OpenRoot

Estate Agent Fitzrovia

2006-10-25T15:35:00.000-07:00

Robert Irving Burns specialise in London Commercial and Residential property services. They are a specialist in estate agent fitzrovia, amongst other London areas such as Soho and Oxford Circus.

Anthimus I

2005-03-18T01:24:00.000-08:00

As bishop of Trebizond Anthimus participated in discussions at Constantinople in 532, to effect religious and political unity between East and West. Although avowing support for the orthodox party, Anthimus

Turban

2005-03-17T00:53:00.000-08:00

Early Persians wore a conical cap sometimes encircled by bands of cloth, which perhaps may be considered one of the origins of the turban. The turban did not become common among the Turks, however, until after the capture of Constantinople in 1453, when the Ottoman sultan

Pythagoras

2005-03-15T08:43:00.000-08:00

Pythagoras migrated in his youth to Rhegium. He made a statue of Philoctetes, noted for the physical

Quindío

2005-03-12T06:17:00.000-08:00

Departamento, west-central Colombia, on the western slopes of the Andean Cordillera Central. The smallest department in the nation, it occupies an area of 712 square miles (1,845 square km) in one of Colombia's leading coffee-producing regions. Bananas, corn (maize), sugarcane, and beans are among the other crops, and livestock raising is widespread. Quindío has rich deposits of

Economic Development

2005-03-10T13:23:00.000-08:00

The process whereby simple, low-income national economies are transformed into modern industrial economies. Although the term is sometimes used as a synonym for economic growth, generally it is employed to describe a change in a country's economy involving qualitative as well as quantitative improvements. The theory of economic development—how primitive and

Cambert, Robert

2005-03-09T20:24:00.000-08:00

Cambert was a pupil of the harpsichord composer Jacques Chambonnières and in 1666 became superintendent of music to the dowager queen, Anne of Austria. In 1659 he collaborated with the poet Pierre Perrin in his first stage work, the Pastorale

Arrastra

2005-03-06T10:08:00.000-08:00

Crude drag-stone mill for pulverizing ores such as those containing silver or gold or their compounds. See patio process.

Silverius, Saint

2005-03-03T18:44:00.000-08:00

Silverius was born to the future pope St. Hormisdas before Hormisdas had entered the priesthood. Silverius was a subdeacon when the Ostrogothic king Theodahad nominated him to the papacy. He was consecrated

Protestantism, Germany

2005-03-01T10:45:00.000-08:00

In the late 18th and early 19th centuries, a reaction against the Enlightenment occurred in Germany. In philosophy, literature, and music it found expression in German Idealism and Romanticism. Indeed, a number of religious thinkers sought to point out the banality of the Enlightenment and to preserve and awaken genuine Christianity. Among these was Johann Georg

Calatrava, Order Of

2005-02-27T06:54:00.000-08:00

In full Military Order of Calatrava, Spanish Orden Militar de Calatrava, major military and religious order in Spain. The order was originated in 1158 when King Sancho III of Castile ceded the fortress of Calatrava to Raymond, abbot of the Cistercian monastery of Fitero, with instructions to defend it against the Moors. The order of knights and monks who defended the fort was formally recognized by the pope in 1164, and it became closely affiliated

Savings And Loan Association

2005-02-25T22:30:00.000-08:00

A savings and home-financing institution that makes loans for the purchase of private housing, home improvements, and new construction. Formerly cooperative institutions in which savers were shareholders in the association and received dividends in proportion to the organization's profits, savings and loan associations are mutual organizations that now

Kamehameha Iii

2005-02-23T16:24:00.000-08:00

Only 10 years of age when he succeeded to the throne, he was initially under the regency of Kamehameha I's favourite wife, Kaahumanu, who had been regent ever since Kamehameha II had visited England in 1824 and died there. Converted to Christianity in 1824, she became known for her wise and beneficent

Switzerland, The Burgundian War

2005-02-21T05:58:00.000-08:00

Then followed a series of events that led directly to the Burgundian War. The Swiss came to the aid of Mulhouse and successfully repelled all threats to the city. Wishing to further probe the Habsburg defense, the Bernese moved eastward, laying siege to the key fortress town of Waldshut, sited near the confluence of the Aare and Rhine rivers, thereby controlling all

China, Efforts to prevent civil war

2005-02-18T18:00:00.000-08:00

Between May and September 1944, representatives of the government and the CCP carried on peace negotiations at Sian. The main issues were the disposition, size, and command of the Communist armies; the relationship between Communist-organized regional governments and the National Government; and problems of civil rights and legalization of the CCP and its activities

Quillen, Daniel Gray

2005-02-16T01:53:00.000-08:00

Quillen was awarded the Fields Medal at the International

Moshav

2005-02-14T07:26:00.000-08:00

Plural Moshavim, in Israel, a type of cooperative agricultural settlement. The moshav, which is generally based on the principle of private ownership of land, avoidance of hired labour, and communal marketing, represents an intermediate stage between privately owned settlements and the complete communal living of the kibbutz. Moshavim are built on land belonging to the Jewish

Skellefteå

2005-02-13T05:00:00.000-08:00

Town and port, in the län (county) of Västerbotten, northern Sweden, on the Skellefteälv (river) near the Gulf of Bothnia. Although incorporated in 1845, it did not become important until after the discovery, in 1918, of the rich Boliden mineral deposits northwestward. In 1952 Skellefteå absorbed several surrounding communities. Gold, silver, copper, arsenic, and other metals, as well

Rinderpest

2005-02-08T10:06:00.000-08:00

Also called steppe murrain, cattle plague , or contagious bovine typhus an acute, highly contagious viral disease of ruminant animals, primarily cattle, that is common in Africa, the Indian subcontinent, and the Middle East. It has occurred in Brazil and Australia but was quickly eradicated in those countries. Rinderpest has not been reported in the United States. Rinderpest is the most severe infectious disease of cattle and is characterized

Ciompi, Revolt Of The

2005-02-07T16:48:00.000-08:00

A struggle between factions within the major ruling guilds triggered

Frederick Iii

2005-02-04T11:54:00.000-08:00

King of Prussia and German emperor for 99 days in 1888, during which time he was a voiceless invalid, dying of throat cancer. Although influenced by liberal, constitutional, and middle-class ideas, he retained a

France, History Of, The political history of France (c. 8501180)

2005-01-29T18:31:00.000-08:00

The fragmentation of political power meant that the kings of France were forced into rivalries, alliances, and conflicts with the princes, who were for many generations the real rulers of France.

Gambier Islands

2005-01-27T21:38:00.000-08:00

French Îles Gambier, also called Mangareva Islands, southeasternmost extension of the Tuamotu Archipelago of French Polynesia in the central South Pacific, nearly 1,000 miles (1,600 km) east-southeast of Tahiti. The principal inhabited group of the Gambiers comprises the volcanic islets Mangareva (Magareva), Taravai, Akamaru, and Aukena. Mangareva, which is 5 miles (8 km) long and encircled by a barrier reef, rises to approximately

Rectocele

2005-01-25T16:22:00.000-08:00

Disorder in which the rectum bulges into the back wall of the vagina. It is caused when the muscles and connective tissues supporting the rectum and back wall of the vagina are weakened, usually due to repeated childbirth or to aging, and the rectum sags until it abuts the vagina. A rectocele often occurs together with an enterocele, which is a bulge of the small

Wollaston, William

2005-01-24T20:04:00.000-08:00

After studies at the University of Cambridge, Wollaston became a schoolteacher in Birmingham (1682) and soon afterward was ordained a priest. In 1688 he inherited the major part of his

Loxton

2005-01-22T13:34:00.000-08:00

Town, southeastern South Australia. It lies along the Murray River and is the service centre for an extensive, irrigated fruit-raising area. Major European settlement of the region began in 1894, and the town of Loxton, named after William Loxton, a boundary rider at a nearby sheep station (ranch), was proclaimed in 1907. Wheat, wool, fruit, and grapes are produced in the area, and the

U Thong Style

2005-01-20T13:13:00.000-08:00

One of the canonical styles for Buddha icons developed in Thailand (Siam) in the southern capital of Ayutthaya, beginning in the 14th century. To retain the greatest spiritual potency, Buddha icons in Thai temples had to resemble as closely as possible an original prototype that tradition erroneously believed had been made during the lifetime of the Buddha. Of the

Zambales Mountains

2005-01-17T02:51:00.000-08:00

Volcanic range in the southwestern part of northern Luzon in the Philippines. The range stretches northwest-southeast from Lingayen Gulf in the north to the Bataan Peninsula and the entrance to Manila Bay in the south. Its greatest elevation is High Peak (6,683 feet [2,037 m]). Lying farther south and across the bay from Manila is Mount Mariveles (4,659 feet [1,420 m]), which marks the southern

Frederick Iv

2005-01-15T20:49:00.000-08:00

King of Denmark and Norway (1699–1730), who succeeded his father, King Christian V. He continued the Danish efforts to sever the House of Gottorp's link with Sweden, but his first attempt to do so, in 1700 at the outbreak of the Great Northern War, was checked by Charles XII of Sweden. Frederick then accepted the Treaty of Traventhal (1700), but he reentered the war

Earth, The Earth's magnetic field

2005-01-14T01:58:00.000-08:00

Brief surveys are Sydney Chapman, The Earth's Magnetism, 2nd ed. rev. (1951, reprinted 1961); and J.A. Jacobs, The Earth's Core and Geomagnetism (1963), and Reversals of the Earth's Magnetic Field (1984). For more in-depth coverage, consult Sydney Chapman and Julius Bartels, Geomagnetism, vol. 1, Geomagnetic and Related Phenomena (1940, reprinted 1962); George D. Garland, Introduction to Geophysics: Mantle, Core and Crust, 2nd ed. (1979), an informative overview; S. Matsushita, “Solar Quiet and Lunar Daily Variation Fields,” ch. III-1 in S. Matsushita and Wallace H. Campbell, Physics of Geomagnetic Phenomena, vol. 1 (1967), pp. 301–424, an extensive treatment; Ronald T. Merrill and Michael W. McElhinny, The Earth's Magnetic Field: Its History, Origin, and Planetary Perspective (1983), an attempt to bridge the gap between dynamo theory and paleomagnetology; W.D. Parkinson, Introduction to Geomagnetism (1983), a logical, systematic, and highly readable treatment; and S.K. Runcorn, K.M. Creer, and J.A. Jacobs (eds.), The Earth's Core: Its Structure, Evolution, and Magnetic Field (1982), an excellent introduction to the modern literature on the topic. See also S.J. Peale, “Consequences of Tidal Evolution,” ch. 12 in Margaret G. Kivelson (ed.), The Solar System: Observations and Interpretations (1986), pp. 275–288; and K.A. Wienert, Notes on Geomagnetic Observatory and Survey Practice (1970), an explanation of the basic principles of geomagnetic survey techniques.

Amitayur-dhyana-sutra

2005-01-12T10:38:00.000-08:00

(Sanskrit: “Discourse Concerning Meditation on Amitayus”), one of three texts basic to Pure Land Buddhism. Together with the larger and smaller Sukhavati-vyuha-sutras (Sanskrit: “Description of the Western Paradise Sutras”), this text envisions rebirth in the celestial Pure Land of Amitayus, the Buddha of Infinite Life (virtually identical with Amitabha, “Infinite Light,” called

China, From Ch'eng-ti to Wong Mang

2005-01-09T05:40:00.000-08:00

In the reigns of Ch'eng-ti (33/32–7/6), Ai-ti (7/6–1 BC), and P'ing-ti (1 BC–AD 6) the conduct of state affairs and the atmosphere of the court were subject to the weakness or youth of the emperors, the lack of an heir to succeed Ch'eng-ti, and the rivalries between four families of Imperial consorts. It was a time when considerable attention was paid to omens. Changes that were first introduced in the state religious

Hardinge (of Penshurst), Charles Hardinge, 1st Baron

2005-01-07T02:25:00.000-08:00

A grandson of Lord Hardinge, governor-general of India in 1844–48, Charles Hardinge entered the diplomatic service in 1880. Appointed ambassador to Russia in 1904 and permanent under secretary

China, Attacks on party members

2005-01-06T07:43:00.000-08:00

Gradual transference of the revolution to top echelons of the party was managed by a group centred on Mao Zedong, Lin Biao, Jiang Qing, Kang Sheng, and Chen Boda. In May 1966 Mao secretly assigned major responsibilities to the army in cultural and educational affairs. Another purpose of the Cultural Revolution, as then conceived, would be a “revolution in the

Ito Jinsai

2005-01-04T13:54:00.000-08:00

Sinologist, philosopher, and educator who helped found the Kogaku (“Study of Antiquity”), which opposed the official Neo-Confucianism of Tokugawa Japan (derived essentially from the writings of the Chinese thinker Chu Hsi). He advocated a return to classical Confucian teaching. Through his hundreds of students, he exerted a powerful influence

Ealdred

2005-01-02T01:50:00.000-08:00

Ealdred became abbot of Tavistock, Devon, about 1027, and bishop of Worcester in 1046. Made archbishop of York by Pope Nicholas

Tábor

2004-12-30T13:51:00.000-08:00

City, Jihoceský kraj (region), Czech Republic. It lies along a bend in the Luznice River 50 miles (80 km) south of Prague. Founded in 1420 by Jan Zizka and other followers of the Bohemian religious reformer Jan Hus, Tábor became the radical centre of the more militant members of the movement, known as the Taborites. These people fostered the national spirit and the preservation of the Czech

Capone, Al

2004-12-28T06:48:00.000-08:00

Capone's parents immigrated to the United States from Naples in 1893; Al, the fourth of nine children, quit school in Brooklyn after the sixth grade and joined Johnny Torrio's James Street Boys gang, rising eventually to the Five Points Gang. In a youthful

Clifford (of Chudleigh), Thomas Clifford, 1st Baron

2004-12-26T20:01:00.000-08:00

Clifford matriculated at Exeter College, Oxford, in 1647 and entered the Middle Temple in 1648. In Parliament in 1660–61 he became a steady supporter of Henry Bennett (who became Lord Arlington in 1665) in opposition to the chancellor, the Earl of Clarendon. Knighted in 1664 and appointed

Ibn Kathir

2004-12-25T15:21:00.000-08:00

Ibn Kathir was educated in Damascus and upon completion of his studies obtained his first official appointment in 1341, when he joined an inquisitorial commission formed to determine

Rhythm And Blues

2004-12-23T05:08:00.000-08:00

Also called rhythm & blues or R&B term used for several types of postwar African-American popular music, as well as for some white rock music derived from it. The term was coined by Jerry Wexler in 1947, when he was editing the charts at the trade journal Billboard and found that the record companies issuing black popular music considered the chart names then in use (Harlem Hit Parade, Sepia, Race) to be demeaning.

Argyll, Archibald Campbell, 1st Marquess And 8th Earl Of, Lord Campbell, Lord Lorne, Lord Of Kintyre

2004-12-20T22:14:00.000-08:00

He was the eldest son of Archibald, 7th Earl of Argyll, and took over the management of the family estates in 1619 after his father had

Pachaimalai Hills

2004-12-18T09:58:00.000-08:00

Range of hills in Tamil Nadu state, southern India, an eastward extension of the Eastern Ghats in the northeastern Tamilnad Uplands. The Pachaimalai Hills, together with the Javadi, Shevaroy, and Kalrayan hills, separate the Cauvery River basin in the south from the Palar River basin in the north. Extending over approximately 5,200 sq mi (13,500 sq km), they form a discontinuous line of highlands

Location Theory

2004-12-16T21:12:00.000-08:00

In economics and geography, theory concerned with the geographic location of economic activity; it has become an integral part of economic geography, regional science, and spatial economics. Location theory addresses the questions of what economic activities are located where and why. The location of economic activities can be determined on a broad level such

Croatia, Industry

2004-12-15T03:16:00.000-08:00

Already more industrialized than most of its neighbours when the communists assumed power over Yugoslavia in 1945, Croatia continued its rapid industrialization under socialist policies of economic and social development. One unfortunate result was the squandering of a great deal of money through inefficiency and the misallocation of resources through the

Ruways, Ar-

2004-12-13T07:00:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Ruweis, or Ru'ays, site of a giant industrial complex, Abu Dhabi emirate, United Arab Emirates. It lies along the Persian Gulf about 140 miles (220 km) west of Abu Dhabi, the national capital. Ar-Ruways has natural-gas-processing plants under the control of the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC). Ar-Ruways has a small airport and is linked by road with Abu Dhabi city and Jabal az-Zannah.

China, Formation of a rival southern government

2004-12-11T04:46:00.000-08:00

Meanwhile, in July Sun Yat-sen, supported by part of the Chinese navy and followed by some 100 members of parliament, attempted to organize a rival government in Canton. The initial costs of this undertaking, termed the Movement to Protect the Constitution, probably were supplied by the German consulate in Shanghai. On August 31 the rump parliament in Canton established

Barb

2004-12-09T21:24:00.000-08:00

Also called Barbel (genus Barbus), any of numerous freshwater fishes belonging to a genus in the carp family, Cyprinidae. The barbs are native to Europe, Africa, and Asia. The members of this genus typically have one or more pairs of barbels (slender, fleshy protuberances) near the mouth and often have large, shining scales. The species vary widely in size; certain barbs are only about 2.5–5 cm (1–2 inches)

Everson, William

2004-12-06T06:14:00.000-08:00

Raised by Christian Scientist parents, Everson became an agnostic in his teens; while attending Fresno (California) State College, he read the verse of Robinson Jeffers and resolved to become a poet. His

Bead Lightning

2004-12-05T10:07:00.000-08:00

Also called chain lightning form of lightning of longer duration than more typical lightning that appears as a string of luminous segments instead of a continuous channel. It occurs infrequently but has been observed many times. Its causes are unknown, but among the theories proposed are the following: portions of the lightning channel are slanted toward or away from the observer and thus

Lipase

2004-12-03T03:25:00.000-08:00

Initial lipase digestion occurs in the lumen (interior) of the small intestine. Bile salts reduce the surface tension of the fat droplets

Rayy

2004-11-30T15:56:00.000-08:00

A settlement at the site dates from the 3rd millennium BC. Rayy is featured in the Avesta (the original document of Zoroastrianism, an Iranian religion) as a sacred place, and it is

Bahram Vi Chubin

2004-11-29T14:03:00.000-08:00

Prominent as master of the household in the Byzantine wars of the Sasanian king Hormizd IV, Bahram later received the supreme command in Khorasan and was able to repel a Turkish invasion.

Ibn Ezra, Moses (ben Jacob Ha-sallah)

2004-11-27T09:19:00.000-08:00

Known in Arabic as Abu Harun Musa, he belonged to a prominent Hispano-Hebrew family (his three

Priam

2004-11-26T06:35:00.000-08:00

In Greek mythology, the last king of Troy. He succeeded his father, Laomedon, as king and extended his control over the Hellespont. He married first Arisbe (a daughter of Merops the seer) and then Hecuba, by whom he had many children, including his favourites, Hector and Paris. Homer described Priam as an old man, powerless but kindly, not even blaming Helen, the wife of Paris,

Ciliate

2004-11-25T11:09:00.000-08:00

The cilia are usually arranged in rows, known as

Photometry

2004-11-25T08:54:00.000-08:00

The earliest observations of the apparent brightness of the stars were made by Greek astronomers. The system used by Hipparchus about

Pacific Islands, Trust Territory Of The

2004-11-24T18:12:00.000-08:00

Former United Nations strategic-area trusteeship that was administered by the United States from 1947 to 1986. The territory consisted of more than 2,000 islands scattered over about 3,000,000 square miles (7,770,000 square km) of the tropical western Pacific Ocean, north of the Equator between latitudes 1° and 22° N and longitudes 130° and 172° E. Most of the islands are quite small, the total land area being only

Minangkabau

2004-11-23T01:49:00.000-08:00

Malay Urang Padang (People of Padang) largest ethnic group on the island of Sumatra, Indonesia, whose traditional homeland is the west central highlands. Their numbers have been variously estimated at between 2,000,000 and 5,000,000. Although Muslim, the Minangkabau are matrilineal—i.e., they trace descent and inheritance through the female line. Traditionally, the wife remained with her maternal relatives after marriage,

Breckenridge

2004-11-21T17:35:00.000-08:00

City, seat (1862) of Summit county, central Colorado, U.S. Situated at an elevation of 9,600 feet (2,926 metres), Breckenridge was the scene of one of the earliest gold strikes in Colorado, in 1859; the town grew around the goldfields, and within a decade it contained several fine hotels and theatres. The present downtown preserves the character of the original city centre, and some 250 of its buildings

Great Rye Island

2004-11-20T06:52:00.000-08:00

Slovak Vel'ký Zitný Ostrov riverine island, Západní Slovensko kraj (region), Slovakia. The island lies southeast of Bratislava, between the Little Danube and Váh rivers to the north and the Danube to the south. It is composed of rich alluvial sediments deposited by the Danube in the Little Alföld, which is a plain shared by Hungary and Slovakia. Like Little Schütt Island (Szigetköz) on the Hungarian

Cable

2004-11-20T03:42:00.000-08:00

The first successful stranded iron wire rope was developed in 1831–34 by Wilhelm Albert, a mining official of Clausthal

Haardt Mountains

2004-11-18T19:24:00.000-08:00

Also called Hardt Mountains, mountain range in Rheinland-Pfalz Land (state), southwestern Germany. They comprise the eastern part of the Pfälzer Forest Mountains and lie west of the Rhine River basin, extending from the French border to a point about 20 miles (30 km) south of Mainz. Their densely forested slopes rise to 2,208 feet (673 m) in Mount Kalmit. Geologically the Haardt Mountains are a continuation of the

Valencia, Guillermo

2004-11-17T22:10:00.000-08:00

Valencia, a member of a prominent family, received a humanistic classical education and read widely in several languages, developing the cosmopolitan outlook and balanced temperament that were reflected in both his political

Haleakala

2004-11-17T18:14:00.000-08:00

The name Haleakala (Hawaiian: “House of the

Cassone

2004-11-15T15:03:00.000-08:00

Italian chest, usually used as a marriage chest, and the most elaborately decorated piece of furniture of the Renaissance. Cassoni traditionally were made in pairs and sometimes bore the respective coats of arms of the bride and groom. They contained the bride's clothes, linen, and many other items of her dowry. In the 15th century, when the greatest importance was attached

Biblical Literature, Papyri

2004-11-14T05:03:00.000-08:00

The earliest New Testament manuscript witnesses (2nd–8th centuries) are papyri mainly found preserved in fragments in the dry sands of Egypt. Only in the latter decades of the 20th century have the relatively recently discovered New Testament papyri been published. Of those cataloged to date, there are about 76 New Testament manuscripts with fragments of various parts

Taedong River

2004-11-13T22:12:00.000-08:00

Korean Taedong-gang river, southern North Korea, rising in the Nangnim Mountains in Hamgyong-nam do (province). It flows 273 miles (439 km) southwestward to enter Korea Bay, an arm of the Yellow Sea, at Namp'o. With its tributaries it forms a drainage basin of 7,855 square miles (20,344 square km). Because of its deep water and the tidal influence of the Yellow Sea, it is useful for water transportation, and many river ports,

Skelton, John

2004-11-13T21:38:00.000-08:00

His place of birth and childhood

Encyclopaedia, The Arab world

2004-11-12T15:31:00.000-08:00

The early encyclopaedias written in Arabic can be roughly divided into two classes: those designed for people who wished to be well informed and to make full use of their cultural heritage, and those for the rapidly growing number of official administrators. The latter type of encyclopaedia originated when the Arabs established their rule through so many parts

Giovanni Di Paolo (di Grazia)

2004-11-11T01:33:00.000-08:00

Painter whose religious paintings maintained the mystical intensity and conservative style of Gothic decorative painting against the trend, progressively dominant in the art of 15th-century Tuscany, toward scientific naturalism and classical humanism. One of the last practitioners of the tradition of medieval painting,

Tablature

2004-11-10T08:46:00.000-08:00

Lute tablatures were of three main varieties, French, Italian (used also in Spain), and German. The French type, used c. 1500–c. 1800, proved to be the most practical and contained an important

Fry, Christopher

2004-11-09T09:24:00.000-08:00

Fry adopted his mother's surname after he became a schoolteacher at age 18, his father having died many years earlier. He was for many years an actor, director, and writer of revues and plays before he gained fame as a playwright with The Lady's Not for Burning (1948), an ironic medieval comedy whose heroine is charged

Fry, Christopher

2004-11-06T02:37:00.000-08:00

The Malabar spiny tree mouse (Platacanthomys lasiurus) lives only in the old-growth rainforests of southwestern India. Nocturnal and arboreal, it builds nests in tree cavities and eats fruits and nuts. The animal is named for its flat, grooved spines

Locust Bird

2004-11-06T01:18:00.000-08:00

Any of various African birds that eat grasshoppers and locusts, especially the black-winged pratincole (see pratincole). In India the rose-coloured starling is called locust bird.

Skiffle

2004-11-05T21:33:00.000-08:00

Style of music played on rudimentary instruments, first popularized in the United States in the 1920s but revived by British musicians in the mid-1950s. The term was originally applied to music played by jug bands (in addition to jugs, these bands featured guitars, banjos, harmonicas, and kazoos), first in Louisville, Kentucky, as early as 1905 and then more prominently in Memphis, Tennessee,

Eastern Orthodoxy, The reforms of Peter the Great (reigned 16821725)

2004-11-04T11:15:00.000-08:00

The son of Tsar Alexis, Peter the Great, changed the historical fate of Russia by radically turning away from the Byzantine heritage and reforming the state according to the model of Protestant Europe. Humiliated by his father's temporary submission to Patriarch Nikon, Peter prevented new patriarchal elections after the death of Patriarch Adrian in 1700. After a long

Earth, Constructing seismological Earth models

2004-11-03T01:02:00.000-08:00

Effectively what is done is to start with an initial estimate of the density and velocity distributions, calculate the observed properties (periods of oscillations, travel times, and so forth), compare these with the observations, and then refine the density and velocity distributions until the observed properties are satisfactorily reproduced. An elegant mathematical

Distortion

2004-11-02T18:58:00.000-08:00

In acoustics and electronics, any change in a signal that alters the basic waveform or the relationship between various frequency components; it is usually a degradation of the signal. Straight amplification or attenuation without alteration of the waveform is not usually considered to be distortion. Amplitude distortion refers to unequal amplification

Club

2004-10-31T20:02:00.000-08:00

Primitive weapon, a heavy stick, sometimes with a stone or metal head, used as a hand or throwing weapon and usually shaped or selected with an outer end wider and heavier than its handle. Among primitive groups, special designs often characterize particular tribes. Medieval European bishops denied the use of the sword were allowed to enter battle with a mace, an iron

Marrah Mountains

2004-10-31T05:25:00.000-08:00

Arabic Jabal Marra, mountain range, a rugged volcanic chain extending for 100 miles (160 km) west-southwest of Al-Fashir, in west-central Sudan. The highest point of the Nile-Lake Chad watershed, the mountains reach heights of more than 10,000 feet (3,000 m). Some intermittent tributaries of the Al-'Arab River rise on the southern flanks.

Bhaisajya-guru

2004-10-30T16:32:00.000-07:00

(Sanskrit), Tibetan Sman-bla-rgyal-po , Chinese Yao-shih-fo , Japanese Yakushi Nyorai the healing Buddha, widely worshiped in Tibet, China, and Japan. According to popular belief in those countries, some illnesses are effectively cured by merely touching his image or calling out his name. More serious illnesses, however, require the performance of complex ritual acts, as described in the principal scripture of the Bhaisajya-guru cult. Bhaisajya-guru

Wigan

2004-10-29T04:32:00.000-07:00

Town and metropolitan borough in the northwestern part of the metropolitan county of Greater Manchester, historic county of Lancashire, England. It lies along the River Douglas and the Leeds and Liverpool Canal. The borough includes large industrial and commercial centres such as the towns of Wigan and Leigh, suburban neighbourhoods, and small rural

Adams, John

2004-10-27T02:45:00.000-07:00

His insistence that elites were unavoidable realities in all societies, however, made him vulnerable to the charge of endorsing aristocratic rule in America, when in fact he was attempting to suggest that the inevitable American elite must be controlled, its ambitions channeled toward public purposes. He also was accused of endorsing monarchical principles because he argued that the chief executive in the American government, like the king in medieval European society, must possess sufficient power to check the ravenous appetites of the propertied classes. Although misunderstood by many of his contemporaries, the realistic perspective Adams proposed—and the skepticism toward utopian schemes he insisted upon—has achieved considerable support in the wake of the failed 20th-century attempts at social transformation in the communist bloc. In Adams's own day, his political analysis enjoyed the satisfaction of correctly predicting that the French Revolution would lead to the Reign of Terror and eventual despotism by a military dictator.

Han River

2004-10-26T19:05:00.000-07:00

Wade–Giles romanization Han Shui, Pinyin Han Shui, one of the most important tributaries of the Yangtze River of China. It has a total length of about 952 mi (1,532 km). The Han Shui rises in the Shen-ch'iung Shan (mountains), part of the Mi-t'sang Shan in the north of Ning-ch'iang County in the extreme southwest of Shensi Province. Its upper stream is known successively as the Yü-tai Ho, the Yang Shui, and, below Mien-hsien, the Mien Shui. At Han-chung

Amundsen, Roald

2004-10-25T18:52:00.000-07:00

Amundsen studied medicine for a while and then took to sea. In 1897 he sailed as first mate on

Bone

2004-10-25T03:46:00.000-07:00

The functions of bone include (1) structural support for the mechanical action of soft tissues, such as contraction of

Juan De Austria

2004-10-24T07:17:00.000-07:00

Removed from his mother, a burgher's daughter, at an early age, he was

China, Industrialization for self-strengthening

2004-10-22T23:48:00.000-07:00

Stimulated by the military training and techniques exhibited during the Westerners' cooperation against the Taiping and supported by Prince Kung in Peking, the Self-Strengthening Movement was launched by the anti-Taiping generals Tseng Kuo-fan, Li Hung-chang, and Tso Tsung-t'ang, who sought to consolidate the Ch'ing power by introducing Western technology. The

Monteverdi, Claudio

2004-10-22T03:10:00.000-07:00

Italian composer of the late Renaissance, the most important developer of the then new genre, the opera. He also did much to bring a “modern” secular spirit into church music.

Great Chain Of Being

2004-10-21T07:23:00.000-07:00

Also called Chain Of Being, conception of the nature of the universe that had a pervasive influence on Western thought, particularly through the ancient Greek Neoplatonists and derivative philosophies during the European Renaissance and the 17th and early 18th centuries. The term denotes three general features of the universe: plenitude, continuity, and gradation. The principle of plenitude

Lord Dunmore's War

2004-10-20T13:46:00.000-07:00

(1774), Virginia-led attack on the Shawnee Indians of Kentucky, removing the last obstacle to colonial conquest of that area. During the early 1770s the Shawnee watched with growing distress the steady encroachment upon their rich Kentucky hunting grounds by white trappers, traders, speculators, and settlers. In early 1774 the Virginia militia seized Fort Pitt and renamed it Fort

Fargo

2004-10-18T13:01:00.000-07:00

Seat (1873) of Cass county and the largest city of North Dakota, U.S., on the Red River of the North, opposite Moorhead, Minn. Founded in 1871 by the Northern Pacific Railway, it served as an outfitting post for settlers, with its rail, steamboat, and stagecoach facilities. It was named for William George Fargo (of Wells, Fargo & Company), a pioneer in the shipment of goods by express. The development

Burgos, José

2004-10-18T04:03:00.000-07:00

Burgos studied at San Juan de Letran College and the University of Santo Tomás in Manila, earning a doctorate of philosophy and a licentiate in canon law. His scholarship and

White, Minor

2004-10-16T10:09:00.000-07:00

White took up photography while very young but set it aside for a number of years to study botany and, later, poetry. He began to photograph seriously

Army

2004-10-15T14:59:00.000-07:00

Throughout history, the character and organization of armies have changed. Social and political aspects of nations at different

Pacific Islands

2004-10-14T21:23:00.000-07:00

Geographic region of the Pacific Ocean. The term is commonly accepted as including all of those islands in the Pacific that are collectively referred to as Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia, also sometimes known as Oceania. This usage rules out the Australian island continent, the Asia-related Indonesian, Philippine, and Japanese archipelagoes, and the Ryukyu,

Ramie

2004-10-12T08:49:00.000-07:00

The ramie plant has been cultivated

Trier

2004-10-11T04:39:00.000-07:00

Regierungsbezirk (administrative district), western Rhineland-Palatinate Land (state), southwestern Germany. Trier is bordered by Luxembourg and Belgium to the west, North Rhine–Westphalia Land to the north, the Regierungsbezirk of Koblenz to the east, and Saarland Land to the south. The district forms a southern portion of the larger historical region of the Rhineland

Demeter

2004-10-10T19:02:00.000-07:00

Demeter is rarely mentioned by Homer, nor is she included among the Olympian gods, but the roots of her legend are probably ancient. The legend centred on the story of her daughter Persephone

OpenRoot

Estate Agent Fitzrovia

Anthimus I

Turban

Pythagoras

Quindío

Economic Development

Cambert, Robert

Arrastra

Silverius, Saint

Protestantism, Germany

Calatrava, Order Of

Savings And Loan Association

Kamehameha Iii

Switzerland, The Burgundian War

China, Efforts to prevent civil war

Quillen, Daniel Gray

Moshav

Skellefteå

Rinderpest

Ciompi, Revolt Of The

Frederick Iii

France, History Of, The political history of France (c. 8501180)

Gambier Islands

Rectocele

Wollaston, William

Loxton

U Thong Style

Zambales Mountains

Frederick Iv

Earth, The Earth's magnetic field

Amitayur-dhyana-sutra

China, From Ch'eng-ti to Wong Mang

Hardinge (of Penshurst), Charles Hardinge, 1st Baron

China, Attacks on party members

Ito Jinsai

Ealdred

Tábor

Capone, Al

Clifford (of Chudleigh), Thomas Clifford, 1st Baron

Ibn Kathir

Rhythm And Blues

Argyll, Archibald Campbell, 1st Marquess And 8th Earl Of, Lord Campbell, Lord Lorne, Lord Of Kintyre

Pachaimalai Hills

Location Theory

Croatia, Industry

Ruways, Ar-

China, Formation of a rival southern government

Barb

Everson, William

Bead Lightning

Lipase

Rayy

Bahram Vi Chubin

Ibn Ezra, Moses (ben Jacob Ha-sallah)

Priam

Ciliate

Photometry

Pacific Islands, Trust Territory Of The

Minangkabau

Breckenridge

Great Rye Island

Cable

Haardt Mountains

Valencia, Guillermo

Haleakala

Cassone

Biblical Literature, Papyri

Taedong River

Skelton, John

Encyclopaedia, The Arab world

Giovanni Di Paolo (di Grazia)

Tablature

Fry, Christopher

Fry, Christopher

Locust Bird

Skiffle

Eastern Orthodoxy, The reforms of Peter the Great (reigned 16821725)

Earth, Constructing seismological Earth models

Distortion

France, History Of, The political history of France (c. 8501180)

Eastern Orthodoxy, The reforms of Peter the Great (reigned 16821725)

China, Industrialization for self-strengthening