frogmouth: The large frogmouth (Batrachostomus auritus), a 16-inch (40-cm) species of the Malay Peninsula and the islands of Sumatra and Borneo, lays a single egg on a pad of down covered with lichens and spiderwebs. The tawny frogmouth (Podargus strigoides), of the Australian mainland and Tasmania, is…

steroid: Steroids of insects, fungi, and other organisms: …aurotaenia, produces a deadly alkaloid, batrachotoxin (14), which is used by tribal peoples as an arrow poison. The skin of salamanders secretes a comparably poisonous alkaloid—samandarin (15).

Nakh languages: …group includes Chechen, Ingush, and Bats (Tsova-Tushian). Because Bats has no written form, its speakers use Georgian as their literary language. The Nakh group, sometimes called the Central Caucasian languages, is often classified by scholars with the Dagestanian languages (among which are Avar and Lezgian) in a Nakho-Dagestanian, or Northeast…

bellflower: Throatwort, or bats-in-the-belfry (C. trachelium), a coarse, erect, hairy Eurasian plant also naturalized in North America, bears clusters of lilac-coloured funnel-shaped flowers. Other cultivated Campanula species from Europe include Adria bellflower (C. garganica, sometimes classified as a variety of C. elatines); clustered bellflower (C. glomerata);…

János Batsányi was Hungary’s leading political poet during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic periods in Europe. Beginning his career as a tutor, Batsányi became the editor of Magyar Museum and emerged as an eloquent advocate of social progress and Enlightenment ideals in Hungary. In his

Pygmy: …is the large group of Tswa (Batswa), who, like the Twa, have adopted much of the culture and language of neighbouring tribes. They live largely by fishing and trapping.

Tswana, westerly division of the Sotho, a Bantu-speaking people of South Africa and Botswana. The Tswana comprise several groupings, the most important of which, numerically speaking, are the Hurutshe, Kgatla, Kwena, Rolong, Tlhaping, and Tlokwa. They numbered about four million at the turn of the

Batak, several closely related ethnic groups of north-central Sumatra, Indonesia. The term Batak is one of convenience, likely coined during precolonial times by indigenous outsiders (e.g., the Malay) and later adopted by Europeans. The groups embraced by the term—the Toba, the Karo, the

The Battle of Algiers, Italian-Algerian war film, released in 1966, that is the signature achievement of director Gillo Pontecorvo and an acclaimed experiment in cinéma vérité. The visually striking film documents the Algerian revolt against the French in 1954–62, with a focus on the events of

Giuseppe Verdi: Early career: La battaglia di Legnano (1849; The Battle of Legnano), a tale of love and jealousy set against the Lombard League’s victory over Frederick Barbarossa in 1176 ce, was Verdi’s emphatic response to the Italian unification movement, or Risorgimento, which spilled over into open warfare in…

Futurism: Literature: …peso + odore” (1912; “Battle Weight + Smell”) was appended to one of the Futurists’ manifestos as an example of words-in-freedom:

Batak, several closely related ethnic groups of north-central Sumatra, Indonesia. The term Batak is one of convenience, likely coined during precolonial times by indigenous outsiders (e.g., the Malay) and later adopted by Europeans. The groups embraced by the term—the Toba, the Karo, the

battalion, a tactical military organization composed basically of a headquarters and two or more companies, batteries, or similar organizations and usually commanded by a field-grade officer. The term has been used in nearly every Western army for centuries and has had a variety of meanings. In the

Battambang, city in western Cambodia that is the capital of Battambang province. It is the third largest city in Cambodia, after the national capital of Phnom Penh and the city of Siem Reap. Located in Cambodia’s “rice bowl” along the Sangkae River northwest of Phnom Penh, Battambang is a major

al-Battānī was an Arab astronomer and mathematician who refined existing values for the length of the year and of the seasons, for the annual precession of the equinoxes, and for the inclination of the ecliptic. He showed that the position of the Sun’s apogee, or farthest point from the Earth, is

bet din, Jewish tribunal empowered to adjudicate cases involving criminal, civil, or religious law. The history of such institutions goes back to the time the 12 tribes of Israel appointed judges and set up courts of law (Deuteronomy 16:18). During the period of the Second Temple of Jerusalem (516

battement, (French: “beating”), in ballet, an extension of the leg to the front, side, or back, either repeatedly or as a single movement. Among representative types are battement tendu (“stretched beating”), in which one leg is extended until the point of the stretched foot barely touches the

battement: …or higher and held straight; battement frappé (“struck beating”), in which the ball of the foot brushes the floor as the working foot is briskly extended from a flexed position against the lower calf of the supporting leg; and petit battement sur le cou-de-pied (“small beatings on the instep”), in…

battement: Among representative types are battement tendu (“stretched beating”), in which one leg is extended until the point of the stretched foot barely touches the ground; grand battement (“large beating”), in which the leg is lifted to hip level or higher and held straight; battement frappé (“struck beating”), in which…

batten, term used in joinery for a board 4 to 7 inches (10 to 17.8 cm) wide and not more than 3 inches (7.6 cm) thick employed for various purposes. In sailing the word is applied to a strip of wood nailed to a mast to prevent rubbing or to fix down a tarpaulin over a hatchway in rough

Batten disease, rare and fatal neurodegenerative disease that begins in childhood. The disease is named for British physician Frederick Batten, who in 1903 described the cerebral degeneration and macular changes characteristic of the condition. Batten disease is among the most commonly occurring of

United Kingdom Independence Party: The 2017 general election and the decline of UKIP: With the election of Gerard Batten as leader in 2018, UKIP tacked away from its libertarian roots to embrace an overt anti-Islamic stance. Farage responded by leaving the party in December of that year, and in April 2019 he launched the Brexit Party.

Jean Batten was an aviator who made record-breaking flights from 1933 to 1937 and was perhaps the most famous New Zealander of the 1930s. (Read Orville Wright’s 1929 biography of his brother, Wilbur.) Batten was sent by her parents to England to study music, but she became intensely interested in

Jean Batten was an aviator who made record-breaking flights from 1933 to 1937 and was perhaps the most famous New Zealander of the 1930s. (Read Orville Wright’s 1929 biography of his brother, Wilbur.) Batten was sent by her parents to England to study music, but she became intensely interested in

Battenberg family, a family that rose to international prominence in the 19th and 20th centuries, the name being a revival of a medieval title. The first Battenbergs were a family of German counts that died out about 1314 and whose seat was the castle of Kellerburg, near Battenberg, in Hesse. The

Louis Alexander Mountbatten, 1st marquess of Milford Haven was a British admiral of the fleet and first sea lord, who was responsible, with Winston Churchill, for the total mobilization of the fleet prior to World War I. The eldest son of Prince Alexander of Hesse, he was naturalized as a British

Louis Mountbatten, 1st Earl Mountbatten was a British statesman, naval leader, and the last viceroy of India. He had an international royal-family background; his career involved extensive naval commands, the diplomatic negotiation of independence for India and Pakistan, and the highest military

batter, mixture of flour and liquid with other ingredients, such as leavening agents, shortening, sugar, salt, eggs, and various flavourings, used to make baked goods and other food products. Similar mixtures—called doughs—are thick and flexible, allowing them to be shaped and rolled. Batters,

baseball: Play of the game: …as home plate, where a batter, holding a formed stick (a bat), waits for him to throw a hard leather-covered ball. The goal of the batter is to hit the ball out of the reach of the fielders and eventually (most often with the help of hits by subsequent batters)…

Batter My Heart, sonnet by John Donne, one of the 19 Holy Sonnets, or Divine Meditations, originally published in 1633 in the first edition of Songs and Sonnets. Written in direct address to God and employing violent and sexual imagery, it is one of Donne’s most dramatic devotional lyrics. The poet

child abuse, willful infliction of pain and suffering on children through physical, sexual, or emotional mistreatment. Prior to the 1970s the term child abuse normally referred to only physical mistreatment, but since then its application has expanded to include, in addition to inordinate physical

battered woman syndrome, Psychological and behavioral pattern displayed by female victims of domestic violence. Explanations that have evolved since the late 1970s include learned helplessness, a “cycle of violence” theory, and a form of post-traumatic stress disorder. The term is a legal concept

dance: Basic characteristics: …their jumps and their vigorous batterie (beating together of the legs in midair), through the speed and multiplicity of their turns, and through the fast linking steps that seem to move them effortlessly, almost without touching the floor, from one virtuoso movement to another. In ballet the stress and effort…

battering ram, ancient and medieval weapon consisting of a heavy timber, typically with a metal knob or point at the front. Such devices were used to batter down the gates or walls of a besieged city or castle. The ram itself, usually suspended by ropes from the roof of a movable shed, was swung

Battersea, area on the south bank of the River Thames in the London borough of Wandsworth. It is known for its riverside park and its (now defunct) power station; in the mid-18th century it was the production site of Battersea enamelware. The area was settled in the Iron Age, as evidenced by

Battersea: …its western side is the Battersea Bridge (1890); the current structure replaces a wooden bridge (late 18th century) that was the subject of a nocturne by the American-born artist James McNeill Whistler.

Battersea enamelware, type of painted enamelware considered the finest of its kind to be produced in England during the mid-18th century. It is especially noted for the high quality of its transfer printing. Battersea ware was made at York House in Battersea, a district in London, by Stephen

Battersea: …for its unruly carnivals lies Battersea Park, which was opened in 1853 on the Thames riverfront. The park incorporated an amusement park in time for the Festival of Britain (1951), but the rides were dismantled in the mid-1970s. Many of the park’s salient features date from the late 19th century.…

battery, in electricity and electrochemistry, any of a class of devices that convert chemical energy directly into electrical energy. Although the term battery, in strict usage, designates an assembly of two or more galvanic cells capable of such energy conversion, it is commonly applied to a

baseball: The battery: The pitcher and catcher together are known as the battery or as batterymen. As a fielder, the pitcher may function as an emergency first baseman, and he fields bunts or other infield grounders hit his way. The ability of the pitcher to quickly transition…

assault and battery, related but distinct crimes, battery being the unlawful application of physical force to another and assault being an attempt to commit battery or an act that causes another reasonably to fear an imminent battery. These concepts are found in most legal systems and together with

Burlington: …during the War of 1812 Battery Park was the site of several engagements between land batteries and British warships on the lake. It is famous for sunset views.

Charleston: The Battery (White Point Gardens), conspicuous for monuments and military relics, stands at the city’s southern extremity, overlooking the rivers and the harbour. Fort Sumter National Monument, commemorating the first shot fired in the Civil War, is located about 3.5 miles (5.5 km) southeast of…

baseball: The battery: The pitcher and catcher together are known as the battery or as batterymen. As a fielder, the pitcher may function as an emergency first baseman, and he fields bunts or other infield grounders hit his way. The ability of the pitcher to quickly transition…

aesthetics: Major concerns of 18th-century aesthetics: …and subsequently made famous by Charles Batteux in a book entitled Les Beaux Arts réduits à un même principe (1746; “The Fine Arts Reduced to a Single Principle”). This diffuse and ill-argued work contains the first modern attempt to give a systematic theory of art and aesthetic judgment that will…

Alba Iulia: …an 18th-century fortress, and the Batthyáneum Library, founded in 1784 by Ignatius Batthyány, a Catholic bishop, and containing many incunabula and old manuscripts of great value, notably the Codex Aureus from the 8th century. Industries in Alba Iulia include leatherworking and food processing and the production of footwear, construction materials,…

Lajos, count Batthyány was a statesman who during the revolution of 1848 was premier of the first Hungarian parliamentary government and a martyr for Magyar independence. The son of wealthy liberal landowners whose nobility dated to 1398, Batthyány entered the military but left it in 1827 to manage

North Africa: The Greeks in Cyrenaica: The dynasty of Battus ended about 440 bc with the establishment of a democratic constitution like that of Athens, and the general prosperity of Cyrenaica continued through the 4th century in spite of some political troubles. Cyrenaica submitted to Alexander the Great in the late 4th century and…

Batticaloa, town, eastern Sri Lanka. Lying on an island off the eastern coast, it is linked to the mainland by causeway, bridge, and ferry and by road and railway connections. Batticaloa is the trading centre for rice and coconuts from nearby plantations and for other agricultural products. It was

quilting: Batting, or wadding, made of cotton, polyester, wool, or flannel is layered sandwich-style between the quilt top and backing. The three layers are basted or pinned together, and the quilting design is marked on the top and quilted (sewn) in small, even stitches by hand,…

cricket: Batting: A batsman may hit right-handed or left-handed. Good batting is based on a straight (i.e., vertical) bat with its full face presented to the ball, although a cross (i.e., horizontal) bat can be used effectively to deal with short bowling. The chief strokes are:…

baseball: Analyzing baseball: …began furnishing year-end tabulations of batting, fielding, and pitching exploits. Hefty encyclopaedias of baseball contain detailed records of the performances of thousands of players and team seasons, and a vast array of special statistics are offered on the Internet.

sabermetrics: Early analytic efforts: …railing about the inadequacy of batting average as an indicator of performance. As Lane noted, it made little sense to count a single the same as a home run, and eventually he devised his own (generally accurate) values for singles, doubles, triples, and home runs. During his 26-year tenure as…

baseball: The batting order: At the start of each game, managers from both teams submit a batting order to the umpire. The order lists the name and defensive position of each player in the game and the order in which they will hit. The order may not…

Jonathan Battishill was an English composer of church music and popular songs. Battishill was a chorister at St. Paul’s Cathedral (1747) and became conductor (directing from the harpischord) at Covent Garden about 1756. He composed songs and choruses for plays, notably, Almena (1764), an opera

Filippo Brunelleschi: Early years: …for the door of the Baptistery of Florence. Brunelleschi’s trial panel depicting The Sacrifice of Isaac is the high point of his career as a sculptor. His ability to arrest narrative action at the moment of its greatest dramatic impact and the vigorous gestures and animated expressions of the figures…

Battle, town (parish), Rother district, administrative county of East Sussex, historic county of Sussex, southeastern England. It ls located just inland from Hastings. A ridge to the southeast, called Senlac, was the site of the famous Battle of Hastings in which William I the Conqueror defeated

Battle of Lookout Mountain, in the American Civil War, one of the battles that ended the Confederate siege of Union troops at Chattanooga, Tenn. See Chattanooga, Battle

Chen Kaige: …codirected Chang jin hu (2021; The Battle at Lake Changjin), about a military campaign in the Korean War; hugely popular, the war epic set records at the Chinese box office.

clout shooting: In another variety, called battle clout, a larger, more distant target and hunting arrows are often used.

Battle Creek, city, Calhoun county, south-central Michigan, U.S. It lies at the juncture of Battle Creek with the Kalamazoo River, about 20 miles (30 km) east of Kalamazoo and about 45 miles (70 km) southwest of Lansing. Settled in 1831 and named in 1834 for a “battle” that had taken place on the

Ellen Gould Harmon White: …Emmanuel Missionary College (from 1960 Andrews University), and in 1903 the church headquarters and newspaper relocated to Takoma Park, Maryland. From that year White lived mainly in St. Helena, California.

John Harvey Kellogg: …Institute, which then became the Battle Creek Sanitarium, located in Battle Creek, Michigan. (The sanitarium was renamed the Percy Jones Army Hospital in 1942, the Battle Creek Federal Center in 1954, and Hart-Dole-Inouye Federal Center in 2003.) Kellogg developed numerous nut and vegetable products to vary the diet of the…

warship: Cruisers: …series of ships it called battle cruisers. These were as large as the newest battleships and were armed with battleship guns, but they were much faster (initially a top speed of 25 knots, compared with the 21 knots of battleships). The first was HMS Invincible, completed in 1907. Many of…

Raoul Walsh: Last films: Battle Cry (1955) was an ode to the marines of World War II that remained as faithful as was then possible under the Production Code to the epic novel by Leon Uris (who also wrote the screenplay). It was Walsh’s first Cinemascope production and starred…

Leon Uris: …the World War II novel Battle Cry (1953) and Exodus (1958), which deals with the struggle to establish and defend the state of Israel.

dance: Defining according to function: …as descendants of the tribal war and hunting dances that have also been integral to many cultures. War dances, often using weapons and fighting movements, were used throughout history as a way of training soldiers and preparing them emotionally and spiritually for battle. Many hunting tribes performed dances in which…

combat fatigue, a neurotic disorder caused by the stress involved in war. This anxiety-related disorder is characterized by (1) hypersensitivity to stimuli such as noises, movements, and light accompanied by overactive responses that include involuntary defensive jerking or jumping (startle

Naomi Klein: Klein’s later books included The Battle for Paradise: Puerto Rico Takes on the Disaster Capitalists (2018), which focused on the struggle over the island’s recovery following Hurricane Maria. In the essay collection On Fire: The (Burning) Case for a Green New Deal (2019), she continued to address the climate…

Planet of the Apes: …of the Apes (1972), and Battle for the Planet of the Apes (1973). Director Tim Burton remade the first film in 2001.

Douglas Sirk: From All That Heaven Allows to Imitation of Life: Less lauded were Battle Hymn (1957), another vehicle for Hudson, which cast him as a minister training fighter pilots in Korea during the Korean War, and Interlude (1957), a remake of Stahl’s soap operaish When Tomorrow Comes (1939). With The Tarnished Angels (1958)—an adaptation of William Faulkner’s novel…

Julia Ward Howe: …best known for her “Battle Hymn of the Republic.”

Chinese music: Courtly music: For example, “The Battle Line Smashing Song” was attributed to the Tang emperor Taizong (626–649). The accompanying dance is listed for 120 performers with spears and armour. A similarly grandiose piece is “Music of Grand Victory” credited to the next Tang emperor, Gaozong (649–683). Wuhou (died 705)…

sword dance: …one or more performers emphasize battle mime and originally served as military training. Crossed-sword dances are performed over two swords or a sword and scabbard crossed on the ground. Finally, guerrilla dances in circular formation are often performed with swords.

Albrecht Altdorfer: Altdorfer’s masterpiece, the “Battle of Alexander at Issus” (1529; Alte Pinakothek, Munich), is both a battle scene of incredible detail and a highly dramatic and expressive landscape.

The Battle of Algiers, Italian-Algerian war film, released in 1966, that is the signature achievement of director Gillo Pontecorvo and an acclaimed experiment in cinéma vérité. The visually striking film documents the Algerian revolt against the French in 1954–62, with a focus on the events of

Leonardo da Vinci: Second Florentine period (1500–08) of Leonardo da Vinci: …years he worked on this Battle of Anghiari; like its intended complementary painting, Michelangelo’s Battle of Cascina, it remained unfinished. During these same years Leonardo painted the Mona Lisa (c. 1503–19). (For more analysis of the work, see below The Mona Lisa and other works.)

Battle of Balaklava, indecisive military engagement on October 25 (October 13, Old Style), 1854, during the Crimean War that is best known as the inspiration of the English poet Alfred, Lord Tennyson’s “Charge of the Light Brigade.” In this battle, the Russians failed to capture Balaklava, the

Battle of Britain, British war film, released in 1969, that recounts Great Britain’s successful defense against German air raids during World War II. The film centres on various British military figures, a number of whom are based on real-life people, as the German air force (Luftwaffe) begins

The Battle of Brunanburh, Old English poem of 73 lines included in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle under the year 937. It relates the victory of the Saxon king Athelstan over the allied Norse, Scots, and Strathclyde Briton invaders under the leadership of Olaf Guthfrithson, king of Dublin and claimant to

The Battle of Brunanburh, Old English poem of 73 lines included in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle under the year 937. It relates the victory of the Saxon king Athelstan over the allied Norse, Scots, and Strathclyde Briton invaders under the leadership of Olaf Guthfrithson, king of Dublin and claimant to

Alaric II: …in the battle of the Campus Vogladensis (Vouillé, in Poitou).

Alaric II: …in the battle of the Campus Vogladensis (Vouillé, in Poitou).

Xenophon: Life: …mainland Greece, Xenophon fought (at Coronea in 394) for Sparta.

science fiction: Mass markets and juvenile science fiction: …in George Chesney’s short story The Battle of Dorking (1871). First published in Blackwood’s Magazine, The Battle of Dorking darkly postulated a Prussian defeat of a poorly armed, weak, and unwary Britain and established the military techno-thriller. Chesney used his urgent narrative of the near future to warn against what…

Battle of Drăgăşani, (June 19, 1821), military engagement in which the Ottoman Turks defeated the forces of the Greek revolutionary society Philikí Etaireía and ended the first insurrection of the Greek War of Independence. Intending to overthrow Ottoman rule in the Balkans and to establish an

panorama: …son Paul painted the panorama The Battle of Gettysburg (1883), exhibiting it in several American cities before its permanent installation in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. Other examples survive at The Hague and in Quebec city. A higher form of panoramic art is the Chinese and Japanese traditional hand scroll painting on paper…

tessellated pavement: …1st-century ad representation of the Battle of Issus—was unearthed at Pompeii in the Faun House and is now in the National Archeological Museum at Naples.

Battle of Kapyong, (April 23–25, 1951), Korean War battle in which vastly outnumbered United Nations forces checked the communist advance on the South Korean capital of Seoul. Two Commonwealth battalions—the 2nd Battalion of the Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry Regiment (2PPCLI) and the

Battle of Kursk, (July 5–August 23, 1943), unsuccessful German assault on the Soviet salient around the city of Kursk, in western Russia, during World War II. The salient was a bulge in the Soviet lines that stretched 150 miles (240 km) from north to south and protruded 100 miles (160 km) westward

Giuseppe Verdi: Early career: La battaglia di Legnano (1849; The Battle of Legnano), a tale of love and jealousy set against the Lombard League’s victory over Frederick Barbarossa in 1176 ce, was Verdi’s emphatic response to the Italian unification movement, or Risorgimento, which spilled over into open warfare in…

Rage Against the Machine: The Battle of Los Angeles (1999) was also successful commercially. In the summer of 2000 the group staged a concert outside the Democratic National Convention in Los Angeles, after which a small riot erupted between some audience members and police. In October of that year,…

The Battle of Maldon, Old English heroic poem describing a historical skirmish between East Saxons and Viking (mainly Norwegian) raiders in 991. It is incomplete, its beginning and ending both lost. The poem is remarkable for its vivid, dramatic combat scenes and for its expression of the Germanic

John Ford: 1930s to World War II: …Department’s photographic unit—two of which, The Battle of Midway (1942) and December 7th (1943), won Academy Awards for best documentary—and, working for the Office of Strategic Services, he was present at Omaha Beach on D-Day. Having been personally under fire and a witness to slaughter, he was so proud of…

Battle of Nahāvand, (ad 642), military clash in Iran between Arab and Sāsānian forces that was a major turning point in Iranian history. The battle ended in disastrous defeat for the Sāsānian armies and paved the way for the Arab conquest, which resulted in the Islamization of Iran. At Nahāvand

ballad: Historical ballads: …though a few, like “The Battle of Otterburn,” celebrate events of an earlier date, in this case 1388. “The Hunting of the Cheviot,” recorded about the same time and dealing with the same campaign, is better known in a late broadside version called “Chevy Chase.” The details in historical…

tapestry: 16th century: …detail in sets such as The Battle of Pavia, The Story of Abraham, The Story of Tobias, and The Hunts of the Emperor Maximilian I (before 1528). Among his followers in the first half of the 16th century were the Flemish painters Pieter Coecke van Aelst (1502–50), Jan Vermeyen (c.…

Eugène Delacroix: Development of mature style: …January 5, 1477 (1831) and Battle of Poitiers (1830). He also painted the typically Byronic subject of Combat Between the Giaour and the Pasha (1835). Like Géricault, Delacroix explored the newly invented medium of lithography and made a set of 17 lithographs (1827) illustrating a French edition of Johann Wolfgang…

Battle of Queenston Heights, (Oct. 13, 1812), serious U.S. reverse in the War of 1812, sustained during an abortive attempt to invade Canada. On Oct. 13, 1812, Major General Stephen Van Rensselaer, commanding a force of about 3,100 U.S. militia, sent advance units across the Niagara River. They

Frank Capra: The 1940s: …Award for best documentary, and Battle of Russia (1943; codirected with Anatole Litvak) were released theatrically during the war. Capra left the army with the rank of full colonel and with a Distinguished Service Medal.