LivingUmbrella

0800 Promote

2006-11-23T16:05:00.000-08:00

0800 Promote are a London based company, established in 1989, primarily to supply quality business gifts. 0800promote provide an all-round facility to promote all aspects of corporate promotional activity and promotional products, including promotional printing,http://0800promote.com/printed-clothes.php and http://0800promote.com/printed-pen.php to name a few. We are a small building business who needed items printing on for a buyers show we were attending and we were extremely happy with 0800 Promotes services.

Khalil Ibn Ahmad, Al-

2005-04-04T17:53:00.000-07:00

When he moved to Basra, al-Khalil left the Ibadi sect of Islam, which was popular in his native Oman, for Sunnism (the largest branch of Islam). He lived simply and piously in Basra, where he taught. The renowned Sibawayh was

Rhythmic Mode

2005-04-02T15:32:00.000-08:00

Rhythmic organization in triple patterns underlying all polyphonic (many-voiced) music of the late 12th and 13th centuries, beginning with the descant sections of two-part organa of the Notre-Dame school in Paris and culminating in the multilingual motets of the 13th century; the latter forms feature two or three rhythmic modes simultaneously in different parts of the

Rowan College Of New Jersey

2005-04-01T21:20:00.000-08:00

Public, coeducational institution of higher learning in Glassboro, New Jersey, U.S. It includes the schools of Business, Education, Engineering, Fine and Performing Arts, and Liberal Arts and Sciences. In addition to some 30 bachelor's degree programs, the college offers a range of master's degree programs. There is a branch campus in Camden. University facilities include

Sa'adia Ben Joseph

2005-03-31T17:03:00.000-08:00

Sa'adia's opus magnum was on exegesis. He prepared

Sturdza, Dimitrie Alexandru

2005-03-29T06:53:00.000-08:00

The scion of a great boyar family, Sturdza participated through 1857–58 in the Moldavian organizational commissions that prepared the ground

Pendant

2005-03-27T20:32:00.000-08:00

The pharaohs of ancient Egypt wore pendants that were sometimes of huge dimensions,

Indonesia

2005-03-26T15:31:00.000-08:00

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

Armistice

2005-03-26T09:10:00.000-08:00

An agreement for the cessation of active hostilities between two or more belligerents. Generally, the terms, scope, and duration of an armistice are determined by the contracting belligerents. An armistice agreement may involve a partial or temporary cessation of hostilities—called a local armistice or truce—established for a variety of specific purposes, such

Ba'qubah

2005-03-25T09:38:00.000-08:00

Town, east-central Iraq. Located on the Diyala River and on a road and a rail line between Baghdad and Iran, it is a regional trade centre for agricultural produce and livestock. The name comes from the Aramaic Baya 'quba, meaning “Jacob's house.” The town is located on the site of a settlement dating back to pre-Islamic times. Under the 'Abbasid caliphate, it was a prosperous town known

Kachchh, Gulf Of

2005-03-24T21:31:00.000-08:00

Kachchh also spelled Kutch, Cutch , or Kachh northeastern arm of the Arabian Sea, extending between the Rann of Kachchh (a salt waste) and the Kathiawar Peninsula of west-central India. Reaching eastward for some 110 miles (180 km), the gulf varies in width from 10 to 40 miles (16 to 65 km). It is rimmed with mudflats, and many small islands rise from its waters. The port at the entrance to the gulf is Okha; other ports include Mandvi, Bedi, and

Desert Fathers

2005-03-24T14:46:00.000-08:00

Early Christian hermits whose practice of asceticism in the Egyptian desert, beginning in the 3rd century, formed the basis of Christian monasticism. One of these hermits, Pachomius of the Thebaid (c. AD 290–346; see Pachomius, Saint), who organized nine monasteries for men and two for women, is credited with being the founder of cenobitic (communal) monasticism in the Western

Watanabe Kazan

2005-03-23T06:28:00.000-08:00

The son of a poor retainer of a lesser lord, Watanabe studied painting to earn a living. In 1832 Watanabe, who was in the service of Lord Tawara of Mikawa,

Pendred's Syndrome

2005-03-22T13:00:00.000-08:00

Hereditary metabolic condition that is characterized by deafness and defective incorporation of iodine into thyroid hormone, resulting in goitre or enlargement of the thyroid gland. Pendred's syndrome is a major cause of congenital deafness. It does not produce symptoms of hypothyroidism (deficiency of thyroid activity) in most patients, nor does the condition

Ch'ungch'ong, South

2005-03-22T11:18:00.000-08:00

With one-third of its land area under cultivation, South Ch'ungch'ong is one of the best granaries in the country, producing rice, ginseng, tobacco, and peppermint.

Wantage

2005-03-21T14:52:00.000-08:00

Town (“parish”), Vale of White Horse district, administrative county of Oxfordshire, historic county of Berkshire, England. It is an old market town and the birthplace of the Anglo-Saxon king Alfred the Great (871–899), whose statue stands in the marketplace. The town is a modest service centre in rural surroundings, but research establishments, including the atomic-energy research

Igneous Rock, Classification of volcanic and hypabyssal rocks

2005-03-21T13:44:00.000-08:00

Owing to the aphanitic texture of volcanic and hypabyssal rocks, their modes cannot be readily determined; consequently, a chemical classification is widely accepted and employed by most petrologists. One popular scheme is based on the use of both chemical components and normative mineralogy. Because most lay people have little access to analytic facilities

Gum

2005-03-20T06:13:00.000-08:00

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

Cremona

2005-03-19T23:10:00.000-08:00

City, capital of Cremona provincia, Lombardia (Lombardy) regione, northern Italy, on the north bank of the Po River southeast of Milan. It was founded by the Romans in 218 BC on the site of an earlier Gallic village of the Cenomani. Virgil, the Roman poet, went to school there. With the decline of the Roman Empire, Cremona was repeatedly sacked by the Goths and the Huns before being

Great Dane

2005-03-18T13:52:00.000-08:00

Breed of working dog developed at least 400 years ago in Germany, where it was used for boar hunting. The Great Dane is typically a swift, alert dog noted for courage, friendliness, and dependability. It has a massive, square-jawed head, and body lines that give it an elegant appearance. Its short coat is black, golden brown, brindle, blue-gray, or white with black patches. The tallest

Samuelson, Paul

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

Samuelson was educated at the University of Chicago (B.A., 1935) and at Harvard University (Ph.D., 1941). He became a professor of economics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1940. Samuelson also served as an economic

Fabre, Jean Henri

2005-03-18T00:06:00.000-08:00

Fabre did important research on the insect orders

Cádiz

2005-03-17T21:51:00.000-08:00

The eastern part of the provincia is crossed by wooded spurs of

Earth

2005-03-17T08:34:00.000-08:00

The Earth's outermost rigid, rocky layer is called the lithosphere. It is broken, like a slightly cracked eggshell, into about a dozen separate rigid blocks, or plates. There are two types of plates, oceanic and continental. An example of an oceanic plate is the Pacific Plate, which extends from the East Pacific Rise to the deep-ocean trenches bordering the western part

Dominant

2005-03-16T23:32:00.000-08:00

Chords based on the dominant had a strong tendency to move to the tonic chord, and the key built

Orléans, Louis-philippe-robert, Duc D' (duke Of)

2005-03-16T07:00:00.000-08:00

The eldest son of Louis-Philippe-Albert, comte de Paris, and great-grandson of King Louis-Philippe, Orléans was banished from France in 1886 as a threat to the republican regime. Returning in 1890, he was arrested and given a prison sentence but was released after a few months

Eisenerz

2005-03-15T07:48:00.000-08:00

Town, Bundesland Steiermark (federal province of Styria), Austria, in the Erzbach Valley, at the northern foot of the Erzberg (Ore Mountain; 5,033 ft [1,534 m]), northwest of Leoben. Iron has been mined on the Erzberg by terraced open-pit methods since Roman times, and Eisenerz (“iron ore”) is the principal centre of Austrian iron mining, supplying most of the nation's total output. Notable

Rainmaking

2005-03-14T22:53:00.000-08:00

Any process of increasing the amount of precipitation discharged from a cloud. Primitive methods, such as rain dances or the throwing of pebbles into water, failed to produce rain, but modern techniques of seeding supercooled clouds with frozen carbon dioxide or silver iodide offer some possibility of increasing rainfall amounts substantially.

Guinea

2005-03-14T07:13:00.000-08:00

The shortage

Kerouac, Jack

2005-03-14T01:27:00.000-08:00

Of French-Canadian descent, Kerouac learned English as a second language as a schoolboy. Discharged from

Pontevedra

2005-03-13T18:37:00.000-08:00

Provincia, northwestern Spain, smallest of the four provinces of the comunidad autónoma (“autonomous community”) of Galicia. It is mountainous, with an Atlantic coastline deeply indented by the picturesque rías bajas (inlets) of Arosa, Pontevedra, and Vigo. Numerous traditional fiestas held throughout the province contribute, with the scenic beauty and fine beaches,

Spohr, Louis

2005-03-12T13:56:00.000-08:00

Spohr taught himself composition by studying the scores of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. He studied violin with the leader of the Brunswick orchestra and in 1802 with Franz Eck, who

Guadalcanal, Battle Of

2005-03-12T10:29:00.000-08:00

(August 1942–February 1943), series of World War II land and sea clashes between Allied and Japanese forces on and around Guadalcanal, one of the southern Solomon Islands, in the South Pacific. Japanese troops had landed on Guadalcanal on July 6, 1942, and had begun constructing an airfield there. On August 7, in the Allies' first major offensive in the Pacific, 6,000 U.S. Marines landed on Guadalcanal

Najahid Dynasty

2005-03-12T03:52:00.000-08:00

Muslim dynasty of Ethiopian Mamluks (slaves) that ruled Yemen in the period 1022–1158 from its capital at Zabid. The Ziyadid kingdom at Zabid (819–1018) had in its final years been controlled by Mamluk viziers, the last of whom divided Yemen between two slaves, Nafis and Najah. Nafis murdered the last Ziyadid ruler in 1018, and, after several years of bitter fighting and the death of Nafis, Najah emerged victorious

Grundtvig, N.f.s.

2005-03-11T18:50:00.000-08:00

After taking a degree in theology (1803) from the University of Copenhagen, Grundtvig studied the Edda

Carissimi, Giacomo

2005-03-11T09:16:00.000-08:00

Following brief appointments at Tivoli and Assisi, Carissimi settled in Rome in the late 1620s as director of music at the Church of Sant'Apollinare and retained this post until he died. Although not an operatic composer,

Silk Road

2005-03-11T01:11:00.000-08:00

Originating at Sian, the 4,000-mile (6,400-kilometre) road, actually a caravan tract, followed the Great Wall

Switzerland, Police and armed forces

2005-03-10T09:32:00.000-08:00

Police authority is generally exercised by the cantons, but larger cities also maintain municipal police forces. A small federal police corps enforces special federal laws concerning such crimes as treason and forgery (mainly in collaboration with cantonal police). However, there is growing support for enlarging the role of the federal police, particularly

Cumberland Wrestling

2005-03-09T13:21:00.000-08:00

Form of wrestling developed in northern England and southern Scotland, also called the North Country style. The wrestlers stand chest to chest, each grasping the other with locked hands around the body, each opponent's chin on the other's right shoulder. The right arm is placed below and the left above the adversary's. When the hold has been firmly taken, an umpire gives

Maccabees

2005-03-09T02:39:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Machabees priestly family of Jews who organized a successful rebellion against the Seleucid ruler Antiochus IV and reconsecrated the defiled Temple of Jerusalem.

Hard-boiled Fiction

2005-03-08T10:49:00.000-08:00

A tough, unsentimental style of American crime writing that brought a new tone of earthy realism or naturalism to the field of detective fiction. Hard-boiled fiction used graphic sex and violence, vivid but often sordid urban backgrounds, and fast-paced, slangy dialogue. Credit for the invention of the genre belongs to Dashiell Hammett (1894–1961), a former Pinkerton detective

'abd Al-rahman Iii

2005-03-08T01:34:00.000-08:00

Accounts of 'Abd ar-Rahman's reign may be found in W. Montgomery Watt, A History of Islamic Spain (1965, reissued 1977); and Stanley Lane-Poole, The Story of the Moors in Spain (1886, reprinted as The Moors in Spain, 1967).

Berenson, Senda

2005-03-07T02:49:00.000-08:00

The Valvrojenski family immigrated to the United States in 1875, adopting the name Berenson and settling in

Alonso, Dámaso

2005-03-06T13:48:00.000-08:00

Educated at the University of Madrid, Alonso taught at the Centre of Historical Studies, Madrid (1923–36), and was a professor at the University of Valencia (1933–39) and the University of Madrid (1939–68). He was also a lecturer or visiting professor at universities in

Arts, Central Asian

2005-03-06T13:47:00.000-08:00

Music in Central Asia flowered along centuries-old caravan routes linking the Middle East with China and India via what is often referred to as Turkistan, the vast region extending from the Caspian Sea to Sinkiang province in China. Musical instruments diffused from one region to another, and many of the musical styles still display foreign influence. The variety

Tigon

2005-03-06T07:27:00.000-08:00

Offspring of a tiger and a lioness. The tigon, or tiglon, is a zoo-bred hybrid, as is the liger, the product of the reverse mating of a lion with a tigress.

France, History Of, Charles X, 182430

2005-03-05T11:56:00.000-08:00

Charles X, the younger brother of Louis XVIII, had spent the Revolutionary years in exile and had returned embittered rather than chastened by the experience. What France needed, in his view, was a return to the unsullied principle of divine right, buttressed by the restored authority of the established church. The new king and his Cabinet—still headed by Villèle—promptly

Elijah

2005-03-05T08:42:00.000-08:00

One of the most important moments in the history of monotheism is the climax of Elijah's struggle with Baalism. His momentous words, “If Yahweh is God, follow him, but if Baal, then follow him”—especially when taken with the prayer “Hear me, Yahweh, that this people may know that you, Yahweh, are God”—show that more is at stake than simply allotting to divinities their particular

Zirid Dynasty,

2005-03-05T06:28:00.000-08:00

Also called Banu Ziri Muslim dynasty of Sanhajah Berbers whose various branches ruled in Ifriqiyah (Tunisia and eastern Algeria) and Granada (972–1152). Rising to prominence in the mountains of Kabylie, Algeria, where they established their first capital, Ashir, the Zirids became allies of the Fatimids of al-Qayrawan. Their loyal support prompted the Fatimid caliph al-Mu'izz, when moving to his new capital of

Sayyid

2005-03-03T17:05:00.000-08:00

In Pakistan and India

Halévy, (jacques-françois-) Fromental(-élie)

2005-03-03T02:02:00.000-08:00

Halévy studied at the Paris Conservatoire from the age of 10 and won the Prix de Rome in 1819 for his cantata Herminie. His first opera performed was L'Artisan (1827), but it was not until Le Dilettante d'Avignon

Chiang Mai

2005-03-02T20:32:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Chiengmai, largest city in northern Thailand and the third largest city in the nation after metropolitan Bangkok and Nakhon Ratchasima. It is located on the Ping River, a major tributary of the Chao Phraya River, near the centre of a fertile intermontane basin at an elevation of 1,100 feet (335 m). It serves as the religious, economic, cultural, educational, and transportation centre for

Jezebel

2005-03-02T00:48:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Jezabel in the Old Testament (Kings I and II), the wife of King Ahab, who ruled the kingdom of Israel; by interfering with the exclusive worship of the Hebrew god Yahweh, disregarding the rights of the common man, and defying the great prophets Elijah and Elisha, she provoked the internecine strife that enfeebled Israel for decades. She has come to be known as an archetype of the

Zaharias, Babe Didrikson

2005-03-01T21:07:00.000-08:00

From 1930 through 1932, Didrikson was a member of the women's All-America basketball team. During the same period she also won eight events and tied in a ninth in national championship competition

Biblical Literature, Authorship and style

2005-03-01T19:00:00.000-08:00

Apocalypticism was introduced into Asia Minor after AD 70 (the fall of Jerusalem), and c. 80–90 a prophetic circle was formed near Ephesus. Its leader was John, a prophet, who might well have been the author of Revelation, which is deeply steeped in apocalyptic traditions. The “Johannine circle” bearing the tradition of John, the Apostle of the Lord, and from which emerged the Gospel

Italian Literature, The Hermetic movement

2005-02-28T22:59:00.000-08:00

Poetry in the fascist period underwent a process of involution, partly influenced by French Symbolism, with its faith in the mystical power of words, and partly under the stress of changed political conditions after World War I, during which literature had declined. Many poets of the wartime generation, weary of tradition and rhetoric, had been seeking new expression:

Arts, East Asian, The formative period

2005-02-28T06:59:00.000-08:00

Sporadic Chinese influence on Korean culture began in the late Neolithic Period, but the influence

Distributive Law

2005-02-27T23:06:00.000-08:00

In mathematics, the law relating to number operations stated symbolically, a(b + c + d) = ab + ac + ad; that is, the monomial factor a is distributed, or separately applied, to each term of the polynomial factor b + c + d, resulting in the product ab + ac + ad. Hence, the result of first adding several numbers and then multiplying the sum by some number is the same as first multiplying each separately

Grotesque

2005-02-27T11:56:00.000-08:00

First revived in the Renaissance by the school of Raphael

Bouraoui, Hédi (andré)

2005-02-26T03:20:00.000-08:00

Bouraoui specialized in English literature at the University of Toulouse in France and then, in the United States, received degrees in English and American literature at Indiana University and in romance

Sitrah

2005-02-25T23:26:00.000-08:00

Town, in the state and emirate of Bahrain, located on Sitrah island in the Persian Gulf. An oil port, Sitrah handles not only the entire petroleum production of Bahrain but is also an export centre for oil fields in northeastern Saudi Arabia. A submarine and land pipeline runs northwest about 36 miles (58 km) across the Gulf of Bahrain and Bahrain island, from Al-Damman on the

Biblical Literature, Hebrew prophecy

2005-02-24T17:21:00.000-08:00

Hebrew prophecy was rooted in the prophetic activities of various individuals and groups from the nations and peoples of the ancient Near East. Though prophecy among ancient Egyptians, Mesopotamians, and Canaanites—as well as among the peoples of the Aegean civilization—generally was connected with “foretelling” (or predicting) the future, the Hebrew view of prophecy

Shensi, Administration and social conditions

2005-02-24T17:14:00.000-08:00

The province has three prefecture-level municipalities (shih) directly subordinated to the provincial government. One of these municipalities includes the provincial capital, Sian. The rest of the province is organized into seven prefectures (ti-ch'ü); the northern plateau area is divided between the Yü-lin Prefecture in the far north and the Yen-an Prefecture farther

Amputation

2005-02-24T04:15:00.000-08:00

In medicine, removal of any part of the body. Commonly the term is restricted to mean surgical removal of a part of or an entire limb, either upper or lower extremity. The reasons for surgical amputation in general are injury, infection, tumour, diabetes, or insufficient blood supply. Persons born without a limb or limbs are said to have suffered congenital amputation.

Habakkuk, The Book Of

2005-02-23T19:54:00.000-08:00

It is difficult to fix the date of the book, but the mention of the Chaldeans as Yahweh's agent (1:6) suggests the period

Catamarca

2005-02-23T07:44:00.000-08:00

Also called San Fernando Del Valle De Catamarca city, capital of Catamarca province, northwestern Argentina, on the Río del Valle de Catamarca, a river between the two south-pointing spurs of the Andean sierras of Ambato and Ancasti. Originally named Londres, it was founded by the explorer Juan Pérez de Zurita (1559) in the Valle de Quinmivil. Following various moves due to hostile Indians, Catamarca was established in

Earth, Age of the oldest marine sediments

2005-02-22T11:27:00.000-08:00

Samples of sediments have been recovered as a result of deep drilling and piston coring from many parts of the world's ocean basins. These sediments have been dated by means of the fossils they contain. Such studies have shown that no old sediments are present (at least in the areas sampled) near mid-oceanic ridges. Moreover, the studies also have revealed that the age

Waits, Tom

2005-02-22T08:14:00.000-08:00

Born into a middle-class California family but enamoured of the bohemian lifestyle depicted

Athis-mons

2005-02-21T19:29:00.000-08:00

Town, southern suburb of Paris, in Essonne département, Île-de-France région, northern France. Athis-Mons lies near the confluence of the Orge and Seine rivers and is bisected by the N7 road artery leading to the centre of Paris. It was ancient Attegais, later Athis-sur-Orge, where a treaty of that name was signed in 1305 by the king of France and the count of Flanders. A Romanesque

Interior Design, China

2005-02-21T13:27:00.000-08:00

Possessing the oldest Eastern civilization, China has powerfully influenced the others. Forms and motifs of decoration, which began as early as the Shang dynasty (18th to 12th century BC), or even before in the legendary Hsia dynasty, persist throughout Chinese history. Early forms of bronze altar vessels, for example, are found in porcelain in the 18th and 19th centuries, slightly

Stewart, Payne William

2005-02-21T04:10:00.000-08:00

American golfer who during a 19-year career captured 18 professional tournaments, notably the Professional Golfers' Association 1989 title and the 1991 and 1999 U.S. Open titles as well as a stunning comeback victory as part of the 1999 U.S. Ryder Cup squad; he was instantly recognizable on the golf course wearing his trademark knickers and tam-o'-shanter. He was killed in a plane crash (b. Jan. 30, 1957, Springfield,

Plutus

2005-02-20T10:55:00.000-08:00

In Greek religion, god of abundance or wealth, a personification of ploutos (Greek: “riches”). According to Hesiod, Plutus was born in Crete, the son of the goddess of fruitfulness, Demeter, and the Cretan Iasion. In art he appears chiefly as a child with a cornucopia. He was sometimes confused with Pluto (Hades), god of the underworld.

Performing Arts, Nontheatrical Films.

2005-02-19T16:32:00.000-08:00

The Academy Award-winning

Cyrenaic

2005-02-18T21:15:00.000-08:00

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

Annelid, Behaviour and associations.

2005-02-18T20:07:00.000-08:00

Various polychaetes (for example, Syllis, Chaetopterus, Cirratulus, Terebella) are bioluminescent—that is, capable of producing light. The phenomenon occurs within the cells of Polynoe; the lower surfaces of some scale worms (Halosydna) have special photocells that produce light when stimulated. Odontosyllis light production is related to sexual maturity and

Kuei-lin

2005-02-18T14:43:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Kweilin , formerly Lin-kuei , Pinyin Guilin , or Lingui large city in northeastern Kwangsi Chuang autonomous ch'ü (region), China. It stands on the west bank of the Kuei River, which is a tributary of the Hsi. The natural route centre of the Kuei River basin, Kuei-lin lies along the easiest of all the routes leading from central China to Kwangtung province—that between the headwaters of the Hsiang River in Hunan province and

Karachi

2005-02-17T15:52:00.000-08:00

City and capital of Sindh province, southern Pakistan. It is the country's largest city and principal seaport and is a major commercial and industrial centre. Karachi is located on the coast of the Arabian Sea immediately northwest of the Indus River Delta. The city proper covers an area of 228 square miles (591 square km), while the metropolitan area of Greater Karachi spreads

Mars

2005-02-17T13:31:00.000-08:00

Mars's festivals at Rome occurred in the spring and the

Philistine

2005-02-17T04:22:00.000-08:00

One of a people of Aegean origin who settled on the southern coast of Palestine in the 12th century BC, about the time of the arrival of the Israelites. According to biblical tradition (Deuteronomy 2:23; Jeremiah 47:4), the Philistines came from Caphtor (possibly Crete). They are mentioned in Egyptian records as prst, one of the Sea Peoples that invaded Egypt in about 1190 BC after ravaging

Mauer

2005-02-16T21:35:00.000-08:00

Pleistocene locality on the Neckar River of Germany and the name of a Pleistocene deposit, the Mauer Sands (the Pleistocene epoch began about 1,600,000 years ago and ended about 10,000 years ago). The Mauer Sands are about 64 feet (20 m) thick and contained the fossil remains of the sabre-toothed cat, bear, horse, hippopotamus, and extinct elephant; Germany's oldest human fragment, the Heidelberg

Wright, James C(laude), Jr.

2005-02-15T08:52:00.000-08:00

Wright was educated at Weatherford College and the University of Texas before serving in the Army Air Force during World War II. After the war he entered politics as a Democrat

Bear Grass

2005-02-14T23:05:00.000-08:00

Also called Turkey Beard, one of two species of North American plants comprising the genus Xerophyllum of the lily family (Liliaceae). The western species, X. tenax, also is known as elk grass, squaw grass, and fire lily. It is a smooth, light-green mountain perennial with a stout, unbranched stem, from 0.6 to 2 metres (2 to 6 feet) high, which rises from a woody, tuber-like rootstock and cordlike roots. The stem bears

France, History Of, Restructuring France

2005-02-14T13:16:00.000-08:00

From 1789 to 1791 the National Assembly acted as a constituent assembly, drafting a constitution for the new regime while also governing from day to day. The constitution established a limited monarchy, with a clear separation of powers in which the king was to name and dismiss his ministers. But sovereignty effectively resided in the legislative branch, to consist of a single

Tiergarten

2005-02-14T01:14:00.000-08:00

District of Berlin, Germany, on the Spree River. Before World War II the district was Berlin's diplomatic quarter and the site of the War Ministry. It includes the famous 630-acre (255-hectare) Tiergarten Park, a deer preserve until the 18th century. The park was destroyed in World War II, but it has been replanted; its new “English garden” was donated by the British. The zoological gardens

Saratoga

2005-02-13T17:04:00.000-08:00

County, eastern New York state, U.S., bounded by the Hudson River to the northeast and east and the Mohawk River to the southeast. Other waterways include Snook Kill and Great Sacandaga, Saratoga, and Galway lakes. The terrain rises from Hudson valley lowlands in the south and east to the Adirondack Mountains in the northwest. Adirondack Park occupies the northwestern

Arabia, History Of, Yemen

2005-02-13T02:20:00.000-08:00

To quell a rising in Yemen, the 'Abbasid caliph al-Ma'mun dispatched Ibn Ziyad, who refounded in 820 the southern city of Zabid and became overlord of Yemen, Najran, and Hadhramaut. About a century later, the Najahids—Ethiopian slaves or local Afro-Asians—supplanted the Ziyadids in Zabid; however, though independent, neither dynasty renounced vague 'Abbasid suzerainty. The Banu Ya'fur

Nordhausen

2005-02-12T09:46:00.000-08:00

City, Thuringia Land (state), central Germany, lying on the Zorge River, at the southern slopes of the Harz Mountains, in the fertile lowland known as the Goldene Aue (“Golden Meadow”). First mentioned in 927 as the site of a royal castle near the older Frankish settlement of Northusen (Nordhusa), it was made a free imperial city in 1290 and accepted the Reformation in 1522. It lost its independence

çatalhüyük

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

Major Neolithic site in the Middle East, located near Konya in south-central Turkey. Excavations (1961–65) by the British archaeologist James Mellaart have shown that Anatolia in Neolithic times was the centre of an advanced culture. The earliest building period at Çatalhüyük is tentatively dated to about 6700 BC and the latest to about 5650 BC. The inhabitants lived in rectangular mud-brick

Wolfgang, Marvin

2005-02-11T15:06:00.000-08:00

Wolfgang attended the University of Pennsylvania, where he received M.A. (1950) and Ph.D. (1955) degrees. He officially joined the faculty of the University

Orange

2005-02-11T14:39:00.000-08:00

City, seat (1852) of Orange county, southeastern Texas, U.S. It lies at the Louisiana state line. Orange is a deepwater port on the Sabine River, which has been canalized to connect with the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway. It is linked to Beaumont and Port Arthur by the tall Rainbow Bridge (1938), built to allow passage of the tallest ship of its time; with Beaumont and Port Arthur, Orange forms

Carthage

2005-02-10T22:40:00.000-08:00

Dubos, René

2005-02-10T13:26:00.000-08:00

In full René Jules Dubos French-born American microbiologist, environmentalist, and author whose pioneering research in isolating antibacterial substances from certain soil microorganisms led to the discovery of major antibiotics. Dubos is also known for his research and writings on a number of subjects, including antibiotics, acquired immunity,

Clove Tree

2005-02-09T21:21:00.000-08:00

Tropical tree, a species of the genus Eugenia (q.v.).

Switzerland, Science

2005-02-09T17:09:00.000-08:00

Swiss scientists have included Paracelsus (Theophrastus Bombastus von Hohenheim), who in the 16th century brought chemistry into the field of medicine; the Bernoulli family of Basel, who made significant contributions to mathematics over three generations; the innovative mathematician Leonhard Euler; the naturalist and pioneer Alpine scholar Horace Bénédict

Polaron

2005-02-09T13:30:00.000-08:00

Electron moving through the constituent atoms of a solid material, causing the neighbouring positive charges to shift toward it and the neighbouring negative charges to shift away. This distortion of the regular position of electrical charges constitutes a region of polarization that travels along with the moving electron. After the electron passes, the region

African American Literature

2005-02-06T13:56:00.000-08:00

Body of literature written by Americans of African descent. Beginning in the pre-Revolutionary War period, African American writers have engaged in a creative, if often contentious, dialogue with American letters. The result is a literature rich in expressive subtlety and social insight, offering illuminating assessments of American identities and history.

Holocaust, Non-Jewish victims of Nazism

2005-02-06T11:39:00.000-08:00

Political dissidents, trade unionists, and Social Democrats were among the first to be arrested and incarcerated in concentration camps. Under

Bka'-brgyud-pa

2005-02-06T02:40:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Kagyupa (Tibetan: “Transmitted Word”), third largest Buddhist sect in Tibet. Its members are followers of the 11th-century teacher Mar-pa, who distinguished himself as a translator of Buddhist texts while continuing to live the life of a householder. Mar-pa studied in India under the master yogin (spiritual adept, or ascetic) Naropa, and the school stresses the more severe practices

Indian Paint Brush

2005-02-06T01:35:00.000-08:00

Also called Painted Cup, Painted Lady, or Paint Brush, any plant of the genus Castilleja (family Scrophulariaceae), which contains about 200 species of partially or wholly parasitic plants that derive nourishment from the roots of other plants. For this reason the plants are seldom cultivated successfully in the flower garden. The small, tubular flowers are irregular (two-lipped). They are surrounded by upper

Thebes

2005-02-05T10:55:00.000-08:00

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