M. Night Shyamalan: …in The Visit (2015) and Split (2016), the latter being a sequel to Unbreakable.

Xia Gui: Life: …his use of a “split brush” (i.e., the brush tip divided so as to make two or more strokes at once) in painting tree foliage and of his freehand drawing of architecture, bridges, and so forth, “without employing a ruler.” They say that he liked to use a brush…

antiphonal singing: The term cori spezzati (“split choirs”) was used to describe polychoral singing in Venice in the later 16th century. Compare responsorial singing.

Richard J. Roberts: …for his independent discovery of “split genes.”

hand tool: Casting: With experience, closed but longitudinally split and, hence, two-piece molds were devised, each side having a groove down the middle to furnish a strengthening rib on both sides of the blade.

dissociative identity disorder, mental disorder in which two or more independent and distinct personality systems develop in the same individual. Each of these personalities may alternately inhabit the person’s conscious awareness to the exclusion of the others. In some cases all of the

basketry: Sewed coiling: …preceding coil (split stitch, or furcate). This sewed type of coiled ware has a very wide distribution: it is almost the exclusive form in many regions of North and West Africa; it existed in ancient Egypt and occurs today in Arabia and throughout the Mediterranean basin as far as western…

split-brain syndrome, condition characterized by a cluster of neurological abnormalities arising from the partial or complete severing or lesioning of the corpus callosum, the bundle of nerves that connects the right and left hemispheres of the brain. Although it is not fully understood whether the

man-made fibre: Split-film fibres: Very cheap fibres for use in applications that cannot justify the cost of fibres spun by the usual methods (for instance, packaging materials) may be prepared by the split-film method. This process consists of extruding a polymer such as polypropylene through a die…

baseball: The pitching repertoire: …pitcher Bruce Sutter introduced the split-fingered fastball, which broke downward at the plate in a motion often compared, with some exaggeration, to a ball rolling off a table.

baseball: The pitching repertoire: …pitcher Bruce Sutter introduced the split-fingered fastball, which broke downward at the plate in a motion often compared, with some exaggeration, to a ball rolling off a table.

technology of photography: Focusing aids: …focusing aids such as a split-image wedge alone or with a microprism area, in the screen centre. The split-image wedge consists of a pair of prism wedges that split an out-of-focus image into two sharp halves laterally displaced relative to one another. When the lens is correctly focused the image…

boa: …of snakes: the Mascarene, or split-jawed, boas (family Bolyeriidae) and dwarf boas (ground and wood boas of the family Tropidophiidae); these two families are not closely related to each other or to the true boas.

electric motor: Split-phase motors: An alternative means of providing a rotating field for starting is to use two stator windings, as in the figure, where the auxiliary winding b-b′ is made of more turns of smaller conductors so that its resistance is much larger than that of…

income tax: Integration: …is the case in a split-rate system. With a zero rate on distributed profits, the corporate tax would apply only to undistributed profits. The same effect could be achieved by allowing corporations a deduction for dividends it has paid. The split-rate system offers a tax incentive for distribution of profits…

metamaterial: …as metallic wire arrays and split-ring resonators (SRRs), proposed by English physicist John Pendry in the 1990s and now widely adopted. By adjusting the spacing and size of the elements in metallic wire arrays, a material’s electric permittivity (a measure of the tendency of the electric charge within the material…

air warfare: Air superiority: …diving maneuver called the split-S, half-roll, or Abschwung was frequently executed against bombers. Heavily armed fighters such as the British Hurricane or the German Fw-190, instead of approaching from the side or from below and to the rear, would attack head-on, firing until the last moment and then rolling just…

television: Special techniques: …particularly in sports broadcasting, of split-screen techniques and the related methods of inserting a portion of the image from another camera into an area cut out from the main image. These techniques employ an electronic switching circuit that turns off the signal circuit of one camera for a portion of…

transplant: Split or partial-thickness skin grafts: Split, or partial-thickness, skin grafts are by far the most commonly used grafts in plastic surgery. Superficial slices of skin the thickness of tissue paper are cut with a hand or mechanical razor. The graft, which contains living cells, is…

high-pressure phenomena: Large-volume apparatuses: Many high-pressure researchers now employ split-sphere or multianvil devices, which compress a sample uniformly from all sides. Versions with six anvils that press against the six faces of a cube-shaped sample or with eight anvils that compress an octahedral sample are in widespread use. Unlike the simple squeezer, piston-cylinder, and…

transplant: Split or partial-thickness skin grafts: Split, or partial-thickness, skin grafts are by far the most commonly used grafts in plastic surgery. Superficial slices of skin the thickness of tissue paper are cut with a hand or mechanical razor. The graft, which contains living cells, is…

baseball: The pitching repertoire: …pitcher Bruce Sutter introduced the split-fingered fastball, which broke downward at the plate in a motion often compared, with some exaggeration, to a ball rolling off a table.

Fay Weldon: Weldon’s other works included Splitting (1995), a novel about a recently divorced woman’s attempts to reconstruct herself and unite the conflicting personalities and voices in her head; Wicked Women: A Collection of Short Stories (1995); and Worst Fears (1996), in which an actress must face her fear of being…

Ted Kooser: He subsequently published the collections Splitting an Order (2014), Kindest Regards: New and Selected Poems (2018), and Red Stilts (2020). His nonfiction work included Local Wonders: Seasons in the Bohemian Alps (2002) and The Poetry Home Repair Manual: Practical Advice for Beginning Poets (2005), a guidebook to writing poetry.

Puffy AmiYumi: …tour and releasing the album Splurge. With what seemed an ever-expanding fan base, the duo subsequently recorded more albums, including Hit & Fun (2007), Honeycreeper (2007), Puffy AmiYumi X Puffy (2009), Bring It! (2009), and Thank You (2011).

multiple sclerosis: Prevalence and types of multiple sclerosis: …types of MS: relapsing-remitting (RRMS), secondary-progressive (SPMS), primary-progressive (PPMS), and progressive-relapsing (PRMS). About 80–85 percent of patients are diagnosed initially with RRMS. In this form of the disease, onset is usually gradual, and there are alternating intervals of symptom exacerbation and complete symptom remission. In many patients with RRMS, symptoms…

Austria: Political process: The center-left Social Democratic Party of Austria (Sozialdemokratische Partei Österreichs; SPÖ; until 1991 the Socialist Party) was founded in 1945. It is a successor of the original Social Democratic Party (founded in 1889), which was a driving force in the establishment of the First Austrian Republic in…

Schutzbund: …workers’ guards by the Austrian Social Democratic Party, of which the Schutzbund remained an adjunct. It was also descended from the People’s Guard of 1918, a Social Democratic weapon against the Communists; it considered as its main objective the protection of a social reform program hated by Austria’s conservative bourgeois…

Benjamin Spock was an American pediatrician whose books on child-rearing, especially his Common Sense Book of Baby and Child Care (1946; 6th ed., 1992), influenced generations of parents and made his name a household word. Spock received his medical degree in 1929 from Columbia University’s College

Benjamin Spock was an American pediatrician whose books on child-rearing, especially his Common Sense Book of Baby and Child Care (1946; 6th ed., 1992), influenced generations of parents and made his name a household word. Spock received his medical degree in 1929 from Columbia University’s College

Benjamin Spock was an American pediatrician whose books on child-rearing, especially his Common Sense Book of Baby and Child Care (1946; 6th ed., 1992), influenced generations of parents and made his name a household word. Spock received his medical degree in 1929 from Columbia University’s College

Spode porcelain, porcelain introduced about 1800 in the factory of Josiah Spode and Josiah Spode II at Stoke-upon-Trent, Staffordshire, Eng. This hybrid porcelain—combining the ingredients of hard-paste porcelain (china clay and china stone) and bone ash—became the standard English bone china.

bone china: …bone china is attributed to Josiah Spode the Second, who introduced it around 1800. His basic formula of six parts bone ash, four parts china stone, and three and a half parts china clay remains the standard English body. Although hard porcelain is strong, it chips fairly easily and, unless…

Spodosol, one of the 12 soil orders in the U.S. Soil Taxonomy. Spodosols are ashy gray, acidic soils with a strongly leached surface layer. Their suitability for cultivation is limited to acid-tolerant crops and orchards, provided that sufficient lime and fertilizer are applied. Covering about 3.5

spodumene, a lithium aluminum silicate mineral (LiAlSi2O6) in the pyroxene family, an important ore of lithium and a source of ceramic materials. It is ordinarily found in lithium-bearing granite pegmatites. When brilliant and glassy, clear spodumene is valued as a semiprecious gem (more by

Library of Congress: Librarian of Congress Ainsworth Rand Spofford (1864–97) was the first to propose that the library be moved to a dedicated building. He also was instrumental in establishing the copyright law of 1870, which placed the Copyright Office in the Library of Congress and required anyone seeking a copyright…

Harriet Elizabeth Prescott Spofford was an American writer whose Gothic romances are set apart by luxuriant description and her unconventional handling of the female stereotypes of her day. Harriet Prescott moved from her native Maine to Newburyport, Massachusetts, in 1849 and attended the

cricket: Test matches: …bowler of this era in F.R. Spofforth and the first of the great wicketkeepers in J.McC. Blackham.

Louis Spohr was a German violinist, composer, and conductor whose compositions illustrate an early aspect of the Romantic period in German music. Spohr taught himself composition by studying the scores of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. He studied violin with the leader of the Brunswick orchestra and in

Louis Spohr was a German violinist, composer, and conductor whose compositions illustrate an early aspect of the Romantic period in German music. Spohr taught himself composition by studying the scores of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. He studied violin with the leader of the Brunswick orchestra and in

land reclamation: Reclamation of mine spoils: …of piles of overburden, called spoil banks, with a deep trench at the side where operations ceased. The piles of overburden are generally loose and porous but barren of plant life and only slowly revegetated by natural processes. Historically, when the mineral deposits in an area were exhausted, the site…

baking: Spoilage by microbes: Bakery products are subject to the microbiological spoilage problems affecting other foods. If moisture content is kept below 12 to 14 percent (depending on the composition), growth of yeast, bacteria, and molds is completely inhibited. Nearly all crackers and cookies fall below…

airplane: Devices for aerodynamic control: …found on military aircraft, and spoilers, which are surfaces that can be extended on the wing or fuselage to disrupt the air flow and create drag or to act in the same manner as ailerons. Drag can also be provided by extension of the landing gear or, at the appropriate…

Ray Enright: …most notable of which were The Spoilers (1942), a Yukon adventure based on the novel by Rex Beach (which had been filmed three times previously), with the cast of Marlene Dietrich, John Wayne, and Randolph Scott (who made six other films with Enright); and ‘Gung Ho!’: The Story of Carlson’s…

The Spoils of Poynton, short novel by Henry James, first published as a serial titled The Old Things in The Atlantic Monthly in 1896. Retitled The Spoils of Poynton, it was published as a book in 1897. Poynton Park is the home of old Mrs. Gereth, an antique collector with impeccable taste who has

spoils system, practice in which the political party winning an election rewards its campaign workers and other active supporters by appointment to government posts and with other favours. The spoils system involves political activity by public employees in support of their party and the employees’

The Balkan Trilogy: …of The Great Fortune (1960), The Spoilt City (1962), and Friends and Heroes (1965), the trilogy is a semiautobiographical account of a British couple living in the Balkans during World War II. The complex narrative, composed of several different voices, is noted for its vivid historicity.

Plateau Indian: Language: Sanpoil, Nespelim, Spokan, Kalispel, Pend d’Oreille, Coeur d’Alene, and Flathead peoples. Some early works incorrectly denote all Salishan groups as “Flathead.”

Spokane, city, seat (1879) of Spokane county, eastern Washington, U.S., at the falls of the Spokane River. Frequented by trappers when the North West Company built a trading post there in 1810, the site was settled in 1872 and laid out in 1878. Known as Spokane Falls (for the Spokane Indians, whose

Spokane, city, seat (1879) of Spokane county, eastern Washington, U.S., at the falls of the Spokane River. Frequented by trappers when the North West Company built a trading post there in 1810, the site was settled in 1872 and laid out in 1878. Known as Spokane Falls (for the Spokane Indians, whose

Spokane River, river rising in Coeur d’Alene Lake, Kootenai county, northern Idaho, U.S., and flowing west across the Washington border through Spokane for about 50 miles (80 km) to the Columbia River. The Spokane is 100 miles (160 km) long and has several dams, including Long Lake Dam

bicycle: Wheels: Bicycle wheels have a rim to retain the tire, a ball-bearing hub, and spokes between hub and rim. Spokes are made of steel wire, laced tangentially and kept under tension by threaded nipples in the rims that are adjusted to keep the rim straight…

Laura Welch Bush: Bush later wrote an autobiography, Spoken from the Heart (2010), in which she defended her husband and for the first time publicly discussed the 1963 car accident.

speech, human communication through spoken language. Although many animals possess voices of various types and inflectional capabilities, humans have learned to modulate their voices by articulating the laryngeal tones into audible oral speech. Human speech is served by a bellows-like respiratory

broadcasting: Spoken word: Spoken-word programs have included entertainment types, such as “This Is Your Life” and many of the “talk shows,” in which a personality interviewer questions celebrities, sometimes with interludes of music or comedy or with serious discussions, documentaries, or lectures. A fear of controversy,…

hand tool: Plane: The spokeshave, which may be likened to a short-bodied plane with a handle on either side allowing the tool to be pulled toward the operator, has left little in the way of a record. The term was first used about 1510, but the earliest known example…

The Ghost Sonata, one-act drama in three scenes by August Strindberg, written and published as Spöksonaten in 1907 and performed the following year. The drama is considered the best of Strindberg’s four chamber plays, written during his years as director of Stockholm’s Intima Theatre, and it is one

Guy II was a duke of Spoleto, who was claimant to the throne of the Holy Roman Empire in the chaotic end of the Carolingian era. His father, Guy I, duke of Spoleto, had come to Italy in the entourage of Lothar I and had successfully expanded his family’s power in central and southern Italy.

Spoleto, town and archiepiscopal see, Umbria regione, central Italy; it lies on a detached spur at the southern extremity of the central Umbrian plain, commanding the passes southward and eastward toward Terni and Norcia, north of Rome. The site of an Umbrian township from at least the 7th to the

Spoleto, town and archiepiscopal see, Umbria regione, central Italy; it lies on a detached spur at the southern extremity of the central Umbrian plain, commanding the passes southward and eastward toward Terni and Norcia, north of Rome. The site of an Umbrian township from at least the 7th to the

South Carolina: Sports and recreation: …prominent of these is Charleston’s Spoleto Festival, which was founded in 1977 by the Italian opera composer Gian Carlo Menotti as the New World branch of his Festival of Two Worlds in Spoleto, Italy. The annual event features hundreds of actors, singers, dancers, musicians, and other artists in more than…

Spoleto: …ancient citadel, and by the cathedral, consecrated in 1198 and extensively remodeled in 1634–44. The cathedral, with eight rose windows and a central mosaic by Solsternus (1207), contains a magnificent fresco of the Coronation of the Virgin by Fra Filippo Lippi and pupils, as well as Lippi’s tomb. Other notable…

Lambert Of Spoleto was the duke of Spoleto, king of Italy, and Holy Roman emperor (892–898) during the turbulent late Carolingian Age. He was one of many claimants to the imperial title. Crowned coemperor with his father, Guy of Spoleto, at a ceremony in Ravenna in 892, Lambert ruled alone after

ancient Greek civilization: Formal relationships: …for such a treaty is spondai, which literally means “libations” to the guaranteeing gods). The earliest surviving inscriptional peace treaty “for all time” dates from the 6th century and was found at Olympia. Nonetheless, there were surely agreements to limit warfare over strips of boundary land before that date. Archaeology…

spondee, metrical foot consisting of two long (as in classical verse) or stressed (as in English verse) syllables occurring together. The term was derived from a Greek word describing the two long musical notes that accompanied the pouring of a libation. Spondaic metre occurred occasionally in

spondee, metrical foot consisting of two long (as in classical verse) or stressed (as in English verse) syllables occurring together. The term was derived from a Greek word describing the two long musical notes that accompanied the pouring of a libation. Spondaic metre occurred occasionally in

Royall Tyler was a U.S. lawyer, teacher, and dramatist, known as the author of the first American comedy, The Contrast (1787). After graduating from Harvard University, Tyler served in the U.S. Army and later became a lawyer. A meeting with Thomas Wignell, the star comedian of the American Company,

hog plum, (Spondias mombin), ornamental tree of the cashew family (Anacardiaceae), native to the tropical Americas. The hog plum and several other species of the genus Spondias are cultivated for their edible plumlike fruits. The young leaves can also be eaten, and various parts of the plant are

spondylitis, inflammation of one or more of the vertebrae. Spondylitis takes several forms; the most widely occurring forms are ankylosing spondylitis, hypertrophic spondylitis, and tuberculous spondylitis. Ankylosing spondylitis (also called Bekhterev spondylitis, deforming spondylitis, or

arthritis: Spondyloarthropathies: Ankylosing spondylitis, Reiter syndrome, psoriatic arthritis, and arthritis associated with inflammatory bowel disease are a subset of conditions known as spondyloarthropathies. Typically affected are the sacrum and vertebral column, and back pain is the most common presenting symptom. Enthesitis,

spondylolisthesis, forward slipping of one of the vertebrae on the subjacent vertebra or on the sacrum, the triangular bone at the base of the spinal column. The most common vertebrae involved are the lumbar (lower back). The condition is often associated with degenerative joint disease or with

spondylosis, noninflammatory degenerative disease of the spine resulting in abnormal bone development around the vertebrae and reduced mobility of the intervertebral joints. It is primarily a condition of age and occurs much more commonly in men than in women; onset of symptoms is gradual, but

baking: The sponge-and-dough method: …stage, the mixture, called the sponge, usually contains one-half to three-fourths of the flour, all of the yeast, yeast foods, and malt, and enough water to make a stiff dough. Shortening may be added at this stage, although it is usually added later, and one-half to three-fourths of the salt…

sponge, any of the primitive multicellular aquatic animals that constitute the phylum Porifera. They number approximately 5,000 described species and inhabit all seas, where they occur attached to surfaces from the intertidal zone to depths of 8,500 metres (29,000 feet) or more. The members of one

batter: Angel food and sponge cake batters, usually made without leavening ingredients, are leavened during baking by the expansion of the many small air bubbles that have been incorporated into the batter by vigorous mixing or beating. Pancakes too are made with batter. Batters are also used as coatings…

sponge candy, a crunchy, bite-size, chocolate-covered crystalline candy. Much like malt balls, it has a crispy inner texture that melts away quickly when eaten. The sweet filling usually tastes of caramelized sugar or molasses, while the covering is typically milk chocolate or dark chocolate. The

loofah, (genus Luffa), genus of seven species of annual climbing vines of the gourd family (Cucurbitaceae), native to the Old World tropics. Two species (Luffa acutangula and L. aegyptiaca) are commonly cultivated for their fruits, which are edible when young and have a fibrous spongelike interior

renal cyst: In medullary cystic diseases, also thought to be congenital in origin, cysts form in the small collecting tubules that transport urine from the nephrons, the urine-producing units of the kidney. The disease generally does not have warning symptoms, but affected persons become anemic and have low…

foam rubber, flexible, porous substance made from a natural or synthetic latex compounded with various ingredients and whipped into a froth. The resulting product contains roughly 85 percent air and 15 percent rubber and can be molded and vulcanized. Its uses include padding for furniture,

bread: Methods of bread making: …performed by the straight-dough or sponge-dough methods or by the continuous-mixing process. In the straight-dough method, frequently used in small bakeries, all ingredients are mixed at one time. In the sponge-dough method, only some of the ingredients are mixed, forming a sponge that is allowed to ferment and is then…

Nickelodeon: …programs, such as the animated SpongeBob SquarePants (1999– ) and the live-action sitcom iCarly (2007–12), frequently ranked among the highest-rated cable programs in the United States. Nickelodeon’s offerings aimed at preschoolers, a key element of its success, included Blue’s Clues (1996–2006), Dora the Explorer (2000–14, 2019), and Go, Diego, Go!…

Cyndi Lauper: Broadway musicals: …wrote songs for the musical SpongeBob SquarePants, which premiered on Broadway in 2017; the score was nominated for a Tony.

Spongiforma squarepantsii, species of fungus found on the island of Borneo, in the extreme southwestern Pacific Ocean, and known in particular for its form, which is similar to that of a sea sponge, and for its pale orange color. Spongiforma squarepantsii was discovered in 2010 by mycologists

batter: Angel food and sponge cake batters, usually made without leavening ingredients, are leavened during baking by the expansion of the many small air bubbles that have been incorporated into the batter by vigorous mixing or beating. Pancakes too are made with batter. Batters are also used as coatings…

Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease: …diseases are types of transmissible spongiform encephalopathies, so called because of the characteristic spongelike pattern of neuronal destruction that leaves brain tissue filled with holes.

Spongiforma squarepantsii, species of fungus found on the island of Borneo, in the extreme southwestern Pacific Ocean, and known in particular for its form, which is similar to that of a sea sponge, and for its pale orange color. Spongiforma squarepantsii was discovered in 2010 by mycologists

freshwater sponge, any of about 20 species of the genus Spongilla (class Demospongiae, siliceous sponges), a common, widely occurring group. Spongilla species are found in clean lake waters and slow streams. Freshwater sponges are delicate in structure, growing as encrusting or branching masses.

spongillafly, (family Sisyridae), any of a group of insects (order Neuroptera) that are smoky brown in colour and resemble lacewings. Females deposit clusters of eggs under a silky web near or on the water. The larva lives as a parasite on a freshwater sponge. It leaves the water when fully grown

sponge: Other types: …(Ceractinomorpha) has a type of spongin, which, in certain orders (Axinellida, Poecilosclerida, and Haplosclerida), cements the spicules in bundles or meshes, thereby increasing the elastic nature of the skeleton. In another group of Demospongiae (Keratosa), spongin fibres constitute the entire skeleton; the spongin fibres may be branched (order Dendroceratida), netlike…

sponge: Water-current system: …into the central cavity, or spongocoel, and leaves by way of an osculum. In most syconoid sponges (e.g., Scypha) the radial canals are bordered by incurrent canals through which passes the water entering the pores; other openings (prosopyles) allow water into the choanocytes, from which it passes directly into the…

Plasmodiophoromycota: …cabbage and related plants, and Spongospora subterranea, which causes powdery scab of potatoes.

cancellous bone, light, porous bone enclosing numerous large spaces that give a honeycombed or spongy appearance. The bone matrix, or framework, is organized into a three-dimensional latticework of bony processes, called trabeculae, arranged along lines of stress. The spaces between are often

angiosperm: Leaves: …to the leaf surface, and spongy parenchyma, located in the lower part of the leaf and composed of irregularly shaped cells. The veins contain primary xylem and phloem and are enclosed by a layer of parenchyma called the bundle sheath. Only the midvein and some large lateral veins have any…

spongy moth, (Lymantria dispar), lepidopteran that is a serious pest of both deciduous and evergreen trees. The European strain was accidentally introduced into eastern North America about 1869, and by 1889 it had become a serious pest of deciduous forests and fruit trees. By the end of the 20th

angiosperm: Leaves: …to the leaf surface, and spongy parenchyma, located in the lower part of the leaf and composed of irregularly shaped cells. The veins contain primary xylem and phloem and are enclosed by a layer of parenchyma called the bundle sheath. Only the midvein and some large lateral veins have any…

godparent, in Christianity, one who stands surety for another in the rite of baptism. In the modern baptism of an infant or child, the godparent or godparents make a profession of faith for the person being baptized (the godchild) and assume an obligation to serve as proxies for the parents if the

spontaneous combustion, the outbreak of fire without application of heat from an external source. Spontaneous combustion may occur when combustible matter, such as hay or coal, is stored in bulk. It begins with a slow oxidation process (as bacterial fermentation or atmospheric oxidation) under

radiation: Absorption and emission: …multiplied by the probability of spontaneous emission, Aji, to the ground state plus the additional induced emission term, Nj Bji I(ν), in which Bji is a term that Einstein showed to be equal to Bi

spontaneous fission, type of radioactive decay in which certain unstable nuclei of heavier elements split into two nearly equal fragments (nuclei of lighter elements) and liberate a large amount of energy. Spontaneous fission, discovered (1941) by the Russian physicists G.N. Flerov and K.A.

spontaneous generation, the hypothetical process by which living organisms develop from nonliving matter; also, the archaic theory that utilized this process to explain the origin of life. According to that theory, pieces of cheese and bread wrapped in rags and left in a dark corner, for example,