go

A

The letter A is the first letter in the Latin and Old Italic alphabetcitation needed]. It is also the capital form of the Greek letter alpha as well as the first letter of the Cyrillic alphabet.

A. A. Milne

Alan Alexander Milne (IPA pronunciation: ) (January 18, 1882 – January 31, 1956), also known as A. A. Milne, was an English author, best known for his books about the teddy bear Winnie-the-Pooh and for various children's poems. Milne was a noted writer, primarily as a playwright, before the huge success of Pooh overshadowed all his previous work.

A. E. J. Collins

Arthur Edward Jeune (James) Collins (18 August 1885–11 November 1914), typically known by his initials AEJ Collins, was an English cricketer and soldier. He is most famous for achieving the highest-ever recorded score in cricket: as a 13-year-old schoolboy, he scored 628 not out over four afternoons in June 1899. Collins' record-making innings drew a large crowd and increasing media interest; spectators at the Old Cliftonian match being played nearby were drawn away to watch the junior school house cricket match in which Collins was playing.

Collins joined the British Army in 1902. He studied at the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich, before becoming an officer in the Royal Engineers. He served in France during World War I, where he was killed in action in 1914.

A (band)

A are a British alternative rock band. They formed in 1995 in Suffolk, England.

A (kana)

あ in hiragana or ア in katakana (romanised a) is one of the Japanese kana that each represent one mora. あ is based on the sōsho style of kanji 安, and ア is from the radical of kanji 阿. In the modern Japanese system of alphabetical order, it is occupies the first position of the alphabet, before い. Additionally, it is the 36th letter in Iroha, after て, before さ. Its hiragana resembles the kana no combined with a cross. The Unicode for あ is U+3040, and the Unicode for ア is U+30A2.

The pronunciation is normally transcribed ; more precisely, it is or .

A cappella

A cappella music is vocal music or singing without instrumental accompaniment, or a piece intended to be performed in this way. A cappella is Italian for "in the style of the chapel", and was originally intended to differentiate between Renaissance polyphony and Baroque concertato style. In the 19th century a renewed interest in Renaissance polyphony coupled with an ignorance of the fact that vocal parts were often doubled by instrumentalists led to the term coming to mean unaccompanied vocal music. In modern usage, a cappella often refers to an all-vocal performance of any style, including barbershop, doo wop, and modern pop/rock.

A Christmas Carol

A Christmas Carol in Prose, Being a Ghost Story of Christmas (commonly known as A Christmas Carol ) is what Charles Dickens described as his "little Christmas Book" and was first published on December 19, 1843 with illustrations by John Leech. The story was instantly successful, selling over six thousand copies in one week and, although originally written as a potboiler to enable Dickens to pay off a debt, the tale has become one of the most popular and enduring Christmas stories of all time.

Contemporaries noted that the story's popularity played a critical role in redefining the importance of Christmas and the major sentiments associated with the holiday. A Christmas Carol was written during a time of decline in the old Christmas traditions. "If Christmas, with its ancient and hospitable customs, its social and charitable observances, were in danger of decay, this is the book that would give them a new lease," said English poet Thomas Hood.

A Tale of a Tub

A Tale of a Tub was the first major work written by Jonathan Swift, composed between 1694 and 1697 and published in 1704. It is probably his most difficult satire, and possibly his most masterly. The Tale is a prose parody which is divided up into sections of "digression" and "tale." The "tale" presents a consistent satire of religious excess, while the digressions are a series of parodies of contemporary writing in literature, politics, theology, Biblical exegesis, and medicine. The overarching parody is of enthusiasm, pride, and credulity.

A Wrinkle in Time

A Wrinkle in Time is a children's fantasy novel by Madeleine L'Engle, written between 1959 and 1960 and published in 1962 after at least 26 rejections by publishers because it was, in L'Engle's words, "too different." The book went on to win a Newberry Medal, Sequoyah Book Award, and Lewis Carroll Shelf Award, and was runner-up for the Hans Christian Andersen Award. It is the first in L'Engle's series of books about the Murry and O'Keefe families.

Aachen

Aachen (help·info) (Ripuarian Oche) is a spa city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, on the border with Belgium and the Netherlands, 65 km to the west of Cologne, and the westernmost city in Germany.

Aardvark

The Aardvark (Orycteropus afer) ("Digging foot"), sometimes called "antbear" is a medium-sized mammal native to Africa. The name comes from the Afrikaans/Dutch for "earth pig" (aarde earth, varken pig), because early settlers from Europe thought it resembled a pig. However, the Aardvark is not closely related to pigs, being placed in its own order.

Aarhus

Aarhus (Danish pronunciation (help·info): ) also commonly known by its contemporary Danish spelling Århus, is the second largest city and the principal port of Jutland, situated on the eastside of the peninsula. Aarhus is the seat of the council of Aarhus municipality and claims the unofficial title "Capital of Jutland".

Aaron Burr

Aaron Burr, Jr. (6 February 1756 – 14 September 1836) was an American politician, Revolutionary War hero and adventurer. He served as the third Vice President of the United States (1801–1805). As a politician, a soldier, and a man, Burr has been both zealously defended and bitterly denounced. Despite the passage of two centuries, his legacy and Burr himself remain enigmatic.

A formative member of the Democratic-Republican Party with a political base in New York, Burr served in the New York State Assembly (1784–1785, 1798–1801), as New York State Attorney General (1789–1791), United States Senator (1791-1797), and for one term as Vice President of the United States (1801–1805) under President Thomas Jefferson. A candidate for Vice-President in 1800, Burr tied Jefferson with 73 electoral votes, making him eligible for President and sending the election into the U.S. House of Representatives. After 36 ballots, Jefferson was elected President and Burr elected Vice President. As Vice President, Burr was President of the Senate, and in such role, presided over the impeachment trial of Samuel Chase.

During an unsuccessful campaign for election to Governor of New York in 1804, Burr was relentlessly defamed in the press, often by the writings of Alexander Hamilton (1755-1804), a long-time political rival and son-in-law of Philip Schuyler, the first U.S. Senator from New York whom Burr defeated in his bid for re-election in 1791. Taking umbrage at remarks made by Hamilton at a dinner party and Hamilton's subsequent failure to account for the remarks, Burr challenged Hamilton to a duel on 11 July 1804, at the Heights of Weehawken in New Jersey at which he mortally wounded Hamilton. Arguably the most famous duel in American history, the duel had immense political ramifications. Burr, who survived the duel, was indicted for murder in both New York and New Jersey (though these charges were either later dismissed or resulted in acquittal), and the harsh criticism and animosity directed towards him would bring about an end to his political career in the East though he remained a popular figure in the West and South. Further, Hamilton's untimely death would fatally weaken the fledging remnants of the Federalist Party, which, combined with the death of George Washington (1732-1799) five years earlier, was left without a strong leader.

After Burr left the Vice Presidency at the end of his term in 1805, he journeyed into what was then the American West, particularly the Ohio River Valley area and the lands acquired in the Louisiana Purchase. While historians are uncertain as to Burr's particular activities, he was accused in turns of having committed treason, of a conspiracy to steal Louisiana Purchase lands away from the United States and crown himself a King or Emperor, or of an attempt to declare an illegal war against Spanish possessions in Mexico (a process known then as filibustering). Burr was arrested in 1807 and brought to trial on charges of treason, for which he was acquitted. After several years in self-imposed exile in Europe, Burr returned to practicing law in New York City and lived a largely reclusive existence until his death.

Abacá

Abacá, from Spanish "abacá", pronounced ("ah buh KAH"), (Musa textilis) is a species of banana native to the Philippines, grown widely as well in Borneo and Sumatra. The plant is of great economic importance, being harvested for its fibre, called Manila hemp, extracted from the large, oblong leaves and stems. On average, the plant grows about 20 feet (6 meters) tall. The fibre is used for making twines and ropes. The plant's name is sometimes spelt Abaká. It was first cultivated on a large scale in Sumatra in 1925 under the Dutch, who had observed its cultivation in the Philippines for cordage since the 1800s, followed up by plantings in Central America sponsored by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Commercial planting began in 1930 in British North Borneo; with the commencement of WWII, the supply from the Philippines was eliminated by the Japanese.

Abacus

An abacus (plurals abacuses or abaci) is a calculating tool, often constructed as a wooden frame with beads sliding on wires. It was in use centuries before the adoption of the written Hindu-Arabic numeral system and is still widely used by merchants and clerks in China, Japan, Africa and elsewhere.

Abadan

Abadan (Persian: آبادان) is a city in the Khuzestan province in southwestern Iran (Persia). It lies on Abadan Island (68 km long, 3-19 km wide, the island is bounded in the west by the Shatt al-Arab river and to the east by the Bahmanshir outlet of the Karun River), on the Shatt al-Arab river 53 kilometers from the Persian Gulf, near the Iraqi-Iran border. It is the capital of Abadan County. In 2005, the population was estimated to be at 415,139. The civilian population of the city dropped to near zero during the eight-years Iran-Iraq war. In 1992, only 84,774 had returned to live in the city. By 2001, the population had jumped to 206,073, only to double in the past five years.

Abandonment

The term abandonment has a multitude of uses which can generally be broken into legal and extra-legal uses. This "signpost article" provides a guide to the various uses of the word via links to articles that deal with each of the distinct concepts at length.

Abaya

The abaya is an overgarment worn by some women in Muslim-majority countries. It is the traditional form of hijab / Jilbab, or Islamic dress, for many countries of the Arabian peninsula. It is sometimes adopted in other parts of Islamic world. Traditional abayas are black, and may be either a large square of fabric draped from the shoulders or head, or a long black caftan. The abaya should cover the whole body save face, feet, and hands. It can be worn with the niqab, a face veil covering all but the eyes. Some women choose to also wear long black gloves, so their hands are covered underneath the abaya.

Saudi Arabia requires women to cover in public; the niqāb is optional. Covering is enforced by the religious police, the mutaween (also known as the 'mutawa').

Contemporary models are usually caftans, cut from light, flowing fabrics like crape, georgette, and chiffon. They are now made in colors other than black.

Some Muslim women living in the west also cover themselves as part of their religion and culture. Due to the difficulty of finding stores nearby, Muslim women in the United States usually buy Islamic clothing online.

Abbadid

The Abbadids (Arabic,بنو عباد) comprised an Arab Muslim dynasty which arose in Al-Andalus on the downfall of the Caliphate of Cordoba (756–1031). Abbadid rule lasted from about 1023 until 1091, but during the short period of its existence it exhibited singular energy and typified its time. The name of the dynasty should not be confused with that of the Abbasids of Baghdad.

Abbas I of Persia

Shāh ‘Abbās I or Shāh ‘Abbās, The Great (Persian: شاه عباس بزرگ) born on (January 27, 1571 - January 19, 1629) was Shah of Iran, and the most eminent ruler of the Safavid Dynasty of the Persian Empire. He was the third son of Shah Mohammad.

Abbasid

Abbasid (Arabic: العبّاسيّون, Abbāsīyūn) is the dynastic name generally given to the caliph of Baghdad, the second of the two great Sunni dynasties of the Arab Empire, that overthrew the Umayyad caliphs from all but Spain. It descended from Muhammad's youngest uncle, Abbas ibn Abd al-Muttalib. It seized power in 750 and shifted the capital from Damascus to Baghdad. It flourished for two centuries, but slowly went into decline with the rise to power of the Turkish army it had created, the Mamluks. Within 150 years of gaining power across Iran, they were forced to cede power to local dynastic amirs who only nominally acknowledged their power, and had to cede Al Andalus to an escaped Umayyad royal and the Maghreb and Ifriqiya to independent Berber entities such as the Aghlabids and the Fatimids. Their rule was ended in 1258, when Hulagu Khan, the Mongol conqueror, sacked Baghdad. While they continued to claim authority in religious matters from their base in Egypt, the dynasty's secular authority had ended. Descendants of the Abbasids include the al-Abbasi tribe who live northeast of Tikrit in modern-day Iraq.

Abbey

This article is about an abbey as a Christian monastic community. For other uses, see Abbey (disambiguation).

Topics in Christianity
Movements · Denominations
Ecumenism · Preaching · Prayer
Music · Liturgy · Calendar
Symbols · Art · Criticism

Important figures
Apostle Paul · Church Fathers
Constantine · Athanasius · Augustine
Anselm · Aquinas · Palamas · Luther
Calvin · Wesley
Arius · Marcion of Sinope
Pope · Archbishop of Canterbury
Patriarch of Constantinople

An abbey (from the Latin abbatia, which is derived from the Syriac abba, "father"), is a Christian monastery or convent, under the government of an Abbot or an Abbess, who serves as the spiritual father or mother of the community. A nunnery is a convent of nuns.

Abbey Theatre

The Abbey Theatre, also known as the National Theatre of Ireland, is located in Dublin, Ireland. The Abbey first opened its doors to the public on 27 December 1904 and, despite losing its original building to a fire in 1951, it has continued to stage performances more or less continuously to the present day. The Abbey was the first state-subsidised theatre in the English-speaking world; from 1925 onwards it received an annual subsidy from the Irish Free State.

In its early years, the theatre was closely associated with the writers of the Celtic revival, many of whom were involved in its foundation and most of whom had plays staged there. The Abbey served as a nursery for many of the leading Irish playwrights and actors of the 20th century. In addition, through its extensive programme of touring abroad and its high visibility to foreign, particularly North American, audiences, it has become an important part of the Irish tourist industry.

Abbot

The word abbot, meaning father, has been used as a Christian clerical title in various, mainly monastic, meanings.

Abbreviation

An abbreviation (from Latin brevis "short") is a shortened form of a word or phrase. Usually, but not always, it consists of a letter or group of letters taken from the word or phrase. For example, the word "abbreviation" can itself be represented by the abbreviation "abbr." or "abbrev."

ABC

ABC are the first three letters in the Latin alphabet. ABC may also refer to the phrase "as easy as ABC", that is something that is fundamentally simple and easy.

ABC (album)

ABC was the second studio album by The Jackson 5, issued in May 1970 on Motown Records. It featured the number-one singles "ABC" and "The Love You Save". Also present on the LP are several notable album tracks, including a cover of Funkadelic's "I'll Bet You", "I Found That Girl" (the only lead song from brother Jermaine - Michael takes most of the leads on the album), and "The Young Folks", originally recorded by the Diana Ross-led version of The Supremes. It peaked at number-four on the Billboard Pop Albums Chart, and at number-one on the Billboard Black Albums chart. It was named number ninety-eight on the VH1 All Time Album Top 100. It remains of one of their most popular efforts.

Abdomen

The abdomen is the part of the body that lies between the chest and the thigh and encloses the ureters, intestines, liver, anus, bladder, gallbladder, and reproductive system outside the breast. It is also called the belly or venter. In humans, and in many other vertebrates, it is the region between the thorax and the pelvis (Separating the thoracic cavity and the abdominal cavity is the thoracic diaphragm). In fully developed insects, the abdomen is the third (or posterior) segment, after the head and thorax.

Abdominal aorta

The abdominal aorta is the largest artery in the abdominal cavity. As part of the aorta, it is a direct continuation of descending aorta (of the thorax).

Abel Tasman

Abel Janszoon Tasman (1603 - October 10, 1659), was a Dutch seafarer, explorer, and merchant.

He is best known for his voyages of 1642 and 1644 in the service of the VOC (Dutch East India Company). His was the first known European expedition to reach the islands of Van Diemen's Land (now Tasmania) and New Zealand and to sight the Fiji islands, which he did in 1643. Tasman, his navigator Visscher, and his Merchant Gilsemans also mapped substantial portions of Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific Islands.

Aberdeen

Coordinates: 57°09′09″N 2°06′36″W / 57.1526, -2.11

Aberdeen (IPA: /ˌabɚˈdin/ (help·info); Scottish Gaelic: Obar Dheathain) is Scotland's third largest city with a population of over 250,000.

Nicknames include the Granite City and the Silver City with the Golden Sands. During the mid-18th to mid-20th centuries, Aberdeen's buildings incorporated locally quarried grey granite, whose Tourmaline deposits sparkle like silver. The city has a long, sandy coastline.

Since the discovery of North Sea oil in the 1970s, other nicknames have been the Oil Capital of Europe or the Energy Capital of Europe.

The area around Aberdeen has been settled for at least 8,000 years, when small villages lay around the mouths of the River Dee and River Don.

In 1319, Aberdeen received Royal Burgh status from Robert the Bruce, transforming the city economically. The city's two universities, the University of Aberdeen, founded in 1495, and the Robert Gordon University, which was awarded university status in 1992, make Aberdeen the educational centre of the north-east. The traditional industries of fishing, paper-making, shipbuilding, and textiles have been overtaken by the oil industry and Aberdeen's seaport. Aberdeen Heliport is the busiest commercial heliport in the world. and the seaport is the largest in the north-east of Scotland.

Aberdeen has won the Britain in Bloom competition ten times, and hosts the Aberdeen International Youth Festival.

Aberration of light

The aberration of light (also referred to as astronomical aberration or stellar aberration) is an astronomical phenomenon which produces an apparent motion of celestial objects. It was discovered and later explained by the third Astronomer Royal, James Bradley, in 1725, who attributed it to the finite speed of light and the motion of Earth in its orbit around the Sun.

At the instant of any observation of an object, the apparent position of the object is displaced from its true position by an amount which depends upon the transverse component of the velocity of the observer, with respect to the vector of the incoming beam of light (i.e., the line actually taken by the light on its path to the observer). In the case of an observer on Earth, the direction of its velocity varies during the year as Earth revolves around the Sun (or strictly speaking, the barycenter of the solar system), and this in turn causes the apparent position of the object to vary. This particular effect is known as annual aberration or stellar aberration, because it causes the apparent position of a star to vary periodically over the course of a year. The maximum amount of the aberrational displacement of a star is approximately 20 arcseconds in right ascension or declination. Although this is a relatively small value, it was well within the observational capability of the instruments available in the early eighteenth century.

Aberration should not be confused with stellar parallax, although it was an initially fruitless search for parallax that first led to its discovery. Parallax is caused by a change in the position of the observer looking at a relatively nearby object, as measured against more distant objects, and is therefore dependent upon the distance between the observer and the object.

In contrast, stellar aberration is independent of the distance of a celestial object from the observer, and depends only on the observer's instantaneous transverse velocity with respect to the incoming light beam, at the moment of observation. The light beam from a distant object cannot itself have any transverse velocity component, or it could not (by definition) be seen by the observer, since it would miss the observer. Thus, any transverse velocity of the emitting source plays no part in aberration. Another way to state this is that the emitting object may have a transverse velocity with respect to the observer, but any light beam emitted from it which reaches the observer, cannot, for it must have been previously emitted in such a direction that its transverse component has been "corrected" for. Such a beam must come "straight" to the observer along a line which connects the observer with the position of the object when it emitted the light.

Aberration should also be distinguished from light-time correction, which is due to the motion of the observed object, like a planet, through space during the time taken by its light to reach an observer on Earth. Light-time correction depends upon the velocity and distance of the emitting object during the time it takes for its light to travel to Earth. Light-time correction does not depend on the motion of the Earth—it only depends on Earth's position at the instant when the light is observed. Aberration is usually larger than a planet's light-time correction except when the planet is near quadrature (90° from the Sun), where aberration drops to zero because then the Earth is directly approaching or receding from the planet. At opposition to or conjunction with the Sun, aberration is 20.5" while light-time correction varies from 4" for Mercury to 0.37" for Neptune (the Sun's light-time correction is less than 0.03").

Aberystwyth

Aberystwyth (IPA: , South Welsh: ) (in English: Mouth of the Ystwyth) is a historic market town, administrative centre and holiday resort within Ceredigion, Wales. It is often called just "Aber".

In modern times Aberystwyth has become a major Welsh educational centre. The indigenous population is around 12,000, but for nine months of the year the resident students associated with the University of Wales, Aberystwyth take this total to over 21,000 people. The World's first department in international politics was established here in 1919 and it is also the home of the only AMBA-accredited MBA programme in Wales.

Abhidhamma Pitaka

The Abhidhamma Pitaka (abhidhammapiṭaka) is the last of the three pitakas, that is, baskets, constituting the Pali Canon, the scriptures of Theravāda Buddhism. It presents a more formal, abstract, systematic form of teaching than the others.

Abidjan

Abidjan is the largest city and former capital of Côte d'Ivoire (Ivory Coast). It is the commercial and banking center of Côte d'Ivoire as well as the de facto capital. (Yamoussoukro is the official capital.) It is also the most populated city in French-speaking Western Africa. It stands in Ébrié Lagoon on several converging peninsulas and islands, connected by bridges. There are an estimated 4 to 5 million inhabitants in the metropolitan area.citation needed] In the region, this is second only to Lagos, the previous English Capital of Nigeria. Abidjan is considered the cultural crossroads of West Africa.

Abkhazia

Abkhazia IPA: /æbˈkeɪʒə/ or /æbˈkɑziə/ (Abkhaz: Аҧсны Apsny, Georgian: აფხაზეთი Apkhazeti or Abkhazeti, Russian: Абха́зия Abhazia) is a de facto independent republic which is officially part of Georgia. It is located on the eastern coast of the Black Sea, bordering the Russian Federation to the north. Within the internationally recognised borders of Georgia, Abkhazia borders the provinces of Mingrelia and Svaneti to the east. Abkhazia’s independence is not recognized by any international organization or country and it is recognised as an autonomous republic of Georgia (Georgian: აფხაზეთის ავტონომიური რესპუბლიკა, Abkhaz: Аҧснытәи Автономтәи Республика), with Sukhumi as its capital.

A secessionist movement of Abkhaz ethnic minority in the region led to the declaration of independence from Georgia in 1992 and the Georgian-Abkhaz armed conflict from 1992 to 1993 which resulted in the Georgian military defeat and the mass exodus and ethnic cleansing of Georgian population from Abkhazia. In spite of the 1994 ceasefire accord and the ongoing UN-monitored CIS peacekeeping operation, the sovereignty dispute has not yet been resolved and the region remains divided between the two rival authorities, with over 83 percent of its territory controlled by the Russian-backed Sukhumi-based separatist government and about 17 percent governed by the representatives of the de jure Government of Abkhazia, the only body internationally recognized as a legal authority of Abkhazia, located in the Kodori Valley, part of Georgian-controlled Upper Abkhazia.

Able Archer 83

Able Archer 83 was a ten-day NATO exercise starting on November 2, 1983 that spanned the continent of Europe and simulated a coordinated nuclear release. It incorporated a new, unique format of coded communication, radio silences, participation by heads of state, and a simulated DEFCON 1 nuclear alert. The realistic nature of the exercise, coupled with deteriorating relations between the United States and the Soviet Union and the anticipated arrival of Pershing II nuclear missiles in Europe, led some in the USSR to believe that Able Archer 83 was a genuine nuclear first strike. In response, the Soviets readied their nuclear forces and placed air units in East Germany and Poland on alert. This relatively obscure incident is considered by many historians to be the closest the world has come to nuclear war since the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962. The threat of nuclear war abruptly ended with the conclusion of the Able Archer 83 exercise on November 11, which, coincidentally, was also Armistice Day (alternatively called Remembrance Day).

ABO blood group system

The ABO blood group system is the most important blood type system (or blood group system) in human blood transfusion. The associated anti-A antibodies and anti-B antibodies are usually IgM antibodies, which are usually produced in the first years of life by sensitization to environmental substances such as food, bacteria and viruses. ABO blood types are also present in some animals, for example apes such as chimpanzees, bonobos and gorillas.

Abolitionism

Abolitionism is a political movement that seeks to end the practice of slavery and the worldwide slave trade. It began during the period of the Enlightenment and grew to large proportions in Europe and United States during the 1800s, eventually succeeding in some of its goals although child and adult slavery and forced labor continue to be widespread to this day. There was no comparable opposition to slavery within the Muslim world.

==Britain==thanks to he quakers for freeing me The last form of enforced servitude (villeinage) had disappeared in Britain by the beginning of the seventeenth century. However, by the eighteenth century, black slaves began to be brought into London and Edinburgh as personal servants. They were not bought or sold, and their legal status was unclear until 1772, when the case of a runaway slave named James Somerset forced a legal decision. The owner, Charles Steuart, had attempted to abduct him and send him to Jamaica to work on the sugar plantations. While in London, Somerset had been baptised and his godparents issued a writ of habeas corpus. As a result Lord Mansfield, Chief Justice of the Court of King's Bench, had to judge whether the abduction was legal or not under English Common Law as there was no legislation for slavery in England. In his judgement of 22 June 1772 he declared: "Whatever inconveniences, therefore, may follow from a decision, I cannot say this case is allowed or approved by the law of England; and therefore the black must be discharged." It was thus declared that the condition of slavery did not exist under English law. This judgement emancipated the 10 to 14 thousand slaves in England and also laid down that slavery contracted in other jurisdictions (such as the American colonies) could not be enforced in England.

After reading of the Somerset case, a black slave in Scotland, Joseph Knight, left his master, John Wedderburn. A similar case to Steuart's was brought by Wedderburn in 1776, with the same result: that chattel slavery did not exist under the law of Scotland (nevertheless, there were native-born Scottish serfs until 1799, when coal miners previously kept in serfdom gained emancipation).

Abomination (comics)

The Abomination (Emil Blonsky) is a fictional supervillain that appears in the Marvel Universe and is a perennial foe of the Incredible Hulk. The Abomination first appears in Tales to Astonish vol. 1 #90 (April 1967), and was created by Stan Lee and Gil Kane.

Abortion

An abortion is the removal or expulsion of an embryo or fetus from the uterus, resulting in or caused by its death. This can occur spontaneously as a miscarriage, or be artificially induced by chemical, surgical or other means. "Abortion" can refer to an induced procedure at any point during human pregnancy; it is sometimes medically defined as either miscarriage or induced termination before the point of viability. Throughout history, abortion has been induced by various methods. The moral and legal aspects of abortion are subject to intense debate in many parts of the world.

Abraham Goldfaden

Abraham Goldfaden (July 24, 1840 – January 9, 1908; Yiddish: אברהם גאָלדפֿאַדען; born Avrum Goldnfoden; first name alternately Abram, Avram, Avrohom, Avrom, or Avrum, last name alternately Goldfadn; the Romanian spelling Avram Goldfaden is common) was a Russian-born Jewish poet and playwright, author of some 40 plays. In 1876 he founded in Romania what is generally credited as the world's first professional Yiddish-language theater troupe. He was also responsible for the first Hebrew-language play performed in the United States. The Avram Goldfaden Festival of Iaşi, Romania, is named and held in his honour.

Jacob Sternberg called him "the Prince Charming who woke up the lethargic Romanian Jewish culture". Israil Bercovici wrote that in his works "...we find points in common with what we now call 'total theater'. In many of his plays he alternates prose and verse, pantomime and dance, moments of acrobatics and some of jonglerie, and even of spiritualism..."

Abraham Lincoln

Abraham Lincoln (February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was the sixteenth President of the United States, March 4, 1861 to April 15, 1865. As an outspoken opponent of the expansion of slavery and a political leader in the western states, he won the Republican Party nomination in 1860 and was elected president later that year. During his term, he helped preserve the United States by leading the defeat of the secessionist Confederate States of America in the American Civil War. He introduced measures that resulted in the abolition of slavery, issuing his Emancipation Proclamation in 1863 and promoting the passage of the Thirteenth Amendment to the Constitution in 1865.

Lincoln's leadership qualities were evident in his close supervision of the victorious war effort, especially in his selection of Ulysses S. Grant and other top generals. Historians conclude that he handled the factions of the Republican Party brilliantly by bringing its leaders into his cabinet and forcing them to cooperate. In crisis management, he defused a war scare with the United Kingdom (1861), he outmaneuvered the Confederacy and took control of the border slave states in 1861 – 1862, and he managed his own landslide reelection in the 1864 presidential election.

Antiwar "Copperheads" criticized him for refusing to compromise on the slavery issue. In contrast, the Radical Republicans, a strongly Abolitionist faction of the Republican Party, criticized him for moving too slowly in abolishing slavery. Yet despite his detractors, Lincoln successfully rallied public opinion through the powerful rhetoric of his messages and speeches; his Gettysburg Address is remembered as a prime example of this. At the close of the war, Lincoln took a moderate view of Reconstruction, seeking to speedily re-unite the nation through a policy of generous reconciliation. His assassination in 1865 was the first in U.S. history and made him a martyr for the ideal of national unity.

Scholars rank Lincoln among the top three U.S. Presidents, with the average of those surveyed placing him at number one. He is noted for his lasting influence on U.S. politics, including a redefinition of Republican values.

Abrasion

In dermatology, an abrasion, is superficial damage to the skin, generally not deeper than the epidermis. It is more superficial than an excoriation, although it can give mild bleeding. Mild abrasions, also known as 'grazes' do not scar, but deep abrasions may lead to the development of scarring tissue.

Such injuries, where caused by abrasive contact with textiles or carpet, are sometimes referred to as 'rug burn' or 'carpet burn'.

Abscess

An abscess is a collection of pus that has accumulated in a cavity formed by the tissue on the basis of an infectious process (usually caused by bacteria or parasites) or other foreign materials (e.g. splinters or bullet wounds). It is a defensive reaction of the tissue to prevent the spread of infectious materials to other parts of the body.

The organisms or foreign materials that have gained access to a part of tissue kill the local cells, resulting in the release of toxins. The toxins trigger an inflammatory response, which draws huge amounts of white blood cells to the area and increases the regional blood flow.

The final structure of the abscess is an abscess wall that is formed by the adjacent healthy cells in an attempt to build a barrier around the pus that limits the infected material from neighboring structures and also limits immune cells from attacking the bacteria.

Absinthe

Absinthe (also absinth) (IPA English: ; IPA French: ) is a distilled, highly alcoholic, anise-flavored spirit derived from herbs including the flowers and leaves of the medicinal plant Artemisia absinthium, also called grand wormwood. Although it is sometimes mistakenly called a liqueur, absinthe is not bottled with added sugar and is therefore classified as a liquor or spirit.

Absinthe is typically green (either naturally or with added color) and is often referred to as la Fée Verte ('The Green Fairy'). Because of its high proof and concentration of oils, absintheurs (absinthe drinkers) typically add 3-5 parts ice-cold water to 1 part absinthe which causes the drink to cloud, called 'louching.' Often the water is used to dissolve added sugar to add sweetness. This procedure is considered an important part of the experience of drinking absinthe, so much so that it has become ritualized, complete with special slotted absinthe spoons and other accoutrements. Absinthe's flavor is similar to other anise-flavored drinks, with a light bitterness and added complexity imparted by multiple herbs.

Absinthe originated in Switzerland as an elixir/tincture, used in a similar capacity as patent medicines would be used later in the United States. However, it is better known for its popularity in late 19th and early 20th century France, particularly among Parisian artists and writers whose romantic associations with the drink still linger in popular culture. In its heyday, the most popular brand of absinthe worldwide was Pernod Fils. At the height of this popularity, absinthe was portrayed as a dangerously addictive, psychoactive drug; the chemical thujone was blamed for most of its deleterious effects. By 1915, it was banned in a number of European countries and the United States. Even though it was vilified, no evidence shows it to be any more dangerous or psychoactive than ordinary alcohol. A modern absinthe revival began in the 1990s, as countries in the European Union began to reauthorize its manufacture and sale.

Absolute pitch

Absolute pitch (AP), widely referred to as perfect pitch, is the ability of a person to identify or sing a musical note without the benefit of a known reference.

Absolute zero

Absolute zero describes a theoretical system that neither emits nor absorbs energy. The Absolute zero temperature is known to be 0 K (–273.15 °C). While it is possible to cool any substance to near absolute zero, it may never actually be achieved.

Absolute zero is the point at which particles have a minimum energy, determined by quantum mechanical effects, which is called the zero-point energy.

By international agreement, absolute zero is defined as precisely 0 K on the Kelvin scale, which is a thermodynamic (absolute) temperature scale, and –273.15 °C on the Celsius scale. Absolute zero is also precisely equivalent to 0 °R on the Rankine scale (also a thermodynamic temperature scale), and –459.67  °F on the Fahrenheit scale.

While scientists cannot fully achieve a state of “zero” heat energy in a substance, they have made great advancements in achieving temperatures ever closer to absolute zero (where matter exhibits odd quantum effects). In 1994, the NIST achieved a record cold temperature of 700 nK (billionths of a kelvin). In 2003, researchers at MIT eclipsed this with a new record of 450 pK (0.45 nK).

Absolution (album)

Absolution is the third studio album by English alternative rock band Muse. It was released on September 21, 2003 in the UK and almost six months later on March 23, 2004 in the U.S. by Taste Music Limited. The album yielded the band its first big American hit in "Time Is Running Out". Unlike previous albums, the recording and release of Absolution was not subject to constraining schedules, allowing the band to take as much time as they felt necessary to refine and alter their songs.

As with their previous albums, Absolution is targeted at the "alternative hard rock" audience, and has a strong apocalyptic tone that is typical of the genre.

Muse's frontman Matthew Bellamy cites influences on the album from Pink Floyd's The Wall, King Crimson's In the Court of the Crimson King,and U2's Achtung Baby.citation needed]

Abstract art

Abstract art is now generally understood to mean art that does not depict objects in the natural world, but instead uses color and form in a non-representational way. In the very early 20th century, the term was more often used to describe art, such as Cubist and Futurist art, that depicts real forms in a simplified or rather reduced way—keeping only an allusion of the original natural subject. Such paintings were often claimed to capture something of the depicted objects' immutable intrinsic qualities rather than its external appearance. (See abstraction.) The more precise terms, "non-figurative art," "non-objective art," and "non-representational art" avoid any possible ambiguity.

Abstract expressionism

Abstract expressionism was an American post-World War II art movement. It was the first specifically American movement to achieve worldwide influence and also the one that put New York City at the center of the art world, a role formerly filled by Paris. The term "Abstract expressionism" was first applied to American art in 1946 by the art critic Robert Coates.

Abstraction

Abstraction is the process of generalization by reducing the information content of a concept or an observable phenomenon, typically in order to retain only information which is relevant for a particular purpose. For example, abstracting a leather soccer ball to a ball retains only the information on general ball attributes and behaviour. Similarly, abstracting happiness to an emotional state reduces the amount of information conveyed about the emotional state.

Abu Dhabi

Abu Dhabi (Arabic: أبو ظبي ʼAbū Ẓabī, literally "Father of Gazelle") is the capital of the emirate of the same name, largest of the seven emirates of the United Arab Emirates and is also the capital of the United Arab Emirates. It is said by some to be the richest city in the world and is located in the north central UAE. The city lies on a T-shaped island jutting into the Persian Gulf from the central western coast. An estimated 1.8 million people lived there in 2006, with about an 80% expatriate population. Abu Dhabi city is located at 24°28′00″N 54°22′00″E / 24.4667, 54.3667. At the head of Abu Dhabi and across from the Corniche is Lulu Island, a semi-natural landmass that is arguably the most strategic and valuable piece of property in the Emirate.citation needed]

Abu Sayyaf

The Abu Sayyaf Group (Arabic: جماعة أبو سياف; Jamāʿah Abū Sayyāf; ASG), also known as al-Harakat al-Islamiyya is one of several militant Islamist separatist groups based in and around the southern islands of the Philippines, in Bangsamoro (Jolo, Basilan, and Mindanao) where for almost 30 years various groups have been engaged in an insurgency for an Islamic state, independent of the predominantly Christian Philippines. The name of the group is derived from the Arabic ابو, abu ("father of") and sayyaf ("Swordsmith").

Since its inception in the early 1990s, the group has carried out bombings, assassinations, kidnappings, and extortion in their fight for an independent Islamic state in western Mindanao and the Sulu Archipelago with the stated goal of creating a pan-Islamic superstate across southeast Asia, spanning from east to west; the island of Mindanao, the Sulu Archipelago, the island of Borneo (Malaysia, Indonesia), the South China Sea, and the Malay Peninsula (Peninsular Malaysia, Thailand and Myanmar).

The U.S. Department of State has branded the group a terrorist entity by adding it to the list of Foreign Terrorist Organizations.

Abuja

Abuja is the capital city of Nigeria, with an estimated population of 405,000. When it was decided to move the national capital from Lagos in 1976, a capital territory was chosen for a new city, located near the centre of the country. This "planned" city is located in the Nigeria's Federal Capital Territory, an attempt to reduce any real or perceived regional bias in a country which was formed by amalgamation of various tribal territories and emirates, under colonial influence.

Abuse

Abuse refers to the use or treatment of something (a person, item, substance, concept, or vocabulary) that is seen as harmful. The term can be used for anything ranging from the misuse of a piece of equipment to the severe maltreatment of a person.

Abuse (computer game)

Abuse is a run and gun computer game developed by Crack dot Com, and published by Origin Systems/Electronic Arts. It was released in 1996, and runs on DOS and Linux operating systems. An improved port of the game was released for Mac OS by Bungie Studios and for the Acorn Archimedes by R-Comp Interactive. The game has been in the public domain since the late 1990s.

AC/DC

AC/DC are a hard rock band formed in Sydney, Australia in 1973 by brothers Angus and Malcolm Young. The band are considered pioneers of heavy metal, alongside bands such as Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple and Black Sabbath. Its members, however, have always classified their music as "rock 'n' roll".

AC/DC underwent several line-up changes before releasing their first album, High Voltage, in 1975. Membership remained stable until bassist Cliff Williams replaced Mark Evans in 1977. In 1979, the band recorded their highly successful album, Highway to Hell. Lead singer and co-songwriter Bon Scott died on February 19, 1980, after a night of heavy alcohol consumption. The group briefly considered disbanding, but soon ex-Geordie singer Brian Johnson was selected as Scott's replacement. Later that year, the band released their biggest-selling album, Back in Black.

The band's next album, For Those About to Rock We Salute You, was also highly successful and was the first hard rock album to reach #1 in the United States. AC/DC declined in popularity soon after the departure of drummer Phil Rudd in 1983. Poor record sales continued until the release of The Razors Edge in 1990. Phil Rudd returned in 1994 and contributed to the band's 1995 album Ballbreaker. Stiff Upper Lip was released in 2000 and was well-received by critics. A new album is expected in Jan of 2008.

AC/DC have sold more than 150 million albums worldwide, including more than 68 million albums in the U.S. Back in Black has sold 42 million units worldwide, including 21 million in the U.S. alone, making it the second-highest-selling album ever internationally, and the biggest-selling album by any band. The band are ranked fourth on VH1's list of the 100 Greatest Artists of Hard Rock and were ranked by MTV the 7th "Greatest Heavy Metal Band Of All Time".

Acacia

Acacia is a genus of shrubs and trees belonging to the subfamily Mimosoideae of the family Fabaceae, first described in Africa by the Swedish botanist Linnaeus in 1773.

There are roughly 1300 species of Acacia worldwide, about 950 of them native to Australia, with the remainder spread around the tropical to warm-temperate regions of both hemispheres, including Africa, southern Asia, and the Americas.

Academia

Academia is a collective term for the scientific and cultural community engaged in higher education and research, taken as a whole.

The word comes from the akademeia just outside ancient Athens, where the gymnasium was made famous by Plato as a center of learning. The sacred space, dedicated to the goddess of wisdom, Athene, had formerly been an olive grove, hence the expression "the groves of Academe".

By extension Academia has come to connote the cultural accumulation of knowledge, its development and transmission across generations and its practitioners and transmitters. In the seventeenth century, English and French religious scholars popularized the term to describe certain types of institutions of higher learning. The English adopted the form academy while the French adopted the forms acadème and académie.

An academic is a person who works as a researcher (and usually teacher) at a university or similar institution in post-secondary (or tertiary) education. He or she is nearly always an advanced degree holder who does research. In the United States, the term academic is approximately synonymous with that of the job title professor. In the United Kingdom, various titles are used, typically fellow, lecturer, reader, and professor (see also academic rank), though the loose term don is often popularly substituted. The term scholar is sometimes used with equivalent meaning to that of "academic" and describes in general those who attain mastery in a research discipline. It has wider application, with it also being used to describe those whose occupation was research prior to mass organized higher education.

Some sociologists have divided, but not limited, academia into four basic historical types: ancient academia, early academia, academic societies, and the modern university. There are at least two models of academia: a European model developed since ancient times, as well as an American model developed by Benjamin Franklin in the mid-eighteenth century and Thomas Jefferson in the early nineteenth century. In the United States academia tends to be politically progressive with 72% of faculty members identifying as liberal (87% at elite institutions).

Academic degree

A degree is any of a wide range of status levels conferred by institutions of higher education, such as universities, normally as the result of successfully completing a program of study.

Academic term

An academic term is a division of an academic year, the time during which a school, college or university holds classes. These divisions may be called 'terms', 'semesters', 'quarters', or 'trimesters', depending on the institution and the country.

Institutions often have two semesters (four-month terms, though it literally means "six months") in an academic year, each lasting between 15 and 18 weeks. A quarter or trimester (three-month term) lasts between 8 and 12 weeks, and there are typically three per year. Other permutations are sometimes used – for example, two semesters each divided into two quarters, four quarters, or even three semesters.

In contrast to a calendar year, in most countries an academic year begins with the start of summer and ends the following spring. This is because it follows the medieval agricultural pattern of the year in northern Europe, in which July and August were when able-bodied young people were needed on the farms.

Academy Award

The Academy Awards, popularly known as the Oscars, are prominent and the most watched film awards ceremony in the world. Awarded annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences since 1929 in Los Angeles, it recognizes excellence in many aspects of motion picture making, such as acting, directing and screenwriting.

Academy Awards are granted by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), a professional honorary organization, which as of 2007 had a voting membership of 5,830. Actors, with a membership of 1,311, make up the largest voting bloc at 22 percent. The votes have been tabulated and certified by the auditing firm PricewaterhouseCoopers and its predecessor Price Waterhouse for 72 years, since close to the awards' inception.

Most recently, the 79th Academy Awards ceremony took place on Sunday, February 25, 2007 at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, and was produced by Laura Ziskin and hosted by day-time television talk show host Ellen DeGeneres. The 80th Academy Awards ceremony is scheduled to take place on Sunday, February 24, 2008 at the same venue.

Acceleration

In physics, acceleration is defined as the rate of change of velocity. It is thus a vector quantity with dimension length/time². In SI units, acceleration is measured in metres/second² (m·s-²). The term "acceleration" generally refers to the change in instantaneous velocity.

Accent (linguistics)

This article or section is in need of attention from an expert on the subject.
WikiProject Linguistics or the Linguistics Portal may be able to help recruit one.
If a more appropriate WikiProject or portal exists, please adjust this template accordingly.

In linguistics, an accent is a pronunciation characteristic of a particular group of people relative to another group. Accent should not be confused with dialect (q.v.), which is a variety of language differing in vocabulary and syntax as well as pronunciation. Dialects are usually spoken by a group united by geography or class.

Accent (music)

In music, an accent is an emphasis placed on a particular note, either as a result of its context or specifically indicated by an accent mark. A tonic accent is an emphasis on a note by virtue of being higher in pitch than surrounding notes. An agogic accent is an emphasis by virtue of being longer in duration than surrounding notes, in a way that shifts their time of onset. Dynamic accents are created when one note is louder than another.

Accents which do not correspond to the stressed beats of the prevailing meter are said to be syncopated (See syncopation).

In music notation, an accent mark indicates a louder dynamic to apply to a single note, or an articulation mark. The most common is the horizontal accent, the fourth symbol in the diagram above; this is the symbol that most musicians mean when they say accent mark. The vertical accent, third in the diagram, may be stronger or weaker than the horizontal accent; composers have never been consistent in using these markings. The vertical accent has many informal names such as a "housetop". In most musical works this type of accent is meant to be played more forcefully and usually shorter.

The remaining marks typically shorten a note. Staccato, the first symbol shown above, indicates that the last part of a note should be silenced to create separation between it and the following note. The duration of a staccato note may be about half as long as the note value would indicate, although the tempo and performers' taste varies this quite a bit. The staccatissimo, shown second, is usually interpreted as shorter than the staccato, but composers up to the time of Mozart used these symbols interchangeably. The tenuto mark, shown fifth above, indicates that a note is to be separated with a little space from surrounding notes. This separation may be enough to emphasize the note, or it may have to be played a little louder, at the discretion of the player. The tenuto mark also indicates that the note should be played for its full value - not cut off earlier. Sometimes these symbols are used in combination.

Accepted

Accepted is a 2006 comedy motion picture about a group of high school seniors who, after being rejected from all colleges to which they had applied, create their own college. Though it is a light comedy the film's untertone throughout is highly critical of the U.S. college system (and the college ranking system).

Access (comics)

Access (Axel Asher) is a fictional character owned by both DC Comics and Marvel Comics. He made his first appearance in Marvel vs DC #1 (March 1996), a special crossover between the two companies. He was intended both as a way to explain the events of the story as well as a means to enable more such crossovers in the future.

Accessibility

Accessibility is a general term used to describe the degree to which a system is usable by as many people as possible. In other words, it is the degree of ease with which it is possible to reach a certain location from other locations. It is not to be confused with usability which is used to describe how easily an entity (e.g., device, service, environment) can be used by any type of user. Accessibility can also be viewed as the "ability to access" the functionality, and possible benefit, of some system or entity; such a definition brings in access-based individual rights laws and regulations that are discussed below. One meaning of accessibility specifically focuses on people with disabilities and their right of access to entities, often through use of assistive devices such as screen-reading web browsers or wheelchairs. Other meanings are discussed below.

Accessibility is strongly related to universal design when the approach involves "direct access." This is about making things accessible to all people (whether they have a disability or not). However, products marketed as having benefited from a Universal Design process are often actually the same devices customized specifically for use by people with disabilities.citation needed] An alternative is to provide "indirect access" by having the entity support the use of a person's assistive technology to achieve access (e.g., screen reader).

Accident

An accident is an event that occurs unexpectedly and unintentionally. Physical examples include unintended collisions or falls, being injured by touching something sharp, hot, or electric, or ingesting poison. Non-physical examples are unintentionally revealing a secret or otherwise saying something incorrectly, forgetting an appointment, etc.

50,425 people were killed in accidents (not including car accidents) in the U.S. in 1995, which is 19 people in 100,000.

Often, accidents are investigated so that we can learn how to avoid them in the future. This is sometimes called root cause analysis, but does not generally apply to accidents that cannot be predicted with any certainty. For example, a root cause of a purely random incident may never be identified, and thus future similar accidents remain "accidental."

The informal term "freak accident" may refer to an unfortunate event that may seem exceedingly unlikely to happen by chance. This term may be used to imply doubts about whether the event actually was an accident.

Accord

Accord is of the semantic paradigm: agreement, harmony, alignment or concurrence and may refer to:

Accountability

Accountability is a concept in ethics with several meanings. It is often used synonymously with such concepts as answerability, enforcement, responsibility, blameworthiness, liability and other terms associated with the expectation of account-giving. As an aspect of governance, it has been central to discussions related to problems in both the public and private (corporation) worlds.

Accountability is defined as "A is accountable to B when A is obliged to inform B about A’s (past or future) actions and decisions, to justify them, and to suffer punishment in the case of eventual misconduct" .

In leadership roles, accountability is the acknowledgment and assumption of responsibility for actions, products, decisions, and policies including the administration, governance and implementation within the scope of the role or employment position and encompassing the obligation to report, explain and be answerable for resulting consequences.

Accountancy

Accountancy (profession) or accounting (methodology) is the measurement, disclosure or provision of assurance about financial information primarily used by managers, investors, tax authorities and other decision makers to make resource allocation decisions within companies, organizations, and public agencies. The terms derive from the use of financial accounts.

Accounting is the art of measuring, communicating and interpreting financial activity. Accounting is also widely referred to as the "language of business".

Financial accounting is one branch of accounting and historically has involved processes by which financial information about a business is recorded, classified, summarized, interpreted, and communicated; for public companies, this information is generally publicly-accessible. By contrast management accounting information is used within an organization and is usually confidential and accessible only to a small group, mostly decision-makers. Tax Accounting is the accounting needed to comply with jurisdictional tax regulations.

Practitioners of accountancy are known as accountants. There are many professional bodies for accountants throughout the world. Many allow their members to use titles indicating their membership or qualification level. Examples are Chartered Accountant (FCA, CA or ACA), Chartered Certified Accountant (ACCA or FCCA), Management Accountant (ACMA, FCMA or AICWA), Certified Public Accountant (CPA) and Certified General Accountant (CGA).

Auditing is a related but separate discipline, with two sub-disciplines: internal auditing and external auditing. External auditing is the process whereby an independent auditor examines an organization's financial statements and accounting records in order to express an opinion as to the truth and fairness of the statements and the accountant's adherence to Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP), or International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS), in all material respects. Internal auditing aims at providing information for management usage, and is typically carried out by auditors employed by the company, and sometimes by external service providers.

Accounting/accountancy attempts to create accurate financial reports that are useful to managers, regulators, and other stakeholders such as shareholders, creditors, or owners. The day-to-day record-keeping involved in this process is known as bookkeeping.

Accra

Accra, population 1,970,400 (2005), is the capital of Ghana. It is Ghana's largest city and its administrative, communications, and economic center. The primary economic activities are financial and government services, communications, construction, transportation and agriculture (particularly fishing). Over 70% of Ghana's manufacturing capacity is located within the capital area. Accra is located at 5°30' North, 0°10' West (5.5, -0.1667). and sits near the Greenwich Meridian in the Accra Metropolitan Area, in the Greater Accra Region.

The city of Accra has been Ghana's capital since 1877, and contains fine public buildings reflecting its transition from a 19th century suburb of Victoriasborg to the modern metropolis it is today. Spreading along the Atlantic coast, the city is well endowed with luxury as well as great value hotels, excellent restaurants and nightclubs. A range of absorbing museums and fine public monuments, modern business and commercial areas, as well as busy markets and tree-lined residential suburbs, are ready to be explored.

Among the highlights of Accra are the National Museum, with its splendid display of exhibits that reflect the heritage of Ghana from prehistoric times to modern times, the National Theatre with its distinctive modern architecture, the Centre for National Culture, Independence Square, the Kwame Nkrumah Mausoleum, the Accra International Conference Centre, the fishing port at James Town and Makola Market.

The University of Ghana at Legon is just 14km north of Accra, and its distinctive buildings are set amongst elegant tree-lined gardens that are popular with students and visitors alike.

Accra is also linked internationally by the Kotoka International Airport

Ace (Doctor Who)

Ace (given name Dorothy) is a fictional character played by Sophie Aldred in the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. A 20th-century Earth teenager from the London suburb of Perivale, she is a companion of the Seventh Doctor and a regular in the programme from 1987 to 1989.

ACE inhibitor

ACE inhibitors, or inhibitors of Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme, are a group of pharmaceuticals that are used primarily in treatment of hypertension and congestive heart failure, in most cases as the drugs of first choice.

Acer (company)

Acer (LSE: ACID) (Traditional Chinese: 宏碁股份有限公司) is a Taiwan-based company. It owns the largest franchised computer retail chain in Taiwan, Acerland. Acer's product lineup includes desktop and mobile PCs (laptops), servers and storage, displays, peripherals, and e-business solutions for business, government, education, and home users.

Acer palmatum

Japanese Maple (Acer palmatum) (Japanese: イロハカエデ, irohakaede) is a species of maple native to Japan, Korea, Taiwan and eastern China.

Acetate

An acetate, or ethanoate, is a salt or ester of acetic acid.

Acetic acid

Acetic acid, also known as ethanoic acid, is an organic chemical compound with the formula CH₃COOH best recognized for giving vinegar its sour taste and pungent smell. Pure, water-free acetic acid (glacial acetic acid) is a colourless liquid that attracts water from the environment (hygroscopy), and freezes below 16.7°C (62°F) to a colourless crystalline solid. Acetic acid is corrosive, and its vapour causes irritation to the eyes, a dry and burning nose, sore throat and congestion to the lungs, however, it is considered a weak acid due to its limited ability to dissociate in aqueous solutions.clarify]

Acetic acid is one of the simplest carboxylic acids (the second-simplest, next to formic acid). It is an important chemical reagent and industrial chemical that is used in the production of polyethylene terephthalate mainly used in soft drink bottles; cellulose acetate, mainly for photographic film; and polyvinyl acetate for wood glue, as well as many synthetic fibres and fabrics. In households diluted acetic acid is often used in descaling agents. In the food industry acetic acid is used under the food additive code E260 as an acidity regulator.

The global demand of acetic acid is around 6.5 million tonnes per year (Mt/a), of which approximately 1.5 Mt/a is met by recycling; the remainder is manufactured from petrochemical feedstocks or from biological sources.

Acetone

The chemical compound acetone (also known as propanone, dimethyl ketone, 2-propanone, propan-2-one and β-ketopropane) is the simplest representative of the ketones. Acetone is a colorless, mobile, flammable liquid with a freezing point of −95.4 °C and boiling point of 56.53 °C. It has a relative density of 0.819 (at 0 °C). It is readily soluble in water, ethanol, ether, etc., and itself serves as an important solvent.

The most familiar household use of acetone is as the active ingredient in nail polish remover. Acetone is also used to make plastic, fibers, drugs, and other chemicals.

Before the invention of the cumene process acetone was produced by the dry distillation of acetates, for example calcium acetate.

Acetylene

Acetylene (systematic name: ethyne) is a hydrocarbon belonging to the group of alkynes. It is considered to be the simplest of all alkynes as it consists of two hydrogen atoms and two carbon atoms. Acetylene is an unsaturated organic compound because its four atoms are triple bonded through a covalent bond.

Acetylene was discovered in 1836 by Edmund Davy who identified it as a "new carburet of hydrogen." It was rediscovered in 1860 by French chemist Marcellin Berthelot, who coined the name "acetylene." The Nobel Laureate Gustaf Dalén was blinded by an acetylene explosion.

Acetylcholine

The chemical compound acetylcholine, often abbreviated as ACh, was the first neurotransmitter to be identified. It is a chemical transmitter in both the peripheral nervous system (PNS) and central nervous system (CNS) in many organisms including humans. Acetylcholine is the neurotransmitter in all autonomic ganglia. In other words, it is a chemical that allows neurons to communicate with each other within humans and other organisms.

Acid

edit

An acid (often represented by the generic formula HA+A-]) is traditionally considered any chemical compound that, when dissolved in water, gives a solution with a pH less than 7.0. That approximates the modern definition of Johannes Nicolaus Brønsted and Martin Lowry, who independently defined an acid as a compound which donates a hydrogen ion (H+) to another compound (called a base). Common examples include acetic acid (in vinegar) and sulfuric acid (used in car batteries). Acid/base systems are different from redox reactions in that there is no change in oxidation state. Generally, acids have the following properties:

Acid rain

The term acid rain or more accurately acid precipitation is commonly used to mean the deposition of acidic components in rain, snow, dew, or dry particles. Acid rain occurs when sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides are emitted into the atmosphere, undergo chemical transformations, and are absorbed by water droplets in clouds. The droplets then fall to earth as rain, snow, mist, dry dust, hail, or sleet. This increases the acidity of the soil, and affects the chemical balance of lakes and streams.

The term "acid rain" is sometimes used more generally to include all forms of acid deposition — both wet deposition, where acidic gases and particles are removed by rain or other precipitation, and dry deposition removal of gases and particles to the Earth's surface in the absence of precipitation.

Acid rain is defined as any type of precipitation with a pH that is unusually low. Dissolved carbon dioxide dissociates to form weak carbonic acid giving a pH of approximately 5.6 at typical atmospheric concentrations of CO₂. Therefore a pH of less than 5.6 has sometimes been used as a definition of acid rain. However, natural sources of acidity mean that in remote areas, rain has a pH which is between 4.5 and 5.6 with an average value of 5.0 and so rain with a pH of less than 5 is a more appropriate definition. The US EPA says, "Acid rain is a serious environmental problem that affects large parts of the US and Canada" Acid rain accelerates weathering in carbonate rocks and accelerates building weathering. It also contributes to acidification of rivers, streams, and forest damage at high elevations. When the acid builds up in rivers and streams it can kill fish.

Acne vulgaris

Acne Vulgaris is an inflammatory disease of the skin, caused by changes in the pilosebaceous units (skin structures consisting of a hair follicle and its associated sebaceous gland). Acne lesions are commonly referred to as pimples, spots, or zits.

Acne develops as a result of blockages in follicles. Hyperkeratinization and formation of a plug of keratin and sebum (a microcomedo) is the earliest change. Enlargement of sebaceous glands and an increase in sebum production occur with increased androgen (DHEA-S) production at adrenarche. Increased sebum production provides an environment for the overgrowth of Propionibacterium acnes. Bacterial overgrowth of Propionibacterium acnes can cause inflammation.

The condition is most common during adolescence, affecting more than 85% of teenagers, but frequently continues into adulthood. For most people, acne diminishes over time and tends to disappear, or at least decrease, after one reaches his or her early twenties. There is, however, no way to predict how long it will take for it to disappear entirely, and some individuals will continue to suffer from acne decades later, into their thirties and forties and even beyond.

The term acne comes from a corruption of the Greek άκμή (acme in the sense of a skin eruption) in the writings of Aëtius Amidenus. The vernacular term bacne or backne is often used to indicate acne found specifically on one's back.

Aconcagua

Cerro Aconcagua is the highest mountain in the Americas. It is located in the Andes mountain range, in the Argentine province of Mendoza. The summit is located about 5 kilometres from San Juan Province and 15 kilometres from the international border with Chile. It lies 112 km (70 mi) west by north of the city of Mendoza. Aconcagua is the highest peak in both the Western and Southern Hemispheres, as well as the highest outside of Asia. It is one of the Seven Summits.

Aconcagua is bounded by the Valle de las Vacas to the north and east and the Valle de los Horcones Inferior to the West and South. The mountain and its surroundings are part of the Aconcagua National Park. The mountain has a number of glaciers. The most substantial are the north-eastern or Polish Glacier and the eastern or English Glacier.

The mountain was created by the subduction of the Nazca Plate beneath the South American plate during the geologically recent Andean orogeny; however, it is not a volcano. The origin of the name is contested, it is either from the Arauca Aconca-Hue, which refers to the Aconcagua River and means 'comes from the other side' or the Quechua Ackon Cahuak, meaning 'Sentinel of Stone'.

Acorn Computers

Acorn Computers was a British computer company established in Cambridge, England, in 1978. The company produced a number of computers which were especially popular in the UK. These included the Acorn Electron, the BBC Micro and the Acorn Archimedes. Acorn's BBC Micro computer dominated the UK educational computer market during the 1980s and early 1990s, drawing many comparisons with Apple in the U.S. Though the company was broken up into several independent operations in 1998, it leaves an impressive legacy, particularly in the development of RISC personal computers. A number of Acorn's former subsidiaries, notably ARM Holdings, live on today.

A new company licensed the Acorn trademark in 2006 to sell a range of branded laptop computers.

Acoustics

Acoustics is a branch of physics and is the study of sound (mechanical waves in gases, liquids, and solids). A scientist who works in the field of acoustics is an acoustician. The application of acoustics in technology is called acoustical engineering. There is often much overlap and interaction between the interests of acousticians and acoustical engineers.

Acoustics is the science concerned with the production, control, transmission, reception, and effects of sound. Its origins began with the study of mechanical vibrations and the radiation of these vibrations through mechanical waves, and still continues today. Research was done to look into the many aspects of the fundamental physical processes involved in waves and sound and into possible applications of these processes in modern life. The study of sound waves also lead to physical principles that can be applied to the study of all waves.

The study of acoustics has been fundamental to many developments in the arts. Some of these, especially in the area of musical scales and instruments, were only explained theoretically by scientists after long years of long experimentation by artists. For example, much of what is now known about architectural acoustics was actually learned by trial and error over centuries of experience and was only recently formalized into a science.

Other applications of acoustic technology are in the study of geologic, atmospheric, and underwater phenomena. Psychoacoustics, the study of the physical effects of sound on biological systems, has been of interest since Pythagoras first heard the sounds of vibrating strings and of hammers hitting anvils in the 6th century BC, but the application of modern ultrasonic technology has only recently provided some of the most exciting developments in medicine. The ear itself is another biological instrument dedicated to receiving certain wave vibrations and interpreting them as sound. Recent studies by Daniel Statnekov and others, study sound and its effect on the human brain. Harmonic frequencies in the form of binaural beats]

Acquired taste

An acquired taste often refers to an appreciation for a food or beverage that is unlikely to be enjoyed, in part or in full, by a person who has not had substantial exposure to it, usually because of some unfamiliar aspect of the food or beverage, including a strong or strange odor (e.g. stinky tofu), taste (such as bitter teas or hot spices), or appearance. The process of “acquiring” a taste involves consuming a food or beverage in the hope of learning to enjoy it. In most cases, this introductory period is considered worthwhile, as many of the world's delicacies are considered to be acquired tastes. For examples of such, a list of acquired tastes is available.

Acquired taste may also refer aesthetic tastes, such as taste in music or other forms of art. For more on this form of taste, see the article taste (sociology). A connoisseur is one who is held to be an expert judge of taste in a certain area, for example a coffee connoisseur.

Acre

An acre is the name of a unit of area in a number of different systems, including Imperial units and United States customary units. The most commonly used acres today are the international acre and, in the United States, the survey acre.

One acre comprises 4,840 square yards or 43,560 square feet. Because of alternative definitions of a yard or a foot, the exact size of an acre also varies slightly. Traditionally, an acre was a swath of land one furlong long and one chain wide. A modern acre can have arbitrary dimensions as long as the area is correct. For example, a strip of land 1 inch wide and 99 miles long is also an acre.

The acre is often used to express areas of land. In the metric system, the hectare is commonly used for the same purpose. An acre is approximately 0.4 hectare.

One acre is 90.75 yards of a 53.33-yard-wide American football field. The full field, including the end zones, covers approximately 1.32 acres.

Acromegaly

Acromegaly (from Greek akros "extreme" or "extremities" and megalos "large" - extremities enlargement) is a hormonal disorder that results when the pituitary gland produces excess growth hormone (hGH). Most commonly it is a benign hGH producing tumor derived from a distinct type of cells (somatotrophs) and called pituitary adenoma.

Acromegaly most commonly affects middle-aged adults and can result in serious illness and premature death. Because of its insidious pathogenesis and slow progression, the disease is hard to diagnose in the early stages and is frequently missed for many years.

Acropolis

Acropolis (Gr. acron, edge + polis, city) literally means the edge of a town or a high city. For purposes of defense, early settlers naturally chose elevated ground, frequently a hill with precipitous sides, and these early citadels became in many parts of the world the nuclei of large cities which grew up on the surrounding lower ground. The word "Acropolis", though Greek in origin and associated primarily with Greek cities (Athens, Argos, Thebes, and Corinth with its Acrocorinth), may be applied generically to all such citadels (Rome, Jerusalem, Celtic Bratislava, many in Asia Minor, or even Castle Hill at Edinburgh).

The most famous example is the Acropolis of Athens which, by reason of its historical associations and the several famous buildings erected upon it (most notably the Parthenon), is generally known without qualification as simply "The Acropolis".

Because of its classical Greco-Roman style, the ruins of Mission San Juan Capistrano's "Great Stone Church" (in California, United States) have been dubbed the "American Acropolis".

Other parts of the world developed other names for the high citadel or alcázar, which often reinforced a naturally strong site. In Central Italy, many small rural communes still cluster at the base of a fortified habitation known as "La Rocca" of the commune.

The term acropolis is also used to described the central complex of overlapping structures, such as plazas and pyramids, in many Mayan cities, including Tikal and Copán.

Acrylamide

The chemical compound acrylamide (acrylic amide) has the chemical formula C₃H₅NO. Its IUPAC name is 2-propenamide. It is a white odourless crystalline solid, soluble in water, ethanol, ether and chloroform. Acrylamide is incompatible with acids, bases, oxidizing agents, iron and iron salts. It decomposes non thermally to form ammonia and thermal decomposition produces carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide and oxides of nitrogen.

Most acrylamide is used to synthesize polyacrylamides which find many uses as water-soluble thickeners. These include use in wastewater treatment, gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE), papermaking, ore processing, and the manufacture of permanent press fabrics. Some acrylamide is used in the manufacture of dyes and the manufacture of other monomers.

Acrylamide was accidentally discovered in foods in April 2002 by scientists in Sweden when they found large amounts of the chemical in starchy foods, such as crisps, chips, and bread. it is not found in food which has been boiled.

ACT (examination)

The ACT® test is a standardized achievement examination for college admissions in the United States produced by ACT, Inc. It was first administered in Fall 1959 as a competitor to the College Board's Scholastic Aptitude Test, now the SAT Reasoning Test. Some students who perform poorly on the SAT find that they perform better on the ACT and vice versa. In February 2005, an optional writing test was added to the ACT, mirroring changes to the SAT later that year. All four-year colleges and universities in the U.S. accept the ACT but different institutions place different emphasis on standardized tests such as the ACT, compared to other factors of evaluation such as class rank, G.P.A., and extracurricular activities.

Actinium

Actinium (IPA: /akˈtɪniəm/) is a chemical element in the periodic table that has the symbol Ac and atomic number 89.

Action potential

An action potential is a "spike" of electrical discharge that travels along the membrane of a cell. Action potentials are an essential feature of animal life, rapidly carrying information within and between tissues. They also occur in some plants. Action potentials can be created by many types of cells, but are used most extensively by the nervous system for communication between neurons and for transmitting information from neurons to other body tissues such as muscles and glands.

Action potentials are not the same in all cell types and can even vary in their properties at different locations in the same cell. For example, cardiac action potentials are significantly different from the action potentials in most neurons. This article is primarily concerned with the "typical" action potential of axons.

Active transport

Active transport (sometimes called active uptake) is the mediated transport of biochemicals, and other atomic/molecular substances, across membranes. Unlike passive transport, this process requires the expenditure of cellular energy to move molecules "uphill" against a gradient.

Actor

An actor, actress, or player (see terminology) is a person who acts, or plays a role, in a dramatic production. The term commonly refers to someone working in film, television, live theatre, or radio, and can occasionally denote a street entertainer. Besides playing dramatic roles, actors may also sing or work only on radio or as a voice actor.

An actor usually plays a fictional character. In the case of a true story (or a fictional story that portrays real people) an actor may play a real person (or a fictional version of the same). Occasionally, actors appear as themselves, as in John Malkovich's performance in the film Being John Malkovich.

Acts of Union 1707

The Acts of Union were a pair of Parliamentary Acts passed in 1706 and 1707 by the Parliament of England and the Parliament of Scotland respectively, that took effect on 1 May 1707. These Acts were the implementation of the Treaty of Union negotiated between the two countries.

The Kingdom of Great Britain was created by merging the Kingdom of England and the Kingdom of Scotland. Since the Union of the Crowns in 1603, the two countries shared a monarch but retained separate and sovereign parliaments.

The Acts of Union dissolved both the parliaments of England and Scotland and replaced them with a new Parliament, called the Parliament of Great Britain. This new parliament is based in Westminster, the former home of the English Parliament. These Acts are referred to as the Union of the Parliaments.

Actuary

An actuary is a business professional who deals with the financial impact of risk and uncertainty. Actuaries can be considered as professional bookmakers who manage economic risk by utilising mathematical and statistical probability rules to calculate financial rates. What is an Actuary?,..Actuary has not infrequently been compared with the bookmaker..

Actuaries have a deep understanding of financial security systems, their reasons for being, their complexity, their mathematics, and the way they work (Trowbridge 1989, p. 7). They evaluate the likelihood of events and quantify the contingent outcomes in order to minimize losses, both emotional and financial, associated with uncertain undesirable events. Since many events, such as death, cannot be totally avoided, it is helpful to take measures to minimize their financial impact when they occur. These risks can impact both sides of the balance sheet, and require asset management, liability management, and valuation skills. Analytical skills, business knowledge and understanding of human behavior and the vagaries of information systems are required to design and manage programs that control risk (Be An Actuary 2005).

Actuaries' insurance disciplines may be classified as life; health; pensions, annuities, and asset management; social welfare programs; property; casualty; general insurance; and reinsurance. Life, health, and pension actuaries deal with mortality risk, morbidity, and consumer choice regarding the ongoing utilization of drugs and medical services risk, and investment risk. Products prominent in their work include life insurance, annuities, pensions, mortgage and credit insurance, short and long term disability, and medical, dental, health savings accounts and long term care insurance. In addition to these risks, social insurance programs are greatly influenced by public opinion, politics, budget constraints, changing demographics and other factors such as medical technology, inflation and cost of living considerations (Bureau of Labor Statistics 2006).

Casualty actuaries, also known as non-life or general insurance actuaries, deal with catastrophic, unnatural risks that can occur to people or property. Products prominent in their work include auto insurance, homeowners insurance, commercial property insurance, workers’ compensation, title insurance, malpractice insurance, products liability insurance, directors and officers liability insurance, environmental and marine insurance, terrorism insurance and other types of liability insurance. Reinsurance products have to accommodate all of the previously mentioned products, and in addition have to properly reflect the increasing long term risks associated with climate change, cultural litigiousness, acts of war, terrorism and politics (Bureau of Labor Statistics 2006).

In 2002, a Wall Street Journal survey on the best jobs in the United States listed actuary as the second best job, while in previous editions of the list, actuaries had been the top rated job (Lee 2002). The survey used six key criteria to rank jobs: environment, income, employment outlook, physical demands, security and stress. A similar survey by U.S. News & World Report in 2006 included actuaries among the 25 "Best Professions" that it expects will be in great demand in the future (Nemko 2006).

Actuator

An actuator is a mechanical device for moving or controlling a mechanism or system. The actuator is usually a physical mechanism but also refers to an artificial agent intelligent agent.

Acute myeloid leukemia

Acute myeloid leukemia (AML), also known as acute myelogenous leukemia, is a cancer of the myeloid line of white blood cells, characterized by the rapid proliferation of abnormal cells which accumulate in the bone marrow and interfere with the production of normal blood cells. AML is the most common acute leukemia affecting adults, and its incidence increases with age. Although AML is a relatively rare disease, accounting for approximately 1.2% of cancer deaths in the United States, its incidence is expected to increase as the population ages.

The symptoms of AML are caused by replacement of normal bone marrow with leukemic cells, resulting in a drop in red blood cells, platelets, and normal white blood cells. These symptoms include fatigue, shortness of breath, easy bruising and bleeding, and increased risk of infection. Although several risk factors for AML have been identified, the specific cause of AML remains unclear. As an acute leukemia, AML progresses rapidly and is typically fatal within weeks or months if left untreated.

Acute myeloid leukemia is a potentially curable disease; but only a minority of patients are cured with current therapy. AML is treated initially with chemotherapy aimed at inducing a remission; some patients may go on to receive a hematopoietic stem cell transplant.

Areas of active research in acute myeloid leukemia include further elucidation of the cause of AML, identification of better prognostic indicators, development of new methods of detecting residual disease after treatment, and the development of new drugs and targeted therapies.

Ad hoc

Ad hoc is a Latin phrase which means "for this purpose". It generally signifies a solution that has been custom designed for a specific problem, is non-generalizable and cannot be adapted to other purposes. Examples include a tailor-made suit, a handcrafted network protocol or a purpose-specific equation. Ad hoc can also have connotations of a makeshift solution, inadequate planning or improvised events.

Ad hominem

An ad hominem argument, also known as argumentum ad hominem (Latin: "argument to the person", "argument against the man") consists of replying to an argument or factual claim by attacking or appealing to the person making the argument or claim, rather than by addressing the substance of the argument or producing evidence against the claim. It is most commonly used to refer specifically to the ad hominem abusive, or argumentum ad personam, which consists of criticizing or personally attacking an argument's proponent in an attempt to discredit that argument.

Other common subtypes of the ad hominem include the ad hominem circumstantial, or ad hominem circumstantiae, an attack which is directed at the circumstances or situation of the arguer; and the ad hominem tu quoque, which objects to an argument by characterizing the arguer as being guilty of the same thing that he is arguing against.

Ad hominem arguments are always invalid in syllogistic logic, since the truth value of premises is taken as given, and the validity of a logical inference is independent of the person making the inference. However, ad hominem arguments are rarely presented as formal syllogisms, and their assessment lies in the domain of informal logic and the theory of evidence.

On the other hand, the theory of evidence depends to a large degree on assessments of the credibility of witnesses, including eyewitness evidence and expert witness evidence. Evidence that a purported eyewitness is unreliable, or has a motive for lying, or that a purported expert witness lacks the claimed expertise can play a major role in making judgements from evidence.

Argument ad hominem is the converse of appeal to authority, in which the arguer bases the truth value of an assertion on the authority, knowledge or position of the person asserting it. Hence, while an ad hominem argument may make an assertion less compelling, by showing that the person making the assertion does not have the authority, knowledge or position they claim, or has made mistaken assertions on similar topics in the past, it cannot provide an infallible counterargument.

Adam

Adam (Standard Hebrew אָדָם, masculine proper noun; Arabic آدم) was the first man created by God according to Jewish, Christian and Islamic traditions. He is considered a prophet by the Jewish, Islamic, Mandaean and Bahá'í faiths.citation needed] He is also commemorated as a patriarch in the Calendar of Saints of the Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod with Eve on December 19. citation needed]

Adam Smith

Adam Smith FRSE (baptised June 5, 1723 O.S. / June 16 N.S. – July 17, 1790) was a Scottish moral philosopher and a pioneering political economist. He is a major contributor to the modern perception of economics. One of the key figures of the intellectual movement known as the Scottish Enlightenment, he is known primarily as the author of two treatises: The Theory of Moral Sentiments (1759), and An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations (1776). The latter was one of the earliest attempts to systematically study the historical development of industry and commerce in Europe, as well as a sustained attack on the doctrines of mercantilism. Smith's work helped to create the modern academic discipline of economics and provided one of the best-known intellectual rationales for free trade, capitalism, and libertarianism.

Adamant

Adamant and similar words are used to refer to any especially hard substance, whether composed of diamond, some other gemstone, or some type of metal. Both adamant and diamond derive from the Greek word αδαμας (adamas), meaning "untameable". Adamantite and adamantium (a metallic name derived from the Neo-Latin ending -ium) are also common variants.

Throughout ancient history, "adamantine" referred to anything that was made of a very hard material. Virgil describes Tartarus as having a screeching gate protected by columns of solid adamantine (Aeneid book VI). Later, by the Middle Ages, the term came to refer to diamond, as it was the hardest material then known.

It was in the Middle Ages, too, that adamantine hardness and the lodestone's magnetic properties became confused and combined, leading to an alternate definition in which "adamant" means magnet, falsely derived from the Latin adamare, which means to love or be attached to. Another connection was the belief that adamant (the diamond definition) could block the effects of a magnet. This was addressed in chapter III of Pseudodoxia Epidemica, for instance.

Since the word diamond is now used for the hardest gemstone, the increasingly archaic "adamant" — and its adjectival form "adamantine" — has a mostly poetic or figurative use. In that capacity, the name is frequently used in popular media and fiction to refer to a very hard substance.

Adam's apple

The Adam's apple - more clinically known as the laryngeal prominence - is a feature of the human neck. This lump, or protrusion, is formed by the angle of the thyroid cartilage surrounding the larynx.

The laryngeal prominence is usually more prominent in adult men than in women or prepubescent girls or boys. Note that the growth of the larynx itself during puberty is responsible for the vocal instability in teenage boys, not the laryngeal prominence. The laryngeal prominence is merely the protrusion one sees of the thyroid cartilage making up the body of the larynx. Some suggest that the reason for the laryngeal prominence usually being more prominent in males is that the two laminae of the thyroid cartilage that form the protrusion meet at an angle of 90° in males but that angle is usually 120° in females. This theory, however, seems more like conjecture when you consider the fact that with most women with a large laryngeal prominence appear no different from those seen on men.

A prominent laryngeal prominence is commonly considered a male secondary sex characteristic though this is more of a perception than anything pointing to scientific fact since not all males have large laryngeal prominence and there are quite a few women who do.

The laryngeal prominence can be more prominent than desired, and this is sometimes remedied by a chondrolaryngoplasty (thyroid chondroplasty), a type of plastic surgery to reduce the size of the laryngeal prominence. This surgery is not without risk as it can adversely affect the voice and cause permanent damage as well as leaving a visible scar. This surgery can be part of sex reassignment therapy for male-to-female transgender or transsexual people (transwomen).

Adder (electronics)

In electronics, an adder is a digital circuit that performs addition of numbers. In modern computers adders reside in the arithmetic logic unit (ALU) where other operations are performed. Although adders can be constructed for many numerical representations, such as Binary-coded decimal or excess-3, the most common adders operate on binary numbers. In cases where two's complement is being used to represent negative numbers it is trivial to modify an adder into an adder-subtracter.

Addiction

An addiction is a recurring compulsion by an individual to engage in some specific activity. The term is often reserved for drug addictions but it is sometimes applied to other compulsions, such as problem gambling, pornography, and compulsive overeating. Factors that have been suggested as causes of addiction include genetic, biological/pharmacological and social factors.

Addis Ababa

Addis Ababa (sometimes spelled Addis Abeba, the spelling used by the official Ethiopian Mapping Authority; Amharic አዲስ አበባ, Āddīs Ābebā "new flower"; Oromo Finfinne) is the capital city of Ethiopia and the African Union, as well as its predecessor, the OAU. As a chartered city (ras gez astedader), Addis Ababa has the status of both a city and a state. The city has as many as 80 nationalities speaking 80 languages, and Christian, Muslim, and Jewish communities. The city is located at 9.03° N 38.74° E. From its lowest point, around Bole International Airport, at 2,326 metres above sea level in the southern periphery, the city rises to over 3,000 metres in the Entoto Mountains to the north.

The site was chosen by Empress Taytu Betul and the city was founded in 1886 by her husband, Emperor Menelik II, and now has a population of around four million, and an eight per cent annual growth rate.

The city lies at the foot of Mount Entoto, and is home to Addis Ababa University. Addis Ababa University was formerly known as Haile Selassie I University, after the former Emperor of Ethiopia, who donated his Genete Leul Palace to be the University main campus in 1961.

Addison's disease

Addison's disease (also known as chronic adrenal insufficiency, hypocortisolism or hypocorticism) is a rare endocrine disorder in which the adrenal gland produces insufficient amounts of steroid hormones (glucocorticoids and often mineralocorticoids). It may develop in children as well as adults, and may occur as the result of a large number of underlying causes.

The condition is named after Dr Thomas Addison, the British physician who first described the condition in his 1855 On the Constitutional and Local Effects of Disease of the Suprarenal Capsules. The adjective "Addisonian" is used for features of the condition, as well as patients with Addison's disease.

The condition is generally diagnosed with blood tests, medical imaging and additional investigations. Treatment is with replacement of the hormones (oral hydrocortisone and fludrocortisone). If the disease is caused by an underlying problem, this is addressed. Regular follow-up and monitoring for other health problems is necessary.

Addition

Addition is the mathematical operation of combining or adding two numbers to obtain an equal simple amount or total. Addition also provides a model for related processes such as joining two collections of objects into one collection. Repeated addition of the number one is the most basic form of counting.

Additive inverse

In mathematics, the additive inverse, or opposite, of a number n is the number that, when added to n, yields zero. The additive inverse of n is denoted −n.

The additive inverse of a number is defined as its inverse element under the binary operation of addition. It can be calculated using multiplication by −1; that is, −n = −1 × n.

Integers, rational numbers, real numbers, and complex number all have additive inverses, as they contain negative as well as positive numbers. Natural numbers, cardinal numbers, and ordinal numbers, on the other hand, do not have additive inverses within their respective sets. Thus, for example, we can say that natural numbers do have additive inverses, but because these additive inverses are not themselves natural numbers, the set of natural numbers is not closed under taking additive inverses.

The notation '+' is reserved for commutative binary operations, i.e. such that x + y = y + x, for all x,y. If such an operation admits a neutral element o (such that x + o (= o + x) = x for all x), then this element is unique (o' = o' + o = o). If then, for a given x, there exists x' such that x + x' (= x' + x) = o, then x' is called an additive inverse of x. This additive inverse is unique for every real number.

Adelaide

Adelaide is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of South Australia, and is the fifth largest city in Australia, with a population of over 1.1 million in 2004. It is a coastal city beside the Southern Ocean, and is situated on the Adelaide Plains, north of the Fleurieu Peninsula, between the Gulf St. Vincent and the low-lying Mount Lofty Ranges.

Named in honour of Queen Adelaide, the consort of King William IV, the city was founded in 1836 as the planned capital for the only freely-settled British province in Australia. Colonel William Light, one of Adelaide's founding fathers, designed the city and chose its location close to the River Torrens. Inspired by William Penn, Light's design set out Adelaide in a grid layout, interspaced by wide boulevards and large public squares, and entirely surrounded by parkland. Early Adelaide was shaped by religious freedom and a commitment to political progressivism and civil liberties, which led to world-first reforms. Today Adelaide is known for its many festivals as well as for its wine, arts and sports.

As South Australia's seat of government and commercial centre, Adelaide is the site of many governmental and financial institutions. Most of these are concentrated in the city centre along the cultural boulevard of North Terrace, King William Street and in various districts of the metropolitan area.

Adenium

Adenium is a genus of flowering plants in the family Apocynaceae, containing a single species, Adenium obesum, also known as Sabi Star, Kudu or Desert-rose. It is native to tropical and subtropical eastern and southern Africa and Arabia.

It is an evergreen succulent shrub, growing to 1-3 m in height, with pachycaul stems and a stout, swollen basal caudex. The leaves are spirally arranged, clustered toward the tips of the shoots, simple entire, leathery in texture, 5-15 cm long and 1-8 cm broad. The flowers are tubular, 2-5 cm long, with the outer portion 4-6 cm diameter with five petals, resembling those of other related genera such as Plumeria and Nerium. The flowers tend to red and pink, often with a whitish blush outward of the throat.

Adenium is a popular houseplant in temperate regions. It requires a sunny location and a minimum indoor temperature in winter of 10 °C. It thrives on a xeric watering regime as required by cacti. Adenium is typically propagated by seed or stem cuttings. However, only those grown from seed would have the swollen caudex that is prized by collectors.

Due to its resemblance to plumeria and was introduced to the Philippines from Bangkok, Thailand, the plant was also called as Bangkok kalachuchi in the Philippines.

Adenocarcinoma

Adenocarcinoma is a form of carcinoma that originates in glandular tissue. To be classified as adenocarcinoma, the cells do not necessarily need to be part of a gland, as long as they have secretory properties. This form of carcinoma can occur in some higher mammals, including humans.

The term adenocarcinoma is derived from 'adeno' meaning 'pertaining to a gland' and 'carcinoma', which describes a cancer that has developed in the epithelial cells.

Adenoma

An adenoma is a collection of growths (-oma) of glandular origin. Adenomas can grow from many organs including the colon, adrenal, pituitary, thyroid, etc. These growths are benign, although over time they may progress to become malignant (at which point they are called adenocarcinomas). Though adenomas are benign, they can cause serious health complications by compressing other structures (mass effect) and by producing large amounts of hormones in an unregulated manner (paraneoplastic syndrome).

Adenosine triphosphate

Adenosine 5'-triphosphate (ATP) is a multifunctional nucleotide that is most important as a "molecular currency" of intracellular energy transfer. In this role, ATP transports chemical energy within cells for metabolism. It is produced as an energy source during the processes of photosynthesis and cellular respiration and consumed by many enzymes and a multitude of cellular processes including biosynthetic reactions, motility and cell division. ATP is also incorporated into nucleic acids by polymerases in the processes of DNA replication and transcription. In signal transduction pathways, ATP is used as a substrate by kinases that phosphorylate proteins and lipids, as well as by adenylate cyclase, which uses ATP to produce the second messenger molecule cyclic AMP.

The structure of this molecule consists of a purine base (adenine) attached to the 1' carbon atom of a pentose (ribose). Three phosphate groups are attached at the 5' carbon atom of the pentose sugar. When ATP is used in DNA synthesis, the ribose sugar is first converted to deoxyribose by ribonucleotide reductase. ATP was discovered in 1929 by Karl Lohmann, and was proposed to be the main energy-transfer molecule in the cell by Fritz Albert Lipmann in 1941.

Adhesive

An adhesive is a compound that adheres or bonds two items together. Adhesives may come from either natural or synthetic sources. Some modern adhesives are extremely strong, and are becoming increasingly important in modern construction and industry.

Adi Shankara

Adi Shankara (Malayalam: ആദി ശങ്കരന്‍, Devanāgarī: आदि शङ्कर, Ādi Śaṅkara, IPA: Dates Section], also known as Śaṅkara Bhagavatpādācārya ("the teacher at the feet of God"), and Ādi Śaṅkarācārya ("the first Shankara in his lineage") was the first philosopher to consolidate the doctrine of Advaita Vedanta, a sub-school of Vedanta. His teachings are based on the unity of the soul and Brahman, in which Brahman is viewed as without attributes. In the Smārta tradition, Adi Shankara is regarded as an incarnation of Shiva.

Adi Shankara toured India with the purpose of propagating his teachings through discourses and debates with other philosophers. He founded four mathas ("monasteries") which played a key role in the historical development, revival and spread of post-Buddhist Hinduism and Advaita Vedanta. Adi Shankara was the founder of the Dashanami monastic order and the Shanmata tradition of worship.

His works in Sanskrit, all of which are extant today, concern themselves with establishing the doctrine of Advaita (Sanskrit, "Non-dualism"). Adi Shankara quotes extensively from the Upanishads and other Hindu scriptures in forming his teachings. He also includes arguments against opposing schools of thought like Samkhya and Buddhism in his works.

Adiabatic process

In thermodynamics, an adiabatic process or an isocaloric process is a thermodynamic process in which no heat is transferred to or from the working fluid. The term "adiabatic" literally means impassable (from a dia bainein), corresponding here to an absence of heat transfer. For example, an adiabatic boundary is a boundary that is impermeable to heat transfer and the system is said to be adiabatically (or thermally) insulated; an insulated wall approximates an adiabatic boundary. Another example is the adiabatic flame temperature, which is the temperature that would be achieved by a flame in the absence of heat loss to the surroundings. An adiabatic process that is reversible is also called a isentropic process.

The opposite extreme -- of maximum heat transfer with the surroundings, causing the temperature to remain constant -- is known as an isothermal process. Since temperature is thermodynamically conjugate to entropy, the isothermal process is conjugate to the adiabatic process for reversible transformations.

A transformation of a thermodynamic system can be considered adiabatic when it is quick enough that no significant heat is transferred between the system and the outside. The adiabatic process can also be called quasi-static. At the opposite, a transformation of a thermodynamic system can be considered isothermal if it is slow enough so that the system's temperature remains constant by heat exchange with the outside.

Adipose tissue

In anatomy, adipose tissue or fat is loose connective tissue composed of adipocytes. Its main role is to store energy in the form of fat, although it also cushions and insulates the body. Obesity in humans and most animals is not dependent on the amount of body weight, but on the amount of body fat—specifically adipose tissue. Two types of adipose tissue exist: white adipose tissue (WAT) and brown adipose tissue (BAT). Adipose tissue also serves as an important endocrine organ by producing recently-discovered hormones such as leptin, resistin and the cytokine TNFα.

Adirondack Mountains

The Adirondack mountain range is located in the northeastern part of New York that runs through Clinton, Essex, Franklin, Fulton, Hamilton, Herkimer, Lewis, St. Lawrence, Saratoga, Warren, and Washington counties.

The mountains are often included by geographers in the Appalachian Mountains, but they are geologically more similar to the Laurentian Mountains of Canada. They are bordered on the east by Lake Champlain and Lake George, which separate them from the Green Mountains in Vermont. They are bordered to the south by the Mohawk Valley and to the west by the Tug Hill Plateau, separated by the Black River. This region is south of the St. Lawrence River.

Adjacent

Adjacent is an adjective meaning contiguous, adjoining or abutting. In geometry, adjacent sides of a polygon join at their vertex.

Adjective

In grammar, an adjective is a word whose main syntactic role is to modify a noun or pronoun (called the adjective's subject), giving more information about what the noun or pronoun refers to. Collectively, adjectives form one of the traditional eight parts of speech, though linguists today distinguish adjectives from words such as determiners that used to be considered adjectives but that are now recognized to be different.

Not all languages have adjectives, but most, including English, do. (English adjectives include big, old, and tired, among many others.) Those that don't typically use words of another part of speech, often verbs, to serve the same semantic function; for example, such a language might have a verb that means "to be big", and would use a construction analogous to "big-being house" to express what English expresses as "big house". Even in languages that do have adjectives, one language's adjective might not be another's; for example, where English has "to be hungry" (hungry being an adjective), French has "avoir faim" (literally "to have hunger"), and where Hebrew has the adjective "צריך" (roughly "in need of"), English uses the verb "to need".

In most languages with adjectives, they form an open class of words; that is, it is relatively common for new adjectives to be formed via such processes as derivation.

Adlai Stevenson

Adlai Ewing Stevenson II (February 5, 1900 – July 14, 1965) was an American politician, noted for intellectual demeanor and advocacy of liberal causes in the Democratic party. He served one term as governor of Illinois and lost, by landslides, in two races for president against Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1952 and 1956. He was Ambassador to the United Nations, 1961-65.

Administration (business)

The word "administration" is from the Middle English administracioun, deriving from the French administration, which is itself derived from the Latin administratio: a compounding of ad ("to") and ministratio ("to give service").

In business, administration consists of the performance or management of business operations and thus the making or implementing of major decisions. Administration can be defined as the universal process of organizing people and resources efficiently so as to direct activities toward common goals and objectives.

Administrator can serve as the title of the General Manager or Company Secretary who reports to a corporate board of directors. This title is archaic but in many enterprises this function, and its associated Finance, Personnel and MIS services, is what is intended when the term "the Administration" is used.

In some organizational analyses, Management is viewed as a subset of administration, specifically associated with the technical and mundane elements within an organization's operation. It stands distinct from executive or strategic work.

In other organizational analyses, administration can refer to the bureaucratic or operational performance of mundane office tasks, usually internally oriented and usually reactive rather than proactive.

This article incorporates text from the Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition, a publication now in the public domain.

Admiral

Admiral is the rank, or part of the name of the ranks, of the highest naval officers. It is usually considered a full admiral (equivalent to full general) and four-star rank above Vice Admiral and below Fleet Admiral.

Adolescence

Adolescence (Latin adolescentia, from adolescere, to grow up) is the period of psychological, social, and physical transition between childhood and adulthood (gender-specific, manhood or womanhood).

Adolf Eichmann

Otto Adolf Eichmann (known as Adolf Eichmann; March 19, 1906 – June 1, 1962) was a high-ranking Nazi and SS Obersturmbannführer (equivalent to Lieutenant Colonel). Due to his organizational talents and ideological reliability, he was charged by Obergruppenführer Reinhard Heydrich with the task of facilitating and managing the logistics of mass deportation to ghettos and extermination camps in Nazi-occupied Eastern Europe. After the war he travelled to Argentina using a fraudulently obtained laissez-passer issued by the International Red Cross and lived there under a false identity. He was captured by Israeli Mossad agents in Argentina and tried in Israeli court on fifteen criminal charges, including crimes against humanity and war crimes. He was convicted and hanged.

Adolf Hitler

Adolf Hitler (listen (help·info)) (IPA: ) (20 April 1889 – 30 April 1945) was the German Chancellor (Reichskanzler) in 1933, and Führer from 1934 until his death. He also led the National Socialist German Workers Party (Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei, the Nazi Party).

Hitler gained power during Germany's period of crisis following World War I. Using propaganda and charismatic oratory, he appealed to the lower and middle classes, while sounding resonant chords of nationalism, antisemitism, and anti-communism. With the establishment of a restructured economy, a rearmed military, and a totalitarian regime, Hitler pursued an aggressive foreign policy with the intention of expanding German Lebensraum (living space). After the annexation of Austria and then parts of Czechoslovakia, Hitler triggered World War II by invading Poland, much of which was also annexed to form the Großdeutsches Reich ("Greater German Reich").

Although Nazi Germany and the Axis Powers occupied most of Europe and parts of Asia at their zenith, they were eventually defeated by the Allies. By the end of the war, Hitler's policies of territorial conquest and racial subjugation had brought death and destruction to tens of millions of people, including the genocide of some six million Jews in what is now known as the Holocaust.

In the final days of the war, Hitler, along with his new wife, Eva Braun, committed suicide in his underground bunker in Berlin, as the city was overrun by the Red Army of the Soviet Union.

Adonis

Adonis is an archetypal life-death-rebirth deity in Greek mythology, and a central cult figure in various mystery religions. He is closely related to the Egyptian Osiris, the Semitic Tammuz & Baal Hadad, the Etruscan Atunis and the Phrygian Attis, all of whom are deities of rebirth and vegetation (Some mythologists believe he was later exported to Germania, and that Balder is to be read as his counterpart in Germanic mythology). Adonis is one of the most complex cult figures in classical times. He has had multiple roles and there has been much scholarship over the centuries concerning his meaning and purpose in the Greek religious beliefs. He is an annually-renewed, ever-youthful vegetation god, a life-death-rebirth deity whose nature is tied to the calendar. His cult belonged to women: the cult of dying Adonis was fully-developed in the circle of young girls around Sappho on Lesbos, about 600 BCE, as a fragment of Sappho reveals.

Adore (album)

Adore is the fourth studio album from Chicago alternative rock band The Smashing Pumpkins. Virgin Records released the album on June 2, 1998 in the United States. Adore is the Pumpkins' only album not to feature original drummer Jimmy Chamberlin. Adore marked a change in sound for The Smashing Pumpkins; Greg Kot of Rolling Stone magazine noted that the album "isn't just a transitional record; it's a complete break with the past." Their previously layered, guitar-oriented sound was largely replaced by a quieter and more electronic influenced sound, and incorporated drum machines and synthesizers. For the release, the band shed their alternative hipster image for a more subdued Gothic look.

Despite being "one of the most anticipated albums of 1998," Adore was a commercial disappointment and sold only 1.1 million copies, far below the Pumpkins' previous albums Siamese Dream and Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness. However, the album was well received by critics, and received a nomination for Best Alternative Music Performance at the 1999 Grammy Awards.

Adrenal gland

In mammals, the adrenal glands (also known as suprarenal glands) are the triangle-shaped endocrine glands that sit on top of the kidneys; their name indicates that position (ad-, "near" or "at" + -renes, "kidneys"). They are chiefly responsible for regulating the stress response through the synthesis of corticosteroids and catecholamines, including cortisol and adrenaline.

Adriaen van der Donck

Adriaen Cornelissen van der Donck (ca. 1618 – 1655) was a lawyer and landowner in New Netherland after whose honorific Jonkheer the city of Yonkers, New York is named. In addition to being the first lawyer in the Dutch colony, he was a leader in the political life of New Amsterdam (modern New York City), and an activist for Dutch-style republican government in the Dutch West India Company-run trading post.

Enchanted by his new homeland of New Netherland, Van der Donck made detailed accounts of the land, vegetation, animals, waterways, topography, and climate. Van der Donck used this knowledge to actively promote immigration to the colony, publishing several tracts, including his influential Description of New Netherland. Charles Gehring, Director of the New Netherland Project, has called it "the fullest account of the province, its geography, the Indians who inhabited it, and its prospects…It has been said that had it not been written in Dutch, it would have gone down as one of the great works of American colonial literature."

Van der Donck is a central figure in Russell Shorto's The Island at the Center of the World, which argues, based on newly translated records from the colony, that he is a great early American patriot, forgotten by history because of the eventual English conquest of New Netherland.

Today, he is also recognized as a sympathetic early Native American ethnographer, having learned the languages and observed many of the customs of the Mahicans and Mohawks. His descriptions of their practices are cited in many modern works, such as the 2005 book 1491: New Revelations of the Americas Before Columbus.

Adult

The term adult describes any mature organism, but normally it refers to a human: one that is no longer a child / minor and is now either a man or a woman. Adulthood can be defined in terms of biology, law, personal character, or social status. These different aspects of adulthood are often inconsistent and contradictory. A person may be biologically an adult, and have adult behavioral characteristics but still be treated as a child if they are under the legal age of majority. Conversely one may legally be an adult but possess none of the maturity and responsibility that define adult character.

Coming of age is the event; passing a series of tests to demonstrate the child is prepared for adulthood; or reaching a specified age, sometimes in conjunction with demonstrating preparation. Most modern societies determine legal adulthood based on reaching a legally-specified age without requiring a demonstration of physical maturity or preparation for adulthood.

"Adult" also means "not considered suitable for children," in particular as a euphemism for being related to sexual behaviour, such as adult entertainment, adult video, adult magazine, adult bookstore. However, adult education simply means education for adults, not particularly sex education.

Adultery

Adultery is voluntary sexual intercourse between a married person and one who is not his or her spouse. Some legal jurisdictions have defined it as "crime against marriage", opposed to infidelity.

Adverb

An adverb is a part of speech. It is any word that modifies any other part of language: verbs, adjectives (including numbers), clauses, sentences and other adverbs, except for nouns; modifiers of nouns are primarily determiners and adjectives.

Adverbs typically answer such questions as how?, when?, where?, To what extent?, In what kind or how often? This function is called the adverbial function, and is realized not just by single words (i.e., adverbs) but by adverbial phrases and adverbial clauses. Adverbs also describe adjectives, verbs, and other adverbs.

Adverbial

In grammar an adverbial is a word (an adverb) or a group of words (an adverbial phrase or an adverbial clause) which modifies or tells us something about the sentence or the verb. The word adverbial is also used as an adjective, meaning 'having the same function as an adverb'. Look at the examples below:

Advertising

Advertising is paid, one-way communication through a medium in which the sponsor is identified and the message is controlled. Variations include publicity, public relations, product placement, sponsorship, underwriting, and sales promotion. Every major medium is used to deliver these messages, including: television, radio, movies, magazines, newspapers, the Internet, and billboards.

Advertisements can also be seen on the seats of grocery carts, on the walls of an airport walkway, on the sides of buses, heard in telephone hold messages and in-store public address systems. Advertisements are usually placed anywhere an audience can easily and/or frequently access visuals and/or audio, especially on clothing.

Advertising clients are predominantly, but not exclusively, for-profit corporations seeking to increase demand for their products or services. Some organisations that frequently spend large sums of money on advertising but do not strictly sell a product or service to the general public include: political parties, interest groups, religion-supporting organizations, and militaries looking for new recruits. Additionally, some non-profit organizations are not typical advertising clients and rely upon free channels, such as public service announcements. For instance, a well-known exception to the use of commercial advertisements is Krispy Kreme doughnuts which relies on word-of-mouth.

The advertising industry is large and growing. In the United States alone in 2005, spending on advertising reached $144.32 billion, reported TNS Media Intelligence. That same year, according to a report titled Global Entertainment and Media Outlook: 2006-2010 issued by global accounting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers, worldwide advertising spending was $385 billion. The accounting firm's report projected worldwide advertisement spending to exceed half-a-trillion dollars by 2010.

While advertising can be seen as necessary for economic growth, it is not without social costs. Unsolicited Commercial Email and other forms of spam have become so prevalent as to have become a major nuisance to users of these services, as well as being a financial burden on internet service providers. Advertising is increasingly invading public spaces, such as schools, which some critics argue is a form of child exploitation. One scholar has argued that advertising is a toxic by-product of industrial society which may bring about the end of life on earth.

Advil

Advil is a popular brand of ibuprofen, an NSAID (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug). Advil is manufactured by Madison NJ based Wyeth and has been on the market since 1984. Marketing slogans have included "Advanced Medicine for Pain" and most recently "The Every Pain Reliever". Throughout its history, Advil advertising often compared it to both aspirin and Tylenol portraying both as "old fashioned" or "out of date" drugs. For example, one print advertisement showed asprin and Tylenol in the background with the years they came out (1898 and 1955 respectively) and Advil shown as "Today's" drug. Another example is a television commercial (about mid to late 1990s) showing "flashbacks" of previous generations using aspirin or Tylenol and showing Advil as being used by the current generation.

Advil PM became available in 2006. It is a combination of 200mg of Ibuprofen and a gentle sleep aid diphenhydramine, the same ingredient in Tylenol PM and Benadryl.

According to Drug Facts on the back of Advil, headaches, backaches, the common cold, minor pain of arthritis, toothaches, menstrual cramps, and muscular aches can be milder with Advil. Fever, including that from sunburn, can also be temporarily reduced.

Advil also states on the Drug Facts that the ibuprofen may cause a severe allergic reaction. This allergic reaction may include hives, asthma and/or wheezing, skin reddening, facial swelling, shock, rash, and/or blisters. It is strongly advised that you do not take it with alcohol.

Not many brands have the ability to compete with advil. However, 360otc is an emerging company with not only a headache/ muscle ache product, but it also has a hangover pill. 360 works just as well as advil but without the name brand price tag. It can be found wherever advil is located. Its ticker is TSXT.

Aegean civilization

Aegean civilization is a general term for the Bronze Age civilizations of Greece and the Aegean. There are in fact three distinct regions covered by this term: Crete, the Cyclades and the Greek mainland. Crete is associated with the Minoan civilization from the Early Bronze Age, while the Cyclades and the mainland have distinct cultures. The Cyclades converge with the mainland during the Early Helladic ("Minyan") period and with Crete in the Middle Minoan period. From ca. 1450 (Late Helladic, Late Minoan), the Greek Mycenaean civilization spreads to Crete.

Aegina

Aegina (Greek: Αίγινα (Egina)) is one of the Saronic Islands of Greece in the Saronic Gulf, 31 miles (50 km) from Athens. Tradition derives the name from Aegina, the mother of Aeacus, who was born in and ruled the island. During ancient times, Aegina was a rival to Athens, the great sea power of the era.

The island forms part of the Piraeus Prefecture and, on a bigger level, the Attica. The capital is the town of Aegina, situated at the northwestern end of the island. Due to its proximity to Athens, it is a popular quick getaway during the summer months, with quite a few Athenians owning second houses on the island.

Aegis

"Ægis" has entered modern English to mean a shield, protection, or sponsorship, originally from the name of the mythological protective shield of Zeus. The name has been extended to many other entities, such as the Aegis combat system used by the U.S. Navy, Aegis Clothing and Aegis Law Firm in southern California, as well as Aegis School of Business in Mumbai, India; and the concept of a protective shield is found in other mythologies, while its form varies across sources.

The concept of doing something "under someone's ægis" means doing something under protection of a powerful, knowledgeable, or benevolent source. The word ægis is identified with protection by a strong force with its roots in Classical mythology, specifically Greek myth adopted by the Romans; there are parallels in Norse mythology, and in Egyptian, where the Greek word aegis is applied by extension.

Aerobic exercise

Aerobic exercise refers to exercise which is of moderate intensity, undertaken for a long duration. Aerobic means "with oxygen", and refers to the use of oxygen in a muscle's energy-generating process. Many types of exercise are aerobic, and by definition are performed at moderate levels of intensity for extended periods of time.

An effective aerobic exercise should involve 5-10 minutes of warming up at an intensity of 50-60% of maximum heart rate, followed by at least 20 minutes of exercise at an intensity of 70-80% of maximum heart rate, ending with 5-10 minutes of cooling down at an intensity of 50-60% of maximum heart rate.

Aeschylus

Aeschylus (Greek: Αἰσχύλος, IPA: /ˈɛskələs/ or /ˈiskələs/, 525 BC/524 BC – 456 BC) was an ancient Greek playwright. He is often recognized as the father or the founder of tragedy, and is the earliest of the three Greek tragedians whose plays survive, the others being Sophocles and Euripides. He expanded the number of characters in plays to allow for conflict between them; previously, characters interacted only with the chorus. Unfortunately, only seven of the estimated seventy plays written by Aeschylus have survived into modern times.

Many of Aeschylus' works were influenced by the Persian invasion of Greece, which took place during his lifetime. His play The Persians remains an important primary source of information about this period in Greek history. The war was so important to Greeks and to Aeschylus himself that, upon his death around 456 BC, his epitaph included a reference to his participation in the Greek victory at Marathon but not to his success as a playwright.

Aesthetics

Aesthetics (also spelled esthetics) is a branch of philosophy, a species of value theory or axiology, which is the study of sensory or sensori-emotional values, sometimes called judgments of sentiment and taste. Aesthetics is closely associated with the philosophy of art.

Aether (classical element)

Japanese (Godai)

Earth (地) | Water (水) | Fire (火) |
Air / Wind (風) | Void / Sky / Heaven (空)

Hinduism (Tattva) and Buddhism (Mahābhūta)

Vayu / Pavan — Air / Wind
Agni / Tejas — Fire
Akasha — Aether
Prithvi / Bhumi — Earth
Ap / Jala — Water

According to ancient and medieval science, Aether (Greek αἰθήρ, aithēr), also spelled ether, is the material that fills the region of the universe above the terrestrial sphere. Aristotle included it as a fifth element distinct from the other four, Air, Earth, Fire, and Water. Aether was also called quintessence (from quinta essentia, "fifth element"). Quintessence was also supposed to be a definition of pure energy. Its force is imagined to be like lightning. This element also has the power of life. Its Platonic solid was the dodecahedron.

Affair

An affair may refer to a form of nonmonogamy or to infidelity in marriage. It may be used as a euphemism and in some cases to add glamour to an illicit liaison. Describing a relationship as an 'affair' may be inaccurate or intentionally damaging. It may or may not involve either or both romance or sex. In the romantic friendship article are numerous examples of 'special friendships' in popular culture many apparently without sex. Some are distinguishable from an emotional affair.

Affair has the same word origins as affect — an affair implies bonds of affection, but not necessarily so. Some affairs are premeditatively cold. Some exploitative or designed to extract information by stealth. Some are entered into in order to provide the basis for later blackmail. And some are set up in order to provide grounds for divorce in jurisdictions that lack no-fault divorce laws.citation needed] That is then referred to as adultery. Affair, in lay and professional usage, does not require any of the parties to be married, though often one is in a committed relationship. Adultery refers more specifically to those in a legal married relationship.

In the most general sense, affair may be used to connote professional, personal, or public business. These include meetings or other functions, or tasks that need to be completed. For example, one might say, "I have other affairs to attend to at the moment." It may also refer to a particular business or private activity, as in family affair or private affair. An affair, in the political sense, typically refers to any kind of involvement in illicit business by any kind of public representatives, such as in the Watergate affair. Like the earlier definition this is not always the case — for example the British Government has a Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, which is a perfectly legitimate (and usually honorable) position.

Affection

Affection (from Latin ad, and facere, meaning "to do something to") is an emotion that derives from the recognition of one's own values in the character of another.

Affenpinscher

The Affenpinscher is a terrier-like toy breed of dog.

Affirmative action

Affirmative action refers to policies intended to promote access to education or employment aimed at a historically socio-politically non-dominant group (typically, minorities or women). Motivation for affirmative action policies is to redress the effects of past discrimination and to encourage public institutions such as universities, hospitals and police forces to be more representative of the population.

This is commonly achieved through targeted recruitment programmes, by preferential treatment given to applicants from socio-politically disadvantaged groups and in some cases through the use of quotas.

Opponents of affirmative action policies argue that it is based on collectivism and merely another form of discrimination because it can result in qualified applicants being denied entry to higher education or employment because they belong to a particular social group (usually the historically socio-politically dominant group; typically majority races and men).

Affix

An affix is a morpheme that is attached to a base morpheme such as a root or to a stem, to form a word. Affixes may be derivational, like English -ness and pre-, or inflectional, like English plural -s and past tense -ed.

Afghan Hound

The Afghan Hound is a very old sighthound dog breed. Distinguished by its thick, fine, silky coat and its tail with a ring curl at the end, the breed acquired its unique features in the cold mountains of Afghanistan, where it was originally used to hunt wolves, foxes, and gazelles. Its local name is Tāzī (Persian: تازی). Other alternate names for this breed are Balkh Hound, Baluchi Hound, Barutzy Hound and Kabul Hound.

Afghanistan

Afġānistān, officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan (Pashto: د افغانستان اسلامي جمهوریت, Persian: جمهوری اسلامی افغانستان), is a landlocked country that is located in the heart of Asia. It is variously designated within Central or South Asia, as well as the Middle East. It has religious, ethno-linguistic, and geographic links with most of its neighbours. It is largely bordered by Pakistan in the south and east, Iran in the west, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan in the north, and the People's Republic of China in the far northeast. The name Afghanistan means the "Land of Afghans".

Afghanistan is a culturally mixed nation, a crossroads between the East and the West, and has been ancient focal point of trade and migration. It has an important geostrategical location, connecting South Asia, Central Asia and Middle East together. During its long history, the land has seen various invaders and conquerors, while on the other hand, local entities invaded the surrounding vast regions to form empires to themselves. Ahmad Shah Durrani created a large empire in the middle of the eighteenth century, with its capital at Kandahar. Subsequently, most of its territories were ceded to former neighboring countries. In the 19th century, Afghanistan became a buffer state in "The Great Game" played between the United Kingdom and Tsarist Russia. On August 19, 1919, following the third Anglo-Afghan war, the country regained full independence from the United Kingdom over its foreign affairs.

Since the late 1970s, Afghanistan has suffered continuous and brutal civil war, which included foreign interventions in the form of the 1979 Soviet invasion of Afghanistan and the 2001 conflict with the US in which the ruling Taliban government was toppled. In December 2001, the United Nations Security Council authorized the creation of an International Security Assistance Force (ISAF). This force, composed of NATO troops, has been involved in assisting the government of President Hamid Karzai in establishing authority across the nation. In 2005, the United States and Afghanistan signed a strategic partnership agreement committing both nations to a long-term relationship. In the meantime, about 30 billion US dollars have also been provided by the international community for the reconstruction of the country.

Africa

Africa is the world's second-largest and second most-populous continent, after Asia. At about 30,221,532 km² (11,668,545 mi²) including adjacent islands, it covers 6.0% of the Earth's total surface area, and 20.4% of the total land area. With more than 900,000,000 people (as of 2005) in 61 territories, it accounts for about 14% of the world's human population. The continent is surrounded by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, the Suez Canal and the Red Sea to the northeast, the Indian Ocean to the southeast, and the Atlantic Ocean to the west. There are 46 countries including Madagascar, and 53 including all the island groups.

Africa, particularly central eastern Africa, is widely regarded within the scientific community to be the origin of humans and the Hominidae tree, as evidenced by the discovery of the earliest hominids, as well as later ones that have been dated to around 7 million years ago including Sahelanthropus tchadensis, Africanus, Homo Erectus, with the earliest humans being dated to ca. 200,000 years ago, according to this view.

Africa straddles the equator and encompasses numerous climate areas; it is the only continent to stretch from the northern temperate to southern temperate zones. Because of the lack of natural regular precipitation and irrigation as well as glaciers or mountain aquifer systems, there is no natural moderating effect on the climate except near the coasts.

Africa (song)

"Africa" is a song by '80s rock band Toto. The song's catchy chorus is a metaphor for how much the writer loves his female partner, hence "It's gonna take a lot to drag me away from you / There's nothing that a hundred men or more could ever do / I bless the rains down in Africa". The song was included on their 1982 album Toto IV, and reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in February 1983. The song was written by the band's keyboardist David Paich, who also sings both verses of the song, and drummer Jeff Porcaro. Bobby Kimball sings the chorus.

African American

Protestantism (chiefly Baptist, Pentecostal and Methodist); Roman Catholicism; Islam; minorities of Judaism and Buddhism

African Americans or Black Americans are citizens or residents of the United States whose ancestors, usually in predominant part, were indigenous to Sub-Saharan Africa. It is estimated that a significant number of African Americans have European heritage. In the United States the term is generally used for Americans with predominantly Sub-Saharan African ancestry. Most African Americans are the descendants of captive Africans who were enslaved within the boundaries of the present United States, although some are—or are descended from—voluntary immigrants from Africa, the Caribbean and South America

African American literature

African American literature is the body of literature produced in the United States by writers of African descent. The genre traces its origins to the works of such late 18th century writers as Phillis Wheatley and Olaudah Equiano, reached early high points with slave narratives and the Harlem Renaissance, and continues today with authors such as Toni Morrison, Maya Angelou and Walter Mosley being ranked among the top writers in the United States. Among the themes and issues explored in African American literature are the role of African Americans within the larger American society, African-American culture, racism, slavery, and equality. African American writing has also tended to incorporate within itself oral forms such as spirituals, sermons, gospel music, blues and rap.

As African Americans' place in American society has changed over the centuries, so, too, have the foci of African American literature. Before the American Civil War, African American literature primarily focused on the issue of slavery, as indicated by the subgenre of slave narratives. At the turn of the 20th century, books by authors such as W.E.B. DuBois and Booker T. Washington debated whether to confront or appease racist attitudes in the United States. During the American Civil Rights movement, authors such as Richard Wright and Gwendolyn Brooks wrote about issues of racial segregation and black nationalism. Today, African American literature has become accepted as an integral part of American literature, with books such as Roots: The Saga of an American Family by Alex Haley, The Color Purple by Alice Walker, and Beloved by Toni Morrison achieving both best-selling and award-winning status.

African American Vernacular English

Note: This page or section contains IPA phonetic symbols in Unicode. See IPA chart for English for a pronunciation key.

African American Vernacular English (AAVE), also called African American English, Black English, Black Vernacular, Black English Vernacular (BEV), or Black Vernacular English (BVE) is a variety (dialect, ethnolect and sociolect) of the English language, particularly American English. It is also known colloquially as Ebonics. Its pronunciation in some respects is common to Southern American English, which is spoken by many African Americans in the United States and by many non-African Americans. AAVE shares many characteristics with various Creole English dialects spoken by black people in much of the world.citation needed] It has sometimes been suggested that AAVE has grammatical structures in common with various West African languages, but this is disputed.citation needed]. Speakers of AAVE are often bidialectal and, like with any form of language, age, status, topic, and setting influence the use of AAVE. For example, AAVE is used more often when discussing abstract concepts, such as feelings, or when speaking to members of one's own peer group.citation needed] There are many literary uses of this variety of English, particularly in African-American literature.

African Black Oystercatcher

The African Black Oystercatcher, (Haematopus moquini) sometimes known as the African oystercatcher, is a large wader which is a resident breeder on the rocky coasts and islands of southern Africa. This oystercatcher has a population of less than 5,000 adults.

The African Black Oystercatcher is a large and noisy plover-like bird, with completely black plumage, red legs and a strong broad red bill used for smashing or prying open molluscs such as mussels, or for finding earthworms. The sexes are similar in appearance, but juveniles are browner than adults.

The African Black Oystercatcher is unmistakable in flight with its all-dark plumage. The call is a distinctive loud piping, very similar to Common Pied Oystercatcher. That migratory species can occur as a vagrant in southern Africa, but its black-and-white plumage makes confusion impossible.

African Brush-tailed Porcupine

The African Brush-Tailed Porcupine (Atherurus africanus) is a species of rat-like Old World porcupine called "brush-tailed porcupines". The brush-tailed porcupines live in forests, usually at high elevations. They are nocturnal and during the day they sleep in caves and burrows. The brush-tailed porcupine is one of the biggest rodents in Africa, growing almost three feet long and weigh as much as eight pounds. It has an elongated rat-like face and body and short legs, tipped with clawed and webbed feet. Unlike most other porcupines, the brush-tailed porcupine has lighter and smaller quills. On the tail, these quills are thinner and brush-like. These can make noise when rattled. Brush-tailed porcupines live in small family groups of about eight members. Different family groups can share resources. When attacked by a predator, the porcupine raises its quills so it looks twice its size, rattles its tail quills, and stomps its feet. As with all porcupines, the brush-tailed porcupine would back into the attacker and inflict damage with its quills.

The brush-tailed porcupine is mostly herbivorous. When alone eating, the porcupines can be quite nervous. During the breeding season, males and females form pair bonds to get acquainted. The African brush-tailed porcupine has a long pregnancy compared to other rodents: 110 days at the longest. The young are born well-developed or precocial. Porcupines reach maturity at two years of age.

African Buffalo

The African Buffalo or Cape Buffalo (Syncerus caffer) is a bovid from the family of the Bovidae. It is up to 1.7 meters high, 2.8 meters long. On average, an adult male stands about 1.5 m high at the shoulder and weighs 600 - 750 kg, while a female is 10 - 15 cm shorter and weighs between 400 - 550 kg. Bulls at ten years of age or older can reach or exceed 900 kg.

The African Buffalo is not closely related to the slightly larger Asian Water Buffalo, but its ancestry remains unclear.

African clawed frog

The African clawed frog (Xenopus laevis, also known as platanna) is a species of South African aquatic frog of the genus Xenopus. It is up to 12 cm long with a flattened head and body but no tongue. Its name derives from its three short claws on each of its hind feet, which it probably uses to stir up mud to hide it from predators.

African Darter

The African Darter (Anhinga rufa ), sometimes called the Snakebird, is a water bird of tropical sub-Saharan Africa.

This species builds a stick nest in a tree and lays 3-6 eggs. It often nests with herons, egrets and cormorants.

It is an 80 cm long cormorant-like fish-eating species with a very long neck which occurs in both saline and fresh water, especially near mangroves. It often swims with only the neck above water.

The male is mainly glossy black with white streaking, but females and immature birds are browner. The African Darter differs in appearance from the American Darter most recognisably by its thin white lateral neck stripe against a rufous background colour.

The African Darter is a member of the darter family, Anhingidae, and is closely related to American (Anhinga anhinga), Oriental (Anhinga melanogaster), and Australian (Anhinga novaehollandiae) Darters.

African Great Lakes

The Great Lakes of Africa are a series of lakes in and around the Great Rift Valley. They include Lake Victoria, the second largest fresh water lake in the world in terms of surface area, and Lake Tanganyika, the world's second largest in volume as well as the second deepest. The term 'Greater Lakes' is also used, less commonly, for some of them.

The term 'Great Lakes' is in the African context a rather loose one. Unlike their American counterparts, the three largest lakes have a host of nearby middle-sized and small lakes, though the small ones would be considered very substantial in many countries of the world. There is no accepted size criterion for 'Great Lake'.

They are also divided between three different catchments (river basins), and a number have no exit. The following, in order of size from largest down, are included on most lists of the African Great Lakes:

Some call only Lake Victoria, Lake Albert, and Lake Edward the Great Lakes as they are the only three that empty into the White Nile. (Lake Kyoga is part of Great Lakes system, but is not itself considered a Great Lake, on size grounds. Lake Tanganyika and Lake Kivu both empty into the Congo River system, while Lake Malawi is drained by the Shire River into the Zambezi. Lake Turkana has no outlet.

Two other lakes close to Lake Tanganyika do not appear on the lists despite being larger than Edward and Kivu: Lake Rukwa and Lake Mweru.

The term Great Lake region is likewise somewhat loose. It is used in a narrow sense for the area lying between northern Lake Tanganyika, western Lake Victoria, and lakes Kivu, Edward and Albert. This comprises Burundi, Rwanda, north-eastern DR Congo, Uganda and north-western Kenya and Tanzania. It is used in a wider sense to extend to all of Kenya and Tanzania, but not usually as far south as Zambia, Malawi and Mozambique nor as far north as Ethiopia, though these four countries border one of the Great Lakes.

An estimated 107 million people live in the Great Lakes region.citation needed]. The area described in the narrow sense above is one of the most densely populated areas of Africa. Because of past volcanic activity this area also contains some of Africa's best farmland. Its altitude gives it a sub-tropical climate despite being right on the equator, becoming temperate in the mountains. This makes tropical diseases of humans and livestock, such as trypanosomiasis, less prevalent, so that, for instance, cattle and other susceptible animals thrive.

Because of the density of population and the agricultural surplus in the region the area became highly organized into a number of small states. The most powerful of these monarchies were Rwanda, Burundi, Buganda, and Bunyoro. Unusually for sub-Saharan Africa, the traditional borders were largely maintained by the colonial powers.

Being the long sought after source of the Nile, the region had long been of interest to Europeans. The first Europeans to arrive in the region in any numbers were missionaries who had limited success in converting the locals, but did open the region to later colonization. The increased contact with the rest of the world led to a series of devastating epidemics affecting both humans and livestock. These decreased the region's population dramatically, by up to 60% in some areas. The region did not return to its precolonial population until the 1950s.

While seen as a region with great potential after independence, the region has in recent decades been marred by civil war and conflict, from which only Kenya and Tanzania have largely escaped. The worst affected areas have been left in great poverty.

Coordinates: 8°00′S, 35°00′E

African Grey Hornbill

The African Grey Hornbill, Tockus nasutus, is a hornbill. Hornbills are a family of tropical near-passerine birds found in the Old World.

The African Grey Hornbill is a widespread and common resident breeder in much of sub-Saharan Africa and into Arabia.

This is a bird mainly of open woodland and savannah. The female lays two to four white eggs in a tree hole, which is blocked off during incubation with a cement made of mud, droppings and fruit pulp. There is only one narrow aperture, just big enough for the male to transfer food to the mother and the chicks.

This species is a large bird, at 45cm in length, but is one of the smaller hornbills. It has mainly grey plumage, with the head, flight feathers and long tail being a darker shade. There is a white line down each side of the head and one on the back which is visible only in flight. The long curved bill is black and has a small casque and a creamy horizontal stripe.

Sexes are similar, but the male has a black bill, whereas the female has red on the mandibles. Immature birds are more uniformly grey. The flight is undulating. The similarly sized Red-billed Hornbill has uniformly grey plumage.

African Grey Parrot

The African Grey Parrot is a medium-sized parrot of the genus Psittacus native to Africa, and is considered one of the most intelligent birds. As their name implies, they are predominantly grey, with accents of white. Some of their feathers are very dark grey, and others are a lighter grey colour. They have red or maroon tails, depending on the subspecies. They feed primarily on nuts and fruits, supplemented by leafy matter.

African Jacana

The African Jacana (Actophilornis africana) is a jacana. The jacanas are a group of waders in the family Charadriidae, which are identifiable by their huge feet and claws which enable them to walk on floating vegetation in the shallow lakes that are their preferred habitat. They are found worldwide within the tropical zone.

African Jacana breeds throughout sub-Saharan Africa. It is sedentary apart from seasonal dispersion. It lays four black-marked brown eggs in a floating nest. The males, as in some other wader families like the phalaropes, take responsibility for incubation.

These are conspicuous and unmistakable birds. They are 30cm long, but the females are larger than the males. They have chestnut upperparts with black wingtips, rear neck and eyestripe. The underparts are white, with a chestnut belly patch in adult birds. The blue bill extends up as a coot-like head shield, and the legs and very long toes are grey.

African Penguin

The African Penguin (Spheniscus demersus), also known as the Blackfooted Penguin (and formerly as the Jackass Penguin), is found on the south-western coast of Africa, living in colonies on 24 islands between Namibia and Algoa Bay, near Port Elizabeth, South Africa, with the largest colony on Dyer Island, near Kleinbaai. Two colonies were established by penguins in the 1980s on the mainland near Cape Town at Boulders Beach near Simon's Town and Stony Point in Betty's Bay. Mainland colonies probably only became possible in recent times due the reduction of predator numbers, although the Betty's Bay colony has been attacked by leopard seals. The only other mainland colony is in Namibia, but it is not known when this was established.

Boulders Beach is a popular tourist attraction, for the beach, swimming and the penguins. The penguins will allow people to approach them as close as a meter (three ft), and so are often photographed.

The closest relatives of the African Penguins are the Humboldt and Magellanic penguins found in southern South America and the Galápagos Penguin found in the Pacific Ocean near the equator. African Penguins like warm weather.

African slave trade

The slave trade in Africa has existed for thousands of years. The first main route passed through the Sahara, tying in to the Arab slave trade. After the European Age of Exploration, African slaves became part of the Atlantic slave trade, from which comes the modern, Western conception of slavery as an institution of African-descended slaves and non-African slave owners. Despite its illegality, slavery continues in all parts of the world, including Africa.

African Union

The African Union (AU) is an organisation consisting of fifty-three African states. Established in 2001, the AU was formed as a successor to the amalgamated African Economic Community (AEC) and the Organisation of African Unity (OAU). Eventually, the AU aims to have a single currency and a single integrated defence force, as well as other institutions of state, including a cabinet for the AU Head of State. The purpose of the union is to help secure Africa's democracy, human rights, and a sustainable economy, especially by bringing an end to intra-African conflict and creating an effective common market.

African Wild Ass

E. a. africanus
E. a. somalicus

The African Wild Ass (Equus asinus) is a wild member of the horse family, Equidae. This species is believed to be the ancestor of the domestic donkey which is usually placed within the same species. The species name for the African Wild Ass is sometimes designated as, africanus. They live in the deserts and other arid areas of northeastern Africa, in Eritrea, Ethiopia and Somalia; it formerly had a wider range north and west into Sudan, Egypt and Libya.

African Wild Dog

The African Wild Dog, Lycaon pictus also known as the African Hunting Dog, Cape Hunting Dog, or Painted Wolf, is a carnivorous mammal of the Canidae family. The Afrikaans name for the African Wild dog is Wildehond, and in Swahili, Mbwa mwitu. It is the only species in the monotypic genus, Lycaon. They are, as their name indicates, found only in Africa, especially in scrub savanna and other lightly wooded areas.

Africanized bee

Africanized honey bees (AHB), (known colloquially as "killer bees") are hybrids of the African honey bee, Apis mellifera scutellata (not A. m. adansonii; see Collet et al., 2006), with various European honey bees such as the Italian bee A. m. ligustica and A. m. iberiensis.

Afrikaans

Afrikaans is a Low Franconian language, derived from Dutch, mainly spoken in South Africa and Namibia with smaller numbers of speakers in Botswana, Angola, Swaziland, Zimbabwe and Zambia. Due to emigration and migrant labour, there are possibly over 100,000 Afrikaans speakers in the United Kingdom, with other substantial communities found in Brussels, Belgium; Amsterdam, the Netherlands; Perth, Australia; Toronto, Canada; and Auckland, New Zealand. It is the primary language used by two related ethnic groups in South Africa: the Afrikaners and the Coloureds or kleurlinge/bruinmense (including Basters, Cape Malays and Griqua). It is also spoken as a first language by many Tswana people in South Africa's North West Provincecitation needed].

Geographically, the Afrikaans language is the majority language of the western one-third of South Africa (Northern and Western Cape, spoken at home by 69% and 58%, respectively). It is also the largest first language in the adjacent southern one-third of Namibia (Hardap and Karas, where it is the first language of 43% and 41%, respectively). It is the most widely used second language throughout both of these countries for the population as a whole, although the younger generation has better proficiency in English.

Afrikaans originated from the Dutch language. The dialect became known as "Cape Dutch". Later, Afrikaans was sometimes also referred to as "African Dutch" or "Kitchen Dutch", although these terms were mainly pejorative. Afrikaans was considered a Dutch dialect until the late 19th century, when it began to be recognised as a distinct language, and it gained equal status with Dutch and English as an official language in South Africa in 1925. Dutch remained an official language until the new 1961 constitution finally stipulated the two official languages in South Africa to be Afrikaans and English (although, curiously, the 1961 constitution still had a sub-clause stipulating that the word "Afrikaans" was also meant to be referring to the Dutch language). It is the only Indo-European language of significance that developed on the African continent.

Afrikaner

Afrikaners are an ethnic group of Northwestern European ancestry and associated with Southern Africa and the Afrikaans language.

Afro

An afro, sometimes called a "natural" or shortened to "fro", is a hairstyle in which the hair extends out from the head like a halo, cloud or ball. This may or may not include wearing such afros long, to several times the diameter of the head. An afro requires very curly hair.

Anyone of any ethnic background is capable of growing an afro if they have very curly hair. For people of African descent, the spiraling, tightly coiled curls can be straightened out somewhat, giving the hair added volume and length, by first braiding the hair, then separating the coils using an "afro pick." The afro pick is an adaptation of a traditional African grooming instrument, which is essentially a narrow comb with long, widely spaced teeth. Similarly, added volume can be achieved using an afro pick in combination with the heat from a hand-held hair dryer. The effect is called a blowout.

Afro-Asian

An Afro-Asian is a person of sub-Saharan African and Asian ancestry.citation needed] As Afro-Asian is a broad term, it can be broken down into various sub-groups that are distinguished by their demographic location. Due to the widespread African and Asian diasporas, Afro-Asians reside throughout the world. In North America, Latin America and the Caribbean, the influx of Chinese and Indian workers in the 19th century forming unions with enslaved or free Africans gave rise to significant populations of Afro-Asianscitation needed].

In the United States, the neologism and portmanteau "Blasian" has gained informal usage to describe someone of Afro-Asian heritage

As early as 1100 AD commercial contacts between India and Ethiopia were created opening doors for many Africans to come over to India as traders, sailors, warriors, etc. These Africans soon came to be known as 'Habashi'/'Habshi' or Siddi. Siddi is considered to be the more respectful title because it is a word coined to honor the descendents of the Habashies. Many of the Habashi received prominent positions in politics and the military and helped to construct financial, educational, and agricultural reforms.

Today there are very few Habashies left in India as most have intermarried. Someone who is of Indian and Habashi blood is considered an Indo-African.

Right now the Afro-Asian population in South Asia is over 250,000.

During the Pre-Islamic era, Ethiopian conquers entered Southern Arabia in the 2nd and 4th century and by 532 AD had invaded Yemen and settled upon the land. During this same time, the Arabian army, known as the Sabaen, were setteling in the highlands of Ethiopia. After the settlement, many more Africans came to South Arabia as slaves; men were usually traded as the women were kept as servants or concubines for the Arab leaders. The children that stemmed from the relationship between an Ethiopian and an Arab acquired more in South Arabia, two of which were granted the highest positions as Princes of the Abbassids. In Africa, the Sabaens had intermingled with the Ethiopians to such an extent, they created an empire by the name of the Axum Kingdom.

Bantu-speaking Africans were called Zanj and sold to Iraq. Iraq soon had an overwhelming amount of slaves working in trecherous conditions which eventually lead to a famous revolt called the 'Zanj Rebellion'. The rebellion allowed Africans to take occupancy in a huge portion of the Iraq cities, while many Arab refugees fled to Kenya, Somalia, and Tanzania. Someone of black and Arab descent is considered Afro-Arab.

A former slave by the name of Najah seized power in the 10th century and established the Banu Najah dynasty, the first royal Afro-Asian family.

In 1882, the Chinese Exclusion Act was passed and Chinese workers who chose to stay in the U.S. could no longer be with their wives who stayed behind in China. Because European Americans looked at Chinese labor workers as stealing employment, they were harassed and attacked, forcing many of the workers to seek protection in the black communities. While in these communities many Chinese men settled down with African-American women.

Tiger Woods, a famous golf player, too, is of white, Chinese, Native American, Thai and black descent; his father being half African American heritage and his mother being half Thai heritage.

In the 1860s, Chinese immigrants were importated for labor and trade. It became increasingly common for a Chinese man to marry a black woman since the number of black women outnumbered that of Chinese women.

According to the 1946 Census 12,394 Chinese were located between Jamaica and Trinidad. 5,515 of those who lived in Jamaica were Afro-Asian and another 3,673 were Afro-Asians living in Trinidad.

Many Afro-Asian individuals have become successful in the entertainment industrycitation needed], especially in the United States. These musicians, designers, and athletes include Tyson Beckford, Tiger Woods, Hines Ward, Kelis, Cassie, Amerie Rogers, Ashanti and Ne-Yo. Early ska and reggae artist Bunny Lee was of mixed African and Chinese descent.

Afro-Asians are also gaining prominence in fashion: Kimora Lee Simmons, now retired from full-time modeling, was among the first well-known Afro-Asian modelscitation needed]; Angela Chao Roberson was the first of black/Asian mixture to be a contestant in the Los Angeles Miss Chinatown pageant; according to King magazinecitation needed], constructed by the opinions of their readers, Afro-Asian models, such as Tomika Skanes and Lashontae are becoming the next most desired models next to that of the Victoria's Secret angels.

In Japan Crystal Kay, a young singer of African American/Zainichi Korean heritage has become a top 10 recording star; also successful in Japan is rapper Jin Hakashima.

Afterlife

The afterlife, or life after death, is a generic term referring to a "continuation" of existence, typically spiritual, experiential, or ghost-like, beyond this world (eg. planes of existence), or after physical death (eg. near-death experience, reincarnation). The major views in this area derive from religion, esotericism, metaphysics, and science. Also there are those with opposite views, such as the materialist-reductionists, who state that the topic is supernatural, therefore does not really exist or is unknowable.

Agamemnon

Agamemnon (Greek: Ἀγαμέμνων "very resolute") is one of the most distinguished of the Greek heroes. He is the son of King Atreus of Mycenae and Queen Aerope, and brother of Menelaus. Because of the antiquity of the sources, it is not clear whether Agamemnon is a historical or mythical figure.

In alternative traditions Agamemnon is said to be the son of Pleisthenes (son of Atreus) and Aerope, or of Pleisthenes and Cleolla, daughter of Dias, making him the grandson, rather than the son, of Atreus.

Agar

Agar is a gelatinous substance chiefly used as a culture medium for microbiological work. It is an unbranched polysaccharide obtained from the cell walls of some species of red algae or seaweed. It can be used as a laxative, a vegetarian gelatin substitute, a thickener for soups, in jellies, ice cream and Japanese desserts such as anmitsu, as a clarifying agent in brewing, and for paper sizing fabrics. The word agar comes from the Malay word agar-agar (meaning jelly). It is also known as kanten or agal-agal (Ceylon agar). Chemically, agar is a polymer made up of subunits of the sugar galactose. Agar polysaccharides serve as the primary structural support for the algae's cell walls.

Agate

Agate is a type of quartz (silica), chiefly chalcedony, characterised by its fineness of grain and brightness of color. Although agates may be found in various kinds of rock, they are especially common in metamorphic rock.

The colorful agate and other chalcedonies were obtained over 3,000 years ago from the Achates River, now the Drillo, in Sicily.

Agatha Christie

Agatha Mary Clarissa, Lady Mallowan, DBE (15 September 1890 – 12 January 1976), mainly known as Agatha Christie, was an English crime fiction writer. She also wrote romances under the name Mary Westmacott, but is chiefly remembered for her 66 detective novels. Her work with these novels, particularly featuring detectives Hercule Poirot or Miss Marple, have given her the title the 'Queen of Crime' and made her one of the most important and innovative writers in the development of the genre.

Christie has been called—by the Guinness Book of World Records, among others—the best-selling writer of books of all time, and the best-selling writer of any kind second only to William Shakespeare. An estimated one billion copies of her novels have been sold in English, and another billion in 103 other languages. As an example of her broad appeal, she is the all-time best-selling author in France, with over 40 million copies sold in French (as of 2003) versus 22 million for Emile Zola, the nearest contender.

Her stage play The Mousetrap holds the record for the longest run ever in London, opening at the Ambassadors Theatre on 25 November 1952, and as of 2007 is still running after more than 20,000 performances. In 1955, Christie was the first recipient of the Mystery Writers of America's highest honor, the Grand Master Award, and in the same year, Witness for the Prosecution was given an Edgar Award by the MWA, for Best Play. Most of her books and short stories have been filmed, some many times over (Murder on the Orient Express, Death on the Nile, 4.50 From Paddington), and many have been adapted for television and radio and video games.

In 1998, the control of the rights to most of the literary works of Agatha Christie passed to the company Chorion, when it purchased a majority 64% share in Agatha Christie Limited .

Agave

Agave is the name of a succulent plant of a large botanical genus of the same name, belonging to the family Agavaceae.

Age of consent

While the phrase age of consent typically does not appear in legal statutes, when used with reference to criminal law the age of consent is the minimum age at which a person is considered to be capable of legally giving informed consent to any contract or behaviour regulated by law with another person. This article refers specifically to those laws regulating sexual acts. This should not be confused with the age of majority, age of criminal responsibility, or the marriageable age.

The age of consent varies widely from jurisdiction to jurisdiction. The median seems to range from 14 to 16 years, but laws stating ages ranging from 12 to 21 do exist. Some jurisdictions forbid sexual activity outside of legal marriage completely. The relevant age may also vary by the type of sexual act, the sex of the actors, or other restrictions such as abuse of a position of trust. Some jurisdictions may also make allowances for minors engaged in sexual acts with each other, rather than a hard and fast single age. Charges resulting from a breach of these laws may range from a relatively low-level misdemeanor such as "corruption of a minor," to "statutory rape" (which is considered equivalent to rape, both in severity and sentencing).

There are many grey areas in this area of law, some regarding unspecific and untried legislation, others brought about by debates regarding changing societal attitudes, and others due to conflicts between federal and state laws. These factors all make age of consent an often confusing subject, and a topic of highly charged debates.

Age of Enlightenment

The Age of Enlightenment (French: Siècle des Lumières; German: Aufklärung) was an eighteenth-century movement in European and American philosophy, or the longer period including the Age of Reason. The term can more narrowly refer to the intellectual movement of The Enlightenment, which advocated Reason as the primary basis of authority. Developing in France, Britain and Germany, its sphere of influence also included Austria, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Russia, Scandinavia, Spain and, in fact, the whole of Europe. Many of the United States' Founding Fathers were also heavily influenced by Enlightenment-era ideas, particularly in the religious sphere (Deism) and, in parallel with classical liberalism, in the political sphere (which had a major influence on its Bill of Rights, in parallel with the Declaration of the Rights of Man and the Citizen ).

Ageing

Ageing or aging is the process of systems' deterioration with time. This article focuses on the social, cognitive, cultural, and economic effects of ageing. The biology of ageing is treated in detail in senescence. Ageing is an important part of all human societies reflecting the biological changes that occur, but also reflecting cultural and societal conventions. Age is usually measured in full years (except for young children, where this downward rounding would be too crude) and a person's birthday is often an important event.

The issue of an ageing population, where the average age of a society is higher now due to higher standards of living is increasingly important in many nations of the world. The societal effects of age are great. Young people tend to commit most crimes, they are more likely to push for political and social change, to develop and adopt new technologies, and to need education. Older people have different requirements from society and government as opposed to young people, and frequently differing values as well. Older people are also far more likely to vote, and in many countries the young are forbidden from voting, and thus the aged have comparatively more political influence.

Aggregator

In computing, an aggregator, also known as a feed reader, is client software or a Web application which aggregates syndicated web content such as news headlines, blogs, podcasts, and vlogs in a single location for easy viewing.

Aggression

In psychology and other social and behavioral sciences, aggression refers to behavior that is intended to cause harm or pain. Aggression can be either physical or verbal, and behavior is classified as aggression even if it does not actually succeed in causing harm or pain. Behavior that accidentally causes harm or pain is not aggression. Property damage and other destructive behavior may also fall under the definition of aggression. Aggression is not the same thing as assertiveness.

Aggression is a perplexing phenomenon. Why are people motivated to hurt each other? How does violence help organisms to survive and reproduce? After two centuries of theories and technological advances, psychologists and other scientists have been able to look deeply into aggression's biological and evolutionary roots, as well as its consequences in society.

Agnosticism

Agnosticism (from the Greek "a," meaning "without," and Gnosticism or "gnosis," meaning knowledge) is the philosophical view that the truth value of certain claims—particularly metaphysical claims regarding theology, afterlife or the existence of God, god(s), deities, or even ultimate reality—is unknown or, depending on the form of agnosticism, inherently unknowable due to the nature of subjective experience.

Agnostics claim either that it is not possible to have absolute or certain knowledge of God or gods; or, alternatively, that while individual certainty may be possible, they personally have no knowledge. Agnosticism in both cases involves some form of skepticism.

Demographic research services normally list agnostics in the same category as atheists and non-religious people, although this can be misleading depending on the number of agnostic theists who identify themselves first as agnostics and second as followers of a particular religion.

Agnus Dei

Agnus Dei is a Latin term meaning Lamb of God, and was originally used to refer to Jesus Christ in his role of the perfect sacrificial offering that atones for the sins of humanity in Christian theology, harkening back to ancient Jewish Temple sacrifices. See Lamb of God for an explanation of this. Agnus Dei is used to refer to several things related to it.

Agonist

In pharmacology an agonist is a substance that binds to a specific receptor and triggers a response in the cell. It mimics the action of an endogenous ligand (such as hormone or neurotransmitter) that binds to the same receptor.

A partial agonist (such as buspirone, aripiprazole, bifeprunox or norclozapine) activates a receptor, but only produces a partial physiological response compared to a full agonist. They may also be considered as a ligand which displays both agonistic and antagonistic effects. A co-agonist works with other co-agonists to produce the desired effect together. An antagonist blocks a receptor from activation by agonists.

Receptors can be activated or inactivated either by endogenous (such as hormones and neurotransmitters) or exogenous (such as drugs) agonists and antagonists, resulting in stimulating or inhibiting the cell. To see how an agonist may activate a receptor see this link.

New findings that broaden the conventional definition of pharmacology demonstrate that ligands can concurrently behave as agonist and antagonists at the same receptor, depending on effector pathways. Terms that describe this phenomenon are "functional selectivity" or "protean agonism".

From the Greek αγωνιστής (agōnistēs), contestant; champion; rival < αγων (agōn), contest, combat; exertion, struggle < αγω (agō), I lead, lead towards, conduct; drive

Agoraphobia

Agoraphobia is an anxiety disorder which primarily consists of the fear of experiencing a difficult or embarrassing situation from which the sufferer cannot escape. As a result, severe sufferers of agoraphobia may become confined to their homes, experiencing difficulty traveling from this "safe place".

Agra

Coordinates: 27°11′N 78°01′E / 27.18, 78.02

Agra pronunciation (help·info) (Hindi: आगरा, Urdu: آگرا), (IPA: ɑːɣrə) is a city on the banks of the Yamuna River in Uttar Pradesh, India. It finds mention in the epic Mahabharata when it was called Agrabana are Paradise. Ptolemy, the famous second century A.D. geographer, marked it on his map of the world as Agra. Tradition and legend ascribe the present city of Raja Badal Singh (around 1475 A.D.) whose Fort, Badalgarh, Stood on or near the site of the present Fort. However, the 12th century A.D. Persian poet Salman writes of a desperate assault on the fortress of Agra, then held by one King Jaipal, by Sultan Mahmud of Ghazni. It was ruled by Sultan Sikandar Lodi in the year 1506. It achieved fame as the capital of the Mughal emperors from 1526 to 1658 and remains a major tourist destination because of its many splendid Mughal-era buildings, most notably the Taj Mahal, Agra Fort and Fatehpur Sikri, all three of which are UNESCO World Heritage Sites.

Agriculture

Agriculture (encompassing farming, ranching, grazing, and the tending of orchards and vineyards) is the production of food, feed, fiber, fuel and other goods by the systematic raising of plants and breeding and feeding animals.

Agri is from the Latin ager ("a field"), and culture, from the Latin cultura ("cultivation" in the strict sense of "tillage of the soil"). A literal reading of the English word yields "tillage of the soil of a field". In modern usage, the word agriculture covers all activities essential to food/feed/fiber production, including all techniques for raising and "processing" livestock. Agriculture is also short for the study of the practice of agriculture — more formally known as agricultural science.

The history of agriculture is a major element of human history, as agricultural progress has been a crucial factor in worldwide socio-economic change, including wealth-building and militaristic specializations rarely seen in hunter-gatherer cultures—when farmers became capable of producing food beyond the needs of their own families, others in the tribe/nation/empire were freed to devote themselves to ambitions and enterprises other than food acquisition.

An estimated 42 percent of the world's workers are employed in agriculture, making it by far the most common occupation. However, agricultural production accounts for less than five percent of the gross world product (an aggregate of all gross domestic products).

Achillea millefolium

Achillea millefolium or Yarrow (other common names Common Yarrow, Gordaldo, Nosebleed plant, Old Man's Pepper, Sanguinary, Soldier's Woundwort, Thousand-leaf (as its binomial name affirms), Thousand-seal) is a flowering plant in the family Asteraceae, native to the Northern Hemisphere.

Achilles

In Greek mythology, Achilles (also Akhilleus or Achilleus) (Ancient Greek: Άχιλλεύς) was a hero of the Trojan War, the central character and greatest warrior of Homer's Iliad, which takes for its theme, not the War of Troy in its entirety, but specifically the Wrath of Achilles.

Later legends (beginning with a poem by Statius in the first century AD) state that Achilles was invulnerable on all of his body except for his heel. These legends state that Achilles was killed in battle by an arrow to the heel, and so an Achilles' heel has come to mean a person's only weakness.

Achilles is also famous for being the most 'handsome' of the heroes assembled at Troy, as well as the fleetest. Central to his myth is his relationship with Patroclus, characterized in different sources as deep friendship or love.

Achilles tendon

The Achilles tendon (or occasionally Achilles’ tendon) also known as the calcaneal tendon or the tendocalcaneous is a tendon of the posterior leg. It serves to attach the gastrocnemius (calf) and soleus muscles to the calcaneus (heel) bone.

Aid

Aid (or "international aid", "overseas aid", or "foreign aid", especially in the United States) is the help, mostly economic, which may be provided to communities or countries in the event of a humanitarian crisis or to achieve a socioeconomic objective. Humanitarian aid is therefore primarily used for emergency relief, while development aid aims to create long-term sustainable economic growth. Wealthier countries typically provide aid to economically developing countries.

AIDS

Acquired immune deficiency syndrome or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS or Aids) is a collection of symptoms and infections resulting from the specific damage to the immune system caused by the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) in humans, and similar viruses in other species (SIV, FIV, etc.). The late stage of the condition leaves individuals prone to opportunistic infections and tumors. Although treatments for AIDS and HIV exist to slow the virus' progression, there is no known cure. HIV, et al., are transmitted through direct contact of a mucous membrane or the bloodstream with a bodily fluid containing HIV, such as blood, semen, vaginal fluid, preseminal fluid, and breast milk. This transmission can come in the form of anal, vaginal or oral sex, blood transfusion, contaminated hypodermic needles, exchange between mother and baby during pregnancy, childbirth, or breastfeeding, or other exposure to one of the above bodily fluids.

Most researchers believe that HIV originated in sub-Saharan Africa during the twentieth century; it is now a pandemic, with an estimated 38.6 million people now living with the disease worldwide. As of January 2006, the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) and the World Health Organization (WHO) estimate that AIDS has killed more than 25 million people since it was first recognized on June 5, 1981, making it one of the most destructive epidemics in recorded history. In 2005 alone, AIDS claimed an estimated 2.4–3.3 million lives, of which more than 570,000 were children. A third of these deaths are occurring in sub-Saharan Africa, retarding economic growth and destroying human capital. Antiretroviral treatment reduces both the mortality and the morbidity of HIV infection, but routine access to antiretroviral medication is not available in all countries. HIV/AIDS stigma is more severe than that associated with other life-threatening conditions and extends beyond the disease itself to providers and even volunteers involved with the care of people living with HIV.

Aikido

Aikido (合気道, aikidō?), translated as "the way of harmonious spirit", is a Japanese martial art developed by Morihei Ueshiba as a synthesis of his martial studies, philosophy, and religious beliefs. Ueshiba's goal was to create an art practitioners could use to defend themselves without injuring their attacker.

Aikido emphasizes joining with an attack and redirecting the attacker's energy, as opposed to meeting force with force, and consists primarily of body throws and joint-locking techniques. In addition to physical fitness and technique, mental training, controlled relaxation, and development of "spirit" (ki) are emphasized in aikido training.

Air (band)

Air is a French music duo, consisting of Nicolas Godin and Jean-Benoît Dunckel. The name Air is a backronym for Amour, Imagination, Rêve which translates to Love, Imagination, Dream. Some have speculated that the name is a reference to Jean Michel Jarre's influential debut album, Oxygene.citation needed]

Air's debut EP, Premiers Symptômes, was followed by the critically acclaimed album Moon Safari, the re-release of Premiers Symptômes, The Virgin Suicides (soundtrack), 10 000 Hz Legend, Everybody Hertz, Talkie Walkie and Pocket Symphony.

Their most recent album, Pocket Symphony, was released on March 5, 2007. The album features former Pulp vocalist Jarvis Cocker and Neil Hannon of The Divine Comedy, and is produced by Nigel Godrich. Air went on a European tour in March, followed by a North America tour that included an appearance at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival. They will play at major festivals both in Europe and Japan during the summer and then continue touring for the rest of 2007.

Air (visual novel)

Air is a Japanese visual novel developed by Key, and released on September 8, 2000. The original version, first available on the PC, contains a minimal amount of adult-only content of a sexual nature. Subsequent "clean" versions were sold playable on the Dreamcast, PlayStation 2. The PC version with adult content was re-released with added support for Windows 2000/XP under the name Air Standard Edition. The last releases of Air will be available to play on the PlayStation Portable and the SoftBank 3G cell phone.

The gameplay in Air follows a linear plot line where the player interacts at predetermined times to choose predetermined options that appear on the monitor. The game was developed so that the focus for the player would be an intricate plot and the appeal of the three female main characters. The title of the game is meant to reflect the prominent themes of the air, skies, and use of wings.

Air has made transitions into other media. A manga series based on the visual novel was first serialized in the Japanese magazine Comptiq and published by Kadokawa Shoten; the manga ran between August 10, 2004 and February 10, 2006 and was illustrated by Japanese artist Yukimaru Katsura. A thirteen-episode anime series created by Kyoto Animation aired in Japan between January 6, 2005 and March 31, 2005. A subsequent release of two episodes entitled Air in Summer aired on August 28, 2005 and September 4, 2005. While the anime was still airing, an Air movie by the animation studio Toei Animation hit theaters in Japan on February 5, 2005.

Air conditioner

An air conditioner is an appliance, system, or mechanism designed to extract heat from an area using a refrigeration cycle. In construction, a complete system of heating, ventilation, and air conditioning is referred to as HVAC. Its purpose, in the home or in the car, is to provide comfort during hot days and nights.

Air gun

An air gun is a pneumatic gun which fires projectiles using compressed air or other high pressure gas as a propellant.

Air mass

In meteorology, an air mass is a large volume of air having fairly uniform characteristics of temperature, atmospheric pressure, and water vapor content. Air masses cover many hundreds or thousands of square miles, and slowly change in accordance with the terrain they are over.

Air pollution

Air pollution is a chemical, particulate matter, or biological agent that modifies the natural characteristics of the atmosphere. The atmosphere is a complex, dynamic natural gaseous system that is essential to support life on planet Earth. Stratospheric ozone depletion due to air pollution has long been recognized as a threat to human health as well as to the Earth's ecosystems.

Worldwide air pollution is responsible for large numbers of deaths and cases of respiratory disease. While major stationary sources are often identified with air pollution, the greatest source of emissions is actually mobile sources, mainly automobiles. Gases such as carbon dioxide, which contribute to global warming, have recently gained recognition as pollutants by some scientists. Others recognize the gas as being essential to life, and therefore incapable of being classed as a pollutant.

Air Traffic

Air Traffic are an English indie rock band from Bournemouth. The band's name originates from when they used to practice next to a runway at Hurn Airport, where air traffic control signals could be picked up on their amplifiers. Their music features heavy use of piano, and they have been described by NME to be like "Supergrass covering Little Richard".

Airbrush

An airbrush is a small, air-operated tool that sprays various media including ink and dye, but most often paint by a process of atomization. Spray guns developed from the airbrush and are still considered a type of airbrush. The first airbrush was invented in 1879 by Abner Peeler, in Iowa, USA.

Airbus

Airbus S.A.S. is the aircraft manufacturing subsidiary of EADS N.V., a pan-European aerospace concern. Based at Toulouse, France with significant operations in other European states, Airbus produces around half of the world's jet airliners, with most of the rest built by rival Boeing Commercial Airplanes, though the precise share varies on an annual basis.

Airbus A380

The Airbus A380 is a double-deck, four-engined airliner manufactured by EADS (Airbus S.A.S.). It is the largest passenger airliner in the world. It first flew on 27 April 2005 from Toulouse, France. After lengthy delays, commercial flights are scheduled to begin in late 2007. During much of its development phase, the aircraft was known as the Airbus A3XX. The nickname Superjumbo has become associated with the A380.

The A380's upper deck extends along the entire length of the fuselage. This allows for a cabin with 50% more floor space than the next largest airliner, the Boeing 747-400, and provides seating for 525 people in standard three-class configuration or up to 853 people in full economy class configuration. Two models of the A380 are available for sale. The A380-800, the passenger model, is the largest passenger airliner in the world, superseding the Boeing 747. The A380-800F, the freighter model, is designed as one of the largest freight aircraft, with a listed payload capacity exceeded only by the Antonov An-225. The A380-800 has a design range of 15,200 km (8,200 nmi, sufficient to fly from New York to Hong Kong nonstop), and a cruising speed of Mach 0.85 (about 900 km/h or 560 mph at cruise altitude).

Aircraft

An aircraft is a vehicle or craft capable of atmospheric flight.

Aircraft carrier

An aircraft carrier is a warship designed to deploy and in most cases recover aircraft, acting as a sea-going airbase. Aircraft carriers thus allow a naval force to project air power great distances without having to depend on local bases for staging aircraft operations. They have evolved from wooden vessels used to deploy a balloon into nuclear powered warships that carry dozens of fixed and rotary wing aircraft.

Balloon carriers were the first ships to deploy manned aircraft, used during in the 19th and early 20th century, mainly for observation purposes. The 1903 advent of fixed wing airplanes was followed in 1910 by the first flight of such an aircraft from the deck of a US Navy cruiser. Seaplanes and seaplane tender support ships, such as HMS Engadine, followed. The development of flat top vessels produced the first large fleet ships. This evolution was well underway by the mid 1920s, resulting in ships such as the HMS Hermes, Hōshō, and the Lexington class aircraft carriers.

World War II saw the first large scale use and further refinement of the aircraft carrier, spawning several types. Escort aircraft carriers, such as USS Barnes, were built only during World War II. Although some were purpose built, most were converted from merchant ships, and were a stop-gap measure in order to provide air support for convoys and amphibious invasions. Light aircraft carriers, such as USS Independence represented a larger, more "militarized" version of the escort carrier concept. Although the light carriers usually carried the same size air groups as escort carriers, they had the advantage of higher speed as they had been converted from cruisers under construction rather than civilian merchant ships.

Wartime emergencies also saw the creation or conversion of other, unconventional aircraft carriers. CAM ships, like the SS Michael E, were cargo carrying merchant ships which could launch but not retrieve fighter aircraft from a catapult. These vessels were an emergency measure during World War II as were Merchant aircraft carriers (MACs), such as MV Empire MacAlpine, another emergency measure which saw cargo-carrying merchant ships equipped with flight decks. Battlecarriers were created by the Imperial Japanese Navy to partially compensate for the loss of carrier strength at Midway. Two of them were made from Ise class battleships during late 1943. The aft turrets were removed and replaced with a hangar, deck and catapult. The heavy cruiser Mogami concurrently received a similar conversion. Submarine aircraft carriers, such as the French Surcouf, or the Japanese I-400 class submarines which were capable of carrying 3 Aichi M6A Seiran aircraft. The first of these were built in the 1920s, but were generally unsuccessful at war. Modern navies that operate such ships treat aircraft carriers as the capital ship of the fleet, a role previously played by the battleship. The change, part of the growth of air power as a significant part of warfare, took place during World War II. This change was driven by the superior range, flexibility and effectiveness of carrier-launched aircraft.

Following the war, the scope of carrier operations continued to increase in size and importance. The Supercarrier, typically displacing 75,000 tonnes or greater has been the pinnacle of carrier development since their introduction. Most are powered by nuclear reactors and form the core of a fleet designed to operate far from home. Amphibious assault carriers, such as USS Tarawa or HMS Ocean, which serve the purpose of carrying and landing Marines and operate a large contingent of helicopters for that purpose. They have a secondary capability to operate VSTOL aircraft. Also known as "commando carriers" or "helicopter carriers".

Lacking the firepower of other warships, carriers by themselves are considered vulnerable to attack by other ships, aircraft, submarines or missiles and therefore travel as part of a carrier battle group (CVBG) for their protection. Unlike other types of capital ships in the 20th century, aircraft carrier designs since World War II have been effectively unlimited by any consideration save budgetary, and the ships have increased in size to handle the larger aircraft: The large, modern Nimitz class of United States Navy carriers has a displacement nearly four times that of the World War II-era USS Enterprise yet its complement of aircraft is roughly the same, a consequence of the steadily increasing size of military aircraft over the years.

Airline

An airline provides air transport services for passengers or freight. Airlines lease or own their aircraft with which to supply these services and may form partnerships or alliances with other airlines for mutual benefit.

Airship

An airship or dirigible is a buoyant lighter-than-air aircraft that can be steered and propelled through the air. Unlike aerodynamic vehicles such as fixed-wing aircraft and helicopters which stay aloft by moving an airfoil through the air in order to produce lift, aerostatic craft such as airships and balloons stay aloft by filling a large cavity with lighter than air gas.

Airships were the first aircraft to make controlled, powered flight. They were widely used prior to the 1940s. Their use decreased over time as their capabilities were surpassed by those of airplanes. A series of high-profile accidents, including the 1937 burning of the hydrogen-filled Hindenburg at Lakehurst, New Jersey, furthered their decline. Airships are still used today in certain niche applications however, including advertising and sightseeing.

Ajax (programming)

Ajax, or AJAX, is a web development technique used for creating interactive web applications. The intent is to make web pages feel more responsive by exchanging small amounts of data with the server behind the scenes, so that the entire web page does not have to be reloaded each time the user requests a change. This is intended to increase the web page's interactivity, speed, functionality, and usability.

The name is an acronym standing for Asynchronous JavaScript and XML. Ajax is asynchronous in that loading does not interfere with normal page loading. JavaScript is the programming language in which Ajax function calls are made. Data retrieved using the technique is commonly formatted using XML, as reflected in the naming of the XMLHttpRequest object from which Ajax is derived.

Ajax is a cross-platform technology usable on many different operating systems, computer architectures, and Web browsers as it is based on open standards such as JavaScript and XML, together with open source implementations of other required technologies.

AK-47

The AK-47 (short for Russian: Автомат Калашникова образца 1947 года, Avtomat Kalashnikova 1947) is a piston-operated assault rifle used in most Eastern bloc countries during the Cold War. Adopted and standardized in 1947, it was designed by Mikhail Kalashnikov and originally produced by Russian manufacturer Izhevsk Mechanical Works. Compared with most auto-loading rifles of World War II, the AK-47 is compact, of comparative range, moderate power, and capable of selective fire. It was one of the first true assault rifles and remains the most widely-used -- more AK-type rifles have been produced than of any other assault rifle type.

Akbar the Great

Jalaluddin Muhammad Akbar (Persian: جلال الدین محمد اکبر Jalāl ud-Dīn Moḥammad Akbar), also known as Akbar the Great (Akbar-e-Azam) (October 15, 1542 – October 12, 1605) was the son of Nasiruddin Humayun whom he succeeded as ruler of the Mughal Empire from 1556 to 1605. His lineage was Turkic, and more distantly Mongolian.

Only 13 when he ascended to the throne (because of the death of his father Humayun by falling from the stairs of his library), he is widely considered the greatest of the Mughal emperors. During his reign, he eliminated external military threats from the Afghan descendants of Sher Shah (an Afghan who was able to temporarily oust Humayun from 1540-1555), and at the Second Battle of Panipat defeated the Hindu leader Hemu. In addition to his military gains, the emperor solidified his rule by repealing the jizya tax on non-Muslims and courting the favour of the powerful Rajput caste, to the extent of marrying Rajput princesses.

Akbar's most lasting contributions were to the arts. He initiated a large collection of literature, including the Akbar-nama and the Ain-i-Akbari, and incorporated art from around the world into the Mughal collections. He also commissioned the building of widely admired buildings, including the Panj Mahal. Having a greatly tolerant attitude toward religion, Akbar preserved Hindu temples. He also began a series of religious debates where Muslim scholars would debate religious matters with Sikhs, Hindus, Carvaka atheists and even Jesuits from Portugal. He founded his own religion, the Din-i-Ilahi or the "Divine Faith"; the religion, however, amounted only to a form of personality cult for Akbar, and quickly dissolved after his death.

Akhenaten

Akhenaten (or rarely alt: Ikhnaton) meaning Effective spirit of Aten, first known as Amenhotep IV (sometimes read as Amenophis IV and meaning Amun is Satisfied) before his first year, was a Pharaoh of the Eighteenth dynasty of Egypt, especially notable for attempting to compel the Egyptian population to monotheistically worship the Aten. Although there are doubts as to how successful he was at this, it was the first known attempt at monotheism the world had seen. He was born to Amenhotep III and his Chief Queen Tiye and was their younger son. Akhenaten was not originally designated as the successor to the throne until the untimely death of his older brother, Thutmose.

Amenhotep IV succeeded his father after Amenhotep III's death at the end of his 38-year reign, possibly after a coregency lasting between either 1 to 2 or 12 years. Suggested dates for Akhenaten's reign (subject to the debates surrounding Egyptian chronology) are from 1353 BC-1336 BC or 1351 BC–1334 BC. Akhenaten's chief wife was Nefertiti, who has been made famous by her exquisitely painted bust in the Altes Museum of Berlin.

Akira Kurosawa

Akira Kurosawa (Kyūjitai: 黒澤 明, Shinjitai: 黒沢 明, Kurosawa Akira?, 23 March 1910 – 6 September 1998) was a prominent Japanese film director, film producer, and screenwriter. His first credited film (Sugata Sanshiro) was released in 1943; his last (Madadayo) in 1993. His many awards include the Legion d'Honneur and an Oscar for Lifetime Achievement.

Akkad

Coordinates: 33°6′N, 44°6′E

Akkad (Sumerian Agade), (Biblical Accad), was a city and its surrounding region (Sumerian URI.KI or KIURI) in central Mesopotamia. Akkad also became the capital of the Akkadian Empire, and later that of the northern division of the ancient Babylonian empire.

The city was probably situated on the west bank of the Euphrates, between Sippar and Kish (in present-day Iraq, about 50 km southwest of the center of Baghdad). Despite an extensive search, the precise site has never been found.

Akkad reached the height of its power between the 24th and 22nd centuries BC, following the conquests of king Sargon of Akkad.

Because of the policies of the Akkadian Empire toward linguistic assimilation, Akkad also gave its name to the predominant Semitic dialect: the Akkadian language, reflecting use of akkadû ("in the language of Akkad") in the Old Babylonian period to denote the Semitic version of a Sumerian text.

Akrotiri and Dhekelia

Akrotiri and Dhekelia are two UK administered areas on the island of Cyprus that comprise the Sovereign Base Areas Overseas Territory of the United Kingdom. The bases were retained by the UK following the transition of Cyprus' status from a colony in the British Empire to an independent Commonwealth republic within the Commonwealth of Nations. The United Kingdom retained the bases because of the strategic location of Cyprus in the Mediterranean Sea.

The bases are split into Akrotiri (Greek: Ακρωτήρι; Turkish: Agrotur, along with Episkopi Garrison, is part of an area known as the Western Sovereign Base Area or WSBA) and Dhekelia (Greek: Δεκέλεια; Turkish: Dikelya, along with Ayios Nikolaos, is part of the Eastern Sovereign Base Area or ESBA).

Aksumite currency

Aksumite currency was the only native currency to be issued in Africa without direct influence by an outside culture like the Romans or Greeks. It was issued and circulated from the middle of the height of the Kingdom under King Endubis around AD 270 until it began its decline in the first half of the 7th century. No sub-Saharan state would mint coins after Aksum until the Kilwa sultanate in the tenth century.

Aksum's currency served as a vessel of propaganda demonstrating the kingdom's wealth and promoting the national religion (first polytheistic and later Oriental Christianity), as well as facilitating the Red Sea trade on which it thrived. The coinage has also proved invaluable in providing a reliable chronology of Aksumite kings due to the lack of extensive archaeological work in the area.

Al Capone

Alphonse Gabriel Capone (January 17, 1899 – January 25, 1947), popularly known as Al Capone, was an American gangster who led a crime syndicate dedicated to the smuggling and bootlegging of liquor and other illegal activities during the Prohibition Era of the 1920s and 1930s.

Born in Brooklyn, New York, to southwest Italy emigrants Gabriele and Teresina Capone, Capone began his career in Brooklyn before moving to Chicago and becoming the boss of the criminal organization known as the Chicago Outfit (although his business card reportedly described him as a used furniture dealer).

By the end of the 1920s, Capone had gained the attention of the Federal Bureau of Investigation following his being placed on the Chicago Crime Commission's "public enemies" list. Although never successfully convicted of racketeering charges, Capone's criminal career ended in 1931, when he was indicted and convicted by the federal government for income tax evasion.

Al Gore

Albert Arnold "Al" Gore, Jr. (born March 31, 1948) is an American politician, businessman, and environmentalist. Gore served in the United States House of Representatives (1977–85) and the United States Senate (1985–93) representing Tennessee. From 1993 to 2001, he was the forty-fifth Vice President of the United States, under Bill Clinton.

Gore was the Democratic nominee for President in the 2000 election, which was one of the most controversial elections in American history. After a series of voting discrepancies and court challenges in the state of Florida the United States Supreme Court, with its final ruling on Bush v. Gore, stopped ongoing ballot recounts, giving George W. Bush the electoral college victory, and consequently the presidency.

Today, Gore is president of the American television channel Current TV, chairman of Generation Investment Management, a director on the board of Apple Inc., an unofficial advisor to Google's senior management, and chairman of the Alliance for Climate Protection.

Gore lectures widely on the topic of global warming, which he calls "the climate crisis", and in 2006 starred in the Academy Award-winning documentary An Inconvenient Truth, discussing global warming and the environment. Under his leadership, one of Gore's organizations, Save Our Selves, organized the benefit concert Live Earth in an effort to raise awareness about climate change. The concert was held all over the world on July 07, 2007 (07.07.07). In July 2007, he announced teaming with actress Cameron Diaz for a TV climate contest 60 Seconds to Save the Earth to gain people's support in solving the climate crisis.

Gore's 2007 book, The Assault on Reason, is an analysis of what he calls the "emptying out of the marketplace of ideas" in civic discourse, which, according to Gore, is due to the influence of electronic media, especially television, and which endangers American democracy; but he also expresses the belief that the Internet can revitalize and ultimately "redeem the integrity of representative democracy."

While Gore has frequently stated that "I'm not planning to be a candidate again," there is frequent speculation that he may run for the 2008 Democratic presidential nomination.

Al Jazeera

Al Jazeera (Arabic: الجزيرة, al-ğazīrä, , meaning "The Peninsula", referring to the Arabic name for the Arabian Peninsula) is a television network headquartered in Doha, Qatar. Initially launched as an Arabic news and current affairs satellite TV channel with the same name, Al Jazeera has since expanded into a network of several specialty TV channels.

The original Al Jazeera channel's willingness to broadcast dissenting views, including on call-in shows, created controversies in Persian Gulf States and the United States. The station gained worldwide attention following the September 11, 2001 attacks, when it broadcast video statements by Osama bin Laden and other al-Qaeda leaders (see Videos of Osama bin Laden) and also when it reported massacres allegedly committed by the US Army both in Afghanistan and Iraq.citation needed]

Al Jolson

Al Jolson was a highly acclaimed American singer, comedian and actor of Jewish heritage whose career lasted from 1911 until his death in 1950. He was one of the most popular entertainers of the 20th century whose influence extended to other popular performers, including Bing Crosby, Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Judy Garland, Sammy Davis, Jr., Eddie Fisher, Jerry Lewis, Elvis Presley, Tom Jones, Rod Stewart, Mick Jagger and Michael Jackson.

Al Jolson was the first popular singer to make a spectacular "event" out of singing a song. Prior to Jolson, popular singers such as John McCormack and Henry Burr would stand still with only very minimal gesturing as they sang. Jolson, in comparison, had tremendous energy displayed in his performances by way of dynamic gestures and other physical movement. Jolson was the first entertainer to ever utilize a ramp extending out into the audience from the center of the stage. Jolson insisted on having a ramp so he could be closer to the audience. It was very common for Jolson to sit on the end of the ramp and have personal one-on-one conversations with audience members which is something that had also never been done prior to Jolson.

Jolson was known to stop major Broadway productions in which he was involved, turn to the audience and ask them if they would rather hear him sing instead of watching the rest of the play. The answer from the audience was always a resounding "yes" and Jolson would spend at least the next hour singing an impromptu concert to an ecstatic audience. George Burns, the popular American comedian and friend of Al Jolson probably described Jolson best when he said, "...Jolson was all Show Business!"

Alabama

The State of Alabama (IPA: /ˌɒ.ləˈbɒ.mə/), is located in the southern region of the United States of America. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama ranks 30th in total land area and ranks second in the size of its inland waterways. The state ranks 23rd in population with almost 4.5 million residents in 2000.

From the American Civil War until World War II, Alabama, like many Southern states, suffered economic hardship. In the years following the war, Alabama experienced significant recovery as the economy of the state transitioned from agriculture to diversified interests in heavy manufacturing, mineral extraction, education, and high technology. Today, the state is heavily invested in the aerospace, education, health care, banking, and various heavy industries including automobile manufacturing, mineral extraction, steel production and fabrication.

Alabaster

Alabaster (sometimes called satin spar) is a name applied to varieties of two distinct minerals: gypsum (a hydrous sulfate of calcium) and calcite (a carbonate of calcium). The former is the alabaster of the present day; the latter is generally the alabaster of the ancients.

The two kinds are readily distinguished from each other by their relative hardnesses. The gypsum kind is so soft as to be readily scratched by a finger-nail (hardness 1.5 to 2), while the calcite kind is too hard to be scratched in this way (hardness 3), though it does yield readily to a knife. Moreover, the calcite alabaster, being a carbonate, effervesces on being touched with hydrochloric acid, whereas the gypsum alabaster, when so treated, remains practically unaffected.

Due to the characteristic color of white alabaster, the term has entered the vernacular as a metonym for white things, particularly "alabaster skin".

Aladdin

Aladdin (an adaptation of the Arabic name Alā' ad-Dīn, Arabic: علاء الدين literally "nobility of faith") is one of the tales with an Ancient Arabian origin in The Book of One Thousand and One Nights (Arabian Nights), and one of the most famous.

Aladdin (film)

Aladdin is a 1992 animated feature produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation, and released by Walt Disney Pictures on November 25, 1992. The thirty-first animated feature in the Disney animated features canon, it relates a version of the story of Aladdin and the magic lamp from The Book of One Thousand and One Nights. As is usual with Disney film adaptations, many aspects of the traditional story were changed for the movie—for instance the setting is changed from a mythical Islamic "China" to a fictional Arabian city, Agrabah. It was released at the peak stretch of the Disney renaissance era beginning with The Little Mermaid. It was the most successful film of 1992, with over $217 million in domestic revenues and over $504 million worldwide.

It was directed by John Musker and Ron Clements, both of whom had just finished writing and directing The Little Mermaid. The musical score was created by Alan Menken, which received the 1992 Academy Award for Original Music Score for his work, and the song lyrics were written by Howard Ashman and Tim Rice. The main soundtrack song "A Whole New World" (sung during the closing credits by Peabo Bryson and Regina Belle) won a Grammy Award as well as the Academy Award for Best Song for Menken and Rice in 1992.

Voice actors included Robin Williams as the Genie. Although this was not the first time in which a major actor provided voice-over work for an animated film, it was the first major American animated feature film in which particular attention was paid to a celebrity cast member, such as a major movie star, in the film as part of its promotion. This has led to a subsequent increased attention to the casts of later productions, such as Toy Story and Shrek, as a major element of animated film marketing.citation needed]

Aladdin was followed by two direct-to-video sequels: The Return of Jafar (1994) and Aladdin and the King of Thieves (1996), and an animated television series, Aladdin, set between the two sequels.

Alamosaurus

Alamosaurus, (IPA: /ˌæləməˈsɔɹəs/; meaning "Alamo lizard"), is a genus of titanosaurian sauropod dinosaur from the Late Cretaceous Period of what is now North America. It was a large quadrupedal herbivore, up to 53 feet (16 metres) in length and up to 33 tons (30 metric tonnes) in weight. Alamosaurus, like other sauropods, had a long neck and a long tail, which may have ended in a 'whiplash' structure.

Alan Shepard

Alan Bartlett Shepard, Jr. (November 18, 1923 – July 21, 1998) (Rear Admiral, USN, Ret.) was the second person and the first American astronaut in space. He later commanded the Apollo 14 mission, and was the fifth man to walk on the moon.

Alan Turing

Alan Mathison Turing, OBE (23 June 1912 – 7 June 1954) was an English mathematician, logician, and cryptographer.

Turing is often considered to be the father of modern computer science. Turing provided an influential formalisation of the concept of the algorithm and computation with the Turing machine, formulating the now widely accepted "Turing" version of the Church–Turing thesis, namely that any practical computing model has either the equivalent or a subset of the capabilities of a Turing machine. With the Turing test, he made a significant and characteristically provocative contribution to the debate regarding artificial intelligence: whether it will ever be possible to say that a machine is conscious and can think. He later worked at the National Physical Laboratory, creating one of the first designs for a stored-program computer, although it was never actually built. In 1948 he moved to the University of Manchester to work on the Manchester Mark I, then emerging as one of the world's earliest true computers.

During the Second World War Turing worked at Bletchley Park, Britain's codebreaking centre, and was for a time head of Hut 8, the section responsible for German naval cryptanalysis. He devised a number of techniques for breaking German ciphers, including the method of the bombe, an electromechanical machine that could find settings for the Enigma machine.

In 1952, Turing was convicted of "acts of gross indecency" after admitting to a sexual relationship with a man in Manchester. He was placed on probation and required to undergo hormone therapy. Turing died after eating an apple laced with cyanide in 1954. His death was ruled a suicide.

Alanine

Alanine is an α-amino acid with the chemical formula HO₂CCH(NH₂)CH₃. The L-isomer is one of the 20 proteinogenic amino acids, i.e. the building blocks of proteins. Its three letter code is ala, its one letter code is A, and its codons are GCU, GCC, GCA, and GCG. It is classified as an nonpolar amino acid. L-alanine is second only to leucine, accounting for 7.8% of the primary structure in a sample of 1,150 proteins . D-alanine occurs in bacterial cell walls and in some peptide antibiotics.

Alaska

Alaska (IPA: /əˈlæs.kə/, Russian: Аляска Alyaska) is a state of the United States of America that is located in the extreme northwest portion of North America, west of Canada. It is the largest U.S. state in terms of area (by a substantial margin), comprising approximately one-sixth of the country.

The area that became Alaska was purchased from Russian interests on October 18, 1867, for $7,200,000. The land went through several administrative changes before becoming an organized territory in 1912 and the 49th state of the U.S. on January 3, 1959. The name "Alaska" is derived from the Aleut alaxsxaq, meaning "the mainland", or more literally "the object towards which the action of the sea is directed".

Alaskan Malamute

The Alaskan Malamute is a large northern dog breed originally bred for use as an Alaskan sleddog and is often mistaken for a Siberian Husky.

Albania

The Republic of Albania (Albanian: Republika e Shqipërisë, IPA or simply Shqipëria) is a Balkan country in Southeastern Europe. It borders Montenegro to the north, Serbia to the northeast, the Republic of Macedonia to the east, and Greece to the south. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea to the west and a coast on the Ionian Sea to the southwest. Despite its troubled history of foreign rule and internal conflict, the country has been classified as an emerging democracy since the 1990s. Albania is continuing to work toward joining NATO and the European Union.

Albatross

Diomedea
Thalassarche
Phoebastria
Phoebetria

Albatrosses, of the biological family Diomedeidae, are large seabirds allied to the procellariids, storm-petrels and diving-petrels in the order Procellariiformes (the tubenoses). They range widely in the Southern Ocean and the North Pacific. They are absent from the North Atlantic, although fossil remains show they once occurred there too and occasional vagrants turn up. Albatrosses are amongst the largest of flying birds, and the great albatrosses (genus Diomedea) have the largest wingspans of any extant birds. The albatrosses are usually regarded as falling into four genera, but there is disagreement over the number of species.

Albatrosses are highly efficient in the air, using dynamic soaring and slope soaring to cover great distances with little exertion. They feed on squid, fish and krill by either scavenging, surface seizing or diving. Albatrosses are colonial, nesting for the most part on remote oceanic islands, often with several species nesting together. Pair bonds between males and females form over several years, with the use of ritualised dances, and will last for the life of the pair. A breeding season can take over a year from laying to fledging, with a single egg laid in each breeding attempt.

Of the 21 species of albatrosses recognised by the IUCN, 19 are threatened with extinction. Numbers of albatrosses have declined in the past due to harvesting for feathers, but today the albatrosses are threatened by introduced species such as rats and feral cats that attack eggs, chicks and nesting adults; by pollution; by a serious decline in fish stocks in many regions largely due to overfishing; and by long-line fishing. Long-line fisheries pose the greatest threat, as feeding birds are attracted to the bait and become hooked on the lines and drown. Governments, conservation organisations and fishermen are all working towards reducing this by-catch.

Albert Camus

Albert Camus (IPA: ) (November 7, 1913 – January 4, 1960) was a French author and philosopher. Although he is often associated with existentialism, Camus preferred to be known as a man and a thinker, rather than as a member of a school or ideology. He preferred persons over ideas. In an interview in 1945, Camus rejected any ideological associations: “No, I am not an existentialist. Sartre and I are always surprised to see our names linked....” (Les Nouvelles litteraires, November 15, 1945).

Camus was the second youngest recipient of the Nobel Prize for Literature (after Rudyard Kipling) when he became the first African-born writer to receive the award, in 1957. He is also the shortest-lived of any literature laureate to date, having died in a car crash only three years after receiving the award.

Albert Einstein

Albert Einstein (German pronunciation (help·info)) (March 14, 1879 – April 18, 1955) was a German-born theoretical physicist.

He is best known for his theory of relativity and specifically mass-energy equivalence, E = mc2. Einstein received the 1921 Nobel Prize in Physics "for his services to Theoretical Physics, and especially for his discovery of the law of the photoelectric effect."

Einstein's many contributions to physics include his special theory of relativity, which reconciled mechanics with electromagnetism, and his general theory of relativity which extended the principle of relativity to non-uniform motion, creating a new theory of gravitation. His other contributions include relativistic cosmology, capillary action, critical opalescence, classical problems of statistical mechanics and their application to quantum theory, an explanation of the Brownian movement of molecules, atomic transition probabilities, the quantum theory of a monatomic gas, thermal properties of light with low radiation density (which laid the foundation for the photon theory), a theory of radiation including stimulated emission, the conception of a unified field theory, and the geometrization of physics.

Works by Albert Einstein include more than fifty scientific papers and also non-scientific books. In 1999 Einstein was named Time magazine's "Person of the Century", and a poll of prominent physicists named him the greatest physicist of all time. In popular culture the name "Einstein" has become synonymous with genius.

Alberta

Coordinates: 55°10′N, 114°24′W

Alberta (IPA: /æl.bɝ.tə/) is one of Canada's western provinces. It became a province on September 1, 1905.

Alberta is located in Western Canada, bounded by the provinces of British Columbia to the west and Saskatchewan to the east, Northwest Territories to the north, and by the U.S. state of Montana to the south. Alberta is one of two provinces (the other being New Brunswick) to border only a single U.S. state. It is also one of two provinces that are completely land-locked (the other being Saskatchewan).

The capital city of Alberta is Edmonton, located just south of the centre of the province. Calgary is a major distribution and transportation hub as well as being one of Canada's major commerce centres. Edmonton is the primary supply and service hub for Canada's oil sands and other northern resource industries. According to recent population estimates, these two metropolitan areas have now both exceeded 1 million people, Calgary being slightly more populous than Edmonton. Other major but much smaller municipalities include Red Deer, Lethbridge, Medicine Hat, Fort McMurray, Grande Prairie, Camrose, Lloydminster, Wetaskiwin, Banff, and Jasper. See also: List of communities in Alberta.

Since December 14, 2006, the Premier of the province is Hon. Ed Stelmach, Progressive Conservative.

Alberta is named after Princess Louise Caroline Alberta (1848–1939), the fourth daughter of Queen Victoria. Princess Louise was the wife of the Marquess of Lorne, Governor General of Canada from 1878 to 1883. Lake Louise, the village of Caroline, and Mount Alberta were also named in honour of Princess Louise.

Alberto Santos-Dumont

Alberto Santos-Dumont (20 July 1873 – 23 July 1932) was an early pioneer of aviation and noted Brazilian inventor.

Santos-Dumont designed, built, and flew the first practical dirigible balloons. In doing so he became the first person to demonstrate that routine, controlled flight was possible. This "conquest of the air", in particular winning the Deutsch de la Meurthe prize on 19 October 1901 on a flight that rounded the Eiffel Tower, made him one of the most famous people in the world during the early 20th century.

In addition to his pioneering work in airships, Santos-Dumont made the first public flight of an airplane in Paris in October 1906. That aircraft, designated 14-bis or Oiseau de proie (French for "bird of prey"), is considered to be the first to take off, fly, and land without the use of catapults, high winds, launch rails, or other external assistance. Thus some consider him to be the inventor of the airplane and in his homeland he is honored as the "Father of Aviation".

Albertosaurus

Albertosaurus (pronounced /ælˌbɝto'sɔɹəs/; meaning 'Alberta lizard') is a genus of tyrannosaurid theropod dinosaur that lived in western North America during the Late Cretaceous Period, more than 70 million years ago. The type species, A. sarcophagus, was restricted in range to the modern-day Canadian province of Alberta, after which the genus is named. Scientists disagree on the content of the genus, with some recognizing Gorgosaurus libratus as a second species.

As a tyrannosaurid, Albertosaurus was a bipedal predator with tiny, two-fingered hands and a massive head with dozens of large, sharp teeth. It may have been at the top of the food chain in its local ecosystem. Although relatively large for a theropod, Albertosaurus was much smaller than its more famous relative Tyrannosaurus, probably weighing only as much as a modern black rhinoceros.

Fossils of more than thirty individuals have been recovered, providing scientists with a more detailed knowledge of Albertosaurus anatomy than is available for most other tyrannosaurids. The discovery of 22 individuals at one site provides evidence of pack behavior and allows studies of ontogeny and population biology which are impossible with lesser-known dinosaurs.

Albigensian Crusade

The Albigensian Crusade or Cathar Crusade (1209 - 1229) was a 20-year military campaign initiated by the Roman Catholic Church to eliminate the heresy of the Cathars of Languedoc.

When Innocent III's diplomatic attempts to roll back Catharism met with little success, he declared a crusade against Languedoc, offering the lands of the schismatics to any French nobleman willing to take up arms. The violence, extreme even by medieval standards, led to France's acquiring of lands with closer cultural and linguistic ties to Catalonia (see Occitan).

The Albigensian Crusade also had a role in the creation and institutionalization of both the Dominican Order and the Medieval Inquisition.

Albinism

Albinism (from Latin albus; extended etymology), more technically hypomelanism or hypomelanosis, is a form of hypopigmentary congenital disorder, characterized by a lack of melanin pigment in the eyes, skin and hair (or more rarely the eyes alone). Albinism results from inheritance of recessive genes. The condition is known to affect mammals, fish, birds, reptiles, and amphibians. While the most common term for an organism affected by albinism is "albino" (noun and adjective), the word is sometimes used in a derogatory way towards people; more neutral terms are "albinistic" (adjective) and "person with albinism" (noun). Additional clinical adjectives sometimes used to refer to animals are "albinoid" and "albinic".

Albrecht Dürer

Albrecht Dürer (pronounced /'al.bʀɛçt 'dy.ʀɐ/) (May 21, 1471 – April 6, 1528) was a German painter and mathematician.

Along with Rembrandt and Goya, Dürer is considered one of the greatest creators of old master prints. He was born and died in Nuremberg, Germany and is best known for his prints, often executed in series, including the Apocalypse (1498) and his two series on the passion of Christ, the Great Passion (1498–1510) and the Little Passion (1510–1511). Dürer's best known individual engravings include Knight, Death, and the Devil (1513), Saint Jerome in his Study (1514) and Melencolia I (1514), which has been the subject of the extensive analysis and speculation. His most iconic images are his woodcuts of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse (1497–1498) from the Apocalypse series, the "Rhinoceros", and numerous self-portraits.

His work reflected the apocalyptic spirit of his time, when famine, plague, and social and religious upheaval were common. He was sympathetic to the reform work of Luther but remained Roman Catholic. At his death, Luther wrote to a friend, "Affection bids us mourn for one who was the best." Dürer probably did not cut his own woodblocks but employed a skilled carver who followed his drawings faithfully.

Albrecht Rodenbach

Albrecht Rodenbach (* 27 October 1856 in Roeselare, Belgium; † 23 June 1880 in Roeselare) was a Flemish poet, and a leader in the revival of Flemish literature that occurred in the late 19th Century. He is more noteworthy as a symbol of the Flemish movement, than for his actual activities, since he died at the age of 23. Hugo Verriest called Rodenbach the poet, the soul, the heart, the mind, the word of Reborn Flanders!.

Album

An album or record album is a collection of related audio or music tracks distributed to the public. The most common way is through commercial distribution, although smaller artists will often distribute directly to the public by selling their albums at live concerts or on their websites.

The tracks on an album may be related by subject, mood or sound, and may even be designed to express a unified message or tell a story (as in the case of a concept album), or the tracks may simply represent a convenient grouping of recordings made at one time or place, or recordings whose commercial rights are controlled by a single record label. A group of audio tracks is considered to be an album if it has a generally consistent track list (often with minor differences or bonus tracks in different territories, or if the album is "reissued" at different times). An album may be released in a single format, such as on compact disc, or in multiple media formats, ranging from physical ones such as CDs, DVD audio, cassettes and vinyl records, to digital ones such as MP3 and AAC files or streaming audio.

The term "record album" originated from the fact that 78 RPM Phonograph disc records were kept together in a book resembling a photo album. The first collection of records to be called an "album" was Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker Suite, released in April 1909 as a four-disc set by Odeon Records. It retailed for 16 shillings — about £56 (US$101) in 2005 currency.

In 1948, Columbia produced the first 12", 33⅓ RPM microgroove record made of vinyl. With a running time of 23 minutes per side, these new records contained as much music as the old-style album of records and, thus, took on the name "album". For many years, the standard industry format for popular music was an album of twelve songs, originally the number related to payment of composer royalties.

Traditionally, an album ranged in duration from half an hour to an hour, depending on the genre and record label. American pop albums tended to be around a half hour; British pop albums were somewhat longer, often containing 14 songs instead of 11 or 12; jazz albums were longer still; and classical albums were the longest of all. From the dawn of the "album era" (in jazz, about 1954; in rock, about 1962) until about the mid-1960s, albums were often recorded as quickly as possible, sometimes in single sessions. (Prestige Records and Blue Note Records were famous for this; as well, the Beatles' first album and the Byrds first four albums were all largely recorded in single sessions.)

Vinyl LP records had two sides, each comprising one half of the album. If a pop or rock album contained tracks released separately as commercial singles, these were often traditionally placed in particular positions on the album. A common configuration was to have the album led off by the second and third singles, followed by a ballad. The first single would lead off side 2. In the past, many singles (such as the Beatles' "Hey Jude") did not appear on albums, but others (such as the Beatles' "Come Together" and "Something") were also part of an album released concurrently. Today many commercial albums of music tracks feature one or more singles, which are released separately to radio, TV or the Internet as a way of promoting the album. Albums have also been issued that are compilations of older tracks not originally released together, such as singles not originally found on albums, b-sides of singles, or unfinished "demo" recordings.

Today, with the vinyl record no longer being used as the primary form of distribution, the term "album" can still be applied to any sound recording collection, such as those on compact disc, MiniDisc, Compact audio cassette, and digital or MP3 albums. Cover art is also considered an integral part of the album. Many albums also come with liner notes and inserts giving background information or analysis of the recording, reprinted lyrics, images of the performers, or additional artwork and text. These are now often found in the form of CD booklets.

Due to the large capacity of new media (compact discs originally ran to 74 minutes, later extended to 80 minutes) and the lack of any formal "side" divisions, the matter of how long an album should be is open to debate, although most studio albums released today range from 40 to 55 minutes in length. According to the rules of the UK Charts, a recording counts as an "album" if either it has more than four tracks or lasts more than 25 minutes. Sometimes shorter albums are referred to as EPs, an abbreviation of extended play, "extended" meaning longer than a single but shorter than an LP. The term "mini-album" may also be used.

If an album becomes too long to fit this format, a recording artist may make the decision to release a double album where two vinyl LPs or compact discs are packaged together in a single case, or even a triple album, with recordings stretching over three separate media.

Recording artists who have an extensive back catalogue will often re-release several CDs in one single box with a unified design, often containing one or more albums, or a compilation of previously unreleased recordings. These are known as box sets. Some musical artists have also released more than three compact discs or LP records of new recordings at once, in the form of boxed sets, although in that case the work is still usually considered to be an album.

By Category – List of basic music topics – List of musical topics – Definition of music – Music theory – Musician – Composer – Musicology – Ethnomusicology – Music history – History of music – Musical instrument – Composition – Terminology – Notation – Education – Musical improvisation – Music and politics – Music and mathematics – Music market – Genre – Album – Song – Suite – Lyrics – Record label – Record producer

Albumin

Albumin (Latin: albus, white) refers generally to any protein with water solubility, which is moderately soluble in concentrated salt solutions, and experiences heat coagulation (protein denaturation). Substances containing albumin, such as egg white, are called albuminoids.

Alcibiades

Alcibiades Cleiniou Scambonides (IPA: /ælsɪ'baɪədi:z/, Greek: Ἀλκιβιάδης Κλεινίου Σκαμβωνίδης, (pronunciation) transliterated Alkibiádēs Kleiníou Skambōnidēs), meaning Alcibiades, son of Cleinias, from the deme of Skambonidai; c. 450–404 BC), was a prominent Athenian statesman, orator, and general. He was the last famous member of his mother's aristocratic family, the Alcmaeonidae, which fell from prominence after the Peloponnesian War. He played a major role in the second half of that conflict as a strategic advisor, military commander, and politician.

During the course of the Peloponnesian War, Alcibiades changed his allegiance on several occasions. In his native Athens in the early 410s BC, he advocated for an aggressive foreign policy, and was a prominent proponent of the Sicilian Expedition, but fled to Sparta after his political enemies brought charges of sacrilege against him. In Sparta, he served as a strategic advisor, proposing or supervising several major campaigns against Athens. In Sparta too, however, Alcibiades soon made powerful enemies and was forced to defect to Persia. There he served as an advisor to the satrap Tissaphernes until his Athenian political allies brought about his recall. He then served as an Athenian general (strategos) for several years, but his enemies eventually succeeded in exiling him a second time.

The Sicilian Expedition was Alcibiades' creation, and modern scholars have argued that, had that expedition been under Alcibiades' command instead of Nicias', the expedition might not have met its eventual disastrous fate. In the years that he served Sparta, Alcibiades played a significant role in Athens' undoing; the capture of Decelea and the revolts of several critical Athenian subjects occurred either at his suggestion or under his supervision. Once restored to his native city, however, he played a crucial role in a string of Athenian victories that eventually brought Sparta to seek a peace with Athens. He favored unconventional tactics, frequently winning cities over by treachery or negotiation rather than by siege. Alcibiades' military and political talents frequently proved valuable to whichever state currently held his allegiance, but his capacity for making powerful enemies ensured that he never remained in one place for long; and, by the end of the war he had helped rekindle in the early 410s, his days of political relevance were a bygone memory.

ALCO FA

The ALCO FA was a family of B-B diesel locomotives designed to haul freight trains. The locomotives were built in Schenectady, New York, by the American Locomotive Company (ALCO) between January 1946 and May 1959. They were of a cab unit design, and both cab-equipped lead (A unit) FA and cabless booster (B unit) FB models were built. A dual passenger-freight version, the FPA/FPB, was also offered. It was equipped with a steam generator for heating passenger cars.

Externally, the FA and FB models looked very similar to the ALCO PA models produced in the same period. They shared many of the same characteristics both aesthetically and mechanically. It was the locomotive's mechanical qualities and newer locomotive models from both General Motors Electro-Motive Division (EMD) and General Electric (GE) that ultimately led to the retirement of the locomotive model from revenue service. Several examples of FAs and FBs have been preserved in railroad museums, a few of them in operational states on such lines as the Grand Canyon Railway and the Napa Valley Wine Train.

Alcohol

In chemistry, an alcohol is any organic compound in which a hydroxyl group (-OH) is bound to a carbon atom of an alkyl or substituted alkyl group. The general formula for a simple acyclic alcohol is C_nH_2n+1OH.

Generally, the word alcohol, when used alone, usually refers to ethanol, also known as grain alcohol or (older) spirits of wine. Ethanol is a very strong and unique smelling, colorless, volatile liquid formed by the fermentation of sugars. It also often refers to any beverage that contains ethanol (see alcoholic beverage). It is the most widely used depressant in the world, and has been for thousands of years. This sense underlies the term alcoholism (addiction to alcohol).

Other forms of alcohol are usually described with a clarifying adjective, as in isopropyl alcohol (propan-2-ol) or wood alcohol (methyl alcohol, or methanol). The suffix -ol appears in the official chemical name of all alcohols.

Alcoholic beverage

An alcoholic beverage is a drink containing ethanol, commonly known as alcohol, although the chemical definition of alcohol is more extensive.

Ethanol is a centrally-acting drug with a depressant effect, and many societies regulate or restrict its sale and consumption. Countries place various legal restrictions on the sale of alcoholic drinks to young people. The manufacture and consumption of alcohol is found to some degree in most cultures and societies around the world, from hunter-gatherer tribes to organized nation-states. The consumption of alcohol is often important at social events in such societies and may be an important aspect of a community's culture.

Ethanol is only slightly toxic compared to other alcohols, but has significant psychoactive effects at sublethal doses. A significant blood alcohol content is considered legal drunkenness as it reduces attention, lengthens reaction time and lowers inhibitions. Alcoholic beverages are addictive when consumed repeatedly or in high doses and the state of addiction to ethanol is known as alcoholism.

Alcoholism

Alcoholism is a term with multiple sometimes conflicting definitions, but with no formal recognition of the divergence of meaning. In common and historical usage, alcoholism typically refers to any condition that results in the continued consumption of alcoholic beverages despite negative personal and social consequences. Medical definitions describe alcoholism as a disease which may result in a persistent difficulty in controlling alcohol consumption. Alcoholism may also refer to a preoccupation with or compulsion toward the consumption of alcohol and/or an impaired ability to recognize the negative effects of excessive alcohol consumption. Although not all of these definitions specify current and on-going use of alcohol as a qualifier, some do, as well as remarking on the long-term effects of consistent, heavy alcohol use, including dependence and symptoms of withdrawal.

While the ingestion of alcohol is, by definition, necessary to develop alcoholism, the use of alcohol does not predict the development of alcoholism. The quantity, frequency and regularity of alcohol consumption required to develop alcoholism varies greatly from person to person. In addition, although the biological mechanisms underpinning alcoholism are uncertain, some risk factors, including social environment, emotional health and genetic predisposition, have been identified.

Aldol reaction

The aldol reaction is an important carbon-carbon bond formation reaction in organic chemistry. In its usual form, it involves the nucleophilic addition of a ketone enolate to an aldehyde to form a β-hydroxy ketone, or "aldol" (aldehyde + alcohol), a structural unit found in many naturally occurring molecules and pharmaceuticals. Sometimes, the aldol addition product loses a molecule of water during the reaction to form an α,β-unsaturated ketone. This is called an aldol condensation. The aldol reaction was discovered independently by Charles-Adolphe Wurtz and by Alexander Porfyrevich Borodin in 1872. Borodin observed the aldol dimerization of 3-hydroxybutanal from acetaldehyde under acidic conditions. The aldol reaction is used widely in the large scale production of commodity chemicals such as pentaerythritol and in the pharmaceutical industry for the synthesis of optically pure drugs. For example, Pfizer's initial route to the heart disease drug Lipitor (INN: atorvastatin), approved in 1996, employed two aldol reactions, allowing access to multigram-scale quantities of the drug.

The aldol structural motif is especially common in polyketides, a class of natural products from which many pharmaceuticals are derived, including the potent immunosuppressant FK506, the tetracycline antibiotics, and the antifungal agent amphotericin B. Extensive research on the aldol reaction has produced highly efficient methods which enable the otherwise challenging synthesis of many polyketides in the laboratory. This is important because many polyketides, along with other biologically active molecules, occur naturally only quantities impractically small for further investigation. The synthesis of many such compounds, once considered nearly impossible, can now be performed routinely on the laboratory scale, and is approaching economic viability on a larger scale in some cases, such as the highly active anti-tumor agent discodermolide. In biochemistry, the aldol reaction is one of the key steps of glycolysis, where it is catalyzed by enzymes called aldolases.

The aldol reaction is particularly valuable in organic synthesis because it produces products with two new stereogenic centers (on the α- and β-carbon of the aldol adduct, marked with asterisks in the scheme above). Modern methods, described below, now allow the relative and absolute configuration of these centers to be controlled. This is of particular importance when synthesizing pharamaceuticals, since molecules with the same structural connectivity but different stereochemistry often have vastly different chemical and biological properties.

A variety of nucleophiles may be employed in the aldol reaction, including the enols, enolates, and enol ethers of ketones, aldehydes, and many other carbonyl compounds. The electrophilic partner is usually an aldehyde, although many variations, such as the Mannich reaction, exist. When the nucleophile and electrophile are different (the usual case), the reaction is called a crossed aldol reaction (as opposed to dimers formed in an aldol dimerization).

Aldosterone

Aldosterone is a steroid hormone (mineralocorticoid family) produced by the outer-section (zona glomerulosa) of the adrenal cortex in the adrenal gland to regulate sodium and potassium balance in the blood.

Aldous Huxley

Aldous Leonard Huxley (July 26, 1894 – November 22, 1963) was an English writer and one of the most prominent members of the famous Huxley family. He spent the latter part of his life in the United States, living in Los Angeles from 1937 until his death in 1963. Best known for his novels and wide-ranging output of essays, he also published short stories, poetry, travel writing, and film stories and scripts. Through his novels and essays Huxley functioned as an examiner and sometimes critic of social mores, norms and ideals. Huxley was a humanist but was also interested towards the end of his life in spiritual subjects such as parapsychology and philosophical mysticism. By the end of his life Huxley was considered, in some academic circles, a leader of modern thought and an intellectual of the highest rank citation needed].

Alexander Pushkin

Alexander Sergeyevich Pushkin (Russian: Алекса́ндр Серге́евич Пу́шкин, IPA: , listen (help·info)) (June 6 O.S. May 26] 1799 – February 10 O.S. January 29] 1837) was a Russian Romantic author who is considered to be the greatest Russian poet and the founder of modern Russian literature. Pushkin pioneered the use of vernacular speech in his poems and plays, creating a style of storytelling—mixing drama, romance, and satire—associated with Russian literature ever since and greatly influencing later Russian writers.

Born in Moscow, Pushkin published his first poem at the age of fourteen, and was widely recognized by the literary establishment by the time of his graduation from the Imperial Lyceum in Tsarskoe Selo. Pushkin gradually became committed to social reform and emerged as a spokesman for literary radicals; in the early 1820s he clashed with the government, which sent him into exile in southern Russia. While under the strict surveillance of government censors and unable to travel or publish at will, he wrote his most famous play, the drama Boris Godunov, but could not publish it until years later. His novel in verse, Eugene Onegin, was published serially from 1825 to 1832.

Pushkin and his wife Natalya Goncharova, whom he married in 1831, later became regulars of court society. In 1837, while falling into greater and greater debt amidst rumors that his wife had started conducting a scandalous affair, Pushkin challenged her alleged lover, Georges d'Anthès, to a duel. Pushkin was mortally wounded and died two days later.

Because of his liberal political views and influence on generations of Russian rebels, Pushkin was portrayed by Bolsheviks as an opponent to bourgeois literature and culture and a predecessor of Soviet literature and poetry. Tsarskoe Selo was renamed after him.

Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn

Alexandr Isayevich Solzhenitsyn (Russian: Алекса́ндр Иса́евич Солжени́цын, IPA:  ; born December 11, 1918) is a Russian novelist, dramatist and historian. Through his writings, he made the world aware of the Gulag, the Soviet labor camp system, and, for these efforts, Solzhenitsyn was both awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1970 and exiled from the Soviet Union in 1974. He returned to Russia in 1994. In 1994, he was elected as a member of Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts in the Department of Language and Literature.

Aleksandr Vasilevsky

Aleksandr Mikhaylovich Vasilevsky (Russian: Алекса́ндр Миха́йлович Василе́вский, September 30, 1895 – December 5, 1977) was a Soviet military commander, promoted to Marshal of the Soviet Union in 1943. He was the Soviet Chief of the General Staff and Deputy Minister of Defense during World War II, as well as Minister of Defense from 1949 to 1953. As the Chief of the General Staff, Vasilevsky was responsible for the planning and coordination of almost all decisive Soviet offensives, from the Stalingrad counteroffensive to the assault on East Prussia and Königsberg.

Vasilevsky started his military career during the First World War, earning the rank of captain by 1917. At the beginning of the October Revolution and the Civil War he was conscripted into the Red Army, taking part in the Polish-Soviet War. After the war, he quickly rose through the ranks, becoming a regimental commander by 1930. In this position, he showed great skill in the organization and training of his troops. Vasilevsky's talent did not go unnoticed, and in 1931 he was appointed a member of the Directorate of Military Training. In 1937, following Stalin's Great Purge, he was promoted to General Staff officer.

At the start of the 1943 Soviet counteroffensive of the Second World War, Vasilevsky coordinated and executed the Red Army's offensive on the upper Don, in the Donbass, Crimea, Belarus and Baltic states, ending the war with the capture of Königsberg in April 1945. In July 1945, he was appointed Commander-in-Chief of Soviet forces in the Far East, executing Operation August Storm and subsequently accepting Japan's surrender. After the war, he became the Soviet Defense Minister, a position he held until Stalin's death in 1953. With Khrushchev's rise, Vasilevsky started to lose power and was eventually pensioned off. After his death, he was buried in the Kremlin Wall Necropolis in recognition of his past service and contributions to his nation.

Aleksey Arakcheyev

Count Alexey Andreyevich Arakcheyev (Russian: граф Алексей Андреевич Аракчеев; October 4, 1769- May 3, 1834) was a Russian general and statesman under the reign of Alexander I.

As he grew up, he was Peter Ivanovich Melissino's pupil and rapidly started teaching arithmetic and geometry. His military career started when he was sought after by Paul I as an artillery officer.

He served under Paul I and Alexander I as army leader and artillery inspector respectively. After the Tsar's death and Nicholas I's coronation, he lost all his powers and properties.

Aleppo

Aleppo (Arabic: حلب36°13′N, 37°10′E) is a city in northern Syria, capital of the Aleppo Governorate. The city has a population of around 1.9 million, making it the second largest city in Syria after Damascus. Aleppo is one of the oldest inhabited cities in history. It knew human settlement since the eleventh millennium B.C. through the residential houses which were discovered in Al-Qaramel Hill. It was known to antiquity as Khalpe, Khalibon, to the Greeks as Beroea (Veroea), and to the Turks as Halep; during the French Mandate, Alep was used. It occupies a strategic trading point midway between the sea and the Euphrates; initially, it was built on a small group of hills in a wide fertile valley on both sides of the river Quweiq (قويق). The province or governorate extends around the city for over 16,000 km² and has around 3.7 million inhabitants.

The main role of the city was as a trading place, as it sat at the crossroads of two trade routes and mediated the trade from India, the Tigris and Euphrates regions and the route coming from Damascus in the South, which traced the base of the mountains rather than the rugged seacoast. Although trade was often directed away from the city for political reasons, it continued to thrive until the Europeans began to use the Cape route to India and later to utilise the route through Egypt to the Red Sea. Since then the city has declined and its chief exports now are the agricultural products of the surrounding region, mainly wheat and cotton, pistachios, olives and sheep.

Aleut

The Aleuts (self-denomination: Unangax̂, Unangan or Unanga) are the indigenous people of the Aleutian Islands of Alaska, United States and Kamchatka Krai, Russia.

Aleutian Islands

The Aleutian Islands (possibly from Chukchi aliat, "island") are a chain of more than 300 small volcanic islands forming an island arc in the Northern Pacific Ocean, occupying an area of 6,821 sq mi (17,666 km²) and extending about 1,200 mi (1,900 km) westward from the Alaska Peninsula toward the Kamchatka Peninsula. Crossing longitude 180°, they are the westernmost part of the United States (and technically also the easternmost; see Extreme points of the United States). Nearly all the archipelago is part of Alaska and usually considered as being in the "Alaskan Bush", but at the extreme western end the small, geologically-related, and remote Komandorski Islands, are in Russia. The islands, with their 57 volcanoes, are in the northern part of the Pacific Ring of Fire. The Alaska Marine Highway passes through the islands.

Alex Haley

Alexander Murray Palmer Haley (August 11, 1921 – February 10, 1992) was an American writer. He is best known for The Autobiography of Malcolm X, which he co-wrote in collaboration with Malcolm X, and for his book Roots: The Saga of an American Family.

Alexander (film)

Alexander is a 2004 epic motion picture film, based on the life of Alexander the Great. The film was directed by Oliver Stone. According to Stone, the theatrical release is based on facts and historical events.

The film was controversial and critically-derided on its release, and failed at the American box office, grossing only $34 million domestically. It succeeded internationally, however, grossing a total of $167 million worldwide, with $133 million in overseas revenues.

Alexander Graham Bell

Alexander Graham Bell (3 March 1847 – 2 August 1922) was a Scottish scientist, inventor, and innovator. Born and raised in Edinburgh, Scotland, he emigrated to Canada in 1870, and then to the United States in 1871, becoming a U.S. citizen in 1882.

Bell was awarded the U.S. patent for the invention of the telephone in 1876; although other inventors had claimed the honor, the Bell patent remained in effect.

Alexander Hamilton

Alexander Hamilton (January 11, 1755 or 1757–July 12, 1804) was an Army officer, lawyer, Founding Father, American politician, leading statesman, financier and political theorist. One of America's foremost constitutional lawyers, he was a leader in calling the U.S. Constitutional Convention in 1787; he was one of the two chief authors of the Federalist Papers, the most important interpretation of the United States Constitution.

Hamilton served chiefly as aide-de-camp to General George Washington, though he also led troops in combat. Under President Washington, Hamilton became the first Secretary of the Treasury; and had much influence over the rest of the government and the formation of policy, including foreign and military policy. Hamilton convinced Congress to use an elastic interpretation of the Constitution to pass far-reaching laws. They included: the funding of the national debt; federal assumption of the state debts; creation of a national bank; and a system of taxes through a tariff on imports and a tax on whiskey that would help pay for it. He admired the success of the British system, and opposed the excesses of the French Revolution.

Hamilton created the Federalist party, the first American political party, which he built up using Treasury department patronage, networks of elite leaders, and aggressive newspaper editors he subsidized both through Treasury patronage and by loans from his own pocket. His great political adversary was Thomas Jefferson who, with James Madison, created the opposition party (of several names, now known as the Democratic-Republican Party). This opposition party intended to counter Hamilton's urban, financial, industrial goals for the United States, and his promotion of extensive trade and friendly relations with Britain. Hamilton retired from the Treasury in 1795 to practice law in New York City, but during the Quasi-War with France he served as organizer and de facto commander of a national army beginning in December, 1798; if full scale war broke out with France, the army was intended to conquer the North American colonies of France's ally, Spain. He worked to defeat both John Adams and Jefferson in the election of 1800; but when the House of Representatives deadlocked, he helped secure the election of Jefferson over Hamilton's long-time political enemy, Aaron Burr.

Hamilton's nationalist and industrializing vision was rejected in the Jeffersonian "Revolution of 1800" as too elitist and hostile to states' rights. However, after the War of 1812 showed the need for strong national institutions, his former opponents -- including Madison and Albert Gallatin -- came to emulate his programs as they too set up a national bank, tariffs, a national infrastructure, and a standing army and navy. The later Whig and Republican parties adopted many of Hamilton's ideas regarding the flexible interpretation of the Constitution and using the federal government to build a strong economy and military. However, his negative reputation after 1800 - both John Adams and Thomas Jefferson viewed him as unprincipled and dangerously aristocratic - did not allow acknowledgment of his role until his style of nationalism became dominant again in the late 19th century, when progressives such as Theodore Roosevelt and Herbert Croly, as well as conservatives such as long-time member of the US Congress Henry Cabot Lodge, revived his reputation. Several twentieth-century Republican politicians took it upon themselves to write biographies of Hamilton.

Alexander Pope

Alexander Pope (21 May 1688 – 30 May 1744) is generally regarded as the greatest English poet of the early eighteenth century, best known for his satirical verse and for his translation of Homer. He is the third most frequently quoted writer in the English language, after Shakespeare and Tennyson. Pope was a master of the heroic couplet.

Alexander Pushkin

Alexander Sergeyevich Pushkin (Russian: Алекса́ндр Серге́евич Пу́шкин, IPA: , listen (help·info)) (June 6 O.S. May 26] 1799 – February 10 O.S. January 29] 1837) was a Russian Romantic author who is considered to be the greatest Russian poet and the founder of modern Russian literature. Pushkin pioneered the use of vernacular speech in his poems and plays, creating a style of storytelling—mixing drama, romance, and satire—associated with Russian literature ever since and greatly influencing later Russian writers.

Born in Moscow, Pushkin published his first poem at the age of fourteen, and was widely recognized by the literary establishment by the time of his graduation from the Imperial Lyceum in Tsarskoe Selo. Pushkin gradually became committed to social reform and emerged as a spokesman for literary radicals; in the early 1820s he clashed with the government, which sent him into exile in southern Russia. While under the strict surveillance of government censors and unable to travel or publish at will, he wrote his most famous play, the drama Boris Godunov, but could not publish it until years later. His novel in verse, Eugene Onegin, was published serially from 1825 to 1832.

Pushkin and his wife Natalya Goncharova, whom he married in 1831, later became regulars of court society. In 1837, while falling into greater and greater debt amidst rumors that his wife had started conducting a scandalous affair, Pushkin challenged her alleged lover, Georges d'Anthès, to a duel. Pushkin was mortally wounded and died two days later.

Because of his liberal political views and influence on generations of Russian rebels, Pushkin was portrayed by Bolsheviks as an opponent to bourgeois literature and culture and a predecessor of Soviet literature and poetry. Tsarskoe Selo was renamed after him.

Alexander the Great

Alexander the Great (Greek: Μέγας Aλέξανδρος, Megas Alexandros; July 20, 356 BC – June 10, 323 BC), also known as Alexander III, was an Ancient Greek king of Macedon (336–323 BC). He was one of the most successful military commanders in history, and was undefeated in battle. By the time of his death, he had conquered most of the world known to the ancient Greeks.

Following the unification of the multiple city-states of ancient Greece under the rule of his father, Philip II of Macedon (a labour Alexander had to repeat twice because the southern Greeks rebelled after Philip's death), Alexander conquered the Persian Empire, including Anatolia, Syria, Phoenicia, Judea, Gaza, Egypt, Bactria and Mesopotamia and extended the boundaries of his own empire as far as the borders of Punjab. Before his death, Alexander had already made plans to also turn west and conquer Europe. He also wanted to continue his march eastwards in order to find the end of the world, since his boyhood tutor Aristotle had told him tales about where the land ends and the Great Outer Sea begins. Alexander integrated foreigners into his army, leading some scholars to credit him with a "policy of fusion." He encouraged marriage between his army and foreigners, and practiced it himself. After twelve years of constant military campaigning, Alexander died, possibly of malaria, West Nile virus, typhoid, viral encephalitis or the consequences of heavy drinking.

His conquests ushered in centuries of Greek settlement and cultural influence over distant areas, a period known as the Hellenistic Age, a combination of Greek and Middle Eastern culture. Alexander himself lived on in the history and myth of both Greek and non-Greek cultures. After his death (and even during his life) his exploits inspired a literary tradition in which he appears as a legendary hero in the tradition of Achilles.

Alexis de Tocqueville

Alexis-Charles-Henri Clérel de Tocqueville (July 29, 1805 – April 16, 1859) was a French political thinker and historian best known for his Democracy in America (appearing in two volumes: 1835 and 1840) and The Old Regime and the Revolution (1856). In both of these works, he explored the effects of the rising equality of social conditions on both the individual and the state in western societies.

Democracy in America (1835), his major work, published after his travels in the United States, is today considered an early work of sociology. An eminent representative of the liberal political tradition, Tocqueville was also an active participant in French politics, first under the July Monarchy (1830–1848) and then during the Second Republic (1849–1851) which succeeded to the February 1848 Revolution. He retired from political life after Louis Napoléon Bonaparte's December 2, 1851 coup, and thereafter began work on The Old Regime and the Revolution, Volume I of which was completed by the time he died.

Alfred Hitchcock

Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock KBE (August 13, 1899 – April 29, 1980) was a highly influential British-born film director and producer who pioneered many techniques in the suspense and thriller genres. He directed more than fifty feature films in a career spanning six decades, from the silent film era, through the invention of talkies, to the colour era. Hitchcock was among the most consistently successful and publicly recognizable directors in the world during his lifetime, and remains one of the best known and most popular directors of all time, famous for his expert and largely unrivalled control of pace and suspense throughout his movies.

Hitchcock was born and raised in Leytonstone, London, England. He began his directing career in the United Kingdom in 1922, but from 1939 he worked primarily in the United States and applied for U.S. citizenship in 1956. Hitchcock and his family lived in a mountaintop estate high above Scotts Valley, California, from 1940 to 1972. He died of renal failure in 1980.

Hitchcock's films draw heavily on both fear and fantasy, and are known for their droll humour. They often portray innocent people caught up in circumstances beyond their control or understanding.

Rebecca was the only one of his films to win the Academy Award for Best Picture, although four others were nominated. However, Hitchcock never won an Academy Award for Best Director. He was awarded the Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award for lifetime achievement in 1967, but never personally received an Academy Award of Merit.

Until the later part of his career, Hitchcock was far more popular with film audiences than with film critics, especially the elite British and American critics.citation needed] In the late 1950s the French New Wave critics, especially Éric Rohmer, Claude Chabrol, and François Truffaut, were among the first to see and promote his films as artistic works. Hitchcock was one of the first directors to whom they applied their auteur theory, which stresses the artistic authority of the director in the film-making process.

Hitchcock's innovations and vision have influenced a great number of filmmakers, producers, and actors. His influence helped start a trend for film directors to control artistic aspects of their movies without answering to the movie's producer.

Alfred Nobel

Alfred Bernhard Nobel (help·info) (October 21, 1833, Stockholm, Sweden – December 10, 1896, Sanremo, Italy) was a Swedish chemist, engineer, innovator, armaments manufacturer and the inventor of dynamite. He owned Bofors, a major armaments manufacturer, which he had redirected from its previous role as an iron and steel mill. In his last will, he used his enormous fortune to institute the Nobel Prizes. The synthetic element Nobelium was named after him.

Alfred the Great

Alfred (also Ælfred from the Old English: Ælfrēd /'æl.freːd/) (c. 849 – 26 October 899) was king of the southern Anglo-Saxon kingdom of Wessex from 871 to 899. Alfred is noted for his defence of the kingdom against the Danish Vikings, becoming the only English King to be awarded the epithet 'the Great' (although not English, Canute the Great was another King of England given this title by the Danes). Alfred was the first King of the West Saxons to style himself 'King of the Anglo-Saxons'. Details of his life are discussed in a work by the Welsh scholar, Asser. A learned man, Alfred encouraged education and improved the kingdom's law system.

Algae

Algae (singular alga) are groups of relatively simple living aquatic organisms that capture light energy through photosynthesis, using it to convert inorganic substances into organic matter.

Algae are photosynthetic organisms that occur in most habitats. Algae vary from small and single-celled to complex multicellular species, such as the Giant kelps that grow to 65 meters in length.

Algae have conventionally been regarded as simple plants within the study of botany all are Eukaryota. Chromophyta have Bacterial (see Blue-green algae) characteristics and some authorities consider them all to be Protists, however this view is now considered to be outdated. They may still be included in the algae as plants. Some authors often include the blue-green algae (Cyanophyta) but note that they are not eukaryote. Algae do not represent a single evolutionary direction or line but a level of organization that may have developed several times in the early history of life on Earth.

The prokaryotic forms, referred to as blue-green algae are only half-algae with a mixture of bacterial characteristics. However they are quite distant from the bacteria and are referrred to by some as Cyanochloronta. All other forms belong as true eukaryota algae within the study of Botany, they have a nucleus enclosed within a membrane.The protoctists are defined by some as eukaryotic microorganisms with the exception of animals and plants and including fungi and algae, slime moulds and other obscure eukaryotes.There is still some disagreement on some of these matters.

Algae range from single-cell organisms to multicellular organisms, some with fairly complex differentiated form and (if marine) called seaweeds. All lack leaves, roots, flowers, seeds and other organ structures that characterize higher plants (vascular plants). They are distinguished from other protozoa in that they are photoautotrophic although this is not a hard and fast distinction as some groups contain members that are mixotrophic, deriving energy both from photosynthesis and uptake of organic carbon either by osmotrophy, myzotrophy, or phagotrophy. Some unicellular species rely entirely on external energy sources and have reduced or lost their photosynthetic apparatus.

All algae have photosynthetic machinery ultimately derived from the cyanobacteria, and so produce oxygen as a byproduct of photosynthesis, unlike non-cyanobacterial photosynthetic bacteria. It is estimated that algae produce about 73 to 87 percent of the net global production of oxygen - which is available to humans and other animals for respiration.

Algebra

Algebra is a branch of mathematics concerning the study of structure, relation and quantity. The name is derived from the treatise written by the Persian mathematician Muhammad bin Mūsā al-Khwārizmī titled (in Arabic كتاب الجبر والمقابلة ) Al-Kitab al-Jabr wa-l-Muqabala (meaning "The Compendious Book on Calculation by Completion and Balancing"), which provided symbolic operations for the systematic solution of linear and quadratic equations.

Together with geometry, analysis, combinatorics, and number theory, algebra is one of the main branches of mathematics. Elementary algebra is often part of the curriculum in secondary education and provides an introduction to the basic ideas of algebra, including effects of adding and multiplying numbers, the concept of variables, definition of polynomials, along with factorization and determining their roots.

Algebra is much broader than elementary algebra and can be generalized. In addition to working directly with numbers, algebra covers working with symbols, variables, and set elements. Addition and multiplication are viewed as general operations, and their precise definitions lead to structures such as groups, rings and fields.

Algeria

Algeria (Arabic: الجزائر, Al Jaza'ir IPA: , Berber: , Dzayer ), officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria, is the second largest country on the African continent. It is bordered by Tunisia in the northeast, Libya in the east, Niger in the southeast, Mali and Mauritania in the southwest, and Morocco as well as a few kilometers of the Western Sahara in the west.

Algeria is a member of the United Nations, African Union and of Arab League. It also contributed towards the end of the eighties to the creation of the Arab Maghreb Union. Constitutionally, Algeria is defined as an Islamic, Arab, and Amazigh (Berber) country.

Algerian Civil War

The Algerian Civil War was an armed conflict between the Algerian government and various Islamist rebel groups which began in 1991. It is estimated to have cost between 150,000 and 200,000 lives. More than 70 journalists were assassinated, either by security forces or by Islamists The conflict effectively ended with a government victory, following the surrender of the Islamic Salvation Army and the 2002 defeat of the Armed Islamic Group. However, low-level fighting still continues in some areas.

The conflict began in December 1991, when the government cancelled elections after the first round results had shown that the Islamic Salvation Front (FIS) party would win, citing fears that the FIS would end democracy. After the FIS was banned and thousands of its members arrested, Islamist guerrillas rapidly emerged and began an armed campaign against the government and its supporters. They formed themselves into several armed groups, principally the Islamic Armed Movement (MIA), based in the mountains, and the Armed Islamic Group (GIA), based in the towns. The guerrillas initially targeted the army and police, but some groups soon started attacking civilians. In 1994, as negotiations between the government and the FIS's imprisoned leadership reached their height, the GIA declared war on the FIS and its supporters, while the MIA and various smaller groups regrouped, becoming the FIS-loyalist Islamic Salvation Army (AIS).

Soon after, the talks collapsed, and new elections were held—won by the army's candidate, General Liamine Zéroual. Conflict between the GIA and AIS intensified. Over the next few years, the GIA began a series of massacres targeting entire neighborhoods or villages; some evidence also suggests the involvement of government forces. These massacres peaked in 1997 around the parliamentary elections, which were won by a newly created pro-Army party, the National Democratic Rally (RND). The AIS, under attack from both sides, opted for a unilateral ceasefire with the government in 1997, while the GIA was torn apart by splits as various subdivisions objected to its new massacre policy. In 1999, following the election of a new president, Abdelaziz Bouteflika, a new law gave amnesty to most guerrillas, motivating large numbers to "repent" (as it was termed) and return to normal life. The violence declined substantially, with effective victory for the government. The remnants of the GIA proper were hunted down over the next two years, and had practically disappeared by 2002.

A splinter group of the GIA, the Salafist Group for Preaching and Combat (GSPC), initially based on the fringes of Kabylie, formed in 1998 to dissociate itself from the massacres. However, despite its former repudiation of attacking non-combatants, they "...eventually returned to killing civilians" and in October of 2003, publicly endorsed Al-Qaeda. The GSPC rejected the amnesty and has continued to fight, although many individual members have surrendered. While as of 2006, its comparatively sparse activities - mainly in mountainous parts of the east - are the only remaining fighting in Algeria, a complete end to the violence is not yet in sight.

Algernon Charles Swinburne

Algernon Charles Swinburne (April 5, 1837 – April 10, 1909) was a Victorian era English poet. His poetry was highly controversial in its day, much of it containing recurring themes of sadomasochism, death-wish, lesbianism and irreligion.

Algiers

Algiers (Arabic: الجزائر, Standard Arabic: Al Jaza'ir IPA: , Algerian Arabic: Dzayer ( (From Berber pronunciation), Berber: , Ledzayer , French: Alger ) is the capital and largest city of Algeria and the second in North Africa behind Casablanca in Morocco. According to the 1998 census the population of the city proper was 1,519,570, for the urban area was 2,135,630, for the metropolitan area 3,518,083, and for Algiers Province as a whole 5,723,749 (2006). So the urban area of Greater Algiers is the largest one in the Maghreb.

Nicknamed El-Bahdja (البهجة) or Alger la Blanche ("Algiers the White") for the glistening white of its buildings as seen rising up from the sea, it is situated on the west side of a bay of the Mediterranean Sea. The city name is derived from the Arabic word al-jazā’ir, which translates as the islands, referring to the four islands which lay off the city's coast until becoming part of the mainland in 1525. Al-jazā’ir is itself a truncated form of the city's older name jazā’ir banī mazghannā, "the islands of (the tribe) Bani Mazghanna", used by early medieval geographers such as al-Idrisi and Yaqut al-Hamawi. Algiers is the only Algerian city with an English name different from its French name.

The modern part of the city is built on the level ground by the seashore and the old part, the ancient city of the deys, climbs the steep hill behind the modern town and is crowned by the casbah or citadel, 400 feet (122 m) above the sea. The casbah and the two quays form a triangle.

Algol

Algol (β Per / Beta Persei) is a bright star in the constellation Perseus. It is one of the best known eclipsing binaries, the first such star to be discovered, and also one of the first (non-nova) variable stars to be discovered. Algol is actually a three star system (Beta Persei A, B and C) in which the large and bright primary Beta Persei A is regularly eclipsed by the dimmer Beta Persei B. Thus, Algol's magnitude is usually near-constant at 2.1, but regularly dips to 3.4 during the several hour long eclipses which occur every 2 days, 20 hours and 49 minutes.

Algolagnia

Algolagnia (IPA pronunciation: æl gəˈlægniə) (from the Greek άλγος, algos, "pain", and λαγνεία, lagnia, "lust") is a sexual tendency which is defined by deriving sexual pleasure and stimulation from physical pain, particularly involving an erogenous zone.

Most current research suggests it has a fully biological basis, as it is proven that pain, just like sensorial pleasures such as sexual contact and sweet foods, causes the release of endorphins, the chemicals that induce pleasure. Furthermore, studies conducted indicate differences in how the brains of those with algolagnia interpret nerve input.

Algoma Central Railway

The Algoma Central Railway (AAR reporting marks AC, ACIS) was a railway in Northern Ontario that ran between Sault Ste. Marie and Hearst, with a branch line to Michipicoten. The area served by the railway is sparsely populated, with few roads. The railway is well known for its Agawa Canyon tour train. The railway was purchased by Wisconsin Central in 1995, which was in turn purchased by Canadian National Railway in 2001. It is now operated as part of CN's Eastern Division.

The Algoma Central Railway was initially owned by Francis H. Clergue, who required a railway to haul resources from the interior of the Algoma District to Clergue's industries in Sault Ste. Marie; specifically, to transport logs to his pulp mill and iron ore from the Helen Mine near Wawa to a proposed steel mill (which was later named Algoma Steel). The Algoma Central Railway was chartered on August 11, 1899. The railway's Dominion and provincial charters gave it authority to build north from Sault Ste. Marie to a junction with the Canadian Pacific Railway's main line, as well as a branch line to Michipicoten Harbour, on Lake Superior near Wawa.

In 1901 Clergue acquired the charter of the Ontario, Hudson Bay and Western Railway, who were intending to build a line between the CPR main line and Hudson Bay and then changed the name of the Algoma Central Railway to the Algoma Central and Hudson Bay Railway, anticipating a connection either to Moose Factory on James Bay, or to some point on Hudson Bay.

The Algoma Central fell victim to the bankruptcy of Clergue's Consolidated Lake Superior Corporation in 1903. At that time, the line reached 56 miles north of Sault Ste. Marie with a 20 mile segment running east from Michipicoten Harbour that did not yet connect with the main line. Construction was stopped, but was resumed in 1909 and the line was extended northward through to junctions with the Michipicoten Harbour branch (at Hawk Junction), the Canadian Pacific Railway (at Franz) and the Canadian Northern Railway (at Oba). In 1914 it finally reached Hearst, a town 296 miles north of Sault Ste. Marie that was a divisional point on the National Transcontinental Railway. By that point, Clergue's dream of building a railway to Hudson Bay or James Bay had long been abandoned, and the railway's northern terminus remained at Hearst, around 150 miles from James Bay. However, the phrase and Hudson Bay was not removed from the railway's name until June 30, 1965.

The Algoma Central was the first Canadian railway to fully dieselize, in 1952.

In the 1960s, the railway began to promote the natural beauty of the District of Algoma to tourists, especially the Agawa Canyon, a canyon around the Agawa River, 114 rail miles north of Sault Ste. Marie that is not accessible by road. The Algoma Central developed a tourist stopover here, which was a great success for the railway. Due to the popularity of the Agawa Canyon excursions, the Algoma Central would run the longest passenger trains in North America, often up to 20 to 24 cars long. During the 1970s and 1980s around 100,000 people per year would tour Agawa Canyon.

The railway had been in the shipping business since 1900, when it had purchased four steamships. Starting around the 1960s, the railway greatly expanded its marine operations and diversified into trucking, real estate, forestry, and mining operations. These operations were more profitable than the railway operations, and on April 30, 1990, as part of a corporate reorganization, the name of the company was changed to Algoma Central Corporation, and the Algoma Central Railway became a subsidiary of it. A few years later the Algoma Central Railway was put up for sale. On February 1, 1995, Wisconsin Central Ltd. purchased Algoma Central Railway Incorporated, operating the railway as a separate subsidiary, Wisconsin Central Canada Holdings. In 1998, Algoma Steel closed its iron ore mine in Wawa, and the branch line between Michipicoten Harbour and Hawk Junction was abandoned. Wisconsin Central Ltd. was acquired by Canadian National on October 9, 2001, whereupon the Algoma Central became part of CN's Eastern Division.

Algorithm

In mathematics, computing, linguistics, and related disciplines, an algorithm is a finite list of well-defined instructions for accomplishing some task that, given an initial state, will terminate in a defined end-state.

The concept of an algorithm originated as a means of recording procedures for solving mathematical problems such as finding the common divisor of two numbers or multiplying two numbers. A partial formalization of the concept began with attempts to solve the Entscheidungsproblem (the "decision problem") that David Hilbert posed in 1928. Subsequent formalizations were framed as attempts to define "effective calculability" (cf Kleene 1943:274) or "effective method" (cf Rosser 1939:225); those formalizations included the Gödel-Herbrand-Kleene recursive functions of 1930, 1934 and 1935, Alonzo Church's lambda calculus of 1936, Emil Post's "Formulation I" of 1936, and Alan Turing's Turing machines of 1936-7 and 1939.

Alhambra

The Alhambra (Arabic: الحمراء = Al-Ħamrā'; literally "the red") is a palace and fortress complex of the Moorish monarchs of Granada, in southern Spain (known as Al-Andalus when the fortress was constructed), occupying a hilly terrace on the south-eastern border of the city of Granada. It was the residence of the Muslim kings of Granada and their court, but is currently a museum exhibiting exquisite Islamic architecture. A Renaissance palace was also inserted by Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor.

Coordinates: 37°10′36.81″N, 3°35′23.95″W

Alchemy

In the history of science, alchemy (Arabic: الخيمياء, al-khimia) refers to both an early form of the investigation of nature and an early philosophical and spiritual discipline, both combining elements of chemistry, metallurgy, physics, medicine, astrology, semiotics, mysticism, spiritualism, and art all as parts of one greater force. Alchemy has been practiced in Mesopotamia, Ancient Egypt, Persia, India, and China, in Classical Greece and Rome, in the Muslim civilization, and then in Europe up to the 19th century—in a complex network of schools and philosophical systems spanning at least 2500 years.

Alchemy has always been closely connected with Hermeticism, a philosophical and spiritual system that traces its roots to Hermes Trismegistus, a syncretic Egyptian-Greek deity and legendary alchemist. These two disciplines influenced the birth of Rosicrucianism, an important esoteric movement of the seventeenth century. In the course of the early modern period, mainstream alchemy evolved into modern chemistry.

Today the discipline is of interest mainly to historians of science and philosophy, and for its mystic, esoteric, and artistic aspects. Nevertheless, alchemy was one of the main precursors of modern sciences, and many substances and processes of ancient alchemy continue to be the mainstay of modern chemical and metallurgical industries.

Although alchemy takes on many forms, in pop culture it is most often cited in stories, films, shows, and games as the process used to change lead (or other elements) into gold. Another form that alchemy takes is in the search for the Philosopher's Stone, in which to obtain the ability to transmute inexpensive metals such as lead into gold ("chrysopoeia" in the Greek language) or create an elixir that grants eternal life.

Alchemy (Fullmetal Alchemist)

In the anime/manga series Fullmetal Alchemist, alchemy is a technique used to transform one material into another (referred to as a transmutation). For most alchemists, performing a transmutation requires the use of a transmutation circle. In addition, all transmutations, except for those performed with the aid of the Philosopher's Stone, are subject to the Law of Equivalent Exchange.

Ali

‘Alī ibn Abī Tālib (Arabic: علي بن أﺑﻲ طالب)‎ Approximately: March 17, 599 - February 28, 661 was an early Islamic leader, the fourth and last Sunni caliph, and the first Shi'a Imam. Although he had limited political influence during his lifetime, he had vast influence on the developments of events during the time of the early Muslims as a military leader, close companion, cousin and son-in-law of Muhammad. Later, his stature as a foremost authority on the Qur'an, Fiqh (Islamic jurisprudence) and religious thought continues to influence Islamic history. He is among the most influential people in the history of Islam after Muhammad himself, being considered second only to Muhammad in divine guidance by Shi'a Muslims. He is revered by the Sunni Muslims as one of the Four Rightly Guided Caliphs and as a foremost authority in Tafsir (Quranic exegesis) and Islamic jurisprudence.

Alias (TV series)

Alias is an American "Spy-fi" television series created by J. J. Abrams which was broadcast on ABC from September 30, 2001 to May 22, 2006, spanning five seasons. It starred Jennifer Garner as Sydney Bristow, a CIA agent, who was usually seen wearing a colorful new disguise while undercover in some part of the world.

A major plotline of the series was the search for and recovery of artifacts created by Milo Rambaldi, a fictional Leonardo da Vinci-like inventor and Nostradamus-like prophet from the Renaissance period. This plot and some technologies used in the series pushed Alias into the genre of science fiction.

Alice Walker

Alice Malsenior Walker (born February 9, 1944) is an American author and feminist. She received the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1983 for her critically acclaimed novel The Color Purple.

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland is a work of children's literature by the English mathematician and author, the Reverend Charles Lutwidge Dodgson, written under the pseudonym Lewis Carroll. It tells the story of a girl named Alice who falls down a rabbit-hole into a fantasy realm populated by grotesque figures like talking playing cards and anthropomorphic creatures.

The tale is fraught with satirical allusions to Dodgson's friends (and enemies), and to the lessons that British schoolchildren were expected to memorize. The Wonderland described in the tale plays with logic in ways that have made the story of lasting popularity with adults as well as children. It is considered to be one of the most characteristic examples of the genre of literary nonsense.

The book is often referred to by the abbreviated title Alice in Wonderland. This alternate title was popularized by the numerous film and television adaptations of the story produced over the years. Some printings of this title contain both Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and its sequel Through the Looking-Glass, and What Alice Found There.

Alien (film)

Alien, a 1979 science fiction/horror film directed by Ridley Scott, became a cultural phenomenon. A single tagline promoted the script to studio executives: "Jaws in space". The title refers to the main antagonist, a highly aggressive extraterrestrial life-form which threatens the crew of the spaceship Nostromo after hatching from the body of one of the humans.

Alien became a critical and a box-office success, and spawned a Hollywood franchise of literature, video games, merchandise, and three official sequels. The film launched actress Sigourney Weaver's career. By featuring a strong heroine, the film itself also proved unconventional (by Hollywood standards) for the action genre. While the Alien (referred to in spin-offs as a "xenomorph") proved a popular aspect of the film, the story of Ellen Ripley became the thematic thread that ran through the series. Some observers believe that the film helped to popularize the body-horror subgenre.citation needed] Sequels to the film include: Aliens (1986), Alien³ (1992), and Alien: Resurrection (1997), and the crossover Alien vs. Predator (2004). Publicity for the film used a tagline which became famous: "In space no one can hear you scream."

Aliphatic compound

In chemistry, aliphatic compounds are organic compounds in which carbon atoms are joined together in straight or branched chains or in rings, that can be either saturated or unsaturated, but not aromatic. The simplest aliphatic compound is methane (CH₄). Aliphatics include not only the fatty acids and other derivatives of paraffin hydrocarbons (alkanes), but also unsaturated compounds, including the alkenes (such as ethylene) and the alkynes (such as acetylene). The most frequently found non-carbon atoms bound to the carbon chain include hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, sulfur, and various halides.

Most aliphatic compounds have exothermic combustion reactions, thus allowing hydrocarbons such as methane to fuel Bunsen burners in the laboratory, while acetylene is used as torch fuel in pipe fitting.

A-list

The list was created by veteran entertainment journalist James Ulmer, who developed a 100-point method to quantify a star's value to a film production, in terms of getting a film financed and the cameras rolling.

Tom Hanks and Tom Cruise have topped the latest ranking in 2006. Ulmer's latest Top Ten List from 2006 also includes:

James Ulmer calls his method "The Ulmer Scale". The A-list is part of a larger guide called The Hot List that has become an industry-standard guide in Hollywood. Lesser-known actors inhabit the B+, B, and C lists, and there is even a dreaded "Bottom of the Heap."

If an actor has 100 points on the Ulmer Scale for a given budget, a movie on that budgetary level can have 100% of its financing guaranteed, based solely on that actor's participation. Very few stars have such power in the "$25 million or over" range, and the ones nearest to it occupy the A-list. Ulmer has also developed a Hot List of directors.

Alistair Cooke

Alistair Cooke KBE (November 20, 1908 – March 30, 2004) was a British-American journalist and broadcaster.

Born in England, he became a naturalized American citizen, and lived in New York City with his family for most of his adult life.

Alkali

In chemistry, an alkali (from Arabic: Al-Qalyالقلي, القالي ) is a basic, ionic salt of an alkali metal or alkaline earth metal element. Alkalis are best known for being bases (compounds with pH greater than 7) that dissolve in water. The adjective alkaline is commonly used in English as a synonym for base, especially for soluble bases. This broad use of the term is likely because alkalis were the first bases known to obey the Arrhenius definition of a base and are still among the more common bases. Since Brønsted-Lowry acid-base theory, the term alkali in chemistry is normally restricted to those salts containing alkali and alkaline earth metal elements.

Alkali metal

The alkali metals are a series of elements comprising Group 1 (IUPAC style) of the periodic table: lithium (Li), sodium (Na), potassium (K), rubidium (Rb), caesium (Cs), and francium (Fr). (Note that hydrogen, although nominally also a member of Group 1, very rarely exhibits behavior comparable to the alkali metals). The alkali metals provide one of the best examples of group trends in properties in the periodic table, with well characterized homologous behavior down the group.

The alkali metals are all highly reactive and are rarely found in elemental form in nature. As a result, in the laboratory they are stored under mineral oil. They also tarnish easily and have low melting points and densities. Potassium and Rubidium are very weakly radioactive (harmless) due to the presence of long duration radioactive isotopes.

The alkali metals are silver-colored (caesium has a golden tinge), soft, low-density metals, which react readily with halogens to form ionic salts, and with water to form strongly alkaline (basic) hydroxides. These elements all have one electron in their outermost shell, so the energetically preferred state of achieving a filled electron shell is to lose one electron to form a singly charged positive ion.

Hydrogen, with a solitary electron, is usually placed at the top of Group 1 of the periodic table, but it is not considered an alkali metal; rather it exists naturally as a diatomic gas. Removal of its single electron requires considerably more energy than removal of the outer electron for the alkali metals. As in the halogens, only one additional electron is required to fill in the outermost shell of the hydrogen atom, so hydrogen can in some circumstances behave like a halogen, forming the negative hydride ion. Binary compounds of hydride with the alkali metals and some transition metals have been prepared. Under extremely high pressure, such as is found at the core of Jupiter, hydrogen does become metallic and behaves like an alkali metal; see metallic hydrogen.

Alkali metals have the lowest ionization potentials in their respective periods, as removing the single electron from the outermost shell gives them the stable inert gas configuration. But their second ionization potentials are very high, as removing an electron from a species having a noble gas configuration is very difficult.

Alkaline earth metal

The alkaline earth metals are a series of elements comprising Group 2 (IUPAC style) of the periodic table: beryllium (Be), magnesium (Mg), calcium (Ca), strontium (Sr), barium (Ba) and radium (Ra). The alkaline earth metals provide a good example of group trends in properties in the periodic table, with well characterised homologous behaviour down the group.

The alkaline earth metals are silvery colored, soft, low-density metals, which react readily with halogens to form ionic salts, and with water, though not as rapidly as the alkali metals, to form strongly alkaline (basic) hydroxides. For example, where sodium and potassium react with water at room temperature, magnesium reacts only with steam and calcium with hot water:

All the alkaline earth metals have two electrons in their outermost shell, so the energetically preferred state of achieving a filled electron shell is to lose two electrons to form doubly charged positive ions.

The alkaline earth metals are named after their oxides, the alkaline earths, whose old-fashioned names were beryllia, magnesia, lime, strontia and baryta. These oxides are basic (alkaline) when combined with water. "Earth" is an old term applied by early chemists to nonmetallic substances that are insoluble in water and resistant to heating--properties shared by these oxides. The realization that these earths were not elements but compounds is attributed to the chemist Antoine Lavoisier. In his Traité Élémentaire de Chimie (Elements of Chemistry) of 1789 he called them salt-forming earth elements. Later, he suggested that the alkaline earths might be metal oxides, but admitted that this was mere conjecture. In 1808, acting on Lavoisier's idea, Humphry Davy became the first to obtain samples of the metals by electrolysis of their molten earths.

Alka-Seltzer

Alka-Seltzer is a brand name owned by the German Bayer Corporation for a line of medications sold over the counter and taken by means of rapidly dissolving tablets that form an effervescent solution in water.

The original Alka-Seltzer is a remedy for headache, indigestion and hangover. Sodium Bicarbonate in Alka-Seltzer also makes it effective in treating mild blood Acidosis associated with allergy (see citation). Alka-Seltzer is a combination of aspirin (acetylsalicylic acid), baking soda (sodium bicarbonate) and citric acid, designed to treat pain and simultaneously neutralize excess stomach acid (the "Alka" being derived from the word "alkali"). It is provided in the form of large effervescent tablets, about 1 inch (25 mm) in diameter, which are dissolved (two at a time for the usual adult dosage) in a glass of water. As the tablets dissolve, the acid and bicarbonate react vigorously producing carbon dioxide gas (hence the "Seltzer"), which also produces enough agitation to allow the active ingredients to dissolve readily. The patient then ingests the resulting solution.

The product has been extensively advertised since the beginning of the mass media era in the U.S. It was formerly marketed as something of a cure-all; at one time its ads even suggested taking it for "the blahs." Subsequent regulation has taken into consideration that aspirin is a relatively powerful drug which is not tolerated by everyone and should not generally be taken at all by children or adolescents due to its linkage to Reye's syndrome; the product is no longer marketed in this fashion.

As the sale of the original product has declined, Bayer HealthCare (formerly Miles Laboratories) has put the famous brand onto newer products, such as the Alka-Seltzer Plus line of remedies for the common cold. Some of the newer products are now neither effervescent nor aspirin-based. This is because the years spent building the brand through advertising are still yielding benefits; many Americans still remember catch phrases from its ads such as "I can't believe I ate the whole thing!", "Mamma mia, that's-a spicy meat-a-ball!", "Try it, you'll like it!" and "Plop Plop Fizz Fizz, oh what a relief it is!"; a similar slogan in the United Kingdom referred to the "plunk plunk fizz-ics".

In late 2005, Alka Seltzer re-introduced the "I can't believe I ate the whole thing" ad with Peter Boyle, apparently "in character" as Frank Barone from the 1996–2005 TV sitcom Everybody Loves Raymond (his TV wife, Doris Roberts as Marie Barone, appeared alongside Boyle in some of these commercials).

On March 28, 2006, Alka-Seltzer celebrated its 75th anniversary with a world record setting buffet at the Las Vegas Hilton. Over 500 dishes were featured at the buffet. The event was hosted by Kathy Griffin and was featured in the final episode of the second season of the Bravo reality show Kathy Griffin: Life on The D-List. In late 2006, Griffin appeared in another re-introduced Alka-Seltzer ad, the "Try it, you'll like it!" spot.

Another well known icon was the "Speedy" character (an American advertising icon created by George Pal) who was either a little boy or an elf (opinions vary) whose body was primarily one Alka-Seltzer tablet while he wore another as a hat; he proclaimed Alka-Seltzer's virtues and sang the "Plop plop fizz fizz" song in his high, squeaky voice (provided by voice actor Dick Beals).

All Blacks

The All Blacks are New Zealand's national rugby union team. Rugby union is New Zealand's national sport, with the All Blacks a formidable power in international rugby, achieving a winning record against all nations.

The All Blacks compete annually with the Australian rugby team, the Wallabies, and the South African rugby team, the Springboks, in the Tri-Nations Series, in which they also contest the Bledisloe Cup with Australia. The All Blacks have been Tri-Nations champions seven times in the tournament's eleven-year history, and twice completed a Grand Slam (in 1978 and in 2005), and currently hold the Bledisloe Cup. They are the top-ranked team in the world, and the 2006 International Rugby Board (IRB) Team of the Year. Twelve former All Blacks have been inducted into the International Rugby Hall of Fame.

The team first competed internationally in 1893 against New South Wales, and played their first Test match in 1903, a victory against Australia. This was soon followed by a tour of the northern hemisphere in 1905, during which the team's only loss was to Wales in Cardiff.

The All Blacks completed their first series win over archrivals South Africa ("The Springboks") in New Zealand in 1956. A decade later, they achieved their longest winning streak by winning seventeen Tests between 1965 and 1970. The British and Irish Lions achieved their only series victory over the All Blacks in 1971, but seven years later the All Blacks completed their first Grand Slam (wins over England, Ireland, Scotland, and Wales on the same tour).

The 1981 Springbok tour to New Zealand caused large-scale civil unrest due to protests over South Africa's apartheid policy. In 1987 New Zealand hosted and won the inaugural Rugby World Cup. New Zealand toured post-apartheid South Africa in 1996, and achieved their first series win on South African soil.

Early New Zealand national rugby uniforms consisted of a black jersey with a silver fern and white knickerbockers. By their 1905 tour the All Blacks were wearing all black, except for the silver fern, and their All Black name dates from this time. The All Blacks traditionally perform a haka (Māori posture dance) before each match. Traditionally, the haka performed is Te Rauparaha's Ka Mate, though since 2005, Kapa o Pango, a modified version of the 1924 All Blacks haka, Kia Whaka-ngawari, has occasionally been performed.

All You Need Is Love (The JAMs song)

"All You Need Is Love" is a song by The Justified Ancients of Mu Mu, independently released as their debut single on 9 March 1987. A politically topical song concerning the UK media's AIDS furore, the track was initially given a 12" white label release because of its plagiaristic sampling of other records.

The artistic attitude of "All You Need Is Love" epitomised that of The JAMs' subsequent recordings: plagiarising popular music by taking extensive samples of other artists' work, and juxtaposing these with each other, adding beatbox rhythms and Bill Drummond's Scottish-accented raps, poems and narrations. The JAMs' promotional tactics were similarly unconventional, including the use of promotional graffiti, a guerrilla communication method which would be employed regularly by Drummond and Cauty throughout their career.

All your base are belong to us

"All your base are belong to us" (often shortened to "All Your Base", AYBABTU or simply AYB) is an Engrish phrase that sparked an Internet phenomenon in 2001 and 2002, with the spread of flash animation that ubiquitously depicted the slogan. The text is taken from the opening cut scene of the English version of the 1989 Japanese video game Zero Wing by Toaplan. Its brief but intense popularity derived in part from its poor translation into English and partly from its near-accidental adoption by a group of Internet humorists. While the wildfire has died down, "All Your Base" is still a well-known reference among gamers.

Alla Nazimova

Alla Nazimova (Russian: Алла Назимова), born Mariam Edez Adelaida Leventon (Мириам Эдес Аделаида Левентон; May 22, 1879 – July 14, 1945) was a Russian/American theater and film actress, scriptwriter, and producer. She is often known as just Nazimova, and was also known as Alia Nasimoff.

Allah

Allah (Arabic: اللّٰه, Allāh) is the standard Arabic word for "God". The term is best known in the West for its use by Muslims as a reference to God. Arabic-speakers of all faiths, including Christians and Jews, use the word "Allah" to mean "God". The Muslim and Christian Arabs of today have no other word for 'God' than 'Allah'. In pre-Islamic Arabia, Allah was used by pagan Meccans as a reference to the creator-god, possibly the supreme deity.

In Islam, Allah is the only deity, transcendent creator of the universe, and the judge of humankind. Some Islamic scholars believe that the term "Allāh" should not be translated, arguing that "Allāh" as used in Islam is a special and glorified term whose use should be preserved, while God can also be used in reference to deities worshiped by polytheists.

According to F. E. Peters, "The Qur'an insists, Muslims believe, and historians affirm that Muhammad and his followers worship the same God as the Jews.Qur'an 29:46] The Quran's Allah is the same Creator God who covenanted with Abraham". Peters states that the Qur'an portrays Allah as both more powerful and more remote than Yahweh, and as a universal deity, unlike Yahweh who closely follows Israelites.

According to the tradition of Islam there are more than 99 Names of God (al-asma al-husna lit. meaning: "The best names") each of which evoke a distinct characteristic of Allah. The most famous and most frequent of these names are "the Merciful" (al-rahman) and "the Compassionate" (al-rahim).

Allegiance (computer game)

Allegiance is an MMOG providing a mix of real-time strategy and player piloted space combat. Initially developed by Microsoft Research, the game was later released under a shared source license and is now maintained/developed by volunteers. Gameplay relies heavily on good teamwork and forward thinking. Players can fly a variety of craft, striving to destroy enemy team installations and protecting their own. Resource collection figures significantly in the game, since new technology can be expensive and money is usually scarce.

It was developed as an experiment by a team of programmers who had never worked in game design before. Allegiance was released in March of 2000 , after an extended beta test period. Allegiance is based on Alto Trek (1972), which was also written by Rick Rashid.

Despite its exhilarating fast-paced teamwork-oriented gameplay and sharp 3D graphics, the game never achieved commercial success (perhaps partly due to its reliance on Microsoft's less-than-reliable Microsoft Zone, the lack of advertising or both). It did manage to build a dedicated following, who have stayed with the game and continued its development despite multiple setbacks (Microsoft pulling support, player cheating, etc)

Due to the lack of commercial success, the official servers closed in 2002 . As a consequence of this, the original retail version of the game is largely unfunctional. However, the Allegiance community has been tireless and largely successful in its attempts to make the game free for all to play. The updated version of the game client is downloadable for free from the FreeAllegiance.org web site and many servers are currently hosted by members of the community.

In February, 2004, Allegiance's original development team released the source code for Allegiance, signaling yet another chapter in Allegiance's unique history. Developers have since released two minor updates to the game engine, with the first major one coming in a few weeks, while enthusists develop/refine new mods for gameplay.

Allegory

An allegory (from Greek αλλος, , "other", and αγορευειν, agoreuein, "to speak in public") is a figurative mode of representation conveying a meaning other than the literal.

Allegory is generally treated as a figure of rhetoric, but an allegory does not have to be expressed in language: it may be addressed to the eye, and is often found in realistic painting, sculpture or some other form of mimetic, or representative art.

The etymological meaning of the word is broader than the common use of the word. Though it is similar to other rhetorical comparisons, an allegory is sustained longer and more fully in its details than a metaphor, and appeals to imagination, while an analogy appeals to reason or logic. The fable or parable is a short allegory with one definite moral.

Since meaningful stories are nearly always applicable to larger issues, allegories may be read into many stories, sometimes distorting their author's overt meaning. For instance, many people have suggested that The Lord of the Rings was an allegory for the World Wars, while in fact it was well under way before the outbreak of World War II and J.R.R. Tolkien's emphatic statement in the introduction to the American edition "It is neither allegorical nor topical....I cordially dislike allegory in all its manifestations, and always have done so since I grew old and wary enough to detect its presence."

Northrop Frye discussed what he termed a "continuum of allegory", ranging from what he termed the "naive allegory" of The Faerie Queen, to the more private allegories of modern paradox literature. In this perspective, the characters in a "naive" allegory are not fully three-dimensional, for each aspect of their individual personalities and the events that befall them embodies some moral quality or other abstraction; the allegory has been selected first, and the details merely flesh it out.

Allegory in the Middle Ages

Allegory in the Middle Ages was a vital element in the synthesis of Biblical and Classical traditions into what would become recognizable as Medieval culture. People of the Middle Ages consciously drew from the cultural legacies of the ancient world in shaping their institutions and ideas, and so allegory in Medieval literature and Medieval art was a prime mover for the synthesis and transformational continuity between the ancient world and the "new" Christian world. People of the Middle Ages did not see the same break between themselves and their classical forbears that modern observers see; rather, they saw continuity with themselves and the ancient world, using allegory as a synthesizing agent, bringing together a whole image.

Allele

An allele (pronounced al-eel or al-e-ul) is any one of a number of viable DNA codings that occupies a given locus (position) on a chromosome. Usually alleles are DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) sequences that code for a gene, but sometimes the term is used to refer to a non-gene sequence. An individual's genotype for that gene is the set of alleles it happens to possess. In a diploid organism, one that has two copies of each chromosome, two alleles make up the individual's genotype. The word came from Greek αλληλος = "each other".

An example is the gene for blossom colour in many species of flower—a single gene controls the colour of the petals, but there may be several different versions (or alleles) of the gene. One version might result in red petals, while another might result in white petals. The resulting colour of an individual flower will depend on which two alleles it possesses for the gene and how the two interact.

Allergy

An allergy is an abnormal, acquired sensitivity to a given substance, including pollen, drugs, or numerous environmental triggers. The term was coined by the Viennese pediatrician Clemens von Pirquet in 1906 after noting that some of his patients were hypersensitive to normally innocuous entities such as dust, pollen, or certain foods. Pirquet called this phenomenon "allergy", from the Greek words allos meaning "other" and ergon meaning "work".

Type I hypersensitivity is characterised by excessive activation of mast cells and basophils by IgE, resulting in a systemic inflammatory response that can result in symptoms as benign as a runny nose, to life-threatening anaphylactic shock and death.

Knowing any allergies that a patient may have is important in a clinical setting. Full allergy history is taken down when obtaining a medical history of a patient. This ensures that no contradictory treatments are prescribed to the danger of the patient. In the United States physicians who hold certification by the American Board of Allergy and Immunology (ABAI) have successfully completed an accredited educational program and an evaluation process, including a secure, proctored examination to demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and experience to the provision of patient care in allergy and immunology

In the United States, an allergist-immunologist is a physician specially trained to manage and treat asthma and the other allergic diseases. Becoming an allergist-immunologist requires completion of at least nine years of training. After completing medical school and graduating with a medical degree, a physician will then undergo three years of training in internal medicine (to become an internist) or pediatrics (to become a pediatrician). Once physicians have finished training in one of these specialties, they must pass the exam of either the American Board of Pediatrics (ABP) or the American Board of Internal Medicine (ABIM). Internists or pediatricians who wish to focus on the sub-specialty of allergy-immunology then complete at least an additional two years of study, called a fellowship, in an allergy-immunology training program. Allergist-immunologists who are listed as ABAI-certified have successfully passed the certifying examination of the American Board of Allergy and Immunology (ABAI), following their fellowship.

Alliance (Warcraft)

In World of Warcraft the playable races of the Alliance include Humans of Stormwind, Dwarves of Ironforge, Gnomes of Gnomeregan, and Night Elves of Teldrassil. The Draenei of Exodar became members of the Alliance in the first expansion, World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade.

Although only five playable alliance factions are present in World of Warcraft and its expansion, the Alliance encompasses a number of more factions or nations in the Warcraft universe. Many of them are represented by NPCs in World of Warcraft who are friendly to alliance players and hostile to horde players. They include the besieged nation of Stromgarde, the island nation of Kul Tiras, the children of Cenarius, the Kirin Tor, and the remaining human settlements of Lordaeron. There are at least two factions that had historical ties with the Alliance and are still hostile the Horde, but are not part of the current alliance. They are the Wildhammer Dwarves and the nation of Gilneas. The remaining High Elves are allied with the Alliance in World of Warcraft, and are repulsed by their Blood Elf brethren who joined the Horde in Burning Crusade.

Alligator

Alligator mississippiensis
Alligator sinensis

An alligator is a crocodilian in the genus Alligator of the family Alligatoridae. The name alligator is an anglicized form of the Spanish el lagarto ("the lizard"), the name by which early Spanish explorers and settlers in Florida called the alligator. There are two living alligator species: the American Alligator (Alligator mississippiensis) and the Chinese Alligator (Alligator sinensis).

Alliteration

Common examples of alliterations include the tongue-twisters "Round and round the rugged rock the ragged rascal ran," and "Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers."

Alliteration can serve as a mnemonic device. As alliterative phrases are often memorable, they are frequently used in news headlines, corporate business names, literary titles, advertising, buzzwords, nursery rhymes, poetry, and tongue twisters. In speech, an alliteration can be used for comic effect.

Peter Piper picked a peck
of pickled peppers.
A peck of pickled peppers,
Peter Piper picked
If Peter Piper picked a peck
of pickled peppers,
Where's the peck
of pickled peppers Peter Piper picked?

The foX and his boX hoCKs soCKs for his watCH.

(this last line is Assonance)

Literary examples:
Double alliteration (with echo in white) as found in Marciano Guerrero's Gothic thriller The Poison Pill

And tell the pleasant Prince this mock of his / Hath turned his balls to gun stones
- Act 1 Scene Two of Henry V by William Shakespeare Here the alliterative use of the letter 'p' emphasises Henry's sarcasm.

Alliterative verse

In prosody, alliterative verse is a form of verse that uses alliteration as the principal structuring device to unify lines of poetry, as opposed to other devices such as rhyme.

The most intensively studied traditions of alliterative verse are those found in the oldest literature of many Germanic languages. Alliterative verse, in various forms, is found widely in the literary traditions of the early Germanic languages. The Old English epic Beowulf, as well as most other Old English poetry, the Old High German Muspilli, the Old Saxon Heliand, and the Old Norse Poetic Edda all use alliterative verse.

Alliterative verse can be found in many other languages as well, although rarely with the systematic rigor of Germanic forms. The Finnish Kalevala and the Estonian Kalevipoeg both use alliterative forms derived from folk tradition. Traditional Turkic verse, for example that of the Uyghur, is also alliterative.

Allosaurus

Allosaurus (IPA pronunciation: /ˌæləˈsɔɹəs/) is a genus of large (up to 9.7 m long) theropod dinosaurs. The name Allosaurus comes from the Greek allos/αλλος, meaning 'strange' or 'different' and saurus/σαυρος, meaning 'lizard' or 'reptile'. It was named 'different lizard' because its vertebrae were different from those of other dinosaurs known at the time of its discovery. The genus contains three described species, the best known of which is A. fragilis. Several other dinosaurs originally classified as Allosaurus are now in separate genera.

Allosaurus was a bipedal carnivorous dinosaur with a large skull balanced by a long, heavy tail. Relative to the large and powerful hindlimbs, its three fingered forelimbs were small. It was the most common large predator in the Morrison Formation of what is now North America, 155 to 145 million years ago, in the late Jurassic period. It shared the landscape with several genera of giant sauropods such as Apatosaurus, Diplodocus and Camarasaurus as well as other herbivores such as Stegosaurus and Camptosaurus, all of which may have been potential prey.

Allure (group)

Allure is a New York-based female R&B quartet that formed in the early 1990s. The group consists of members Linnie Belcher, Alia Davis, Akissa Mendez, and Lalisha McLean. They were the first group to be signed to Mariah Carey's Crave Records. They released their debut self-titled album in 1997. The album featured the gold-selling single "Head Over Heels" (featuring Nas), "No Question" (featuring LL Cool J), "Last Chance", and 1997's platinum-selling "All Cried Out" (featuring 112), a cover of the Lisa Lisa and Cult Jam hit, which is their biggest hit to date.

After being released off Mariah Carey's label, Allure signed with MCA Records in 2000, eventually issuing their second album "Sunny Days" in 2001. That album went unnoticed due to an almost invisible promotion campaign, yielding two singles: "Enjoy Yourself" (of which the remix featuring former collaborator LL Cool J), and "Kool Wit Me" which was produced by Allstar. Soon after, member Linnie Belcher left the group, and they signed with NBA player Ron Artest's newly formed label, Truwarier Records, distributed by Lightyear Entertainment.

Late 2004 saw the release of their third album, aptly titled "Chapter III", in reference to their lineup change and this being their third album. It didn't become a big hit, seeing how it was on an independent label, although it did receive considerable press due to Ron Artest's suspension from the NBA that year. Two singles were released as well, 2004's "Uh Oh" featuring reggae artist Elephant Man, and 2005's "I Think I'm In Love" featuring rapper Joe Budden.

In late 2005 it was announced that Allure were finally returning to the UK after a 7 year absence from the charts. They had two hits in the UK, "Head Over Heels" which reached #18 and "All Cried Out" which managed a #12 peak. The band have been released through Truwarier Record's license deal with UK independent label NiceTunes and release their new single, a double 'a' side of "Hate 2 Luv U" and "Uh Oh" featuring Elephant Man on 6th February 2006. Their album "Chapter III" will be released in the UK for the first time on 30th January 2006 and will contain a UK exclusive track "You Are The Man" as well as a bonus remix of "Hate 2 Luv U".

Almaty

Almaty (Kazakh: Алматы; formerly known as Alma-Ata, also Vernyj, Vyernyi (Верный) in Imperial Russia) is the largest city in Kazakhstan, with a population of 1,226,000 (as of 1 August 2005) , which represents 8% of the population of the country (unofficial sources claim 2,000,900 and 13% correspondingly ). It was the capital of Kazakhstan (and its predecessor, the Kazakh SSR) from 1929 to 1998. Despite losing its status as the capital, Almaty remains the major commercial center of Kazakhstan.

Almaty is 40 - 50% ethnically Russian. Until the mid-1980s, Kazakhs represented only 12 per cent of Almaty's population, but that figure increased nearly twofold by the end of the decade. According to unofficial statistics, Kazakhs now account for over half of Almaty's two million residents.

Almond

The almond (Prunus dulcis, syn. Prunus amygdalus, or Amygdalus communis) is a small deciduous tree belonging to the subfamily Prunoideae of the family Rosaceae; an almond is also the fruit of this tree. The plant is classified with the peach in the subgenus Amygdalus within Prunus, distinguished from the other subgenera by the corrugated seed shell.

The sweet fleshy outer covering of other members of Prunus, such as the plum and cherry, is replaced by a leathery coat called the hull, which contains inside a hard shell the edible kernel, commonly called a nut in culinary terms. However, in botanical terms, an almond is not a true nut. In botanical parlance, the reticulated hard stony shell is called an endocarp, and the fruit, or exocarp, is a drupe, having a downy outer coat. The tree is a native of southwest Asia. The domesticated form can ripen fruit as far north as the British Isles. It is a small tree, growing to 4–9 m tall. The leaves are lanceolate, 6–12 cm long, and serrated at the edges. The flowers are white or pale pink, 3–5 cm diameter with five petals, produced before the leaves in early spring.

Aloe

Aloe, also written Aloë, is a genus containing about four hundred species of flowering succulent plants.

The genus is native to Africa and is common in South Africa's Cape Province and the mountains of tropical Africa, and neighbouring areas such as Madagascar, the Arabian peninsula and the islands off Africa.

The APG II system (2003) placed the genus in the family Asphodelaceae. In the past it has also been assigned to families Aloaceae and Liliaceae. Members of the closely allied genera Gasteria, Haworthia and Kniphofia which have a similar mode of growth, are also popularly known as aloes. Note that the plant sometimes called "American aloe" (Agave americana), belongs to Agavaceae, a different family.

Most Aloes have a rosette of large, thick, fleshy leaves. The leaves are often lance-shaped with a sharp apex and a spiny margin. Aloe flowers are tubular, frequently yellow, orange or red and are borne on densely clustered, simple or branched leafless stems.

Many species of Aloe are seemingly stemless, with the rosette growing directly at ground level; other varieties may have a branched or un-branched stem from which the fleshy leaves spring. They vary in colour from grey to bright green and are sometimes striped or mottled.

Aloe vera

Aloe vera (syn. A. barbadensis Mill., A. vulgaris Lam.) is a species of Aloe, native to northern Africa. It is a stemless or very short-stemmed succulent plant growing to 80-100 cm tall, spreading by offsets and root sprouts. The leaves are lanceolate, thick and fleshy, green to grey-green, with a serrated margin. The flowers are produced on a spike up to 90 cm tall, each flower pendulous, with a yellow tubular corolla 2-3 cm long.

Alopecia areata

Alopecia areata is a form of hair loss from areas of the body, usually from the scalp. Because it causes bald spots on the head, especially in the first stages, it is sometimes called spot baldness. In 1–2% of cases, the condition can spread to the entire scalp (Alopecia totalis) or to the entire epidermis (Alopecia universalis).

Alpaca

The Alpaca (Vicugna pacos) is a domesticated species of South American camelid developed from the wild alpacas. It resembles a sheep in appearance, but is larger and has a long erect neck as well as coming in many colors, whereas sheep are generally bred to be white.

Alpacas are kept in herds that graze on the level heights of the Andes of Ecuador, southern Peru, northern Bolivia, and northern Chile at an altitude of 3500 to 5000 meters above sea-level, throughout the year.citation needed] Alpacas are considerably smaller than llamas, and unlike them are not used as beasts of burden but are valued only for their fiber. Alpacas only have fleece fibers, not woolen fibers, used for making knitted and woven items much as sheeps wool is. These items include: blankets, sweaters, hats, gloves, scarves, a wide variety of textiles and ponchos in South America, and sweaters, socks and coats in other parts of the world. The fiber comes in more than 52 natural colors as classified in Peru, 12 as classified in Australia and 22 as classified in America.citation needed] Alpacas and llamas differ in that llamas have banana shaped ears and long tails and alpacas have straight ears and stubby tails. Aside from these differences llamas are on average 1-2 feet taller and proportionally bigger than alpacas.

In the textile industry, "alpaca" primarily refers to the hair of Peruvian alpaca, but more broadly it refers to a style of fabric originally made from alpaca hair but now often made from similar fibers, such as mohair, Icelandic sheep wool, or even high-quality English wool.citation needed] In trade, distinctions are made between alpacas and the several styles of mohair and luster.

Alpha (biology)

In social animals, the alpha male or alpha female is the individual in the community whom the others follow and defer to. Where one male and one female fulfill this role, they are referred to as the alpha pair. In some groups, the alpha males and females are overrepresented in the genetics of a population if they are the only ones who breed successfully.

Chimpanzees show deference to the alpha of the community by ritualised gestures such as bowing, allowing the alpha to walk first in a procession, or standing aside when the alpha challenges. Canines also show deference to the alpha pair in their pack, by allowing them to be the first to eat and, usually, the only pair to mate; wolves are a good example of this. The status of the alpha is generally achieved by means of superior physical prowess; however, in certain highly social species such as the bonobo, a contender can use more indirect methods, such as political alliances, to oust the ruling alpha and take his/her place.

In humans, the expression refers to a man who is powerful or high on the social ladder, similar to hegemonic masculinity. In Western cultures, the term is usually pejorative and describes a man who is overtly or affectedly masculine to the point of rejecting any affront to his ascribed status.

In the power hierarchy of the animal group, two other roles also are defined and named. First, the Beta male, which is the contender, subservient to the alpha male, but only after testing. The betas act as second-in-command and can either be dethroned alpha males or future alphas if they persist in challenging the regnant alpha male. The term Omega male (ω-male) is an antonym often used in a deprecating or self-deprecating manner to refer to males at the bottom of the social hierarchy. An omega male will be subservient to both the alpha and the beta males.

Alpha Centauri

Alpha Centauri (α Cen / α Centauri, also known as Rigil Kentaurus), is the brightest star system in the southern constellation of Centaurus. Although it appears as a single point to the naked eye, Alpha Centauri is actually a system of three stars, one of which is the fourth brightest star in the night sky. Alpha Centauri is famous in the Southern Hemisphere as the outermost "pointer" to the Southern Cross, but it is too far south to be visible in most of the northern hemisphere. The two brightest components of the system are too close to be resolved as separate stars by the naked eye and so are perceived as a single source of light with a total visual magnitude of about −0.27 (brighter than the third brightest star in the night sky, Arcturus).

Alpha Centauri is the closest star system to our own solar system at 4.37 light-years distant (about 41.5 trillion km, 25.8 trillion miles or 277,600 AU). Proxima Centauri, usually regarded as part of the system, is the closest star at 4.22 light-years distant. Alpha Centauri's relative proximity makes it a logical choice as "first port of call" in speculative fiction about interstellar travel, which predicts eventual human exploration, and even the discovery and colonization of planetary systems. These themes are common to countless works of science fiction and video games.

Alphabet

An alphabet is a complete standardized set of letters — basic written symbols — each of which roughly represents a phoneme of a spoken language, either as it exists now or as it may have been in the past. There are other systems of writing such as logosyllabic writing, in which each symbol represents a morpheme, or word or syllable or places the word within a category, and syllabaries, in which each symbol represents a syllable.

The etymology of the word "alphabet" itself comes to Middle English from the Late Latin Alphabetum which in turn originates from the Ancient Greek Alphabetos, from alpha and beta, the first two letters of the Greek alphabet. There are dozens of alphabets in use today. Most of them are 'linear', which means that they are made up of lines. Notable exceptions are Braille, manual alphabets, and Morse code.

Alprazolam

Alprazolam, also known under the trade-names Xanax and Niravam, is a short-acting drug in the benzodiazepine class used to treat severe anxiety disorders and as an adjunctive treatment for anxiety associated with depression.

Alprazolam was first synthesized by Upjohn (now a part of Pfizer) and is marketed under various trade names. Its patent (#3,987,052) was filed on October 29, 1969, granted on October 19, 1976 and expired in September 1993.

Alps

The Alps (German: Alpen; Italian: Alpi; French: Alpes; Slovenian: Alpe) is the name for one of the great mountain range systems of Europe, stretching from Austria and Slovenia in the east, through Italy, Switzerland, Liechtenstein and Germany to France in the west. The word "Alps" was taken via French from Latin Alpes (meaning "the Alps"), which may be influenced by the Latin words albus (white) or altus (high) or more likely a Latin rendering of a Celtic or Ligurian original.

The highest mountain in the Alps is Mont Blanc, at 4,808 metres (15,774 ft), on the French-Italian border. All the main peaks of the Alps can be found in the list of mountains of the Alps and list of Alpine peaks by prominence.

Al-Qaeda

Al-Qaeda (also al-Qaida or al-Qa'ida or al-Qa'idah) (Arabic: القاعدة‎ al-qāʕida, translation: The Base) is an international alliance of militant Sunni jihadist organizations. Its roots can be traced back to Osama bin Laden and others around the time of the Soviet withdrawal from Afghanistan in 1989. Al-Qaeda's objectives include the end of foreign influence in Muslim countries and the creation of a new Islamic caliphate.

Al-Qaeda has been labeled a terrorist organization by the United Nations Security Council, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, the European Union, the United States, Australia, Canada, Israel, Japan, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Russia, Sweden, and Switzerland. Its affiliates have executed attacks against targets in various countries, the most prominent being the September 11, 2001 attacks in New York and Washington, D.C. Following the September 11 attacks, the United States government launched a broad military and intelligence campaign known as the War on Terrorism, with the stated aim of dismantling al-Qaeda and killing or capturing its operatives.

Due to its structure of semi-autonomous cells, al-Qaeda's size and degree of responsibility for particular attacks are difficult to establish. However, this may also be because its size and degree are exaggerated. Although the governments opposed to al-Qaeda claim that it has worldwide reach, other analysts have suggested that those governments, as well as Osama bin Laden himself, exaggerate al-Qaeda's significance in Islamist terrorism. The neologism "al-Qaedaism" is applied to the wider context of those who independently conduct similar acts through political sympathy to al-Qaeda ideology or methods or the copycat effect.

Alsace

Alsace (French: Alsace, pronounced /alzas/; Alsatian and German: Elsass, pre-1996 German: Elsaß) is one of the 26 regions of France, located on the eastern border of France, on the west bank of the Upper Rhine, adjacent to Germany and Switzerland. Its capital and largest city is Strasbourg. Alsace, previously a part of the Holy Roman Empire, changed hands between France and Germany several times between the 17th and 20th centuries.

In the course of the 17th century, the entirety of Alsace was gradually annexed under King Louis XIV of France and made one of the provinces of France. Alsace is frequently (although now informally) mentioned in conjunction with Lorraine, because possession of these two régions (as Alsace-Lorraine) has been often contested in 19th and 20th century history, following a division among the successors of Charlemagne in the 9th century.

Although it was a German dialect-speaking region for several periods in its history, all Alsatians today speak French. About 25% of the local population is fluent in Alsatian (as a mother tongue) or German (as a second language).

Altar

An altar is any structure upon which sacrifices or other offerings are offered for religious purposes, or some other sacred place where ceremonies take place. Altars are usually found in shrines, temples, and other sacred places. They occur in many cultures worldwide, particularly in the religions of Christianity, Buddhism, Hinduism, Shinto, Taoism (also known as Daoism), and Neopaganism. They were also found in other ancient religions.

Alter ego

An alter ego (Latin, "the other I") is a second self, a second personality or persona within a person. The term is commonly used in literature analysis and comparison to describe characters who are psychologically identical.

The term and concept also frequently appear in popular fiction, such as in comic books, for the secret identity of a superhero, vigilante, or crimefighter. Related concepts include avatar, doppelgänger, impersonator, and split personality. It was created in the early 1800's when people first discovered schizophrenia.

Alternating current

An alternating current (AC) is an electrical current whose magnitude and direction vary cyclically, as opposed to direct current, whose direction remains constant. The usual waveform of an AC power circuit is a sine wave, as this results in the most efficient transmission of energy. However in certain applications different waveforms are used, such as triangular or square waves.

Used generically, AC refers to the form in which electricity is delivered to businesses and residences. However, audio and radio signals carried on electrical wire are also examples of alternating current. In these applications, an important goal is often the recovery of information encoded (or modulated) onto the AC signal.

Alternation of generations

Alternation of generations is a reproductive cycle of certain plants, fungi, and protists. The term is a bit confusing for people familiar only with the life cycle of a typical animal. A more understandable name would be "alternation of phases of a single generation" because we usually consider a generation of a species to encompass one complete life cycle. The life cycle of organisms with "alternation of generations" is characterized by each phase consisting of one of two separate, free-living organisms: a gametophyte (thallus (tissue) or plant), which is genetically haploid, and a sporophyte (thallus or plant), which is genetically diploid.

A haploid plant of the gametophyte generation produces gametes by mitosis. Two gametes (originating from different organisms of the same species or from the same organism) combine to produce a zygote, which develops into a diploid plant of the sporophyte generation. This sporophyte produces spores by meiosis, which germinate and develop into a gametophyte of the next generation. This cycle, from gametophyte to gametophyte, is the way in which plants and many algae undergo sexual reproduction.

Alternative medicine

Alternative medicine is defined as "any of various systems of healing or treating disease (as chiropractic, homeopathy, or faith healing) not included in the traditional medical curricula taught in the United States and Britain". Complementary medicine is defined as "any of the practices (as acupuncture) of alternative medicine accepted and utilized by mainstream medical practitioners". The term complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) is an umbrella term for both branches. CAM includes practices that incorporate spiritual, metaphysical, or religious underpinnings; non-evidence based practices, non-European medical traditions, or newly developed approaches to healing.

The list of therapies included under CAM changes gradually. If and when an approach regarded as "unproven therapy" is proven to be safe and effective, it may be adopted into conventional health care and over time may cease to be considered "alternative".

Alternative rock

Alternative rock (also called alternative music or simply alternative; known primarily in the UK as indie) is a genre of rock music that emerged in the 1980s and became widely popular in the 1990s. The term "alternative" was coined in the 1980s to describe punk rock-inspired bands on independent record labels that did not fit into the mainstream genres of the time. As a musical genre, alternative rock consists of various subgenres that have emerged from the indie music scene since the 1980s, such as grunge, Britpop, gothic rock, and indie pop. These genres are unified by their collective debt to the style and/or ethos of punk, which laid the groundwork for alternative music in the 1970s.

Though the genre is considered to be rock, some of its subgenres are influenced by folk music, reggae, electronic music and jazz among other genres. At times alternative rock has been used as a catch-all phrase for rock music from underground artists in the 1980s, all music descended from punk rock (including punk itself, New Wave, and post-punk), and, ironically, for rock music in general in the 1990s and 2000s.

Alternator

An alternator is an electromechanical device that converts mechanical energy to alternating current electrical energy. Most alternators use a rotating magnetic field but linear alternators are occasionally used. In principle, any AC generator can be called an alternator, but usually the word refers to small rotating machines driven by automotive and other internal combustion engines.

Altitude sickness

Altitude sickness, also known as acute mountain sickness (AMS) or altitude illness is a pathological condition that is caused by acute exposure to low air pressure (usually outdoors on high altitudes). It commonly occurs above 2,400 metres (approximately 8,000 feet). Acute mountain sickness can progress to high altitude pulmonary edema (HAPE) or high altitude cerebral edema (HACE).

Another rarer type of altitude sickness caused by prolonged exposure to high altitude is chronic mountain sickness, also known as Monge's disease.

Alto

In music, an alto or contralto is a singer with a vocal range somewhere between a tenor and a mezzo-soprano. The term is used to refer to the lowest female singing voice, or to a kind of male singing voice utilizing falsetto called a countertenor. Alto pieces normally span between G below middle C to the E a tenth above middle C (i.e. G3-E5). At the bottom of their range, male altos sound almost like tenors. Some altos have even larger ranges; from the C below middle C to the C two octaves above (C3-C6 if middle C is C4), but like all singers, their vocal type is defined mostly by their "vocal center" and not by their range (a soprano for instance could technically possess the lower range of an alto, but would not be comfortable singing it). In four part choral harmony, the alto is the second highest voice. Alto pieces were originally written in the alto clef, but now use the treble clef.

Although both men and women may have voices in the alto range, the word is usually used to mean a female singer. The word "contralto" can be used to refer specifically to a female alto singer, versus alto male singers or instruments or clefs. However, choirs singing early music frequently include adult male altos, also called countertenors. If a singer is a man and a natural tenor, if they choose to sing using falsetto they are referred to as a countertenor, whereas a male alto's true vocal weight usually is that of a baritone or bass.

In English church usage, the term alto is sometimes exclusively used to mean a countertenor, while contralto is used for a female singer: this is particularly the case in the Anglican cathedral tradition which is historically all-male. However, this is not done consistently, and for most practical purposes, alto and contralto can be thought of as synonyms. Boys may also sing alto, in which case the term boy alto may be used to avoid confusion.

A few popular music enthusiasts define the contralto and alto separately, as the contralto having an especially dark range, from the D above low C to Tenor C, which is essentially a female of tenor range, while alto is a voice with a range from G below middle C to the F an eleventh above middle C, and is closer to the mezzo-soprano. The majority however define contralto and alto as synonyms, and assign the adjectives light and dark, with a dark alto being a female of tenor range, while a light alto, commonly referred to as simply alto, to include mezzo-sopranos as well.

In medieval polyphony, the principal voice was the tenor. When additional voices were added, they were called contratenor (meaning "against the tenor"). When two such voices were added, they were called contratenor alto and contratenor bassus, indicating high and low respectively.

Contraltos are fairly rare in opera, since there is very little work that was written specifically for them. Most of the time, contralto roles are limited to maids, mothers and grandmothers, but they do occasionally get notable roles, with witches being the most common outside of the three former roles (a common saying among contraltos is that they are only allowed to play "witches, bitches, or britches"). Baroque opera features a large number of alto roles.

The word, "alto", is often applied to instruments to indicate their range in relation to other instruments of the same group. In common usage, particularly among jazz musicians, the word has become synonymous with the alto saxophone. In US usage the alto horn is an Eb saxhorn, a brass instrument.

Altruism

Altruism is selfless concern for the welfare of others. It is a traditional virtue in many cultures, and central to many religious traditions. In English, this idea was often described as the Golden rule of ethics. Some newer philosophies such as egoism have criticized the concept, with writers such as Nietzsche arguing that there is no moral obligation to help others.

Altruism can be distinguished from a feeling of loyalty and duty. Altruism focuses on a motivation to help others or a want to do good without reward, while duty focuses on a moral obligation towards a specific individual (for example, God, a king), a specific organization (for example, a government), or an abstract concept (for example, patriotism etc). Some individuals may feel both altruism and duty, while others may not. Pure altruism is giving without regard to reward or the benefits of recognition.

The concept has a long history in philosophical and ethical thought, and has more recently become a topic for psychologists, sociologists, evolutionary biologists, and ethologists. While ideas about altruism from one field can have an impact on the other fields, the different methods and focuses of these fields lead to different perspectives on altruism.

Aluminium

Aluminium (IPA: /ˌæljʊˈmɪniəm/, /ˌæljəˈmɪniəm/) or aluminum (IPA: /əˈluːmɪnəm/, see the "spelling" section below) is a silvery and ductile member of the poor metal group of chemical elements. It has the symbol Al; its atomic number is 13.

Aluminium is found primarily in bauxite ore and is remarkable for its ability to resist corrosion (due to the phenomenon of passivation) and its light weight. Structural components made from aluminium and its alloys are vital to the aerospace industry and very important in other areas of transportation and building.

Aluminium chloride

Aluminium chloride (AlCl₃) is a compound of aluminium and chlorine. The solid has a low melting and boiling point, and is covalently bonded. It sublimes at 178 °C. Molten AlCl₃ conducts electricity poorly, unlike more ionic halides such as sodium chloride. It exists in the solid state as a six-coordinate layer lattice.

AlCl₃ adopts the "YCl₃" structure, featuring Al3+ cubic close packed layered structure. In contrast, AlBr₃ has a more molecular structure, with the Al3+ centers occupying adjacent tetrahedral holes of the close-packed framework of Br− ions. Upon melting AlCl₃ gives the dimer Al₂Cl₆, which can vaporise. At higher temperatures this Al₂Cl₆ dimer dissociates into trigonal planar AlCl₃, which is structurally analogous to BF₃.

Aluminium chloride is highly deliquescent, and it can explode upon abrupt contact with water because of the high heat of hydration. Aqueous solutions of AlCl₃ are ionic and thus conduct electricity well. Such solutions are found to be acidic, indicative of partial hydrolysis of the Al3+ ion is occurring. The reactions can be described (simplified) as:

AlCl₃ is probably the most commonly used non-Brønsted-Lowry acid and also one of the most powerful. It finds widespread application in the chemical industry as a catalyst for Friedel-Crafts reactions, both acylations and alkylations. It also finds use in polymerization and isomerization reactions of hydrocarbons. Aluminium also forms a lower chloride, aluminum(I) chloride (AlCl), but this is very unstable and only known in the vapour phase.

Aluminium oxide

Aluminium oxide is an amphoteric oxide of aluminium with the chemical formula Al₂O₃. It is also commonly referred to as alumina in the mining, ceramic and materials science communities.

Aluminium

Aluminium (IPA: /ˌæljʊˈmɪniəm/, /ˌæljəˈmɪniəm/) or aluminum (IPA: /əˈluːmɪnəm/, see the "spelling" section below) is a silvery and ductile member of the poor metal group of chemical elements. It has the symbol Al; its atomic number is 13.

Aluminium is found primarily in bauxite ore and is remarkable for its ability to resist corrosion (due to the phenomenon of passivation) and its light weight. Structural components made from aluminium and its alloys are vital to the aerospace industry and very important in other areas of transportation and building.

Always (Bon Jovi song)

"Always" is a power ballad by New Jersey band Bon Jovi. It was released as a single off their 1994 album, Cross Road, and went on to become their biggest selling single, with 1.5 million copies sold in the US and more than 4 million copies sold worldwide.

Alzheimer's disease

Alzheimer's disease (AD), also known simply as Alzheimer's, is a neurodegenerative disease that, in its most common form, is found in people over age 65. Approximately 24 million people worldwide are living with Alzheimer’s.

Clinical signs of Alzheimer's disease are characterized by progressive cognitive deterioration, together with declining activities of daily living and by neuropsychiatric symptoms or behavioral changes. It is the most common type of dementia. Plaques which contain misfolded proteins called beta amyloid form in the brain many years before the clinical signs of Alzheimer's are observed. Together, these plaques and neurofibrillary tangles form the pathological hallmarks of the disease. These features can only be discovered at autopsy and help to confirm the clinical diagnosis. Medications can help reduce the symptoms of the disease, but they cannot change the course of the underlying pathology.

The ultimate cause of Alzheimer's is unknown. Genetic factors are suspected, and dominant mutations in three different genes have been identified that account for the small number of cases of familial, early-onset AD. For the more common form of late onset AD (LOAD), ApoE is the only repeatedly confirmed susceptibility gene.

Amalgam

An amalgam is any mixture or blending of mercury with another metal or with an alloy. Most metals are soluble in mercury, but some (such as iron) are not. Amalgams are commonly used in dental fillings.

Amanita muscaria

Amanita muscaria (also known by the English-language common name fly agaric or Fly Amanita) is a psychoactive agaric species of mushroom found commonly throughout much of the world. The quintessential toadstool, it is a large imposing white-gilled, white-spotted, usually deep red mushroom, one of the most recognizable and widely encountered in popular culture. Though it is generally considered poisonous, Amanita muscaria is otherwise famed for its hallucinogenic properties with its main psychoactive constituent being the compound muscimol. The mushroom has had a religious significance in Siberian culture and possibly also in ancient Indian and Scandinavian cultures.

Native throughout the temperate and boreal regions of the Northern Hemisphere, Amanita muscaria has been unintentionally conveyed to many countries in the Southern Hemisphere, generally as a symbiont with pine plantations, and is now a true cosmopolitan species.

The common names in English, fly agaric or fly mushroom, are generally thought to derive from its European use as an insecticide, sprinkled in milk. The flykilling agent is now known to be ibotenic acid. Another compound isolated from the fungus is 1,3-diolein which is an insect attractor. An alternate derivation proposes that the term fly- refers not to insects as such but rather the delirium resulting from consumption of the fungus. This is based on the medieval belief that flies could enter a person's head and cause mental illness.

Amaranth

Amaranthus, collectively known as amaranth or pigweed, is a cosmopolitan genus of herbs. Approximately 60 species are presently recognised, with inflorescences and foliage ranging from purple and red to gold. Members of this genus share many characteristics and uses with members of the closely related genus Celosia.

Although several species are often considered weeds, people around the world value amaranths as leaf vegetables, cereals and ornamentals.

The word comes from the Greek amarantos, the "one that does not wither", or the never-fading (flower).

Amaranth (song)

"Amaranth" is the upcoming second single of the Finnish symphonic power metal band Nightwish from the Dark Passion Play album. A sample has been added to their official website.

The single features a song called "While Your Lips Are Still Red", which is featured on Finnish film "LIEKSA!", to be released in September 2007. The song features all the band members but Emppu Vuorinen and Anette Olzon, and its video (with clips from the film) was released on June 15, 2007.. The song itself, while not officially released yet, appears to have leaked onto the internet, though the exact date it leaked is unknown.

Amaranth oil

Amaranth oil is extracted from the seeds of two species of the genus Amaranthus - A. cruentus and A. hypochondriacus - that are called, collectively, grain amaranth. A manufacturer of this unique oil writes:

The oil is valued for its ability to add temperature stability at both high and low temperatures. Commercial uses of amaranth oil include foods, cosmetics, shampoos and intermediates for manufacture of lubricants, pharmaceuticals, rubber chemicals, aromatics and surface active agents. As a food oil, amaranth oil has a delicate and agreeable taste. Berger et al, in a study of the cholesterol-lowering properties of amaranth grain and oil in hamsters, report that amaranth oil significantly reduced non-HDL cholesterol and raised HDL cholesterol, as well as lowering very low density lipoprotein cholesterol (VLDL cholesterol) by 21-50%.

The oil content of the actual amaranth grain ranges from 4.8 to 8.1%, which is relatively low compared to other sources of seed oil.

Amaretto

The term amaretto refers to a sweet liqueur made from a basic infusion of the stones of drupe fruits, such as peaches, as well as a related almond biscotto. Amaretto is often thought to be made of almonds due to the almond flavor. Both originate in Italy, where major brands are still produced today.

Amarillo, Texas

Amarillo is the 14th-largest city in the U.S. state of Texas and the county seat of Potter County. A portion of the city, the biggest in the Texas Panhandle, extends into Randall County. As of the 2000 U.S. Census, the city had a total population of 173,627 (though a July 1, 2005 estimate placed the city's population at 183,021). The Amarillo metropolitan area, however, has an estimated population of 236,113 in four counties.

Amarillo was originally named Oneida and it is situated in the Llano Estacado region. The availability of the railroad and freight service provided by the Fort Worth and Denver City Railroad contributed the city's growth as a cattle marketing center in the late 19th century. Amarillo is the regional economical center for the Texas Panhandle as well as Eastern New Mexico and the Oklahoma Panhandle.

The city was once self-proclaimed as the "Helium Capital of the World" for having one of the country's most productive helium fields. The city is also known as "The Yellow Rose of Texas" and most recently "Rotor City, USA" for its V-22 Osprey hybrid aircraft assembly plant. Amarillo operates one of the largest meat packing areas in the United States. Pantex, the only nuclear weapons assembly and disassembly facility in the country, is also a major employer. The attractions Cadillac Ranch and Big Texan Steak Ranch were located on the former U.S. Route 66, which passes through the city.

Amazon Basin

The Amazon Basin is the part of South America drained by the Amazon River and its tributaries.

Amazon parrot

An Amazon parrot is a large parrot of the genus Amazona native to the New World ranging from South America to Mexico and the Caribbean.

Most Amazons are predominantly green, with accenting colors that depend on the species and can be quite vivid. Amazons, like all parrots, are zygodactyl, having four toes on each foot—two front and two back. They feed primarily on nuts and fruits, supplemented by leafy matter.

Several amazon species are commonly kept as pets, including the Yellow-headed Amazon, Yellow-naped Amazon, and Blue-fronted Amazon.

Amazons are known for their exceptional vocal abilities, playfulness, and dexterity with their feet. They are very loyal, loving companions; having them is somewhat like having a two-year-old human child in ability and temperament for 50-plus years.citation needed] However, some Amazons are aggressive (usually during their mating time), and they all require a lot of attention when kept as pets. Parrots require more attention and care than domesticated pets such as dogs or cats, and are not for the inexperienced bird owner. All parrots need a lot of stimulating activities to keep from being bored and terribly destructive to themselves and their surroundings. In particular, since Amazons are cavity nesters in the wild, their desire to chew wood is strong, and they need to be provided with destructible toys to satisfy this innate urge.

Amazon Rainforest

The Amazon Rainforest (Brazilian Portuguese: Floresta Amazônica or Amazônia; Spanish: Selva Amazónica or Amazonía) is a moist broadleaf forest in the Amazon Basin of South America. The area, also known as Amazonia or the Amazon Basin encompasses seven million square kilometers (1.2 billion acres), though the forest itself occupies some 5.5 million square kilometers, located within nine nations: Brazil (with 60 percent of the rainforest), Colombia, Peru, Venezuela, Ecuador, Bolivia, Guyana, Suriname, and French Guiana. States or departments in four nations bear the name Amazonas after it. The Amazon represents over half of the planet's remaining rainforests and comprises the largest and most species-rich tract of tropical rainforest in the world.

Amazon River

The Amazon River or River Amazon (Portuguese: Rio Amazonas; Spanish: Río Amazonas) of South America is the largest river in the world by volume, with greater total river flow than the next eight largest rivers combined, and with the largest drainage basin in the world. Because of its vast dimensions it is sometimes called The River Sea (o rio-mar in Portuguese). Debate as to whether the Amazon or the Nile is the world's longest river has gone on for many years, with the consensus during the 20th century being that, by possibly only a few kilometers, the Nile is the longer of the two (see below)

The area covered by the water of the River and its tributaries more than triples over the course of a year. In an average dry season 110,000 square kilometres (42,000 mi²) of land are water-covered, while in the wet season the flooded area of the Amazon Basin rises to 350,000 square kilometres (135,000 mi²).citation needed] At its widest point the Amazon River can be 11 kilometres (7 mi) wide during the dry season, but during the rainy season when the Amazon floods the surrounding plains it can be up to 45 kilometres (28 mi) wide.

The quantity of fresh water released by the Amazon to the Atlantic Ocean is enormous: up to 300,000 m³ per second in the rainy season. The Amazon is responsible for a fifth of the total volume of fresh water entering the oceans worldwide. Offshore of the mouth of the Amazon, potable water can be drawn from the ocean while still out of sight of the coastline, and the salinity of the ocean is notably lower a hundred miles out to sea. In 1500, Vicente Yañez Pinzón was the first European to sail into the river. Pinzón called the river flow "río Santa María de la Mar Dulce", finally the name was shortened to "Mar Dulce" (sweet sea).

The Amazon estuary is over 325 kilometres (202 mi) wide. The main river (which is between approximately one and six miles wide) is navigable for large ocean steamers to Manaus, 1,500 kilometres (930 mi) upriver from the mouth. Smaller ocean vessels of 3,000 tons and 5.5 metres (18 ft) draft can reach as far as Iquitos, Peru, 3,600 kilometres (2,240 mi) from the sea. Smaller riverboats can reach 780 kilometres (485 mi) higher as far as Achual Point. Beyond that, small boats frequently ascend to the Pongo de Manseriche, just above Achual Point.

The Amazon drains an area of some 6,915,000 square kilometres (2,670,000 mi²), or some 40 percent of South America. It gathers its waters from 5 degrees north latitude to 20 degrees south latitude. Its most remote sources are found on the inter-Andean plateau, just a short distance from the Pacific Ocean.

The Amazon has changed its course several times. In early Cenozoic times, before the uplifting of the Andes, it flowed westward.

The Upper Amazon has a series of major river systems in Peru (many of which are alike in Ecuador) that flow North and South into the Marañón and Amazon River. Among others, these include the following rivers: Morona, Pastaza, Nucuray, Urituyacu, Chambira, Tigre, Nanay, Napo, Huallaga, and Ucayali. All of these are longer than any river in Europe. The same as in the snow-crested Andes high above Lake Lauricocha in central Peru, the headstream of the Marañón River rises in the glaciers in what is known as the Nevado de Yarupa. Rushing through waterfalls and gorges in an area of the high jungle called the pongos, the Marañón River flows about 1,000 miles (1,600 km) from west-central to northeast Peru before it combines with the Ucayali River, just below the provincial town of Nauta, to form the mighty Amazon River. The primary tributaries of the Marañón River are--from south to north--the Crisnejas, Chamayo, Urtcubamba, Cenepa, Santiago, Moroña, Pastaza, Huallaga, and Tiger Rivers (Cavero-Egusquiza 1941:49-51).The most distant source of the Amazon was firmly established in 1996, 2001 and 2007 as a glacial stream on a snowcapped 5,597 m (18,363 ft) peak called Nevado Mismi in the Peruvian Andes, roughly 160 km (100 mi) west of Lake Titicaca and 700 km (430 mi) southeast of Lima. The waters from Nevado Mismi flow into the Quebradas Carhuasanta and Apacheta, which flow into the Río Apurímac which is a tributary of the Ucayali which later joins the Marañón to form the Amazon proper. Formally, though, the union of the Ucayali and the Marañón form the Río Amazonas, which changes its name to Solimões on the triple frontier between Peru, Colombia and Brazil, and later changes its name back to the Amazon only after it meets the Rio Negro near Manaus.

After the confluence of Río Apurímac and Ucayali, the river leaves Andean terrain and is instead surrounded by flood plain. From this point to the Marañón, some 1,600 km (990 mi), the forested banks are just out of water, and are inundated long before the river attains its maximum flood-line. The low river banks are interrupted by only a few hills, and the river enters the enormous Amazon Rainforest.

Amber

Amber is the common name for fossil resin that is appreciated for its inherent and interesting mixture of colours and it is widely used for the manufacture of ornamental objects. Although not mineralized, it is sometimes considered and used as a gemstone. Neopagans often use the stone for healing. This stone was called Freya's tears by the ancient Norse. Most of the world's amber is in the range of 30–90 million years old. Semi-fossilized resin or sub-fossil amber is called copal.

Amber is heterogeneous in composition, but consists of several resinous bodies more or less soluble in alcohol, ether and chloroform, associated with an insoluble bituminous substance. Amber is a macromolecule by free radical polymerization of several precursors in the labdane family, communic acid, cummunol and biformene. Labdanes are tetrameric terpenes (C₂₀H₃₂) and trienes which means that the organic skeleton has three alkene groups available for polymerization. As amber matures over the years, more polymerization will take place as well as isomerization reactions, crosslinking and cyclization. The average composition of amber leads to the general formula C₁₀H₁₆O.

Heating amber will soften it and eventually it will burn, which is why the German word for amber is bernstein. Heated rather below 200°C, amber suffers decomposition, yielding an "oil of amber", and leaving a black residue which is known as "amber colophony", or "amber pitch"; when dissolved in oil of turpentine or in linseed oil this forms "amber varnish" or "amber lac". Rubbing amber can produce an electrostatic charge. This property is so well known that the word "electricity" has roots from the Greek word for amber, elektron.

True amber yields on dry distillation succinic acid, the proportion varying from about 3% to 8%, and being greatest in the pale opaque or bony varieties. The aromatic and irritating fumes emitted by burning amber are mainly due to this acid. True Baltic amber is distinguished by its yield of succinic acid, for many of the other fossil resins which are often termed amber contain either none of it, or only a very small proportion; hence the name succinite proposed by Professor James Dwight Dana, and now commonly used in scientific writings as a specific term for the real Prussian amber. Succinite has a hardness between 2 and 3, which is rather greater than that of many other fossil resins. Its specific gravity varies from 1.05 to 1.10. An effective tool for Amber analysis is IR spectroscopy. It enables the distinction between Baltic and non-Baltic amber varieties because of a specific carbonyl absorption and it can also detect the relative age of an amber sample.

Often amber (particularly with insect inclusions) is counterfeited using a plastic resin similar in appearance. A simple test (performed on the back of the object) consists of touching the object with a heated pin and determining if the resultant odor is of wood resin. If not, the object is counterfeit, although a positive test may not be conclusive owing to a thin coat of real resin. Often counterfeits will have a too perfect pose and position of the trapped insect.

Ambiguity

Ambiguity is the property of words, terms, notations and concepts (within a particular context) as being undefined, undefinable, or without an obvious definition and thus having an unclear meaning.

A word, phrase, sentence, or other communication is called “ambiguous” if it can be interpreted in more than one way. Ambiguity is distinct from vagueness, which arises when the boundaries of meaning are indistinct. Ambiguity is in contrast with definition, and typically refers to an unclear choice between standard definitions, as given by a dictionary, or else understood as common knowledge.

Ambivalence

Ambivalence is a state of having emotions, thoughts or actions in contradiction with each other, when they are related to an object, idea or person (for example, feeling both love and hatred for someone or something). The term is also commonly used to refer to situations where 'mixed feelings' of a more general sort are experienced or where a person experiences uncertainty or indecisiveness concerning something.

Ambrose Bierce

Ambrose Gwinnett Bierce (June 24, 1842 – 1914?) was an American editorialist, journalist, short-story writer and satirist, today best known for his Devil's Dictionary.

Bierce's lucid, unsentimental style has kept him popular when many of his contemporaries have been consigned to oblivion. His dark, sardonic views and vehemence as a critic earned him the nickname, "Bitter Bierce." Such was his reputation that it was said his judgment on any piece of prose or poetry could make or break a writer's career. Among the younger writers whom he encouraged were the poet George Sterling and the fiction writer W. C. Morrow.

Ambrosia

In ancient Greek mythology, Ambrosia (ancient Greek: ἀμβροσία) is sometimes the food, sometimes the drink, of the gods, often depicted as conferring immortality on whoever consumes it.

Ambrosia is very closely related to the gods' other form of sustenance, nectar. The two terms may not have originally been distinguished, though in Homer's poems and later works, nectar is the drink and ambrosia the food. On the other hand, in Alcman, nectar is the food, and in Sappho and Anaxandrides, ambrosia is the drink. Both are fragrant, and may be used as perfume.

Ambulatory

The ambulatory (Med. Lat. ambulatorium, a place for walking, from ambulare, to walk) is the covered passage around a cloister; a term applied sometimes to the procession way around the east end of a cathedral or large church and behind the high altar.

Aisles that line the nave extend through the transept and continue in a half-circle that runs behind the apse. Along the ambulatory, there are small chapels. This modification by Romanesque architects allowed visitors to move freely around the altar without disturbing the monks' devotions.

Ambulatory also refers to:
–adjective
1. of, pertaining to, or capable of walking: an ambulatory exploration of the countryside.
2. adapted for walking, as the limbs of many animals.
3. moving about or from place to place; not stationary: an ambulatory tribe.
4. Also, ambulant. Medicine/Medical.
---a. not confined to bed; able or strong enough to walk: an ambulatory patient.
---b. serving patients who are able to walk: an ambulatory care center.
5. Law. not fixed; alterable or revocable: ambulatory will.

Amda Seyon I of Ethiopia

Amda Seyon I, Emperor of Ethiopia (also Amde Tsiyon and other variants, Ge'ez ዐምደ ፡ ጽዮን ʿamda ṣiyōn, Amharic āmde ṣiyōn, "Pillar of Zion") was Emperor of Ethiopia (1314 - 1344; throne name Gebre Mesqel Ge'ez ገብረ ፡ መስቀል gabra masḳal, Amh. gebre mesḳel, "slave of the cross"), and a member of the Solomonic dynasty. According to the British expert on Ethiopia, Edward Ullendorff, "Amde Tseyon was one of the most outstanding Ethiopian kings of any age and a singular figure dominating the Horn of Africa in the fourteenth century." His conquests of Muslim borderlands greatly expanded Ethiopian territory and power in the region, maintained for centuries after his death. Amda Seyon asserted the strength of the newly (1270) installed Solomonic dynasty and therefore legitimized it. These expansions further provided for the spread of Christianity to frontier areas, sparking a long era of proselytization and Christianization of previously frontier areas.

Amelia Earhart

Amelia Mary Earhart (24 July 1897 – missing 2 July 1937, declared deceased 5 January 1939) was a noted American aviation pioneer and women's rights advocate. Earhart was the first woman to receive the Distinguished Flying Cross, which she was awarded as the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic. She set many other records, wrote best-selling books about her flying experiences and was instrumental in the formation of The Ninety-Nines, a women's pilots' organization.

Earhart disappeared over the central Pacific Ocean during an attempt to make a circumnavigational flight in 1937. Intense public fascination with her life, career and disappearance continues to this day.

Amenorrhoea

Amenorrhoea (BE), amenorrhea (AmE), or amenorrhœa, is the absence of a menstrual period in a woman of reproductive age. Physiologic states of amenorrhoea are seen during pregnancy and lactation (breastfeeding), the latter also forming the basis of a form of contraception known as the lactational amenorrhea method. Outside of the reproductive years there is absence of menses during childhood and after menopause.

Amenorrhoea is a symptom with many potential causes. Primary amenorrhoea (menstruation cycles never starting) may be caused by developmental problems such as the congenital absence of the uterus, or failure of the ovary to receive or maintain egg cells. Also, delay in pubertal development will lead to primary amenorrhoea. Secondary amenorrhoea (menstruation cycles ceasing) is often caused by hormonal disturbances from the hypothalamus and the pituitary gland or from premature menopause, or intrauterine scar formation.

America (band)

America is an English-American folk rock band, originally composed of members Gerry Beckley, Dewey Bunnell, and Dan Peek. The three members were barely past their teenage years when they became an overnight musical sensation in 1972; they reached a peak in popularity in the early to mid 1970s and early 1980s. Among the band's best known songs are "A Horse with No Name", "Sister Golden Hair" (both of which reached Number 1), "Ventura Highway", and "Tin Man".

Although their music was frequently derided by critics, from a commercial standpoint the band's singles and albums were exceptionally successful. They were popular enough to attract the services of famed Beatles producer George Martin for a run of seven albums. The band survived the loss of one of its original members near the peak of its success only to see Beckley and Bunnell return the act to the top of charts as a duo with "You Can Do Magic" in 1982. Consistently touring for well over three decades, America still maintains a strong following and performs over 100 shows per year. On January 16, 2007, America released Here & Now, the band's first major label studio album in over twenty years.

American Bison

The American Bison is a bovine mammal, also commonly known as the American Buffalo, or simply buffalo, something of a misnomer as it is only distantly related to either of the two "true buffalos": the Water Buffalo and the African Buffalo.

The bison inhabited the Great Plains of the United States and Canada in massive herds, ranging from the Great Slave Lake in Canada's far north to Mexico in the south, and from eastern Oregon almost to the Atlantic Ocean, taking its subspecies into account. Its two subspecies are the Plains Bison (Bison bison bison), distinguished by its smaller size and more rounded hump, and the Wood Bison (Bison bison athabascae), distinguished by its larger size and taller square hump. With their huge bulk, Wood Bison are surpassed in size only by the massive Asian Gaur and wild water buffalo, both of which are found mainly in India and Southeast Asia.

American Black Bear

The American Black Bear (Ursus americanus) is the most common bear species native to North America.

It lives throughout much of the continent, from northern Canada and Alaska south into Mexico, from the Atlantic to the Pacific. This includes 41 of the 50 U.S. states and all Canadian provinces except Prince Edward Island. Populations in the east-central and southern United States remain in the protected mountains and woodlands of parks and preserves, though bears will occasionally wander outside the parks' boundaries and have set up new territories, in some cases on the margins of urban environments in recent years as their populations increase. Although there were probably once as many as two million black bears in North America long before European colonization, the population declined to a low of 200,000 as a result of habitat destruction and unrestricted hunting. By current estimates, more than 800,000 are living today on the continent.

American Civil War

Confederate States of America (Confederacy)

The American Civil War (1861–1865) was a major war between the United States (the "Union") and eleven Southern states which declared that they had a right to secession and formed the Confederate States of America, led by President Jefferson Davis. The Union, led by President Abraham Lincoln and the Republican Party, which had opposed the expansion of slavery into territories owned by the United States, rejected any right of secession. Fighting commenced on April 12, 1861, when Confederate forces attacked a United States (federal) military installation at Fort Sumter in South Carolina, the first state to secede.

During the first year, the Union assumed control of the border states and established a naval blockade as both sides raised large armies. In 1862 large, bloody battles such as Shiloh and Antietam were fought, causing massive casualties unprecedented in U.S. military history largely as a result of incompatibility between new weapons and old battlefield tactics. In September 1862, Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation made the freeing of slaves in the South a war goal and gave a higher moral cause to the war, despite opposition from northern Copperheads who tolerated secession and slavery. Emancipation reduced the likelihood of intervention from Britain and France on behalf of the Confederacy. In addition, the goal also allowed the Union to recruit African-Americans for reinforcements, a resource that the Confederacy did not dare exploit until it was too late. The border states and War Democrats reluctantly accepted emancipation as part of total war needed to save the Union. European immigrants joined the Union Army in large numbers too. 23.4% of all Union soldiers were German-Americans; about 216,000 were born in Germany. In the East, Confederate general Robert E. Lee assumed command of the Army of Northern Virginia and rolled up a series of victories over the Army of the Potomac, but his best general, Thomas Jonathan "Stonewall" Jackson, was killed at the Battle of Chancellorsville in May 1863. Lee's invasion of the North was repulsed at the Battle of Gettysburg in Pennsylvania in July 1863; he barely managed to escape back to Virginia. The Union Navy captured the port of New Orleans in 1862, and Ulysses S. Grant seized control of the Mississippi River by capturing Vicksburg, Mississippi in July 1863, thus splitting the Confederacy.

By 1864, long-term Union advantages in geography, manpower, industry, finance, political organization and transportation were overwhelming the Confederacy. Grant fought a number of bloody battles with Lee in Virginia in the summer of 1864. Lee's defensive tactics resulted in extremely high casualties for Grant's army, but Lee lost strategically overall as he could not replace his casualties and was forced to retreat into trenches around his capital, Richmond, Virginia. Meanwhile, General William Sherman, the leader of the Union Military Division of the Mississippi, captured Atlanta, Georgia during his March to the Sea, during which he destroyed a hundred-mile-wide swath of Georgia. In 1865, the Confederacy collapsed after Lee surrendered to Grant at Appomattox Court House; all slaves in the Confederacy were freed by the Emancipation Proclamation. Slaves in the border states and Union-controlled parts of the South were freed by state action or by the Thirteenth Amendment.

The full restoration of the Union was the work of a highly contentious postwar era known as Reconstruction. The war produced about 970,000 casualties (3% of the population), including approximately 620,000 soldier deaths—two-thirds by disease. The war accounted for more casualties than all other U.S. wars combined. The causes of the war, the reasons for its outcome, and even the name of the war itself are subjects of lingering controversy even today. The main results of the war were the restoration and strengthening of the Union (mainly by permanently ending the issue of secession), and the end of slavery in the United States. About 4 million black slaves were freed in 1865. Based on 1860 census figures, 8% of all white males aged 13 to 43 died in the war, including 6% in the North and an extraordinary 18% in the South.

American Dream

The American Dream is the idea held by many in the United States that through hard work, courage and determination one could achieve prosperity. These were values held by many early European settlers, and have been passed on to subsequent generations. What the American dream has become is a question under constant discussion.

American English

American English (AmE, AE, AmEng, USEng, en-US), also known as United States English or U.S. English, is a set of dialects of the English language used mostly in the United States of America. It is estimated that approximately two thirds of native speakers of English live in the United States.

The use of English in the United States was inherited from British colonization. The first wave of English-speaking settlers arrived in North America in the 17th century. During that time, there were also speakers in North America of Dutch, French, German, Spanish, Swedish, Scots, Welsh, Irish, Scottish Gaelic, Finnish, as well as numerous Native American languages.

American Falls

The American Falls is one of three waterfalls that together are known as Niagara Falls on the Niagara River along the Canada-U.S. border. Unlike the wider Horseshoe Falls, which is on the Canadian side of the border, the American Falls is completely within the U.S. state of New York.

The falls receive approximately 10% of the flow from Niagara River, with most of the rest going over Horseshoe Falls, from which it is separated by Goat Island. It has a straight line crest width of about 253 m (830 feet). If measured along the jagged lip of the falls, the crest is about 290 m (950 feet) long. The torrent of water passing over the crest of the falls is about 0.6 m (2 feet) deep.

The height of the American Falls ranges between 21 to 34 metres (70-110 feet). This measurement is taken from the top of the Falls to top of the rock pile (talus). The height of the Falls from the top of the Falls to the river is 57 metres (188 feet).

The falls are viewable from a steep angle on the American side, where it is possible to approach to within several meters of the edge of the falls. One can view the falls from the bank of the river, as well as on Goat Island, which is accessible by a pedestrian bridge that crosses the rapids of the Niagara river upstream from the falls. The falls are viewable head-on from the Canadian side in Niagara Falls, Ontario.

The ledge of the American Falls is shaped in a modified "W" form, caused by numerous rockfalls over the past 150 years which have resulted in the huge mound of rock at its base. The most notable recent rockfall occurred in 1954 with the collapse of Prospect Point to the north.

To survey the rockfall and determine how to prevent the falls from becoming a series of rapids, the American Falls were drained dry from May to November 1969. Results conflict as to whether tourist attendance that season was higher or lower than normal. Attendance increases were likely due to the news that the cataract was dried off; decreases in tourists could be attributed to the fact people thought both cataracts (the American and Horseshoe Falls) were dewatered that year. By December 1969, the American Falls were flowing again. In the mid-1970s, it was decided not to make alterations to the rock wall and remove the talus, citing the trend to allow nature to take its course.

American football

American football, known in the United States and Canada simply as football and in Britain, Australia and New Zealand as gridiron and gridiron football, is a competitive team sport known for its physical roughness despite being a highly strategic game. The object of the game is to score points by advancing the prolate spheroid ball into the opposing team's end zone. The ball can be advanced by carrying it (a running play) or by throwing it to a teammate (a passing play). Points can be scored in a variety of ways, including carrying the ball over the goal line, throwing the ball to another player past the goal line or kicking it through the goal posts on the opposing side. The winner is the team with the most points when the time expires and the last play ends.

Outside the United States and Canada, the sport is referred to as American football (or a translation thereof) to differentiate it from other football games.

American Legion

The American Legion is an organization of veterans of the United States armed forces who served in wartime. The Organization was founded in 1919 by veterans returning from Europe after World War I and is headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana. As of July 2007, the group has nearly 3 million memberscitation needed].

In addition to organizing commemorative events and volunteer activities, the American Legion is active in U.S. politics. While its primary political activity is lobbying for the interests of veterans, including support for veterans benefits such as pensions and the Veterans Affairs hospital system, it has also been involved in more general political issues, generally taking a conservative position. Most criticism of the Legion is based on its political activities.

The state American Legions run an annual civic training event for high school juniors called Boys State. Two members from each Boys State are selected for Boys Nation. The American Legion Auxiliary runs Girls State and Girls Nation. The American Legion also hosts many social events.

American lobster

The American lobster, Homarus americanus, is a species of lobster found on the Atlantic coast of North America. Within North America, it is also known as the northern lobster, Atlantic lobster or Maine lobster. It thrives in cold, shallow waters where there are many rocks and other places to hide from predators and is both solitary and nocturnal.

The American lobster is found as far south as North Carolina, and are famously citation needed] associated with the colder waters around the Canadian Maritimes, Newfoundland and Labrador, Massachusetts, and Maine. They commonly range from 20 cm to 60 cm in length and ½ kg to 4 kg in weight, but have been known to reach lengths of well over 1 m and weigh as much as 20 kg or more, making this the heaviest marine crustacean in the world . An average adult is about 230 mm (9 inches) long and weighs 700 to 900 g (1½ to 2 pounds).

The adult American lobster's main natural predator is the codfish, but other enemies include haddock, flounder, and other lobsters. Overfishing of cod in the early 20th century has allowed the lobster population to grow enormously. American lobsters make their home in and around northeast shipwrecks. In fact, lobster diving is the main attraction for many wreck divers.

American Pit Bull Terrier

The American Pit Bull Terrier (APBT) is a breed of dog in the terrier group, one of several breeds loosely classified as pit bulls.

Ownership of APBTs is controversial, due to publicized media stories "pit bulls" having attacked children and strangers. This has led to the ownership of APBTs and "pit bulls" in general being restricted or banned in many parts of the world. For example, in Ontario, Canada, APBTs were found to pose a significant threat to the public, and were thus banned from the province. Owners of APBTs claim that well-bred APBTs are not aggressive toward humans, and suggest that the problem is due to the breed's appeal to irresponsible segments of society who do not know how to breed or train the dogs.

APBT and similar dogs are often associated with the urban and gang culture, and many young, predominantly male, people purchase them on the grounds of wanting a 'tough dog.' Dogs of any breed acquired for such purposes often end up poorly-trained, misused and in poor health.

The APBT is not recognized by the American Kennel Club, unlike the closely related breeds the American Staffordshire Terrier and Staffordshire Bull Terrier. It is, however, recognized by the United Kennel Club.

American popular music

Even before the birth of recorded music, American popular music had a profound effect on music across the world. The country has seen the rise of popular styles that have had a significant influence on global culture, including ragtime, blues, jazz, rock, R&B, doo wop, gospel, soul, funk, heavy metal, punk, disco, house, techno, salsa, grunge and hip hop. In addition, the American music industry is quite diverse, supporting a number of regional styles like zydeco, klezmer and slack-key. The appeal of these styles lies in their supple, energetic rhythms, their appealing vocal lines, and in many cases their symbolic associations with the plight of the underprivileged.

Distinctive styles of American popular music began to emerge early in the 19th century, and in the 20th century the American music industry developed a series of new forms of music, using elements of blues and other genres of American folk music. These popular styles included country, R&B, jazz and rock. The 1960s and '70s saw a number of important changes in American popular music, including the development of a number of new styles, including heavy metal, punk, soul, and hip hop. Though these styles were not popular in the sense of mainstream, they were commercially recorded and are thus examples of popular music as opposed to folk or classical music.

American Revolution

The American Revolution refers to the period during the last half of the 18th century in which the Thirteen Colonies that became the United States of America gained independence from the British Empire.

In this period, the Colonies rebelled against the British Empire and entered into the American Revolutionary War, also referred to (especially in Britain) as the American War of Independence, between 1775 and 1783. This culminated in an American Declaration of Independence in 1776, and victory on the battlefield in 1781.

France played a key role in aiding the revolution, providing the Americans with money and munitions, organizing a coalition against Britain, and sending an army and a fleet that played a decisive role at the battle that effectively ended the war at Yorktown. The Americans however were revolting against royalty and aristocracy and consequently did not look at France as a model for government.

The American Revolution included a series of broad intellectual and social shifts that occurred in the early American society, such as the new republican ideals that took hold in the American population. In some states, sharp political debates broke out over the role of democracy in government. The American shift to republicanism, as well as the gradually expanding democracy, caused an upheaval of the traditional social hierarchy, and created the ethic that formed the core of American political values.

The revolutionary era began in 1763, when the military threat to the American colonies from France ended. Adopting the view that the colonies should pay a substantial portion of the costs of defending them, Britain imposed a series of taxes which proved highly unpopular and, because the colonies lacked elected representation in the governing British Parliament, many colonists considered to be illegal. After protests in Boston, the British sent combat troops, the Americans mobilized their militia, and fighting broke out in 1775. Although Loyalists were about 15-20% of the population, throughout the war the Patriots generally controlled 80-90% of the territory; the British could only hold a few coastal cities. In 1776, representatives of the 13 colonies voted unanimously to adopt a Declaration of Independence, by which they established the United States of America. The Americans formed an alliance with France in 1778 that evened the military and naval strengths. Two main British armies were captured at Saratoga in 1777 and Yorktown in 1781, leading to peace with the Treaty of Paris in 1783. The United States was bounded by British Canada on the north, Spanish Florida on the south, and the Mississippi River on the west.

American Revolutionary War

The American Revolutionary War (1775–1783), also known as the American War of Independence, was a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and the thirteen "United Colonies". The war was the culmination of the political American Revolution, whereby the colonists overthrew British rule. In 1775, Revolutionaries seized control of each of the thirteen colonial governments, set up the Second Continental Congress, and formed a Continental Army. The following year, they formally declared their independence as a new nation, the United States of America. From 1778 onward, other European powers would fight on the American side in the war. Meanwhile, Native Americans and African Americans served on both sides.

Throughout the war, the British were able to use their naval superiority to capture and occupy coastal cities, but control of the countryside (where 90% of the population lived) largely eluded them. In early 1778, shortly after an American victory at Saratoga, France entered the war against Britain; Spain and the Netherlands joined as allies of France over the next two years. French involvement proved decisive, with a French naval victory in the Chesapeake leading to the surrender of a British army at Yorktown in 1781. The Treaty of Paris in 1783 ended the war and recognized the sovereignty of the United States over the territory bounded by what is now Canada to the North, Florida to the South, and the Mississippi River to the west.

American Samoa

American Samoa (Samoan: Amerika Sāmoa or Sāmoa Amelika) is an unincorporated territory of the United States located in the South Pacific Ocean, southeast of the sovereign state of Samoa. The main (largest and most populous) island is Tutuila, with the Manu'a Islands, Rose Atoll, and Swains Island also included in the territory. American Samoa is part of the Samoan Islands chain, located west of the Cook Islands, north of Tonga, and some 300 miles (500 km) south of Tokelau. To the west are the islands of the Wallis and Futuna group. The 2000 census showed a total population of 57,291. The total land area is 200.22 km² (77.305 sq mi).

American Sign Language

This article or section is in need of attention from an expert on the subject.
WikiProject Languages or the Languages Portal may be able to help recruit one.
If a more appropriate WikiProject or portal exists, please adjust this template accordingly.

American Sign Language (ASL; less commonly Ameslan) is the dominant sign language of the Deaf community in the United States, in the English-speaking parts of Canada, and in parts of Mexico. Although the United Kingdom and the United States share English as a spoken and written language, British Sign Language (BSL) is quite different from ASL, and the two sign languages are not mutually intelligible.

ASL is also used (sometimes alongside indigenous sign languages) in the Philippines, Singapore, Hong Kong, Dominican Republic, Haiti, Puerto Rico, Côte d'Ivoire, Burkina Faso, Ghana, Togo, Benin, Nigeria, Chad, Gabon, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Central African Republic, Mauritania, Kenya, Madagascar, and Zimbabwe. Like other sign languages, its grammar and syntax are distinct from any spoken language in its area of influence. While there has been no reliable survey of the number of people who use ASL as their primary language, estimates range from 500,000 to 2 million in the U.S. alone .

American Staffordshire Terrier

The American Staffordshire Terrier is a breed of dog. The breed is descended from American dog fighting breeds and was intended to be a show strain of the American Pit Bull Terrier. American Staffordshire Terriers were first recognized by the American Kennel Club in 1936. They are a member of the Terrier and Molosser groups.

American Standard Code for Information Interchange

American Standard Code for Information Interchange (ASCII), generally pronounced , is a character encoding based on the English alphabet. ASCII codes represent text in computers, communications equipment, and other devices that work with text. Most modern character encodings — which support many more characters — have a historical basis in ASCII.

Work on ASCII began in 1960. The first edition of the standard was published in 1963, a major revision in 1967, and the most recent update in 1986. It currently defines codes for 128 characters: 33 are non-printing, mostly obsolete control characters that affect how text is processed, and 95 are printable characters.

American Stock Exchange

The American Stock Exchange (AMEX) is an American stock exchange situated in New York. AMEX is a mutual organization, owned by its members. Until 1929 it was known as the New York Curb Exchange.

Americana (album)

Americana is the fifth album by The Offspring, released on November 17, 1998 (see 1998 in music), and has sold more than 11 million copies worldwide. This was their most successful album since their 1994 breakthrough Smash.

Americana is also an Enhanced CD and contains the karaoke videos of "Staring at the Sun", "Pretty Fly (for a White Guy)" and "Why Don't You Get a Job?", and the previous MTV music videos from Ixnay on the Hombre. The album's main themes are of unpleasant realities of American life,

Americas

The Americas are the lands of the Western hemisphere or New World consisting of the continents of North America and South America with their associated islands and regions. The Americas cover 8.3% of the Earth's total surface area (28.4% of its land area) and contain about 14% of the human population (about 890 million people). The Americas may alternatively be referred to as America; however, America may be ambiguous as it can refer to either this entire landmass or just the United States of America.

Americium

Americium (IPA: /ˌaməˈrɪsiəm/) is a synthetic element in the periodic table that has the symbol Am and atomic number 95. A radioactive metallic element, americium is an actinide that was obtained by bombarding plutonium with neutrons and was the fourth transuranic element to be discovered. It was named for the Americas, by analogy with europium.

Amerigo Vespucci

Amerigo Vespucci (March 9, 1454 -February 22, 1512) was an Italian merchant, explorer and cartographer. He played a senior role in two voyages which explored the east coast of South America between 1499 and 1502. On the second of these voyages he discovered that South America extended much further south than previously known by Europeans. This convinced him that this land was part of a new continent, a bold contention at a time when other European explorers crossing the Atlantic thought they were reaching Asia (the "Indies").

Vespucci's voyages became widely known in Europe after two accounts attributed to him were published between 1502 and 1504. In 1507, Martin Waldseemüller produced a world map on which he named the new continent "America" after Vespucci's first name, Amerigo. In an accompanying book, Waldseemüller published one of the Vespucci accounts, which led to criticism that Vespucci was trying to usurp Christopher Columbus's glory. However, the rediscovery in the 18th century of other letters by Vespucci has led to the view that the early published accounts were fabrications, not by Vespucci, but by others.

Amethyst

Amethyst is a purple variety of quartz often used as an ornament. The name comes from the Greek a ("not") and methuskein ("to intoxicate"), a reference to the belief that the stone protected its owner from drunkenness; the ancient Greeks and Romans wore amethyst and made drinking vessels of it in the belief that it would prevent intoxication.

Amine

Amines are organic compounds and a type of functional group that contain nitrogen as the key atom. Structurally amines resemble ammonia, wherein one or more hydrogen atoms are replaced by organic substituents such as alkyl and aryl groups. An important exception to this rule is that compounds of the type RC(O)NR₂, where the C(O) refers to a carbonyl group, are called amides rather than amines. Amides and amines have different structures and properties, so the distinction is chemically important. Somewhat confusing is the fact that amines in which an N-H group has been replaced by an N-M group (M = metal) are also called amides. Thus (CH₃)₂NLi is lithium dimethylamide.

Amino acid

In chemistry, an amino acid is a molecule that contains both amine and carboxyl functional groups. In biochemistry, this term refers to alpha-amino acids with the general formula H₂NCHRCOOH, where R is an organic substituent. In the alpha amino acids, the amino and carboxylate groups are attached to the same carbon, which is called the α–carbon. The various alpha amino acids differ in which side chain (R group) is attached to their alpha carbon. They can vary in size from just a hydrogen atom in glycine, through a methyl group in alanine, to a large heterocyclic group in tryptophan.

Beyond the amino acids that recur throughout biochemistry (see below), many non-natural amino acids are also important. The chelating agents EDTA and nitriloacetic acid are alpha amino acids that are industrially synthesized (sometimes from naturally occurring amino acids).

Amish

The Amish (Amisch or Amische) (IPA: ˈɑːmɪʃ) are an Anabaptist Christian denomination in the United States and Canada (Ontario and Manitoba) known for their plain dress and avoidance of modern conveniences such as cars and electricity. The Amish separate themselves from mainstream society for religious reasons: They do not join the military, apply for Social Security benefits, take out insurance or accept any form of financial assistance from the government.

Most speak a German dialect known as Pennsylvania Dutch (Pennsylvania German or Pennsylvanie Deutsch) at home and in church services, and learn English in school. The Amish are divided into separate fellowships consisting of geographical districts or congregations. Each district is fully independent and has its own Ordnung, or set of unwritten rules.

The Old Order Amish are distinguished from the Beachy Amish and the New Order Amish by their strict adherence to the use of horses for farming and transportation, their traditional manner of dress, and their refusal to allow electricity or telephones in their homes. The Old Order Amish is the concept many outsiders have when they think of "Amish".

Amitriptyline

Amitriptyline (or Amitryptyline) hydrochloride (sold as Elavil, Tryptanol, Endep, Elatrol, Tryptizol, Trepiline, Laroxyl) is a tricyclic antidepressant drug. It is a white, odorless (but tastes like licorice), crystalline compound which is freely soluble in water; it is usually dispensed in tablet form. In terms of its mechanism of action, amitriptyline inhibits serotonin and noradrenaline reuptake almost equally.

Amman

Amman (IPA: ), sometimes spelled Ammann (Arabic عمان ʿAmmān), is the capital city of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, a city of 2,125,400 inhabitants (2005 estimate), and the administrative capital and commercial centre of Jordan. It is the capital city of Amman Governorate.

Ammolite

Ammolite is a rare and valuable opal-like organic gemstone found primarily along the eastern slopes of the Rocky Mountains of the United States and Canada. It is made of the fossilized shells of ammonites, which in turn are composed primarily of aragonite, the same mineral that makes up nacreous pearls. It is one of the three biogenic gemstones, the other two being amber and pearl.1 In 1981, ammolite was given official gemstone status by the World Jewellery Confederation, the same year commercial mining of ammolite began. In 2004 it was designated the official gemstone of the Province of Alberta.

Ammolite is also known as aapoak (Kainah for "small, crawling stone"), gem ammonite, calcentine, and korite. The latter is a trade name given to the gemstone by the Alberta-based mining company Korite International, the first and largest commercial producer of ammolite.

Ammonia

Ammonia is a compound with the formula NH₃. It is normally encountered as a gas with a characteristic pungent odor. Although ammonia contributes significantly to the nutritional needs of Earth, the gas itself is caustic and can cause serious health damage. The United States Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has set a 15-minute exposure limit for gaseous ammonia of 35 ppm by volume in the environmental air and an 8-hour exposure limit of 25 ppm by volume. Exposure to very high concentrations of gaseous ammonia can result in lung damage and death. Although ammonia is regulated in the United States as a non-flammable gas, it still meets the definition of a material that is toxic by inhalation and requires a hazardous safety permit when transported in quantities greater than 13,248 L (3,500 gallons).

Ammonia used commercially is usually named anhydrous ammonia. This term emphasizes the absence of water. Because NH₃ boils at -33 °C, the liquid must be stored under pressure or at low temperature. Its heat of vaporization is, however, sufficiently high that NH₃ can be readily handled in ordinary beakers in a fume hood. "Household ammonia" or "ammonium hydroxide" is a solution of NH₃ in water. The strength of such solutions is measured in units of baume (density), with 26 degrees baume (about 30 weight percent ammonia at 15.5 °C) being the typical high concentration commercial product. Household ammonia ranges in concentration from 5 to 10 weight percent ammonia. See Baumé scale.

Ammonite

Ammonites are an extinct group of marine animals of the subclass Ammonoidea in the class Cephalopoda, phylum Mollusca. They are excellent index fossils, and it is often possible to link the rock layer in which they are found to specific geological time periods. Ammonites' closest living relative is probably not the modern Nautilus (which they outwardly resemble), but rather the subclass Coleoidea (octopus, squid, and cuttlefish). Their fossil shells usually take the form of planispirals, although there were some helically-spiraled and non-spiraled forms (known as "heteromorphs"). Their spiral shape begot their name, as their fossilized shells somewhat resemble tightly-coiled rams' horns. Plinius the Elder (died 79 A.D. near Pompeii) called fossils of these animals ammonis cornua ("horns of Ammon") because the Egyptian god Ammon (Amun) was typically depicted wearing ram's horns. Often the name of an ammonite genus ends in ceras, which is Greek (κέρας) for "horn" (for instance, Pleuroceras).

Ammonium nitrate

The chemical compound ammonium nitrate, the nitrate of ammonia with the chemical formula NH₄NO₃, is a white powder at room temperature and standard pressure. It is commonly used in agriculture as a high-nitrogen fertilizer, and it has also been used as an oxidizing agent in explosives, including improvised explosive devices.

Ammosaurus

Ammosaurus (IPA: /ˌæməˈsɔɹəs/; "sand lizard") is a genus of sauropodomorph dinosaur from the Early Jurassic Period of North America. At 4 meters (13 feet) in length, it was small compared to some other members of its suborder, which included the largest animals ever to walk the Earth. It was a versatile animal, able to move both bipedally and quadrupedally, and may have been omnivorous.

Ammunition

Ammunition, often referred to as ammo, is a generic term meaning (the assembly of) a projectile and its propellant. It is derived through French from the Latin munire (to provide). See also munition.

Amnesia

Amnesia (from Greek Ἀμνησία) (see spelling differences) is a condition in which memory is disturbed. The causes of amnesia are organic or functional. Organic causes include damage to the brain, through trauma or disease, or use of certain (generally sedative) drugs. Functional causes are psychological factors, such as defense mechanisms. Hysterical post-traumatic amnesia is an example of this. Amnesia may also be spontaneous, in the case of transient global amnesia. This global type of amnesia is more common in middle-aged to elderly people, particularly males, and usually lasts less than 24 hours.

Another effect of amnesia is the inability to imagine the future. A recent study published online in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences shows that amnesiacs with damaged hippocampi cannot imagine the future. This is because when a normal human being imagines the future, they use their past experiences to construct a possible scenario. For example, a person who would try to imagine what would happen at a party that would occur in the near future would use their past experience at parties to help construct the event in the future.

Amnesia is prevalent in many works of fiction. Global amnesia is a common motif in fiction despite being extraordinarily rare in reality. Anterograde amnesia features in the movies Memento, Clean Slate, and 50 First Dates, and lacunar amnesia features in the movie Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. In the first season of 24, a prominent character has dissociative amnesia. In the first season of Lost, a character is kidnapped and has amnesia upon returning. The TV show John Doe is based on an amnesiac who mysteriously appears in the middle of a sea. In The Bourne Identity, the main character has retrograde amnesia. In the 1966 motion picture Mr. Buddwing, the protagonist enters an amnesial fugue state in response to distress in his marital relationship. In the 2004 film The Forgotten, adults struggle with memory loss about the existence of their children, who have been abducted for alien/government experiments. In the Marvel Comics series X-Men, Wolverine, one of the main characters, has retrograde amenesia due to brainwashing. In Season 4 of Smallville, Clark has his memory wiped by a Summerholt patient.

In Century Fox's animated film, Anastasia (1997), Anya suffers from amnesia as a result of having her head hit when trying to climb on train to escape to Paris with her grandmother as a young girl and cannot recall the first eight years of her life, and sang "Once Upon A December" & "Journey to the Past", to refresh memories of being a Russian princess and her family, the Romanov family.

In movies and television, particularly sitcoms, it is often depicted that a second hit to the head (similar to the first one) cures the amnesia. In reality, however, a second concussion would have catastrophic consequences, a phenomenon known as Second Impact Syndrome. Dissociative Amnesia plays a critical role in the novel Mysterious Skin and movie of the same name. Author Gene Wolfe addresses amnesia in the series Soldier of the Mist, where the main character Latro is injured during battle, causing relatively long term (24 hour) anterograde amnesia.

http://men.msn.com/articlees.aspx?cp-documentid=5125971&GT1=10215

Amnesiac

Amnesiac is the fifth studio album by the English band Radiohead. It was released on 4 June 2001 in the United Kingdom and on 5 June 2001 in the United States and Canada, debuting at #1 on the UK charts and #2 on the Billboard Top 200. Seen as the furthest departure yet from the arena rock style and heart-on-sleeve songwriting of the band's early career,citation needed] Amnesiac nevertheless has more audible guitar than its direct predecessor Kid A, and unlike that album, it spun off several successful singles (though it should be noted that no singles were released from Kid A). Like Kid A, it synthesizes influences of electronic music, ambient music, and jazz.

Amoeba

Amoeba, amœba, or ameba (plural amoebae) is a genus of protozoa that moves by means of temporary projections called pseudopods, and is well-known as a representative unicellular organism. The word amoeba or ameba is variously used to refer to it and its close relatives, now grouped as the Amoebozoa, or to all protozoa that move using pseudopods, otherwise termed amoeboids. The amoeba was first discovered by August Johann Rösel von Rosenhof in 1755.

Amortization

Amortization is also used in the context of zoning regulations and describes the time in which a property owner has to relocate when the property's use constitutes a preexisting nonconforming use under zoning regulations.

Amoxicillin

Amoxicillin (INN) or amoxycillin (former BAN) is a moderate-spectrum β-lactam antibiotic used to treat bacterial infections caused by susceptible microorganisms. It is usually the drug of choice within the class because it is better absorbed, following oral administration, than other beta-lactam antibiotics. Amoxicillin is susceptible to degradation by β-lactamase-producing bacteria, and so may be given with clavulanic acid to decrease its susceptibility (see below). It was developed by Beecham in 1972 and is currently marketed by GlaxoSmithKline (the inheritor company) under the original trade name Amoxil.

Ampere

The ampere, in practice often shortened to amp, (symbol: A) is a unit of electric current, or amount of electric charge per second. The ampere is an SI base unit, and is named after André-Marie Ampère, one of the main discoverers of electromagnetism.

Ampersand

An ampersand (&), also commonly called an "and sign" is a logogram representing the conjunction "and." The symbol is a ligature of the letters in et, Latin for "and." Its origin is apparent in the second example in the image to the left below; the first example, now more common, is a later development.

Amphetamine

Amphetamine or Amfetamine (Alpha-Methyl-PHenEThylAMINE), also known as, beta-phenyl-isopropylamine, and benzedrine, is a prescription stimulant commonly used to treat Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in adults and children. It is also used to treat symptoms of traumatic brain injury and the daytime drowsiness symptoms of narcolepsy and chronic fatigue syndrome. Initially it was more popularly used to diminish the appetite and to control weight. Brand names of the drugs that contain Amphetamine include Adderall, and Dexedrine. The drug is also used illegally as a recreational club drug and as a performance enhancer. The term "Amphetamine" may also refer to the class of compounds derived from Amphetamine, often referred to as the Substituted Amphetamines.

Amphibian

   Order Temnospondyli - extinct
Subclass Lepospondyli - extinct
Subclass Lissamphibia
   Order Anura
   Order Caudata
   Order Gymnophiona

Amphibians (class Amphibia; from Greek αμφις "both" and βιος "life") are a taxon of animals that include all living tetrapods (four-legged vertebrates) that do not have amniotic eggs, are ectothermic (term for the animals whose body heat is regulated by the external environment; previously known as cold-blooded), and generally spend part of their time on land. Most amphibians do not have the adaptations to an entirely terrestrial existence found in most other modern tetrapods (amniotes). There are around 6,000 described, living species of amphibians. The study of amphibians and reptiles is known as herpetology. Amphibians are able to breathe through their skin.

Amplifier

Generally, an amplifier is any device that will use a small amount of energy to control a larger amount of energy. In popular use, the term today usually refers to an electronic amplifier, often as in audio applications. The relationship of the input to the output of an amplifier — usually expressed as a function of the input frequency — is called the transfer function of the amplifier, and the magnitude of the transfer function is termed the gain.

Amsterdam

Amsterdam (help·info) is the capital city of the Netherlands, located in the south of the province North Holland. The name Amsterdam literally means Amstel dam.. The city was founded in the late 12th century as a small fishing village. The historical centre is renowned for its concentric canals, largely built during the Dutch Golden Age in the 17th century. The city has been compared with Venice. Beyond the canals, the similaraties have a basis in the cities' long histories of overseas trading, translating in openess and tolerance.

As of January 1, 2006 the city of Amsterdam has a population of 743,027 inhabitants and is by population size the largest city in the Netherlands. The urban area has a population of 1,021,870 inhabitants and is part of the conglomerate metropolitan area Randstad, with a population of 6,659,300 inhabitants.

Amtrak

The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak (AAR reporting marks AMTK and AMTZ), is a quasi-governmental corporation that was organized on May 1, 1971, to provide intercity passenger train service in the United States. "Amtrak" is a portmanteau of the words "American" and "track".

All of Amtrak's preferred stock is owned by the Federal government. The members of its board of directors are appointed by the President of the United States and are subject to confirmation by the United States Senate. Common stock was issued in 1971 to railroads that contributed capital and equipment; the common stock was to be redeemed in 2002 and its present status is unclear.

Amtrak employs nearly 19,000 people. It operates passenger service on 21,000 miles (33,800 km) of track primarily owned by other railroads connecting 500 destinations in 46 states. Some routes serve Canada. In fiscal year 2006, Amtrak served 24.3 million passengers, a company record.

Amur

The Amur River or Heilong Jiang (Russian: Амур; Simplified Chinese: 黑龙江; Traditional Chinese: 黑龍江; Pinyin: Hēilóng Jiāng, or "Black Dragon River"; Mongolian: Хар Мөрөн, Khar Mörön or "Black River"; Manchu: Sahaliyan Ula, literal meaning "Black River") is the world's eighth longest river, forming the border between the Russian Far East and Northeastern China.

In many historical references these two geopolitical entities are known as Outer Manchuria (Russian Manchuria) and Inner Manchuria, respectively. The Chinese province of Heilongjiang on the south bank of the river is named after it, as is the Russian Amur Oblast on the north bank.

The Amur River is a very important symbol of — and an important geopolitical factor in — Chinese-Russian relations. The Amur was especially important in the period of time following the Sino-Soviet political split in the 1960s.

The name Black River was used by the Manchu and the Qing Dynasty who always regarded this river as sacred.

The economy of the Amur Basin includes manufacturing, metallurgy, iron mining, non-ferrous metals, gold, coal, hydroelectricity, wheat, millet, soybeans, fishing, timber and Chinese-Russian trade. The Daqing oilfield, which is the world's 4th-largest oilfield, is located near Daqing City in Heilongjiang, a few hundred kilometers from the river.

Flowing across northeast Asia for over 4,666 km (2,700 mi), from the mountains of northeastern China to the Sea of Okhotsk (near Nikolayevsk-na-Amure), it drains a remarkable watershed that includes diverse landscapes of desert, steppe, tundra, and taiga, eventually emptying into the Pacific Ocean through the Strait of Tartary, where the mouth of the river faces the northern end of the island of Sakhalin. The Amur has always been closely associated with Sakhalin, and most names for the island, even in the languages of the indigenous peoples of the region, are derived from the name of the river: "Sakhalin" derives from a Tungusic dialectal form cognate with Manchu sahaliyan ("black," as in sahaliyan ula, "Black River"), while Ainu and Japanese "Karaputo" or "Karafuto" is derived from the Ainu name of the Amur or its mouth.

The average annually discharge varies from 6000 m³/s (1980) - 12000 m³/s (1957), leading to an average 9819 m³/s or 310 km³ per year. The maximum runoff measured occurred in Oct 1951 with 30700 m³/s whereas the minimum discharge was recorded in March 1946 with a mere 514 m³/s.

The Amur is bordered by Heilongjiang province of China in the south, and Amur Oblast, Jewish Autonomous Oblast, and Khabarovsk Krai of Russia in the north. The final stretch of the Amur passes through Khabarovsk Krai. It passes by the following cities:

Coordinates: 53°06′N, 140°44′E

Amusement park

Amusement park is the generic term for a collection of rides and other entertainment attractions assembled for the purpose of entertaining a fairly large group of people. An amusement park is more elaborate than a simple city park or playground, as an amusement park is meant to cater to adults, teenagers, and small children.

An amusement park may be permanent or temporary, usually periodic, such as a few days or weeks per year. The temporary help convey the feeling that people are in a different place or time. Often a theme park will have various 'lands' (sections) of the park devoted to telling a particular story. Alternatively, an amusement park often has rides with little in terms of theming or additional design elements. The main difference between a theme park and an amusement park is that in a theme park all the rides go all with the theme of the park, for example Magic Kingdom in Walt Disney World.

Amusement parks evolved in Europe from Pleasure Gardens, which existed for the recreation of the people, while charging a fee. In the United States, expositions were another influence on the amusement park. Amusement parks were the historical precursors to modern theme parks as well as the more traditional midway arcades and rides at county and state fairs (in the United States). Today, amusement parks have largely been replaced by theme parks, and the two terms are often used interchangeably. The oldest amusement park of the world (opened 1583) is Bakken, at Klampenborg, north of Copenhagen, Denmark. Another long-standing park is Prater in Vienna, Austria, which opened in 1766.

For a remarkable example of a European park, dating from 1843 and still existing, see Tivoli Gardens, Copenhagen. Even older is the Oktoberfest which not only is a beer festival but also provides a lot of amusement park features dating back to 1810, when the first event was held in Munich, Germany.

Amusement Park (song)

"Amusement Park" was the second single by rapper 50 Cent from the album Curtis. The music video premiered on Yahoo!'s website May 16. Although there have been rumours of a possible ban, it hasn't been banned from MTV and it has premiered on TRL May 17.

Other rumors concerning Dangerous LLC selling the beat twice, once to 50 Cent and once to Jim Jones for the song "Your Majesty" on a DJ Drama mixtape, have been denied by Dangerous LLC who claims it was probably leaked. It claimed the #1 spot on 106 & Park, on June 6, 2007.

Amygdala

The amygdalae (Latin, also corpus amygdaloideum, singular amygdala, from Greek αμυγδαλή, amygdalē) are almond-shaped groups of neurons located deep within the medial temporal lobes of the brain in complex vertebrates, including humans. Shown in research to perform a primary role in the processing and memory of emotional reactions, the amygdalae are considered part of the limbic system.

Amyloidosis

In medicine, amyloid refers to a particular insoluble form that many different proteins can take, due to an alteration in their secondary structure. This characteristic alteration in the protein shape is called the beta-pleated sheet. Amyloidosis refers to a variety of conditions in which amyloid proteins are abnormally deposited in organs and/or tissues, causing disease.

Approximately 25 different proteins are known that can form amyloid in humans, most of them are constituents of the plasma.

Different amyloidoses can be systemic-affecting many different organ systems, or organ specific. Some are inherited, due to mutations in the precursor protein. Other, secondary forms are due to different diseases causing overabundant or abnormal protein production-such as with over production of immunoglobulin light chains in multiple myeloma (termed AL amyloid), or with continuous overproduction of acute phase proteins in chronic inflammation (which can lead to AA amyloid).

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS, sometimes called Lou Gehrig's Disease, Maladie de Charcot or motor neurone disease) is a progressive, fatal, neurodegenerative disease caused by the degeneration of motor neurons, the nerve cells in the central nervous system that control voluntary muscle movement. The disorder causes muscle weakness and atrophy throughout the body as both the upper and lower motor neurons degenerate and die, ceasing to send messages to muscles. Unable to function, the muscles gradually weaken, atrophy, and develop fasciculations (twitches) because of denervation. Eventually, the brain completely loses its ability to initiate and control voluntary movement. The disease does not necessarily debilitate the patient's mental functioning in the same manner as Alzheimer's disease or other neurological conditions. Rather, those suffering advanced stages of the disease may retain the same memories, personality, and intelligence they had before its onset.

Anabaptist

Topics in Christianity
Movements · Denominations
Ecumenism · Preaching · Prayer
Music · Liturgy · Calendar
Symbols · Art · Criticism

Important figures
Apostle Paul · Church Fathers
Constantine · Athanasius · Augustine
Anselm · Aquinas · Palamas · Luther
Calvin · Wesley
Arius · Marcion of Sinope
Pope · Archbishop of Canterbury
Patriarch of Constantinople

Anabaptists (Greek ανα (again) +βαπτιζω (baptize), thus, "re-baptizers", German: Wiedertäufer) are Christians of the Radical Reformation. Various groups at various times have been called Anabaptist, but this article focuses primarily on the Anabaptists of 16th century Europe.

The term "anabaptist" comes from the practice of baptizing individuals who had been baptized previously, often as infants. Anabaptists believe infant baptism is not valid, because a child cannot commit to a religious faith, and they instead support what is called believer's baptism.

The word anabaptism is used in this article to describe any of the 16th century "radical" dissenters, and the denominations descending from the followers of Menno Simons. Today the descendants of the 16th century European movement (particularly the Baptists, Amish, Hutterites, Mennonites, Church of the Brethren, and Brethren in Christ) are the most common bodies referred to as Anabaptist.

Anabolic steroid

Anabolic steroids, also known as anabolic-androgenic steroids or AAS, are a class of steroid hormones related to the hormone testosterone. They increase protein synthesis within cells, which results in anabolism of cellular tissue, especially in muscles. Anabolic steroids also have androgenic and virilizing properties, including the development and maintenance of masculine characteristics such as the growth of the vocal chords and body hair. The word anabolic comes from the Greek: anabole, "to build up", and the word androgenic comes from the Greek: andros, "man" + genein, "to produce".

Anabolic steroids were first isolated, identified and synthesized in the 1930s, and are now used therapeutically in medicine to stimulate bone growth and appetite, induce male puberty, and treat chronic wasting conditions, such as cancer and AIDS. Anabolic steroids also produce increases in muscle mass and physical strength, and are consequently used in sport and bodybuilding to enhance strength or physique. Serious health risks can be produced by long-term use or excessive doses of anabolic steroids. These effects include harmful changes in cholesterol levels (increased bad cholesterol and decreased good cholesterol), acne, high blood pressure, liver damage, and dangerous changes in the structure of the left ventricle of the heart. Some of these effects can be mitigated by exercise, or by taking supplemental drugs.

The non-medical use of anabolic steroids is controversial because they may be used to gain an advantage in competitive sports, as well as because of their adverse effects. The use of anabolic steroids is banned by all major sporting bodies, including the International Olympic Committee, FIFA, UEFA, the National Hockey League, Major League Baseball, the National Basketball Association, the European Athletic Association and the National Football League. Anabolic steroids are controlled substances in many countries, including the United States (U.S.), Canada, the United Kingdom (UK), Australia, Argentina and Brazil, while in other countries, such as Mexico and Thailand, they are freely available. In countries where the drugs are controlled, there is often a black market, in which smuggled or counterfeit drugs are sold to users. The quality of such illegal drugs may be low, and contaminants may cause additional health risks. Many users have called for the decriminalization of anabolic steroids.

Anaconda

Anacondas are four species of aquatic boa inhabiting the swamps and rivers of the dense forests of tropical South America. The Yellow Anaconda can be found as far south as Argentina.

There are two possible origins for the word 'anaconda.' It is perhaps an alteration of the Sinhalese word 'henakanday', meaning 'thunder snake', or alternatively, the Tamil word 'anaikondran', which means 'elephant killer'. It is unclear how the name originated so far from the snake's native habitat; it is likely due to its vague similarity to the large Asian pythons. Local names for the anaconda in South America include the Spanish term matatoro, meaning 'bull killer', and the Native American terms sucuri, yakumama, and jibóia. Anacondas as members of the boa family are sometimes called water boas. The Latin name for Anaconda is Eunectes.

Anaconda (film)

Anaconda (1997) is a horror film. It was followed by the sequel Anacondas: The Hunt for the Blood Orchid.

The plot centered on a film crew for National Geographic who are kidnapped by a hunter who is going after the world's largest anaconda, which is discovered in the remote jungle. Though a modest box office hit, the film was critically panned.

Anagram

An anagram (< Greek anagramma 'letters written anew', passive participle of ana- 'again' + gramma 'letter') is a type of word play, the result of rearranging the letters of a word or phrase to produce other words, using all the original letters exactly once; e.g., Eleven plus two=Twelve plus one, A Decimal Point=I'm a Dot in Place, Astronomers=Moon Starers. Someone who creates anagrams is called an anagrammist. The original word or phrase is known as the subject of the anagram. Technically, any word or phrase which exactly reproduces the letters in another is an anagram; e.g., saltine = entails. However, the goal of serious or skilled anagrammists is to produce anagrams which, in some way, reflect or comment on the subject. Such an anagram may be a synonym or antonym of its subject, a parody, a criticism, or praise. Another goal of anagrammists is to produce an anagram which is not only new, or previously unknown to others (this is known as "discovering" an anagram), but also one that is considered clever enough that it becomes widely known and enters the canon of famous or classic anagrams, like the examples below.

Anal sex

Anal sex is a form of human sexual behavior. While there are many sexual acts involving the anus, anal cavity, sphincter valve and/or rectum, the term anal sex is often restricted to anal intercourse: the insertion of the erect penis into the rectum.

Analgesic

An analgesic (colloquially known as a painkiller) is any member of the diverse group of drugs used to relieve pain (achieve analgesia). This derives from Greek an-, "without", and -algia, "pain". Analgesic drugs act in various ways on the peripheral and central nervous systems; they include paracetamol (acetaminophen), the nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) such as the salicylates, narcotic drugs such as morphine, synthetic drugs with narcotic properties such as tramadol, and various others. Some other classes of drugs not normally considered analgesics are used to treat neuropathic pain syndromes; these include tricyclic antidepressants and anticonvulsants.

Analog-to-digital converter

An analog-to-digital converter (abbreviated ADC, A/D or A to D) is an electronic integrated circuit (i/c) that converts continuous signals to discrete digital numbers. The reverse operation is performed by a digital-to-analog converter (DAC).

Typically, an ADC is an electronic device that converts an input analog voltage ( or current ) to a digital number. The digital output may be using different coding schemes, such as binary and two's complement binary. However, some non-electronic or only partially electronic devices, such as rotary encoders, can also be considered ADCs.

Analogy

Analogy is both the cognitive process of transferring information from a particular subject (the analogue or source) to another particular subject (the target), and a linguistic expression corresponding to such a process. In a narrower sense, analogy is an inference or an argument from a particular to another particular, as opposed to deduction, induction, and abduction, where at least one of the premises or the conclusion is general. The word analogy can also refer to the relation between the source and the target themselves, which is often, though not necessarily, a similarity, as in the biological notion of analogy.

Analogy plays a significant role in problem solving, decision making, perception, memory, creativity, emotion, explanation and communication. It lies behind basic tasks such as the identification of places, objects and people, for example, in face perception and facial recognition systems. It has been argued that analogy is "the core of cognition" (Hofstadter in Gentner et al. 2001).
Specific analogical language comprises exemplification, comparisons, metaphors, similes, allegories, and parables, but not metonymy. Phrases like and so on, and the like, as if, and the very word like also rely on an analogical understanding by the receiver of a message including them. Analogy is important not only in ordinary language and common sense, where proverbs and idioms give many examples of its application, but also in science, philosophy and the humanities. The concepts of association, comparison, correspondence, mathematical and morphological homology, homomorphism, iconicity, isomorphism, metaphor, resemblance, and similarity are closely related to analogy. In cognitive linguistics, the notion of conceptual metaphor may be equivalent to that of analogy.

Analogy has been studied and discussed since classical antiquity by philosophers, scientists and lawyers. The last few decades have shown a renewed interest in analogy, most notable in cognitive science.

Analytical Marxism

Analytical Marxism refers to a style of thinking about Marxism that was prominent amongst English-speaking philosophers and social scientists during the 1980s. It was mainly associated with the September Group of academics, so called because of their biennial September meetings to discuss common interests. The group also dubbed itself "Non-Bullshit Marxism", and was characterized, in the words of David Miller, by "clear and rigorous thinking about questions that are usually blanketed by ideological fog." The most prominent members of the group were G. A. Cohen, John Roemer, Jon Elster, Adam Przeworski, Erik Olin Wright, Philippe van Parijs, and Robert-Jan van der Veen.

Anamorphosis

Anamorphosis is a distorted projection or perspective requiring the viewer to use special devices or occupy a specific vantage point to reconstitute the image. "Ana - morphosis" comes from the Greek words meaning "formed again." In other languages: αναμόρφωση (Greek), anamorphotisches Bild (German), anamorfosi (Italian), anamorfosis (Spanish), vertekend beeld (Dutch), anamorphose (French), anamorfoza (Polish), anamorfózis (Hungarian).

Anaphylaxis

Anaphylaxis is an acute systemic (multi-system) and severe Type I Hypersensitivity allergic reaction in humans and other mammals. The term comes from the Greek words ana (against) and phylaxis (protection). Anaphylaxis occurs when a person or animal is exposed to a trigger substance, called an allergen, to which they have already become sensitized. Minute amounts of allergens may cause a life-threatening anaphylactic reaction. Anaphylaxis may occur after ingestion, skin contact, injection of an allergen or, in rare cases, inhalation.

Anaphylactic shock, the most severe type of anaphylaxis, occurs when an allergic response triggers a quick release from mast cells of large quantities of immunological mediators (histamines, prostaglandins, leukotrienes) leading to systemic vasodilation (associated with a sudden drop in blood pressure) and edema of bronchial mucosa (resulting in bronchoconstriction and difficulty breathing). Anaphylactic shock can lead to death in a matter of minutes if left untreated.

An estimated 1.24% to 16.8% of the population of the United States may suffer from anaphylactic reactions, 1% of whom may die as a result. Most common presentation is sudden cardiovascular collapse (88% of reported cases of severe anaphylaxis).citation needed]

Researchers typically distinguish between "true anaphylaxis" and "pseudo-anaphylaxis." The symptoms, treatment, and risk of death are identical, but "true" anaphylaxis is always caused directly by degranulation of mast cells or basophils that is mediated by immunoglobulin E (IgE), and pseudo-anaphylaxis occurs due to all other causes. The distinction is only important for researchers who are studying mechanisms of allergic reactions. Due to the word "pseudo", it may frustrate patients who feel they are being told that a life-threatening allergic reaction isn't "real".

Anarchism

Anarchism is a political philosophy or group of philosophies and attitudes centered on rejection of any form of (hierarchical) authority or (compulsory) government (cf. "state"), and supporting its elimination.. The term "anarchism" derives from the Greek αναρχία ("without archons" or "without rulers").

There are a variety of types and traditions of anarchism with various points of difference. However, the varieties are not particularly well characterized and not all of them are mutually exclusive. Other than the description above, "there is no single defining position that all anarchists hold, and those considered anarchists at best share a certain family resemblance." Different anarchists prefer several different economic systems, although nearly all favor a variation of socialism.

Anarcho-capitalism

Anarcho-capitalism (a form of market anarchism) advocates the elimination of the state; the provision of law enforcement, courts, national defense, and all other security services by voluntarily-funded competitors in a free market rather than by taxation; the complete deregulation of nonintrusive personal and economic activities; and a self-regulated market. Anarcho-capitalists argue for a society based in voluntary trade of private property (including money, consumer goods, land, and capital goods) and services in order to maximize individual liberty and prosperity, but also recognize charity and communal arrangements as part of the same voluntary ethic. Though anarcho-capitalists are known for asserting a right to private (individualized/non-public) property, non-state common property can also exist in an anarcho-capitalist society. For them, what is important is that it is acquired and transferred without help or hindrance from the compulsory state. Anarcho-capitalist libertarians believe that the only just way to acquire property is through voluntary trade, gift, or labor-based original appropriation, rather than through aggression or fraud.

Anarcho-capitalists see free-market capitalism as the basis for a free society. Anarcho-capitalist Murray Rothbard defined free-market capitalism as "peaceful voluntary exchange," in contrast to "state capitalism" which he defined as a collusive partnership between business and government that uses coercion to subvert the free market. "Capitalism," as anarcho-capitalists employ the term, is not to be confused with state monopoly capitalism, crony capitalism, corporatism, or contemporary mixed economies, wherein natural market incentives and disincentives are skewed by state intervention. So they reject the state, based on the belief that states are aggressive entities which steal property (through taxation and expropriation), initiate aggression, are a compulsory monopoly on the use of defensive and/or punitive force, use their coercive powers to benefit some businesses and individuals at the expense of others, create monopolies, and restrict trade. The embrace of unfettered capitalism leads to considerable tension between anarcho-capitalists and many social anarchists who tend to distrust the market, and believe that free-market capitalism is inherently authoritarian - hence incompatible with egalitarian anarchist ideals.

Various theorists have differing, though similar, philosophies which are considered to fall under "anarcho-capitalism." The first well-known version of anarcho-capitalism was developed by Austrian School economist and libertarian Murray Rothbard in the mid-twentieth century, synthesizing elements from the Austrian School of economics, classical liberalism, and nineteenth century American individualist anarchists Lysander Spooner and Benjamin Tucker (rejecting their labor theory of value and the normative implications they derived from it). In Rothbardian anarcho-capitalism, there would first be the implementation of a mutually agreed-upon libertarian "legal code which would be generally accepted, and which the courts would pledge themselves to follow." This legal code would recognize sovereignty of the individual and the principle of non-aggression. However, in David D. Friedman's anarcho-capitalism, "the systems of law will be produced for profit on the open market," which he believes would lead to a generally libertarian society if not an absolute one. Rothbard bases his philosophy on absolutist natural law grounds but also gives economic explanations of why he thinks anarcho-capitalism is preferable on pragmatic grounds. Friedman says he is not an absolutist rights theorists but is also "not a utilitarian," but believes that "utilitarian arguments are usually the best way to defend libertarian views." Hans-Hermann Hoppe, meanwhile, uses "argumentation ethics" for his foundation of "private property anarchism", and is closer to Rothbard's natural law approach.

Anarchy

Anarchy (from Greek: ἀναρχία anarchía, "without authority") may refer to any of the following:

Anathema

Anathema (in Greek Ανάθεμα) meaning originally something lifted up as an offering to the gods; later, with evolving meanings, it came to mean:

Anathema (band)

Anathema are an English band from the city of Liverpool, who — together with Paradise Lost and My Dying Bride — helped develop the death/doom sound, a subgenre of doom metal. Since their album Eternity, Anathema have strayed away from doom and eventually metal altogether, becoming an atmospheric rock band.

Anatolia

Anatolia (Turkish: Anadolu from Greek: Ανατολία - Anatolía) is a peninsula of Western Asia which forms the greater part of the Asian portion of Turkey, as opposed to its European portion (Thrace, or traditionally Rumelia). It is also often called by the Latin name of Asia Minor, which comes from the Greek Mikrá Asía (Μικρά Ασία).

The name comes from the Greek Aνατολή (Αnatolḗ) or Ανατολία (Anatolía), which means "east". The Byzantine theme of "Anatolikon" ("eastern one") signified the lands to the east of Europe and Constantinople. The Turkish form Anadolu derives from the Greek version; Turkish folk etymology breaks down the geographical term into two words, "mother" and "full" Thus, Ana, dolu 'Mother, it is full' or 'Full of mothers'.

Anatomy

Anatomy (from the Greek ἀaνατομία anatomia, from ἀνατέμνειν ana: separate, apart from, and temnein, to cut up, cut open) is the branch of biology that is the consideration of the structure of living things. It is a general term that can include human anatomy, animal anatomy (zootomy) and plant anatomy (phytotomy). In some of its facets anatomy is closely related to embryology, comparative anatomy and comparitive embryology, through common roots in evolution.

Anatomy is subdivided into gross anatomy and histology. Gross anatomy (also called topographical anatomy, regional anatomy, or anthropotomy) is the study of anatomical structures that can be seen by unaided vision. Microscopic anatomy is the study of minute anatomical structures assisted with microscopes, which includes histology (the study of the organisation of tissues), and cytology (the study of cells).

The history of anatomy has been characterized, over time, by a continually developing understanding of the functions of organs and structures in the body. Methods have also advanced dramatically, advancing from examination of animals through dissection of cadavers (dead human bodies) to technologically complex techniques developed in the 20th century.

Anatomy should not be confused with histopathology (also called anatomical pathology or morbid anatomy), which is the study of the gross and microscopic appearances of diseased organs.

Ancient (Stargate)

The Ancients, also known as the Alterans and Lanteans, sometimes calling themselves Anqueetas in their language, are a humanoid race in the fictional Stargate universe. They are the most advanced race known to have existed, having evolved for millions of years prior to the present day and reaching their level of technology long before humanity evolved on Earth. They are best known as the builders of the Stargates, the basis of the franchise.

The Ancients have become the most important race in both Stargate series. They belong to the same race as the Ori, the main antagonists in Stargate SG-1 since the show's ninth season, and have played a large role in the series' many story arcs. In Stargate Atlantis, the Ancients built Atlantis, the show's main setting, and are responsible for the emergence of the show's two main villain races: the Wraith and the Asurans.

Ancient Egypt

Ancient Egypt was a long-standing civilization in northeastern Africa. It was concentrated along the middle to lower reaches of the Nile River, reaching its greatest extent in the second millennium BC, during the New Kingdom. It reached from the Nile Delta in the north, as far south as Jebel Barkal at the Fourth Cataract of the Nile. Extensions to the geographic range of ancient Egyptian civilization included, at different times, areas of the southern Levant, the Eastern Desert and the Red Sea coastline, the Sinai Peninsula, and the Western body (focused on the several oases). Ancient Egypt developed over at least three and a half millennia. It began with the incipient unification of Nile Valley polities around 3150 BC, and is conventionally thought to have ended in 31 BC when the early Roman Empire conquered and absorbed Ptolemaic Egypt as a state. This last event did not represent the first period of foreign domination; the Roman period was, however, to witness a marked, if gradual transformation in the political and religious life of the Nile Valley, effectively marking the end of independent civilizational development.

The civilization of ancient Egypt was based on balanced control of natural and human resources, characterised primarily by controlled irrigation of the fertile Nile Valley; the mineral exploitation of the valley and surrounding desert regions; the early development of an independent writing system and literature; the organization of collective projects; trade with surrounding regions in east / central Africa and the eastern Mediterranean; and finally, military ventures that exhibited strong characteristics of imperial hegemony and territorial domination of neighbouring cultures at different periods. Motivating and organising these activities were a socio-political and economic elite that achieved social consensus by means of an elaborate system of religious belief under the figure of a semi-divine ruler (usually male) from a succession of ruling dynasties, and related to the larger world by means of polytheistic beliefs.

Ancient Greece

Ancient Greece is a period in Greek history that lasted for around three thousand years. It is generally considered to be the seminal culture which provided the foundation of Western Civilization. Greek culture had a powerful influence on the Roman Empire, which carried a version of it to many parts of Europe. The civilization of the ancient Greeks has been immensely influential on the language, politics, educational systems, philosophy, science, and arts, giving rise to the Renaissance in Western Europe and again resurgent during various neo-Classical revivals in 18th and 19th century Europe and the Americas.

Ancient Greek

Ancient Greek refers to the Greek language as it existed during the Archaic (9th–6th centuries BC) and Classical (5th–4th centuries BC) periods in Greece. The Ancient era of Greek history normally includes also the Hellenistic (post-Classic) age, which formally constitutes its own stage in the Greek language known as Koine Greek.

Ancient Greek is the language of the Homeric poems, including the Iliad and the Odyssey, and of the great works of literature and philosophy of the Athenian Golden Age, which came to be the foundations of Western civilisation's modern mathematics and sciences.

For information on the Hellenic language family prior to the creation of the Greek alphabet, see articles Mycenaean Greek and Proto-Greek.

Ancient history

Ancient history is the study of the written past from the beginning of human history until the Early Middle Ages. The goal of the modern day critical ancient historian is objectivity. The term classical antiquity is often used to refer to ancient history since the beginning of recorded Greek history in about 776 BC. This coincides roughly with the traditional date of the founding of Rome in 753 BC, the beginning of the history of ancient Rome.

Although the ending date of ancient history is disputed, currently most Western scholars use the fall of the Western Roman Empire in AD 476 as the end of ancient European history. The span of recorded history is roughly 5,000 – 5,500 years, with Sumerian cuneiform being the oldest form of writing discovered so far. Thus, this is the beginning of history by the definition used by all historians.

History of China

The history of China is told in traditional historical records that refer as far back as the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors about 5,000 years ago, supplemented by archaeological records dating to the 16th century BC. China is one of the world's oldest continuous civilizations. Turtle shells with markings reminiscent of ancient Chinese writing from the Shang Dynasty have been carbon dated to around 1500 BC. Chinese civilization originated with city-states in the Yellow River valley. 221 BC is the commonly accepted year when China became unified under a large kingdom or empire. Successive dynasties in Chinese history developed bureaucratic systems that enabled the Emperor of China to control the large territory.

China was first united by Qin Shi Huang in 221 BC. China alternated between periods of political unity and disunity, with occasionally conquests by foreign peoples, most of whom were assimilated into the Chinese population. Cultural and political influences from many parts of Asia, carried by successive waves of immigration, expansion, and assimilation, merged to create Chinese culture.

Ancient Rome

Ancient Rome was a civilization that grew from a small agricultural community founded on the Italian Peninsula circa the 9th century BC to a massive empire straddling the Mediterranean Sea. In its twelve-century existence, Roman civilization shifted from a monarchy, to a republic based on a combination of oligarchy and democracy, to an autocratic empire. It came to dominate Western Europe and the entire area surrounding the Mediterranean Sea through conquest and assimilation.

The Roman empire went into decline in the 5th century A.D. The western half of the empire, including Hispania, Gaul, and Italy, broke into independent kingdoms in the 5th century. The eastern empire, governed from Constantinople, is usually referred to as the Byzantine Empire after 476, the traditional date for the "fall of Rome" and for the subsequent onset of the Early Middle Ages, also known as the Dark Ages.

Roman civilization is often grouped into "classical antiquity" with ancient Greece, a civilization that inspired much of the culture of ancient Rome. Ancient Rome contributed greatly to the development of law, war, art, literature, architecture, technology and language in the Western world, and its history continues to have a major influence on the world today.

Andalusia

Andalusia (Spanish: Andalucía) is an autonomous community of Spain. Andalusia is the most populous and the second largest, in terms of its land area, of the seventeen autonomous communities of the Kingdom of Spain. Its capital is Seville.

Andalusia is bounded on the north by the autonomous communities of Extremadura and Castilla-La Mancha; on the east by the autonomous community of Murcia and the Mediterranean Sea; on the west by Portugal and the Atlantic Ocean; on the south by the Mediterranean Sea, the Strait of Gibraltar, which separates Spain from Morocco, and the Atlantic Ocean. The British colony of Gibraltar shares a three-quarter-mile land border with the Andalusian province of Cádiz at the eastern end of the Strait of Gibraltar.

Andes

The Andes (Old Castillan shorthand for "Andenes" or "Andenerías"citation needed]: Some attribute the origin of the name to one of the four regions of the Inca empire, or Anti(s)) is South America's longest mountain range, forming a continuous chain of highland along the western coast of South America. It is over 7,000 km (4,400 miles) long, 500 km (300 miles) wide in some parts (widest between 18° to 20°S latitude), and of an average height of about 4,000 m (13,000 feet).

The Andean range is composed principally of two great ranges, the Cordillera Oriental and the Cordillera Occidental, often separated by a deep intermediate depression, in which arise other chains of minor importance, the chief of which is Chile's Cordillera de la Costa. Other small chains arise on the sides of the great chains. The Cordillera de la Costa starts from the southern extremity of the continent and runs in a northerly direction, parallel with the coast, being broken up at its beginning into a number of islands and afterwards forming the western boundary of the great central valley of Chile. To the north this coastal chain continues in small ridges or isolated hills along the Pacific Ocean as far as Venezuela, always leaving the same valley more or less visible to the west of the western great chain. The mountains extend over seven countries: Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Venezuela, some of which are known as Andean States. One theory says the name Andes comes from the Quechua word anti, which means "high crest". Another theory says that the name Andes derived from the Spanish word "anden" which means terrace in reference to the cultivation terraces used by the Incas and other related peoples.

The Andes mountain range is the highest mountain range outside Asia, with the highest peak, Aconcagua, rising to 6,962 m (22,841 feet) above sea level. The summit of Mount Chimborazo in the Ecuadorean Andes is the point on the Earth's surface most distant from its center, because of the equatorial bulge. The Andes cannot match the Himalayas in height but do so in width and are more than twice as long.

Andhra Pradesh

Coordinates: 17°21′58″N 78°28′34″E / 17.366, 78.476 Andhra Pradesh (Telugu: ఆంధ్ర ప్రదేశ్, Urdu: آندھرا پردیش (help·info)) or AP, the "Rice Bowl of India", is a state in southern India. It lies between 12°41' and 22°N latitude and 77° and 84°40'E longitude, and is bordered by Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh and Orissa in the north, the Bay of Bengal in the East, Tamil Nadu to the south and Karnataka to the west. Andhra Pradesh is the fifth largest state in India by area and population. It is the largest and most populous state in South India. The state is crossed by two major rivers, the Godavari and the Krishna.

Andorra

Andorra (Catalan: Andorra), officially The Principality of Andorra (Catalan: Principat d'Andorra) is a small landlocked country in western Europe, located in the eastern Pyrenees mountains and bordered by Spain and France. Once isolated, it is currently a prosperous country mainly because of tourism and its status as a tax haven. It has the highest life expectancy in the world, at 83.52 years (2007 est).

Andrei Tarkovsky

Andrei Arsenyevich Tarkovsky (Андре́й Арсе́ньевич Тарко́вский) (April 4, 1932 - December 29, 1986) was a Soviet film director, opera director, writer, and actor. He is generally regarded as the foremost important and influential filmmaker of the post-war Soviet era in Russia and one of the greatest in the history of cinema.

Andrés Nocioni

Andrés Marcelo Nocioni (last name pronounced No-CEE-oh-nee) (born November 30, 1979 in Santa Fe) is an Argentine basketball player for the NBA's Chicago Bulls, and for the Argentine national team. Nocioni won a gold medal with the Argentine national team at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens. His natural position is small forward, though with the Bulls he has played some minutes at power forward. He shares both Argentine and Italian citizenship. Nocioni is known as Chapu after the Mexican children TV series El Chapulín Colorado. Nocioni has a wife named Paula and a son named Laureano.

Andrew

Andrew is the English form of a given name common in many countries. Andrey, Andrei, or Andreiy are used more commonly abroad. Other forms include 'Andreas', 'Andres', 'Anders', and 'André'. 'Andrew' is a common name in English-speaking countries. In the 1990s it was among the top-ten most popular names for baby boys in those countries. Andrew frequently is shortened to 'Andy' or 'Drew'.

Andrew Carnegie

Andrew Carnegie (November 25, 1835 – August 11, 1919) was a Scottish-American industrialist, businessman, a major philanthropist, and the founder of Pittsburgh's Carnegie Steel Company which later became U.S. Steelpronounce] is known for having built one of the most powerful and influential corporations in United States history, and, later in his life, giving away most of his riches to fund the establishment of many libraries, schools, and universities in America, Scotland and other countries throughout the world. Carnegie, a poor boy with fierce ambition, a pleasant personality, and a devotion to both hard work and self-improvement, started as a telegrapher. By the 1860s, he had investments in railroads, railroad sleeping cars, as well as bridges and oil derricks, and he built wealth as a bond salesman raising money in Europe for American enterprises. Steel was where he found his fortune. In the 1870s, he founded the Carnegie Steel Company, a step which cemented his name as one of the “Captains of Industry”. By the 1890s, the company was the largest and most profitable industrial enterprise in the world. He sold it to J.P. Morgan's US Steel in 1901 and devoted the remainder of his life to large-scale philanthropy, with special emphasis on local libraries, world peace, and scientific research.

Andrew Dickson White

Andrew Dickson White (November 7, 1832 – November 4, 1918) was a U.S. diplomat, author, and educator, best known as the co-founder of Cornell University.

White was born in Homer, New York. After spending one year at Hobart College (then known as Geneva College), he transferred to Yale University. At Yale, he was a classmate of Daniel Coit Gilman, who would later serve as first president of Johns Hopkins University. The two were members of the Skull and Bones secret society, and would remain close friends. He was also a member of the Alpha Sigma Phi fraternity, serving as editor of the fraternity publication, The Tomahawk.

After graduating from Yale in 1853, White spent three years studying in Europe before returning to the United States as a professor of history and English literature at the University of Michigan.

In 1865, White and Western Union tycoon Ezra Cornell founded Cornell University on Cornell's estate in Ithaca, New York. White became the school's first president, and his farsighted leadership set the university on the path to becoming an elite educational institution, with particular excellence in agricultural research and engineering. He also served as a professor in the Department of History.

After 14 years at Cornell, White resigned to serve as the first U.S. Minister to Germany (1879-1881), first president of the American Historical Association (1884-1886), Minister to Russia (1892-1894), and as the first U.S. Ambassador to Germany (1897-1902).

While serving in Russia, White—a noted bibliophile—made the acquaintance of author Leo Tolstoy. Tolstoy's fascination with Mormonism sparked a similar interest in White, who had previously regarded the Latter-Day Saints (LDS) as a dangerous, deviant cult. Upon his return to the United States, White took advantage of Cornell's proximity to the original Mormon heartland near Rochester to amass a collection of LDS memorabilia (including many original copies of the Book of Mormon) unmatched by any other institution save the church itself and its university, Brigham Young University.

In 1891, Leland and Jane Stanford asked White to serve as the first president of the university they had founded in Palo Alto, CA, Stanford University. Although he refused their offer, he did recommend his former student David Starr Jordan.

At the time of Cornell's founding, White announced that it would be "an asylum for Science—where truth shall be sought for truth's sake, not stretched or cut exactly to fit Revealed Religion" (Lindberg and Numbers 1986, pp. 2-3). Up to that time, America's private universities were exclusively religious institutions, and generally focused on the liberal arts and religious training (though they were not explicitly antagonistic to science). In 1869 White gave a lecture on "The Battle-Fields of Science", arguing that history showed the negative outcomes resulting from any attempt on the part of religion to interfere with the progress of science. Over the next 30 years he refined his analysis, expanding his case studies to include nearly every field of science over the entire history of Christianity, but also narrowing his target from "religion" through "ecclesiasticism" to "dogmatic theology."

The final result was the two-volume History of the Warfare of Science with Theology in Christendom (1896). Initially less popular than John William Draper's History of the Conflict between Religion and Science (1874), White's book became an extremely influential text on the relationship between religion and science. The premise of the book—known as the conflict thesis—was once prevalent, but since the 70s and 80s, many historians of science have reevaluated the history of science and religion, finding little evidence for White's claims of widespread conflict; instead, they often blame White for perpetuating a number of scientific myths, such as the idea that Christopher Columbus had to overcome widespread belief in a flat earth and that Charles Darwin's work was generally opposed by the religious authorities

Andrew Gonzalez (Lasallian)

Brother Andrew Benjamin Gonzalez FSC (February 29, 1940 - January 29, 2006) was a linguist, writer, educator, and a Lasallian Brother. He served as president of De La Salle University from 1979 to 1991 and from 1994 to 1998. From 1998 to 2001 he served as Secretary of the Department of Education, Culture and Sports. After his term ended, he returned to De La Salle University as Vice President for Academics and Research from 2001 to 2003 and as Presidential Adviser for Academics and Research from 2003 to 2005.

Br. Andrew conceptualized the De La Salle University System and helped expand the range of Lasallian education in the Philippines. During his first term, Br. Andrew established the College of Career Development of DLSU-Manila which became the College of Saint Benilde and took over a medical school in Dasmariñas which became DLSU-Dasmariñas.

Andrew Jackson

Andrew Jackson (March 15, 1767 – June 8, 1845) was the seventh President of the United States (1829–1837). He was also military governor of Florida (1821), commander of the American forces at the Battle of New Orleans (1815), a founder of the modern Democratic Party, and the eponym of the era of Jacksonian democracy. He was a polarizing figure who dominated American politics in the 1820s and 1830s. Nicknamed "Old Hickory" because he was renowned for his toughness, Jackson was the first President primarily associated with the frontier (although born in South Carolina, he based his career in Tennessee).

Andrew Johnson

Andrew Johnson (December 29, 1808 – July 31, 1875) was the seventeenth President of the United States (1865–1869), succeeding to the presidency upon the assassination of Abraham Lincoln.

Johnson was a U.S. Senator from Greeneville, Tennessee at the time of the secession of the southern states. He was the only Southern Senator not to quit his post upon secession, and became the most prominent War Democrat from the South. In 1862 Lincoln appointed Johnson military governor of Tennessee, where he proved energetic and effective in fighting the rebellion. Johnson was nominated for the Vice President slot in 1864 on the National Union Party ticket. He was elected along with Abraham Lincoln in November 1864, and he became president upon Lincoln's assassination on April 15, 1865. As president he took charge of Presidential Reconstruction — the first phase of Reconstruction — which lasted until the Radical Republicans gained control of Congress in the 1866 elections. His conciliatory policies towards the South, his hurry to reincorporate the former Confederates back into the union, and his vetoes of civil rights bills embroiled him in a bitter dispute with the Radical Republicans. The Radicals in the House of Representatives impeached him in 1868, and he was acquitted by a single vote in the Senate, that of Edmund G. Ross. He was the first U.S. President to be impeached.

Andrew Lloyd Webber

Andrew Lloyd Webber, Baron Lloyd-Webber (born 22 March 1948) is a highly successful English composer of musical theatre, and also the elder brother of Julian Lloyd Webber.

Lloyd Webber has enjoyed great popular success, with several musicals that have run for more than a decade both on Broadway and in the West End. He has composed 13 musicals, a song cycle, a set of variations, two film scores, and a Latin Requiem Mass. He has also gained a number of honours, including a knighthood in 1992 followed by a peerage, three Tony Awards, three Grammy Awards, an Oscar, an International Emmy, six Olivier Awards, a Golde