Encyclopædia Britannica Australia -

Encyclopedias since 1768

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Schwenckfeld, Kaspar ... Scone

Schwenckfeld, Kaspar: German theologian, writer, and preacher who led the Protestant Reformation in Silesia. He founded the movement called Reformation by the Middle Way, and he established societies that in the United States survive as the Schwenckfelder Church.
Schwerin: city, capital of Mecklenburg-West Pomerania Land (state), northern Germany. It lies on the southwestern shore of Schweriner Lake, southwest of Rostock. Originally a Wendish settlement first mentioned in 1018, the German town was founded and chartered by ...
Schwimmer, Rosika: Hungarian-born feminist and pacifist whose national and international activism brought her both persecution and worldwide accolades.
Schwind, Moritz von: Austrian-born German painter who was a leading early Romantic portrayer of an idealized Austria and Germany-of knights, castles, and the provincial charm of his own time.
Schwingen: (German: "swinging"), form of wrestling native to Switzerland and the Tirolese valleys. Wrestlers wear Schwinghosen (wrestling breeches) with strong belts on which holds are taken. Lifting and tripping are common, and the first man down loses the bout. Schwingen tournaments ...
Schwinger, Julian Seymour: American physicist and joint winner, with Richard P. Feynman and Tomonaga Shin'ichiro, of the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1965 for his work in formulating quantum electrodynamics and thus reconciling quantum mechanics with Albert Einstein's special theory of relativity.
Schwitters, Kurt: German Dada artist and poet, best known for his collages and relief constructions.
Schwyz: canton, central Switzerland, traversed by the valleys of the Muota and the Sihl. More than three-quarters of the canton is reckoned as productive (forests covering about 92 square miles [238 square km]), and about 25 square miles (65 square km) ...
Schwyz: capital of Schwyz canton, central Switzerland, at the foot of the Grosser Mythen (6,230 feet [1,899 m]), just east of Luzern and 3 miles (5 km) northeast of Brunnen, its port on Lake Lucerne. The traditional centre of the canton, ...
Sciacca: town, Agrigento provincia, southern Sicily, Italy, northwest of Agrigento. On the site of the Roman Thermae Selinuntinae, it has been, from antiquity, a health resort with hot sulfur springs. The coastal town has a modern appearance, but notable older structures ...
Sciascia, Leonardo: Italian writer noted for his metaphysical examinations of political corruption and arbitrary power.
sciatic nerve: largest and thickest nerve of the human body that is the principal continuation of all the roots of the sacral plexus. It emerges from the spinal cord in the lumbar portion of the spine and runs down through the buttocks ...
sciatica: pain along the sciatic nerve, which runs from the lower back down the legs. Sciatica often develops following an unusual movement or exertion that places a strain on the lumbar portion of the spine, where the nerve has its roots, ...
Scicli: town, southeastern Sicily, Italy. It lies south of Ragusa city. Scicli flourished under the Saracens and Normans but later declined and was heavily damaged by the earthquake of 1693. It was rebuilt on a regular pattern, and its principal buildings ...
Scidmore, Eliza Ruhamah: American travel writer and photographer whose books and magazine articles often featured her perspective on travel and culture in Asia. She is perhaps best known as the person responsible for the planting of Japanese cherry trees in Washington, D.C.
science: any system of knowledge that is concerned with the physical world and its phenomena and that entails unbiased observations and systematic experimentation. In general, a science involves a pursuit of knowledge covering general truths or the operations of fundamental laws.
Science and Industry, Museum of: science museum established in Chicago, Ill., in 1926 by the philanthropist-founder Julius Rosenwald. He had seen the Deutsches Museum in Munich and wished to have a museum of the same type established in the United States. The collections are housed ...
science fiction: a form of fiction that deals principally with the impact of actual or imagined science upon society or individuals. The term science fiction was popularized, if not invented, in the 1920s by one of the genre's principal advocates, the American ...
Science Museum: museum that is the headquarters of Britain's National Museum of Science and Industry and is one of the greatest museums of science and technology in the world. It is located in South Kensington, London, near the Natural History Museum and ...
science, history of: the history of science from its beginnings in prehistoric times to the 20th century.
Science, Museum of: major American museum of science and technology, founded in 1830 in Boston, Massachusetts, as the Boston Society of Natural History. The society moved to permanent quarters in 1864, when it became known as the New England Museum of Natural History. ...
science, philosophy of: the study, from a philosophical perspective, of the elements of scientific inquiry and of their validity.
Sciences, Academy of: highest scientific society and principal coordinating body for research in natural and social sciences, technology, and production in Russia. The organization was established in St. Petersburg, Russia, in 1724. Membership in the academy is by election, and members can be ...
Sciences, Academy of: French scientific society established in 1666 by Jean-Baptiste Colbert to formalize the periodic private meetings in Paris that began about 1662 among a group that included Rene Descartes, Blaise Pascal, Pierre Gassendi, and Marin Mersenne. Under Colbert's sponsorship, the society ...
Scientific American: American monthly magazine interpreting scientific developments to lay readers, the most highly regarded of its genre. It was founded in New York City in 1845 by Rufus Porter, a New England inventor, as a weekly newspaper describing new inventions. He ...
scientific theory: systematic ideational structure of broad scope, conceived by the human imagination, that encompasses a family of empirical (experiential) laws regarding regularities existing in objects and events, both observed and posited. A scientific theory is a structure suggested by these laws ...
Scientology: international movement that emerged in the 1950s in response to the thought of Lafayette Ronald Hubbard (b. March 13, 1911, Tilden, Nebraska, U.S., -d. January 24, 1986, San Luis Obispo, California, ), a writer who introduced his ideas to ...
Scillitan Martyrs: 12 North African Christians from Scilla (or Scillium) in Numidia who were tried in Carthage under the Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius. The Acts of their martyrdom is the earliest authentic document on Christianity in North Africa and represents the earliest ...
Scilly, Isles of: group of about 50 small islands and many more islets lying southwest of Cornwall, England, 25-36 miles (40-58 km) off Land's End. Administratively, the islands are a distinct unit within England, though they form a part of the historic county ...
scimitar-babbler: any of about 12 species of songbirds of the babbler family Timaliidae (order Passeriformes), which have long, curved bills used for uncovering insects in ground litter. Scimitar-babblers are 18 to 28 cm (7 to 11 inches) in length, with fairly ...
scintillation counter: radiation detector that is triggered by a flash of light (or scintillation) produced when ionizing radiation traverses certain solid or liquid substances (phosphors), among which are thallium-activated sodium iodide, zinc sulfide, and organic compounds such as anthracene incorporated into solid ...
Scioto River: river rising in Auglaize county, west-central Ohio, U.S., and flowing southeast and past Columbus, Circleville, and Chillicothe, joining the Ohio River at Portsmouth after a course of 237 miles (381 km). O'Shaughnessy (built 1925) and Griggs (1905) dams, both near ...
Scipio Africanus the Elder: Roman general noted for his victory over the Carthaginian leader Hannibal in the great Battle of Zama (202 BC), ending the Second Punic War. For his victory he won the surname Africanus (201 BC).
Scipio Africanus The Younger: Roman general famed both for his exploits during the Third Punic War (149-146 BC) and for his subjugation of Spain (134-133 BC). He received the name Africanus and a "triumph" in Rome after his destruction of Carthage (146 BC). He ...
Scipio, Publius Cornelius: Roman general, consul in 218 BC and later proconsul, during the Second Punic War between Rome and Carthage.
Scirophoria: in Greek religion, annual Athenian festival held at threshing time on the 12th of Skirophorion (roughly, June/July). Under the cover of a large white umbrella, which symbolized the protection of the Attic soil against the Sun's burning rays, the priestess ...
scissors: cutting instrument consisting of a pair of opposed metal blades that meet and cut when the handles at their ends are brought together. The term shears sometimes denotes large-size scissors. Modern instruments are of two types: the more usual pivoted ...
scissors chair: chair supported by two crossed and curved supports either at the sides or at the back and front. Because of its basic simplicity, it is one of the oldest forms of chair or stool, its prototype reaching back to the ...
sclerenchyma: any of various kinds of hard, woody cells that serve the function of support in plants. Mature sclerenchyma cells are dead cells that have heavily thickened walls containing lignin. Such cells occur in many different shapes and sizes, but two ...
scleritis: inflammation of the sclera, the white of the eye. The inflammation is of unknown cause but is thought to arise from infection, rheumatoid disease, gout, or disorders of menstruation. It occurs particularly among young women. A person who has scleritis ...
scleroderma: a chronic disease of the skin that also can affect the blood vessels and various internal organs. Scleroderma is characterized by excessive deposition of collagen-the principal supportive protein of the connective tissues-in affected areas. There are two main types of ...
sclerophyll: type of vegetation characterized by hard, leathery, evergreen foliage that is specially adapted to prevent moisture loss. Broad-leaved sclerophyll vegetation, including species such as holly (Ilex), is known as Mediterranean vegetation (q.v.) because it is characteristic of regions with a ...
scleroprotein: any of several fibrous proteins of cells and tissues once thought to be insoluble but now known to be dissolved by dilute solutions of acids such as citric and acetic.
sclerotin: a dark-brown biological pigment formed by an enzyme-catalyzed tanning of protein. Sclerotin is found in the cuticle (external covering) and egg cases of insects, the body shell (carapace) of certain crustaceans, and the bristles of terrestrial and marine worms. Sclerotin ...
sclerotium: a persistent, vegetative, resting spore of certain fungi (e.g., Botrytis, Sclerotium). It consists of a hard, dense, compact mycelium (mass of filaments that make up the body of a typical fungus) that varies in form and has a dark-coloured covering. ...
Scofield, Paul: English actor noted for his powerful performances in Shakespearean and other stage roles.
scolecite: mineral closely related to natrolite (q.v.), a member of the zeolite family.
scoliosis: lateral deviation of the spine. Scoliosis is a type of spinal curvature (q.v.).
sconce: wooden or metal bracket affixed to a wall and designed to hold candles, lamps, or other types of illumination. One of the earliest forms of lighting fixtures for domestic and public use, sconces first appeared in Classical antiquity, but more ...
scone: quick bread of British origin and worldwide fame, made with leavened barley flour or oatmeal that is rolled into a round shape and cut into quarters before baking on a griddle. The first scones were baked in cast iron pans ...
Scone: town, eastern New South Wales, Australia, in the upper Hunter River valley. Gazetted in 1837 as the village of Invermein, it was renamed for Scone, Scot., and was proclaimed a municipality in 1888. It lies along the New England Highway ...