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Estate Agent Fitzrovia

2006-10-25T00:40:00.000-07:00

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.

Ibrahim Pasha

2005-03-29T23:59:00.000-08:00

A son, or adopted son, of the famous vali Muhammad 'Ali, in 1805 Ibrahim joined his father in Egypt, where he was made governor of Cairo. During 1816–18 he successfully commanded an army against the Wahhabite rebels in Arabia. Muhammad 'Ali sent him on a mission

Midas

2005-03-29T18:42:00.000-08:00

Abbreviation of Missile Defense Alarm System, any of a series of unmanned U.S. military satellites developed to provide warning against surprise attacks by Soviet intercontinental ballistic missiles. Midas was the first such warning system in the world. Launched during the early 1960s, the reconnaissance satellites were equipped with infrared sensors capable of detecting the heat of a ballistic missile's rocket

New General Catalogue Of Nebulae And Clusters Of Stars

2005-03-29T06:23:00.000-08:00

(NGC), basic reference list of star clusters, nebulas, and galaxies. It was compiled in 1888 by Danish astronomer Johan Ludvig Emil Dreyer, who based his work on earlier lists made by the Herschel family of British astronomers. Dreyer included some 8,000 celestial objects, a total raised to about 13,000 by his first and second Index Catalogues (IC), published in 1895 and 1908, respectively. With these

Ramana Maharshi

2005-03-27T23:25:00.000-08:00

Original name Venkataraman Aiyer Hindu philosopher and yogi called “Great Master,” “Bhagavan” (the Lord), and “the Sage of Arunachala,” whose position on monism (the identity of the individual soul and the creator of souls) and maya (illusion) parallels that of Sankara (c. AD 700–750). His original contribution to yogic philosophy is the technique of vicara (self-“pondering”

August

2005-03-27T10:14:00.000-08:00

Eighth month of the Gregorian calendar. See month and the accompanying Table.

Industrial Glass, Tableware

2005-03-27T07:14:00.000-08:00

Tableware tumblers are made by blowing glass at the end of a blowing pipe into a split paste-mold. The paste-mold is made of cast iron and is lined with a wetted cork-type or pasted-sawdust material. The resulting steam cushion gives a smooth finish to the glass, which is rotated in the mold during the blowing step. The formed ware is then gently knocked off the pipe by a light

Oat Grass

2005-03-26T10:07:00.000-08:00

Any of the perennial plants of two genera of grasses, Arrhenatherum and Danthonia (family Poaceae). Approximately six species of tall grasses, native to temperate Europe and Asia, constitute the genus Arrhenatherum. Tall oat grass (A. elatius), which has been introduced into various countries as a pasture grass, grows wild in many areas and is considered a weed, especially

Aryabhata

2005-03-26T07:49:00.000-08:00

First unmanned Earth satellite built by India. It was named for a prominent Indian astronomer and mathematician of the 5th century AD. The satellite was assembled at Peenya, near Bangalore, but was launched from within the Soviet Union by a Russian-made rocket on April 19, 1975. Aryabhata weighed 794 pounds (360 kilograms) and was instrumented to explore conditions in the Earth's ionosphere,

United States, Bank Of The

2005-03-25T23:21:00.000-08:00

Central bank chartered in 1791 by the U.S. Congress at the urging of Alexander Hamilton and over the objections of Thomas Jefferson. Extended debate over its constitutionality contributed significantly to the evolution of pro- and anti-bank factions into the first American political parties—respectively, the Federalists and the Democratic-Republicans. Antagonism

Bhamo

2005-03-24T20:53:00.000-08:00

In ancient times Bhamo

Bracteate

2005-03-24T06:36:00.000-08:00

These circular bracteates were derived from late Roman and Byzantine coins. Goldsmiths later abandoned the Roman

Power Steering

2005-03-24T05:27:00.000-08:00

System to aid the steering of an automobile by use of a hydraulic device (driven from the engine) that amplifies the turning moment, or torque, applied to the steering wheel by the driver. To reduce the torque required from the driver as cars became heavier and tires softer, gears were introduced between the steering wheel shaft and the linkage that turns the wheels.

Baba Taher

2005-03-22T09:21:00.000-08:00

Most of his life is clouded in mystery. He probably lived in Hamadan. His nickname, 'Aryan (the Naked), suggests that he was a wandering dervish, or mystic. Legend tells that the poet, an illiterate woodcutter, attended lectures at a religious college, where he was ridiculed

Avunculate

2005-03-22T07:20:00.000-08:00

Special relationship between a man and his sister's children, particularly her sons, which prevails in many societies, notably those characterized by matrilineal descent. The term is derived from the Latin avunculus, meaning “uncle.” It typically involves for the uncle a measure of authority over his nephews, coupled with specific responsibilities in their upbringing,

Aulos

2005-03-21T15:15:00.000-08:00

Each aulos was made of cane, wood, or metal and had three or four

Alarcos, Battle Of

2005-03-20T01:12:00.000-08:00

(July 18, 1195), celebrated Almohad victory in Muslim Spain over the forces of King Alfonso VIII of Castile. In 1190 the Almohad caliph Abu Yusuf Ya'qub forced an armistice on the Christian kings of Castile and Leon, after repulsing their attacks on Muslim possessions in Spain. At the expiration of the truce (c. 1194) Alfonso invaded the province of Sevilla (Seville), prompting Abu Yusuf to leave

Eystein I Magnusson

2005-03-19T22:09:00.000-08:00

An illegitimate son of Magnus III Barefoot, Eystein succeeded to the throne in 1103 with his younger brothers Sigurd I and Olaf (IV); the latter, a child, died in 1115, but Sigurd outlived Eystein. While Sigurd was off on crusades in Moorish Spain and the Holy

Annelid, Development

2005-03-19T21:38:00.000-08:00

In annelids, the first four cells (blastomeres) give rise, by alternating clockwise and counterclockwise

Halakhah

2005-03-18T21:49:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Halakha, Halakah, or Halachah (Hebrew: “the Way”), plural Halakhahs, Halakhot, Halakhoth, or Halachot, in Judaism, the totality of laws and ordinances that have evolved since biblical times to regulate religious observances and the daily life and conduct of the Jewish people. Quite distinct from the Law of the Pentateuch (the first five books of the Bible), Halakhah purports to preserve and represent oral traditions stemming from the revelation on Mount Sinai or

Kama-loka

2005-03-18T17:49:00.000-08:00

In Buddhism, the world of feeling. See arupa-loka.

Basedow, Johann Bernhard

2005-03-18T09:09:00.000-08:00

Basedow as a boy revolted

Straparola, Gianfrancesco

2005-03-17T15:41:00.000-08:00

Straparola's Piacevoli notti (1550–53; The Nights of Straparola) contains 75 novellas (short prose tales) that were later used as source material by William Shakespeare, Molière, and others; it introduced into European literature 20 folktales, among

Obi

2005-03-17T15:16:00.000-08:00

The contemporary, wide obi evolved in the early 18th century. It is frequently

Cabriole Leg

2005-03-16T16:16:00.000-08:00

The early

Epistolary Novel

2005-03-16T02:58:00.000-08:00

A novel told through the medium of letters written by one or more of the characters. Originating with Samuel Richardson's Pamela; or, Virtue Rewarded (1740), the story of a servant girl's victorious struggle against her master's attempts to seduce her, it was one of the earliest forms of novel to be developed and remained one of the most popular up to the 19th century. The epistolary

Aluko, T.m.

2005-03-15T22:07:00.000-08:00

A civil engineer and town planner by profession, Aluko was educated in Ibadan, Lagos, and London and held positions as director of public works for western Nigeria and faculty member at the University of Lagos. He first became known

Abbey

2005-03-14T14:49:00.000-08:00

Group of buildings housing a monastery or a convent, centred on an abbey church or a cathedral and under the direction of an abbot or an abbess. In this sense, an abbey consists of a complex of buildings serving the needs of a self-contained religious community. The term abbey is also used loosely to refer to priories, smaller monasteries under a prior. In England, since

Adams, Samuel Hopkins

2005-03-14T04:10:00.000-08:00

One of the so-called muckrakers of the period, Adams

Faenza

2005-03-14T03:14:00.000-08:00

Latin Faventia, city, Ravenna provincia, in the Emilia-Romagna regione of northern Italy, on the Lamone River, southeast of Bologna. In the 2nd century BC it was a Roman town (Faventia) on the Via Aemilia, but excavations show Faenza to have had a much earlier origin. It was later subject to many barbarian attacks, became an independent commune at the beginning of the 12th century, and withstood

Literature

2005-03-13T04:24:00.000-08:00

In many ways 1996 was a dispiriting year for literature. While more books were published than ever before, the rift between serious literary writing and the vast majority of titles grew wider. This was the result, particularly in the “first world,” of four converging trends: the continuing absorption of independent publishing houses; the focus on cultural studies that

Chattahoochee River

2005-03-13T01:37:00.000-08:00

River having its source in several headstreams in the Blue Ridge Mountains in northeastern Georgia, U.S. It flows southwestward across northern Georgia to West Point, south of which its course marks the Georgia-Alabama and Georgia-Florida boundaries until it joins the Flint River at Chattahoochee, Fla., after a course of about 436 miles (702 km), where it forms the Apalachicola

Valdivia, Pedro De

2005-03-11T19:23:00.000-08:00

Valdivia served with the Spanish army in Italy and Flanders before being sent to South America in 1534. During the Peruvian civil war (1538), he fought with Francisco Pizarro against Diego de Almagro. For the Chilean

Wapentake

2005-03-11T02:46:00.000-08:00

An administrative division of the English counties of York, Lincoln, Leicester, Nottingham, Derby, and Rutland, first clearly referred to at the end of the 10th century and corresponding to the “hundred” in other parts of England. The term wapentake is of Scandinavian origin and meant the taking of weapons; it later signified the clash of arms by which the people assembled

Anauxite

2005-03-10T14:27:00.000-08:00

Mineral, an interstratified mixture of kaolinite and free silica. See kaolinite.

Layamon

2005-03-10T10:23:00.000-08:00

Layamon describes himself

Andean Peoples

2005-03-10T00:52:00.000-08:00

Even these two technological developments, however, are not enough to characterize and explain the emergence of Andean civilizations. From the intimate knowledge of their environmental conditions, the people developed a set of values that may have started from a desire to minimize risks but that soon was elaborated into an economic and political ideal. Every

Bashkortostan

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

From Mount Yamantau, the highest peak in the southern Urals, elevation generally decreases southward and westward, with the heavily forested mountains giving way to open steppe interspersed with islands

Allergy

2005-03-09T07:16:00.000-08:00

Antigens that provoke an allergic reaction are called allergens. Typical allergens include pollens, drugs, lints, bacteria, foods, and dyes or chemicals. The immune system contains several mechanisms

Alder, Kurt

2005-03-08T04:21:00.000-08:00

Alder studied chemistry at the universities of Berlin and Kiel, where he received his doctorate

Elizabethan Literature

2005-03-08T04:18:00.000-08:00

Body of works written during the reign of Elizabeth I of England (1558–1603), probably the most splendid age in the history of English literature, during which such writers as Sir Philip Sidney, Edmund Spenser, Roger Ascham, Richard Hooker, Christopher Marlowe, and William Shakespeare flourished. The epithet Elizabethan is merely a chronological reference and does not describe

Mountain, Volcanoes and island arcs surrounding the Northwest Pacific Basin

2005-03-07T10:16:00.000-08:00

A chain of volcanoes extends from mainland Alaska down the Alaska Peninsula along the Aleutian Islands and then southwestward down the peninsula of Kamchatka in northeastern Siberia and along the Kuril Islands to Japan. The Pacific Plate is being subducted beneath this long volcanic chain. Most of the relief is the result of volcanism. The Aleutians and Kurils

Kassala

2005-03-06T15:10:00.000-08:00

Traditional region, east-central Sudan. It is bordered on the east by Ethiopia. The Atbara River, an important tributary of the Nile, flows northwestward through Kassala and causes seasonal floods during torrential summer rains. Rocky deserts dominate the centre of the region, while in the north is the Butana Plain, with sandy clay soils and occasional low hills with

Scilly, Isles Of

2005-03-06T13:39:00.000-08:00

Also called Scilly Isles group of about 50 small islands and many more islets lying southwest of Cornwall, England, 25–36 miles (40–58 km) off Land's End. Administratively, the islands are a distinct unit within England, though they form a part of the historic county of Cornwall. Because their council serves the functions of both a district and a county, they have a status similar to that of a unitary

Waihi

2005-03-06T03:07:00.000-08:00

Town, Waikato local government region, northern North Island, New Zealand, on the Ohinemuri River (tributary of the Waihou). Situated at the base of the Coromandel Peninsula on the northern end of the Waihi Plains, Waihi, whose name is Maori for “rising waters,” was founded three years after gold and silver were discovered just north of the site in 1875. Gold mining continued

Andersen, Tryggve

2005-03-05T23:20:00.000-08:00

Born on a farm and educated at the University of Kristiania, Andersen was an office worker. The young Andersen was fascinated with German Romanticism, especially as seen in the fantastic

Chamber Music

2005-03-05T02:22:00.000-08:00

For well over a century after its inception about 1600, chamber music was supported primarily by the nobility. Aristocratic establishments customarily employed groups of musicians who served as composers, conductors, and performers of a variety of operatic, orchestral, and chamber music; and traditionally the audiences were restricted to the patrons and their guests.

Water Chestnut

2005-03-04T21:36:00.000-08:00

The water caltrop (T. natans) has submerged leaves that are long, feathery, and rootlike, and floating leaves, in a loose rosette, that are attached to petioles, or leafstalks, 5 to 10 cm (2 to 4 inches) long.

United Kingdom, The reconquest of the Danelaw

2005-03-04T03:15:00.000-08:00

When Alfred died in 899, his son Edward succeeded him. A large-scale incursion by the Danes of Northumbria ended in their crushing defeat at Tettenhall in 910. Edward completed his father's plan of building a ring of fortresses around Wessex, and his sister Aethelflaed took similar measures in Mercia. In 912 Edward was ready to begin the series of campaigns by which he relentlessly

Henry, O.

2005-03-03T14:47:00.000-08:00

Pseudonym of William Sydney Porter American short-story writer whose tales romanticized the commonplace—in particular the life of ordinary people in New York City. His stories expressed the effect of coincidence on character through humour, grim or ironic, and often had surprise endings, a device that became identified with his name and cost him critical

Marietta

2005-03-03T01:16:00.000-08:00

During the

Agrionia

2005-03-02T13:51:00.000-08:00

(from Greek agrios, “wild,” or “savage”), Greek religious festival celebrated annually at Orchomenus in Boeotia and elsewhere in honour of the wine god Dionysus. The tradition is that the daughters of Minyas, king of Orchomenus, having despised the rites of the god, were driven mad by Dionysus and ate the flesh of one of their children; as punishment they were turned into bats

Vienne, Council Of

2005-03-01T04:41:00.000-08:00

15th ecumenical council of the Roman Catholic church (1311–12), convoked by Pope Clement V at the insistence of Philip IV of France, who demanded the posthumous trial of Pope Boniface VIII and the suppression of the Knights Templars, one of the great military religious orders founded during the Crusades. Vienne, near Lyon, was chosen because it was easily accessible and because

Caudata, Annotated classification

2005-03-01T03:20:00.000-08:00

Tailed amphibians with 2 or 4 legs; moist, usually

Price

2005-03-01T00:55:00.000-08:00

City, seat (1894) of Carbon county, central Utah, U.S., on the Price River, 65 miles (105 km) southeast of Provo. Settled in 1877 by Mormons, it was named for the river discovered in 1869 by William Price, a bishop of the Mormon church. Its growth was spurred by the arrival of the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad in 1883. Coal production, livestock, and agriculture (sugar beets and grains) are major economic

Qajar Dynasty

2005-02-28T21:48:00.000-08:00

In 1779, following the death of Mohammad Karim Khan Zand, the Zand dynasty ruler of southern Iran, Agha Mohammad Khan (reigned 1779–97), a leader of the Turkmen Qajar tribe, set out to reunify Iran. By 1794 he had eliminated all his rivals, including Lotf 'Ali Khan, the last of the Zand dynasty, and had reasserted Iranian sovereignty over the former Iranian territories in

Wolfe, Charles

2005-02-27T19:34:00.000-08:00

Irish poet and clergyman, whose “Burial of Sir John Moore” (1817), commemorating the commander of the British forces at the Battle of Corunna (La Coruña, Spain) during the Peninsular War, is one of the best-known funeral elegies in English. Wolfe attended Trinity College, Dublin, was ordained in 1817, and held curacies in County Tyrone.

Hengist And Horsa

2005-02-26T21:40:00.000-08:00

Hengist also spelled Hengest (respectively d. c. 488; d. 455?), brothers and legendary leaders of the first Anglo-Saxon settlers in Britain who went there, according to the English historian and theologian Bede, to fight for the British king Vortigern against the Picts between AD 446 and 454. The brothers are said to have been Jutes and sons of one Wihtgils. The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle says that they landed at Ebbsfleet,

Syria, The state of the arts

2005-02-26T16:28:00.000-08:00

Following World War I, drawing was taught in the schools, and talented artists began to emerge. There is a faculty of fine arts

Aerobics

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

System of physical conditioning developed to increase the efficiency of the body's intake of oxygen. Typical aerobic exercises (e.g., walking, running, swimming, dancing, and cycling) stimulate heart and lung activity long enough to produce beneficial changes in the body. To be effective, aerobic training must include a minimum of three sessions per week. During each

Zinn, Walter Henry

2005-02-25T17:40:00.000-08:00

In 1934 Zinn received a Ph.D. from Columbia University in New York. He was recruited by Enrico Fermi for the Manhattan Project, and it was he who, at the University

Jordan, Transportation

2005-02-25T08:58:00.000-08:00

Jordan has a main, secondary, and rural road network, most of which is hard-surfaced. This roadway system, maintained by the Ministry of Public Works and Housing, not only links the major cities and towns but also connects the kingdom with neighbouring countries. One of the main traffic arteries is the Amman–Jarash–Ar-Ramtha highway, which links Jordan with Syria. The route

Tonga

2005-02-24T09:38:00.000-08:00

Agriculture is the mainstay of the Tongan economy. Coconuts, bananas, and vanilla beans constitute the main cash crops, and other important crops include yams, taro, cassava, corn (maize), watermelons, pineapples, and tomatoes. All land is essentially owned by the Crown, but large estates have been divided among the nobles of Tonga. Land is parceled out to peasant proprietors:

Tabby

2005-02-24T00:24:00.000-08:00

Type of dark-striped coat colouring found in both wild and domestic cats. One of the most common coat colours, the tabby pattern dates back to domestic cats in ancient Egypt. It is a recognized colour variety in purebred cats and is frequently seen in cats of mixed ancestry. Tabby colouring is highly variable but, for show cats, should consist of the following dark markings:

Bradenton

2005-02-23T07:10:00.000-08:00

City, seat (1903) of Manatee county, west-central Florida, U.S. It lies on the south bank of the Manatee River near its mouth at Tampa Bay, about 10 miles (15 km) north of Sarasota. The explorer Hernando de Soto landed nearby, probably at Shaw's Point, in 1539 (an event commemorated by a national memorial). Founded in the 1840s, the city was named for an early settler, Joseph Braden, who planted sugar and

Religion, Seventh-day Adventist Church.

2005-02-23T06:01:00.000-08:00

Celebrating 100 years of Adventism in southern Asia, the Annual Council of the world church met in Bangalore, India, in 1993. The church at first grew very slowly there, but in recent years India had become a fruitful field for growth, and membership in 1993 approached 200,000. The church in India was also moving toward financial strength; the centenary year saw the first conference, Mizoram,

Sanniquellie

2005-02-22T05:57:00.000-08:00

Also called Sangbui, Sanokole, or Sanokwele, town, north-central Liberia, located at the intersection of roads from Monrovia and Côte d'Ivoire (Ivory Coast). A rural administrative centre among the Mano and Malinke (Mandingo), Sanniquellie has secondary schools and the George W. Harley Memorial Hospital. There is local trade in agricultural products (rice, cassava, palm oil and kernels) and ivory carvings. Diamond

Chase, Mary Ellen

2005-02-22T05:32:00.000-08:00

Chase grew up in Maine, graduating from the University of Maine in 1909. Three autobiographical works describe her background and early experiences: A Goodly Heritage (1932), A Goodly Fellowship (1939), and The White Gate:

Jabal Shammar

2005-02-21T18:32:00.000-08:00

Mountainous area, northwestern Saudi Arabia, bounded by the regions of Hejaz on the west and Ash-Sharqiyah on the east. The principal features of the region are the two great mountain ranges of Aja' (granites) and Salma (basalts) and the immense rolling sand dunes of An-Nafud. The oasis town of Ha'il is situated on the southern flank of the Aja', while an older capital, Fayd, lies in the

Kyffhäuser Mountains

2005-02-21T06:57:00.000-08:00

German Kyffhäuser Gebirge, double line of hills on the northern edge of the Thüringer Basin in central Germany that extend for 13 miles (21 km) and reach a maximum height in the Kulpen-Berg (1,565 feet [477 m]). Lying in the lowland of Thuringia on the south side of the Harz Mountains, the range cuts off steeply to the north and slopes gently to the south. The northern hills look down upon the valley of the Goldene Aue

Ijtihad

2005-02-20T11:58:00.000-08:00

In Islamic law, the independent or original interpretation of problems not precisely covered by the Qur'an, Hadith (traditions concerning the Prophet's life and utterances), and ijma' (scholarly consensus). In the early Muslim community every adequately qualified jurist had the right to exercise such original thinking, mainly ra'y (personal judgment) and qiyas (analogical

Herculano De Carvalho E Araújo, Alexandre

2005-02-19T10:32:00.000-08:00

As a young man Herculano took part in the unsuccessful rebellion against the absolute rule of Dom Miguel

Alaska Current

2005-02-19T00:02:00.000-08:00

Flow velocities at a depth of 16 feet (5 m) have been reported to be as high as 1.7 knots (1.9 miles per hour)

Reformation Day

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

Anniversary of the day Martin Luther is said to have posted his Ninety-five Theses on the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg, Ger. (Oct. 31, 1517), later identified by Protestants as the beginning of the Reformation. (See Researcher's Note.) The European Lutheran territorial churches at first commemorated the Reformation on various days, among them the anniversary of Luther's

Smyrna

2005-02-18T13:38:00.000-08:00

Town, Kent county, central Delaware, U.S., near the Smyrna River. Established about 1755, it was known as Duck Creek Cross Roads (for its location on the creek, which flows into the Smyrna River) until 1806, when it was renamed for the biblical seaport of Asia Minor. In 1792 a piqued state assembly, barred from the State House at Dover by a sheriff, met in the village tavern and named Duck Creek

Perdiccas

2005-02-18T09:53:00.000-08:00

Perdiccas served with distinction in Alexander's campaigns and, upon Alexander's death, led the aristocratic party that supported the claim of the unborn child of Roxana, Alexander's widow, to the succession. After a compromise under which a division of the powers

Kadár, Ján

2005-02-18T01:52:00.000-08:00

Kadár attended Charles University, Prague, and the Film School at Bratislava, Czechoslovakia (1938). During World War II he was interned in a Nazi labour camp, after which he worked as a scriptwriter and assistant director, first at

Van Der Zee, James

2005-02-17T19:24:00.000-08:00

Van Der Zee made his first photographs as a boy in Lenox, Massachusetts. By 1906 he had moved with his father and brother to Harlem in New York City, where he worked as a waiter and elevator operator. In 1915 Van Der Zee moved to Newark, New Jersey, where he took

Alaska, Government

2005-02-16T17:14:00.000-08:00

Alaska's economy has been dominated by government since territorial days. From 1940 to 1960 the federal government invested nearly $2 billion in the development of military bases in Alaska. Nothing else in Alaska's history has produced such long-term results, bringing thousands of residents into the territory and creating jobs and a vast array of transportation and communications

Giotto Di Bondone

2005-02-16T06:27:00.000-08:00

In January 1330, King Robert of Naples promoted Giotto to the rank of “familiar” (member of the royal household), which implies that he had been in Naples for some while, possibly since 1329, and he remained there until 1332–33. All the works he executed there have been lost, but traces of his style may be distinguished in the local school. On April 12, 1334, he was appointed capomastro, or surveyor, of

Chan Ii

2005-02-16T00:14:00.000-08:00

When Chan's father, King Eng, died in 1796, the Thais had superiority. In 1802 Chan was recognized as the king of Cambodia by the Thais, and he was crowned in the Thai capital of Bangkok in 1806. The advisers to the

Lévis-lauzon

2005-02-15T05:06:00.000-08:00

City, Chaudière-Appalaches region, southern Quebec province, Canada, on the south shore of the St. Lawrence River, opposite the city of Quebec, with which it is linked by ferry. The settlement, founded in 1647, was formerly called Aubigny in honour of the Duke of Richmond (who had inherited the title of Duke d'Aubigny). From the heights above the town, the British general James Wolfe

Hoess, Rudolf Franz

2005-02-14T23:16:00.000-08:00

After serving in World War I, Hoess joined conservative cliques, was arrested and imprisoned (1923–28), and then joined the Nazi Party, becoming a member of the SS. In 1934 he began serving

Hungarian Literature, Early years

2005-02-13T14:04:00.000-08:00

The year 1906, when Endre Ady burst upon the literary scene with his Uj versek (“New Poems”), marked a turning point. In matters of style Ady was influenced by the French Symbolists, but in content he was concerned with radical political ideas. He rejuvenated the language of Hungarian poetry, introducing new themes and powerful new imagery. His rise was helped by the periodical

Aqaba, Gulf Of

2005-02-13T02:26:00.000-08:00

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

Framingham

2005-02-13T00:53:00.000-08:00

Town (township), Middlesex county, eastern Massachusetts, U.S. It lies along the Sudbury River, about 20 miles (32 km) west of Boston. Settled in 1650, it was incorporated in 1700 and derived its name from Framlingham, Suffolk, England. Framingham Center, just north of the downtown area, was the original village. Framingham's industrial development dates from 1835, with the utilization of local

Chaste Tree

2005-02-12T07:44:00.000-08:00

Its pliable twigs are used in basketry, and its red fruits are used for flavouring. The undersides of its five- to seven-lobed leaves and its branches are white felted. It is native

Bradford, William

2005-02-11T11:21:00.000-08:00

He was a Quaker and a self-taught artist, painting the ships and the marine views he saw along the coasts of Massachusetts, Labrador, and Nova Scotia; he went on several Arctic expeditions with Isaac Hayes and was the first

Lancaster, House Of

2005-02-11T01:30:00.000-08:00

The family name first appeared in 1267, when the title earl of Lancaster was granted to Edmund “Crouchback” (1245–96), the youngest son of Henry III. Two of Edmund's sons by his second

Trafalgar, Battle Of

2005-02-10T16:50:00.000-08:00

At the end of September 1805, Villeneuve had

Glassware, Venice and the façon de Venise

2005-02-10T09:19:00.000-08:00

A glass industry was already established near Venice in the 7th century, and vessel glass was made there by the last quarter of the 10th century. In 1291 the glass furnaces were removed to the neighbouring island of Murano to remove the risk of fire from the city. Although Venice had constant contact with the East, there is no evidence that it was indebted to that source for its

Issa

2005-02-10T02:09:00.000-08:00

A branch of the Somali (q.v.) people living in the Republic of Djibouti (formerly the French Territory of the Afars and Issas) on the east coast of Africa.

Kilauea

2005-02-09T01:57:00.000-08:00

The world's largest active volcanic mass, located on southeastern Hawaii Island, Hawaii, U.S. The central feature of Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, Kilauea (“Much Spreading”) is an elongated dome built of lava eruptions from a central crater and from lines of craters extending along east and southwest rifts, or fissures. The volcano's 4,090-foot (1,250-metre) summit has collapsed

Polish Literature, Literature in independent Poland

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

The restoration of the country's independence in 1918 decisively affected Polish literature. The period between 1918 and 1939 was characterized by richness, variety, and increasing contact with other European literatures, especially through the publication of translations. Lyrical poetry predominated for nearly a decade after 1918. The periodical Zdrój (“The Fountainhead”) showed

Carian Language

2005-02-07T21:32:00.000-08:00

Ancient language spoken in the southernmost area of western Anatolia. The language is known primarily from the more than 100 Carian graffiti that were left by Carian mercenaries who served in Egypt. Clay tablets and monumental inscriptions in the language have also been found in Caria since World War II. Carian appears to be written in an alphabetic script. Not enough

Jizah, Al-

2005-02-07T20:27:00.000-08:00

The

Alarcón Y Ariza, Pedro Antonio De

2005-02-07T15:17:00.000-08:00

Alarcón had achieved a considerable reputation as a journalist and poet when his play El hijo pródigo (“The Prodigal Son”) was hissed off the stage in 1857. The failure so exasperated him that he enlisted as a volunteer in the Moroccan campaign of 1859–60. The expedition

Babbitt, Isaac

2005-02-07T03:04:00.000-08:00

Trained as a goldsmith, Babbitt made the first britannia ware in the United States (1824) to compete with imports of utensils manufactured from this tin-based alloy, which was similar to pewter and then very popular. Ten years later he went to Boston

Corcoran Gallery Of Art

2005-02-06T09:56:00.000-08:00

The museum also houses the private collection of

Masirah

2005-02-05T06:19:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Masira, island of Oman, in the Arabian Sea, off the country's southeastern coast. The island is separated from the mainland by the narrow Tur'at (channel) Masirah. There is an airfield, occupied by the British until the late 1970s, at the northern tip. The Gulf of Masira lies between the island (north) and the Ra's (cape) al-Madrakah (south). Masirah is the habitat of large colonies of turtles. There