YellowPlate

Robert Irving Burns Property Consultants

2006-11-22T10:00:00.000-08:00

Robert Irving Burns has been established for over 40 years and is an independent partnership, who specialise in a full range of property services. These include commercial property
and commercial offices as well as property to let london. Whilst my business partner and I were looking for Offices, we found Rib’s expertise invaluable.

Rabab

2005-03-19T15:54:00.000-08:00

The rabab has a membrane belly and, commonly, two or three strings. There is normally no fingerboard,

Nicholas Of Clémanges

2005-03-16T06:53:00.000-08:00

Named rector of the University of Paris in 1393 after acquiring repute

Ghazal

2005-03-15T22:46:00.000-08:00

The ghazals by 'Umar ibn

Roberts, Kate

2005-03-13T21:23:00.000-08:00

Roberts set her works in the quarrying districts of North Wales and in the mining villages of South Wales, where poverty is usually the harsh determinant

Aragon, Louis

2005-03-10T20:05:00.000-08:00

Through the Surrealist poet André Breton, Aragon was introduced to avant-garde movements such as Dadaism; and together with Philippe Soupault, he and Breton founded the Surrealist review Littérature (1919). Aragon's first poems, Feu de joie (1920; “Bonfire”) and

Ringsaker

2005-03-09T23:43:00.000-08:00

Town, Hedmark fylke (county), southeastern Norway. It lies along the eastern shore of Mjøsa, the largest lake in Norway. Situated along the main road and rail line between Oslo and Trondheim, Ringsaker lies in a rich agricultural and lumbering region. Tourism is based mainly on the scenery of the lake area, a 12th-century church, and a nearby 13th-century castle. Pop. (1989 est.) mun., 30,960.

Holarctic Region

2005-03-05T05:38:00.000-08:00

One of the six major land areas of the world defined on the basis of its characteristic animal life. It is part of the Megagaean realm; it encompasses all the nontropical parts of Europe and Asia, Africa north of the Sahara, and North America south to the Mexican desert region. This vast region is often subdivided into the Palaearctic (Old World) and Nearctic (New World)

Allotropy

2005-03-03T06:07:00.000-08:00

The existence of a chemical element in two or more forms, which may differ in the arrangement of atoms in crystalline solids or in the occurrence of molecules that contain different numbers of atoms. The existence of different crystalline forms of an element is the same phenomenon that in the case of compounds is called polymorphism. Allotropes may be monotropic,

Schawlow, Arthur L.

2005-03-01T09:54:00.000-08:00

As a child, Schawlow moved with his family to Canada. He attended the University of Toronto, receiving his

Abu Hanifah

2005-02-26T07:20:00.000-08:00

In full Abu Hanifah An-nu'man Ibn Thabit Muslim jurist and theologian whose systematization of Islamic legal doctrine was acknowledged as one of the four canonical schools of Islamic law. The school of Abu Hanifah acquired such prestige that its doctrines were applied by a majority of Muslim dynasties. Even today it is widely followed in India, Pakistan, Turkey, Central Asia, and Arab

Biblical Literature, Biblical criticism

2005-02-25T05:15:00.000-08:00

A prerequisite for the exegetical study of the biblical writings, and even for the establishment of hermeneutical principles, is their critical examination. Most forms of biblical criticism are relevant to many other bodies of literature.

Fishing Cat

2005-02-22T21:00:00.000-08:00

(species Felis viverrina), tropical cat of the family Felidae, found in India and Southeast Asia. The coat of the fishing cat is pale gray to deep brownish gray and marked with dark spots and streaks. The adult animal stands about 40 cm (16 inches) at the shoulder, weighs 8–11 kg (18–24 pounds), and is from 60 to 85 cm long, excluding the black-ringed tail, which accounts for an additional 25–30 cm. The fishing

Roberts, Kenneth (lewis)

2005-02-20T00:25:00.000-08:00

Roberts worked as a journalist until 1917, when he began service as a captain in the Intelligence Section of the U.S. Army's Siberian Expeditionary Force. He was staff correspondent of the Saturday Evening Post from 1919 until

Korea Warm Current, East

2005-02-19T19:52:00.000-08:00

Surface oceanic current, the northward-flowing branch of the Tsushima Current in the Sea of Japan. After flowing along the coast of Korea, the East Korea Warm Current turns eastward and divides into the Tsugaru Warm Current and the Soya Warm Current. The Tsugaru Warm Current enters the Pacific Ocean through the Tsugaru Strait, and the Soya Current enters the Sea of Okhotsk

Shackleton, Sir Ernest Henry

2005-02-17T23:11:00.000-08:00

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

Wolf, Hugo

2005-02-15T18:43:00.000-08:00

Wolf studied at the Vienna Conservatory (1875–77) but had a moody and irascible temperament and was expelled from the conservatory following his outspoken criticism of his masters. In 1875 he met the composer Richard

Ay

2005-02-12T09:18:00.000-08:00

Ay began his career either owing to his prestige as a son of the parents of Queen Tiy, wife of Amenhotep III, or else with the aid of his own wife, who was the nurse of Nefertiti, Akhenaton's queen. As Akhenaton's

Powerlifting

2005-02-11T13:16:00.000-08:00

Powerlifting was developed primarily in the United States and Canada by weight lifters whose concentration on power alone, they felt, was excluded from formal competition. In 1967 the Amateur Athletic Union began national supervision of the

Epididyme

2005-02-08T11:29:00.000-08:00

Either of a pair of elongated crescent-shaped structures attached to each of the two male reproductive organs, the testes (see testis). Sperm cells produced in the testes are transported to the epididymes, where they mature and are stored. Each epididymis has three regions, called, respectively, the head, body, and tail. The head is the

Bruner, Jerome S(eymour)

2005-02-07T20:17:00.000-08:00

Bruner's father, a watch manufacturer, died when Bruner was 12 years old. Bruner studied at Duke University in Durham, N.C. (B.A., 1937), and then

Pavese, Cesare

2005-02-04T23:30:00.000-08:00

Born in a small town in which his father, an official, owned property, he moved with his family to Turin, where he attended high school and the university. Denied an outlet for his creative powers by Fascist control of literature,

Joule-thomson Effect

2005-02-02T11:30:00.000-08:00

The change in temperature that accompanies expansion of a gas without production of work or transfer of heat. At ordinary temperatures and pressures, all real gases except hydrogen and helium cool upon such expansion; this phenomenon often is utilized in liquefying gases. Hydrogen and helium cool upon expansion only if their initial temperatures are very low.

Tyrant Flycatcher

2005-01-31T15:07:00.000-08:00

Also called New World Flycatcher, any of about 367 species of aggressive, insect-eating New World birds of the family Tyrannidae (order Passeriformes). About one-third of the species are not flycatcher-like in habit and bear names derived from their habitats (e.g., bush tyrant, marsh tyrant) or from their similarity to the songbird groups (tit-tyrant, shrike-tyrant). A few are

Zapopan

2005-01-29T04:41:00.000-08:00

City, north-central Jalisco estado (“state”), west-central Mexico. It is in the temperate Guadalajara Valley, at an elevation of 5,243 feet (1,598 m) above sea level, 4.5 miles (7 km) northwest of Guadalajara, the state capital. It is a commercial and manufacturing centre for the surrounding area that produces grain (principally corn [maize]), sugarcane, cotton, and fruits and vegetables. Livestock

Tulunid Dynasty

2005-01-28T06:04:00.000-08:00

First local dynasty of Egypt and Syria to exist independently of the 'Abbasid caliphate in Baghdad, ruling 868–905. Its founder, Ahmad ibn Tulun, a Turk, arrived in Egypt in 868 as vice governor and promptly (868–872) established a military and financial foothold in the province by organizing an independent Egyptian army and securing the management of the Egyptian and Syrian treasuries. Insufficient

Sosigenes Of Alexandria

2005-01-25T15:35:00.000-08:00

At the conclusion of the Roman civil war (49–45 BC), Caesar set out to replace the multitude of inaccurate and diverse

Lattre De Tassigny, Jean De

2005-01-24T13:06:00.000-08:00

After service in World War I and Morocco (1921–26), de Lattre held a staff commission early

Abbott, Sir John

2005-01-22T16:56:00.000-08:00

Educated at McGill University, Montreal, Abbott became a lawyer in 1847 and was made queen's counsel in 1862. He served as dean of the McGill faculty of law from 1855 to 1880. He was elected to the Legislative Assembly of the then-united province of Canada in 1857 and

La Mettrie, Julien Offroy De

2005-01-20T06:58:00.000-08:00

La Mettrie obtained a medical degree at Reims, studied medicine in Leiden under Hermann Boerhaave (some of whose

Earth, Formation of igneous rocks

2005-01-15T04:25:00.000-08:00

Igneous

Aurichalcite

2005-01-13T10:02:00.000-08:00

A mineral composed of the hydroxide carbonate of zinc and copper (Zn, Cu)5(OH)6(CO3)2. It is commonly found with malachite in the oxidized zone of zinc and copper deposits as at Tomsk, Siberia; Santander, Spain; and Bisbee, Ariz., U.S. Its pale blue-green featherlike form distinguishes it from malachite; and, because it is a weathered product of zinc-rich ores, it can serve as a guide to

Chandler, Zachariah

2005-01-09T15:16:00.000-08:00

Chandler, who was

Sea Bass

2005-01-07T00:05:00.000-08:00

Any of the numerous fishes of the family Serranidae (order Perciformes), most of which are marine and found in the shallower regions of warm and tropical seas. The family includes about 400 species, many of them well-known food and sport fishes. Although the term sea bass may be used for the family as a whole, the fishes themselves

Murdoch, (keith) Rupert

2005-01-06T09:58:00.000-08:00

In 1998 one of the most talked-about conflicts in baseball took place off the field and in the boardroom. Australian media mogul Rupert Murdoch revealed in late 1997 that he planned to purchase the Los Angeles Dodgers for a record-high price of $350 million. Despite the protest of media giant and Atlanta Braves owner Ted Turner, a longtime critic of Murdoch, on March 19, 1998, the sale was approved

Cooper, Cynthia

2005-01-04T11:48:00.000-08:00

Cooper was raised

West Bridgford

2005-01-01T11:53:00.000-08:00

Town, Rushcliffe district, administrative and historic county of Nottinghamshire, England. The town now functions largely as a residential suburb of Nottingham, which lies just to the northwest. West Bridgford's parish church was built in the 14th century. There is some modern light industry in the town. Trent Bridge cricket ground (one of England's most famous) and Nottinghamshire's

Drachmann, Holger Henrik Herholdt

2004-12-31T14:05:00.000-08:00

The son of a physician, Drachmann studied painting and also began to write. A visit to London in 1871 awakened an interest in social problems, and after his return he joined the new radical movement of which Georg Brandes was the central

Johnson, Ian William

2004-12-29T13:45:00.000-08:00

Australian cricket player who was a reliable, slow off-spin bowler for Victoria and in 45 Test matches for Australia, including 17 as captain (1954-57). Johnson played first-class cricket for Victoria briefly in 1935, but he served as a fighter pilot in World War II before making his Test debut against New Zealand in 1946. In his 11-year career Johnson achieved a Test-career double, scoring 1,000 runs

Resonance

2004-12-26T15:43:00.000-08:00

In particle physics, an extremely short-lived phenomenon associated with subatomic particles called hadrons that decay via the strong nuclear force. This force is so powerful that it allows resonances to exist only for the amount of time it takes light to cross each such “object.” A resonance occurs when the net energy of the colliding subatomic particles is just

Ithaca

2004-12-25T11:20:00.000-08:00

With an area of 37 square miles (96 square km), Ithaca consists of two limestone masses connected by a narrow, peninsula that curves to form the head of a gulf facing the Greek mainland. The island is separated from the island of Cephallenia to the west by

Plot

2004-12-23T08:27:00.000-08:00

In fiction, the structure of interrelated actions, consciously selected and arranged by the author. Plot involves a considerably higher level of narrative organization than normally occurs in a story or fable. According to E.M. Forster in Aspects of the Novel (1927), a story is a “narrative of events arranged in their time-sequence,” whereas a plot organizes the events according

Mercury

2004-12-20T23:23:00.000-08:00

(genus Mercurialis), group of eight annual and perennial weedy flowering-plant species of the spurge family (Euphorbiaceae), native to Europe, Asia, and North Africa but naturalized in North America. Herb mercury (M. annua) grows as a weed in cultivated areas and shaded woods. Dog's mercury (M. perennis; see photograph), which is malodorous and poisonous

Computers, Integrated circuits

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

William Shockley, a coinventor of the transistor, started Shockley Semiconductor Laboratories in 1955 in his hometown of Palo Alto, California. In 1957 his eight top researchers left to form Fairchild Semiconductor Company, funded by Fairchild Camera and Instrument Company. Along with Hewlett-Packard, another Palo Alto firm, Fairchild Semiconductor was the seed of what

Kwara

2004-12-17T18:38:00.000-08:00

Kwara state consists mostly of wooded savanna, but there are forested regions in the south. Almost all of its savanna area was conquered by the Fulani in the early 19th century, and the region remained part

Aragats, Mount

2004-12-14T20:08:00.000-08:00

Russian Gora Aragats, also spelled Gora Aragac, mountain in Armenia, northwest of Yerevan and north of the Ararat Plain. The highest point in both Armenia and the Lesser Caucasus range (13,418 feet [4,090 m]), Aragats is a circular, shieldlike mountain composed of both lavas and tufas. A volcanic cone of recent geologic age lies atop far older rocks. The crater of the volcano has become the steep-walled basin, or cirque, of a glacier,

Akh

2004-12-12T14:51:00.000-08:00

In Egyptian religion, the spirit of a deceased person and, with the ka and ba (qq.v.), a principal aspect of the soul. By enabling the soul to assume temporarily any form it desired, for the purpose of revisiting the earth or for its own enjoyment, the akh characterized the soul of a deceased person as an effective entity in the next world. The akh-soul was generally represented

Eagle Owl

2004-12-10T03:37:00.000-08:00

(Bubo bubo), bird of the family Strigidae (order Strigiformes), characterized by its large size (often 70 centimetres [about 2.3 feet] long), two tufts of feathers on the head (ear tufts), and large orange eyes. The overall coloration is tawny, mottled with brown, lighter below. The eagle owl roosts and breeds within rocky niches and hollow trees. At twilight it perches on a branch while

Franceville

2004-12-08T05:47:00.000-08:00

Franceville is now an active trading centre in a mining region. The exploitation of manganese at Mouanda and uranium at Mounana, both to the northwest,

Wang Hui

2004-12-06T02:11:00.000-08:00

Wade-Giles romanization Wang Hui probably the paramount member of the group of Chinese painters known as the Four Wangs (including Wang Shimin, 1592–1680, Wang Jian, 1598–1677, and Wang Yuanqi, 1642–1715), who represented the so-called “orthodox school” of painting in the Ming and early Qing periods. The orthodox school was based upon the dicta laid down by Dong Qichang (1555–1636). It was “orthodox” in the Confucian

Lockyer, Sir Joseph Norman

2004-12-05T10:10:00.000-08:00

Lockyer became a clerk in the War Office in 1857, but his interest in astronomy eventually led to a career in that field. He initiated in 1866 the spectroscopic observation of sunspots, and in 1868 he found that solar

Ibis

2004-12-02T11:35:00.000-08:00

Any of about 20 species of medium-sized wading birds constituting the subfamily Threskiornithinae of the family Threskiornithidae (order Ciconiiformes), which also includes the spoonbills. Ibises occur in all warm regions except on South Pacific islands. They wade in shallow lagoons, lakes, bays, and marshes, using their slender, down-curved bills to feed on small

Silhouette Island

2004-12-01T22:46:00.000-08:00

Granitic island, third largest of the Seychelles archipelago, Republic of Seychelles, in the western Indian Ocean. It has an area of 7.6 sq mi (20 sq km), rises to 2,467 ft (751 m), and is 12 mi (19 km) northwest of Mahé Island. Virgin forests still grow in the more inaccessible parts of its mountainous terrain. The island is protected as a national park. Copra and fish are the main products. Pop. (1982 est.) 255.

Edgar The Aetheling

2004-11-26T11:19:00.000-08:00

Anglo-Saxon prince, who, at the age of about 15, was proposed as king of England after the death of Harold II in the Battle of Hastings (Oct. 14, 1066) but instead served the first two Norman kings, William I, Harold's conqueror, and William II. His title of aetheling (an Anglo-Saxon prince, especially the heir apparent) indicates he was a prince of the royal family; he was a grandson

Shifting Attitudes In A Changing World

2004-11-24T00:53:00.000-08:00

It was once said that "almost everything in history almost never happened"--a feeling, perhaps, that many of us have had about our own lives. When we look back, we often find an awkward chain of events that escapes logic, and only by willful disregard of such complicating factors as facts will we succeed in finding anything resembling a pattern or a plan guiding us. In westernized

Actor-manager System

2004-11-22T20:36:00.000-08:00

Method of theatrical production dominant in England and the U.S. in the 19th century, consisting of a permanent company formed by a leading actor who chose his own plays, took a leading role in them, and handled business and financial arrangements. The advantages of this system became apparent in the 18th century when successful actor-managers such as Colley Cibber and

Christo

2004-11-21T16:18:00.000-08:00

Christo attended the Fine Arts Academy in Sofia, Bulg., and had begun working with the Burian Theatre in Prague when the Hungarian Revolution of 1956 broke out. He fled to Vienna, where he studied for a semester, and then, after a brief stay in Switzerland,

Theatre, Western, Native traditions

2004-11-18T18:20:00.000-08:00

In spite of the lack of originality shown by dramatists, there were in Italy a number of native comic traditions that helped to shape the style of Roman comedy. The Fescennine verses (fescennia locatio) were bawdy, improvised exchanges sung by clowns at local harvest festivals and marriage ceremonies. These are thought to have combined with a tradition of performances

Paulownia Sun, Order Of The

2004-11-16T06:32:00.000-08:00

The badge, suspended from a green

Fichte, Johann Gottlieb

2004-11-15T23:16:00.000-08:00

German philosopher and patriot, one of the great transcendental idealists.

Midfa'i, Jamil Al-

2004-11-12T01:22:00.000-08:00

Midfa'i attended the engineering college in Istanbul and became an artillery officer in the Turkish Army, from which he deserted in 1916 to join the Arab forces that had risen in revolt in Arabia under the direction of Sharif Husayn. Later, from a base in Syria, Midfa'i launched raids into Iraq, where there was considerable

Biblical Literature, The Testament of Job

2004-11-11T05:10:00.000-08:00

Though there are scholars who think that the Testament of Job was once written in Hebrew or Aramaic, it is more probable that the existing Greek text of the book is the original or even a rewritten later version of a Greek work; a fragment of an older form is probably preserved in the Greek translation of Job (2:9). Job is identified, according to some Jewish traditions, with

Wu P'ei-fu

2004-11-08T18:32:00.000-08:00

The son of a tradesman, Wu joined the famous Peiyang Army of Yüan Shih-k'ai, the leading general of the Ch'ing dynasty (1644–1911/12) and the first president of the Republic of China, and rapidly rose to high position. After Yüan's death in 1916, Wu became the chief bulwark of the shaky Peking government.

Hoover, J. Edgar

2004-11-07T07:47:00.000-08:00

Hoover studied law at night at George Washington University, where he received degrees as bachelor of laws in 1916 and as

Agricola, Georgius

2004-11-04T03:47:00.000-08:00

(Latin), German Georg Bauer German scholar and scientist known as “the father of mineralogy.” While a highly educated classicist and humanist, well regarded by scholars of his own and later times, he was yet singularly independent of the theories of ancient authorities. He was indeed among the first to found a natural

Sudbury

2004-11-03T22:52:00.000-08:00

Town (“parish”), Babergh district, administrative and historic county of Suffolk, England, on the River Stour. An important wool town during the Middle Ages, it has many half-timbered houses and three Perpendicular-style churches. Sudbury was first incorporated in 1554. As the worsted industry declined, silk weaving and coconut matting were introduced. Milling and brewing

Hanamichi

2004-10-31T23:52:00.000-08:00

An integral part of the Kabuki

Allende, Salvador

2004-10-30T21:09:00.000-07:00

Allende, born into an upper-middle-class family, received his medical degree in 1932 from the University of Chile, where he was a Marxist activist. He participated in the founding (1933) of Chile's Socialist Party. After election to the Chamber of Deputies in 1937, he served (1939–42) as minister of health in the liberal leftist

Bobbin Lace

2004-10-28T23:32:00.000-07:00

Also called pillow lace , or bone lace with needle lace, one of two main kinds of lace. Bobbin lace is made with a number of threads, each fastened to an elongated spool (bobbin). A pattern is drawn on parchment or paper, and holes are pricked to indicate where pins will be placed to keep the threads in position while the lace is being made. The parchment is placed on a pillow or cushion, and the threads, with the bobbins

Country Furniture

2004-10-25T21:24:00.000-07:00

Furniture made by country craftsmen, varying from purely functional pieces made by amateurs to expertly constructed and carved work based on luxurious furniture made for the rich. Much country furniture is naive, with the best of such examples falling into the category of folk art. The furniture is sturdy, rarely delicate in design or workmanship, and restricted

Heureaux, Ulises

2004-10-24T21:33:00.000-07:00

Heureaux received some schooling in a Methodist mission and then joined a revolt against Spain in the early 1860s, distinguishing

Condensation

2004-10-22T16:21:00.000-07:00

Deposition of a liquid or a solid from its vapour, generally upon a surface that is cooler than the adjacent gas. A substance condenses when the pressure exerted by its vapour exceeds the vapour pressure of the liquid or solid phase of the substance at the temperature of the surface where condensation occurs. Heat is released when a vapour condenses. Unless this heat

Computers, Grace Murray Hopper

2004-10-19T11:39:00.000-07:00

While the high cost of computer resources placed a premium on fast hand-coded machine-language programs, one individual worked tirelessly to promote high-level programming languages and their associated compilers. Grace Murray Hopper taught mathematics at Vassar College, Poughkeepsie, New York, from 1931 to 1943 before joining the United States Naval Reserve. In 1944 she

Kafr Ash-shaykh

2004-10-15T00:34:00.000-07:00

Also spelled Kafr El-sheikh muhafazah (governorate) in the central Nile Delta, Lower Egypt, with the Rosetta Branch of the river to the west and ad-Daqahliyah governorate to the east. It was created in 1949 out of al-Gharbiyah muhafazah, just south, and named Fu'adiyah muduiyah (province) after Fu'ad I, sultan (1917–22) and king (1922–36) of Egypt. After the Egyptian monarchy was overthrown in 1952, the area was renamed in 1955. Buhayrat al-Burullus, which

Calamian Group

2004-10-14T16:24:00.000-07:00

Islands lying between Mindoro and Palawan, west central Philippines. The group comprises Busuanga, Culion (q.v.), and Coron islands and about 95 lesser coral isles and islets, with a total area of 677 sq mi (1,753 sq km). The main islands are quite hilly and are densely settled, with relatively stable populations engaged in subsistence agriculture and fishing. The principal settlement

Tarakan Island

2004-10-11T17:05:00.000-07:00

Indonesian Pulau Tarakan island in Kalimantan Timur provinsi (“province”), Indonesia. It is situated in the eastern Celebes Sea, off the northeastern coast of Borneo. The island occupies an area of 117 square miles (303 square km) and has a length of approximately 10 miles (16 km). Its coastal area is low and swampy, and there are oil fields on the southwestern coast. During World War II the island was captured (January

Bondfield, Margaret (grace)

2004-10-10T09:59:00.000-07:00

Bondfield had little schooling. Starting as a draper's assistant at 14, she found conditions miserable and joined the National Union of Shop Assistants at its formation. In 1899 she was the only woman delegate to the Trades Union Congress, and

Perche

2004-10-07T21:56:00.000-07:00

Region of northern France on the border of Normandie, mainly in the east of the Orne département, with extensions into neighbouring départements. Formerly a county, it was united to the French crown in 1525. It is largely hilly country, the Perche Hills having summits as high as 1,000 feet (300 m). Perche is a district of pastoral farming and dairying, famous for its breed of draft horses

Azerbaijan, Russian suzerainty

2004-10-05T21:17:00.000-07:00

After a series of wars between the Russian Empire and Iran, the treaties of Gulistan (1813) and Turkmenchai (1828) established a new border between the empires. Russia acquired Baku, Shirvan, Ganja, Nakhichevan (Naxçivan), and Yerevan. Henceforth the Azerbaijani Turks of Caucasia were separated from the majority of their linguistic and religious compatriots, who remained in Iran.

Karaji, Al-

2004-10-04T16:53:00.000-07:00

Also known as al-Karkhi, in full, Abu Bakr ibn Muhammad ibn al-Husayn al-Karaji mathematician and engineer who held an official position in Baghdad (c. 1010–1015), perhaps culminating in the position of vizier, during which time he wrote his three main works, al-Fakhri fi'l-jabr wa'l-muqabala (“Glorious on algebra”), al-Badi‘ fi'l-hisab (“Wonderful on calculation”), and al-Kafi fi'l-hisab (“Sufficient on calculation”). A

Sarandon, Susan

2004-10-01T23:03:00.000-07:00

Original name Susan Abigail Tomalin American film actress who transcended the early roles of her career, when she often played characters who were highly sensual but little else, to become a performer of considerable versatility and emotional depth. In 1995 she won an Academy Award for her unglamorous yet engaging performance as a nun counseling death-row prisoners in Dead Man

Density

2004-09-29T23:39:00.000-07:00

Mass of a unit volume of a material substance, expressed as kilograms per cubic metre in MKS or SI units; the densities of common solids, liquids, and gases are listed in textbooks and handbooks. Density offers a convenient means of obtaining the mass of a body from its volume or vice versa; the mass is equal to the volume multiplied by the density, while the volume is equal

Welland Canal

2004-09-27T08:02:00.000-07:00

Waterway in southern Ontario, Can., that provides navigation for large vessels between Lake Erie to the south and Lake Ontario to the north and forms an important link in the St. Lawrence Seaway. The canal was necessary because the Niagara River, the natural connection between Lakes Erie and Ontario, has impassable falls and rapids. The modern Welland Canal extends

Good-night

2004-09-26T09:01:00.000-07:00

Sensational type of broadside ballad (q.v.), popular in England from the 16th through the 19th century, purporting to be the farewell statement of a criminal made shortly before his execution. Good-nights are usually repentant in tone, containing a sketchy account of how the criminal first went astray, a detailed account of his grisly crime, his sentence by the judge, the grief

Biblical Literature, The revision of Theodotion

2004-09-23T18:58:00.000-07:00

A second revision of the Greek text was made by Theodotion (of unknown origins) late in the 2nd century, though it is not entirely clear whether it was the Septuagint or some other Greek version that underlay his revision. The new rendering was characterized by a tendency toward verbal consistency and much transliteration of Hebrew words.

Carnatic Music

2004-09-22T18:43:00.000-07:00

Also spelled Karnatic Music, music of southern India (generally south of the city of Hyderabad in Andhra Pradesh state) that evolved from ancient Hindu traditions and was relatively unaffected by the Arabic and Iranian influences that, since the late 12th and early 13th centuries, as a result of the Islamic conquest of the north, have characterized the Hindustani music of northern India. In contrast

Alkaline Phosphatase

2004-09-18T19:30:00.000-07:00

Enzyme that is normally present in high concentrations in growing bone and in bile. It is essential for the deposition of minerals in the bones and teeth. Alkaline phosphatase deficiency is a hereditary trait called hypophosphatasia, which results in bone deformities. In severe cases, the deficiency leads to early death from infection. Alkaline phosphatase is

Jackson, Andrew

2004-09-17T16:23:00.000-07:00

A collection of Andrew Jackson's letters and documents can be found in Sam B. Smith et al. (eds.), The Papers of Andrew Jackson (1980– ). Biographies of Jackson are Robert V. Remini, Andrew Jackson and the Course of American Empire, 3 vol. (1977–84), also available in a one-volume condensed and rev. ed., The Life of Andrew Jackson (1988); Marquis James, Andrew Jackson: The Border Captain (1933, reprinted 1985), and Andrew Jackson: Portrait of a President (1937, reprinted 1983); James C. Curtis, Andrew Jackson and the Search for Vindication (1976); and Burke Davis, Old Hickory (1977). Various aspects of Jackson's career and influence are presented in Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr., The Age of Jackson (1945, reissued 1989), a classic work; Robert V. Remini, The Election of Andrew Jackson (1963, reprinted 1980), and The Legacy of Andrew Jackson: Essays on Democracy, Indian Removal, and Slavery (1988); Richard P. McCormick, The Second American Party System: Party Formation in the Jacksonian Era (1966, reissued 1973); Michael Paul Rogin, Fathers and Children: Andrew Jackson and the Subjugation of the American Indian (1975, reissued 1991); Anthony F.C. Wallace, The Long, Bitter Trail: Andrew Jackson and the Indians (1993), discussing Jackson's role in the forced relocation of many Native Americans; Richard B. Latner, The Presidency of Andrew Jackson: White House Politics, 1829–1837 (1979); Donald B. Cole, The Presidency of Andrew Jackson (1993), a detailed account of Jackson's presidency, portraying him as more uncertain of himself than many believed; John M. Belohlavek, Let the Eagle Soar!: The Foreign Policy of Andrew Jackson (1985); Richard E. Ellis, The Union at Risk: Jacksonian Democracy, States' Rights, and the Nullification Crisis (1987); and Harry L. Watson, Liberty and Power: The Politics of Jacksonian America (1990), which deals with politics and public life during the years just before Jackson's presidency into the decade afterward. Robert V. Remini and Robert O. Rupp, Andrew Jackson (1991), provides an annotated bibliography.

Lane, Harriet

2004-09-16T19:43:00.000-07:00

She died of cancer in 1903 and was buried in the Greenmount Cemetery in Baltimore.

Kogaku

2004-09-14T14:18:00.000-07:00

(Japanese: “Ancient Learning”), one of three schools of Neo-Confucian studies that developed in Japan during the Tokugawa period (1603–1867). See Neo-Confucianism.

Hill, A.v.

2004-09-13T08:14:00.000-07:00

In full Archibald Vivian Hill British physiologist and biophysicist who received (with Otto Meyerhof) the 1922 Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine for discoveries concerning the production of heat in muscles. His research helped establish the origin of muscular force in the breakdown of carbohydrates with formation of lactic acid in the

Anderson, Lindsay Gordon

2004-09-13T06:07:00.000-07:00

British stage and film director (b. April 17, 1923, Bangalore, India--d. Aug. 30, 1994, near Angoulême, France), as one of the original Angry Young Men, made his distaste for conformity and England's class consciousness the constant theme of his often anarchic works. While attending Wadham College, Oxford, Anderson cofounded and coedited the film magazine Sequence, and he later wrote for such

Chondrichthian, Food habits

2004-09-12T21:02:00.000-07:00

All sharks are carnivorous and, with a few exceptions, have broad feeding preferences, governed largely by the size and availability of the prey. The recorded food of the tiger shark (Galeocerdo cuvieri), for example, includes a wide variety of fishes (including other sharks, skates, and stingrays), sea turtles, birds, sea lions, crustaceans, squid, and even carrion such as

Endomorph

2004-09-11T15:54:00.000-07:00

A human physical type (somatotype) tending toward roundness, as determined by the physique classification system developed by American psychologist W.H. Sheldon. The extreme endomorph has a body as nearly globular as humanly possible; he has a round head, a large, round abdomen, large internal organs relative to his size, rather short arms and legs with fat upper arms

Fisherman's Ring

2004-09-10T22:19:00.000-07:00

The pope's signet ring; it shows St. Peter as a fisherman and has the reigning pope's name inscribed around the border. Used since the 13th century as a seal for private letters and since the 15th century for papal briefs, it is one of two papal seals, the other being the leaden bull (bulla). The ring, which each newly elected pope receives, is publicly broken after his death.

Pachuca

2004-09-08T11:31:00.000-07:00

In full Pachuca De Soto, capital city, Hidalgo estado (“state”), east-central Mexico. It was one of the first settlements in New Spain and lies in a rich mining district in the Sierra Madre Oriental, 7,959 feet (2,426 m) above sea level. Its first silver mine was discovered in 1534, though it is said that some of the mines were known to pre-Columbian Indians. The nearby Real del Monte mine, begun in 1739 and still in operation,

Great Sand Dunes National Monument And Preserve

2004-09-08T01:18:00.000-07:00

Federal legislation enacted in 2000 created Great Sand

Acting

2004-09-06T10:49:00.000-07:00

Acting is generally agreed to be a matter less of mimicry, exhibitionism, or imitation than of the ability to react to imaginary stimuli. Its essential elements remain the twin requisites enunciated by the French

Tyumen

2004-09-05T00:51:00.000-07:00

Also spelled Tiumen, or T'umen ', oblast (province), central Russia, occupying an area of 554,100 square miles (1,435,200 square km) in the Ob-Irtysh Basin. In the extreme west the Ural Mountains attain 6,217 feet (1,895 m) in Mount Narodnaya, but the remainder of the oblast's huge area is a low, exceptionally flat plain, with innumerable lakes and very extensive swamps. The oblast stretches from tundra in the north, with its scanty vegetation

Chi-ning

2004-09-04T16:59:00.000-07:00

Pinyin Jining , Pinyin (Mongolian) Ulan Qab town, Inner Mongolia autonomous ch'ü (region), China. Before the Communist Revolution of 1949, the town was a minor station named P'ing-ti-ch'üan and was a collecting point on the east-west Peking–Pao-t'ou railway. It experienced phenomenal growth after the completion in 1955 of a trunk railway northward to Erh-lien-hao-t'e on the Mongolian border, linking it with Ulaanbaatar (capital