Pabbajja

In some Theravada countries such as Burma, the rite is normally held for every Buddhist boy at the age of puberty. In Tibet and China a probationary period of study is required

Offa

Town, Kwara state, southwestern Nigeria. It lies along the railroad from Lagos and at the intersection of roads from Ilorin town, Lafiagi, and Ikirun. A traditional settlement of the Yoruba people in a savanna area, it now serves as a collecting point for the yams, cassava, corn (maize), sorghum, and shea nuts grown in the surrounding area. Cotton weaving and dyeing (with locally

Epistemology, David Hume

Although Berkeley rejected the Lockean notions of primary and secondary qualities and matter, he retained Locke's beliefs in the existence of mind, substance, and cause as a power or secret force. David Hume (1711–76), in addition to rejecting all the Lockean notions that Berkeley did, also rejected what Berkeley had retained. His justification for this step was empiricist

Radcliffe, Ann

Radcliffe's father was in trade, and the family lived in well-to-do gentility. In 1787, at the age of 23, she married William Radcliffe, a journalist who encouraged her literary pursuits.

Henrician Articles

Polish  Artykuly Henrykowskie  (1573) statement of the rights and privileges of the Polish gentry (szlachta) that all elected kings of Poland, beginning with Henry of Valois (elected May 11, 1573), were obliged to confirm and that severely limited the authority of the Polish monarchy. After King Sigismund II Augustus died (July 1572), Henry of Valois, duc d'Anjou and the future Henry III of France, emerged as the favourite

Blood Bank

Organization that collects, stores, processes, and transfuses blood. The fact that stored blood could safely be used was demonstrated in World War I. Before the first blood banks came into operation, the physician determined the blood types of the patient's relatives and friends until the proper type was found, performed the crossmatch, bled the donor, and gave the

Carnivore, Importance to humans

The cat, like the dog, was originally taken into the home of man as a pet. Unlike the dog, the cat has not been trained to hunt or to serve as a guardian. Cats may perform the function of “mouse catcher” in those areas where mice become a problem, but most urban house cats do not have the opportunity to perform this unless garbage and trash are allowed to accumulate. On farms, where

Turbay Ayala, Julio César

Born into a middle-class family descended from Lebanese immigrants, Turbay Ayala was educated at the National Commercial School (Bogotá) and University College of Botero. He served in the House of Representatives from 1943 to 1953 and became

China, Industrialization for “self-strengthening”

Stimulated by the military training and techniques exhibited during the Westerners' cooperation against the Taiping and supported by Prince Kung in Peking, the Self-Strengthening Movement was launched by the anti-Taiping generals Tseng Kuo-fan, Li Hung-chang, and Tso Tsung-t'ang, who sought to consolidate the Ch'ing power by introducing Western technology. The

Advertising Coloration

In animals, the use of biological coloration to make an organism unique and highly visible as compared with the background, thereby providing easily perceived information as to its location, identity, and movement. Such advertisement may serve the function of attracting individuals in order to enter into some advantageous interaction (e.g., courtship for reproductive

Mahakavya

In its classical form, a mahakavya consists of a variable number of comparatively short cantos, each composed in a metre appropriate to its particular subject matter. The subject matter of the mahakavya is

Turdidae

Members range in size from 11.5 to 33 centimetres (4.5 to 13 inches) long. They have slender bills and stout legs and feet, the lower leg smooth rather than scaly. Included