Mitropoulos, Dimitri

Mitropoulos studied in Athens, where his opera Soeur Béatrice (after Maeterlinck) was performed in 1919. Later in Berlin he studied piano under the brilliant pianist, composer, and teacher Ferruccio Busoni. An excellent pianist, Mitropoulos sometimes conducted from the keyboard (e.g., in 1930 and

Macau

Also spelled  Macao , Chinese (Pinyin romanization)  Aomen  or (Wade-Giles romanization)  Ao-men   special administrative region (Pinyin tebie xingzhengqu; Wade-Giles t'e-pieh hsing-cheng-ch'ü) of China, on the country's southern coast. Macau is located on the western side of the Pearl River (Chu Chiang) estuary (at the head of which is the port of Canton) and stands about 40 miles (64 km) opposite the special administrative region of Hong Kong, which is on the eastern side of the

Biblical Literature

History is a central element of the Old Testament. It is the subject of narration in the specifically historical books and of celebration, commemoration, and remonstration in all of the books. History in the Old Testament is not history in the modern sense; it is the story of events seen as revealing the divine presence and power. Nevertheless, it is the account of an

Viseu

Distrito (“district”) northern Portugal. Framed by the Caramulo, Arada, and Montemuro mountains in the west, the district is drained by the upper basin of the Mondego and Vouga rivers. It is densely populated in the more humid western plateaus, with impressive flights of cultivated terraces on the deep valley slopes, which produce chiefly corn (maize), cabbage, grapes, and

Spitz, Mark

Like many other outstanding American swimmers, Spitz trained for several years at the Santa Clara (California) Swim Club. He served as captain of the intercollegiate swimming team at Indiana University, Bloomington (graduated 1972). At the 1968 Olympic

Jack

The jack's effectiveness stems from the ratio of the load, or weight of the object

Cottonwood

Several fast-growing trees of North America, members of the genus Populus, in the family Salicaceae, with triangular, toothed leaves and cottony seeds. The dangling leaves clatter in the wind. Eastern cottonwood (P. deltoides), nearly 30 metres (100 feet) tall, has thick glossy leaves. Perhaps natural hybrids between this and Eurasian black poplar (P.

Antarctica, History

A thorough general account is in C. Hartley Grattan, The Southwest Pacific Since 1900 (1963). An interesting and thorough history is Walter Sullivan, Quest for a Continent (1957). Kenneth J. Bertrand, Americans in Antarctica, 1775–1948 (1971), recounts early U.S. explorations. Antarctica: Great Stories from the Frozen Continent (1985), offers a readable and profusely illustrated account of explorers from many nations, as well as a description of the physical environment. A complete list of expeditions, claims, treaties, discoveries, and meetings is found in R.K. Headland, Chronological List of Antarctic Expeditions and Related Historical Events (1989).

Water Milfoil

Any member of the genus Myriophyllum (family Haloragaceae), about 45 widely distributed species of submerged freshwater plants with whorls of feathery leaves and emergent, wind-pollinated flowers. Some species are cultivated in pools and aquariums, especially the parrot's feather, or water feather, (M. aquaticum) and the myriad leaf (M.

Checkers

Also called  Draughts,   board game, one of the world's oldest games. Checkers is played by two persons who oppose each other across a board of 64 light and dark squares, the same as a chessboard. The 24 playing pieces are disk-shaped and of contrasting colours (whatever their colours, they are identified as black and white). At the start of the game, each contestant has 12 pieces arranged on the board. While

La Ceiba

Developed in the late 19th century as a banana port, La Ceiba is one of the nation's major Caribbean ports. Besides bananas, the port handles pineapples, citrus fruits, coconuts, abacá fibre, fish, meat, coffee, and lumber. The Standard Fruit and Steamship

Interior Design, Early medieval Europe

In the constant warfare that was waged in Europe in the early medieval period, material possessions dwindled to a minimum: a man did not own for long anything he could not defend and had little use or opportunity for interior decoration. If he possessed more than one house, his furniture and possessions would go with him from place to place. During this time, the arts