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imperial preference ... Indian grass
imperial preference
historically, a commercial arrangement in which preferential rates (i.e., rates below the general level of an established tariff) were granted to one another by constituent units of an empire. Imperial ...
Imperial Valley
intensively irrigated part of the Colorado Desert, mainly in Imperial county, southern California, U.S. The valley extends southward for 50 miles (80 km) from the southern end of the Salton ...
Imperial War Museum
in the United Kingdom, national museum serving as a memorial and record of the wartime efforts and sacrifices of the people of Great Britain and the Commonwealth. Upon its opening ...
imperialism
state policy, practice, or advocacy of extending power and dominion, especially by direct territorial acquisition or by gaining political and economic control of other areas. Because it always involves the ...
imperium
(Latin: "command," "empire"), the supreme executive power in the Roman state, involving both military and judicial authority. It was exercised first by the kings of Rome; under the republic (c. ...
impetigo
inflammatory skin infection that begins as a superficial blister or pustule that then ruptures and gives rise to a weeping spot on which the fluid dries to form a distinct ...
Imphal
capital of Manipur state and administrative headquarters of Manipur Central district, northeastern India, lying in the Manipur River Valley, at an altitude of 2,500 ft (760 m). Imphal was the ...
implantation
in reproduction physiology, the adherence of a fertilized egg to a surface in the reproductive tract, usually to the uterine wall (see uterus), so that the egg may have a ...
implication
in logic, a relationship between two propositions in which the second is a logical consequence of the first. In most systems of formal logic, a broader relationship called material implication ...
impotence
in general, the inability of a man to achieve or maintain penile erection and hence the inability to participate fully in sexual intercourse. In its broadest sense the term impotence ...
Impressionism
a major movement, first in painting and later in music, that developed chiefly in France during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Impressionist painting comprises the work produced between ...
impressment
enforcement of military or naval service on able-bodied but unwilling men through crude and violent methods. Until the early 19th century this practice flourished in port towns throughout the world. ...
imprimatur
(Latin: "let it be printed"), in the Roman Catholic church, a permission, required by contemporary canon law and granted by a bishop, for the publication of any work on Scripture ...
imprinting
process of transferring writing from a master copy to another form. There are three basic methods of imprinting: (1) spirit hectograph master cards, (2) stencil cards, and (3) metal or ...
imprinting
in psychobiology, a form of learning in which a very young animal fixes its attention on the first object with which it has visual, auditory, or tactile experience and thereafter ...
impromptu
a 19th-century piano composition intended to produce the illusion of spontaneous improvisation. In keeping with this fundamental premise, there is no particular form associated with the impromptu, although ternary and ...
improvisation
in music, the extemporaneous composition or free performance of a musical passage, usually in a manner conforming to certain stylistic norms but unfettered by the prescriptive features of a specific ...
improvisation
in theatre, the playing of dramatic scenes without written dialogue and with minimal or no predetermined dramatic activity. The method has been used for different purposes in theatrical history. The ...
imram
in early Irish literature, a story about an adventurous voyage. This type of story includes tales of Irish saints traveling to Iceland or Greenland, as well as fabulous tales of ...
Imredy, Bela
right-wing politician and premier of Hungary (1938-39), whose close collaboration with the Nazis during World War II led to his execution as a war criminal.
Imru' al-Qays
Arab poet, acknowledged as the most distinguished poet of pre-Islamic times by the Prophet Muhammad, by 'Ali, the fourth caliph, and by Arab critics of the ancient Basra school. He ...
in medias res
in narrative technique, the recommended practice of beginning an epic or other fictional form by plunging into a crucial situation that is part of a related chain of events; the ...
In Memoriam stanza
a quatrain in iambic tetrameter with a rhyme scheme of abba. The form was named for the pattern used by Alfred, Lord Tennyson in his poem In Memoriam, which, following ...
In nomine
style of 16th- and 17th-century English instrumental ensemble music based on the plainsong melody of the antiphon (a verse originally sung before and after a psalm in the Roman Catholic ...
in vitro fertilization
medical procedure in which mature egg cells are removed from a woman, fertilized with male sperm outside the body, and inserted into the uterus of the same or another woman ...
Inari
in Japanese mythology, god primarily known as the protector of rice cultivation. The god also furthers prosperity and is worshiped particularly by merchants and tradesmen, is the patron deity of ...
Inari, Lake
largest lake in northern Finland, lying near the Russian border. At an elevation of 389 ft (119 m), it is approximately 50 mi (80 km) long and 25 mi (40 ...
Inazawa
city, Aichi ken (prefecture), Honshu, Japan, in the Owari plain. It was a small rural town during the Tokugawa period (1603-1867), producing vegetables for the market of nearby Nagoya. Increased ...
inbreeding
the mating of individuals or organisms that are closely related through common ancestry, as opposed to outbreeding, which is the mating of unrelated organisms. Inbreeding is useful in the retention ...
Inca
South American Indians who, at the time of the Spanish conquest in 1532, ruled an empire that extended along the Pacific coast and Andean highlands from the northern border of ...
incandescent lamp
any of various devices that produce light by heating a suitable material to a high temperature. When any solid or gas is heated, commonly by combustion or resistance to an ...
Incarnation
central Christian doctrine that God became flesh, that God assumed a human nature and became a man in the form of Jesus Christ, the Son of God and the second ...
Ince, Thomas H
pioneer American motion-picture director, who was the first to organize production methods into a disciplined system of filmmaking.
incense
grains of resins (sometimes mixed with spices) that burn with a fragrant odour, widely used as an oblation. It is commonly sprinkled on lighted charcoal contained in a censer, or ...
incense burner
container generally of bronze or pottery, fitted with a perforated lid, in which incense is burnt. Although incense burners were used in Europe, they were far more widespread in the ...
incense cedar
(species Calocedrus decurrens), ornamental and timber evergreen conifer of the cypress family (Cupressaceae). It is native primarily to the western slopes of the Cascade and Sierra Nevada mountain ranges of ...
Inceptisol
one of the 12 soil orders in the U.S. Soil Taxonomy. Inceptisols are soils of relatively new origin and are characterized by having only the weakest appearance of horizons, or ...
incest
sexual relations between persons who, because of the nature of their kin relationships, are prohibited by law or custom from intermarrying. Because, cross-culturally, incest is more an emotional than a ...
inch
unit of British Imperial and United States Customary measure equal to 136 of a yard. The unit derives from the Old English ince, or ynce, which in turn came from ...
Inch'on
port city, Kyonggi do (province), northwestern South Korea. It lies near the mouth of the Han River, 25 miles (40 km) west-southwest of Seoul, with which it is connected by ...
Inchbald, Elizabeth
nee Simpson English novelist, playwright, and actress whose successful prose romances, A Simple Story (1791) and Nature and Art (1796), are early examples of the novel of passion.
incidental music
music written to accompany or point up the action or mood of a dramatic performance on stage, film, radio, television, or recording; to serve as a transition between parts of ...
incinerator
container for burning refuse, or plant designed for large-scale refuse combustion. In the second sense, an incinerator consists of a furnace into which the refuse is charged and ignited (usually ...
incipit
the opening word or words of a medieval Western manuscript or early printed book. In the absence of a title page, the text may be recognized, referred to, and recorded ...
inclined plane
simple machine consisting of a sloping surface, used for raising heavy bodies. The force required to move an object up the incline is less than the weight being raised, discounting ...
income and employment theory
a body of economic analysis concerned with the relative levels of output, employment, and prices in an economy. By defining the interrelation of these macroeconomic factors, governments try to create ...
income tax
levy imposed on individuals (or family units) and corporations. Individual income tax is computed on the basis of income received. It is usually classified as a direct tax because the ...
incomes policy
collective governmental effort to control the incomes of labour and capital, usually by limiting increases in wages and prices. The term often refers to policies directed at the control of ...
incongruent melting
liquefaction of a solid accompanied by decomposition or by reaction with the melt to produce another solid and a liquid that differs in composition from the original solid. For example, ...
incremental repetition
a device used in poetry of the oral tradition, especially English and Scottish ballads, in which a line is repeated in a changed context or with minor changes in the ...
incubation
the maintenance of uniform conditions of temperature and humidity to ensure the development of eggs or, under laboratory conditions, of certain experimental organisms, especially bacteria. The phrase incubation period designates ...
incubator
an insulated enclosure in which temperature, humidity, and other environmental conditions can be regulated at levels optimal for growth, hatching, or reproduction. There are three principal kinds of incubators: poultry ...
incubus
demon in male form that seeks to have sexual intercourse with sleeping women; the corresponding spirit in female form is called a succubus. In medieval Europe, union with an incubus ...
incunabula
books printed during the earliest period of typography, i.e., from the invention of the art of typographic printing in the 1450s to the end of the 15th century (i.e., January ...
Independence
city, seat (1870) of Montgomery county, southeastern Kansas, U.S. Independence lies on the Verdigris River, near Elk City Lake (dammed for flood control and irrigation). It was founded in 1869 ...
Independence
city, seat of Jackson county, western Missouri, U.S., immediately east of Kansas City. It is the hometown of President Harry S. Truman (who was born at Lamar, 100 miles [160 ...
Independence Day
in the United States, the annual celebration of nationhood. It commemorates the passage of the Declaration of Independence by the Continental Congress on July 4, 1776.
Independence National Historical Park
area of downtown Philadelphia, partially owned by the city but operated by the U.S. National Park Service. It covers 45 acres (18 hectares) and contains a number of historic structures ...
Independent Fundamental Churches of America
fellowship of conservative, independent Christian churches stressing biblical truth. It was organized in Cicero, Illinois, U.S., in June 1930 as the successor to the American Conference of Undenominational Churches.
Independent Television
in the United Kingdom, television network consisting of a consortium of private companies in competition with the British Broadcasting Corporation. It is regulated by the Independent Broadcasting Authority, which was ...
Indes Orientales, Compagnie Francaise des
(French: "French Company of the East Indies"), one of the companies known as the French East India Company (q.v.).
Indes, Compagnie Francaise des
(French: "French Company of the Indies"), one of the companies known as the French East India Company (q.v.).
indeterminacy
in literature, the multiplicity of possible interpretations of given textual elements. The term was given its literary meaning by deconstruction theorists. Indeterminacy is similar to ambiguity as described by the ...
indeterminate sentence
in law, term of imprisonment with no definite duration within a prescribed maximum. Eligibility for parole is determined by the parole authority. In this respect, an indeterminate sentence differs from ...
index fossil
any animal or plant preserved in the rock record of the Earth that is characteristic of a particular span of geologic time or environment. A useful index fossil must be ...
Index Librorum Prohibitorum
(Latin: "Index of Forbidden Books"), list of books once forbidden by Roman Catholic church authority as dangerous to the faith or morals of Roman Catholics. Publication of the list ceased ...
indexation
in fiscal policy, a means of offsetting the effect of inflation or deflation on social security payments and taxes by measuring the "real value" of money from a fixed point ...
India
country that occupies the greater part of South Asia. It is a constitutional republic consisting of 28 states, each with a substantial degree of control over its own affairs; 6 ...
India ink
black pigment in the form of sticks that are moistened before use in drawing and lettering, or the fluid ink consisting of this pigment finely suspended in a liquid medium, ...
India rubber plant
(species Ficus elastica), large tree in its native Southeast Asia and in other warm areas but a common indoor pot plant elsewhere. It has large, thick, oblong leaves, up to ...
India, House of
15th-century Portuguese establishment that managed the trade in products from overseas colonies. It was called House of Guinea because it began by processing products from Guinea. Originally housed in a ...
Indian Airlines
the domestic and regional airline of India, founded in 1953. Whereas the airline Air-India provides a broader international service, Indian Airlines serves the Indian subcontinent-India, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh, Myanmar ...
Indian Association
nationalist political group in India that favoured local self-government and served as a preparatory agent for the more truly national Indian National Congress. The association was founded in Bengal in ...
Indian Botanic Garden
botanical garden in Calcutta, famous for its enormous collections of orchids, bamboos, palms, and plants of the screw pine genus (Pandanus). The garden covers more than 109 hectares (270 acres), ...
Indian Evidence Act
act passed by the British Parliament in 1872 that set forth the rules of evidence admissible in Indian courts and that had far-reaching consequences for the traditional systems of caste ...
Indian grass
(species Sorghastrum nutans), tall perennial forage grass of the family Poaceae and one of the important constituents of the North American tall grass prairie. It bears narrow, greatly branched flower ...