Monday, April 04, 2005

Vienna

Modern Vienna has undergone several historical incarnations. From 1558 to 1918 it was an imperial city—until 1806 the seat of the Holy Roman Empire and then the capital of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. In 1918 it became the capital of the truncated,

Locatelli, Pietro

In full  Pietro Antonio Locatelli  Italian violinist and composer, one of the first great violinists who practiced virtuosity for virtuosity's sake, thereby extending the technical vocabulary of the violin. He is perhaps best known for his L'Arte del violino, a group of 12 violin concerti issued with 24 capriccios ad libitum for

Sunday, April 03, 2005

Rush

Any of several flowering plants distinguished by cylindrical stalks or hollow, stemlike leaves. They are found in temperate regions and particularly in moist or shady locations. The rush family (Juncaceae) includes Juncus, the common rushes, and Luzula, the woodrushes. Common rushes are used in many parts of the world for weaving into chair bottoms,

Yi Sun-shin

After passing the government examinations to become a military officer in 1576, Yi served at various army and navy posts. Although he was twice discharged after being falsely accused by jealous

Friday, April 01, 2005

Anhava, Tuomas

Anhava was a perfectionist in his poetry, with a fanatical concern for le mot propre and a great theoretical interest in the aesthetics of modern poetry. His Runoja (1953; “Poems”) has as its central theme alienation and a search for a transcendence of everyday reality.

Ski Patrol

Group of paid or volunteer workers at ski resorts whose primary function is to promote skiing safety and provide first aid for injured skiers. Ski patrolmen are proficient skiers trained in first aid and cold weather rescue and survival techniques. One of the largest such organizations in the world is the National Ski Patrol System of the United States, founded

Wednesday, March 30, 2005

Radin, Paul

U.S. anthropologist who was influential in advancing a historical model of primitive society based on a synthesis of economic and social structure, religion, philosophy, and psychology. He pioneered in such important fields of anthropology as culture-personality studies and the use of autobiographical documents. An accomplished

Tuesday, March 29, 2005

Distribution Function

Mathematical expression that describes the probability that a system will take on a specific value or set of values. For example, the probability (dP) that a molecule of gas will be found with velocity components u, v, and w in the x, y, and z directions, respectively, is given by the product of the distribution function and the infinitesimal volume du dv dw; i.e., dP = f (u, v, w) du dv

Sunday, March 27, 2005

Arabian Sea, Resources

High levels of inorganic nutrients, such as phosphate concentrate, which produce a rich fish life, have been observed in the western Arabian Sea and off the southeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula. Occurring in the euphotic zone (zone of light, which is found in the upper 450 feet of the sea), this fertilizing effect undoubtedly is attributable in part to coastal upwelling,

Sabda

(Sanskrit: “sound”), in Indian philosophy, verbal testimony as a means of obtaining knowledge. In the orthodox philosophical systems (darsana), sabda is equated with the authority of the Vedas (most ancient sacred scriptures) as the only infallible testimony, since the Vedas are deemed both eternal and authorless and without contradiction. Sabda is of particular importance

Saturday, March 26, 2005

Kilim

Pileless floor covering handwoven by tapestry techniques in Anatolia, the Balkans, or parts of Iran. In the rest of Iran, the Caucasus, and Turkistan, the name for similar pieces is palas. In most kilims, a slit occurs wherever two colours meet along a vertical line in the pattern, but in a few Karabagh or South Caucasian pieces, interlocking methods are employed in order