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Serviced Offices UK

2006-07-18T09:55:00.000-07:00

Office Planet is the one stop shop website for Serviced Offices UK. Serviced Offices UK provide several advantages over traditional office space. Offices are fully furnished, staffed and equipped with everything your business will require. Business centre support services also cater to all business needs on a fully flexible, immediately available basis.
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Frederick I

2005-11-19T05:40:00.000-08:00

He was the second son of Frederick V, burgrave of Nürnberg. After his father's death, in 1398, he obtained Ansbach and, in 1420, on the death of his elder brother John, the principality of Bayreuth. In 1410 Sigismund, younger son of

Aureus

2005-10-17T02:20:00.000-07:00

Basic gold monetary unit of ancient Rome and the Roman world. It was first named nummus aureus (“gold money”), or denarius aureus, and was equal to 25 silver denarii; a denarius equaled 10 bronze asses. (In 89 BC, the sestertius, equal to one-quarter of a denarius, replaced the bronze ass as a unit of account.) In Constantine's reform of AD 312, the aureus was replaced by the solidus as the basic monetary

Mckenna, Reginald

2005-07-28T05:00:00.000-07:00

In 1905, after serving for 10 years in the House of Commons, McKenna became financial secretary of the Treasury, and in 1907 he was

Bradlaugh, Charles

2005-07-26T10:30:00.000-07:00

Son of a poor legal clerk, Bradlaugh served in the British army (1850–53), followed his father's occupation for a time, and then became

Yessentuki

2005-07-23T23:10:00.000-07:00

Also spelled Jessentuki , or Essentuki city, Stavropol kray (region), southwestern Russia, in the valley of the Podkumok River. It was founded in 1798, developed as a fortress in the 1830s, and became a city in 1917. It is located at mineral springs at the base of the Caucasus Mountains. The city is composed of an old Cossack village in the southern sector and a newer city in the north. It is a major health resort, with sanatoriums

Arabian Desert, Resources

2005-07-08T20:40:00.000-07:00

The greatest natural resource of the Arabian Desert is its underground water supply, which—as it remains virtually unreplenished because of low rainfall—in effect consists of Pleistocene-age waters that are now being tapped. Modern techniques have been used by the governments of Arab countries to develop water sources and to irrigate soils for farming. Desalinization

China, The practice of government

2005-07-01T03:00:00.000-07:00

As the final arbiter of power, the emperor—and at times the empress dowager—issued edicts declaring the Imperial will. Such instructions often took the form of repeating officials' proposals with a note of approval. Some edicts were couched as comments on the current situation and called in general terms for an improvement in the quality of government or for more

Brasília, Climate

2005-06-21T14:55:00.000-07:00

The climate is warm and mild with average minimum and maximum temperatures of about 57° F (14° C) and 81° F (27° C), respectively. Rainfall averages some 60 inches (1,600 mm) per year with a dry season from March to October, and humidity is generally between 40 and 80 percent (it fell to 11 percent during a drought in 1994).

La Louvière

2005-06-16T18:25:00.000-07:00

Town, Hainaut province, southwestern Belgium, on the Central Canal, about 11 mi (17 km) east of Mons. It has been a centre of coal mining since the 14th century. La Louvière is also a major centre of steel manufacturing and produces sheet metal, furniture, and ceramics. Nearby is the park of Mariemont, named for Mary of Hungary, sister of Charles V and queen of the Netherlands, who first

Mitral Stenosis

2005-06-13T13:15:00.000-07:00

Narrowing of the mitral valve, the function of which is to permit blood to flow from the atrium, or upper chamber, to the ventricle, or lower chamber, of the left side of the heart and to prevent its backflow. Narrowing of the mitral valve is usually a result of rheumatic fever; rarely, the narrowed valve is a congenital defect. The condition, most common in women under 45, is diagnosed

Akwamu

2005-06-02T08:20:00.000-07:00

Its founders, an Akan people who are traditionally said to have come from Twifu Heman, northwest of Cape Coast, moved during the late 16th or early

Ma'adi, Al-

2005-05-18T13:10:00.000-07:00

Predynastic Egyptian site located just south of modern Cairo in Al-Qahirah muhafazah (governorate) in Lower Egypt. The settlement at Al-Ma'adi was approximately contemporary with the widespread Gerzean culture (c. 3400–c. 3100 BC) of Upper Egypt. Al-Ma'adi was apparently a peasant village with a separate cemetery; the settlement was characterized by rectangular huts, splay-footed vases,

Chibchan Languages

2005-05-16T18:25:00.000-07:00

A group of South American Indian languages that were spoken before AD 1500 in the area now comprising Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, western Colombia, and Ecuador. A now extinct Chibchan language sometimes known as Muisca was the language of a powerful Indian empire with its centre near Bogotá. Important present-day Chibchan languages include Guaymí and Move in Panama,

Kawaihae

2005-05-14T16:05:00.000-07:00

Kawaihae was a busy port in the 19th century for whalers and traders but declined

Nervous System, Human, Reciprocal innervation

2005-03-15T21:10:00.000-08:00

Any cold, hot, or noxious stimulus striking the skin of the foot contracts the flexor muscle of that limb, relaxes the extensor muscles of the same limb, and extends the opposite limb. The purpose of these movements is to remove one limb from harm while shifting weight to the opposite limb. That is the first and immediate response, but a slower and longer-lasting reflex

House Sparrow

2005-03-14T18:38:00.000-08:00

Also called �English Sparrow� (Passer domesticus), one of the world's best-known and most abundant small birds, sometimes classified in the family Ploceidae (q.v.; order Passeriformes) or separated as Passeridae. It lives in towns and on farms, worldwide, having accompanied Europeans from its original home - most of Eurasia and northern Africa. It was introduced into North America

San Felipe

2005-03-11T08:39:00.001-08:00

Historic town, Austin county, southeastern Texas, U.S. It lies along the Brazos River, some 45 miles (70 km) west of Houston. Known as the �birthplace of Anglo-American settlement in Texas,� it was founded in 1824 as headquarters for the colony of Stephen Austin, who there first employed the Texas Rangers as a defense force. In 1829 the colony, then known as San Felipe de Austin, published the

San Felipe

2005-03-11T08:39:00.000-08:00

Alc�ntara

2005-03-06T13:15:00.000-08:00

Town, C�ceres provincia, in the Extremadura comunidad aut�noma (�autonomous community�), western Spain, on a rock above the southern bank of the Tagus (Tajo) River just east of the Portuguese frontier. The walled town was named by the Moors after the six-arched Roman bridge Al-Qantarah (Arabic: �The Bridge�), which there spans the Tagus. Built in AD 105 - 106 in honour of the emperor Trajan,

Death Rite, Forms of final determination

2005-03-04T19:15:00.000-08:00

Those religions that have taught the possibility of a happy afterlife have also devised forms of postmortem testing of merit for eternal bliss. Ancient Egypt has the distinction of conceiving of a judgment of the dead of an essentially moral kind. This conception finds graphic expression in the vignettes that illustrate the Book of the Dead. The heart of the deceased

Discount Rate

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

The discount rate serves as an important indicator

Auger Mining

2005-03-02T07:09:00.000-08:00

Method for recovering coal by boring into a coal seam at the base of strata exposed by excavation. Normally one of the lowest-cost techniques of mining, it is limited to horizontal or slightly pitched seams that have been exposed by geologic erosion. Augering is usually associated with contour strip-mining, recovering coal for a limited depth beyond the point where

Pabna

2005-03-01T13:35:00.000-08:00

Also spelled �Pubna� city, west-central Bangladesh. It lies along the Ichamati River, which is a tributary of the Padma (Ganges). An industrial centre, Pabna has jute mills and is noted for its hosiery and handloomed products. Historical remains include the Hindu temple of Jor Bangla and the Pabna Jubilee tank (water reservoir; excavated 1887). Pabna was incorporated a municipality in 1876; it has Jinnah Park,

Petr�leos De Venezuela, Sa

2005-02-28T05:47:00.000-08:00

By 1971 Venezuela had begun to take steps to curb the influence of the foreign concessionaires who, since their arrival after World War I, had been exploiting the nation's oil

China, Establishment of the People's Republic

2005-02-27T14:34:00.000-08:00

The Communist victory in 1949 brought to power a peasant party that had learned its techniques in the countryside but had adopted Marxist ideology and believed in class struggle and rapid industrial development. Extensive experience in running base areas and waging war before 1949 had given the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) deeply ingrained operational habits and proclivities.

World War I, The war at sea, 1914 - 15

2005-02-26T05:09:00.000-08:00

In August 1914 Great Britain, with 29 capital ships ready and 13 under construction, and Germany, with 18 and nine, were the two great rival sea powers. Neither of them at first wanted a direct confrontation: the British were chiefly concerned with the protection of their trade routes; the Germans hoped that mines and submarine attacks would gradually destroy Great Britain's numerical

Gwinnett, Button

2005-02-25T04:00:00.000-08:00

Gwinnett emigrated from England to Georgia

Sax, Antoine-joseph

2005-02-24T15:31:00.000-08:00

Sax was the son of Charles Joseph Sax (1791 - 1865), a maker of wind and brass instruments, as well as of pianos, harps, and guitars. Adolphe studied the flute and clarinet at the Brussels Conservatory and in 1842 went to Paris. There he exhibited the saxophone

Aqaba, Gulf Of

2005-02-23T21:20:00.000-08:00

Arabic �Khalij Al-'aqabah, � northeastern arm of the Red Sea, penetrating between Saudi Arabia and the Sinai Peninsula. It varies in width from 12 to 17 miles (19 to 27 km) and is 100 miles (160 km) long. The gulf lies in a pronounced cleft between hills rising abruptly to about 2,000 feet (600 m). Navigation is difficult because of the gulf's narrow entrance at the Straits of Tiran and its islands, coral reefs, and sudden squalls. The

Melfi

2005-02-22T21:48:00.000-08:00

Town and episcopal see, Potenza provincia, Basilicata regione, southern Italy, at the foot of the volcanic mass of Monte Vulture, at an elevation of 1,742 feet (531 m), north of Potenza. Of Roman origin, the town was taken from the Byzantines by the Normans, who, for a period, made it their capital. It was a favourite residence of the Holy Roman emperor Frederick II, who there assembled

Burton, Virginia Lee

2005-02-21T16:27:00.000-08:00

Burton grew up from the age of seven in Sonora, California. After graduating from high school she studied both dancing and drawing, and later she continued taking art lessons at the Boston Museum School. In 1929 she became

Piazzi, Giuseppe

2005-02-20T00:43:00.000-08:00

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,

Axon

2005-02-19T01:59:00.000-08:00

Also called �Nerve Fibre, � portion of a nerve cell (neuron, q.v.) that carries nerve impulses away from the cell body. A neuron typically has one axon, which is rarely branched. Axons connect neurons with other neurons or with muscle or gland cells. The axon of a motor neuron may be quite long, reaching, for example, from the spinal cord down to a toe. Most axons of vertebrate animals are enclosed in a myelin

Hunan, Industry

2005-02-18T13:07:00.000-08:00

The main coal measures are located in the south. Coal was little developed

Merced

2005-02-17T09:33:00.000-08:00

City, Merced county, central California, U.S., on Bear Creek in the San Joaquin valley, 55 miles (89 km) northwest of Fresno. It was founded in 1872 by the Central Pacific Railroad, and it became county seat in the same year. It was named for the Nuestra Se�ora de la Merced River. It developed as a processing and shipping point for agricultural produce of the valley, irrigated by the Tri-Dam

Mcmein, Neysa

2005-02-16T17:11:00.000-08:00

McMein attended the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and in 1913 went to New York City. She studied at the Art Students League for a few months and in 1914 sold her first drawing to the Boston Star. The next year she sold a drawing

Pitcher, Molly

2005-02-15T02:58:00.000-08:00

Molly Pitcher first enters the historical record in 1778. Her original surname is unknown, though she is thought to have been Irish. Military records indicate that her first husband, William Hays, enlisted as a gunner in a Pennsylvania artillery regiment in 1777. The nickname

Metalwork, Modern

2005-02-14T19:39:00.000-08:00

The structure of trade, following the drastic social changes that have taken place since 1914, is similar in all industrial countries. A few artist-craftsmen maintain independent studio workshops, producing commercially unprofitable but artistically significant work. Many of them also teach in art schools or work part-time in factories as industrial designers.

Davila, Arrigo Caterino

2005-02-13T23:30:00.000-08:00

About 1583 Davila became a page in the service of Catherine de M�dicis, wife of King Henry II of France. He subsequently became a soldier and fought in the French civil wars until the peace in 1598. He then returned to Padua, where he

Andean Peoples

2005-02-12T16:10:00.000-08:00

Since 1532, under European rule, extractive activities, such as silver, tin, and copper mining, for foreign markets have been favoured to the point to which Andean agriculture and the ecologic wisdom in handling productively the extremely high altitudes have been gradually devalued and mostly forgotten. The population of the Central Andes is both less dense and less

Tibet, Health and welfare

2005-02-11T00:09:00.000-08:00

Under the health program of the Tibetan government, medical advice and medicine were provided free to expectant mothers. In addition to free vaccinations, sacred pendants known as rims-srungs were distributed annually to prevent epidemics. The construction and maintenance of proper drainage systems, wells, and canals - and security facilities to guard against

F-104

2005-02-10T20:26:00.000-08:00

Also called �Starfighter, � jet day fighter aircraft built by Lockheed Aircraft Corporation for the U.S. Air Force but adopted by a total of 15 NATO and other countries. It was widely adapted for use as a fighter-bomber. The F-104 had a wingspan of 21 feet 11 inches (6.68 m) and a length of 54 feet 9 inches (16.7 m). It was a single-seat, single-engine midwing monoplane, powered with a General Electric J79 series turbojet engine with

Baalbek

2005-02-09T20:55:00.000-08:00

Nothing is known of Baalbek earlier than the Greek conquest of Syria (332 BC). After the death of Alexander the Great (323), the region fell to the Ptolemaic dynasty of Egypt, under which the town was called Heliopolis, probably after its Egyptian namesake.

Arnulf Of Metz, Saint

2005-02-08T07:29:00.000-08:00

A Frankish noble, Arnulf gave distinguished service at the Austrasian court under Theudebert II (595 - 612). In 613, however, with Pippin, he led the aristocratic opposition to Brunhild that led to her downfall and to the reunification of Frankish

Boieldieu, Fran�ois-adrien

2005-02-07T08:58:00.000-08:00

In Rouen he studied under the organist Charles Broche and composed two operas and numerous piano sonatas, remarkable for their form, which constitute the first important body of piano works by a French composer. In 1796 he settled in Paris,

Keratin

2005-02-06T06:59:00.000-08:00

Of the amino acids in keratin, cystine may account for as much as 24 percent. The numerous disulfide bonds formed by cystine are responsible

Brechin

2005-02-05T16:58:00.000-08:00

Small royal burgh (town), council area and historic county of Angus, Scotland, situated on the River South Esk in the fertile vale of Strathmore. One of Scotland's three round towers (10th-century) adjoins the 12th-century cathedral. In 1296 Scotland was ceded temporarily to the English at Brechin. Brechin Castle subsequently made a gallant stand against the English forces of

Nilus Of Rossano, Saint

2005-02-04T23:24:00.000-08:00

Also called �Nilus The Younger� abbot and promoter of Greek monasticism in Italy, who founded several communities of monks in the region of Calabria following the Greek rule of St. Basil of Caesarea. A supporter of the regular successors to the papal crown in their controversies with antipopes,

Sales Tax

2005-02-03T03:18:00.000-08:00

Levy imposed upon the sale of goods and services. A sales tax levied on the manufacture, purchase, sale, or consumption of a specific type of commodity is known as an excise tax. American terminology in this matter tends to differ from that used in the United Kingdom and former British colonies, however. In the United States, excises apply to imports as well as to domestic

Alfonso Vi

2005-02-02T06:20:00.000-08:00

Byname �Alfonso the Brave�, Spanish �Alfonso el Bravo� king of Leon (1065 - 70) and king of reunited Castile and Leon (1072 - 1109), who by 1077 had proclaimed himself �emperor of all Spain� (imperator totius Hispaniae). His oppression of his Muslim vassals led to the invasion of Spain by an Almoravid army from North Africa (1086). His name is also associated with the national hero of Spain, Rodrigo D�az de Vivar (El Cid), who was alternatively

Black Friday

2005-02-01T19:19:00.000-08:00

In U.S. history, Sept. 24, 1869, when plummeting gold prices precipitated a securities market panic. The crash was a consequence of an attempt by financier Jay Gould and railway magnate James Fisk to corner the gold market and drive up the price. The scheme depended on keeping government gold off the market, which the manipulators arranged through political influence. When

Wroclaw

2005-01-31T15:42:00.000-08:00

German �Breslau, � city, capital of Wroclaw wojew�dztwo (province), southwestern Poland. It lies along the Oder River at its confluence with the Olawa, Sleza, Bystrzyca, and Widawa rivers. A large industrial centre situated in Dolny Slask (Lower Silesia), Wroclaw is the fourth largest city in Poland. It contains Poland's largest flour mills, a modern electronics and data-processing industry, foundries,

Alto

2005-01-30T22:35:00.000-08:00

Alto derives from the term contratenor altus, which in Renaissance music referred to the part immediately above the tenor

Argentina, Music and dance

2005-01-29T00:01:00.000-08:00

Another cultural hybrid is the tango, a music style and dance that emerged from the poor immigrant quarters of Buenos Aires toward the end of the 19th century and quickly became famous around the world as a symbol of Argentine culture. Influenced by the Spanish tango and, possibly, the Argentine milonga, it was originally a high-spirited local phenomenon, but, after it

Nitrobenzene

2005-01-27T15:39:00.000-08:00

Nitrobenzene was first prepared in 1834 by the German chemist Eilhardt Mitscherlich, who treated benzene with

North Germanic Languages, Orthography

2005-01-26T06:42:00.000-08:00

The five basic vowel symbols of the Latin alphabet are supplemented by a number of special symbols that are used mostly to represent umlauted vowels: thus, there is y (pronounced as German �), � (used in Danish, Norwegian, Icelandic, and Faroese) and the corresponding � (used in Swedish), � (in Danish, Norwegian, and Faroese) and the corresponding � (in Swedish and Icelandic), and

Yamazaki Ansai

2005-01-25T04:04:00.000-08:00

A Buddhist monk early in life, Ansai began to study Confucianism and gradually turned against

Manchester Ship Canal

2005-01-24T14:02:00.000-08:00

Waterway opened in 1894 linking Eastham, Merseyside, Eng., to the city of Manchester. The canal made Manchester accessible to large oceangoing vessels. It is 36 miles (58 km) long, 45 - 80 feet (14 - 24 m) wide, and varies in depth from 28 to 30 feet (about 9 m); it has five locks.

Ringed Seal

2005-01-23T22:03:00.000-08:00

(species Pusa, or Phoca, hispida), nonmigratory, earless seal (family Phocidae) of North Polar seas and a few freshwater lakes in Europe and on Baffin Island. Named for the characteristic pale rings on its grayish or yellowish coat, the ringed seal grows to about 1.5 m (5 feet) in length and 90 kg (200 pounds) in weight. It lives near the pack ice and feeds on crustaceans, mollusks, and some

Frederick I

2005-01-22T02:04:00.000-08:00

An implacable enemy of the Bohemian followers of Jan Hus, church reformer and accused heretic, Frederick aided the Holy Roman emperor Sigismund against them from 1420 on. When the last Saxon elector

Mercadante, Saverio

2005-01-21T20:01:00.000-08:00

Mercadante was born out of wedlock. He was taken

Hupeh, Industry

2005-01-20T06:13:00.000-08:00

Hupeh's mineral wealth consists chiefly of iron, copper, and phosphorus ores; coal; and gypsum. Some of China's richest and best iron ore is found at Ta-yeh in southeastern Hupeh. The exploitation of this ore and of coking coal from P'ing-hsiang in Kiangsi was the basis for the founding of an ironworks at Han-yang at the end of the 19th century. Ore from Ta-yeh and other mines was

China, Civil war (1945 - 49)

2005-01-18T01:36:00.000-08:00

In a little more than four years after Japan's surrender, the CCP and the People's Liberation Army (PLA) conquered mainland China, and, on Oct. 1, 1949, the People's Republic of China was established, with its capital at Peking. The factors that brought this about were many and complex and subject to widely varying interpretation, but the basic fact was a Communist military triumph

Shenute

2005-01-17T17:53:00.000-08:00

Shenute entered monastic life as a youth and succeeded his uncle as abbot of the White Monastery in 383. He revived the rule of Pachomius, the 4th-century founder of cenobitic,

Amarapura

2005-01-16T08:19:00.000-08:00

Town, central Myanmar (Burma). It lies on the left bank of the Irrawaddy River. A suburb of Mandalay, it is also known as Taung-myo (Southern Town) or Myohaung (Old City). Founded by King Bodawpaya in 1783 as his new capital, it supplanted Ava, 6 miles (10 km) southwest. Its population in 1810 was estimated at 170,000, but a fire that year and the return of the court to Ava in 1823 caused a decline to about 30,000 by 1827. King

Ashley, Maurice

2005-01-15T00:49:00.000-08:00

Ashley moved to Brooklyn, New York, with his family when he was 12 years old. He soon took up chess and excelled at the game, becoming a national master in 1986 and an International Master in 1993. From 1991 to 1997 Ashley was the chess director of the Harlem Educational Activities Fund, Inc., where

Burgesses, House Of

2005-01-14T03:41:00.000-08:00

Representative assembly in colonial Virginia; the first elective governing body in a British overseas possession. The assembly was one division of the legislature established by Gov. George Yeardley at Jamestown, July 30, 1619; the other included the governor himself and a council, all appointed by the colonial proprietor (the Virginia Company). Because each Virginia

Kazoku

2005-01-13T11:13:00.000-08:00

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

Mar�, �le

2005-01-12T15:29:00.000-08:00

Formerly �Nengone Island, � southernmost of the Loyalty Islands, a raised coralline limestone and volcanic group in the southwestern Pacific Ocean that is part of the French overseas territory of New Caledonia. Rising to 300 ft (100 m), Mar� is the highest in the group. It is 22 mi (35 km) long and 18 mi wide and has a total area of 248 sq mi (642 sq km). It was annexed by France in 1866 and was Christianized by indigenous teachers from

Clanton

2005-01-11T01:14:00.000-08:00

City, seat of Chilton county, central Alabama, U.S., near the Coosa River, about 45 miles (70 km) northwest of Montgomery. Originally called Goose Pond, the town was laid out in 1870 and renamed for James H. Clanton, a Confederate general in the American Civil War. Peach growing is the area's main economic activity, and a peach festival is held in June. Clanton is a base for sport fishing on

Alkali

2005-01-10T20:14:00.000-08:00

Any of the soluble hydroxides of the alkali metals - i.e., lithium, sodium, potassium, rubidium, and cesium. Alkalies are strong bases that turn litmus paper from red to blue; they react with acids to yield neutral salts; and they are caustic and in concentrated form are corrosive to organic tissues. The term alkali is also applied to the soluble hydroxides of such alkaline-earth

Dehra Dun

2005-01-09T05:03:00.000-08:00

City, capital of Uttaranchal state, northern India. It lies in the Himalayan foothills at an elevation of 2,200 feet (670 metres). Dehra Dun was founded in 1699, when the heretical Sikh Guru Ram Rai, driven out of the Punjab, built a temple there. During the 18th century the area succumbed to successive invaders, the last of whom were the Gurkhas. When the Gurkha War ended in 1816, the area was ceded to

Consumerism

2005-01-08T10:23:00.000-08:00

Consumer

Melas Carpet

2005-01-07T13:13:00.000-08:00

Floor covering handwoven in the neighbourhood of Mil�s (Melas) on the Aegean coast of southwestern Turkey. Normally of small size and 19th century in date, Melas carpets have unusually wide borders in relation to their narrow fields. In the prayer rugs the arch (which indicates the direction of Mecca, the Holy City) is straight-sided, with a triangular indentation below

Pito�ff, Georges

2005-01-06T05:39:00.000-08:00

Russian-born director and producer, noted for his popularization in France of the works of contemporary foreign playwrights, especially Pirandello, Shaw, Chekhov, Schnitzler, and O'Neill. He was a member of the Cartel des Quatre (Group of Four), a group including Louis Jouvet, Charles Dullin, and Gaston Baty, dedicated to rejuvenating the

Rome, March On

2005-01-05T15:53:00.000-08:00

Widespread social discontent, aggravated by middle-class fear of a socialist revolution and by disappointment over Italy's meagre gains from the

Foraminiferan

2005-01-04T10:11:00.000-08:00

Any unicellular organism of the rhizopodan order Foraminiferida (formerly Foraminifera), characterized by long, fine pseudopodia that extend from a uninucleated or multinucleated cytoplasmic body encased within a test, or shell. Depending on the species, the test ranges in size from minute to more than 5 cm (2 inches) in diameter and varies in shape, number of chambers,

Kuala Kangsar

2005-01-03T08:03:00.000-08:00

Town, northwestern West Malaysia (Malaya). It lies along the Perak River and the main west coast road and rail network. It was the site (1897) of the first conference of rulers of the Federated Malay States. Now a collecting centre for a rice- and rubber-growing area (the first rubber trees cultivated in Malaya were planted there), Kuala Kangsar is the royal town of Perak state with

Cereal Farming, Weeds

2005-01-02T20:51:00.000-08:00

Weeds present difficulties, as they compete with cereal crops for water, light, and mineral nutrients. The infestation of annual seeds planted in a field may cause many weeds in that field for successive years. Charlock or wild mustard, wild oats, crouch grass, and other common weeds are disseminated by wind, water, and birds.

T�rgu Jiu

2005-01-01T21:47:00.000-08:00

Also spelled �T�rgu Jiu� city, capital of Gorj judet (county), southwestern Romania, on the Jiu River. Formerly a Roman settlement, T�rgu Jiu was the property of boyars until the 19th century. After World War II, the city developed rapidly from an agricultural market town into an industrial centre producing timber, clothing, cigarettes, and foodstuffs. It lies in the southern part of the Petrosani

Oath

2004-12-30T08:31:00.000-08:00

Sacred or solemn voluntary promise usually involving the penalty of divine retribution for intentional falsity and often used in legal procedures. It is not certain that the oath was always considered a religious act; such ancient peoples as the Germanic tribes, Greeks, Romans, and Scythians swore by their swords or other weapons. These peoples, however, were actually

Accentual Verse

2004-12-29T16:14:00.000-08:00

In prosody, a metrical system based only on the number of stresses or accented syllables in a line of verse. In accentual verse the total number of syllables in a line can vary as long as there are the prescribed number of accents. This system is used in Germanic poetry, including Old English and Old Norse, as well as in some English verse. The poem "what if a much of a which

Vajrayana

2004-12-28T15:16:00.000-08:00

Also called �Tantric Buddhism, � important development within Buddhism in India and neighbouring countries, notably Tibet. Vajrayana, in the history of Buddhism, marks the transition from Mahayana speculative thought to the enactment of Buddhist ideas in individual life. The term vajra (Sanskrit: �diamond,� or �thunderbolt�) is used to signify the absolutely real and indestructible in man, as opposed

Baetic Cordillera

2004-12-27T21:33:00.000-08:00

Spanish �Sistema Penib�tico, � mountain system comprising the Andalusian mountains of southern Spain, of which the northern range runs about 360 miles (580 km) from Cape Trafalgar to Cape Nao. The central and southern ranges, the Baetic proper, extend a shorter distance from Estepona to Cape Gata. Separating the two systems is a complex series of structures, traceable in longitudinal corridors and high

Earp, Wyatt (berry Stapp)

2004-12-26T23:54:00.000-08:00

Earp and his four

Swale

2004-12-25T06:43:00.000-08:00

Borough (district), administrative and historic county of Kent, southeastern England, on the south side of the Thames estuary at its mouth. Swale borough includes the Isle of Sheppey, 9 miles (14 km) long and 4 miles (6 km) wide, to the north. The island is separated from the mainland (south) by The Swale, a branch of the River Medway estuary, which gives its name to the district. Land on

Dye

2004-12-23T08:57:00.000-08:00

Coloured substance synthesized from certain chemical compounds called benzenoid hydrocarbons, obtained from either coal tar or petroleum. Its most important use is in dyeing textiles. Wool or cotton fabrics may have dyes applied at any stage of manufacture from fibre to finished garment, depending on the nature of the textile, its subsequent processing, and

Duarte, Fausto (castilho)

2004-12-22T02:58:00.000-08:00

Duarte was educated under the official program of assimila�ao (�assimilation�), which after 1921 had social and political equality for Africans in the Portuguese sphere of influence as a goal. He was then

Wainganga River

2004-12-21T16:42:00.000-08:00

River, tributary of the Godavari River, western India. It rises in the Mahadeo Hills in south-central Madhya Pradesh state and flows 360 miles (580 km) south to join the Wardha River (a headwater of the Godavari) northeast of Kagaznagar in Maharashtra state. Along the final 142 miles (229 km) of its course, the river forms the boundary between Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh states and is known as

Perak, Tun

2004-12-20T16:37:00.000-08:00

A leader in the Malay defeat of a Siamese invasion in 1445 - 46, Tun Perak was made bendahara by Sultan Muzaffar Shah in 1456, when he again led Malacca's forces in a decisive defeat of the Siamese. He

1812, War Of

2004-12-19T05:52:00.000-08:00

(June 18, 1812 - Dec. 24, 1814), inconclusive British - U.S. conflict arising chiefly out of U.S. grievances over oppressive maritime practices during the Napoleonic Wars. The long struggle between Great Britain and France, fought intermittently between 1793 and 1815, led both belligerents to infringe on the rights and impair the interests of neutrals. Napoleon averted hostilities

Porsgrunn

2004-12-18T05:01:00.000-08:00

Town, Telemark fylke (county), southern Norway, at the mouth of the Skienselva (river) on Frierfjorden. Established as a customs post in 1652 with the name Porsgrund, it received its town charter in 1842. An export and industrial centre, it contains the huge Norsk Hydro chemical factories, a factory that produces Norway's finest porcelain, shipyards, metalworks, and lumber mills.

Biblical Literature, Pseudepigrapha connected with the Dead Sea Scrolls

2004-12-17T10:05:00.000-08:00

There are three Pseudepigrapha that are closely connected with the writings of the Dead Sea sect: the Book of Jubilees, the Ethiopic Book of Enoch, and the Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs. It is not accidental that fragments of the two first books and of two sources of the third were found among the Dead Sea Scrolls.

Lillehei, C(larence) Walton

2004-12-16T18:02:00.000-08:00

American surgeon who in 1952 performed the first successful open-heart operation; he also helped develop the first wearable pacemaker and artificial heart valves (b. Oct. 23, 1918, Minneapolis, Minn. - d. July 5, 1999, St. Paul, Minn.).

Rachmaninoff, Sergey

2004-12-15T17:56:00.000-08:00

Rachmaninoff's letters have been collected and published in Russian in Pisma, ed. by Z.A. Apetian (1955), which includes all previously published letters and some newly published ones. Rachmaninoff's Recollections, Told to Oskar von Riesemann, trans. from German by Dolly Rutherford (1934, reissued 1979), are reminiscences by the composer about his life and work; the last chapter is Riesemann's analysis of Rachmaninoff's qualities as a composer. Sergei Bertensson, Jay Leyda, and Sophia Satin, Sergei Rachmaninoff: A Lifetime in Music (1956, reissued 1965), is a comprehensive biography whose preparation was assisted by the composer's cousin and sister-in-law; it is especially useful for its description of the composer's years in the United States. Other biographical studies are Patrick Piggott, Rachmaninov (1978), including detailed musical commentary and critique; Barrie Martyn, Rachmaninoff: Composer, Pianist, Conductor (1990), drawing extensively on archival and Russian-language sources, with a discography; and Geoffrey Norris, Rachmaninoff, rev. and updated ed. (1994).

Royal Courts Of Justice

2004-12-14T03:49:00.000-08:00

Within its confines are held sessions of the Court of Appeal, the High Court of Justice, and the Crown Court. Prior to the opening of the complex in 1882, civil cases were decided

Harvard Classification System

2004-12-13T13:16:00.000-08:00

In the 1860s the Italian astronomer Angelo Secchi distinguished four main spectral types of stars. At the Harvard College Observatory in the 1880s, during the compilation of the Henry

Al Wahibah Dunes

2004-12-11T16:21:00.000-08:00

Arabic �Ramlat Al Wahibah, � sandy desert, east-central Oman. It fronts the Arabian Sea on the southeast and stretches along the coast for more than 100 miles (160 km). The desert consists of honey-coloured dunes that are dark red at their base and rise to heights of 230 feet (70 m). The sands are crisscrossed with tracks and routes for vehicles. There is very little surface water, but underground water traditionally