02-09T15:31:00.000-08:00

The origins of

Allen, Bog Of

2005-02-09T04:03:00.000-08:00

Irish Móin Alúine group of peat bogs between the Liffey and the Shannon rivers in east-central Ireland in Counties Kildare, Offaly, Laoighis, and Westmeath. Some 370 square miles (958 square km) in area, it is developed extensively for fuel for power stations; the cutover land is used for grazing. The bogs are traversed by the Grand and Royal canals, the latter no longer in use. An early monastic site

Elijah's Cup

2005-02-08T00:01:00.000-08:00

In Judaism, the fifth ceremonial cup of wine poured during the family Seder dinner on Passover (Pesah). It is left untouched in honour of Elijah, who, according to tradition, will arrive one day as an unknown guest to herald the advent of the Messiah. During the Seder dinner, biblical verses are read while the door is briefly opened to welcome Elijah, who, it is further said,

Obuasi

2005-02-07T03:55:00.000-08:00

Town, southern Ghana. Its growth was stimulated by the discovery of a large gold deposit in 1897 and the building of the railway from Sekondi in 1902. The Asante gold mine at Obuasi has continued as the country's major producer while others have become depleted. It is one of the world's richest gold mines in terms of yield per ton of ore. By the end of the 20th century, it was the 10th largest

Oskaloosa

2005-02-06T20:38:00.000-08:00

City, seat (1844) of Mahaska county, southeastern Iowa, U.S. It lies between the Des Moines and South Skunk rivers, about 60 miles (100 km) southeast of Des Moines. The region was inhabited by Sauk and Fox peoples when a fort was founded there by Captain Nathan Boone, nephew of Daniel Boone, who explored the area in 1835. Settled by Quakers in 1843, it takes its name (meaning “the last of the