Britannica Concise 2005

Senegal \ l se-ni- , gol\ officially Republic of Senegal Country, west¬ ern Africa. Area: 75,955 sq mi (196,722 sq km). Population (2005 est.): 11,706,000. Capital: Dakar. There are seven major ethnic groups in Senegal—including the Wolof, Fulani, and Maunke, each speaking a sepa¬ rate language—and a number of smaller groups. Language: French (offi¬ cial). Religions: Islam; also traditional beliefs, Christianity. Currency: CFA franc. The climate varies from dry desert to moist tropics. Forests

Seneca, marble bust, 3rd century, after an original bust of the 1 st century; in the Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, Ger¬ many

COURTESY OF THE STAATUCHE MUSEEN ZU BERUN, GERMANY

cover about one-third of the total area, and nearly one-third is pasture or rangeland; much of the rest is arable. Agriculture is the main industry; peanuts are the most impor¬ tant cash and export crop. Other important industries are fishing, mining, manufacturing, and tourism. Senegal has large reserves of phosphates and iron ore. It is a republic with one leg¬ islative house; its head of state and government is the president, assisted by the prime minister. Links between the peoples of Senegal and North Africa were established in the early centuries ad. Islam was introduced in the 11th century, although animism retained a hold on the country into the 19th century. The Portuguese explored the coast about 1444, and in 1638 the French established a trading post at the mouth of the Senegal River. Throughout the 17th and 18th centuries, Europeans exported slaves, ivory, and gold from Senegal. The French gained control over the coast in the early 19th century and moved inland, checking the expansion of the Tukulor empire; in 1895 Senegal became part of French West Africa. Its inhabitants were made French citizens in 1946, and it became an over¬ seas territory of France. It voted for a degree of autonomy in 1958, was federated with Mali in 1959-60, and became an independent state in 1960. In 1982 it entered a confederation with Gambia, called Senegambia, which was dissolved in 1989. Separatists fighting in the southern part of the country since the early 1980s signed a peace accord with the government in 2003.

Senegal River River, western Africa. It rises in Guinea and flows northwest across Mali, then west to the Atlantic Ocean, forming the bor¬ der between Mauritania and Senegal. It is 1,020 mi (1,641 km) long. Its two major headstreams, the Bating and Bakoye, meet in Mali to form the Senegal proper. Dams control floodwaters and prevent the encroachment of saltwater during the dry season.

Senegambia Confederation of Senegal and Gambia, 1982-89. The two countries agreed to integrate their military and security forces, form an economic and monetary union, coordinate their foreign policies and communications, and establish confederal institutions controlled by Sene¬ gal. Each country maintained its independence. The confederation was dissolved in 1989. The name Senegambia also refers to the region around the Senegal and Gambia rivers.

Senghor \seq-'g6r\, Leopold (Sedar) (b. Oct. 9, 1906, Joal, Sene¬ gal, French West Africa—d. Dec. 20, 2001, Verson, Fr.) Poet, president of Senegal (1960-80), and cofounder of the Negritude movement in Afri¬ can art and literature. He completed his studies in Paris and became a teacher there. Drafted in 1939, he was captured and spent two years in Nazi concentration camps, where he wrote some of his finest poems. He was elected to the French National Assembly in 1945. In 1948 he edited

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senna ► seppuku I 1721

Hosties noires, an anthology of French-language African poetry that became a seminal Negritude text. That same year he founded the Sene¬ galese Progressive Union, which, as the Socialist Party (since 1976), remains Senegal’s governing party. When Senegal gained independence in 1960, he was unanimously elected president. Advocating a moderate “African socialism,” free of atheism and excessive materialism, he became an internationally respected spokesman for Africa and the Third World. In 1984 he became the first black inducted into the French Acad¬ emy.

senna Any of several plants, especially of the genus Cassia, in the pea family (see legume), mostly of sub¬ tropical and tropical regions. Many are used medicinally; some yield tanbark used in preparing leather.

Some sennas are among the showi¬ est flowering trees. In the eastern U.S., wild sennas (C. hebecarpa and C. marilandica ) grow up to 4 ft (1.25 m) high and have showy spikes of yellow flowers. Some species are Old World shrubs or small trees.

Sennacherib Vso-'na-ko-robX (d.

January 681 bc) King of Assyria (r.

705/704-681 bc), son and successor of Sargon II. Between 703 and 689 he undertook six campaigns against Elam (southwestern Iran), which was stirring up Chaldean and Aramaean tribes in Babylonia; Babylon was sacked during the last campaign. He dealt firmly with an Egyptian-backed rebellion in Palestine in 701, sparing Jerusalem after receiving payment of a heavy indemnity. He rebuilt the city of Nineveh, around which he planted fruit trees and exotic plants, including cotton, building extensive canals to bring water to the plantations. He devised less laborious methods of bronze casting and improved methods of raising water from wells. He was assassinated by a son during a rebellion.

Sennett, Mack orig. Michael Sinnott (b. Jan. 17, 1880, Richmond, Que., Can.—d. Nov. 5, 1960, Holly¬ wood, Calif., U.S.) Canadian-born U.S. film director. He performed in burlesque and vaudeville before joining the Biograph studio in 1908, and he soon was directing comedies under D.W. Griffith’s tutelage. He left to form his own Keystone Co. in 1912. Considered the father of slap¬ stick comedy in motion pictures, he produced the first U.S. feature-length comedy, Tillie’s Punctured Romance (1914), and made over 1,000 com¬ edy shorts, often featuring the wild antics of the Keystone Kops. He hired stars such as Mabel Normand,

Fatty Arbuckle, and Charlie Chaplin.

Important directors such as Frank Capra and George Stevens also received experience under Sennett.

Sennett excelled in comic timing, improvisation, and effective editing, and he used trick camera work and high-speed and slow-motion photography to produce his famous comic chase scenes. In 1937 he received a special Academy Award.

sensation Mental process (such as seeing, hearing, or smelling) due to immediate bodily stimulation, usually as distinguished from perception. When a stimulus impinges on a sense organ and the organism responds, it is said that the stimulus has been sensed. See also psychophysics, sense- data.

sense or sensory reception or sense perception Mechanism by which information is received about one’s external or internal envi¬ ronment. Stimuli received by nerves, in some cases through specialized organs with receptor cells sensitive to one type of stimulus, are converted into impulses that travel to specialized areas of the brain, where they are

analyzed. In addition to the “five senses”—sight, hearing, smell, taste, and touch—humans have senses of motion (kinesthetic sense), heat, cold, pressure, pain, and balance. Temperature, pressure, and pain are cutane¬ ous (skin) senses; different points on the skin are particularly sensitive to each. See also chemoreception, ear, eye, inner ear, mechanoreception, nose,

PHOTORECEPTION, PROPRIOCEPTION, TASTE, THERMORECEPTION, TONGUE.

sense-data Entities that are the direct objects of sensation. Examples of sense-data are the circular image one sees when viewing the face of a penny and the oblong image one sees when viewing the penny from an angle. Other examples are the image one sees with one’s eyes closed after staring at a bright light (an afterimage) and the dagger Macbeth sees floating before him (a hallucination). In each case, according to sense- data theorists, there is something of which one is directly aware, and that something is the sense-datum.

sensitive plant Either of two plants in the pea family (see legume) that close up their leaves and droop when touched. This unusually quick response is due to rapid water release from specialized cells at the bases of leaftsalks. The more common plant is Mimosa pudica (see mimosa). Spiny and shrubby, with fernlike leaves and small, globular, mauve flower puffs, it grows about 1 ft (30 cm) high as a widespread tropical weed and a greenhouse curiosity. Wild sensitive plant ( Cassia nictitans) is less sen¬ sitive to touch; a larger plant, 20 in. (50 cm) high, it is native to the east¬ ern U.S. and the West Indies.

sentence In criminal law, a judgment formally pronouncing the punish¬ ment to be inflicted on a person convicted of a crime. Among the major types are the concurrent sentence, which runs at the same time as another; the consecutive sentence, which runs before or after another; the manda¬ tory sentence, which is specifically required by statute as punishment for an offense; and the suspended sentence, the imposition or execution of which is suspended by the court. See also capital punishment, parole.

Seoul \'sol\ City (pop., 2000: 9,853,972), capital of South Korea since 1946, with the administrative status of a province. Located on the Han River near the centre of the Korean peninsula, Seoul was the capital of the Choson dynasty (1394-1910) and the centre of Japanese rule of Korea (1910-45). During the Korean War it was the capital of the U.S. military government and suffered extensive damage; it has been largely rebuilt since 1953. In 1988 it was the site of the Summer Olympic Games. The commercial, cultural, and industrial heart of South Korea, it is a centre of higher education, with several universities, including Seoul National University (1946).

separation of powers Division of the legislative, executive, and judicial functions of government among separate and independent bodies. Such a separation limits the possibility of arbitrary excesses by govern¬ ment, since the sanction of all three branches is required for the making, executing, and administering of laws. The concept received its first mod¬ ern formulation in the work of Charles- Louis de Secondat, baron de La Brede et de Montesquieu, who declared it the best way to safeguard liberty; he influenced the framers of the Constitution of the United States, who in turn influenced the writers of 19th- and 20th-century constitutions. See also CHECKS AND BALANCES.

Sephardi \so-'far-de\ Any member of the Jewish community, or their descendants, who lived in Spain and Portugal from the Middle Ages until their expulsion in the late 15th century. They fled first to North Africa and other parts of the Ottoman Empire and eventually settled in countries such as France, Holland, England, Italy, and the Balkan states. They differ from the Ashkenazi Jews in their traditional language, Ladino, and in their pres¬ ervation of Babylonian rather than Palestinian Jewish ritual traditions. Many now live in Israel.

Sephardic language See Ladino language

Sepik \'sa-pik\ River River, northeastern New Guinea. It enters the Bismarck Sea through a delta about 700 mi (1,100 km) from its source in the central highlands. Because of the amount of sediment it carries, it discolours the waters for 20 mi (32 km) beyond its mouth, which is more than 1 mi (1.6 km) wide. It is navigable by shallow-draft vessels for more than 300 mi (483 km). The river’s small tribal groups have extensive artistic traditions, known as the Sepik River style.

Sepoy Mutiny See Indian Mutiny

seppuku Vse-po-.kiiX or hara-kiri Japanese ritual suicide by disem- bowelment, practiced by members of the samurai class. Suicide by dis-

Senna (Cassia didymobotrya).

GERALD CUBITT

Mack Sennett.

COURTESY OF THE MUSEUM OF MODERN ART FILM STILLS ARCHIVE, NEW YORK

© 2006 Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.

1722 I September 11 attacks ► Serbia and Montenegro

embowelment was favoured because it was slow and painful and therefore demonstrated courage, self-control, and strong resolve. Voluntary seppuku was performed to avoid the dishonour of capture, show loyalty to one’s lord by following him into death, protest against some policy of a supe¬ rior, or atone for failure. Obligatory seppuku was a method of capital punishment for a samurai, who would be beheaded by a second once he had made an initial stab wound himself. Obligatory seppuku was abol¬ ished in 1873, but voluntary seppuku continued to occur. Notable 20th- century examples included those of army officer Nogi Maresuke and writer Yukio Mishima. See also bushido.

September 1 1 attacks Series of airline hijackings and suicide bomb¬ ings against U.S. targets perpetrated by 19 militants associated with the Islamic extremist group al-QAEDA. The attacks were planned well in advance; the militants—most of whom were from Saudi Arabia—traveled to the U.S. beforehand, where a number received commercial flight train¬ ing. Working in small groups, the hijackers boarded 4 domestic airliners in groups of 5 (a 20th participant was alleged) on Sept. 11, 2001, and took control of the planes soon after takeoff. At 8:46 am (local time), the ter¬ rorists piloted the first plane into the north tower of the World Trade Cen¬ ter in New York City. A second plane struck the south tower some 15 minutes later. Both structures erupted in flames and, badly damaged, soon collapsed. A third plane struck the southwest side of the Pentagon near Washington, D.C., at 9:40, and within the next hour the fourth crashed in Pennsylvania after its passengers—aware of events via cellular telephone—attempted to overpower their assailants. Some 2,750 people were killed in New York, 184 at the Pentagon, and 40 in Pennsylvania. All 19 terrorists died.

septic arthritis Acute inflammation of one or more joints caused by infection. Suppurative arthritis may follow certain bacterial infections; joints become swollen, hot, sore, and filled with pus, which erodes their cartilage, causing permanent damage if not promptly treated by giving antibiotics, draining the pus, and resting the joint. Nonsuppurative arthri¬ tis can accompany several diseases caused by bacteria, viruses, or fungi; joints become stiff, swollen, and painful to move. Treatment includes rest, drugs, and, in the case of tuberculosis, orthopedic care to prevent skeletal deformity.

septicemia \,sep-ti-'se-me-3\ or blood poisoning Invasion of the bloodstream, after surgery or infectious disease, by microorganisms— typically gram-negative (see gram stain) bacteria —and the toxins they release. The latter trigger immune responses and widespread coagulation in blood vessels. High fever, chills, weakness, and sweating are followed by a drop in blood pressure. Multiple infections are often present, requiring broad-spectrum antibiotics as well as drainage of foci of infection. Without immediate treatment, septic shock follows, with a mortality rate over 50%. Invasive technology and antibiotic-resistant bacteria in hospitals have made septicemia more severe and more common. See also bacteremia.

Septimania \,sep-t3-'ma-ne-3\ Ancient territory, southwestern France. Located between the Garonne and Rhone rivers and the Pyrenees and Cevennes mountains, Septimania was settled during the reign of the Roman emperor Augustus by veterans of the Seventh Legion (Septimani). It was the last Gallic holding of the Visigoths of Spain. The region was occupied by the Franks (732-768), was then part of the kingdom of Aquitaine under the Carolingians, and became a separate duchy in 817. Later in the 9th century it was subsumed under the counts of Toulouse.

Septuagint \sep-'tti-3-j9nt\ Earliest extant Greek translation of the Hebrew scriptures from the original Hebrew, presumably made for the use of the Jewish community in Egypt when Greek was the lingua franca. The Pentateuch was translated near the middle of the 3rd century bc; the rest of the Hebrew scriptures were translated in the 2nd century bc. The name Sep¬ tuagint was derived from a legend that 72 translators worked on the project. Its influence was far-reaching. The Septuagint rather than the original Hebrew Bible was the main basis for the Old Latin, Coptic, Ethiopic, Armenian, Georgian, Slavonic, and some Arabic translations of the Bible.

sequencing Determining of the order of amino acids in a protein or of nucleotides in a nucleic acid or gene. The results have increased under¬ standing of the mechanisms of life processes and have numerous appli¬ cations. Whereas Frederick Sanger required 10 years to determine the structure and sequence of amino acids in insulin and about as long to determine the sequence of nucleotides in the DNA of a small virus, auto¬ mated laboratory instruments and techniques can now do either task in days or hours. See also genetic code; polymerase chain reaction.

sequestration In law, a writ authorizing a law-enforcement official to take into custody the property of a defendant in order to enforce a judg¬ ment or to preserve the property until a judgment is rendered. In some civil-law jurisdictions, contested property may be deposited with a third party until it is determined to whom it properly belongs.

sequoia See redwood

sequoia, giant See big tree

Sequoia National Park National park. Sierra Nevada range, Cali¬ fornia, U.S. The park, with an area of 629 sq mi (1,629 sq km), was set aside in 1890 to protect groves of big trees (Sequoiadendron giganteum) that are among the world’s largest and oldest living things. The largest tree in the park is thought to be 2,300-2,700 years old. Kings Canyon National Park adjoins Sequoia park to the north; Mount Whitney is on the eastern boundary.

Sequoyah or Sequoya or Sequoia \si-'kwoi-3\ (b. c. 1760/1770, Taskigi, North Carolina colony—d. August 1843, near San Fernando, Mex.) Creator of the Cherokee writing system. Sequoyah was probably the son of a British trader. Convinced that the secret of the white people’s power was written language, Sequoyah set about developing a Cherokee system. Adapting letters from English, Greek, and Hebrew, he created a system of 86 symbols representing all the syllables of the Cherokee lan¬ guage. Most Cherokee quickly became literate as a result. Sequoyah never learned to speak, read, or write English.

Seram See Ceram

seraph Vser-9f\ In Jewish, Christian, and Islamic literature, a celestial being with two or three pairs of wings who guards the throne of God. In Christian angelology, seraphim are the highest-ranking in the hierarchy of angels. In art they are often painted red, symbolizing fire. They appear in the Old Testament in a vision of Isaiah as six-winged creatures praising God. See also cherub.

Serbia Vs3r-be-,ya\ Constituent republic of Serbia and Montenegro, con¬ stituting about 80% of its area. The formerly autonomous provinces of Kosovo (administered by the UN since 1999) and the Vojvodina are within its borders. Area: 34,116 sq mi (88,361 sq km). Population (2001 est.): 9,993,000. The capital is Belgrade. Serbia is mountainous, with forests in the central area and low-lying plains in the north. Serbs settled the region in the 6th-7th centuries ad. In the 9th century the Serbs, nominally under Byzantine suzerainty, converted to Eastern Orthodox Christianity. The Ottoman Empire triumphed at the Battle of Kosovo in 1389; after a long period of resistance, Serbia became part of the empire in 1459. After the Russo-Turkish War of 1828-29, Serbia became an autonomous principal¬ ity under Ottoman suzerainty and Russian protection. It became com¬ pletely independent of the Ottoman Empire in 1878. After World War I, Serbia became part of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes, which was renamed Yugoslavia in 1929. In 1946 Serbia was made one of six federated republics of Yugoslavia. As the Yugoslav economy faltered in the 1980s, the country began to break apart. After an unsuccessful attempt to prevent Slovenia’s secession in 1991, Serbian elements of the Yugo¬ slav armed forces began assisting Bosnian Serbs in sweeping Bosniacs (formerly designated Muslims) and Croats from eastern and northern Bos¬ nia and Herzegovina. In 1992, after Yugoslavia’s breakup, Serbia joined with Montenegro to form a new Yugoslav federation. The area remained in turmoil (see Bosnian conflict). The signing of the Dayton peace accords in 1995 ultimately brought little relief. Slobodan Milosevic retained power in Serbia through the end of the century, and the push for more autonomy by Albanian Kosovars provoked another round of fighting in 1998-99 (see Kosovo conflict). As the violence escalated, NATO responded with a bombing campaign, which led to a peace accord in June 1999. A change in the Yugoslav government late in 2000 brought reinstatement in the UN, and in 2003, after the Montenegrin government threatened to declare independence, the governments of the two constituent states agreed to remain united under the name Serbia and Montenegro.

Serbia and Montenegro Federated country, west-central Balkans region, southern Europe. It consists of two republics: Serbia and Montene¬ gro. Area: 39,449 sq mi (102,173 sq km). Population (2005 est.): 9,960,000. Administrative centre: Belgrade. The population comprises Ser¬ bian, Albanian, Montenegrin, Hungarian, and other ethnic groups. Lan¬ guages: Serbian (Serbo-Croatian), Albanian. Religions: Christianity (mostly Eastern Orthodox; also Roman Catholic), Islam. Currencies: Ser¬ bian dinar (Serbia); euro (Montenegro). The southern two-thirds of Serbia

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Serbo-Croatian language ► serialism I 1723

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MONTENEGRO

and Montenegro is mountainous, with the Dinaric Alps in the west and the Balkan Mountains in the east. Rivers include the Danube, Ibar, Morava, Timis, and Tisza. The country has oil, gas, coal, copper, lead, zinc,

and gold deposits. Its industries include machine building, metallurgy, mining, electronics, and petroleum products, while its agricultural products include com, wheat, potatoes, and fruit. The country is a federation with a president and a unicameral legislature, but most power resides with the governments of the two republics. The Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slov¬ enes was created after the collapse of Austria-Hungary at the end of World War I. The country signed treaties with Czechoslovakia and Romania in 1920-21, marking the beginning of the Little Entente. In 1929 an absolute monarchy was established, the country’s name was changed to Yugoslavia, and it was divided without regard to ethnic boundaries. Axis powers invaded Yugoslavia in 1941, and German, Italian, Hungarian, and Bulgar¬ ian troops occupied it for the rest of World War II. In 1945 the Federal Peo¬ ple’s Republic of Yugoslavia was established; it included the republics of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, and Slo¬ venia. Its independent form of communism under the leadership of Josip Broz Tito provoked the Soviet Union and led to its expulsion from the Com- inform in 1948. Internal ethnic tensions flared up in the 1980s, causing Yugoslavia to collapse. In 1991-92 independence was declared by Croatia, Slovenia, Macedonia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina; the new Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (containing roughly 45% of the population and 40% of the area of its predecessor) was proclaimed by Serbia and Mon¬ tenegro. Still fueled by long-standing ethnic tensions, hostilities continued into the 1990s (see Bosnian conflict; Kosovo conflict). In 2003, after rati¬ fication of an accord by the governments of Serbia, Montenegro, and Yugo¬ slavia, the country was renamed Serbia and Montenegro.

Serbo-Croatian language South Slavic language spoken by some 21 million people in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Serbia and Montenegro. As the dominant language of pre-1991 Yugoslavia, it was used or understood by most ethnic groups of the federation. The Central Neo-Shtokavian dialect forms the basis for both Standard Serbian and Standard Croatian. Historically, Serbia’s literary language was the Ser¬ bian recension of Church Slavonic (see Old Church Slavonic language). In the 19th century a new literary language based on colloquial Serbian was successfully promulgated by Vuk Stefanovic Karadzic. Croatian writ¬ ten in the Latin alphabet first appears in the mid-14th century. In the 19th century the Zagreb-based Illyrian political movement, which aimed at a union of all South Slavs, turned to the Central Neo-Shtokavian dialect as the basis for a literary language that would unite Croatians and bring them closer to their Slavic compatriots. The move toward a unified “Serbo- Croatian” was supported by the politically unified Yugoslav kingdom

(1918-41) and communist Yugoslavia (1945-91). With the independence of Bosnia and Herzegovina in 1992, a Bosnian form of the language was recognized of necessity. Vocabulary and pronunciation differences exist among the three but form no real barrier to communication. The Croats and Bosnians use the Roman, or Latin, alphabet; the Serbs and Montene¬ grins of present-day Serbia and Montenegro use Cyrillic. Most Bosnians, Serbs, and Croats insist that their language is distinct from the others, and, perhaps, from a political perspective this is understandable; but most linguists consider Serbian, Croatian, and Bosnian a single language, which has historically been called Serbo-Croatian.

Serbs, Croats \'kro-,ats\ / and Slovenes, Kingdom of Balkan state formed in 1918 after World War I. It included the previously inde¬ pendent kingdoms of Serbia and Montenegro and the southern Slavic ter¬ ritories formerly subject to the Austro-Hungarian Empire, including Dalmatia, CROATiA-Slavonia, Slovenia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina. The kingdom was ruled by the Serbian Karadjordjevic dynasty. In 1929 King Alexander I sought to combat local nationalisms by proclaiming a royal dictatorship and renaming the state Yugoslavia. See also Serbia and Mon¬ tenegro.

Serengeti \,ser-3n-'ge-te\ National Park Wildlife refuge, north- central Tanzania. Established in 1951, the park covers 5,700 sq mi (14,763 sq km). An international tourist attraction, it is the only place in Africa where vast land-animal migrations still take place. More than 35 species of plains animals, more than 350 species of birds, and lions, leopards, elephants, rhinoceroses, hippopotamuses, giraffes, and baboons inhabit the park. Poaching is a major problem.

serfdom In medieval Europe, condition of a tenant farmer who was bound to a hereditary plot of land and to the will of his landlord. Serfs differed from slaves in that slaves could be bought and sold without ref¬ erence to land, whereas serfs changed lords only when the land they worked changed hands. From about the 2nd century ad, large privately owned estates in the Roman Empire that had been worked by slaves were broken up and given to peasant farmers. These farmers came to depend on larger landowners for protection in turbulent times, and swearing fealty to a proprietor became common practice. In 332 Constantine I established serfdom legally by requiring tenant farmers to pay labour services to their lords. As serfs, they could not marry, change occupations, or move with¬ out the permission of their lords, to whom they were required to give a major portion of their harvest. The development of centralized political power, the labour shortage caused by the Black Death, and endemic peas¬ ant uprisings in the 14th and 15th centuries led to the gradual emancipa¬ tion of serfs in western Europe. In eastern Europe serfdom became more entrenched during that period; the peasants of the Austro-Hungarian Empire were freed in the late 18th century, and Russia’s serfs were freed in 1861. See also feudalism.

serial Film presented in a series of episodes over several months. The serials, usually adventure melodramas, probably developed from the adventure stories published in monthly installments in magazines. The first internationally popular serial, The Perils of Pauline (1914), starring Pearl White, was followed by other serials such as The Hazards of Helen, which ran for 119 episodes (1914-17). Serials focused on action sequences, with cliff-hanging endings for each episode. They remained popular with movie audiences, especially children, into the 1940s.

serial murder Unlawful homicide of at least two people, carried out in a series over a period of time. Serial murder differs from mass murder, in which several victims are murdered at the same time and place. Crimi¬ nologists have distinguished between two types of serial murder: classic serial murder, which usually involves stalking and is often sexually moti¬ vated, and spree serial murder, which is usually motivated by thrill¬ seeking. Cases of serial murder have been documented since ancient times. The incidence of serial murder increased dramatically in the early 19th century, particularly in Europe, though this development has been attributed to advances in crime detection and increased news coverage rather than to an actual rise in the number of occurrences. From the late 19th century serial murderers received considerable attention in the press, and their cases inspired numerous books and films. These accounts, how¬ ever, tended to mislead the public by suggesting that serial murder is a common phenomenon, when in fact it represented less than 2% of all murders in the late 20th century.

serialism Use of an ordered set of pitches as the basis of a musical composition. The terms 12-tone music and serialism, though not entirely

© 2006 Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.

1724 I serigraphy ► Servetus

synonymous, are often used interchangeably. The serial method was worked out by Arnold Schoenberg in the years 1916-23, though another serial method was being devised simultaneously by Josef Matthias Hauer. To Schoenberg, it represented the culmination of the growth of chromati¬ cism in the late 19th and early 20th century. In an attempt to erase the system of tonality, which he regarded as outworn but which frequently asserted itself even in the music of composers who desired to transcend it, Schoenberg’s original method stipulated (among several other require¬ ments) that no note could be repeated before all 11 other notes of the chromatic scale had been used. Serialism, a broader term than 12-tone music, can be applied to the use of fewer than 12 tones. “Total serialism,” a concept that arose in the late 1940s, attempts to organize not only the 12 pitches but also other elements such as rhythm, dynamics, register, and instrumentation into ordered sets.

serigraphy See silkscreen

serine \'ser-,en\ One of the nonessential amino acids, found in substan¬ tial concentrations (sometimes 5-10%) in many common proteins. It is also an important component of phospholipids. It is used in biochemical and microbiological research and as a dietary supplement and feed addi¬ tive.

Serkin, Rudolf (b. March 28, 1903, Eger, Bohemia, Austria- Hungary—d. May 8, 1991, Guilford, Vt., U.S.) Austrian-born U.S. pia¬ nist. He made his debut at age 12 in Vienna, and from 1920 he was a close associate of the conductor Adolf Busch, whose daughter he married in 1935. He immigrated to the U.S. in 1939 and began teaching at the Curtis Institute, of which he served as director (1968-75). In 1950 he and Busch cofounded the Marlboro Music Festival in Vermont, which under Serkin’s direction became the preeminent locus for chamber music in the U.S. He was known for his highly intelligent and expressive but self- effacing playing of the German-Austrian classics. His son, Peter (b. 1947), is a well-known pianist, with a wide repertoire.

Serling, (Edward) Rod(man) (b. Dec. 25, 1924, Syracuse, N.Y., U.S.—d. June 28, 1975, Rochester, N.Y.) U.S. television writer and pro¬ ducer. He began his career in radio but soon shifted to television, becom¬ ing a freelance screenwriter in 1953. He wrote teleplays for series such as Kraft Television Theater, Studio One, and Playhouse 90, including Requiem for a Heavyweight (1956, Emmy Award). He created, narrated, and was the main writer of the famous supernatural series The Twilight Zone (1959-65) and narrated the similar series Night Gallery (1970-73). He also wrote screenplays, often based on his television scripts, such as Patterns (1956) and The Rack (1956). He was coauthor of The Planet of the Apes (1968).

Sermon on the Mount Biblical collection of religious teachings and ethical sayings attributed to Jesus, as reported in the Gospel of St. Mat¬ thew. The sermon was addressed to disciples and a large crowd of listen¬ ers to guide them in a life of discipline based on a new law of love, even of enemies, as opposed to the old law of retribution. It is the source of many familiar Christian homilies and oft-quoted passages from the Bible, including the Beatitudes and the Lord's Prayer. The sermon is often regarded as a blueprint for Christian life.

serotonin N.ser-o-'to-nonX Chemical (5-hydroxytryptamine, or 5-HT) derived from the amino acid tryptophan. It occurs in brain and intestinal tissue, platelets, and certain connective-tissue cells and is a component of many animal venoms (e.g., wasp, toad). A strong stimulator of blood¬ vessel constriction and a neurotransmitter, serotonin concentrates in cer¬ tain brain areas, especially the midbrain and hypothalamus. Some cases of depression are apparently caused by reduced amounts or activity of sero¬ tonin in the brain; many antidepressants counteract that condition. Exces¬ sive brain serotonin activity may cause migraine headaches and nausea. LSD may act by inhibiting the action of serotonin.

serpentine Vsor-pan-.teM Any of a group of magnesium-rich silicate minerals whose composition resembles Mg 3 Si 2 0 5 (OH)4. Serpentine gen¬ erally occurs in three forms: as chrysotile, the most common variety of asbestos; and as antigorite or lizardite, both of which are commonly mas¬ sive and fine-grained. Named in allusion to its resemblance to a snake’s skin, serpentine is usually grayish, white, or green but may be yellow or green-blue. It takes a high polish and is sometimes used as an ornamen¬ tal stone.

Serra Vser-o\, Junipero (b. Nov. 24, 1713, Petra, Majorca, Spain—d. Aug. 28, 1784, Carmel, Calif., New Spain) Spanish missionary. He was

ordained a Franciscan priest in 1730 and worked as a missionary in Mexico (1750-67). When Spain began its occupation of Alta California (now California), he joined the expedition and in 1769 founded Mission San Diego. From 1770 to 1782 he founded eight more missions in Cali¬ fornia, thereby strengthening Spain’s control of the area. His work earned him the title Apostle of California, and he was beatified in 1988.

Serra, Richard (b. Nov. 2, 1939, San Francisco, Calif., U.S.) U.S. sculptor. He paid for his education at the University of California by working in steel factories. From 1961 he studied with Josef Albers at Yale University. He settled in New York City c. 1966 and began to experiment with new materials. In 1967-68 he displayed a series of works entitled Splashes, which were pieces of molten lead thrown against a wall in a gallery; the resulting solidified lead could be seen as sculpture, although Serra himself viewed the process of creation as more important than the end result. In 1969-70 gravity became a major element of his work; the Prop series consisted of huge plates of lead or steel leaning against each other, supported only by their opposing weights. He is best known for his enormous, sometimes controversial, outdoor pieces that interact with the environment, particularly Tilted Arc, installed in New York’s Federal Plaza in 1981 but removed in 1989. His work has been defined as Min¬ imalist.

Sert, Jose Luis Catalan Josep Uuis Serf i Lopez (b. July 1, 1902, Barcelona, Spain—d. March 15, 1983, Barcelona) Spanish-born U.S. architect. After graduating from Barcelona’s School of Architecture, he worked with Le Corbusier in Paris. On his own, he designed the Spanish pavilion at the Paris World’s Fair (1937). After moving to the U.S. in 1939, he worked in urban development for Bogota and Havana, among other cities. He served as dean of the Graduate School of Design at Har¬ vard University (1953-59), Cambridge, Mass. His work is best exempli¬ fied by his Peabody Terrace married-students’ housing at Harvard (1963— 65), in which high-rise and low-rise apartment buildings are harmoniously interconnected. His outstanding museum designs include the Maeght Foundation in Saint-Paul-de-Vence, France (1968), and the Joan Miro Foundation in Barcelona (1975).

Sertorius \s3r-'tor-e-3s\, Quintus (b. c. 126, Nursia, Sabini—d. 73 bc) Roman statesman and military commander. He commanded an army in the Social War, and he helped Marius take Rome (87-86) in his struggle against Sulla. As praetor in 83 he was sent to Spain; he fled to Mauret¬ ania when Sulla pursued him but later overthrew Sulla’s governor in Far¬ ther Spain and by 77 was ruler of most of Spain. When Pompey the Great and Metellus Pius finally arrived to put down the rebellion, he skillfully kept them at bay until the tide turned in his favour. When troop morale sank, he was murdered by a conspiracy of officers.

serval Vsor-volX Long-limbed cat ( Felis serval ) of sub-Saharan Africa found in grass- and bush-covered country near water. It has a long neck and large, cupped ears. It is 32—40 in.

(80-100 cm) long, has an 8-12-in.

(20-30-cm) tail, stands about 20 in.

(50 cm), and may weigh over 30 lbs (15 kg). Its long coat is yellowish to reddish brown above and whitish below, with black spots or stripes; there are some all-black servals in Kenya.

server Network computer, com¬ puter program, or device that pro¬ cesses requests from a client (see client-server architecture). On the World Wide Web, for example, a Web server is a computer that uses the HTTP protocol to send Web pages to a client’s computer when the client requests them. On a local area network, a print server manages one or more printers, and prints files sent to it by client computers. Network servers (which manage network traffic) and file servers (which store and retrieve files for clients) are two more examples of servers.

Servetus \s9r-'ve-t3s\, Michael orig. Miguel Servet (b. 1511?, Vil¬ lanueva or Tudela, Spain—d. Oct. 27, 1553, Champel, Switz.) Spanish physician and theologian. His views alienated both Roman Catholics and Protestants, beginning with the publication of his first book, De Trinita- tis erroribus (1531), in which he denied the Holy Trinity. His most impor¬ tant work, Biblia sacra ex Santis Pagnini translation (1542), was notable

Serval (Felis serval)

CHRISTINA LOKE-PHOTO RESEARCHERS

© 2006 Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.

Service ► Seton I 1725

for its theory of prophecy. Elsewhere he questioned the usefulness of bap¬ tism and criticized the promulgation of the Nicene Creed. Persecuted by John Calvin, he was convicted of heresy in Geneva and burned at the stake. His notable contribution to medicine was the first accurate description of cardiopulmonary circulation of the blood (1553).

Service, Robert (William) (b. Jan. 16, 1874, Preston, Lancashire, Eng.—d. Sept. 11, 1958, Lancieux, France) English-born Canadian popu¬ lar verse writer. He immigrated to Canada in 1894 and lived eight years in the Yukon. His Songs of a Sourdough (1907) and Ballads of a Cheechako (1909), about life in the “frozen North,” were enormously popular. He became known as “the Canadian Kipling” with such rollick¬ ing ballads as “The Shooting of Dan McGrew” and “The Cremation of Sam McGee”. His other works include the novel The Trail of ’98 (1910) and Rhymes of a Red Cross Man (1916).

service industry Industry that provides services rather than goods. Economists divide the products of all economic activity into two broad categories, goods and services. Industries that produce goods (tangible objects) include agriculture, mining, manufacturing, and construction. Service industries include everything else: banking, communications, wholesale and retail trade, all professional services such as engineering and medicine, all consumer services, and all government services. The proportion of the world economy devoted to services rose rapidly in the 20th century. In the U.S., the service sector accounted for more than half the gross domestic product in 1929, two-thirds in 1978, and more than three-quarters in 1993. As increases in automation facilitate productivity, a smaller workforce is able to produce more goods, and the service func¬ tions of distribution, management, finance, and sales become relatively more important.

servitude In property law, a right by which property owned by one per¬ son is subject to a specified use or enjoyment by another. Servitudes allow people to create stable long-term arrangements for a wide variety of pur¬ poses, including shared land uses; maintaining the character of a residen¬ tial neighbourhood, commercial development, or historic property; and financing infrastructure and common facilities. Modem European civil law is derived from Roman law, which divides real servitudes into rural (those owed by one estate to another) and urban (those established for conve¬ nience). Rural servitudes include various rights of way; urban servitudes include building rights in neighbouring properties, such as drainage and encroachment rights, and rights to light, support, and view. See also ease¬ ment.

servomechanism Device used to correct the performance of a mecha¬ nism automatically, by means of error-sensing feedback. The term prop¬ erly applies only to systems in which the feedback and error-correction signals control mechanical position or velocity. Servomechanisms were first used in military and marine navigation equipment. Today they are used in automatic machine tools, satellite-tracking antennas, celestial¬ tracking systems on telescopes, automatic navigation systems, and antiaircraft-gun control systems. The design of servomechanisms is con¬ sidered to be a branch of both robotics and cybernetics.

sesame Erect, annual plant ( Sesamum indicum ) of numerous types and varieties in the family Pedaliaceae. It has been cultivated since antiquity for its seeds, which are used as food and flavouring and yield a prized oil. The hulled seeds, creamy or pearly white and tiny, have a mild, nutlike aroma and taste. The whole seed is used extensively in the cuisines of the Middle East and Asia. Sesame oil, noted for its stability and its resistance to becoming rancid, is used as a salad or cooking oil, in shortening and margarine, in the manufacture of soaps, pharmaceuticals, and lubricants, and as an ingredient in cosmetics.

Sessions, Roger (Huntington) (b. Dec. 28, 1896, Brooklyn, N.Y., U.S.—d. March 16, 1985, Princeton, N.J.) U.S. composer. He attended Harvard and Yale, lived in Italy and Germany (1925-33), and later taught principally at Princeton University (1935—45, 1953-65). His early inter¬ est in Neoclassicism was replaced c. 1953 by his adoption of serialism. His works include the operas The Trial of Lucullus (1947) and Montezuma (1963), incidental music to The Black Maskers (1923), eight symphonies, a Concerto for Orchestra (1982, Pulitzer Prize), and the cantata When Lilacs Last in the Door-yard Bloom’d (1970), as well as several widely read books on music.

set In mathematics and logic, any collection of objects (elements), which may be mathematical (e.g., numbers, functions) or not. The intuitive idea

of a set is probably even older than that of number. Members of a herd of animals, for example, could be matched with stones in a sack without members of either set actually being counted. The notion extends into the infinite. For example, the set of integers from 1 to 100 is finite, whereas the set of all integers is infinite. A set is commonly represented as a list of all its members enclosed in braces. A set with no members is called an empty, or null, set, and is denoted 0. Because an infinite set cannot be listed, it is usually represented by a formula that generates its elements when applied to the elements of the set of counting numbers. Thus, {2x | x = 1,2,3,...} represents the set of positive even numbers (the vertical bar means “such that”).

set theory Branch of mathematics that deals with the properties of sets. It is most valuable as applied to other areas of mathematics, which bor¬ row from and adapt its terminology and concepts. These include the opera¬ tions of union (u), and intersection (n). The union of two sets is a set containing all the elements of both sets, each listed once. The intersec¬ tion is the set of all elements common to both original sets. Set theory is useful in analyzing difficult concepts in mathematics and logic. It was placed on a firm theoretical footing by Georg Cantor, who discovered the value of clearly formulated sets in the analysis of problems in symbolic logic and number theory.

setback In architecture, a steplike recession in the profile of a high-rise building. Usually dictated by building codes to allow sunlight to reach streets and lower floors, the building must take another step back from the street for every specified added height interval. Without building set¬ backs, many of New York City’s streets would be in constant shadow. In the 1920s architects drew attention to their setbacks with decorative devices—mosaics; Chinese, Mayan, or Greek motifs; or geometric blocks—but later architects deemphasized them. The International Style glass-wall skyscraper was typically built without intermittent setbacks, but architects met zoning requirements by creating one huge setback at ground level that created a plaza. The late 20th century saw a return to decorative setbacks.

Seth or Set Ancient Egyptian god and patron of the 11th nome, or prov¬ ince, of Upper Egypt. A trickster, he was a sky god, lord of the desert, and master of storms, disorder, and warfare. He was the brother of Osiris, whom he killed, and he was antagonistic to Horus, the child of Osiris’s sister, Isis. Seth’s cult largely died out in the 1st millennium bc, and he was gradually ousted from the Egyptian pantheon. He was later regarded as entirely evil and identified as a god of the Persians and other invaders of Egypt.

SETI in full search for extraterrestrial intelligence Ongoing effort to seek intelligent extraterrestrial life. SETI focuses on receiving and analyzing signals from space, particularly in the radio and visible- light regions of the electromagnetic spectrum, looking for nonrandom pat¬ terns likely to have been sent either deliberately or inadvertently by technologically advanced beings. The first modem SETI search was Project Ozma (I960), which made use of a radio telescope in Green Bank, W.Va. SETI approaches include targeted searches, which typically con¬ centrate on groups of nearby sunlike stars, and systematic surveys cov¬ ering all directions. The value of SETI efforts has been controversial; programs initiated by NASA in the 1970s were terminated by congres¬ sional action in 1993. Subsequently, SETI researchers organized privately funded programs—e.g., the targeted-search Project Phoenix in the U.S. and the survey-type SERENDIP projects in the U.S. and Australia. See also Drake equation.

Seti I (d. 1279 bc) Egyptian king of the 19th dynasty (r. 1290-79 bc). His father, Ramses I, had reigned only two years, and it was Seti who was the real founder of the greatness of the Ramessids. Seti did much to pro¬ mote Egypt’s prosperity. He fortified the frontier, opened mines and quar¬ ries, dug wells, and rebuilt temples and shrines; he continued work on the great hall at Karnak and built a temple at Abydos decorated with reliefs of great delicacy.

Seton \se-t°n. Saint Elizabeth Ann orig. Elizabeth Ann Bay-

ley known as Mother Seton (b. Aug. 28, 1774, New York, N.Y.—d. Jan. 4, 1821, Emmitsburg, Md., U.S.; canonized Sept. 14, 1975; feast day January 4) U.S. religious leader and educator, the first native-born U.S. citizen canonized by the Roman Catholic church. Bom into an upper-class family, she married William Magee Seton in 1794. In 1797 she founded the Society for the Relief of Poor Widows with Small Children, and in 1803 she was herself left a widow with five children. After converting

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1726 I Seton ► Seven Weeks'War

from Episcopalianism to Roman Catholicism in 1805, she opened a free Catholic elementary school in Baltimore, Md., in 1809. In 1813 she founded the Sisters of Charity, the first U.S. religious order, and she served as its superior until her death. She is often considered the mother of the parochial school system in the U.S.

Seton Vse-t 3 n\, Ernest Thompson orig. Ernest Evan Thompson also called Ernest E.T. Seton or Ernest Seton-Thompson (b. Aug. 14, 1860, South Shields, Durham, Eng.—d. Oct. 23, 1946, Seton Village, Santa Fe, N.M., U.S.) British-born U.S. naturalist and animal fiction writer. Seton’s family emigrated to Canada from England in 1866. He earned a living for a time as a wild-animal artist, and in 1898 he pub¬ lished his most popular book, the story collection Wild Animals I Have Known. Deeply concerned for the future of the North American prairie, he fought to establish reservations for American Indians and parks for endangered animals. In 1902 he founded the Woodcraft Indians to give children opportunities for nature study. He chaired the committee that established the Boy Scouts of America.

setter Any of three breeds derived from a medieval hunting dog that would set (lie down) when it found birds so that it and the birds could be covered with a net. Setters have long hair on the ears, chest, legs, and tail.

They weigh 44-70 lbs (20-32 kg) and stand 23-27 in. (58-69 cm). The English setter, developed in the 15th century, may be all white, black and white-and-tan, or white with dark flecks. The Gordon setter originated in 17th-century Scotland; its soft, wavy coat is black with tan mark¬ ings. The Irish setter, bred in Ireland in the 18th-cent, has a straight red coat.

Settignano, Desiderio da See Desiderio da Settignano

settlement In law, a compromise or agreement between litigants to settle the matters in dispute between them in order to dispose of and con¬ clude their litigation. Generally, as a result of the settlement, prosecution of the action is withdrawn or dismissed without any judgment being entered. The parties may, however, incorporate the terms of the settle¬ ment into a consent decree, recorded by the court. Most suits brought today are either withdrawn or settled.

Settlement, Act of (June 12, 1701) Act of Parliament that thereafter regulated the succession to the English throne. It decreed that if King William III or Princess (later Queen) Anne died without issue, the crown was to pass to James I’s granddaughter Sophie of Hanover (1630-1714) and her Protestant heirs. The act resulted in the accession of the house of Hanover in 1714. It also decreed that future monarchs must belong to the Church of England, that judges were to hold office on the basis of good behaviour rather than at the sovereign’s pleasure, and that impeachment by the House of Commons was not subject to pardon by the sovereign.

settlement house or social settlement or community centre

Neighbourhood social-welfare agency. The staff of a settlement house may sponsor clubs, classes, athletic teams, and interest groups; they may employ such specialists as vocational counselors and caseworkers. The settlement movement began with the founding of Toynbee Hall in Lon¬ don in 1884 by Samuel Augustus Barnett (1844-1913). It spread to the U.S. in the late 19th century with the establishment of such institutions as Chicago’s Hull House (founded by Jane Addams). Many countries now have similar institutions. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, U.S. settlement houses were active among the masses of new immigrants and worked for reform legislation such as workers’ compensation and child- labour laws.

settling In building construction, the gradual subsiding of a structure as the soil beneath its foundation consolidates under loading. This may con¬ tinue for several years after the structure’s completion. Primary consoli¬ dation occurs as water is squeezed out from the voids within the soil mass. Secondary consolidation results from adjustments in the internal structure of the soil mass under a sustained load. Whenever the possibility of settle¬ ment exists, care must be taken to choose a structural system and foun¬ dation capable of adapting. Fixed-end beams present a problem as they

are incapable of rotating under uneven settlement loads and bend in response to the stress; simply supported beams, the ends of which act as hinges, will rotate slightly and remain straight. Special columns with jacking devices may then be used to level the beams. Floating founda¬ tions and piles are often used to overcome the problems of building on yielding soils. See also soil mechanics.

Seurat \sce-*ra\, Georges (-Pierre) (b. Dec. 2, 1859, Paris, Fr.—d. March 29, 1891, Paris) French painter. He entered the Ecole des Beaux- Arts in 1878 and exhibited at the 1883 Salon, though he had already lost sympathy with its conservative policies. He studied scientific works in an effort to achieve scientifically the colour effects that the Impressionists had pursued, and developed Pointillism, the technique of juxtaposing tiny brushstrokes of contrasting colours to portray the play of light. Employ¬ ing this method, he created huge compositions, including his masterpiece, Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte (1884—86). He and other artists working in this style became known as Neo-Impressionists. As an aesthetic theorist, he explored the effects that could be achieved with the three primary colours and their complements.

Seuss, Doctor See Theodor Geisel

Sevan \s9-‘van\, Lake Lake, northern Armenia. It has an area of some 525 sq mi (1,360 sq km). Lying at 6,250 ft (1,905 m) above sea level in a mountain-enclosed basin, it is Armenia’s largest lake and is in two con¬ nected parts: the smaller Maly Sevan and the Bolshoy Sevan. It is rich in fish. Several ancient Armenian churches lie along the shore.

Sevastopol formerly Sebastopol Vso-'vas-to-.poL Seaport city (pop., 2001: 342,000) in the Crimea, southern Ukraine. In 1783 the Russians annexed the Crimea, and, near the ancient Greek colony of Chersonesus, they began construction of a naval base on Sevastopol Bay, an inlet of the Black Sea. It became a commercial port in the early 19th century. It was besieged by Anglo-French forces for 11 months (1854-55) during the Crimean War, an ordeal chronicled by Leo Tolstoy in his Sevastopol Sketches. The devastated town was later rebuilt, and it was the anti- Bolshevik White Army headquarters in the Russian Civil War (1918-20). In World War II it was destroyed after a months-long siege by the Ger¬ mans, but again it was reconstructed. The chief base of the Russian Black Sea fleet since the early 19th century, it has extensive dockyard facilities and arsenals. The Ukrainian naval forces are also now based in Sevasto¬ pol.

Seven, Group of Toronto-centred group of Canadian painters devoted to landscape painting (especially of northern Ontario subjects) and the creation of a national style. A number of future members met in 1913 while working as commercial artists in Toronto. The group adopted its name on the occasion of a group exhibition held in 1920. The original members included J.E.H. MacDonald, Lawren S. Harris, Arthur Lismer, F.H. VaiTey, Franklin Carmichael, Frank H. Johnston, and Alexander Young Jackson. The group was particularly influential in the 1920s and ’30s. In 1933 the name was changed to the Canadian Group of Painters.

Seven Cities of Cibola See Seven Cities of Cibola

Seven Days' Battles (June 25-July 1, 1862) American Civil War battles that prevented Union capture of Richmond, Va. In a series of attacks and counterattacks by both sides, the Confederate army under Robert E. Lee forced Union troops under George B. McClellan to retreat from a position 4 mi (6 km) east of the Confederate capital to a new base on the James River. The Union failure to take Richmond and the with¬ drawal of the Army of the Potomac ended the Peninsular Campaign. Casualties were estimated at 16,000 for the Union and 20,000 for the Confederates.

Seven Oaks Massacre (1816) Destruction of a Canadian fur-trading settlement. Sixty Metis, directed by an agent of the North West Co., attempted to run provisions past the rival Hudson's Bay Co. settlement on the Red River. They were intercepted by the colony’s governor and 25 soldiers at Seven Oaks, near the settlement. An argument grew into a fight in which the Metis killed 20 men, including the governor. They then threatened the remaining settlers with massacre, forcing them to abandon the colony. The settlement was restored the next year.

Seven Weeks' War or Austro-Prussian War (June-August 1866) Conflict between Prussia on one side and Austria, Bavaria, Saxony, Hanover, and minor German states on the other. A contrived dispute by Prussia’s Otto von Bismarck over the Schleswig-Holstein Question resulted

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Seven Wonders of the World ► sewage system I 1727

in the June 1866 Prussian attack on Austrian forces in Bohemia. The Prussian army, modernized and reorganized by Albrecht Theodor Emil, count von Roon, and Helmuth von Moltke, decisively defeated Austria at the Battle of Koniggratz and elsewhere. By August the war was formally concluded by the Treaty of Prague, which assigned Schleswig-Holstein and other territories to Prussia. The effect of the war was to exclude Aus¬ tria from Germany.

Seven Wonders of the World Preeminent architectural and sculp¬ tural achievements of antiquity, as listed by various Greco-Roman observ¬ ers. Included on the best known list were the Pyramids of Giza (the oldest of the wonders and the only one substantially in existence today), the Hanging Gardens of Babylon (a series of landscaped rooftop terraces on a ziggurat, ascribed to either Nebuchadnezzar II or the semilegendary Queen Sammu-ramat), the Statue of Zeus at Olympia (a large gold-and- ivory figure of the god on his throne by Phidias), the Temple of Artemis at Ephesus (a temple, built in 356 bc, famous for its imposing size and the works of art that adorned it), the Mausoleum of Halicarnassus, the Colossus of Rhodes, and the Pharos of Alexandria (a lighthouse built c. 280 bc on the island of Pharos off Alexandria, said to have been more than 350 ft, or 110 m, high). These wonders inspired the compilation of many other lists of seven attractions, or “wonders,” by later generations.

Seven Years' War (1756-63) Major European conflict between Aus¬ tria and its allies France, Saxony, Sweden, and Russia on one side against Prussia and its allies Hanover and Britain on the other. The war arose out of Austria’s attempt to win back the rich province of Silesia, taken by Prussia in the War of the Austrian Succession. Early victories by Frederick II the Great in Saxony and Bohemia (1756-58) were offset by a decisive Prussian defeat by Austria and Russia near Frankfurt (1759). After incon¬ clusive fighting in 1760-61, Frederick concluded a peace with Russia (1762) and drove the Austrians from Silesia. The war also involved the overseas colonial struggles between Britain and France in North America (see French and Indian War) and in India. The European conflict was settled with the Treaty of Hubertusburg, by which Frederick confirmed Prussia’s stature as a major European power.

Seventh-day Adventist See Adventist

Severn Vse-vomV River Welsh Hafren Vha-vren\ ancient Sabrina River, eastern Wales and western England. Britain’s longest river, it is 180 mi (290 km) long from its source to tidal waters. It rises in east-central Wales and crosses the English border near Shrewsbury, continuing south to the Bristol Channel and the Atlantic Ocean.

Severus \so-'vir-3s\, Septimius in full Lucius Septimius Severus Pertinax (b. ad 145, Leptis Magna, Tripolitania—d. Feb. 4, 211, Eboracum, Britain) Roman emperor (193-211). He was in Europe in command of Rome’s largest army when the emperor Publius Helvius Pertinax was murdered. Named emperor by his troops, he marched on Rome, entering the city without resistance. He effectively made Rome a military monarchy, giving the army a dominant role in government, ignor¬ ing the Senate, choosing officials from among the equites (see eques) and granting control of the courts to the Praetorian prefect. He annexed Meso¬ potamia, and he died attempting to subdue non-Roman Britain. He named his son Caracalla his successor.

Severus Alexander in full Marcus Aurelius Severus Alex¬ ander orig. Gessius Bassianus Alexianus (b. c. ad 209, Phoenicia—d. 235, Gaul) Roman emperor (222-235). At age 14 he suc¬ ceeded Elagabalus, who had been murdered by the Praetorian Guard. Severus’s mother and grandmother both held real power during his reign. A council of senators gave nominal ruling power to the Senate. Civil law¬ lessness reigned, and Severus’s military incompetence led to defeat by the Persians, though their heavy losses forced them to withdraw from Mesopotamia. When he bought peace from the invading Germanic Ale- manni, his indignant soldiers murdered him and his mother.

Sevier \so-'vir\, John (b. Sept. 23, 1745, New Market, Va.—d. Sept. 24, 1815, Fort Decatur, Mississippi Territory) American frontiersman and politician. He moved to what is now eastern Tennessee in 1773, where he fought in Lord Dunmore's War. In the American Revolution he helped win the Battle of King’s Mountain (1780). He participated in a settlers’ revolt against North Carolina that formed the temporary state of Franklin (1784) and was elected its governor (1785-88). He served in the U.S. House of Representatives from North Carolina (1789-91). When Tennes¬ see joined the Union, he served as its governor (1796-1801, 1803-09).

Sevigne \sa-ven-'ya. Marquise de orig. Marie de Rabutin- Chantal (b. Feb. 5, 1626, Paris, France—d. April 17, 1696, Grignan) French writer. Of old Burgundian nobility, she was well educated and moved in court society in Paris after her marriage in 1644. She was devoted to her children, and, after her daughter married and moved to Provence, she began writing letters to her, without literary intention, that recounted events, described people and details of daily life, and com¬ mented on many topics. The stories and gossip in the 1,700 letters of this correspondence, related in a natural, spontaneous tone, provide a vivid picture of the 17th-century French aristocracy.

Sevilla \sa-'ve-ya\ English Seville \so-'vil\ ancient Hispalis City (pop., 2005 est.: city, 704,154; 2001: urban agglom., 1,180,197), capital of Sevilla province and Andalusia autonomous community ( comunidad autonoma ), Spain. Located on the Guadalquivir River, it is Spain’s lead¬ ing inland port and fourth largest city. Originally an Iberian town, Sevilla prospered under the Romans in the 2nd century bc. In the 5th-8th cen¬ turies ad it was the chief city in southern Spain under the Vandals and the Visigoths. In 711 it fell to the Moors, and under Muslim rule it was a cultural and commercial centre until the 13th century, when Spanish Christians under Ferdinand III captured it. About 1500 Sevilla became the centre of the Spanish colonial trade with the Americas. The French occupied the city (1808-12), and during the Spanish Civil War (1936-39) it was held by the Nationalists. It is one of Spain’s main tourist centres, with historic mosques, cathedrals, and the 12th-century Alcazar Palace. It was the site of the Iberoamerican Exposition in 1929 and the Univer¬ sal Exposition in 1992. The University of Sevilla was founded in 1502.

Sevres VsevrA, Treaty of (Aug. 10, 1920) Pact at the end of World War I between the Allied Powers and the government of Ottoman Tur¬ key, signed at Sevres, France. It abolished the Ottoman Empire, obliged Turkey to renounce rights over Arab Asia and North Africa, and provided for an independent Armenia, an autonomous Kurdistan, and Greek con¬ trol over the Aegean islands commanding the Dardanelles. These provi¬ sions were rejected by the new Republic of Turkey, and the treaty was replaced in 1923 by the Treaty of Lausanne.

Sevres Vsev-re\ porcelain French hard-paste, or true, porcelain, as well as soft-paste porcelain, made at the royal (now national) factory of Sevres from 1756 until the present.

After the decline of Meissen porcelain after 1756, Sevres became the lead¬ ing porcelain factory in Europe, thanks in large part to the patronage of Louis XV’s mistress, Madame de Pompadour, who involved the fore¬ most artists of^the day (e.g., Francois Boucher and Etienne-Maurice Falco¬ net) in the enterprise. Sevres porce¬ lain is famous for many styles and techniques, including white figures representing cupids, shepherdesses, or nymphs and the embellishment of grounds with minute patterns in gold.

Sewa \'sc-wn\ River River, Sierra Leone. Formed by the junction of the Bagbe and Bafi rivers, it flows 150 mi (240 km) to join the Waanje River and form the Kittam, which empties into the Atlantic Ocean. The coun¬ try’s most important commercial river, it is extensively panned for dia¬ monds.

sewage system Collection of pipes and mains, treatment works, and discharge lines (sewers) for the wastewater of a community. Early civi¬ lizations often built drainage systems in urban areas to handle storm run¬ off. The Romans constructed elaborate systems that also drained wastewater from the public baths. In the Middle Ages these systems fell into disrepair. As the populations of cities grew, disastrous epidemics of cholera and typhoid fever broke out, the result of ineffective separation of sewage and drinking water. In the mid-19th century the first steps were taken to treat wastewater. The concentration of population and the addi¬ tion to sewage of manufacturing waste that occurred during the Industrial

Sevres soft-paste porcelain jardiniere decorated with flowers and cupids painted in reserves on rose Pompadour ground, 1761; in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London

COURTESY OF THE VICTORIA AND ALBERT MUSEUM, LONDON; PHOTOGRAPH, WILFRID WALTER-EB INC.

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1728 I Sewall ► sexual response

Revolution increased the need for effective sewage treatment. Sewer pipe is laid following street patterns, and access holes with metal covers allow periodic inspection and cleaning. Catch basins at street corners and along street gutters collect surface runoff of storm water and direct it to the storm sewers. Civil engineers determine the volume of sewage likely, the route of the system, and the slope of the pipe to ensure an even flow by grav¬ ity that will not leave solids behind. In flat regions, pumping stations are sometimes needed. Modem sewage systems include domestic and indus¬ trial sewers and storm sewers. Sewage treatment plants remove organic matter from waste water through a series of steps. As sewage enters the plant, large objects (such as wood and gravel) are screened out; grit and sand are then removed by settling or screening with finer mesh. The remaining sewage passes into primary sedimentation tanks where sus¬ pended solids (sludge) settle out. The remaining sewage is aerated and mixed with microorganisms to decompose organic matter. A secondary sedimentation tank allows any remaining solids to settle out; the remain¬ ing liquid effluent is discharged into a body of water. Sludge from the sedimentation tanks may be disposed of in landfills, dumped at sea, used as fertilizer, or decomposed further in heated tanks (digestion tanks) to produce methane gas to power the treatment plant.

Sewall Vsii-olX, Samuel (b. March 28, 1652, Bishopstoke, Hampshire, Eng.—d. Jan. 1, 1730, Boston, Mass.) British-American colonial mer¬ chant and jurist. He immigrated to America as a boy and became man¬ ager of the New England colonial printing press (1681-84) and a member of the governor’s council (1684-1725). In 1692 he was appointed to pre¬ side at the Salem witch trials, in which 19 people were executed. Later admitting the error of the court’s decision, he stood silently in the Old South Church in Boston in 1697 while his confession of error and guilt was read aloud. His three-volume Diary (published 1878-82) provides a view of New England Puritan life.

Seward Vsu-ordV William H(enry) (b. May 16, 1801, Florida, N.Y., U.S.—d. Oct. 10, 1872, Auburn, N.Y.) U.S. politician. He served in the New York state senate (1830-34) and as governor (1839-43). In the U.S. Senate (1849-61), he was an antislavery leader in the Whig and Repub¬ lican parties. A close adviser to Pres. Abraham Lincoln, he served as U.S. secretary of state (1861-69). He helped prevent foreign recognition of the Confederacy and obtained settlement in the Trent Affair. In 1865 he was stabbed by a conspirator of John Wilkes Booth but recovered. He is best remembered for successfully negotiating the Alaska Purchase (1867), which critics called Seward’s Folly.

Seward Vsii-ordX Peninsula Peninsula, western Alaska, U.S. Its tip, Cape Prince of Wales, on the Bering Strait, is the most westerly point of North America. The peninsula is about 180 mi (290 km) long and 130 mi (209 km) wide; its highest peak is 4,720 ft (1,439 m), in the Kigluaik Mountains. The city of Nome is on its southern coast.

Sewell \'sii-3l\, Anna (b. March 30, 1820, Yarmouth, Norfolk, Eng.—d. April 25, 1878, Old Catton, Norfolk) British writer. She was introduced to writing by her mother, an author of juvenile best-sellers, and her concern for the humane treatment of horses began early in life. Confined to her house as an invalid, she spent her last years writing the children’s classic Black Beauty (1877), a fictional autobiography of a gentle, highbred horse. It had a strong moral purpose and is said to have been instrumental in abolishing the cruel practice of using the checkrein (a short rein used to prevent a horse from lowering its head).

sewing machine Machine for stitching material (such as cloth or leather), usually having a needle and shuttle to carry thread and powered by treadle or electricity. Invented by Elias Howe in 1846 and successfully manufactured by Howe and Isaac Merritt Singer, it became the first widely distributed mechanical home appliance and has also been an important industrial machine. Modern sewing machines are usually powered by an electric motor, but the foot-treadle machine is still in wide use in much of the world.

sex Sum of features by which a member of a plant or animal species can be placed into one of two complementary reproductive groups, male or female. In both plants and animals, sex is determined by the reproductive cells (gametes) produced by the organism. The male produces sperm cells, and the female produces EGG cells. Males and females may or may not have apparent structural differences, but they always have functional, hormonal, and chromosomal differences. Patterns of behaviour, some¬ times elaborate, may also distinguish the sexes in some species. See also REPRODUCTIVE BEHAVIOUR.

sex chromosome Either of a pair of chromosomes that determine whether an individual is male or female. The sex chromosomes of mam¬ mals are designated X and Y; in humans, they constitute one pair of the total 23 pairs of chromosomes. Individuals possessing two X chromo¬ somes (XX) are female; those having one X and one Y chromosome (XY) are male. The X chromosome is larger and carries more genetic informa¬ tion than the Y. Traits controlled only by genes found on the X chromo¬ some (e.g., hemophilia, red-green colour blindness) are said to be sex- linked. Sex-linked traits occur far more frequently in males than in females, since a male inheriting an allele for a recessive (see recessiveness) trait on the X chromosome lacks a corresponding allele on the Y chro¬ mosome that might counteract its effects. Several disorders are associated with an abnormal number of sex chromosomes, including Turner syndrome and Klinefelter syndrome.

sex linkage See linkage group

sextant Instrument for determining the angle between the horizon and a celestial body—such as the Sun, the Moon, or a star—used in celestial navigation to determine latitude and longitude. It consists of a metal arc, marked in degrees, and a movable radial arm pivoted at the centre of the arc’s circle. A telescope, mounted rigidly to the framework, is lined up with the horizon. The radial arm, on which a mirror is mounted, is moved until the star is reflected into a half-silvered mirror in line with the tele¬ scope and appears, through the telescope, to coincide with the horizon. The angular distance of the star above the horizon is then read from the graduated arc of the sextant. From this angle, the latitude can be deter¬ mined (within a few hundred metres) by means of published tables, and by consulting an accurate chronometer the longitude can be established. Invented in 1731, the sextant replaced the octant and became an essen¬ tial tool of navigation.

Sexton, Anne orig. Anne Gray Harvey (b. Nov. 9, 1928, New¬ ton, Mass., U.S.—d. Oct. 4, 1974, Weston, Mass.) U.S. poet. She worked as a model, librarian, and teacher. Her first book of poetry, To Bedlam and Part Way Back (1960), examines her mental breakdowns and subsequent recoveries with confessional intensity. She continued probing her personal life in All My Pretty Ones (1962) and Live or Die (1966, Pulitzer Prize). Her other works include the nonfiction collection No Evil Star (1985). She died a suicide. Several volumes of poetry were published posthu¬ mously.

sexual dysfunction Inability to experience arousal or achieve sexual satisfaction under ordinary circumstances, as a result of psychological or physiological problems. The most common sexual dysfunctions have tra¬ ditionally been referred to as impotence (applied to males) and frigidity (females), but these terms have gradually been replaced by more specific terms. Most sexual dysfunctions can be overcome through use of coun¬ seling, psychotherapy, or drug therapy.

sexual harassment Unsolicited verbal or physical behaviour of a sexual nature. Sexual harassment may embrace any sexually motivated behaviour considered offensive by the recipient. Legal recourse is avail¬ able in cases that occur in the workplace, though it is very difficult to obtain convictions. In 1994 the Supreme Court of the United States ruled that behaviour can be considered sexual harassment and an abridgment of an individual’s civil rights if it creates a hostile and abusive working environment.

sexual intercourse or coitus or copulation Act in which the male reproductive organ enters the female reproductive tract (see reproductive system). Various sexual activities (foreplay) lead to physiological changes that progress to orgasm (climax) and resolution (see sexual response). If it is completed, semen passes from the male into the female’s body. If con¬ ditions favour fertilization, a sperm joins with an egg, and pregnancy begins (see fertility; reproduction); contraception can prevent this. Intercourse with an unwilling female is rape. See also reproductive behaviour; sexuality, human; sexually transmitted disease.

sexual response Four-stage series of physiological reactions to sexual stimulation. Persons do not necessarily progress through all four stages, nor need two persons pass through them simultaneously. If the two partners are of opposite sex, sexual response may lead to sexual inter¬ course. In excitement, muscles tense and heart rate increases; in males, the penis becomes erect; in females, the inner vagina widens, its walls become moist, and the clitoris enlarges. In the plateau stage, breathing accelerates and muscles continue tensing; the testes and glans of the penis

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sexuality ► Sforza I 1729

enlarge; the outer vagina contracts and the clitoris retracts. At orgasm the muscle tension is quickly released; the penis contracts repeatedly, ejacu¬ lating semen; the vagina contracts regularly. In resolution, the genitals of both return to their pre-arousal condition; men cannot become aroused for some minutes or hours; women can quickly become aroused again.

sexuality, human Tendencies and behaviour of human beings with regard to any activity that causes or is otherwise associated with sexual arousal. It is strongly influenced by the genetically inherited sexual response patterns that ensure reproduction (see reproductive behaviour), societal attitudes toward sex, and each individual’s upbringing. Physiol¬ ogy sets only very broad limits on human sexuality; most of the enor¬ mous variation found among humans results from learning and conditioning. What is deviant in one society may be normal in another. Sexuality covers gender identity, sexual orientation, and actual practices, as well as one’s acceptance of these aspects of one’s personality, which may be more important than their specifics. See also homosexuality; trans¬ sexualism.

sexually transmitted disease (STD) Disease transmitted prima¬ rily by direct sexual contact. STDs usually affect the reproductive system and urinary system but can be spread to the mouth or rectum by oral or anal sex. In later stages they may attack other organs and systems. The best-known are syphilis, gonorrhea, AIDS, and herpes simplex. Yeast infec¬ tions (see Candida) produce a thick, whitish vaginal discharge and genital irritation and itch in women and sometimes irritation of the penis in men. Crab louse infestation (see louse, human) can also be considered an STD. The incidence of STDs has been affected by such factors as antibiotics, birth-control methods, and changes in sexual behaviour. See also chlamy¬ dia; HEPATITIS; PELVIC INFLAMMATORY DISEASE; WART.

Seybouse River \sa-'biiz\ River, northeastern Algeria. It rises at the eastern edge of the Setif plains, rushes through a narrow gorge in Mount Nador, and flows through a tree-lined valley to the Mediterranean Sea south of Annaba. Unnavigable except for its estuary, it is 145 mi (232 km) long.

Seychelles \sa-'shel, sa-'shelz\ officially Republic of Seychelles

Island country, western Indian Ocean. Area: 176 sq mi (455 sq km). Population (2005 est.): 82,800. Capital: Victoria. The mixed population is

chelles rupee. Located east of northeastern

Tanzania, Seychelles is composed of two main island groups: the Mahe group of 40 central, mountainous, granitic islands and a second group of

more than 70 outlying, flat, coralline islands. The country has a develop¬ ing economy that depends heavily on tourism. Exports include fish, copra, and cinnamon. It is a republic with one legislative house; its head of state and government is the president. The first recorded landing on uninhab¬ ited Seychelles was made in 1609 by an expedition of the British East India Company. The archipelago was claimed by the French in 1756 and surrendered to the British in 1810. It became a British crown colony in 1903 and a republic within the Commonwealth in 1976. A one-party social¬ ist state since 1979, it held multiparty elections in 1992 and adopted a new constitution in 1993.

Seymour, Jane See Jane Seymour

Seyss-lnquart VzIs-'iqk-.vartV Arthur (b. July 22, 1892, Stannem, near Iglau, Bohemia, Austria-Hungary—d. Oct. 16, 1946, Niirnberg, Ger.) Austrian Nazi leader. He served in the Austro-Hungarian army during World War I and was seriously wounded. Later a lawyer in Vienna, he became a leader of the moderate faction of the Austrian Nazis and served on the federal council of state (1937-38). In response to German pres¬ sure, he was named minister of interior and security and then replaced Kurt von Schuschnigg as chancellor (1938). He welcomed the Anschluss by Germany and became governor of the Austrian administration (1938— 39). In World War II he was German high commissioner of The Nether¬ lands (1940-45) and carried out the Nazi policy against Dutch Jews. He was tried at the Nurnberg trials and executed as a war criminal.

Sezession \za-tses-'yon\ Name for several groups of progressive artists that broke away from established and conservative artists’ organizations in Austria and Germany. The first secession group was formed in Munich in 1892. It was followed by the Berlin Sezession movement, formed by Max Liebermann in 1892, which included such artists as Lovis Corinth. The most famous of the groups, formed in Vienna in 1897 by Gustav Klimt, favoured a highly ornamental Art Nouveau style over the prevailing academicism. Shortly thereafter, murals created by Klimt for the ceiling of the University of Vienna auditorium were rejected as scandalous because of their erotic symbolism. The Sezession movement influenced such artists and architects as Egon Schiele and Josef Hoffmann. See also Photo-Secession.

Sfax \'sfaks\ or Safaqis \s3-'fa-kis\ Port city (pop., 1994: 230,900), east-central Tunisia. Built on the site of two ancient settlements, the city grew as an Islamic trading centre. It was occupied by the Normans in the 12th century and by the Spanish in the 16th century, and later served as a stronghold of the Barbary Coast pirates. The town was bombarded by the French in 1881 prior to their occupation of Tunisia and again in World War II (1939-45), when it was a base for German forces until taken by the British in 1943. Tunisia’s second-largest city, it is a transportation hub and a major fishing port.

Sforim, Mendele Moykher See Mendele Moykher Sforim

Sforza \'sfort-sa\, Carlo, Count (b. Sept. 25, 1873, Montignoso di Lunigiana, Italy—d. Sept. 4, 1952, Rome) Italian diplomat. He entered the diplomatic service in 1896 and served in embassies worldwide. He served as minister for foreign affairs (1920-21) and as Italy’s ambassa¬ dor to France (1922), but he resigned after refusing to serve under Benito Mussolini. A strong antifascist, he lived in voluntary exile in Belgium until 1939 and in the U.S. (1940-43). He returned to Italy after World War II to serve in various government posts, including minister of foreign affairs

(1947-51).

Sforza, Francesco (b. July 23, 1401, San Miniato, Tuscany—d. March 8, 1466, Milan) Italian mercenary and duke of Milan (1450-66). He became condottiere of Florence in 1434 and defeated Milan twice (1438, 1440), then was hired by the Milanese to serve as captain general in their struggle to found a republic (1447). He later blockaded the city and seized control, becoming duke of Milan in 1450, and he allied with Florence to secure the Peace of Lodi (1454). See also Sforza family.

Sforza, Ludovico (b. July 27, 1452, Vigevano, Pavia, duchy of Milan—d. May 27, 1508, Loches, Toubrenne, France) Regent (1480-94) and duke of Milan (1494-98). The second son of Francesco Sforza, he was known as “the Moor” because of his dark complexion and black hair. He plotted to take over as regent for his young nephew. He made Milan supreme among the Italian states, and his patronage of scholars and art¬ ists such as Leonardo da Vinci made his court renowned in Europe. He bribed Maximilian I to declare him duke of Milan and fought to expel the French from Italy. After Louis XII conquered Milan (1498), Ludovico tried unsuccessfully to retake it (1500); he was captured and died in prison.

© 2006 Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.

1730 I Sforza family ► Shaftesbury

Sforza family Italian family that ruled Milan (1450-1535). The fam¬ ily began with the prosperous farmer and later condottiere leader Muzio Attendolo (1369-1424), who was given the nickname Sforza (“Force”). His illegitimate son Francesco Sforza became duke of Milan in 1450. Galeazzo Maria Sforza (1444-76) succeeded his father in 1466, and, though a despotic ruler, he introduced the cultivation of rice, built canals and encouraged commerce, and was a patron of the arts; he was assas¬ sinated by conspirators who vainly hoped to provoke a popular uprising. Gian Galeazzo Sforza (1469-94) succeeded his father in 1476 under the regency of his mother and uncle, Ludovico Sforza, who usurped the gov¬ ernment in 1481 and established Milan’s supremacy. After Ludovico was driven from power by Louis XII of France in 1499, his son Massimiliano Sforza (1493-1530) returned to rule briefly (1513-16) before yielding the duchy to France. Another son, Francesco Maria Sforza (1495-1535), returned after the French defeat to rule from 1522, until his death with¬ out heirs ended the ducal line in 1535. The duchy then passed to Charles V and the Habsburgs. Descendants of Sforza Secondo (an illegitimate son of Francesco Sforza) became the Counts Sforza and included the diplo¬ mat Carlo, Count Sforza.

SGML in full Standard Generalized Markup Language

Markup language for organizing and tagging elements of a document, including headings, paragraphs, tables, and graphics. The elements are marked according to their meaning and relationship to other elements rather than to the format of their presentation. The tagged elements can then be formatted in different ways according to the unique rules for dif¬ ferent applications. Readable by both humans and computer programs, SGML is usable in a wide range of applications, including print publish¬ ing, CD-ROMs, and database systems. Generic coding of electronic manuscripts was first proposed in the late 1960s; in 1969 an IBM team developed GML, which was adopted by the U.S. Internal Revenue Ser¬ vice and Department of Defense. In the late 1970s the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) established a committee to create SGML from GML; it was accepted by the International Organization for Standards in 1986. See also HTML, XML.

Shaanxi \'shan-'she\ or Shen-hsi conventional Shensi \'shen-'se\ Province (pop., 2002 est.: 36,740,000), north-central China. It is bordered by Shanxi, Henan, Hubei, Sichuan, and Gansu provinces, Chongqing municipality, and Ningxia and Inner Mongolia autonomous regions. It has an area of 75,600 sq mi (195,800 sq km). Its capital is Xi'an. Shaanxi has three distinct natural regions: the mountainous southern region, the cen¬ tral Wei River valley, and the northern upland plateau. The valley is espe¬ cially vulnerable to earthquakes. Its northern parts were some of the earliest settled in China, and the remains of ancient construction projects found there include part of the Great Wall. From 221 bc until the Tang dynasty, it was wealthy and the centre of much political activity. As its irrigation system deteriorated, the area declined. In the 13th century, under the Mongols, it assumed its present form as a province. Mao Zedong’s Long March ended here in 1935. Its ancient irrigation system has been rehabilitated in modern times, and the region is again a rich agricultural area. Crops include corn, winter wheat, fruits, tobacco, and cotton.

Shabbetai Tzevi Vsha-bo-.tl-tso-'veN (b. July 23, 1626, Smyrna, Otto¬ man Tur.—d. 1676, Dulcingo, Alb.) False Jewish Messiah. He studied the mystical learning of the Kabbala and at age 22 proclaimed himself the messiah. He traveled around the Levant, gaining both followers and enemies. With the support of powerful religious and political figures, his movement spread to parts of Europe and North Africa. In 1666, the year he was prophesied to bring about fire restoration of Israel, he was impris¬ oned by the Ottoman sultan and, under threat of torture, converted to Islam. His following largely fell away, though some remained faithful to him and strove to reconcile his claims with his seeming betrayal of Judaism.

Shackleton, Sir Ernest Henry (b. Feb. 15, 1874, Kilkea, County Kildare, Ire.—d. Jan. 5, 1922, Grytviken, South Georgia) British explorer. In 1901 he joined Robert Falcon Scott’s expedition to the Antarctic. He returned to Antarctica in 1908 and led a sledging party to within 97 mi (156 km) of the pole. In 1914 he led the British Trans-Antarctic Expe¬ dition, which planned to cross Antarctica via the South Pole. His expe¬ dition ship Endurance was caught in pack ice and drifted for 10 months before being crushed. Shackleton and his crew drifted on ice floes for another five months until they reached Elephant Island. He and five oth¬ ers sailed 800 mi (1,300 km) to South Georgia Island to get help, then he led four relief expeditions to rescue his men. Shackleton died on South Georgia at the outset of another Antarctic expedition.

shad Any of several saltwater food fishes of the herring family (Clu- peidae) that swim up rivers to spawn. Shad eggs (roe) are a delicacy in the U.S. Adult shad are toothless. The lower jaw of shad in the genus Alosa fits into a notch at the tip of the upper jaw. The American shad {A. sapidissima ), an Atlantic fish introduced into the Pacific, is a migratory plankton eater and a good game fish. The Allis (or Allice) shad (A. alosa ) of Europe is about 30 in. (75 cm) long and weighs about 8 lbs (3.6 kg). See also whitefish.

Shad well, Thomas (b. 1642?, Norfolk, Eng.—d. Nov. 19, 1692, Lon¬ don) English dramatist. One of the court wits after the Restoration (1660), he wrote 18 plays, of which his broad comedies of manners are the best remembered. Epsom-Wells (1672), his greatest success, played for nearly half a century. After his friendship with John Dryden ended over differ¬ ences in politics and dramatic techniques, both men produced satires attacking the other, Dryden’s (including the devastating MacFlecknoe), being the more memorable. In 1688 Shadwell succeeded Dryden as poet laureate and historiographer royal.

Shaffer, Peter (Levin) (b. May 15, 1926, London, Eng.) British play¬ wright. He first won notice for his comedy Five Finger Exercise (1958) and his epic tragedy The Royal Hunt of the Sun (1964). His Equus (1973, Tony Award; film, 1977) was a hit in London and New York City. He was also acclaimed for Amadeus (1979), which treated Antonio Salieri’s one¬ sided rivalry with Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart; Shaffer adapted the play for film (1984, Academy Award). His later plays include Lettice and Lovage (1988).

Shaft! Vsha-fi-,e\, Abu Abd Allah (Muhammad ibn Idris) al-

(b. 767, Arabia—d. Jan. 20, 820, Al-Fustat, Egypt) Muslim legal scholar and founder of the ShafTiyyah school of law. A distant relative of Muham¬ mad, he was brought up in poverty in Mecca and studied with Islamic scholars across Arabia and the Levant. His great contribution was the cre¬ ation of a synthesis of Islamic legal thought that put into coherent form many familiar but unsystematized ideas. He dealt primarily with the iden¬ tification of the sources of Islamic law and their application to contem¬ porary events. His book, the Risdlah (c. 817), earned him the title “father of Muslim jurisprudence.”

shaft seal See oil seal

Shaftesbury, Anthony Ashley Cooper, 1 st earl of (b. July 22, 1621, Wimborne St. Giles, Dorset, Eng.—-d. Jan. 21, 1683, Amsterdam, Neth.) English politician. He served in the English Civil Wars, fighting first for the king (1643) and then for Parliament (1644). He was appointed by Oliver Cromwell to the council of state (1653-54, 1659) and also served in Parliament (1654-60). One of 12 commissioners sent to invite Charles II to return to England, he was appointed to Charles’s privy council (1660) and served as chancellor of the Exchequer (1661-72) and lord chancel¬ lor (1672-73). As head of the Council of Trade and Foreign Plantations (1672-74), he drew up a constitution for the North American province of Carolina, aided by his protege John Locke. Dismissed by Charles for sup¬ porting the anti-Catholic Test Act and opposing the marriage of Charles’s brother James (later James II) to another Catholic, Shaftesbury became a leader of the Whig opposition. He exploited the political chaos caused by Titus Oates to consolidate his parliamentary power and tried unsuccess¬ fully to pass the Exclusion Bill, to keep James from the throne. In 1681 Charles dissolved the Parliament; Shaftesbury was arrested and tried for treason but was acquitted. In 1682 he fled to Holland, where he died.

Shaftesbury, Anthony Ashley Cooper, 3rd earl of (b. Feb. 26, 1671, London, Eng.—d. Feb. 15, 1713, Naples) English politician and philosopher. Grandson of the 1st earl of Shaftesbury, he received his early education from John Locke. He entered Parliament in 1695; succeeding to his title in 1699, he served three years in the House of Lords. His numer¬ ous philosophical essays were influenced by Neoplatonism; published as Characteristicks of Men, Manners, Opinions, Times (1711), they became the chief source of English Deism and influenced writers such as Alexander Pope, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, and Immanuel Kant.

Shaftesbury, Anthony Ashley Cooper, 7th earl of (b. April 28, 1801, London, Eng.—d. Oct. 1, 1885, Folkestone, Kent) English poli¬ tician and social reformer. When his father succeeded to the earldom in 1811, Cooper became Lord Ashley. As a member of Parliament ( 1826- 51), he opposed the Reform Bill of 1832 but supported Catholic emanci¬ pation and repeal of the Corn Laws. From 1833 he led the factory reform movement in Parliament and effected passage of the Mines Act (1842)

© 2006 Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.

Shah Jahan ► Shaktism I 1731

and the Ten Hours Act (1847), known as Lord Ashley’s Act, which short¬ ened the working day in textile mills. As president of the Ragged Schools Union (1843-83), he promoted the free education of destitute children. Succeeding to his father’s title in 1851, he continued his work as one of the most effective social reformers of 19th-century England. He also led the Evangelical movement within the Church of England and financially supported several missionary societies.

Shah Jahan Vsha-jo-'hanX (b. Jan. 5, 1592, Lahore, India—d. Jan. 22, 1666, Agra) Mughal emperor of India (1628-58). During the reign of his father, Jahangir, he was part of the clique that dominated Mughal-dynasty politics. After Jahangir’s death, he garnered enough support to proclaim himself emperor. His reign was notable for its successes against the Dec- can states. Though attempts to reconquer lost territory almost bankrupted the empire, his reign marked the zenith of Mughal court splendour. Of his great architectural undertakings (including a fortress-palace built when he transferred the capital from Agra to Delhi), the most famous is the Taj Mahal. Though a more orthodox Muslim than his father, he was less orthodox than his son and successor, Aurangzeb, and he was relatively tolerant of his Hindu subjects.

shah of Iran See Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi; Reza Shah Pahlavi

Shahn, Ben(jamin) (b. Sept. 12, 1898, Kaunas, Russia—d. March 14, 1969, New York, N.Y., U.S.)

Lithuanian-born U.S. painter and graphic artist. His family immigrated to New York City in 1906. As a youth he worked as a lithographer’s apprentice; he later attended New York University and the National Academy of Design. In 1931-33 he achieved fame with a series of gouache paintings inspired by the Sacco-Vanzetti case, combining real¬ ism and abstraction in the service of sharp sociopolitical comment. In 1933 he assisted Diego Rivera with his Rockefeller Center mural and worked for the Public Works of Art Project. In 1935-38 he depicted rural poverty while working as an artist and photographer for the Farm Secu¬ rity Administration. After World War II he concentrated on easel paint¬ ing, poster design, and book illustration.

Shaivism or Saivism Vshl-.vi-zomX One of three main forms of mod¬ ern Hinduism, centred on the worship of Shiva. The earliest of the cults devoted to Shiva date from the 4th century bc. Texts written by devotees of Shiva in the 3rd century ad are the basis of Tantra in Hinduism and other Indian religions. Today Shaivism includes diverse movements, both religious and secular, all of which take Shiva as the supreme and all- powerful deity and teacher and view gaining the nature of Shiva as the ultimate goal of existence. This is believed to be brought about by the performance of complex rituals. See also Shaktism; Vaishnavism.

Shaka \'sha-ko\ (b. c. 1787—d.

Sept. 22, 1828) Zulu chief (18 lb- 28), founder of southern Africa’s Zulu kingdom. His life is the subject of numerous colourful and exagger¬ ated stories, many of which are debated by historians. It is generally accepted that Shaka was a highly skilled warrior who established him¬ self as head of the Zulu about 1816.

Under his autocratic rule, the Zulu kingdom experienced significant expansion, quickly becoming the dominant power in southeastern Africa. Shaka was murdered by his half-brother.

Shaker Member of the United Society of Believers in Christ’s Sec¬ ond Appearing, a celibate millenar- ian sect. Derived from a branch of

the radical English Quakers (see Society of Friends), the movement was brought to the U.S. in 1774 by Ann Lee, an illiterate textile worker whose followers accepted her as the second incarnation of Christ. The Shakers spread throughout New England from their base near Albany, N.Y., and later into Kentucky, Ohio, and Indiana, eventually establishing 19 com¬ munities. Communities held property in common, observed celibacy, and pursued a life of productive labour. Although sometimes persecuted for their pacifism and for bizarre beliefs falsely attributed to them, Shakers won admiration for their model farms and orderly, prosperous communi¬ ties. Their talent for simple, functional design led to numerous inventions and innovations (see Shaker furniture). The movement reached its height in the 1840s and thereafter gradually declined. In the early 21st century only one working Shaker village remained: Sabbathday Lake, near New Gloucester, Maine.

Shaker furniture Furniture designed for the religious colonies of Shakers founded in the U.S. in the last quarter of the 18th century. The Shakers’ designs reflected their beliefs that good craftsmanship was in itself an act of prayer and that form should follow function, an attitude that anticipated the concept of Functionalism a century later. Constructed of pine or other inexpensive wood, each item was fashioned solely to serve its intended use and was devoid of decoration. Interest in Shaker furni¬ ture and other Shaker crafts revived in the 20th century, after most Shaker colonies had dissolved, and imitations are now widely produced.

Shakespeare, William (baptized April 26, 1564, Stratford-upon- Avon, Warwickshire, Eng.—d. April 23, 1616, Stratford-upon-Avon) Brit¬ ish poet and playwright, often considered the greatest writer in world literature. He spent his early life in Stratford-upon-Avon, receiving at most a grammar-school education, and at age 18 he married a local woman, Anne Hathaway. By 1594 he was apparently a rising playwright in Lon¬ don and an actor in a leading theatre company, the Lord Chamberlain's Men (later King’s Men); the company performed at the Globe Theatre from 1599. The order in which his plays were written and performed is highly uncertain. His earliest plays seem to date from the late 1580s to the mid- 1590s and include the comedies Love’s Labour’s Lost, The Comedy of Errors, The Taming of the Shrew, and A Midsummer Night ’s Dream ; his¬ tory plays based on the lives of the English kings, including Henry VI (parts 1, 2, and 3), Richard III, and Richard //; and the tragedy Romeo and Juliet. The plays apparently written between 1596 and 1600 are mostly comedies, including The Merchant of Venice, The Merry Wives of Windsor, Much Ado About Nothing, and As You Like It, and histories, including Henry IV (parts 1 and 2), Henry V, and Julius Caesar. Approxi¬ mately between 1600 and 1607 he wrote the comedies Twelfth Night, All’s Well That Ends Well, and Measure for Measure, as well as the great trag¬ edies Hamlet (probably begun in 1599), Othello, Macbeth, and King Lear, which mark the summit of his art. Among his later works (about 1607 to 1614) are the tragedies Antony and Cleopatra, Coriolanus, and Timon of Athens, as well as the fantastical romances The Winter’s Tale and The Tempest. He probably also is responsible for some sections of the plays Edward III and The Two Noble Kinsmen.

Shakespeare’s plays, all of them written largely in iambic pentameter verse, are marked by extraordinary poetry; vivid, subtle, and complex characterizations; and a highly inventive use of English. His 154 sonnets, published in 1609 but apparently written mostly in the 1590s, often express strong feeling within an exquisitely controlled form. Shakespeare retired to Stratford before 1610 and lived as a country gentleman until his death. The first collected edition of his plays, or First Folio, was pub¬ lished in 1623. As with most writers of the time, little is known about his life and work, and other writers, particularly the 17th earl of Oxford, have frequently been proposed as the actual authors of his plays and poems.

shakti or sakti Vsh9k-te\ In Hinduism, the “creative energy” inherent in and proceeding from God. It is exemplified by the female principle, the female reproductive organs, or the goddess Shakti, wife of Shiva. As energy, shakti is viewed as the merging of powers emanating from male gods, and it is possessed by each person. In Tantric Hinduism, the god¬ dess Shakti is associated with the lowest of the chakras, lying dormant within the body as a coiled serpent (Kundalini) that must be aroused to reach spiritual liberation by uniting with Shiva at the top of the head. See also Shaktism.

Shaktism or Saktism Vshok-.ti-zoirA Worship of the supreme Hindu goddess Shakti. Together with Vaishnavism and Shaivism, it is one of the major forms of Hinduism practiced today. Particularly prominent in Ben¬ gal and Assam, Shaktism takes various forms depending on conceptions

Ben Shahn, 1966.

© KARSH FROM RAPHO/PHOTO RESEARCHERS-EB INC.

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Shaka, lithograph by W. Bagg, 1836.

COURTESY OF THE TRUSTEES OF THE BRITISH MUSEUM; PHOTOGRAPH, J.R. FREEMAN & CO. LTD.

© 2006 Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.

1732 I shakuhachi ► Shankar

of Shakti. In popular worship she has many names, and some scholars consider most female deities in Hinduism to be various manifestations of her. Shakti is worshiped and cultivated as a power that can lead to spiri¬ tual liberation. Shaktism is inseparably related to the system of practices for the purification of mind and body that are grouped under Tantric Hin¬ duism.

shakuhachi V.sha-kii-'ha-cheV Japanese end-blown bamboo flute. Its notes are produced by blowing across the open upper end, resulting in a distinctively breathy tone. It has five fingerholes. The shakuhachi is of great antiquity; it has been widely played as a solo instrument and in small ensembles, especially with the koto and samisen (a fretless lute).

shale Any of a group of fine-grained, laminated sedimentary rocks con¬ sisting of silt- and clay-sized particles. Shale constitutes roughly 60% of the sedimentary rock in the Earth’s crust. Shales are commercially impor¬ tant, particularly in the ceramics industry. They are a valuable raw mate¬ rial for tile, brick, and pottery and constitute a major source of alumina for portland cement. In addition, advances in recovery methods may one day make oil shale a practical source for liquid petroleum.

shale oil Synthetic crude oil that is extracted from oil shale by pyroly¬ sis, or destructive distillation. The oil obtained from oil shale cannot be refined by the methods that have been developed for crude oil, however, because shale oil is low in hydrogen and contains large amounts of nitro¬ gen and sulfur compounds. To be made usable, shale oil must be hydro¬ genated and then chemically treated to remove the nitrogen and sulfur, a process too expensive to make shale oil commercially competitive with crude oil. See also kerogen, petroleum.

shallot Mildly aromatic herbaceous plant {Allium ascalonicum) of the lily family, probably of Asiatic origin, used to flavour foods. Closely related to the onion and garlic, the shallot is a hardy perennial with short, small, cylindrical, and hollow leaves; lavender to red flowers in a compact umbel; and small, elongated, angular bulbs. Much like garlic, the bulbs develop in clusters on a common base. The leaves are sometimes eaten when green. The so-called shallot marketed extensively as green spring onions is in fact a form of onion.

shaman Vsha-monX Person who uses magic to cure the sick, divine the unknown, or control events. Both men and women can be shamans. Sha¬ manism is classically associated with certain Arctic and Central Asian peoples, but today the term is applied to analogous religious and quasi¬ religious systems throughout the world. As medicine man and priest, the shaman cures illnesses, directs communal sacrifices, and escorts the souls of the dead to the other world. He operates by using techniques of ecstasy, the power to leave his body at will during a trancelike state. In cultures where shamanism occurs, sickness is usually thought of as soul loss; it is thus the shaman’s task to enter the spirit world, capture the soul, and rein¬ tegrate it in the body. A person becomes a shaman either by inheritance or by self-election. See also animism.

Shamash \'sha-,mash\ In Mesopotamian religion, the god of the sun, who, with his father, Sin, and the goddess Ishtar, was part of an astral triad of divinities. As the solar god, Shamash was the heroic conqueror of night and death, and he became known as the god of justice and equity. He was said to have presented the Code of Hammurabi to the Babylonian king. At night he served as judge of the underworld. The chief centres of his cult were at Larsa and Sippar.

Shamil or Shamyl \ , sha-,mel\ (b. 1797?, Gimry, Dagestan—d. March 1871, Medina?, Arabia) Leader of Muslim Dagestan and Chechen moun¬ taineers. In 1830 he joined a Sufi sect that had become involved in a holy war against the Russians for Dagestan, formerly part of northern Iran but occupied by the Russians from 1813. He eventually became imam of Dag¬ estan and established an independent republic (1834), then led successive raids against the Russians in the Caucasus for 25 years. Determined to suppress him, the Russians attacked from all sides, compelling his sur¬ render in 1859 and effectively ending Caucasian resistance to Russian subjugation.

Shamir \sh3-'mer\, Yitzhak orig. Yitzhak Jazernicki (b. Oct. 15, 1915, Ruzinoy, Pol., Russian Empire) Polish-born Israeli statesman. He immigrated in 1935 to Palestine, where he helped found the Israel Free¬ dom Fighters, later known as the Stem Gang. Twice arrested by British authorities (1941, 1946), he twice escaped and eventually found asylum in France. After Israel achieved independence, he served as a secret- service operative until 1965. He was speaker of the Knesset (1977-80)

and later foreign minister under Menachem Begin (1980-83). He became prime minister in 1983; in 1984 an indecisive election led to his sharing power with the Labour Party leader Shimon Peres, and Shamir acted as prime minister for the six years beginning in 1986, which included another indecisive election in 1988 and the formation of a coalition government in 1990, but lost power in 1992. He retired from the Knesset in 1996.

Sham'un, Kamil See Camille Chamoun

Shan Shan Tai Any member of a Southeast Asian people who live pri¬ marily in eastern and northwestern Myanmar (Burma) and also in Yun¬ nan province, China. The Shan are the largest minority group in Myanmar, numbering more than four million. They live mainly in the valleys and plains on the Shan Plateau, where they grow rice or practice shifting agri¬ culture. They are Theravada Buddhists and have their own written lan¬ guage and literature. They dominated much of Myanmar from the 13th to the 16th century; since the 1970s they have been at odds with the national government over the issue of local autonomy. See also Tai.

Shan-hsi See Shanxi

Shandong \'shan-'duq\ or Shan-tung conventional Shantung Coastal province (pop., 2002 est.: 90,820,000), eastern China. It lies on the Yellow Sea and is bordered by Jiangsu, Anhui, Henan, and Hebei prov¬ inces. It has an area of 59,200 sq mi (153,300 sq km), and its capital is Jinan. It contains the Shandong Peninsula and an inland zone that includes a fertile, intensely cultivated area that forms part of the Huang He (Yel¬ low River) basin. The peninsula has been occupied since the 3rd millen¬ nium bc, and by the 8th century bc it had become a centre of political and military activity. It became northern China’s leading maritime centre in the 3rd century ad and retained that position for centuries. In the 19th century devastating floods resulted in substantial emigration. It came under German, British, and Japanese influence in the late 19th century. The Japanese occupied it in 1937-45; it came under communist control in 1948. Its products include wheat, corn, iron ore, gold, fish, and silk. Confucius and Mencius were born in Shandong.

Shandong Peninsula or Shan-tung Peninsula conventional Shantung Peninsula Peninsula, eastern China. Occupying the east¬ ern section of Shandong province, it extends northeastward between the Bo Hai (Gulf of Chihli) and the Yellow Sea. The terrain is hilly, with eleva¬ tions around 600 ft (180 m), rising to 3,707 ft (1,130 m) in the Lao Moun¬ tains. Fishing is important along the coast, and fruit is grown in the hills. Iron ore, magnesite, and gold are abundant. Some of China’s best ports are located along the peninsula’s rocky, indented coast.

Shang dynasty or Yin dynasty Traditionally, the second of Chi¬ na’s dynasties, following the Xia dynasty. Until excavations in the 20th century provided archaeological evidence for the Xia, the Shang was the first verifiable Chinese dynasty. Dates for its founding vary; traditionally its rule was said to have spanned 1766-1122 bc, but more recently the range has been given as c. 1600-1046 bc. Shang society was stratified: it included a king, local governors, nobles, and the masses, who engaged in agriculture. The Shang developed a 12-month, 360-day calendar with intercalary months added as necessary. The Chinese writing system began to develop; numerous records and ceremonial inscriptions survive. Sur¬ viving artifacts include musical instruments, superb bronze vessels, pot¬ tery for ceremonial and daily use, and jade and ivory ornaments. Cowrie shells were used as currency. See also Erlitou culture; Zhou dynasty.

Shanghai \'shaq-'hl\ or Shang-hai Municipality with provincial sta¬ tus (pop., 2003 est.: city, 10,030,800; 2002 est.: municipality, 16,250,000), east-central China. The municipality, on the East China Sea, is bordered by Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces and has an area of 2,400 sq mi (6,200 sq km). The city is located on the Huangpu River, which gives oceango¬ ing vessels access to it. The site was settled during the Bei (Northern) Song period (ad 960-1127), and later under the Ming dynasty it was an area of intense cotton production. This changed when it became the first Chinese port opened to trade with the West after China’s defeat by Brit¬ ain in the Opium Wars (1842); it came to dominate the nation’s commerce. The site of the Chinese Communist Party’s founding in 1921, it saw severe fighting in the Sino-Japanese War of 1937—45 and was occupied by Japan during World War II. Since 1949, it has become China’s chief industrial and commercial centre and one of its leading centres of higher education and scientific research.

Shankar \'shaq-,kar\ / Ravi (b. April 7, 1920, Benares, India) Indian sitar player. He studied music and dance, toured as a member of his

© 2006 Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.

Shankara ► shark I 1733

brother Uday’s dance troupe, and spent years learning the sitar. After serving as music director of All-India Radio (1948-56), he began a series of European and U.S. tours. He wrote the score for Satyajit Ray’s Apu film trilogy (1955-59). He was a founder of the National Orchestra of India, and in 1962 he founded the Kinnara School of Music in Bombay (now Mumbai) and later in Los Angeles. His performances with Yehudi Menu¬ hin and his association with George Harrison of the Beatles were prima¬ rily responsible for bringing Indian music to a broad Western audience.

Shankara Vshan-ko-roX or Samkara Vshom-ko-roV (b. c. 700, Kal- adi village?, India—d. c. 750, Kedarnath) Indian philosopher and theo¬ logian. According to tradition, he was born into a pious Brahman family and became a sannyasi after his father’s death. He is said to have trav¬ eled all over India, holding discussions with philosophers of different creeds, and is believed to have founded four monasteries. He is the reputed author of more than 300 Sanskrit works, most of them commentaries on and expositions of Vedic literature, but most are not regarded as authen¬ tic. The most renowned exponent of the Advaita school of Vedanta phi¬ losophy, he is credited with laying the foundation for Hindu orthodoxy in India after centuries of challenge from Jainism and Buddhism.

Shannon, Claude (Elwood) (b. April 30, 1916, Petoskey, Mich., U.S.—d. Feb. 24, 2001, Medford, Mass.) U.S. electrical engineer. Shan¬ non earned a Ph.D. in mathematics from MIT in 1940. He had a long career as a research mathematician at Bell Laboratories (1941-72) and as a professor at MIT (1957-78). On the basis of his 1948 paper “The Math¬ ematical Theory of Communication,” he is considered the founder of communication theory. He was awarded the National Medal of Science in 1966 and the Kyoto Prize in 1985.

Shannon, River River, Ireland. The country’s longest river, it rises in northwestern County Cavan and flows for about 230 mi (370 km) to enter the Atlantic Ocean below Limerick. It is surrounded by marshes and bogs for much of its course and widens at various points into lakes, many with islands. In the early 19th century it was a vital link in the waterways of Ireland; today it is used by pleasure craft.

Shantung See Shandong

Shanxi \'shan-'she\ or Shan-hsi conventional Shansi \'shan-'se\ Province (pop., 2000 est.: 32,970,000), northern China. It is bordered by Hebei, Henan, and Shaanxi provinces and Inner Mongolia. It has an area of 60,700 sq mi (157,100 sq km). The capital is Taiyuan. Largely a vast plateau covered by great loess deposits, it was the home of early Chinese agriculture. Most of the people are Han Chinese; other ethnic groups include Hui (Chinese Muslims), Mongols, and Manchus. Since ancient times it has been an integral part of the various northern kingdoms of China, serving as a buffer against invaders from the north and as a key trade route. It was one of the major avenues by which Buddhism came to China from India. After the overthrow of the Qing dynasty in 1911-12, the warlord Yan Xishan ruled as absolute dictator until the end of World War II. Japan occupied part of the province during the Sino-Japanese War. Communist forces assumed control of Shanxi in 1949. It has vast reserves of coal and iron and the largest titanium and vanadium deposits in China, and it is China’s largest provincial producer of cotton.

Shao Yong or Shao Yung Vshau-'yugV (b. 1011, Kung-ch’eng, China—d. 1077, Henan) Chinese philosopher who greatly influenced the development of the idealist school of Neo-Confucianism. Originally a Dao- ist, he refused all offers of government office and lived in a hermitage outside Henan. He became interested in Confucianism by studying the Yl jing, from which he developed his theory that numbers are the basis of all existence. He believed that the key to the world hinged on the num¬ ber four; thus the universe is divided into four sections (sun, moon, stars, zodiac), the body into four sense organs (eye, ear, nose, mouth), and the earth into four substances (fire, water, earth, stone). He also introduced to Confucianism the Buddhist concept of the universe’s repeating cycles.

shape-note singing U.S. a cappella singing style incorporating many folk hymns and utilizing a special musical notation. The seven-note scale used by some singers is sung not to the syllables do-re-mi-fa-sol-la-ti but to a four-syllable system brought to America by early English colonists: fa-sol-la-fa-sol-la-mi. The system reflects the fact that a series of three intervals repeats itself in the major scale. A differently shaped note head is used for each of the four syllables. The singer reads the music by fol¬ lowing the shapes; singers unfamiliar with the system can read the notes according to their placement on the staff. The tradition started in New

England and moved South and West as more sophisticated forms of music reached the U.S. Shape-note singing had largely died out except in rural areas by the 1880s, but it has experienced a revival in recent years. The traditional shape-note hymnal, The Sacred Harp, first published in 1844, remains in use today.

shaper Metal-cutting machine tool in which the workpiece is usually held in a vise or similar device that is clamped to a table and can be manu¬ ally operated or power-driven at right angles to the path of a chisel-like cutting tool with only one cutting edge. A moving table feeds the work- piece in small, individual steps at the end of each stroke of the tool. The adjustable mounting of the tool permits the cutting of grooves and gen¬ erating of surfaces at almost any angle to one another. The largest shapers have a 36-in. (0.9-m) cutting stroke and can machine parts up to 36 in. (0.9 m) long. See also planer.

Shapley, Harlow (b. Nov. 2, 1885, Nashville, Mo., U.S.—d. Oct. 20, 1972, Boulder, Colo.) U.S. astronomer. In 1911 he began a determination of the dimensions of the components of numerous binary stars from mea¬ surements of their light variation when they eclipse one another; he also proposed (correctly) that Cepheid variables are pulsating variable stars, not eclipsing binaries (see eclipsing variable star). In 1914 he joined the staff of Mount Wilson Observatory. His study of the distribution of globular clusters in the Milky Way Galaxy led him to deduce that the Sun, previ¬ ously thought to lie near the centre of the Galaxy, was 50,000 light-years from the centre (now estimated at about 27,000), leading to the first real¬ istic estimate of the Galaxy’s size. Shapley also studied neighbouring gal¬ axies, especially the Magellanic Clouds, and found that galaxies tend to occur in clusters.

shar-pei Vshar-'paX Ancient breed of dog that originated in China. Shar- peis are notable for their loose, wrinkled skin, especially when young. They have a short bristly coat, wide blunt muzzle, blue-black tongue, and unusual black gums.

Sha'ranl \,sha-ra-'ne\, al- orig. ( Abd al-Wahhab ibn Ahmad (b.

1492, Cairo—d. 1565, Cairo) Egyptian scholar and mystic, founder of the Sufi order known as the Sha'rawiyyah. Throughout his career he sought to avoid the extremism he saw in the various theological sects of Islam, as well as in other Sufi orders; his aim was to take the best from each, ignoring conflicts between them. Since his thoughts and writings were unsystematic and confused, the appeal of his teachings depended largely on his personal presence. The order gradually declined after his death, though it remained popular until the 19th century.

Sharansky, Natan See Anatoly Shcharansky sharecropping See tenant farming Shari River See Chari River

Sharl'ah \'sha-'re-a\ Legal and moral code of Islam, systematized in the early centuries of the Muslim era (8th-9th century ad). It rests on four bases: the Qur’an; the sunna, as recorded in the Hadith; ijma, or agree¬ ment among scholars; and qiya, or analogical reasoning. Sharfah differs fundamentally from Western law in that it purports to be grounded in divine revelation. Among modem Muslim countries, Saudi Arabia and Iran retain Sharfah as the law of the land, in both civil and criminal pro¬ ceedings, but the legal codes of most other Muslim countries combine elements of Islamic and Western law where necessary. Most Islamic fun¬ damentalist groups insist that Muslim countries should be governed by Sharfah.

Sharlk Peninsula or Cape Bon \'bo n \ Peninsula Peninsula, northeastern Tunisia. Extending northeast into the Mediterranean Sea, it is about 50 mi (80 km) long. During World War II (1939-45), it was occupied by German troops in retreat from Egypt and Libya (1943); they soon surrendered to the Allied Powers there.

shark Any of more than 300 species of predatory cartilaginous fish (order Selachii). An ancient animal, it has changed little in 100 million years. The skin typically is dull gray and tough and has toothlike scales. Most sharks have a muscular, asymmetrical, upturned tail; pointed fins; a pointed snout; and sharp triangular teeth. Sharks have no swim bladder and must swim perpetually to keep from sinking. Most species bear liv¬ ing young. Several species can be dangerous to humans (e.g., great white SHARK, HAMMERHEAD SHARK, SAND SHARK, TIGER SHARK); Smaller Ones, Called topes, hounds, and dogfishes, are fished commercially. See also basking shark, MACKEREL SHARK, MAKO SHARK, THRESHER SHARK, WHALE SHARK.

© 2006 Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.

1734 I sharksucker > Shawn

sharksucker See remora Sharm al-Sheikh See Cape NasranT

Sharon \sh9-'ron\, Ariel (b. Feb. 26, 1928, Kefar Malal, Palestine) Israeli soldier and politician. He received military training early in life and did intelligence and reconnaissance work after Israel achieved inde¬ pendence. During the Suez Crisis (1956) and again during the Six-Day War (1967), a unit under his command captured the strategic Mitla Pass. In the Yom Kippur War (1973), he led an Israeli counterattack. Appointed min¬ ister of agriculture in charge of settlements in 1977, he actively promoted Jewish settlement in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. As minister of defense (1981-83), he oversaw Israel’s invasion of Lebanon (see Lebanese civil war). An Israeli court of inquiry held Sharon indirectly responsible for the Sabra and Shatila massacres, and he was forced to resign in 1983. He held several further cabinet positions throughout the 1980s and ’90s and in 1999 became head of the Likud party. Elected prime minister in 2001, Sharon faced increased fighting between Israelis and Palestinians. In an effort to stem the violence, he initiated a plan to withdraw Israeli settlers and soldiers from the Gaza Strip and parts of the West Bank in 2005. In November 2005 Sharon quit Likud to form Kadima (“Forward”), a cen¬ trist party. In January 2006 he suffered a massive stroke, and power was transferred to an acting prime minister.

Sharon, Plain of Mediterranean coastal plain, western Israel. Extend¬ ing about 55 mi (90 km) from Mount Carmel to Tel Aviv-Yafo and roughly triangular in shape, it has been inhabited since remote antiquity. Its name occurs in the Bible and is mentioned in Egyptian pharaonic inscriptions. Modern settlement was undertaken as part of the Zionist movement to settle the agricultural lands of Palestine in the late 19th century, and by the early 1930s it had become the most densely settled area of Jewish Palestine. It produces citrus fruits, vegetables, and cotton and is a popu¬ lar tourist destination.

Shasta, Mount Peak, Cascade Range, northern California, U.S. A double-peaked extinct volcano 14,162 ft (4,317 m) high. Mount Shasta dominates the landscape for a hundred miles. The several glaciers on its slopes are popular with skiers and climbers. The first ascent was made in

shath \'shath\ In Sufism, a divinely inspired statement that a practitioner utters in a mystical state. The Sufis claim that there are moments of ecstatic fervour when they are overwhelmed by the divine presence to such a degree that they lose touch with worldly realities. In such moments they utter statements that may seem incoherent or blasphemous if taken literally, so the statements must be interpreted symbolically. Since the state of mystical trance is normally brief, the statements rarely exceed six or seven words, but the Sufis regard all their writings, particularly their poetry, as possessing an element of shath.

Shatila See Sabra and Shatila massacres

Shaft al-Arab Vshat-al-'ar-oM River, southeastern Iraq, formed by the confluence of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers. It flows southeastward for 120 mi (193 km) and passes the Iraqi port of AI-Basrah and the Iranian port of Abadan before emptying into the Persian Gulf. With dredging, the river is navigable by shallow-draft oceangoing vessels. For about the last half of its course, the river forms the border between Iraq and Iran. In the 1980s it was the scene of prolonged fighting during the Iran-Iraq War.

Shatuo Turk or Sha-t'o Vsha-'to\ Turk Any member of a nomadic people who came to the aid of the Tang dynasty (618-907) after the rebel Huang Zhao captured the capitals of Luoyang and Chang’an in 880 and 881. Their leader, Li Keyong (856-908), became one of the aspirants to imperial power during the collapse of the Tang dynasty.

Shaughnessy Vsh6-no-se\ (of Montreal and Ashford), Tho¬ mas George Shaughnessy, 1 st Baron (b. Oct. 6, 1853, Milwau¬ kee, Wis., U.S.—d. Dec. 10, 1923, Montreal, Que., Can.) Canadian railway executive. After working as a clerk for the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul Railway, he joined the Canadian Pacific Railway as general pur¬ chasing agent (1882), becoming vice president (1891-99), president (1899-1918), and chairman of the board (from 1918). He oversaw the greatest expansion in the railroad’s history and added shipping and min¬ ing industries to its holdings.

Shaw, Anna Howard (b. Feb. 14, 1847, Newcastle upon Tyne, Northumberland, Eng.—d. July 2, 1919, Moylan, Pa., U.S.) U.S. minis¬ ter and suffragist. She arrived in the U.S. with her family in 1851. By age

15 she was a frontier schoolteacher, and in 1880 she became the first woman minister of the Methodist Protestant Church. She took up the causes of temperance and woman suffrage in 1885 and became an impor¬ tant spokesperson for both. She earned a medical degree the next year and later served as president of the National American Woman Suffrage Asso¬ ciation (1904-15). She performed home-front war work during World War I, for which she received the Distinguished Service Medal in 1919. She died shortly before women gained the right to vote.

Shaw, Artie orig. Arthur Jacob Arshawsky (b. May 23, 1910, New York, N.Y., U.S.—d. Dec. 30, 2004, Newbury Park, Calif.) U.S. clarinetist and leader of one of the most popular big bands of the swing era. Shaw was a technically brilliant clarinetist and worked freelance before leading his own groups. In 1935 he performed with a string quar¬ tet, later expanding the group into a more conventional dance band. He led a U.S. Navy band during World War II and afterward led various ensembles until his retirement in 1954. His best-known recordings are “Begin the Beguine” and “Frenesi.”

Shaw, George Bernard (b. July 26, 1856, Dublin, Ire.—d. Nov. 2, 1950, Ayot St. Lawrence, Hertford¬ shire, Eng.) Irish playwright and critic. After moving to London in 1876, he worked for years as a music and art critic, wrote book and theatre reviews, and was an active member of the socialist Fabian Society. In his first play, Widowers’ Houses (1892), he emphasized social and economic issues instead of romance, adopting the ironic comedic tone that would characterize all his work. He described his first plays as “unpleas¬ ant” because they forced the specta¬ tor to face unpleasant facts; these plays include Mrs. Warren’s Profes¬ sion (1893), which concerns prosti¬ tution and was barred from performance until 1902. He then wrote four “pleasant” plays, includ¬ ing the comedies Arms and the Man (1894) and Candida (1895). His next plays include Caesar and Cleopatra (1899) and Man and Superman (1905). He used high comedy to explore society’s foibles in Major Bar¬ bara (1905), The Doctor’s Dilemma (1911), and Pygmalion (1913), his comedic masterpiece. Other notable plays include Androcles and the Lion (1912), Heartbreak House (1919), and Saint Joan (1923). His other writ¬ ings and speeches made him a controversial public figure for much of his life. He received the Nobel Prize in 1925.

Shaw, Lemuel (b. Jan. 9, 1781, Barnstable, Mass., U.S.—d. March 30, 1861, Boston, Mass.) U.S. jurist. He was educated at Harvard University. In 1822 he drafted the first municipal charter for Boston virtually with¬ out precedents to guide him; it remained in effect until 1913. In 1830 he was appointed chief justice of the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachu¬ setts, where he served for 30 years. His rulings were formative in the development of both Massachusetts and national jurisprudence. In par¬ ticular, his ruling in favour of a striking labour union (1842) provided the first major precedent for removing unions from the province of the law of conspiracy, and his decision upholding the city’s segregated schools (1849) was later reflected in the “separate but equal” doctrine propounded by the Supreme Court of the United States in Plessy v. Ferguson (1896), though it also led Massachusetts to pass the only 19th-century American desegregation law. His daughter married Herman Melville.

shawm Double-reed Renaissance woodwind instrument, ancestor of the oboe. Its conical bore and bell are wider than the oboe’s. A disk called a pirouette usually supports the player’s lips. Shawms were constructed in many sizes, from treble to great bass. They were in use in the Middle East perhaps 2,000 years ago, and they were introduced into Europe during the Crusades. With their powerful tone, shawms were classed with the “loud” or “outdoor” instruments and were used in dance and ceremonial music.

Shawn, Ted orig. Edwin Myers Shawn (b. Oct. 21, 1891, Kan¬ sas City, Mo., U.S.—d. Jan. 9, 1972, Orlando, Fla.) U.S. modem dancer, teacher, and choreographer. He married Ruth St. Denis in 1914, soon after beginning his dance career. In 1915 they cofounded the Denishawn school

George Bernard Shaw, photograph by Yousuf Karsh.

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Shawnee ► sheep I 1735

and company to promote nonballetic dance movement; their tours brought modern dance to many parts of the U.S. for the first time. After the couple separated in 1931, the com¬ pany disbanded, and Shawn estab¬ lished a company of male dancers for which he choreographed works that embodied a vigorous, masculine style. In 1933 he founded the Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival in Becket,

Mass., as a summer residence and theatre for his dancers. He continued to dance and choreograph into the 1960s.