DryCart

organic cotton goods

2006-10-30T09:15:00.000-08:00

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

'ayyar

2005-03-19T09:31:00.000-08:00

Though 'ayyarun were found fighting for Islam on the frontiers of inner Asia, the most thorough documentation of these warriors describes their activities in Baghdad in the 10th–12th century, a picture that may not be typical of 'ayy

Zoo

2005-03-16T02:59:00.000-08:00

Also called Zoological Garden , or Zoological Park place where wild animals and, in some instances, domesticated animals are exhibited in captivity. In such an establishment animals can generally be given more intensive care than is possible in nature reserves or sanctuaries. Most long-established zoos exhibit general collections of animals, but some formed more recently specialize in particular groups—e.g.,

Antigonus I Monophthalmus

2005-03-14T06:20:00.000-08:00

Also called Antigonus I Cyclops Macedonian general under Alexander the Great who founded the Macedonian dynasty of the Antigonids (306–168 BC), becoming king in 306. An exceptional strategist and combat leader, he was also an astute ruler who cultivated the friendship of Athens and other Greek city-states.

Close, Chuck

2005-03-12T21:09:00.000-08:00

Close began taking art lessons as a child and at age 14 saw an exhibition of Jackson Pollock's abstract paintings, which helped inspire him to become a painter. He studied at the University of Washington

Piccard, Jacques (-ernest-jean)

2005-03-11T09:33:00.000-08:00

He was born in Brussels while his Swiss-born father was professor at the University of Brussels. After graduating from the École

Papin, Denis

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

Papin assisted the Dutch physicist Christiaan Huygens

Muhammad Ibn Tughluq

2005-03-07T13:55:00.000-08:00

Second sultan of the Tughluq dynasty (reigned 1325–51), who briefly extended the rule of the Delhi sultanate of northern India over most of the subcontinent. As a result of misguided administrative actions and unexampled severity toward his opponents, he eventually lost his authority in the south; at the end of his reign, the sultanate had begun to

Free Verse

2005-03-04T14:34:00.000-08:00

Poetry organized to the cadences of speech and image patterns rather than according to a regular metrical scheme. It is “free” only in a relative sense. It does not have the steady, abstract rhythm of traditional poetry; its rhythms are based on patterned elements such as sounds, words, phrases, sentences, and paragraphs, rather than on the traditional prosodic units

Free Verse

2005-03-03T09:10:00.000-08:00

Organization formed in the United States in 1916 at the instigation of Rodman Wanamaker, a Philadelphia businessman, with the stated purpose of promoting interest in professional golf, elevating the standards of the game, and advancing the welfare of its members. By the late 1980s the PGA had a membership of about 8,500 playing and teaching professionals. Its annual PGA national

Pumpkin

2005-03-01T23:19:00.000-08:00

Fruit of certain varieties of Cucurbita pepo or of C. moschata, members of the family Cucurbitaceae. The names pumpkin and squash, especially in the United States, are applied inconsistently to certain varieties of both these species. The quick-growing, small-fruited bush, or nontrailing, varieties of C. pepo are called squash (q.v.) in America, while the long-season, long-trailing,

Astoria

2005-02-26T18:05:00.000-08:00

City, seat (1844) of Clatsop county, northwestern Oregon, U.S., on the south bank of the Columbia River (there bridged to Megler, Washington) near its mouth on the Pacific Ocean. It is near the site of Oregon's first military establishment, Fort Clatsop, built by the Lewis and Clark Expedition, which wintered there (1805–06); the reconstructed fort, 4.5 miles (7.5 km) southwest, is a national memorial.

Farc

2005-02-25T18:04:00.000-08:00

Abbreviation of Spanish Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia (“Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia”) Marxist guerilla organization in Colombia. Formed in 1964 as the military wing of the Colombian Communist Party, the FARC is the largest of Colombia's rebel groups, estimated to possess some 10,000 to 15,000 armed soldiers and thousands of supporters, largely drawn from Colombia's rural areas. One of the organization's founders, Manuel Marulanda Vélez (originally Pedro Antonio

Melchite

2005-02-22T09:23:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Melkite, any of the Christians of Syria and Egypt who accepted the ruling of the Council of Chalcedon (451) affirming the two natures—divine and human—of Christ. Because they shared the theological position of the Byzantine emperor, they were derisively termed Melchites—that is, Royalists or Emperor's Men (from Syriac malka: “king”)—by those who rejected the Chalcedonian definition

Fawcett, Dame Millicent Garrett

2005-02-20T15:37:00.000-08:00

Leader for 50 years of the movement for woman suffrage in England. From the beginning of her career she had to struggle against almost unanimous male opposition to political rights for women; from 1905 she also had to overcome public hostility to the militant suffragists led by Emmeline Pankhurst and her daughter Christabel,

Barakzay Dynasty

2005-02-18T23:51:00.000-08:00

Ruling family in Afghanistan in the 19th and 20th centuries. The Barakzay brothers seized control of Afghanistan and in 1826 divided the region between them. Dost Mohammad Khan gained preeminence and founded the dynasty about 1837. Thereafter his descendants ruled in direct succession until 1929, when the reigning monarch abdicated and his cousin Mohammad Nader Khan was elected

Pacific Ocean, Deep-sea minerals

2005-02-17T09:40:00.000-08:00

Metal-bearing deposits on the deep-sea floor, consisting of nodules, crusts, and accumulations of metallic sulfides from deep vents, are of potential economic interest. In the 1970s and '80s it was hoped that mining the nodules—which contain quantities of manganese, iron, copper, nickel, titanium, and cobalt, as well as small traces of other metals—might be a way to contribute

General Santos

2005-02-14T07:12:00.000-08:00

Formerly (1954) Buayan, city, southern Mindanao, Philippines. The city is named for General Paulino Santos, who directed the pioneer settlement (mostly by Christian Filipino migrants) and development of the Koronadal Valley that began in the mid-1930s. General Santos city is located at the head of Sarangani Bay of the Celebes Sea along the southern shore of Mindanao. The city is a principal shipping

Kindi, Ya'qub Ibn Ishaq As-sabah, Al-

2005-02-13T18:01:00.000-08:00

Al-Kindi was born of noble Arabic descent and flourished in Iraq under the caliphs al-Ma'mun (813–833) and al-Mu'tasim (833–842). He concerned himself not only with those philosophical questions that had been treated by the Aristotelian Neoplatonists of Alexandria but also with such miscellaneous subjects

Mauritania, Religious groups

2005-02-10T03:12:00.000-08:00

About 99 percent of all Mauritanians are Muslim. Most Moors belong to the Qadiriyah order. The Tukulor and some of the Tagant tribes belong to the Tijaniyah order. Many tariqas (mystical sects) flow from these orders.

Epinephrine And Norepinephrine

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

Also called adrenaline and noradrenaline, two separate but related hormones secreted by the medulla of the adrenal glands. They are also produced at the ends of sympathetic nerve fibres, where they serve as chemical mediators for conveying the nerve impulses to effector organs. Chemically, the two compounds differ only slightly; and they exert similar pharmacological actions, which resemble the effects

Drug Use, Amphetamines

2005-02-06T05:36:00.000-08:00

These stimulants are of three types having closely related actions on the nervous system: amphetamine proper (Benzedrine), one of its isomers (Dexedrine), and methamphetamine (Methedrine). The amphetamines have been used to alleviate depression, fatigue, the hyperkinetic behaviour disturbances of children, postencephalitic Parkinsonism, enuresis, nausea of pregnancy,

Ancient Rome, The Illyrian emperors

2005-02-05T08:30:00.000-08:00

After Claudius II's unexpected death, the empire was ruled from 270 to 284 by several “Illyrian” emperors, who were good generals and who tried in an energetic way to restore equilibrium. The most remarkable was Aurelian. He first gained hard-won victories over the Alemanni and the Juthungi, who had invaded the Alpine provinces and northern Italy. To cheer the inhabitants of

Calamy, Edmund

2005-02-03T07:09:00.000-08:00

English Presbyterian theologian who contributed significantly to the writings of Smectymnuus (1641), the pen name under which was published the Calvinists' famous reply to the Anglican apology for bishops and liturgical worship in the church. The leader of the Presbyterian ascendancy in Parliament during the Commonwealth (1643–53), he

Tobit

2005-01-31T01:09:00.000-08:00

Also called The Book Of Tobias, apocryphal work (noncanonical for Jews and Protestants) that found its way into the Roman Catholic canon via the Septuagint. A religious folktale and a Judaicized version of the story of the grateful dead, it relates how Tobit, a pious Jew exiled to Nineveh in Assyria, observed the precepts of Hebrew Law by giving alms and by burying the dead. In spite of his good works,

Vacuum Technology

2005-01-30T02:36:00.000-08:00

This pump is mainly used on equipment for the study of clean surfaces and in radio-frequency sputtering. Capacities are available up to 190,000 cu ft per minute with an operating pressure range of 10-2 to less than 10-9 torr when water-cooled baffles are used and less than 10-11 torr when refrigerated baffles are employed. The pumping speed for a vapour pump remains constant from about

Aegean Civilizations

2005-01-28T09:05:00.000-08:00

The area consists of Crete, the Cyclades and some other islands, and the Greek mainland, including the Peloponnese, central Greece, and Thessaly. The first high civilization on European soil, with stately palaces, fine craftsmanship,

Offa's Dyke

2005-01-26T10:42:00.000-08:00

Great English earthwork extending linearly, with some gaps, from the River Severn near Chepstow to the seaward end of the Dee estuary, passing for 169 miles (270 kilometres) through the counties of Gloucestershire, Herefordshire, Radnorshire, Montgomeryshire, Shropshire, Denbighshire, and Flintshire. It was built at the orders of Offa, the great Mercian king of the second

Cohesion

2005-01-24T02:02:00.000-08:00

In physics, the intermolecular attractive force acting between two adjacent portions of a substance, particularly of a solid or liquid. It is this force that holds a piece of matter together. Intermolecular forces act also between two dissimilar substances in contact, a phenomenon called adhesion. These forces originate principally because of coulomb (electrical)

Furniture, 18th century: the Rococo style

2005-01-22T23:11:00.000-08:00

The influence of French furniture was predominant in Europe during the 18th century. In the second half of the century England played a leading role in establishing the Neoclassical style, and for supreme craftsmanship provided an inspiration to workshops in several countries; but in the diffusion of the two styles, the Rococo and the Neoclassical, French designs

Argentina, Industry

2005-01-20T22:46:00.000-08:00

Manufacturing, which accounts for one-fifth of the GDP and nearly one-sixth of the workforce, is the mainstay of the Argentine economy.

Bexley

2005-01-18T00:50:00.000-08:00

Outer borough of eastern London, part of the historic county of Kent, on the south bank of the River Thames. It extends to the borough of Bromley in the south. Bexley was established in 1965 by the amalgamation of the former boroughs of Bexley and Erith, the urban district of Crayford, and part of Chislehurst and Sidcup. Within the borough are such areas as (roughly from north

Lycian Alphabet

2005-01-16T15:00:00.000-08:00

Writing system of the Lycian people of southwest Asia Minor, dating from the 5th–4th centuries BC. The Lycian alphabet is clearly related to the Greek, but the exact nature of the relationship is uncertain. Several letters appear to be related to symbols of the Cretan and Cyprian writing systems. The script has 29 letters (6 vowels), with several sounds not represented in Greek.

Lima Barreto, Afonso Henriques De

2005-01-14T18:23:00.000-08:00

Lima Barreto was an active journalist throughout his adult life. His often vitriolic social analysis and criticism are more direct and less

Van Praagh, Dame Peggy

2005-01-11T22:32:00.000-08:00

Throughout the 1930s van Praagh worked as a dancer and teacher. She joined Ballet Rambert in London in 1933 and maintained a long, fruitful association with choreographer Antony Tudor, in whose Jardin aux Lilas (1936) and Dark

Bantu Languages

2005-01-10T13:34:00.000-08:00

A group of some 500 languages belonging to the Bantoid subgroup of the Benue-Congo branch of the Niger-Congo language family. The Bantu languages are spoken in a very large area, including most of Africa from southern Cameroon eastward to Kenya and southward to the southernmost tip of the continent. Twelve Bantu languages are spoken by more than five million people,

Ghazal

2005-01-08T14:05:00.000-08:00

The ghazals by 'Umar ibn

Anthony Of Padua, Saint

2005-01-05T13:09:00.000-08:00

Anthony also spelled Antony , Italian Sant'Antonio da Padova , original name Fernando Franciscan friar, doctor of the church, and patron of the poor. Baptized Ferdinand, he joined the Augustinian canons (1210) and probably became a priest. In 1220 he joined the Franciscan order, hoping to preach to the Saracens and be martyred. Instead, he taught theology at Bologna, Italy, and at Montpellier,

Arzner, Dorothy

2005-01-04T09:24:00.000-08:00

Arzner was reared in Los Angeles, where her family owned a Hollywood

Bashi-bazouk

2005-01-02T13:53:00.000-08:00

Turkish Basibozuk (“corrupted head,” or “leaderless”), mercenary soldier belonging to the skirmishing or irregular troops of the Ottoman Empire, notorious for their indiscipline, plundering, and brutality. Originally describing the homeless beggars who reached Istanbul from the provinces of the Ottoman Empire, the term bashi-bazouk was later applied to all Muslim subjects who were

Palais-royal Theatre

2004-12-30T01:14:00.000-08:00

The Palais-Royal traces its history to a small private theatre in the residence of Cardinal Richelieu. Designed by architect Jacques Lemercier, this theatre became known by the name of the residence, the Palais-Cardinal; it was the first theatre in France with movable scenery wings and a permanent

Tarakanova, Yelizaveta Alekseyevna

2004-12-28T07:32:00.000-08:00

She claimed to have been reared in St. Petersburg, but she was probably not Russian, and her origins and real name are unknown. She appeared in various cities of western Europe

Koch, Martin

2004-12-26T07:21:00.000-08:00

Koch came from a lower middle-class family, which his father deserted when the children were very young. The young Koch worked as a labourer's helper, studied art, and became active in the Good Templars Lodge. His first publication

Abu Al-fida'

2004-12-25T13:49:00.000-08:00

Abu al-Fida' was a descendant of Ayyub, the father of Saladin, founder of the Ayyubid dynasty that had been supplanted by the Mamluks in Egypt and elsewhere before his birth. In 1285 he accompanied his father and his cousin (prince of Hamah and a Mamluk client)

Ila

2004-12-23T23:30:00.000-08:00

The Ila combine agriculture with animal husbandry. Men hunt, fish, and clear land, while women gather foods from the countryside and are responsible for most of the

Sète

2004-12-19T17:24:00.000-08:00

Formerly (until 1827) Cette, town and a principal French Mediterranean commercial port, lying in Hérault département, Languedoc-Roussillon région, southern France, southwest of Montpellier. It occupies the lower slopes and foot of the isolated Mont Saint-Clair, which lies on a tongue of land between the Mediterranean and the large marshy Thau Lagoon. A network of canals links the town with

Suleja

2004-12-16T00:19:00.000-08:00

The emirate's wooded savanna area of about 1,150 square miles (2,980 square km) originally included four small Koro chiefdoms that paid tribute to the Hausa kingdom of Zazzau.

Silica

2004-12-14T08:51:00.000-08:00

Also called Silicon Dioxide, compound of the two most abundant elements in the Earth's crust, silicon and oxygen, SiO2. The mass of the Earth's crust is 59 percent silica, the main constituent of more than 95 percent of the known rocks. Silica has three main crystalline varieties: quartz (by far the most abundant), tridymite, and cristobalite. Other varieties include coesite, keatite, and lechatelierite. Silica

Kennedy, Robert F.

2004-12-13T17:03:00.000-08:00

Robert interrupted his studies at Harvard University to serve in the U.S. Navy during World War II but returned to the university and was

T4 Program

2004-12-11T14:33:00.000-08:00

Henry Friedlander, The Origins of the Nazi Genocide: From Euthanasia to the Final Solution (1995), provides an overview of the T4 Program and its historical context. Robert Jay Lifton, The Nazi Doctors: Medical Killing and the Psychology of Genocide (1986, reissued 2000), studies the relationship between German physicians and the Holocaust. Robert Proctor, Racial Hygiene: Medicine under the Nazis (1988), assesses the place of Nazi medicine in medical history and the history of science.

Sétif

2004-12-08T10:26:00.000-08:00

Also called Stif, town, northeastern Algeria, near the Wadi Bou Sellam. As ancient Sitifis, it became important when the Roman emperor Nerva established a veterans' colony there in AD 97. Sitifis became the chief town of the province of Mauretania Sitifensis (created AD 297) and remained so under Byzantine rule. The town declined until garrisoned by the French in 1838. In 1945 the Sétif town area was the site

Lens Dislocation

2004-12-07T05:17:00.000-08:00

Abnormal position of the crystalline lens of the eye. The dislocation, which may be congenital or acquired, has as its immediate cause weakness or loss of a portion of the ligaments that anchor the lens to the ciliary muscle.

Bingham, George Caleb

2004-12-05T09:12:00.000-08:00

In 1819 Bingham's family moved to Franklin, Missouri, on the Lewis and Clark trail. After the death of his father, the family relocated to Arrow Rock, Missouri. Between 1827 and 1828, Bingham apprenticed to a

Novgorod School

2004-12-03T22:47:00.000-08:00

Important school of Russian medieval icon and mural painting that flourished around the northwestern city of Novgorod from the 12th through the 16th century. A thriving merchant city, Novgorod was the cultural centre of Russia during the Mongol occupation of most of the rest of the country in the 13th and 14th centuries. During that period it preserved the Byzantine traditions

Melanchthon, Philipp

2004-12-01T08:08:00.000-08:00

Original name Philipp Schwartzerd (German: “Black Earth”; in Greek, Melanchthon) German author of the Confession of Augsburg of the Lutheran Church (1530), humanist, Reformer, theologian, and educator. He was a friend of Martin Luther and defended his views. In 1521 Melanchthon published the Loci communes, the first systematic treatment of evangelical doctrine. Because of his academic

Melanchthon, Philipp

2004-11-29T00:49:00.000-08:00

American collegiate athletic association that grew out of the Southern Conference. Members are the University of Alabama, the University of Arkansas (Fayetteville), Auburn University, the University of Florida, the University of Georgia, the University of Kentucky, Louisiana State University, the University of Mississippi, Mississippi State University,

Sculpture, Western, Public and private memorials

2004-11-24T17:07:00.000-08:00

After World War II there was a flood of public memorial sculpture, and in Europe especially many of the commissions were carried out by modern sculptors. A striking war memorial in Italy is Mirko Basaldella's gate for the monument to the Roman hostages killed in the Ardeatine Caves (1951). For its full effect the gate must be seen in connection with the rugged masonry wall

Melilite

2004-11-22T04:26:00.000-08:00

Any member of a series of silicate minerals that consist of calcium silicates of aluminum and magnesium; gehlenite is the aluminous end-member and åkermanite the magnesian end-member. These minerals crystallize from calcium-rich, alkaline magmas and from many artificial melts and blast-furnace slags. They occur in thermally metamorphosed limestones at contact

Felsenmeer

2004-11-21T07:27:00.000-08:00

(German: “sea of rock”), exposed rock surfaces that have been quickly broken up by frost action so that much rock is buried under a cover of angular shattered boulders. These mantles principally occur in Arctic regions and high mountain areas. Their continuity and depth varies with climate, vegetation, and rock type, but they may be as much as 4 metres (12 feet) deep. Felsenmeer

United Arab Emirates

2004-11-19T14:18:00.000-08:00

In the late 18th and early 19th centuries the dominant tribal faction was the Al-Qawasim (singular: Qasimi), whose ships controlled the maritime commerce (notably fishing and pearling) concentrated in

Pacific Ocean, Deepwater circulation

2004-11-12T14:11:00.000-08:00

It appears that the most important influence on the vertical circulation of the Pacific is the cold water generated around the Antarctic continent. This dense circumpolar

Avison, Margaret

2004-11-11T04:14:00.000-08:00

The daughter of a Methodist minister, Avison attended the University of Toronto (B.A., 1940; M.A., 1964) and worked as a librarian, editor, lecturer, and social worker at church

Charles, Thomas

2004-11-08T18:04:00.000-08:00

Educated at the dissenting academy in Carmarthen and at Jesus College, Oxford, after holding curacies in Somerset, he settled in 1783 in the neighbourhood of Bala, his wife's home. He

La Piedad Cavadas

2004-11-07T19:48:00.000-08:00

City, northwestern Michoacán estado (“state”), west-central Mexico. On the Lerma River, which forms the Michoacán-Guanajuato border, it is 314 miles (505 km) west-northwest of Mexico City and 119 miles (192 km) northwest of Morelia, the state capital. During the colonial era it was known as Zula la Vieja but was elevated to city rank and given its present name in 1871. Much of La Piedad's economy is

La Piedad Cavadas

2004-11-05T07:00:00.000-08:00

French Organisation De L'unité Africaine (OUA) labour organization founded in 1973 at Addis Ababa, Eth., on the initiative of the Organization of African Unity and replacing the former All-African Trade Union Federation (AATUF; founded in 1961) and the African Trade Union Confederation (ATUC; founded in 1962). The ATUC from its founding had encouraged member affiliation with other international union organizations, while the

Indian Tobacco

2004-11-03T17:46:00.000-08:00

The Indian tobacco's leafy flower spike, about 1 m (3 feet) tall, begins blooming at the bottom

John George Iv

2004-11-01T23:41:00.000-08:00

At the beginning of his reign his chief adviser was Hans Adam von Schöning (1641–96), who counselled a union between Saxony and Brandenburg and a more independent attitude toward the emperor Leopold I. In accordance with this advice certain proposals were put before Leopold to which he refused to agree; consequently the

Toba, Go-

2004-10-29T14:52:00.000-07:00

After reigning for 15 years, Go-Toba in 1198 abdicated

Indonesia

2004-10-27T00:54:00.000-07:00

Officially Republic of Indonesia , Indonesian Republik Indonesia country located off the coast of the Southeast Asian mainland in the Indian and Pacific oceans. It is an archipelago that lies across the Equator and spans a distance equivalent to one-eighth of the Earth's circumference. Its islands can be grouped into the Greater Sunda Islands of Sumatra (Sumatera), Java (Jawa), the southern extent of Borneo known as Kalimantan, and

Tequendama Falls

2004-10-25T05:53:00.000-07:00

Spanish Salto De Tequendama, waterfalls on the Bogotá (Funza) River, which is a tributary of the Magdalena River, in the Andean Cordillera (mountains) Oriental, central Colombia. One of the country's major tourist attractions, the falls are located in a forested area 20 miles (32 km) west of Bogotá. The river surges through a rocky gorge that narrows to about 60 feet (18 m) at the brink of the 515-foot- (157-metre-) high falls. The

Massachusetts, The land

2004-10-24T16:24:00.000-07:00

The Massachusetts coastline is about 1,500 miles (2,400 km) in length, yet the cross-country distances are only 190 miles (300 km) from east to west and 110 miles (180 km) from north to south. The jagged coast winds from Rhode Island around Cape Cod, in and out of scenic harbours along the shore south of Boston, through Boston harbour and up the North Shore, swinging around the painters' paradise of Cape

Rio De Janeiro

2004-10-22T08:32:00.000-07:00

The name was given to the city's original site by Portuguese navigators who arrived at the port on Jan. 1, 1502, and mistook the entrance of the bay for the mouth of a river (rio is the Portuguese word for “river” and janeiro

Taree

2004-10-20T04:55:00.000-07:00

City, northeastern New South Wales, Australia, 10 miles (16 km) above the coastal mouth of the Manning River. Established in 1854 as a private town, it was proclaimed a municipality in 1885 and a city in 1981; it derives its name from the Aboriginal tareehin, or tarrebit, referring to a local wild fig. Situated on the Sydney-Brisbane rail line and the Pacific Highway, 80 miles (130 km) northeast of Newcastle,

Aluminum Bronze

2004-10-17T16:36:00.000-07:00

Any of a group of strong, corrosion-resistant alloys of copper containing from 4 to 15 percent aluminum and small amounts of other metals, used to make many machine parts and tools. Because of their golden colour and high tarnish resistance, the alloys are also used for jewelry and in architecture. Their resistance to oxidation at high temperatures and to corrosion, particularly

Tyrconnell, Rory O'donnell, 1st Earl Of, Baron Of Donegall

2004-10-16T19:12:00.000-07:00

The second son of Hugh MacManus O'Donnell, he allied with his younger brother Hugh Roe, who transferred his authority as chief to Rory upon leaving for Spain. In 1602 Rory gave his allegiance to the English lord deputy and, in the following summer, went with Hugh

Zafar

2004-10-12T07:01:00.000-07:00

Biblical Sephar , classical Sapphar , or Saphar ancient Arabian site located southwest of Yarim in southern Yemen. It was the capital of the Himyarites, a tribe that ruled much of southern Arabia from about 115 BC to about AD 525. Up until the Persian conquest (c. AD 575), Zafar was one of the most important and celebrated towns in southern Arabia—a fact attested to not only by Arab geographers and historians but also by Greek and Roman authors.

Brea

2004-10-10T03:55:00.000-07:00

City, Orange county, southwestern California, U.S., at the foot of the Puente Hills. Early settlers dug the oil-soaked earth in the “Brea” canyon for fuel, and commercial production began in the 1890s after successful strikes in the Brea and Olinda fields. The influx of people inspired the Ontario Investment Company to file a subdivision map in 1908 for a town to be called Randolph;

Biblical Literature, Book of Esther

2004-10-08T10:06:00.000-07:00

The Book of Esther is a romantic and patriotic tale, perhaps with some historical basis but with so little religious purpose that God, in fact, is not mentioned in it. The book may have been included in the Hebrew canon only for the sake of sanctioning the celebrations of the festival Purim, the Feast of Lots. There is considerable evidence that the stories related in

Eyasi, Lake

2004-10-06T17:40:00.000-07:00

Lake, northern Tanzania. It lies west of Lake Manyara and approximately 95 miles (155 km) southwest of Arusha. At an elevation of about 3,400 feet (1,040 m), the lake covers an area of about 400 square miles (1,050 square km) and occupies the bottom of a bowllike depression in a region of volcanic activity. The walls of the lake are purple lava enclosing a broad expanse of white alkaline shallows with

Botero, Fernando

2004-10-04T22:12:00.000-07:00

As a youth, Botero attended a school for matadors for several years, but his true interest was in art. While still a teenager, he began painting and was inspired by the pre-Columbian and Spanish colonial art that surrounded him as well as by the political

Skagway

2004-10-01T13:49:00.000-07:00

City, southeastern Alaska, U.S., at the north end of the Lynn Canal, the northernmost point on the Inside Passage (Alaska Marine Highway). Founded in the 1890s as the gateway to the Yukon and Klondike goldfields, it owed its importance to being the Pacific coastal terminus of the White Pass (2,913 feet [888 m]) through the Boundary Ranges and of the White Pass and Yukon Route (WP&YR) railway from

Sacramento

2004-09-29T00:05:00.000-07:00

City, capital of California, U.S., seat (1850) of Sacramento county, in the Central Valley, where the Sacramento and American rivers meet. John Augustus Sutter established the colony of New Helvetia in 1839 on the site, a Mexican land grant, and between 1840 and 1842 built a palisaded trading post known as Sutter's Fort. His community, initially populated by fellow Swiss immigrants, prospered

Teschenite

2004-09-28T08:07:00.000-07:00

Coarse- to fine-grained, rather dark-coloured, intrusive igneous rock that occurs in sills (tabular bodies inserted while molten between other rocks), dikes (tabular bodies injected in fissures), and irregular masses and is always altered to some extent. It consists primarily of plagioclase feldspar, analcime, and titaniferous augite, with barkevikite, nepheline,

Rosenzweig, Franz

2004-09-23T22:19:00.000-07:00

German-Jewish religious Existentialist who, through his fresh handling of traditional religious themes, became one of the most influential modern Jewish theologians. In 1913, although his conversion to Christianity had seemed imminent, a religious experience caused him to devote his life to the study, teaching, and practice of

Broad Church

2004-09-22T02:10:00.000-07:00

Moderate movement that emerged as one of the three parties in the Church of England during the mid-19th century. The Broad Church represented “broad” views and eschewed narrow expressions of doctrine as practiced by Anglo-Catholics (or High Churchmen) on one hand and anti-Roman Evangelicals (or Low Churchmen) on the other. Broad Churchmen in the 19th century—including such

Pacific Islands, Relief

2004-09-19T23:09:00.000-07:00

The islands may be classified as either continental or oceanic. The former are associated with the ancient continental platforms of Asia and Australia, now partially submerged. Oceanic islands, located eastward in the deeper Pacific basin, are differentiated as high volcanic-based islands or low coral islands and atolls. A coral island may be single, or two or more

Nephelinite

2004-09-17T13:52:00.000-07:00

Silica-poor (basic) lava that contains nepheline and pyroxene and is usually completely crystallized. Despite its wide geographic distribution and occasional extensive local development, it is a very rare rock. Known only from Tertiary strata (about 2,500,000 to 65,000,000 years in age), nephelinites are abundant in the Canary Islands, the Azores, the Cape Verde Islands, and Isla Fernando

Ramcaritmanas

2004-09-16T06:24:00.000-07:00

(“Sacred Lake of the Acts of Rama”), version, written in a dialect of Hindi, of the Sanskrit epic poem the Ramayana, one of the masterpieces of medieval Hindu literature and a work with significant influence on modern Hinduism. Written in the 16th century by the poet Tulsidas (q.v.), the poem is distinguished both by its great expression of love for a personal god and by its exemplification

Wicomico

2004-09-13T02:21:00.000-07:00

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

Independence

2004-09-12T13:48:00.000-07:00

City, seat of Jackson county, western Missouri, U.S., immediately east of Kansas City. It is the hometown of President Harry S. Truman (who was born at Lamar [q.v.], 100 miles [160 km] south). Settled in 1827, the county was named for Andrew Jackson, and the city recalled his love of independence. Near the western terminus of transportation on the Missouri River, Independence was the starting point

Adams, Ansel

2004-09-10T13:21:00.000-07:00

Originally a student of music, Adams pursued photography as an avocation until 1927. In that year he published his first portfolio, Parmellian Prints of the High Sierras, photographs in the style

Tano River

2004-09-07T14:05:00.000-07:00

River, western Ghana, West Africa. It rises near Techiman and flows southward for 250 miles (400 km) to enter the Gulf of Guinea (Atlantic Ocean), at Aby Lagoon, Côte d'Ivoire (Ivory Coast). Its lower course forms the Ghana–Côte d'Ivoire boundary. It is navigable from its mouth for about 60 miles (95 km) to Tanoso, where further travel is blocked by the Sutre Falls. The Tano and the parallel Ankobra

Teriyaki

2004-09-05T14:37:00.000-07:00

(Japanese: “glossy broil”), in Japanese cuisine, foods grilled with a highly flavoured glaze of soy sauce and sake or mirin (sweet wine). Garlic and fresh ginger are sometimes added to the mixture. In westernized Japanese cooking, the teriyaki sauce is frequently used as a marinade as well as a basting sauce. Beef, chicken, and fish are commonly prepared teriyaki style.

Han Yü

2004-09-04T02:02:00.000-07:00

An orphan, Han initially failed his civil service exams because the examiners refused to accept his unconventional prose style, but he eventually entered the bureaucracy

France, History Of, The end of Gaul (c. 400c. 500)

2004-08-30T20:22:00.000-07:00

From 395 the division of the Roman Empire between an eastern and a western half caused acute internal political stresses that encouraged barbarian penetration of the Danube region and even Italy. The Rhine frontier was again neglected, and the seat of the Gallic prefecture was moved to Arelate. The result was Germanic invasion and civil war. By 418, Franks and Burgundians

Caazapá

2004-08-28T13:59:00.000-07:00

Town, southern Paraguay. Founded in 1607 by Friar Bolaños, the town is situated on the edge of the westward extension of the Brazilian Highlands, including the Cordillera (mountains) de Ybytyruzú. Caazapá is a lumbering and agricultural centre, and tanneries are also located there. The town has a regional hospital, various educational institutions including an agricultural

Burckhardt, Jacob (christopher)

2004-08-26T14:51:00.000-07:00

Jacob Christopher also spelled Jakob Christoph one of the first great historians of art and culture, whose Die Kultur der Renaissance in Italien (1860; The Civilization of the Renaissance in Italy, 1878, reprinted 1945) became a model for the treatment of cultural history in general.

Racer

2004-08-25T23:34:00.000-07:00

Any of several large, swift snakes belonging to the family Colubridae. Blue racers are central and western North American subspecies of Coluber constrictor; they are plain bluish, greenish blue, gray, or brownish, sometimes with yellow bellies. The eastern subspecies is called black snake; it is all black except for its whitish chin and throat.

Dennis, Nigel

2004-08-23T02:14:00.000-07:00

Dennis spent his early childhood in Southern Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) and was educated, in part, at the Odenwald School in Germany. He moved to Britain

Aesthetics, The aesthetic recipient

2004-08-18T02:16:00.000-07:00

Whichever approach we take, however, there is an all-important question upon the answer to which the course of aesthetics depends: the question of the recipient. Only beings of a certain kind have aesthetic interests and aesthetic experience, produce and appreciate art, employ such concepts as those of beauty, expression, and form. What is it that gives these beings