(from the article "palm") ...insects and wind. Beetles are implicated in Astrocaryum mexicanum, Bactris, Cryosophila albida, Rhapidophyllum hystrix, and Socratea exorrhiza. Syrphus flies apparently pollinate Asterogyne martiana in Costa Rica, and drosophila flies are thought to pollinate the nipa palm in New Guinea. Bees pollinate several species (Sabal palmetto and Iriartea deltoidea)....
any of a host of rocky small bodies, about 1,000 km (600 miles) or less in diameter, that orbit the Sun primarily between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter in a nearly flat ring called the asteroid belt. It is because of their small size and large numbers relative to ... [22 Related Articles]
(from the article "astronomy") ...million asteroids exist, but most are small, and their combined mass is estimated to be less than a thousandth that of Earth. Most of the asteroids have orbits close to the ecliptic and move in the asteroid belt, between 2.3 and 3.3 AU from the Sun. Because some asteroids travel ...
(from the article "Anura") ...(except otophrynines and scaphiophrynines) or undergoing direct development; 66 genera, 306 species; 10 subfamilies: Cophylinae (Madagascar), Dyscophinae (Madagascar), Scaphiophryninae (Madagascar), Asterophryinae (New Guinea and Sulu Archipelago), Genyophryninae (Philippines, eastern Indo-Australian archipelago, New Guinea, northern Australia), Brevicipitinae (Africa), Microhylinae (North and...
(from the article "Greece") ...the summit of Mount Idhi, Stavros, 8,058 feet (2,456 metres) high; the east-central Dhikti Mountains; and the far eastern Thriptis (Thrifti) Mountains. Another range, the Asterousia (or Kofinos) Mountains, runs along the south-central coast between the Mesara Plain and the Libyan Sea. Of Crete's 650 miles (1,046 kilometres) of rocky ...
(from the article "echinoderm") ...Inadunata, and Flexibilia; living subclass Articulata, which includes stalked sea lilies and unstalked feather stars; about 700 living species.Fossil and living forms (Lower Ordovician about 500,000,000 years ago to Recent); radially symmetrical with more or less star-shaped body resulting from growth of...brittle starConcentricycloidea
a condition in which the body lacks or has lost strength either as a whole or in any of its parts. General asthenia occurs in many chronic wasting diseases, such as anemia and cancer, and is probably most marked in diseases of the adrenal gland. Asthenia may be limited to ...
(from the article "personality disorder") ...minor provocation. Persons with histrionic personality disorder persistently display overly dramatic, highly excitable, and intensely expressed behaviour (i.e., histrionics). Persons with dependent personality disorder lack energy and initiative and passively let others assume responsibility for major aspects of their lives. Persons with passive-aggressive personality disorder express...
(from the article "Kretschmer, Ernst") ...and Character), advanced the theory that certain mental disorders were more common among people of specific physical types. Kretschmer posited three chief constitutional groups: the tall, thin asthenic type, the more muscular athletic type, and the rotund pyknic type. He suggested that the lanky asthenics, and to a lesser degree ...
(from the article "Earth Sciences") ...of the Institute for Geosciences, Tubingen, Ger., and colleagues reported the results of a series of mineral physics experiments that provided a novel explanation for the existence of Earth's asthenosphere, a layer in the upper mantle that is softer and less viscous than the lithospheric plates that override it. The ...
a chronic disorder of the lungs in which inflamed airways are prone to constrict, causing episodes of wheezing, chest tightness, coughing, and breathlessness that range in severity from mild to life-threatening. [10 Related Articles]
city, Piemonte (Piedmont) region, northwestern Italy. It lies at the confluence of the Tanaro and Borbera rivers, 28 miles (45 km) southeast of Turin. Asti was the Hasta, or Colonia, of the Romans and was the seat of a bishopric from AD 932. It reached its zenith as an independent ...
(from the article "Anatolia") ...and Sarduri II (755-735); the latter also conquered Kustaspi, king of Kummuhu (Commagene), and forced him to pay tribute about 745. During the period of Assyrian weakness a king named Asti-Ruwas ruled over Carchemish. He is not mentioned in the Assyrian documentation, which is also lacking for the following two ...
(from the article "acarid") ...and soil, a few aquatic; feed on algae, fungi, or decaying material; of some economic importance; cosmopolitan; about 145 families and 8,500 species.Homogeneous group includes mange, itch, or scab mites; weakly sclerotized and slow moving; 0.2-1.5 mm in size; eyes rarely present, stigmata absent; palps...
nonuniform curvature of the cornea (the transparent, dome-shaped tissue located in front of the iris and pupil) that causes the eye to focus images at different distances, depending on the orientation of light as it strikes the cornea. The effect of astigmatism can also be produced by abnormalities or misalignment ... [6 Related Articles]
(from the article "aberration") Astigmatism, unlike spherical aberration and coma, results from the failure of a single zone of a lens to focus the image of an off-axis point at a single point. As shown in the three-dimensional schematic the two planes at right angles to one another passing through the optical axis are ...
in Indian philosophy, any orthodox school of thought, defined as one that accepts the authority of the Vedas (sacred scriptures of ancient India); the superiority of the Brahmans (the class of priests), who are the expositors of the law (dharma); and a society made up of the four traditional classes ... [2 Related Articles]
(from the article "dravya") a fundamental concept of Jainism, a religion of India that is the oldest Indian school of philosophy to separate matter and soul completely. The Jains recognize the existence of five astikayas (eternal categories of being) which together make up the dravya (substance) of existence. ...
genus of about 14 species of herbaceous perennials, in the family Saxifragaceae, native to eastern Asia and North America. They are often grown in gardens for their erect, featherlike flower spikes of white, yellow, pink, magenta, or purple, which rise above clumps of fernlike leaves from mid- to late summer.
(from the article "Astilbe") A. chinensis, up to 60 cm (2 feet) in height, has produced several hybrids with dwarf habit and more intense colours. The smaller A. simplicifolia, less than 30 cm (1 foot), has starlike white flowers on slender spikes. A. japonica and its hybrids constitute the florist's spirea, some...
(from the article "Astilbe") ...feet) in height, has produced several hybrids with dwarf habit and more intense colours. The smaller A. simplicifolia, less than 30 cm (1 foot), has starlike white flowers on slender spikes. A. japonica and its hybrids constitute the florist's spirea, some with variegated leaves and larger flowers, densely packed on ...
(from the article "Saxifragaceae") Leaves of Astilbe philippinensis are used in northern Luzon, Philippines, for smoking. The rhizomes of Bergenia purpurascens are used in Chinese medicine to stop bleeding and to serve as a tonic. Tiarella cordifolia of North America is considered useful as a diuretic and tonic. Saxifraga...
(from the article "Astilbe") A. chinensis, up to 60 cm (2 feet) in height, has produced several hybrids with dwarf habit and more intense colours. The smaller A. simplicifolia, less than 30 cm (1 foot), has starlike white flowers on slender spikes. A. japonica and its hybrids constitute the florist's spirea, some with variegated ...
island, westernmost of the Greek Dodecanese islands, Aegean Sea, between Amorgos and Cos (Kos). It comprises two mountain masses linked by a narrow isthmus that provided shelter for the ancient Roman fleet. The western hills rise to about 1,500 feet (450 metres) and the eastern hills to about 1,200 feet ...
(from the article "Ducrow, Andrew") ...his legs. He appeared in European circuses and in spectacles at Covent Garden and Drury Lane in London, but he is best remembered for his long career as proprietor and chief performer at the famous Astley's Amphitheatre, a permanent modern circus (1824-41). When Astley's was destroyed by fire for the ...
English trick rider and theatrical manager who in 1770, in London, created Astley's Amphitheatre, considered the first modern circus ring. [2 Related Articles]
Australian author, who in her fiction examined, usually satirically, the lives of morally and intellectually isolated people in her native country. [2 Related Articles]
any uniformly ciliated protozoan of the order Astomatida, commonly found in annelid worms and other invertebrates. As the name implies, this parasite has no mouth. Some astomes attach themselves to their hosts by suckers; others use various types of hooks or barbs. Asexual reproduction is by transverse fission. In some ...
(from the article "Business Overview") ...surpassed by Toyota's 2.62 million, which meant that Ford had slipped from its long-held position as the number two American carmaker. Ford looked to bow out of the luxury-car market. It sold off Aston Martin in March, put Jaguar and Land Rover up for sale, and even considered selling its ...
British physicist who won the Nobel Prize for Chemistry in 1922 for his development of the mass spectrograph, a device that separates atoms or molecular fragments of different mass and measures those masses with remarkable accuracy. Aston used the mass spectograph to discover a large number of nuclides, or nuclear ... [6 Related Articles]
British association football (soccer) referee (b. Sept. 1, 1915, Colchester, Essex, Eng.-d. Oct. 23, 2001, Ilford, Essex), invented the yellow (caution) and red (ejection) disciplinary cards, which were first employed during play at the 1970 World Cup finals and were quickly introduced around the world. Aston qualified as a referee ...
(from the article "Macready, William Charles") ...Macready's last visit to America in 1849 a longstanding feud started by his rival, the American actor Edwin Forrest, erupted into tragedy. During a performance of Macbeth by Macready at the Astor Place Opera House in New York City, Forrest's partisans tried to storm the theatre and thus started a ...
(from the article "Indus River") The Shigar joins the Indus on the right bank near Skardu in Baltistan. The Gilgit, farther down, is another right-bank tributary, joining it at Bunji. Some miles farther downstream, the Astor River joins as a left-bank tributary. The Indus then flows west, crosses the Kashmir border, and turns south and ...
American socialite, philanthropist, and writer, who employed her position, wealth, and energies in the interest of cultural enrichment and the poor. [1 Related Articles]
the doyenne of American high society in the latter half of the 19th century, who held the ground of "old money" in the face of changing times and values.
British newspaper editor (b. March 5, 1912, London, Eng.-d. Dec. 7, 2001, London), as editor of The Observer from 1948 to 1975, was largely responsible for turning the paper's viewpoint from a conservative, establishment-supporting one to espousal of a number of liberal causes, including anticolonialism, human rights, and prison reform. ...
fur magnate and founder of a renowned family of Anglo-American capitalists, business leaders, and philanthropists. His American Fur Company is considered the first U.S. business monopoly. [5 Related Articles]
(from the article "Astor Family") John Jacob Astor (1822-90), son of William Backhouse Astor, increased the fortune to between $75,000,000 and $100,000,000. But he was a more active philanthropist than his predecessors, making substantial gifts to the Metropolitan Museum of Art and Trinity Church as well as to the Astor Library.
(from the article "Astor Family") John Jacob Astor (1864-1912) was a cousin of William Waldorf Astor and a great-grandson of the fur trader who founded the family fortune. An inventor and a science fiction novelist, he was also responsible for building several great New York City hotels: the Astoria (later combined with the Waldorf), the ...
British journalist and great-great-grandson of the U.S. fur magnate John Jacob Astor; as chief proprietor of The Times of London (1922-66), he maintained the newspaper's leading position in British journalism.
American motion-picture and stage actress noted for her delicate, classic beauty and a renowned profile that earned her the nickname "The Cameo Girl." With the ability to play a variety of characters ranging from villains to heroines to matrons, Astor worked in film from the silent era to the 1960s. [1 Related Articles]
(from the article "Astor Family") Vincent Astor (1891-1959), son of the John Jacob Astor who built the well-known hotels, departed markedly from Astor family conservatism. He sold some Astor-owned properties to New York City under generous terms so that they might be converted into housing projects. In addition, he backed the New Deal, though temporarily, ...
member of Parliament (1910-19) and agricultural expert whose Cliveden home was a meeting place during the late 1930s for Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain and supporters of his policy of "appeasement" toward Adolf Hitler. [1 Related Articles]
(from the article "Astor, John Jacob") At the same time, however, Astor invested in New York City real estate that became the foundation of the family fortune. His son, William Backhouse Astor (1792-1875), greatly expanded the family real estate holdings, building more than 700 stores and dwellings in New York City. The wealthiest person in the ...
(from the article "Astor Family") His son, William Waldorf Astor (1848-1919), was politically ambitious, but after a stint in the New York state legislature and three years as U.S. minister to Italy, he moved permanently to England in 1890. He became a British subject in 1899 and, in 1917, became 1st Viscount Astor, of Hever ...
city, Leon provincia (province), in the Castile-Leon comunidad autonoma (autonomous community), northwestern Spain, on the left bank of the Tuerto River on a spur of the Manzanal mountain chain. It originated as the Roman Asturica Augusta (called a "magnificent city" by Pliny) and ...
city, seat (1844) of Clatsop county, northwestern Oregon, U.S., on the south bank of the Columbia River (there bridged to Megler, Washington) near its mouth on the Pacific Ocean. It is near the site of Oregon's first military establishment, Fort Clatsop, built by the Lewis and Clark Expedition, which wintered ...
(from the article "bridge") Although trusses are used mostly as secondary elements in arch, suspension, or cantilever designs, several important simply supported truss bridges have achieved significant length. The Astoria Bridge (1966) over the Columbia River in Oregon, U.S., is a continuous three-span steel truss with a centre span of 370 metres (1,232 feet), ...
