Jason Alexander: Career: …Memoirs (1986), and the drama The Mosquito Coast (1986). In 1989 he moved to California to work on Seinfeld, a comedy series that was initially called The Seinfeld Chronicles.

mosquito fern, (genus Azolla), genus of six or seven species of aquatic ferns of the family Salviniaceae. Members of Azolla are distributed nearly worldwide but are most diverse in tropical regions. Mosquito ferns float on the surface of still, fresh waters, sometimes becoming stranded on muddy

World Malaria Day: …measures, such as insecticide-treated bed nets and indoor insecticide spraying. On the first World Malaria Day the secretary-general of the United Nations, Ban Ki-moon, emphasized the need to increase the availability of bed nets, medicines, public health facilities, and trained health workers to people in areas of the world affected…

William Faulkner: Youth and early writings: A second novel, Mosquitoes (1927), launched a satirical attack on the New Orleans literary scene, including identifiable individuals, and can perhaps best be read as a declaration of artistic independence. Back in Oxford—with occasional visits to Pascagoula on the Gulf Coast—Faulkner again worked at a series of temporary…

mosquitofish, (Gambusia affinis), live-bearing topminnow of the family Poeciliidae (see live-bearer), native to fresh waters of the southeastern United States but widely introduced in other parts of the world for mosquito control. The hardy mosquito fish, which has a prodigious appetite for

moss, (division Bryophyta), any of at least 12,000 species of small nonvascular spore-bearing land plants. Mosses are distributed throughout the world except in salt water and are commonly found in moist shady locations. They are best known for those species that carpet woodland and forest floors.

Moss, town and port, southeastern Norway, on the eastern shore of Oslo Fjord. Moss was founded in the 16th century. On Aug. 14, 1814, it was the site of the signing of the Convention of Moss, which ended the short war between Norway and Sweden that preceded their union. The town has paper and

moss agate, grayish to milky-white agate (q.v.), a variety of the silica mineral quartz that contains opaque, dark-coloured inclusions whose branching forms resemble ferns, moss, or other vegetation. The included materials, mainly manganese and iron oxides, are of inorganic origin. Most moss agates

moss animal, any member of the phylum Bryozoa (also called Polyzoa or Ectoprocta), in which there are about 5,000 extant species. Another 15,000 species are known only from fossils. As with brachiopods and phoronids, bryozoans possess a peculiar ring of ciliated tentacles, called a lophophore, for

gall wasp: Major species: The bedeguar gall (also called moss gall, or robin’s pincushion), which may contain about 50 or more larvae, is commonly seen on rose bushes and is caused by the gall wasp Diplolepis rosae.

tardigrade, (phylum Tardigrada), any of more than 1,100 species of free-living tiny invertebrates belonging to the phylum Tardigrada. They are considered to be close relatives of arthropods (e.g., insects, crustaceans). Tardigrades are mostly about 1 mm (0.04 inch) or less in size. They live in a

phlox: Major species: Moss pink, or creeping phlox (P. subulata), a low evergreen mat covered in early spring with blue, purple, pink, or white massed blooms, is native to sandy soil and rocky ledges in eastern North America. Moss pink is often grown as a garden perennial, creeping…

Gregory Ratoff: Films of the 1930s and ’40s: …turned to murder mysteries with Moss Rose (1947), a thriller set in turn-of-the-century London; Peggy Cummins played a chorus girl who suspects a wealthy man (Victor Mature) of killing her roommate. Ratoff’s period drama about the 18th-century magician Cagliostro, Black Magic (1949), was even better, with lead actor Orson Welles…

Carlton Moss was a filmmaker who inspired later African American filmmakers with the industrial, training, and educational films that he made in the era when segregation and discrimination prevented blacks from writing or directing films in Hollywood. After growing up in North Carolina and Newark,

Charles XIV John: …August the Norwegians signed the Convention of Moss, whereby they accepted Charles XIII as king but retained the May constitution. Thus, when force might have imposed any system on the Norwegians (for a time at least), the Crown Prince insisted on a constitutional settlement.

Elisabeth Moss is an American actress and producer who was best known for her roles in several top-rated television series—notably, The West Wing (1999–2006), Mad Men (2007–15), and The Handmaid’s Tale (2017– )—for which she earned the sobriquet “the queen of peak TV.” Moss grew up in Los Angeles

Elisabeth Moss is an American actress and producer who was best known for her roles in several top-rated television series—notably, The West Wing (1999–2006), Mad Men (2007–15), and The Handmaid’s Tale (2017– )—for which she earned the sobriquet “the queen of peak TV.” Moss grew up in Los Angeles

Howard Moss was an American poet and editor who was the poetry editor of The New Yorker magazine for almost 40 years. Moss, whose father had immigrated to the United States from Lithuania, graduated from the University of Wisconsin in 1943 and published the first of 12 volumes of poetry, The Wound

Texas hold’em: Origins: American card player Johnny Moss recollected that he first became aware of the game in 1926 in Dallas, and American card player Doyle Brunson reported that he first heard of the game in the late 1950s; that it was being played in different parts of Texas, such as…

Boy George: Culture Club: …guitar and the addition of Jon Moss on drums, the group’s name changed again, this time to Culture Club.

Kate Moss is a British fashion model whose waifish figure and natural look redefined the industry in the 1990s and who later became a cultural icon. Moss grew up in the London borough of Croydon. At the age of 14, she was discovered by Sarah Doukas, the owner of the modeling agency Storm. In 1990

Laura Keene was an actress and the first notable female theatre manager in the United States. Mary Moss, as her name is believed to have been originally, grew up in obscurity. She turned to the stage to support herself and made her London debut in The Lady of Lyons in October 1851 under the name

Randy Moss is an American professional football player who is considered one of the greatest wide receivers in National Football League (NFL) history. Moss was a standout high-school football and basketball player, but an arrest for battery during his senior year led the University of Notre Dame to

Randy Moss is an American professional football player who is considered one of the greatest wide receivers in National Football League (NFL) history. Moss was a standout high-school football and basketball player, but an arrest for battery during his senior year led the University of Notre Dame to

Stirling Moss was a British Formula One Grand Prix racing driver who was considered by many to have been the greatest driver who never won a world championship. Moss won his first event in 1950 in England and went on to win scores of races, including the British Grand Prix (twice) and the Monaco

Stirling Moss was a British Formula One Grand Prix racing driver who was considered by many to have been the greatest driver who never won a world championship. Moss won his first event in 1950 in England and went on to win scores of races, including the British Grand Prix (twice) and the Monaco

The Bear: …are “Cousin” Richie Jerimovich (Ebon Moss-Bachrach), who provides an often-gruff sounding board for Carmy’s ideas, and Sydney Adamu (Ayo Edebiri), Carmy’s sous chef, who embraces his vision for the running of The Beef. The first season was lauded for its realistic take on the frantic dynamics of an operating…

Panama: Transitions to democracy and sovereignty: …the secretive Panamanian law firm Mossack Fonseca, revealed how 12 current or former world leaders as well as dozens of other politicians, public officials, and celebrities throughout the world had used tax havens to hide their wealth.

Mossad, (Hebrew: “Central Institute for Intelligence and Special Operations”), one of the three major intelligence organizations of Israel, along with Aman (military intelligence) and Shin Bet (internal security). The Mossad is concerned with foreign intelligence gathering, intelligence analysis,

Mossad, (Hebrew: “Central Institute for Intelligence and Special Operations”), one of the three major intelligence organizations of Israel, along with Aman (military intelligence) and Shin Bet (internal security). The Mossad is concerned with foreign intelligence gathering, intelligence analysis,

Moçâmedes, city and port, southwestern Angola. It was founded in the mid-19th century and settled primarily by Portuguese settlers, some fleeing from the unrest in Portugal’s former colony of Brazil. Located on an arid coastal strip from which rises the steep Huíla escarpment, Moçâmedes was cut off

Mössbauer effect, nuclear process permitting the resonance absorption of gamma rays. It is made possible by fixing atomic nuclei in the lattice of solids so that energy is not lost in recoil during the emission and absorption of radiation. The process, discovered by the German-born physicist Rudolf

Mössbauer effect: Apparatus: …Doppler velocity, resulting in a Mössbauer effect absorption spectrum like that shown in Figure 2. The drop in counting rate in the centre is due to resonant absorption—i.e., the Mössbauer effect. At high positive or negative velocity, the resonant absorption has been destroyed by the Doppler shift.

high-pressure phenomena: Effects on electric and magnetic properties: …in a diamond-anvil cell using Mössbauer spectroscopy, which is a technique that can probe the coupling of a magnetic field with the nuclear magnetic dipole. High-pressure ferromagnetic-to-paramagnetic transitions were documented in iron metal and in magnetite (Fe3O4), while Curie temperatures (i.e., the temperature above which the ferromagnetic properties of a…

Mössbauer effect: Applications: …has been argued that the Mössbauer effect thermal red-shift provides direct experimental resolution of the famous twin paradox of relativity by showing that a space traveler will be younger upon return to Earth than his stay-at-home twin.

Rudolf Ludwig Mössbauer was a German physicist and winner, with Robert Hofstadter of the United States, of the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1961 for his discovery of the Mössbauer effect. Mössbauer discovered the effect in 1957, one year before he received his doctorate from the Technical University

menhaden, any of several species of valuable Atlantic coastal fishes in the genus Brevoortia of the herring family (Clupeidae), utilized for oil, fish meal, and fertilizer. Menhaden have a deep body, sharp-edged belly, large head, and tooth-edged scales. Adults are about 37.5 cm (about 15 inches)

Mossel Bay, city in Western Cape province, South Africa, situated on the Cape Saint Blaize peninsula, facing Mosselbaai, an Indian Ocean inlet. The Outeniqua Mountains lie to the north. The name Mossel means “mussel” in the Dutch and Afrikaans languages. Prehistoric humans lived in caves at nearby

Mossel Bay, city in Western Cape province, South Africa, situated on the Cape Saint Blaize peninsula, facing Mosselbaai, an Indian Ocean inlet. The Outeniqua Mountains lie to the north. The name Mossel means “mussel” in the Dutch and Afrikaans languages. Prehistoric humans lived in caves at nearby

Mosses from an Old Manse, collection of short stories by Nathaniel Hawthorne, published in two volumes in 1846. The 25 tales and sketches of this volume—written while Hawthorne lived at the Old Manse in Concord, Mass., the home of Ralph Waldo Emerson’s ancestors—include some of the author’s finest

Mossi, people of Burkina Faso and other parts of West Africa, especially Mali and Togo. They numbered some six million at the start of the 21st century. Their language, Moore, belongs to the Gur branch and is akin to that spoken by the Mamprusi and Dagomba of northern Ghana, from whom the Mossi

Mossi states, complex of independent West African kingdoms (fl. c. 1500–1895) around the headwaters of the Volta River (within the modern republics of Burkina Faso [Upper Volta] and Ghana) including in the south Mamprusi, Dagomba, and Nanumba, and in the north Tenkodogo, Wagadugu (Ouagadougou),

Mossoró, city, northwestern Rio Grande do Norte estado (state), northeastern Brazil. It lies on the Apodi River, about 30 miles (50 km) from its mouth on the Atlantic coast, at 66 feet (20 metres) above sea level. Formerly known as Santa Luzia de Mossoró, it was given city status in 1870 and is now

bur oak, (Quercus macrocarpa), North American timber tree belonging to the white oak group, distributed primarily throughout the central United States. It has become a popular ornamental and shade tree in urban areas because of its resistance to insect and fungal attack, drought, and air pollution.

bellbird: The mossy-throated, bearded, or black-winged bellbird (P. averano) has many thin wattles hanging from the throat. The three-wattled bellbird (P. tricarunculata), confined to Central America, has three bill wattles. One hangs from each corner of the mouth, and another dangles from the bill’s upper base, each wattle measuring about…

gall wasp: Major species: …caused by the gall wasp Diplolepis rosae.

MOST, Canadian telescope that studied physical processes in stars and properties of extrasolar planets. MOST was launched on June 30, 2003, from Plestek, Russia, and was Canada’s first space telescope. It was a small spacecraft that weighed about 60 kg (130 pounds) and carried a telescope 15 cm (6

Most, city, northwestern Czech Republic. It lies along the Bílina River, southwest of Útsí nad Labem. It was mentioned in early 11th-century German documents as Brüx, which means “bridge,” as does its Czech name. This probably refers to an ancient structure spanning marshy ground near the old town.

Vladimir Gusinsky: In 1989 he established Most Bank, which soon emerged as a strong commercial banking group, and in 1993 began to handle the accounts of the Moscow city government and the vast amounts of money passing through them. In turn, Mayor Yury Luzhkov’s administration reportedly helped Most acquire some of…

Kurosawa Akira: First films: …second film, Ichiban utsukushiku (The Most Beautiful), a story about girls at work in an arsenal. Immediately thereafter, he married the actress who had played the leading part in the picture, Yaguchi Yoko; they had two children, a son and a daughter. In August 1945, when Japan offered to…

Irving Pichel: Directing: His debut was the classic The Most Dangerous Game (1932), which he codirected with Ernest B. Schoedsack. This intense thriller starred Joel McCrea as a shipwreck survivor who is hunted by a killer on a remote island. Before Dawn (1933) was next, followed by the imaginative She (1935), directed with…

Richard Johnson: …author of popular romances, notably The Most Famous History of the Seaven Champions of Christendome (vol 1., 1596; vol. 2, 1597), which was so successful that one or two further parts were added later. The work includes a number of unacknowledged quotations from William Shakespeare.

Redemptorist, a community of Roman Catholic priests and lay brothers founded by St. Alphonsus Liguori at Scala, Italy, a small town near Naples, in 1732. The infant community met an obstacle in the royal court of Naples, which tried to exercise complete control over the order. Only after steps were

Bridgettine: The modern Sisters of the Most Holy Savior of St. Bridget, founded at Rome in 1911 by Mother Elisabeth Hasselblad, were recognized by the Holy See in 1942 as an offshoot of the ancient order. Its members are contemplatives whose prayer life is directed to the reunion…

Bridgettine, a religious order of cloistered nuns founded by St. Bridget of Sweden in 1344 and approved by Pope Urban V in 1370. Bridget believed that she was called by Christ to found a strictly disciplined religious order that would contribute to the reform of monastic life. She went to Rome to

Bridgettine, a religious order of cloistered nuns founded by St. Bridget of Sweden in 1344 and approved by Pope Urban V in 1370. Bridget believed that she was called by Christ to found a strictly disciplined religious order that would contribute to the reform of monastic life. She went to Rome to

Trinitarian, member of the Order of the Most Holy Trinity for the Redemption of Captives (O.SS.T.), a Roman Catholic religious order that was founded in France in 1198 by St. John of Matha. The order’s original mission was to free enslaved Christians from captivity under the Moors in the Middle

A Midsummer Night’s Dream: …inept performance of their play, The Most Lamentable Comedy and Most Cruel Death of Pyramus and Thisbe, which turns out to be a parody of the perilous encounters the various lovers have experienced in the forest and somehow managed to survive.

What were the most popular baby names during the decade you were born? If it was the 1980s or ’90s, Jessica and Michael were number one. Are you named Jacob or Emily? Those names were the winners in the 2000s. What about the most popular names of the last century? Since 1924, Mary has taken the

baseball: Awards: The Most Valuable Player (MVP) is selected in both the American League and the National League. The MVP was first given in 1922; since 1931 the players have been chosen by the Baseball Writers Association of America (BBWAA). There are also MVP awards for the League…

Jessica Chastain: …Strindberg play; the gangster movie A Most Violent Year; and Christopher Nolan’s powerful science-fiction drama Interstellar (all 2014).

John le Carré: A Most Wanted Man (2008; film 2014) follows the efforts of a terrorist—the son of a KGB colonel—to conceal himself in Hamburg. Our Kind of Traitor (2010; film 2016) is the story of an English couple who, while on a tennis holiday, unwittingly find themselves…

Philip Seymour Hoffman: The Master and The Hunger Games: …the John le Carré adaptation A Most Wanted Man (2014).

Kevin Young: Poetry collections: Young’s first poetry collection, Most Way Home (1995), introduced themes that have reappeared throughout his work: African American history, oral traditions, death and grief, family and heritage, and the cultural differences between the American South and North. His next collection, To Repel Ghosts (the double album) (2001), introduced another…

anarchism: Anarchism in the Americas: …by immigrants from Europe, including Johann Most (editor of Die Freiheit; “Freedom”), who justified acts of terrorism on anarchist principles; Alexander Berkman, who attempted to assassinate steel magnate Henry Clay Frick in 1892; and Emma Goldman, whose Living My Life gives a picture of radical activity in the United States…

most-favoured-nation treatment (MFN), guarantee of trading opportunity equal to that accorded to the most-favoured nation; it is essentially a method of establishing equality of trading opportunity among states by making originally bilateral agreements multilateral. As a principle of public

most-favoured-nation treatment (MFN), guarantee of trading opportunity equal to that accorded to the most-favoured nation; it is essentially a method of establishing equality of trading opportunity among states by making originally bilateral agreements multilateral. As a principle of public

Jan Mostaert was a Netherlandish painter of portraits and religious subjects. Little is known about Mostaert’s life. According to one account, he spent 18 years in Brussels and Mechelen as court painter to Margaret of Austria, regent of the Netherlands, but other evidence suggests that he worked

Ruhollah Khomeini was an Iranian Shiʿi cleric who led the revolution that overthrew Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi in 1979 (see Iranian Revolution) and who was Iran’s ultimate political and religious authority for the next 10 years. Khomeini was the grandson and son of mullahs (Shiʿi religious

Mostaganem, town and Mediterranean Sea port, northern Algeria, on the Gulf of Arzew. Known as Murustuge in the 11th century, it contains Bordj el-Mehal (the old citadel), attributed to the 11th-century Almoravid emir Yūsuf ibn Tāshufīn. Captured in 1516 by the sea rover Khayr al-Dīn (Barbarossa),

Mostar, town, Bosnia and Herzegovina. Mostar is the chief city and, historically, the capital of Herzegovina. It is situated in mountainous country along the Neretva River and lies on the Sarajevo-Ploče rail line. First mentioned in 1452, Mostar became a Turkish garrison town in the 16th century.

relish: Lombardy in Italy specializes in mostarda di frutta, a melange of fruits preserved in a sweet syrup made sharp with mustard. In the Pennsylvania Dutch (see Pennsylvania German) cuisine of the United States, “seven sweets and seven sours” traditionally were served, among them many that are favourites throughout the country:…

Zero Mostel was an American actor, singer, and artist who was best known for his physically and emotionally expressive comedic acting. He appeared on the stage, in movies, and on television but won his greatest acclaim in theatre. Mostel grew up in New York City and Connecticut. He aspired to be an

Zero Mostel was an American actor, singer, and artist who was best known for his physically and emotionally expressive comedic acting. He appeared on the stage, in movies, and on television but won his greatest acclaim in theatre. Mostel grew up in New York City and Connecticut. He aspired to be an

Moon: Effects of impacts and volcanism: A small crater, Mösting A, was agreed upon as the reference point. With the Moon considered as a world, rather than just a disk moving across the sky, east and west are interchanged. Thus, Orientale, despite its name, is located at west lunar longitudes.

Miskito, Central American Indians of the lowlands along the Caribbean coast of northeastern Nicaragua. They were encountered by Columbus on his fourth voyage and have been in steady European contact since the mid-17th century. In the late 20th century five subgroups existed, with a total population

Venice Film Festival, world’s oldest film festival, held annually in Venice beginning in late August or early September. Officially part of the Venice Biennale, the festival takes place in the picturesque Lido section of the city, and the combination of location and tradition makes it a popular

Roberto Benigni: …Devil”) and Il mostro (1994; The Monster). His fourth film as director, writer, and actor, Johnny Stecchino (1991), a Mafia farce, set box-office records in Italy.

Mosul, city, capital of Nīnawā muḥāfaẓah (governorate), northwestern Iraq. From its original site on the western bank of the Tigris River, the modern city expanded to the eastern bank and now encircles the ruins of the ancient Assyrian city of Nineveh. Located 225 miles (362 km) northwest of

Hamadan rug, any of several handwoven floor coverings of considerable variety, made in the district surrounding the ancient city of Hamadan (Ecbatana) in western Iran and brought there for marketing. Several generations ago, many of these rugs were traded through Mosul and consequently were known

Mosul school, in metalwork, a group of 13th-century metal craftspeople who were centred in Mosul, Iraq, and who for centuries to come influenced the metalwork of the Islamic world from North Africa to eastern Iran. Under the active patronage of the Zangid dynasty, the Mosul school developed an

Mosul school, in painting, a style of miniature painting that developed in northern Iraq in the late 12th to early 13th century under the patronage of the Zangid dynasty (1127–1222). In technique and style the Mosul school was similar to the painting of the Seljuq Turks, who controlled Iran at that

Moritz Moszkowski was a German pianist and composer known for his Spanish dances. Moszkowski studied piano at Dresden and Berlin, where he gave his first concert in 1873. In 1879 he settled in Paris. His two books of Spanische Tänze, Opus 12, were published in 1876 for piano duet and later in many

Mot, ancient West Semitic god of the dead and of all the powers that opposed life and fertility. He was the favourite son of the god El, and the most prominent enemy of the god Baal, a god of springs, sky, and fertility. Mot was the god of sterility and the master of all barren places.

Gustave Flaubert: Method of composition: …to track down le seul mot juste, “the unique right word,” to convey his thought precisely. But at the same time he always wanted a cadence and a harmony of sounding syllables in his prose, so that it would appeal not only to the reader’s intelligence but also to his…

Amazonas: In 1669 a Portuguese captain, Francisco da Mota Falcão, founded the fort of São José do Rio Negrinho on the site of the present Manaus; and in 1755 the captaincy of São José do Rio Negro was established in the region. After Brazilian independence Rio Negro remained dependent on the…

Melanesian languages: …of Papua New Guinea; and Mota, a widely used lingua franca and literary language of the Melanesian Mission in northern Melanesia in the 19th century.

Portugal: Sports and recreation: Rosa Mota won the marathon at the 1988 Summer Games in Seoul, South Korea, a world championship title, and three European championships; and Carlos Lopes won the men’s marathon at the Summer Games in Los Angeles (1984).

community ecology: Coevolution of one species with several species: pratensis), reed warblers (Acrocephalus scirpaceus), pied wagtails (Motacilla alba yarrellii), and dunnocks (Prunella modularis).

migration: Origin and evolution of migration: The yellow wagtail (Motacilla flava) and the wheatear (Oenanthe oenanthe) settled in Alaska; they migrate annually into other parts of the Western Hemisphere but spend their winters in the warm regions of southeastern Asia and even Africa, probably following the migratory route of their ancestors. A…

passeriform: Annotated classification: Family Motacillidae (pipits and wagtails) Small, slender-bodied ground birds, 12.5 to 23 cm (5 to 9 inches). Pipits similar to larks in appearance but differ in having a bilaminate tarsus and pointed wing with 9 primaries. Wagtails have longer tails, brighter colours. Bill thin, pointed; legs…

Motagua River, river in eastern Guatemala, rising in the central highlands near Chichicastenango. The Motagua is Guatemala’s longest river, measuring approximately 250 miles (400 km). Flowing generally eastward and northeastward, it empties into Omoa Bay off the Gulf of Honduras at the Honduran

Eugenie Clark: …year it was renamed the Mote Marine Laboratory. The year the lab was built, Clark was asked by a cancer researcher to capture some sharks so he could study their livers; that led to the creation of a pen for live sharks at the site. In 1958 Clark undertook research…

motel, originally a hotel designed for persons travelling by automobile, with convenient parking space provided. Motels serve commercial and business travellers and persons attending conventions and meetings as well as vacationers and tourists. The automobile became the principal mode of travel by

Bennie Moten was an American pianist, one of the earliest known organizers of bands in the Midwest in the emergent years of jazz. Moten became a bandleader in and around his hometown of Kansas City, Missouri, in 1922 and remained so until his death. His recording debut was in 1923, and his early

Hazel Motes, fictional character, a fierce, Jesus-haunted man in Flannery O’Connor’s darkly comic novel Wise Blood (1952). The work’s protagonist, Motes preaches nihilism and the pursuit of sin in his “Church Without Christ.” Although at first he rejects conventional religion, he is obsessed with

motet, (French mot: “word”), style of vocal composition that has undergone numerous transformations through many centuries. Typically, it is a Latin religious choral composition, yet it can be a secular composition or a work for soloist(s) and instrumental accompaniment, in any language, with or

Passion music: …Passions adopted a style called motet Passion because the entire text is set polyphonically, as in a motet. The 16th-century French composer Antoine de Longaval, who made extensive use of the plainsong formulas, was more concerned with declamation of the text than with elaborate polyphony. Among the Germans, Jacob Handl…

Montezuma II was the ninth Aztec emperor of Mexico, famous for his dramatic confrontation with the Spanish conquistador Hernán Cortés. In 1502 Montezuma succeeded his uncle Ahuitzotl as the leader of an empire that had reached its greatest extent, stretching to what is now Honduras and Nicaragua,

moth, (superfamily Noctuoidea), any of about 160,000 species of overwhelmingly nocturnal flying insects that, along with the butterflies and skippers, constitute the order Lepidoptera. Moths vary greatly in size, ranging in wingspan from about 4 mm (0.16 inch) to nearly 30 cm (about 1 foot). Highly