Chelles

Town, eastern suburb of Paris, in Seine-et-Marne département, Paris region, north-central France, near the Marne River. It is the site of ancient Calae and has ruins of the 7th-century Abbey of Notre-Dame-de-Chelles (founded by Bathilde, widow of Clovis II, and destroyed during the French Revolution). Prehistoric remains found nearby in the 19th century were designated Chellean

Asceticism

The origins of asceticism lie in man's attempts to achieve various ultimate goals or ideals: development of the “whole” person, human creativity, ideas, the “self,” or skills demanding technical proficiency. Athletic askesis (“training”), involving the ideal of bodily fitness and excellence, was developed to ensure the highest possible degree of physical fitness in an athlete.

Percé

City, Gaspésie–Îles-de-la-Madeleine region, eastern Quebec province, Canada. It lies along the Gulf of St. Lawrence, at the east end of the Gaspé Peninsula. First visited in 1534 by Jacques Cartier, it has been the site of a Roman Catholic mission since 1670. Percé is now a fishing port and summer resort. Offshore, but connected by a sandbar at low tide, is famed Rocher-Percé (“Pierced

Intelligence

In government and military operations, evaluated information concerning the strength, activities, and probable courses of action of foreign countries or nonstate actors that are usually, though not always, enemies or opponents. The term also is used to refer to the collection, analysis, and distribution of such information and to secret intervention in the political

Belgium

The Belgian Parliament approved a further decentralization of power to the country's three regions during 2001. After six months of intense negotiations between the major political parties, it was agreed in July that responsibility for agricultural policy, foreign trade, development cooperation, and control over communal and provincial councils would pass from

Forcados River

River, a major navigable channel of the Niger Delta, southern Nigeria. It leaves the main course of the Niger River about 20 miles (32 km) downstream from Aboh and flows through zones of freshwater swamps, mangrove swamps, and coastal sand ridges before completing its 123-mile (198-kilometre) westerly course to the Bight of Benin. Since about 1900 it has been the chief link for small ship

Thomas, W(illiam) I(saac)

Thomas taught sociology at the University of Chicago (1895–1918), the New School for Social Research, New York City (1923–28), and Harvard University (1936–37). His Sex and

Athlone, Godard Van Reede, 1st Earl Of, Baron Of Aughrim, Heer (lord) Van Ginkel

Van Reede's father, Adriaan, the first baron van Reede (a Danish title),

Childhood Disease And Disorder, Respiratory disorders

Numerous abnormalities of respiratory function are common in the newborn infant. One of the most severe is respiratory distress syndrome (RDS; also called hyaline membrane disease). RDS occurs in 0.5 to 1 percent of all deliveries, and, as previously mentioned, is especially common in premature infants. In addition, it is encountered commonly in infants of diabetic mothers

Valenciennes Lace

The

Adam's Bridge

Also called  Rama's Bridge,   chain of shoals, between the islands of Mannar, near northwestern Sri Lanka, and Rameswaram, off the southeastern coast of India. The bridge is 30 miles (48 km) long and separates the Gulf of Mannar (southwest) from the Palk Strait (northeast). Some of the sandbanks are dry, and nowhere are the shoals deeper than 4 feet (1 m); thus, they seriously hinder navigation. Dredging operations,

Stranitzky, Joseph Anton

Stranitzky began his career as an itinerant puppeteer. After his arrival in Vienna (c. 1705) he formed his own company, which performed burlesques and farces in German, often based on Italian libretti. By 1711 he and his troupe had become

Kerguelen Islands

Archipelago in the southern Indian Ocean. Administratively a part of the French Southern and Antarctic Lands (Terres Australes et Antarctiques Françaises), it consists of the island of Kerguelen (also known as Desolation Island) and nearly 300 islets, which together cover about 2,400 square miles (6,200 square km). Heavily glaciated Kerguelen Island, about 100 miles (160 km) in length, has