OpenNeedle

Organic Underwear

2006-10-29T05:40:00.000-08:00

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

Buckinghamshire Lace

2005-04-04T08:42:00.000-07:00

Lace made in Buckinghamshire, Eng., from c. 1665 or earlier until the first quarter of the 20th century. This bobbin-lace industry, which was centred in Olney and Newport Pagnell, is thought to have originated from the successive influx of refugee laceworkers to the east Midlands counties. These refugees were reportedly Flemish, especially from Mechlin (1563–68), and French, especially

Velázquez, Diego

2005-04-03T09:15:00.000-07:00

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

Hoover Dam

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

Formerly called Boulder Dam, dam in Black Canyon on the Colorado River, at the Arizona-Nevada border, U.S. Constructed between 1930 and 1936 and originally named Boulder Dam, it was renamed in 1947 to honour President Herbert Hoover. Hoover Dam is the highest concrete arch dam in the United States. It impounds Lake Mead, which extends for 115 miles (185 km) upstream and is one of the largest manmade lakes in the world. The dam

Marie-thérèse Of Austria

2005-04-02T11:28:00.000-08:00

As the daughter of King Philip IV of Spain and Elizabeth of France, Marie-Thérèse was betrothed to Louis by the Peace of the Pyrenees (1659), which ended a 24-year war between France and Spain. Under the terms of the pact, she agreed to renounce her claim to succession to the Spanish throne

Salamanca

2005-04-01T18:34:00.000-08:00

Salamanca is an important agricultural and commercial centre, and its central location in the fertile Bajío region has led to its being called the “Granary of Mexico.” Wheat, corn (maize), beans, chick-peas, and fruits, all thrive in the temperate

Thebes

2005-04-01T15:38:00.000-08:00

Modern Greek Thívai major city of Boeotia nomós (department), northwest of Athens, Greece, and one of the chief cities and powers of ancient Greece. On the acropolis of the ancient city stands the present commercial and agricultural centre of Thebes. It is situated on a low ridge dividing the surrounding plain; the modern city is the seat of the Greek Orthodox bishop of Thebes and Levádhia.

Tapestry, Pre-Columbian Americas

2005-03-31T14:19:00.000-08:00

The most skilled weaving in pre-Columbian America was achieved by the Andean Indian cultures of ancient Peru. The origins of tapestry weaving among these peoples are believed to date as early as the beginnings of the Christian Era. By the 6th and 7th centuries the technique of tapestry weaving was established, and a large number of pieces in this medium have survived,

Gamelan

2005-03-30T18:08:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Gamelang, or Gamelin, the indigenous orchestra of Java and Bali, consisting largely of several varieties of gongs and various sets of tuned instruments that are struck with mallets. The gongs are either suspended vertically or, as with the knobbed-centre, kettle-shaped bonang, placed flat. Percussive melodic instruments include sets of tuned bonangs, xylophones (the gambang kayu), and

Seleucus Iv Philopator

2005-03-30T03:38:00.000-08:00

Although the empire that Seleucus inherited was not so great as the one over which his father had ruled before the war with Rome (190–189), it was still large, consisting of Syria (including Cilicia and Palestine), Mesopotamia, Babylonia, and nearer Iran (Media and Persia). Because of financial difficulties,

Arts, Islamic, Early Islamic literature

2005-03-29T05:02:00.000-08:00

With the coming of Islam the attitude of the Arabs toward poetry seems to have changed. The new Muslims, despite their long-standing admiration for powerful language, often shunned poetry as reminiscent of pagan ideals now overthrown. For the Qur'an, in surah 26:225 ff., condemned the poets “who err in every valley, and say what they do not do. Only the perverse follow them!” The Qur'an,

Fable, Parable, And Allegory, Allegory

2005-03-28T10:25:00.000-08:00

In terms of allegory, the Greco-Roman and Hebraic-Christian cultures both have a common

Wild West Show

2005-03-28T07:31:00.000-08:00

Theatrical extravaganza begun in 1883 by William Frederick “Buffalo Bill” Cody. Cody, an Indian scout and Western hero, first turned to acting and then to producing and promoting his own Wild West show. In 1887 his show was performed at Madison Square Garden, New York City, with a cast of 100 Indians; Annie Oakley, the sharpshooter; other trick riders, ropers, and shooters; and such wild

Wilderness, Battle Of The

2005-03-27T17:58:00.000-08:00

(May 5–7, 1864), in the American Civil War, first stage of a carefully planned Union campaign to capture the Confederate capital at Richmond, Virginia. Crossing the Rappahannock River near Fredericksburg, Virginia, early in May, General Ulysses S. Grant advanced with a Union army of 115,000 men. On May 5 he met a Confederate army of 62,000 troops under General Robert E. Lee. The confrontation occurred

Persian Gulf, Transportation

2005-03-27T16:18:00.000-08:00

For centuries a considerable sea trade has been carried on by local craft between the Persian Gulf and Africa and India; this has become completely dominated by an incessant traffic of large tankers that carry oil from the large marine terminals at Khark Island (Iran), Kuwait, Dhahran (Az-Zahran, in Saudi Arabia), Bahrain, Das Island (United Arab Emirates), and other locations

Gum

2005-03-26T13:14:00.000-08:00

Also called Gingiva, plural Gingivae, in anatomy, mucous membrane attached to and surrounding the necks of the teeth and adjacent alveolar bone. Before the erupting teeth enter the mouth cavity, gum pads develop; these are slight elevations of the overlying oral mucous membrane. When tooth eruption is complete, the gum embraces the neck region of each tooth. As well as being attached to adjacent alveolar

Redjedef

2005-03-25T09:23:00.000-08:00

Also called Djedefre , Horus name Kheper third king of the 4th dynasty (c. 2575–c. 2465 BC) of Egypt. Redjedef was a son of Khufu (Cheops), builder of the Great Pyramid, by a secondary queen. The original crown prince, Kawab, who had married the heiress Hetepheres II, apparently predeceased his father. At Khufu's death, Redjedef married Hetepheres II and became king; but since he came from a secondary branch of the royal family, he probably

Mountain, The Zagros and Bitlis mountains

2005-03-25T05:46:00.000-08:00

The Arabian Peninsula, its northeastern edge covered by thick sedimentary rocks, has collided with Iran and Turkey at the Zagros and Bitlis sutures to form the Zagros and Bitlis mountains. Thick layers of salt in the Arabian shield's sedimentary rock have allowed the overlying layers to detach and fold, creating a particularly well-developed fold and thrust belt

Stafford, Thomas P(atten)

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

A graduate (1952) of the U.S. Naval Academy, Annapolis, Md., Stafford transferred to the Air Force

Zane, Betty

2005-03-22T16:21:00.000-08:00

Zane lived in her native Virginia (now part of West Virginia) in the town of Wheeling, which was founded in 1769 by her older brothers Ebenezer,

Ahmad Ibn Hanbal

2005-03-22T10:58:00.000-08:00

For bibliography and information pertaining to Ibn Hanbal's works, see Fuat Sezgin, Geschichte des arabischen Schrifttums, vol. 1 (1967); for his life and works generally, see W.M. Patton, Ahmed ibn Hanbal and the Mihna (1897); and H. Laoust, “Le Hanbalisme sous le califat de Bagdad,” in Revue des Études Islamiques (1959); and the Encyclopaedia of Islam, vol. 1 (1960). On Sufism in the Hanbali school of thought, see G. Makdisi, “L'Isnad initiatique soufi de Muwaffaq ad-Din Ibn Qudama,” in L'Herne: Louis Massignon (1970).

Drafting

2005-03-22T10:16:00.000-08:00

At the design stage, both freehand and mechanical drawings serve the functions of inspiring and guiding the designer and of communicating among the designer, collaborators,

Leaf Insect

2005-03-21T18:26:00.000-08:00

(family Phylliidae), also called walking leaf any of about 25 species of flat, green insects with a leaflike appearance that belong to the order Phasmatodea. The female has large leathery forewings (tegmina) that lie edge to edge on the abdomen and resemble, in their vein pattern, the midrib and veins in a leaf; the hindwings have no function. The male has small tegmina and ample, non-leaflike, functional hindwings.

Switzerland, Vegetation

2005-03-20T19:44:00.000-08:00

The vegetation is derived from that of the four European climatic regions converging in Switzerland and has been influenced by the varied relief. It includes the beeches and oaks of the maritime west; hornbeam and larch trees in the more continental east, predominantly in the Engadin and the dry Valais; extensive spruce forests in the northern subalpine region;

Alabama, Settlement patterns

2005-03-20T11:47:00.000-08:00

By 1980 less than two-fifths of the population of Alabama was classified as rural, and the proportion was declining still further as rural residents sought homes in the state's cities. Eight counties had a population loss during the 1970s. Much of the loss was from the old cotton region of the Black Belt, which had been largely depopulated by the 1980s. By the 1970s, however, the state had

Saxhorn

2005-03-19T14:04:00.000-08:00

Any of a family of brass wind instruments patented by the Belgian instrument-maker Antoine-Joseph Sax, known as Adolphe Sax, in Paris in 1845. Saxhorns, one of many 19th-century developments from the valved bugle, provided military bands with a homogeneous series of valved brass in place of the miscellany of valved instruments that had come into use since 1825 (such as flügelhorns,

Charter Oath

2005-03-19T09:29:00.000-08:00

Also called Imperial Oath Of Five Articles, Japanese Gokajo No Goseimon, in Japanese history, statement of principle promulgated on April 6, 1868, by the emperor Meiji after the overthrow of the Tokugawa shogunate and the restoration of direct participation in government by the imperial family. The Charter Oath opened the way for the modernization of the country and the introduction of a Western parliamentary constitution. The five articles

Egypt, Education

2005-03-19T09:02:00.000-08:00

At the end of the 19th century there were only three secondary and nine “higher” schools in Egypt; the educational structure continued to be based on the kuttabs, or Qur'an schools. In 1916 the latter were turned into elementary schools, and in 1923 a law was passed providing free compulsory education between the ages of seven and 12. A sharp increase in the annual budgetary allocation

Puerto Princesa

2005-03-18T08:25:00.000-08:00

City, east-central Palawan, Philippines. It is an important port on a sheltered inlet of the Sulu Sea, south of Honda Bay, and it has an airport. The city was formerly called Cuyo. The site of a penal colony during the Spanish regime, Puerto Princesa has become one of several resettlement sites on the island for migrants from Luzon and the western Visayan region. Copra, lumber,

Syriac Language

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

Semitic language belonging to the Northern Central, or Northwestern, group; it was an important Christian literary and liturgical language from the 3rd through the 7th century AD. Syriac was based on the East Aramaic dialect of Edessa, Osroëne (present-day Sanliurfa, in southeastern Turkey), which became one of the chief centres of Christianity in the Middle East at the end

Roberts, Richard

2005-03-17T16:41:00.000-08:00

Roberts began his career as an uneducated quarryman. He had remarkable mechanical ability, however, and worked at various times for the industrialist John Wilkinson and the inventor Henry Maudslay. He was one of the inventors of the metal planer and made

Nepos, Julius

2005-03-17T11:28:00.000-08:00

Born of a distinguished family, Nepos was sent by the Eastern ruler Leo I to govern Italy as augustus (emperor). He at once deposed the Western emperor, Glycerius, whom Leo regarded as a usurper. Nepos proclaimed himself emperor in June 474. A year later he was obliged to recognize the independence of the Visigothic kingdom

Hydra

2005-03-16T08:31:00.000-08:00

Genus of invertebrate freshwater animals of the class Hydrozoa (phylum Cnidaria). The body of such an organism consists of a thin, usually translucent tube that measures up to about 30 millimetres (1.2 inches) long but is capable of great contraction. The body wall is comprised of two layers of cells separated by a thin, structureless layer of connective tissue called the

Byssinosis

2005-03-15T15:46:00.000-08:00

Also called Brown Lung, or Brown Lung Disease, respiratory disorder, a type of pneumoconiosis caused by dust from cotton and other fibres, common among textile workers. When inhaled, the dust stimulates histamine release, which causes constriction of the air passages, making breathing difficult. Over time the dust accumulates in the lung, producing a typical discoloration that gives the disease its common

Qarmatian

2005-03-14T22:48:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Qarmathian, Karmatian , or Karmathian , Arabic Qarmati , plural Qaramitah a member of the Shi'ite Muslim sect known as the Isma'ilites. The Qarmatians flourished in Iraq, Yemen, and especially Bahrain during the 9th to 11th centuries, taking their name from Hamdan Qarmat, who led the sect in southern Iraq in the second half of the 9th century. The Qarmatians became notorious for an insurrection in Syria and Iraq in 903–906 and for the exploits of two Bahraini leaders,

Trachyte

2005-03-14T21:21:00.000-08:00

Light-coloured, very fine-grained extrusive igneous rock that is composed chiefly of alkali feldspar with minor amounts of dark-coloured minerals such as biotite, amphibole, or pyroxene. Compositionally, trachyte is the volcanic equivalent of the plutonic (intrusive) rock syenite. Most trachytes show porphyritic texture in which abundant, large, well-formed crystals

Aquaculture: Fulfilling Its Promise

2005-03-14T07:38:00.000-08:00

For 25 centuries fish farming (aquaculture) has been a mainstay of Asian agriculture. Throughout China, India, and Thailand, it prospered on traditional small-scale farms. In recent years, however, fish farming has begun to suffer from problems associated with rapid growth and careless stewardship. As the 20th century draws to a close, aquaculture must redefine itself

Overbeck, Johann Friedrich

2005-03-13T18:17:00.000-08:00

In 1806 Overbeck entered the Academy of Vienna, where, disappointed in the academic approach to teaching, he and Franz Pforr in 1809 founded the Lucas Brotherhood. They sought to revive

Dunant, Henri

2005-03-13T18:08:00.000-08:00

An eyewitness of the Battle of Solferino (June 24, 1859), which resulted in nearly 40,000 casualties, Dunant organized emergency aid services

Salcedo

2005-03-12T05:39:00.000-08:00

City, northern Dominican Republic. It lies in the fertile Cibao Valley between the mountain chains of the Cordillera Central and the Cordillera Septentrional. Salcedo serves as a commercial centre for the agricultural hinterland, which yields principally cacao, coffee, and corn (maize). It is accessible by secondary highway from San Francisco de Macorís and Moca.

Adams, Walter (sydney)

2005-03-11T03:19:00.000-08:00

Born of missionary parents who returned to the United States when he was eight years old, Adams studied astronomy

Biblical Literature, The patristic period

2005-03-10T19:27:00.000-08:00

Alexandria had long boasted a school of classical study that practiced the allegorical interpretation of the Homeric epics and the Greek myths. This method of exegesis was taken over by Philo and from him by Christian scholars of Alexandria in the 2nd and 3rd centuries. Clement of Alexandria (c. 150–c. 215) and Origen (c. 185–c. 254) did not completely rule out the literal sense of

Mueller, Sir Ferdinand Von

2005-03-10T11:32:00.000-08:00

After an apprenticeship as pharmacist, Mueller began the study of botany at the University of Kiel. Soon after receiving his Ph.D., he left Germany for Adelaide, South Australia (1847), where

Selye, Hans

2005-03-10T02:33:00.000-08:00

Selye was educated at the German University of Prague (M.D., 1929; Ph.D., 1931) and at the universities of Paris and Rome. In 1931 he came to the United States to work as a research fellow at Johns Hopkins University. In 1932 he continued his fellowship at McGill University

Yahya Sobh-e Azal, Mirza

2005-03-09T16:19:00.000-08:00

Yahya was the designated successor of Sayyid Ali Muhammad, a Shi'i sectarian leader known as the Bab (Arabic: “gate,” referring to one who has access to the hidden imam). The Bab was executed in 1850, and by the following year his followers

Biblical Literature, The Gothic version

2005-03-09T10:52:00.000-08:00

The Gothic version was produced in the mid-4th century by Ulfilas, a Christian missionary who also invented the Gothic alphabet. It constitutes practically all that is left of Gothic literature. The translation of the Old Testament has entirely disappeared except for fragments of Ezra and Nehemiah. Though a Greek base is certain, some scholars deny the attribution

Hypotrich

2005-03-09T04:30:00.000-08:00

Any dorsoventrally flattened, oval protozoan of the ciliate order Hypotrichida, very widely distributed in both fresh and salt water. Instead of having simple cilia (hairlike processes), the hypotrichs have groups of fused cilia (cirri) arranged on the ventral surface and used for crawling. The dorsal surface is frequently equipped with rows

Moradabad

2005-03-08T15:44:00.000-08:00

City, administrative headquarters of Moradabad district, Uttar Pradesh state, northern India, on a ridge along the Ramganga River. Moradabad was founded in 1625 by Rustam Khan (a Mughal general), who built the fort north of the city as well as the Jami' Masjid, a large mosque. Located at a major road and rail junction, it is a trade centre for agricultural products. Industries include cotton

Aenesidemus

2005-03-07T22:26:00.000-08:00

Philosopher and dialectician of the Greek Academy who revived the Pyrrhonian principle of “suspended judgment” (epoche) as a practical solution to the vexing and “insoluble” problem of knowledge. In his Pyrrhonian Discourses Aenesidemus formulated 10 tropes in defense of Skepticism, four suggesting arguments that arise from the nature

Sprague, Kate Chase

2005-03-07T17:25:00.000-08:00

Educated by her father and in private schools, Kate Chase became the emotional focus of her father's life after the deaths of

Kahramanmaras

2005-03-07T15:21:00.000-08:00

Capital of the Hittite kingdom of Gurgum (c. 12th century BC), it was known to the 8th-century-BC conquering Assyrians as Markasi and later to the Romans as

Quinone

2005-03-06T18:42:00.000-08:00

Any member of a class of cyclic organic compounds containing two carbonyl groups, > C = O, either adjacent or separated by a vinylene group, -CH = CH-, in a six-membered unsaturated ring. In a few quinones, the carbonyl groups are located in different rings. The term quinone also denotes the specific compound para- (p-)benzoquinone (C6H4O2). The quinone structure

Quinone

2005-03-05T19:06:00.000-08:00

Obsessions are recurring or persistent thoughts, images, or impulses that, rather than being voluntarily produced, seem to invade a person's consciousness despite his

Yancey, Jimmy

2005-03-05T18:17:00.000-08:00

Yancey was largely a self-taught pianist, with some instruction from his brother Alonzo. He had a childhood

Tyard, Pontus De

2005-03-05T02:57:00.000-08:00

Tyard was seigneur (lord) of Bissy-sur-Fley and an associate of the Lyonese poets, especially Maurice Scève. In 1551 he translated León Hebreo's Dialoghi di amore (“Dialogues

Rye

2005-03-04T03:00:00.000-08:00

Town (“parish”), Rother district, administrative county of East Sussex, historic county of Sussex, England, on a hill by the River Rother. The community's cobbled streets and timber-framed and Georgian houses attract many tourists. Originally a seaport, Rye was incorporated in 1289 and became a full member of the Cinque Ports (a confederation of English Channel ports) in about

Akhenaton

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

Also spelled Akhnaton , or Ikhnaton , also called Amenhotep Iv , or Neferkheperure Amenhotep , Greek Amenophis king of Egypt (1353–36 BC) of the 18th dynasty, who established a new monotheistic cult of Aton (hence his assumed name, Akhenaton, meaning “One Useful to Aton”).

China, The Ch'in state

2005-03-03T04:45:00.000-08:00

The history of the Ch'in dynasty may be traced back to the 8th century BC. When the Chou royal house was reestablished at the eastern capital in 770 BC, the Ch'in ruling house, according to the Ch'in historical record, was entrusted with the mission of maintaining order in the previous capital. This may be an exaggeration of the importance of the Ch'in ruling house, and the Ch'in may

Elizabeth

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

City, seat (1857) of Union county, northeastern New Jersey, U.S., on Newark Bay and Arthur Kill (channel; connected by bridge to Staten Island, New York City) and is adjacent to Newark, New Jersey, to the north. Settlement began in 1664 with the purchase of land from the Delaware Indians. It was named Elizabethtown to honour the wife of Sir George Carteret, one of the colony's first proprietors.

Hybrid

2005-03-01T20:48:00.000-08:00

Offspring of parents that differ in genetically determined traits. The parents may be of different species, genera, or (rarely) families. The term hybrid, therefore, has a wider application than the terms mongrel or crossbreed, which usually refer to animals or plants resulting from a cross between two races, breeds, strains, or varieties of the same species. There are

Aschelminth, Adaptations

2005-02-28T15:26:00.000-08:00

The ability of some nematodes and rotifers to survive drying or freezing conditions in a state of suspended animation, i.e., cryptobiosis or anabiosis, has enabled them to inhabit the driest deserts and the coldest polar regions, as long as free water occurs occasionally and for long enough periods of time for them to reproduce. This ability also allows both groups

Annelid, Life span

2005-02-28T11:32:00.000-08:00

Since both the polychaetes and oligochaetes are able to regrow lost parts—i.e., regenerate (see below)—it may appear that they are essentially ageless. Few longevity studies have been carried out with polychaetes, however. Most of the adults of species studied have a characteristic number of segments, which form rapidly during early life and prior to the appearance

Toadfish

2005-02-28T00:15:00.000-08:00

Any of about 45 species of bottom-living fishes constituting the family Batrachoididae and the order Batrachoidiformes. They are found chiefly in the New World and mostly in warm seas—occasionally in freshwater. Toadfishes are heavy-bodied fishes with broad, flattened heads and large mouths equipped with strong teeth. They grow to a maximum of about 40 cm (16 inches) and

Belgian Literature, The 20th century

2005-02-27T19:30:00.000-08:00

Walloon literature explored new paths during the course of the 20th century. Scholars undertook dialect studies, and standardization of spelling and grammar extended the literary possibilities of the dialect, as did attempts by Émile Lempereur and some other writers to renew the sources of inspiration. Alongside several veteran authors, such as the talented

Melito Of Sardis

2005-02-27T14:15:00.000-08:00

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

Dieback

2005-02-26T20:17:00.000-08:00

Common symptom or name of disease, especially of woody plants, characterized by progressive death of twigs, branches, shoots, or roots, starting at the tips. Staghead is a slow dieback of the upper branches of a tree; the dead, leafless limbs superficially resemble a stag's head. Dieback and staghead are caused by many fungi and a few bacteria that produce cankers, anthracnose,

Libya, Settlement patterns

2005-02-26T02:14:00.000-08:00

Libya is divided into three regions—the western region (formerly Tripolitania province), the eastern region (formerly Cyrenaica province), and the southern region (formerly Fezzan province). Two-thirds of the population lives in the western region, the majority in Tripoli and other cities along the coast and on the Nafusah Plateau. About 20 percent of the people live in

Roussel, Albert(-charles-paul-marie)

2005-02-25T16:37:00.000-08:00

Roussel joined the French navy at the age of 18 and made several journeys to Southeast Asia, the exotic impressions of which he recalled in later orchestral and dramatic works. At 25 he resigned his

Interior Design, Greece

2005-02-24T15:55:00.000-08:00

A period of so-called dark ages in Greece followed the destruction of Knossos in c. 1400 BC, but Cretan civilization had already influenced the mainland before then. Small terra-cotta models of furniture and fragments of tables and chairs dating from as early as 1350 BC have been found. Homer's epic Odyssey, dating from the 9th–8th century BC, speaks of a chair inlaid with ivory and silver,

Sinkiang, Uygur Autonomous Region Of, Relief

2005-02-24T10:46:00.000-08:00

In the north the Northern Highlands extend in a semicircle along the Mongolian border.

Belasco, David

2005-02-24T03:09:00.000-08:00

As a child actor, Belasco appeared with Charles Kean in Richard III and later played in stock companies touring the mining camps. During

Romanian Orthodox Church

2005-02-23T23:33:00.000-08:00

Christianity first reached Dacia (roughly coextensive with modern Romania) under the Roman Empire at least as early as the 4th century

Waterberg Series

2005-02-23T10:33:00.000-08:00

Also called Waterberg System, major division of rocks in southern Africa. The age of the Waterberg is in doubt; it is possible that the Waterberg is late Precambrian or Early Paleozoic (older or younger than 540 million years, respectively). Waterberg rocks consist of several thousand feet of brown, red, and purple sandstones and some rather minor shales. Sedimentary structures such as ripple marks,

Wheeler, William A(lmon)

2005-02-22T21:40:00.000-08:00

He was nominated as vice president in order to lend sectional balance to the ticket, and in his acceptance letter he alluded to the need to end Reconstruction, as Hayes subsequently did. Wheeler ran on a platform favouring administrative integrity, civil service reform, and aid to education in the South. Distracted by health and personal problems—his wife died just prior to the Republican convention in 1876—he retired from public life after his term in office was over.

National Book Awards

2005-02-22T19:48:00.000-08:00

Annual awards given to books of the highest quality written by Americans and published by American publishers. The awards were founded in 1950 by the American Book Publishers Council, American Booksellers Association, and Book Manufacturers Institute. From 1976 to 1979 they were administered by the National Book Committee. In 1980 they were renamed the American Book Awards and

Stegner, Wallace

2005-02-20T21:13:00.000-08:00

Stegner grew up in Saskatchewan, Canada, and in several western states.

Oviparity

2005-02-20T10:43:00.000-08:00

Expulsion of undeveloped eggs rather than live young. The eggs may have been fertilized before release, as in birds and some reptiles, or are to be fertilized externally, as in amphibians and many lower forms. In general, the number of eggs produced by oviparous species greatly exceeds the number of offspring from species that bear live young, but the chances of survival

La Révellière-lépeaux, Louis-marie De

2005-02-20T10:33:00.000-08:00

In 1789 La Révellière-Lépeaux was elected as a representative of the Third Estate (the unprivileged order) to the States General, which converted itself into the revolutionary National Assembly. In 1792 he became a member of the Convention, the new national assembly that governed

Graves, Robert James

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

Graves received his degree from the University of Dublin in 1818. After studying in London and on the European continent, he returned

Furniture, Bed

2005-02-19T11:01:00.000-08:00

As a furniture form, the bed

Respighi, Ottorino

2005-02-19T06:27:00.000-08:00

Italian composer who introduced Russian orchestral colour and some of the violence of Richard Strauss's harmonic techniques into Italian music. He studied at the Liceo of Bologna and later with Nikolay Rimsky-Korsakov in St. Petersburg, where he was first violist in the Opera Orchestra. From his foreign masters Respighi acquired

'abd Ar-rahman Ii

2005-02-18T19:47:00.000-08:00

'Abd ar-Rahman II was the grandson of his namesake, founder of the Umayyad dynasty in Spain. His reign was an administrative watershed. As the influence of the 'Abba sid Caliphate, then at the peak of its splendour, grew,

Cyrenaic

2005-02-18T03:22:00.000-08:00

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

Han Dynasty

2005-02-17T10:07:00.000-08:00

The dynasty was founded by Liu Pang, later Kao Tsu (256–195 BC), a man of humble birth who led the revolt against

Kwazulu/natal

2005-02-17T04:39:00.000-08:00

Formerly Natal, province of the Republic of South Africa, occupying the southeastern portion of the country. It is bounded on the east by the Indian Ocean, on the south by Eastern province, on the west by Lesotho and Free State province, on the northwest by Mpumalanga province, and on the north by Swaziland and Mozambique. Within KwaZulu/Natal is an enclave of Eastern province consisting

Argentina, The conservative restoration and the Concordancia, 193043

2005-02-17T04:04:00.000-08:00

During the next 13 years, which have often been termed “the Infamous Decade,” the armed forces sponsored a conservative restoration. After expelling Irigoyen, they installed General José Félix Uriburu in the presidency (1930–32). Uriburu was a descendent of an old, conservative northern family, and he leaned toward fascism. His influence with the army, however, was not as great

Helder, Den

2005-02-17T03:44:00.000-08:00

Gemeente (municipality) and port, Noord-Holland provincie, northwestern Netherlands, at the northern end of the North Holland Canal, opposite Texel Island on the Marsdiep, a channel linking the North Sea and Waddenzee. Offshore, in 1673, a Dutch fleet under Adm. Michiel A. de Ruyter and Cornelis Tromp defeated an Anglo-French fleet. In 1794 a French cavalry troop captured a Dutch

Agri

2005-02-15T03:19:00.000-08:00

Agri is named after Mount Ararat (Turkish: Agri Dagi), situated to the east near the frontier with Iran.

Chase, Samuel

2005-02-15T02:57:00.000-08:00

A member of the Maryland assembly (1764–84) and the Continental Congress (1774–78, 1784–85), and a signer of the Declaration of Independence, Chase served

Hallucination

2005-02-14T15:40:00.000-08:00

Traditional psychiatric sources define hallucinations as “perceptions without corresponding

Louis I

2005-02-13T11:48:00.000-08:00

Not all challenges to Louis's authority could so easily be managed. The birth of Charles in 823 to Louis's second wife, Judith, and the accommodations required by another heir provoked a crisis in the family and the empire. Reformers complained about the rampant corruption of powerful nobles who preyed on church lands and the poor. Moreover, the various ethnic and linguistic

Xenotime

2005-02-13T06:14:00.000-08:00

Widely distributed phosphate mineral, yttrium phosphate (YPO4, though large proportions of erbium commonly replace yttrium), that occurs as brown, glassy crystals, crystal aggregates, or rosettes in igneous rocks and associated pegmatites, in quartzose and micaceous gneiss, and commonly in detrital material. Occurrences include Norway, Sweden, Madagascar, Brazil,

Ursa Minor

2005-02-12T22:55:00.000-08:00

Also called The Little Bear, in astronomy, a constellation of the northern sky, seven of whose stars outline the Little Dipper. Polaris (Alpha Ursae Minoris), at the end of the Little Dipper's handle, marks (roughly) the position of the north celestial pole. The constellation lies at about 15 hours right ascension and 80° north declination.

Sorabji, Kaikhosru Shapurji

2005-02-12T22:18:00.000-08:00

Dudley was of Parsi, Sicilian, and Spanish descent and spent most of his life in England. As a young man he became interested in his father's Parsi

Maha Sarakham

2005-02-11T17:15:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Mahasarakhan, or Mahasarakham, town, northeastern Thailand. Maha Sarakham is located at a road junction on a bend of the Chi River. Rice is widely grown in the surrounding region, particularly in shallow river valleys, and freshwater fishing is also important. Pop. (1993 est.) 41,812.

Tiele, Cornelis Petrus

2005-02-11T11:41:00.000-08:00

Educated at Amsterdam High School and at the seminary of the Remonstrant Brotherhood, Tiele served as pastor at Moordrecht and Rotterdam, then as professor at the Remonstrant Seminary. In 1877 he was appointed

Santa-clara

2005-02-11T02:02:00.000-08:00

Cape situated on the Atlantic coast of northwestern Gabon, Africa. Extending south from the larger peninsula that separates the Gabon estuary from Corisco Bay, the cape juts into the mouth of the estuary. Santa-Clara is located 12 miles (20 km) north of Libreville and just north of Owendo, one of Gabon's major ports. Like Cape Esterias, still farther north, Santa-Clara has fine

Romania

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

Also spelled Rumania , Romanian România country lying in the eastern half of the Balkan Peninsula. It is the largest country of the peninsula, having an area of 91,699 square miles (237,500 square kilometres). Its boundaries total 1,959 miles (3,153 kilometres), with Ukraine on the north, Moldova on the northeast, the Black Sea on the east, Bulgaria on the south, Serbia on the southwest, and Hungary on the west. The capital is Bucharest

Alytus

2005-02-09T16:01:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Alitus, German and Polish Olita, city, southern Lithuania. It lies along the Neman (Lithuanian: Nemunas) River, 37 miles (60 km) south of Kaunas. The city dates from the 14th century. In the 20th century it developed as an industrial centre, with factories producing refrigerators, chemical products, linen, and clothing. Alytus is a rail terminus and road junction and has an agricultural college. Pop. (1994 est.) 77,400.

Amphibian, Reproduction

2005-02-09T10:28:00.000-08:00

The three living groups of amphibians have distinct evolutionary lineages and exhibit a diverse range of life strategies. The breeding behaviour of each order will be discussed in its individual section below. One similar tendency among amphibians has been the evolution in some species of direct development of young in terrestrial eggs, thus eliminating the