Britannica Concise 2005 - читать бесплатно онлайн полную версию книги автора Encyclopedia Britannica (ч. 10)

Ashbery ► Ashur I 115

accused by the Mu'tazilah of believing in predestination because they claimed the human capacity for action was only acquired at the very moment of action.

Ashbery, John (Lawrence) (b. July 28, 1927, Rochester, N.Y., U.S.) U.S. poet. He earned degrees from Harvard and Columbia universities and subsequently became known as an art critic. His poems, noted for their elegance, originality, and obscurity, are characterized by arresting images, exquisite rhythms, intricate form, and sudden shifts in tone and subject. His collections include The Double Dream of Spring (1970), Self-Portrait in a Convex Mirror (1975, Pulitzer Prize, National Book Award), A Wave (1984), Flow Chart (1991), and Wakefulness (1998).

Ashcroft, Dame Peggy orig. Edith Margaret Emily Ashcroft

(b. Dec. 22, 1907, Croydon, London, Eng.—d. June 14, 1991, London) British actress. She made her debut in 1927 and appeared from 1932 with the Old Vic company, winning acclaim in Romeo and Juliet (1935). She starred in more than 100 stage productions, playing comedy and tragedy with equal success. One of the great actresses of the British stage, she was a founding member of the Royal Shakespeare Co. (1961) and later a director. She acted in films such as The Thirty-nine Steps (1935) and A Passage to India (1984, Academy Award) and in the television series The Jewel in the Crown (1984).

Ashe, Arthur (Robert), Jr. (b. July 10, 1943, Richmond, Va., U.S.—-d. Feb. 6, 1993, New York, N.Y.) U.S. tennis player. He won his first grand-slam singles title (the 1968 U.S. Open) as an amateur. The first African American member of the U.S. Davis Cup team, he helped win five championships (1963, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1978). In 1975 he won the Wim¬ bledon singles title and received World Championship Tennis top ranking. He retired in 1980 and became captain of the U.S. Davis Cup team (to 1985). Off the court he was a critic of racial injustice, including South Africa’s apartheid policy. In 1992 he revealed that he had been infected with HIV by a transfusion following surgery, and he thereafter devoted time to increasing public awareness of AIDS. The U.S. Open is now played at Arthur Ashe Stadium, which opened at the National Tennis Center in Flushing, N.Y., in 1997.

Ashford, Evelyn (b. April 15, 1957, Shreveport, La., U.S.) U.S. sprinter. She attended UCLA, where she won four national collegiate championships and competed in the 1976 Olympics in Montreal. She went on to win world championships (100- and 200-m sprints) in 1979 and 1981 and was named Woman Athlete of the Year both years. She won two gold medals in the 1984 Olympics (100-m dash, 4 x 100-m relay) and a silver and a gold medal in the 1988 Olympics (in the same events). At the 1992 games, her fifth Olympics, she became the oldest woman (at 35) to win a gold medal in track and field (4 x 100-m relay).

Ashgabat Vash-ga-,bat\ formerly Ashkhabad Vash-ko-.badX City (pop., 1999 est.: 605,000), capital of Turkmenistan. It lies in an oasis at the northern foot of the Kopet-Dag Range near the Iranian border. Founded in 1881 as a Russian military fort, it was the capital of Turk¬ menistan S.S.R. (1924-90). A violent earthquake destroyed the city in 1948; it was rebuilt on the same plan. It is now an industrial, transpor¬ tation, and cultural centre.

Ashikaga \,a-she-'ka-ga\ family Japanese warrior family that estab¬ lished the Ashikaga shogunate in 1338. The founder, Ashikaga Takauji (1305-58), supported the emperor Go-Daigo’s attempt to wrest control of the country from the Hojo family, but then turned on him and set up an emperor from another branch of the imperial family, who granted Takauji the title of shogun. Takauji’ s grandson Yoshimitsu (1358-1408), the third Ashikaga shogun, ended the dual imperial courts that had resulted from his grandfather’s actions, took an active role in the court bureaucracy, and reorganized civil government. Yoshimitsu reopened formal trade with China and is remembered as a sponsor of the arts; he commissioned the famous Golden Pavilion (Kinkaku-ji) in Kyoto. Ashikaga Yoshimasa (1436-90), the eighth Ashikaga shogun, was also a great patron of the arts and a devotee of the tea ceremony. He commissioned the Silver Pavil¬ ion (Ginkaku-ji), whose understated elegance contrasts with the opulence of the Golden Pavilion. Politically, Yoshimasa’s tenure as shogun coin¬ cided with increasing loss of control over the countryside as Japan headed toward a century of civil war. See also Muromachi period; daimyo; Onin War; samurai.

Ashkenazi \,ash-k3-'na-ze\ Any of the historically Yiddish-speaking European Jews who settled in central and northern Europe, or their

descendants. They lived originally in the Rhineland valley, and their name is derived from the Hebrew word Ashkenaz (“Germany”). After the start of the Crusades in the late 11th century, many migrated east to Poland, Lithuania, and Russia to escape persecution. In later centuries Jews who adopted the German-rite synagogue ritual were called Ashkenazim to dif¬ ferentiate them from the Sephardic, or Spanish-rite, Jews (see Sephardi), from whom they differ in cultural traditions, pronunciation of Hebrew, and synagogue chanting as well as in the use of the Yiddish language (until the 20th century). Today they constitute more than 80% of the world’s Jews.

Ashley, William Henry (b. c. 1778, Powhatan, Va., U.S.—d. March 26, 1838, Cooper county, Mo.) U.S. fur trader. Arriving in Missouri about 1802, he prospered in mining and land speculation. In 1820 he became the state’s first lieutenant governor. With Andrew Henry (1771-1833), he organized the Rocky Mountain Fur Co. in 1822 and established a trading post at the mouth of the Yellowstone River. Forced to abandon the post by Indians, he instituted the annual rendezvous (1825), where trappers would trade their furs to him for supplies for the next year. By 1827 he had made a fortune and retired. Elected to the U.S. House of Represen¬ tatives (1831-37), he championed Western interests.

Ashoka \3-'sho-k3\ or Asoka \3-'so-ko\ (b. c. 304—d. c. 232 bc) Last major emperor (c. 269-232 bc) of the Mauryan empire in India and a patron of Buddhism. After his bloody conquest of Kalinga in the eighth year of his reign, Ashoka renounced military aggression and resolved to live according to the dharma. He spoke of Buddhism only to fellow Buddhists and adopted a policy of toleration for other religions. He spread Buddhist teachings through inscriptions known as the Rock Edicts and Pillar Edicts. He enjoined officials to be aware of the needs of common people and to dispense justice impartially; dharma ministers were appointed to relieve suffering and look to the special needs of other religions, women, outly¬ ing regions, and neighbouring peoples. He erected stupas and monaster¬ ies, developed a course of study for adherents, and sent missionaries to Sri Lanka. He is remembered as the ideal Buddhist ruler.

Ashqelon \'ash-k9-,lan\ formerly Ascalon Town (pop., 2000 est.: 98,937) and archaeological site, Israel. The historic coastal city-state of Ascalon was traditionally the key to the conquest of southwestern Pales¬ tine. Its name appears in Egyptian texts as early as c. 1800 bc. It was con¬ quered by several ancient empires, including that of Alexander the Great (332 bc). Conquered by the Arabs in ad 636, it was taken by Crusaders in 1153 and became one of their principal ports (see Crusades). It was retaken by the Ayyubid sultan Saladin in 1187 and destroyed by the Mamluk sultan Baybars I in 1270. Modern Ashqelon, originally an Arab town, was resettled by Israelis after 1949 and is now a resort and industrial centre.

ashram Yash-rem, 'ash-,ram\ or ashrama Vash-ro-moV In Hinduism, any of the four stages of life through which a “twice-born” (see upanay- ana) Hindu ideally will pass. These stages are: the student, who is devoted and obedient to his teacher; the householder, who supports his family and the priests and fulfills duties to the gods and ancestors; the hermit, who withdraws from society to pursue ascetic and yogic practices; and the homeless mendicant, who renounces all possessions and wanders from place to place begging for food. In English the word has come to mean a place for the pursuit of spiritual or religious disciplines, often under a GURU.

Ash tart See Astarte

Ashton, Sir Frederick (William Mallandaine) (b. Sept. 17, 1904, Guayaquil, Ecua.—d. Aug. 18, 1988, Sussex, Eng.) Principal cho¬ reographer and director of England’s Royal Ballet. After creating ballets from 1925 for the Ballet Club (later Ballet Rambert), he joined the Vic- Wells Ballet (later Royal Ballet) in 1933, becoming principal choreogra¬ pher, assistant director (1953-63), and director (1963-70). At least 30 of his works remain in its repertoire, including Fagade (1931), Symphonic Variations (1946), and Birthday Offering (1956). He also choreographed for companies such as the Royal Danish Ballet ( Romeo and Juliet, 1955) and the New York City Ballet ( Illuminations , 1950).

Ashur Ancient religious capital of Assyria. It is located on the Tigris River, 60 mi (97 km) south of Mosul, Iraq. The name Ashur was applied to the city, to Assyria itself, and to Assyria’s principal god. The capital’s site was originally occupied c. 2500 bc and later became part of Akkad. By the late 12th century bc it was under Assyrian control. Its religious sanc-

116 I Ashurbanipal ► asparagus

Ashurbanipal carrying a basket in the rebuilding of the temple, stone bas- relief from the Esagila, Babylon, 650 bc; in the British Museum

tity ensured its continuous upkeep until 614 bc, when it was destroyed by Babylonia. The archaeological site has yielded fortifications, temples, and palaces.

Ashurbanipal V.a-sor-'ba-ni-.paL (fl. 7th century bc) Last great Assyr¬ ian king (r. 668-627 bc). He was appointed crown prince of Assyria in 672 bc; his half-brother was appointed crown prince of Babylo¬ nia. On his father’s death, Ashurba¬ nipal assumed full power without incident. He quelled a rebellion in Egypt and successfully besieged Tyre. His half brother, who served him in Babylonia peacefully for 16 years, joined a coalition of peoples from outlying areas of the Assyrian empire and plotted rebellion, but Ashurbanipal discovered the plots and, after a three-year siege, took Babylon. By 639 bc he had the whole known world under his control. A person of religious zeal, he rebuilt or adorned most of the major shrines of Assyria and Babylonia. His principal intellectual accomplishment was the creation in Nineveh of the first sys¬ tematically organized library in the Middle East; the clay tablets col¬ lected there preserved omen texts,

Mesopotamian epics, prayers and incantations, scientific texts, lexico¬ graphical texts, and folktales.

Asia Largest continent on Earth. It is bounded by the Arctic, Pacific, and

Indian oceans. The western boundary, with Europe, runs roughly north- south along the eastern Ural Mountains; the Caspian, Black, Aegean, and Mediterranean seas; the Suez Canal; and the Red Sea. The islands of Sri Lanka and Taiwan and the archipelagoes of Indonesia (excluding New Guinea), the Philippines, and Japan also form part of Asia. Area: 17,226,000 sq mi (44,614,000 sq km). Population (2004 est.): 3,879,659,000. Mountains and plateaus predominate on the continent, with the highest mountains located in Central Asia and north of the Indian subcontinent. Terrain features include Earth’s highest peak, Mount Ever¬ est, at 29,035 ft (8,850 m), and the lowest natural point, the Dead Sea, at 1,312 ft (400 m) below sea level. The largest of Asia’s many arid regions are the Thar and Gobi deserts. It has some of the longest rivers in the world, including the Euphrates, Tigris, Indus, Ganges (Ganga), Yangtze (Chang; the longest river in Asia), Huang He (Yellow), Ob, Yenisey, and Lena. The Caspian, Aral, and Dead seas are major saltwater lakes. About one-fifth of Asia’s landmass is arable. Its principal language groups include Sino- Tibetan, Indo-Aryan, Austronesian, Austroasiatic, and Semitic; important singular languages include Japanese and Korean. East Asia contains three main ethnic groups: Chinese, Japanese, and Korean. The Indian subcon¬ tinent is home to a vast diversity of peoples, most of whom speak lan¬ guages from the Indo-Aryan subgroup of the Indo-European family. Because of the influence of China and the former Soviet Union, the Man¬ darin Chinese dialect and the Russian language are used widely. Asia is the birthplace of all the world’s major religions and hundreds of minor ones. Hinduism is the oldest major religion to have originated in southern Asia; Jainism and Buddhism emerged in the 6th and 5th centuries bc, respec¬ tively. Southwest Asia was the cradle of the so-called Abrahamic reli¬ gions: Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Daoism and Confucianism, both of which originated in the 6th or 5th century bc, have profoundly influenced Chinese culture and the cultures of surrounding peoples. Asia is marked by great disparities in wealth. A few countries, notably Japan, Singapore, and the oil-rich countries of the Arabian Peninsula, have attained high standards of living; others, such as Bangladesh and Myanmar, are among the poorest. Between these two extremes lie Russia, China, and India. Asia is a land of great cultural diversity, but there are five main cultural influ¬ ences: Chinese, Indian, Islamic, European, and Central Asian. China has had great influence in East Asia as the source of Confucianism, artistic styles, and the Chinese writing system. Indian influence has been expressed through Hinduism and Buddhism, affecting Tibet, Indonesia,

Cambodia, and Central Asia. Islam spread from its original Arabian home to become important in the Middle East, South Asia, Central Asia, and elsewhere. Members of the earlier human species Homo erectus migrated from Africa to East Asia at least one million years ago. One of the ear¬ liest civilizations to use writing developed in the Tigris and Euphrates river valleys c. 3000 bc (see Mesopotamia). Civilization in the Indus River valley and in northern Syria followed c. mid-3rd millennium bc. Chinese urban civilization began with the Shang dynasty (c. 1600-1046 bc) and continued under the Zhou dynasty (1046-256 bc). Indo-European¬ speaking peoples (Aryans) began to invade India from the west c. 2000- 1500 bc and developed the Vedic religion. A succession of empires and charismatic rulers, including the Macedonian Alexander the Great, spread their political control as far as military power could carry them. In the 13th century ad Genghis Khan and his Mongol successors united much of Asia under their rule. In the 14th century the Turkic warlord Timur con¬ quered much of Central Asia. Muslim Turks destroyed the remnants of the Byzantine Empire in the 15th century. In the 19th century European imperialism began to replace Asian imperialism. Tsarist Russia pushed its political control across Asia to the Pacific Ocean, the British gained con¬ trol of India and Burma (Myanmar), the French dominated eastern South¬ east Asia (see French Indochina), the Dutch occupied the East Indies (Indonesia), and the Spanish and later the U.S. ruled the Philippines. After World War II (1939-45), European imperialism steadily disappeared as former colonies gained independence in the second half of the 20th cen¬ tury. See map on opposite page.

Asia Minor See Anatolia

Asimov Va-zi-.moA, Isaac (b. Jan. 2, 1920, Petrovichi, Russia—d. April 6, 1992, New York, N.Y., U.S.) Russian-born U.S. author and bio¬ chemist. He arrived in the U.S. at age 3, earned a doctorate from Colum¬ bia University, and subsequently taught for many years at Boston University. Before embarking on graduate study, he had already begun publishing his stories. “Nightfall” (1941) is often called the finest science- fiction short story ever written. His I, Robot (1950) greatly influenced how later writers treated intelligent machines. A trilogy of novels— Foundation, Foundation and Empire, and Second Foundation (1951— 53)—is widely considered a classic. Asimov’s nonfiction science books for lay readers are noted for their lucidity and humour. Immensely pro¬ lific, he published more than 300 volumes in all.

Askja \'as-kya\ Caldera, Iceland. The largest crater in the Dyngjufjbl volcanic massif, Askja lies 20 mi (32 km) north of Vatnajokull, Iceland’s largest ice field. Its rugged peaks, up to 4,954 ft (1,510 m), encircle a lake of 4.25 sq mi (11 sq km) that occupies the caldera. The volcano erupted in 1875 and again in 1961.

Asmara Vas-ma-ra\ City (pop., 2002 est.: 500,600), capital of Eritrea. It lies on the northern tip of the Ethiopian Plateau at an elevation of 7,628 ft (2,325 m). Its Red Sea port, Massawa, is 40 mi (65 km) northeast. For¬ merly a hamlet of the Tigre people, Asmara became the capital of the Ital¬ ian colony of Eritrea in 1900. It was under British control from 1941 until Eritrea’s federation with Ethiopia in 1952 and became the capital of inde¬ pendent Eritrea in 1993. It is an agricultural marketplace.

Aso \'a-so. Mount Japanese Aso-san Volcanic mountain, central Kyushu island, Japan. The highest of its five peaks is about 5,223 ft (1,592 m) tall. It has one of the largest active craters in the world, measuring 71 mi (114 km) in circumference; its caldera marks the original crater and contains an active volcano and hot springs. The crater is inhabited; its pastures are used for cattle raising and dairy farming. The volcano is at the centre of Aso-Kuju National Park.

Asoka See Ashoka

asp Anglicized form of aspis, the name used in classical antiquity for a venomous snake, probably the Egyptian cobra (Naja haje ). The asp was the symbol of royalty in Egypt, and its bite was used for the execution of criminals in Greco-Roman times. Cleopatra is said to have killed herself with an asp.

asparagine \3-'spar-3-jen\ One of the nonessential amino acids, widely distributed in plant proteins and closely related to aspartic acid. First iso¬ lated in 1806 from asparagus, it is used in medicine and biochemical research.

asparagus Any plant of the genus Asparagus (lily family), which con¬ tains about 300 species native from Siberia to southern Africa. The best-

117

118 I aspartame ► Assam

known and economically most important species is the garden asparagus (A. officinalis ), cultivated as a green vegetable for its succulent spring stalks. Several African species are grown as ornamental plants. The poi¬ sonous species prized for their delicate and graceful foliage are A. plu- mosus (the feathery asparagus fern, or florists’ fern—not a true fern), A. sprengeri, and A. asparagoides.

aspartame Vas-por-.tamX Synthetic organic compound (a dipeptide) of phenylalanine and aspartic acid. It is 150-200 times as sweet as cane sugar and is used as a nonnutritive tabletop sweetener and in low-calorie pre¬ pared foods (brand names NutraSweet, Equal) but is not suitable for bak¬ ing. Because of its phenylalanine content, persons with phenylketonuria must avoid it. Though it is approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Admin¬ istration and other regulatory authorities around the world, its safety even for those without the disease remains controversial. See also saccharin.

aspartic acid One of the nonessential amino acids, found in many pro¬ teins and closely related to asparagine. It is used in medical and biochemi¬ cal research, as an organic intermediate, and in various industrial applications. It is one of the two components of aspartame.

Aspasia Vas-'pa-shoX (fl. 5th century bc) Mistress of Pericles and a vivid figure in Athenian society. Originally from Miletus, she lived with Peri¬ cles from c. 445 bc until his death in 429. Because she was not a citizen, their son was initially denied civic rights. Though an intellectual admired by Socrates, she endured public attacks, especially in comic theatre, for her private life and her supposed influence on Pericles’ foreign policy.

Aspen City (pop., 2000: 5,914), western central Colorado, U.S. It is located on the Roaring Fork River at the edge of the White River National Forest, at an altitude of 7,907 ft (2,410 m). Founded by prospectors c. 1878, it was a booming silver-mining town by 1887 but declined rapidly after silver prices collapsed in the early 1890s. Its revival as a ski resort began in the late 1930s, and it is now a popular tourist town; it is also known for its cultural festivals, notably the Aspen Music Festival.

aspen Any of three tree species of the genus Populus, of the willow family: P. tremula (the common European aspen), P. tremuloides (the American quaking, or trembling, aspen), and P. grandidentata (the Ameri¬ can big-tooth aspen). Native to the Northern Hemisphere, aspens are known for the fluttering of their leaves in the slightest breeze. Aspens grow farther north and higher up the mountains than other Populus spe¬ cies. All aspens have a smooth, gray-green bark, random branching, rich green leaves that turn brilliant yellow in fall, and catkins that appear before the leaves in spring.

Aspendus \as-'pen-d9s\ Ancient city, Pamphylia (now southwestern Turkey). It was a wealthy city by the 5th century bc. Occupied by Alex¬ ander the Great in 333 bc, it was taken by the Romans in 133 bc. It is noted for its Roman ruins, including a huge theatre designed by the archi¬ tect Zeno in honour of the emperor Marcus Aurelius.

Aspergillus \ l as-por-'jil-3s\ Any fungus of the genus Aspergillus of the Fungi Imperfecti (form-class Deuteromycetes). Species for which the sexual phase is known are placed in the order Eurotiales. A. niger causes black mold on some foods; A. niger, A. flavus, and A. fumigatus cause aspergillosis in humans. A. oryzae is used to ferment SAKE, and A. wentii to process soybeans.

asphalt Black or brown petroleum-like material that has a consistency varying from viscous liquid to glassy solid. It is obtained either as a resi¬ due from the distillation of petroleum or from natural deposits. Asphalt consists of compounds of hydrogen and carbon with minor proportions of nitrogen, sulfur, and oxygen. It softens when heated and is elastic under certain conditions. Used principally in road surfacing, asphalt is also used for roofs, coatings, floor tilings, and waterproofing, and in industrial prod¬ ucts.

asphodel Vas-f9-,del\ Any of several flowering plants belonging to the lily family. This common name is variously applied and thus much misun¬ derstood. The asphodel of the poets is often a narcissus; that of the ancients is either of two genera, Asphodeline or Asphodelus. Asphodels are hardy herbaceous perennials with narrow leaves and an elongated stem bearing a handsome spike of white, pink, or yellow flowers. Bog asphodel ( Narth- ecium ossifragum ) is a small herbaceous plant that grows in boggy places in Britain.

asphyxia \as-'fik-se-o\ Lack of exchange of oxygen and carbon diox¬ ide due to respiratory failure or disturbance, resulting in insufficient brain

oxygen, which leads to unconsciousness or death. Causes include stran¬ gulation, drowning, and carbon monoxide poisoning. Breathing in food or fluid can cause obstruction of the airway and pulmonary collapse. Emergency resuscitation usually includes cardiopulmonary resuscitation.

aspidistra \ 1 as-po- , dis-tr9\ Any plant of the genus Aspidistra (lily fam¬ ily), native to eastern Asia and known for ornamental foliage. The only cultivated species is a houseplant commonly known as cast-iron plant (A. elatior, or A. lurida ), which has long, stiff, pointed evergreen leaves that are capable of withstanding temperature extremes, dust, smoke, and other harsh conditions. The solitary, bell-shaped flowers, which are usually lilac in colour but sometimes brown or green, are borne at the base of the plant. The fruits are small berries.

aspirin Common name of acetylsalicylic acid, an organic compound introduced in 1899. The ester of salicylic acid and acetic acid, it inhibits production of prostaglandins in the body. Its analgesic, fever-reducing, and anti-inflammatory effects make it useful in treating headaches, muscle and joint aches, arthritis pain, and the symptoms of mild fevers and infections. It also has anticoagulant activity and is taken in low doses by coronary heart disease patients to prevent heart attack. Prolonged use may cause stomach bleeding and peptic ulcer, and its use in children with fever has been linked to Reye syndrome. See also acetaminophen; ibuprofen; NSAID.

Aspiring, Mt. See Mount Aspiring National Park

Asplund, (Erik) Gunnar (b. Sept. 22, 1885, Stockholm, Swed.—d. Oct. 20, 1940, Stockholm) Swedish architect. His work shows the his¬ torically important transition from Neoclassical architecture to Modern¬ ism. By 1928, influenced by Le Corbusier, he had turned from a retrospective style to a new vision for architecture. He planned the Stock¬ holm Exposition of 1930, a place of futuristic, glassy pavilions that had a significant influence on subsequent exhibition architecture. His Wood¬ land Crematorium, Stockholm (1935-40), with its spare Neoclassical col¬ onnade surrounded by meadows, is admired by Classicists and Modernists alike.

Asquith, H(erbert) H(enry), 1 st earl of Oxford and Asquith

(b. Sept. 12, 1852, Morley, Yorkshire, Eng.—d. Feb. 15, 1928, Sutton Courtenay, Berkshire) British politician and prime minister (1908-16). Elected to the House of Commons in 1886, he served as home secretary (1892-95). A leader of the Liberal Party, he became prime minister in 1908. His plan to limit the powers of the House of Lords was enacted by the Parliament Act of 1911. He led Britain in the early years of World War I, but domestic crises combined with British losses in the war led to widespread dissatisfaction. He resigned in 1916 but remained leader of his party until 1926.

ass or wild ass Either of two species of small, sturdy equines. Asses are 3-5 ft (90-150 cm) high at the shoulder. The African wild ass, or true ass ( Equus asinus) is bluish gray to fawn; the Asiatic wild ass, or half¬ ass ( E . hemionus) is reddish to yellow-gray. The half-ass differs from the true ass in that it has extremely long, slender legs, shorter ears, and larger hooves. The true ass has the alternating “hee-haw” bray. Desert dwellers, wild asses often inhabit regions that cannot support other large mammals. They are very swift runners. See also donkey.

Assad \'a-sad\, Hafiz al- (b. Oct. 6, 1930, Qardaha, Syria—d. June 10, 2000, Damascus) President of Syria (1971-2000). He joined the Ba'th Party in 1946 and in 1955 became an air force pilot. He became air force commander (1963) after helping the Ba'thists gain power. After partici¬ pating in a military coup in 1966, he became minister of defense. He led a coup in 1970 to replace his political mentor, Salah al-Jadld, as Syria’s leader. He joined Egypt in a surprise attack on Israel (1973) but nearly 20 years later (1991) participated in peace negotiations with Israel in an effort to regain the Golan Heights, taken by Israel in the Six-Day War of 1967. A longtime foe of Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein, he supported the Western alliance against Iraq in the Persian Gulf War (1990—91). He was succeeded by his son Bashshar.

As sal \a-'sal. Lake Saline lake, central Djibouti. Situated at 515 ft (157 m) below sea level, it is the lowest point in Africa. It has been used for quarrying salt.

Assam \a-'sam\ State (pop., 2001 prelim.: 26,638,407), northeastern India. With an area of 30,285 sq mi (78,438 sq km), Assam borders Bhu¬ tan and Bangladesh and Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram, Meghalaya, and West Bengal states; its capital is Dispur. A strong inde-

Assassin ► Assiniboin I 119

pendent kingdom was founded there in the 13th century by invaders from Myanmar (Burma) and China; it reached its zenith in the early 18th cen¬ tury. The British took control in the early 19th century. In the division of India (1947), Assam lost some territory to Pakistan. Beginning in the 1960s, four new states—Nagaland, Meghalaya, Mizoram, and Arunachal Pradesh—were created from land within Assam. The Brahmaputra River valley is its dominant physical feature. The population consists of Indo- Iranian and Asian peoples; the most widely spoken language is Assamese.

Assassin properly Nizariyyah Byname for any member of a sub¬ sect of Ismafill Shl'ite Muslims who operated in parts of Iran and Syria from the 11th to the 13th century. The order takes its name from the pur¬ ported use of hashish to induce ecstatic visions of paradise among its devotees (hashshashun, “hashish smokers”—whence is derived the English term) before they set out to face martyrdom. The Assassins oper¬ ated out of series of mountain fortresses and, seeing assassination as a religious duty, engaged in a long campaign of murder against members of the Sunnite community, including numerous officials of the 'Abbasid and Seljuq dynasties, and others. The Assassins’ power was finally bro¬ ken by the Mongols, who captured the great Assassin stronghold of 'Ala- mut in Iran in 1256. The Syrian branch was destroyed by the Mamluk Baybars I in 1271-73. Leadership of the Nizari order continued until mod¬ em times in the line of the Aga Khans, a family prominent worldwide as philanthropists and public servants.

assassin bug Any of about 4,000 insect species (family Reduviidae) characterized by a thin, necklike structure connecting the narrow head to the body. Many species are common to North and South America. Rang¬ ing in size from 0.5 to 1 in. (13-25 mm), assassin bugs use their short, three-segmented beak to suck body fluids from their victims. Most assas¬ sin bugs prey on other insects; some, however, suck blood from verte¬ brates, including humans, and transmit diseases. One species, the large assassin bug, defends itself by accurately “spitting” saliva toxic enough to blind a human.

assassin fly See robber fly

assault and battery Related but distinct crimes. Battery is the unlaw¬ ful application of physical force to another; assault is an attempt to com¬ mit battery or an act that may reasonably cause fear of imminent battery. With manslaughter and murder (see homicide), these concepts are articu¬ lated to protect against rude and undesired physical contact or the threat of it. Battery requires no minimum degree of force, nor does it need to be applied directly; administering poison and transmitting a disease may both be battery. Accidents and ordinary negligence are not, nor is reason¬ able force used in the performance of duty (e.g., by a police officer). See also RAPE.

assault rifle Military firearm that is chambered for ammunition of reduced size or propellant charge and has the capacity to switch between semiautomatic and fully automatic fire. Light and portable, yet able to deliver a high volume of fire with reasonable accuracy at modern combat ranges of 1,000-1,600 ft (300-500 m), assault rifles have become the standard infantry weapon of modern armies. Their ease of handling makes them ideal for mobile assault troops crowded into personnel carriers or helicopters, as well as for guerrilla fighters engaged in jungle or urban warfare. Widely used assault rifles are the U.S. Ml 6, the Soviet Kalash¬ nikov (the AK-47 and modernized versions), the Belgian LAL and LNC, and the German G3.

assaying Va-sa-iqX In chemical analysis, the process of determining proportions of metal, particularly precious metal, in ores and metallurgi¬ cal products. The most important assaying technique grew largely out of the experiments of the ancient alchemists and goldsmiths. Precious met¬ als tend to occur as scattered particles randomly distributed, so a large sample of ore is required. Such large samples (typically containing gold, silver, and lead) are still most economically assayed by this ancient method, which involves several steps of heating and cooling. More sophisticated recent methods, such as spectrochemical analysis, are not suited to assaying precious metal ores because the samples of the inho¬ mogeneous ore that must be used are larger than the instruments can handle. See also parting.

assemblage \,a-sam-'blazh\ Three-dimensional construction made from household materials such as rope and newspapers or from any found materials. The term, coined by Jean Dubuffet in the 1950s, has been applied to collage, photomontage, and sculptural assemblage. The Dadaists and

Surrealists produced ready-made assemblages and elevated them to art by simply exhibiting them. Later artists who have worked with the technique include Louise Nevelson and Robert Rauschenberg.

Assemblies of God Largest Pentecostal denomination in the U.S. It was formed in 1914 in Hot Springs, Ark., by the union of several small Pentecostal groups. The Assemblies of God emphasize the centrality of the Bible in Christian faith and worship. Instead of sacraments, the Assem¬ blies have two ordinances, baptism by total immersion and the Lord’s Sup¬ per. Personal sanctification is believed to happen gradually rather than instantaneously, and millennial doctrines dealing with Christ’s Second Coming and the establishment of the Kingdom of God are of great impor¬ tance. The Assemblies of God have been very active in mission work in the U.S. and overseas. See also millennialism, Pentecostalism.

assembly language Type of low-level computer programming lan¬ guage consisting mostly of symbolic equivalents of a particular comput¬ er’s machine language. Computers produced by different manufacturers have different machine languages and require different assemblers and assembly languages. Some assembly languages can be used to convert the code that programmers write (source code) into machine language (readable by the computer), and have functions to facilitate programming (e.g., by combining a sequence of several instructions into one entity). Programming in assembly languages requires extensive knowledge of COMPUTER ARCHITECTURE.

assembly line Industrial arrangement of machines, equipment, and workers for continuous flow of workpieces in mass-production operations. An assembly line is designed by determining the sequences of operations for manufacture of each component as well as the final product. Each movement of material is made as simple and short as possible, with no cross flow or backtracking. Work assignments, numbers of machines, and production rates are programmed so that all operations performed along the line are compatible. Automated assembly lines (see automation) con¬ sist entirely of machines run by other machines and are used in such continuous-process industries as petroleum refining and chemical manu¬ facture and in many modern automobile-engine plants. See also Henry Ford, interchangeable parts, Taylorism.

assessment Process of setting a value on real or personal property, usually for the purpose of taxation. It is carried out either by central gov¬ ernment agencies or by local officials. Property may be assessed on the basis of its annual rental value, as in Britain, or its capital value, as in the U.S. Various methods are used to determine capital value, including analy¬ sis of market data to estimate the property’s current market price, esti¬ mation of the cost of reproducing the property minus accrued depreciation, and capitalization of the property’s earnings.

assessor One with special knowledge of a subject who is appointed or elected to assist a judge or magistrate in deciding a legal matter. In the U.S., the term also designates an official who evaluates property for the purposes of taxation. Assessors were appointed in the late 19th century throughout Europe to try to limit the influence of the jury system, which had been introduced in the wake of the French Revolution. Assessors thus represented a return to the civil-law traditions of Europe. In Britain and the U.S., assessors came to be used in labour and maritime courts as well as in some other civil jurisdictions.

assimilation See culture contact

Assiniboia No-.sin-s-'boi-oV Early region, western Canada. Named for the Assiniboin Indians, it was an area with indefinite boundaries, controlled by the Hudson's Bay Co. c. 1811-70. It included present-day southern Manitoba and, until 1818, the Red River Valley in present-day North Dakota and Minnesota. It was incorporated into Manitoba in 1870. In 1882 the Canadian government created another district of Assiniboia as part of the old Northwest Territories. In 1905 this district was divided between Alberta and Saskatchewan.

Assiniboin Xo-.sin-o-'boi-onN or Nakota North American Plains Indian people living mostly on reservations in Montana, U.S., and Saskatchewan and Alberta, Can. They speak a Siouan language. Their name is an Ojibwa word meaning “those who cook with stones.” They were divided into bands, each with its own chief and council, and were generally friendly with whites. The bands moved their camps frequently in pursuit of migrat¬ ing buffalo. Prowess in war consisted of taking scalps and horses and of touching the enemy (“counting coups”) during battle. Their numbers were severely reduced by smallpox in the 1820s and ’30s, after which most

120 I Assiniboine ► Astarte

were placed on reservations. Some 3,900 people claimed sole Assini- boin descent in the 2000 U.S. census.

There are somewhat fewer in Canada.

Assiniboine Vo-'sin-o-.bohA River River, southern Canada. Ris¬ ing in Saskatchewan, it flows south¬ east across Manitoba into the Red River of the North at Winnipeg. It is about 665 mi (1,070 km) long and has two tributaries, the Qu'Appelle and the Souris. Explored by Pierre La Verendrye in 1736, it later served as a route to the plains by colonists from Red River Settlement.

Assis, Joaquim Maria Machado de See Joaquim M.

Machado de Assis

assistance, writ of General search warrant used by the British in the American colonies. The warrants authorized customhouse officers, with the assistance of a sheriff, to search any house or ship for smuggled goods, without requiring them to specify the place or the goods. The legality of the writs was challenged by the colonists in the 1760s, and they became a major grievance in the years leading up to the American Revolution. See also James Otis.

assize \9-'siz\ In law, a session, or sitting, of a court. It originally referred to a judicial inquest in which a panel of men conducted an inves¬ tigation. It was later applied to special sessions of high courts in England and France. Assize courts were abolished in most countries in the 20th century, but in France they are still the courts of first instance in the han¬ dling of serious crimes.

Associated Press (AP) Cooperative news agency, the oldest and larg¬ est in the U.S. and long the largest in the world. Its beginnings trace to 1848, when six New York City newspapers pooled their efforts to finance a telegraphic relay of foreign news brought by ships to Boston. In 1892 the modern AP was set up under the laws of Illinois; several years later it moved to New York. Its restrictive controls on new memberships were ended with federal antitrust prosecution in the 1940s. AP was the first agency to devote a news wire to sports coverage (1946), and it distrib¬ utes business news through a partnership with Dow Jones & Co., Inc. More than 15,000 organizations worldwide obtain news, photographs, and illustrations from the agency. The AP Stylebook has become a standard in many journalistic organizations.

association In psychology, the process of forming mental connections or bonds between sensations, ideas, or memories. Though discussed by the ancient Greeks (in terms of similarities, contrasts, and contiguities), the “association of ideas” was first proposed by John Locke and subse¬ quently examined by David Hume, John Stuart Mill, Herbert Spencer, and William James. Ivan Pavlov used objective methods to study the phenom¬ enon, resulting in his identification of the conditioned reflex (see condi¬ tioning). Within psychoanalysis, the therapist encourages “free association” in order to help identify latent conflicts. Practitioners of Gestalt psychol¬ ogy and others have criticized associationist theories as too all-embracing, while some theorists of cognitive psychology have made it central to their theory of memory.

association football See football

Association of Caribbean States (ACS) Trading bloc composed of 25 countries of the Caribbean basin. Responding to a proposal by Pres. Bill Clinton for a Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA), existing Caribbean-area trading blocs joined forces in 1995 to strengthen their economic position and ease future integration into the FTAA. Prominent in the ACS are the Caricom countries (13 English-speaking countries and Suriname), which have been struggling toward a single market and economy along the lines of the European Union. The ACS has addressed such issues as unifying responses to natural disasters, ending the U.S. embargo of Cuba, and ending shipments of nuclear materials through the Panama Canal.

Association of Southeast Asian Nations See ASEAN

associative law Two closely related laws of number operations. In symbols, they are stated: a + (b + c) = (a + b) + c, and a(bc ) = ( ab)c . Stated in words: The terms or factors may be associated in any way desired and the result will be the same. This holds for the numbers generally encoun¬ tered: positive and negative, integral and fractional, rational and irrational, real and imaginary. Exceptions occur (e.g., in nonassociative algebras and divergent infinite series). See also commutative law, distributive law.

Assos See Assus

assumpsit \3-'s9mp-sit\ (Latin: “he has undertaken”) In common law, an action to recover damages for breach of contract, especially an implied or quasi contract. It developed in early English law as a form of recovery for the negligent performance of an undertaking (e.g., failing to protect from damage another’s goods in one’s care). Eventually, it came to cover broader claims regarding failure to keep a promise. It remains available as a contractual remedy in some U.S. jurisdictions.

Assus or Assos Ancient Greek city, southern Troas (now northwestern Turkey). It was founded in the 1st millennium bc on the Gulf of Edremit, opposite the island of Lesbos. It was long an important city and port. Aris¬ totle taught there 348-345 bc, and it was the birthplace of the philoso¬ pher Cleanthes (3317-232? bc).

Assyria Ancient empire, southwestern Asia. It grew from a small region around Ashur (in modem northern Iraq) to encompass an area stretching from Egypt to Anatolia. Assyria may have originated in the 2nd millen¬ nium bc, but it came to power gradually. Its greatest period began in the 9th century bc, when its conquests reached the Mediterranean Sea under Ashurnasirpal II (883-859), and again c. 746-609 bc, during the Neo- Assyrian empire, when it conquered much of the Middle East. Its great¬ est rulers during the latter period were Tiglath-pileser III, Sargon II, Sennacherib, and Ashurbanipal. Famous for their cruelty and fighting prow¬ ess, the Assyrians were also monumental builders, as shown by archaeo¬ logical finds at Nineveh, Ashur, and Calah. The opulence of Ashurbanipal’s court at Nineveh became legendary. Artistically, the Assyrians were par¬ ticularly noted for their stone bas-reliefs. The kingdom was finally van¬ quished in 612-609 bc by a coalition of Media and Babylonia (Chaldea).

Assyro-Babylonian language See Akkadian language

Astaire, Fred orig. Frederick Austerlitz (b. May 10, 1899, Omaha, Neb., U.S.—d. June 22,

1987, Los Angeles, Calif.) U.S. dancer and singer of stage and mov¬ ies. At age seven he began his popu¬ lar vaudeville dance act with his sister Adele, and they made their Broadway debut in 1917; they con¬ tinued dancing in stage hits until Adele retired in 1932. Astaire’s suc¬ cessful film appearances with Ginger Rogers began with Flying Down to Rio (1933) and continued until 1939.

In the 1940s and 1950s he danced on-screen with Eleanor Powell, Cyd Charisse, and Judy Garland. His singing, though untrained, was admired by the finest songwriters of his time. He retired in 1971 but occa¬ sionally appeared in films and on television. His combination of sophis¬ ticated, seemingly effortless grace and technical virtuosity revolutionized popular-dance performance.

Astana formerly (1992-98) Aqmola or Akmola \ak-'mo-b\ or(1961-92) Tselinograd Vtsi-'le-no-.graA City (pop., 1999: 319,318), capital of Kazakhstan. Situated on the banks of the Ishim River in north- central Kazakhstan, it was founded in 1824 as a Russian military outpost. The city’s importance was enhanced by its location at the junction of the Trans-Kazakhstan and South Siberian railways. It is in the centre of a mineral-rich steppe region. In 1994 the Kazakh government began to transfer the national capital from Almaty to Astana, changing the city’s name in 1998.

Astarte \a-'star-te\ or Ashtart \'ash-,tart\ Goddess of the ancient Middle East and chief deity of the Mediterranean seaports of Tyre, Sidon,

Assiniboin, placating the spirit of a slain eagle, photograph by Edward S. Curtis, 1908; from The North Ameri¬ can Indian

COURTESY OF THE NEWBERRY LIBRARY, CHICAGO, AYER COLLECTION

Astaire in Top Hat, 1935

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aster ► astronomy I 121

and Elath. Astarte shared many qualities, and perhaps a common origin, with her sister Anath. The goddess of love and war, Astarte was worshiped in Egypt and in Canaan, as well as among the Hittites. Her Akkadian counterpart was Ishtar. She is often mentioned in the Bible under the name Ashtaroth; Solomon is said to have worshipped the goddess, and Josiah destroyed the shrines dedicated to her. In Egypt she was assimilated with Isis and Hathor; in the Greco-Roman world she was assimilated with Aph¬ rodite, Artemis, and Juno.

aster Any of various chiefly fall-blooming, leafy-stemmed herbaceous plants (Aster and closely related genera) in the composite family, often with showy flowers. Included among the asters are many perennial wildflow- ers and hundreds of garden varieties.

asteroid Any of the many small rocky objects found mainly in a flat ring, or belt, between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter. It is thought that the gravitational influence of what became Jupiter kept the asteroids from aggregating into a single planet while the solar system was forming. Also called minor planets, asteroids are smaller than any of the nine major planets; only about 30 are more than 125 mi (200 km) across. Ceres is the largest known asteroid. Millions of boulder-sized asteroidal fragments are thought to exist in the solar system. Asteroids or their fragments regularly strike Earth, plunging through the atmosphere as meteors to reach its sur¬ face (see meteorite). Asteroids appear to be composed of carbonaceous, stony, and metallic (mainly iron) materials. See also Earth-crossing aster¬ oid; Trojan asteroids.

asthenosphere \as-'the-n3-,sfir\ Zone of the Earth’s mantle lying beneath the lithosphere, believed to be much hotter and more fluid than the lithosphere. The asthenosphere is thought to extend from about 60 mi (100 km) to about 450 mi (700 km) below the Earth’s surface.

asthma Vaz-mo\ Chronic disease with attacks of shortness of breath, wheezing, and coughing from constriction and mucous-membrane swell¬ ing in the bronchi (air passageways in the lungs). It is caused primarily by allergy or respiratory infection. Secondhand smoke can cause asthma in children. Asthma is common and runs in families; predisposition may be hereditary. In established asthmatics, exercise, stress, and sudden changes in temperature or humidity can bring on attacks. Attacks usually last from a half hour to several hours; severe attacks can be fatal. Corti¬ costeroids can control asthma; injections of epinephrine can relieve acute attacks. Prevention involves avoiding exposure to allergens.

astigmatism No-'stig-mo-.ti-zonA Lack of symmetry in the curvature of the cornea or, rarely, the lens of the eye. The unequal curvatures spread light rays, preventing them from being sharply focused at a point on the retina, causing blurring of part of the image. The effect of astigmatism can also be produced by misalignment of the lens. Astigmatic vision is corrected by means of lenses (see contact lens, eyeglasses) that refract the light rays to the proper degree in the opposite direction of that produced by the defects in curvature.

Astor, John Jacob orig. Johann Jakob Astor (b. July 17, 1763, Waldorf, Ger.—d. March 29, 1848,

New York, N.Y., U.S.) German-born U.S. fur magnate and financier. After emigrating from Germany at age 17, he opened a fur-goods shop in New York c. 1786. By 1800 he was a leader in the fur trade, and he estab¬ lished the American Fur Co. He con¬ trolled the fur trade with China (1800-17) and in the Mississippi and Missouri valleys (in the 1820s) before selling his interests in 1834.

His investment in New York City real estate became the foundation of the family fortune. At his death, Astor was the wealthiest person in the U.S.; he willed $400,000 to found what became the New York Public Library.

His son, William B. Astor (1792- 1875), greatly expanded the family real-estate holdings, building more than 700 stores and dwellings in the city.

Astrakhan Vas-tr3-,kan\ City (pop., 2002: 506,400), southwestern Rus¬ sia. It is situated on several islands in the delta of the Volga River. It was the capital of a Tatar khanate that became independent of the Golden Horde in the 13th century, and its location on caravan and water routes made it a trading centre. Ivan IV (the Terrible) conquered Astrakhan in 1556, giving Russia control of the Volga. The Turks burned the city in 1569. It served as the base for the campaign of Peter I (the Great) against Persia and later was given special trade privileges. Sites of interest include a fortress and a cathedral.

astrolabe Type of early scientific instrument used for reckoning time and for observational purposes.

Astrolabes can be traced to the 6th century ad; they came into wide use in Europe and the Islamic world in the early Middle Ages and were adopted by mariners by the mid-15 th century. One widely used variety, the planispheric astrolabe, can be regarded as a rudimentary analog computer. It enabled astronomers to calculate the positions of the Sun and prominent stars with respect to both the horizon and the meridian.

astrology Divination that consists of interpreting the influence of stars and planets on earthly affairs and human destinies. In ancient times it was inseparable from astronomy. It originated in Mesopotamia (c. 3rd millennium bc) and spread to India, but it developed its Western form in Greek civilization during the Hellenistic period. Astrology entered Islamic culture as part of the Greek tradition and was returned to European cul¬ ture through Arabic learning during the Middle Ages. According to the Greek tradition, the heavens are divided according to the 12 constella¬ tions of the zodiac, and the bright stars that rise at intervals cast a spiri¬ tual influence over human affairs. Astrology was also important in ancient China, and in imperial times it became standard practice to have a horo¬ scope cast for each newborn child and at all decisive junctures of life. Though the Copernican system shattered the geocentric worldview that astrology requires, interest in astrology has continued into modem times and astrological signs are still widely believed to influence personality.

astronaut Person trained to pilot a spacecraft, operate any of its sys¬ tems, or conduct research aboard it during spaceflights. The term com¬ monly refers to those participating in U.S. space missions; cosmonaut is the Russian equivalent. Extensive training, including classroom study of technical subjects as well as practice in computer-controlled simulators and full-sized mock-ups of spacecraft to experience free fall, prepares astronauts physically and psychologically for space missions. Astronauts also learn to use the control, communication, and life-support systems of any given spacecraft and conduct difficult flight operations. See also Edwin Aldrin; Neil Armstrong; Guion S. Bluford, Jr.; Yury A. Gagarin; John H. Glenn, Jr.; Mae Jemison; Sally Ride; Alan B. Shepard, Jr.; Valentina Teresh¬ kova.

astronomical unit (AU) Length of the semimajor axis of Earth’s orbit around the Sun, 92,955,808 mi (149,597,870 km), often defined simply as the average distance from Earth to the Sun. Direct measurement through the parallax method cannot be used for accurate determinations, because the Sun’s glare blots out the light of the background stars nec¬ essary to make the measurement. The most precise values have been obtained by measuring the distance from Earth to other objects orbiting the Sun. This indirect method requires an accurate proportional math¬ ematical model of the solar system; once the distance to one planet or other object is determined, then the distance to the Sun can be calculated.

astronomy Science dealing with the origin, evolution, composition, distance, and motion of all bodies and scattered matter in the universe. The most ancient of the sciences, it has existed since the dawn of recorded civilization. Much of the earliest knowledge of celestial bodies is often credited to the Babylonians. The ancient Greeks introduced influential cosmological ideas, including theories about the Earth in relation to the rest of the universe. Ptolemy’s model of an Earth-centred universe (2nd

John Jacob Astor, detail of an oil paint¬ ing by Gilbert Stuart, 1794; in the Brook Club, New York.

COURTESY OF THE FRICK ART REFERENCE LIBRARY

Astrolabe, 11 th century.

OXFORD SCIENCE ARCHIVE/HERITAGE-IMAGES

122 I astrophysics ► AT&T Inc.

century ad) influenced astronomical thought for over 1,300 years. In the 16th century, Nicolaus Copernicus assigned the central position to the Sun (see Copernican system), ushering in the age of modern astronomy. The 17th century saw several momentous developments: Johannes Kepler’s discovery of the principles of planetary motion, Galileo’s application of the telescope to astronomical observation, and Isaac Newton’s formulation of the laws of motion and gravitation. In the 19th century, spectroscopy and photography made it possible to study the physical properties of planets, stars, and nebulae, leading to the development of astrophysics. In 1927 Edwin Hubble discovered that the universe, hitherto thought static, was expanding (see expanding universe). In 1937 the first radio telescope was built. The first artificial satellite, Sputnik, was launched in 1957, inau¬ gurating the age of space exploration; spacecraft that could escape Earth’s gravitational pull and return data about the solar system were launched beginning in 1959 (see Luna; Pioneer). See also big bang; cosmology;

GAMMA-RAY ASTRONOMY; INFRARED ASTRONOMY; RADIO AND RADAR ASTRONOMY; ULTRAVIOLET ASTRONOMY; X-RAY ASTRONOMY.

astrophysics Branch of astronomy concerned mainly with the proper¬ ties and structures of cosmic objects, including the universe as a whole. Starting in the 19th century, spectroscopy and photography were applied to astronomical research, making it possible to study the brightness, tem¬ perature, and chemical composition of cosmic objects. It was soon real¬ ized that the properties of these bodies could be fully understood only in terms of the physics of their atmospheres and interiors. X-ray astronomy, GAMMA-RAY ASTRONOMY, INFRARED ASTRONOMY, ULTRAVIOLET ASTRONOMY, and RADIO and radar astronomy are all basically concerned with extending electro¬ magnetic coverage beyond the visible spectrum to constrain the physical characteristics of astronomical objects.

Astruc \as-trIEk\ of Lunel orig. Abba Mari ben Moses ben Joseph (b. 1250?, Lunel, near Montpellier, France—d. after 1306) French Jewish scholar. He revered Maimonides but argued that Mai- monides’ followers undermined faith by reading the Bible allegorically. Through letters he persuaded the powerful rabbi Solomon ben Abraham Adret (1235-1310) of Barcelona, Spain, to forbid the study or teaching of science and philosophy by those under 25 (1305). The resulting con¬ troversy almost split the Jewish communities of France and Spain. A schism was prevented when Philip IV of France expelled the Jews from France in 1306, and Astruc settled in Majorca.

Asturias \as-'tur-e-os\ Autonomous community (pop., 2001: 1,062,998) and province, on the Bay of Biscay, northwestern Spain. It occupies an area of 4,094 sq mi (10,604 sq km); its capital is Oviedo. Coextensive with the historical principality of Asturias, it is largely covered by moun¬ tains that isolate it from other Spanish provinces. Its population and indus¬ tries are concentrated in the Nalon River valley, whose extensive coalfields make the province Spain’s mining centre. Conquered by the Romans under Augustus in 25 bc, it was later ruled by the Visigoths. It became part of the kingdom of Leon on the accession of Alfonso III in 866. It was made a principality in 1388, a province in 1838, and an autonomous community in 1981.

Asturias \as-'tur-e-9s\, Miguel Angel (b. Oct. 19, 1899, Guatemala City, Guat.—d. June 9, 1974,

Madrid, Spain) Guatemalan poet, novelist, and diplomat. He moved to Paris in 1923 and became a Surreal¬ ist under the influence of Andre Bre¬ ton. His first major works appeared in the 1930s. He began his diplo¬ matic career in 1946; it culminated in his serving as ambassador to France 1966-70. Asturias’s writings combine a Mayan mysticism with an epic impulse toward social protest, especially against U.S. and oligar¬ chic power. In Men of Maize (1949), often considered his masterpiece, he depicts the seemingly irreversible wretchedness of the Indian peasant.

Other major novels, some of which employ the style of magic realism, are El Sehor Presidente (1946), a fictional denunciation of Guatemala’s dictator; The Cyclone (1950); The Green Pope (1954); and The Eyes of the Interred (1960). He won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1967.

Asuncion Xa-.sun-'syonN in full Nuestra Senora de la Asuncion

City (pop., 2002 prelim.: 513,339), capital of Paraguay. It lies on the Paraguay River near its confluence with the Pilcomayo River. Founded in 1537 by Spanish coNQUiSTADORes, it replaced Buenos Aires as the head¬ quarters of Spanish colonial activities in eastern South America during the period of the latter’s depopulation (1541-80). In 1731 Asuncion was the site of one of the first major rebellions against Spanish rule. The city declared independence from both Spain and Argentina in 1811. Today it dominates social, cultural, and economic trends in Paraguay.

Asvaghosa V.ash-vo'-go-shoN (b. ad 80?, Ayodhya, India—d. 150?, Peshawar) Indian philosopher and poet considered the father of Sanskrit drama. Born a Brahman, he opposed Buddhism until a debate with a Bud¬ dhist scholar led to his conversion. Asvaghosa became known as a bril¬ liant orator, and he spoke on Mahayana at the fourth Buddhist council. He is considered India’s greatest poet before Kalidasa. Works attributed to him include the Buddhacarita (“Life of the Buddha”) and the Mahalan- kara (“Book of Glory”).

asvamedha V.ash-vo-'ma-doV Rite of the Vedic religion in ancient India, performed by a king to celebrate his supremacy. A stallion was selected and allowed to roam freely for a year under the protection of a royal guard. It was said to symbolize the progress of the sun and the power of the king. If it was not captured during the year, it was brought back to the capital along with the rulers of lands it had entered. It was then sacrificed at a public ceremony, and the king assumed the title of universal mon¬ arch. The Buddha condemned the practice, but it was revived in the 2nd century bc and may have continued as late as the 11th century ad.

Aswan City (pop., 1996 est.: 219,017), southeastern Egypt. It lies on the Nile River just north of Lake Nasser. In ancient times it was the south¬ ern frontier of pharaonic Egypt. Later known as Syene, it served as a frontier garrison post for the Romans, Ottomans, and British. Modem Aswan is located near the old Aswan Dam (completed 1902) and the Aswan High Dam.

Aswan High Dam Dam across the Nile River, north of Aswan, Egypt. Built 4 mi (6 km) upstream from the earlier Aswan Dam (1902), it is 364 ft (111 m) high and 12,562 ft (3,830 m) long. Differences with Gamal Abdel Nasser led the U.S. and Britain to withdraw their financial support of the project in 1956, whereupon Nasser turned to the Soviet Union for assistance. The dam, completed in 1970, impounds the reservoir Lake Nasser and controls the annual Nile flood, releasing flood waters when needed for irrigation; it also enables the production of great amounts of electric power. Its construction necessitated the relocation of the ancient Abu Simbel ruins.

asylum Protection from arrest and extradition given to political refu¬ gees by a country or by an embassy that has diplomatic immunity. No one has a legal right to asylum, and the sheltering state, which has the legal right to grant asylum, is under no obligation to give it. It is thus a right of the state, not the individual. Its traditional use has been to protect those accused of political offenses such as treason, desertion, sedition, and espio¬ nage. Beginning in the 20th century, asylum also was granted to those who could demonstrate a significant risk of politically motivated perse¬ cution if they returned to their home countries.

asymmetric synthesis Chemical reaction by which unequal amounts of two product isomers are formed. It is normally not possible to synthe¬ size from materials that do not have optical activity (i.e., are not chiral) one stereoisomer of a chiral compound without the other, but use of a chiral auxiliary, such as an enzyme or other catalyst, a solvent, or an intermedi¬ ate, can force the reaction to produce predominantly or only one isomer. Asymmetric syntheses are often called stereoselective; if one product forms exclusively, it is stereospecific.

asymptote Va-som-.toA In mathematics, a line or curve that acts as the limit of another line or curve. For example, a descending curve that approaches but does not reach the horizontal axis is said to be asymptotic to that axis, which is the asymptote of the curve.

AT&T Inc. formerly American Telephone and Telegraph Co.

U.S. telecommunications corporation. It was established as a subsidiary of Bell Telephone Co. (founded by Alexander Graham Bell in 1877) to build long-distance telephone lines and later became the parent company of the Bell System. In the early 20th century it gained a virtual monopoly over the U.S. telecommunications industry, and by 1970 it was the world’s largest corporation. It developed transoceanic radiotelephone links and

Miguel Angel Asturias.

CAMERA PRESS

Atacama ► Atget I 123

telephone cable systems and created the Telstar satellite communications system. Years of federal antitrust litigation resulted in 1984 in the divest¬ ment by AT&T (nicknamed “Ma Bell”) of its 22 regional telephone com¬ panies, which were combined to form seven “Baby Bells”: Nynex, Bell Atlantic, Ameritech, BellSouth, Southwestern Bell Corp. (renamed SBC Corp. in 1995), US West, and Pacific Telesis Group. Although several Baby Bells merged following the Telecommunications Act of 1996, AT&T proceeded to divide its operations into three separate companies: AT&T Corp., Lucent Technologies Inc. (composed of the former operations of Western Electric and Bell Laboratories), and the NCR Corp. In 2005 AT&T was acquired by SBC Corp., which then changed its name to AT&T Inc. Its diversified telecommunications businesses included local and long¬ distance telephone service, wireless voice and data networks, broadband DSL (Digital Subscriber Line), and Internet communication and Web man¬ agement services.

Atacama \,a-ta-'ka-ma\ Desert Cool, arid area, north-central Chile. Extending north from the city of Copiapo, the area runs from north to south for a distance of some 600 to 700 mi (1,000 to 1,100 km) and cov¬ ers most of the Antofagasta region and the northern part of the Atacama region. Because of its location between low coastal mountains and a higher inland range, the region is meteorologically anomalous. Despite its low latitude, summer temperatures average only about 65 °F (18 °C), and, though heavy fogs are common, the desert is one of the driest regions in the world. Some areas receive heavy rain only two to four times a cen¬ tury. For much of the 19th century, the desert was the object of conflicts between Chile, Bolivia, and Peru; after the War of the Pacific (1879-83), Chile emerged with permanent ownership of sectors previously controlled by Peru and Bolivia. For years before the development of synthetic meth¬ ods of fixing nitrogen, the desert was a chief source of the world’s nitrates.

Atahuallpa \,a-ta-'wal-pa\ (b. c. 1502—d. Aug. 29, 1533, Cajamarca, Inca empire) Last free-reigning emperor of the Incas. He became ruler after defeating his half brother in what may have been the greatest mili¬ tary engagement in Inca history. The conquistador Francisco Pizarro met Atahuallpa just before the emperor’s triumphal entry into Cuzco and invited him to a feast in his honour. When Atahuallpa and his unarmed retainers arrived, Pizarro ambushed them on horseback with cannons and guns, slaughtered thousands, and took Atahuallpa prisoner. Pizarro accepted Atahuallpa’s offer of a ransom of a roomful of gold; then, hav¬ ing received 24 tons of gold and silver, he ordered Atahuallpa burned at the stake. The sentence was changed to death by garrote when Atahuall¬ pa agreed to convert to Christianity.

Atalanta \,a-t 3 l-'an-t9\ In Greek mythology, a swift-footed huntress. Born in Boeotia or Arcadia, she was left to die at birth but was suckled by a bear.

As an adult she took part in the famous Calydonian boar hunt and drew first blood. She offered to marry any man who could outrun her in a race, but the losers were required to pay with their lives. One contes¬ tant, Hippomenes (or Milanion), obtained three golden apples from Aphrodite to carry in the race. As he dropped them, Atalanta stooped to pick them up, and thus lost the race.

The two were later turned into lions after they desecrated a shrine to Cybele or Zeus.

Atanasoff Vo-'tan-o-.soA, John V(incent) (b. Oct. 4, 1903, Hamil¬ ton, N.Y., U.S.—d. June 15, 1995,

Frederick, Md.) U.S. physicist. He received his Ph.D. from the Univer¬ sity of Wisconsin. With Clifford Berry, he developed the Atanasoff-Berry Computer (1937-42), a machine capable of solving differential equations using binary arithmetic. In 1941 he joined the Naval Ordnance Labora¬ tory; he participated in the atomic bomb tests at Bikini Atoll (1946). In 1952 he established the Ordnance Engineering Co., which he later sold to Aerojet Engineering Corp. In 1973, after a judge voided a patent owned by Sperry Rand Corp. on ENIAC, the Atanasoff-Berry Computer was credited as the first electronic digital computer.

Atargatis \3-'tar-go-tis\ Goddess of northern Syria who was worshiped at Hierapolis, northeast of Aleppo, along with her consort, Hadad. Pri¬ marily a goddess of fertility, she was also mistress of the city and its people. She was often depicted wearing a crown and carrying a sheaf of grain, and her throne was supported by lions, suggesting her power over nature. Considered a combination of Anath and Astarte, she also showed kinship with the Anatolian Cybele (Great Mother of the Gods). Merchants and mercenaries carried her cult throughout the Greek world, where she was considered a form of Aphrodite.

Ataturk Yat-s-.torkV Mustafa Kemal orig. Mustafa Kemal (b.

1881, Salonika, Greece, Ottoman Empire—d. Nov. 10, 1938, Istanbul, Tur.) Founder of modem Turkey. Dedicated by his father to military ser¬ vice, he graduated near the top of his class in military school. As a young officer, he was critical of the government of the Ottoman Empire and became involved with the Turkish nationalist Committee of Union and Progress. He nevertheless fought for the government during World War I (1914-18), achieving great success against Allied forces during the Dardanelles Cam¬ paign. The eventual Allied victory brought British, French, and Italian troops to Anatolia; appointed to restore order there, he used the opportunity to incite the people against the Allied occupation. Greece and Armenia, ter¬ ritorial beneficiaries of the Ottoman defeat, opposed the Turkish national¬ ists, but Mustafa Kemal overcame all opposition, and the Republic of Turkey was established in 1923. He was given the name Ataturk (“Father of the Turks”) in 1934. He pursued a policy of Westernization and secu¬ larization, in which Western styles of dress and appellation were made mandatory, seclusion of women was abolished, and the legal and educa¬ tional system was overhauled. See also Enver Pasha; Young Turks.

ataxia \a-'tak-se-9\ Inability to coordinate voluntary muscular move¬ ments. In common usage, the term describes an unsteady gait. Hereditary ataxias are usually caused by degeneration of the spinal cord, cerebellum, or other parts of the nervous system. The most common is Friedreich ataxia, which begins at ages 3-5, progressing slowly to almost complete inca¬ pacity by age 20. There is no specific therapy. Metabolic disorders, brain injuries, and toxins can cause ataxia.

Atbara \'at-ba-ra\ River River, North Africa. Rising in the Ethiopian highlands, it flows about 500 mi (800 km) northwest through eastern Sudan to join the Nile River at Atbara in The Sudan. It is the Nile’s north¬ ernmost tributary.

Atchafalaya Na-.cha-fs-'lI-sX Bay Inlet of the Gulf of Mexico on the Louisiana coast, U.S. Together with Four League Bay, it extends about 21 mi (34 km). The Atchafalaya River links the bay with Morgan City on the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway. The area includes many natural gas and oil fields.

Atchafalaya River River, southern Louisiana, U.S. A distributary of the Red and Mississippi rivers, it branches southwest from the Red River in east-central Louisiana and flows south about 140 mi (225 km) to Atcha¬ falaya Bay. Its name is Choctaw for “Long River.”

Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad Co. Former railway. Chartered in Kansas in 1860 by Cyrus K. Holliday, the founder of Topeka, as the Atchison and Topeka Railroad Co., it was built along the Santa Fe Trail and became known as the Santa Fe Railway. Its main line, completed in 1872, extended to the Colorado state border. Further expansion west in the 1880s and early 1890s reached about 9,000 mi (14,500 km) of track. It reached its greatest extent in 1941, with more than 13,000 mi (21,000 km) of track, but gradually shrank thereafter. In 1971 its famously luxu¬ rious passenger service was sold to Amtrak. In the 1990s it merged with Burlington Northern to become Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway.

atelectasis X.at-T-'ek-ts-sssV or lung collapse Lack of expansion of pulmonary alveoli (see pulmonary alveolus). With a large-enough collapsed area, the victim stops breathing. In adhesive atelectasis, obstruction or lack of surface tension keeps a newborn’s alveoli from expanding. Com¬ pression atelectasis is caused by external pressure. Obstructive atelecta¬ sis may be caused by blockage of a major airway or when pain from abdominal surgery keeps breathing too shallow to clear bronchial secre¬ tions; treatment involves removal of obstruction or fluids, control of infec¬ tion, and lung reinflation.

Aten See Aton

Atget \at-'zhe\, (Jean-) Eugene (-Auguste) (b. Feb. 12, 1857, Liboume, near Bordeaux, France—d. Aug. 4, 1927, Paris) French pho-

124 I Athabasca > Athos

tographer. He began his adult life as an itinerant actor. Around age 30 he settled in Paris and became a photographer. The rest of Atget’s life was spent recording everything he could that he considered picturesque or artistic in and around Paris. With an eye for strange and unsettling images, he made several series of photographs of iron grillwork, fountains, stat¬ ues, and trees. He also photographed shop fronts, store windows, and poor tradespeople. His main clients were museums and historical societies that bought his photographs of historic buildings and monuments. After World War I he received a commission to document the brothels of Paris. Man Ray published four of Atget’s photographs in La revolution surrealiste (1926), the only recognition he received in his lifetime. After his death, Ray, Berenice Abbott, and the art dealer Julien Levy bought his remaining collection, which is now in the Museum of Modem Art.

Athabasca, Lake Lake, western central Canada. It extends 208 mi (335 km), crossing the Alberta-Saskatchewan boundary. On the southwest it receives the Athabasca River, and on the northwest it discharges into the Slave River. It is important for its commercial fishing.

Athabasca River River, west-central Canada. A tributary of the Mac¬ kenzie River in Alberta, it rises in the Rocky Mountains in Jasper National Park and flows northeast and north 765 mi (1,231 km) into Lake Atha¬ basca. Its chief tributaries are the Pembina, Lesser Slave, McLeod, and Clearwater rivers. Extensive petroleum deposits lie in oil-impregnated sands (Athabasca Tar Sands) along a 70-mi (113-km) stretch of the river.

Athabaskan languages or Athapaskan languages Family of North American Indian languages. There are perhaps 200,000 speak¬ ers of Athabaskan. Northern Athabaskan includes more than 20 languages scattered across an immense region of subarctic North America from western Alaska to Hudson Bay and south to southern Alberta and British Columbia. Pacific Coast Athabaskan consisted of four to eight languages, all now extinct or nearing extinction. Apachean consists of eight closely related languages spoken in the southwestern U.S. and northern Mexico, including Navajo and the various subdivisions of Apache. In 1990 Navajo had some 150,000 speakers, far more than any other indigenous language of the U.S. or Canada. In 1915 Edward Sapir placed the Athabaskan fam¬ ily together with Tlingit and Haida (languages of Alaska and British Columbia, respectively) in a larger grouping called Na-Dene; this hypo¬ thetical relationship continues to be controversial.

Athanasius V.a-tho-'na-zhosN, Saint (b. 293, Alexandria, Egypt—d. May 2, 373, Alexandria; feast day May 2) Early Christian theologian and staunch opponent of Arianism. He studied philosophy and theology at Alexandria, Egypt, and in 325 he attended the Council of Nicaea, which condemned the Arian heresy. He welcomed the council’s teaching that the Son is “consubstantial with the Father” and defended that teaching throughout his career. In 328 he was appointed patriarch of Alexandria, but theological disputes led to the first of several banishments in 336. He returned from exile repeatedly and resumed his office, but Arian opposi¬ tion continued. After being banished by Constantius II in 356, Athanasius lived in a remote desert in Upper Egypt and wrote theological treatises, including his Four Orations Against the Arians. The emperor’s death in 361 gave Athanasius a brief respite under the toleration proclaimed by Julian, but a controversy with Julian’s heathen subjects forced him to flee into the Theban desert. At the time of his death he again possessed the see at Alexandria.

atheism Va-the-.iz-onA Critique and denial of metaphysical beliefs in God or divine beings. Unlike agnosticism, which leaves open the question of whether there is a God, atheism is a positive denial. It is rooted in an array of philosophical systems. Ancient Greek philosophers such as Dem¬ ocritus and Epicurus argued for it in the context of materialism. In the 18th century David Hume and Immanuel Kant, though not atheists, argued against traditional proofs for God’s existence, making belief a matter of faith alone. Atheists such as Ludwig Feuerbach held that God was a projection of human ideals and that recognizing this fiction made self-realization possible. Marxism exemplified modem materialism. Beginning with Friedrich Nietzsche, existentialist atheism proclaimed the death of God and the human freedom to determine value and meaning. Logical positivism holds that propositions concerning the existence or nonexistence of God are nonsensical or meaningless.

Athena \3-'the-n3\ or Athene \o-'the-ne\ In ancient Greek religion, the goddess of war, handicraft, and wisdom and the patroness of Athens. Her Roman counterpart was Minerva. Hesiod told how Athena sprang in full armour from Zeus’s forehead. In the Iliad she fought alongside the Greek

heroes, and she represented the vir¬ tues of justice and skill in warfare as opposed to the blood lust of Ares. She was associated with birds (especially the owl) and the snake, and she was usually represented as a virgin god¬ dess. Her birth and contest with Posei¬ don for suzerainty of Athens were depicted on the Parthenon. Her birth¬ day festival was the Panathenaea.

Athens Greek Athinai \a-'the-ne\

City (pop., 2001: 745,514), capital of Greece. It is located inland near its port, Piraeus, on the Saronic Gulf in eastern Greece. The source of many of the West’s intellectual and artistic conceptions, including that of democracy, Athens is generally con¬ sidered the birthplace of Western civilization. An ancient city-state, it had by the 6th century bc begun to assert its influence. It was destroyed by Xerxes in 480 bc, but rebuilding began immediately. By 450 bc, led by Pericles, it was at the height of its commercial prosperity and cultural and political dominance, and over the next 40 years many major build¬ ing projects, including the Acropolis and Parthenon, were completed.

Athens’s “Golden Age” saw the works of the philosophers Socrates,

Plato, and Aristotle; the dramatists Sophocles, Aristophanes, and Eurip-

ides; the historians Herodotus, Thucydides, and Xenophon; and the sculptors Praxiteles and Phidias. The Peloponnesian Wars with Sparta ended in Ath¬ ens’s defeat in 404, but it quickly recovered its independence and pros¬ perity. After 338 bc Athens came under Macedonia’s hegemony, which was lifted with the aid of Rome in 197 bc in a battle at Cynoscephalae. It became subject to Rome in 146 bc. In the 13th century Athens was taken by the Crusaders. It was conquered in 1456 by the Ottoman Turks, who held it until 1833, when it was declared the capital of independent Greece. Athens is Greece’s principal centre for business and foreign trade. The city’s ruins and many museums make it a major tourist destination. It was selected to host the 2004 Olympic Games.

The Varvakeion, a Roman marble copy (c. ad 130) of the colossal gold and ivory statue of the Athena Parthenos by Phidias (438 bc); in the National Archaeological Museum, Athens.

AUNARI/ART RESOURCE, NEW >ORK

atherosclerosis or hardening of the arteries Chronic disease characterized by abnormal thickening of the walls of the arteries due to fatty deposits (atheromas) of cholesterol on the arterial inner walls (see- artery). These thicken, forming plaques that narrow the vessel channel (lumen) and impede blood flow. Scarring and calcification make the walls less elastic, raising blood pressure. Eventually plaques may completely block a lumen, or a blood clot (thrombus) may obstruct a narrowed chan¬ nel. Atherosclerosis of one or more coronary arteries (also called coro¬ nary heart disease) can decrease the heart muscle’s blood supply, causing angina pectoris. Complete blockage causes heart attack. In the brain, ath¬ erosclerosis may result in stroke. Treatments include drugs that reduce the level of cholesterol and fat in the blood, anticoagulants and other drugs that prevent the formation of blood clots, coronary bypass, and balloon ANGIOPLASTY.

athlete's foot Form of ringworm that affects the feet. In the inflam¬ matory type, the infection may lie inactive much of the time, with occa¬ sional acute episodes in which blisters develop, mostly between the toes. The dry type is a chronic condition marked by slight redness of the skin and dry scaling that may involve the sole and sides of the foot and the toenails, which become thick and brittle.

athletics See track and field

Athos Va- ,thos. Mount Mountain, northern Greece. Reaching a height of 6,670 ft (2,033 m), it occupies Aktf, a promontory of the Chalcidice Peninsula. It is the site of a semiautonomous republic of 20 monasteries and dependencies (skftes). Organized monastic life began there in 963, when St. Athanasius the Athonite founded the first monastery. By 1400

Athyr ► atlas I 125

there were 40 monasteries. Long regarded as the holy mountain of the Greek Orthodox Church, it was declared a theocratic republic in 1927. Its churches and libraries house a rich collection of Byzantine art and ancient and medieval manuscripts.

Athyr See Hathor

Atitlan \,a-te-'tlan\, Lake Lake, southwestern Guatemala. It lies at an elevation of about 5,100 ft (1,560 m) in the central highlands. Occupy¬ ing a crater some 1,000 ft (300 m) deep, the lake is 12 mi (19 km) long and 6 mi (10 km) wide. On its borders are three volcanoes: Atitlan, Toliman, and San Pedro. Many of the towns along the lake, including Ati¬ tlan and San Lucas, are popular tourist destinations.

Atkins, Chet orig. Chester Burton Atkins (b. June 20, 1924, Lut- trell, Tenn., U.S.—d. June 30, 2001, Nashville, Tenn.) U.S. guitarist and record company executive. Atkins began his musical career as a fiddler in the early 1940s, but it was his signature style of playing guitar (bass rhythm played with thumb, melody picked with three fingers) that brought him worldwide acclaim. In the early 1950s he began playing electric guitar, pio¬ neering its use in country music. As an RCA Records executive, he pro¬ duced hit recordings for Elvis Presley, Jim Reeves, and Waylon Jennings.

Atlanta City (pop., 2000: 416,474; metro, area pop.: 4,112,198), capi¬ tal of Georgia, U.S. Lying in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains, Atlanta is Georgia’s largest city. In 1837 a spot was selected there for a railroad terminus that would serve the southeastern U.S. First named Ter¬ minus and later Marthasville, it was given the name Atlanta in 1845. An important supply depot during the American Civil War, it was burned by Union forces under William T. Sherman. Atlanta became the state capital in 1868. As it recovered from the war’s destruction, it began to epitomize the spirit of the “New South” in seeking reconciliation with the North. It was the home of Martin Luther King, Jr., and the first major Southern city to elect a black mayor (1970). It is the principal trade and transportation centre of the southeastern U.S.

Atlanta Campaign Important series of battles in the American Civil War in Georgia (May-September 1864). Though most of the battles ended in draws, they eventually cut off the main Confederate supply centre, Atlanta. Union troops under William T. Sherman forced the evacuation of the city (August 31-September 1) and then burned it. His victory assured the reelection of Pres. Abraham Lincoln later that year.

Atlanta Compromise Classic statement on race relations by Booker T. Washington, made in a speech at the Atlanta Exposition (1895). He asserted that vocational education, which gave blacks a chance for eco¬ nomic security, was more valuable than social equality or political office. Many African Americans feared that such a limited goal would doom them to indefinite subservience to whites; that fear led to the Niagara Move¬ ment and later to the founding of the NAACP.

Atlanta Journal-Constitution Daily morning newspaper published in Atlanta, Ga., based largely on the former Atlanta Constitution. Gener¬ ally regarded as the “voice of the New South,” the Constitution counted among the great newspapers of the U.S. It became a leader among South¬ ern papers soon after its founding in 1868, and a succession of outstand¬ ing editors contributed to its distinction: Henry W. Grady (1850-89), in the late 1870s and 1880s; Clark Howell (1897-1938); and Ralph McGill, who served as both editor (1942-60) and publisher (1960-69). In 1950 it was bought by James M. Cox, who already owned the evening Atlanta Journal (founded 1883); for many years a merged paper, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, was published on weekends until the two papers were fully merged in 2001.

Atlantic Charter Joint declaration issued on Aug. 14, 1941, during World War II, by Winston Churchill and Franklin D. Roosevelt. Among the statements made in this propaganda manifesto, signed when the U.S. had not yet entered the war, were that neither the U.S. nor Britain sought aggrandizement and that both advocated the restoration of self- government to peoples forcibly deprived of it. The charter was incorpo¬ rated by reference in the Declaration of the UN (1942).

Atlantic City City (pop., 2000: 40,517) and resort, southeastern New Jersey, U.S. Lying on narrow Absecon Island, the resort began to be developed in the mid-19th century. Amusement piers were constructed, and the first beachfront boardwalk was built there in 1870. The Miss America Pageant was established in Atlantic City in 1921. After World War II the city began to decline. In 1976 the state approved legalized

gambling, and extensive development in Atlantic City provided a huge influx of money to the resort, but much of the surrounding area remained impoverished.

Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway Navigable route, coastal eastern U.S. Authorized by Congress in 1919 to provide sheltered passage for both commercial shipping and pleasure craft, and constructed by the Army Corps of Engineers, it was originally planned to form a continuous chan¬ nel from New York City to Brownsville, Texas. Because the link through Florida was never completed, it remains in two separate sections (see Gulf Intracoastal Waterway). The Atlantic portion consists of rivers, bays, and canals from Cape Cod to Florida Bay, including the Cape Cod Canal and the Chesapeake and Delaware Canal.

Atlantic languages formerly West Atlantic languages Branch of the Niger-Congo language family. Atlantic comprises some 45 lan¬ guages spoken by some 30 million people living mainly in Senegal, The Gambia, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Sierra Leone, and Liberia. About half of these people speak Fula, the language of the Fulani. The languages of the Wolof of Senegal and The Gambia and the Temne of northwest Sierra Leone are spoken by more than 1 million people.

Atlantic Monthly, The Monthly journal of literature and opinion, one of the oldest and most respected of U.S. reviews. Published in Boston, it was founded in 1857 by Moses Dresser Phillips. It soon became noted for the quality of its fiction and general articles, contributed by distinguished editors and authors such as James Russell Lowell, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry W. Longfellow, and Oliver Wendell Holmes. In the early 1920s it expanded its scope to political affairs, featuring articles by figures such as Theodore Roosevelt, Woodrow Wilson, and Booker T. Washington. In the 1970s increasing costs nearly shut down the magazine; it was pur¬ chased in 1980 by Mortimer B. Zuckerman and was sold to the National Journal Group in 1999.

Atlantic Ocean Ocean separating North and South America from Europe and Africa. The second largest of the world’s oceans, the Atlan¬ tic has an area of 31,830,000 sq mi (82,440,000 sq km). With its marginal seas, including the Baltic, North, Black, and Mediterranean to the east, and Baffin Bay, Hudson Bay, the Gulf of St. Lawrence, Gulf of Mexico, and Caribbean Sea to the west, it covers some 41,100,000 sq mi (106,450,000 sq km). Including these latter bodies of water, its average depth is 10,925 ft (3,330 m); its maximum depth is 27,493 feet (8,380 m) in the Puerto Rico Trench. Its most powerful current is the Gulf Stream.

Atlantic salmon Oceanic trout species ( Salmo salar ), a highly prized game fish. It averages about 12 lbs (5.5 kg) and is marked with round or cross-shaped spots. Found on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean, it enters streams in the fall to spawn. The young enter the sea in about two years and mature in about four. Adults may return to the sea and, after a year or two, spawn again. The ouananiche of rivers and the sebago, or lake, salmon are landlocked subspecies that are also prized for sport. The Atlan¬ tic salmon has been successfully introduced into the U.S. Great Lakes.

Atlantic, Battle of the Contest in World War II between Britain (and later the U.S.) and Germany for the control of Atlantic sea routes. Ini¬ tially the Anglo-French coalition drove German merchant shipping from the Atlantic, but with the fall of France in 1940, Britain was deprived of French naval support. The U.S. then assisted Britain with the lend-lease program. Early in 1942, the Axis began a large-scale submarine offensive against coastal shipping in U.S. waters, and German U-boats also oper¬ ated in force along the South Atlantic ship lanes to India and the Middle East. Allied shipping losses were severe, but the Allies succeeded in tight¬ ening their blockade of Axis Europe and combating the Axis war on ship¬ ping. By mid-1943 the Allies had recovered control of the sea routes.

Atlantis Legendary sunken island in the Atlantic Ocean west of Gibral¬ tar. The main sources for the legend are two of Plato’s dialogues, Timaeus and Critias. According to Plato, Atlantis had a rich civilization, and its princes made many conquests in the Mediterranean before earthquakes destroyed the island and it was swallowed up by the sea. Plato also sup¬ plied a history of its ideal commonwealth, and Atlantis is sometimes imagined as a utopia. The legend may have originated with the eruption c. 1500 bc of a volcano on ThIra, which was so powerful that it gave rise to earthquakes and tidal waves.

atlas Collection of maps or charts, usually bound together. The name derives from a custom—initiated by Gerardus Mercator in the 16th century—of using the figure of the Titan Atlas, holding the globe on his

126 I atlas ► atomic bomb

shoulders, as a frontispiece for books of maps. Abraham Ortelius’s Epitome of the Theater of the World (1570) is generally thought to be the first modern atlas. Atlases often contain pictures, tabular data, facts about areas, and indexes of place-names keyed to coordinates of latitude and longitude or to a locational grid with numbers and letters along the sides of maps.

atlas Male figure used as a column to support an entablature, balcony, or other projection, originating in Classical architecture. Such figures are posed as if supporting great weights, like Atlas bearing the world. The related telamon of Roman architecture, the male counterpart of the cary¬ atid, is also a weight-bearing figure but does not usually appeal - in an atlas pose.

Atlas In Greek mythology, the strong man who supported the weight of the heavens on his shoulders. He was the son of the Titan Iapetus and the nymph Clymene (or Asia) and the brother of Prometheus. According to Hesiod, Atlas was one of the Titans who waged war against Zeus, and as punishment he was condemned to hold aloft the heavens.

Atlas, Charles orig. Angelo Siciliano (b. Oct. 30, 1893, Acri, Italy—d. Dec. 24, 1972, Long Beach, N.Y., U.S.) Italian-born U.S. body¬ builder. Atlas immigrated to the U.S. at age 10. In 1929 he and the adver¬ tiser Charles P. Roman launched a course involving isotonic exercises and nutritional maintenance. Their mail-order bodybuilding course became legendary through advertisements in three generations of pulp comic books, the standard ad depicting scenes in which a skinny boy loses his girlfriend to a well-built lifeguard (who kicks sand in his face) and regains her after taking the Atlas course.

Atlas Mountains Mountain system, northwestern Africa. It extends some 1,200 mi (2,000 km) from the Moroccan port of Agadir in the southwest to the Tunisian capital of Tunis in the northeast. It comprises several ranges, rising to various elevations, including the High Atlas in Morocco; the Tell, or Maritime, Atlas, which runs along the coast from Morocco to Tunisia; and the Saharan Atlas in Algeria, located farther inland and running adjacent to the Sahara. Among these ranges are situ¬ ated numerous plateaus and plains that support diverse ecologies. The system’s highest peak is Morocco’s Mount Toubkal, elevation 13,665 ft (4,165 m).

Atlas rocket Any of a series of U.S. expendable space launch vehicles. The Atlas was originally designed as a liquid-fueled ICBM and first tested in an operational version in 1959. Early versions launched most of the Mercury manned missions and, coupled with upper-stage rockets, a num¬ ber of Ranger, Surveyor, Mariner, and Pioneer probes on lunar and plan¬ etary missions. Later generations have become workhorses of the U.S. space program and carry a wide variety of scientific, military, and com¬ mercial spacecraft.

atman Vat-msnX (Sanskrit: “breath” or “self’) Basic concept in Hindu philosophy, describing that eternal core of the personality that survives death and transmigrates to a new life or is released from the bonds of existence. Atman became a central philosophical concept in the Upan- ishads. It underlies all aspects of personality, as Brahman underlies the working of the universe. The schools of Samkhya, Yoga, and Vedanta are particularly concerned with atman. See also soul.

atmosphere Gaseous envelope that surrounds the Earth. Near the sur¬ face it has a well-defined chemical composition (see air). In addition to gases, the atmosphere contains solid and liquid particles in suspension. Scientists divide the atmosphere into five main layers: in ascending order, the troposphere (surface to 6-8 mi, or 10-13 km); the stratosphere (4-11 mi, or 6-17 km, to about 30 mi, or 50 km); the mesosphere (31-50 mi, or 50-80 km); the thermosphere (50-300 mi, or 80-480 km); and the exosphere (from 300 mi and gradually dissipating). Most of the atmo¬ sphere consists of neutral atoms and molecules, but in the ionosphere a significant fraction is electrically charged. The ionosphere begins near the top of the stratosphere but is most distinct in the thermosphere. See also ozone layer. See illustration opposite.

atmospheric pressure or barometric pressure Force per unit area exerted by the air above the surface of the Earth. Standard sea-level pressure, by definition, equals 1 atmosphere (atm), or 29.92 in. (760 mm) of mercury, 14.70 lbs per square in., or 101.35 kilopascals, but pressure varies with elevation and temperature. It is usually measured with a mer¬ cury barometer (hence the term barometric pressure), which indicates the height of a column of mercury that exactly balances the weight of the

column of atmosphere above it. It may also be measured using an aner¬ oid barometer, in which the action of atmospheric pressure in bending a metallic surface is made to move a pointer.

atoll \'a- ,tol\ Coral reef enclosing a lagoon. Atolls consist of ribbons of reef that may not be circular but that are closed shapes, sometimes miles across, around a lagoon that may be 160 ft (50 m) deep or more. Most of the reef itself is usually below the water surface; around the rim along the top are usually low, flat islands or more continuous strips of low, flat land.

atom Smallest unit into which matter can be divided and still retain the characteristic properties of an element. The word derives from the Greek atomos (“indivisible”), and the atom was believed to be indivisible until the early 20th century, when electrons and the nucleus were discovered. It is now known that an atom has a positively charged nucleus that makes up more than 99.9% of the atom’s mass but only about 1/100,000 of its volume. The nucleus is composed of positively charged protons and elec¬ trically neutral neutrons, each about 2,000 times as massive as an elec¬ tron. Most of the atom’s volume consists of a cloud of electrons that have very small mass and negative charge. The electron cloud is bound to the nucleus by the attraction of opposite charges. In a neutral atom, the pro¬ tons in the nucleus are balanced by the electrons. An atom that has gained or lost electrons becomes negatively or positively charged and is called an ion. See illustration on opposite page.

atomic bomb Weapon whose great explosive power results from the sudden release of energy upon the splitting, or fission, of the nuclei of heavy elements such as plutonium or uranium (see nuclear fission). With

(°C)

-100 -80 -60 -40 -20 0 20

pressure (atm)

In Earth's atmosphere, the limits of the atmospheric layers are approximate and variable, especially with latitude. Most weather occurs within the troposphere. The ozone layer, which absorbs most incoming ultraviolet radiation, forms part of the stratosphere. The thermosphere extends hundreds of miles above Earth's surface and is bounded by outer space. Atmospheric pressure drops off steadily with alti¬ tude, but temperature rises and falls through successive layers in a more complex manner.

atomic number ► atonement I 127

nucleus —

neutron

-S

J proton

e electron

The classical "planetary" model of an atom. The protons and neutrons in the nucleus are circled by electrons in "orbit" around the nucleus. The number of pro¬ tons determines which element is represented, the number of electrons determines its charge, and the number of neutrons determines which isotope of the element is represented.

only 11-33 lb (5-15 kg) of highly enriched uranium, a modern atomic bomb could generate a 15-kiloton explosion, creating a huge fireball, a large shock wave, and lethal radioac¬ tive fallout. The first atomic bomb, developed by the Manhattan Project during World War II, was set off on July 16, 1945, in the New Mexico desert. The only atomic bombs used in war were dropped by the U.S. on Hiroshima on Aug. 6, 1945, and on Nagasaki three days later. In 1949 the Soviet Union tested its first atomic bomb, followed by Britain (1952),

France (1960), China (1964), India (1974), and Pakistan (1998). Israel and South Africa were suspected of testing atomic weapons in 1979. See also HYDROGEN BOMB; NUCLEAR NON¬ PROLIFERATION Treaty; nuclear weapon.

atomic number Number of a chemical element in the systematic, ordered sequence shown in the periodic table. The elements are arranged in order of increasing number of protons in the nucleus of the atom (the same as the number of electrons in the neutral atom), and that number for each element is its atomic number.

atomic physics Scientific study of the structure of the atom, its energy states, and its interaction with other particles and fields. The modem understanding of the atom is that it consists of a heavy nucleus of posi¬ tive charge surrounded by a cloud of light, negatively charged electrons. The physical properties of atoms are largely determined by the laws of quantum mechanics and quantum electrodynamics. The primary tools for the study of these properties are spectroscopy, particle collisions (see particle accelerator), and statistical models that simulate complex, many-body interactions (such as gas dynamics). A broad field, atomic physics has applications in the study of condensed matter, gases, chemical-reaction

First atomic bomb test, near Alamo¬ gordo, New Mexico, July 16, 1945.

COURTESY OF LOS ALAMOS NATIONAL LABORATORY, NEW MEXICO

mechanisms, atmospheric science, lasers, nuclear physics, and the arrange¬ ment of elements in the periodic table.

atomic weapon See nuclear weapon

atomic weight Ratio of the average mass of a chemical element’s atoms to Vn the mass of an atom of the carbon-12 isotope. The original standard of atomic weight, established in the 19th century, was hydrogen, with a value of 1. From c. 1900 until 1961, the reference standard was oxygen, with a value of 16, and the unit of atomic mass was defined as Vie the mass of an oxygen atom. Oxygen, however, contains small amounts of two isotopes that are heavier than the most abundant one, and 16 is actu¬ ally a weighted average of the masses of the three isotopes of oxygen. Therefore, the standard was changed to one based on carbon-12. The new scale required only minimal changes to the values that had been used for chemical atomic weights.

atomism Philosophical doctrine that material objects are aggregates of simpler parts known as atoms. Atomism in the strict sense is character¬ ized by three points: the atoms are absolutely indivisible, qualitatively identical apart from shape, size, and motion, and combinable with each other only by juxtaposition. Atomism is usually associated with realism and mechanism; it is mechanistic because it maintains that all observable changes can be reduced to changes in the configuration of the atoms that constitute matter. It is opposed to holism because it holds that the prop¬ erties of any whole can be explained in terms of those of its parts.

Aton or Aten Va-ton, 'a-ton\ In ancient Egyptian religion, a sun god, depicted as the solar disk emitting rays terminating in human hands. The pharaoh Akhenaton (r. 1353-36 bc) declared Aton to be the only god, and in opposition to the Amon-Re priesthood of Thebes, built the city of Akhetaton as the center for Aton’s worship, but Aton’s religion is poorly understood. After Akhenaton’s death, the old religion was restored.

under the rays of the sun god Aton, altar relief, mid-14th century bc; in the State Museums at Berlin

FOTO MARBURG-ART RESOURCE

atonality \,a-to-'na-l3-te\ In music, the absence of functional harmony as a primary structural element. Probably originally a pejorative term applied to music of extreme chromaticism, it has become the most widely used descriptive term for 20th-century music whose connection with tonality is difficult to hear. Arnold Schoenberg and his students Alban Berg and Anton Webern are regarded as the seminal atonal composers; the serialism of their later work is often distinguished from their earlier “free atonality.”

atonement Religious concept in which obstacles to reconciliation with God are removed, usually through sacrifice. Most religions have rituals of purification and expiation by which the relation of the individual to the divine is strengthened. In Christianity, atonement is achieved through the death and resurrection of Jesus. In Roman Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, and some Protestant churches, penance is a sacrament that allows for per-

128 I Atonement ► attic

sonal atonement (see confession). In Judaism the annual Day of Atone¬ ment, Yom Kippur, is the culmination of 10 days centered on repentance.

Atonement, Day of See Yom Kippur

ATP in full adenosine triphosphate \9-'de-n3- 1 sen-tri- , fas- 1 fat\ Organic compound, substrate in many enzyme-catalyzed reactions (see catalysis) in the cells of animals, plants, and microorganisms. ATP’s chemical bonds (see bonding) store a large amount of chemical energy. ATP therefore functions as the carrier of chemical energy from energy- yielding oxidation (see oxidation-reduction) of food to energy-demanding cellular processes. Three such processes of metabolism are sources of ATP and stored energy: fermentation, the tricarboxylic acid cycle, and cellular respiration (also called oxidative phosphorylation). All form ATP from adenosine monophosphate (AMP) or adenosine diphosphate (ADP) and inorganic phosphate. When the reaction goes in the other direction, ATP is broken down to ADP or AMP and phosphate, and the released energy is used to perform chemical, electrical, or osmotic work for the cell.

atresia and stenosis \3- , tre-zh3...ste-'no-s3s\ Absence (atresia), usu¬ ally congenital, or narrowing (stenosis) of almost any normal body cav¬ ity or passage. The more important include atresia of the anus, esophagus, aortic arch, heart valves, and urinary passages; and stenosis of the intes¬ tine, urinary passages, pyloric valve (stomach outlet), and heart valves. Most must be surgically corrected soon after birth.

Atreus \'a-tre-os\ In Greek legend, the son of Pelops. Atreus became king of Mycenae and drove out his brother Thyestes. Plagued by a curse on the house of Pelops, Atreus murdered his own son Pleisthenes and was eventually killed by the nephew he had raised as a son. Two more sons, Agamemnon and Menelaus, fought in the Trojan War.

atrial Va-tre-oP fibrillation Irregular rhythm (arrhythmia) of contrac¬ tion of the atria (upper heart chambers). The most common major arrhyth¬ mia, it may result as a consequence of increased fibrous tissue in the aging heart, of heart disease, or in association with severe infection. If it con¬ tinues, it can permit formation of blood clots, which can block blood flow to essential organs. Emergency treatment consists of drugs such as beta- blockers or digitalis, which slow the heart’s action, and anticoagulants. In addition, atrial fibrillation can be interrupted by administering electric shocks (defibrillation). See also ventricuiar fibrillation.

atrium Va-tre-onP In an ancient Roman house, an open central court that contained the impluvium, a basin where rainwater collected. It originally contained the health and functioned as the center of family life. The term later came to be used for the open front courtyard of a Christian basilica, where congregants collected before services. The atrium was revived in the 20th century in the form of glass-covered, greenery- filled multistory spaces sometimes found in shopping centers, office buildings, and large hotels.

atrophy Va-tr9-fe\ Decrease from previous normal size of the body or a part, cell, organ, or tissue. An organ or body part’s cells may be reduced in number, size or both. Atrophy of some cells and organs is normal at certain points in the life cycle. Other causes include malnutrition, disease, disuse, injury, and hormone over- or underproduction.

atropine \'a-tra-,pen\ Anticholinergic drug. A poisonous, crystalline alkaloid derived from certain nightshade plants, especially Egyptian hen¬ bane, atropine is used chiefly to dry up bodily secretions, to dilate the bronchi, to prevent excessive cardiac slowing during anesthesia, and in ophthalmology to dilate the pupil of the eye. It works by suppressing the parasympathetic nervous system. Atropine is also used as an antidote for nerve gas poisoning.

Atsumi Kiyoshi (b. March 10, 1928, Tokyo, Japan—d. Aug. 4, 1996, Tokyo) Japanese comic actor. Atsumi grew up in an impoverished section of Tokyo and took odd jobs in the theatre before first portraying the role of Tora-san for a television film in 1968. He went on to play the char¬

acter until 1996 in the 48-film series Otoko wa tsurai yo (“It’s Tough Being a Man”), the longest-running series in which the same actor por¬ trayed the central character. Tora-san, a middle-aged peddler, is a charm¬ ingly irresponsible rogue who sells trinkets to passersby and unsuccessfully courts pretty women. Atsumi infused the role with witty wordplay and a folksy sincerity.

attainder In English law, the extinction of civil and political rights after a sentence of death or outlawry, usually after a conviction of treason. A legislative act attainting a person without trial was known as a bill of attainder. The most important consequences of attainder were forfeiture of property and “corruption of blood,” meaning that the attainted person was disqualified from inheriting or transmitting property, thus disinheriting his descendants. All forms of attainder except forfeiture following indictment for treason were abolished in the 19th century. As a result of the English experience, the U.S. Constitution provided that “no Attainder of Treason shall work Corruption of Blood, or Forfeiture except during the Life of the Person attainted.” The U.S. Supreme Court has also struck down as bills of attainder such things as the test oaths passed after the Civil War to dis¬ qualify Confederate sympathizers from certain professions.

Attalus I Soter \ , at-3-bs... , s6t-3r\ (b. 269—d. 197 bc) Ruler of Perga- mum (241-197). He crushed an attack by the Galatians (c. 230) and won most of Anatolia (228) through victory over the SELEUCID king, though by 222 the Seleucids had won most of it back. With Rome Attalus fought the First and Second Macedonian Wars, but he died shortly before Philip V’s defeat. He was celebrated as a patron of the arts.

Attenborough, Sir David (Frederick) (b. May 8, 1926, London, Eng.) British television writer. For the BBC, which he joined in 1952, he originated the series Zoo Quest (1954-64). As controller of BBC-2 (1965— 68) and director of programs (1968-72), he helped produce The Forsyte Saga, The Ascent of Man, and Civilisation. As an independent producer, he made innovative educational programs such as Life on Earth (1979) and The Living Planet (1984). He was knighted in 1985.

attention In psychology, the act or state of applying the mind to an object of sense or thought. Wilhelm Wundt was perhaps the first psycholo¬ gist to study attention, distinguishing between broad and restricted fields of awareness. He was followed by William James, who emphasized active selection of stimuli, and Ivan Pavlov, who noted the role attention plays in activating conditioned reflexes. John B. Watson sought to define atten¬ tion not as an “inner” process but rather as a behavioral response to spe¬ cific stimuli. Psychologists today consider attention against a background of “orienting reflexes” or “preattentive processes,” whose physical corre¬ lates include changes in the voltage potential of the cerebral cortex and in the electrical activity of the skin, increased cerebral blood flow, pupil dilation, and muscular tightening. See also attention deficit disorder.

attention deficit (hyperactivity) disorder (ADD or ADHD) formerly hyperactivity Behavioral syndrome in children, whose major symptoms are inattention and distracAbility, restlessness, inability to sit still, and difficulty concentrating on one thing for any period of time. It occurs in about 5% of all schoolchildren, and it is three times more com¬ mon in boys than in girls. It can adversely affect learning, though many children with ADD can learn to control their behaviour sufficiently to per¬ form satisfactorily in school. It appears to be caused by a combination of genetic and environmental factors. Certain aspects of the syndrome may persist into adulthood. Treatment usually entails counseling and close parental supervision, and it may also include prescription medication.

atthakatha \,a-t3-'ka-t3\ Commentaries on the Pali Buddhist canon from ancient India and Ceylon. Pali commentaries had reached Ceylon by the 3rd century bc and been translated into Sinhalese by the 1st century ad. The scholar Buddhaghosa (5th century) reworked in Pali much of the early material plus Dravidian commentaries and Sinhalese traditions. The earlier atthakatha have disappeared, but the works of Buddhaghosa and his successors provide information on the development of life and thought in the Theravada Buddhist community and contain much secular and leg¬ endary material as well.

attic Floor of a dwelling contained within the eaves of the roof structure. The word originally denoted any portion of a wall above the main cornice (see entablature). Used by the ancient Romans principally for decorative purposes and inscriptions, as in triumphal arches, it became an important part of the Renaissance facade, often enclosing an additional story. See photograph on opposite page.

Atrium of the basilica of S. Ambrogio, Milan, 1088-1128

AUNARI—ART RESOURCE

Attica ► Auden I 129

Attica Greek Attiki \,a-te-'ke\ Ancient district, eastern central Greece. It was bordered by the Aegean Sea on the south and east and included the island of Salamis; its chief cities were Athens, Piraeus, and Eleusis. Its coastal settlements were enriched by maritime trade. Origi¬ nally inhabited by Pelasgians, it was a center of Mycenaean culture in the 2nd millennium bc; the Ionian Greeks invaded it c. 1300 bc. The territory was unified under Athens by 700 bc, traditionally through the efforts of King Theseus.

Attila Va-Ul-o, a-'ti-b\ (d. 453) King of the Huns (434-53, ruling jointly with his elder brother until c. 445). He was one of the greatest of the barbarian rulers who assailed the Roman Empire. He and his brother Bleda inherited an empire that stretched from the Alps and the Baltic nearly to the Caspian Sea. The failure of the Romans to pay promised tributes prompted Attila to launch assaults along the Danube in 441 and 443. He murdered his brother in 445 and two years later invaded the Balkan provinces and Greece, a campaign later ended by another peace treaty that exacted heavy damages from the Eastern Romans. He invaded Gaul (451) but was defeated by an alliance of the Roman gen¬ eral Aetius and the Visigoths. His invasion of Italy (452) was ended by fam¬ ine and plague. His depredations, which seemed to some like divine punishment, earned him the epithet Flagellum Dei (“Scourge of God”). Attila died on his wedding night, possibly murdered by his bride. His sons took control of his empire, which collapsed shortly after Attila’s death.

Attis Mythical consort of the Great Mother of the Gods and vegetation god worshiped in Phrygia and Asia Minor. His worship later spread to the Roman empire, where he became a solar deity in the 2nd century ad. The worship of Attis and the Great Mother included the celebration of mys¬ teries at the beginning of spring.

attitude In psychology, a mental position with regard to a fact or state. Attitudes reflect a tendency to classify objects and events and to react to them with some consistency. Attitudes are not directly observable but rather are inferred from the objective, evaluative responses a person makes. Thus, investigators depend heavily on behavioral indicators of attitudes—what people say, how they respond to questionnaires, or such physiological signs as changes in heart rate. Attitude research is employed by social psychologists, advertising professionals, and political scientists, among others. Public-opinion researchers often attempt to distinguish atti¬ tudes from related concepts such as values, opinions, and knowledge.

Attlee, Clement (Richard), 1 st Earl Attlee of Walthamstow

(b. Jan. 3, 1883, Putney, London,

Eng.—d. Oct. 8, 1967, Westminster,

London) British Labour Party leader (1935-55) and prime minister (1945—51). Committed to social reform, he lived for much of the years (1907-22) in a settlement house in London’s impoverished East End. Elected to Parliament in 1922, he served in several Labour governments and in the wartime coa¬ lition government of Winston Churchill, whom he succeeded as prime minister in 1945. Attlee pre¬ sided over the establishment of the WELFARE STATE in Britain, the national¬ ization of major British industries, and the granting of independence to India, an important step in the con¬ version of the British Empire into the Commonwealth of Nations. He resigned when the Conservatives narrowly won the election in 1951.

attorney See lawyer

attorney, power of Authorization to act as agent or attorney for another. Many of the general powers of attorney important in civil-law countries come under the powers of trust in common-law countries (see civil law, common law). Durable power of attorney becomes effective when the principal becomes unable to manage his or her affairs; general power of attorney authorizes the agent to carry on business for the principal; special power of attorney authorizes the agent to carry out a particular business transaction.

attorney general Chief law-enforcement officer of a state and legal adviser to the chief executive. The office dates to the Middle Ages but did not assume its modem form until the 16th century. In the U.S., the posi¬ tion dates to the Judiciary Act of 1789. Head of the Department of Jus¬ tice and a member of the cabinet, the attorney general oversees all the government’s law business and acts as the president’s legal adviser. Every U.S. state also has an attorney general.

Attucks \'at-oks\, Crispus (b. 1723?—d. March 5, 1770, Boston, Mass.) American patriot and martyr of the Boston Massacre. His early life is unclear, but he was probably a runaway slave of African and Natick Indian ancestry, and he may have served on whaling ships. He is the only one of the massacre’s five victims who is widely remembered. In 1888 the Crispus Attucks monument was unveiled in the Boston Common.

Atwood, Margaret (Eleanor) (b. Nov. 18, 1939, Ottawa, Ont., Can.) Canadian poet, novelist, and critic. Atwood attended the University of Toronto and Harvard University. In the poetry collection The Circle Game (1964; Governor General’s Award), she celebrates the natural world and condemns materialism. Her novels, several of which have become best-sellers, include Lady Oracle (1976), Bodily Harm (1981), The Hand¬ maid’s Tale (1985; Governor General’s Award), The Robber Bride (1993), Alias Grace (1996), and The Blind Assassin (2000). She is noted for her feminism and Canadian nationalism.

Aubusson \,o-b3-'so n \ carpet Floor covering produced at the village of Aubusson in central France. A centre for the production of tapestries and furniture coverings since the 16th century, Aubusson was granted the title of Royal Manufactory in 1665. In 1743 workshops were established to manufacture pile carpets for the nobility, and soon thereafter carpets were being produced in the flat-woven tapestry technique in floral and chinoiserie patterns. In the 19th-20th centuries the name Aubusson became synonymous with a flat-woven French carpet.

Auckland City (pop., 2001: 377,382; metro, area pop.: 1,158,891), North Island, New Zealand. Located on Waitemata and Manukau har¬ bours, it is the country’s principal port and largest city. Founded in 1840 as New Zealand’s capital and named for George Eden, earl of Auckland, it remained the capital until superseded by Wellington in 1865. It is a major manufacturing and shipping centre. A bridge links it with the grow¬ ing northern shore suburbs and with Devonport, New Zealand’s chief naval base.

auction Buying and selling of property through open public bidding. Typically, potential purchasers make a succession of increasing bids or offers until the highest (and final) bid is accepted by the auctioneer. At a so-called Dutch auction, by contrast, the seller offers property at succes¬ sively lower prices until one of his offers is accepted or until the price drops so low as to force the withdrawal of the offered property. Prospec¬ tive buyers are usually allowed to examine auction items beforehand, and sellers may set a minimum price below which the property will not be sold. Auctions are important in the agricultural markets of many coun¬ tries, permitting the rapid sale of perishable goods. Other items often sold at auction include artwork and antiques, secondhand goods, and farms and buildings repossessed by banks or the government. Auctions can be struc¬ tured in many ways (e.g., bids submitted in person, via telephone, or over the Internet). Auction selling is also employed on stock and commodity exchanges.

Auden, W(ystan) H(ugh) (b. Feb. 21, 1907, York, Yorkshire, Eng.—d. Sept. 29, 1973, Vienna, Austria) British-born U.S. poet and man of letters. He attended Oxford University, where he exerted a strong influ¬ ence on C. Day-Lewis, Louis MacNeice, and Stephen Spender. Auden’s var¬ ied works throughout his life dealt with intellectual and moral issues of public concern as well as with the inner world of fantasy and dream. In the 1930s he became a hero of the left, pointing up the evils of capital¬ ism while also warning against those of totalitarianism. He collaborated with Christopher Isherwood on three verse dramas. Auden’s later writing

Inscribed attic surmounting the main cornice of the Arch of Titus, Rome, ad

A.F. KERSTING

130 I audio card ► Augustan Age

reflects changes in his life (he became a U.S. citizen) and in his religious and intellectual perspective (he embraced Christianity and became disillusioned with the left) and occasionally his homosexuality.

His poetic works include The Age of Anxiety (1947, Pulitzer Prize) and the collections Another Time (1940) and Homage to Clio (1960). With his longtime companion Chester Kail- man, he wrote opera librettos, nota¬ bly The Rake’s Progress (1951) for Igor Stravinsky.

audio card See sound card

Audion Elementary radio tube developed by Lee De Forest (patented 1907). It was the first triode vacuum tube, incorporating a control grid as well as a cathode and an anode. It was capable of more sensitive recep¬ tion of wireless signals than were the electrolytic and Carborundum detec¬ tors then in use. The Audion made possible live radio broadcasting and became the key component of all radio, telephone, radar, television, and computer systems before the invention of the transistor.

audit Examination of the records and reports of an enterprise by account¬ ing specialists other than those responsible for their preparation. Public auditing by independent accountants is common in large firms. The audi¬ tor performs tests to determine whether the firm’s statements were pre¬ pared in accordance with acceptable accounting principles and that they fairly present its financial position and operating results. Personal tax audits are carried out to determine whether people have accurately reported their financial circumstances when filing their taxes. Failing such an audit may result in a fine, or, in cases of extensive and deliberate deception, criminal prosecution. See also Internal Revenue Service.

auditorium Portion of a theater or hall where an audience sits, as dis¬ tinct from the stage. The auditorium originated in the theaters of ancient Greece, as a semicircular seating area cut into a hillside. Floor levels in a large auditorium may include stalls, private boxes, dress circle, balcony or upper circle, and gallery. A sloping floor and converging walls allow for a clear view of the stage and improve acoustics. The walls and ceil¬ ings of contemporary auditoriums usually conceal light, sound, and air- conditioning equipment.

Audubon, John James orig. Fouaere Rabin or Jean Rabin later Jean-Jacques Fougere Audubon (b. April 26, 1785, Les Cayes, Saint-Domingue, West Indies —d. Jan. 27, 1851, New York, N.Y., U.S.) U.S. ornithologist, artist, and naturalist known for his drawings and paintings of North American birds. Bom to a French merchant in Haiti, he returned with his father to France, where he briefly studied painting with Jacques-Louis David before moving to the U.S. at age 18. From his father’s Pennsylvania estate, he made the first American bird-banding experiments. After failing in business ventures, he concentrated on draw¬ ing and studying birds, which took him from Florida to Labrador. His extraordinary four-volume Birds of America was published in London in 1827-38. He simultaneously published the extensive accompanying text Ornithological Biography (5 vol., 1831-39). His multivolume Viviparous Quadrupeds of North America (1842-54) was completed by his sons. Though his bird poses are sometimes unrealistic (the result of painting dead birds wired into position) and some details are inaccurate, few argue with the excellence of his illustrations as art, and his studies were fun¬ damental to New World ornithology.

Audubon Society, National U.S. organization dedicated to con¬ serving and restoring natural ecosystems. Founded in 1905 and named for John James Audubon, the society has 600,000 members and maintains more than 100 wildlife sanctuaries and nature centres throughout the U.S. Its high-priority campaigns include preserving wetlands and endangered forests, protecting corridors for migratory birds, and conserving marine wildlife. Its 300-member staff includes scientists, educators, sanctuary managers, and government-affairs specialists.

Auerstedt, Battle of See Battles of Jena and Auerstedt

auger Tool (or bit) used with a carpenter’s brace for drilling holes, usu¬ ally in wood. It looks like a corkscrew and produces extremely clean holes, almost regardless of how large the bit is. Expansive auger bits have adjustable blades with cutting edges and spurs that can be extended radi¬ ally to cut large holes. Large augers are used to bore holes in soil for fence posts and telephone poles, or in ice for ice fishing. Horizontal augers as much as 8 ft (2.5 m) in diameter are used in coal mining.

augite \'o-j!t\ Most common pyroxene mineral, occurring chiefly as blocky crystals in basalts, gabbros, andesites, and various other dark igne¬ ous rocks. It also is a common constituent of lunar basalts and meteor¬ ites and may be found in certain metamorphic rocks, such as pyroxenites. Because the diopside-hedenbergite series and augite are nearly indistin¬ guishable, the term augite is sometimes used to designate any dark green to black pyroxene with monoclinic symmetry (three unequal crystallo¬ graphic axes with one oblique intersection).

Augsburg \'auks-,burk\ City (pop., 2002 est.: 257,800), Bavaria, south¬ ern Germany. Founded as a Roman colony by Augustus c. 14 bc, it was the seat of a bishopric by ad 739. It became an imperial free city in 1276 and joined the Swabian League in 1331. The Fugger and Welser families made the city a major banking and commercial centre in the 15th-16th centuries. The Augsburg Confession was read at the Diet of 1530; the Peace of Augsburg was concluded in 1555; and the League of Augsburg was formed in 1686. The city became part of Bavaria in 1806. It was heavily bombed during World War II. Sites of interest include the Fug- gerei (1519), the world’s oldest housing settlement for the poor.

Augsburg Vogz-borgV League of Coalition formed in 1686 by Emperor Leopold I, the kings of Sweden and Spain, and the electors of Bavaria, Saxony, and the Palatinate. The league was formed to oppose the expansionist plans of Louis XIV of France prior to the War of the Grand Alliance. It proved ineffective because of the reluctance of some princes to oppose France and the absence of provisions for combined military action.

Augsburg, Peace of Convention promulgated in 1555 by the Diet of the Holy Roman Empire, which provided the first permanent legal basis for the existence of Lutheranism in addition to Catholicism in Germany. The Diet determined that no member of the empire would make war against another on religious grounds. It recognized just two denomina¬ tions, the Roman Catholics and the Lutherans, and it stipulated that in each territory of the empire, only one denomination was allowed. How¬ ever, people were allowed to move to states where their faith was adopted. Despite numerous shortcomings, the accord saved the empire from seri¬ ous internal conflicts for over 50 years. See also Reformation.

Augsburg \'auks-,burk\ Confession Basic doctrinal statement of Lutheranism. Its principal author was Philipp Melanchthon, and it was pre¬ sented to Emperor Charles V at the Diet of Augsburg on June 25, 1530. Its purpose was to defend the Lutherans against misrepresentations of their teachings and to provide a statement of theology that Roman Catho¬ lics might accept. It consisted of 28 articles that outlined Lutheran doc¬ trine and listed abuses that had crept into Western Christendom over the centuries. The unaltered document has remained authoritative for Luth¬ erans, and a heavily revised version by Melanchthon is accepted by some Reformed churches. Translated into English in 1536, it had a major influ¬ ence on the Anglican Church’s Thirty-nine Articles and the Methodists’ Twenty-five Articles of Religion.

Augusta City (pop., 2000: 18,560), capital of Maine, U.S. It was estab¬ lished in 1628 by traders from Plymouth colony as a post at the head of navigation on the Kennebec River. Fort Western was built there in 1754 (restored 1922), attracting settlers. Incorporated in 1797, the town was renamed the next year for the daughter of an American Revolutionary general. It became the state capital in 1832. It is one of Maine’s leading vacation centres.

Augustan Age ( c. 43 bc-ad 18) Illustrious period in Latin literary history. Along with the preceding period, which was dominated by Cicero, it forms the Golden Age of Latin literature. Marked by civil peace and prosperity, the age reached its highest expression in poetry, with polished, sophisticated verse on themes of patriotism, love, and nature, generally addressed to a patron or to the emperor Augustus. Writers active in the period include Virgil, Horace, Livy, and Ovid. The term is also applied to “classical” periods in the literature of other nations, especially to late 17th- and 18th-century England.

Augustine ► Aurangzeb I 131

Augustine (of Hippo), Saint (b. Nov. 13,354, Tagaste, Numidia—d. Aug. 28, 430, Hippo Regius; feast day August 28) Christian theologian and one of the Latin Fathers of the Church. Born in Roman North Africa, he adopted Manichaeism, taught rhetoric in Carthage, and fathered a son. After moving to Milan he converted to Christianity under the influence of St. Ambrose, who baptized him in 387. He returned to Africa to pursue a contemplative life, and in 396 he became bishop of Hippo (now Annaba, Alg.), a post he held until his death while the city was under siege by a Vandal army. His best-known works include the Confessions, an autobio¬ graphical meditation on God’s grace, and The City of God, on the nature of human society and the place of Christianity in history. His theological works On Christian Doctrine and On the Trinity are also widely read. His sermons and letters show the influence of Neoplatonism and carry on debates with the proponents of Manichaeism, Donatism, and Pelagianism. His views on predestination influenced later theologians, notably John Calvin. He was declared a Doctor of the Church in the early Middle Ages.

Augustine \o-'g9s-t9n\ of Canterbury, Saint (b. Rome?—d. May 26, 604/605, Canterbury, Kent, Eng.; feast day May 26 in England and Wales, May 28 elsewhere) First archbishop of Canterbury. A Benedictine prior in Rome, he was chosen by Pope Gregory I to lead 40 monks as missionaries to England. They arrived in 597 and were welcomed by King Ethelbert of Kent, at the behest of his queen, and he gave them a church in Canterbury. Augustine converted the king and thousands of his sub¬ jects and was made bishop of the English. On the pope’s instructions he purified pagan temples and consecrated 12 other bishops. He founded Christ Church, Canterbury, as his cathedral and made Canterbury the pri¬ mary see in England. He tried unsuccessfully to unify his churches with the Celtic churches of northern Wales.

Augustinian In the Roman Catholic church, a member of any of the religious orders and congregations whose constitutions are based on the Rule of St. Augustine, including the Hospitallers (Knights of Malta) and the Dominicans. The two main branches of the Augustinians, however, are the Augustinian Hermits and the Augustinian Canons. The former was one of the four great mendicant orders of the Middle Ages, and its mem¬ bers (including Martin Luther) were active in European university life and ecclesiastical affairs. The latter became in the 11th century the first Roman Catholic order to combine clerical status with full common life. The order declined after the Reformation, but it continues missionary, educational, and hospital work. Other notable orders are the Augustinian Recollects (founded in the 16th century) and the Second Order of St. Augustine (1264) for nuns, both still active today.

Augustus., Caesar or Octavian orig. Gaius Octavius later Gaius Julius Caesar Octavianus (b. Sept. 23, 63 bc —d. Aug. 19, ad 14, Nola, near Naples) First Roman emperor. Bom to a wealthy fam¬ ily, at age 18 he was named adoptive son and heir of his great-uncle Julius Caesar. After Caesar’s assassination (44 bc) a power struggle ensued, and several battles later Octavian formed the Second Triumvirate with his chief rivals, Lepidus and Mark Antony. Octavian disposed of Lepidus in 32 and Antony (then allied with Cleopatra) at the Battle of Actium in 31 to become sole ruler. He was anointed princeps; the Roman Empire is said to begin with his accession. At first he ruled as consul, maintaining republican administration, but in 27 he accepted the title Augustus and in 23 he received imperial power. His rule (31 bc-ad 14) brought changes to every aspect of Roman life and lasting peace and prosperity to the Greco-Roman world. He secured outlying imperial provinces, built roads and public works, established the Pax Romana, and fostered the arts. He took steps to rectify Roman morality, even exiling his daughter Julia for adultery. When he died, the empire stretched from Iberia to Cappadocia and from Gaul to Egypt. He was deified after his death.

Augustus II Polish August Fryderyk (b. May 12, 1670, Dresden, Saxony—d. Feb. 1, 1733, Warsaw) King of Poland and elector of Sax¬ ony (as Frederick Augustus I). He ascended to the Polish throne in 1697, having converted to Catholicism to better his chances. Also called Augus¬ tus the Strong, he invaded Livonia in 1700, beginning the Second North¬ ern War. Charles XII of Sweden defeated Augustus’s army and forced him to abdicate in 1706, but he was restored as king in 1710. Poland declined during Augustus’s reign from a major European power to a pro¬ tectorate of Russia.

Augustus III Polish August Fryderyk (b. Oct. 17, 1696, Dresden, Saxony—d. Oct. 5, 1763, Dresden) King of Poland and elector of Sax¬ ony (as Frederick Augustus II), whose reign (1733-63) marked a great

period of disorder within Poland. He cared more for pleasure than affairs of state and left the administration of Saxony and Poland to his chief adviser, Heinrich von Bruhl (1700-1763), and the powerful Czartoryski family. He gave Saxon support to Austria in the War of the Austrian Suc¬ cession and the Seven Years' War.

auk In general, any of 22 species of diving birds (family Alcidae), espe¬ cially the little auk and the razorbill, or razor-billed auk. Auks are 6-16 in. (15—40 cm) long, with short wings and legs and webbed feet. They occur only in Arctic, subarctic, and temperate regions (with a few species south to Baja California). Auks nest colonially on cliff ledges or in rock crevices or burrows near the sea; many spend the winter far from land. They feed on fish, crustaceans, mollusks, and plankton. True auks are black and white and stand erect on land. See also great auk.

aulos Vo-los\ Single- or double-reed pipe usually played in pairs, par¬ ticularly in ancient Greece. During the Classical period the pipes were of equal length, each with three or four finger holes. The principal wind instrument of most ancient Middle Eastern peoples, it existed in Europe up to the early Middle Ages, often as a single pipe with more finger holes.

Its quavering sound, described by Plato, was classically associated with the rites of Dionysus.

AUM Shinrikyo Vaum-shin-'rik- yo\ Japanese "AUM Supreme Truth" Japanese new religious movement founded by Asahara Shoko (b. 1955 as Matsumoto Chi- zuo) in 1987. It contained elements of Hinduism and Buddhism and was founded on the millenarian expecta¬ tion of a series of disasters that would bring an end to this world and inaugurate a new cosmic cycle. In 1995 its members released nerve gas into the Tokyo subway system, killing 12 people and injuring some 5,500. The group has been linked with other nerve-gas incidents and violent crimes. It claimed some 50,000 members, mostly in Russia, at the time of the gas attack. Membership collapsed in the wake of the attack, but it had grown to more than 1,500 members by the early 21st century. The group changed its name to Aleph in 2000. More than 10 AUM members were sentenced to death for their involvement in the gassing incident, including Asahara, who in 2004 was found guilty of masterminding the attack.

Aung San V6q-'san\ (b. 1914?, Natmauk, Burma—d. July 19, 1947, Rangoon) Nationalist leader of Burma (Myanmar). He led a student strike in 1936 and became secretary-general of a nationalist group in 1939. He accepted Japanese aid in raising a military force in Burma that helped the Japanese in their 1942 invasion. However, he came to doubt that the Japa¬ nese would ever allow Burma to become independent and grew displeased with their treatment of Burmese forces, and in 1945 he switched to the Allied cause. After the war, he effectively became prime minister and negotiated Burma’s independence, which was agreed on in 1947; he was assassinated before independence was achieved in 1948.

Aung San Suu Kyi Vorj-'san-'sii-'cheX (b. June 19, 1945, Rangoon, Burma) Opposition leader in Burma (Myanmar). Daughter of nationalist leader Aung San, she studied in Burma and India and at the University of Oxford. She lived quietly in Britain until, returning to Myanmar in 1988, she was moved by the brutality of U Ne Win’s military regime to begin a nonviolent struggle for democracy and human rights. The 1990 electoral victory of her National League for Democracy was ignored by Ne Win’s government, and she was held under house arrest from 1989 to 1995. She subsequently continued her opposition activities and was sub¬ ject to varying degrees of government harrassment, including another period of house arrest in 2000-02. She was awarded the 1991 Nobel Prize for Peace.

Aurangzeb \ 1 au-r3q-'zeb\ orig. Muhi al-DTn Muhammad (b. Nov. 3, 1618, Dhod, Malwa, India—d. March 3, 1707) Last of the great Mughal emperors of India (r. 1658-1707). He was the third son of the emperor Shah Jahan and Mumtaz Mahal, for whom the Taj Mahal was built. After distin-

Auloi player with phorbeia and dancer with krotala, detail from a kylix found at Vulci, Italy, signed by Epictetus, c. 520-510 bc; in the British Museum, London.

COURTESY OF THE TRUSTEES OF THE BRITISH MUSEUM, LONDON

132 I Aurelian ► Austen

guishing himself early in life with his military and administrative ability, he fought his eldest brother for the right of succession and had several other rival relatives (including a son) executed. During the first half of his reign, he proved to be a capable Mus¬ lim monarch of a mixed Hindu- Muslim empire; he was disliked for his ruthlessness but respected. From c. 1680 his devout religious side came to dominate; he excluded Hin¬ dus from public office and destroyed their temples and schools, became embroiled in fruitless warfare with the Marathas in South India, and executed the Sikh Guru Tegh Baha¬ dur (r. 1664-75), starting a Sikh- Muslim feud that has continued to the present.

Aurelian \o-'ra-le-3n\ Latin Lucius Domitius Aurelianus

(b. c. 215—d. 275, near Byzantium)

Roman emperor ad 270-75. Prob¬ ably from the Balkans, he became emperor after Claudius II’s death and the brief reign of Claudius’s brother. He reunited the empire and restored Roman power in Europe, turning back invaders and quelling revolts, securing provinces in the east and defeating the Germans to the north, for which he took the title restitutor orbis (“restorer of the world”). He built a new wall around Rome and increased food distribu¬ tion to the poor, but his monetary and religious reforms failed. While marching to Persia, he was slain by a group of officers who mistakenly believed they had been marked for execution.

Aurelius, Marcus See Marcus Aurelius

Aurgelmir Vaur-gsl-.mhA or Ymir Vi-mir\ In Norse mythology, the first being, a giant created from the drops of water that formed when the ice of Niflheim met the heat of Muspelheim. He was the father of all giants; a male and female grew under his arm and his legs produced a six-headed son, whom the cow Audumla nursed. Audumla licked salty frost from stones, which she shaped into the man Buri, grandfather of Odin and his brothers. The gods killed Aurgelmir and put his body into the void, where his flesh became the earth, his blood the seas, his bones mountains, his teeth stones, his skull the sky, and his brains the clouds. His eyelashes (or eyebrows) became the fence around Midgard, home of mankind.

Aurignacian culture \,6r-en-'ya-sh9n\ Stone-tool industry and artis¬ tic tradition of Upper Paleolithic Europe, named after the village of Aurignac in southern France where the tradition was first identified. The Aurignacian period dates to 35,GOO- 15,000 bc. Its tools included scrap¬ ers, burins (which made the engraving possible), and blades.

Points and awls were fashioned from bones and antlers. Aurignacian art represents the first complete artistic tradition, moving from simple engravings of animal forms on small rocks to finer pieces of carved bone and ivory to highly stylized clay figurines of pregnant women (the so-called “Venus figures,” presumably fertility figures). By the end of the Aurignacian, hundreds of engravings, reliefs, and paintings had been executed on the walls and ceilings of limestone caves in western Europe, most famously Lascaux Grotto.

aurochs \'aur-,aks\ or auroch Extinct wild ox ( Bos primigenius) of Europe, the species from which cattle are probably descended. The

aurochs survived in central Poland until 1627. It was black, stood 6 ft (1.8 m) high at the shoulder, and had spreading, forward-curving horns. Some German breeders claim to have re-created this race since 1945, but their animals are smaller and probably lack the aurochs’s genetic constitution. The name has sometimes been wrongly applied to the European bison.

Aurora Roman goddess of dawn. Her Greek counterpart was Eos. Hesiod described her as the daughter of the Titans Hyperion and Theia. She was the sister of Helios, the sun, and Selene, the moon. By the Titan Astraeus, she became the mother of the winds and of the evening star. In Greek mythology she was also represented as the lover of the hunters Cephalus and Orion.

aurora Luminous phenomenon of the upper atmosphere that occurs pri¬ marily at high latitudes. Auroras in the Northern Hemisphere are called aurora borealis, or northern lights; in the Southern Hemisphere they are called aurora australis, or southern lights. Auroras are caused by the inter¬ action of energetic particles (electrons and protons) from outside the atmo¬ sphere with atoms of the upper atmosphere. Such interaction occurs in zones surrounding the Earth’s magnetic poles. During periods of intense solar activity, auroras occasionally extend to the middle latitudes.

Aurora City (pop., 2000: 276,393), north-central Colorado, U.S. It was founded near Denver as Fletcher during the silver boom of 1891 and renamed in 1907. Though mainly residential, it is also the site of Buck- ley Air National Guard Base.

Auschwitz \'aush-,vits\ or Auschwitz-Birkenau Nazi Germany’s largest concentration camp and extermination camp, located in southern Poland (modern Oswi^cim). It consisted of three camps (prison, extermi¬ nation, and forced labour), established in 1940, 1941 (Birkenau), and 1942. Able-bodied Jewish prisoners were sent to a slave-labour camp, while the aged, the weak, and children and their mothers were killed. Some prisoners were also subjected to medical experiments, conducted by Josef Mengele. The camp was gradually abandoned in 1944^45 as Soviet troops advanced. The total number who died at Auschwitz is esti¬ mated at between 1.1 million and 1.5 million, 90% of which were Jews; also among the dead were some 19,000 Roma (Gypsies), who were killed in July 1944, and some 83,000 Poles. Much of the camp was later con¬ verted into a museum and memorial. It was designated a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1979. See also Holocaust.

auscultation V.o-skol-'ta-shonV Procedure for detecting certain defects or conditions by listening for normal and abnormal heart, breath, bowel, fetal, and other sounds in the body. The invention of the stethoscope in 1819 improved and expanded this practice, still very useful despite the great technological advances in other means of diagnosis.

Ausgleich See Compromise of 1867

Austen, Jane (b. Dec. 16, 1775, Steventon, Hampshire, Eng.—d. July 18, 1817, Winchester, Hampshire)

English novelist. The daughter of a rector, she lived in the circumscribed world of minor landed gentry and country clergy that she was to use in her writing; her closest companion was her sister, Cassandra. Her earli¬ est known writings are mainly paro¬ dies, notably of sentimental fiction.

In her six full-length novels— Sense and Sensibility (1811), Pride and Prejudice (1813), Mansfield Park (1814), Emma (1815), Persuasion (1817), and Northanger Abbey (pub¬ lished 1817 but written before the others)—she created the comedy of manners of middle-class English life in her time. Her writing is noted for its wit, realism, shrewd sympathy, and brilliant prose style. Through her treatment of ordinary people in everyday life, she was the first to give the novel its distinctly modem character. She published her novels anonymously; two appeared only after her death, which probably resulted from Addison disease.

Aurangzeb, Mughal miniature, 17th century; in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City

BY COURTESY OF THE METROPOLITAN MUSEUM OF ART, NEW YORK, BEQUEST OF GEORGE D. PRATT, 1945

Cave painting of a bull and horse; in Lascaux Grotto, near Montignac, France.

HANS HINZ, BASEL

c ..

Jane Austen, pencil and watercolour by Cassandra Austen, c. 1810; in the National Portrait Gallery, London.

Austerlitz ► Australian Alps I 133

Austerlitz, Battle of (Dec. 2, 1805) First engagement of the War of the Third Coalition and one of Napoleon’s greatest victories. In the battle, fought near Austerlitz in Moravia (now Slavkov u Brna, Czech Rep.), Napoleon’s 68,000 troops defeated almost 90,000 Russians and Austrians under Russia’s Alexander I and Mikhail Kutuzov. Also called the Battle of the Three Emperors, Napoleon’s resounding victory forced Austria’s Francis I to conclude the Treaty of Pressburg, ceding Venetia to the French kingdom in Italy and temporarily ending the anti-French alliance. See also Napoleonic Wars.

Austin City (pop., 2000: 656,600), capital of Texas, U.S. It was founded in 1835 as the village of Waterloo on the Colorado River in south-central Texas. In 1839 it was made capital of the Republic of Texas and renamed to honour Stephen Austin; when Texas became a state in 1845, Austin was its capital. As the home of the University of Texas, it has expanded as a research and development centre for defense, high-technology, and con¬ sumer industries. The Lyndon B. Johnson Library is on the university campus.

Austin, J(ohn) L(angshaw) (b. March 28, 1911, Lancaster, Lancash¬ ire, Eng.—d. Feb. 8, 1960, Oxford) British philosopher. He taught at Oxford from 1945 until his death. He was a leading member of the “ordi¬ nary language,” or “Oxford,” movement of analytic philosophy, which was characterized by its belief that philosophical problems frequently arise through inattention to or misunderstandings of ordinary uses of language; accordingly, such problems can be resolved through consideration of the ordinary uses of the terms by which the relevant philosophical concepts are expressed. Ordinary-language analyses by Austin and his followers fre¬ quently took the form of asking “what one would say” in various concrete situations. Austin was also the inventor of speech act theory, through which he attempted to account for the various “performative” aspects of conveyed linguistic meaning. Several of his essays and lectures were published post¬ humously in Philosophical Papers (1961), Sense and Sensibilia (1962), and How to Do Things with Words (1962). See also analytic philosophy.

Austin, John (b. March 3, 1790, Creeting Mill, Suffolk, Eng.—d. Dec. 1859, Weybridge, Surrey) British jurist. Although initially unsuccessful in his law practice (1818-25), his analytical mind and intellectual hon¬ esty impressed colleagues, and he was named the first professor of juris¬ prudence at University College, London (1826). Distinguished men attended his lectures, but he failed to attract students, and he resigned his chair in 1832. His writings, especially The Province of Jurisprudence Determined (1832), sought to distinguish law from morality. He also helped to define jurisprudence as the analysis of fundamental legal con¬ cepts, as distinct from the criticism of legal institutions, which he called the “science of legislation.” His work, largely unrecognized in his life¬ time, influenced later jurists, including Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.

Austin, Stephen (Fuller) (b. Nov. 3, 1793, Austinville, Va., U.S.—d. Dec. 27, 1836, Austin, Texas) U.S. founder of the first legal colony of English-speaking people in Texas when it was still part of Mexico. He was raised in the Missouri Territory and served in its legislature (1814— 19). The economic panic in 1819 led his father to conceive a plan to colo¬ nize Texas on land obtained from the Mexican government. Austin continued the project after his father died (1821) and founded a colony of several hundred families on the Brazos River in 1822. He maintained good relations with the Mexican government. He tried to induce the Mexi¬ can government to make Texas a separate state in the Mexican confed¬ eration; when this attempt failed, he recommended in 1833 the organization of a state without waiting for the consent of the Mexican congress, and he was imprisoned. Released in 1835, he traveled to the U.S. to secure help when the Texas revolution broke out in October of that year. He is considered one of the state’s founders. The city of Austin is named for him.

Austral Islands Group of islands (pop., 2002: 6,386), southern French Polynesia. The southernmost part of French Polynesia ( austral is Latin for “south”), the islands form a chain about 800 mi (1,300 km) long. They were sighted by Capt. James Cook in 1769 and 1777. They were taken over by the French in the late 19th century. The inhabited islands are Rimatara, Rurutu, Tubuai, Raevavae, and Rapa.

Australia officially Commonwealth of Australia Smallest con¬ tinent and sixth largest country (in area) on Earth, lying between the Pacific and Indian oceans. Area: 2,969,978 sq mi (7,692,208 sq km). Population (2005 est.): 20,345,000. Capital: Canberra. Most Australians are descendants of Europeans. The largest nonwhite minority is the Aus¬

tralian Aborigine population. The Asian portion of the population has grown as a result of relaxed immigration policy. Language: English (offi¬ cial). Religions: Christianity (mostly Protestant; also Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, other Christians), Buddhism, Islam. Currency: Austra¬ lian dollar. Australia has three major physiographic regions. More than half of its land area is on the Western Australian plateau, which includes the outcrops of Arnhem Land and the Kimberleys in the northwest and the Macdonnell Ranges in the east. A second region, the Interior Lowlands, lies east of the plateau. The Eastern Uplands, which include the Great Dividing Range, are a series of high ridges, plateaus, and basins. The coun¬ try’s highest point is Mount Kosciusko in the Australian Alps, and the low¬ est is Lake Eyre. Major rivers include the Murray-Darling system, the Funders and Swan rivers, and Cooper Creek. There are many islands and reefs along the coast, including the Great Barrier Reef, Melville Island, Kan¬ garoo Island, and Tasmania. Australia is rich in mineral resources, includ¬ ing coal, petroleum, and uranium. A vast diamond deposit was found in Western Austraua in 1979. The country’s economy is basically free enter¬ prise; its largest components include finance, manufacturing, and trade. Formally a constitutional monarchy, its chief of state is the British mon¬ arch, represented by the governor-general. In reality it is a parliamentary state with two legislative houses; its head of government is the prime min¬ ister. Australia has long been inhabited by Aborigines, who began arriving at least 50,000 years ago. Estimates of the population at the time of Euro¬ pean settlement in 1788 range from 300,000 to 1,000,000. Widespread European knowledge of Australia began with 17th-century explorations. The Dutch landed in 1616 and the British in 1688, but the first large-scale expedition was that of James Cook in 1770, which established Britain’s claim to Australia. The first British settlement, at Port Jackson (1788), consisted mainly of convicts and seamen; convicts were to make up a large proportion of the incoming settlers. By 1859 the colonial nuclei of all Aus¬ tralia’s states had been formed, but with devastating effects on the indig¬ enous peoples, whose populations declined sharply with the introduction of European diseases. Britain granted its colonies limited self-government in the mid-19th century, and an act federating the colonies into a common¬ wealth went into effect in 1901. Australia fought alongside the British in World War I, notably at Gallipoli, and again in World War II, preventing Australia’s occupation by the Japanese. It joined the U.S. in the Korean and Vietnam wars. Since the 1960s the government has sought to deal more fairly with the Aborigines, and a loosening of immigration restrictions has led to a more heterogeneous population. Constitutional links allowing British interference in government were formally abolished in 1968, and Australia has assumed a major role in Asian and Pacific affairs. During the 1990s there were several debates about giving up its British ties and becoming a republic. See map on following page.

Australian Aboriginal languages Group of perhaps as many as 500 languages spoken by the 300,000 to 1,000,000 native inhabitants of Australia before the beginning of European conquest in 1788. More than half are now extinct; of the remainder, only about 20, mostly in the North Territory and northern Western Australia, remain in active use by both adults and children. Most Australian languages belong to a single super¬ family, Pama-Nyungan, and the remainder, a very diverse group of lan¬ guages spoken in the Kimberley region of Western Australia and parts of the North Territory, may be remotely akin to Pama-Nyungan.

Australian Aborigine \a-b3- , ri-jo- l ne\ Any of the indigenous peoples of Australia. The first Australians are estimated to have reached the con¬ tinent at least 50,000 years ago. At one time there may have been as many as 500 language-named, territorially anchored groups of indigenous Aus¬ tralians. They subsisted as hunters and gatherers. Groups (bands) were formed along the male line (patrilineal descent) and consisted of two or more families. Their lives were centred around a specific site settled by the group’s ancestors. The men were custodians of the mythology, ritual, sites, and symbols evoked in the Dreaming. Australian Aborigines are believed to have numbered 300,000-1,000,000 when European coloniza¬ tion began in the late 18th century, but they were devastated by intro¬ duced diseases and by the bloody 19th-century policy of “pacification by force.” In the early 21st century they were estimated to number more than 400,000. Most aspects of their traditional culture have been severely modified. All Aboriginal peoples have had some contact with modern Australian society, and all are now Australian citizens. At the turn of the 21st century Aboriginal interest in cultural revival was strong.

Australian Alps Mountain range, southeastern Australia. The moun¬ tains form the southern end of the Great Dividing Range and the watershed

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between the headstreams of the Murrum- bidgee River and the rivers flowing south to the Pacific Ocean. The highest peak is Mount Kosciusko. The valleys of the Aus¬ tralian Alps have been used for grazing, while the highlands have seen scattered mining ventures.

Australian Ballet Leading ballet company of Australia. It was spon¬ sored in 1962 by art patrons interested in promoting a national ballet. Peggy van Praagh was the first artistic director (1962-74). Since 1965 the company has toured Europe and North America.

Australian Capital Territory Political entity (pop., 2001: 321,680), southeastern Australia. A capital territory was mandated by the 1901 Aus¬ tralian constitution; the site was chosen in 1908. It lies within New South Wales and consists of Canberra and the area around Jervis Bay. Parliament moved there from Melbourne in 1927. In 1989 the Territory received responsibility for self-government similar to that held by Australian states.

Australian National University Public university in Canberra, Australian Capital Territory. Founded in 1946, it originally offered only graduate programs. Undergraduates were first admitted in 1960, and today the university offers a wide range of graduate and undergraduate pro¬ grams. Affiliated with the university are research schools of medicine, physical and biological sciences, social sciences, and Pacific studies.

Australian religion Religion of Australia’s Aborigines, based in the Dreaming. Religion involved living in agreement with the way of life ordained in the Dreaming, through the performance of rituals and obedi¬ ence to the law. Through dreams and other states of altered conscious¬

ness, the living could come into contact with the spiritual realm and gain strength from it; myths, dances, and other rituals bound the human, spiri¬ tual, and physical worlds together in a single cosmic order. A child’s spirit was held to come from the dreaming to animate a fetus, and a person’s spiritual heritage was more important than the bond between a physical parent and child. Sacred art included tjurunga, sand and cave paintings, and paintings on bark.

Australian Rules football Variety of football played between two teams of 18 players. The field is oval, 148-202 yd (135-185 m) long, with four goalposts at each end. A six-point goal is scored when the oval ball is kicked through the two central goalposts. A one-point “behind” is scored when the ball is kicked over the behind line extending between the central and outer goalposts. The game’s finest spectacle is the “mark” in which competing players leap, sometimes riding on the back of an oppo¬ nent, in order to catch the ball directly from the kick of another player. The player making such a catch is awarded a mark, an unhindered kick from behind the spot of the catch. The sport, Australia’s foremost, was developed in Melbourne. The Victorian Football League was established in 1896 as the first professional league. It was renamed the Australian Football League in 1990 to reflect the addition of franchises outside of Victoria state.

Australopithecus Vo-.stra-lo-'pi-tha-kssV Latin "southern ape"

Genus of extinct hominins that may be ancestral to human beings ( Homo sapiens). The name Australopithecus refers to the first fossils, which were discovered in South Africa. Australopithecus lived in much of Africa dur¬ ing the Pliocene Epoch (c. 5.3-1.8 million years ago [mya]). These hom¬ inins were distinguished from apes by their upright posture and bipedal

Austrasia ► Austro-German Alliance I 135

gait, and their teeth were more humanlike than apelike, but their brains were small and not very dif¬ ferent from those of living apes. Five species are recognized: A. anamen- sis (4.2-3.9 mya), A. afarensis (3.8- 2.9 mya), A. bahrelghazali (3.5-3.0 mya), A. africanus (3-2.4 mya), and A. garhi (2.5 mya). Three “robust” species are now instead classified as Paranthropus (2.7-1.3 mya): P. aethiopicus, P. robustus, and P. boi- sei. Paranthropus eventually became extinct, leaving no evolutionary suc¬ cessors. See also Hadar remains; human evolution; Laetoli footprints;

Lucy; Olduvai Gorge; Sterkfontein.

Austrasia \o-'stra-zh3\ or Ostrasia \a-'stra-zho\ Early medieval European kingdom. During the Merovingian dynasty (6th-8th centuries ad), it was the eastern Frankish kingdom and Neustria was the western kingdom. Austrasia covered present-day northeastern France and areas of western and central Germany; its capital was at Metz. The region was the power base of the early Carolingian mayors of the palace, one of whom, Pippin III, deposed the last Merovingian king in 751 and founded the Car¬ olingian dynasty. The dynasty’s heartland, Austrasia, was an important region in the empire established by Charlemagne.

Austria officially Republic of Austria Country, south-central Europe. Area: 32,383 sq mi (83,871 sq km). Population (2005 est.): 8,168,000. Capital: Vienna. The population is predominantly Austrian.

Lateral view of an Australopithecus africanus skull found at Sterkfontein, S.Af.

COURTESY OF THE TRANSVAAL MUSEUM, PRETORIA, S.AF.

Language: German (official). Religions:

Christianity (predominantly Roman Cath¬ olic; also Protestant); also Islam. Cur¬ rency: euro. Much of Austria is covered by Alpine regions, including the eastern Alps,

where the country’s highest point, the Grossglockner, is found. The Bohe¬ mian Forest, a highland region, extends north into the Czech Republic. The lowland region, including the Vienna Basin, lies in the east; it sup¬ ports mainly agricultural activities. The Danube River and its tributaries drain nearly the entire country. Austria has a developed mixed free-market and government-operated economy based on manufacture and commerce; tourism is also important. Austria is a republic with two legislative houses. The chief of state is the president, and the head of government is the chancellor. Austria’s greatest cultural contribution has been in music (see Joseph Haydn; Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart; Franz Schubert; Alban Berg;

Anton Webern). Major cultural figures in other fields include Oskar Koko¬ schka in art, Sigmund Freud in psychoanalysis, and Ludwig Wittgenstein in philosophy. Settlement in Austria goes back some 3,000 years, when Illyr¬ ians were probably the main inhabitants. The Celts invaded c. 400 bc and established the kingdom of Noricum. The Romans arrived after 200 bc and established the provinces of Raetia, Noricum, and Pannonia; prosper¬ ity followed, and the population became Romanized. With the fall of Rome in the 5th century ad, many tribes invaded, including the Slavs; they were eventually subdued by Charlemagne, and the area became eth¬ nically Germanic. The distinct political entity that would become Austria emerged in 976 with Leopold I of Babenberg as margrave. In 1278 Rudolf IV of Habsburg (later Rudolf I as the king of Germany) conquered the area; Habsburg rule lasted until 1918. While in power, the Habsburgs created a kingdom centred on Austria, Bohemia, and Hungary. The Napoleonic Wars brought about the end of the Holy Roman Empire (1806) and the emergence of the Austrian Empire. The prince von Metternich tried to assure Austrian supremacy among Germanic states, but war with Prussia led Austria to divide the empire into the Dual Monarchy of Austria- Hungary. Nationalist sentiment plagued the kingdom, and the assassina¬ tion of Francis Ferdinand by a Bosnian Serb nationalist in 1914 triggered World War I, which destroyed the Austro-Hungarian Empire. In the post¬ war carving up of Austria-Hungary, Austria became an independent repub¬ lic. It was annexed by Nazi Germany in 1938 (see Anschluss) and joined the Axis powers in World War II. The republic was restored in 1955 after 10 years of Allied occupation. Austria became a full member of the Euro¬ pean Union (EU) in 1995. After a half-century of military neutrality, Aus¬ tria was one of the few members of the EU that was not a member of NATO at the outset of the 21st century.

Austria-Hungary or Austro-Hungarian Empire Former mon¬ archy, central Europe. Austria-Hungary at one time included Austria and Hungary, Bohemia, Moravia, Bukovina, Transylvania, Camiola, Ktisten- land, Dalmatia, Croatia, Fiume, and Galicia. The so-called Dual Monar¬ chy, formed by the Compromise of 1867, created a king of Hungary in addition to the existing Austrian emperor; though these were the same person, Hungary was granted its own parliament and considerable autonomy. Francis Joseph held both titles from Austria-Hungary’s incep¬ tion until his death in 1916. Up to 1914, the monarchy maintained a pre¬ carious balance among its many minorities; that year saw the balance toppled with the assassination of the Austro-Hungarian Francis Ferdinand by a Serbian nationalist that precipitated World War I. With its defeat in that war and revolutions by the Czechs, Yugoslavs, and Hungarians, the monarchy collapsed in 1918.

Austrian Netherlands (1713-95) Provinces located in the southern part of the Low Countries, roughly comprising modern Belgium and Lux¬ embourg. In 1713, the Peace of Utrecht gave Emperor Charles VI control of what had been called the Spanish Netherlands. Administration of the region continued under the Habsburg rulers Maria Theresa and later Joseph II. until the Austrian Netherlands was annexed to France in 1795.

Austrian school of economics Body of economic theory developed by several late 19th-century Austrian economists. Carl Menger (1840- 1921) published a paper on their new theory of value in 1871. The con¬ cept of value was subjective, the source of a product’s value being its ability to satisfy human wants. The actual value depended on the utility derived by the consumer from the product in its least important use (mar¬ ginal utility). The theory was also applied to production and pricing. Other founders of the school included Friedrich von Wieser (1851-1926) and Eugen von Bohm-Bawerk (1851-1914). See also opportunity cost; pro¬ ductivity.

Austrian Succession, War of the (1740^-8) Group of related wars that took place after the death (1740) of Emperor Charles VI. At issue was the right of Charles’s daughter Maria Theresa to inherit the Habsburg lands. The war began when Frederick II of Prussia invaded Silesia in 1740. His victory suggested that the Habsburg dominions were incapable of defend¬ ing themselves, prompting other countries to enter the fray. The conflict was ended by the Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle.

Austro-German Alliance or Dual Alliance (1879) Pact between Austria-Hungary and the German Reich in which the two powers prom¬ ised each other support in case of attack by Russia, and neutrality in case of aggression by any other power. Germany’s Otto von Bismarck saw the alliance as a way to prevent the isolation of Germany and to preserve peace, as Russia would not wage war against both empires. The addition

136 I Austro-Hungarian Empire ► automaton

of Italy in 1882 made it the Triple Alliance. The agreement remained an important element of both German and Austro-Hungarian foreign policy until 1918.

Austro-Hungarian Empire See Austria-Hungary Austro-Prussian War See Seven Weeks' War

Austroasiatic languages Superfamily of about 150 languages spo¬ ken by close to 90 million physically and culturally very diverse people in South and Southeast Asia. Today most scholars believe that it is sub¬ divided into two families, Munda and Mon-Khmer. The present fragmented distribution of Austroasiatic languages is most likely the result of rela¬ tively recent incursions by Indo-Aryan, Sino-Tibetan, Tai, and AusTRONESiAN-speaking peoples. In prehistoric times Austroasiatic lan¬ guages most likely extended over a much broader and more continuous area, including much of what is now southeastern China. Other than Viet¬ namese and Khmer, no Austroasiatic language is an official national lan¬ guage.

Austronesian languages formerly Malayo-Polynesian lan¬ guages Family of about 1,200 languages spoken by more than 200 mil¬ lion people in Indonesia, the Philippines, Madagascar, the central and southern Pacific island groups (except most of New Guinea; see Papuan languages), and parts of mainland Southeast Asia and Taiwan. Before European colonial expansion, it had the widest territorial extent of any lan¬ guage family. A primary genetic division in the family separates the Aus¬ tronesian languages of Taiwan from the remaining languages, which are divided into Western and Central-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian. Western Malayo-Polynesian includes Javanese, which is spoken by about 76 mil¬ lion people—more than a third of all Austronesian-speakers. Eastern Malayo-Polynesian includes Oceanic, the best-defined subgroup of Aus¬ tronesian, comprising nearly all the languages of Polynesia, Micronesia, and Melanesia. Typological generalizations about Austronesian languages are difficult because of their enormous number and diversity, though content words tend to be disyllabic, and vowel and consonant inventories tend to be limited, especially in Polynesian. Written records in scripts of Southeast Asian provenance (see Indic writing system) survive for several languages, including Old Javanese and Cham, the language of the kingdom of Champa.

auteur \o-'toer\ theory Theory that holds that a film’s director is its “author” (French, auteur). It originated in France in the 1950s and was promoted by Francois Truffaut and Jean- Luc Godard and the journal Cah- iers du Cinema. The director oversees and “writes” the film’s audio and visual scenario and therefore is considered more responsible for its con¬ tent than the screenwriter. Supporters maintain that the most successful films bear the distinctive imprint of their director.

authoritarianism Principle of unqualified submission to authority, as opposed to individual freedom of thought and action. As a political sys¬ tem, authoritarianism is antidemocratic in that political power is concen¬ trated in a leader or small elite not constitutionally responsible to those governed. It differs from totalitarianism in that authoritarian governments usually lack a guiding ideology, tolerate some pluralism in social orga¬ nization, lack the power to mobilize the whole population in pursuit of national goals, and exercise their power within relatively predictable lim¬ its. See also absolutism, dictatorship.

autism Neurobiological disorder that affects physical, social, and lan¬ guage skills. First described by Leo Kanner and Hans Asperger in the 1940s, the syndrome usually appears before IVi years of age. Autistic infants appear indifferent or averse to affection and physical contact. They may be slow in learning to speak and suffer episodes of rage or panic; they may also appear deaf and display an almost hypnotized fascination with certain objects. Autism is often characterized by rhythmic body movements such as rocking or hand-clapping and by an obsessive desire to prevent change in daily routines. Autistic individuals may be hyper¬ sensitive to some stimuli (e.g., high-pitched sounds) and abnormally slow to react to others (e.g., physical pain). The disorder is three to four times more common in males. Though postnatal factors such as lack of paren¬ tal attention were once blamed, it is now known that autism is the result of abnormalities in the brain structure. About 15-20% of autistic adults live and work independently; “high-functioning” autistic people may have special abilities based on their unusual ability for visual thinking. See also SAVANT SYNDROME.

auto sacramental Vau-to-.sa-kra-men-'taL Spanish "sacramental act" Spanish dramatic genre of short plays on sacred or biblical subjects.

Performed outdoors as part of Corpus Christi feast-day celebrations, they were verse allegories dealing with some aspect of the mystery of the Holy Eucharist. The form first appeared in the 16th century and reached its height in plays by Pedro Calderon de la Barca, who covered a wide range of nonsacramental subjects. Their performance was prohibited by royal decree in 1765 on the ground of irreverence.

autobiography Biography of oneself narrated by oneself. Little auto¬ biographical literature exists from antiquity and the Middle Ages; with a handful of exceptions, the form begins to appear only in the 15th century. Autobiographical works take many forms, from intimate writings made during life that are not necessarily intended for publication (including let¬ ters, diaries, journals, memoirs, and reminiscences) to the formal autobi¬ ography. Outstanding examples of the genre extend from St. Augustine’s Confessions (c. ad 400) to Vladimir Nabokov’s Speak, Memory (1951).

autoclave Vessel, usually of steel, able to withstand high temperatures and pressures. The chemical industry uses various types of autoclaves in manufacturing dyes and in other chemical reactions requiring high pres¬ sures. In bacteriology and medicine, instruments, equipment, supplies, and culture media are sterilized by superheated steam in an autoclave. In 1679 Denis Papin (1647-c. 1712) invented a prototype known as a steam digester; still used in cooking, it is now called a pressure cooker.

autograph Any manuscript handwritten by its author; in common usage, a handwritten signature. Aside from its value as a collector’s item, an early or corrected draft of a work may show its stages of composition or “correct” final version. The earliest autograph signature of a famous person is probably the Cid’s, dated 1096. There exist autographs of most of the great Renaissance figures, including Leonardo da Vinci, Michelan¬ gelo, and Ludovico Ariosto. Since the 1 8th century, autograph material of notable people in the arts, sciences, or public life has been more abundant.

autoimmune disease Any disease caused by an immune response (see immunity) against antigens in the tissues of one’s own body. The immune system has two known ways to prevent such a response: destruction of lymphocytes in the thymus before they leave to attack one’s own tissues and loss of ability to react to their target antigens by any such cells that do leave the thymus. Autoimmune diseases arise when these mechanisms fail and lymphocytes destroy host tissues; examples include type 1 diabetes mellitus, systemic lupus erythematosus, pernicious anemia, and rheumatoid arthritis. Treatment may replace the function of the affected tissue (e.g., insulin therapy for diabetes) or suppress the immune system (see immun¬ osuppression). Allergy is another type of autoimmune reaction.

automata fo-'ta-mo-toX theory Body of physical and logical prin¬ ciples underlying the operation of any electromechanical device (an automaton) that converts information input in one form into another, or into some action, according to an algorithm. Norbert Wiener and Alan M. Turing are regarded as pioneers in the field. In computer science, automata theory is concerned with the construction of robots (see robotics) from basic building blocks of automatons. The best example of a general automaton is an electronic digital computer. Networks of automata may be designed to mimic human behaviour. See also artificial intelligence; Turing MACHINE.

automation Term coined about 1946 by a Ford Motor Co. engineer, used to describe a wide variety of systems in which there is a significant substitution of mechanical, electrical, or computerized action for human effort and intelligence. In general usage, automation can be defined as a technology concerned with performing a process by means of pro¬ grammed commands combined with automatic feedback control (see con¬ trol system) to ensure proper execution of the instructions. The resulting system is capable of operating without human intervention.

automatism Xo-'ta-mo-.tiz-omX Method of painting or drawing in which conscious control over the movement of the hand is suppressed so that the subconscious mind may take over. For some Abstract Expression¬ ists, such as Jackson Pollock, the automatic process encompassed the entire process of composition. The Surrealists, having once achieved an interesting image or form by automatic or chance means, exploited the technique with fully conscious purpose. See also Abstract Expressionism, ACTION PAINTING, SURREALISM.

automaton Xo-'ta-mo-tonX Mechanical object, either functional (such as a clock) or decorative (such as a miniature singing bird), that is self- operating. Devices set in motion by water, falling weights, and steam were in use in the 1st century. Decorative mechanical objects were made for

automobile ► Ava I 137

ecclesiastical use and table ornaments in the Middle Ages and Renais¬ sance. Spectacular fountains and waterworks can be seen in 16th-century Italian gardens; elaborate mechanical devices (such as the chess-playing Turk) were popular in the 18th-19th century. Except for some works by Carl Faberge, the production of expensive automatons virtually ceased by the 20th century.

automobile Four-wheeled automotive vehicle designed for passenger transportation, commonly propelled by an internal combustion engine using a volatile fuel. The modem automobile consists of about 14,000 parts, divided into several structural and mechanical systems. These include the steel body, containing the passenger and storage space, which sits on the chassis or steel frame; the internal combustion gasoline engine, which powers the car by means of a transmission; the steering and braking sys¬ tems, which control the car’s motion; and the electrical system, which includes a battery, alternator, and other devices. Subsystems involve fuel, exhaust, lubrication, cooling, suspension, and tires. Though experimental vehicles were built in the 18th and mid-19th century, not until the 1880s did Gottlieb Daimler and Karl Benz in Germany begin separately to manu¬ facture cars commercially. In the U.S., James and William Packard and Ransom Olds were among the first auto manufacturers, and by 1898 there were 50 U.S. manufacturers. Some early cars operated by steam engine, such as those made from c. 1902 by Francis E. and Freelan O. Stanley. The internal combustion engine was used by Henry Ford when he introduced the Model T in 1908; Ford would soon revolutionize the industry with his use of the assembly line. In the 1930s European manufacturers began to make small, affordable cars such as the Volkswagen. In the 1950s and ’60s, U.S. automakers produced larger, more luxurious cars with more automatic features. In the 1970s and ’80s Japanese manufacturers exported their small, reliable, fuel-efficient cars worldwide, and their increasing popularity spurred U.S. automakers to produce similar models. See also axle, brake, bus, carburetor, electric automobile, fuel injection, motor¬ cycle, TRUCK.

automobile racing Sport practiced in a variety of forms on roads, tracks, or closed circuits. It includes Grand Prix racing, speedway racing (including the Indianapolis 500), stock-car racing, sports-car racing, drag racing, midget-car racing, and karting, as well as hill climbs and rally driv¬ ing. The International Motor Sports Hall of Fame is located in Talladega, Ala., U.S. There is no central governing body for automobile racing in the U.S. as there is in most other countries.

autonomic \,6t-9-'nam-ik\ nervous system Part of the nervous sys¬ tem that is not under conscious control and that regulates the internal organs. It includes the sympathetic, parasympathetic, and enteric nervous systems. The first, which connects the internal organs to the brain via spi¬ nal nerves, responds to stress by increasing heart rate and blood flow to the muscles and decreasing blood flow to the skin. The second comprises the cranial nerves and the lower spinal nerves, which increase digestive secretions and slow the heartbeat. Both have sensory fibres that send feedback on the condition of internal organs to the central nervous sys¬ tem, information that helps maintain homeostasis. The third division, embedded in the walls of the stomach and intestines, controls digestive movement and secretions. See illustration opposite.

autopsy \'6-,tap-se\ or necropsy or postmortem Dissection and examination of a dead body to determine cause of death and learn about disease processes in ways that are not possible with the living. Autopsies have contributed to the development of medicine since at least the Middle Ages. Beyond revealing causes of individual deaths, autopsy is crucial to the accuracy of disease and death statistics, the education of medical stu¬ dents, the understanding of new and changing diseases, and the advance¬ ment of medical science.

Autry, (Orvon) Gene (b. Sept. 29, 1907, Tioga, Texas, U.S.—d. Oct. 2, 1998, North Hollywood, Calif.) U.S. actor and singer. He made his debut on a local radio show in 1928, hosting his own radio program from 1931. His first film. In Old Santa Fe (1934), launched his career as a cow¬ boy actor. Known as “the Singing Cowboy,” he starred in 18 movies, end¬ ing with Alias Jesse James (1959). His recordings, including “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” (1949), sold millions of copies. The televised Gene Autry Show ran from 1950 to 1954.

autumn crocus Any plant of the genus Colchicum (lily family), some¬ times called meadow saffron, comprising about 30 species of herbaceous plants native to Eurasia. The stemless, crocuslike flowers bloom in autumn. Several species are cultivated as ornamentals for their pink,

white, or bluish-purple tubelike flowers, especially C. autumnale, C. born- muelleri, and C. speciosum. The swollen underground stem of C. autum¬ nale contains colchicine, a substance used to relieve the pain of gout.

Auvergne \o-'vern y \ Region (pop., 1999: 1,308,878), south-central France. It was once inhabited by the Arverni, a Gallic people led by Ver- cingetorix and defeated by Julius Caesar. It was yielded to the Visigoths in ad 475 and conquered by the Franks under Clovis I in 507. It became part of Aquitaine, and in the 8th century it was made a countship. It passed to the Bourbons in 1416 and to France c. 1530.

auxiliary In grammar, a verb that is subordinate to the main lexical verb in a clause. Auxiliaries can convey distinctions of tense, aspect, mood, person, and number. In Germanic languages such as English and Romance languages such as French, an auxiliary verb occurs with the main verb in the form of an infinitive or participle.

auxin Any of a group of hormones that regulate plant growth, particu¬ larly by stimulating cell elongation in stems and inhibiting it in roots. Auxins influence the growth of stems toward light (phototropism) and against the force of gravity (geotropism). Auxins also play a role in cell division and differentiation, fruit development, the formation of roots from cuttings, the inhibition of lateral branching, and leaf fall. The most important naturally occurring auxin is beta-indolylacetic acid.

Ava \'a-va\ Ruined city, Myanmar. The city, located on the Irrawaddy River southwest of Mandalay, was founded in the 14th century by the Shans, who made it their capital. It was destroyed in 1527, but again became the capital in 1634 under the Toungoo dynasty. When Alaung-

Pathways of the autonomic nervous system. Nerve impulses begin in motor neurons in the brain or spinal cord. Each motor neuron connects with a second motor neu¬ ron outside the central nervous system to carry the impulse to the glands and smooth muscles. In the sympathetic nervous system, these second motor neurons are found in ganglia (masses of neurons) along either side of the spinal cord. In the parasympathetic nervous system, ganglia are located closer to, or sometimes within, the target organs. Some ganglia form large clusters called plexuses. Pregan¬ glionic fibres of the sympathetic system emerge along the thoracic (T) and first three lumbar (L) segments of the spinal cord. Fibres of the parasympathetic system origi¬ nating in the brainstem arise from the third, seventh, ninth, and tenth cranial nerves; other parasympathetic fibres emerge from the second, third, and fourth sac¬ ral (S) segments of the spinal cord.

138 I avalanche ► Avesta

paya founded the Konbaung dynasty in the 18th century, Ava served as its capital for a time, and even after the dynasty built Amarapura and Mandalay, its seat was often referred to as the “Court of Ava.”

avalanche Large mass of material, such as snow or rock debris, that moves rapidly down a mountain slope, sweeping everything in its path. Avalanches begin when a mass of material overcomes the frictional resis¬ tance of the sloping surface, often after the material’s foundation has been weakened by rains or the snow has been partially melted by a warm, dry wind. Other weather conditions that can lead to avalanches are heavy snowfall and high winds. A common method of avalanche control con¬ sists of detonating explosives in the upper reaches of avalanche zones, which intentionally causes the snow to slide before accumulations have become very great.

Avalokitesvara \ 1 3-v9- 1 lo-ki-'tash-v9-r9\ Chinese Guanyin \'gwan-'yin\ Japanese Kannon Vkan-'n6n\ Bodhisattva of infinite compassion and mercy, the most popular of Mahayana Buddhist dei¬ ties. He is the earthly manifestation of Amitabha, guarding the world between the departure of the histori¬ cal Buddha, Gautama, and the appearance of the future Buddha,

Maitreya. He is the creator of the fourth world, the actual living uni¬ verse. In China and Japan his gender became ambiguous; he is sometimes called a goddess. For Pure Land Bud¬ dhists, he forms a ruling triad with Amitabha and the bodhisattva Mahasthamaprapta. In Tibetan Bud¬ dhism, he is thought to be reincar¬ nated in each Dalai Iama in order to preserve buddha-teaching.

Avalon Island to which Britain’s legendary King Arthur was taken after he was mortally wounded in his last battle. First described by Geof¬ frey of Monmouth, it was said to be ruled by Morgan le Fay and her eight sisters, all of whom were skilled in the healing arts. Legend held that when Arthur was healed he would return to rule Britain. The tale may have originated in Celtic myths of an elysium for fallen heros. Avalon has sometimes been identified with Glas¬ tonbury in Somerset.

Avanti Historic kingdom, north-central India. Located on the overland trade routes between northern and southern India, it lay within present- day Madhya Pradesh. Its capital was at Ujjayini (near present-day Ujjain). It flourished in the 6th^lth centuries bc as one of the great powers of northern India. In the 4th century bc it was conquered and annexed by Candra Gupta Maury a of Magadha. Ujjayini, one of the seven holy cities of Hinduism, was renowned for its beauty and wealth; it also became a centre of early Buddhism and Jainism.

Avar \'a-var\ Any member of a people of undetermined origin who built an empire in eastern Europe between the Adriatic and Baltic seas and the Elbe and Dnieper rivers in the 6th-9th centuries. Mounted nomads, pos¬ sibly from Central Asia, they made the Hungarian plain the centre of their empire, from which they intervened in Germanic tribal wars, helped the Lombards overthrow allies of Byzantium, and nearly succeeded in occu¬ pying Constantinople in 626. They also fought the Merovingians and helped push the Serbs and Croats southward. Avar decline began in the late 7th century and culminated in the destruction of their capital by Charlemagne in 796. In the early 9th century the Avars were fully incor¬ porated in the Carolingian empire.

Avatamsaka-sutra V.o-vo-'tom-so-ko-'su-troN or Garland Sutra

Mahayana Buddhist sutra that explores the teachings of the Buddha Gautama. It speaks of the deeds of the Buddha and the resulting merits that blossom like a garland of flowers. It begins with the Buddha’s Enlighten¬

ment attended by a chorus of bodhisattvas and divine beings. It describes an assembly in the palace of Indra, where the Buddha teaches that all beings have the Buddha nature. Around ad 400 a Chinese translation appeared, Huayan jing, which gave rise in the 6th century to the Huayan sect, which became in Japan the Kegon school. See also Vairocana.

avatar Ya-v9-,tar\ In Hinduism, the incarnation of a deity in human or animal form to counteract an evil in the world. It usually refers to 10 appearances of Vishnu, including an incarnation as the Buddha Gautama and Kalkin (the incarnation yet to come). The doctrine appears in the Bhagavadgita in the words of Lord Krishna to Arjuna: “Whenever there is a decline of righteousness and rise of unrighteousness then I send forth Myself.”

Avebury \'av-bo-re\ Village, Wiltshire, England, lying partly within one of the largest prehistoric sites in Europe. The site occupies 28.5 acres (11.5 hectares) and contains vast megalithic remains, including chalk blocks and sandstone pillars placed in circles. Its date and origin are uncertain. Kennet Avenue, a route into the interior of the great circle, linked Ave¬ bury with a temple 1 mi (1.6 km) away.

Avedon Va-va-.danX, Richard (b. May 15, 1923, New York, N.Y., U.S.—d. Oct. 1, 2004, San Antonio, Texas) U.S. photographer. He began studying photography in the U.S. merchant marine. In 1945 he became a regular contributor to Harper's Bazaar, he later was closely associated with Vogue. Avedon’s fashion photographs are characterized by a strong black-and-white contrast that creates an effect of austere sophistication. In his portraits of celebrities and other sitters, he created a sense of drama by often using a stark, white background and eliciting a frontal, confron¬ tational pose. Many collections of his photographs have been published.

averts \'a-venz\ Any of the low-growing, perennial flowering plants (approximately 50 species) of the genus Geum, in the rose family. Most occur in the northern or southern temperate zones or in the Arctic. Several species are cultivated for their solitary or clustered white, red, orange, or yellow flowers. The plants grow no more than 2 ft (60 cm) tall. Most of the compound, deeply lobed or cut leaves arise from the base of the stem.

average See mean, median, and mode

Avernus \3- , v3r-n3s\ / Lake ancient Lacus Avernus. Lake, southern Italy. It lies west of Naples in the crater of an extinct volcano. Because of its sulfurous vapors, it was considered an entrance to the underworld by the ancient Romans, including Virgil. According to legend, the grove of Hecate and the grotto of the Cumaean Sibyl lay nearby. In the 1st century bc it was transformed into a naval base, Portus Iulius, by Agrippa and linked to the sea. Its impressive Roman ruins include baths, temples, and villas.

Averroes \9-'ver-9-,wez \ Arabic Ibn Rushd \,ib-9n-'rusht\ in full Abu al-Walld Muhammad ibn Ahmad ibn Muhammad ibn Rushd (b. 1126, Cordoba—d. 1198, Marrakech, Almohad empire) Span¬ ish Arabic philosopher. Trained in law, medicine, and philosophy, he rose to be chief judge of Cordoba, an office also once held by his grandfather. His series of commentaries on most of the works of Aristotle, written between 1169 and 1195, exerted considerable influence on both Jewish and Christian scholars in later centuries. While mostly faithful to Aristo¬ tle’s thought, he endowed the Aristotelian “prime mover” with the char¬ acteristics of the Plotinian (see Plotinus) and Islamic transcendent God, the universal First Cause. In his Commentary on Plato's Republic he attempted to apply Platonic doctrines to the contemporary Almoravid and Almohad states. See also Arabic philosophy.