Buraq
In Islamic tradition, a creature said to have transported the Prophet Muhammad to heaven. Described as “a white animal, half-mule, half-donkey, with wings on its sides . . . ,” Buraq was originally introduced into the story of Muhammad's night journey (isra') from Mecca to Jerusalem and back, thus explaining how the journey between the cities could have been completed in a single night.
Bone Cyst
Circumscribed, benign (noncancerous) lesion, usually saclike and filled with fluid. Unicameral bone cyst affects the long bones or heel bones in children and adolescents and is frequently detected as a result of a pathological fracture. Treatment is by excision and bone graft, but spontaneous healing is common. Aneurysmal bone cyst, usually occurring in young males,
Packaging and branding are also substantial components in the marketing of a product. Packaging in some instances may be as simple as customers in France carrying long loaves of unwrapped bread or small produce dealers in Italy wrapping vegetables in newspapers or placing them in customers' string bags. In most industrialized countries, however, the packaging
Also called Scandinavian languages group of Germanic languages consisting of modern standard Danish, Swedish, Norwegian (Dano-Norwegian and New Norwegian), Icelandic, and Faroese. These languages are usually divided into East Scandinavian (Danish and Swedish) and West Scandinavian (Norwegian, Icelandic, and Faroese) groups.
Lighthouse, Rectangular and drum lenses
In 1828 Augustin Fresnel of France produced the first apparatus using the refracting properties of glass, now known as the dioptric system. On a lens panel he surrounded a central bull's-eye lens with a series of concentric glass prismatic rings. The panel collected light emitted by the lamp over a wide horizontal angle and also the light that would otherwise escape to
Binnig, Gerd
Binnig graduated from Johann Wolfgang Goethe University in Frankfurt and received a doctorate from the University of Frankfurt in 1978. He then
Gnetales
Only order of plants in the subdivision Gnetopsida, a group with characteristics of both angiosperms and gymnosperms. The order contains three families: Ephedraceae, Gnetaceae, and Welwitschiaceae, each with a single genus. See also Ephedra; Gnetaceae; Welwitschiaceae.
Concept of government in which the state plays a key role in the protection and promotion of the economic and social well-being of its citizens. It is based on the principles of equality of opportunity, equitable distribution of wealth, and public responsibility for those unable to avail themselves of the minimal provisions for a good life. The general term may cover
Heyward, Dubose
At the age of 17 Heyward worked on the waterfront, where he observed the black Americans who were to become the subject of his writing. Heyward first wrote poems: Carolina Chansons (1922), a joint publication
Sponge genus that includes the freshwater sponge (q.v.) species.
In aerial navigation, a system of radio transmitting stations, each of which transmits a signal that not only carries identification but also is of intrinsic value to a navigator in fixing his position. The older “A–N” type, dating from 1927, operates at low and medium frequencies and is still in use, mainly by private light aircraft. The only equipment needed in the aircraft
The first half of the 20th century saw the gradual disintegration of the old order in China and the turbulent preparation for a new society. Foreign political philosophies undermined the traditional governmental system, nationalism became the strongest activating force, and civil wars and Japanese invasion tore the vast country and retarded its modernization.
Thomas Cup
Trophy signifying world supremacy in the sport of badminton. The cup was donated in 1939 by Sir George Thomas for a series of men's international team competitions to be managed by the International Badminton Federation (IBF), of which Thomas was then president. The first tournament was held in 1948–49 and won by Malaya. Tournaments are held every two years.
Ksar El-boukhari
Also called Boghari, town, north-central Algeria. Lying along the Chelif River at the junction of the High Plateau and the Atlas Mountains, the town is almost totally surrounded by wooded mountain ridges. The old walled quarter (ksar) is on a hill, overlooking the modern town. Ksar el-Boukhari is a commercial centre for pastoral peoples of the interior, who trade in wool, livestock, and cereals.
Any of several venomous snakes of the viper family, Viperidae, and the death adder, a viperlike member of the cobra snake family, Elapidae. The name adder may also be applied to certain other snakes, such as the hognose snake (q.v.), a harmless North American species. Among the adders of the viper family are included the common adder (Vipera berus), the puff adders (several species
Ilebo
Formerly Port-Francqui, town, south-central Congo (Kinshasa). The town lies along the Kasai River near its junction with the Sankuru River. Ilebo is a river port and has rail connections with Kananga and Lubumbashi. It is an important transshipment point in the transport of copper and other minerals from Katanga (Shaba) province to Kinshasa and Matadi. Ilebo is also a busy commercial, industrial,
Tafoya, Maria Margarita
American potter (b. Aug. 13, 1904, Santa Clara Pueblo, N.M.—d. Feb. 25, 2001, Santa Clara Pueblo), was one of the most prominent Native American folk artists and was considered the matriarch of the renowned Santa Clara Pueblo potters. In particular, Tafoya was known for her large clay vessels, and her works were the subject of exhibits around the world. In 1984 she was named a National Heritage fellow
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
German Moon, archipelago and island, Estonia, separating the Gulf of Riga from the Baltic Sea. The archipelago's three main islands are Saaremaa (q.v.), the largest, in the south; Hiiumaa (q.v.) in the north; and Muhu, the smallest, in the east nearest the mainland. Navigable straits separate the islands from each other and from the mainland. Ferries serve the archipelago, and a causeway links
Clarence River
Coastal river, northeastern New South Wales, Australia, rising in the McPherson Range near the Queensland border, flowing south and northeast for 245 mi (394 km), and emptying into the Pacific 40 mi below Grafton. Its chief tributaries are the Timbarra, Mitchell, and Orara. Woodford, Chatsworth, and Harwood are the largest of its many islands, most of which are subject to floods. The
Sabah (North Borneo) was the last region to be brought under British control. In the early 1700s Brunei transferred its claims over much of Sabah to the sultan of Sulu, but, except in the northeast, actual Sulu power remained limited. Occasional resistance to Brunei or Sulu influence, as well as extensive coastal raiding and confusion of suzerainty, invited Western interest
30 Doradus
Also called Tarantula Nebula (catalog number NGC 2070) immense ionized-hydrogen region in the Large Magellanic Cloud, a satellite galaxy of the Milky Way system (in which the Earth is located). The nebula consists of a cloud of interstellar gas—principally hydrogen—lit from within by young, hot stars that ionize the gas around them. As the atoms in the gas recombine, they emit visible light. The total mass of the nebula is about
Formerly Halcyon Island, or Helsion Island, an atoll in the central Pacific Ocean, 2,300 miles (3,700 km) west of Honolulu. An unincorporated territory of the United States, it comprises three low-lying coral islets (Wilkes, Peale, and Wake) that rise to 21 feet (6 m) and occupy a total land area of 2.5 square miles (6.5 square km). Linked by causeways, they lie in a crescent configuration on a reef (4.5 miles [7.2 km] long and 2 miles [3.2 km] wide) surrounding a lagoon.
Human Embryology, Allantois
The allantois, a tube of endoderm (the innermost germ layer), grows out of the early yolk sac in a region that soon becomes the hindgut. The tube extends into a bridge of mesoderm (the middle germ layer) that connects embryo with chorion and will become incorporated into the umbilical cord (Figure 1K, O). The human
Grijalva River
Spanish Río Grijalva, river in southeastern Mexico. Its headstreams, the largest of which is the Cuilco, rise in the Sierra Madre of Guatemala and the Sierra de Soconusco of Mexico. The Grijalva flows generally northwestward through Chiapas state, where it is known locally as the Río Grande de Chiapa, or the Río Chiapa. After leaving a lake created by the Malpaso Dam, it turns northward and
Also called Ixcuina, or Tlaelquani, Aztec goddess who represented sexual impurity and sinful behaviour; she was probably introduced to the Aztecs from the gulf lowlands of Huaxteca. Tlazoltéotl was an important and complex earth-mother goddess. She was known in four guises, associated with different stages of life. As a young woman, she was a carefree temptress. In her second form she was the destructive
