Encyclopaedia Britannica Online Shop

0-9

Gama, Vasco da, 1er Conde Da Vidigueira ... Gao Qipei

Gama, Vasco da, 1er Conde Da Vidigueira: Portuguese navigator whose voyages to India (1497-99, 1502-03, 1524) opened up the sea route from western Europe to the East by way of the Cape of Good Hope and thus ...
Gamagri: city, southern Aichi ken (prefecture), central Honshu, Japan, facing Mikawa Bay. The city has been well known for the manufacture of cotton textiles since the Edo (Tokugawa) ...
Gamaliel I: a tanna, one of a select group of Palestinian masters of the Jewish Oral Law, and a teacher twice mentioned in the New Testament.
Gamaliel II: nasi (president) of the Sanhedrin, at that time the supreme Jewish legislative body, in Jabneh, whose greatest achievement was the unification of the important Jewish laws and rituals in a ...
Gamaliel III: eldest son of Judah ha-Nasi, and the renowned editor of the Mishna (the basic compilation of Jewish oral law).
Gambaga Scarp: line of cliffs along the Volta River basin, northeastern Ghana, western Africa. The scarp forms the elevated northern boundary of the Volta River basin and the eastern section of the ...
Gambetta, Leon: French republican statesman who helped direct the defense of France during the Franco-German War of 1870-71. In helping to found the Third Republic, he made three essential contributions: first, by ...
Gambia River: river in western Africa, 700 miles (1,120 km) long, rising in the Republic of Guinea and flowing westward through The Gambia into the Atlantic Ocean. Its major tributaries are the ...
Gambia, The: country of western Africa, with an area of 4,127 square miles (10,689 square kilometres). Essentially, The Gambia is a strip of land 15 to 30 miles (25 to 50 kilometres) ...
Gambia, The, history of: history of the area from precolonial times to the present.
Gambier Islands: southeasternmost extension of the Tuamotu Archipelago of French Polynesia in the central South Pacific, nearly 1,000 miles (1,600 km) east-southeast of Tahiti. The principal inhabited group of the Gambiers comprises ...
Gambino, Carlo: head of one of the Five Families of organized crime in New York City from 1957 to 1976, with major interests in Brooklyn, and reputedly the "boss of bosses" of ...
gambling: the betting or staking of something of value, with consciousness of risk and hope of gain, on the outcome of a game, a contest, or an uncertain event whose result ...
gamboge: hard, brittle gum resin that is obtained from various Southeast Asian trees of the genus Garcinia and is used as a colour vehicle and in medicine. Gamboge is orange to ...
Gamburtsev Mountains: subglacial range in the central part of eastern Antarctica, extending 750-800 miles (1,200-1,300 km). The mountains attain their greatest height at 11,120 feet (3,390 m). Completely buried under more than ...
game: in gastronomy, the flesh of any wild animal or bird. Game is usually classified according to three categories: (1) small birds, such as the thrush and quail; (2) game proper, ...
game: a universal form of recreation generally including any activity engaged in for diversion or amusement and often establishing a situation that involves a contest or rivalry. Card games are the ...
game theory: branch of applied mathematics that provides tools for analyzing situations in which parties, called players, make decisions that are interdependent. This interdependence causes each player to consider the other player's ...
gamelan: the indigenous orchestra of Java and Bali, consisting largely of several varieties of gongs and various sets of tuned instruments that are struck with mallets. The gongs are either suspended ...
Gamelin, Maurice: French army commander in chief at the beginning of World War II who proved unable to stop the German assault on France (May 1940) that led to the French collapse ...
gamete: sex, or reproductive, cell containing only one set of dissimilar chromosomes, or half of the genetic material necessary to form a complete organism (i.e., haploid). During fertilization, male and female ...
gametophyte: in certain plants, sexual phase (or an individual representing the phase) in the alternation of generations-a phenomenon in which two distinct phases occur in the life history of the plant, ...
gamma decay: type of radioactivity in which some unstable atomic nuclei dissipate excess energy by a spontaneous electromagnetic process. In the most common form of gamma decay, known as gamma emission, gamma ...
gamma function: generalization of the factorial function to nonintegral values, introduced by the Swiss mathematician Leonhard Euler in the 18th century.
gamma globulin: subgroup of the blood proteins called globulins. In humans and many of the other mammals, antibodies, when they are formed, occur in the gamma globulins. Persons who lack gamma globulin ...
gamma ray: electromagnetic radiation of the shortest wavelength and highest energy.
gammarid: any member of the family Gammaridae, the largest of 80 or so families that make up the crustacean order Amphipoda. The name is sometimes also used to refer to amphipods ...
Gammexane: trade name for an insecticide composed of the most toxic of the isomeric forms of benzene hexachloride (q.v.).
Gamow, George: Russian-born American nuclear physicist and cosmologist who was one of the foremost advocates of the big-bang theory, according to which the universe was formed in a colossal explosion that took ...
gamut: in music, the full range of pitches in a musical system; also, the compass of a particular instrument or voice. The word originated with the medieval monk Guido of Arezzo ...
Gan language: Chinese language of the Sino-Tibetan language family spoken primarily in Jiangxi province and the southeastern corner of Hubei province. According to some scholars, there are five primary dialects: Changjing, Yiping, ...
Gananoque: town, southeastern Ontario, Canada. It lies along the St. Lawrence River, at the mouth of the Gananoque River. The town was founded by Charles McDonald, who built a mill there ...
Ganapatya: member of an esoteric Hindu sect devoted to the worship of the elephant-headed Ganesa (also called Ganapati) as the supreme deity. The sect was at its height in about the ...
Ganassa, Zan: one of the most important and influential actors and company managers of the early Italian commedia dell'arte.
Ganca: city, western Azerbaijan. It lies along the Ganca River. The town was founded sometime in the 5th or 6th century, about 4 miles (6.5 km) east of the modern city. ...
Gance, Abel: important director in the post-World War I revival of the French cinema who is best known for extravagant historical spectacles.
Ganda: people inhabiting the area north and northwest of Lake Victoria in south-central Uganda. They speak a Bantu language-called Ganda, or Luganda-of the Benue-Congo group. The Ganda are the most numerous ...
Gandak River: river in central Nepal and northern India. It is formed by the union of the Kali and Trisuli rivers, which rise in the Great Himalaya Range in Nepal; from this ...
Gander: town, northeastern Newfoundland, Canada. It lies just north of Gander Lake, 206 miles (332 km) northwest of St. John's. Gander has one of the largest international airports in North America. ...
Gandhara: historical region in what is now northwestern Pakistan, corresponding to the Vale of Peshawar and having extensions into the lower valleys of the Kabul and Swat rivers.
Gandhara art: style of Buddhist visual art that developed in what is now northwestern Pakistan and eastern Afghanistan between the 1st century BC and the 7th century AD. The style, of Greco-Roman ...
Gandhi, Indira: politician who served as prime minister of India for three consecutive terms (1966-77) and a fourth term (1980-84). She was assassinated by Sikh extremists.
Gandhi, Mohandas Karamchand: leader of the Indian nationalist movement against British rule, considered to be the father of his country. He is internationally esteemed for his doctrine of nonviolent protest to achieve political ...
Gandhi, Rajiv: the leading general secretary of India's Congress (I) Party (from 1981) and prime minister of India (1984-89) after the assassination of his mother, Indira Gandhi. He was himself assassinated in ...
Gandhinagar: city, capital of Gujarat state, west-central India. It lies on the banks of the Sabarmati River, north of the former capital of Ahmadabad. Built to supplant the former capital, the ...
Gandia: city, Valencia provincia, in the comunidad autonoma ("autonomous community") of Valencia, eastern Spain. It lies south of Valencia city at the mouth of the Serpis River. Once a Greek settlement, ...
Ganesan, Sivaji: versatile star of Indian cinema.
Ganesha: elephant-headed Hindu god, the son of Shiva and Parvati. He is also revered by Jains and important in the art, myth, and ritual of Buddhist Asia.
gang: a group of persons, usually youths, who share a common identity and who generally engage in criminal behaviour. In contrast to the criminal behaviour of other youths, the activities of ...
Gang of Four: the most powerful members of a radical political elite convicted for implementing the harsh policies directed by Communist Party chairman Mao Zedong during the Cultural Revolution (q.v.) of the 1960s ...
Gang of Four, the: British rock group known for its Marxist politics and danceable fusion of rock and funk. The principal members were Jon King (b. June 8, 1955, London, Eng., ), Andy Gill ...
Ganga Dynasty: either of two distinct but remotely related Indian dynasties. The Western Gangas ruled in Mysore state (Gangavadi) from about AD 250 to about 1004. The Eastern Gangas ruled Kalinga from ...
Ganganagar: town, extreme northern Rajasthan state, northwestern India. During the 1970s it grew rapidly as an agricultural distribution centre. The town has textile, sugar, and rice mills. A meteorological station and ...
Ganges River: great river of the plains of northern India. Although officially as well as popularly called the Ganga, both in Hindi and in other Indian languages, internationally it is known by ...
Ganges-Yamuna Doab: segment of the Indo-Gangetic Plain in western and southwestern Uttar Pradesh state, northeastern India, with an area of about 23,360 square miles (60,500 square km). It lies between the Ganges ...
ganglion: dense group of nerve-cell bodies present in most animals above the level of cnidarians. In flatworms (e.g., planaria) two lateral neuronal cords carry impulses to and from a pair of ...
gangrene: localized death of animal soft tissue, caused by prolonged interruption of the blood supply that may result from injury or infection. Diseases in which gangrene is prone to occur include ...
gangsta rap: form of hip-hop music that became the genre's dominant style in the 1990s, a reflection and product of the often violent lifestyle of American inner cities afflicted with poverty and ...
Gangtok: town, capital of Sikkim state, northeastern India. It lies at an elevation of 5,600 feet (1,700 m). The town (the name of which means "top of the hill") rises over ...
Ganioda'yo: English Handsome Lake Seneca Indian chief who developed a new religion for the Iroquois (see Handsome Lake cult). The cult was so successful that in the 20th century several thousand ...
Ganivet y Garcia, Angel: Spanish essayist and novelist, considered a precursor of the Generation of '98 because of his concern for the spiritual regeneration of his country. Fluent in five languages, he served with ...
Ganku: original name Saeki Kishi Japanese painter of the late Tokugawa period who established the Kishi school of painting.
gannet: any of three oceanic bird species within the family Sulidae (order Pelecaniformes). Closely related to the boobies and variously classified with them in the genus Sula or separated as Morus ...
Gannett Co., Inc.: one of the largest newspaper publishers in the United States, with interests in newspaper Web sites and television broadcasting as well. The company also publishes a number of newspapers and ...
Gannett Peak: mountain in the Wind River Range and the highest point (13,804 feet [4,207 metres]) in Wyoming, U.S. Located 50 miles (80 km) northwest of Lander on the crest of the ...
Gannett, Frank Ernest: American publisher who established a major chain of daily newspapers in small and medium-sized U.S. cities. During his career Gannett bought many newspapers and often merged them, creating one paper ...
Gans, Eduard: a major German jurist and, for a time, a potent force in the revival of studies of Jewish culture.
Gans, Joe: American professional boxer, known as the Old Master, who was perhaps the greatest fighter in the history of the lightweight division. Because he was black, he was compelled by boxing ...
Gante, Pedro de: Franciscan monk who founded the first school in New Spain (Mexico) and laid the foundations for future Indian education in the Spanish colonies.
Ganymede: largest of Jupiter's satellites and of all the satellites in the solar system. One of the Galilean moons, it was discovered by the Italian astronomer Galileo in 1610. It was ...
Ganymede: in Greek legend, the son of Tros (or Laomedon), king of Troy. Because of his unusual beauty, he was carried off either by the gods or by Zeus, disguised as ...
Ganz, Rudolph: pianist, conductor, and composer, who introduced works by contemporary composers such as Bartok, Ravel, and Vincent d'Indy, and who revived little-played older works in the keyboard repertory.
Gao: town, eastern Mali, western Africa. It is situated on the Niger River at the southern edge of the Sahara Desert, about 200 miles (320 km) east-southeast of Timbuktu. The population ...
Gao Gang: one of the early leaders of the Chinese Communist Party and one of the most important figures in the Communist government established after 1949. His purge in 1954-55 was the ...
Gao Ming: Chinese poet and playwright whose sole surviving opera, Pipaji (The Lute), became the model for drama of the Ming dynasty.
Gao Qipei: technically innovative Chinese landscape painter who used his hands-palms, fingers, nails-in place of the traditional Chinese brush. Gao was precocious and gifted and served in an official capacity during the ...