SecretLine

Ren Essential Moroccan Rose Oil

2006-12-07T15:40:00.000-08:00

This is one of the most amazing natural bath oils I have used. It is a rich, sensuous and luxurious. Only a small amount of the Moroccan Otto Rose Oil in the bath will fill the room with this incredible smell. This rose oil really penetrates the skin during the bath leaving it soft as silk and with the beatiful scent of the rose oil

Leonowens, Anna Harriette

2005-04-03T22:57:00.000-07:00

At age 15 Anna went to Asia, where she married Maj. Thomas Lewis Leonowens of the Indian Army. After the major died in 1858, she lived in Singapore

Vacuum Technology

2005-04-03T16:25:00.000-07:00

Capacities are available up to many thousands of cu ft per minute, operating in the pressure range of 10-3 to below 10-11 torr. The full speed of the pump, which only pumps chemically reactive gases, is developed at pressures below 10-5 torr. In this type of pump, titanium is sublimed onto the pump walls from either a resistance or an electron-beam heated source. Active gases are pumped

Biblical Literature, The need for consolidation and delimitation

2005-04-02T04:06:00.000-08:00

Viewed both phenomenologically and practically, the canon had to be consolidated and delimited. Seen historically, however, there were a number of reasons that forced the issue of limiting the canon. Oral tradition had begun to deteriorate in post-apostolic times, partly because many or most of the eyewitnesses to the earliest events of Jesus' life and death and

Nord-du-québec

2005-04-01T13:21:00.000-08:00

English North of Quebec , formerly Nouveau-québec administrative region constituting the northern half of Quebec province, Canada. The name Nouveau-Québec (“New Quebec”) once was used synonymously with Ungava for that part of the Labrador-Ungava peninsula between Hudson Bay and the Labrador Sea, north of the Eastmain and Churchill (Hamilton) rivers, which was, at the time, a part of the Northwest Territories. In 1912, however,

Indian National Congress

2005-03-30T07:42:00.000-08:00

Byname Congress Party broadly based political party of India. Formed in 1885, the Indian National Congress dominated the Indian movement for independence from Great Britain and formed most of India's governments from the time of independence through the mid-1990s.

Mid-indian Ridge

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

Submarine ridge of the Indian Ocean that is connected to the Mid-Atlantic Ridge; both are segments of the worldwide mid-oceanic ridge system. Entering the Indian Ocean from the South Atlantic, the Mid-Indian Ridge extends north to a point near Rodrigues Island, where it divides into two parts: one segment continues northward toward the Gulf of Aden, where it connects

Lancaster, House Of

2005-03-28T00:18:00.000-08:00

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

Wellfleet

2005-03-27T20:57:00.000-08:00

Town (township), Barnstable county, Massachusetts, U.S. It lies on the northeastern arm of Cape Cod, 12 miles (19 km) south-southeast of Provincetown. First settled about 1724, it was incorporated in 1763 and gained prominence in the 19th century as a fishing port, having from 1830 to 1870 a virtual monopoly of New England oystering. The name of the town may derive from “whale fleet” or from the Wallfleet

Biblical Literature, Deliberate changes

2005-03-26T19:31:00.000-08:00

Apart from mechanical alterations of a text, many variants must have been consciously introduced by scribes, some by way of glossing—i.e., the insertion of a more common word to explain a rare one—and others by explanatory comments incorporated into the text. Furthermore, a scribe who had before him two manuscripts of a single work containing variant readings, and unable

Carte Du Ciel

2005-03-24T15:56:00.000-08:00

(French: “Map of the Heavens”), projected photographic mapping of some 10 million stars in all parts of the sky that was planned to include all stars of the 14th magnitude or brighter and to list in an associated catalog all of the 12th magnitude or brighter. The plan, devised about 1887 by Amédée Mouchez, director of the Paris Observatory, involved the cooperation of 18 observatories

Dynamical Time

2005-03-24T15:25:00.000-08:00

The time scale of dynamical astronomy (celestial mechanics). The orbital motions of celestial bodies subject only to Newton's laws of motion and law of gravitation, as modified by relativity, proceed as a function of dynamical time. In 1952 the International Astronomical Union (IAU) defined a dynamical time scale named Ephemeris Time (ET), which is based on the Earth's orbital

Marggraf, Andreas Sigismund

2005-03-23T03:02:00.000-08:00

Marggraf served as assistant (1735–38) to his father, the court apothecary at Berlin, and as director of the chemical laboratory of the German Academy of Sciences of Berlin (1754–60). He distinguished between the oxides of aluminum (alumina) and

Bridgnorth

2005-03-22T22:36:00.000-08:00

The town of Bridgnorth lies mainly on a high red sandstone rock along the River Severn and has been a bridging point since Saxon times. Aethelflaed, lady of Mercia, rebuilt

Aeschylus

2005-03-20T07:53:00.000-08:00

This is the third and only surviving play of a connected trilogy, presented in 467 BC, that dealt with the impious transgressions of Laius and the doom subsequently inflicted upon his descendants. The first play seems to have shown how Laius, king of Thebes, had a son despite the prohibition of the oracle of the god Apollo. In the second play it appears that that son, Oedipus,

Pijao

2005-03-20T05:10:00.000-08:00

Extinct Indian people of the southern highlands of Colombia. The Pijao spoke a language of the Chibchan family, related to that of the Páez, their neighbours to the south. They were agriculturists, raising corn (maize), sweet manioc (yuca), beans, potatoes, and many fruits; they also hunted and fished. They lived in settlements of several families in houses built of wood and

Wedekind, Frank

2005-03-19T16:32:00.000-08:00

Original name Benjamin Franklin Wedekind German actor and dramatist who became an intense personal force in the German artistic world on the eve of World War I. A direct forebear of the modern Theatre of the Absurd, Wedekind employed episodic scenes, fragmented dialogue, distortion, and caricature in his dramas, which formed the transition from the realism of

Uijongbu

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

City, Kyonggi do (province), north western South Korea. Uijongbu lies 12 miles (20 km) north of Seoul. Its name, meaning “the Cabinet” in old Korean, derives from its being the temporary site of the Cabinet office during the Choson (Yi) dynasty (1392–1910). The city was formerly the market centre for agricultural products grown in the surrounding area. It developed rapidly after the Korean War (1950–53) as

Ahmet Pasa Bursali

2005-03-18T10:42:00.000-08:00

Born into a prominent family, Ahmet Pasa received a classical Islamic education and was appointed as a teacher in the madrasah (religious college) in the city of Bursa. In 1451 he became judge of the city of Edirne. With the accession of Sultan Mehmet II (1451–81), he became qadi 'asker (“military

Tsvetayeva, Marina Ivanovna

2005-03-17T06:24:00.000-08:00

Tsvetayeva spent her youth predominantly in Moscow, where her father

Anthony Iii Studite

2005-03-17T01:19:00.000-08:00

A monk of the Studios monastery, Anthony became private secretary to Basil I, patriarch of Constantinople.

Arezzo

2005-03-16T03:36:00.000-08:00

Latin Arretium, city, capital of Arezzo provincia, Toscana (Tuscany) regione of north-central Italy, in a fertile plain near the confluence of the Chiana and Arno rivers southeast of Florence. An important Etruscan city, it was known to the Romans as Arretium and was noted for its red-clay Arretine pottery. A flourishing commune in the Middle Ages, it fell to Florence in 1384 and later became

Ikere-ekiti

2005-03-14T05:11:00.000-08:00

Also called Ikere , or Ikerre town, Ondo State, southwestern Nigeria, on the road from Akure to Ado-Ekiti. A major collecting point for cocoa, it also serves as an agricultural trade centre (yams, cassava [yuca], rice, corn [maize], palm oil and kernels, okra, pumpkins) for the Ekiti branch of the Yoruba people. Ikere-Ekiti has government and Christian teacher-training colleges; there is also a hospital. The

Ngugi Wa Thiong'o

2005-03-14T02:21:00.000-08:00

Ngugi received bachelor's degrees from Makerere University, Kampala, Uganda, in

Ob River, Plant and animal life

2005-03-13T13:48:00.000-08:00

Rich meadows extend in bands 1 to 2 miles (2 to 3 km) wide for great distances along the banks of the Ob and cover many of the numerous islands. Pine, cedar, silver fir, aspen, and birch also grow on the banks and occasionally constitute isolated forests on the higher ground of the floodplain. Large areas near the river are covered with willow, snowball trees (Viburnum), bird cherry

Yeshiva

2005-03-12T20:51:00.000-08:00

Also spelled yeshivah , or yeshibah (Hebrew “sitting”) , plural yeshivas, yeshivot, yeshivoth , or yeshibot any of numerous Jewish academies of Talmudic learning, whose biblical and legal exegesis and application of Scripture have defined and regulated Jewish religious life for centuries. The early history of the yeshiva as an institution is known only through indirect evidence, and the word itself did not come into current use until the 1st century AD. Rabbinic literature

Lepidopteran, Environmental hazards

2005-03-12T20:37:00.000-08:00

As primary consumers of green plant material, the Lepidoptera are enormously important in food chains, not only because of the very large number of species in the order and the diversity of their food habits, but also because of the abundance of individuals. In most land environments they, in turn, are eaten by a host of other animals: predators, parasites, and scavengers.

Switzerland, Literature

2005-03-11T13:21:00.000-08:00

In the field of literature, Switzerland has produced Jean-Jacques Rousseau; the historian and critic Jacob Burckhardt; Germaine de Staël, whose home at Coppet became a centre of European literary life during the 18th century; Gottfried Keller; Conrad Ferdinand Meyer; Jeremias Gotthelf; Charles-Ferdinand Ramuz; and the Nobel Prize winners Hermann Hesse and Carl Spitteler.

Piazzi, Giuseppe

2005-03-11T11:43:00.000-08:00

Piazzi became a Theatine monk in about 1764 and a professor of theology in Rome in 1779, and in 1780 he was appointed professor of higher mathematics at the Academy of Palermo. Later, with the aid of the viceroy of Sicily,

Armin, Robert

2005-03-10T00:59:00.000-08:00

Armin was an apprentice to a goldsmith in the 1580s. It was during this time that he befriended Richard

Ankaratra

2005-03-09T10:49:00.000-08:00

Volcanic mountainous region in central Madagascar (Malagasy), covering an area of approximately 2,000 square miles (5,200 square km) and rising to 8,671 feet (2,643 m) in Mount Tsiafajavona, the nation's second highest peak. The main range runs south-southwest from the town of Antananarivo. Antsirabe (q.v.), situated on the slopes of Mount Tsiafajavona, is the principal town in the region.

Chafer

2005-03-08T14:05:00.000-08:00

Any of several beetles of the insect subfamily Melolonthinae (family Scarabaeidae, order Coleoptera). The leaf chafers (Macrodactylus) eat foliage; the grub feeds underground on plant roots. The adult female deposits her eggs in the soil, and the larvae live underground for several years. They pupate in the fall, but the adults remain underground until the following

Pavane

2005-03-08T03:22:00.000-08:00

(probably from Italian padovana, “Paduan”), majestic processional dance of the 16th- and 17th-century European aristocracy. Until about 1650 the pavane opened ceremonial balls and was used as a display of elegant dress. Adapted from the basse danse, an earlier court dance, the pavane presumably traveled from Italy to France and England by way of Spain; in southern

Bruce Family

2005-03-07T06:55:00.000-08:00

The family is descended from Robert de Bruce (d. 1094?), a Norman knight who came to England with William I the Conqueror and who was awarded by the gift of many

Abu Jirab

2005-03-06T14:40:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Abu Gurab ancient Egyptian site, about 1 mile (1.6 km) north of Abu Sir, between Saqqarah and Giza; it is known as the location of two 5th-dynasty (c. 2465–c. 2325 BC) sun temples. The first part of the 5th dynasty is recognized as a period of unusually strong emphasis on the worship of the sun god Re, contemporary inscriptions recording that six sun temples were built. Only those of King Userkaf and King Neuserre

Gaillardia

2005-03-06T14:37:00.000-08:00

They have purple disk flowers and yellow, orange, or white ray flowers with three or more teeth

Margarita Island

2005-03-05T11:39:00.000-08:00

Spanish Isla De Margarita, island in the Caribbean Sea, 12 mi (19 km) north of the Península de Araya in northeastern Venezuela. Also known as the Isle of Pearls, Margarita is the largest of 70 islands comprising Nueva Esparta state. In reality two islands joined by a low, narrow isthmus, Margarita is about 40 mi (65 km) long, covers an area of 414 sq mi (1,072 sq km), and has a coastline of 198 mi, with many natural harbours. The island

Becket, Saint Thomas

2005-03-05T02:02:00.000-08:00

Thomas was born to Norman parents of the merchant class. He was educated first at Merton priory, then in a City of London school, and finally at Paris. Deeply influenced in childhood by a devout mother who died when he was 21, Thomas entered adult life as a city clerk and accountant in the service of the sheriffs. After three years he was introduced by his father to Archbishop

Triangle Shirtwaist Company Fire

2005-03-04T19:55:00.000-08:00

The fire started on the eighth floor of the Asch Building just east of Washington Square Park and quickly spread upward to the two top floors of the building. Some workers, having no way of opening the doors that

Gaul

2005-03-03T01:22:00.000-08:00

By the 5th century BC the Gauls had migrated south from the Rhine River valley to the Mediterranean coast. By the middle of the 4th century

Atholl, John Stewart, 4th Earl Of

2005-03-02T06:30:00.000-08:00

The son of John Stewart, the 3rd Earl of Atholl in the Stewart line (whom he succeeded in 1542), Atholl was particularly trusted by Mary Stuart; but, after the murder of Mary's husband Lord Darnley in 1567, he joined the Protestant lords against her

Dyer, Sir Edward

2005-03-01T14:14:00.000-08:00

Educated at the University of Oxford, Dyer went to court under the patronage of the Earl of Leicester. Dyer was a friend of Sir Philip Sidney, on whose death he wrote an elegy

Sarcoidosis

2005-02-28T20:22:00.000-08:00

Systemic disease of unknown cause that is characterized by the formation of granulation (scarlike) tissue. Sarcoidosis often disappears spontaneously within two or three years but may progress to involve more than one organ. It is observed in the lungs, lymph nodes, eyes, salivary glands, muscles, liver, spleen, and the connective tissues of the nervous system. Skin

Anderson

2005-02-28T18:54:00.000-08:00

City, seat (1828) of Madison county, east-central Indiana, U.S. It lies along the West Fork of the White River, in a corn- (maize-) and wheat-producing region, 38 miles (61 km) northeast of Indianapolis. Founded in 1823 on the site of a Delaware Indian village, it was named Andersontown for a subchief, Koktowhanund, also known as William Anderson. In 1886 the town's industrial growth was assured with the

Chatham

2005-02-27T14:51:00.000-08:00

Town, Northumberland county, eastern New Brunswick, Canada. It lies near the mouth of the Miramichi River opposite Newcastle, 84 miles (135 km) north-northwest of Moncton. Founded about 1800 by Francis Peabody, it was probably named in honour of William Pitt, Earl of Chatham. It has pulp and paper mills, foundries, and shipyards and is a lumber-shipping and salmon-fishing port. In the

Scalping

2005-02-27T06:14:00.000-08:00

Scalping

Haldane, John Scott

2005-02-26T13:59:00.000-08:00

Haldane developed several procedures for studying the physiology of breathing and the physiology of the blood and for the analysis of gases consumed or produced by the body. Among his most widely used devices were

Pyroxenite

2005-02-25T06:05:00.000-08:00

Dark-coloured, intrusive igneous rock that consists chiefly of pyroxene. Pyroxenites are not abundant; they occur in discrete inclusions, in layered sills (tabular bodies inserted between other rocks) and lopoliths (laccoliths with basin-shaped bases), in branching veins, in narrow dikes (tabular bodies injected in fissures), and at the edges of silica-poor plutons

Tirmidhi, At-

2005-02-24T14:51:00.000-08:00

The life of at-Tirmidhi is poorly documented. He journeyed to Khorasan, to Iraq, and to the Hejaz in search of material for his collection and studied with such renowned scholars of Had

Heidenheim

2005-02-24T11:50:00.000-08:00

Officially Heidenheim an der Brenz city, Baden-Württemberg Land (state), southwestern Germany, on the Brenz River in the eastern Swabian Alps. The site of a Roman settlement, it was chartered in 1356. It is overlooked by the ruined castle of Hellenstein (with a museum) standing on a hill (1,985 feet [605 m]). Since 1723 it has held traditional shepherds' competitions. Precision instruments, tools, machinery, textiles, and cement are

Ikhshidids Dynasty

2005-02-24T01:18:00.000-08:00

Muslim Turkish dynasty from Fergana in Central Asia that ruled Egypt and Syria from 935 to 969. The founder, Muhammad ibn Tughj, appointed governor of Egypt in 935, two years later obtained the title ikhshid (Persian: “prince, ruler”) from the 'Abbasid caliph ar-Radi; he then secured his position in Egypt and Syria against opposition from Muhammad ibn Ra'iq, 'Abbasid amir al-umara' (commander in chief),

Congo

2005-02-23T23:34:00.000-08:00

Officially Republic of the Congo, French République du Congo, country lying astride the Equator in west-central Africa. It is bordered to the west by Gabon, to the northwest by Cameroon, to the north by the Central African Republic, and to the east and south by the Democratic Republic of the Congo. To the southwest it shares a border with the Angolan enclave of Cabinda; the republic also has a coastline 100 miles (160 kilometres) long on the

West Lothian

2005-02-23T16:44:00.000-08:00

Council area and historic county, southeastern Scotland, on the southern shore of the River Forth estuary and the Firth of Forth just west of Edinburgh. The council area and historic county occupy somewhat different areas. The historic county borders the Forth from Bo'ness to the mouth of the River Almond just west of Cramont. It extends southwest across a lowland

Guanacaste

2005-02-22T01:51:00.000-08:00

Province, northwestern Costa Rica, bounded on the north by Nicaragua, on the east by Alajuela province, and on the west and south by the Pacific Ocean. Occupying one-fifth of the national territory, Guanacaste's 4,000 sq mi (10,400 sq km) were formerly open deciduous forest, which have been turned into savanna grasslands, with dry forests in the north. It rises into the Guanacaste Cordillera

Nagano

2005-02-21T13:12:00.000-08:00

Formerly Zenkoji, city, Nagano ken (prefecture), central Honshu, Japan. It is the capital of the prefecture and is situated in the Nagano Basin. The city dates from the 12th–13th century and grew up around the Zenko Temple, which was founded in the 7th century. Nagano later developed as a market town and post station along the Hokkoku Road. It is now an important commercial centre with food-processing,

Aratus Of Sicyon

2005-02-21T02:35:00.000-08:00

After liberating Sicyon in 251, he established a democracy there and united it with the Achaean League for defense against Macedonia. As general of the league (a post he normally held each alternate year after 245), he captured

Apra Harbor

2005-02-21T02:14:00.000-08:00

Also called Port Apra, port on the west coast of Guam, Mariana Islands, western Pacific. It is the best anchorage on the island and is located just west of Agana. It is the port of entry and site of a U.S. naval base. With 2,400 feet (730 m) of frontage for deepwater docking, it is a transshipment point for various Micronesian islands. The harbour, which is protected (south) by Orote Peninsula and (north) by Cabras

Cereal Processing, Pasta products

2005-02-20T17:59:00.000-08:00

Alimentary pastes include such products as macaroni, spaghetti, vermicelli, and noodles. Such products are often called pastas. Italy is regarded as the place of origin of macaroni products, and annual consumption in that country is as high as 30–35 kilograms (65–75 pounds) per person. Annual consumption is about 6.3 kilograms in France, 3.7 in the United States, and only 0.4 kilogram in the

Bryennius, Nicephorus

2005-02-19T06:09:00.000-08:00

A favourite of the emperor Alexius I Comnenus, who gave him the title of caesar, Bryennius assisted Alexius in dealing with Godfrey of Bouillon, the leader of the First Crusade, by successfully

Maurice, Saint

2005-02-19T02:07:00.000-08:00

Their story was recorded in the Passio martyrum Acaunensium (“The Passion of the Martyrs of Agaunum”), by the 5th-century French bishop St. Eucherius, who believed

Latin Literature

2005-02-16T14:32:00.000-08:00

The body of writings in Latin, primarily produced during the Roman Republic and the Roman Empire, when Latin was a spoken language. When Rome fell, Latin remained the literary language of the Western medieval world until it was superseded by the Romance languages it had generated and by other modern languages. After the Renaissance the writing of Latin was increasingly

Pietra Dura

2005-02-16T13:25:00.000-08:00

(Italian: “hard stone”), in mosaic, any of several kinds of hard stone used in commesso mosaic work, an art that flourished in Florence particularly in the late 16th and 17th centuries and involved the fashioning of highly illusionistic pictures out of cut-to-shape pieces of coloured stone. The resulting decorative mosaics were used primarily for tabletops and small wall

Murder

2005-02-16T04:20:00.000-08:00

In criminal law, the unjustified killing of one person by another, usually distinguished from the crime of manslaughter by the element of malice aforethought. See homicide.

Balabac

2005-02-16T02:16:00.000-08:00

Island, extreme southwestern Philippines. It is located about 19 miles (30 km) southwest of the southern tip of Palawan island, and hardly twice that north of Borneo. Balabac rises to an elevation of about 1,890 feet (576 metres) and has swamps on its northwestern coast. There are coral reefs off its western coast, and the island is particularly noted for its rare glory-of-the-seas cone

Olmedo, José Joaquín

2005-02-15T09:20:00.000-08:00

Poet and statesman whose odes commemorating South America's achievement of independence from Spain captured the revolutionary spirit of his time and inspired a generation of Romantic poets and patriots. They have remained monuments to the heroic figures of the liberation movement in South

Apple, Max

2005-02-15T00:25:00.000-08:00

Apple's satire is distinguished by its

Latin-american Literature, Realism and naturalism

2005-02-14T19:16:00.000-08:00

Romantic interest in the picturesque and unusual led writers to discover a regional way of life, and shortly after midcentury the cuadro de costumbres, or sketch of contemporary customs, developed into a realistic novel of manners, often with an urban setting. Many of these novels are the expression of an ideal national history connected to political independence.

China, Neolithic Period

2005-02-14T18:50:00.000-08:00

The complex of developments in stone tool technology, food production and storage, and social organization that is often characterized as the “Neolithic Revolution” was in progress in China by at least the 6th millennium BC. Developments in the Chinese Neolithic were to establish some of the major cultural dimensions of the subsequent Bronze Age.

Dolores River

2005-02-13T18:52:00.000-08:00

River in southwest Colorado, U.S., rising in the La Plata Mountains and flowing southwest through deep canyons, past Dolores, then northwest through Paradox Valley, at the north end of which it is met by its chief tributary, the San Miguel River. It continues on past Gateway and across the Utah border to join the Colorado River near Moab after a course of about 250 miles (400 km). Melting

Wali Allah, Shah

2005-02-13T08:52:00.000-08:00

Wali Allah received a traditional Islamic education from his father and is said to have memorized the Qur'an at the age of seven. In 1732 he made a pilgrimage to Mecca, and he then remained in the Hejaz (now in Saudi Arabia) to

Régio, José

2005-02-12T22:15:00.000-08:00

Régio began his literary career while still a student at the University of Coimbra with the publication of his lyric-dramatic Poemas de Deus e do

Aequi

2005-02-12T08:42:00.000-08:00

Ancient people of Italy originally inhabiting the region watered by the tributaries of the Avens River (modern Velino). Long hostile to Rome, they became especially menacing in the 5th century BC, advancing to the Alban Hills. Although repulsed by the Romans in 431, the Aequi were not completely subdued by Rome until the end of the Second Samnite War (304 BC), when they received civitas

Epiclesis

2005-02-11T20:16:00.000-08:00

(Greek: “invocation”), in the Christian eucharistic prayer (anaphora), the special invocation of the Holy Spirit; in most Eastern Christian liturgies it follows the words of institution—the words used, according to the New Testament, by Jesus himself at the Last Supper—“This is my body . . . this is my blood” and has a clearly consecratory character. The epiclesis specifically

Star Of India

2005-02-11T05:40:00.000-08:00

A large, cabochon-cut, gray-blue star sapphire, slightly oval in shape. The polished but unfaceted gem weighs 536 carats and was found in Ceylon (now Sri Lanka). It was presented to the American Museum of Natural History, in New York City, by J.P. Morgan.

Insurance, Warranties

2005-02-11T01:29:00.000-08:00

In applying for insurance, the applicant makes certain representations or warranties. If the applicant makes a false representation, the insurer has the option of voiding the contract. Concealment of vital information may be considered misrepresentation. In general, the misrepresentation or concealment must concern a material fact—defined as a fact that would,

Kamil, Al-malik Al-

2005-02-10T21:59:00.000-08:00

On his accession to the sultanate, al-Kamil engaged the armies of the Fifth Crusade and eventually negotiated their withdrawal from Egypt in 1221. During this conflict he had an interview with St. Francis of Assisi, who wished to convert him to Christianity. In 1229 al-Kamil ceded

Gershwin, Ira

2005-02-09T13:41:00.000-08:00

Original name Israel Gershvin American lyricist who collaborated with his younger brother, George Gershwin, on more than 20 Broadway musicals and motion pictures until George's death (1937) and who later collaborated on films and plays with others—Moss Hart, Kurt Weill, Jerome Kern, Harry Warren, and Harold Arlen—and contributed to Gershwin

Eakins, Thomas

2005-02-09T02:21:00.000-08:00

From his earliest student days, Eakins had been primarily interested in studying and portraying the human figure. His early sculling scenes displayed the musculature of athletic men, and “The Gross Clinic” dealt directly with the subject of human anatomy. But Eakins found few subjects in contemporary Philadelphia that afforded opportunities for portraying

Annihilation

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

In physics, reaction in which a particle and its antiparticle collide and disappear, releasing energy. The most common annihilation on Earth occurs between an electron and its antiparticle, a positron. A positron, which may originate in radioactive decay, usually combines briefly with an electron to form a quasi-atom, called positronium, composed of the two particles

Backhuysen, Ludolf

2005-02-08T01:05:00.000-08:00

Backhuysen studied under the Dutch painters Allart van Everdingen and Hendrik Dubbels. His numerous compositions are nearly all variations of marine themes, in a style peculiarly his own, marked by intense realism. In his later years Backhuysen employed his time in etching

Jirásek, Alois

2005-02-07T21:25:00.000-08:00

Jirásek was a secondary-school teacher until his retirement in 1909. He wrote a series of historical novels imbued with faith in his nation and in progress toward freedom and justice.

Davidescu, Nicolae

2005-02-07T10:24:00.000-08:00

Romanian poet and novelist whose early poems, Inscriptii (1916), showed the influence of Charles Baudelaire. Among his prose works the novel Zâna din fundul lacului (1912; “The Fairy at the Bottom of the Lake”) was an exercise in symbolism, and Vioara muta (1928; “The Muted Violin”), in social psychology. In the epic Cântecul omului (1928–37; “The Song of Man”), he aimed at re-creating world history.

Reggio Nell'emilia

2005-02-07T06:11:00.000-08:00

Founded in the 2nd century BC on the Roman road Via Aemilia by Marcus Aemilius Lepidus as Regium Lepidi, it was later the seat of a Lombard duchy and then was ruled by its bishops. Under the protection of the

France, History Of, The conversion of Clovis

2005-02-06T11:04:00.000-08:00

Clovis came to believe that his victory at Tolbiacum in 496 was due to the help of the Christian God, whom his wife Clotilda had been encouraging him to accept. With the support of Bishop Remigius of Reims, a leader of the Gallo-Roman aristocracy, Clovis converted with some 3,000 of his army. Clovis' conversion assured the Frankish king of the support not only of the ecclesiastical

Profile Records

2005-02-05T06:50:00.000-08:00

Hip-hop was scorned by the established music industry as a novelty idiom until 1986, when Run-D.M.C. enrolled Aerosmith's vocalist, Steven Tyler, and guitarist, Joe Perry, to take part in a revival of the hard rockers' hit “Walk This Way” from 10 years earlier. Released on the Profile label, the resultant record was accepted by many radio formats and became the first rap hit to make the

Berdyayev, Nikolay Aleksandrovich

2005-02-05T00:46:00.000-08:00

During his student days at Kiev

Kaali Järv Craters

2005-02-04T19:24:00.000-08:00

Group of eight meteorite craters on Saaremaa Island in the Baltic Sea, 12 miles (20 km) northeast of Kingisepp, Estonia. The largest is 333 feet (110 m) in diameter, with a rim 20–23 feet (6–7 m) above the surrounding land. Thought to be an explosion crater because of this high rim and uplifted surrounding strata, it holds a pond about 53 feet (16 m) deep. The other craters are dry and range from 40 to 143 feet (12 to 44 m) in

Congo, Ethnic composition

2005-02-04T14:44:00.000-08:00

The Bantu peoples constitute a large majority of the country's population and occupy more than two-thirds of the national territory.

Regina

2005-02-03T16:27:00.000-08:00

Capital and largest city of Saskatchewan, Canada, on Wascana Creek, in the south-central part of the province. It originated as a hunters' camp and was known as Pile O'Bones for the heaps of bones left there after skinning and cutting buffalo. Captain John Palliser, the explorer, visited the site in 1857 and called it Wascana (derived from its Cree Indian name, Oskana); with the

Hypophrygian Mode

2005-02-03T06:38:00.000-08:00

In music, fourth of the eight medieval church modes. See church mode.

Wade, Benjamin F.

2005-02-03T03:46:00.000-08:00

In 1821 Wade's family moved to Andover, Ohio. He studied law, was admitted to the bar, and formed a successful partnership in 1831 with the outspoken antislavery advocate Joshua R. Giddings. After a term

Bradbury, Ray

2005-02-03T00:56:00.000-08:00

Bradbury published his first story in 1940 and was soon contributing widely to magazines. His first book of short stories, Dark Carnival (1947), was followed by The Martian

Biblical Literature, The history of canonization

2005-02-01T23:53:00.000-08:00

Because no explicit or reliable traditions concerning the criteria of canonicity, the canonizing authorities, the periods in which they lived, or the procedure adopted have been preserved, no more than a plausible reconstruction of the successive stages involved can be provided. First, it must be observed that sanctity and canonization are not synonymous terms.

Cloisonnism

2005-02-01T14:46:00.000-08:00

Painting method used in the style known as Synthetism (q.v.).

Hvarenah

2005-02-01T01:51:00.000-08:00

In Zoroastrianism, the attribute of kingly glory. Introduced to the Persian religion from Iran as part of Mithraism, hvarenah is thought of as a shining halo that descends on a leader and makes him sacred. The king thus proclaims himself divine and can rule with absolute power in the name of God. The concept of hvarenah was especially popular with the Roman emperors,

Kordofan

2005-01-31T10:08:00.000-08:00

Kordofan was originally inhabited by brown-skinned Nubian-speaking peoples, and the region's name may be derived from the Nubian word kurta, meaning “men.” The region was perhaps under the control of the Christian Tungur dynasty from

Ezra And Nehemiah, Books Of

2005-01-30T02:33:00.000-08:00

Also spelled Esdras and Nehemias, two Old Testament books that together with the books of Chronicles formed a single history of Israel from the time of Adam. Ezra and Nehemiah are a single book in the Jewish canon. Roman Catholics long associated the two, calling the second “Esdras alias Nehemias” in the Douay-Confraternity. Later works, e.g., the Jerusalem Bible, maintain separate identities but associate

Saccopastore Skulls

2005-01-29T22:09:00.000-08:00

The strong development of the brow ridges (responsible for the so-called beetle-browed look) and the low, flat crown, large jaw, and

African American Literature

2005-01-29T21:50:00.000-08:00

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

Maun

2005-01-29T15:07:00.000-08:00

Village, northwestern Botswana. It lies at the southern edge of the Okavango Swamp, northeast of Lake Ngami. The traditional capital of the Tswana people, Maun is the centre of the safari and game industry for the Okavango River delta and the Moremi Game Reserve. Pop. (1991) 26,768.