HealthyBook

serviced offices

2006-11-01T13:30:00.000-08:00

Office planet have a huge database of serviced offices throughout the UK. serviced offices provide an affordable and hassle free office solution

Levitation

2005-03-18T09:56:00.000-08:00

Rising of a human body off the ground, in apparent defiance of the law of gravity. The term designates such alleged occurrences in the lives of saints and of spiritualist mediums, generally during a séance; levitation of furniture and other objects during a séance has also been reported. Levitation of witches and other figures of folklore is called transvection

China

2005-03-17T10:51:00.000-08:00

Despite China's size, the wealth of its resources, and the fact that more than 20 percent of the world's population lives within its borders, its role in the world economy traditionally has been relatively small. Since the late 1970s, however, when China decided to increase its interaction with the international economy, its role in world trade has steadily grown and its importance

Austin

2005-03-15T01:01:00.000-08:00

City, seat (1857) of Mower county, southeastern Minnesota, U.S. It lies along the Cedar River, in a farming area specializing in corn (maize) and livestock. It was settled in 1853, laid out in 1856, and named for its first settler, Austin R. Nicholas. Austin Community College (1940) and the Mower County Historical Center are there. George A. Hormel and Company's meat-packing and food-processing plant

Marriage Law

2005-03-13T13:54:00.000-08:00

The body of legal specifications and requirements and other laws that regulate the initiation, continuation, and validity of marriages. Marriage is a legally sanctioned union usually between one man and one woman. At the beginning of the 21st century, marriage between people of the same sex was legally recognized in two countries, The Netherlands (2001) and Belgium (2003), and

Gymnure

2005-03-11T19:28:00.000-08:00

Also called Hairy Hedgehog, any of five species of Asian mammals composing the subfamily Echinosoricinae of the hedgehog (q.v.) family (Erinaceidae). These ratlike animals lack the short, barbless spines of spiny hedgehogs but have coarse guard hairs. Their tails are well developed. Gymnures are extremely malodorous. An example is the common gymnure (Echinosorex

Los Angeles Zoo, The

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

Byname Griffith Park Zoo, zoological park founded in 1912 in Los Angeles as the Griffith Park Menagerie. It is a completely outdoor zoo that has holdings of the emperor tamarin, mountain tapir, and California condor. The Los Angeles Zoo was also the first to breed the tarictic hornbill. Comprising a main zoo and a children's zoo, it occupies 46 hectares (113 acres) of Griffith Park, a large city-owned park. The

Dwight, John

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

After taking the degree of bachelor of civil law at Christ Church, Oxford, Dwight was appointed registrar and scribe to the diocese of Chester. In 1665 he moved to Wigan and sometime between 1671 and 1674 moved to Fulham, London. In 1671 Dwight took out a patent for “transparent earthenware, commonly knowne

Base

2005-03-05T22:29:00.000-08:00

Also called Radix, in mathematics, an arbitrarily chosen number in terms of which any number can be expressed. See number system.

Allman Brothers Band, The

2005-03-03T13:29:00.000-08:00

American rock band whose bluesy, jam-oriented sound helped spark the Southern rock movement of the 1970s and set the stage for several generations of roots-oriented improvisational rock bands. The members were Duane Allman (in full Howard Duane Allman; b. Nov. 20, 1946, Nashville, Tenn., U.S.—d. Oct. 29, 1971, Macon, Ga.), Gregg Allman (in full Gregory Lenoir Allman; b. Dec. 8, 1947, Nashville), Berry Oakley (in full

Wiesbaden

2005-03-01T15:31:00.000-08:00

City, capital (1946) of Hessen Land (state), southern Germany. It is situated on the right (east) bank of the Rhine River at the southern foot of the Taunus Mountains, west of Frankfurt am Main and north of Mainz. The settlement was known as a spa (Aquae Mattiacae) in Roman times. Its earthen fortifications (12 BC) were replaced by stone in AD 83, and a Roman wall (of which traces remain) was built about

San Fernando

2005-02-26T01:32:00.000-08:00

City and port of Trinidad, in the island country of Trinidad and Tobago, in the southern Caribbean Sea. It lies at the western end of the Central Range of hills on the flat, shallow coast of the Gulf of Paria, 36 miles (58 km) south of Port of Spain. Trinidad's second largest city, its chief function is that of an administrative and trading centre for the southern half of the island.

Bas-relief

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

Sculptural relief in which the projection from the surrounding surface is slight (see photograph). See relief.

Sangha River

2005-02-23T15:58:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Sanga, tributary of the Congo River, formed by the Mambéré and Kadeï headstreams at Nola, southwestern Central African Republic. The Sangha River flows 140 miles (225 km) south to Ouesso in Congo (Brazzaville), forming part of Cameroon's border with the Central African Republic and Congo. The river then turns south-southeast and southwest, flowing 225 miles (362 km) to its mouth on the Congo

An-k'ang

2005-02-21T01:48:00.000-08:00

Pinyin Ankang, formerly Hsing-an, city in southeastern Shensi sheng (province), China. Situated in the narrow valley of the Han River between the Tsinling and Ta-pa mountain ranges, it has been an important trade centre since antiquity, being situated at the junction of the east-west route via the Han River valley and the route to the north over the mountains to Sian (Ch'ang-an). A rail line, completed in 1978, links

Nicene Creed

2005-02-18T02:30:00.000-08:00

Until the early 20th century, it was universally assumed that the Niceno-Constantinopolitan

Chancellorsville, Battle Of

2005-02-16T04:33:00.000-08:00

(May 1–5, 1863), in the American Civil War, bloody assault by the Union army in Virginia that failed to encircle and destroy the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia. Following the “horror of Fredericksburg” (December 13, 1862), the Confederate army of General Robert E. Lee and the Union force under General Joseph Hooker had spent the winter facing each other across the Rappahannock River

Mold

2005-02-14T02:55:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Mould, in manufacturing, a cavity or matrix in which a fluid or plastic substance is shaped into a desired finished product. A molten substance, such as metal, or a plastic substance is poured or forced into a mold and allowed to harden. Molds are made of a wide variety of materials, depending on the application; sand is frequently used for metal casting, hardened steel for molds

Disease

2005-02-13T06:03:00.000-08:00

A brief discussion of disease follows. The subject is treated in a variety of articles. For a general discussion of human, animal, and plant diseases, see disease. For a discussion of diseases categorized according to their cause or transmission, see infection; nutritional

Saavedra (ramírez De Baquendano), ángel De, Duque De Rivas

2005-02-10T11:56:00.000-08:00

After entering politics Saavedra was condemned to death in 1823 for his extreme liberal views. He fled to London and lived subsequently in Italy,

Békés

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

Megye (county), southeastern Hungary, occupying 2,175 square miles (5,632 square km) of agricultural flatland on the Great Hungarian Plain. It has hot summers, severe winters, light rainfall, and a sparse natural vegetation. In the northern part of the megye, broad areas along the Körös and Berettyó rivers are irrigated. In addition to cereals, specialty crops of poppy seeds and sour

Subjective Idealism

2005-02-07T21:20:00.000-08:00

A philosophy based on the premise that nothing exists except minds and spirits and their perceptions or ideas. A person experiences material things, but their existence is not independent of the perceiving mind; material things are thus mere perceptions. The reality of the outside world is contingent on a knower. The 18th-century Anglo-Irish philosopher George

Atlas

2005-02-04T07:16:00.000-08:00

In Greek mythology, son of the Titan Iapetus and the nymph Clymene (or Asia) and brother of Prometheus (creator of mankind). In the works of Homer, Atlas seems to have been a marine creation who supported the pillars that held heaven and earth apart. These were thought to rest in the sea immediately beyond the most western horizon, but later the name of Atlas was transferred

Margaret

2005-02-03T04:50:00.000-08:00

Margaret's father was Eric II, king of Norway; her mother, Margaret, a daughter of King Alexander III of Scotland (ruled 1249–86), died in 1283. Because none of Alexander III's other children were alive at the time of his death (March 1286), the Scottish

Wagga Wagga

2005-02-01T19:30:00.000-08:00

City, southeastern New South Wales, Australia, situated on the Murrumbidgee River. A service centre for the fertile Riverina district (chiefly wheat and sheep), it is also the site of an agricultural college and research institute, a college of advanced education, a soil-conservation research station, and a Royal Australian Air Force base. Secondary industries include

Pas D'élévation

2005-01-28T05:28:00.000-08:00

(French: “high steps”), all jumping and leaping movements in classical ballet. The steps are admired for the height at which they are performed and for the dancer's ability to ascend without apparent effort and to land smoothly. Dancers famed for aerial maneuvers of this kind include Jean Balon, a French dancer of the late 17th century, and Vaslav Nijinsky, reportedly an early

Malay Peninsula

2005-01-25T05:13:00.000-08:00

Also called the Kra Peninsula, in Southeast Asia, a long, narrow appendix of the mainland extending south for a distance of about 700 miles (1,127 km) through the Isthmus of Kra to Cape Balai, southernmost point of the Asian continent; its maximum width is 200 miles (322 km). It lies between the Andaman Sea of the Indian Ocean and the Strait of Malacca (west), the Singapore Strait (south), and the Gulf of Thailand and the South

Cermak, Anton J.

2005-01-23T09:55:00.000-08:00

Cermak was born about 50 miles (80 km) from Prague but celebrated his first birthday on Ellis Island in New York harbour. His parents settled in Braidwood, Ill., where,

Buzzati, Dino

2005-01-22T00:34:00.000-08:00

Buzzati began his career on the Milan daily Corriere della Sera in 1928. His two novels of the mountains, written in the style of traditional realism, Barnabò delle montagne (1933; “Barnabus of the Mountains”) and Il segreto del bosco

Amazon Rainforest

2005-01-19T23:37:00.000-08:00

Large, tropical rainforest occupying the drainage basin of the Amazon River and its tributaries in northern South America, and covering an area of 2,300,000 square miles (6,000,000 square km). Comprising about 40 percent of Brazil's total area, it is bounded by the Guiana Highlands to the north, the Andes Mountain Ranges to the west, the Brazilian central plateau to the south, and the Atlantic

Kierkegaard, Søren

2005-01-17T15:03:00.000-08:00

In full SØren Aabye Kierkegaard Danish religious philosopher and critic of rationalism, regarded as the founder of existentialist philosophy. He is famous for his critique of systematic rational philosophy, particularly Hegelianism, on the grounds that actual life cannot be contained within an abstract conceptual system. With this stance, he intended to

God Save The Queen

2005-01-16T19:19:00.000-08:00

Also called (during a kingship) God Save the King British royal and national anthem. The origin of both the words and the music is obscure. The many candidates for authorship include John Bull (c. 1562–1628), Thomas Ravenscroft (c. 1583–c. 1633), Henry Purcell (c. 1639–95), and Henry Carey (c. 1687–1743). The earliest copy of the words appeared in Gentleman's Magazine in 1745; the tune appeared about the same time in an anthology, Thesaurus Musicus—in both instances without

Argentina, Mesopotamia

2005-01-14T08:24:00.000-08:00

Thin stands of tall wax palms occupy the flood zones of Mesopotamia. Groups of trees and grassy areas form a park landscape of noted beauty. Common trees are the quebracho, exploited for its tannin since colonial times, the urunday, and the guayacán, used for tannin and lumber. Gallery forests growing along rivers become denser and taller in Misiones province.

Aquinas, Thomas, Saint

2005-01-12T13:45:00.000-08:00

Escape from the feudal world, rapid commitment

Táchira

2005-01-09T09:21:00.000-08:00

State, western Venezuela, bounded on the west by Colombia. The territory of 4,300 square miles (11,100 square km) lies in the southwestern reaches of the Andean Cordillera de Mérida. Agriculture dominates the state's economy; coffee and sugarcane are the leading commercial crops. Rural industry, closely related to agriculture, is usually carried on in the local homes. Relatively

Leaf-nosed Bat

2005-01-07T01:41:00.000-08:00

Any of the bats belonging to the families Phyllostomatidae and Hipposideridae (qq.v.).

Accordion

2005-01-05T00:41:00.000-08:00

The advent of the accordion is the subject of debate among researchers. Many credit C. Friedrich L. Buschmann, whose Handäoline was patented in Berlin in 1822, as the

Dion Chrysostom

2005-01-02T11:08:00.000-08:00

Dion was banished in AD 82 for political reasons from both Bithynia and Italy. He wandered for 14 years through the lands near the Black Sea, adopting the life of poverty advocated by the Cynics. With the death of the emperor Domitian his exile

Alemanni

2004-12-31T04:01:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Alamanni, or Alamani, a Germanic people first mentioned in connection with the Roman attack on them in AD 213. In the following decades, their pressure on the Roman provinces became severe; they occupied the Agri Decumates c. 260, and late in the 5th century they expanded into Alsace and northern Switzerland, establishing the German language in those regions. In 496 they were conquered by Clovis and incorporated

Taqi Khan, Mirza

2004-12-26T07:55:00.000-08:00

At an early age Mirza Taqi learned to read and write despite his humble origins. He joined the provincial bureaucracy as a scribe and, by his abilities, rapidly advanced within the hierarchy of the administration. In 1829, as a junior

Shackleton, Sir Ernest Henry

2004-12-24T21:23:00.000-08:00

Educated at Dulwich College (1887–90), Shackleton entered the mercantile marine service in 1890 and became a sublieutenant in the Royal Naval Reserve in 1901. He joined Captain Robert Falcon Scott's British National Antarctic (Discovery) Expedition (1901–04) as third

Salem

2004-12-22T15:46:00.000-08:00

City, Essex county, northeastern Massachusetts, U.S. It lies on Salem Bay Harbor (an inlet of Massachusetts Bay), 16 miles (26 km) northeast of Boston. Salem was incorporated as a town in 1626 by Roger Conant, who emigrated from Cape Ann, 14 miles (22 km) northeast. The first Congregational Church in America was organized there in 1629, and Roger Williams, founder of Rhode Island colony, served as

Zamoyski Family

2004-12-22T03:19:00.000-08:00

The family settled in the 15th century at Laznin in the Mazovia area of Poland. Tomasz Lazninski bought an estate there called Zamosc, and his sons Florian (died 1510) and Maciej began to use the name Zamoyski. Florian's grandson Stanislaw was the first member of the family to serve as a

Venetic Language

2004-12-21T20:41:00.000-08:00

A language spoken in northeastern Italy before the Christian era. Known to modern scholars from some 200 short inscriptions dating from the 5th through the 1st century BC, it is written either in Latin characters or in a native alphabet derived from Etruscan, the Etruscans having established settlements in the Po Valley in the 6th century BC. Authorities are undecided as to

Indo-hittite Languages

2004-12-19T10:57:00.000-08:00

Hypothetical family of languages composed of the Indo-European and Anatolian languages. The term Indo-Hittite was proposed by scholars who believed that Hittite and the other closely related Anatolian languages represented a language branch coordinate with all the other Indo-European languages combined, rather than forming another branch coordinate with

Teaching Machine

2004-12-19T00:17:00.000-08:00

There are many types of teaching machines. In general, they all work on the same method, which is to present a question, have the user indicate the answer, and then provide the user with the correct answer. Some machines may be extremely simple, such as test sheets or books so programmed that

Pharmaceutical Industry, Dispersions

2004-12-17T18:18:00.000-08:00

Aerosols were formerly defined as colloidal systems consisting of very finely subdivided liquid or solid particles dispersed in a gas. Today the term aerosol, in general usage, has become synonymous with a pressurized package. For pharmaceutical purposes aerosols may be divided into two types. Space sprays disperse the medicament as a finely divided spray with

Bagirmi, Kingdom Of

2004-12-17T16:06:00.000-08:00

Bagirmi also spelled Baguirmi, historic African state founded in the 16th century in the region just southeast of Lake Chad. Europeans first learned about the existence of Bagirmi and the other powerful states of central Africa (Wadai Bornu-Kanem) when Dixon Denham penetrated the Lake Chad region in 1823. Details became known particularly from written records of the later explorers Heinrich Barth

Dwight, Timothy

2004-12-14T22:35:00.000-08:00

Educated by his mother, a daughter of the preacher Jonathan Edwards, Dwight entered Yale at age 13 and was graduated in 1769. He then pursued a variety of occupations, including those of a tutor at Yale, a school principal, a Massachusetts

Anastasius I, Saint

2004-12-13T07:17:00.000-08:00

Anastasius earned the praise of St. Jerome (Letter 127) for censuring (c. 400) the works of Origen, one of the most influential theologians of the early Greek church. In papal letters he condemned several Origenist writings and disapproved the spreading of Origen's teaching. Anastasius' virtues

Chemical Bonding

2004-12-12T06:10:00.000-08:00

Any of the interactions that account for the association of atoms into molecules, ions, crystals, and other stable species that make up the familiar substances of the everyday world. When atoms approach one another, their nuclei and electrons interact and tend to distribute themselves in space in such a way that the total energy is lower than it would be in any alternative

Palatalization

2004-12-12T01:23:00.000-08:00

In phonetics, the production of consonants with the blade, or front, of the tongue drawn up farther toward the roof of the mouth (hard palate) than in their normal pronunciation. Palatalized consonants in Russian are pronounced as if attempting simultaneously to pronounce a particular consonant and a y sound; in English, the ny in “canyon” approximates a palatalized

Earth, Geometry and rates of plate movement

2004-12-11T09:57:00.000-08:00

The plates range in size from about 400 by 2,500 kilometres to 10,000 by 10,000 kilometres. Some Earth scientists believe that the plates are equal in thickness to the lithosphere (see above). If this is so, the plates would be between 70 and 225 kilometres thick. Other investigators hold that the lithosphere moves along with the asthenosphere (the relatively plastic layer underlying the lithosphere)

Murat River

2004-12-10T23:26:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Murad River, Turkish Murat Nehri, river, the major headstream of the Euphrates. In antiquity it was called Arsanias. The river rises north of Lake Van near Mount Ararat, in eastern Turkey, and flows westward for 449 miles (722 km) through a mountainous region to unite with the Karasu Çayi and form the Upper Euphrates near Malatya. Turkey's largest dam, the Keban, west of Elâzig, completed in 1974, is designed to provide electric

Smith, Patti

2004-12-09T18:17:00.000-08:00

In full Patti Lee Smith American poet, rock songwriter, and singer. Growing up in New Jersey, Smith won an art scholarship to Glassboro State Teachers College. In 1967 she moved to New York City, where she became active in the downtown Manhattan arts scene, writing poetry and living with the photographer Robert Mapplethorpe. Her performance-driven poetry readings

Chinese Cabbage

2004-12-07T13:49:00.000-08:00

Either of two widely cultivated members of the mustard family (Brassicaceae). Brassica pekinensis, also called celery cabbage, forms a tight head of crinkled light green leaves. One type, Michihli, or Tientsin, forms slender cylindrical heads about 45 cm (18 inches) tall. It has long been grown in the United States as a salad vegetable. Napa is similar, but

Bent, Charles

2004-12-06T13:31:00.000-08:00

After moving from Charleston, Va., to Marietta, Ohio, in 1805, the Bent family settled in St. Louis the following year. Charles and his brother William developed an interest in the fur trade, and they probably worked for John

Wupatki National Monument

2004-12-04T14:33:00.000-08:00

The monument comprises more than 800 pre-Columbian

Jungfrau

2004-12-03T05:56:00.000-08:00

Well-known Swiss peak (13,642 feet [4,158 m]) dominating the Lauterbrunnen valley and lying 11 miles (18 km) south-southeast of the resort of Interlaken. The scenic mountain separates the cantons of Bern and Valais and is in the Bernese Alps, two other peaks of which (the Finsteraarhorn [14,022 feet] and the Aletschhorn [13,763 feet]) surpass it in height. The first ascent was made in 1811 on the eastern or Valais

Fischer, Edmond H.

2004-12-03T02:16:00.000-08:00

The son of Swiss parents, Fischer earned a Ph.D. in chemistry from the University of Geneva in 1947 and

Rocky Mountains, Plant life

2004-12-01T18:17:00.000-08:00

The plant communities of the Rockies vary markedly according to elevation, latitude, and exposure. On the eastern slopes in Colorado and New Mexico, strong winter winds off the arid plains stunt and deform the scattered cedars and piñon pines. The lower elevations at this end of the system are predominantly treeless, except along watercourses, where cottonwoods

Dowa Highlands

2004-11-30T06:56:00.000-08:00

Also called Chitembwe-mwera Highlands, central Malawi, rectangular formation covering an area of about 360 square miles (930 sq km); they comprise rolling hills crowned by high ridges including the heights of Dowa (5,571 feet [1,698 m]) and Ntchisi peaks. The highlands are bounded on three sides by steep slopes, forming the Eastern (Great) Rift Valley wall to the east and overlooking the Bua and Lilongwe river valleys to the north

Hinduism, Philosophical sutras and the rise of the six schools of philosophy

2004-11-29T04:16:00.000-08:00

The most important of the Six Schools is the Vedanta (“End of the Vedas”), also called Uttara-Mimamsa, or later Mimamsa. The most renowned philosopher of this school and, indeed, of all Hinduism was Sankara

Hinduism, Philosophical sutras and the rise of the six schools of philosophy

2004-11-28T09:28:00.000-08:00

Any of about 30 species of mammals related to rabbits and belonging to the same family (Leporidae). In general, hares have longer ears and longer hind feet than rabbits. While the tail is relatively short, it is longer than that of rabbits. The vernacular names hare and rabbit are frequently misapplied to particular species. Jackrabbits of North

Pedestal

2004-11-28T01:02:00.000-08:00

In Classical architecture, support or base for a column, statue, vase, or obelisk. Such a pedestal may be square, octagonal, or circular. The name is also given to the vertical members that divide the sections of a balustrade. A single pedestal may also support a group of columns, or colonnade. A pedestal is divided into three parts, from bottom to top: the plinth (or foot), the

Biblical Literature, Samuel: Israel under Samuel and Saul

2004-11-27T11:11:00.000-08:00

The book of Samuel covers the period from Samuel, the last of the judges, through the reigns of the first two kings of Israel, Saul and David (except for David's death). The division of Samuel and its succeeding book, Kings (Melakhim), into four separate books first appeared in the Septuagint, the Greek translation of the Old Testament from the 3rd to 2nd centuries BCE.

Charadriiform, Reproduction

2004-11-24T20:52:00.000-08:00

The modes of reproduction in the charadriiforms are only slightly less diverse than the food habits. Nearly all are ground nesters, laying few eggs (two to four in most families; up to six in jacanas) often with little or no nesting material. Usually the eggs are protectively coloured. Some species nest in crevices or burrows, a few in trees. Many are colonial, with aggregations

Chan Painting

2004-11-24T03:50:00.000-08:00

Wade-Giles romanization Ch'an school of Chinese painting inspired by the “meditative” school of Buddhism called, in Chinese, Chan (Japanese: Zen). Although Chan originated in China with an Indian monk, Bodhidharma, it came to be the most Chinese of Buddhist schools. The ideals of the school later frequently found expression in a special kind of art, typically composed

Sarah

2004-11-23T01:03:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Sarai, in the Old Testament, wife of Abraham and mother of Isaac. Sarah was childless until she was 90 years old. God promised Abraham that she would be “a mother of nations” (Genesis 17:16) and that she would conceive and bear a son, but Sarah did not believe. Isaac, born to Sarah and Abraham in their old age, was the fulfillment of God's promise to them. The barrenness of Sarah, cited in the preface

Sanno Ichijitsu Shinto

2004-11-21T09:57:00.000-08:00

Also called Ichijitsu Shinto , or Tendai Shinto in Japanese religion, the syncretic school that combined Shinto with the teachings of the Tendai sect of Buddhism. Shinto-Buddhist syncretism developed from the Japanese concept that Shinto deities (kami) were manifestations of Buddhist divinities. The earliest of these schools, Ryobu Shinto, was founded on the belief that Amaterasu Omikami, the chief Shinto deity, corresponded

Alaska Range

2004-11-21T09:12:00.000-08:00

Segment of the Pacific Coast Ranges that extends generally northward and eastward in an arc for about 400 miles (640 km) from the Aleutian Range to the Yukon boundary in southern Alaska, U.S. Mount McKinley (20,320 feet [6,194 m]), near the centre of the range, in Denali National Park, is the highest point in North America. Many nearby peaks exceed 13,000 feet (3,960 m), including Mounts Silverthrone, Hunter, Hayes,

Arcaro, Eddie

2004-11-20T19:08:00.000-08:00

Byname of George Edward Arcaro American jockey who was the first to ride five Kentucky Derby winners and two U.S. Triple Crown champions (winners of the Kentucky Derby, the Preakness Stakes, and the Belmont Stakes). In 31 years of riding Thoroughbreds (1931–61), he won 549 stakes events, a total of 4,779 races, and more than $30,000,000 in purses. On Feb. 20, 1958, at Santa Anita Race Track in California, he became

Jícama

2004-11-19T17:17:00.000-08:00

Also called Yam Bean (species Pachyrhizus erosus, or P. tuberosus), leguminous vine native to Mexico and Central and South America, grown for its edible tuberous root. The plant's irregularly globular, brown-skinned tubers are white-fleshed, crisp, and juicy; some varieties (jícama de aqua) have clear juices, and some (jícama de leche) have milky juice. Both types of tubers are mild-flavoured and

Skelton Glacier

2004-11-18T01:07:00.000-08:00

Antarctic glacier situated on the Hillary Coast of Victoria Land, to the northeast of the Cook Mountains, near McMurdo Sound. It flows sluggishly southward into the Ross Ice Shelf. The greatest known thickness of ice along its 39-mi (62-km) length occurs at a point about 30 mi from the tip of its floating terminus. There the ice is about 4,760 ft (1,450 m) thick. The east side of the glacier is covered

Wyre

2004-11-16T08:47:00.000-08:00

Borough (district), administrative and historic county of Lancashire, northwestern England, bordering on the Irish Sea north and east of the resort of Blackpool. The borough, named for the River Wyre, which crosses and drains it, is generally a low coastal plain. Formerly occupied by pockets of marshland, much of the plain has been reclaimed and is now intensively cultivated.

Zambezi River

2004-11-15T03:07:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Zambesi, river draining a large portion of south-central Africa. Together with its tributaries, it forms the fourth largest river basin of the continent. The river flows eastward for about 2,200 miles (3,540 kilometres) from its source on the Central African Plateau to empty into the Indian Ocean. With its tributaries, it drains an area of more than 500,000 square miles (1,300,000 square kilometres). The Zambezi

Tragicomedy

2004-11-14T04:38:00.000-08:00

Dramatic work incorporating both tragic and comic elements. When coined by the Roman dramatist Plautus in the 2nd century BC, the word denoted a play in which gods and men, masters and slaves reverse the roles traditionally assigned to them, gods and heroes acting in comic burlesque and slaves adopting tragic dignity. This startling innovation may be seen in Plautus'

Solar

2004-11-13T17:51:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Sollar, in architecture, private room in a late medieval English manor house, located on the floor above the great hall. The solar served as a kind of parlour to which the owner of the manor house or castle could retire with his family from the chaotic communal living of the hall below. In fact, by the late 14th century the solar was more often called the “retiring room.” Up a flight of

Amuzgo

2004-11-12T20:32:00.000-08:00

The people are agricultural, using the plow or digging stick to plant staples of corn, beans, and squash,

Binghamton

2004-11-12T13:21:00.000-08:00

City, seat (1806) of Broome county, south-central New York, U.S. It lies at the confluence of the Chenango and Susquehanna rivers, near the Pennsylvania border, 75 miles (121 km) south of Syracuse. With Johnson City and Endicott, it forms the Triple Cities. Settled in 1787 at the site of an Iroquois village (Ochenang), it was first known as Chenango Point and was later named for William Bingham,

Chelsea Porcelain

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

Soft-paste porcelain made at a factory in Chelsea, London, established in 1743 by Charles Gouyn and Nicolas Sprimont, the latter a silversmith. By the 1750s the sole manager was Sprimont, from whose genius stemmed Chelsea's greatest achievements. In 1769 the factory was sold to James Cox; and he sold it a year later to William Duesbury of Derby, Derbyshire, who maintained it until 1784, producing

Abel

2004-11-09T03:53:00.000-08:00

In the Old Testament, second son of Adam and Eve, who was slain by his older brother, Cain (Genesis 4:1–16). According to Genesis, Abel, a shepherd, offered the Lord the firstborn of his flock. The Lord respected Abel's sacrifice but did not respect that offered by Cain. In a jealous rage, Cain murdered Abel. Cain then became a fugitive because his brother's innocent blood put a curse

Ear, Human

2004-11-08T17:39:00.000-08:00

The human ear, like that of other mammals, contains sense organs that serve two quite different functions: that of hearing and that of postural equilibrium and coordination

Kazoku

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

In Japan, the unified, crown-appointed aristocracy of the period 1869–1947, which replaced the feudal lords. The kazoku (“flower family”) class was created in 1869 as part of the Westernizing reforms of the Meiji Restoration. In this class the old feudal lords (daimyo) and court nobles (kuge) were merged into one group and deprived of territorial privileges. In 1884 the kazoku was reorganized

Fisk, James

2004-11-06T16:42:00.000-08:00

Fisk worked successively as a circus hand, waiter, peddler, dry-goods salesman, stockbroker, and corporate official. In 1866 he formed Fisk and Belden, a brokerage firm, with the support of Daniel

Ashikaga Yoshimasa

2004-11-05T13:27:00.000-08:00

Shogun (hereditary military dictator) who helped promote one of Japan's greatest cultural eras. His attempts to select an heir, however, brought on a dispute that caused the great Onin War (1467–77). This conflict not only laid waste the area around the capital at Kyoto and destroyed many of its great architectural treasures but also eliminated the fiction

Gondi Family

2004-11-05T02:58:00.000-08:00

French family of Florentine origin, whose diplomats and bankers were prominent in France from the 16th century. The family established itself in France after gaining the confidence and patronage of Catherine de Médicis. Antoine II (1486–1560) was the first Gondi to settle in France and started the most illustrious branch of the family. At first a banker in Lyon, he was brought

Arts, Native American, The Northwest Coast

2004-11-03T04:54:00.000-08:00

Indian tribes along the Pacific coasts of Washington and British Columbia developed masked medicine dances and elaborate fishing ceremonies, such as that performed for a bountiful salmon catch. Their two most striking types of ceremonies are the potlatch, a feast and a dance for display and distribution of the host's wealth, and the midwinter initiation ceremony.

Tulancingo

2004-10-31T21:30:00.000-08:00

City, southeastern Hidalgo estado (“state”), north-central Mexico. Tulancingo lies along the Río Grande de Tulancingo, at 7,290 feet (2,222 m) above sea level. It was taken from the Toltec Indians by the Spaniards in the 1520s. The city, which contains several colonial churches, became the seat of a bishopric in 1862. It is an agricultural (barley and alfalfa) and industrial centre and has several

Death Valley

2004-10-29T00:13:00.000-07:00

For several decades after its christening in 1849 by a hapless party of emigrants who endured intense suffering while crossing it, Death Valley was little known except to the Indians of the area and to prospectors searching the surrounding mountains. The first scientific notice of the valley seems to have been a brief note published in 1868 by a California state geologist.

Monarch Butterfly

2004-10-27T10:32:00.000-07:00

(Danaus plexippus), a familiar member of the milkweed butterfly family Danaidae (order Lepidoptera), distributed throughout the world but concentrated mainly in North, Central, and South America. The monarch's wingspan averages 90 to 100 millimetres (about 4 inches). The distinctive coloration of the reddish-brown wings, marked by black veins and a black

Abe Masahiro

2004-10-25T11:25:00.000-07:00

Born into an influential noble family, Abe was only 25 years old when he was appointed head of the roju (senior councillors), the highest administrative office under the shogun,

Saisunaga Dynasty

2004-10-23T22:19:00.000-07:00

Sisunaga, or Susunaga, the founder, was of obscure origin and may have initially served as Magadhan

Arrupe, Pedro

2004-10-21T17:13:00.000-07:00

Arrupe studied medicine at the University of Madrid, but, after witnessing the poverty in that city, he left school to join the Jesuits in 1927. When the Spanish government dissolved the Jesuit order in Spain in 1932, Arrupe continued his religious studies elsewhere in Europe and in the United States,

Ta'liq Script

2004-10-19T03:35:00.000-07:00

In Arabic calligraphy, cursive style of lettering developed in Iran in the 10th century. It is thought to have been the creation of Hasan ibn Husayn 'Ali of Fars, but, because Khwajah 'Abd al-Malik Buk made such vast improvements, the invention is often attributed to him. The rounded forms and exaggerated horizontal strokes that characterize the ta'liq letters were derived primarily

Spain, Flag Of

2004-10-18T01:24:00.000-07:00

Many symbols used today by Spain have origins that, according to tradition, stretch back for centuries. Even when not documented, the myths associated with these symbols are powerful forces for national pride. For example, the lion symbol of León is supposed to have been used by a Roman legion in the 1st century AD, and the gold shield with four red bars of the kingdom of Aragon

Locke, John, Empiricism

2004-10-16T19:06:00.000-07:00

As for “the original,” the answer was plain. Knowledge of the world began in sense perception, and self-knowledge in introspection, or “reflection” in Locke's language. It did not begin in innate knowledge of maxims or general principles, and it did not proceed by syllogistic reasoning from such principles. In the 17th century there had been much vague talk about innate knowledge,

Eni

2004-10-14T05:41:00.000-07:00

Eni is an outgrowth of Agip (Azienda Generale Italiana Petroli), an oil and gas agency set up by the Italian fascist

Defferre, Gaston

2004-10-11T16:36:00.000-07:00

Son of a lawyer (avocat), Defferre studied at the Faculty of Law in Aix-en-Provence and practiced law from 1931. During World War II he served in the resistance and was briefly mayor of Marseille near war's end. He was deputy to the National Assembly

Spahi

2004-10-07T00:51:00.000-07:00

Feudal cavalryman of the Ottoman Empire whose status resembled that of the medieval European knight. The spahi (from Persian for “cavalryman”) was holder of a fief (timar; Turkish: timar) granted directly by the Ottoman sultan and was entitled to all of the income from it in return for military service. The peasants on the land were subsequently attached to the land and