- bisexuality (biology)
bisexuality, in biology, the condition of an organism capable of producing both male and female gametes (sex cells). In plants and microorganisms, this is often referred to as monoecism. In multicellular animals, bisexuality is usually called hermaphroditism
- bisexuality (human behavior)
bisexuality, in human sexuality, sexual interest in and attraction to members of one’s own and the opposite sex. A bisexual is thus a person with both heterosexual and homosexual desires. Some clinical surveys suggest that a significant number of persons experience bisexual desires and engage in
- biseyao (pottery)
Chinese pottery: The Five Dynasties (907–960) and Ten Kingdoms (902–978): …pale olive-green glaze, were called biseyao (“secret,” or “reserve, colour ware”) by 10th-century writers. It is not known whether this referred to a secret process or to the fact that the ware was reserved for the court.
- BISF (British association)
British Steel Corporation PLC: …the creation (1934) of the British Iron and Steel Federation (BISF), an association of major firms that negotiated both with the government and with rival foreign cartels and firms on issues of pricing, tariffs, quotas, and other policies. During World War II the staff of BISF became almost wholly the…
- Bishamon (Buddhist and Hindu mythology)
Kubera, in Hindu mythology, the king of the yakshas (nature spirits) and the god of wealth. He is associated with the earth, mountains, all treasures such as minerals and jewels that lie underground, and riches in general. According to most accounts, he first lived in Lanka (Sri Lanka), but his
- Bishamon (Japanese god)
Bishamon, in Japanese mythology, one of the Shichi-fuku-jin (“Seven Gods of Luck”). He is identified with the Buddhist guardian of the north, known as Kubera, or Vaiśravaṇa. Bishamon is always depicted as dressed in full armour, carrying a spear and a miniature pagoda. He is the protector of the
- Bishamonten (Japanese god)
Bishamon, in Japanese mythology, one of the Shichi-fuku-jin (“Seven Gods of Luck”). He is identified with the Buddhist guardian of the north, known as Kubera, or Vaiśravaṇa. Bishamon is always depicted as dressed in full armour, carrying a spear and a miniature pagoda. He is the protector of the
- Bishandas (Indian painter)
Bishandas was one of the most skilled portrait painters of the 17th-century Jahāngīr school of Mughal painting. Almost nothing is known of his life, though his name indicates that he was a Hindu. Bishandas was praised by the emperor Jahāngīr as “unequaled in his age for taking likenesses” and was
- Bishāpūr (ancient city, Iran)
Shāpūr II: Conquest of Armenia.: At Bishāpūr in southwestern Iran, a tremendous rock-cut relief depicts him seated on a throne and witnessing a triumph of his army: in the top row he is flanked by nobles of the court, and the lower row contains soldiers who present captives and trophies of…
- Bishārīn (Beja tribe)
Egypt: Ethnic groups: …two tribes—the ʿAbābdah and the Bishārīn. The ʿAbābdah occupy the Eastern Desert south of a line between Qinā and Al-Ghardaqah; there are also several groups settled along the Nile between Aswān and Qinā. The Bishārīn live mainly in Sudan, although some dwell in the ʿIlbah Mountain region, their traditional place…
- Bishkek (national capital, Kyrgyzstan)
Bishkek, city and capital of Kyrgyzstan. It lies in the Chu River valley near the Kyrgyz Mountains at an elevation of 2,500–3,000 feet (750–900 metres). Bishkek is situated along the Alaarcha and Alamedin rivers and intersects in the north with the Bolshoy (Great) Chuysky Canal. In 1825 the Uzbek
- Bishnupur (India)
Bishnupur, historic town, central West Bengal state, northeastern India. It lies just south of the Dhaleshwari (Dhalkisor) River (a tributary of the Damodar River), about 18 miles (29 km) southeast of Bankura. Bishnupur was the capital of the Hindu Mallabhum kingdom, which was founded in the 8th
- bishop (Christianity)
bishop, in some Christian churches, the chief pastor and overseer of a diocese, an area containing several congregations. Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, and other churches have maintained the view that bishops are the successors of the Apostles and that an unbroken line of succession connects
- bishop (chess)
chess: The pragmatists: …was a depreciation of the bishop: The Hypermoderns had attacked Tarrasch’s high opinion of an unobstructed bishop and said a bishop could profitably be traded for a knight. The post-Soviet players often traded bishop for knight for minimal compensation. They also often exchanged their good bishop, the one less encumbered…
- bishop (bird)
bishop, any of several small African birds belonging to the family Ploceidae (order Passeriformes) and constituting the genus Euplectes. The breeding males are black-bellied and reddish or yellow above, with rufflike head feathering and fluffy rump feathers nearly covering their stumpy tails. The
- Bishop Auckland (coalfield, Durham, England, United Kingdom)
railroad: The Stockton and Darlington Railway: Investment in the Bishop Auckland coalfield of western County Durham was heavily concentrated in Darlington, where there was agitation for improvement in the outward shipment of the increasing tonnages produced. The region had become the most extensive producer of coal, most of which was sent by coastal sloop…
- Bishop Blougram’s Apology (work by Browning)
Bishop Blougram’s Apology, long poem by Robert Browning, published in the two-volume collection Men and Women (1855). The poem contains conversations between Bishop Blougram and Gigadibs, a journalist. The two men argue about the nature of reality and the nature of faith. Neither man finally
- Bishop Hill State Historic Site (historical site, Illinois, United States)
Bishop Hill State Historic Site, historic site, Henry county, northwestern Illinois, U.S. It lies about 45 miles (70 km) northwest of Peoria. The village was established in 1846 by Swedish immigrants led by Erik Jansson, who had been influenced by the Pietist movement in Sweden. Fearing persecution
- Bishop Museum (museum, Honolulu, Hawaii, United States)
Bishop Museum, research centre and museum for the study of Hawaiian and Polynesian archaeology, natural history, and culture in Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S. The largest museum in the state of Hawaii, it exhibits Hawaiian and Polynesian arts, crafts, artifacts, and flora and fauna. Among items on display
- Bishop of Broadway (American theatrical producer and playwright)
David Belasco was an American theatrical producer and playwright whose important innovations in the techniques and standards of staging and design were in contrast to the quality of the plays he produced. As a child actor, Belasco appeared with Charles Kean in Richard III and later played in stock
- Bishop Orders His Tomb at St. Praxed’s Church, The (poem by Browning)
The Bishop Orders His Tomb at St. Praxed’s Church, poem considered to be the first blank verse dramatic monologue in English, by Robert Browning, published in the collection Dramatic Romances and Lyrics (1845). The poem is a character study of a powerful, worldly prince of the Roman Catholic Church
- Bishop Rock Lighthouse (lighthouse, Cornwall, England, United Kingdom)
Bishop Rock Lighthouse, 19th-century lighthouse, Scilly Islands, Cornwall. The 19th-century civil-engineering landmark takes perhaps the worst buffeting from heavy seas of any lighthouse in the world. The first tower, begun in 1847, was swept away before the lantern could be installed. The present
- Bishop Theodore of Aquileia, Church of (church, Aquileia, Italy)
Western architecture: First period, to 313 ce: The double church of Bishop Theodore of Aquileia marks a step toward the creation of a monumental edifice of the Christian religion. Standing within the enclosure of a Roman villa, it occupied all the space of the earlier building and more. Two sanctuaries of considerable size, 121…
- Bishop Tuff (rock formation, California, United States)
Quaternary: Correlation of Quaternary deposits: …“instantaneous” marker horizon is the Bishop Tuff, erupted from the Long Valley Caldera in California about 740,000 years ago. This ash is found in Pleistocene sediments as far away as eastern Nebraska. This and other ashes can be identified by their chemistry and confidently dated with radiometric techniques such as…
- Bishop v. Wood (law case)
Bishop v. Wood, legal case in which the U.S. Supreme Court held (5–4) on June 10, 1976, that a municipal employee who was dismissed from his position without a formal hearing and for false causes was not thereby deprived of property or liberty in violation of the due process clause of the
- Bishop William (English bishop)
William Of Saint Carilef was a Norman-French bishop of Durham (1081–96), adviser to William I the Conqueror, and chief minister to William II Rufus (1088). Bishop William distinguished himself in his early years as a diligent and practical monk and abbot at the monasteries of St. Carilef (later
- bishop’s cap cactus (plant)
bishop’s cap cactus, (Astrophytum myriostigma), species of spineless cactus (family Cactaceae) native to Texas and central Mexico. The plant is a common ornamental species. Bishop’s cap cactus usually reaches no more than 100 cm (39 inches) in height and up to 20 cm (8 inches) in diameter. It has
- Bishop’s House (historical bldg, Alaska, United States)
Sitka National Historical Park: The Bishop’s House (completed 1842) in downtown Sitka, just west of the main park area, became part of the national historical park in 1973. Long the seat of the Russian Orthodox Church in North America, the house is the oldest intact Russian American building in the…
- bishop’s mitre cactus (plant)
bishop’s cap cactus, (Astrophytum myriostigma), species of spineless cactus (family Cactaceae) native to Texas and central Mexico. The plant is a common ornamental species. Bishop’s cap cactus usually reaches no more than 100 cm (39 inches) in height and up to 20 cm (8 inches) in diameter. It has
- Bishop’s Stortford (England, United Kingdom)
Bishop’s Stortford, town (parish), East Hertfordshire district, administrative and historic county of Hertfordshire, southeastern England. It lies along the River Stort on the northeast periphery of the metropolitan complex centred on London. In Norman times the manor was held by the bishop of
- Bishop’s University (university, Lennoxville, Quebec, Canada)
Bishop’s University, Privately endowed university in Lennoxville, Quebec, Canada, founded in 1843. It offers undergraduate and graduate programs in the humanities, social sciences, natural sciences, business, and
- Bishop’s Wife, The (film by Koster [1947])
Henry Koster: Films of the 1940s: …his career, Koster then made The Bishop’s Wife (1947). The Christmas classic starred Cary Grant as an angel who comes to earth to help a bishop (David Niven) and his wife (Loretta Young) raise money for their church. It received an Academy Award nomination for best picture, and Koster earned…
- Bishop, Barry C. (American mountaineer)
Mount Everest: The U.S. ascent of 1963: …Unsoeld and Hornbein, along with Barry C. Bishop and Luther G. Jerstad (who had also reached the summit that day via the South Col), were forced to bivouac in the open at 28,000 feet (8,535 meters). All suffered frostbite, and Bishop and Unsoeld later lost their toes; the two had…
- Bishop, Billy (Canadian fighter ace)
William Avery Bishop was a Canadian fighter ace who shot down 72 German aircraft during World War I. Bishop was educated at the Royal Military College, Kingston, and went overseas during World War I with the Canadian cavalry. In 1915 he transferred to the Royal Flying Corps, joining the 60th
- Bishop, Bridget (American colonist)
Salem witch trials: The trials: On June 2 Bridget Bishop—who had been accused and found innocent of witchery some 12 years earlier—was the first of the defendants to be convicted. On June 10 she was hanged on what became known as Gallows Hill in Salem Village. On July 19 five more convicted persons…
- Bishop, Bronwyn (Australian politician)
Bronwyn Bishop is an Australian Liberal Party politician who served in the federal Senate (1987–94) and House of Representatives (1994–2016); she was the speaker of the House from 2013 to 2015. Bishop was educated at the University of Sydney. She was admitted to practice law in 1967 and was elected
- Bishop, Bronwyn Kathleen (Australian politician)
Bronwyn Bishop is an Australian Liberal Party politician who served in the federal Senate (1987–94) and House of Representatives (1994–2016); she was the speaker of the House from 2013 to 2015. Bishop was educated at the University of Sydney. She was admitted to practice law in 1967 and was elected
- Bishop, Charles R. (American businessman)
Bishop Museum: …was founded in 1889 by Charles R. Bishop, the American husband of Hawaiian Princess Bernice Pauahi (died 1884), the last direct descendant of Kamehameha I. In 1961 a planetarium and an observatory were added to emphasize the role of astronomy in the cultural history of Pacific Island peoples. The Bishop…
- Bishop, Elizabeth (American poet)
Elizabeth Bishop was an American poet known for her polished, witty, descriptive verse. Her short stories and her poetry first were published in The New Yorker and other magazines. Since her death in 1979, her reputation has grown as one of the most important American poets of the 20th century.
- Bishop, Elvin (American musician)
Southern rock: …the Marshall Tucker Band, the Elvin Bishop Group, and others. Soon, as groups such as Lynyrd Skynyrd, the Charlie Daniels Band, the Outlaws, and Wet Willie joined the fray, fans began to rally around anthems such as Daniels’s “The South’s Gonna Do It.”
- Bishop, Eric (American comedian, musician, and actor)
Jamie Foxx is an American comedian, musician, and actor who became known for his impersonations on the television sketch-comedy show In Living Color and later proved himself a versatile film actor, especially noted for his Academy Award-winning portrayal of Ray Charles in Ray (2004). Bishop’s
- Bishop, Errett (American mathematician)
analysis: Constructive analysis: …initiated by the American mathematician Errett Bishop has developed a new framework for analysis in which no object can be deemed to exist unless a specific rule is given for constructing it. This school is known as constructive analysis, and its devotees have shown that it is just as rich…
- Bishop, Hazel (American chemist and businesswoman)
Hazel Bishop was an American chemist and businesswoman who is best remembered as the inventor of the cosmetics line that bore her name. Bishop graduated from Barnard College in 1929 and attended graduate night courses at Columbia University. From 1935 to 1942 she was an assistant in a dermatologic
- Bishop, Hazel Gladys (American chemist and businesswoman)
Hazel Bishop was an American chemist and businesswoman who is best remembered as the inventor of the cosmetics line that bore her name. Bishop graduated from Barnard College in 1929 and attended graduate night courses at Columbia University. From 1935 to 1942 she was an assistant in a dermatologic
- Bishop, Isabel (American artist)
Isabel Bishop was an American painter, draughtsman, and etcher who worked in an urban realist style. Isabel Bishop was reared in Detroit, Michigan. She moved to New York City at age 16 to study commercial art, attending the New York School of Design for Women in 1918. She shifted from commercial
- Bishop, J. Michael (American scientist)
J. Michael Bishop is an American virologist and cowinner (with Harold Varmus) of the Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine in 1989 for achievements in clarifying the origins of cancer. Bishop graduated from Gettysburg College (Pennsylvania) in 1957 and from Harvard Medical School in 1962. After
- Bishop, Joey (American comedian)
Television in the United States: The late shows: …their own late-night shows—including The Joey Bishop Show (ABC, 1967–69), The Dick Cavett Show (ABC, 1968–75), and The Merv Griffin Show (CBS, 1969–72)—but none could compete with The Tonight Show. In 1973 NBC introduced The Midnight Special (1973–81), a rock music variety show that ran from 1:00 am to 2:30…
- Bishop, John (Australian educator)
Adelaide Festival of Arts: …University of Adelaide music professor John Bishop. Inspired by Scotland’s Edinburgh Festival, the two men formulated a plan and a budget to stage a similar event in Adelaide. Their idea won the support of the city’s mayor, who subsequently helped to generate funding for the festival. With the patronage of…
- Bishop, John Michael (American scientist)
J. Michael Bishop is an American virologist and cowinner (with Harold Varmus) of the Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine in 1989 for achievements in clarifying the origins of cancer. Bishop graduated from Gettysburg College (Pennsylvania) in 1957 and from Harvard Medical School in 1962. After
- Bishop, John Peale (American poet and critic)
John Peale Bishop was an American poet, novelist, and critic. He was a member of the "lost generation" and a close associate of the American expatriate writers in Paris in the 1920s. At Princeton University, from which he graduated in 1917, Bishop formed lifelong friendships with Edmund Wilson, the
- Bishop, Maurice (prime minister of Grenada)
20th-century international relations: Nicaragua and El Salvador: …Movement led by the charismatic Maurice Bishop. Over the next several years the Bishop regime socialized the country, signed mutual-assistance agreements with Soviet-bloc states, and hastened construction of a large airstrip that the United States feared would ultimately be used by Soviet aircraft. The evident incompetence of the New Jewel…
- Bishop, Sir Henry Rowley (English composer and conductor)
Sir Henry Rowley Bishop was an English composer and conductor remembered for his songs “Home, Sweet Home” and “Lo, Here the Gentle Lark.” Bishop composed, arranged, and conducted dramatic musical productions at Covent Garden Theatre (1810–24), King’s Theatre, Haymarket (1816–17), Drury Lane (from
- Bishop, William Avery (Canadian fighter ace)
William Avery Bishop was a Canadian fighter ace who shot down 72 German aircraft during World War I. Bishop was educated at the Royal Military College, Kingston, and went overseas during World War I with the Canadian cavalry. In 1915 he transferred to the Royal Flying Corps, joining the 60th
- Bishops’ Bible
biblical literature: The Bishops’ Bible: The failure of the Great Bible to win popular acceptance against the obvious superiority of its Geneva rival, and the objectionable partisan flavor of the latter’s marginal annotations, made a new revision a necessity. By about 1563–64 Archbishop Matthew Parker of Canterbury had…
- Bishops’ Wars (British history)
Bishops’ Wars, (1639, 1640), in British history, two brief campaigns that were fought between Charles I and the Scots. The wars were the result of Charles’s endeavour to enforce Anglican observances in the Scottish Church and of the determination of the Scots to abolish episcopacy. A riot in
- Bishops, Synod of (Roman Catholic ecclesiastical body)
Synod of Bishops, in the Roman Catholic Church, the institution of periodic meetings of bishops established in 1965 by Pope Paul VI. According to the “Decree on the Bishops’ Pastoral Office in the Church” issued by the Second Vatican Council, the synod is convoked by the pope with the intention of
- Bisht, Ajay Singh (Hindu monk and Indian politician)
Yogi Adityanath is a Hindu monk and Indian political leader. He is a prominent member of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and is the only politician to have served two full consecutive terms as chief minister of Uttar Pradesh, a key electoral state. He is also the mahant, or head priest, of the
- Bishu Shanzhuang (royal residence, China)
Chengde: History: …summer residence there, calling it Bishu Shanzhuang (“Mountain Estate for Escaping the Heat”). It became the usual practice for the Chinese emperor to leave Beijing for Chengde every summer. About this time the area around Chengde became one of the first intensively colonized and cultivated areas outside the Great Wall;…
- Bisiri, Yemi (Nigerian artist)
Mbari Mbayo Club: Yemi Bisiri made lost-wax brass figures for the Ogboni cult, but in a contemporary style. Jinadu Oladepo created brass figures and bracelets and pendants that were worn by the Oshogbo artists as a kind of insignia. Senabu Oloyede and Kikelomo Oladepo both worked in cloth…
- Bīsitūn (Iran)
Bīsitūn, village and precipitous rock situated at the foot of the Zagros Mountains in the Kermanshah region of Iran. In ancient times Bīsitūn was on the old road from Ecbatana, capital of ancient Media, to Babylon, and it was on that scarp that the Achaemenid king Darius I the Great (reigned
- bisj pole (religious carving)
bisj pole, carved wooden pole used in religious rites of the South Pacific Islands. Bisj poles are occasionally found in North America, but they are more common in New Zealand, Vanuatu (formerly the New Hebrides), and especially the Asmat area in southwestern (Indonesian) New Guinea and along the
- biskop (fish)
porgy: …is the home of the musselcrackers—popular sport fishes growing as heavy as 45 kg (100 pounds). In Australia several important food species are known as snappers and belong to the genus Chrysophrys; in Japan a related species, the red tai (C. major), is another important food fish.
- Biskra (Algeria)
Biskra, town, northeastern Algeria, on the northern edge of the Sahara. It is the centre of the Zab (Ziban) group of oases south of a wide, open depression between the Aurès Massif and the Tell Atlas Mountains. On the site of Vescera, a fortified Roman post, Biskra prospered after Arab conquest in
- Biskra Gap (mountain pass, North Africa)
Atlas Mountains: Transportation: The Biskra Gap, situated between the Ouled-Naïl and Aurès ranges, provides a natural conduit for traffic between Constantine on the Rhumel River and Touggourt in the Sahara. Between Algeria and Morocco both the road and the railroad pass through the Atlas along the Taza Pass, which…
- Biskupa sǫgur (Icelandic saga)
saga: Native historical accounts: …prominent bishops are in the Biskupa sǫgur. Though some of these have a strong hagiographical flavour, others are soberly written and of great historical value. The period from about 1100 to 1264 is also dealt with in several secular histories, known collectively as Sturlunga saga, the most important of which…
- Biskupia Kopa (mountain, Poland)
Opolskie: Geography: The highest point is Biskupia Kopa (2,916 feet [889 metres]) in the Opawskie Mountains. The main rivers are the Oder (Odra), Neisse (Nysa Kłodzka), Mała Panew, and Stobrawa. Forests, most of which are coniferous, cover one-fourth of the province. The Oder River valley is one of the warmest regions…
- Bislama language (language)
Vanuatu: People: …languages and dialects are spoken; Bislama, an English-based Melanesian pidgin, is the national language and, along with English and French, is one of three official languages.
- Bislett Games (sports event)
Yobes Ondieki: …sights on the July 1993 Bislett Games Grand Prix 10,000-metre race in Oslo, which was held on a track where dozens of records had fallen. When he began training for the 10,000 metres in February 1993, he had not run the event on a track in 10 years. He prepared…
- Bismarck (German ship)
Bismarck, German battleship of World War II that had a short but spectacular career. The Bismarck was laid down in 1936 and launched in 1939. It displaced 52,600 tons, mounted eight 15-inch (38-centimetre) guns, and had a speed of 30 knots. In May 1941 the battleship, which was commanded by Admiral
- Bismarck (North Dakota, United States)
Bismarck, city, capital of North Dakota, U.S., and seat (1873) of Burleigh county. It lies in the south-central part of the state and is situated on the eastern bank of the Missouri River. The Lewis and Clark Expedition passed through the area in 1804–05. In 1872 Camp Greeley (later Camp Hancock;
- Bismarck Archipelago (islands, Papua New Guinea)
Bismarck Archipelago, island group of Papua New Guinea in the Bismarck Sea, southwestern Pacific Ocean, that lies northeast of the island of New Guinea. The largest components of the archipelago, which has a total land area of about 18,600 square miles (48,200 square km), are New Britain, New
- Bismarck brown (dye)
dye: Azo dyes: …more of the diamine gives Bismark brown, a major component in the first successful disazo dye—i.e., a dye with two azo groups. In 1884 a conjugated disazo dye, Congo red, made by coupling 4-sulfo-1-naphthylamine with bisdiazotized benzidine, was found to dye cotton by simple immersion of the fabric in a…
- Bismarck Range (mountains, Papua New Guinea)
Bismarck Range, northeastern segment of the central highlands of Papua New Guinea, in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. Visited in 1886 by the German explorer G.E. von Schleinitz, the range was named for Otto von Bismarck. The mountains reach 14,793 feet (4,509 metres) at Mount Wilhelm (the highest
- Bismarck Sea (sea, Pacific Ocean)
Bismarck Sea, section of the southwestern Pacific Ocean, bounded to the southwest by the northeast coast of New Guinea and to the northwest through to the southeast by the Bismarck Archipelago, consisting of the Admiralty Islands (north), New Ireland (east), and New Britain (southeast). With a
- Bismarck Sea, Battle of the (Japanese-European history)
World War II: The Solomons, Papua, Madagascar, the Aleutians, and Burma, July 1942–May 1943: …was a disaster: in the Battle of the Bismarck Sea, on March 2–4, 1943, the Japanese lost four destroyers and eight transports, and only 1,000 of the 7,000 troops reached their destination. On March 25 the Japanese Army and Navy high commands agreed on a policy of strengthening the defense…
- Bismarck, Otto von (German chancellor and prime minister)
Otto von Bismarck was the prime minister of Prussia (1862–73, 1873–90) and founder and first chancellor (1871–90) of the German Empire. Once the empire was established, he actively and skillfully pursued pacific policies in foreign affairs, succeeding in preserving the peace in Europe for about two
- Bismarck-Schönhausen, Ferdinand von (Prussian landowner)
Otto von Bismarck: Early years: His father, Ferdinand von Bismarck-Schönhausen, was a Junker squire descended from a Swabian family that had ultimately settled as estate owners in Pomerania. Ferdinand was a typical member of the Prussian landowning elite. The family’s economic circumstances were modest—Ferdinand’s farming skills being perhaps less than average—and Bismarck…
- Bismarckian system (European history)
20th-century international relations: The Bismarckian system, 1871–90: The European map and world politics were less confused in the decades after 1871 than at any time before or since. The unifications of Italy and Germany removed the congeries of central European principalities that dated…
- Bismāyah (ancient city, Iraq)
Adab, ancient Sumerian city located south of Nippur (modern Niffer or Nuffar), Iraq. Excavations (1903–04) carried out by the American archaeologist Edgar James Banks revealed buildings dating from as early as the prehistoric period and as late as the reign of Ur-Nammu (reigned 2112–2095 bce). Adab
- bismuth (chemical element)
bismuth (Bi), the most metallic and the least abundant of the elements in the nitrogen group (Group 15 [Va] of the periodic table). Bismuth is hard, brittle, lustrous, and coarsely crystalline. It can be distinguished from all other metals by its colour—gray-white with a reddish tinge. atomic
- bismuth phosphomolybdate (chemical compound)
bismuth: Commercial production and uses: …is in the form of bismuth phosphomolybdate (BiPMo12O40), which is an effective catalyst for the air oxidation of propylene and ammonia to acrylonitrile. The latter is used to make acrylic fibres, paints, and plastics. Pharmaceutical uses of bismuth have been practiced for centuries. It is effective in indigestion remedies and…
- bismuth subgallate (chemical compound)
gallic acid: As bismuth subgallate it has been employed in medicine as a mild skin antiseptic and astringent (q.v.; an agent that tends to shrink mucous membranes and raw surfaces and to dry up secretions). Propyl gallate is an important antioxidant for the prevention of rancidity in edible…
- bismutite (mineral)
bismutite, a bismuth subcarbonate, (BiO)2CO3, that has been formed as an alteration product of primary bismuth minerals in the oxidized portions of metal veins. Well-known localities include Cornwall, Eng., and the Tazna district, Bolivia. For detailed physical properties, see carbonate mineral
- bisociation (humor)
humor: The logic of laughter: The word bisociation was coined by the present writer to make a distinction between the routines of disciplined thinking within a single universe of discourse—on a single plane, as it were—and the creative types of mental activity that always operate on more than one plane. In humor,…
- Bison (Soviet bomber)
Myasishchev M-4, Soviet long-range bomber, the first jet bomber in the strategic air force of the Soviet Union that was capable of reaching deep into the continental United States. It was produced by the Myasishchev design bureau under Vladimir Mikhailovich Myasishchev (1902–78); the first version
- bison (mammal)
bison, (genus Bison), either of two species of oxlike grazing mammals that constitute the genus Bison of the family Bovidae. The American bison (B. bison), commonly known as the buffalo or the plains buffalo, is native to North America, and the European bison (B. bonasus), or wisent, is native to
- Bison (mammal)
bison, (genus Bison), either of two species of oxlike grazing mammals that constitute the genus Bison of the family Bovidae. The American bison (B. bison), commonly known as the buffalo or the plains buffalo, is native to North America, and the European bison (B. bonasus), or wisent, is native to
- Bison bison (mammal)
bison: The American bison (B. bison), commonly known as the buffalo or the plains buffalo, is native to North America, and the European bison (B. bonasus), or wisent, is native to Europe. Both species were drastically reduced in numbers by hunting and now occupy small protected areas…
- Bison bison athabascae (mammal)
bison: bison bison) and the wood bison (B. bison athabascae), though the differences between them are minor. The plains bison formerly inhabited most of the United States east of the Rocky Mountains and the Great Plains provinces of Canada. It greatly outnumbered the wood bison, which lived in northwestern Canada…
- Bison bison bison (mammal)
bison: …subspecies of American bison, the plains bison (B. bison bison) and the wood bison (B. bison athabascae), though the differences between them are minor. The plains bison formerly inhabited most of the United States east of the Rocky Mountains and the Great Plains provinces of Canada. It greatly outnumbered the…
- Bison bonasus (mammal)
Belovezhskaya Forest: …I, the European bison, or wisent, was reintroduced to the Belovezhskaya with zoo-bred animals. The forest remains the European bison’s most notable home, though the animals are now also found again in other parts of Europe, including Lithuania, Russia, and Ukraine. Once the hunting grounds of kings and tsars, the…
- Bison latifons (fossil mammal)
bison: DNA of a 120,000-year-old fossil long-horned bison (B. latifons) from Colorado and a 130,000-year-old fossil of what was likely a steppe bison (Bison priscus) from Yukon suggested that the first bison in North America migrated from Asia across the Bering Land Bridge sometime between 95,000 and 135,000 years ago before…
- Bison priscus (extinct mammal)
bison: …of what was likely a steppe bison (Bison priscus) from Yukon suggested that the first bison in North America migrated from Asia across the Bering Land Bridge sometime between 95,000 and 135,000 years ago before spreading rapidly throughout the continent. (Both the long-horned bison and the steppe bison are extinct.)…
- Bison, the (Ghanaian athlete)
Michael Essien is a Ghanaian professional football (soccer) player who rose to international stardom as a midfielder for the English football club Chelsea FC in the 2000s. Essien was raised in Awutu Breku, a small town in central Ghana, where his interest in football was sparked, in part, by his
- Bisonhorn Maria (people)
Gond: Bisonhorn Maria, so called for their dance headdresses, live in less-hilly country and have more-permanent fields that they cultivate with plows and bullocks. The Muria are known for their youth dormitories, or ghotul, in the framework of which the unmarried of both sexes lead a…
- Bīsotūn (Iran)
Bīsitūn, village and precipitous rock situated at the foot of the Zagros Mountains in the Kermanshah region of Iran. In ancient times Bīsitūn was on the old road from Ecbatana, capital of ancient Media, to Babylon, and it was on that scarp that the Achaemenid king Darius I the Great (reigned
- bisphenol A (chemical compound)
bisphenol A (BPA), a colourless crystalline solid belonging to the family of organic compounds; its molecular formula is C15H16O2. BPA is best known for its use in the manufacture of polycarbonate plastics and epoxy resins, particularly those found in water bottles, baby bottles, and other beverage
- bisphenol F (chemical compound)
bisphenol A: Biological effects of bisphenol A: …well as bisphenol S and bisphenol F, which are used as alternatives to BPA, are associated with obesity, particularly in children.
- bisphenol S (chemical compound)
bisphenol A: Biological effects of bisphenol A: BPA as well as bisphenol S and bisphenol F, which are used as alternatives to BPA, are associated with obesity, particularly in children.
- bisque (food)
soup: Bisques and chowders are creamy soups usually made with shellfish or fish, sometimes with meat or vegetables, and cream or milk. Gumbos are spicy soups originating in the Creole cooking of Louisiana that combine African, European, and American Indian elements. Substantial stewlike soups are found…