Britannica Concise 2005

Valdes Leal \bal-'das-le-'al\, Juan de (b. May 4, 1622, Sevilla, Spain—d. Oct. 15, 1690, Sevilla) Spanish painter. Son of a Portuguese father, he was educated in Cordoba and worked there and in Sevilla. After the death of Bartolome Esteban Murillo, he was Sevilla’s leading painter. His early works are marked by exotic colours, dramatic lighting, and vig¬ orous brushstrokes. Later paintings such as Vanitas (1660) and Triumph of Death (1672) are characterized by their macabre subject matter, dynamic energy, and theatrical violence.

Valdivia Wal-'de-ve-oV, Pedro de (b. c. 1498, Extremadura, Spain—d. January 1554, Tucapel, Viceroyalty of Peru) Spanish conquis¬ tador. After serving with the Spanish army in Italy and Flanders, he was sent to South America in 1534, where he served under Francisco Pizarro in Peru. In 1540 he led an expedition of 150 Spaniards into Chile, where he defeated a large force of Indians and founded Santiago in 1541. He extended Spanish rule south to the Bio-Bio River in 1546, fought again in Peru (1546-48), and returned to Chile as governor in 1549. He began to conquer Chile south of the Bio-Bio and founded Concepcion in 1550. He was killed in a campaign against the Araucanian Indians.

Vale of Tempe See Vale of Tempe

Vale of the White Horse See Vale of the White Horse

valence \'va-bns\ Number of bonds (see bonding) an atom can form. Hydrogen (H) always has valence 1, so other elements' valences equal the

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1982 I Valencia ► Valhalla

number of hydrogen atoms they combine with. Thus, oxygen (O) has valence 2, as in water (H 2 0); nitrogen (N) has valence 3, as in ammonia (NH 3 ); and chlorine (Cl) has valence 1, as in hydrochloric acid (HC1). The valence depends on the number of unpaired electrons in the outer¬ most (and, in transition elements, the next) shell of the atom’s structure. The sharing of the unpaired (valence) electrons in a bond mimics the stable configuration of the noble gases, whose outer shells are full. Ele¬ ments that can achieve stable configurations by various combinations have more than one valence.

Valencia Autonomous community (pop., 2001: 4,162,776), eastern Spain. Encompassing the provinces of Alicante, Castellon, and Valencia, it covers 8,979 sq mi (23,255 sq km); its capital is the city of Valencia. A generally mountainous region with salt lagoons on the coast, the area was conquered successively by Romans, Visigoths, and Moors. Part of the caliphate of Cordoba (11th century), it subsequently became an indepen¬ dent Moorish kingdom. It was held by the Spanish commander the Cid ( 1094-99); after the Cid’s death Valencia again was lost to the Moors, until King James I of Aragon took it in 1238. One of the richest farming regions in the Mediterranean basin, it produces oranges, rice, grapes, and olives; it also has many manufacturing facilities.

Valencia City (pop., 2001: city, 738,441; metro, area, 1,397,809), capi¬ tal of the autonomous community of Valencia, eastern Spain. First men¬ tioned as a Roman settlement in 138 bc, it was later taken by the Visigoths in ad 413 and the Moors in 714. It became the seat of the newly estab¬ lished independent Moorish kingdom of Valencia in 1021. After 1238 it was part of the dominions of Aragon. The first Spanish printing press was established in Valencia in 1474; during the next two centuries the city was the seat of the Valencian school of painting. It was severely dam¬ aged in the Peninsular War, during the Spanish Civil War, and by flood in 1957. Its port ships agricultural produce and manufactured items.

Valencia City (pop., 2000 est.: 1,338,833), northwestern Venezuela. It is located near the western shore of Lake Valencia. Founded in 1555, it rivaled Caracas as the region’s major city well into the 19th century. In 1814, during the struggle for Venezuela’s independence, it was the site of a bloody battle between Spanish and opposition forces. It served as national capital in 1812, 1830, and 1858. One of Venezuela’s principal industrial and transportation centres, it produces textiles, pharmaceuticals, and automobiles.

Valencia, Lake/ormerfy Tacarigua \,ta-ka-'re-gwa\ Lake, Carabobo and Aragua states, northern Venezuela. Its total area of 141 sq mi (364 sq km) makes it the second largest natural lake in Venezuela, after Lake Maracaibo. It lies in an agricultural region and popular resort area.

Valens (b. c. ad 328—d. Aug. 9, 378) Eastern Roman emperor (364- 378). His older brother, Valentinian I, appointed Valens to be coemperor and assigned him to rule the eastern part of the empire, while Valentinian took the throne in the West. An Arian Christian, Valens persecuted Catho¬ lics and waged war on the pagan Procopius (366), the Visigoths (367- 369), and the Persians (c. 376). When the Visigoths again rebelled against the Romans, Valens’s poor tactics led to his defeat and death in the great Battle of Adrianople.

Valentine, Saint (d. 3rd century, Rome; feast day February 14) Chris¬ tian martyr whose legend inspired the lover’s holiday Valentine’s Day. According to tradition, he was a Roman priest and physician who died during the persecution of Christians by the emperor Claudius II Gothicus and was buried on the Via Flaminia. The priest signed a letter to his jail¬ er’s daughter, whom he had befriended and with whom he had fallen in love, “from your Valentine.” The legend of the bishop of Terni, Italy— also called Valentine and also martyred in Rome—may refer to the same person.

Valentine's Day Lovers’ holiday celebrated on February 14, the feast day of St. Valentine, one of two 3rd-century Roman martyrs of the same name. St. Valentine is considered the patron of lovers and especially of those unhappily in love. The feast day became a lovers’ festival in the 14th century, probably as an extension of pagan love festivals and fertil¬ ity rites celebrated in mid-February. Today it is marked by the exchange of romantic cards (valentines), flowers, and other gifts.

Valentinian I \,va-bn-'ti-ne-3n\ in full Flavius Valentinianus (b.

ad 321, Cibalae, Pannonia—d. Nov. 17, 375, Brigetio, Pannonia Inferior) Roman emperor (364-375). He served in the military in Africa under his father. Proclaimed emperor by the army, he made his brother Valens ruler

in the East while he ruled the West. Both showed religious toleration. Val¬ entinian defeated the Alemanni in Gaul in 365, then moved to support the defense of Britain. He named his nine-year-old son Gratian coemperor (367) to ensure succession. In Germany he fortified the Rhine; he went on to fight the Quadi in Pannonia, where he fell sick and died. Despite his achievements, he was known for his cruelty and poor choice of min¬ isters.

Valentino, Rudolph orig. Rodolfo Guglielmi di Valentina d'Antonguolla (b. May 6, 1895, Castellaneta, Italy—d. Aug. 23, 1926, New York, N.Y., U.S.) Italian-born U.S. film actor. He immigrated to the U.S. in 1913 and worked as a dancer before moving to Hollywood in 1918. He played small parts in movies until his role in The Four Horse¬ men of the Apocalypse (1921) made him a star. His popularity, promoted by skillful press agents, soared among women as he played the handsome, mysterious lover in romantic dramas such as The Sheik (1921), Blood and Sand (1922), The Eagle (1925), and The Son of the Sheik (1926). His sud¬ den death at 31 from a ruptured ulcer caused worldwide hysteria, several suicides, and riots at his funeral.

Valera, Eamon de See Eamon de Valera

Valerian Latin Publius Licinius Valerianus (d. ad 260) Roman emperor (253-260). He served as consul under Severus Alexander (r. 222- 235). Later a commander on the upper Rhine, he supported the emperor Gallus (r. 251-253) in the conflict with a rival emperor but arrived with his legions too late to save Gallus from death at the hands of his own troops. Elected emperor by his soldiers (253), Valerian renewed the per¬ secution of the Christians and executed Pope Sixtus II in 258. After appointing his son Publius Licinius Galuenus to rule the western part of the empire, he marched east to repel the Persian invasion. At first successful, he was later defeated by the Persian king Shapur I and died in captivity.

valerian Any of the more than 400 species of annual and perennial her¬ baceous plants in about 10 genera that make up the family Valerianaceae. A few are outstanding as ornamentals, salad or potherbs, or as sources of medicines and perfumes. Greek valerian is Jacob’s ladder (Polemonium caeruleum ), in the family Polemoniaceae. The true valerians (native to the temperate zones, the Andes Mtns., and Africa) have tubular flowers, often spurred at the base and clustered in tight heads. The largest genus, Valeriana, contains about 200 species and is best known for common valerian (V officinalis), used by modern herbalists to calm the nerves.

Valery \,va-b-'re\, (Ambroise-) Paul (-Toussaint-Jules) (b. Oct. 30, 1871, Sete, France—d. July 20,

1945, Paris) French poet, essayist, and critic. A student of law, Valery wrote many poems during 1888-91, some published in magazines of the Symbolist movement. After 1894 he wrote daily in his notebooks, later published as the famous Cahiers. He revised his early work to create his greatest poem. La Jeune Parque (1917). It was followed by Album de vers anciens, 1890-1900 (1920) and Charmes oupoemes (1922), contain¬ ing “Le Cimetiere marin,” which established him as the outstanding French poet of his time. His works are typically variations on the theme of the tension within the human con¬ sciousness between the desire for contemplation and the will to action.

He later became a prominent public personage, writing many essays and occasional papers on literary topics and taking a great interest in science and political problems.

Valhalla \val-'ha-b, val-'ha-b\ In Germanic religion, the hall of slain warriors who live blissfully under the leadership of Odin. Valhalla is depicted as a splendid palace, roofed with shields, where the warriors feast on the flesh of a boar slaughtered daily and made whole again each evening. They drink liquor that flows from the udders of a goat, and their sport is to fight one another every day, with the slain being revived in the evening. Thus they will live until the Ragnarok, when they will leave Val¬ halla to fight at the side of Odin against the Giants. See also Asgard, Freyja, Valkyrie.

Paul Valery.

EB INC.

© 2006 Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.

validity ► Valparaiso I 1983

validity In logic, the property of an argument consisting in the fact that the truth of the premises logically guarantees the truth of the conclusion. Whenever the premises are true, the conclusion must be true, because of the form of the argument. Some arguments that fail to be valid are accept¬ able on grounds other than formal logic (e.g., inductively strong argu¬ ments), and their conclusions are supported with less than logical necessity. Where the support yields high probability of the conclusion relative to the premises, such arguments are sometimes called inductively valid. In other purportedly persuasive arguments, the premises actually provide no rational grounds for accepting the conclusion; such defective forms of argument are called fallacies (see fallacy, formal and informal).

valine \'va-,len, 'va-,len\ One of the essential amino acids, found in most proteins. Produced industrially by hydrolysis of proteins or by chemical synthesis, it is used in biochemical and nutritional research and as a dietary supplement.

Valium Trademark for a preparation of diazepam. A tranquillizing drug used to treat anxiety and tension states and as an aid in sedation, first introduced in 1963, it belongs to the group of chemically related com¬ pounds called benzodiazepines, the first of which was synthesized in 1933. Side effects include drowsiness and muscular incoordination; physi¬ cal dependence can result after prolonged use. The discovery of Valium and similar drugs led to a new era in psychopharmacology.

Valkyrie \val-'kir-e, 'val-ko-re\ In Germanic religion, any of a group of maidens sent by Odin to select slain warriors worthy of a place in Val¬ halla. They rode to the battlefield on horses or, in some accounts, flew through the air and sea. Some had the power to cause the death of war¬ riors they disliked; others guarded the lives and ships of those they favoured. According to various myths, they were either purely supernatu¬ ral or human with supernatural powers; they were associated with fair¬ ness, brightness, and gold as well as with bloodshed.

Valla \'val-la\, Lorenzo (b. 1407, Rome, Papal States—d. Aug. 1, 1457, Rome) Italian humanist, philosopher, and literary critic. Unable to find a post as a papal secretary, Valla left Rome in 1430 and spent five years traveling in northern Italy. He was royal secretary and historian for Alfonso V of Aragon (1435—48). In his polemical style, he criticized the works of Boethius (for his viewpoint), Aristotle (for his “barbarisms,” among other things), and Cicero (for his prose style). Found heretical by the Inquisition for his refusal to believe that the Apostles’ Creed was com¬ posed by the 12 Apostles, he narrowly avoided being burned at the stake. His Elegantiae linguae Latinae (printed 1471; “Elegances of the Latin Language”) was the first textbook of Latin grammar written since late antiquity. His Annotations on the New Testament (printed 1505) was his last major work.

Valladolid \,va-l3-d9-'lid,\ Spanish \,bal-ya-tho-Teth\ City (pop., 2001: 316,580), capital of the autonomous community of Castile-Leon, Spain. First mentioned in 1074, it was the seat of the Castilian court until c. 1600. The Catholic Monarchs, Isabella of Castile and Ferdinand of Aragon, were married there in 1469. It suffered heavy damage by fire in 1561 and by the French during the Peninsular War. Industry and commerce are eco¬ nomic mainstays. It has many medieval buildings, and its university (founded 1346) is one of Spain’s oldest. Christopher Columbus died in Val¬ ladolid in 1506.

Vallandigham \v3-'lan-di-g3m\, Clement L(aird) (b. July 29,1820, Lisbon, Ohio, U.S.—d. June 17, 1871, Lebanon, Ohio) U.S. politician. He served in the U.S. House of Representatives (1857-63), where he became a leader of the antiwar Copperheads and the secret Knights of the Golden Circle (later Sons of Liberty). As a result of his vociferous criti¬ cism of Pres. Abraham Lincoln’s administration and its pursuit of the American Civil War, he was arrested and found guilty of treasonable sen¬ timents (1863) and was sentenced to exile in the South. He soon made his way to Canada and later illegally to Ohio. While in Canada he was nominated for governor by the Ohio Peace Democrats, but he was easily defeated. He later criticized the Reconstruction policy of the Republicans as both unconstitutional and tyrannical.

Valle d'Aosta \,va-la-da-'6s-t9\ Autonomous region (pop., 2001 pre¬ lim.: 119,356), northwestern Italy. Covering an area of 1,259 sq mi (3,262 sq km), it is enclosed on three sides by the Alps; the capital is Aosta. Originally the territory of the Celtic Salassi, it was annexed by the Romans. After the fall of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century, it formed part of the Burgundian and Frankish kingdoms. It was acquired

in the 11th century by the house of Savoy. The autonomous region of Valle d’Aosta was created in 1945, in recognition of the area’s special French linguistic and cultural orientation. It is important for dairy products and tourism.

Valle-lncldn Vbal-ya-eq-'klanN, Ramon Maria del orig. Ramon Valle y Villanueva de Arosa (b. Oct. 28, 1866, Villanueva de Arosa, Spain—d. Jan. 5, 1936, Santiago de Compostela) Spanish novel¬ ist, playwright, and poet. Early on he was influenced by the Symbolist movement, and his first four works, collectively called the Sonatas (1902- 05), are evocatively written in a tone of refined and elegant decadence. Some later plays and novels take an intentionally absurdist and cruelly satiric tone to express what he saw as the Spanish deformation of Euro¬ pean civilization; representative are the play Bohemian Lights (1921) and the novel The Court of Miracles (1927).

Vallee \'val-e\, Rudy orig. Hubert Prior Vallee (b. July 28, 1901, Island Pond, Vt., U.S.—d. July 3, 1986, North Hollywood, Calif.) U.S. singer and entertainer. He performed as a musician while at Yale Univer¬ sity and in 1928 formed a dance band, the Yale Collegians (later the Con¬ necticut Yankees). A singing bandleader, he used his trademark megaphone to amplify his suave, light-toned voice. He made his screen debut in The Vagabond Lover (1929) and evolved into a light comedian and character actor. On radio he hosted the first major network variety hour. The Rudy Vallee Show (1929-43), and discovered new talent such as Alice Faye and Edgar Bergen.

Vallejo \v9-'la-o\ City (pop., 2000: 116,760), western California, U.S. It is located on San Pablo Bay, near Oakland. Settled in 1850, it served as the state capital for seven days in January 1852 and for a month in 1853. The Mare Island Naval Shipyard (established 1854; closed 1996) ensured the city’s survival. It is now a commuter and transportation hub for the North Bay Area. It is home to the California Maritime Academy (founded 1929).

Valletta \vo-Te-to\ Seaport city (pop., 1999 est.: 7,100), capital of Malta. It is located on a rocky promontory with harbours on either side. Built after the Great Siege of Malta (1565), which checked the advance of Ottoman power in southern Europe, it was named after Jean Parisot de la Valette, grand master of the Knights of Malta. It became the Maltese capital in 1570. After 1814 it was made the principal base of the British Mediterranean naval fleet and remained important through World War II, during which it suffered heavy damage from bombing raids. Several 16th- century buildings still exist. The city’s economy relies mainly on trade and tourism.

valley Elongate depression of the Earth’s surface. Valleys are commonly drained by rivers and may be in a relatively flat plain or between ranges of hills or mountains. Valleys formed by rivers and slope denudation are typically V-shaped; those formerly occupied by glaciers are characteris¬ tically U-shaped. Valley evolution is controlled mainly by climate and rock type. Very narrow, deep valleys cut in resistant rock and having steep, almost vertical sides are called canyons. Smaller valleys of similar appear¬ ance are called gorges.

Valley Forge National Historical Park Preserve, southeastern Pennsylvania, U.S. The 3,468-ac (1,404-ha) park commemorates the site where Gen. George Washington camped with his Continental Army in the winter of 1777-78 during the American Revolution. The park was established in 1976.

Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes See Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes

Valley of the Kings See Valley of the Kings

Valois \val-'wa\ Medieval county and duchy, northern France. It corre¬ sponds to the southeastern quarter of the modem departement of Oise, with an adjacent portion of Aisne. It was under the Merovingian kings (c. 500-751) and their successors, the Carolingians, until it became a heredi¬ tary countship. In 1214 King Philip II Augustus annexed it to the royal domain. The duchy’s last representative, Henry III, was succeeded in 1589 by the house of Bourbon. In 1790 it was abolished in the redivision of France into departement s.

Valois, Ninette de See Ninette de Valois

Valparaiso V.val-po-'ri-zoV City (pop., 2002 est.: 262,000) and port, central Chile. It was founded by the Spanish in 1536; few of its colonial

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1984 I value-added tax ► Van Cortlandt

buildings have survived a succession of pirate raids, storms, fires, floods, and earthquakes. After Chilean independence in 1818, the city’s port developed with the growth of the Chilean navy. In 1884 a treaty was signed there by which Bolivia ceded to Chile a coastal region containing principal nitrate deposits (see War of the Pacific). As Chile’s principal seaport, it handles the bulk of the country’s imports, and it is still a naval facility. It also produces chemicals and textiles. Chile’s bicameral parlia¬ ment, the National Congress, has been situated there since it was rees¬ tablished in 1990.

value-added tax (VAT) Government levy on the amount a firm adds to the price of a goods or services as value is added—that is, at each step of their production and distribution. In the most common method of cal¬ culation, the seller subtracts the sum of taxes paid on items being pur¬ chased from the sum of all taxes that have been collected on the items being sold; the net tax liability is the difference between the tax collected and the tax paid. The burden of the value-added tax, like that of other sales TAxes, tends to be passed on to the consumer. To limit the VAT’s regressiveness, most countries set lower rates for consumer necessities than for luxury items. In 1954 France became the first country to adopt the value-added tax on a large scale. Though complex to calculate, the tax served as an improvement on earlier systems by which a product was taxed repeatedly at every stage of production and distribution. It has since been adopted throughout much of Europe and in many countries in South America, Asia, and Africa. All European Union member countries have a VAT. See also regressive tax.

valve In mechanical engineering, a device for controlling the flow of fluids (liquids, gases, slurries) in a pipe or other enclosure. It exerts con¬ trol by means of a movable element that opens, shuts, or partially blocks an opening in a passageway. Valves are of seven main types: globe, gate, needle, plug (cock), butterfly, poppet, and spool. Some valves operate automatically; check (or nonreturn) valves, for example, are self-acting valves that permit flow in only one direction. Safety valves open at a pre¬ determined pressure; the movable element usually has a weighted lever or a spring strong enough to hold the valve closed until a particular pres¬ sure is reached.

bonnet

seat

A globe valve controls the flow of a fluid through a pipe, inlet, or outlet. To stop the flow completely, the threaded stem is turned to lower a sealing gasket onto the seat.

© MERRIAM-WEBSTER INC.

vampire In popular legend, a bloodsucking creature that rises from its burial place at night, sometimes in the form of a bat, to drink the blood of humans. By daybreak it must return to its grave or to a coffin filled with its native earth. Tales of vampires are part of the world’s folklore, most notably in Hungary and the Balkan Peninsula. The disinterment in Serbia in 1725 and 1732 of several fluid-filled corpses that villagers claimed were behind a plague of vampirism led to widespread interest and imaginative treatment of vampirism throughout western Europe. Vampires are supposedly dead humans (originally suicides, heretics, or criminals) who maintain a kind of life by biting the necks of living humans

and sucking their blood; their vic¬ tims also become vampires after death. These “undead” creatures cast no shadow and are not reflected in mirrors. They can be warded off by crucifixes or wreaths of garlic and can be killed by exposure to the sun or by an oak stake driven through the heart. The most famous vampire is Count Dracula from Bram Stoker’s novel Dracula (1897).

vampire bat Any of three species (family Desmodontidae) of tailless, brown, blood-eating bats native to the New World tropics. They grow to 2-3.5 in. (6-9 cm) long and weigh 0.5-2 oz (15-50 g). They run swiftly and leap with agility. They live in colonies in caves, hollow trees, and culverts, leaving after dark to forage low on the ground. They feed on quietly resting birds and mammals, including the occasional human, mak¬ ing a small cut with their sharp incisor teeth, often without disturbing the prey, and lapping the blood. The wounds are not serious but may trans¬ mit rabies or other diseases.

Van City (pop., 1997: 226,965), eastern Turkey, on the eastern shore of Lake Van. The ruins of stone buildings there date from the 8th century bc, when it was the chief centre of the kingdom of Urartu. After the fall of Nineveh (612 bc), it was occupied in succession by the Medes, the kings of Pontus, Arabs (7th century ad), and Armenians (8th century ad). It fell to the Seljuq dynasty after 1071 ad and to the Ottoman Empire in 1543. Russian forces held it (1915-17) during World War I. It has a large Kurdish population. It once had a large Armenian population that was brutally expelled following the war (see Armenian massacres). Van is a shipping point for hides, grains, fruits, and vegetables.

Van, Lake Salt lake, eastern Anatolia. The largest lake in Turkey, it covers an area of 1,434 sq mi (3,713 sq km) and is more than 74 mi (119 km) across at its widest point. Its greatest depth exceeds 330 ft (100 m). It is fed by precipitation and meltwater as well as by several small tribu¬ taries. It has no apparent outlet, and its brackish waters are unsuitable for either drinking or irrigation.

Van Allen radiation belts Two doughnut-shaped zones of highly energetic charged particles (see electric charge) trapped at high altitudes in Earth’s magnetic field. Named for James A. Van Allen (b. 1914), who discovered them in 1958, they are most intense over the Equator and effectively absent above the poles. The two zones merge gradually, with the flux of charged particles showing two regions of maximum density. The inner one, mostly protons thought to be produced by primary cosmic rays striking the atmosphere, is centred about 3,700 mi (6,000 km) above Earth’s surface. The outer region includes some helium ions from the solar wind and is centred about 12,500 mi (20,000 km) above Earth’s sur¬ face. Intense solar activity (see solar cycle) causes disruptions of the belts, linked in turn with such phenomena as auroras and magnetic storms.

Van Buren, Martin (b. Dec. 5, 1782, Kinderhook, N.Y., U.S.—d. July 24, 1862, Kinderhook) Eighth president of the U.S. (1837-41). He served in the New York Senate (1812-20) and as state attorney general (1816-19). An informal group of his political supporters came to be known as the Albany Regency because they dominated state politics even while Van Buren was in Washington. He was elected to the U.S. Senate (1821-28), where he supported states' rights and opposed a strong central government. After John Quincy Adams became president, he joined with Andrew Jack- son and others to form a group that later became the Democratic Party. He was elected governor of New York (1828) but resigned to become U.S. sec¬ retary of state (1829-31). He was nominated for vice president at the first Democratic Party convention (1832) and served under Jackson (1833-37). As Jackson’s chosen successor, he defeated William H. Harrison to win the 1836 election. His presidency was marked by an economic depression, the Maine-Canada border dispute (see Aroostook War), the Seminole Wars in Florida, and debate over the annexation of Texas. He was defeated in his bid for reelection and failed to win the Democratic nomination in 1844 because of his antislavery views. In 1848 he was nominated for president by the Free Soil Party but failed to win the election and retired.

Van Cortlandt, Stephanus (b. May 7, 1643, New Amsterdam—d. Nov. 25, 1700, New York City) American colonial official. He was a

Bela Lugosi with Frances Dade in Drac¬ ula (1931).

COURTESY OF UNIVERSAL PICTURES; PHOTOGRAPH, THE BETTMANN ARCHIVE

© 2006 Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.

Van de Graaff ► Vancouver I 1985

wealthy merchant in New Amsterdam. After the colony came under Brit¬ ish rule (1664), he was appointed to the governor’s council (1674). He became the first native-born mayor of New York City (1677, 1686-87) and later served as associate justice and chief justice of the New York supreme court (1691-1700).

Van de Graaff, Robert i(emison) (b. Dec. 20, 1901, Tuscaloosa, Ala., U.S.—d. Jan. 16, 1967, Boston, Mass.) U.S. physicist. He worked as an engineer, then as a physics researcher at the University of Oxford (1925- 29). From 1931 he continued his research at MIT, as a professor (1934-60). He developed a high-voltage electrostatic generator (later called the Van de Graaff generator) that served as a type of particle accelerator. In 1946 he cofounded the High Voltage Engineering Coip. to manufacture his accel¬ erator. Widely used in atomic research, the device was also adapted to pro¬ duce high-energy X rays for medical and industrial uses.

van de Velde, Henri See Henri van de Velde

van de Velde, Willem, the Elder See Willem van de Velde the Elder

van der Goes, Hugo See Hugo van der Goes

van der Rohe, Ludwig Mies See Ludwig Mies van der Rohe

van der Waals Vvan-dor-.wolzV Johannes Diederik (b. Nov. 23, 1837, Leiden, Neth.—d. March 9, 1923, Amsterdam) Dutch physicist. As professor at the University of Amsterdam (1877-1907), he extended the classical ideal-gas law (see gas laws) to describe the behaviour of real gases, deriving the van der Waals equation of state in 1881. His work led to the liquefying of several common gases and made possible the study of temperatures near absolute zero. The van der Waals forces were named in his honour. He received a 1910 Nobel Prize.

van der Waals forces Relatively weak electrical forces that attract neutral (uncharged) molecules to each other in GAses, liquefied and solidi¬ fied gases, and almost all organic liquids and solids. Solids held together by van der Waals forces typically have lower melting points and are softer than those held together by ionic, covalent, or metallic bonds (see bond¬ ing). The forces arise because neutral molecules, though uncharged, are usually electric dipoles, which have a tendency to align with each other and to induce further polarization in neighbouring molecules, resulting in a net attractive force. They are somewhat weaker than the forces involved in hydrogen bonding. See also Johannes D. van der Waals.

van der Weyden, Rogier See Rogier van der Weyden

Van Der Zee, James (Augustus Joseph) (b. June 29, 1886, Lenox, Mass., U.S.—d. May 15, 1983, Washington, D.C.) U.S. photog¬ rapher. In 1906 he moved with his family to Harlem in New York City. After a brief stint at a portrait studio in Newark, N.J., he returned to Har¬ lem to set up his own studio. The portraits he took from 1918 to 1945 chronicled the Harlem Renaissance; among his many renowned subjects were Countee Cullen, Bill Robinson, and Marcus Garvey. After World War II his fortunes declined until the Metropolitan Museum of Art exhibited his photographs in 1969.

van Doesburg, Theo See Theo van Doesburg

Van Doren, Carl (Clinton) and Mark (respectively b. Sept. 10, 1885, Hope, Ill., U.S.—d. July 18, 1950, Torrington, Conn.; b. June 13, 1894, Hope, Ill.—d. Dec. 10, 1972, Torrington, Conn.) U.S. writers and teachers. Carl, who taught at Columbia University from 1911 to 1930, edited the Cambridge History of American Literature (1917-21) and jour¬ nals. His critical works include the biography Benjamin Franklin (1938, Pulitzer Prize). Mark taught at Columbia from 1920 to 1959. He pub¬ lished more than 20 volumes of verse, including Spring Thunder (1924) and Collected Poems (1922-38) (1939, Pulitzer Prize). He wrote three novels and several volumes of short stories and edited anthologies. His literary criticism includes works on John Dryden, William Shakespeare, and Nathaniel Hawthorne as well as Introduction to Poetry (1951), which examines shorter classic poems of English and American literature.

Van Dyck \van-'dlk\, Sir Anthony (b. March 22, 1599, Antwerp, Belg.—d. Dec. 9, 1641, London, Eng.) Flemish painter. Son of a well- to-do silk merchant, he was apprenticed to an Antwerp painter at 10. He soon came under the influence of Peter Paul Rubens, for his early works are painted in Rubens’s Baroque style, though with darker and warmer colour, more abrupt chiaroscuro, and more angular figures. He was a master in the Antwerp artists’ guild by 19, at which time he was also working with Rubens. He spent over five years in Italy (1621-27); on his

return, he received many commissions for altarpieces and portraits. He also executed works on mythological subjects and was a fine draftsman and etcher, but he is chiefly known for his portraits, in which he ideal¬ ized his models without sacrificing their individuality. In Britain in 1632, he was appointed court painter by Charles I. He gained a comfortable income from the many portraits he painted in Britain, and his life matched his clients’ in luxury. His influence was pervasive and lasting; Flemish, Dutch, and German portraitists imitated his style and technique, and the 18th-century English portraitists, especially Thomas Gainsborough and Joshua Reynolds, were deeply indebted to him.

Van Dyke, Dick orig. Richard Wayne Van Dyke (b. Dec. 13, 1925, West Plains, Mo., U.S.) U.S. actor and comedian. In 1947-53 he played in nightclubs with his pantomime act, “The Merry Mutes,” before making his Broadway debut in 1959. He starred in the musical Bye Bye Birdie (1960-61, Tony Award; film, 1963), and then in the successful television comedy series The Dick Van Dyke Show (1961-66)—winning several Emmy Awards— The New Dick Van Dyke Show (1971-74), and the drama series Diagnosis Murder (1993-2001). He has starred in such movies as Mary Poppins (1964) and Chitty, Chitty, Bang, Bang (1968).

van Eyck, Jan See Jan van Eyck

van Gogh, Vincent See Vincent van Gogh

Van Heusen \van-'hyu-z9n\, Jimmy orig. Edward Chester Bab¬ cock (b. Jan. 26, 1913, Syracuse, N.Y., U.S.—d. Feb. 7, 1990, Rancho Mirage, Calif.) U.S. songwriter. He began working in radio in his teens. In the early 1930s he worked in Tin Pan Alley and later collaborated on songs such as “Darn That Dream” and “Polka Dots and Moonbeams.” With Johnny Burke he wrote the songs for 23 Bing Crosby films. In 1954 he began collaborating with Sammy Cahn. He composed 76 songs for his friend Frank Sinatra, including “The Tender Trap” and “Come Fly with Me,” and won Academy Awards for “Swinging on a Star,” “All the Way,” “High Hopes,” and “Call Me Irresponsible.”

van Ostade, Adriaen See Adriaen van Ostade

vanadium \v9-'na-de-3m\ Metallic chemical element, one of the transi¬ tion elements, chemical symbol V, atomic number 23. A silvery white, soft metal found (always combined) in various minerals, coal, and petroleum, it is used in alloys with steel and iron for high-speed tool steel, high-strength low-alloy steel, and wear-resistant cast iron. Unalloyed, it is used in high- temperature applications, as a target in X-ray applications, and as a cata¬ lyst. Its compounds, in which it has various valences, have many beautiful colours in solution and are used as catalysts and mordants (see dye).

Vanbrugh Vvan-.briik, van-'bru. Sir John (baptized Jan. 24, 1664, London, Eng.—d. March 26, 1726, London) English dramatist and archi¬ tect. He began writing while serving as a soldier. He specialized in the comedy of manners; his successful plays include The Relapse (1696) and The Provok’d Wife (1697). He also wrote lively adaptations from the French, more farce than comedy, including The Country House (per¬ formed 1703) and The Confederacy (1705). In 1702 he designed Castle Howard, Yorkshire, with Nicholas Hawksmoor (1661-1736). His master¬ piece, again with Hawksmoor, was Blenheim Palace (1705-16), Oxford¬ shire, which brought the English baroque style to its culmination.

Vance, Cyrus (Roberts) (b. March 27, 1917, Clarksburg, W.Va., U.S.—d. Jan. 12, 2002, New York, N.Y.) U.S. public official. After receiv¬ ing his law degree from Yale University in 1942, he enlisted in the navy and served until 1946, when he joined a law firm in New York City. He was appointed general counsel for the U.S. Department of Defense in 1960. In 1962 he became secretary of the army, and in 1963 Pres. Lyn¬ don B. Johnson named him deputy secretary of defense. Initially a vig¬ orous supporter of U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War, his viewed changed after his resignation in 1967, and by 1968 he was urging Johnson to stop the bombing of North Vietnam. In that year he was sent to Paris with W. Averell Harriman to negotiate peace with the North Vietnamese. As secretary of state (1977-80) under Pres. Jimmy Carter, he worked to obtain the Strategic Arms Limitation Talks II (SALT II) arms-control treaty and was instrumental in the Camp David accords. He resigned in 1980 in protest of Carter’s plan to send a secret military mission to rescue Ameri¬ can hostages held in Tehran, Iran (see Iran hostage crisis).

Vancouver City (pop., 2001: metro, area, 1,986,965), southwestern British Columbia, Canada. Located on a fine natural harbour, it originated as a lumber-processing settlement in the 1870s. It recovered from a disas-

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1986 I Vancouver ► Vanuatu

trous fire (1886) to become Canada’s principal seaport. Its development was aided by completion of the transcontinental railroad in 1887 and the opening of the Panama Canal in 1914, which made it economically fea¬ sible to export grain and lumber from Vancouver to the North American east coast and Europe. Economic activities include producing lumber and plywood, oil refining, fishing, and shipbuilding.

Vancouver, George (b. June 22, 1757, King’s Lynn, Norfolk, Eng.—d. May 10, 1798, Richmond, Surrey) English navigator. He entered the Royal Navy at age 13 and sailed with James Cook on his second and third voyages (1772-75, 1776-79) to the Pacific. In 1791 he commanded an expedition that explored the coasts of Australia, New Zealand, Tahiti, and Hawaii before reaching the Pacific coast of North America in 1792; over the next two years he meticulously mapped a major portion of the coast. His maps and a lengthy account of his voyages were published in

Vancouver Vvan-'ku-varX Island Island (pop., 2001: 705,000) off southwestern British Columbia, Canada. It is the largest island (12,079 sq mi [31,285 sq km]) on the Pacific coast of North America. It has several peaks of more than 7,000 ft (2,100 m), as well as several fine harbours. The chief city is Victoria. It was inhabited by coastal Indians for several millennia before it was visited by early Spanish and English explorers, including Capt. James Cook in 1778. It was surveyed in 1792 by George Vancouver and was held by the Hudson's Bay Co. until it was made a Brit¬ ish crown colony in 1849. It united with British Columbia in 1866. The island’s main industries include lumbering, fishing, agriculture, and tour¬ ism.

Vandal Any member of a Germanic people who ruled a kingdom in North Africa from 429 to 534 and who sacked Rome in 455. Fleeing westward from the Huns, they invaded Gaul before settling in Spain (409). Under King Gaiseric (r. 428^477) they migrated to North Africa and became federates of Rome (435). Four years later Gaiseric threw off Roman overlordship and captured Carthage. The Vandals later annexed Sardinia, Corsica, and Sicily, and their pirate fleets controlled much of the western Mediterranean. When they invaded Italy and captured Rome (455), they plundered the city and its artworks, and their name has remained a synonym for willful desecration and destruction. The Vandals were Arian Christians (see Arianism) who persecuted Roman Catholics in Africa. They were conquered when the Byzantines invaded North Africa

(533-534).

Vandenberg, Arthur H(endrick) (b. March 22, 1884, Grand Rap¬ ids, Mich., U.S.—d. April 18, 1951, Grand Rapids) U.S. politician. Edi¬ tor of the Grand Rapids Herald (1906-28), he was elected as a Republican to the U.S. Senate (1928-51). He was a critic of Pres. Franklin D. Roosevelt’s foreign policy but revised his isolationist position after the attack on Pearl Harbor. In a 1945 Senate speech he advocated U.S. par¬ ticipation in international alliances, and he was a delegate to the UN orga¬ nizing conference. He led Republican congressional support for legislative measures introduced by Pres. Harry Truman, including the Mar¬ shall Plan, the Truman Doctrine, and NATO.

Vanderbilt, Cornelius (b. May 27, 1794, Port Richmond, Staten Island, N.Y., U.S.—d. Jan. 4,1877, New York, N.Y.) U.S. shipping and rail¬ road magnate. He began a passenger ferry business in New York harbour in 1810 with one boat; he added several others during the War of 1812 in order to supply government outposts. He sold his boats to work as a steamship captain (1818-29), then started his own steamship company on the Hudson River. By cutting fares and offering luxurious accommodations, he soon controlled the river traffic. He then provided transportation along the east¬ ern seacoast. By 1846 he was a millionaire. He formed the Accessory Tran¬ sit Co. to transport passengers and freight from New York to the California gold fields via Nicaragua. He again undercut his competitors, and they bought him out at a high price (1858). Turning to railroads, he acquired controlling stock in the New York and Harlem Railroad. After losing a battle for control of the Erie Railroad (1868), he bought and consolidated the Hudson River and the New York Central railroads (1869). After buying the Lake Shore and Michigan Southern Railroad (1873), he provided the first rail service between New York and Chicago. At his death, he had a fortune of more than $100 million, the largest sum accumulated in the U.S. to that date. He gave $1 million to Central University (later Vanderbilt Uni¬ versity). He left almost all the rest to his son William H. Vanderbilt (1821— 85), who greatly expanded the New York Central network, acquired other railroads, and doubled the family fortune.

Vanderbilt University Private university in Nashville, Tennessee, U.S. It was founded in 1873 and named for benefactor Cornelius Vander¬ bilt. Baccalaureate degrees are awarded through its college of arts and sci¬ ences, school of engineering, and school of music. Master’s, doctoral, and professional degree programs are offered through these and other schools, such as Vanderbilt’s graduate school, divinity school, and schools of law, management, medicine, and nursing. Research institutes include centres for the study of education and human development, public policy, and the humanities.

Vanderlyn, John (b. Oct. 15, 1776, Kingston, N.Y., U.S.—d. Sept. 23, 1852, Kingston) U.S. painter. He studied with Gilbert Stuart and later at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts. He remained in Paris, where he enjoyed great popularity for his paintings in the Neoclassical style (including Ariadne Asleep on Naxos, 1812). At age 40 he returned to the U.S., but failing to receive the federal commissions he had anticipated, he retired embittered to Kingston. In 1832 he finally received a government commission for a full-length portrait of George Washington and in 1839 another for The Landing of Columbus in the U.S. Capitol Rotunda.

Vane, Sir Henry known as Sir Henry Vane the Younger (b.

1613—d. June 14, 1662, London, Eng.) English politician. Son of the royal adviser Henry Vane the Elder (1589-1655), he was converted to Puritanism and in 1635 sailed to New England, where he served as gov¬ ernor of Massachusetts (1636-37). After returning to England, he became treasurer of the navy (1639), then served with his father in the Long Par¬ liament, where they helped secure the impeachment of Thomas Wentworth, 1st earl of Strafford. The chief English negotiator of the Solemn League and Covenant, Vane became leader of the House of Commons (from 1643) and a member of the Commonwealth’s Council of State (1649-53). After the Restoration, he was arrested, imprisoned (1660-62), and executed for treason.

Vanern Vva-nsmX Lake, southwestern Sweden. The largest lake in Swe¬ den and the third largest in Europe, it is about 90 mi (145 km) long, as much as 322 ft (98 m) deep, and covers an area of 2,156 sq mi (5,585 sq km). Fed by numerous rivers, it drains into the Kattegat strait via the Gota River.

Vanguard Any of three unmanned U.S. experimental satellites. Van¬ guard I (1958), the second U.S. satellite placed in orbit around Earth (after Explorer 1), was a tiny 3.25-lb (1.47-kg) sphere with two radio transmit¬ ters. Its flight path revealed that Earth is almost imperceptibly pear- shaped, confirming earlier theories. Vanguard II (1959) carried light- sensitive photocells to provide information about Earth’s cloud cover, but its tumbling motion rendered the data unreadable. Vanguard III (1959) was used to map Earth’s magnetic field.

vanilla Any member of a group of tropical climbing orchids that make up the genus Vanilla, and the flavouring agent extracted from its seed- pods. The plant has a long, fleshy climbing stem that attaches itself by aerial rootlets to trees; roots also penetrate the soil. Numerous flowers open a few at a time and last only a day. The fruit, a bean pod about 8 in. (20 cm) long at maturity, is harvested as soon as it turns golden green at the base. Curing and processing turn the pods a deep chocolate brown. Vanilla is used in a variety of sweet foods and beverages as well as in perfumery.

Vanir \'va-,nir\ In Germanic religion, the group of gods responsible for wealth, fertility, and commerce. They included Njord and his children, Freyr and Freyja, among others. They were originally subordinate to the warlike Aesir, but, after defeating the Aesir in battle, they were granted equal status. The Vanir sent Njord and Freyr to live with the Aesir and received Hoenir and Mimir in exchange. The birth of Kvasir resulted from the peace ritual between the two groups.

Vanua Levu V.van-.wa-'la-viA Island (pop., including adjacent islands, 1996: 139,526), Fiji. Fiji’s second largest island, it is 2,137 sq mi (5,535 sq km) in area. Sighted by the Dutch navigator Abel Janszoon Tasman in 1643, the volcanic Vanua Levu (meaning “Great Land”) has a central mountain range, culminating at Mount Nasorolevu (3,386 ft [1,032 m]), which divides the island into wet and dry sections. The chief river is the Ndreketi.

Vanuatu V.van-wa-'tiiX officially Republic of Vanuatu Island coun¬ try, South Pacific Ocean. It consists of a chain of 13 principal and many smaller islands. Area: 4,707 sq mi (12,190 sq km). Population (2005 est.): 211,000. Capital: Vila. The population is nearly all indigenous Melane-

© 2006 Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.

vapor lamp ► variation I 1987

sian. Languages: Bislama, English, French (ah official); Melanesian lan¬ guages and dialects. Religions: Christianity (mostly Protestant; also Roman Catholic); also traditional beliefs. Currency: vatu. Extending north-south some 400 mi (650 km), Vanuatu includes the islands of Espiritu Santo, Pentecost (Pentecote), Malakula, Efate, Ambrym, Erromango, Tanna, Aoba, Epi, and Maewo. The larger islands are volcanic in origin and mountainous; there are several active volcanoes. Some of them, espe¬ cially Efate and Malakula, have good harbours. The highest point is Mount Tabwemasana (6,165 ft [1,879 m]) on Espiritu Santo. The devel¬ oping free-market economy is based mainly on agriculture, cattle raising, and fishing. Tourism is increasingly important. Vanuatu is a republic with a single legislative house; its chief of state is the president, and the head of government is the prime minister. The islands were inhabited for at least 3,000 years by Melanesian peoples before being discovered in 1606 by the Portuguese. They were rediscovered by French navigator Louis- Antoine de Bougainville in 1768, then explored by English mariner Capt. James Cook in 1774 and named New Hebrides. Sandalwood merchants and European missionaries arrived in the mid-19th century; they were followed by British and French cotton planters. Control of the islands was sought by both the French and British, who agreed in 1906 to form a con¬ dominium government. During World War II a major Allied naval base was on Espiritu Santo; Vanuatu escaped Japanese invasion. New Hebrides became the independent Republic of Vanuatu in 1980. Much of its his¬ tory since then has been marked by political instability.

vapor lamp See electric discharge lamp

vaporization Conversion of a substance from the liquid or solid phase into the gaseous (see gas), or vapour, phase. It includes boiling, in which vapour bubbles form in a liquid, and sublimation, in which a solid is con¬ verted directly to vapour. Vaporization requires that HEAT (the substance’s latent heat of vaporization) be supplied to the liquid or solid; the same amount of heat is released by the substance in condensation, the reverse of vaporization. If the surroundings do not supply enough heat, the tem¬ perature of the remaining substance undergoing vaporization drops. See also evaporation.

Varanasi \va-'ra-n3-se\ or Benares Vbo-'nar-osV City (pop., 2001 pre¬ lim.: 1,100,748), Uttar Pradesh, India. Located on the Ganges River in southeastern Uttar Pradesh, it is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world and was the site of an Aryan settlement before the 2nd millennium bc. It is one of the seven sacred cities of Hinduism and has numerous shrines, temples, and palaces and miles of steps for ritual bath¬ ing. More than a million Hindus visit the city each year. Just north of Varanasi is Sarnath, where the Buddha delivered his first sermon.

Vardan Mamikonian Vvar-don-.ma-mi-'ko-ne-onV, Saint (died 451) Armenian military commander. The Persian attempt to impose Zoro¬ astrianism on the Armenians provoked a rebellion, which ended when Var¬ dan and his companions were slain at the Battle of Avarayr. Despite their victory the Persians renounced their plans to convert Armenia by force, and they deposed the traitorous Armenian governor.

Vardon, Harry (b. May 9, 1870, Grouville, Jersey, Channel Islands—d. March 20, 1937, Totteridge, Hertfordshire, Eng.) British golfer. While working as a manservant for an affluent amateur golfer on the island of Jersey, Vardon learned golf, and he turned professional at age 20. A technical innovator, he won the British Open six times (1896, 1898, 1899, 1903, 1911, and 1914) and the U.S. Open once (1900). The Vardon Trophy is awarded annually by the Professional Golfers’ Asso¬ ciation of America to the profes¬ sional with the best scoring average.

Varese \va-'rez\, Edgard (-Victor-Achille-Charles) (b.

Dec. 22, 1883, Paris, France—d.

Nov. 8, 1965, New York, N.Y., U.S.)

French-born U.S. composer. Forbid¬ den to study music by his father, he secretly continued his studies and entered the Schola Cantorum with the help of his cousin, the pianist Alfred Cortot (1877-1962). He soon moved to Berlin, where he met Fer¬ ruccio Busoni and Richard Strauss, musicians in tune with his forward¬

looking ideas. His Bourgogne (1907) caused a scandal because of its dis¬ sonance. His budding conducting career was interrupted by World War I, and he moved to the U.S. In 1921 he cofounded the International Com¬ posers Guild. His output was small, but every piece became a classic, including Ojfrandes, Ameriques (both 1921), Hyperprism, Octandre (both 1923), Arcana (1927), and Ionisation (1931), works remarkable for the way they used instruments, especially percussion, to create blocks of sound. After the early 1950s, when he finally gained access to the elec¬ tronic sound equipment he desired, he concentrated on electronic music.

Vargas Vvar-gos\, Getulio (Dorneles) (b. April 19,1883, Sao Borja, Braz.—d. Aug. 24, 1954, Rio de Janeiro) President of Brazil (1930-45, 1951-54). He was elected governor of Rio Grande do Sul in 1928 and ran unsuccessfully for president in 1930, but later that year he overthrew the government to become head of state. In 1937 he abolished the constitu¬ tional government and set up the totalitarian New State, under which the previously autonomous states became dependent on central authority. He enacted labour reforms and social-security laws, introduced extensive educational reforms, enfranchised women, and granted the secret ballot. Deposed by a coup in 1945, he was elected president again in 1951; restrained by a congress and public opinion, he was unable to hold sup¬ port and, faced with forced retirement, took his own life.

Vargas Llosa \'bar-gas-'yo-sa\, (Jorge) Mario (Pedro) (b. March 28, 1936, Arequipa, Peru) Peruvian writer. Vargas Llosa worked as a jour¬ nalist and broadcaster before publishing The Time of the Hero (1963), his widely acclaimed first novel. It describes adolescents striving for survival in the hostile environment of a military school, the corruption of which reflects the larger malaise afflicting Peru. His commitment to social change is evident in his early novels, essays, and plays. He turned increas¬ ingly conservative, especially in the face of the Maoist Shining Path insur¬ gency, and in 1990 he ran for president of Peru. His best-known works include The Green House (1965), Aunt Julia and the Scriptwriter (1977), and The War of the End of the World (1981), an account of a 19th-century Brazilian religious movement. In 1994 he won the Cervantes Prize (a prestigious literary award given for Spanish-language literature).

variable In algebra, a symbol (usually a letter) standing in for an unknown numerical value in an equation. Commonly used variables include x and y (real-number unknowns), z (complex-number unknowns), t (time), r (radius), and s (arc length). Variables should be distinguished from coefficients, fixed values that multiply powers of variables in poly¬ nomials and algebraic equations. In the quadratic equation ax 2 + bx + c = 0, x is the variable, and a, b, and c are coefficients whose values must be specified to solve the equation. In translating word problems into alge¬ braic equations, quantities to be determined can be represented by vari¬ ables.

variable, complex See complex variable variable, random See random variable

variable star Star whose observed brightness varies noticeably in intensity. Pulsating variables expand and contract in cycles, pulsating rhythmically in brightness and size. Explosive variables include novas and supernovas, which brighten rapidly due to sudden outbursts of radi¬ ant energy; the increased brightness lasts a short time, followed by rela¬ tively slow dimming. Eclipsing variable stars are variable only because light from one star is blocked by another in Earth’s direction. Hundreds of thousands of variable stars are known. See also binary star; Cepheid vari¬ able; flare star; pulsar; T Tauri star.

variation In biology, any difference between cells, individual organ¬ isms, or groups of organisms within a species caused either by genetic differences (variation in genotype) or by the effect of environmental fac¬ tors on the expression of genetic potentials (variation in phenotype). Varia¬ tion may be shown in physical appearance, metabolism, fertility, mode of reproduction, behaviour, learning and mental ability, and other obvious or measurable characters. Genotypic variations are caused by differences in number or structure of chromosomes or by differences in the genes carried by the chromosomes. Eye colour, body form, and disease resistance are genotypic variations. Phenotypic variations may result from factors such as climate, food supply, and actions of other organisms. Phenotypic varia¬ tions also include stages in an organism’s life cycle and seasonal varia¬ tions in an individual. Because they do not involve hereditary alteration and in general are not transmitted to future generations, phenotypic varia¬ tions are not important in evolution. See also polymorphism.

Edgard Varese.

THE BETTMANN ARCHIVE

© 2006 Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.

1988 I variation ► Vasari

variation In music, basic technique consisting of changing the music melodically, harmonically, or contrapuntally. The simplest variation type is the variation set, in which two or more sections are based on the same musical material, which is treated with different variational techniques in each section. The practice, originally involving use of a repeated bass line (basso ostinato, or ground bass), began in early 16th-century dance music in Italy and Spain. Ground-bass forms include the chaconne and passa- caglia, both of which usually employ a brief bass line repeated many times. In the 17th century, organ and harpsichord variations became a standard form in Germany. Keyboard variations in the 19th century often employed popular tunes or opera melodies; variation form was also com¬ monly used in symphonies, quartets, and sonatas. It declined in impor¬ tance after the classical era but has never ceased to be employed by composers. The music of certain non-Western cultures also uses varia¬ tional techniques. The art music of southern India is built on the concept of a string of pieces, each a variation on a given “theme.” A somewhat different concept of multilevel variation is found in the gamelan (orches¬ tra) music of Indonesia. The variations are not consecutive but are simul¬ taneous, a technique called heterophony.

varicella See chicken pox

varicose Vvar-o-.kosV vein or varix Twisted vein distended with blood. Varix also covers arteries and lymphatic vessels (see lymphatic sys¬ tem). Varicose veins occur mostly in the legs, when malfunctioning valves let blood pool in veins near the skin. Causes include hereditary valve and vein wall weakness and internal or external pressure on veins. Varices are common in pregnancy, suggesting that hormone abnormalities play a role. Symptoms include a heavy feeling, with leg cramps and swelling after standing a long time. Complications include skin ulcers and thrombosis. Treatment involves strong support hose, injection therapy, or surgery. Varices in the esophagus, which often occur in liver disease, can ulcerate and bleed. See also hemorrhoid.

variety theatre See music hall and variety theatre variola See smallpox

Varmus, Harold (Elliot) (b. Dec. 18, 1939, Oceanside, N.Y., U.S.) U.S. virologist. He joined the faculty of UC-San Francisco in 1970. With J. Michael Bishop, he discovered that, under certain circumstances, normal genes in healthy body cells can cause cancer. These oncogenes ordinarily control cell division and growth, but viruses or carcinogens can activate them. Their research superseded a theory that cancer is caused by viral genes, distinct from a cell’s normal genetic material, that lie dormant until activated by carcinogens. For their work, the two shared a 1989 Nobel Prize. Varmus later served as director of the National Institutes of Health (1993-99) and became president of Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center.

Varna Seaport city (pop., 2001: 314,539), Bulgaria, on the Black Sea coast. Founded as Odessus by Milesian Greeks in the 6th century bc, it later was Thracian, Macedonian, and Roman. In ad 681 it became part of the first Bulgarian empire (c. 679-1018) and was named Varna. It came under Ottoman domination in 1391. In 1444 it was the scene of a battle between Turkish and Hungarian armies in which Wladyslaw III, king of Poland and Hungary, was killed. Varna was ceded to Bulgaria by the 1878 Treaty of Berlin (see Congress of Berlin). It is an important administra¬ tive, economic, cultural, and resort centre. Shipbuilding and manufactur¬ ing are important industries.

varna Vvor-noV Any of the four traditional social classes of Hindu India. One of the hymns of the Rigveda declares that the Brahman, the Kshatriya, the Vaishya, and the Shudra issued forth at creation from the mouth, arms, thighs, and feet of Prajapati. Traditional lawmakers specified a set of obli¬ gations, observed mainly in theory only, to each vama: the Brahman, to study and advise; the Kshatriya, to protect; the Vaishya, to cultivate; and the Shudra, to serve. An unofficial fifth class, the pancama, was created to include certain untouchables and tribal groups falling outside this sys¬ tem. The relationship of the caste system to the class system is complex; individual castes, of which there are dozens, have sought to raise their social rank by identifying with a particular varna, demanding the associ¬ ated privileges of rank and honour.

Varna, Battle of (November 10, 1444) Turkish victory over the Hun¬ garians that marked the end of the European effort to protect Constanti¬ nople. The Hungarians under Janos Hunyadi broke a truce and marched to Vama (in present-day Bulgaria), where they fought the Turks under

Sultan Murad II and were defeated; the Hungarian king Ulaszlo I (also ruler of Poland) was killed in the battle. The victory enabled the Ottoman Empire to gain control of the Greek Peloponnese, conquer Constantino¬ ple (1453), and reabsorb Serbia (by 1459).

Varro \'var-o\, Marcus Terentius (b. 116, probably Reate [Italy]—d. 27 bc) Roman scholar and satirist. Varro was active in public life, rising to the office of praetor. He sided with Pompey the Great but later reconciled with Julius Caesar. A prolific writer, he sought in his writings to inculcate moral virtues and to link Rome’s future with its glorious past. He is best known for his Saturae Menippeae (“Menippean Satires”), medleys in mixed prose and verse that mock the absurdities of modern times. He wrote some 75 works in more than 600 books on a wide range of subjects— jurisprudence, astronomy, geography, education, and literary history—as well as in a variety of genres—satires, poems, orations, and letters.

Varus \'var-3s\, Publius Quintilius (d. ad 9) Roman general. He was bom a patrician; his father was one of the murderers of Julius Caesar. Varus crushed the rebellion in Judaea (4 bc) and reestablished Roman control. Assigned to the frontiers east of the Rhine, he tried to assert Roman jurisdiction, but he was overwhelmed by a German attack in the Teutoburg Forest and lost three legions. Disgraced, he killed himself by falling on his sword. His defeat led to the loss of all Roman possessions east of the Rhine.

varved deposit \'varvd\ Any form of repetitive sedimentary rock stratification that was deposited within a year. This annual deposit usu¬ ally consists of paired contrasting layers (varves) of alternately finer (darker) and coarser (lighter) silt or clay, reflecting seasonal variations in sedimentation (winter and summer) within the year. Varved deposits are most commonly found in glacial lakes, but they can also be found in non¬ glacial lakes and marine settings.

varying hare See snowshoe hare

Vasa dynasty Swedish (and Polish) royal dynasty. Its founder was Gustav Eriksson Vasa, regent of Sweden (1521) and king (1523) as Gustav I Vasa. His descendants reigned in Sweden until 1818, the last being Charles XIII. A grandson of Gustav became king of Poland (1587-1632) as Sigismund III Vasa, also ruling Sweden in the years 1592-99. He was suc¬ ceeded as king of Poland by his sons, Wladyslaw IV Vasa (r. 1632-48) and John II Casimir Vasa (r. 1648-68), after which the dynasty ended in Poland.

Vasarely \,va-z3-'re-le\, Victor orig. Viktor Vasarhelyi (b. April 9,1908, Pecs, Hung.—d. March 15,1997, Paris, France) Hungarian French painter. Trained in Budapest in the Bauhaus tradition, he moved to Paris in 1930 and supported himself as a commercial artist. In the 1930s he was influenced by Constructivism, but by the 1940s he was painting animated surfaces of geometric forms and interacting colours. His style reached maturity in the mid 1950s and 1960s, with the use of more vibrant colours to increase the sense of movement through optical illusion, as in Sirius II (1954), and he became one of the leading figures of the Op art movement.

Vasari \va-'za-re\, Giorgio (b. July 30, 1511, Arezzo—d. June 27, 1574, Florence) Italian painter, architect, and writer. Though he was a prolific painter in the Mannerist style, he is more highly regarded as an architect (he designed the Uffizi Palace, now the Uffizi Gallery), but even his architecture is overshad¬ owed by his writings. His Lives of the Most Eminent Architects, Paint¬ ers, and Sculptors (1550) offers biographies of early to late Renais¬ sance artists. His style is eminently readable and his material is well researched, though when facts were scarce he did not hesitate to fill in the gaps. In his view, Giotto had revived the art of true representation after its decline in the early Middle Ages, and succeeding artists had brought that art progressively closer to the per¬ fection achieved by Michelangelo.

The work’s second edition (1568) has proved an invaluable resource for art historians.

Vasari, self-portrait, oil painting; in the Uffizi, Florence

SCALA/ART RESOURCE, NEW YORK

© 2006 Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.

Vasconcelos ► Vatican Palace I 1989

Vasconcelos \,bas-kon-'sa-los\, Jose (b. Feb. 28, 1882, Oaxaca, Mex.—d. June 30, 1959, Mexico City) Mexican educator, politician, essayist, and philosopher. He campaigned for the revolutionary candidates Francisco Madero and Pancho Villa. As minister of education (1920-24) he initiated major reforms in Mexico’s school system, especially expan¬ sion of the rural school program. He ran unsuccessfully for president in 1929. Vasconcelos’s political activism forced him into exile several times. He regarded the indigenous Indian culture as transcending Western cul¬ ture. His autobiography (5 vol., 1935-59), abridged as A Mexican Ulysses (1962), is one of the finest sociocultural studies of 20th-century Mexico.

vascular plant or tracheophyte Vtra-ke-s-.fnA Any plant that has a specialized conducting system consisting mostly of phloem (food¬ conducting tissue) and xylem (water-conducting tissue), collectively called vascular tissue. Ferns, gymnosperms, and flowering plants are all vascular plants. In contrast to the non vascular bryophytes, the more conspicuous generation among vascular plants is the sporophyte (see alternation of gen¬ erations). Because they have vascular tissues, these plants have true stems, leaves, and roots, modifications of which enable species of vascular plants to survive in a variety of habitats under diverse, even extreme, environ¬ mental conditions. This ability to flourish in so many different habitats is the primary reason that vascular plants have become dominant among ter¬ restrial plants.

vasectomy \v9-'sek-t3-me\ Severing of the vas deferens, which carries sperm from the testes to the prostate gland, to cause sterility or prevent infection. This relatively simple procedure, which can be performed in a doctor’s office with local anesthetics, removes the ability to father chil¬ dren without affecting ability to achieve erection or orgasm. The vas is cut near its beginning, in the scrotum. The cut ends may be sealed off or left open. Reversal is more likely to succeed in the latter case; microsur¬ gery has improved the success rate.

Vasily \'va-so-le\ I Russian Vasily Dmitriyevich (b. 1371—d. Feb¬ ruary 1425, Moscow) Grand prince of Moscow (1389-1425). After help¬ ing the Tatar khan Tokhtamysh fight Timur, he succeeded his father as grand prince of Moscow and Vladimir. He enlarged his realm to include Nizhny Novgorod and Murom in the central Volga region, but his efforts to expand westward brought him into conflict with Lithuania and Novgorod. He prepared to fight Timur in 1395, but the Mongol leader withdrew from Russian lands without a battle. Vasily kept his state inde¬ pendent until the Tatars reasserted control in 1408.

Vasily II Russian Vasily Varilyevich known as Vasily the Blind

(b. 1415—d. March 27, 1462, Moscow) Grand Prince of Moscow (1425- 62). At age 10 he was named to succeed his father, Vasily I, but for many years his uncle and cousins struggled to wrest the throne from him. Despite being blinded by his cousin Dmitry Shemyaka, he regained power in 1447 and ruled Muscovy for another 15 years. Vasily quelled internal strife in his realm by 1452 and enlarged his state’s territory by absorbing nearby principalities. During his reign the Russian church asserted its independence from the patriarch at Constantinople. Vasily signed a treaty with Lithuania (1449) but fought Tatar hordes on his southern and east¬ ern borders.

vassal See feudalism

Vassar College Private liberal arts college in Poughkeepsie, N.Y. It was founded as a college for women by Matthew Vassar (1792-1868) in 1861 but did not open until 1865. It became coeducational in 1968. Vas¬ sar offers undergraduate studies in most major disciplines, and it has mas¬ ter’s degree programs in biology, chemistry, and drama. The F.L. Loeb Art Center houses one of the oldest art collections in the U.S.

Vatican City in full State of the Vatican City Independent papal state, southern Europe, within the commune of Rome, Italy. Area: 109 acres (44 hectares). Population (2005 est.): 800. Its medieval and Renais¬ sance walls form its boundaries except on the southeast at St. Peter’s Square. Within the walls is the world’s smallest independent nation-state, with its own diplomatic missions, newspaper, post office, radio station, banking system, army of 100 Swiss Guards, and publishing house. Extra¬ territoriality of the state extends to Castel Gandolfo and to several churches and palaces in Rome proper. Its independent sovereignty was recognized in the Lateran Treaty of 1929. The pope has absolute executive, legislative, and judicial powers within the city. He appoints the members of the Vatican’s government organs, which are separate from those of the Holy See, the name given to the government of the Roman Catholic

Church. The many imposing buildings include St. Peter's Basilica, the Vat¬ ican Palace, and the Vatican Museums. Frescoes by Michelangelo in the Sis- tine Chapel, by Pinturicchio in the Borgia Apartment, and by Raphael in the Stanze (rooms in the papal apartments) are also there. The Vatican Library contains a priceless collection of manuscripts from the pre-Chr istian and Christian eras. The pope and other representatives of the papal state travel widely to maintain international relations.

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Vatican Council, First (1869-70) 20th ecumenical council of the Roman Catholic Church. It was convoked by Pope Pius IX (1846-78) to address the rising influence of rationalism, materialism, and liberalism. The council, which was never formally dissolved, promulgated two doc¬ trinal constitutions: Dei filius, which deals with faith, reason, and their interrelations; and Pastor aeternus, which treats the authority of the pope. After long debate, the council approved the doctrine of papal infallibility. The council recessed in the summer of 1870 but was unable to reconvene because Italian troops had occupied Rome. Pius suspended the council indefinitely on Oct. 20, 1870.

Vatican Council, Second (1962-65) 21st ecumenical council of the Roman Catholic church, announced by Pope John XXIII. It has come to symbolize the church’s readiness to acknowledge the circumstances of the modern world. Among the most notable of the 16 documents enacted were the “Dogmatic Constitution on the Church,” which treats church hierarchy and provides for greater involvement of laypeople in the church; the “Dogmatic Constitution of Divine Revelation,” which maintains an open attitude toward scholarly study of the Bible; the “Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy,” which provides for the use of vernacular languages in the mass in place of Latin; and the “Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the World of Today,” which acknowledges the profound changes humanity has experienced in the modern world and attempts to relate the church to contemporary culture. Observers from other Christian churches were invited to the council in a gesture of ecumenism.

Vatican Museums and Galleries Institutions and papal palaces in Vatican City housing the art collections of the popes since the beginning of the 15th century. Among the many separate museums are the 18th- century Pio-Clementino Museum, which exhibits the collection of Clas¬ sical sculpture that originated in 1503-13 with Julius II; the exhibition rooms in the Vatican Library; and the Sistine Chapel. The Vatican collec¬ tions are most famous for their Classical statues (including Apollo Belve¬ dere, Belvedere Torso , and Laocoon ) but also contain important examples of Egyptian and early Christian art. The Pinacoteca (“Picture Gallery”), founded by Pius VI in 1797, contains Italian religious paintings and Rus¬ sian and Byzantine art. In 1956 a modem-art collection was begun with secular works by such artists as Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Georges Seurat, Vincent van Gogh, Henri Matisse, and Pablo Picasso. The Vatican collec¬ tions are among the largest and most important in the world.

Vatican Palace Pope’s residence since the late 14th century, located north of St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican. First enclosed in 850, the irregu¬ larly walled compound contains gardens (begun by Nero), courtyards, living quarters, galleries, the Vatican Museums and Library, and other facilities. The residence, with more than 1,400 rooms, was begun in the

© 2006 Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.

1990 I Vatnajokull ► vaulting

13th century by Pope Nicholas III. Nicholas V founded the Vatican Library. Under Julius II, Giovanni dei Dolci built the Sistine Chapel, noted for its spectacular interior artwork including Michelangelo’s ceiling; Donato Bramante completed the palace’s northern facade and planned the immense Belvedere court; and Raphael painted his masterpieces in the palace. Antonio da Sangallo the Younger, employed by Paul III. designed the Sala Regia (Royal Hall) and Pauline Chapel, decorated by Michelan¬ gelo. Several chapels, along with Ottaviano Mascherino’s famous Gallery of Maps, date from the late 16th century. Domenico Fontana added a wing of apartments and the present library building under Sixtus V. In the Baroque period. Urban VIII built the Matilda Chapel and, under Alex¬ ander VII, Gian Lorenzo Bernini built the Scala Regia (Royal Stairway).

Vatnajokull Yvat-na-,yce-ku-t 3 l\ Extensive ice field, southeastern Ice¬ land. It covers an area of 3,200 sq mi (8,400 sq km) and has an average ice thickness of more than 3,000 ft (900 m). It contains several moun¬ tains, including Hvannadalshnukur (6,952 ft, or 2,119 m), the highest peak in Iceland. There are numerous active volcanoes throughout the ice field.

Vattern Vve-tornN Lake, south-central Sweden, southeast of Lake Vanern. With a length of 81 mi (130 km), a width of about 19 mi (31 km), and an area of 738 sq mi (1,912 sq km), it is Sweden’s second largest lake, though only one-third the size of Vanern. Its maximum depth is 420 ft (130 m). Known for its dangerous currents, it is connected with the Baltic Sea by the Gota Canal.

Vauban \vo-'ba n \, Sebastien Le Presire de (b. May 15, 1633, Saint-Leger-de-Foucherest, France—d. March 30, 1707, Paris) French military engineer. After fighting with the forces of the Conde family (1651— 53), he switched to the royalist side and joined the newly formed engi¬ neer corps, becoming engineer in chief at the siege of Gravelines (1658). He designed fortifications for numerous French towns and outposts and devised tactics that led to many successes in the French wars of Louis XIV’s reign; his innovations revolutionized the art of siege tactics and defensive fortification. He also introduced the tactic of ricochet gunfire and invented the socket bayonet. His treatises on fortification and siege-craft were stud¬ ied for more than 100 years. He was made a marshal of France in 1703.

Vaucanson \vo-kau- , so I1 \ / Jacques de (b. Feb. 24, 1709, Grenoble, France—d. Nov. 21, 1782, Paris) French inventor. In 1739 he constructed an automaton, “The Duck,” which imitated not only the motions of a live duck but also the motions of drinking, eating, and “digesting.” An inspec¬ tor of silk manufacture, Vaucanson automated the loom by means of per¬ forated cards that guided hooks connected to the warp yams (see weaving). His innovation was ignored for decades until J.-M. Jacquard reconstructed and improved on it; the Jacquard loom became one of the most impor¬ tant inventions of the Industrial Revolution.

Vaucheria \vo-'kir-e-9\ Genus of yellow-green algae. It is character¬ ized by oil food reserves and tubular branches that have multiple nuclei and lack cross-walls except in association with reproductive organs or an injury. Vaucheria reproduce both asexually and sexually. The spherical female sex organ and the slender, hook-shaped male sex organ are usu¬ ally produced on branches close to each other. After fertilization, the zygote may enter a resting phase for several weeks before developing into a new plant. Though most species occur in freshwater or are terrestrial, some are marine and others live in ice.

vaudeville \'v6d-,vil\ Light entertainment popular in the U.S. in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It consisted of 10-15 unrelated acts featuring magicians, acrobats, comedians, trained animals, singers, and dancers. The form developed from the coarse variety shows held in beer halls for a primarily male audience. Tony Pastor established a successful “clean variety show” at his New York City theatre in 1881 and influenced other managers to follow suit. By 1900 chains of vaudeville theatres around the country included Martin Beck’s Orpheum Circuit, of which New York’s Palace Theatre was the most famous (1913-32). Among the many entertainers who began in vaudeville were Mae West, W.C. Fields, Will Rogers, Buster Keaton, Charlie Chaplin, the Marx Brothers, Bud Abbott and Lou Costello, Milton Berle, and Bob Hope. See also music hall and vari¬ ety THEATRE.

Vaugelas \vo-zho-Ta\, Claude Favre, lord de (b. Jan. 6, 1585, Meximieux, France—d. February 1650, Paris) French grammarian. He played a major role in standardizing the French language of literature and of polite society. His Remarks on the French Language, Useful for Those Who Wish to Speak Well and Write Well (1647) became an authoritative

guide to French usage, and his writings formed the basis of the rules for pure and elegant French promulgated by the Academie Francaise, of which he was an original member.

Vaughan Won, 'van\, Henry (b. April 17, 1622, Llansantffraed, Breconshire, Wales—d. April 23, 1695, Llansantffraed) Anglo-Welsh poet and mystic. Vaughan studied law but from the 1650s practiced medicine. After writing two volumes of secular poems, he read the religious poet George Herbert and gave up “idle verse.” He is chiefly remembered for the spiritual vision or imagination evident in his fresh and convincing religious verse and is considered one of the major practitioners of Meta¬ physical poetry. Works that reveal the depth of his religious convictions include Silex Scintillans (1650, enlarged 1655; “The Glittering Flint”) and the prose Mount of Olives (1652). He also translated short moral and reli¬ gious works and two medical works.

Vaughan, Sarah (Lois) (b. March 27, 1924, Newark, N.J., U.S.—d. April 3, 1990, Hidden Hills, Calif.)

U.S. jazz singer. Vaughan won an amateur contest at Harlem’s Apollo Theatre in 1942 and soon joined Earl Hines’s big band as vocalist and sec¬ ond pianist. Joining Billy Eckstine’s band in 1944, she gained exposure to the new bebop style; she was espe¬ cially influenced by Dizzy Gillespie and Charlie Parker and recorded with them in 1945. Alternating between popular song and jazz, she worked as a soloist for the rest of her career. A vast range and wide vibrato in the service of her harmonic sensitivity enabled Vaughan to use her voice with a seemingly instrumental approach, often improvising as a jazz soloist.

Vaughan Williams \v6n-'wil-y3ms\, Ralph (b. Oct. 12,1872, Down Ampney, Gloucestershire, Eng.—d. Aug. 26, 1958, London) British com¬ poser. He attended the Royal College of Music and Cambridge Univer¬ sity, and he also studied in Berlin with the composer Max Bruch. Having collected English folk songs for his academic work, he combined folk melody with modern approaches to harmony and rhythm, forging a musi¬ cal style at once highly personal and deeply English. His nine sympho¬ nies, including Sea Symphony (1909), London Symphony (1913), and Sinfonia Antarctica (1952), were his most exploratory works. Other popu¬ lar pieces include The Lark Ascending (1914) and Serenade to Music (1938); he also wrote five operas, including Riders to the Sea (1936). He conducted extensively throughout his life, and he edited The English Hym¬ nal (1904-06).

vault In building construction, an arched structure forming a ceiling or roof. The masonry vault exerts the same kind of thrust as the arch, and must be supported along its entire length by heavy walls with limited openings. The basic barrel vault, in effect a continuous series of arches, first appeared in ancient Egypt and the Middle East. Roman architects discovered that two barrel vaults intersecting at right angles (a groin vault) could, when repeated in series, span rectangular areas of unlimited length. Because the groin vault’s thrusts are concentrated at the four comers, its supporting walls need not be massive. Medieval European builders devel¬ oped the rib vault, a skeleton of arches or ribs on which the masonry could be laid. The fan vault, popular in the English Perpendicular style, used fan¬ shaped clusters of tracery-like ribs springing from pendants or columns. The 19th century saw the use of large iron skeletons as frameworks for vaults of lightweight materials (see Crystal Palace). An important modern innovation is the reinforced-concrete shell vault, which, if its length is three or more times its transverse section, behaves as a deep beam and exerts no lateral thrust. See illustration opposite.

vaulting Gymnastics exercise in which the athlete leaps over a form that was originally intended to mimic a horse. At one time, the pommel horse was used in the vaulting exercise, with the pommels (handles) removed. The sanctioning body for gymnastic sport, the Federation Internationale de Gymnastique (FIG), decreed in 2001 that a vaulting table would be intro¬ duced to replace the horse. In men’s vaulting the height of the table is 1.35 m (4.43 ft) from the floor; for women, the height is 1.20 m (3.94 ft). A

Sarah Vaughan.

© HERB SNITZER

© 2006 Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.

Vavilov ► Veda I 1991

Reuther board, a type of springboard, is placed in front of the near end of the apparatus. The gymnast runs, gathers momentum while nearing the apparatus, rebounds off the springboard, and, supporting the hands on the apparatus, vaults over it and performs an acrobatic maneuver.

Vavilov \vov-'ye-bf\, Nikolay (Ivanovich) (b. Nov. 25, 1887, Mos¬ cow, Russian Empire—d. Jan. 26, 1943, Saratov, Russia, U.S.S.R.) Rus¬ sian plant geneticist. Through expeditions to many parts of the world, Vavilov amassed an immense plant collection and conceived the theory that a cultivated plant’s centre of origin would be found in the region in which wild relatives of the plant showed maximum adaptiveness. He eventually proposed 13 world centres of plant origin. Though widely con¬ sidered one of the greatest specialists in botanical populations, he was publicly condemned by Trofim Lysenko at successive plant-breeding con¬ gresses (1934-39) as peddling “Mendelist-Morganist genetics” (see Gre¬ gor Mendel; Thomas Hunt Morgan), and he died in a concentration camp.

vCard Electronic business card that automates the exchange of personal information typically found on a traditional business card. The vCard is a file that contains the user’s basic business or personal data (name, address, phone number, URLs, etc.) in a variety of formats such as text, graphics, video clips, and audio clips. It can be attached to an e-mail or exchanged between computers or on the Internet, where, for example, the user can drag-and-drop his or her vCard to a registration or order form on a Web page so that it can automatically complete the form. It is used in such applications as voice mail, Web browsers, call centres, video con¬ ferencing, pagers, faxes, and smart cards.

VCR in full videocassette recorder Electromechanical device that records, stores on a videotape cassette, and plays back on a TV set recorded images and sound. The first commercial VCRs were marketed by Sony Corp. in 1969. VCRs are used to record broadcast TV programs for later viewing and to play commercially recorded cassettes. They have from two to seven tape heads that read and inscribe video and audio tracks on mag¬ netic tape. Home movies can be made with a camcorder system, a VCR connected to a simple video camera.

veal Meat of young calves. It is usually pale grayish white in colour, firm and fine-grained, with a velvety texture. Calves bred to yield veal are usually raised indoors under controlled temperatures and intensively fed on milk, high-protein calf meal, or both. Herbaceous foods are excluded, which results in an iron deficiency that produces the desirable light colour in the meat. In recent decades, animal-rights groups have denounced calf farming as cruel.

barrel vault

Four common types of vault. A barrel vault (also called a cradle vault, tunnel vault, or wagon vault) has a semicircular cross section. A groin (or cross) vault is formed by the perpendicular intersection of two barrel vaults. A rib (or ribbed) vault is sup¬ ported by a series of arched diagonal ribs that divide the vault's surface into pan¬ els. A fan vault is composed of concave sections with ribs spreading out like a fan.

© MERRIAM-WEBSTER INC.

Veblen Vveb-bn\, Thorstein (Bunde) (b. July 30, 1857, Manitowoc county, Wis., U.S.—d. Aug. 3, 1929, near Menlo Park, Calif.) U.S. econo¬ mist. He grew up in Minnesota and earned a Ph.D. in philosophy from Yale University. Although he taught economics at the University of Chi¬ cago and other universities, he was unable to keep any position for long because of his unconventional ideas and the disorder in his personal life. In 1899 he published his classic work The Theory of the Leisure Class, which applied Darwin’s evolutionary theories to the study of modem economic life, highlighting the competitive and predatory nature of the business world. With dry humour he identified the markers of American social class, and he coined the term “conspicuous consumption” to describe the display of wealth made by the upper class. His reputation was highest in the 1930s, when the Great Depression was seen as a vin¬ dication of his criticism of the business system.

vector In mathematics, a quantity characterized by magnitude and direc¬ tion. Some physical and geometric quantities, called scalars, can be fully defined by a single number specifying their magnitude in suitable units of measure (e.g., mass in grams, temperature in degrees, time in seconds). Quantities like velocity, force, and displacement must be specified by a magnitude and a direction. These are vectors. A vector quantity can be visualized as an arrow drawn in a specific direction, whose length is equal to the magnitude of the quantity represented. A two-dimensional vector is specified by two coordinates, a three-dimensional vector by three coor¬ dinates, and so on. Vector analysis is a branch of mathematics that explores the utility of this type of representation and defines the ways such quantities may be combined. See also vector operations.

vector operations Extension of the laws of elementary algebra to vectors. They include addition, subtraction, and three types of multipli¬ cation. The sum of two vectors is a third vector, represented as the diago¬ nal of the parallelogram constructed with the two original vectors as sides. When a vector is multiplied by a positive scalar (i.e., number), its mag¬ nitude is multiplied by the scalar and its direction remains unchanged (if the scalar is negative, the direction is reversed). The multiplication of a vector a by another vector b leads to the dot product, written a • b, and the cross product, written a x b. The dot product, also called the scalar product, is a scalar real number equal to the product of the lengths of vectors a (|a|) and b (|b|) and the cosine of the angle (0) between them: a ■ b = |a| |b| cos 0. This equals zero if the two vectors are perpendicular (see orthogonality). The cross product, also called the vector product, is a third vector (c), perpendicular to the plane of the original vectors. The magnitude of c is equal to the product of the lengths of vectors a and b and the sine of the angle (0) between them: |c| = |a| |b| sin 0. The asso¬ ciative law and commutative law hold for vector addition and the dot prod¬ uct. The cross product is associative but not commutative.

vector space In mathematics, a collection of objects called vectors, together with a field of objects (see field theory), known as scalars, that satisfy certain properties. The properties that must be satisfied are: (1) the set of vectors is closed under vector addition; (2) multiplication of a vec¬ tor by a scalar produces a vector in the set; (3) the associative law holds for vector addition, u + (v + w) = (u + v) + w; (4) the commutative law holds for vector addition, u + v = v + u; (5) there is a 0 vector such that v + 0 = v; (6) every vector has an additive inverse (see inverse function), v + (-v) = 0; (7) the distributive law holds for scalar multiplication over vector addition, n(u + v) = mi + n\ (8) the distributive law also holds for vector multiplication over scalar addition, (m + n)\ = mv + n\ (9) the associative law holds for scalar multiplication with a vector, ( mn)\ = m ( nv ); and (10) there exists a unit vector 1 such that lv = v. The set of all polynomials in one variable with real coefficients is an example of a vector space.

Ved-ava Vva-da-va\ Divine ruler of the waters and their bounty, com¬ mon to several Baltic and Finno-Ugric peoples traditionally dependent on fishing. She was also responsible for promoting fertility in humans and in livestock. In appearance, she resembled a mermaid, having long hair, large breasts, and a fishlike lower body. Fishermen sacrificed to her the first of their catch and observed numerous taboos while fishing. Seeing Ved-ava generally boded misfortune, most often drowning. She has been regarded as the spirit of a drowned person or simply as a personification of the water itself.

Veda \'va-do\ Any of a group of sacred hymns and verses composed in archaic Sanskrit, probably in the period 1500-1200 bc. Together they form a body of liturgical literature that grew up around the cult of the soma

© 2006 Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.

1992 I Vedanta ► Velazquez

ritual. They extol the hereditary deities that personified various natural and cosmic phenomena. The entire corpus of Vedic literature, including the Upanishads, was considered the product of divine revelation. The Vedas were handed down orally for many generations before being committed to writing. Even today, several are recited with intonation and rhythm associated with the early days of Vedic religion. See also Rig Veda, Vedanta.

Vedanta \va-'dan-t3\ One of the six orthodox systems (darshans) of Indian philosophy and the one that forms the basis of most modem schools of Hinduism. Its three fundamental texts are the Upanishads, the Bhaga- vadgita, and the Brahma Sutras, which are very brief interpretations of the doctrine of the Upanishads. Several schools of Vedanta have developed, differentiated by their conception of the relationship between the self (atman) and the absolute (Brahman). They share beliefs in samsara and the authority of the Vedas as well as the conviction that Brahman is both the material and instrumental cause of the world and that the atman is the agent of its own acts and therefore the recipient of the consequences of action (see karma).

Vedic religion \'va-dik\ or Vedism Ancient religion of India that was contemporary with the composition of the Vedas and was the precursor of Hinduism. The religion of the Indo-European-speaking peoples who entered India c. 1500 bce from the region of present-day Iran, it was a polytheistic system in which Indra was the highest-ranked god. It involved the worship of numerous male divinities connected with the sky and natu¬ ral phenomena. Ceremonies centred on ritual sacrifice of animals and on the use of soma to achieve trancelike states. These ceremonies, simple in the beginning, grew to be so complex that only trained Brahmans could carry them out correctly. Out of Vedism developed the philosophical con¬ cepts of atman and Brahman. The spread (8th-5th century bce) of the related concepts of reincarnation, karma, and release from the cycle of rebirth through meditation rather than sacrifice marked the end of the Vedic period and the rise of Hinduism. The Hindu initiation ceremony, upanayana, is a direct survivor of Vedic tradition.

Veeck \'vek. Bill in full William Louis Veeck (b. Feb. 9, 1914, Hinsdale, Ill., U.S.—d. Jan. 2, 1986, Chicago, Ill.) U.S. baseball-club executive and owner. The son of a sportswriter who was also president of the Chicago Cubs (1919-33), Veeck became co-owner of the minor league Milwaukee Brewers (1941—45) and later the major league Cleve¬ land Indians (1946-48), St. Louis Browns (1949-53), and Chicago White Sox (1959-68; 1976—81). Believing that baseball was a form of enter¬ tainment and should not be treated as a business, he introduced many innovations in promotion, was almost always able to improve a team’s attendance, and usually bettered its performance.

Vega Vva-goV, Lope de in full Lope Felix de Vega Carpio (b.

Nov. 25, 1562, Madrid, Spain—d. Aug. 27, 1635, Madrid) Spanish play¬ wright, the outstanding dramatist of the Spanish Golden Age. After serv¬ ing with the Spanish Armada, he lived in Madrid, serving as secretary to a series of nobles, including the duke of Sessa (from 1605). Called the “Phoenix of Spain,” the phenomenally prolific Vega wrote as many as 1,800 plays, of which 431 survive, and established the comedia (tragi¬ comic social drama), which typified the new Golden Age drama. He wrote two major types of drama, both Spanish in setting: the historical play based on a national legend (e.g., Peribahez and The King, the Greatest Alcalde) and the “cloak-and-sword” drama of contemporary manners and intrigue, which turned on some “point of honour” (e.g.. The Gardener's Dog). He established the comic character, or gracioso, as a commentator on the follies of his social superiors. All Citizens Are Soldiers is his best- known work outside Spain. He also wrote 21 volumes of nondramatic works in verse and prose, including The New Art of Writing Plays (1609).

vegetable In the broadest sense, all plant life and plant products (veg¬ etable matter); in common, narrow usage, the fresh edible portion of her¬ baceous plants (roots, stems, leaves, flowers, or fruit), either eaten fresh or prepared in some way. Almost all current vegetables were cultivated in ancient Old or New World civilizations, though some have been greatly modified. Vegetables are good sources of minerals (especially calcium and iron), vitamins (especially A and C), and dietary fiber. All the amino acids needed to synthesize protein are available in vegetables. Fresh vegetables quickly age and spoil, but their storage life can be extended by such pres¬ ervation methods as dehydration, canning, freezing, fermenting, and pick- ling.

vegetable oyster See salsify

vegetarianism Theory or practice of eating only plants. The vegetar¬ ian diet includes grains, vegetables, fruits, and nuts; it excludes meat, poultry, and fish, but some vegetarians eat dairy products (lactovegetar- ians), egg products (ovovegetarians), or both (ovolactovegetarians). Those who eat no animal products (including honey) are called vegans. Moti¬ vations vary and include ethics (both unwillingness to kill animals and abhorrence of modern methods of raising animals for meat), self-denial or religious taboo, ecology (including concern about the wastefulness and environmental costs of beef farming), and health. Vegetarians point to the many health benefits of their diet, including low rates of heart disease, diabetes, colon cancer, and obesity. While obtaining sufficient protein is seldom a problem in affluent societies, vegetarians must be careful to consume enough iron and, especially for vegans, calcium and vitamins D and B 12 . The most influential early proponent of vegetarianism was Pythagoras, in the 6th century bc. Many Hindu sects and most Buddhists are vegetarian, and much of the world eats hardly any meat because it is unavailable. The Enlightenment led to a humane concern for animals; in the 19th century Britain became a major centre of vegetarianism, and vegetarian movements soon arose in Germany, the U.S., and other coun¬ tries.

Veii Vve-yi, 'va-ye\ Ancient Etruscan town. It was located about 10 mi (16 km) northwest of Rome, near modem Veio. An important city of the Etruscan confederation and the foremost 6th-century producer of Etrus¬ can terra-cotta sculptures, it had hegemony over Rome in the 7th-6th centuries bc. A subsequent series of wars ended in its destruction by Rome in 396 bc after a 10-year siege. Under Augustus it was made a municip- ium, and up to the 3rd century ad it continued as a religious centre.

vein Vessel that carries blood to the heart. Except for the pulmonary veins, veins bear deoxygenated blood from capillaries, which converge into threadlike venules and then veins, finally emptying into the venae cavae (see cardiovascular system; vena cava). Blood moves through veins by contraction of the surrounding muscles. Backflow is prevented by valves in most veins’ inner layer (tunica intima), which lacks the elastic mem¬ brane lining of arteries. The thin middle layer (tunica media) is mostly collagen fibres, and the thick outer layer (tunica adventitia) is mostly connective tissue. See also circulation; varicose vein.

Velasco \ba-'las-ko\ (Alvarado), Juan (b. June 16, 1910, Piura, Peru—d. Dec. 24, 1977, Lima) President of Peru (1968-75). Commander in chief of the army, he came to power by overthrowing Pres. Fernando Belaunde Terry. His government was unusual among military regimes for its reformist and populist character. He nationalized transportation, com¬ munications, and electric power and converted millions of acres of pri¬ vate farms into workers’ cooperatives. He defied the U.S. in nationalizing U.S.-owned oil fields and capturing and fining U.S. boats fishing within Peru’s 200-mi (322-km) coastal limit. He was deposed in 1975 because of discontent with his restrictions on political participation.

Velasco Ibarra \ba-Tas-ko-e-'bar-ra\, Jose (Maria) (b. March 19, 1893, Quito, Ecua.—d. March 30, 1979, Quito) Five-time president of Ecuador. Born into a wealthy family, he was first elected to the presi¬ dency in 1933. In response to Congress’s lack of support for his land reform program, he assumed dictatorial powers, imprisoning opposition leaders and censoring the press. Deposed by the army and forced into exile, he returned to the presidency in 1944, but his repressive policies alienated his liberal followers and again he was forced into exile. He returned and was elected three more times before his death in 1979, only once (1952-56) being permitted to serve out a full term.

Velazquez Ws-Tas-kosA Spanish \ba-'lath-kath\, Diego (Rodriguez de Silva) (baptized June 6, 1599, Sevilla, Spain—d. Aug. 6, 1660, Madrid) Spanish painter. He was apprenticed to Francisco Herrera the Elder before being trained by Francisco Pacheco. His early works were mostly religious or genre scenes. After arriving in Madrid in 1623, he painted a portrait of Philip IV that won him immediate success and an appointment as court painter. His position gave him access to the royal collections, including works by Titian, who exerted the greatest influence on his style. In his portraits from this period, only the faces and hands of the figures are accentuated, and the dark figures stand out against a light background. A visit to Italy (1629-31) further developed his style, and on his return to Madrid he entered his most productive period. Velazquez created a new type of informal royal portrait for Philip’s hunting lodge, and his portraits of court dwarfs display the same discerning eye as those of his royal sub¬ jects. On a second visit to Rome (1649-51) he painted a portrait of Pope

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Velde ► veneer I 1993

Innocent X. The powerful head, brilliant combinations of crimson of the curtain, chair, and cope are painted with fluent technique and almost imperceptible brushstrokes that go far beyond the late manner of Titian and announce the last stage in Velazquez’s development. This portrait was copied innumerable times and won him immediate and lasting renown in Italy. In his last years he created his masterpiece. Las Meninas (The Maids of Honour, 1656). In this casual scene, the artist is shown painting the king and queen in the presence of the infanta Margarita and her atten¬ dants; the nearly life-size figures are painted in more or less detail accord¬ ing to their relation to the central figure of the infanta and to the source of light, creating a remarkable illusion of reality never surpassed by Velazquez or any other artist of his age. He is universally acknowledged as one of the giants of Western art.

Velde, Henri van de (b. April 3, 1863, Antwerp, Belg.—d. Oct. 25, 1957, Zurich, Switz.) Belgian architect, designer, and teacher. Sharing the philosophy of William Morris and the Arts and Crafts Movement, van de Velde believed in creating beautiful everyday objects. Increasingly occu¬ pied by a philosophy of total design, in 1895 he designed Bloemenwerf, a house for his wife and himself outside of Brussels for which he also designed all the interiors and furnishings. In 1896 he designed furniture and interiors for the Paris art galleries of Samuel Bing; because of the curving, delicate nature of these designs, van de Velde is credited with bringing the Art Nouveau style to Paris. (Van de Velde himself is gener¬ ally associated with the Jugendstil movement, which was the German branch of Art Nouveau design.) In Weimer in 1902 he reorganized the arts and crafts school and the academy of fine art and thus laid the foun¬ dations for the amalgamation of the two bodies into the Bauhaus in 1919. He designed his best-known structure, the curving, sinuous Werkbund Theatre in Cologne, in 1914. His later work includes the Belgian pavil¬ ions at the international exhibitions in Paris (1937) and New York (1939). He also created graphic design work, generally in the curvilinear Art Nouveau style, and he spread his ideas through lecturing and teaching.

Velde Vvel-doV Willem van de, the Elder (b. 1611, Leiden, Neth.—d. December 1693, London, Eng.) Dutch marine painter. He sailed with the Dutch fleet and painted its engagements with the English. Set¬ tling in England in 1672, he continued to paint marine subjects, often in collaboration with his son, Willem the Younger (1633-1707), who became the foremost marine painter of his time. The latter was appointed court painter by Charles II in 1677 and was commissioned to paint England’s naval battles; many of his works are housed in London’s National Mari¬ time Museum.

Velikovsky V.ve-li-'kof-skeV Immanuel (b. June 10, 1895, Vitebsk, Russia—d. Nov. 17, 1979, Princeton, N.J., U.S.) Russian-born U.S. writer. He earned various degrees in Moscow and Edinburgh before moving to the U.S. in 1939. In his first book, Worlds in Collision (1950), he hypoth¬ esized, relying on legends of ancient peoples, that Venus and Mars had approached Earth closely c. 1500 bc, disturbing its rotation, axis inclina¬ tion, and magnetic field. His claim was widely discredited by astrono¬ mers, and the book’s publication caused U.S. scientists to threaten a boycott of his publisher. Later works set out other controversial theories about ancient history and catastrophic occurrences.

Velociraptor \v3-Ta-s9-,rap-tor\ Genus of clawed theropod dinosaur (family Dromaeosauridae) that flourished in central and eastern Asia dur¬ ing the Late Cretaceous Epoch (99-65 million years ago). It was related to an Early Cretaceous (144-99 million years ago) North American genus, Deinonychus. Both genera had a sickle-shaped claw on each foot and ossi¬ fied tendon reinforcements in the tail that enabled them to keep their bal¬ ance while striking and slashing at prey. Swift, agile predators of small herbivores, they grew up to 6 ft (1.8 m) long and weighed up to 100 lb (45 kg).

velocity Quantity that designates the speed and direction in which a body moves. It can be represented graphically by an arrow (pointing in the direction of the motion), the length of which is proportional to the magnitude, or speed. For an object in circular motion, the direction at any instant is tangential to the circle at that point, and so is perpendicular to the radius at that point. The instantaneous speed of a vehicle, such as an automobile, can be determined by a speedometer, or mathematically by differential calculus. The average speed is the ratio of the distance traveled in any given time interval divided by the time taken.

velvet Fabric having a short, dense pile, used in clothing and uphol¬ stery. Velvet is made in the pile weave (see weaving), of silk, cotton, or

synthetic fibres and is characterized by a soft, downy surface formed by clipped yarns (see shearing). Its “wrong” side is smooth and shows the weave used. Velvets can be made water-repellent and crush-resistant. They are also occasionally patterned or embossed.

vena cava \ l ve-n3- , ka-vo\ Either of two major veins that deliver oxygen- depleted blood to the right side of the heart. The superior vena cava drains the upper body, and the inferior vena cava drains the lower body. See also CARDIOVASCULAR SYSTEM, CIRCULATION.

Venda Bantu-speaking people who inhabit the northeastern corner of South Africa and neighbouring Zimbabwe. The Venda, today numbering more than 750,000, were the last of the peoples in the area to come under European control. Agriculture dominates their economy; cattle raising has increased in importance. Venda chiefs are traditionally custodians of the land, while local headmen permit household groups to occupy and work tracts of land.

Venda Former black enclave, northeastern South Africa. Located near the Zimbabwe border, it attracted the Venda people, who migrated into the region in the early 1700s from what is now Zimbabwe. It was annexed to Transvaal in 1898 and was a distinct administrative unit within South Africa when the country designated it a homeland for Venda-speaking people in 1962. The territory was granted partial self-government in 1973 and became an independent republic in 1979; it never received interna¬ tional recognition. After apartheid was abolished, Venda was reincorpo¬ rated into South Africa in 1994 as part of the newly created Northern (now Limpopo) province.

Vendee \va n -'da. Wars of the (1793 -96) Insurrections in the west of France during the French Revolution. In the religious and impoverished area known as the Vendee, discontent with the new government grew after it instituted strict controls over the Catholic church (1790). An uprising began in opposition to the conscription acts (1793) and spread through¬ out the region, where peasants were joined by royalists to form the Catho¬ lic and Royal Army. Led by the nobleman Frangois Charette de La Contrie (1763-1796), the Vendean army of 65,000 occupied several towns, but was defeated at Cholet by government troops and forced to retreat. After further defeats at Le Mans (about 15,000 rebels killed) and at Savenay, the general warfare ended in December 1793. Vicious reprisals by the government provoked further resistance, until an amnesty was announced (1794) and the Vendee was granted freedom from conscription (1795). Charette joined a British-backed landing of exiled French nobles in Brit¬ tany (1795), but after their defeat and his execution (1796) the counter¬ revolutionary struggle ended.

Vendemiaire \va n -da-'myer\ First month in the French republican cal¬ endar. It also was the name given to the event of 13 Vendemiaire of the year IV (Oct. 5, 1795), when Gen. Napoleon Bonaparte led the French Revolutionary troops that stopped an insurrection of Parisians as they marched against the government.

vending machine Machine from which various goods may be pur¬ chased, either with coin, paper currency, or electronic payment card. The first vending machines were introduced in 18th-century England to sell snuff and tobacco. From the late 19th century they have been widely used in many countries. Vending service is typically provided by a company that owns the machines and places them in businesses, schools, and the like. These operators provide the products and service either without cost to the owner of the premises on which a machine is located or in return for a servicing charge.

Vendsyssel-Thy Vven-.sue-sol-'tuA Island, northern end of Jutland, Denmark. It is known as Vendsyssel in the east and Thy in the west. The Limfjorden separates it from the mainland, to which it was attached until 1825, when water erosion cut a channel through the narrow isthmus at Thyborpn. It has an area of 1,809 sq mi (4,686 sq km). Frederikshavn, the main port, lies on the east coast facing Goteborg, Swed. The island is a holiday resort.

veneer Extremely thin sheet of rich-coloured wood (such as mahogany, ebony, or rosewood) or precious materials (such as ivory or tortoiseshell) cut in decorative patterns and applied to the surface of a piece of furni¬ ture. Though veneering was practiced in Classical antiquity, its use lapsed in the Middle Ages. It was revived in the 17th century, reaching its apo¬ gee in France and spreading from there to other European countries. The considerable craftsmanship involved in artistic veneering is most evident in the 18th and early 19th centuries, when Thomas Chippendale, George

© 2006 Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.

1994 I Venera ► Venice

Hepplewhite, and Thomas Sheraton used mahogany and satinwood veneers. By the mid-19th century mechanical saws allowed the veneering process to be used in mass production to cover defects in cheap furniture.

Venera \vyi-'nyer-3\ English \v9-'nar-3\ Any of a series of unmanned Soviet planetary probes sent to Venus 1965-83. Venera 2 flew to within 25,000 mi (40,000 km) of Venus in 1966; a few days later, Venera 3 crash-landed on its surface, becoming the first spacecraft to strike another planet. Later missions analyzed Venus’s atmosphere, made soft landings, detected certain long-lived radioactive isotopes (chiefly uranium and tho¬ rium), sent back the first close-up photographs of the planet’s surface, and mapped the surface of the northern hemisphere with radar (by Ven¬ era 15 and 16, the last two of the series).

Venetian glass Variety of glassware made in Venice from the 13th century to the present. In the 15th century efforts were concentrated on the perfection of cristallo (clear glass that approximated rock crystal in appearance). By the 16th century Venetian glassmakers mastered tech¬ niques of adding colour and of removing the smoky tint produced by metal in the glass material. These and other secrets were guarded closely, and defecting workers were severely punished. But eventually many Venetian glassmakers did defect, and the techniques became common knowledge in France, Ger¬ many, The Netherlands, and England.

Venetian school Renaissance artists of Venice whose work is char¬ acterized by a love of light and colour. Jacopo Bellini was the first in this influential line, followed by his son Gentile Bellini, the instructor of Venice’s great High Renaissance painters, including Giorgione and Titian. In due course Titian became the dominant force in Venetian paint¬ ing, and his rich colours and paint¬ erly technique were widely imitated.

Other 16th-century masters included Veronese, known for his vast, bril¬ liantly coloured, pageantlike canvases, and Tintoretto, who combined the Mannerists’ rapidly receding diagonals and dramatic foreshortenings with the Venetian love of light as a means of defining form and heightening drama. Giovanni Battista Tiepolo was the last important Venetian figure painter and one of the greatest artists of the Rococo period.

Veneto \'ve-na-,to\ Region (pop., 2001 prelim.: 4,490,586), northern Italy. It covers an area of 7,090 sq mi (18,364 sq km); its capital is Ven¬ ice. Bordered by Austria, the Adriatic Sea, and Lake Garda, the northern part is mountainous, while the southern part consists of a fertile plain. Parts were under Roman rule c. 2nd-lst centuries bc (see Padua and Verona) and later were subject to the Lombards. In the Middle Ages, sev¬ eral city-states gained importance, but most subsequently were subject to Venice. The area began to slip from Venetian hold after the French Revo¬ lution, and in the early 19th century Veneto came under Austrian rule. It was returned and joined to Italy in the 1860s. Agriculture is an economic mainstay, and industrial works are found around Veneto’s major cities.

Venezia Tridentina See Trentino-Alto Adige Veneziano, Domenico See Domenico Veneziano

Venezuela officially Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela Coun¬ try, northern South America. Area: 353,841 sq mi (916,445 sq km). Popu¬ lation (2005 est.): 26,749,000. Capital: Caracas. About two-thirds of the people are mestizos; most of the rest are of European or African descent. Languages: Spanish (official), some 25 Indian languages. Religion: Chris¬ tianity (predominantly Roman Catholic). Currency: bolivar. Mountain ranges and plains dominate Venezuela’s geography. In the west, a north¬ eastern spur of the Andes Mountains rises to Bolivar Peak. The Llanos (plains) occupy one-third of the country’s central region. The Orinoco

Ewer made of calcedonio, Venice, early 16th century; in the Museum fur Kunsthandwerk, Frankfurt am Main, Ger.

COURTESY OF THE MUSEUM FUR KUNSTHANDWERK, FRANKFURT AM MAIN, GER; PHOTOGRAPH, FOTO MARBURG-ART RESOURCE/EB INC.

River system drains almost the entire coun¬ try and has an extensive and thickly wooded delta. The highest waterfall in the world, Angel Falls, is in Venezuela. Lakes include Maracaibo and Valencia. Principal mineral resources are petroleum and natural gas. Other mineral reserves include iron, bauxite, gold, and diamonds. Industries include steel, chemi¬ cals, textiles, and oil refining. Agricultural products—notably sugar, cof¬ fee, com, bananas, and cacao—are important. Venezuela is a republic with a unicameral legislature; its head of state and government is the president. Venezuela has been inhabited by indigenous peoples for millennia. In 1498 Christopher Columbus sighted it; European explorers named the region Venezuela (Spanish: “Little Venice”) after observing local Indian houses on stilts along the shores of Lake Maracaibo. A Spanish mission¬ ary established the first European settlement at Cumana c. 1523. In 1717 it was included in the Viceroyalty of New Granada. Venezuelan Creoles led by Francisco de Miranda and Simon Bolivar spearheaded the South American independence movement, and, though Venezuelans had declared independence from Spain as early as 1797, it was not assured until the last royalist forces surrendered in 1823. Military dictators gen¬ erally ruled the country from 1830 until the overthrow of Marcos Perez Jimenez in 1958. A new constitution adopted in 1961 marked the begin¬ ning of democracy. As a founding member of OPEC (Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries), Venezuela enjoyed relative economic pros¬ perity from oil production during the 1970s, but its economy has remained dependent on fluctuations in the world petroleum market. The govern¬ ment of Hugo Chavez promulgated a new constitution in 1999, the year in which a devastating rainstorm killed thousands in and around Caracas—one of the deadliest events in Venezuelan history. Despite an increase in oil prices in the early 21st century, the country experienced great political turmoil.

Venice Italian Venezia \va-'net-sya\ City (pop., 2004 est.: 271,663), capital of Veneto region, northern Italy. Built on a lagoon, Venice encom¬ passes some 118 islands, the whole 90-mi (145-km) perimeter of the lagoon, and two industrial mainland boroughs. Refugees from northern invasions of the mainland founded settlements in the 5th century ad that were built uniquely on islands as protection against raids. Venice was a vas¬ sal of the Byzantine Empire until the 10th century. Beginning with control of a trade route to the Levant, Venice emerged from the Fourth Crusade (1202-04) as ruler of a colonial empire which included Crete, Euboea, the Cyclades, the Ionian Islands, and footholds in Morea and Epirus. In 1381 it defeated Genoa after a century-long struggle for commercial supremacy in the Levant and eastern Mediterranean. In the 15th century, with the acqui¬ sition of neighbouring regions, the Republic of Venice became an extensive Italian state. It gradually lost its eastern possessions to Ottoman Turks, with

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Venice ► Venus

1995

whom Venice fought intermittently from the 15th to the 18th century; it gave up its last hold in the Aegean in 1715. The republic dissolved and the territory was ceded to Austria in 1797. Incorporated into Napoleon’s King¬ dom of Italy in 1805, it was restored to Austria in 1815. A revolt against Austria (1848^-9) eventually resulted in Venice being ceded to Italy in 1866. It suffered little damage during World War II, but flooding along its many miles of canals caused severe damage in 1966. The waters of the lagoon rise and flood the city on a regular basis, complicating efforts to preserve its architecture, which includes Italian, Arabic, Byzantine, and Renaissance forms. There are some 450 palaces and homes of major his¬ toric importance in Venice. Notable among its 400 bridges is the Bridge of Sighs (built c. 800) and among its churches St. Mark's Basilica. Most of the city’s workers find employment in tourism and related industries, though Venice also plays a key market role within the vibrant economic system of the Veneto region.

Venice, Gulf of Northern section of the Adriatic Sea. It extends east¬ ward for 60 mi (95 km) from the Po River delta, Italy, to the coast of Istria. Marshes, lagoons, and sandspits border the gulf’s shores as far as Trieste, Italy. A northeast wind, called the bora, causes rough seas and creates shipping hazards in the gulf.

Venice, Peace of (1177) Agreement in which Holy Roman Emperor Frederick I Barbarossa acknowledged Alexander III as the true pope. Fred¬ erick’s decisive defeat by the Lombard League at the Battle of Legnano (1176) had obliged him to abandon his Italian campaign and sign a truce. In the Peace of Venice, Frederick agreed to withdraw support from the antipope and to restore church property he had seized. He received the kiss of peace from the pope in front of St. Mark’s.

Venice, Treaty of (1201) Treaty negotiated between crusaders in the Fourth Crusade and Enrico Dandolo of Venice to provide transport for 85,000 marks. The crusaders’ failure to fulfill their monetary obligation was a major factor in the diversion of the crusade to Zara and Constan¬ tinople.

Venice Biennale \,be-en-'na-la\ International art exhibition held in the Castello district of Venice every two years and juried by an international committee. It was founded in 1895 as the International Exhibition of Art of the City of Venice to promote “the most noble activities of the mod¬ ern spirit without distinction of country.” The first Biennale, which achieved worldwide prestige, included artists from 16 nations; the com¬ mittee included Edward Burne-Jones, Gustave Moreau, and Pierre Puvis de Chavannes. After World War II it became the leading showplace for the international avant-garde. Usually held in the summer months, it attracts many tourists and visitors.

Venizelos \,ven-y9-'ze-l6s\, Eleutherios (Kyriakos) (b. Aug. 23, 1864, Moumies, Crete, Ottoman Empire—d. March 18, 1936, Paris, France) Greek revolutionary leader. Son of a Cretan revolutionary, he served in the government of autonomous Crete as minister of justice (1899-1901), then led an insurrection that forced the autocratic high com¬ missioner to leave Crete (1905). In Athens, he led the Military League opposition group and effected the union of Crete with Greece. As premier of Greece (1910—15) he helped form the Balkan League. During the Bal¬ kan Wars, his policies doubled Greece’s area and population. In World War I he supported the Allies; he resigned when opposed by the pro- German King Constantine, led the opposition that forced the king into exile, and again became premier (1917—20), aligning Greece with the Allies and successfully protecting Greek interests at the Paris Peace Con¬ ference. He served three more stints as premier (1924, 1928-32, 1933), but he was forced into exile when the monarchy was restored in 1935.

venom Poison secreted by an animal, produced by specialized glands often associated with spines, teeth, or stings. It may be primarily for para¬ lyzing or killing prey or may be purely defensive. Some venoms also function as digestive fluids. Their effects can range from localized skin inflammation to almost immediate death; they include nervous-system excitation (cramps, vomiting, convulsions) or depression (paralysis, respi¬ ratory or cardiac depression or arrest), hemorrhage, red-blood-cell break¬ down, circulatory collapse, and allergic reactions (including hives and inflammation). Many major groups of animals contain venomous species: snakes (cobras, mambas, vipers, pit vipers); fish (stingrays, spiny sharks, cer¬ tain catfish, puffers); lizards (Gila monsters, beaded lizards); scorpions; spiders (black widow spiders, brown recluse spiders); social insects (bees, wasps, some ants); and marine invertebrates (sea anemones, fire corals, jel¬ lyfish, sea urchins). See also antidote.

ventilating Natural or mechanically induced movement of fresh air into or through an enclosed space. The hazards of poor ventilation were not clearly understood until the early 20th century. Expired air may be laden with odors, heat, gases, or dust. Mechanical ventilation systems typically include a fan and filter to remove particles. A mechanically powered inlet of air, when combined with a natural exhaust, tends to cause a slight posi¬ tive pressure within an enclosed space, so that the air leakage is outward. A mechanical exhaust with a natural air inlet causes a slight negative pressure, so that air moves inward. Such systems are often used to con¬ fine fumes or smells to a particular area of a building (e.g., laboratories, kitchens, bathrooms) and exhaust them to the outside.

ventricular fibrillation Uncoordinated contraction of the muscle fibres of the heart’s ventricles (see arrhythmia). Causes include heart attack, electric shock, anoxia, abnormally high potassium or low calcium in the blood, and digitalis or epinephrine poisoning (see drug poisoning). Death soon follows if circulation is not restored with electric shocks (defibrillation) or drugs supplemented by chest compressions (as in car¬ diopulmonary resuscitation). See also atrial fibrillation.

ventriloquism Art of “throwing” one’s voice in such a way that the sound seems to come from a source other than the speaker. A dummy or doll is commonly used to assist in the deception, with the ventriloquist moving the dummy’s mouth while speaking through closed lips. Ventrilo¬ quists date from ancient times and include Eurycles of Athens. Such peoples as the Maoris, Zulus, and Eskimos are adept ventriloquists. The art was long a feature of puppet shows as well as of variety entertainment such as vaudeville. Notable ventriloquists included Edgar Bergen in the U.S. and Robert Lamouret in France.

Ventris Vven-trosV Michael (George Francis) (b. July 12, 1922, Wheathampstead, Hertfordshire, Eng.—d. Sept. 6, 1956, near Hatfield, Hertfordshire) British architect and cryptographer. At age 14 he heard a lec¬ ture on the continuing mystery of Linear B script (see Linear A and Linear B) and resolved to decipher it. In 1952 he determined that Linear B was Greek in its oldest known form, dating from c. 1400-1200 bc. He collaborated with John Chadwick (1920-98) on Documents in Mycenaean Greek (1956), published a few weeks after his own death in an auto accident.

Venturi, Robert (Charles) (b. June 25, 1925, Philadelphia, Pa., U.S.) U.S. architect. He studied at Princeton University and in Rome at the American Academy. After working with Eero Saarinen and Louis Kahn, he formed a partnership with his wife, Denise Scott Brown, and John Rauch. His philosophy, set forth in the influential books Complexity and Contra¬ diction in Architecture (1966) and Learning from Las Vegas (1972), called for openness to the multiple influences of historical tradition, ordinary commercial architecture, and Pop art. He had such a profound impact on younger architects who were beginning to find similar constraints and limitations in the Modernist architectural aesthetic, that he became the unofficial dean of the postmodern movement in architecture. His buildings often exhibit ironic humour. Important commissions include buildings for Princeton and the University of Pennsylvania, the Seattle Art Museum (1985-91), and the Sainsbury Wing of London’s National Gallery (1986— 91). He won the 1991 Pritzker Architecture Prize.

venturi \ven-'tur-e\ tube Short pipe with a constricted inner surface, used to measure fluid flows and as a pump. The effects of constricted channels on fluid flow were first investigated by Giovanni Battista Ven¬ turi (1746-1822), but it was Clemens Herschel (1842-1930) who devised the instrument in 1888. Fluid passing through the tube speeds up as it enters the tube’s narrow throat, and the pressure drops. There are count¬ less applications for the principle, including the carburetor, in which air flows through a venturi channel at whose throat gasoline vapour enters through an opening, drawn in by the low pressure. The pressure differ¬ ential can also be used to measure fluid flow (see flow meter).

venue In law, the place or county in which the events giving rise to a legal action take place and from which a jury may be drawn to try the case. Venue statutes usually specify that a trial must take place in the dis¬ trict that has jurisdiction over the matter. The grounds for a change of venue are also specified; they include fear of biased jurors due to media coverage, danger of violence, and racial prejudice.

Venus Roman goddess of cultivated fields and gardens, later associated with Aphrodite. She was the daughter of Jupiter and Dione, the wife of Vulcan, and the mother of Cupid. She was famous for her romantic intrigues and affairs with both gods and mortals, and she became asso-

© 2006 Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.

1996 I Venus ► Verdun

ciated with many aspects of femininity. The planet Venus, originally the star of Ishtar, came to be named for Venus through her association with Ishtar. She has been a favourite subject in art since ancient times, nota¬ bly in the statue known as Venus de Milo (c. 150 Bc)and in Sandro Bot¬ ticelli’s painting The Birth of Venus (c. 1485).

Venus Second major planet from the Sun. Named for the Roman god¬ dess, Venus is, after the Moon, the most brilliant natural object in the night sky. Venus comes closer to Earth—about 26 million mi (42 million km)—than any other planet. Its orbit around the Sun is nearly circular at a distance of about 67 million mi (108 million km) and takes 225 days; its rotation, in retrograde motion, takes even longer (243 days). As viewed from Earth, Venus undergoes phase changes similar to the Moon’s, going through one cycle of phases in 584 days. It is seen only near sunrise or sunset and has long been known as both the morning star and the evening star. Venus is a near twin of Earth in size and mass but is completely enveloped by thick clouds of concentrated sulfuric acid droplets. Its sur¬ face gravity is about 90% that of Earth. Its atmosphere is over 96% car¬ bon dioxide, with a pressure about 95 times Earth’s. The dense atmosphere and thick cloud layers trap incoming solar energy so effi¬ ciently that Venus has the highest surface temperature of any of the Sun’s planets, more than 860 °F (460 °C). Radar imaging indicates that the sur¬ face is dry and rocky, consisting mostly of gently rolling plains, broad depressions, and two large elevated regions analogous to continents on Earth; Venus also has impact craters, extensive lava fields, and massive shield volcanos. The interior is thought to be similar to that of Earth, with a metal core, a dense rocky mantle, and a less-dense rocky crust. Unlike Earth, Venus has no intrinsic magnetic field.

Venus's-flytrap or Venus flytrap Flowering perennial plant (Dio- naea muscipula ), sole member of its genus, in the sundew family, notable for its unusual habit of catching and eating insects and other small ani¬ mals (see carnivorous plant). Native to a small region of North and South Carolina, it is common in damp, mossy areas. Growing from a bulb¬ like rootstock, the plant bears hinged leaves with spiny teeth along their margins and a round cluster of small white flowers at the tip of an erect stem 8-12 in. (20-30 cm) tall. When an insect alights on a leaf and stimu¬ lates its sensitive hairs, the leaf snaps shut in about half a second. Leaf glands secrete a red sap that digests the insect’s body and gives the entire leaf a red, flowerlike appearance. After 10 days of digestion, the leaf reopens. The trap dies after capturing three or four insects.

Veracruz V.ver-o-'kriizV in full Veracruz Have City (pop., 2000: 411,582) and port on the Gulf of Mexico, east-central Veracruz state, east- central Mexico. Hernan Cortes founded La Villa Rica de la Veracruz as the first Mexican municipality in 1519, but the site was twice abandoned because of its unhealthy conditions; the present city dates from c. 1600. As the chief link between colonial Mexico and Spain, Veracruz prospered as a port and became the most “Spanish” of Mexican cities. It was attacked and captured repeatedly, first by privateers, then by French and U.S. forces (see Veracruz incident). It was renamed Veracruz Llave in honour of Gen. Ignacio de la Llave, governor of Veracruz state (1857-60). Both the 1857 and 1917 Mexican constitutions were proclaimed there. A revolt against Pres. Francisco Madero occurred there in 1912. It is one of Mexico’s chief seaports and a commercial centre for the Gulf coast.

Veracruz State (pop., 2000: 6,908,975), east-central Mexico. Bordering the Gulf of Mexico, it occupies 27,683 sq mi (71,699 sq km); its capital is Jalapa. The state’s low, sandy gulf area rises inland to a central plateau, where the volcano Citlaltepetl, Mexico’s highest peak, reaches 18,406 ft (5,610 m) high. The area was inhabited by pre-Columbian cultures, includ¬ ing the Olmec. The first European landing was made by Hernan Cortes in 1519. A state since 1824, Veracruz has more than one-fourth of Mexico’s petroleum reserves and several of the country’s refineries. Its economy is supplemented by agriculture, forestry products, and manufacturing.

Veracruz incident (1914) Occupation of Veracruz, Mex., by U.S. marines. In April 1914, after the crew of a U.S. ship that had anchored in

Tampico was briefly detained for landing in a forbidden area, Pres. Wood- row Wilson demanded an apology from the Mexican government. When Mexican president Victoriano Huerta refused, Wilson sent a fleet to the Gulf of Mexico. After learning of an arms shipment to Huerta from Ger¬ many, Wilson ordered the port of Veracruz seized. By July the invasion had caused 200 Mexican casualties and had enabled the rival Constitu¬ tionalists under Venustiano Carranza (who had denounced the seizure by the U.S.) to take over the government. Huerta was forced into exile, and the U.S. marines were withdrawn on November 14.

Veralden-radien Vva-a-.ral-dan-'ra-de-enN Deity believed by the Sami to be the closest to the starry heaven. Because he is associated with the pillar supporting the heavens, he is also responsible for the continuance of life. He imparts the souls of unborn children to Madderakka and takes the souls of the departed to the realm of the dead. He was also the sub¬ ject of a phallic cult; each year the genitalia and blood of a bull reindeer were smeared on his statue. His worship has many Scandinavian features, which has led scholars to seek his origin in Norse mythology.

verbena Xvor-'be-nsX Plant genus ( Verbena ) that contains about 250 species, almost all of them native to the New World tropics and subtrop¬ ics. Two species are indigenous to the Old World. The familiar garden verbena ( V. hortensis, or V. hybrida ) is a creeping plant that has square stems and bears flat heads of phloxlike flowers, in a wide range of colours. Many U.S. species of Verbena are low-growing, small-flowered, some¬ what weedy plants more commonly called vervains. The shrub lemon verbena (Aloysia triphylla ), notable for its fragrant oil, is a member of the verbena, or vervain, family (family Verbenaceae), which contains more than 2,600 species in about 100 genera. Members of the family have opposite or whorled leaves that are usually undivided. The flowers, in spikes or clusters, usually consist of a tube flaring into four or five almost equally cut lobes. The family also includes teak.

Vercingetorix \ l v3r-s9n- , je-t3-,riks\ (d. 46 bc) Chieftain of the Gallic tribe of the Arvemi. Julius Caesar had almost subjugated Gaul (see Gal¬ lic Wars) when Vercingetorix, acclaimed king of his people, led the Gauls against him (52 bc), using guerrilla tactics and picking battle sites favour¬ able to his own forces. After winning a major victory at Gergovia, his later attack on the Roman army failed; besieged at Alesia, he was forced to surrender. Taken to Rome in chains, he was displayed in Caesar’s tri¬ umph and executed six years later.

Verdi \'ver-de\, Giuseppe (Fortunato Francesco) (b. Oct. 9/10, 1813, Roncole, near Busseto, duchy of Parma—d. Jan. 27, 1901, Milan, Italy) Italian composer. He was the son of an innkeeper, and he showed talent early. While earning a living as an organist, he began to write operas in Milan; in 1839 his Oberto was successfully performed at La Scala, and it initiated Verdi’s long association with the publisher Giulio Ricordi. His next opera, Un giorno di regno ( 1840), was a failure. Much worse, Verdi’s two young daughters and his wife died. He overcame his despair by com¬ posing Nabucco (1842); it was a sensational success and was followed by the equally successful I Lombardi (1843). For the rest of the decade he wrote a hit opera every year. Rejecting the prevailing structure of Italian opera—a patchwork of open-ended scenes and inserted arias, duets, and trios—he began conceiving of an opera as a series of integrated scenes, then as unified acts. Specializing in stories in which people’s private and public lives come into conflict, he produced a series of masterworks, including Rigoletto (1851), II trovatore (1853), La traviata (1853), Don Carlos (1867), and Aida (1871). A fervent nationalist, he was regarded as a great national figure. After composing his Requiem (1874), he retired, but when Ricordi brought him together with the poet and composer Arrigo Boito, initially to revise Simon Boccanegra, their mutual esteem led to the two great operas of Verdi’s old age, Otello (1886) and Falstaff{ 1890).

Verdigris Vvor-ds-grosX River River, southeastern Kansas and north¬ eastern Oklahoma, U.S. It rises in east-central Kansas and flows south across the Oklahoma border, emptying into the Arkansas River northeast of Muskogee, Okla. It is 350 mi (560 km) long.

Verdun War-'danV, Battle of (Feb. 21-July 1916) Major engagement of World War I between Germany and France. As part of its strategy of war by attrition, Germany selected the fortress of Verdun as the site it believed France would defend to the last man. After a massive bombard¬ ment, the Germans advanced with little opposition for four days before the reinforced French army under Philippe Petain slowed their advance. For two months the hills west of the Meuse River and north of Verdun were bombarded, attacked, and counterattacked. By July, Germany, which was

Venus's-flytrap (Dionaea muscipula)

JACK DERMID

© 2006 Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.

Verdun ► Vernet I 1997

also engaged in the Battle of the Somme, had abandoned its strategy of attrition, and France gradually regained its forts and territory. The dev¬ astating losses included more than 400,000 French casualties and nearly as many German casualties.

Verdun, Treaty of (843) Treaty partitioning the Carolingian empire among the three surviving sons of Louis I (the Pious). It marked a first stage in the dissolution of Charlemagne’s empire and a step toward the formation of the modem countries of western Europe. The treaty was signed following three years of civil war between the three brothers. Lothar I received the imperial title and Francia Media, which included much of Italy as well as parts of several other present-day European countries. Louis the German received Francia Orientalis, the land east of the Rhine River, and Charles II (the Bald) received Francia Occidentalis, the remainder of modem France.

Verga \'var-ga\, Giovanni (b. Sept. 2, 1840, Catania, Sicily—d. Jan. 27, 1922, Catania) Italian writer, the most important of the verismo (real¬ ist) school of novelists. Bom to a family of landowners, Verga left Sicily for the mainland, where he remained until 1893. There he developed a writing style noted for its terse accuracy and intensity of feeling. His best works include the short stories of Little Novels of Sicily (1883), the nov¬ els The House by the Medlar Tree (1881) and Mastro-Don Gesualdo (1889), and the play Cavalleria rusticana (1884; “Rustic Chivalry”), which became immensely popular when it was adapted as an opera by Pietro Mascagni. His influence on the post-World War II generation of Italian Neorealist writers was particularly marked (see Neorealism).

Vergennes \ver-'zhen\, Charles Gravier, count de (b. Dec. 28, 1719, Dijon, France—d. Feb. 13, 1787, Versailles) French statesman. As ambassador to Ottoman Turkey (1754-68), he ably defended French poli¬ cies during the Seven Years' War. As Louis XVI ’s minister of foreign affairs (1774-87), he advocated French financial and military support for the colonists in the American Revolution, concluded an alliance with them (1778), and helped negotiate the Treaty of Paris (1783). He also worked to establish a stable balance of power in Europe by mediating the peace in the War of the Bavarian Succession.

Verghina or Vergina \ver-‘ge-na\ Archaeological site and ancient capital of Macedonia, northern Greece. Built on a site in use from the Stone Age, it was first called Balia. The palace of Palatista, partly destroyed by fire, dates from the reign of Antigonus III Doson (c. 263- 221 bc). An Iron Age cemetery that dates from the 10th-7th centuries bc is near the palace. The 4th-century-BC royal tomb of Philip II of Macedon also is at Verghina.

Vergil See Virgil

Verhaeren \ver-'ha-ren, ver-a-'ren\, Emile (b. May 21, 1855, Saint Amand lez-Puers, Belg.—d. Nov. 27, 1916, Rouen, France) Belgian poet. He wrote in French, producing more than 30 collections of poetry out¬ standing for its strength and range. His first book, Les Flamandes (1883), contains violently naturalistic poems. Later he began to show a growing concern for social problems. His major works include The Sunlit Hours (1896), The Evening Hours (1911), and Belgium’s Agony (1915). His three main themes are Flanders, human energy, and his tender, understanding love for his wife. He also published plays and books on art. He was one of the group in Brussels who brought about the literary and artistic renais¬ sance of the 1890s.

verifiability principle Criterion of meaningfulness associated with logical positivism and the Vienna Circle. Moritz Schlick’s formulation “The meaning of a [declarative sentence] is the method of its verification” was close to the view held in pragmatism, and later in operationalism, that an assertion has factual meaning only if there is a difference in principle, open to test by observation, between the affirmation and the denial of the assertion. Thus, the statements of ethics, metaphysics, religion, and aes¬ thetics were held to be meaningless. The verifiability criterion of mean¬ ingfulness was in part inspired by Albert Einstein’s abandonment of the ether hypothesis and the notion of absolute simultaneity.

Verlaine \ver-'len\, Paul (-Marie) (b. March 30, 1844, Metz, France—d. Jan. 8, 1896, Paris) French lyric poet. After entering the civil service, he was first associated with the Parnassian poets, contributing to the first volume of the anthology Le Parnasse contemporain (1866). His early collections, Poemes saturniens (1866), Fetes galantes (1869), La Bonne chanson (1870), and Romances sans paroles (1874), show the intense lyricism and musicality that would mark all his verse. His mar¬

riage was shattered by his infatuation with Arthur Rimbaud, and the two scandalized Paris with their behaviour in 1872-73. While in prison in Belgium (1873-75) for shooting Rimbaud when the latter threatened to leave him, he converted to Catholicism and probably composed the famous “Art poetique,” adopted in 1882 by the poets of the Symbolist movement. Sagesse (1880) expresses his religious faith and his emotional odyssey. He later taught French and English; he spent his late years in poverty, but just before his death he was sponsored for a major interna¬ tional lecture tour. His Les Poetes maudits (1884; “The Accursed Poets”) consists of short biographical studies of six poets, including Stephane Mallarme and Rimbaud. He is regarded as the third great member (with Charles Baudelaire and Mallarme) of the so-called Decadents.

Vermeer Wor-'mer, var-'mirV, Johannes (b. Oct. 31, 1632, Delft, Neth.—d. Dec. 15, 1675, Delft) Dutch painter. His parents were tavern keepers. He twice served as head of the Delft artists’ guild but seems to have depended on his activities as an art dealer to support his family. He painted mainly interior genre subjects, depicting members of aristocratic and upper-middle-class society. About half of these paintings show soli¬ tary figures of women absorbed in some ordinary, everyday activity. His interiors combine a microscopic observation of objects with a meticulous depiction of the gradations of daylight on varied shapes and surfaces. His masterpieces (none dated) include View of Delft, Young Woman Reading a Letter, and Allegory of Painting, his most symbolically complex work. He manages to be unique within a typically Dutch genre. Few foreign influences can be sensed in his work. His work was not widely appreci¬ ated in his own time, and he remained in obscurity until 1866, when Theophile Thore celebrated his work and attributed 76 paintings to him; later authorities have reduced the number to between 30 and 35, while proclaiming him one of the greatest painters of all time.

Vermont State (pop., 2000: 608,827), northeastern U.S. One of the New England states, it covers 9,614 sq mi (24,900 sq km); its capital is Mont¬ pelier. On the north, Vermont borders Quebec, Can., on the south, Mas¬ sachusetts, and on the west. New York. From the Canadian to the Massachusetts border, the Connecticut River separates Vermont from New Hampshire on the east. The Green Mountains extend through the centre of Vermont. The highest point is Mount Mansfield, at 4,393 ft (1,339 m). Most of the rivers drain into Lake Champlain. Settled originally by Abenaki Indians, the region was explored by Samuel de Champlain, who in 1609 discovered the lake that now bears his name. The French established the first permanent European settlement in 1666 on Isle La Motte. Both the Dutch and the British established settlements in the 18th century, but the area fell exclusively to the British in 1763. Disputes arose between New York and New Hampshire concerning jurisdiction of the area; New Hamp¬ shire had awarded grants to settlers. In 1770 Ethan Allen organized the Green Mountain Boys to repel encroachers from western New York. In 1775, at the start of the American Revolution, Allen and his group, fight¬ ing for the colonies, captured Fort Ticonderoga from the British. Ver¬ monters created an independent republic in 1777, and in 1791 it became the 14th U.S. state. In 1864, during the American Civil War, it was the site of the only action north of Pennsylvania when a band of Confederates raided St. Albans from Canada. Dairying and the mining of granite and marble contribute to the economy. In the 1930s the first ski runs were built, and by the 1960s a winter tourist industry had developed.

vernacular architecture Common domestic architecture of a region, usually far simpler than what the technology of the time is capable of maintaining. In highly industrialized countries such as the U.S., for example, barns are still being built according to a design employed in Europe in the 1st millennium bc. Vernacular structures are characterized by inexpensive materials and straightforwardly utilitarian design.

Verne, Jules (b. Feb. 8, 1828, Nantes, France—d. March 24, 1905, Amiens) French writer. He studied law then worked as a stockbroker while writing plays and stories. The first of his romantic adventures (voy¬ ages extraordinaires). Five Weeks in a Balloon (1863), was highly suc¬ cessful. His subsequent voyages —with increasingly fantastic yet carefully conceived scientific wonders that often anticipated 20th-century techno¬ logical achievements—include A Journey to the Centre of the Earth (1864), Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea (1870), and Around the World in Eighty Days (1873). Verne’s work shaped the entire develop¬ ment of SCIENCE FICTION.

Vernet \ver-'na\, (Claude-) Joseph (b. Aug. 14, 1714, Avignon, France—d. Dec. 3, 1789, Paris) French painter. Son of a decorative

© 2006 Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.

1998 I vernier ► Versailles

painter, he catered to a new taste for idealized, somewhat sentimentalized landscapes. His shipwrecks, sunsets, and conflagrations reveal a subtle observation of light and atmosphere.

His series of 15 Ports of France (1754-65), his finest works, consti¬ tute a remarkable record of 18th- century life. His son Carle (1758—

1836) produced vast battle scenes for Napoleon, but his real talent was for intimate genre scenes and drawing.

His long series of fashionable stud¬ ies, often satirizing contemporary manners and costume, were widely reproduced as engravings. After the restoration of the monarchy he became court painter to Louis XVIII.

Carle’s son Horace (1789-1863) developed a remarkable facility for working on a grand scale and became one of France’s most impor¬ tant military painters.

vernier \'v3r-ne-or\ or vernier caliper Instrument for making very accurate linear or angular measure¬ ments. Introduced in 1631 by Pierre Vernier (c. 1580-1637), it uses two graduated scales: a main scale similar to that on a ruler, and a specially graduated scale, the vernier, that slides parallel to the main scale and enables readings to be made to a fraction of a division on the main scale.

Verona City (pop., 2001 prelim.: 243,474), northern Italy. Located on the Adige River, it became a Roman colony in 89 bc and was the birthplace of the poet Catullus. It was captured by the Goths after the fall of the Roman Empire and was the site of Odoacer’s defeat by the Ostrogothic king Theodoric in 489. It was occupied by Charlemagne in 774. Verona came under the della Scala family (1260-1387), the era recalled in Wil¬ liam Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. It passed in 1405 to Venice, which held it almost continuously until 1797, when it was ceded to Austria. It became part of the Kingdom of Italy in 1866. It is noted for its ancient Roman amphitheatre (1st century ad), now used for opera, and for Romanesque and Gothic buildings.

Verona, Congress of (1822) Last of the meetings held by the Qua¬ druple Alliance (Russia, Prussia, Austria, and Britain). The congress met in Verona, Italy, to consider a request by the alliance’s ally, France, to intervene in the revolutionary situation in Spain. The congress agreed to support France if it were attacked by Spain and authorized a French expe¬ dition into Spain. However, Britain threatened to use its sea power to pre¬ vent interference with the revolts in Spanish America. Increasing discord caused a breakdown in the congress system begun by the alliance in 1815.

Veronese \ 1 ver-3-'na-se\ / Paolo orig. Paolo Caliari (b. 1528, Verona, Republic of Venice—d. April 9, 1588, Venice) Italian painter. Son of a stonecutter from Verona, he was apprenticed at 13 to a painter. After 1553, when he received the first of many commissions in Venice, he became a major painter of the 16th-century Venetian school, a group of Renaissance artists known for their splendid use of colour and pageant¬ like compositions. His first works in Venice, ceiling paintings for the Doges’ Palace, employ skillful foreshortenings that make figures appear to be floating in space. He decorated the villas and palaces of the Vene¬ tian nobility and received many commissions for frescoes, altarpieces, and devotional paintings, including numerous “suppers” (e.g., The Pilgrims of Emmaus and Feast in the House of the Pharisees ) that allowed him to compose large groups of figures in complex Renaissance architectural settings. In decorating a villa built by Andrea Palladio at Maser (c. 1561), he brilliantly interpreted its architectural structure, breaking through the walls with illusionistic landscapes and opening the ceilings to blue skies with figures from Classical mythology. Whimsical details in his Last Sup¬ per (commissioned 1573) caused him to be summoned before the Inqui¬ sition. Painters from the 16th century on were inspired by his use of colour to express exuberance as well as to model form.

Verrazzano \,ver-3-'za-no\, Giovanni da (b. 1485, Tuscany, Italy—d. 1528, Lesser Antilles) Italian navigator and explorer for France. Educated in Florence, he moved to Dieppe, France, where he entered the

maritime service. In 1524 he was sent to find a westward passage to Asia and reached North America. He explored the eastern coast from Cape Fear northward and became the first European to explore the sites of present-day New York Harbor and Narragansett Bay. He sailed along the coast to New¬ foundland, then returned to France. He later led expeditions to Brazil (1527) and to the Caribbean, where he was killed and eaten by cannibals.

Verres Vver-.ezV Gaius (b. c. 115—d. 43 bc) Roman magistrate. As quaestor, Verres embezzled funds. He helped the governor of Cilicia, Gaius Dolabella, plunder the province (80-78), and then he helped con¬ vict Dolabella at Rome. He became praetor by bribery and abused his power. As governor of Sicily (73-71) his corruption was extreme; he was prosecuted so effectively by Cicero (70) that his lawyer had no reply. He fled into exile but was murdered, perhaps at the orders of Mark Antony, who then acquired his art collection.

Verrocchio \v3-'r6-ke-,6\, Andrea del (b. 1435, Florence—d. 1488, Venice) Italian sculptor and painter.

Little is certain about his early life.

His most important works were executed in his final two decades under the patronage of the Medici in his native Florence. His reputation as a master spread early, and many well-known artists studied at his stu¬ dio, including Leonardo da Vinci and Perugino; the young Leonardo prob¬ ably painted an angel and part of the distant landscape in Verrocchio’s Baptism of Christ (c. 1470). Verroc¬ chio’s reputation as one of the great relief sculptors of the Renaissance was established with his cenotaph in the cathedral at Pistoia; while it remained unfinished at his death and was later changed by others, the relief’s arrangement of figures into a dramatically unified composition anticipates the Baroque sculpture of the 17th century. His bronze statue of the military officer Bartolomeo Colleoni (commissioned 1483, erected in Venice 1496) is one of the greatest equestrian statues of the Renaissance.

vers de societe \,ver-d3-s6s-ya-'ta\ French "society verse" Witty, typically ironic, light verse, written with polish and ease of expression to amuse a sophisticated audience. It has flourished in cultured societies, particularly in court circles and literary salons, from the time of Anacreon (6th century bc). Trivial subjects are treated in an intimate, witty manner, and even when social issues form the theme, the light mood prevails. The poetry of Ogden Nash, with its theme of self-ironic adult helplessness, is a 20th-century example.

Versace, Gianni (b. Dec. 2, 1946, Reggio Calabria, Italy—d. July 15, 1997, Miami Beach, Fla., U.S.) Italian fashion designer. He was born to a dressmaker mother. After working for several Italian ateliers in Milan, in 1978 Versace established his own company, Gianni Versace SpA. Throughout the 1980s and ’90s he built a fashion empire by producing ensembles that oozed sensuality and sexuality. He staged his seasonal fashion shows like rock concerts at his lavish design headquarters in Milan. On July 15, 1997, Versace was shot and killed on the front steps of his Miami Beach, Fla., home, allegedly by the serial killer Andrew Cunanan. At the time of his death, many believed that the designer’s 25-year career was at a peak.

Versailles \ver-'sl. Palace of Baroque palace southwest of Paris built chiefly under Louis XIV. It was the principal residence of the French kings and the seat of government from 1682 to 1789, with some 1,000 court¬ iers and 4,000 attendants residing there. Originally a hunting lodge, it was enlarged by Louis XIII and Louis XIV. Louis Le Vau (1612-70), with Charles Le Brun and Andre Le Notre, began work on the palace in the 1660s. A masterpiece of formal grandeur intended as the visible expres¬ sion of the glory of France, Versailles became the palatial ideal through¬ out Europe and the Americas. Le Notre’s inventive arrangement of earth forms, plantings, and fountains created vistas, terraces, formal gardens, and wooded areas that celebrated the delights of both open and intimate space. After Le Vau’s death, Jules Hardouin-Mansart (1646-1708) was

"The Mask of Joseph Vernet," chalk and pastel portrait by Maurice-Quentin de La Tour; in the Musee des Beaux- Arts, Dijon, Fr.

IAUROS—GIRAUDON FROM ART RESOURCE/EB INC.

Bartolomeo Colleoni, bronze statue by Andrea del Verrocchio, 1483-88; in Campo di Santi Giovanni e Paolo, Venice.

BROGI—ALINARI FROM ART RESOURCE

© 2006 Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.

Versailles ► Vespasian I 1999

commissioned to triple the size of the palace and built the northern and southern wings, the Orangerie, and the Grand Trianon. Later additions include the Classically restrained Petit Trianon, built 1761-64 for Louis XV and Madame de Pompadour. The first scenes of the French Revolu¬ tion were enacted at Versailles, which had become a symbol of royal extravagance. In 1837 Louis- Philippe restored the palace and turned it into a museum.

Versailles, Treaty of International agreement, signed in 1919 at the Palace of Versailles, that concluded World War I. It was negotiated pri¬ marily by the U.S., Britain, and France, without participation by the war’s losers. Germany was forced to accept blame for Allied losses and to pay major reparations. Its European territory was reduced by about 10%, its overseas possessions were confiscated, and its military establishment was reduced. Although some of the treaty’s terms were eased in the 1920s, the bitterness it created helped to foster an environment that led to the growth of fascism in Italy and the rise of the Nazi Party in Germany. The treaty also established the League of Nations, the International Labour Organiza¬ tion, and the Permanent Court of International Justice (later the Interna¬ tional Court of Justice). See also Fourteen Points.

vertebral Vvar-'te-brel, 'vort-s-broR column or spinal column or spine or backbone Flexible column extending the length of the torso. In humans, it consists of 32-34 vertebrae, with different shapes and func¬ tions in each of five regions: 7 cervical, in the neck (including the atlas and axis, modified for free movement of the skull); 12 thoracic, in the chest; 5 lumbar, in the lower back; 5 sacral (fused into the sacrum, part of the pelvic girdle); and 3 to 5 coccygeal (vestigial tailbones fused into the coccyx). The body of each vertebra is separated from its neighbours by cushioning intervertebral disks of cartilage. Behind the body is a Y-shaped vertebral (neural) arch with structures extending up and down to form joints with the adjacent vertebrae and to the back and sides to provide attachment points for muscles and ligaments. The spine supports the torso and protects the spinal cord.

vertebrate Any animal of the chordate subphylum Vertebrata, which includes the fishes, amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals. Vertebrates have an internal skeleton formed of cartilage, bone, or both. The skeleton con¬ sists of a backbone (vertebral column), which partly encloses a spinal cord; a skull, which encloses the brain; and usually two pairs of limbs. Nerves extending from the spinal cord and brain permeate the skin, muscles, and internal organs. The muscular system consists primarily of bilaterally paired masses attached to bones or cartilage. Skin and scales, feathers, fur, or hair cover the outer surface. See also invertebrate.

vertical integration Form of business organization in which all stages of production of a good, from the acquisition of raw materials to the retailing of the final product, are controlled by one company. A current example is the oil industry, in which a single firm commonly owns the oil wells, refines the oil, and sells gasoline at roadside stations. In hori¬ zontal integration, by contrast, a company attempts to control a single stage of production or a single industry completely, which lets it take advantage of economies of scale but results in reduced competition.

vertigo \'v9r-t9-,go\ Feeling that one is spinning or that one’s surround¬ ings are spinning around one, causing confusion and difficulty keeping one’s balance, sometimes accompanied by nausea and vomiting. Vertigo is normal after actual spinning, since inner-ear fluid continues to move once the body has stopped, producing a mismatch between visual and internal sensations. Lack of a stable visual reference point also contrib¬ utes to this effect. Other causes include concussion and abnormalities of the inner ear (e.g., labyrinthitis; see otitis), of the nerves that carry sig¬ nals from it, or of the brain centers that receive them (e.g., stroke). Ver¬ tigo is often confused with a feeling of faintness (see syncope), since both are called dizziness. See also motion sickness, proprioception, spatial disori¬ entation.

vervain See verbena

vervet monkey or vervet Any of several African races of slim, arboreal, diurnal Old World monkeys of the guenon species Cercopithe- cus aethiops and C. pygerythrus (family Cercopithecidae). They have large cheek pouches. The arms and legs are long, and the nonprehensile tail is longer than the head-and-body length of 12-26 in. (30-65 cm). The soft, dense fur of many species has a speckled effect and bold markings of white or bright colours. The face, chin, hands, and feet of C. aethiops races are black.

Verwoerd ffsr-'viirtX, Hendrik (Frensch) (b. Sept. 8, 1901, Amster¬ dam, Neth.—d. Sept. 6, 1966, Cape Town, S.Af.) Dutch-bom South Afri¬ can prime minister (1958-66). He was taken to South Africa as an infant by his missionary parents. After studying at the University of Stellen¬ bosch, he became a professor there, and in 1937 he became editor of the Afrikaner nationalist daily in Johannesburg. Appointed senator (1948) and then minister of native affairs (1950), he was responsible for much of the country’s new apartheid legislation. When he became prime minister in 1958, his apartheid program was strictly enforced, and he pushed through legislation resettling blacks in reservations. His policies provoked dem¬ onstrations, sometimes violent. In 1960 white voters approved his rec¬ ommendation that South Africa leave the British Commonwealth, and his dream of a republic came true. He was stabbed to death in the parlia¬ mentary chamber by a parliamentary messenger of mixed descent.

Very Large Array (VLA) Radio telescope system consisting of 27 parabolic dishes. The most powerful radio telescope in the world, it has been operated on the plains of San Agustin near Socorro, N.M., U.S., by the National Radio Astronomy Observatory since 1980. Each dish is 82 ft (25 m) in diameter and can be moved independently by transporter along rails laid out in an enormous Y pattern whose arms are about 13 mi (21 km) long. The radio signals received by the dishes are integrated by computer, so the entire array acts as a single radio antenna (an inter¬ ferometer). The VLA, which has a maximum angular resolution better than a tenth of an arc second, has been responsible for producing many of the most detailed radio images of quasars; galaxies; supernovas; and the Milky Way Galaxy’s nucleus.

Vesalius Wo-'sa-le-osV Andreas Flemish Andries van Wesel (b.

Dec. 1514, Brussels—d. June 1564, island of Zacynthus, Republic of Venice) Flemish physician. Bom into a family of physicians, he studied medicine at the University of Paris. As a lecturer in surgery, he insisted on dissecting corpses himself, instead of relying on untrained assistants, to learn anatomy. Comparing his observations with ancient texts led him to question the theories of Galen, at that time still considered authorita¬ tive. Vesalius’s own complete textbook of human anatomy, the momen¬ tous De humani corporis fabrica libri septem (1543; “Seven Books on the Structure of the Human Body”), commonly called the Fabrica , was the most extensive and accurate description of the human body that had ever been published.

Vesey \'ve-ze\, Denmark (b. c. 1767, probably St. Thomas, Danish West Indies—d. July 2, 1822, Charleston, S.C., U.S.) U.S. insurrection¬ ist. Born into slavery, he was sold to a Bermuda slaver captain, with whom he sailed on numerous voyages. They settled in Charleston, S.C., and Vesey was allowed to purchase his freedom for $600 in 1800. After read¬ ing antislavery literature, he determined to oppose the oppression of slaves. He organized city and plantation blacks (up to 9,000 by some esti¬ mates) for an uprising in which they would attack arsenals, seize arms, kill all whites, bum Charleston, and free the slaves on surrounding plan¬ tations. After a house servant warned the authorities, the insurrection was forestalled and 130 blacks were arrested; Vesey was tried and hanged with 35 others.

Vespasian \ves-'pa-zh3n\ in full Caesar Vespasianus Augus¬ tus orig. Titus Flavius Vespa¬ sianus (b. Nov. 17?, ad 9, Reate,

Latium—d. June 24, 79) Roman emperor (69-79), founder of the Fla¬ vian dynasty. Although of humble birth, he won military glory in Brit¬ ain and was awarded a triumph by Claudius. In 63 he became proconsul of Africa. He reconquered Judaea except for Jerusalem (67-68) but stopped fighting on the death of Nero (68). After the murder of Galba, Ves¬ pasian was proclaimed emperor by the legions, while Vitellius claimed the title in Cologne; Vespasian’s forces soon defeated Vitellius in Italy. Although he claimed absolute power and took every possible office for himself and his sons, he was a

Vespasian, bust found at Ostia; in the Museo Nazionale Romano, Rome

ANDERSON-AUNARI FROM ART RESOURCE/EB INC.

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2000 I Vespucci ► vibrio

popular emperor and lived simply. He increased provincial taxation to pay for the deficits incurred by Nero and the civil wars, built the Temple of Peace and began the Colosseum, and reformed the army and Praetorian Guard. He ended the Jewish war (70) and the Rhineland revolt, adding lands in Germany and Britain and pacifying Wales. He was succeeded by his son Titus.

Vespucci \ves-'pu-che\, Amerigo (b. 1454, Florence—d. 1512, Sevilla) Italian-born Spanish navigator and explorer of the New World. He entered the Medici family business and in 1491 was sent to Sevilla, where he helped outfit the ships for the expeditions of Christopher Colum¬ bus. By 1496 he was manager of the Sevilla agency. He took part in two (or four—the number is disputed) voyages to the New World; he was navigator on a Spanish expedition (1499-1500) that probably discovered the mouth of the Amazon River, and he led a Portuguese expedition (1501-02) that discovered Guanabara Bay (Rio de Janeiro) and the Rio de la Plata. In the accounts of the voyages (published 1507), the terms America and New World were first used to describe the lands visited by Amerigo Vespucci (in Latin, Americus Vespucius). As chief navigator for the Sevilla-based Commercial House for the West Indies (from 1508), he prepared maps of newly discovered lands from data supplied by ships’ captains.

Vesta In Roman religion, the goddess of the hearth, identified with the Greek Hestia. Because maintaining a hearth fire was important in ancient times, she was worshiped in every household. Her state worship was elaborate: her temple in Rome had a perpetual fire that was attended by the Vestal Virgins. The fire was offi¬ cially extinguished and renewed annually on March 1st; its extinction at any other time was viewed as a portent of disaster to Rome.

Vestal Virgin In Roman religion, any of six priestesses, representing the daughters of the royal house, who tended the state cult of Vesta.

Chosen between the ages of 6 and 10, they served for 30 years, during which time they had to remain vir¬ gins; violation of the vow of chastity was punishable by burial alive. Their duties included tending the perpetual fire in the Temple of Vesta, fetch¬ ing water from a sacred spring, preparing ritual food, caring for objects in the temple’s inner sanctuary, and officiating at the public worship of Vesta. They enjoyed many honours and privileges, including emancipa¬ tion from their fathers’ rule.

Vestris, (Marie-Jean-) Auguste (b. March 27, 1760, Paris, Fr.—d. Dec. 5, 1842, Paris) French ballet dancer. He was trained by his father, Gaetan Vestris, before making his formal debut in 1776. His dazzlingly athletic dancing set a new style of ballet. In his last years he was a revered teacher.

Vestris, Gaetan orig. Gaetano Appolino Baldassare (b. April 18, 1729, Florence, Italy—d. Sept. 23, 1808, Paris, Fr.) French ballet dancer and teacher. His style was flamboyant while respecting traditional courtly technique. Vestris later became renowned as the most distin¬ guished teacher of his day. His most celebrated pupil was his son Auguste Vestris.

Vesuvius Active volcano, eastern side of the Bay of Naples, southern Italy. It originated about 200,000 years ago; its current height of 4,198 ft (1,280 m) has varied considerably after each of its major eruptions; in 1900 it was 4,275 ft (1,303 m) high; in 1906, 3,668 ft (1,118 m) high; and in the 1960s, 4,203 ft (1,281 m) high. The cone is half-encircled on the northern side by Mount Somma, part of the wall of a large crater in which the present cone has formed. There have been numerous destruc¬ tive eruptions; in ad 79 Pompeii and Hercuianeum were destroyed, and in 1631 about 3,000 people were killed. The last major eruption occurred in 1944. More than two million people live in the area of Vesuvius, whose fertile slopes are covered with vineyards and orchards.

vetch Any of about 150 species of herbaceous plants in the genus Vicia of the pea family (see legume). A few species are cultivated as important

fodder and cover crops and as green manure. Trailing or climbing stems grow 1^1 ft (0.3-1.2 m) tall, bearing compound leaves with several pairs of leaflets. Magenta, bluish-white, white, or yellow flowers are borne singly or in clusters. The pods con¬ tain 2-10 seeds. Like other legumes, vetches add nitrogen to the soil through nitrogen fixation. See also

CROWN VETCH.

Veterans Day U.S. holiday cel¬ ebrated on November 11, honouring veterans of the U.S. armed forces and those killed in battle. Originally called Armistice Day, it began as a commemoration of the ending of World War I on Nov. 11, 1918. After World War II it was recognized as a day to pay tribute to all service mem¬ bers, and in 1954 it was designated as Veterans Day. It is usually observed with parades, speeches, and flowers placed on military graves and memo¬ rials. The holiday is called Remembrance Day in Canada and Remem¬ brance Sunday (on the Sunday nearest to November 11) in Britain.

veterinary science Medical field dealing with animals and with dis¬ eases that are contagious between animals and humans. It was a medical specialty in ancient Egypt and Babylonia but went through a period of virtual nonexistence in medieval Europe before reappearing in the mid- 18th century with the founding of the first veterinary schools. Veterinar¬ ians practice internal medicine, surgery, and preventive medicine, using the same techniques used on humans. Many specialize in either small ani¬ mals (pets) or large ones (livestock); a few specialize in wild animals.

Viagra First oral drug for male impotence, generic name sildenafil. Before the FDA approved Viagra in 1998, impotence was treated with surgical implants, suppositories, pumps, and drugs injected into the penis. Taken as a pill shortly before sexual intercourse, Viagra selectively dilates blood vessels in the penis, improving blood flow and allowing a natural sexual response. It works in about 70% of cases; it should not be used by anyone taking nitroglycerin or with heart problems, hypotension, hyper¬ tension, recent stroke, or certain eye disorders.

viatical settlement Arrangement by which a terminally ill patient’s life-insurance policy is sold to provide funds while the insured (viator) is living. The buyer (funder), usually an investment company, pays the patient a lump sum of 50-80% of the policy’s face value, pays the pre¬ miums until the patient dies, and receives the death benefit. Viatical settle¬ ments (from Latin viaticum, “provisions for a journey”) appeared in the 1980s, when people with AIDS had high medical bills and policies nomi¬ nally sufficient to cover them but whose funds would not be available until they died.

vibraphone or vibraharp Percussion instrument with tuned metal bars, arranged keyboard-style like the xylophone. Felt or wool beaters are used to strike the bars, giving a soft, mellow tone quality. Each bar has a resonating tube suspended vertically below it to sustain the tone; small electrically powered spinning disks at the top of the resonators produce a vibrato effect by rapidly closing and opening the resonators. Invented c. 1920, it soon became a popular jazz instrument.

vibration Periodic back-and-forth motion (see periodic motion) of the particles of an elastic body or medium. It is usually a result of the dis¬ placement of a body from an equilibrium condition, followed by the body’s response to the forces that tend to restore equilibrium. Free vibrations occur when a system is disturbed but immediately allowed to move with¬ out restraint, as when a weight suspended by a spring is pulled down and then released. Forced vibrations occur when a system is continuously driven by an external agency, as when a child’s swing is pushed on each downswing. Because all systems are subject to friction, they are also sub¬ ject to damping. In the example of free vibration, damping would cause the amplitudes of the spring’s vibrations to diminish until eventually the system came to rest. See also resonance.

vibrio Vvib-re-o\ Any of a group of aquatic, comma-shaped bacteria in the family Vibrionaceae. Some species cause serious diseases in humans and other animals. They are gram-negative (see gram stain), highly capable of movement (with one to three flagella at one end), and do not

Vesta (seated on the left) with Vestal Virgins, classical relief sculpture; in the Palermo Museum, Italy

COURTESY OF THE PALERMO MUSEUM, ITALY

Vetch (Vicia cracca)

WALTER DAWN

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viburnum ► Victoria I 2001

require oxygen. Their cells are curved rods, single or strung together in S-shapes or spirals. Two species are of significance to humans: one causes cholera, the other acute bacterial diarrhea.

viburnum Wl-'bar-nsnA Any of about 200 shrubs and small trees that make up the genus Viburnum in the honeysuckle family, native to temper¬ ate and subtropical Eurasia and North America. Many species are culti¬ vated for their ornamental foliage, fragrant clusters of usually white flowers, and colourful blue-black fruits. Familiar garden shrubs in this family include Chinese snowball (V macrocephalum variety sterile ) and Japanese snowball ( V. plicatum ), each with large balls of white to green¬ ish white flowers.

Vicente \ve- , sa n n-to\ / Gil (b. c. 1465, Portugal—d. 1536/37) Portuguese playwright. His first plays were produced in 1502, and for the next 34 years he acted as court dramatist and poet laureate, staging his plays to celebrate great events and religious occasions. Regarded as the founder of Portuguese drama, he wrote in both Portuguese and Spanish. His 44 extant plays reflect the change and upheaval of his era; they may be divided into religious plays, court plays, pastoral plays, popular farces, and romantic comedy. His works include Exhortation to War (1513), The Forge of Love (1524), and The Pilgrimage of the Aggrieved (1533).

Vichy \'ve-she\ France officially French State French Etat Francais (July 1940-September 1944) French regime in World War II after the German defeat of France. The Franco-German armistice (June 1940) divided France into two zones: one under German military occu¬ pation and one under nominal French control (the southeastern two-fifths of the country). The National Assembly, summoned at Vichy to ratify the armistice, was persuaded by Pierre Laval to grant Philippe Petain authority to assume full powers in the French State. The antirepublican Vichy gov¬ ernment collaborated with the Germans and became increasingly a tool of German policy, especially after the Germans occupied the whole of France in 1942. By early 1944 the Resistance movement against the Gestapo and Vichy militias created a period of civil war in France, and after the liberation of Paris the Vichy regime was abolished.

Vicksburg Campaign (1862-63) Engagements fought at Vicksburg, Miss., in the American Civil War. Confederate forces held the fortified city against Union naval bombardment from the Mississippi River (1862) and attempts to attack by land. In April 1863 Ulysses S. Grant used the Union ships to ferry troops across the river at night. He quickly took nearby Port Gibson and Grand Gulf to prevent Confederate forces under Joseph Johnston from aiding those in the city. Unable to take Vicksburg directly, Grant besieged the city for six weeks. On July 4 Gen. John Pemberton (1814-1881) surrendered his force of 30,000, leaving the Mississippi River completely under Union control and splitting the Confederacy in half.

Vico \'ve-k6\, Giambattista (b. June 23, 1668, Naples—d. Jan. 23, 1744, Naples) Italian philosopher of cultural history and law. In his major work, New Science (1725), he attempted to combine history and the more systematic social sciences into a single science of humanity. He described human societies as passing through stages of growth and decay. The first is a “bestial” condition, from which emerges “the age of the gods,” in which man is ruled by fear of the supernatural. “The age of heroes” is the consequence of alliances formed by family leaders to protect against inter¬ nal dissent and external attack; in this stage, society is rigidly divided into patricians and plebeians. “The age of men” follows, as the result of class conflict in which the plebeians achieve equal rights, but this stage encoun¬ ters the problems of corruption, dissolution, and a possible reversion to primitive barbarism. His work is recognized as a forerunner of cultural ANTHROPOLOGY.

Victor III orig. Dauferi (b. 1027, Benevento, principality of Benevento—d. Sept. 16, 1087, Montecassino, principality of Capua; beatified July 23, 1887; feast day September 16) Pope (1086-87). As abbot of Monte Cassino from 1058, he promoted manuscript illumination, established a school of mosaic, and reconstructed the abbey. He served as papal vicar in southern Italy, negotiating peace between the Normans and the papacy. He was proclaimed pope against his will and was soon driven from Rome by supporters of Emperor Henry IV and the antipope Clement III. In 1087, after briefly retiring to his abbey, Victor resumed his papal authority and promoted the reforms of his predecessor, Pope Gregory VII. After sending an army to defeat the Saracens at Tunis (1087), he called a synod at Benevento and excommunicated Clement. He fell ill and returned to Monte Cassino, where he died.

Victor Amadeus \,am-3-'da-3s\ II Italian Vittorio Amedeo (b.

May 14, 1666, Turin, Savoy—d. Oct. 31, 1732, Moncalieri, near Turin) King of Sicily (1713-20) and of Sardinia (1720-30). The son of Charles Emmanuel II, he inherited his father’s title as duke of Savoy in 1675 and grew up under a regency headed by his mother, who pursued a pro-French policy. In the War of the Spanish Succession he sided with France, but in 1703 he shifted to the Habsburg side. With the French defeat at Turin (1706) he secured his position in Italy. The Treaty of Utrecht (1713) gave him the title of king of Sicily, which he was obliged to exchange for Sar¬ dinia in 1720. As the first king of Sardinia, which also included Piedmont and Savoy, he established the foundation for the future Italian national state.

Victor Emmanuel I Italian Vittorio Emanuele (b. July 24, 1759, Turin, Kingdom of Sardinia—d. Jan. 10, 1824, Moncalieri, near Turin) King of Sardinia (1802-21). Son of Victor Amadeus III and great- grandson of Victor Amadeus II, he led Sardinian forces against the French (1792-97). He became duke of Savoy and king of Sardinia in 1802 when his brother Charles Emmanuel IV abdicated. His kingdom, except for the island of Sardinia, was occupied by France (1802-14), then restored with the addition of Genoa by the Congress of Vienna (1815). He abdicated in 1821 in favour of his brother Charles Felix (1765-1831).

Victor Emmanuel II Italian Vittorio Emanuele (b. March 14, 1820, Turin, Piedmont, Kingdom of Sardinia—d. Jan. 9, 1878, Rome,

Italy) King of Sardinia (1849-61) and first king of a united Italy (1861—

78). The son of Charles Albert, he took part in the war against Austria (1848) and became king when his father abdicated in 1849. Assisted by his minister Camillo Cavour, he strengthened the kingdom and sup¬ ported the Risorgimento movement for unity. In the war with Austria (1859-61), he commanded troops to victories in the Battles of Magenta and Solferino. He secretly encour¬ aged Giuseppe de Garibaldi in the con¬ quest of Sicily and Naples and led the invasion of the Papal States. He assumed the title of king of Italy (1861) and later acquired Venetia (1866) and Rome (1870).

Victor Emmanuel \\ Italian Vittorio Emanuele (b. Nov. 11, 1869, Naples, Italy—d. Dec. 28, 1947, Alexandria, Egypt) King of Italy (1900- 46). Son of Umberto I, he came suddenly to the throne on his father’s assassination (1900). He accepted a Liberal cabinet and readily agreed to Italy’s war against Turkey (1911-12) and entry into World War I. After the war, he failed to prevent the rise of Benito Mussolini and the fascist seizure of power, which turned him into a figurehead sovereign. In 1943, after disastrous Italian military losses and the Allied invasion of Sicily, he had Mussolini arrested and replaced by Pietro Badoglio as premier. In 1944 he relinquished power to his son Umberto and, in an unsuccessful attempt to preserve the monarchy, abdicated in Umberto’s favour in 1946 (see Umberto II). When the Italian republic was declared in 1946, father and son went into exile.

Victoria orig. Alexandrina Victoria (b. May 24, 1819, Kensing¬ ton Palace, London, Eng.—d. Jan. 22, 1901, Osborne, near Cowes, Isle of Wight) Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland (1837-1901) and Empress of India (from 1876). The only child of Edward, duke of Kent, she succeeded her uncle, William IV, in 1837. She was first guided as queen by the Whig prime minister Lord Melbourne and then by her husband, Prince Albert, whom she married in 1840. Devoted to him, she accepted his decisions on all issues in the period sometimes called the “Albertine monarchy.” They had nine children, through whose marriages descended many of the royal families of Europe. From 1861 Victoria deeply mourned Albert’s death and thereafter made royal deci¬ sions as she believed he would have advised. She was frequently at odds with Prime Minister William E. Gladstone and welcomed his replacement by Benjamin Disraeli in 1874. Her reign, called the Victorian age, was marked by a period of British expansion and a restoration of dignity and

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2002 I Victoria ► video card

popularity to the monarchy, as shown by her Jubilees of 1887 and 1897. She remains the longest reigning monarch in British history.

Victoria State (pop., 2001: 4,822,663), southeastern Australia. It covers an area of 87,810 sq mi (227,420 sq km); its capital is Melbourne. The state’s western and northwestern parts are sandy desert and lowland, while the central and eastern parts are highlands forming the southern end of the Australian Alps. The southwestern coastal region is known as Gippsland. The Murray River forms almost the entire boundary between the state and New South Wales. Australian Aboriginal peoples had lived in the region for at least 40,000 years before contact with Europeans. Some 60 years after Capt. James Cook first sighted its coastline (1770), the area was settled by immigrants from Tasmania, who brought in their wake dis¬ eases that decimated much of the Aboriginal population. Victoria became a separate colony in 1851. In 1901 it became a state of the Common¬ wealth of Australia. Boosting its economy is a highly productive agricul¬ tural hinterland.

Victoria City (pop., 2001: metro, area, 311,902), capital of British Columbia, Canada. It is located on the southeastern tip of Vancouver Island, overlooking Juan de Fuca Strait. It was founded in 1843 by the Hudson's Bay Co. as a fur-trading post known as Fort Camosun; it was later renamed Fort Victoria to honour the English queen. It was selected as the capital in 1866 when Vancouver Island united with British Colum¬ bia. It is now one of the province’s largest business centres and a tourist resort and retirement community. A major port, it is the Pacific headquar¬ ters of the Canadian navy.

Victoria Seaport, urban district, administrative centre of Hong Kong special administrative region, China. It lies on the northern shore of Hong Kong Island (pop., 2001: 1,335,469). It has extensive wharves and is con¬ nected to the mainland by ferry and by automobile and railway tunnels. It is the chief administrative, commercial, and cultural centre of Hong Kong and is the headquarters for numerous international banks and cor¬ porations.

Victoria Town (pop., 1997: metro, area, 24,701), capital of the Repub¬ lic of Seychelles. Located on the northeastern coast of Mahe Island in the Indian Ocean, it is the only port of the archipelago and the only town of any size in Seychelles. It is the country’s business and cultural centre.

Victoria, Lake or Victoria Nyanza Largest lake in Africa and chief reservoir of the Nile River, east-central Africa. The southern half lies in Tanzania, the northern half in Uganda; it borders Kenya in the northeast. With an area of 26,828 sq mi (69,484 sq km), it is the second largest freshwater lake in the world (after Lake Superior in North America). It is about 210 mi (337 km) long, 150 mi (240 km) wide, and up to 270 ft (82 m) deep. Though the Kagera River is its largest tributary, the most impor¬ tant source of water for the lake is rainfall. Its only outlet is the Victoria Nile. John Hanning Speke, searching for the source of the Nile in 1858, was the first European to sight it. He named it for Queen Victoria; the Arabs had called it Ukerewe. Henry Morton Stanley circumnavigated it in 1875. It became a reservoir when the water level was raised after completion of Owen Falls Dam in 1954.

Victoria, Tomas Luis de (b. c. 1548, near Avila, Spain—d. Aug. 27, 1611, Madrid) Spanish composer. He went to Rome c. 1565 as an organ¬ ist and singer, and he may have studied with Giovanni Pierluigi da Pal¬ estrina, eventually becoming kapellmeister for a Jesuit congregation (1573-77). Ordained a priest (1575), he was associated with St. Philip Neri’s group (1578-85). During this time he published his books of motets, masses. Magnificats, and hymns. In 1587 he returned to Spain as chaplain to the dowager empress Maria, in whose convent he served as organist and choirmaster until his death. He wrote 21 masses (including a Pope Marcellus Mass), several Magnificats, and 44 motets (including O magnum mysterium). His music is mystical, impressive, and moving, and he was renowned as the greatest Spanish composer of the Renais¬ sance.

Victoria, University of Public university in Victoria, British Colum¬ bia, Canada, founded in 1903. It has faculties of arts and sciences, edu¬ cation, engineering, fine arts, graduate studies, human and social development, and law, as well as schools of business, music, nursing, and other specializations.

Victoria and Albert Museum Museum of decorative arts in Lon¬ don. It was conceived by Prince Albert as a way to improve the standards of British design by making the finest models available for study. The

core collection, consisting of objects purchased at the 1851 Crystal Pal¬ ace exhibition, was originally called the Museum of Ornamental Art and was opened by Queen Victoria in 1857. A new building was later designed by Sir Aston Webb, and the museum was renamed when Victoria laid the cornerstone in 1899; it was opened to the public by Edward VII in 1909. It houses vast collections of European sculpture, ceramics, furniture, met¬ alwork, jewelry, textiles, and musical instruments from medieval times to the present; remarkable Chinese ceramics, jade, and sculpture; the pre¬ mier collection of Italian Renaissance sculpture outside Italy; and the out¬ standing national collection of British watercolours, miniatures, prints, and drawings. It is regarded as the world’s greatest decorative-arts museum. Its branch museums include the Bethnal Green Museum of Childhood, the Theatre Museum, and the Wellington Museum.

Victoria Desert See Great Victoria Desert

Victoria Falls Waterfall, at the border between Zambia and Zimbabwe. Approximately twice as wide and twice as deep as Niagara Falls, the falls span the entire breadth of the Zambezi River at one of its widest points (more than 5,500 ft [1,700 m]). There the river plunges over a precipice, split by islands and promontories, to a drop of 355 ft (108 m). Two national parks, Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe and Mosi-oa-Tunya in Zambia, are adjacent to the falls. Victoria Falls was designated a World Heritage site in 1989. The first European sighting of the falls was in 1855 by David Livingstone, who named them after Queen Victoria.

Victoria Falls See Iguazu Falls

Victoria Island Second largest island of the Arctic Archipelago, Canada. About 320 mi (515 km) long and 170-370 mi (270-600 km) wide, it has an area of 83,896 sq mi (217,291 sq km). Discovered in 1838 by Thomas Simpson, it was named for Queen Victoria and was first explored by John Rae in 1851. It is divided administratively between the Northwest Territories and the territory of Nunavut.

Victoria Nile River that forms the upper section of the Nile River. Some 260 mi (420 km) long, it issues from the northern end of Lake Victoria, then flows over the Owen Falls Dam, through Lake Kyoga, and over Kabalega Falls (118 ft [36 m]) before entering the northeastern corner of Lake Albert. It is about 300 mi (480 km) long.

Victoria River Longest river in Northern Territory, Australia. The Vic¬ toria River flows northwest for about 350 mi (560 km) to enter the Joseph Bonaparte Gulf of the Timor Sea. Its last 100 mi (160 km) are tidal. Cap¬ tain J.C. Wickham of HMS Beagle reached the river in 1839 and named it in honour of Queen Victoria.

Victoria Strait Channel of the Arctic Ocean. It is located between southeastern Victoria Island and King William Island, off the northern Canada mainland in Nunavut. At about 100 mi (160 km) long and from 50-80 mi (80-130 km) wide, it connects Queen Maud Gulf with McClin- tock Channel and Franklin Strait.

vicuna Wi-’kiin-yo, vl-'kii-noX South American lamoid (see alpaca), the smallest species ( Vicugna vicugna) in the camel family, found in semiarid grasslands of the central Andes at altitudes of 12,000-16,000 ft (3,600- 4,800 m). The remarkably long, soft, lustrous coat is cinnamon to white; a dense, silky, white fleece hangs from the flanks and base of the neck. Vicunas are about 36 in. (90 cm) high and weigh over 100 lbs (50 kg). Small bands of females, led by a male, graze on low grasses, ruminate while at rest, and spit often and noisily. They mark their territory with communal dung heaps. Vicunas are untamable but have been hunted for centuries; they are now protected as an endangered species.

Vidal Vve-.dal, ve-'dal. Gore orig. Eugene Luther Vidal (b. Oct. 3, 1925, West Point, N.Y., U.S.) U.S. novelist, playwright, and essayist. Vidal began publishing his writings soon after his wartime army service. Though he wrote stage plays and television and film screenplays, he is best known for his irreverent and intellectually adroit novels. The City and the Pillar (1948) became notorious for its homoerotic subject mat¬ ter. Myra Breckenridge (1968) was acclaimed for its wild satire. His other novels, many of them historical and most of them best-sellers, include Julian (1964), Washington, D.C. (1967), Burr (1974), 1876 (1976), and Lincoln (1984). He also published several essay collections and the mem¬ oir Palimpsest (1996). Known for his iconoclastically leftist political analyses, he twice ran unsuccessfully for Congressional office.

video card Integrated circuit that generates the video signal sent to a computer display. The card is usually located on the computer mother-

© 2006 Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.

videocassette recorder ► Viet Cong I 2003

board or is a separate circuit board, but is sometimes built into the com¬ puter display unit. It contains a digital-to-analog module, as well as memory chips that store display data. All video cards (also known as video adapters, video boards, and video controllers) adhere to a display stan¬ dard, such as SVGA or XGA.

videocassette recorder See VCR

videodisc Rigid circular plate of either metal or plastic used to record video and audio signals for playback. It resembles a phonograph record and can be played on a machine attached to a conventional television receiver. There are two major classes of videodiscs, magnetic and non¬ magnetic. Magnetic videodiscs have an oxide-coated surface onto which input signals are recorded as magnetic patterns in spiral tracks. Nonmag¬ netic videodiscs use either a mechanical recording system analogous to that used in phonograph records, or optical technology that uses a laser to read data coded as a sequence of pits on the disc. The most common type of videodisc today is the DVD.

videotape Magnetic tape used to record visual images and sound, or the recording itself. There are two types of videotape recorders, the trans¬ verse (or quad) and the helical. The transverse unit uses four heads rotat¬ ing on an axis perpendicular to the direction in which the tape is fed. The transverse format achieves 1,500-in.-per-minute head-to-tape speed, nec¬ essary for high picture quality. The helical unit uses tape traveling around a drum in the form of a helix. VCRs use a helical format, known as VHS (Video Home System), consisting of two helical bands and tape 1/2 in. (1 cm) wide.

Vidor Vve-dor\, King (Wallis) (b. Feb. 8, 1894, Galveston, Texas, U.S.—d. Nov. 1, 1982, Paso Robles, Calif.) U.S. film director. He worked as a prop boy, scriptwriter, newsreel cameraman, and assistant director before directing his first feature film, The Turn in the Road (1919). He won acclaim for The Big Parade (1925) and The Crowd (1928), consid¬ ered a silent-movie classic. His films, which deal with themes such as idealism and disillusionment in contemporary life, include the first all- African American film, Hallelujah! (1929), as well as Our Daily Bread (1934) and The Citadel (1938). His later movies include the western epic Duel in the Sun (1946), The Fountainhead (1949), and War and Peace