Ternary Form

Musical form consisting of three sections, the last of which is a repeat of the first. The symmetrical construction of this scheme (aba) provides one of the basic shapes in music and may be found as a guiding principle in music from the Middle Ages (in Gregorian chant, for instance, the arrangement antiphon-verse-antiphon is common) to the 20th century (a well-known example

Saw-scaled Viper

The saw-scaled viper is irritable and aggressive and commonly hides under stones and in rodent runs. It is sand-coloured or gray,

Molinos, Miguel De

Ordained in 1652, Molinos in 1663 was sent to Rome. There, in 1675, he published his Spiritual Guide, a small handbook teaching that Christian perfection is achieved by a mixture of contemplation

Mercier, D�sir�-joseph

Mercier was ordained in 1874 and taught philosophy at the seminary of Malines, Belg. (1877 - 82). In 1880 Pope Leo XIII requested that a program in Thomistic philosophy be offered at the University of Louvain, Belg., for which Mercier was appointed

Amphibian

Any member of the class Amphibia, vertebrates distinguished by their ability to exploit both aquatic and terrestrial habitats. They include the frogs and toads, salamanders and newts, and caecilians. The name, derived from the Greek amphibios meaning �living a double life,� reflects this dual life strategy. Despite this distinction, however, some species are permanent

Gioia Del Colle

Medieval monuments include a 12th-century castle and a fortified hunting lodge built for the Holy Roman emperor Frederick II. The town has an archaeological museum, and nearby is the site of a large city that flourished between the 6th and 4th

Amorite Language

One of the most ancient of the archaic Semitic languages, distributed in an area that is now northern Syria. Amorite is known almost exclusively from glosses and names, and the only known grammar is the grammar of names. Despite the unknown linguistic characteristics, Amorite is dated from the known chronology of proper names of the period in the last century of the

Kwasniewski, Aleksander

Kwasniewski attended the University of Gdansk, where he studied economics and was chairman of the socialist student group. A leader in the student activist movement, he served as chair of the University Council of the Socialist Union of Polish Students (1976 - 77). In 1977 he joined the governing

Bharhut Sculpture

The Bharhut style, though at times archaic and primitive in its conception, marks the beginnings of a tradition

Cinquefoil

(genus Potentilla), any of many flowering plants of the rose family (Rosaceae), comprising about 500 species of herbs and shrubs. The common name, which means �five-leaved,� refers to the number of leaflets in the compound leaf; some species, however, have three or seven leaflets. Most of the species are native to the North Temperate Zone and the Arctic and are

Cabrera Infante, Guillermo

In the 1940s Cabrera Infante moved to Havana with his impoverished

Moseley Braun, Carol

Carol Moseley attended the University of Illinois at Chicago (B.A., 1969) and received a law degree from the University of Chicago (1972). She married Michael Braun in 1973 (divorced 1986) and worked as an assistant U.S. attorney before her election to the Illinois

Carolingian Art

Charlemagne's dream of a revival of the Roman Empire in the West determined both his political aims and his artistic program. His strong patronage of the arts gave impetus to a remarkable return to Roman classicism in the copying of Early Christian models and the influence

China 1

Also called �Chicom 1�, or �PRC 1� first Earth satellite orbited by the People's Republic of China. It was launched on April 24, 1970, from the rocket facility at Shuang Cheng Tsu, and it made China the fifth nation to place a satellite into Earth orbit. Little is known about China 1. It weighed approximately 173 kg (381 pounds) and carried a radio transmitter that broadcast a patriotic anthem.

Baracaldo

Also spelled �Barakaldo, � industrial municipality, northern Biscay (Vizcaya) provincia, in the autonomous Basque Country, northeastern Spain. It lies on the south bank of the Nervi�n River. Baracaldo consists of the Bilbao suburbs of El Regato, San Vicente de Baracaldo, Ir�uregui, and Alons�tegui. It is the terminus of a mining railway; the locality's primary economic activities include iron

Orange Order

The society was formed in 1795 to maintain the Protestant ascendancy in Ireland in the face of rising demands for Catholic Emancipation. Enmity between Roman Catholics and Protestants had always

Hinduism, Jainism

With Jainism, which always remained an Indian religion, Hinduism has so much in common, especially in social institutions and ritual life, that nowadays Hindus tend to consider it a Hindu sect. Many Jains also are inclined to fraternization. The points of difference - e.g., a stricter ahimsa practice and the absence of sacrifices for the deceased in Jainism - do not give

Margaret Of Valois

The daughter of Henry II of France and Catherine de M�dicis, she played a secondary part in the Wars of Religion (1562 - 98) from the moment she took her place at court in 1569. Her relations with her brothers Charles IX

France, History Of, Merovingian literature and arts

During the entire 6th century many writers, inspired by classical tradition, produced works patterned on antique models; such writers included Sidonius Apollinaris (d. c. 488), Gregory of Tours (d. 594/595), and Venantius Fortunatus (d. c. 600). The writing of saints' lives - hagiography - became the most widespread literary genre of the period. Nevertheless, the standard of literature continued

Biblical Literature, Swiss versions

Four parts of Luther's version were reprinted in the Swyzerdeutsch dialect in Z�rich in 1524 - 25. The Prophets and Apocrypha appeared in 1529. A year later, the first Swiss Bible was issued with the Prophets and Apocrypha independently translated. The Swiss Bible underwent frequent revision between 1660 and 1882. A fresh translation from the original languages was made between 1907 and 1931.

Udi-nsukka Plateau

Pair of plateaus in south-central Nigeria that form a nearly continuous elevated area. The Nsukka Plateau, which forms the main eastward-facing escarpment, extends about 80 miles (130 km) from Nsukka in the north to Enugu in the south. The Udi Plateau continues southward for about 100 miles (160 km) to a point near Okigwi. The average elevation is slightly more than 1,000 feet (300 m), and the highest

Belgium, History Of

After the Burgundian regime in the Low Countries (1363 - 1477), the southern as well as the northern provinces had dynastic links with the Austrian Habsburgs, then with Spain and the Austrian Habsburgs together. Later, as a consequence of revolt in

Basketball, College.

Duke University basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski and his Blue Devils were the consensus favourites to win the 2001 National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) championship, but sentimental fans and media alike were pulling for the Arizona Wildcats and their coach, Lute Olson. The death of Olson's wife, Bobbi, on January 1 had brought an outpouring of sympathy from

Muromachi Period

The most successful of the Ashikaga rulers, the third shogun Yoshimitsu, managed

'phags-pa

'Phags-pa was a member of the Sa-skya-pa school of Buddhism, which was based at the Sa-skya monastery and which was noted for its emphasis on scholarship. After the Mongols had established suzerainty over his country, 'Phags-pa accompanied his uncle, the Sa-skya Lama, on a visit to Mongolia in 1247. 'Phags-pa later succeeded

Work, History Of The Organization Of, Textiles

The same type of specialization is also implied in the making of textiles. Early protective garments were derived from animal skins. The development of agriculture cut into the supply of available skins and required a substitute material for clothing. To make textiles, yarn had to be spun; the earliest apparatus for this work consisted of a spindle and a distaff

France, History Of, The church

The organized church, despite losses from war and plague, continued to be better endowed economically than morally. The popes of Avignon were less distant and - save perhaps to their French relatives, merchants, and artists - less admirable than the reformer popes of the past; as the prestige of their schismatic successors plummeted, the higher clergy were confirmed

Polaris Missile

After four years of research and development, the U.S. Navy in 1960 began to deploy nuclear-powered submarines armed with 16 Polaris missiles each. Each missile was 31 feet (9.4 m) long and 4.5 feet (1.4 m) in diameter and was powered by two solid-fueled stages. Three

Oblate

(from Latin oblatus, �one offered up�), in Roman Catholicism, a lay person connected with a religious order or institution and living according to its regulations; a minor dedicated by his parents to become a monk according to the Benedictine Rule; or a member of either the Oblates of Mary Immaculate (O.M.I.) or the Oblates of St. Francis de Sales (O.S.F.S.).

Oblate

The common fig (Ficus carica) is cultivated for its pear-shaped, edible fruits, which

Mercouri, Melina

Mercouri came from a politically prominent family. She graduated from the Drama School of the National Theatre of Greece. Her first major role, at the age of 20, was Lavinia in Eugene O'Neill's Mourning Becomes Electra,