Britannica Concise 2005 - читать бесплатно онлайн полную версию книги автора Encyclopedia Britannica (ч. 16)

Dangriga L COCKSCOMB BASIN H WILDLIFE SANCTUARY

.V a Victoria

eak / «/ \ •

^ 3,674 ft.

^ nv

Monkey River

Vv 4 Gulf of Honduras

• Punta Gorda

s Amatique Bay

HALF MOON CAY NATIONAL MONUMENT

est.): 291,000. Capital: Belmopan. Most Belizeans are of mixed ancestry (Indian- European, African-European), with smaller groups of Maya Indians and Gari- funa. Languages: English (official), Cre¬ ole, Spanish. Religion: Christianity (Roman Catholic, Protestant). Currency: Belize dollar. The country is bounded to the north by Mexico, to the east by the Caribbean Sea, and to the west and south by Guatemala. Belize is a land of mountains, swamps, and tropical jungles. The north¬ ern half consists of swampy lowlands drained by the Belize and Hondo rivers; the latter forms the boundary with Mexico. The southern half is more mountainous and contains the country’s highest point, Victoria Peak (3,681 ft [1,122 m]). Off the coast lies Belize Barrier Reef, the world’s second largest barrier reef. Belize is relatively prosperous and has a devel¬ oping free-market economy with some government participation. It is a constitutional monarchy with two legislative houses; its head of state is the British monarch represented by a governor-general, and the head of government is the prime minister. The area was inhabited by the Maya (c. 300 bc-ad 900); the ruins of their ceremonial centres, including Car- acol and Xunantunich, can still be seen. The Spanish claimed sovereignty from the 16th century but never tried to settle Belize, though they regarded the British who did as interlopers. British loggers arrived in the mid-17th century; Spanish opposition was finally overcome in 1798. When settlers began to penetrate the interior, they met with Indian resistance. In 1871 British Honduras became a crown colony, but an unfulfilled provision of an 1859 British-Guatemalan treaty led Guatemala to claim the territory. The situation had not been resolved when Belize was granted its inde¬ pendence in 1981. Although Guatemala officially recognized the territo¬ ry’s independence in 1991, a British force, stationed there to ensure the new country’s security, was not withdrawn until 1994.

Belize City City (pop., 2000: 49,050), Belize. The chief seaport and former capital of Belize, it lies at the mouth of the Belize River, which was until the 10th century a heavily populated trade artery of the Maya empire. The British settled the area in the 17th century. The city, built on ground only slightly above sea level, has been ravaged by hurricanes, so the capital was moved inland to Belmopan in 1970.

bell Hollow vessel, usually of metal, that produces a ringing sound when struck by an interior clapper or a mallet. In the West, open bells have acquired a standard “tulip” shape. Though the vibrational patterns of such open bells are basically nonharmonic, they can be tuned so that the lower overtones produce a recognizable chord. Forged bells have existed for many thousands of years. Bells were first cast, or founded, in the Bronze Age; the Chinese were the first master founders. Bells have carried a wide range of cultural meanings. They are particularly important in religious

194 I Bell ► Belle Isle

ritual in East and South Asia. In Christianity, especially Russian Ortho¬ doxy, bells have also been used ritually. They have tolled the hours from monastery and church steeples, originally to govern monastic routine and later also to fill a similar role for the secular world.

Bell, Alexander Graham (b. March 3, 1847, Edinburgh, Scot.—d. Aug. 2, 1922, Beinn Bhreagh, Nova Scotia, Can.) Scottish-born U.S. audiologist and inventor. He moved to the U.S. in 1871 to teach the visible-speech system developed by his father, Alexander Melville Bell (1819-1905). He opened his own school in Boston for training teach¬ ers of the deaf (1872) and was influ¬ ential in disseminating these methods. In 1876 he became the first person to transmit intelligible words through electric wire (“Watson, come here, I want you,” spoken to his assistant Thomas Watson). He patented the telephone the same year, and in 1877 he cofounded Bell Tele¬ phone Co. With the proceeds from France’s Volta Prize, he founded Volta Laboratory in Washington,

D.C., in 1880. His experiments there led to the invention of the photo¬ phone (which transmitted speech by light rays), the audiometer (which measured acuteness of hearing), the Graphophone (an early practical sound recorder), and working wax recording media, both flat and cylindrical, for the Graphophone. He was chiefly responsible for founding the journal Science, founded the Ameri¬ can Association to Promote Teaching of Speech to the Deaf (1890), and continued his significant research on deafness throughout his life.

Bell, (Arthur) Clive (Heward) (b. Sept. 16, 1881, East Shefford, Berkshire, Eng.—d. Sept. 17, 1964, London) British art critic. He stud¬ ied at Cambridge University and in Paris. In 1907 he married Vanessa Stephen, sister of Virginia Woolf; with Virginia’s husband, Leonard Woolf, and Roger Fry, they formed the core of the Bloomsbury group. Bell’s most important aesthetic ideas were published in Art (1914) and Since Cezanne (1922), in which he promoted his theory of “significant form” (the quality that distinguishes works of art from all other objects). His assertion that art appreciation involves an emotional response to purely formal qualities, independent of subject matter, was influential for several decades.

Bell, Cool Papa orig. James Thomas Bell (b. May 17, 1903, Starkville, Miss., U.S.—d. March 7, 1991, St. Louis, Mo.) U.S. baseball player. Bell was a switch-hitting outfielder for most of his career. Play¬ ing primarily in the Negro leagues, he is said to have stolen 175 bases in a 200-game season and is reputed to have been the fastest base runner of all time. Also a fine hitter, he once batted .391 over a five-year period. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1972.

Bell, Gertrude (b. July 14, 1868, Washington Hall, Durham, Eng.—d. July 12, 1926, Baghdad, Iraq) British traveler, writer, and colonial admin¬ istrator. After graduating from Oxford, she journeyed throughout the Middle East. After World War I she wrote a well-received report on the administration of Mesopotamia between the end of the war (1918) and the Iraqi rebellion of 1920 and later helped determine postwar boundaries. In 1921 she helped place a son of the sharif of Mecca, Faysal I, on the Iraqi throne. In helping create the National Museum of Iraq, she promoted the idea that excavated antiquities should stay in their country of origin.

Bell, John (b. Feb. 15, 1797, near Nashville, Tenn., U.S.—d. Sept. 10, 1869, Dover, Tenn.) U.S. politician. He represented Tennessee in the U.S. House of Representatives (1827-41) and Senate (1847-59). Although a large slaveholder, he opposed efforts to expand slavery to U.S. territories and voted against admitting Kansas as a slave state. His defense of the Union brought him the 1860 nomination for president on the Constitu¬ tional Union ticket, but he carried only three states. He later supported the South in the American Civil War.

Bell Burnell, (Susan) Jocelyn orig. Susan Jocelyn Bell (b. July 15, 1943, Belfast, N.Ire.) British astronomer. As a research assistant at the

University of Cambridge, she assisted in constructing a large radio tele¬ scope and discovered pulsars, cosmic sources of peculiar radio pulses, providing the first direct evidence for the existence of rapidly spinning neutron stars. The 1974 Nobel Prize for Physics was awarded for the dis¬ covery of pulsars to Antony Hewish (her adviser) and Martin Ryle, spark¬ ing a controversy over the omission of Bell Burnell. She subsequently became a professor at Open University and vice president of the Royal Astronomical Society.

bell curve See normal distribution

Bell Laboratories U.S. research and development company (founded 1925) that develops telecommunications equipment and carries out defense-related research. Formerly part of AT&T, it now belongs to Lucent Technologies, Inc., which spun off from AT&T in 1996. Bell Labs has produced thousands of inventions, including the first synchronous- sound motion-picture system, the electrical-relay digital computer, the laser, the solar cell, UNIX, and the C and C++ programming languages. Several Bell researchers have won Nobel Prizes: Clinton Davisson, for demon¬ strating the wave nature of matter; John Bardeen, Walter H. Brattain, and William B. Shockley, for inventing the transistor; and Arno Penzias and Robert W. Wilson, for discovering cosmic microwave background radia¬ tion. It operates today in some 20 countries.

Bell palsy See paralysis

bell ringing See change ringing

Bella, Ahmed Ben See Ahmed Ben Bella

belladonna Tall, bushy, herbaceous plant, the deadly nightshade {Atropa belladonna), of the nightshade family; also, the crude drug con¬ sisting of its dried leaves or roots. The plant is a native of wooded or waste areas in central and southern Eurasia. It has dull green leaves, vio¬ let or greenish flowers, shiny black berries about the size of cherries, and a large, tapering root. Belladonna is highly poisonous and is cultivated for medicinal substances (alkaloids) that are derived from the crude drug and used in sedatives, stimulants, and antispasmodics. Because of toxic¬ ity and undesirable side effects, however, these substances are being replaced by synthetic drugs.

Bellamy Vbel-o-meX, Edward (b. March 26, 1850, Chicopee Falls, Mass., U.S.—d. May 22, 1898, Chi¬ copee Falls) U.S. writer. Bellamy first became aware of the plight of the urban poor at age 18 while study¬ ing in Germany. He engaged throughout his life in progressive causes and wrote several books reflecting his concerns, but he is known chiefly for his utopian novel Looking Backward (1888), which describes the U.S. in the year 2000 as an ideal socialist state featuring cooperation, brotherhood, and indus¬ try geared to human need. It sold more than a million copies; a sequel,

Equality (1897), was less successful.

Bellarmine Vbel-.ar-monX, Saint Robert Italian Roberto Fran¬ cesco Romolo Bellarmino (b.

Oct. 4, 1542, Monrepulciano,

Tuscany—d. Sept. 17, 1621, Rome; canonized 1930; feast day September 17) Italian cardinal and theologian. He joined the Jesuits in 1560, and after ordination in the Spanish Neth¬ erlands (1570) he began to teach theology. He was made a cardinal in 1599 and an archbishop in 1602. He took a prominent part in the first examination of Galileo’s writings; though somewhat sympathetic to Gali¬ leo, he thought it best to have the Copernican system declared “false and erroneous,” which was done in 1616. He gave impartial attention to Prot¬ estant works and was regarded as an enlightened theologian. He died a pauper, having given all his funds to the poor. In 1931 he was named a Doctor of the Church.

Belle Isle, Strait of Channel, eastern Canada. The northern entrance from the Atlantic Ocean to the Gulf of St. Lawrence, it is 90 mi (145 km) long and 10-20 mi (16-32 km) wide. It flows between the northern tip

Alexander Graham Bell.

CULVER PICTURES

March 26, 1850, Chicopee Falls,

Bellamy

COURTESY OF THE LIBRARY OF CONGRESS, WASHINGTON, D.C.

Bellerophon ► Belmondo I 195

of Newfoundland and southeastern Labrador and is the most direct route from the Saint Lawrence Seaway and Great Lakes ports to Europe. The cold Labrador Current flows through the strait, extending the period of ice cover and limiting shipping to between June and late November.

Bellerophon \b3-'ler-3-f3n\ Legendary Greek hero. The son of Glau- cus and grandson of Sisyphus, as a youth in Corinth he tamed and rode the winged horse Pegasus. The wife of King Proteus of Argos fell in love with him, and when he rejected her, she falsely accused him of attempted rape. Proteus sent him to the king of Lycia with a message asking that he be killed. The king instead ordered him to kill the monster Chimera, and with the aid of Pegasus he succeeded. He married the king’s daughter but later lost the favour of the gods and became an unhappy wanderer. Another version of the legend holds that he tried to fly up to heaven and was thrown from Pegasus and lamed.

bellflower Any of about 300 annual, perennial, and biennial herba¬ ceous plants of the genus Campan¬ ula (family Campanulaceae) that bear bell-shaped, usually blue flow¬ ers. They are native mainly to north¬ ern temperate regions in both hemispheres, Mediterranean areas, and tropical mountains. Distribution and habitat may be quite diverse.

Species native to northern Eurasia and eastern North America but also grown in gardens are the bluebell (C. rotundifolia) and the tall bellflower (C. americana). The creeping bell¬ flower (C. rapunculoides) is a noto¬ rious garden weed. Among the few food plants in the bellflower family, which includes a total of 40 genera and 700 species, are the rampion (C. rapunculus), eaten as a vegetable in parts of Europe, and some robust members—especially Canarina, Clermontia, and Centropogon —that pro¬ duce edible berries.

Bellini, Vincenzo (b. Nov. 3, 1801, Catania, Sicily—d. Sept. 23, 1835, Puteaux, France) Italian composer. Born into a musical family, he was educated at the Naples Conservatory. He wrote his first opera at age 24 and went on to complete nine more before his death at age 33. The most famous are The Pirate (1827), The Capulets and the Montagues (1830), The Sleepwalker (1831), Norma (1831), and The Puritans (1835). His works, which rely strongly on beautiful vocal melody ( hel canto), rivaled those of his contemporaries Gioacchino Rossini and Gaetano Donizetti in popularity.

Bellini \bal-'le-ne\ family Family of Italian artists. Jacopo Bellini (c. 1400-70/71) was trained under Gentile da Fabriano, and by c. 1440 he had a thriving studio in Venice. More important than his paintings are his two surviving sketchbooks, which contain nearly 300 drawings. He was the father-in-law of Andrea Mantegna. His son Gentile Bellini (c. 1429-1507) inherited his father’s sketchbooks and took over as head of the studio. His most important extant works are two huge canvases. Procession of the Relic of the True Cross (1496) and Miracle at the Bridge of San Lorenzo (1500), depicting scenes of contemporary Venetian life. Gentile’s brother Giovanni Bellini (called Giambellino, c. 1430-1516) was the greatest and most prolific artist of the family. He transformed Venice into a Renais¬ sance centre rivaling Florence and Rome. Giovanni was an early master of oil painting. Primarily a religious painter, he also excelled at portraits, of which Doge Leonardo Loredan (c. 1501) is his best known. Titian and Giorgione were probably trained in his workshop. See also Venetian school.

Belloc \'bel-,ak\, (Joseph-Pierre) Hilaire (b. July 27, 1870, La Celle-Saint-Cloud, France—d. July 16, 1953, Guildford, Surrey, Eng.) French-born British poet, historian, Catholic apologist, and essayist. A highly versatile writer, he is best remembered for his light verse, particu¬ larly for children, and for his lucid and graceful essays. His works include Verses and Sonnets (1895), The Bad Child’s Book of Beasts (1896), The Modern Traveller (1898), Mr. Burden (1904), and Cautionary Tales (1907). He also wrote several historical works, including a four-volume History of England (1925-31).

Bellotto \bel-'lot-to\, Bernardo known as Canaletto (b. Jan. 30, 1720, Venice—d. Oct. 17, 1780, Warsaw, Pol.) Italian painter of topo¬ graphical views, known as vedute (“view paintings”). He was the nephew

of Canaletto and was himself known by that name when painting outside Italy. In 1747 he left Italy to spend the rest of his life working at various European courts, most notably at Dresden for Frederick Augustus II (1747-66) and at Warsaw for Stanislaw II (1767-80). His detailed views of the Polish capital were used as guides to reconstruct the historic sec¬ tions of the city after their destruction in World War II. Bellotto’s style is distinguishable from his uncle’s by its Dutch characteristics (e.g., cast shadows, massed clouds, sombre tone and colour).

Bellow, Saul (b. June 10, 1915, Lachine, near Montreal, Que., Can.—d. April 5, 2005, Brookline, Mass., U.S.) Canadian-born U.S. novelist. Bom to an immigrant Russian Jewish family, he was fluent in Yiddish from childhood. His family moved to Chicago when he was nine; he grew up and attended college there and, after some years in New York, returned to teach in Chicago. His works, which make him representative of the Jewish American writers whose works became central to American lit¬ erature after World War II, deal with the modern urban dweller, disaf¬ fected by society but not destroyed in spirit; his originality lay partly in his combination of cultural sophistication and street wisdom. His works include The Adventures of Augie March (1953, National Book Award), Seize the Day (1956), Henderson the Rain King (1959), Herzog (1964, National Book Award), Mr. Sammler’s Planet (1970, National Book Award), Humboldt’s Gift (1975, Pulitzer Prize), The Dean’s December (1982), and Ravelstein (2000). He won the Nobel Prize for Literature in

bellows Mechanical contrivance for creating a jet of air, consisting usually of a hinged box with flexible sides, which expands to draw in air through an inward opening valve and contracts to expel the air through a nozzle. Invented in medieval Europe, the bellows was commonly used to speed combustion, as in a blacksmith’s or ironworker’s forge, or to oper¬ ate reed or pipe organs.

Bellows, George Wesley (b. Aug. 12, 1882, Columbus, Ohio, U.S.—d. Jan. 8, 1925, New York, N.Y.) U.S. painter and lithographer. He studied with Robert Henri at the New York School of Art and became associated with the artists of the Ash Can school. Best known for his box¬ ing scenes, he achieved notoriety with his painting Stag at Sharkey’s (1909), which depicts an illegal boxing match. He was one of the orga¬ nizers of the Armory Show. From 1916 until his death he produced a series of some 200 lithographs, including the well-known Dempsey and Firpo

(1924).

Stag at Sharkey's, oil on canvas by George Bellows, 1909; in the Cleveland Museum of Art, Ohio, U.S.

COURTESY OF THE CLEVELAND MUSEUM OF ART, OHIO, HINMAN B. HURLBUT COLLECTION

Belmondo \bel-mo n -'do\, Jean-Paul (b. April 9, 1933, Neuilly-sur- Seine, near Paris, France) French film actor. After studying in Paris and performing with provincial stage companies, he appeared in minor film roles before achieving international fame in Jean-Luc Godard’s Breathless (1960). Though not conventionally handsome, he became the leading antihero of New Wave cinema, acting in 25 films by 1963, then went on to appear in such acclaimed films as Pierrot le Fou (1965), Mississippi Mermaid (1969), and Les Miserables (1995).

Bellflower ( Campanula)

W.H. HODGE

196 I Belmont family ► Ben Ali

Belmont family U.S. family prominent in banking and finance, poli¬ tics, and patronage of the arts. Its founder in the U.S. was August Bel¬ mont (1816-90), a Prussian-bom Jewish banker and diplomat. Belmont entered the Rothschilds’ Frankfurt, Ger., banking house at age 14. In 1837 he moved to New York, where he acted as the Rothschilds’ agent and laid the foundation for his own banking house, which became one of the larg¬ est in the country. He took an active interest in politics. Strongly opposed to slavery, he influenced merchants and financiers in England and France in favour of the Union during the Civil War. He introduced Thoroughbred horse racing into the U.S. (see Belmont Stakes). He married the daughter of Commodore Matthew Perry. His son Perry (1850-1947) became a U.S. Congressman and wrote books on U.S. history and politics. Another son, August Belmont, Jr. (1853-1924), took over the banking house and financed the building of New York’s subway, while his wife, Eleanor, supported the Metropolitan Opera.

Belmont Stakes Oldest of the three U.S. horse races that constitute the Triple Crown. The Belmont originated in 1867 and is named after August Belmont (see Belmont family). The stakes is held in early June at Belmont Park, near Garden City, Long Island; the course is 1.5 mi (2,400 m).

Belmopan \ 1 bel-mo-'pan\ City (pop., 2000: 8,130), capital of Belize. It lies in the Belize River valley, 50 mi (80 km) inland from the former capital, Belize City. After a hurricane did extensive damage to low-lying Belize City, the new capital site was chosen far enough inland to avoid flooding. Construction began in 1966, and Belmopan became the capital in 1970.

Belo Horizonte \'ba-lo-re-'zo n n-te\ City (pop., 2003 est.: city, 2,305,800; metro, area, 5,100,359), southeastern Brazil. Capital of Minas Gerais state, it lies on the western slope of the Serra do Espinha^o at an elevation of 2,720 ft (830 m). The site was chosen in the late 19th cen¬ tury to accommodate expansions that the former capital could not. Bra¬ zil’s first planned city, it was laid out on a grid following the models of Washington, D.C., and La Plata, Arg. It is the hub of a large agricultural region and the area’s commercial and industrial centre.

Belorussia See Belarus

Belorussian language See Belarusian language Belsen See Bergen-Belsen

Belshazzar \bel-'sha-z3r\ (d. c. 539 bc) Coregent of Babylon. Though he is referred to in the book of Daniel as the son of Nebuchadrezzar, Babylonian inscriptions suggest that he was the eldest son of King Nabon- idus. When the king went into exile in 550 bc, the kingdom and most of its army were entrusted to Belshazzar. In the biblical story Belshazzar holds a last great feast at which he sees a hand writing on a wall the Ara¬ maic words “ mene , mene, tekel, upharsin ,” which Daniel interprets as a judgment from God foretelling the fall of Babylon. Belshazzar died after Babylon fell to the Persians in 539 bc.

belt drive Pair of pulleys attached to usually parallel shafts and con¬ nected by an encircling flexible belt (band) that can serve to transmit and modify rotary motion from one shaft to the other. Most belt drives con¬ sist of flat leather, rubber, or fabric belts running on cylindrical pulleys or of belts with a V-shaped cross section running on grooved pulleys. Another type of belt, used on some internal-combustion engines for con¬ necting the crankshaft and camshafts, is the toothed (or timing) belt, a flat belt with evenly spaced transverse teeth that fit in matching grooves on the periphery of the pulley.

Beltane Vbel-tan, 'bel-tin\ or Beltine \'bel-tin\ or Cetsamain Vket-.sau-inX In Celtic religion, a festival held on the first day of May, cel¬ ebrating the beginning of summer and open pasturing. Beltane was one of two turning points in the year, the other being November 1 (Samhain), the start of winter. At both, the bounds between the human and supernatural worlds were erased. On May Eve, witches and fairies roamed freely, and measures had to be taken against their enchantments. As late as the 19th century in Ireland, cattle were driven between two bonfires on Beltane as a magical means of protecting them from disease. See also Halloween.

Belter, John Henry orig. Johann Heinrich Belter (b. 1804, Germany—d. 1863, New York, N.Y., U.S.) German-born U.S. cabinet¬ maker and designer. Trained in Germany, he settled in New York City in 1833. He opened a fashionable shop specializing in rosewood, walnut, and mahogany furniture. In 1854 he patented his invention of processing rosewood in many layers to achieve thin panels that, once shaped in molds

through steam heating, could be finely carved. He opened a large factory in 1858, but soon competitive French imports and economic troubles associated with the American Civil War impaired his business, and the firm closed in 1867.

beluga \bo-Tu-g9\ or hausen \'hau-z 3 n\ Large species of sturgeon {Huso huso, or Acipenser huso ) that inhabits the Caspian and Black seas and the Sea of Azov. It reaches a length of 25 ft (7.5 m) and a weight of 2,900 lbs (1,300 kg), but its flesh and caviar are less valuable than those of smaller species.

beluga or white whale Species ( Delphinapterus leucas) of whale found in the Arctic Ocean and adjacent seas, in both deep offshore and coastal waters. It may also enter rivers that empty into far northern seas. A toothed whale with a rounded forehead and no dorsal fin, the beluga is about 13 ft (4 m) long. Bom dark blue-gray or blackish, it fades to white or cream at 4-5 years of age. It feeds on fish, cephalopods, and crusta¬ ceans and usually lives in groups of five to 10. It has been hunted com¬ mercially for its oil, hide, and flesh, and is used in the Arctic as food for humans and dogs.

Beluga, or white whale [Delphinapterus leucas ).

E.R. DEGGINGER

belvedere Roofed architectural structure, freestanding or attached, and open on one or more sides. It is built in an elevated position to provide a view and capture daylight and fresh air. Used in Italy since the Renais¬ sance, it often assumes the form of a loggia. The term is often used for a gazebo on top of a building, especially the glazed viewing room of a Vic¬ torian dwelling.

Belvedere Torso Hellenistic marble torso of a male figure 5 ft 3 in. (1.6 m) high seated on a rock. It is named after the Belvedere court in Vatican City, where it once stood; it is now in the Vatican Museum. It is signed by the Greek sculptor Apollonius and possibly dates from the 1 st century bc. Well known by 1500, it had a profound influence on Michel¬ angelo and other Renaissance artists.

bema \'be-mo\ (Greek: “step”) Raised stone platform originally used in Athens as a tribunal where orators addressed the citizens and courts of law. In modern times it is usually a rectangular wooden platform. The bema became a standard fixture in Eastern Orthodox churches, function¬ ing as a stage for the altar and clergy. In synagogues, the bema (or bimah) is a raised platform with a reading desk from which the Torah and pas¬ sages from the Prophets are read.

Bembo \'bem-,bo\, Pietro (b. May 20, 1470, Venice—d. Jan. 18, 1547, Rome) Italian prelate and linguist. Born into an aristocratic family, he became librarian of St. Mark’s Cathedral and was created a cardinal in 1539. After writing lyric poetry in Latin, he turned to the vernacular, pro¬ ducing Italian poems in imitation of Petrarch and an Italian history of Venice. His Discussions of the Vernacular Language (1525) was one of the earliest books to codify Italian spelling and grammar, and it helped establish the Italian literary language. Bembo successfully advocated the adoption of 14th-century Tuscan as a model for literary Italian.

Ben Ali \ben-'a-le\, Zine el-Abidine (b. Sept. 3, 1938, near Sousse, Tun.) President of Tunisia (from 1987). Trained as a soldier, he headed the defense ministry’s military intelligence section for 10 years (1964-

Ben Bella ► Benedict XIII I 197

74) before entering the foreign service. He served as ambassador to Poland before returning home to hold several domestic government posts, which culminated in a dual appointment as prime minister and interior minister. In 1987 he replaced President Habib Bourguiba, who had been declared medically unfit. He was returned to office in elections in 1989, 1994, 1999, and 2004.

Ben Bella, Ahmed (b. Dec. 25, 1918?, Maghnia, Alg.) First elected president of Algeria. After a French education, he entered the French army and was decorated during World War II (1939—45). After the war he took up arms to fight French rule. In 1954 he helped found the National Lib¬ eration Front (FLN) and became its political leader. He was imprisoned (1956-62) while the FLN fought for Algerian independence. He took control of the FLN’s Political Bureau after his release and was elected president in 1963. He was deposed in a coup in 1965 and imprisoned until 1980. Thereafter he spent 10 years in exile, returning to Algeria in 1990. See also Mohamed Boudiaf; Houari Boumedienne.

Ben-Gurion \ben-'gur-e-on\, David orig. David Gruen (b. Oct. 16, 1886, Plonsk, Pol., Russian Empire—d. Dec. 1, 1973, Tel Aviv-Yafo, Israel) First prime minister of Israel (1948-53, 1955-63). Introduced to Zionism by his father, Ben-Gurion immigrated to Palestine, then part of the Ottoman Empire, in 1906, hoping to fulfill the Zionist aspiration of building a Jewish state in historic Israel. Expelled by the Ottomans at the outbreak of World War I (1914-18), he traveled to New York, where he married. Following the issuance of the Balfour Declaration, he joined the British army’s Jewish Legion and returned to the Middle East. In the 1920s and ’30s he led several political organizations, including the Jew¬ ish Agency, world Zionism’s highest directing body. As Britain became more sympathetic to the interests of the Palestinian Arabs, thereafter restricting Jewish immigration to Palestine, he called on the Jewish com¬ munity to rise against Britain. However, he again called for Jews to sup¬ port the Allies during World War II (1939-45), while continuing the clandestine immigration of Jews to Palestine. On the establishment of the State of Israel (1948), he became prime minister and minister of defense. He succeeded in fusing the underground Jewish militias that had fought the British into a national army, which he used successfully to defend against Arab attacks. Unpopular with Britain and the U.S., he found an ally in France—then embroiled in its own war in the Arab world—which helped arm Israel in the period leading to the Suez Crisis (1956). He retired from the premiership in 1963 and from the Knesset (parliament) in 1970. See also Arab-Israeli wars.

Ben Nevis Highest mountain, British Isles. It is located in the Scottish Highlands; its summit, which reaches 4,406 ft (1,343 m), is a plateau of about 100 acres (40 hectares). Snow lies in some parts all year. It con¬ sists of a superstructure of volcanic rocks surmounting the ancient schists of the Highlands.

Benares See Varanasi

Benavente y Martinez X.be-no-'ven-te-e-mar-'te-nosV Jacinto (b. Aug. 12, 1866, Madrid, Spain—d. July 14, 1954, Madrid) Spanish dra¬ matist. His most celebrated work, The Bonds of Interest (1907), was based on the Italian commedia dell’arte; his 1913 tragedy La malquerida was also popular. During the Spanish Civil War he was detained by the authori¬ ties for a time, but he reestablished himself in official favour with Lo increible (1941). One of the foremost Spanish dramatists of the 20th cen¬ tury, he continued to write until the end of his life, producing more than 150 plays. He received the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1922.

Bench, Johnny (Lee) (b. December 7, 1947, Oklahoma City, Okla., U.S.) U.S. baseball player. Bench joined the Cincinnati Reds in 1967. During his 17 seasons catching for them (1967-83), he helped lead the team (with Pete Rose and Joe Morgan) to four National League pennants (1970, 1972, 1975, 1976) and two World Series victories (1975, 1976). Batting right-handed, he led the National League in runs batted in three times (1970, 1972, 1974) and twice in home runs (1970, 1972). He is regarded as one of the greatest defensive catchers ever to play the game.

Benchley, Robert (Charles) (b. Sept. 15, 1889, Worcester, Mass., U.S.—d. Nov. 21, 1945, New York, N.Y., U.S.) U.S. drama critic, actor, and humorist. Benchley graduated from Harvard University and joined the staff of Life magazine in 1920. A regular member of the Algonquin Round Table, he was drama critic for The New Yorker 1929-40, for which he also wrote “The Wayward Press” column under the pseudonym Guy Fawkes. He had bit parts in many feature films, but he is best known for

more than 40 short subjects, including How to Sleep (1934, Academy Award). His writing was warmly humorous, his satire sharp but not cruel.

bends See decompression sickness

Bene-lsrael Vben-e-.iz-ra-'eL (Hebrew: “Sons of Israel”) one of three groups of Jews in India. The origins of the Bene-lsrael are uncertain, but because of their observance of certain traditions and lack of observance of others, they are believed to have escaped persecution in Galilee before the 2nd century bce and to have shipwrecked on the coast of India. Seven couples are believed to have survived, without the benefit of a material culture. Isolated from other Jews, they largely assimilated into India’s caste system, though they practiced Jewish dietary laws, circumcised male children on the eighth day, and did not work on Saturday. Present-day Bene-lsrael bear a physical resemblance to the Marathi people and speak Marathi and English. Many have emigrated to Israel.

Benedetto da Maiano Xba-na-'dat-to-da-ma-'ya-noV (b. 1442, Majano, Republic of Venice—d. May 24, 1497, Florence) Italian sculp¬ tor active in Florence. He was influenced by Bernardo Rossellino; his marble tomb designs are variants on Rossellino’s patterns. His master¬ piece is a pulpit in Santa Croce in Florence (completed 1485) consisting of five narrative reliefs. He often worked with his brothers, Giovanni and Giuliano, in the design and execution of architectural features such as pilasters, capitals, friezes, and niches. He was also a master of natural¬ istic portrait busts.

Benedict, Ruth orig. Ruth Fulton (b. June 5, 1887, New York, N.Y., U.S.—d. Sept. 17, 1948, New York City) U.S. anthropologist. She received a Ph.D. under Franz Boas at Columbia University and taught at Columbia from 1924 until her death.

In Patterns of Culture (1934), her most famous work, she emphasized how small a part of the range of pos¬ sible human behaviour is elaborated or emphasized in any one society.

She described how these forms of behaviour are integrated into pat¬ terns or configurations, and she sup¬ ported cultural relativism, or the judging of cultural phenomena in the context of the culture in which they occur. In The Chrysanthemum and the Sword (1946), she applied her methods to Japanese culture. Her theories had a profound influence on CULTURAL ANTHROPOLOGY.

Benedict of Nursia, Saint (b. c.

480, Nursia, Kingdom of the Lombards—d. c. 547) Founder of the Benedictine monastery at Monte Cassino, Italy, and father of Western monasticism. Born into a prominent family at Nursia in central Italy, he rejected the immoral and profligate life of the rich and became a hermit outside Rome, where he attracted disciples. At his monastery at Cassino he formulated the Benedictine Rule, which became standard in monasteries throughout Europe. The Rule includes a probationary year prior to the vow of obedience and lifelong residence at one monastery, a ban on personal property, an abbot elected for life who appoints all other officers, and a precisely ordered day that includes five to six hours of liturgy and prayer, five hours of manual work, and four hours of scriptural and spiritual reading.

Benedict XII orig. Jacques Fournier (b. Saverdun, near Toulouse, France—d. April 25, 1342, Avignon, Provence) Pope (1334-42). A French cardinal and theologian, he became the third pontiff to reign at Avignon (see Avignon papacy), succeeding John XXII. The bishop of Pamiers and Mirepoix and a zealous inquisitor before his elevation to the papacy, Benedict devoted himself to the reform of the church and its religious orders; he also tried unsuccessfully to prevent the outbreak of the conflict between England and France that became the Hundred Years' War. His bull Benedictus Deus (1336) set forth the doctrine of the beatific vision as a vision of God granted to the souls of the just immediately after death.

Benedict XIII orig. Pedro de Luna (b. c. 1328, Illueca, Kingdom of Aragon—d. 1423, Penfscola, in Valencia) Antipope (1394-1423). A French

Ruth Benedict.

COURTESY OF COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY, NEW VORK

198 I Benedict XIV ► Bengal

professor of canon law, he was named a cardinal in 1375. When the West¬ ern Schism began in 1378, he supported the antipope Clement VII. Elected pope at Avignon (see Avignon papacy), he refused French pressure to abdi¬ cate and was besieged in the papal palace (1398). Benedict escaped to Provence in 1403 and won back the obedience of France. He refused to yield when deposed by the Councils of Pisa (1409) and Constance (1417).

Benedict XIV orig. Prospero Lambertini (b. March 31, 1675, Bologna, Papal States—d. May 3, 1758, Rome) Pope in 1740-58. Nobly bom, he received a doctorate in theology and law. Typical of his pontifi¬ cate were his promotion of scientific learning and his admonition to those drawing up the Index Librorum Prohibitorum (Index of Forbidden Books) to act with restraint. In the Papal States he reduced taxation, encouraged agriculture, and supported free trade. He maintained conciliatory relations with neighbouring kingdoms. A lifelong active scholar, he founded sev¬ eral learned societies and laid the groundwork for the present Vatican Museum. Bernard Gamier, a French cleric who was counter-antipope (1425-33) while Martin V was pope and Clement VIII was antipope, was also called Benedict XIV.

Benedict XV orig. Giacomo Della Chiesa (b. Nov. 21,1854, Pegli, Kingdom of Sardinia—d. Jan. 22,

1922, Rome, Italy) Pope (1914-22).

Ordained a priest in 1878, he entered the papal diplomatic service. He was made archbishop of Bologna in 1907 and cardinal in 1914. Elected pope a month after the outbreak of World War I, he tried to follow a policy of strict neutrality and concentrated the church’s efforts on relief. He later made positive efforts toward reestab¬ lishing peace, though his principal attempt in 1917 to mediate the war was unsuccessful.

Benedict XVI orig. Joseph Alois Ratzinger (b. April 16,

1927, Marktl am Inn, Ger.) Pope from 2005. He was ordained in 1951 and received a doctorate in theology at the University of Munich in 1953.

Thereafter he pursued a career as a theologian and teacher at various universities. During the Second Vat¬ ican Council (1962-65) he served as an expert adviser and an advocate of reform. In 1977 he was appointed archbishop of Munich; three months later he was made a cardinal. As pre¬ fect of the Congregation for the Doc¬ trine of the Faith from 1981 to 2005, he enforced doctrinal uniformity in the church and served as a close adviser of Pope John Paul II. He was faced with numerous challenges when he became pope, including a decline in church attendance and in the number of new priests, deep divi¬ sions over the direction of the church, and the lingering effects of a sexual-abuse scandal involving priests in various parts of the world.

Benedictine Member of the Order of St. Benedict, the confederated autonomous congregations of monks and lay brothers who follow the Benedictine Rule, created by St. Benedict of Nursia in the 6th century. The Rule spread slowly in Italy and Gaul. By the 9th century it was nearly universal in northern and western Europe, where Benedictine monaster¬ ies became repositories of learning, literature, and wealth. The order declined during the 12th—15th century, when it was revived with reforms that limited abbots to fixed terms and required monks to make their vows to the congregation rather than a particular house. The Reformation vir¬ tually eliminated Benedictines from northern Europe, and they declined elsewhere. In the 19th century another revival strengthened the order in Europe, especially in France and Germany, and led to the establishment of new congregations worldwide.

benefice Vbe-ns-fasV System of land tenure first used by the Franks during the 8th century. A Frankish lord leased an estate to a freeman in beneficium (Latin: “for the benefit (of the tenant)”), normally until the death of the lord or tenant, though tenants often succeeded in turning ben¬ efices into hereditary holdings. By the 12th century benefice was dying out as a term for land tenure; instead it referred to a church office that carried with it the right of receiving income. A lord or bishop chose a priest, who was granted the benefice in return for the performance of spiritual duties.

beneficiary \ 1 be-n9-'fi-she- l er-e, .be-no-'fi-sho-reV Person or entity (e.g., a charity or estate) that receives a benefit from something (e.g., a trust, life-insurance policy, or contract). A primary beneficiary receives proceeds from a trust or insurance policy before any other. A contingent beneficiary receives proceeds upon the occurrence of a specified event, such as the death of the primary beneficiary. A direct beneficiary is a third party whom contracting individuals intend to benefit from a contract; an incidental beneficiary benefits without that being the contracting indi¬ viduals’ intention.

beneficiation V.be-no-.fi-she-'a-shonX Treatment of raw material (such as pulverized ore) to improve physical or chemical properties in prepa¬ ration for further processing. Beneficiation techniques include washing, sizing of particulates, and concentration (which involves the separation of valuable minerals from the other raw materials received from a grinding mill). In large-scale operations, various distinguishing properties of the minerals to be separated (e.g., magnetism, wettability, density) are exploited to concentrate the desirable components. Beneficiation also is used in the ceramics and clay industries. See also flotation; mining; min¬ eral PROCESSING.

Benelux Economic Union Vbe-no-.taksV Economic union of Bel¬ gium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg. The three countries formed a customs union in 1948, and in 1958 they signed the Treaty of the Benelux Economic Union, which became operative in 1960. Benelux became the first completely free international labor market and contributed to the establishment of the European Economic Community.

Benes Vbe-.neshN, Edvard (b. May 28, 1884, Kozlany, Bohemia, Austria-Hungary—d. Sept. 3, 1948, Sezimovo Usti, Czech.) Czechoslo¬ vakian statesman. A disciple of Tomas Masaryk, Benes was a founder of modern Czechoslovakia. He served as its first foreign minister (1918-35) and its president (1935-38). Forced to capitulate to Adolf Hitler’s demands over the Sudetenland, he resigned. He headed the Czech government-in¬ exile in England (1940-45), then reestablished a government on his native soil in 1945. Recognizing the need to cooperate with the Soviet Union, he nevertheless refused to sign a new communist constitution and resigned in 1948 shortly before his death.

Benet \bo-'na\, Stephen Vincent (b. July 22, 1898, Bethlehem, Pa., U.S.—d. March 13, 1943, New York, N.Y.) U.S. poet, novelist, and short- story writer. Benet is best known for John Brown’s Body (1928, Pulitzer Prize), a long narrative poem on the American Civil War. A Book of Americans (1933), poems written with his wife, the former Rosemary Carr, brought many historical characters to life for American schoolchil¬ dren. His story “The Devil and Daniel Webster” (1937) was the basis for a play by Archibald MacLeish, an opera by Douglas Moore (first performed 1939), and two films (1941, 2001).

Bengal \ben-'gol\ Former province, northeastern British India. Gener¬ ally corresponding to the area inhabited by speakers of the Bengali lan¬ guage, it is now divided between eastern India and Bangladesh. Bengal formed part of most of the early empires that controlled northern India. From the 8th to the 12th century it was under a Buddhist dynasty, and from 1576 it belonged to the Mughal Empire. In the 18th century it was dominated by the nawabs of Bengal; they came into conflict with the British, who had established themselves at Calcutta (now Kolkata) in 1690. By 1764 the British had taken possession, and Bengal became the base for British expansion in India. Bengal was partitioned in 1905, and with the end of British rule in 1947, the western portion formed the Indian states of West Bengal, Bihar, and Orissa. East Bengal went to Pakistan; in 1971 it became Bangladesh. Jharkhand state was created from south¬ ern Bihar in 2000.

Bengal, Bay of Part of the Indian Ocean. Occupying about 839,000 sq mi (2,172,000 sq km), it is bordered by Sri Lanka, India, Bangladesh, Myanmar, and the northern Malay Peninsula. It is about 1,000 mi (1,600

Benedict XVI, 2005.

VINCENZO PINTO-AFP/GETTY IMAGES

Bengal ► Benjamin I 199

km) wide, with an average depth of more than 8,500 ft (2,600 m). Many large rivers, including the Godavari, Krishna, Kaveri, Ganges, and Brah¬ maputra, flow into it. The Andaman and Nicobar Islands, the bay’s only islands, separate it from the Andaman Sea. It has long been crossed by Indian and Malaysian traders; Chinese maritime trading dates from the 12th century. Vasco da Gama led the first European voyage into the bay in 1498.

Bengal, Partition of (1905) Division of Bengal carried out by Lord Curzon, the British viceroy in India. The British province of Bengal, which also included Bihar and Orissa, had by the beginning of the 20th century grown too large to handle under a single administration. Curzon chose to unite eastern Bengal with Assam, leaving western Bengal with Bihar and Orissa. The partition went through despite widespread protests, unrest, and boycotts, but in 1911 eastern and western Bengal were reunited. Assam resumed its old status, and Bihar and Orissa were separated to form a new province.

Bengali \ben-'ga-le\ language Indo-Aryan language spoken princi¬ pally in Bangladesh and the Indian state of West Bengal. Bengali has more speakers—some 190 million—than all but a handful of other languages of the world. Like other Modern Indo-Aryan languages, Bengali has dras¬ tically reduced the complex inflectional system of Old Indo-Aryan (see Sanskrit language). It has virtually dropped grammatical gender and fixed stress on the initial syllable of a word or phrase. Bengali was the first of the Indian languages to adopt Western secular literary styles, such as fic¬ tion and drama.

Benghazi See BanghazT

Beni \'ba-ne\ River River, Bolivia. Rising in the eastern cordillera of the Andes Mountains, it flows north and unites with the Mamore River to form the Madeira River at Villa Bella. Near its mouth it receives the Madre de Dios River. It is 994 mi (1,599 km) long.

Benin \bo-'nen\ officially Republic of Benin formerly Dahomey Country, western Africa. Area: 43,484 sq mi (112,622 sq km). Population (2005 est.): 7,649,000. Capital: Porto-Novo (official), Cotonou (de

facto). The Fon people and related groups constitute two-fifths of the population; minorities include the Yoruba, Fulani, and Adjara. Languages: French (official), Fon.

Currency: CFA franc. Religions: tradi¬ tional religions, Islam, Christianity. Extending about 420 mi (675 km) inland from the Gulf of Guinea, Benin includes a hilly region in the north¬ west, where the maximum elevation is 2,103 ft (641 m). There are plains in the east and north and a marshy region in the south, where the coastline

extends about 75 mi (120 km). Benin’s longest river, the Oueme, flows into the Porto-Novo Lagoon and is navigable for 125 mi (200 km) of its 280-mi (450-km) length. Benin has a developing mixed economy based largely on agriculture and operates an offshore oil field. It is a republic with one legislative house; the head of state and government is the presi¬ dent, assisted by the prime minister. In southern Benin the Fon established the Abomey kingdom in the early 17th century. In the 18th century the kingdom expanded to include Allada and Ouidah, where French forts had been established in the 17th century. By 1882 the French were firmly rees¬ tablished in the area, and conflict between the French and Africans ensued. In 1894 Dahomey became a French protectorate; it was incorporated into the federation of French West Africa in 1904. It achieved independence in 1960. Dahomey was renamed Benin in 1975. Its chronically weak economy created problems for the country into the 21st century.

Benin, Bight of Bay, northern section of Gulf of Guinea. It extends along the West African coast about 400 mi (640 km) from Cape St. Paul, Ghana, past Togo and Benin to an outlet of the Niger River in Nigeria. Major ports include Lome, Cotonou, and Lagos. It was the scene of exten¬ sive slave trading during the 16th-19th century, and the region of coastal lagoons west of the Niger delta became known as the Slave Coast. By the 1830s trade in palm oil had become the major economic activity. Petro¬ leum was discovered in the Niger delta in the 1950s.

Benin, kingdom of One of the principal historic kingdoms (12th—19th century) of the western African forest region. Founded by the Edo people, the kingdom was centred on present-day Benin City in southern Nigeri- a.With the accession of Ewuare the Great in the mid 15th century, the Benin kingdom was vastly expanded, including the founding of the city of Lagos. The Portuguese first visited Benin in the late 15th century, and, for a time, Benin traded ivory, palm oil, pepper, and slaves with Portu¬ guese and Dutch traders. Benin stopped trading slaves with Europeans in the 18th century and focused attention on dependent regions around it. Succession struggles in the 18th and 19th centuries put a series of weaker kings on the throne. After the British attacked and burned Benin City in 1897, the kingdom was incorporated into British Nigeria.

Benjamin, Judah P(hilip) (b.

Islands—d. May 6, 1884, Paris,

France) Prominent lawyer in the U.S. and Britain and member of the Confederate cabinet. He moved with his parents from St. Croix to South Carolina in his early youth. In 1832 he began building a successful law practice in New Orleans. He was the first Jew elected to the U.S. Senate (1853-61), where he was noted for his proslavery speeches. After the South seceded, Jefferson Davis appointed him attorney general (1861), secretary of war (1861-62), and secretary of state (1862-65).

Late in the war he enraged many white Southerners by urging that slaves be recruited into the Confed¬ erate army and emancipated after their term of service. At the end of the war he escaped to England, where he was called to the bar (1866) and served as queen’s counsel

(1872).

Benjamin \'ben-ya-,men,\ English Vben-js-monX, Walter (b. July 15, 1892, Berlin, Ger.—d. Sept. 26, 1940, near Port-Bou, Spain) German lit¬ erary critic. Born into a prosperous Jewish family, Benjamin studied phi¬ losophy and worked as a literary critic and translator in Berlin from 1920 until 1933, when he fled to France to avoid persecution. The Nazi take¬ over of France led him to flee again in 1940; he committed suicide at the Spanish border on hearing that he would be turned over to the Gestapo. Posthumous publication of his essays has won him a reputation as the leading German literary critic of the first half of the 20th century; he was also one of the first serious writers about film and photography. His inde¬ pendence and originality are evident in the essays collected in Illumina¬ tions (1961) and Reflections (1979). His writings on art reflect his reading of Karl Marx and his friendships with Bertolt Brecht and Theodor Adorno.

Aug. 6, 1811, St. Croix, Virgin

Judah Benjamin

COURTESY OF THE LIBRARY OF CONGRESS, WASHINGTON, D.C.

200 I Benn ► Bentham

Benn, Gottfried (b. May 2, 1886, Mansfeld, Ger.—d. July 7, 1956, Berlin) German poet and essayist. He received military medical training and was made medical supervisor of jail inmates and prostitutes in occu¬ pied Brussels during World War I. His early poems, including those in Fleisch (1917; “Flesh”), contain allusions to degeneracy and medical aspects of decay. Because of his Expressionism and despite his right-wing views, he was penalized during the Nazi era. He regained literary atten¬ tion with Statische Gedichte (1948; “Static Poems”) and the reappearance of his old poems. A broad selection of his poetry and prose was published in English as Primal Vision (1961).

Bennett, Alan (b. May 9, 1934, Leeds, Yorkshire, Eng.) British dra¬ matist, screenwriter, and actor. He first gained success with the brilliant satirical revue Beyond the Fringe (1960), which he cowrote and per¬ formed with Dudley Moore, Peter Cook, and Jonathan Miller. His first stage play. Forty Years On (1968), was followed by plays such as Get¬ ting On (1971) and Enjoy (1980). He later wrote works for television, including An Englishman Abroad (1982) and Talking Heads (1988), which were marked by his characteristic mixture of wry comedy and sadness. His screenplays include Prick Up Your Ears (1987). His successful play The Madness of King George (1991) was made into an acclaimed film in

Bennett, (Enoch) Arnold (b. May 27, 1867, Hanley, Staffordshire, Eng.—d. March 27, 1931, London) English novelist, playwright, critic, and essayist. His major works, inspired by Gustave Flaubert and Honore de Balzac, form an important link between the English novel and the mainstream of European realism. He is best known for his highly detailed novels of the “Five Towns”—the Potteries in his native Staffordshire— which are the setting of Anna of the Five Towns (1902), The Old Wives’ Tale (1908), and the three novels that make up The Clayhanger Family (1925). He was also a well-known critic.

Bennett, James Gordon (b. Sept. 1, 1795, Newmill, Banffshire, Scot.—d. June 1, 1872, New York, N.Y., U.S.) Scottish-born U.S. editor. He immigrated to the U.S. in 1819 and was employed on various news¬ papers until 1835, when he started The New York Herald. The paper became very successful and introduced many of the methods of modern news reporting. Among other innovations, Bennett published the first Wall Street financial article (1835), established the first correspondents in Europe (1838), maintained a staff of 63 war correspondents during the Civil War, was a leader in using illustrations, introduced a society depart¬ ment, and published the first account in U.S. journalism of a love-nest murder (1836).

Bennett, Michael orig. Michael Bennett Difiglia (b. April 8, 1943, Buffalo, N.Y., U.S.—d. July 2, 1987, Tucson, Ariz.) U.S. dancer, choreographer, and stage musical director. He began dancing at age three and left high school to tour in a production of West Side Story His major contribution to dance was as choreographer-director of Broadway musi¬ cals such as Promises, Promises (1968), Company (1970), Follies (1971), and Dreamgirls (1981). His most remarkable musical was A Chorus Line (1975, Pulitzer Prize), which he conceived, directed, and choreographed. Bennett personally received eight Tony awards during his career.

Bennett (of Mickleham and of Calgary and Hopewell), Richard Bedford Bennett, Viscount (b. July 3, 1870, Hopewell, N.B., Can.—d. June 27, 1947, Mickleham, Surrey, Eng.) Canadian prime minister (1930-35). Bennett was admitted to the bar in 1893 and prac¬ ticed in New Brunswick. He then moved west and served in the legisla¬ tures of the Northwest Territories and Alberta and in the Canadian House of Commons (1911). He was named director general of national service (1916) and later minister of justice (1921). He became head of the Con¬ servative Party in 1927 and, promising relief from the Great Depression, prime minister in 1930. But he underestimated the severity of the crisis, and his measures were ineffective. He was defeated by the Liberals under W.L. Mackenzie King. In 1939 he retired to England, where he was made a viscount in 1941.

Bennett, Tony orig. Anthony (Dominick) Benedetto (b. Aug. 3, 1926, Astoria, Queens, N.Y., U.S.) U.S. popular singer. His first job was as a singing waiter, and he later sang under the name Joe Bari. In 1949 Pearl Bailey asked him to join her nightclub revue, and in 1950 Bob Hope suggested his new name. He had many hits in the 1950s, but “I Left My Heart in San Francisco” (1962) became his signature song. His style grew increasingly jazz-oriented over the years, and in the mid-1990s a special appearance on MTV heralded his comeback.

Benny, Jack orig. Benjamin Kubelsky (b. Feb. 14, 1894, Chicago, Ill., U.S.—d. Dec. 27, 1974, Beverly Hills, Calif.) U.S. comedian. He took up the violin as a boy and played it in vaudeville from 1912. After dis¬ covering a talent for comedy while in the navy, he returned to vaudeville as a comedian. He made his film debut in 1927 and appeared in 18 films in the years 1930-45. His weekly Jack Benny Program on radio (1932— 55) and television (1950-65) won loyal audiences, and he became famous for a unique comic style characterized by subtle verbal inflection, mean¬ ingful pauses, seriocomic violin playing, and the stage image of a vain, stingy man.

Benois \'byi-noi\, Alexandre (Nikolayevich) (b. May 4, 1870, St. Petersburg, Russia—d. Feb. 9, 1960, Paris, Fr.) Russian theatre art direc¬ tor, painter, and influential ballet set designer. With Sergey Diaghilev he cofounded the avant-garde art magazine Mir Iskusstva (“World of Art”) in 1899. He began his scenic-design career in 1901 and designed many of the innovative Ballets Russes decors from 1909 to 1929. He designed sets for numerous other ballet companies in the 1940s and 1950s.

Benoue River See Benue River

bent grass Any of the annual or perennial GRASSes that make up the genus Agrostis, in the family Poaceae (or Gramineae), found in temperate and cool regions and at high altitudes in subtropical and tropical areas. At least 40 species are found in the U.S.; some are weeds, others forage and turf plants. They have slender stems and flat blades. Many spread by creeping stolons. Redtop (A. gigantea ) is a hay and pasture grass.

Creeping bent (A. stolonifera variety palustris) and colonial bent (A. tenuis ) are popular lawn grasses; the many strains of both species are planted in golf courses and bowling greens, where they are closely cut to develop a fine, spongy, firm turf.

Bentham Vben-thomV Jeremy (b. Feb. 15, 1748, London, Eng.—d.

June 6, 1832, London) British moral philosopher and legal theorist, the earliest expounder of utilitarianism. A precocious student, he graduated from Oxford at age 15. In his An Introduction to the Principles of Morals and Legislation, he argued that mankind was governed by two sovereign motives, pain and plea¬ sure. The object of all legislation, therefore, must be the “greatest hap¬ piness of the greatest number”; and since all punishment involves pain and is therefore evil, it ought only to be used “so far as it promises to exclude some greater evil.” His work inspired much reform legislation, especially regarding prisons. He was also an exponent of the new laissez- faire economics of Adam Smith and David Ricardo. Though a vocal advo¬ cate of democracy, he rejected the notions of the social contract, natu¬ ral law, and natural rights as fictional and counterproductive (“Rights is the child of law; from real law come real rights; but from imaginary laws, from ‘law of nature,’ come imagi¬ nary rights”). He helped found the radical Westminster Review (1823). clothed skeleton is permanently exhibited at University College, London.

Bentham, Sir Samuel (b. Jan. 11, 1757, England—d. May 31, 1831, London) British engineer, naval architect, and navy official. He was the

Creeping bent (Agrostis stolonifera variety palustris)

R.G. DOORD-THE NATURAL HISTORY PHOTOGRAPHIC AGENCY/EB INC.

Jeremy Bentham, detail of an oil paint¬ ing by H.W. Pickersgill, 1829; in the National Portrait Gallery, London

In accordance with his will, his

Bentinck ► Benzer i 201

brother of Jeremy Bentham and father of the botanist George Bentham (1800-84). An early advocate of explosive-shell weapons for warships, Bentham led Russian vessels fitted with shell guns to victory over a larger Turkish force in 1788. In England he developed the Arrow class of sloops used against France. He served as commissioner of the navy (1807-12).

Bentinck, William (Henry Cavendish), Lord (b. Sept. 14, 1774, Bulstrode, Buckinghamshire, Eng.—d. June 17, 1839, Paris, France) Brit¬ ish colonial administrator. Born to wealth and rank, he was appointed governor of Madras in 1803. Recalled in 1807 after a mutiny of Indian troops at Vellore, he pressed for the next 20 years for a chance to vindi¬ cate his name. In 1828 he was named governor-general of Bengal (in effect, of all India), and he served until 1835. He reformed the country’s finances, opened up administrative and judicial posts to Indians, sup¬ pressed bands of assassins known as thugs, and abolished suttee. His poli¬ cies helped pave the way to independence more than a century later.

Bentley, Eric (Russell) (b. Sept. 14, 1916, Bolton, Lancashire, Eng.) British-born U.S. drama critic and translator. He was a stage director in several European cities (1948-51); in Munich, after working with Bertolt Brecht on a production of the playwright’s Mother Courage , he translated Brecht’s plays into English. His reporting on European theatre for sev¬ eral magazines helped introduce many European playwrights to the U.S. He wrote numerous critical works, including Life of the Drama (1964), and taught at Columbia University (1953-69) and elsewhere.

Bentley, Richard (b. Jan. 27, 1662, Oulton, Yorkshire, Eng.—d. July

14, 1742, Cambridge, Cambridgeshire) English clergyman and classical scholar. He was appointed Boyle lecturer at Oxford in 1692, became keeper of the Royal Library in 1694, and was named master of Trinity College, Cambridge, in 1700. He displayed his skill in textual emenda¬ tion and his knowledge of ancient metre in Epistola ad Joannem Millium (1691). In Dissertation on the Epistles of Phalaris (1699), he proved the epistles to be spurious; his dispute with Charles Boyle over their authen¬ ticity was satirized by Jonathan Swift in The Battle of the Books (1704). He also published critical texts of classical authors, including Horace, and made linguistic contributions to the study of ancient Greek.

Benton, Thomas Hart (b. March 14, 1782, near Hillsborough, N.C., U.S.—d. April 10, 1858, Washing¬ ton, D.C.) U.S. politician. After moving to St. Louis, Mo. (1815), he became editor of the St. Louis Enquirer. Appealing to agrarian and commercial interests, he won elec¬ tion to the U.S. Senate in 1820. He became a crusader for the distribu¬ tion of public lands to settlers and was soon acknowledged as the chief spokesman in the Senate of the early Democratic Party. His opposition to the extension of slavery into the West cost him his Senate seat in 1851, though he later served in the House of Representatives (1853-55). His grandnephew was the artist Thomas Hart Benton.

Benton, Thomas Hart (b. April

15, 1889, Neosho, Mo., U.S.—d. Jan. 19, 1975, Kansas City, Mo.) U.S. painter and muralist. He studied at the Art Institute of Chicago and at the Academie Julian in Paris, where he came into contact with Synchromism and Cubism. In 1912 he returned to the U.S. and settled in New York City. Failing in his attempts at Modernism, he set out to travel through the rural heartland, sketching people and places. In the 1930s he painted several notable murals, including America Today (1930-31) at the New School for Social Research. He often transposed biblical and classical stories to rural American settings, as in Susanna and the Elders (1938). His style, which quickly became influential, is characterized by undulating forms, cartoonlike figures, and brilliant colour. He taught at the Art Students League in New York, where Jackson Pollock was his best-known student.

Benton, William (Burnett) (b. April 1, 1900, Minneapolis, Minn., U.S.—d. March 18, 1973, New York, N.Y.) U.S. publisher, advertising executive, and government official. A descendant of missionaries and edu¬ cators, he founded, with Chester Bowles, the successful New York adver¬ tising agency of Benton & Bowles. He later became a vice president of the

University of Chicago; through his efforts, the university acquired Ency¬ clopaedia Britannica, which he managed and later purchased. In 1945 he became assistant secretary of state, and he later briefly served in the U.S. Senate (1949-52). Thereafter he devoted sustained attention to the ency¬ clopaedia; he died shortly before the publication of its 15th edition.

bentwood furniture Type of furniture made of wooden rods bent into shape after being heated with steam.

The method was used on the 18th- century Windsor chair, but its prin¬ cipal exponent was Michael Thonet, who exploited its possibilities in the 1840s. His bentwood chairs are among the most successful examples of early mass-produced furniture.

Bentwood is light, comfortable, and inexpensive, as well as strong and graceful.

Benue-Congo \'ba-nwa\ lan¬ guages Largest branch of the Niger-Congo language family, both in numbers of languages (900) and speakers (at least 500 million). Its major divisions are Defoid, includ¬ ing Yoruba, with more than 20 mil¬ lion speakers; Edoid, including Edo (see kingdom of Benin); Nupoid, including Nupe, Ebira, and Gbagyi;

Idomoid, including Idoma; Igboid, including the many dialects of the approximately 19 million Igbo people; Kainji, with 40 languages;

Platoid, a congeries of 50 languages;

Cross River, a group of more than 55 languages; and Bantoid. The largest branch, Bantoid, comprises a North¬ ern and a Southern group and includes more than 500 languages, 47 of which are spoken by more than 1 million people. The Bantu languages make up the largest subgroup of Southern Bantoid.

Benue \'ba-nwa\ River or Benoue \ba-'nwa\ River River, western Africa. Rising in northern Cameroon (as the Benoue), the river flows west across east-central Nigeria (as the Benue). About 870 mi (1,400 km) long, it is the chief tributary of the Niger River and transports a considerable volume of trade.

Benz \'bents \, Karl (Friedrich) (b. Nov. 25, 1844, Karlsruhe, Baden—d. April 4, 1929, Ladenburg, Ger.) German mechanical engineer who designed and built the first practical automobile powered by an internal-combustion engine. The original car, his three-wheeled Motor- wagen, first ran in 1885. Benz’s company produced its first four-wheeled car in 1893 and the first of its series of racing cars in 1899. Benz left the company in 1906 to form another group with his sons. In 1926 the Benz company merged with the company started by Gottlieb Daimler.

benzene Simplest aromatic hydrocarbon (see aromatic compound), par¬ ent substance of a large class of chemical compounds. It was discovered in 1825 by Michael Faraday. The chemical formula is C 6 H 6 ; August Kekule von Stradonitz in 1865 was the first to propose the correct structure, a six-membered ring of carbon atoms, each with one hydrogen atom bonded to it (see bonding). Although benzene is often represented with alternat¬ ing single and double bonds between carbon atoms, the electrons in the bonds are shared or delocalized in such a way as to make all carbon- carbon bonds alike. Benzene is a colourless, mobile liquid with a char¬ acteristic odour. An excellent solvent, it is also widely used as a starting material for many plastics, dyes, detergents, insecticides, and other indus¬ trial chemicals. Benzene is highly toxic, and long exposure may cause LEUKEMIA.

Benzer, Seymour (b. Oct. 15, 1921, New York, N.Y., U.S.) U.S. molecular biologist. He received his Ph.D. from Purdue University. He developed a method for determining the detailed structure of viral genes and coined the term cistron to denote functional subunits of genes. He did much to explain the nature of genetic oddities, called nonsense mutations, in terms of the nucleotide sequence of DNA, and he discovered a rever¬ sal, or suppression, of these mutations in certain bacteria.

Bent beechwood armchair by the Tho¬ net brothers, Austria, c. 1870; in the Museum of Modern Art, New York City

COURTESY OF THE MUSEUM OF MODERN ART, NEW YORK, GIFT OF THONET INDUSTRIES

202 I Beowulf ► Bergen

Beowulf Vba-9-,wulf\ Heroic poem considered the highest achievement of Old English literature and the earliest European vernacular epic. It deals with events of the early 6th century and was probably composed c. 700- 750. It tells the story of the Scandinavian hero Beowulf, who gains fame as a young man by vanquishing the monster Grendel and Grendel’s mother; later, as an aging king, he kills a dragon but dies soon after, honoured and lamented. Beowulf belongs metrically, stylistically, and the¬ matically to the Germanic heroic tradition but shows a distinct Christian influence.

Berain \ba-'ra n \, Jean, the Elder (b. Oct. 28, 1637, Saint-Mihiel, Fr.—d. Jan. 24, 1711, Paris) French decorator and designer. Trained under Charles Le Brun, he was appointed chief designer to the court of Louis XIV in 1674. He was skilled in designing tapestries, accessories, furniture, costumes, and elaborate stage settings for operas and extravagant theat¬ rical productions; these were typically filled with fantastic iconography. He satisfied the king’s appetite for splendour and inspired other cabinet¬ makers such as Andre-Charles Boulle.

Berar \ba-'rar\ Historical region, west-central India. Located in what is now northern Maharashtra state, Berar emerged as a distinct political entity after the incursions of Muslim armies in the 13th century ad. It formed part of several Muslim kingdoms until, on the breakup of the Mughal Empire, it fell to the ruler of Hyderabad. Coming under British control in 1853, it was subsequently assigned to various provinces; it has been part of Maharashtra state since 1960. The region includes a rich cotton-growing area in the Purna River basin.

Berber Any member of a community native to the Maghrib who speaks one of various Berber languages, including Tamazight, Tashahit, and Tari- fit. Berber-speakers were the original inhabitants of North Africa, though many regions succumbed to colonization by the Roman Republic and Empire and later (from the 7th century ad) to conquest by the Arabs. Berbers gradually accepted Islam, and many switched to Arabic or became bilin¬ gual. Berber languages are still spoken in some rural and mountain areas of Morocco and Algeria and by some inhabitants of Tunisia and Libya. Since the 1990s Berber intellectuals have sought to revive interest in the language. The Berber-speaking Almoravid and Almohad dynasties built empires in North Africa and Spain in the 11th—13th centuries. See also Abd el-Krim; Kabyle; Rif.

Berbice \bor-'bes\ River River, eastern Guyana. Rising in Guyana’s highlands, it flows northward 370 mi (595 km) through dense forests to the Atlantic Ocean. Its basin is restricted by the proximity of the larger Essequibo and Courantyne rivers. Its name derives from a Dutch colony that became part of British Guiana (now Guyana) in 1831.

Berchtesgaden \'berk-t3s-,gad- 3 n\ Town (pop., 1992 est.: 8,000), southern Germany. Located in the Bavarian Alps south of Salzburg, it is surrounded on three sides by Austrian territory. Once part of Austria, it passed to Bavaria in the early 19th century. It was the site of Adolf Hit¬ ler’s villa retreat before and during World War II. In 1938 he met there with Neville Chamberlain. Destroyed by bombing in 1945, the villa was leveled in 1952. Mountain climbing and skiing make the area a popular destination.

Berchtold \'berk-,tolt\, Leopold, count von (b. April 18, 1863, Vienna, Austria—d. Nov. 21, 1942, near Csepreg, Hung.) Austro- Hungarian politician. One of the richest men in Austria-Hungary, he entered the diplomatic service in 1893 and became foreign minister in 1912. After the assassination of Archduke Francis Ferdinand in 1914, Ber¬ chtold delivered an ultimatum to Serbia that led to the outbreak of World War I. He was forced to resign in 1915.

Berengar of Tours \'ber-3n- l gar...'tur\ (b. c. 999, Tours, Touraine—d. Jan. 10, 1088, priory of Saint-Cosme, near Tours) French theologian. He became canon of Tours Cathedral and archdeacon of Angers (c. 1040). He rejected the prevailing eucharistic theology and argued against any mate¬ rial change to the bread and wine. He was opposed by numerous theo¬ logians, most notably Lanfranc, and may have been excommunicated (1050) by Pope Leo IX. He was condemned by the Council of Vercelli (1050) and the Synod at Paris (1051). After a compromise, he was again condemned in 1076, 1078, 1079, and 1080 and spent the rest of his life in ascetic solitude.

Berenson Vber-on-sonV, Bernard (b. June 26, 1865, Vilnius, Lithua¬ nia, Russian Empire—d. Oct. 6, 1959, Settignano, Italy) Lithuanian-born U.S. art historian, critic, and connoisseur. He grew up in Boston and

attended Harvard University, but for most of his life he lived in Italy, where he built a reputation as an authority on Italian Renaissance paint¬ ing. He was adviser to the art dealer Joseph Duveen (1869-1939) and to Isabella Stewart Gardner (1840-1924), founder of Boston’s Gardner Museum. Berenson bequeathed his villa, I Tatti (near Florence), with its art collection and outstanding library, to Harvard to be administered as the Harvard Center for Italian Renaissance Studies. His books include The Drawings of the Florentine Painters (1903,1938, 1961) and Italian Paint¬ ers of the Renaissance (1952).

Berezina River \bo-'raz- 3 n-3\ River, Belarus. It is 365 mi (587 km) long and flows southeast into the Dnieper River. During Napoleon’s retreat from Moscow in 1812, a bitter engagement was fought on the Berezina at the crossroads of the river near Baryslaw, and Russian forces inflicted enormous losses on Napoleon’s army. In 1941 it was the scene of fierce fighting during the German advance on Smolensk.

Berg Vberk\ Former duchy, Holy Roman Empire. Located on the Rhine River, the area now lies in the districts of DOsseldorf and Cologne, Ger¬ many. In the 11th century the counts of Berg acquired Westphalian lands east of Cologne; these were incorporated into a duchy in 1380. Berg became a leading iron and textile manufacturing centre in the 17th—18th centuries. In 1806 Napoleon made it a grand duchy in his Confederation of the Rhine. Following the Congress of Vienna in 1814—15, it became part of Prussia.

Berg \'berk\, Alban (Maria Johannes) (b. Feb. 9, 1885, Vienna, Austria-Hungary—d. Dec. 24, 1935, Vienna, Austria) Austrian composer. He was largely self-taught musically until he met Arnold Schoenberg at age 19. This would prove to be the decisive event in his life, and Schoen¬ berg would remain his teacher for eight years. Under his influence, Berg’s early late-Romantic tonal works gave way to increasing atonality and finally (1925) to 12-tone composition. His Expressionist opera Wozzeck (1922) would become the most universally acclaimed post-Romantic opera. His second opera, Lulu, on which he worked for six years, remained unfinished at his death. Berg’s other works include two string quartets, including the Lyric Suite (1926); Three Pieces for Orchestra (1915); and a violin concerto (1935).

Berg, Paul (b. June 30, 1926, New York, N.Y., U.S.) U.S. biochemist. He received his Ph.D. from Western Reserve University. While studying the actions of isolated genes, he devised methods for splitting DNA mol¬ ecules at selected sites and attaching the resulting segments to the DNA of a virus or plasmid, which could then enter bacterial or animal cells. The foreign DNA was incorporated into the host and caused the synthe¬ sis of proteins not ordinarily found there. One of the earliest practical results of this research was the development of a strain of bacteria that contained the gene for producing insulin. In 1980 Berg shared a Nobel Prize with Walter Gilbert (b. 1932) and Frederick Sanger.

bergamot Vbor-go-.matN Any of several North American perennial plants of the mint family, also known as bee balm, fragrant balm, and Indi¬ an’s plume. The leaves are used as an herb to flavour tea, punches, lem¬ onade, and other cold drinks. Monarda didyma, native to the U.S., is made into Oswego tea, a beverage used by the American Indian Oswego tribe and said to be the drink adopted by the 18th-century colonists during their boycott of British tea. The pear-shaped fruit of the bergamot orange ( Cit¬ rus bergamia ), found chiefly in Calabria, Italy, is valued by the flavour¬ ing and perfume industries for the essential oil extracted from its peel. The bergamot pear, a popular winter pear cultivated in Britain, is a large, round fruit with yellowish green skin.

Bergen City (pop., 2000 est.: municipality, 229,496), southwestern Nor¬ way. It is Norway’s second largest city and most important port. Founded in 1070 by King Olaf III, it was Norway’s capital in the 12th—13th cen¬ turies. In the 14th century, German Hanseatic League merchants acquired control over its trade; their influence in a weakened Norway lasted into the 16th century. Repeatedly destroyed by fire (most notably in 1702 and 1916), Bergen has been resurrected each time. Its economy is based largely on fishing and shipbuilding. It was the birthplace of Edvard Grieg and the violinist Ole Bull.

Bergen, Edgar orig. Edgar John Bergren (b. Feb. 16, 1903, Chi¬ cago, Ill., U.S.—d. Sept. 30, 1978, Las Vegas, Nev.) U.S. comedian and ventriloquist. As a boy he developed the skill in ventriloquism that he later used to earn his tuition at Northwestern University. After stints in vaude¬ ville and nightclubs, he took his act to radio, where the Edgar Bergen-

Bergen-Belsen ► Berkeley I 203

Charlie McCarthy Show (with his caustic and irrepressible dummy Charlie McCarthy) was one of the most popular programs for 20 years (1937-57). His daughter, Candice (b. 1946), was a successful screen and television actress.

Bergen-Belsen or Belsen Nazi concentration camp near Bergen and Belsen, villages in what was then Prussian Hannover, Germany. Estab¬ lished in 1943 partly as a prisoner-of-war camp and partly as a Jewish transit camp, it was designed for 10,000 prisoners but eventually held about 60,000, most of whom lacked any food or shelter. It contained no gas chambers, but some 35,000 prisoners died there, including Anne Frank, between January and mid-April 1945. As the first such camp to be liberated by the Western Allies (April 15, 1945), it received instant noto¬ riety. Some 28,000 prisoners died of diseases and other causes in the weeks after their liberation by British troops.

Berger, Victor (Louis) (b. Feb. 28, 1860, Nieder-Rehbach, Austria- Hungary—d. Aug. 7, 1929, Milwaukee, Wis., U.S.) Cofounder of the U.S. Socialist Party. He immigrated to the U.S. from Austria-Hungary in 1878, founded a German-language newspaper in 1892, and edited the Social Democratic Herald (later Milwaukee Leader) from 1898 to 1929. With Eugene V. Debs he founded the Social Democratic Party, which became the Socialist Party in 1901. He served in the U.S. House of Representatives (1911-13) as the first Socialist ever elected to Congress. Elected again in 1918, he was denied his seat after being convicted under the Espionage Act for opposing U.S. participation in World War I. His conviction was overturned, and he again served in the House (1923-29) and succeeded Debs as Socialist Party chairman (1927-29).

Bergerac, Savinien Cyrano de See Savinien Cyrano de Bergerac

Bergey Vbor-geV, David Hendricks (b. Dec. 27, 1860, Skippack, Pa., U.S.—d. Sept. 5, 1937, Philadelphia, Pa.) U.S. bacteriologist. He taught school before attending the University of Pennsylvania, where he earned a doctorate in public health. He subsequently became director of biological research for the National Drug Company in Philadelphia. He is best remembered as the primary author of Bergey’s Manual of Deter¬ minative Bacteriology, a reference for classification of bacteria, and he researched such varied topics as tuberculosis, food preservatives, phago¬ cytosis (engulfment of particles by cells), and allergic reactions.

Bergman, (Ernst) Ingmar (b. July 14, 1918, Uppsala, Swed.) Swed¬ ish film writer-director. The rebellious son of a Lutheran pastor, he worked in the theatre before directing his first film, Crisis (1945). He won inter¬ national acclaim for his films The Seventh Seal (1956) and Wild Straw¬ berries (1957). He assembled a group of actors, including Max von Sydow and Liv Ullmann, and a cinematographer, Sven Nykvist, with whom he made powerful films often marked by bleak depictions of human loneliness, including Through a Glass Darkly (1961), Cries and Whispers (1972), Autumn Sonata (1978), and Fanny and Alexander (1982). He later wrote screenplays for The Best Intentions (1992) and Private Confessions (1996). Throughout his career Bergman continued to direct stage produc¬ tions, usually at Stockholm’s Royal Dramatic Theatre.

Bergman, Ingrid (b. Aug. 29, 1915, Stockholm, Swed.—d. Aug. 29, 1982, London, Eng.) Swedish film and stage actress. After appearing in Intermezzo in Sweden, she went to the U.S. to act in the English-language version (1939). Her radiance and unaffected charm made her a star in films such as Casablanca (1942), Gaslight (1944, Academy Award), and Alfred Hitchcock’s Spellbound (1945) and Notorious (1946). The scandal caused by her love affair with Roberto Rossellini (1949) kept her off the U.S. screen for seven years, and she made films in Europe before being welcomed back to Hollywood in Anastasia (1956, Academy Award). Her later films include Indiscreet (1958) and Murder on the Orient Express (1974, Acad¬ emy Award).

Bergson \berk-'so n \, Henri (-Louis) (b. Oct. 15, 1859, Paris, France—d. Jan. 4, 1941, Paris) French philosopher. In Creative Evolution (1907), he argued that evolution, which he accepted as scientific fact, is not mechanistic but driven by an elan vital (“vital impulse”). He was the first to elaborate a process philosophy, rejecting static values and embrac¬ ing dynamic values such as motion, change, and evolution. His writing style has been widely admired for its grace and lucidity; he won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1927. Very popular in his time, he remains influ¬ ential in France. See photograph opposite.

Beria \'ber-e-o\, Lavrenty (Pavlovich) (b. March 29, 1899, Merkheuli, Russia—d. Dec. 23, 1953, Moscow, Russia, U.S.S.R.) Soviet

politician and director of the Soviet secret police. He worked in intelli¬ gence and counterintelligence activities from 1921. As Communist Party head of the Transcaucasian republics (1932-38), he personally oversaw the political purges initiated by Joseph Stalin (see purge trials). He was head of the Soviet secret police (1938-53), and after Stalin’s death he became one of four deputy prime ministers and the head of the Ministry of Inter¬ nal Affairs. After attempting to succeed Stalin as sole dictator, he was arrested and executed.

beriberi \,ber-e-'ber-e\ or vitamin B 1 deficiency Nutritional disor¬ der, with nerve and heart impairment, caused by thiamin deficiency. Its name is from the Sinhalese word for “extreme weakness.” Symptoms include fatigue, digestive problems, and limb numbness and weakness. Dry beriberi involves gradual long-nerve degeneration, with muscle atro¬ phy and loss of reflexes. Wet beriberi is more acute, with edema from car¬ diac failure and poor circulation. Thiamin occurs widely in food but is lost in processing; a well-balanced diet high in unprocessed foods can prevent beriberi. In Western countries, chronic alcoholism is the most common cause.

Bering, Vitus (Jonassen) (b. 1681, Horsens, Den.—d. Dec. 19, 1741, Bering Island, near the Kamchatka Peninsula) Danish-born Russian navigator. He joined the fleet of the Russian tsar Peter I and in 1724 was appointed leader of an expedition to determine whether Asia and North America were connected by land. In 1728 he set sail from the Kamchatka Peninsula of Siberia and passed through what would later be named the Bering Strait. His plan for a second expedition was expanded into Rus¬ sia’s Great Northern Expedition (1733—43), which mapped much of the Arctic coast of Siberia. After exploring the Alaskan coast, he fell ill from scurvy and died after his ship was wrecked. His exploration paved the way for a Russian foothold in North America.

Bering Sea Marginal sea, North Pacific Ocean. Enclosed by Alaska, the Aleutian Islands, the Kamchatka Peninsula, and eastern Siberia, it covers some 890,000 sq mi (2,304,000 sq km). It has numerous islands, includ¬ ing Karagin and Nunivak, as well as the St. Lawrence, Aleutian, and Komandor archipelagos. It is crossed diagonally by the International Date Line. The sea is connected to the Arctic Ocean by the Bering Strait, which separates Asia from North America and is believed to have been a land bridge during the Ice Age that enabled migration from Asia to North America. Vitus Bering’s exploration of the sea and strait in 1728 and 1741 formed a basis for Russian claims to Alaska.

Bering Sea Dispute Dispute between the U.S. and Britain (and Canada) over the international status of the Bering Sea. In an attempt to control seal hunting off the Alaskan coast, the U.S. in 1881 claimed authority over the Bering Sea and the right to seize sealing vessels. When several Canadian ships were seized in the late 1880s, Britain protested the U.S. claim. An agreement in 1891 permitted both countries to police the area. In 1893 an international tribunal determined that the area was part of the high seas and that no nation had jurisdiction over it.

Berio, Luciano (b. Oct. 24, 1925, Oneglia, Italy—d. May 27, 2003, Rome) Italian composer. He was an important innovator in electronic

music, the combining of live and taped music, aleatory music, graphic notation, musical “collage” using borrowed material, and (perhaps most significantly) in musical “per¬ formance pieces.” His wife, the singer Cathy Berberian (1925-83), was his principal collaborator. His best-known works include Omaggio a Joyce (1958), Visage (1961), Sin- fonia (1968), Opera (1970), and his series of Sequenze (1958-2002).

Berkeley City (pop., 2000: 102,743), west-central California, U.S. Located on San Francisco Bay, the city was founded as Ocean View in 1853 and selected as a campus site by the College (later University) of California. The campus, named for the philosopher George Berkeley, opened in 1873. See also University of California.

204 I Berkeley ► Berlin blockade

Berkeley, Busby orig. William Berkeley Enos (b. Nov. 29,1895, Los Angeles, Calif., U.S.—d. March 14, 1976, Palm Springs, Calif.) U.S. film director and choreographer. The son of itinerant actors, he acted and danced in comedies from age five. After choreographing over 20 Broad¬ way musicals, he was summoned to Hollywood to direct dance numbers for Whoopee (1930). His elaborate production numbers, innovative cam¬ era techniques, and opulent sets in such films as Gold Diggers of 1933 and Footlight Parade (1933) revolutionized the musical and offered escapist fare for moviegoers during the Great Depression. When rising production costs made such extravaganzas unfeasible, he directed less innovative but still popular films such as The Gang’s All Here (1943).

Berkeley \'bark-leV George known as Bishop Berkeley (b.

March 12, 1685, near Dysert Castle, near Thomastown?, County Kil¬ kenny, Ire.—d. Jan. 14, 1753, Oxford, Eng.) Irish bishop, philosopher, and social activist. He worked principally at Trinity College, Dublin (to 1713), and as bishop of Cloyne (1734-52). He is best known for his con¬ tention that, for material objects, to be is to be perceived (“Esse est per- cipi”). His religious calling may have prompted his qualification that, even if no human perceives an object, God does, thereby ensuring the contin¬ ued existence of the physical world when not perceived by any finite being. With John Locke and David Hume, he was one of the founders of modern empiricism. Unlike Locke, he did not believe that there exists any material substance external to the mind, but rather that objects exist only as collections of sensible ideas. His works include An Essay Towards a New Theory of Vision (1709), Treatise Concerning the Principles of Human Knowledge (1710), and Three Dialogues Between Hylas and Philonous (1713). He spent part of his career in America, where he advo¬ cated educating Native Americans and blacks. The city of Berkeley, Calif., U.S., is named for him.

Berkeley, Sir William (b. 1606, Somerset, Eng.—d. July 9, 1677, Twickenham, Middlesex) British colonial governor of Virginia. Appointed governor in 1641, he introduced crop diversification, encouraged manu¬ facturing, and promoted peace with the Indians. A strong monarchist, he was forced to retire to his Virginia plantation during the Commonwealth period in England (1652-59). Reappointed in 1660, he faced crop failures and Indian attacks on the frontier. In 1676 Nathaniel Bacon mounted an expedition against the Indians in defiance of Berkeley’s policy of foster¬ ing trade. Berkeley fought Bacon for control of the colony, which he eventually regained.

Berkshire Vbark-shorX Geographic county, southern England. It occu¬ pies the river valleys of the middle Thames and its tributary, the Kennet, immediately west of London. Settlement of the area dates from the Iron Age, and the Belgic site at Silchester later became a Roman route centre. With the Norman Conquest the Thames valley’s strategic importance was recognized, and the first Windsor Castle was built. Windsor and Eton, on Berkshire’s eastern boundary, contain the county’s most noted structures. With its seat at Reading, it was an administrative county from 1974 to

Berkshire Hills Segment of the Appalachian Mtns., western Massachu¬ setts. Many of its summits exceed 2,000 ft (600 m), including Mount Greylock (3,491 ft, or 1,064 m), the highest point in the state. The wooded hills are a continuation of the Green Mtns. of Vermont; they include the Hoosac and Taconic ranges. Crossed by the Appalachian National Scenic Trail, the Berkshires contain state parks and forests and are the home of the Tanglewood summer music festival (in Lenox).

Berlage Vber-lak-oV, Hendrik Petrus (b. Feb. 21, 1856, Amsterdam, Neth.—d. Aug. 12, 1934, The Hague) Dutch architect. After studies in Zurich, he began his practice in Amsterdam (1889). His best-known work is the Amsterdam Stock Exchange (1897-1903), notable for its forthright use of structural steel and traditional Dutch brickwork. While visiting the U.S. (1911), he was exposed to the work of Louis H. Sullivan and Frank Lloyd Wright and later introduced their methods and ideas to Europe. His work was characterized by the honest use of materials based on their fun¬ damental properties and the avoidance of meaningless ornamentation.

Berle VbsrlV, Milton orig. Milton Berlinger (b. July 12, 1908, New York, N.Y., U.S.—d. March 27, 2002, Los Angeles, Calif.) U.S. come¬ dian. He appeared in vaudeville from age 10 and later acted in more than 50 silent films. He worked chiefly as a nightclub comedian (1939-49) while vainly seeking a radio audience. His slapstick routines and facial contortions, however, were more suited to a visual medium, and between 1937 and 1968 he appeared in 19 movies. His greatest success came with

the television variety show Texaco Star Theater (1948-54), a show so popular that many people are said to have bought television sets just to watch “Uncle Miltie.”

Berlin City and state (pop., 2002 est: city, 3,388,000; metro, area, 4,101,000), capital of Germany. Founded in the early 13th century, it was a member of the Hanseatic League in the 14th century. It became the resi¬ dence of the Hohenzollerns and the capital of Brandenburg. It was suc¬ cessively the capital of Prussia (from 1701), the German Empire (1871- 1918), the Weimar Republic (1919—32), and the Third Reich (1933^15). In World War II much of the city was destroyed by Allied bombing. In 1945 it was divided into four occupation zones: U.S., British, French, and Soviet. The three Western powers integrated their sectors into one eco¬ nomic entity in 1948; the Soviets responded with the Berlin blockade. When independent governments were established in eastern and western Ger¬ many in 1949, East Berlin was made the capital of East Germany, and West Berlin, though surrounded by East Germany, became part of West Germany. Continuing immigration from East to West Berlin through the 1950s prompted the 1961 erection of the Berlin Wall. The area immedi¬ ately became the most vivid focal point of the Cold War. The dramatic dismantling of the wall in 1989 marked the international upheaval that accompanied the end of the Soviet Union. Berlin became reunified as Germany’s official capital in 1991; the transfer of government from Bonn was completed in 1999. It is the site of the University of Berlin, Charlot- tenburg Palace, Brandenburg Gate, and Berlin Zoo and is home to the Berlin Opera and Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra.

Berlin, Congress of (June 13-July 13, 1878) Diplomatic meeting of the major European powers at which the Treaty of Berlin replaced the Treaty of San Stefano. Dominated by Otto von Bismarck, the congress solved an international crisis by revising the peace settlement to satisfy the interests of Britain and Austria-Hungary. By humiliating Russia and failing to acknowledge adequately the aspirations of the Balkan peoples, it laid the foundation for future Balkan crises.

Berlin, Irving orig. Israel Baline (b. May 11, 1888, Mogilyov, Russia—d. Sept. 22, 1989, New York, N.Y., U.S.) U.S. songwriter. The son of a Russian Jewish cantor, he and his family immigrated to New York City in 1893. He worked as a street singer and singing waiter, then began writing songs. His first published song, “Marie from Sunny Italy,” appeared in 1907; a printer’s error named him Irving Berlin. In 1911 he wrote the great hit of Tin Pan Alley’s ragtime vogue, “Alexander’s Ragtime Band.” He may have written more than 1,500 songs. Some of his songs include “Cheek to Cheek” and “God Bless America.” He scored many successful films; his score for Holiday Inn (1942) introduced “White Christmas,” one of the best-selling songs of all time. Altogether Berlin wrote the scores for 19 Broadway shows (including Annie Get Your Gun, 1946) and 18 films.

Berlin, Sir Isaiah (b. June 9, 1909, Riga, Latvia—d. Nov. 5, 1997, Oxford, Eng.) Latvian-born British political philosopher and historian of ideas. His family immigrated to Britain in 1920. Educated at the Univer¬ sity of Oxford, Berlin taught there from 1950 to 1967, serving as presi¬ dent of Wolfson College from 1966 to 1975 and thereafter teaching at All Souls College. His writings on political philosophy are chiefly concerned with the problem of free will in increasingly totalitarian and mechanistic societies. His most important works include Karl Marx (1939), The Hedgehog and the Fox (1953), Historical Inevitability (1955), The Age of Enlightenment (1956), and Four Essays on Liberty (1969).

Berlin, University of or Humboldt University of Berlin Pub¬ lic university in Berlin, Germany. It was founded (as Friedrich Wilhelm University) in 1809-10 by Wilhelm, baron von Humboldt. By the mid 1800s it had attained world renown for its modern curriculum and its scientific research institutes. Among its faculty were G.W.F. Hegel, Johann Gott¬ lieb Fichte, Arthur Schopenhauer, Leopold von Ranke, Hermann von Helm¬ holtz, Friedrich Schleiermacher, and Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm. In the 1930s it was Nazified, and many of its faculty fled abroad. Under the German Democratic Republic after World War II, it was renamed Humboldt Uni¬ versity and given a Marxist-Leninist orientation. It was reorganized after East and West Germany reunified in 1990.

Berlin blockade and airlift (1948^-9) International crises that arose from an attempt by the Soviet Union to force the Allied powers (U.S., Britain, and France) to abandon their postwar jurisdictions in West Ber¬ lin. The Soviets, regarding the economic consolidation of the three Allied occupation zones in Germany in 1948 as a threat to the East German

Berlin Painter ► Bernanos I 205

economy, blockaded all transportation routes between Berlin and West Germany. The U.S. and Britain responded by supplying the city with food and other supplies by military air transport and airlifting out West Berlin exports. An Allied embargo on exports from the Eastern bloc forced the Soviets to lift the blockade after 11 months.

Berlin Painter (fl. 500^160 bc, Athens, Greece) Greek vase painter, the outstanding vase painter of the late Archaic period. He is best known as the decorator of an amphora now in Berlin. Whereas it had been cus¬ tomary to frame the groups of figures on each side of the vase with pat¬ tern bands, the Berlin Painter eliminated the frame, allowing the figures to dominate and stand out sharply against the black background. Nearly 300 vases are attributed to him.

Berlin Wall Barrier surrounding West Berlin that closed off East Ger¬ mans access to West Berlin from 1961 to 1989 and served as a symbol of the Cold War’s division of East and West Germany. The barrier was built in response to the flight of about 2.5 million East Germans to West Germany in the years 1949-61. First erected on the night of Aug. 12-13, 1961, it developed into a system of concrete walls topped with barbed wire and guarded with watchtowers, gun emplacements, and mines. It was opened in the 1989 democratization that swept through eastern Europe and has been largely torn down.

Berlin West Africa Conference (1884-85) Series of negotiations at Berlin in which the major European nations met to determine the future of Central Africa. The participants declared the Congo River basin region to be neutral, guaranteed freedom of trade and shipping for all colonial powers, forbade slave trading, and rejected Portugal’s claims to the region.

Berlinguer V.ber-lin-'gwerV Enrico (b. May 25, 1922, Sassari, Sar¬ dinia, Italy—d. June 11, 1984, Padua) Italian politician. Born into a middle-class Sardinian family, he joined the Communist Party in 1943 and held a series of party posts before becoming secretary-general in 1972, a post he would keep until his death. He became a leading advo¬ cate of “national communism,” seeking independence from Moscow and favouring the adaptation of Marxism to local requirements. His proposal for a coalition government of Christian Democrats and communists was never realized.

Berlioz Vber-le-.ozX, (Louis-) Hector (b. Dec. 11, 1803, La Cote- Saint-Andre, France—d. March 8, 1869, Paris) French composer. He stud¬ ied guitar in his early years and later studied music at the Paris Conservatoire, against his parents’ wishes. His first great score was the stormy Symphonie fantastique (1830), which became a landmark of the Romantic era. Impulsive and passionate, he was a contentious critic and gadfly constantly at war with the musical establishment. Though he was the most compelling French musical figure of his time, his idiosyncratic compositional style kept almost all his music out of the repertory until the mid-20th century. His works include the operas Benvenuto Cellini (1837) and Les Troyens (1858); the program symphonies Harold in Italy (1834) and Romeo and Juliet (1839); and the choral dramas La Damnation de Faust (1846) and L’Enfance du Christ (1854). He was also known as a brilliant conductor with an unsurpassed knowledge of the orchestra; his orchestration treatise (1843) is the most influential such work ever writ¬ ten.

Berlusconi, Silvio (b. Sept. 29, 1936, Milan, Italy) Italian media tycoon and prime minister in 1994 and again from 2001. After graduat¬ ing from the University of Milan, he became a real estate developer, amassing a considerable fortune by the 1970s. By the 1990s he owned more than 150 businesses, including three television networks and Italy’s largest publishing house. In 1994 he founded Forza Italia, a conservative political party, and was elected prime minister. Faced with conflict of interest and other charges, he resigned in December 1994. He was later convicted of fraud and corruption, though he was acquitted of tax eva¬ sion. Despite the convictions and criticism of his control of much of the Italian media, he remained the leader of Forza Italia and again became prime minister in 2001.

Bermejo \ber-'ma-ho\, Bartolome or Bartolome de Cardenas

Vkar-da-nas\ (b. c. 1440, Cordoba, Spain—d. 1495, Barcelona) Spanish painter. He was active in Valencia (1468), Aragon (1474-85), and Barce¬ lona (from 1486). Bermejo’s earliest masterpiece is the panel painting Santo Domingo de Silos (1474). His Pieta (1490) in Barcelona Cathedral is considered a masterpiece of early Spanish oil painting; the influence of

Rogier van der Weyden can be seen in the rich detail and colour. Bermejo cultivated the Flemish style and was considered the most outstanding painter in Spain before El Greco.

Bermejo \ber-'ma-ho\ River River, northern Argentina. Rising on the Bolivian frontier, it flows southeast 650 mi (1,045 km) into the Paraguay River on the border of Paraguay and Argentina. The abundant silt it car¬ ries in suspension is the source of its name ( bermejo , “reddish”). It is navigable for small craft along its central course, known as the Teuco River.

Bermuda British overseas territory (pop., 2005 est.: 65,400), western Atlantic Ocean. Comprising 7 main islands and about 170 additional (named) islets and rocks, it lies about 570 mi (920 km) southeast of Cape Hatteras, N.C., U.S. The archipelago has a total land area of about 20.5 sq mi (53 sq km). The capital is Hamilton on Main Island. Bermuda was named for Juan de Bermudez, who may have visited the islands in 1503. Colonized by the English in 1612, Bermuda became a crown colony in 1684, and its status changed to an overseas territory in 2002. Its economy is based on tourism and international finance; its gross national product per capita is among the world’s highest.

Bermuda Triangle Triangular section of the North Atlantic Ocean whose boundaries are usually said to be Bermuda, the southern U.S. coast, and the Greater Antilles. The region attracted international attention after numerous planes and ships were said to have mysteriously disappeared there. Reports of unnatural occurrences were popularized, but by the late 20th century much of the myth surrounding the Bermuda Triangle had been dispelled.

Bern City (pop., 2000 est: city, 128,600; metro, area, 317,300), capital of Switzerland. Lying along a loop of the Aare River, it was founded as a military post in 1191 by Berthold V, duke of Zahringen. It became a free imperial city in 1218. Gradually extending its power, it became an inde¬ pendent state, and in 1353 it entered the Swiss Confederation. It was a scene of disputation in 1528 between Roman Catholics and reformers, which led to its subsequent championing of Protestant doctrines. It became a member of the Helvetic Republic and in 1848 was made the capital of Switzerland. It is headquarters of the international postal, rail¬ way, and copyright unions.

Bern Convention officially International Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works International agree¬ ment adopted in Bern, Switz., in 1886 to protect copyrights on an inter¬ national basis. It was modified several times throughout the 20th century. Its signatories constitute the Bern Copyright Union. Each member coun¬ try grants the authors of other member countries the same rights that its laws grant its own nationals. Protected works include every kind of lit¬ erary, scientific, and artistic production, regardless of mode of expression, including paintings, sculptures, architectural plans, and musical arrange¬ ments. Copyright is now protected for 70 years after the creator’s death.

Bernadette of Lourdes, Saint orig. Marie-Bernarde Soubir-

ous (b. Jan. 7, 1844, Lourdes, France—d. April 16, 1879, Nevers; can¬ onized Dec. 8, 1933; feast day April 16, but sometimes February 18 in France) French visionary. The daughter of a miller, she had a poverty- stricken childhood and was often ill. In 1858 she had a series of visions of Mary; she defended their authenticity against the doubts of her parents, the clergy, and civil authorities. She joined the Sisters of Charity at Nev¬ ers (1866) and remained in seclusion until her death at 35. The grotto at Lourdes became a pilgrimage site; its waters are reputed to have healing powers.

Bernadotte \ber-na-'dot\ (af Wisborg), Folke, Count (b. Jan. 2, 1895, Stockholm, Swed.—d. Sept. 17, 1948, Jerusalem) Swedish soldier, humanitarian, and diplomat. A nephew of King Gustav V, Bernadotte headed the Swedish Red Cross in World War II and was credited with saving some 20,000 concentration-camp inmates. In 1948 he was appointed mediator in Palestine by the UN Security Council and secured a cease-fire between Israel and the Arab states. He made enemies by pro¬ posing that Arab refugees be allowed to return to their homes in what had become Israel and was assassinated by Jewish extremists.

Bernanos \ber-na-'nos\, Georges (b. Feb. 20,1888, Paris, France—d. July 5, 1948, Neuilly-sur-Seine) French novelist and polemical writer. One of the most original and independent Roman Catholic writers of his time and a man of humour and humanity, he abhorred materialism and compro¬ mise with evil. His masterpiece, The Diary of a Country Priest (1936), is

206 I Bernard ► Bernini

the story of a young priest’s war against sin. Dialogues of the Carmelites (1949), a screenplay about 16 nuns martyred during the French Revolution, was the basis for an opera by Francis Poulenc (1957).

Bernard \ber-'nar\, Claude (b. July 12,1813, Saint-Julien, France—d. Feb. 10, 1878, Paris) French physiologist. He taught at several major French institutions and was named a senator in 1869. He discovered the role of the pancreas in digestion, the glycogenic function of the liver in carbohydrate metabolism, and blood-supply regulation by the vasomotor nerves. He helped establish the principles of experimentation in the life sciences, including the need for a hypothesis. His concept of the internal environment of the organism led to the present understanding of homeo¬ stasis. Bernard also studied the effects of such poisons as carbon monox¬ ide and curare. He was awarded the grand prize in physiology three times by the Academie des Sciences.

Bernard de Clairvaux \kler-'vb. Saint (b. 1090, probably Fontaine-les-Dijons, near Dijon, Burgundy—d. Aug. 20, 1153, Clairvaux, Champagne; canonized 1174; feast day August 20) French Cistercian monk, mystic, and doctor of the church. Born into an aristocratic family near Dijon, he turned away from a literary education for the monastic life, entering the austere religious community at Citeaux in 1112. As abbot of the Cistercian monastery at Clairvaux, Champagne, which he founded in 1115, he helped establish the widespread popularity of the order. Between 1130 and 1145 he mediated civil and ecclesiastical councils and theologi¬ cal debates, and his support for Pope Innocent II helped secure the papacy during the schism with Anacletus. Bernard was the confidant of five popes and became perhaps the most renowned religious figure in Europe. He actively preached the Second Crusade and wrote a number of sermons on the Song of Solomon. He opposed the teachings of Peter Abelard and Henry of Lausanne and defended devotion to the Virgin Mary.

Bernardine See Cistercian

Bernardine Vbor-nor-denX of Siena, Saint (b. Sept. 8, 1380, Massa Marittima, Siena—d. May 20, 1444, L’Aquila, Kingdom of the Two Sicil¬ ies; canonized 1450; feast day May 20) Franciscan priest and theologian. Born into a noble family but orphaned early, he entered the Observants (1402), a strict branch of the Franciscan order that he later helped to spread throughout Europe. In 1417 he began preaching tours in Italy, seeking to combat the lawlessness, strife, and immorality resulting from the Western Schism. Through the Council of Florence he worked to unite the Greek and Roman churches. Numerous miracles are said to have occurred at his tomb.

Bernays, Edward L. (b. Nov. 22, 1891, Vienna, Austria—d. March 9, 1995, Cambridge, Mass., U.S.) U.S. publicist, the “father of public relations.” A nephew of Sigmund Freud, he was born in Austria but was brought up in New York. In organizing endorsements for a play on the taboo subject of venereal disease, he found his calling as a publicist. His early clients included the U.S. War Department and the Lithuanian gov¬ ernment. He edited The Engineering of Consent (1955), whose title is his often-quoted definition of public relations. He died at the age of 103.

Berners-Lee, Tim (b. June 8, 1955, London, Eng.) British physicist. The son of computer scientists, he graduated from Oxford University and in 1980 accepted a fellowship at CERN in Geneva. In 1989 he suggested a global hypertext project. He and his CERN colleagues created a com¬ munications protocol called HyperText Transfer Protocol (HTTP) that stan¬ dardized communication between computer servers and clients. Their text-based Web browser was released to the public in 1991, marking the beginnings of the World Wide Web and general public use of the Inter¬ net. He declined all opportunities to profit from his immensely valuable innovation. In 1994 he joined MIT’s Laboratory for Computer Science as director of the World Wide Web Consortium.

Bernese Alps German Berner Oberland X.bor-nsr-'o-bor-.lanA Segment of the Alps, Switzerland. It lies north of the Rhone River and south of Brienzer and Thuner lakes and extends east from Martigny-Ville to Grimsel Pass and the valley of the upper Aare River. Many peaks, includ¬ ing the Finsteraarhorn, Jungfrau, and Aletschhorn, rise more than 12,000 ft (3,660 m). The Bernese Alps are crossed by the Lotschen, Gemmi, and Pillon passes and the Lotschberg railway tunnel. Many resorts, including Interlaken, Grindelwald, and Gstaad, dot the area.

Bernese mountain dog Breed of Swiss working dog brought to Switzerland over 2,000 years ago by invading Romans. The hardy breed was widely used to pull carts and to drive cattle to and from their pas¬

tures. It has a broad chest, hanging V-shaped ears, and a long, silky, black coat. Markings include brown spots on the chest and forelegs and over the eyes, and sometimes white on the chest, nose, feet, and tail tip. The breed stands 21-28 in. (53-70 cm) high and weighs about 90 lbs (40 kg).

Bernhard \'bern- l hart\ (b. June 29, 1911, Jena, Ger.—d. Dec. 1, 2004, Utrecht, Neth.) Prince of The Netherlands. The son of Prince Bernhard Casimir of Lippe-Biesterfeld, Bernhard married the Dutch crown prin¬ cess Juliana in 1937 and took Dutch citizenship. He opposed Germany’s invasion of The Netherlands and took his family to Britain after the Dutch surrender (1940). In World War II he served as the Dutch liaison with the British armed forces, flew with the Royal Air Force (1942—44), and led Dutch troops in the Allied offensive in The Netherlands (1945). After the war and Juliana’s accession as queen (1948-80), he became The Neth¬ erlands’ goodwill ambassador. He was active in conservation efforts and in 1961 helped found the World Wildlife Fund. In 1976 he was implicated in a bribery scandal that temporarily tarnished the monarchy.

Bernhardi Vbern-.har-deV, Friedrich von (b. 1849, Estonia, Russian Empire—d. 1930) German soldier and military writer. He fought in the Franco-Prussian War and became commander of the Seventh Army corps in 1909. In 1911 he published Germany and the Next War, arguing that Germany had a right and responsibility to wage war to gain the power it deserved. The Allies later considered his book a contributing cause of World War I, in which Bernhardi served as a corps commander.

Bernhardt \ber-'nar,\ English Vbom-.hartA, Sarah orig. Henriette- Rosine Bernard (b. Oct. 22/23,

1844, Paris, France—d. March 26,

1923, Paris) French actress. The ille¬ gitimate child of a courtesan, she was encouraged to pursue a theatri¬ cal career by one of her mother’s lovers, the duke de Morny. After a brief appearance at the Comedie- Francaise (1862-63), she joined the Odeon theatre (1866-72), where she acted in Kean by Alexandre Dumas pere and Ruy Bias by Victor Hugo, charming audiences with her “golden voice.” Returning to the Comedie-Fran^aise (1872-80), she starred in Phedre to great acclaim in Paris and London. She formed her own company in 1880 and toured the world in The Lady of the Camellias by Alexandre Dumas fils, Adrienne Lecouvreur by Eugene Scribe, four plays written for her by Victorien Sardou, and The Eaglet by Edmond Rostand. After an injury to her leg forced its amputation (1915), she strapped on a wooden leg and chose roles she could play largely seated. One of the best-known figures in the history of the stage, she was made a member of France’s Legion of Honour in 1914.

Bernicia \ber-'ni-sh9\ Ancient northern Anglo-Saxon kingdom. It stretched northward from perhaps as far south as the River Tees, ultimately reaching the Firth of Forth. By the end of the 7th century ad it had united with its neighbour Deira to form the kingdom of Northumbria. It had a royal residence at coastal Bamburgh. The first recorded king, Ida, was crowned there in 547; his grandson Aethelfrith (r. 593-616) united Ber¬ nicia and Deira.

Bernini, Gian Lorenzo (b. Dec. 7, 1598, Naples, Kingdom of Naples—d. Nov. 28, 1680, Rome, Papal States) Italian architect and art¬ ist credited with creating the Baroque style of sculpture. He began his career working for his father, a sculptor. Among his early sculptures are Apollo and Daphne (1622-24) and an active David (1623-24). Under the patronage of Urban VIII, the first of eight popes he was to serve, he cre¬ ated the baldachin over the tomb of St. Peter in Rome. Bernini’s architec¬ tural duties increased after 1629, when he was appointed architect of St. Peter's Basilica and the Palazzo Barberini. His works often represent a fusion of architecture and sculpture, as in the Comaro Chapel, in Santa Maria della Vittoria, Rome, with its celebrated theatrical sculpture, The Ecstasy of St. Teresa (1645-52). His greatest architectural achievement is the colonnade enclosing the piazza before St. Peter’s. Among his many

Sarah Bernhardt, photograph by Napoleon Sarony, 1880.

LIBRARY OF CONGRESS, WASHINGTON, D.C.

Bernoulli ► Berry I 207

other contributions to Rome are his Triton Fountain and Fountain of the Four Rivers, noted for their architec¬ tural composition and detail.

Bernoulli \ber-'nu-le\ family Two generations of distinguished Swiss mathematicians. Jakob (1655—

1705) and Johann (1667-1748) were the sons of a pharmacist who wanted one boy to study theology and the other medicine. Over his objections, both pursued careers in mathematics, making important discoveries in cal¬ culus, the calculus of variations, and differential equations. They some¬ times worked together, but not with¬ out friction. Johann’s son Daniel (1700-82) made important contribu¬ tions to fluid dynamics (see Bernoul¬ li's principle) and probability theory.

Widely admired throughout Europe, he also studied and lectured on medi¬ cine, physics, astronomy, and botany.

Bernoulli's principle or Bernoulli's theorem Principle that relates pressure, velocity, and height for a nonviscous fluid with steady flow. A consequence is that, for horizontal flow, as the speed of a fluid increases, the pressure it exerts decreases. Derived by Daniel Bernoulli (see Ber¬ noulli family), the principle explains the lift of an airplane in motion. As the speed of the plane increases, air flows faster over the curved top of the wing than underneath. The upward pressure exerted by the air under the wing is thus greater than the pressure exerted downward above the wing, resulting in a net upward force, or lift. Race cars use the principle to keep their wheels pressed to the ground as they accelerate. A race car’s spoiler—shaped like an upside-down wing, with the curved surface at the bottom—produces a net downward force.

Bernstein Vbern-shtuA, Eduard (b. Jan. 6, 1850, Berlin, Prussia—d. Dec. 18, 1932, Berlin, Germany) German politician and writer. He joined the German Social Democratic Party in 1872, then spent years in exile as an editor of socialist journals. In London he met Friedrich Engels and was influenced by the Fabian Society. Returning to Germany in 1901, Bern¬ stein became the political theorist of the revisionists and was one of the first socialists to modify such Marxist tenets as the imminent collapse of capitalism. He envisaged a type of social democracy that combined pri¬ vate initiative with social reform. As a member of the Reichstag (1902- 06, 1912-16, 1920-28), he inspired much of the reformist programs of the Social Democrats.

Apollo and Daphne, marble sculpture by Gian Lorenzo Bernini, 1622-24; in the Borghese Gallery, Rome.

SCALA/ART RESOURCE, NEW YORK

Bernstein, Leonard (b. Aug. 25, 1918, Lawrence, Mass., U.S.—d. Oct. 14, 1990, New York, N.Y.) U.S. conductor, composer, and writer. He resolved on a music career only after graduating from Harvard University.

He studied conducting at the Curtis Institute of Music with Fritz Reiner and then at Tanglewood (in Lenox,

Mass.), where he met Aaron Cop¬ land and became Serge Koussevitzky’s assistant. Fame came abruptly in 1943 when he substituted on short notice for the conductor of the New York Philharmonic orchestra and was praised for his technical self- assurance and interpretive excel¬ lence. In 1944 he triumphed with his music for Jerome Robbins’s ballet Fancy Free and the Broadway show On the Town. As a composer he made use of diverse elements ranging from biblical themes to jazz rhythms. His best-known composition was the score for the hit musical West Side Story (1957); other works include the musicals Wonderful Town (1952) and Candide (1956), three symphonies, the Chichester Psalms (1965), and the theatrical Mass (1971). Well known as a television lec¬ turer, he was also a prominent political activist.

Leonard Bernstein.

IAUTERWASSER, COURTESY DEUTSCHE GRAMMOPHON

Bernstorff Vbem-shtorfV, Johann-Heinrich, count von (b. Nov. 14, 1862, London, Eng.—d. Oct. 6, 1939, Geneva, Switz.) German dip¬ lomat. After entering the diplomatic service (1899), he represented Ger¬ many in London and Cairo before serving as ambassador to the U.S. (1908-17). During World War I he worked to facilitate mediation of the conflict with Woodrow Wilson but did not receive the support he expected from authorities in Berlin. He served as chairman of the German League of Nations Union until 1933, when he went into exile in Geneva.

Berra Vber-oX, Yogi orig. Lawrence Peter Berra (b. May 12,1925, St. Louis, Mo., U.S.) U.S. baseball player, manager, and coach. Berra joined the New York Yankees in 1946 and served as the team’s regular catcher from 1949 until his retirement in 1963. He was named the Ameri¬ can League’s Most Valuable Player in 1951, 1954, and 1955. He caught in more World Series games (75) than any other catcher and hit 20 or more home runs a season through 1958. He managed the Yankees in 1964 but was fired and became a coach and manager (1965-75) with the New York Mets. He returned to the Yankees as a coach (1976-82) and later manager (1983-85). He was known for idiosyncratic remarks such as “It ain’t over till it’s over” and “It’s deja vu all over again.” The American cartoon character Yogi Bear was named for him.

Berrigan, Daniel (Joseph) and Philip (Francis) (respectively b. May 9, 1921, Virginia, Minn., U.S.(b. Oct. 5, 1923, Two Harbors, Minn., U.S.) —d. Dec. 6, 2002, Baltimore, Md.) U.S. priests and political activ¬ ists. After joining the Catholic priesthood (Daniel became a Jesuit, Philip a Josephite), the brothers became involved in nonviolent political activ¬ ism, carrying out campaigns of civil disobedience to oppose racism, the nuclear arms race, and the Vietnam War. They were best known for their Vietnam-era raid of draft-board files in Catonsville, Md., which they destroyed with chicken blood and napalm. They were also known for the persistence of their activism. Philip later left the priesthood. Both authored numerous books on their work and beliefs; Daniel also wrote poetry and plays.

Berruguete, Alonso (b. c. 1488, Paredes de Nava, Castile—d. 1561, Toledo, Castile) Spanish sculptor and painter. His father, Pedro Berruguete, was a great Renaissance painter. Alonso worked in Florence and Rome c. 1508-16. In 1516 he returned to Spain, and in 1518 he became court painter to Charles V. He succeeded primarily as a sculptor, however, and became known for his intensely emotional Mannerist sculptures of figures portrayed in spiritual torment or in transports of religious ecstasy. His best-known work is a set of wooden reliefs with highly expressive fig¬ ures for choir stalls in Toledo Cathedral (1539-43). Berruguete’s use of a rather rich and extravagant but delicate ornamentation in his church decorations is typical of Spain’s Plateresque style. He is considered the greatest Spanish sculptor of the 16th century.

Berruguete \,ber-u-'ga-ta\, Pedro or Pedro Espanol or Pietro Spagnuolo X.span-yo-'wo-loX (b. c. 1450, Paredes de Nava, Castile—d. Jan. 6, 1504, Avila, Castile) Spanish painter. After a sojourn in Italy, he returned to Spain, where he painted numerous altarpieces and also worked as a fresco painter in Toledo Cathedral (1483-99). The influence of Flem¬ ish and Italian art is evident in his panel paintings, which are character¬ ized by luxurious ornament and gold decoration. He was the first great Renaissance painter in Spain. His son Alonso Berruguete was a sculptor and painter.

Berry \be-'re\ Historical region and former province, central France. It was originally inhabited by the Bituriges Cubi, who opposed Vercinge- torix. Under Roman rule it was part of Aquitania Prima. A countship in the Carolingian period, it fell to the French crown in the 12th century. When Aquitaine was acquired by Henry II of England, Berry became a matter of dispute between England and France. As a duchy, at one time it came under Jean de France, duke de Berry, an important patron of the arts. It returned to France in 1601 and remained a province until 1790.

berry Simple, fleshy fruit that usually has many seeds (e.g., the banana, tomato, or cranberry). The middle and inner layers of the fruit wall often are not distinct from each other. Any small, fleshy fruit is popularly called a berry, especially if it is edible. Raspberries, blackberries, and strawberries are not true berries, but rather aggregate fruits—fruits that consist of mul¬ tiple smaller fruits. The date is a one-seeded berry whose stone is hard nutritive tissue.

Berry, Chuck orig. Charles Edward Anderson Berry (b. Oct. 18, 1926, St. Louis, Mo., U.S. ) U.S. singer-songwriter. Though first

208 I Berry ► beryllium

interested in country music, in the early 1950s Berry led a blues trio that played in black nightclubs around St. Louis. In 1955 he traveled to Chi¬ cago and made his first hit record, “Maybellene,” which was soon fol¬ lowed by “Sweet Little Sixteen,” “Johnny B. Goode,” “Rock and Roll Music,” and “Roll Over, Beethoven.” He was one of the first to shape big-beat blues into what came to be called rock and roll (see rock music) and to achieve widespread popularity with white audiences. After two tri¬ als tainted by racist overtones, in 1959 he began a five-year prison sen¬ tence for immoral behaviour. In 1972 he achieved his first number one hit, “My Ding-A-Ling.” He continued to perform into the 1990s. The Beatles and the Rolling Stones were among the many rock bands greatly influenced by Berry.

Berry, Jean de France, duke de (b. Nov. 30, 1340, Vincennes, France—d. June 15, 1416, Paris) French nobleman and patron of the arts. He was the son of King John II. As duke de Berry and Auvergne, he con¬ trolled at least one-third of France during the middle period of the Hun¬ dred Years' War. Berry shared in the administration of France and worked for peace with England and within France, acting as diplomat and media¬ tor. He invested fortunes in the art treasures that became his monument— paintings, tapestries, jewelry, and illuminated manuscripts that included the famous Tres Riches Heures du due de Berry.

Berry \be-‘re\, Jean de France, duke de orig. Charles- Ferdinand de Bourbon (b. Jan. 24,1778, Versailles, France—d. Feb. 14, 1820, Paris) French nobleman. Son of the future Charles X, he left France at the outbreak of the French Revolution and lived abroad until 1815. His assassination by a Bonapartist fanatic marked a turning point in the Bourbon Restoration, hastening the downfall of the moderate Decazes government and the polarization into liberal and royalist groups.

berserker (from Old Norse beserkr, “bearskin”) In premedieval and medieval Norse and Germanic history and folklore, any member of unruly warrior gangs that worshiped Odin and attached themselves to royal and noble courts as bodyguards and shock troops. They raped and murdered at will in their host communities, and their savagery in battle and animal- skin attire (they are also said to have fought naked) contributed to the development of the werewolf legend in Europe.

Bert VberX, Paul (b. Oct. 17, 1833, Auxerre, Yonne, France—d. Nov. 11, 1886, Hanoi) French physiologist, founder of modern aerospace medi¬ cine. He taught for many years at the Sorbonne and served as a deputy in the government from 1872-86. His research on the effects of air pressure on the body helped make possible the exploration of space and the ocean depths. Bert found the main cause of altitude sickness to be low atmo¬ spheric oxygen content and showed decompression sickness to be due to nitrogen bubbles formed in the blood during rapid drops in external pres¬ sure.

Bertelsmann AG German media company. Beginning as a religious printer and publisher in 1835, the company grew steadily over the next century. Though virtually destroyed by Allied bombing in 1945, it recov¬ ered quickly after World War II. By 1998 Bertelsmann AG had grown to include more than 300 media companies, with more than half its employ¬

ees in countries other than Germany. Its worldwide acquisitions have included the U.S. publishers Bantam Doubleday Dell and Random House. By the early 21st century the company was among the world’s largest media conglomerates.

Berthelot \ber-t3-'lo\, (Pierre-Eugene-) Marcellin (b. Oct. 27, 1827, Paris, France—d. March 18, 1907, Paris) French chemist. The first professor of organic chemistry at the College de France (from 1865), he later also held high government offices, including that of foreign minis¬ ter (1895-96). He did research in alcohols and carboxylic acids, the syn¬ thesis of hydrocarbons, and reaction rates, studied the mechanism of explosion, discovered many coal-tar derivatives, and wrote on the history of early chemistry. He was a pioneer in the use of chemical analysis as a tool of archaeology. His work helped break down the traditional division between organic and inorganic compounds. He opposed the then-current idea that a “vital force” is responsible for synthesis and was one of the first to prove that all chemical phenomena depend on physical forces that can be measured.

Berthoud \ber-'tu\, Ferdinand (b. March 19, 1727, Plancemont, Switz.—d. June 20, 1807, Groslay, France) Swiss-French clockmaker and writer on timekeeping. Working in Paris from 1748, his inventiveness and many publications soon made him influential. His interest in the problem of determining longitude at sea (see latitude and longitude) led to his major achievement, an improved, less expensive marine chronometer. Ber- thoud’s improvements were retained in modern instruments. See also John Harrison.

Bertoia Xbor-'toi-oV, Harry (b. March 10, 1915, San Lorenzo, Italy—d. Nov. 6, 1978, Barto, Pa., U.S.)

Italian-born U.S. sculptor and designer. He attended the Cranbrook Academy of Art and later taught there (1937^13). He worked in Cali¬ fornia with designer Charles Eames before joining Knoll Associates in New York City in 1950. His achieve¬ ments there included the Diamond Chair (commonly known as the Ber¬ toia chair), made of polished steel wire and covered with elastic Naugahyde upholstery. He also pro¬ duced “sound sculptures” that were activated by the wind and numerous works for corporations and public spaces.

Bertolucci \ 1 ber-t3-'lii-che\ / Ber¬ nardo (b. March 16, 1940, Parma,

Italy) Italian film director. After writing poetry and an award-winning book, he entered filmmaking as an assistant to Pier Paolo Pasolini in 1961. His first films as a director, The Grim Reaper (1962) and Before the Revo¬ lution (1964), were followed by the well-received The Conformist (1970). The erotic Last Tango in Paris (1972) made him an international and commercial sensation. He later directed such films as 1900 (1976), The Last Emperor (1987, Academy Awards for direction and best film), and Stealing Beauty (1996).

beryl \'ber-ol\ Mineral composed of beryllium aluminum silicate, Be 3 Al 2 (Si0 3 ) 6 , a commercial source of beryllium. Several varieties are valued as gemstones: aquamarine (pale blue-green); emerald (deep green); heliodor (golden yellow); and morganite (pink). Before 1925 beryl was used only as a gemstone, but since then many important uses have been found for beryllium (e.g., in nuclear reactors, space vehicles, and X-ray tubes). No large deposits have been found, and most production is a by-product of the mining of feldspar and mica. Brazil is a major producer; others include Zimbabwe, South Africa, Namibia, and the U.S.

beryllium Vbo-'ril-e-omV Chemical element, lightest of the alkaline earth metals, chemical symbol Be, atomic number 4. It does not occur uncom¬ bined in nature but is found chiefly as the mineral beryl (of which emer¬ ald and aquamarine are gemstone varieties). Beryllium metal, particularly in alloys, has many structural and thermal applications; it is used in nuclear reactors. Beryllium has valence 2 in all its compounds, which are generally colourless and taste distinctly sweet. All soluble beryllium com¬ pounds are toxic. Beryllium oxide is used in specialized ceramics for nuclear devices, and beryllium chloride is a catalyst for organic reactions.

The Diamond chair designed by Harry Bertoia, 1952

COURTESY OF THE KNOLL GROUP

Berryman, John (b. Oct. 25, 1914, McAlester, Okla. 7, 1972, Minneapolis, Minn.) U.S. poet. Berryman attended Columbia University and the University of Cambridge and later taught at vari¬ ous universities. Homage to Mistress Bradstreet (1956), one of his first experimental poems, assured his importance. His technical daring was also evident in 77 Dream Songs (1964, Pulitzer Prize), augmented to form a sequence of 385 “Dream Songs” in His Toy, His Dream, His Rest (1968). Later works include the deceptively offhand Love & Fame (1970) and Recovery (1973), an account of his struggle against alco¬ holism. He is noted for his confes¬ sional poetry laced with humour.

Subject to deep depression, he com¬ mitted suicide by jumping from a bridge.

U.S.-

, Jan.

Berryman

COURTESY OF THE UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA

Berzelius ► Besson I 209

Berzelius Xber-'sa-le-osV, Jons Jacob, Baron (b. Aug. 20, 1779, near

Linkoping, Swed.—d. Aug. 7, 1848, Stockholm) Swedish chemist. As a professor in Stockholm (1807-32) he achieved an immensely important series of innovations and discover¬ ies. He is especially noted for his introduction of basic laboratory equipment that remains in use today; his determination of atomic weights; his creation of the modern system of chemical symbols; his theory of elec¬ trochemistry; his discovery of the ele¬ ments cerium, selenium, and thorium and his isolation of silicon, zirconium, and titanium; his contribution to the classical techniques of analysis; and his investigations of isomerism and catalysis, both of which he named. He published more than 250 original research papers. He is regarded as one of the founders of modem chem¬ istry.

Bes Minor Egyptian god with a gro¬ tesque appearance. His figure was intended to inspire joy or drive away pain and sorrow, and his ugliness was probably thought to frighten off evil spirits. He was associated with music and childbirth. The name Bes is now used to designate a group of deities of similar appearance with various ancient names.

Jons Jacob Berzelius, detail of an oil painting by Olof Johan Sodermark,

1843; in the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, Stockholm.

COURTESY OF SVENSKA PORTRATTARKIVET, STOCKHOLM

Besant \'be-s 3 nt\, Annie orig. Annie Wood (b. Oct. 1, 1847, London, Eng.—d. Sept. 20, 1933, Adyar, Madras) British social reformer. She was a prominent Fabian socialist in the 1880s before becoming an adherent of theosophy in 1889. She served as international president of the Theosophical Soci¬ ety from 1907 until her death, and her writings are still considered some of the best expositions of theo¬ sophical belief. After immigrating to India, she became an Indian indepen¬ dence leader and established the Indian Home Rule League in 1916.

Bes represented as a dwarf, statue; in the Louvre

GIRAUDON-ART RESOURCE

Bessarabia \,be-s9-'ra-be-9\ Region, eastern Europe. It is bounded by the Prut and Dniester rivers, the Black Sea, and the Danube River delta. Greek colonies were founded on its Black Sea coast in the 7th century bc, and it was probably part of Dacia in the 2nd century ad. It became part of Moldavia in the 15th century; the Turks later annexed the southern por¬ tion into the Ottoman empire. The remainder fell to them in the 16th cen¬ tury when Moldavia submitted to the Turks; Bessarabia remained under Turkish control until the 19th century. Russia acquired it and half of Mol¬ davia in 1812 and retained control until World War I. A nationalist move¬ ment developed, and after the Russian Revolution of 1917 Bessarabia declared its independence and voted to unite with Romania. The Soviet Union never recognized Romania’s right to the province and in 1940 demanded that it cede Bessarabia; when Romania complied, the U.S.S.R. set up the Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic (see Moldova), and incor¬ porated the northern region into the Ukrainian S.S.R. Bessarabia remained divided after Ukraine and Moldavia declared independence in 1991.

Bessel \'be-sol\, Friedrich Wilhelm (b. July 22, 1784, Minden, Brandenburg—d. March 17, 1846, Konigsberg, Prussia) German astrono¬ mer. He was the first to measure (by means of parallax) the distance to a star other than the Sun. One of his major discoveries was that the bright stars Sirius and Procyon make tiny motions explainable only by the exist¬ ence of invisible companions disturbing their motions. His observation of tiny irregularities in the orbit of Uranus, which he concluded were caused

by an unknown planet beyond, led to the discovery of Neptune. His math¬ ematical functions for studying plan¬ etary motions became widely used in solving a wide range of differential equations.

Bessemer, Sir Henry (b. Jan.

19, 1813, Charlton, Hertfordshire,

Eng.—d. March 15, 1898, London)

British inventor and engineer. Son of a metallurgist, he set up his own cast¬ ing business at 17. At that time the only iron-based construction materi¬ als were cast iron and wrought iron.

So-called steel was made by adding carbon to pure forms of wrought iron (see wootz); the resulting material was used almost entirely for cutting Bessel, engraving by E. Mandel after a tools. During the Crimean War painting by Franz Wolf

Bessemer worked to devise a stron- the bettmann archive _

ger cast iron for cannon. The result was a process for the inexpensive production of large, slag-free ingots of steel as workable as any wrought iron. He eventually also discovered how to remove excess oxygen from the iron. The Bessemer process (1856) led to the development of the Besse¬ mer converter. See also basic Bessemer process; R.F. Mushet; puddling process.

Bessemer process Technique for converting pig iron to steel invented by Henry Bessemer in England in 1856 and brought by him into commercial production in 1860.

Air blown through liquid pig iron in a refractory-lined converter oxidizes the carbon and silicon in the iron.

Heat released by the oxidation keeps the metal molten. R.F. Mushet con¬ tributed the technique for deoxidiz¬ ing the converted metal that made the process a success. William Kelly conducted experiments with an air-

blown converter between 1856 and 1860 in Kentucky and Pennsylvania, but failed to make steel. Alexander L. Holley built the first successful Bessemer steel plant in the U.S. in 1865. High-volume production of low- cost steel in Britain and the U.S. by the Bessemer process soon revolu¬ tionized building construction and provided steel to replace iron in railroad rails and many other uses. The Bessemer process was eventually superseded by the open-hearth process. See also basic Bessemer process.

Bessemer, detail of an oil painting by Rudolf Lehmann; in the Iron and Steel Institute, London

Bessey, Charles E(dwin) (b. May 21, 1845, near Milton, Ohio, U.S.—d. Feb. 25, 1915, Lincoln,

Neb.) U.S. botanist. He taught at Iowa State Agricultural College (1870-84) before joining the faculty of the University of Nebraska. By then he had so developed the experi¬ mental study of plant morphology that the recently founded university immediately became one of the nation’s outstanding centres for botanical research. He wrote widely popular textbooks that dominated U.S. botanical instruction for more than 50 years.

Besson \bes-'o n \ / Jacques (b.

1540, Grenoble, France—-d. 1576,

Orleans) French engineer. His

1910

Bessey, c.

improvements in the LATHE were of courtesy of hunt institute for botanical

, . . • . . , . DOCUMENTATION, CARNEGIE MELLON UNIVERSITY,

great importance in the development Pittsburgh, pa.

of the machine-tool industry and of -

210 I Best ► Bethmann Hollweg

scientific instrumentation. His designs were illustrated in great detail in his Theatrum instrumentorum et machinarum (1569). Among many inno¬ vations, Besson introduced cams and templates (patterns used to guide the form of a piece being made) to the screw-cutting lathe, thus increasing the operator’s control of tool and workpiece and permitting production of more accurate and intricate work in metal.

Best, Charles H(erbert) (b. Feb. 27, 1899, West Pembroke, Maine, U.S.—d. March 31, 1978, Toronto, Ont., Can.) U.S.-born Canadian physi¬ ologist. He was a professor and administrator at the University of Toronto 1929-67. With Frederick Banting, he was the first to obtain a pancreatic extract of insulin in a form useful for controlling diabetes mellitus (1921). He did not receive the 1923 Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine with Banting and J. J. R. Macleod because he did not yet have his medical degree, although Banting voluntarily shared his portion of the prize with Best. Best also discovered the vitamin choline and the enzyme histaminase and was one of the first to introduce anticoagulants to treat thrombosis.

bestiary Medieval European work in verse or prose, often illustrated, consisting of a collection of stories, each based on a description of cer¬ tain qualities of the subject, usually an animal or a plant. The stories were allegories, used for moral and religious instruction and admonition. They ultimately were derived from the Greek Physiologus, a text compiled by an unknown author before the mid 2nd century ad. Many traditional attributes of real or mythical creatures derive from bestiaries, such as the phoenix’s burning itself to be born again and the parental love of the peli¬ can, which, believed to feed its young by gashing its own breast, became a symbol of Christ.

beta \'ba-to\ -blocker in full beta-adrenergic blocking agent

Any of a class of synthetic drugs used to treat a wide range of diseases and conditions of the sympathetic nervous system (see autonomic nervous system). Stimulation by epinephrine of beta-adrenergic receptors, which are predominately found in the heart but are also present in vascular and other smooth muscle, results in excitation of the sympathetic nervous system. By preventing that excitation, beta-blockers are useful in controlling anxi¬ ety, hypertension, and a variety of heart conditions (see heart disease). They reduce the risk of a second heart attack.

beta decay Any of three processes of radioactive disintegration in which a beta particle is spontaneously emitted by an unstable atomic nucleus in order to dissipate excess energy. Beta particles are either elec¬ trons or positrons. The three beta-decay processes are electron emission, positron emission, and electron capture. The process of beta decay increases or decreases the positive charge of the original nucleus by one unit without changing the mass number. Though beta decay is in general a slower process than gamma or alpha decay, beta particles can penetrate hundreds of times farther than alpha particles. Beta decay half-uves are a few milliseconds or more. See also radioactivity.

Betancourt V.be-.tan-'kurV Romulo (b. Feb. 22, 1908, Guatire, Miranda, Venez.—d. Sept. 28, 1981, New York, N.Y., U.S.) President of Venezuela (1945-48, 1959-64). As a youth he was active against the dic¬ tatorial regime of Juan Vincente Gomez (1857/64-1935). After a brief period in the Communist Party, he turned against it and helped found the left-wing anticommunist party Accion Democratica, which came to power in 1945 after a coup. As provisional president, he pursued a policy of moderate social reform before resigning to permit election of a succes¬ sor. Elected to a second term in 1959, he steered a middle course between pro-Cuban communists and frightened conservatives, initiating an ambi¬ tious public-works program and fostering industrial development, mostly financed by Venezuela’s vast oil exports. He retired in 1964.

betel \'be-t 3 l\ Either of two differ¬ ent plants that are widely used in combination for chewing purposes in southern Asia and the East Indies.

The betel nut is the seed of the areca, or betel, palm ( Areca catechu), fam¬ ily Palmae; the betel leaf is from the betel pepper, or pan plant ( Piper betle), family Piperaceae. For chew¬ ing, a small piece of the areca palm’s fruit is wrapped in a leaf of the betel pepper, along with a pellet of lime to cause salivation and release the stimulating alkaloids. Chewing re¬

sults in a heavy flow of brick-red saliva, which may temporarily dye the mouth, lips, and gums orange-brown. Betel nuts yield an alkaloid that veterinarians use as a worming agent.

Betelgeuse \'be-t 3 l-jiis\ (from Arabic bat al-dshauza, “the giant’s shoulder”) Brightest star in the constellation Orion, marking the hunter’s eastern shoulder. About 430 light-years from Earth, Betelgeuse is easily identifiable by its brightness, its position in brilliant Orion, and its deep reddish colour. It is a red supergiant star, one of the largest known; its diameter is roughly 500 times that of the Sun.

Bethe \'ba-t9\, Hans (Albrecht) (b. July 2, 1906, Strassburg, Ger.—d. March 6, 2005, Ithaca, N.Y., U.S.) German-bom U.S. theoretical physi¬ cist. His work helped shape quantum mechanics and increased understand¬ ing of the forces governing the structures of atomic nuclei. Bethe fled Germany in 1933 and taught at Cornell University (1935-75). He showed how the electric field surrounding an atom in a crystal affects the atom’s energy states. He was the first to propose the carbon cycle as a source of energy production in stars (1939). He headed the Theoretical Physics Division of the Manhattan Project, but in the postwar era he worked to publicize the threat of nuclear warfare. He was awarded the Max Planck Medal (1955) and the Enrico Fermi Award (1961) and received the 1967 Nobel Prize for Physics.

Bethel City, ancient Palestine. It is located near the modern town of Bay- tin in the West Bank and lies about 10 mi (16 km) north of Jerusalem. Important in Old Testament times, it was associated with Abraham and Jacob. After the division of Israel, Bethel was made the chief sanctuary of the northern kingdom (Israel) and was later the centre for the prophetic ministry of Amos.

Bethlehem Arabic Bayt Lahm Town (pop., 2005 prelim.: 29,000), West Bank, south of Jerusalem. An ancient town of Judaea, it was the early home of King David. A Roman garrison was stationed there during the Second Jewish Revolt (ad 135). Christians regard it as the birthplace of Jesus, and in the early 4th century the Church of the Nativity, located on what is believed to be the site of Jesus’ birth, was built there. Bethlehem was included in the British mandate of Palestine (1923-48); in 1950, fol¬ lowing the first Arab-Israeli war (1948-49), it was annexed by Jordan. After the Six-Day War (1967), it became part of the West Bank territory under Israeli administration. Under an agreement reached in 1995, Israel ceded rule of the town to a Palestinian Authority. Long an important pil¬ grim and tourist centre, it is also an agricultural market closely linked to Jerusalem.

Bethlehem City (pop., 2000: metro area, 71,329), eastern Pennsylva¬ nia, U.S. With Allentown and Easton it forms an urban industrial com¬ plex. Founded in 1741 by Moravian missionaries, it was the site of a hospital for Continental soldiers during the American Revolution. Indus¬ trialization began with the opening of the Lehigh Canal (1829) and the founding of the forerunner of the Bethlehem Steel Corp. (1857); the city became a major steel-producing centre. Its economy has since diversified to include textiles, metal products, furniture, and chemicals.

Bethlehem Steel Corp. U.S. corporation created in 1904 to consoli¬ date Bethlehem Steel Co., the Union Iron Works, and a few smaller com¬ panies. Its principal founder was Charles M. Schwab. In its early decades Bethlehem Steel (based in Bethlehem, Pa.) produced primarily coal, iron ore, and steel; it supplied the steel for the Golden Gate Bridge.

In later decades it diversified into plastics, chemicals, and nonferrous ores. By the late 20th century it had become one of the largest steel pro¬ ducers in the U.S., with operations in Pennsylvania, Indiana, Maryland, and New York. The company’s high labour costs, aging infrastructure, and inability to compete globally led to its liquidation in 2003.

Bethmann Hollweg Vbat-.man- h6l-,vek\, Theobald von (b. Nov. Theobald von Bethmann Hollweg,

29, 1856, Hohenfinow, Prussia— d. detail from a portrait by Brant, 1909. Jan. 1, 1921, Hohenfinow, Germany) archiv fur kunst und geschichte, berun

The betel nut, seed of the areca palm [Areca catechu)

WAYNE LUKAS-GROUPIV-THE NATIONAL AUDUBON SOCIETY COLLECTION/PHOTO RESEARCHERS

Bethune ► Beverly Hills I 211

German politician and chancellor (1909-17). A member of the civil ser¬ vice, he was appointed Prussian minister of the interior in 1905 and became German chancellor in 1909. Before World War I, he allowed the militarist factions to dominate the government; in 1914 he supported a “blank check” to Austria-Hungary for measures against Serbia. In 1916 he tried to secure the mediation of the U.S. to end the war, but he also failed to restrict submarine warfare. In 1917 he angered conservatives by promises of electoral reforms in Prussia and was forced to resign.

Bethune \be-'thtin\, Louise Blanchard orig. Jennie Louise

Blanchard (b. July 21, 1856, Waterloo, N.Y., U.S.—d. Dec. 18, 1913, Buffalo, N.Y.) First professional woman architect in the U.S. She opened an independent office in Buffalo in 1881. Her firm designed several hun¬ dred buildings throughout New York state, many of them in the Romanesque revival style popular in the late 19th century. In 1888 she became the first woman elected to the American Institute of Architects.

Bethune \ba-'th(y)un\, Mary (Jane) McLeod orig. Mary Jane McLeod (b. July 10, 1875, Mayesville, S.C., U.S.—d. May 18, 1955, Daytona Beach, Fla.) U.S. educator. Born to former slaves, she made her way through college and in 1904 founded a school that later became part of Bethune-Cookman College in Daytona Beach, Fla. She was president of the college in 1923-42 and 1946-47, also serving as a special adviser to Pres. Frankun Roosevelt. Prominent in African-American organizations, particularly women’s groups, she directed the Division of Negro Affairs of the National Youth Administration (1936-44).

Bethune \b3-'thiin\ / (Henry) Norman (b. March 3, 1890, Graven- hurst, Ont., Can.—d. Nov. 12, 1939, Huang Shikou, Hebei, China) Cana¬ dian surgeon and political activist. He began his medical career in 1917, serving with Canadian forces in World War I. During the Spanish Civil War he was a surgeon with the loyalist forces, setting up the first mobile blood-transfusion service. After a trip to the Soviet Union in 1935, he joined the Communist Party of Canada. In 1938 he left Canada to serve as a surgeon with the Chinese army in its war with Japan, organizing field hospitals and setting up medical schools. He became a national hero of China.

Betjeman Vbech-o-monV Sir John (b. Aug. 28, 1906, London, Eng.—d. May 19, 1984, Trebetherick, Cornwall) English poet. His poetry volumes include Mount Zion (1933), High and Low (1966), and A Nip in the Air (1974), and his prose works include guidebooks to English coun¬ ties and essays on places and buildings. His nostalgia for the near past, his exact sense of place, and his precise rendering of social nuance made him widely read at a time when much of what he wrote about was van¬ ishing. From 1972 until his death he served as poet laureate of England.

Bettelheim Vbe-tol-.hlirA, Bruno (b. Aug. 28, 1903, Vienna, Austria—d. March 13, 1990, Silver Spring, Md., U.S.) Austrian-U.S. psy¬ chologist. Trained in Vienna, he was arrested by the Nazis and interned in concentration camps (1938-39). He immigrated to the U.S., where from 1944 he directed the University of Chicago’s Orthogenic School, a labo¬ ratory school for disturbed children, and became known especially for his work with autistic children. He applied psychoanalytic principles to social problems, especially in child rearing. His works include an influential paper on adaptation to extreme stress (1943), “Love Is Not Enough” (1950), as well as The Informed Heart (1960), The Empty Fortress (1967), Children of the Dream (1967), and The Uses of Enchantment (1976). Depressed after the death of his wife and after suffering a stroke, he took his own life. His reputation was later clouded by revelations that he had invented his academic credentials and had abused and misdiagnosed chil¬ dren at his school.

Better Business Bureau Any of several U.S., Puerto Rican, and Canadian organizations formed to protect communities from unfair, mis¬ leading, or fraudulent advertising and selling practices. Organized at the local level, Better Business Bureaus investigate and set standards for business practices, receive complaints of improper practices, and conduct educational campaigns alerting the public to methods of deceit and fraud in advertising and selling.

Betti \'bat-te\, Ugo (b. Feb. 4, 1892, Camerino, Italy—d. June 9, 1953, Rome) Italian playwright. He pursued a legal career, serving as a judge and as librarian of the Ministry of Justice in Rome. He wrote three vol¬ umes of poetry, three collections of short stories, and 26 plays. His first play, The Landlady (1927), drew mixed reviews, but later works were more successful. Several were translated into French and English and

performed in Paris, London, and New York City, including Landslide (1933), Corruption in the Palace of Justice (1949), The Queen and the Rebels (1951), and The Fugitive (1953).

Betwa River \'ba-twa\ River, northern India. Rising in western Madhya Pradesh state, it flows northeast 380 mi (610 km) through Uttar Pradesh state into the Yamuna River near Hamirpur. Nearly half its course is unnavi- gable. The Matatila Dam, a joint venture between the two states, is near Jhansi.

Beust \'boist\, Friedrich Ferdinand, count von (b. Jan. 13, 1809, Dresden, Saxony—d. Oct. 24, 1886, Schloss Altenberg, near Vienna, Austria-Hungary) German statesman. A career diplomat in Saxony from 1830, he served as its foreign minister (1849-53) and its interior minis¬ ter (1853-66). Often opposed to Otto von Bismarck, Beust was forced to resign in 1866. Saxony’s ally, the Habsburg emperor Francis Joseph, then appointed him Austrian minister for foreign affairs (1866) and imperial chancellor (1867-71). As chancellor, Beust negotiated the Compromise of 1 867 and helped restore the Habsburgs’ international position. He later served as ambassador to England (1871-78) and France (1878-82).

Beuve, Charles-Augustin Sainte- See C.-A. Sainte-Beuve

Beuys \'bois\, Joseph (b. May 12, 1921, Krefeld, Ger.—d. Jan. 23, 1986, Diisseldorf, W.Ger.) German avant-garde sculptor and performance artist. He served in the German air force in World War II and later stud¬ ied art in Diisseldorf (1947-51); in 1961 he was appointed professor of sculpture at its art academy. In the 1960s he worked with the international group Fluxus, whose emphasis was not on what an artist makes but on his or her personality, actions, and opinions. Beuys’s most famous and con¬ troversial performance was How to Explain Pictures to a Dead Hare (1965), in which he walked around an art gallery with his face covered in honey and gold leaf, talking to a dead hare about human and animal consciousness. He also became known for sculptural works that utilized fat and layers of felt. He succeeded in creating a popular personal mythol¬ ogy and was one of the most influential artists and teachers of the later 20th century.

Bevan Vbev-onX, Aneurin (b. Nov. 15, 1897, Tredegar, Monmouths¬ hire, Eng.—d. July 6, 1960, Chesham, Buckinghamshire) British politi¬ cian. As a young man, he entered Labour Party politics and was elected to the House of Commons in 1929. He overcame a speech impediment to become a brilliant orator. As minister of health in Clement Attlee’s gov¬ ernment (1945-51), “Nye” Bevan established the National Health Service. He was minister of labour (1951) but resigned in protest against rearma¬ ment expenditures that reduced spending on social programs. A contro¬ versial figure in the Labour Party, he headed its left-wing (Bevanite) group and was the party’s leader until 1955.

Beveridge Vbev-,rij\, Albert J(eremiah) (b. Oct. 6, 1862, Highland county, Ohio, U.S.—-d. April 27, 1927, Indianapolis, Ind.) U.S. senator and historian. He was admitted to the Indiana bar in 1887 and began the practice of law in Indianapolis. Elected as a Republican to the U.S. Sen¬ ate (1900-12), he supported the progressive legislation proposed by Pres. Theodore Roosevelt. In 1912 he broke with the conservative wing of the Republican Party to serve as chairman of the convention that organized the Progressive Party and nominated Roosevelt for president. He subse¬ quently retired from public life to write several historical works, includ¬ ing the four-volume Life of John Marshall (1916-19), which won a Pulitzer Prize.

Beveridge (of Tuggal), William Henry, 1st Baron (b. March 5, 1879, Rangpur, India—d. March 16, 1963, Oxford, Oxfordshire, Eng.) British economist. He took a lifelong interest in the problem of unem¬ ployment and served as director of labour exchanges (1909-16). He directed the London School of Economics (1919-37), then became mas¬ ter of University College, Oxford (1937-45). Invited by the government to become the architect of the new British welfare state, he helped shape Britain’s social policies and institutions through the Beveridge Report (1942). His books included Insurance for All (1924), Full Employment in a Free Society (1944), and Pillars of Security (1948).

Beverly Hills City (pop., 2000: 33,784), southwestern California, U.S. It is surrounded by the city of Los Angeles and adjoining Hollywood. It was established in 1906 as a residential area called Beverly. The Beverly Hills Hotel was built in 1912. Movie stars Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks lived there in 1919, beginning the fashion among Hollywood celebrities of building lavish homes in Beverly Hills. Occupying an area

212 I Bevin ► Bhasa

of 5.7 sq mi (14.8 sq km), the city is crossed by the famous streets of Sunset Boulevard, Santa Monica Boulevard, and Rodeo Drive.

Bevin, Ernest (b. March 9, 1881, Winsford, Somerset, Eng.—d. April 14, 1951, London) British labour leader and statesman. Active in labour organizations from 1905, he became head of the Dockers’ Union. In 1921 he merged several unions into the Transport and General Workers’ Union, which became the world’s largest trade union, and served as its general secretary until 1940. He was a forceful minister of labour and national service in Winston Churchill’s wartime coalition government (1940-45). As foreign secretary in Clement Attlee’s Labour government (1945-51), he negotiated the Brussels Treaty and helped establish NATO.

Bewick, Thomas (b. Aug. 12, 1753, Cherryburn, Eng.—d. Nov. 8, 1828, Gateshead) British wood engraver. At age 14 he was appren¬ ticed to a metal engraver, with whom he later went into partnership in Newcastle; Bewick remained there most of his life. He rediscovered the technique of wood engraving, which had declined into a reproductive technique, and brought to it brilliant innovations, such as the use of par¬ allel lines instead of cross-hatching to achieve a wide range of tones and textures. He also developed a method of printing gray backgrounds to heighten the effect of atmosphere and space. Some of his finest works are illustrations for books on natural history. He established a school of engraving in Newcastle.

Bezos \'ba-zos\, Jeff(rey P.) (b.

Jan. 12, 1964, Albuquerque, N.M.,

U.S.) U.S. Internet entrepreneur.

Educated at Princeton University, he worked in banking and investment at Bankers Trust and D.E. Shaw & Co. before founding Amazon.com, Inc., in 1995. The Internet company began as a bookseller and later expanded into recorded music, videos, electronic equipment, tools, and other areas, including on-line auctions. Amazon.com became famous for the extraor¬ dinary rise in its stock-market valuation despite continued annual losses—a reflection of investor confidence in the future of on-line retail¬ ing that marked the late 1990s. The company posted its first quarterly profit in January 2002.

B had raca rya - pranidhana \,bad-r9-char-'y a-.pra-ne-do-'naX

Mahayana Buddhist text that is also important to Tibetan Buddhism. It is related to the Avatamsaka-sutra and is considered by some to be its final section. It presents ten vows of the bodhisattva Samantabhadra. These became daily lessons in Chinese monasteries. By keeping the vows, including inexhaustible service to all buddhas and the embracing of all universes, the faithful can realize the universe of interdependent phenom¬ ena manifested in the Buddha and enter into the Pure Land of Amitabha.

Bhagavadgita Vba-go-.vad-'ge-toV (Sanskrit: “Song of God”) One of the greatest of the Hindu scriptures, constituting part of the Mahabharata. It is written in the form of a dialogue between the warrior Prince Arjuna and the charioteer Krishna, an incarnation of Vishnu. It was probably com¬ posed in the 1st or 2nd century ad, later than much of the epic. Concerned over the suffering the impending battle will cause, Arjuna hesitates, but Krishna explains that the higher way is the dispassionate discharge of duty without concern for personal triumph. The Bhagavadgita considers the nature of God and ultimate reality and offers three disciplines for tran¬ scending the limitations of this world: jnana (knowledge or wisdom), karma (dispassionate action), and bhakti (love of God). It has inspired numerous commentaries over the centuries, including those by Ramanuja and Mohandas K. Gandhi.

Bhagavata Vba-go-.vo-toV Member of the earliest recorded Hindu sect, representing the beginnings of theistic, devotional worship and modem Vaishnavism. The Bhagavata sect originated in the Mathura region c. 3rd- 2nd century bc and spread through western, northern, and southern India. The faith centers on devotion to a personal god, variously called Vishnu, Krishna, Hari, or Narayana. The Bhagavadgita (lst-2nd century ad) is the

earliest exposition of the Bhagavata system, but its central scripture is the Bhagavata Purana. The sect was prominent within Vaishnavism until the 11th century, when bhakti (devotional worship) was revitalized by Ramanuja.

bhakti \'bok-te\ Southern Asian devotional movement, particularly in Hinduism, emphasizing the love of a devotee for his or her personal god. In contrast to Advaita, bhakti assumes a dualistic relationship between devotee and deity. Though Vishnu, Shiva, and Shakti (see shakti) all have cults, bhakti characteristically developed around Vishnu’s incarnations as Rama and Krishna. Practices include reciting the god’s name, singing hymns, wearing his emblem, and making pilgrimages. The fervour of South Indian hymnists in the 7th-10th centuries spread bhakti and inspired much poetry and art. Poets such as Mirabai conceived of the rela¬ tionship between the worshiper and the god in familiar human terms (e.g., the lover and beloved), while more abstract poets such as Kabir and his disciple Nanak, the first Sikh Guru and founder of Sikhism, portrayed the divinity as singular and ineffable.

bharata natya Vba-ro-to-'nat-yoX Principal classical dance style of India, indigenous to Tamil Nadu and prevalent in South India. It expresses Hindu religious themes, and its techniques and terminology are found in the treatise Natya-shastra , written by the sage Bharata (3rd century ad). One dancer performs the entire two-hour program, accompanied by drums, drone, and singer. Originally performed only by female temple dancers, the art fell into disrepute as temple dancing became associated with prostitution, but it was revived in its original purity in the late 19th century. It was not brought to the stage until the 1930s.

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) English Indian People's Party

Pro-Hindu political party of India. The BJP traces its roots to the the Bharatiya Jana Sangh (founded in 1951), which advocated the rebuilding of India in accordance with Hindu culture. The BJP was formally estab¬ lished in 1980. It achieved its first significant electoral success in 1989, though in 1992 the destruction of the Babri Mosjid (Mosque of Babur) in Ayodhya caused a backlash against it. In 1996 the BJP formed a short¬ lived government. Two years later the party and its allies formed a major¬ ity government with Atal Bihari Vajpayee as prime minister. Vajpayee again became prime minister in 1998 as head of a coalition of the BJP and other parties. In 2004, however, the coalition was defeated in parliamentary elections, and Vajpayee resigned from office.

Bharatpur Vbo-rot-.piuA or Bhurtpore Vbort-.porX City (pop., 2001 prelim.: 204,456), Rajasthan state, northwestern India. Located west of Agra, it was founded c. 1733 and was the capital of the princely state of Bharatpur. It was so strongly fortified that it successfully resisted the Brit¬ ish siege in 1805, and it was not taken by them until 1826. The city is renowned for the superb bird sanctuary at nearby Keoladeo National Park.

Bharhut \'ba-rot\ sculpture Indian sculpture from the mid 2nd cen¬ tury bc that decorated the great stupa, or relic mound, of Bharhut, in Madhya Pradesh, India. It is now mostly destroyed; the railings and gate¬ ways that remain are in Kolkata’s (Calcutta’s) Indian Museum. The orna¬ mental medallions depicting legends of the Buddha’s previous births and events in his life are labeled and so are indispensable for an understand¬ ing of Buddhist iconography. The Bharhut style marked the beginning of a tradition of Buddhist narrative relief and decoration of sacred buildings that continued for several centuries.

Bhartrhari \'ba-tr9-re\ (b. 570?, Ujjain, Malwa, India—d. 651?, Ujjain) Indian Hindu philosopher, poet, and grammarian. He was of noble birth; according to legend, he made seven attempts to renounce the world for monastic life before eventually becoming a yogi and moving into a cave near Ujjain. Vakyapadiya is his major work on the philosophy of language. Also ascribed to him are three collections of poetry, each containing 100 verses: Shrngara-shataka (on love), Niti-shataka (on ethics and polity), and Vairagya-shataka (on dispassion). His poem Bhatti kavya demon¬ strates the subtleties of Sanskrit.

Bhasa Vba-S9\ (b. 3rd century ad) Indian dramatist. The earliest known dramatist in Sanskrit, he was known only by the allusions of other San¬ skrit dramatists until the texts of 13 of his dramas were discovered and published in 1912. Most of his works are adaptations of themes of hero¬ ism and romantic love borrowed from two epics, the Ramayana and the Mahabharata. He diverged from the conventions of the time by portray¬ ing battles and killings on the stage. His influence is seen in the works of the 5th-century dramatist Kalidasa.

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