Biblical Literature, Historical criticism

Historical criticism places the documents in their historical setting and promotes their interpretation in the light of their contemporary environment. This is necessary for their understanding, whether they are historical in character or belong to another literary genre. If they are historical in character it is important to establish how faithfully they

Performing Arts, Classical Music

By 1999 the history of the 20th century could be seen in full perspective, and one conclusion evident to music lovers was that it had been the most operatic century since the Renaissance and the origins of opera. Newspapers and television (the nonfiction programs as well as the ones with invented plots and characters) were filled with “operatic” material—if Samuel Johnson's

Topelius, Zacharias

Topelius joined the faculty of the University of Helsinki as professor of Finnish history in 1864; he served as university president, 1875–78. Though he published five collections of lyrics, he is best known for F

Hinchinbrook Island

Island off the northeastern coast of Queensland, Australia. It is situated opposite the port of Cardwell and 60 miles (95 km) northeast of Townsville. About 22 miles (35 km) long and 152 square miles (394 square km) in area, it is separated from the mainland by Hinchinbrook Channel. The thickly wooded, mountainous island, now a national park, is noted for its waterfalls and caves. Its rugged

Auricle

Also called  Pinna,   in human anatomy, the visible portion of the external ear, and the point of difference between the human ear and that of other mammals. The auricle in humans is almost rudimentary and generally immobile and lies close to the side of the head. It is composed of a thin plate of yellow fibrocartilage covered by a tight-fitting skin. The external ear cartilage is molded into

Summer, Donna

An admirer of gospel singer Mahalia Jackson, Summer sang in church and later in clubs in Boston. At age 18 she joined the German production of the musical Hair. While in Europe she studied with the Vienna Folk Opera and performed

Tai Languages, Phonological characteristics

The sound system of the Tai languages may best be described in terms of its syllabic structure. Each syllable consists of an initial consonant or consonant cluster followed by a vowel or vowel cluster (long vowel or diphthong), which may be further followed by a final consonant, usually a nasal sound or an unreleased stop. (An unreleased stop is a consonant in which there

United Kingdom, The golden age of Bede

Within a century of Augustine's landing, England was in the forefront of scholarship. This high standard arose from a combination of influences: that from Ireland, which had escaped the decay caused elsewhere by the barbarian invasions, and that from the Mediterranean, which reached England mainly through Archbishop Theodore and his companion, the abbot Adrian

Lancet Window

Narrow, high window capped by a lancet, or acute, arch. The lancet arch is a variety of pointed arch in which each of the arcs, or curves, of the arch have a radius longer than the width of the arch. It takes its name from being shaped like the tip of a lance. The lancet window is one of the typical features of the Early English (13th century) period in Gothic architecture.

Arndt, Ernst Moritz

Arndt was educated at Stralsund, Greifswald, and Jena and qualified for the Lutheran ministry. At the age of 28 he rejected his clerical career and for 18 months travelled through Europe. On his return to Germany the sight of

China, Renewed Communist-Nationalist conflict

There were numerous clashes between Communists and Nationalists as their military forces competed for control of enemy territory and as the Communists tried to expand their political influence in Nationalist territory through propaganda and secret organizing. Though both sides continued the war against Japan, each was fighting for its own ultimate advantage.

Neap Tide

Tide of minimal range occurring near the time when the Moon and the Sun are in quadrature. This condition is geometrically defined as the time at which the line from the Earth to the Moon is at right angles to the line from the Earth to the Sun. Thus, the tide-producing effects of the Sun and the Moon cancel each other, and tidal ranges are usually 10 to 30 percent less than the

Pyrophyllite

Very soft, pale-coloured silicate mineral, hydrated aluminum silicate, Al2(OH)2 Si4O10, that is the main constituent of some schistose rocks. The most extensive commercial deposits are in North Carolina, but pyrophyllite is also mined in California, Canada, and South Africa. Talclike foliated masses occur in the Urals, in Switzerland, and in other localities. For detailed

Tibaldi, Pellegrino

Tibaldi grew up in Bologna in a family of Lombard stonemasons. He was trained as a painter under minor Emilian artists who imitated the style of Raphael; in 1547, however, he went to Rome and worked with Perino del Vaga.

Kharijah, Al-

Town, capital of the muhafazah (governorate) of Al-Wadi al-Jadid (Arabic: “New Valley”) and chief town of Al-Kharijah (Kharga) oasis, Egypt. The town's history dates back to the 25th dynasty (c. 750–656 BC), though inscriptions record that the oasis was a place for political exiles from Thebes in the 21st dynasty (c. 1075–c. 945 BC). The town flourished under Persian and Roman rule, and there are extensive ruins of those

Ahl-e Haqq

(Arabic: “People of Truth,” or “People of God”), a secret, syncretistic religion, derived largely from Islam, whose adherents are found in western Iran, with enclaves in Iraq. They retain the 12 imams of the Ithna 'Ashariyah sect and such aspects of Islamic mysticism as the communal feast. Central to their religion, however, is a belief in seven successive manifestations of God. They

Zion

City, Lake county, northeastern Illinois, U.S. It lies along Lake Michigan, near the Wisconsin border. Zion was founded in 1901 by John Alexander Dowie as the headquarters of his Christian Catholic Church. Until 1935 it was theocratically governed, and the church controlled all business activities. The church schools were closed in 1939, after which a modern educational system was

Great Rye Island

Slovak  Vel'ký Zitný Ostrov  riverine island, Západní Slovensko kraj (region), Slovakia. The island lies southeast of Bratislava, between the Little Danube and Váh rivers to the north and the Danube to the south. It is composed of rich alluvial sediments deposited by the Danube in the Little Alföld, which is a plain shared by Hungary and Slovakia. Like Little Schütt Island (Szigetköz) on the Hungarian

Trifid Nebula

(catalog numbers NGC 6514 and M 20), bright, diffuse nebula in the constellation Sagittarius, lying several thousand light-years from the Earth. It was discovered by the French astronomer Legentil de La Galaisière before 1750 and named by the English astronomer Sir John Herschel for the three dark rifts that seem to divide the nebula and join at its centre. Of about the ninth magnitude

Babesiosis

Also spelled  Babesiasis,  also called  Piroplasmosis,   any of a group of tick-borne diseases of animals caused by species of Babesia, protozoans that destroy red blood cells and thereby cause anemia. Cattle tick fever, from B. bigemina, occurs in cattle, buffalo, and zebu. Other Babesia species attack cattle, sheep, goats, horses, donkeys, swine, and dogs. Wild animals such as deer, wolves, foxes, wildcats, and pumas are susceptible

Lussatite

A widespread silica mineral, the fibrous variety of low-temperature cristobalite (compare opal) that occurs with opal and chalcedony near the surface of low-temperature hydrothermal deposits. Originally found in the bitumen veins at Lussat, Fr. (whence its name), it also occurs in the Czech Republic, Austria, and Hungary. For detailed physical properties, see silica

Karaosmanoglu, Yakup Kadri

Educated at a French school in Cairo and then in Izmir, he moved to Constantinople (now Istanbul) in 1908. He attracted attention as a writer by his outstanding prose poems, and he became connected with the Fecr-i

Granite

Because of its use as paving block and as a building stone, the quarrying of granite was, at one time, a major industrial activity. Except for tombstones, however, for which there

Van Doren, Mark

Van Doren was the son of a country doctor, and was reared on the family farm in eastern

Arikara

American Plains Indian people of the Caddoan linguistic family who lived along the Missouri River between the Cheyenne River in South Dakota and Fort Berthold in North Dakota. The cultural roots of Caddoan-speaking peoples lay in the prehistoric mound-building societies of the lower Mississippi River valley. The Arikara were culturally related to

Botanical Gardens And Zoos

The most important event of 1993--indeed of the past decade--was the publication of World Zoo Conservation Strategy. This 76-page document was conceived by the International Union of Directors of Zoological Gardens (IUDZG) and the Captive Breeding Specialist Group (CBSG) of the Species Survival Commission of the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural

Tasmania

J.L. Davies (ed.), Atlas of Tasmania (1965), offers comprehensive map coverage with detailed commentary. The Tasmanian Year Book (biennial) is the most comprehensive single reference. C.F. Burrett and E.L. Martin (eds.), Geology and Mineral Resources of Tasmania (1989), is also useful. Margaret Stones and Winifred Curtis, The Endemic Flora of Tasmania, 6 pt. (1967–76), is a definitive study, beautifully illustrated. W.A. Townsley, The Government of Tasmania (1976), is a good political guide. The great 19th-century history is by John West, The History of Tasmania, 2 vol. (1852, reissued in 1 vol., 1971); its successor is by Lloyd Robson, A History of Tasmania, 2 vol. (1983–91), who has also written A Short History of Tasmania (1985). Outstanding historical monographs include Peter Bolger, Hobart Town (1973); Geoffrey Blainey, The Peaks of Lyell, 4th ed. (1978), on copper mining; and Marilyn Lake, A Divided Society: Tasmania During World War I (1975). P. Conrad, Down Home: Revisiting Tasmania (1988, also published as Behind the Mountain: Return to Tasmania, 1989), is an account by an intellectual aghast at the oddities of his native spot.

Pueblo Incident

Capture of the USS “Pueblo,” a Navy intelligence ship, and its 83 crewmen by North Korean patrol boats off the coast of North Korea on Jan. 23, 1968. The United States, maintaining that the “Pueblo” had been in international waters, began a military buildup in the area. It also initiated negotiations that resulted in an agreement that secured the release of the 82 surviving crewmen (one

Itard, Jean-marc-gaspard

Itard was originally marked for the banking profession, but, when the French Revolution intervened, he became a military surgeon, initially attached to Napoleon's famous surgeon Baron Larrey. After meeting the Abbé Sicard, the director of a school for

Aubagne

Town, Bouches-du-Rhône département, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur région, southeastern France. Aubagne lies about 10 miles (16 km) east of Marseille. It was the site of the Gallo-Roman Pagus Lucreti and derived its name from its health springs (Ad Bainea). Aubagne sits amidst an agricultural region that is centred around market gardening and fruit and vegetable production. It

Accordion

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

Akosombo Dam

Rock-fill dam on the Volta River, near Akosombo, Ghana, completed in 1965 as part of the Volta River Project. Its construction was jointly financed by the government of Ghana, the World Bank, the United States, and the United Kingdom. The dam rises 440 feet (134 m) above ground level and has a crest 2,201 feet (671 m) wide and a volume of 10,451,000 cubic yards (7,991,000 cubic m). The dam impounds Lake Volta; this huge reservoir

Quagga

Also called  bonte quagga , or  Burchell's zebra  African species of zebra (q.v.).

Sardica, Council Of

(342/343), an ecclesiastical council of the Christian Church held at Sardica, or Serdica (modern Sofia, Bulg.). It was convened by the joint emperors Constantius II (Eastern, sympathetic to the Arian party) and Constans I (Western, sympathetic to the Nicene party) to attempt a settlement of the Arian controversies. In fact, the council merely embittered still further the relations

Abu

Also called  Mount Abu,   city, southwestern Rajasthan state, northwestern India. It is situated on the slopes of Mount Abu, an isolated feature of the Aravali Range. The city is a noted hill resort, and the Jaina temples at nearby Dilwara, built of white marble, are famous. Tejpal temple, built about AD 1200, is known for the delicacy and richness of its carving, especially for that on the underside of its dome.

Osceola

Osceola moved from Georgia to Florida, where, although not a chief, he came to be acknowledged as a leader

Halden

Formerly  Fredrikshald,   town, Østfold fylke (county), southeastern Norway. It lies along Idde Fjord, which forms part of the border between Norway and Sweden, at the mouth of the Tistedalselva (river). The site was settled in ancient times, and the modern town, founded in 1661, was known as Fredrikshald from 1665 to 1928. Its 17th-century Fredriksten Fort was a strategic border stronghold that withstood many attacks

Avignon School

A body of late Gothic painting, not necessarily of a single stylistic evolution, produced in and around the city of Avignon in southeastern France from the second half of the 14th century into the second half of the 15th. Subject to both Italian and Flemish influences—in contrast to the contemporary art of northern France, which was entirely Flemish in character—the art

Hood, Thomas

The son of a bookseller, Hood

Minehead

Town (“parish”), West Somerset district, administrative and historic county of Somerset, England. The town owes its origin and growth to its harbour. Minehead was first incorporated in 1558. Its older buildings include St. Michael's Church (1450), the almshouses (1630), the old manor office, and the 17th-century cottages along Quay Street. The present harbour was built in 1616. Minehead's trade with

Strabane

Irish  An Srath Bán  town, seat, and district (established 1973), formerly in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. The town is located on the River Mourne at its confluence with the Finn to form the River Foyle near the Irish Republic border. It is a market and employment centre for both Strabane district and County Donegal, Irish Republic, to the west. Long a flax-spinning centre, the town of Sion Mills,

Wilder, Douglas

In full  Lawrence Douglas Wilder  American politician, the first popularly elected African American governor in the United States. He received a bachelor's degree in chemistry from Virginia Union University (1951) and a law degree from Howard University (1959). Wilder pursued a legal and political career in Richmond, Virginia, and served as a director of the Richmond chapter of

Paeonius

Paeonius is famous for his statue of the Nike, or “Winged Victory” (c. 420 BC; Archaeological Museum, Olympia), which was found in Olympia in 1875. An inscription on its pedestal states that the statue commemorated a victory of the Messenians and the Naupactians over an unnamed enemy,

Capital Punishment

Also called  death penalty  execution of an offender sentenced to death after conviction by a court of law of a criminal offense. Capital punishment should be distinguished from extrajudicial executions carried out without due process of law. The term death penalty is sometimes used interchangeably with capital punishment, though imposition of the penalty is not always followed by execution

Anode

The terminal or electrode from which electrons leave a system. In a battery or other source of direct current the anode is the negative terminal, but in a passive load it is the positive terminal. For example, in an electron tube electrons from the cathode travel across the tube toward the anode, and in an electroplating cell negative ions are deposited at the anode.

Floquet, Charles (-thomas)

Floquet strongly opposed the Second Empire and rapidly made a name for himself as a republican lawyer and journalist. In 1870–71 he participated in the formation of the new republic and

China, Livestock and fishing

China has a long tradition of ocean and freshwater fishing and of aquaculture.

Powys

County of east-central Wales, bordering on England. Powys county is by far the largest in Wales. It covers a rugged landscape of valleys and mountains, including most of Brecon Beacons National Park, and it encompasses the entire historic counties of Montgomeryshire and Radnorshire, most of Brecknockshire, and the southern edge of the historic county of Denbighshire

Arnim, Harry, Graf (count) Von

After studying

Nova Scotia, Education

The nondenominational system of compulsory, free public education, dating from the mid-19th century, consolidated the many rural school districts into fewer, larger, and more efficient districts during the 1970s. Considerable emphasis is placed on commercial and vocational training at the secondary as well as the college level. Dalhousie University (founded 1818) in Halifax

Nephrotic Syndrome

The nephrotic syndrome occurs usually in young children or young adults. Persons

Agrionia

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

Nematode

Also called  Roundworm,   any worm of the class Nematoda (phylum Aschelminthes, though many authorities consider the Nematoda to be a distinct phylum). Nematodes are among the most abundant animals, occurring as parasites in animals and plants or as free-living forms in soil, freshwater, marine environments, and even such unusual places as vinegar and beer malts. The number of named species

Blood Count

Determination of the number of red blood cells (RBC's, or erythrocytes) and white blood cells (WBC's, or leukocytes) in a given volume of blood. The readings vary with sex, age, physiological state, and general health, but a cubic millimetre of blood of a normal individual contains approximately 5,000,000 red cells and 7,000 white cells. A differential blood count is the enumeration of the

Azikiwe, Nnamdi

Azikiwe received much of his early education in the United States (1925–34). In 1934 he went to the Gold Coast (now Ghana), where he worked as a newspaper editor before returning to Nigeria in 1937. There he founded a chain of newspapers and also became directly involved