SecretBall

Estate Agent Fitzrovia

2006-10-25T18:40:00.000-07:00

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.

Vakaga

2005-03-30T21:26:00.000-08:00

Northernmost préfecture of the Central African Republic, bordering Chad to the northwest and The Sudan to the northeast. Until the mid-1960s it was an autonomous sub-prefecture named for the town of Birao, the prefectural seat. The northern part of Vakaga, around Birao, with an average temperature of 80° F (27° C), has a far drier climate than the rest of the country. Rainfall, averaging

Angilbert

2005-03-30T14:04:00.000-08:00

Of noble parentage, he was educated at the palace school at Aachen under Alcuin and was closely connected with the court and the imperial family. In 800 he accompanied Charlemagne to Rome and was one of the witnesses to his will. He was made

Denizli

2005-03-29T21:05:00.000-08:00

City, southwestern Turkey. It lies near a tributary of the Menderes River. Set among the gardens at the foot of Mount Gökbel (7,572 feet [2,308 m]), Denizli inherited the economic position of ancient Laodicea ad Lycum, 4 miles (6 km) away, when that town was deserted during wars between the Byzantines and the Seljuq Turks in the 12th century. By the 14th century, as Lâdik (Ladiq), Denizli had emerged

Osler-rendu-weber Disease

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

Also called Rendu-osler-weber Disease, or Hereditary Hemorrhagic Telangiectasia, a hereditary disorder causing bleeding from local capillary lesions. The disorder is classed as a type of purpura. In the disease, capillaries (minute blood vessels) in the fingertips and around the oral and nasal cavities are enlarged and have unusually thin walls; they fill with bright red (well-oxygenated) blood and are easily broken by accidental bumping or jarring,

Trigonal System

2005-03-27T09:16:00.000-08:00

Components of crystals in the trigonal system, like those of the hexagonal system, are located by reference to four axes—three of equal length with 120° intersections and one perpendicular to the plane

Rayleigh (of Terling Place), John William Strutt, 3rd Baron

2005-03-27T07:02:00.000-08:00

Strutt suffered from poor health

Bürgi, Joost

2005-03-25T09:53:00.000-08:00

Bürgi served as court watchmaker to Duke Wilhelm IV of Hesse-Kassel from 1579 to 1592 and worked in the royal observatory at Kassel, where he developed geometrical and astronomical instruments. Word of his exceptional instruments

Lord Chancellor

2005-03-25T07:18:00.000-08:00

The office dates back to Edward the Confessor (1042–66), who followed the model

Stefan Nemanja

2005-03-25T02:25:00.000-08:00

Nemanja became grand zupan (clan leader) of Raška under Byzantine suzerainty in 1169. He subsequently sided with the Venetians and was eventually defeated by the avenging Byzantines, but he was pardoned. Nemanja later conquered Skopje, Prizren, and Tetovo. Though again defeated, he retained Kosovo, Pec, Prizren, Bar, Skadar (Shkodër), and Kotor. He abdicated

Gulper

2005-03-24T23:38:00.000-08:00

Any of nine species of deep-sea fish constituting three families, placed by some authorities in the order Anguilliformes (eels) and by others in a distinct order, Saccopharyngiformes (or Lyomeri). Gulpers range to depths of 2,700 m (9,000 feet) or more. The members of one family, Monognathidae, have mouths of normal proportions, but the other gulpers (Eurypharyngidae and Saccopharyngidae)

Aqaba, Gulf Of

2005-03-24T17:10:00.000-08:00

Arabic Khalij Al-'aqabah, northeastern arm of the Red Sea, penetrating between Saudi Arabia and the Sinai Peninsula. It varies in width from 12 to 17 miles (19 to 27 km) and is 100 miles (160 km) long. The gulf lies in a pronounced cleft between hills rising abruptly to about 2,000 feet (600 m). Navigation is difficult because of the gulf's narrow entrance at the Straits of Tiran and its islands, coral reefs, and sudden squalls. The

Giridih

2005-03-23T04:24:00.000-08:00

Town, Bihar state, northeastern India. It lies 72 miles (115 km) northeast of Hazaribagh town, on both banks of the Usri River. In 1871 a branch line of the Eastern Railway was built to the town, increasing its importance as a transport centre for coal mined at nearby Kuharbarie, Serampore, and Banaidih. It is the headquarters of the country's major mica-producing firms and has a degree-granting

Rawlinson, Sir Henry Creswicke

2005-03-22T21:09:00.000-08:00

British army officer and Orientalist who deciphered the Old Persian portion of the trilingual cuneiform inscription of Darius I the Great at Bisitun, Iran. His success provided the key to the deciphering, by himself and others, of Mesopotamian cuneiform script, a feat that greatly expanded knowledge of the ancient

Legume

2005-03-22T16:48:00.000-08:00

Also called pod fruit of plants of the order Fabales (q.v.), consisting of the single family Leguminosae, or Fabaceae (peas, beans, vetch, and so on). The dry fruit releases its seeds by splitting open along two seams. Legumes furnish food for humans and animals and provide edible oils, fibres, and raw material for plastics. Nutritionally, they are high in protein and contain many of the essential

Computers, ENIAC

2005-03-22T04:38:00.000-08:00

In the United States, government funding went to a project led by John Mauchly, J. Presper Eckert, Jr., and their colleagues at the Moore School of Electrical Engineering at the University of Pennsylvania; their objective was an all-electronic computer. Under contract to the army, and under the direction of Herman Goldstine, work began in early 1943 on the Electronic Numerical

Quillwork

2005-03-20T02:56:00.000-08:00

Type of embroidery done with the quills of a porcupine, or sometimes with bird feathers. This type of decoration was used by American Indians from Maine to Virginia and westward to the Rocky Mountains. For all practical purposes the art has died out. Quills were used on tobacco and tinder bags, knife and paintstick cases, cradles, armulets, burden straps, tunics, shirts,

English Literature, Drama by Dryden and others

2005-03-19T16:10:00.000-08:00

Characteristically, Dryden, as dramatist, experimented vigorously in all the popular stage modes of the day, exploring the possibilities of the rhymed heroic play in the 1660s and early 1670s and producing some distinguished tragic writing in All for Love (1677) and Don Sebastian (1689); but his greatest achievement, Amphitryon (1690), is a comedy. In this he was typical of his age. Though there

Indigestion

2005-03-19T14:24:00.000-08:00

Also called dyspepsia any or all of the symptoms—abdominal discomfort, belching, flatulence, aversion to eating, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, constipation, heartburn—associated with the malfunctioning of the digestive system. Indigestion may be caused by disease, but it primarily occurs because of stress, improper eating habits, excessive smoking, exorbitant consumption of coffee or

Spofford, Harriet Elizabeth Prescott

2005-03-19T04:32:00.000-08:00

Harriet Prescott moved from her native Maine to Newburyport, Massachusetts, in 1849 and attended the Pinkerton Academy in Derry, New Hampshire, in 1853–55. In part to aid the family's precarious

Becquerel, Henri

2005-03-17T14:29:00.000-08:00

He was a member of a scientific family extending through several generations, the most notable being his grandfather Antoine-César Becquerel (1788–1878), his father,

Moses Lake

2005-03-17T13:35:00.000-08:00

City, Grant county, central Washington, U.S., situated on the northeast shore of Moses Lake. Located on a traditional hunting and fishing ground, the town was settled in 1897 and was laid out in 1910 as Neppel; in 1938 it was renamed for the Columbia-Sinkiuse Indian leader Moses. Located in the Columbia River basin, the city serves as the trade centre of an irrigated farm region producing

Alushta

2005-03-17T10:44:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Alušta, tourist resort, Crimea, Ukraine, on the south coast of the Crimean Peninsula. It is the site of a settlement dating from the 6th century AD; in the 14th century it was a Genoan stronghold. Tourism, based on the fine beach and relatively cool summers, developed in the late 19th century. Pop. (1991 est.) 37,600.

Mammal, Food habits

2005-03-16T20:08:00.000-08:00

The earliest mammals, like their reptilian forebears, were active predators. From such a basal stock there has been a complex radiation of trophic adaptations. Modern mammals occupy a wide spectrum of feeding niches. In most terrestrial and some aquatic communities, carnivorous mammals are at the top of the food pyramid. There are also herbaceous mammals that serve

Bylina

2005-03-15T23:44:00.000-08:00

Plural Byliny, traditional form of Old Russian and Russian heroic narrative poetry transmitted orally, still a creative tradition in the 20th century. The oldest byliny belong to a cycle dealing with the golden age of Kievan Rus in the 10th–12th century. They centre on the deeds of Prince Vladimir I and his court. One of the favourite heroes is the independent Cossack Ilya of Murom, who defended

Alexander

2005-03-15T03:24:00.000-08:00

Alexander carried on the hopeless struggle of the crown against the growing power of the Polish senate and nobles, who deprived him of financial control and curtailed his prerogative. For want of funds, Alexander was unable to assist the Grand Master

Eagles, The, Don Henley

2005-03-14T19:59:00.000-08:00

Oshkosh

2005-03-14T08:21:00.000-08:00

City, seat (1847) of Winnebago county, east-central Wisconsin, U.S. It lies on the west shore of Lake Winnebago at the mouth of the upper Fox River, 80 miles (130 km) north-northwest of Milwaukee. The French were active in the area from the late 17th century, and the lake and river formed an important link in a main route from the Great Lakes to the Mississippi River. Permanent settlement did

Adderley, Nat

2005-03-14T02:41:00.000-08:00

Although he began playing the trumpet in his teens, Nat Adderley switched in 1950 to the somewhat smaller cornet, playing it in the U.S. Army band led by his brother. After a year with Lionel

Uaxactún

2005-03-13T17:49:00.000-08:00

Ruined ancient Mayan city of the southern lowlands, located in what is now north-central Guatemala, about 12 miles (20 km) north of the ancient Mayan city of Tikal. Uaxactún was a ceremonial centre of only modest size, compared with Tikal, but it has been important in Mayan archaeology because intensive excavations made there by archaeologists of the Carnegie Institution

Anselm Of Canterbury, Saint

2005-03-12T20:46:00.000-08:00

Founder of Scholasticism, a philosophical school of thought that dominated the Middle Ages; he was recognized in modern times as the originator of the ontological argument for the existence of God (based on the idea of an absolutely perfect being, the fact of the idea being in itself

Loralai

2005-03-12T07:47:00.000-08:00

Loralai district (area 7,364 sq mi [19,073 sq km]), constituted in 1903, consists of a series of long, narrow valleys hemmed in by rugged mountains

Thompson, Sir John (sparrow David)

2005-03-12T04:16:00.000-08:00

Thompson was called to the bar in Nova Scotia in 1865 and appointed queen's counsellor in 1879. He entered politics in 1877 as Liberal-Conservative member for Antigonish in the provincial legislature, becoming attorney general in 1878; he became

Goncourt, Edmond And Jules

2005-03-11T21:36:00.000-08:00

In full Edmond-louis-antoine Huot De Goncourt and Jules-alfred Huot De Goncourt French brothers, writers and constant collaborators who, despite and partly because of neurotic sensibility, contributed solidly to the Naturalistic novel, social history, and art criticism. Above all, they are remembered for their perceptive, revealing Journal and for Edmond's legacy, the Académie

Metacentre

2005-03-11T10:47:00.000-08:00

The centre of buoyancy of a floating body is the point about which all the body parts exactly buoy each

Indian Grass

2005-03-10T11:09:00.000-08:00

(species Sorghastrum nutans), tall perennial forage grass of the family Poaceae and one of the important constituents of the North American tall grass prairie. It bears narrow, greatly branched flower clusters. Each yellow spikelet is fringed with white hairs, giving the plant a silver-and-gold appearance. It is a close relative of S.

English Oak

2005-03-10T02:45:00.000-08:00

Also called Brown Oak (Quercus robur), ornamental and timber tree of the beech family (Fagaceae) that is native to Eurasia but also cultivated in North America and Australia. The tree has a short, stout trunk with wide-spreading branches and may grow to a height of 25 m (82.5 feet). The short-stalked leaves, 13 cm (5 inches) or more long, have three to seven pairs of rounded lobes; they are dark green

Subway

2005-03-09T15:34:00.000-08:00

Also called Underground, Tube, or Métro, underground railway system used to transport large numbers of passengers within urban and suburban areas. Subways are usually built under city streets for ease of construction, but they may take shortcuts and sometimes must pass under rivers. Outlying sections of the system usually emerge aboveground, becoming conventional railways or elevated transit lines.

Schreiber, R(aemer) E(dgar)

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

American experimental physicist who during World War II was one of the scientists who worked on the Manhattan Project in Los Alamos, N.M., to develop the first atomic bombs and then helped assemble the two bombs that were dropped on Japan; after the war he stayed on at Los Alamos in the weapons division and helped develop the hydrogen bomb, from 1955 led the nuclear rocket

Jacinto, António

2005-03-08T20:49:00.000-08:00

The son of Portuguese settlers in Angola, Jacinto became associated with militant movements against Portuguese colonial rule and was arrested in 1961. He was sent to São Paulo Prison

Baseball

2005-03-08T16:53:00.000-08:00

Mark McGwire of the St. Louis Cardinals and Sammy Sosa of the Chicago Cubs, the two sluggers who shattered major league baseball's existing home-run records in 1998, staged a reprise in 1999, with 65 and 63 home runs, respectively. Offense overall throughout both the National League (NL) and the American League (AL) increased substantially; the total home-run output of 5,528 broke the previous

Conopophagidae

2005-03-07T23:23:00.000-08:00

Gnateater (or antpipit) family of small, plump-bodied birds of Central and South America. The two genera (Conopophaga and Corythopsis) were separated from the antbird family (Formicariidae) in 1882 and raised to family rank. Research in the late 1960s, however, led to its dissolution; the Conopophaga were then returned to the Formicariidae, and the Corythopsis were assigned to

Turing Machine

2005-03-06T23:54:00.000-08:00

Hypothetical computing device introduced in 1936 by the English mathematician and logician Alan M. Turing. Turing originally conceived the machine as a mathematical tool that could infallibly recognize undecidable propositions—i.e., those mathematical statements that, within a given formal axiom system, cannot be shown to be either true or false. (The mathematician

Coracle

2005-03-06T09:28:00.000-08:00

Irish curragh primitive, light, bowl-shaped boat with a frame of woven grasses, reeds, or saplings covered with hides. Those still used, in Wales and on the coasts of Ireland, usually have a canvas and tar covering. American Indians used the similar bullboat, covered with buffalo hides, on the Missouri River, and the corita, often sealed with bitumen, on the Colorado.

Danaus

2005-03-06T06:38:00.000-08:00

In Greek legend, son of Belus, king of Egypt, and twin brother of Aegyptus. Driven out of Egypt by his brother, he fled with his 50 daughters (the Danaïds) to Argos, where he became king. Soon thereafter the 50 sons of Aegyptus arrived in Argos, and Danaus was forced to consent to their marriage with his daughters. Danaus, however, commanded each daughter to slay her husband on the

Suckling, Sir John

2005-03-05T08:12:00.000-08:00

He was educated at Cambridge and inherited his father's considerable estates at the age of 18. He entered Gray's Inn in 1627 and was knighted in 1630. He became a prominent figure at court with a reputation for being “the greatest gallant of his time, and the greatest

Gabrieli, Andrea

2005-03-04T23:49:00.000-08:00

He was born in the Canareggio quarter of Venice, but nothing is known about

Alaric

2005-03-04T11:51:00.000-08:00

A nobleman by birth, Alaric served for a time as commander of Gothic troops in the Roman army, but shortly after the death of the emperor Theodosius I in 395, he left the

Marghiloman, Alexandru

2005-03-04T08:36:00.000-08:00

After studying law in Paris, Marghiloman was elected a deputy in Romania in 1884 and became a member of the government in 1888. As a member of the Young Conservative Junimist group, he favoured cooperation with Germany and Austria-Hungary but on the outbreak

Canada, Flag Of

2005-03-03T07:59:00.000-08:00

The establishment of the Canadian federation in 1867 was not accompanied by the creation of a special flag for the country. The imperial Union Jack and other British flags were considered sufficient, although a coat of arms (in the form of a heraldic shield) was granted by Queen Victoria in 1868. The Canadian shield was composed of the arms of the four original provinces—Ontario,

Encaustic Painting

2005-03-02T07:01:00.000-08:00

Painting technique in which pigments are mixed with hot, liquid wax. After all of the colours have been applied to the painting surface, a heating element is passed over them until the individual brush or spatula marks fuse into a uniform film. This “burning in” of the colours is an essential element of the true encaustic technique. Encaustic wax has many of the properties

Xerox Parc

2005-03-01T23:44:00.000-08:00

An excellent source on PARC's history is Michael Hiltzick, Dealers of Lightning: Xerox PARC and the Dawn of the Computer Age (1999).

Catalufa

2005-03-01T15:00:00.000-08:00

Any of certain fishes of the bigeye (q.v.) group.

Ghetto

2005-03-01T07:31:00.000-08:00

Formerly a street, or quarter, of a city set apart as a legally enforced residence area for Jews. One of the earliest forced segregations of Jews was in Muslim Morocco when, in 1280, they were transferred to segregated quarters called millahs. In some Muslim countries, rigid ghetto systems were enforced with restrictions on the sizes of houses and doors. Forced segregation

Alaska Purchase

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

William Henry Seward, secretary of state under President Andrew Johnson, had as early as 1860 dreamed of acquiring Alaska. The territory was considered an economic liability by the Russians, and in December 1866 Baron Eduard de Stoeckl, Russian

Wansbeck

2005-02-28T15:19:00.000-08:00

District, administrative and historic county of Northumberland, northern England, along the North Sea in the southeastern part of the county. Wansbeck spans a narrow coastal plain edging the Northumberland uplands to the west. Its three principal towns (Ashington, Bedlington, and Newbiggin-by-the-Sea) suffered economic decline in the 1960s and '70s because of the loss of

Topiary

2005-02-28T13:52:00.000-08:00

The training of living trees and shrubs into artificial, decorative shapes. Thickly leaved evergreen shrubs are used in topiary; the best subjects are box, cypress, and yew, although others—such as rosemary, holly, and box honeysuckle—are used with success. Topiary is said to have been invented by a friend of the ancient Roman emperor Augustus and is known to have been

Avignon Papacy

2005-02-26T22:04:00.000-08:00

Distressed by factionalism in Rome and pressed to come to France by Philip IV, Pope Clement V moved the papal capital to Avignon, which at that time belonged to vassals of the pope. In 1348 it became direct papal property.

French Literature, Prose literature

2005-02-26T15:40:00.000-08:00

Prose flourished as a literary medium from about 1200. A few years earlier Robert de Borron had used verse for his Joseph d'Arimathie (recounting the Holy Grail's sacred origins) and his Merlin; but both were soon turned into prose. Other Arthurian romances adopted it, notably the great Vulgate cycle with its five branches by various hands. These included the immensely popular

Water Supply

2005-02-25T23:11:00.000-08:00

Available water provided to fulfill a particular need; if the need is domestic, industrial, or agricultural, the water must fulfill both quality and quantity requirements. Water supplies can be obtained by numerous types of water resources projects, such as wells, dams, or reservoirs. See water resource.

Buckingham, George Villiers, 2nd Duke Of

2005-02-25T09:04:00.000-08:00

His father, the 1st Duke of Buckingham,

Arverni

2005-02-25T01:45:00.000-08:00

Ancient Celtic tribe inhabiting what is now the region of Auvergne, in central France; their chieftain Vercingetorix (q.v.) led a rebellion against Julius Caesar in 52 BC. Although rivalry between Arverni and Aedui for Gallic primacy weakened their coalition, the rebels were able to defeat Caesar at the Arverni capital, Gergovia (modern Gergovie), before Vercingetorix

Esteban Echeverría

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

Partido (county) at the southern limits of Greater Buenos Aires, Argentina, in Buenos Aires provincia. Created in 1913 from portions of the partidos of Lomas de Zamora and San Vicente, Esteban Echeverría is an agricultural (and, more recently, low-income suburban) zone with an area of 146 square miles (377 square km), characterized by green villas that support dairy farms and orchards

Kardelj, Edvard

2005-02-24T15:09:00.000-08:00

The son of a railroad worker, Kardelj graduated from the Ljubljana Teachers' College. From the age of 16 he was a member of the outlawed Communist

Arusha

2005-02-23T05:23:00.000-08:00

Formerly Northern Region administrative region, northern Tanzania, East Africa. Established in 1963, it has an area of about 33,250 square miles (86,100 square km), including 950 square miles (2,460 square km) of water area. It is bordered on the north by Kenya. The Serengeti Plain lies in the northwest, and the Masai Steppe, broken only by isolated gneiss hills, lies in the south. In the central area of the region are the Crater

Kazerun

2005-02-22T23:52:00.000-08:00

The ruins of the ancient city of Bishapur (or Shahpur), which are situated 12 miles (19 km) north, have Sasanid (c. AD 224–651) bas-reliefs

Seven Against Thebes

2005-02-22T18:39:00.000-08:00

In Greek mythology, the seven champions who were killed fighting against Thebes after the fall of Oedipus, the king of that city. The twins Eteocles and Polyneices, who had been cursed by their father, Oedipus, failed to agree on which of them was to succeed to the Theban throne and decided to rule in alternate years. As Eteocles' turn came first, Polyneices withdrew to

Qatar, Resources

2005-02-22T03:28:00.000-08:00

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

Euclidean Geometry, Homotheties

2005-02-21T05:29:00.000-08:00

If two nonconcentric circles have centres A, B and unequal radii r, s, there are points I, E with [AIB], AI | IB ~ AE | EB ~ r | s. In consequence, the

Dandenong Ranges

2005-02-20T23:28:00.000-08:00

Mountain ranges, part of the Eastern Highlands, east of Melbourne in southern Victoria, Australia. Several peaks exceed 1,600 ft (500 m), the highest of which is Mt. Dandenong (2,077 ft). With nearly twice as much rainfall as the nearby coastal plain and with fertile volcanic soils, the mountains have dense vegetative cover. The name is derived from an Aboriginal word, tanjenong, meaning

Estébanez Calderón, Serafín

2005-02-20T22:36:00.000-08:00

Estébanez also spelled Estévanes, byname El Solitario one of the best-known costumbristas, Spanish writers who depicted in short articles the typical customs of the people. He moved to Madrid in 1830, where he published newspaper articles under the pseudonym El Solitario and pursued a career that combined Arabic studies, poetry, and the collecting of manuscripts. He was also influential in the

Spooner, John (coit)

2005-02-20T03:14:00.000-08:00

Spooner moved to Wisconsin as a youth. After service in the Union Army during the Civil War, he was admitted to the bar (1867). He began a law practice at Hudson, Wis., and eventually became best known in legal circles as counsel for railroad interests.

Mcmahon, Sir William

2005-02-20T02:53:00.000-08:00

He was educated at the University of Sydney, where he earned a degree in law. After practicing as a solicitor in Sydney he enlisted in the Australian Army in 1939 and rose to the rank of major. He served in the House of Representatives for Lowe (New South Wales)

Baragwanathia

2005-02-18T22:37:00.000-08:00

A genus of fossil plants from the Early Devonian Epoch (about 408 to 387 million years ago) of Australia, of interest as being perhaps the earliest club moss class (or subdivision) Lycopsida. The plants exceeded the size of present-day lycopsids, some being up to 28 cm (11 inches) long.

Diagnosis

2005-02-18T10:40:00.000-08:00

Traditionally, diagnosis has been defined as the art of identifying a disease from its signs and symptoms. Formerly, few diagnostic tests were available to assist the physician who depended on medical history, observation, and examination. Only recently, with the many technological advances in medicine, have tests become available to assist in making specific

Estonia, Relief and drainage

2005-02-18T06:39:00.000-08:00

The Estonian landscape is largely the product of glacial activity; the south is covered with moraine hills, and the central part abounds in elongated hills with flat tops. The northern part of Estonia is characterized by long narrow swells consisting of deposits left by glacial rivers that formed during the melting of ice. Extensive sandy areas mark what was once

Oran

2005-02-18T05:21:00.000-08:00

Oran was founded at the beginning of the 10th century

Animal Behaviour

2005-02-17T09:03:00.000-08:00

A living animal behaves constantly in order to survive, and all animals must solve the same basic problems. They must, for instance, periodically replace their energy source (consume food), avoid dehydration (drink), avoid becoming another animal's energy source (avoid being eaten), maintain their body surfaces (clean and groom), and reproduce.

Performing Arts, Nontheatrical Films.

2005-02-16T22:08:00.000-08:00

Austrian filmmaker Kurt Mundl (Power of the Earth Productions) in 1998 created an amazing film about butterflies and moths, The Messengers of the Gods--Butterflies. The 49-minute gem was made from 18,000 minutes of film patiently photographed using special lenses. New findings about behaviour were brought to life. It won many awards, including Best of Festival at Chicago's U.S. International

Würm Glacial Stage

2005-02-16T16:24:00.000-08:00

Major division of late Pleistocene deposits and time in Alpine Europe (the Pleistocene epoch began about 1,600,000 years ago and ended about 10,000 years ago). The Würm glacial stage followed the Riss-Würm interglacial and is correlated with the Weichsel glacial stage of northern Europe and the Wisconsin glacial stage of North America. The Alpine glaciations of the Pleistocene

Texas, The people

2005-02-15T19:18:00.000-08:00

Texas has long been a huge reservoir for diverse streams of races and cultures. For the bands of prehistoric hunters, for the waves of Indian tribes, for the Spanish and Mexicans pushing northward, for the Anglo-Americans from the North and East, and for colonizers who came to Texas directly from Europe, there was more than enough room for settlement and for the opportunity

Middle English Language

2005-02-14T08:30:00.000-08:00

The history of Middle English is often divided into three periods: (1) Early Middle English, from about 1100 to about 1250, during which the Old English system of writing was still in use; (2) the Central Middle English period from about 1250 to

Arabia, Plant life

2005-02-14T00:11:00.000-08:00

The date palm grows almost everywhere, except at very high elevations and in Dhofar, on the coast of which it is replaced by the coconut palm. The date is a source of food, and uses are found for the trunk, branches, and fibre of the date palm. Among places noted for high-quality date-palm production are Medina, Bishah, and Al-Hasa. Alfalfa (lucerne), widely used as fodder, often fills

Tributyl Phosphate

2005-02-13T19:04:00.000-08:00

An organic liquid solvent used in the extraction of uranium and plutonium salts from reactor effluents, as a solvent for nitrocellulose and cellulose acetate, and as a heat-exchange medium. A phosphorus-containing compound with molecular formula (C4H9)3PO4, it is prepared by reaction of phosphorus oxychloride with butyl alcohol. Tributyl phosphate is corrosive to

Biblical Literature, Impulse toward canonization from heretical movements

2005-02-13T11:12:00.000-08:00

Gnosticism (a religious system with influence both on Judaism and Christianity) tended to foster speculation, cutting loose from historical revelation. In defense the orthodox churches stressed the apostolic tradition by focussing on Gospels and letters from apostolic lives and distinguished them from Gnostic writings, such as the Gospel of Truth (mentioned

Adductor Muscle

2005-02-12T11:06:00.000-08:00

Any of the muscles that draw a part of the body toward its median line or toward the axis of an extremity (compare abductor muscle), particularly three powerful muscles of the human thigh—adductor longus, adductor brevis, and adductor magnus. Originating at the pubis and the ischium (lower portions of the pelvis—the hipbone), these ribbonlike muscles are attached along

Light

2005-02-11T16:58:00.000-08:00

Electromagnetic radiation that can be detected by the human eye. In terms of wavelength, electromagnetic radiation occurs over an extremely wide range, from gamma rays with a wavelength of 3 ´ 10-14 centimetre to long radio waves measured in millions of kilometres. In that spectrum the wavelengths visible to humans occupy a very narrow band, from about 7 ´ 10-5 centimetre (red light)

Utzon, Jørn

2005-02-11T11:53:00.000-08:00

Utzon studied at the Copenhagen School of Architecture (1937–42) and then spent three years in Stockholm, where he came under the influence of the Swedish architect Erik Gunnar Asplund. He also studied in the United States, and, for a six-month

Interior Design, Ceilings

2005-02-11T07:53:00.000-08:00

Although ceilings are in most interiors the largest unbroken surface, they are often ignored by amateur designers and even by professional designers. The result, especially in public and office interiors, is frequently a mass of unrelated lighting devices, air conditioning outlets, and the like. Ceilings were emphasized in the Baroque and 18th-century traditions:

November Insurrection

2005-02-10T17:24:00.000-08:00

When a revolution broke out in Paris (July 1830) and the Russian emperor Nicholas I indicated his intention of using the Polish Army to suppress it, a Polish secret society of infantry cadets staged an uprising in

Art, African, Ekoi

2005-02-10T04:32:00.000-08:00

The Ekoi peoples (Anyang, Boki, Ejagham, Keaka, and Yako) are best known for their large, skin-covered masks, which have two or even three faces, and for their smaller headpieces, which represent a head or an entire figure. The headpieces and masks have metal teeth, inlaid eyes, and frequently pegs to represent hair, which, alternatively, may be carved in elaborate coils. They

Quad

2005-02-09T11:12:00.000-08:00

Unit of energy equal to 1 quadrillion (1015) British thermal units (BTU). The quad is a convenient unit for describing national and world energy resources. One quad is also equal to 293 billion kilowatt hours, or, for fuels of average heating values, 183 million barrels of petroleum, 38.5 million tons of coal, or 980 billion cubic feet of natural gas.

Tsévié

2005-02-08T23:46:00.000-08:00

Town, southern Togo, West Africa. It is located about 20 miles (32 km) north of Lomé, the national capital. The town constitutes an important centre for palm oil processing and a major market for commercial trade among Togo's régions. Tsévié has road and railway links with Notsé, Atakpamé, and Blitta to the north and with Lomé to the south. The Ewe people inhabit Tsévié and the surrounding

Valdés Leal, Juan De Nisa

2005-02-08T18:53:00.000-08:00

His father was Portuguese, and Valdés Leal was educated in Córdoba under the guidance of Antonio del Castillo and worked there until 1653. For the next few years he

Nadelman, Elie

2005-02-08T00:52:00.000-08:00

Nadelman left home at age 19 and, after briefly attending the Warsaw Art Academy, spent six months in Munich, Germany, studying the city's art collection. In 1904 he moved to Paris,

Ear, Human, Tuning-fork tests

2005-02-07T20:25:00.000-08:00

In the Rinne test the sounding tuning fork is placed on the mastoid process, and the person

Alain De Lille

2005-02-06T05:48:00.000-08:00

Alain studied and taught at Paris, lived for some time at Montpellier, and later joined the Cistercians in Cîteaux. As a theologian, he shared in the mystic reaction of the second half of the 12th century against Scholastic

Zaltan

2005-02-06T01:34:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Zelten, town site at the first exploited oil field in Libya. Located 105 miles (169 km) south of the Mediterranean port of Marsa al-Burayqah on the Gulf of Sidra, at the foot of the Zaltan Mountains, the town is in the centre of the so-called oasis group of oil fields that includes Jalu (Gialo), Waha, and Ar-Raqubah (Raguba). Discovered in 1959 and recognized as the nation's first large strike (17,500 barrels per day),

Greece, History Of, The Metaxas regime and World War II

2005-02-05T21:28:00.000-08:00

Public disillusionment with the endless intrigues of the political world, which had been growing apace in the preceding years, was exacerbated when the news leaked that the main political blocs were secretly negotiating with the communists. When the nonpolitical figure appointed by the king to head a caretaker government charged with overseeing the elections

Tibet, Administration and culture under the Manchu

2005-02-05T17:06:00.000-08:00

Chinese contacts