What makes popcorn pop? A popcorn kernel is actually a seed. At its center is a tiny plant embryo, a life form in its earliest phase. The embryo is surrounded by soft, starchy material that…
(Donna Gaines)singerBorn: 12/31/1948Birthplace: Boston Grammy Award-winning singer who was disco's diva and, surviving the period, emerged as a 1980s pop star. Her recordings include Bad Girls (…
(Encyclopedia) Montale, EugenioMontale, Eugenioā&oomacr;jĕˈnyō mōntäˈlā [key], 1896–1981, Italian poet, critic, and translator. After working as an editor, Montale became chief librarian of the…
(Encyclopedia) Massinger, PhilipMassinger, Philipmăsˈənjər [key], 1583–1640, English dramatist, b. Salisbury. He studied at Oxford (1602–6) but left without a degree, apparently to go to London to…
(Encyclopedia) Duccio di BuoninsegnaDuccio di Buoninsegnad&oomacr;tˈchō dē bwōnēnsāˈnyä [key], fl. 1278–1319, early Italian artist, first great painter of Siena. Infusing new life into the…
(Encyclopedia) Parker, Theodore, 1810–60, American theologian and social reformer, b. Lexington, Mass. He graduated from Harvard Divinity School in 1836 and was pastor (1837–46) of the Spring Street…
(Encyclopedia) Uccello, PaoloUccello, Paolopäˈōlō &oomacr;t-chĕlˈlō [key], c.1396–1475, Florentine painter. Uccello was little appreciated in his own time, and much of his work has been destroyed…
(Encyclopedia) pulpit, in churches, elevated platform with low enclosing sides, used for preaching the sermon. In the earliest churches the episcopal throne served this purpose. The boxlike elevated…
(Encyclopedia) Nervi, Pier LuigiNervi, Pier Luigipyĕr lw&oomacr;ēˈjē nĕrˈvē [key], 1891–1979, Italian architectural engineer. Nervi is considered one of the foremost European architectural…
(Encyclopedia) Bulwer, William Henry Lytton Earle, Baron Dalling and BulwerBulwer, William Henry Lytton Earle, Baron Dalling and Bulwerb&oobreve;lˈwər; lĭtˈən [key], 1801–72, English diplomat and…
