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Etruscan civilization

(Encyclopedia)Etruscan civilization, highest civilization in Italy before the rise of Rome. The core of the territory of the Etruscans, known as Etruria to the Latins, was northwest of the Tiber River, now in moder...

horror

(Encyclopedia)horror or horror story, literary genre in which an eerie, tense, often suspenseful atmosphere typically builds to the discovery of something repugnant, such as cannibalism, incest, or the killing of c...

Joyce, James

(Encyclopedia)Joyce, James, 1882–1941, Irish novelist. Perhaps the most influential and significant novelist of the 20th cent., Joyce was a master of the English language, exploiting all of its resources. His nov...

Puritanism

(Encyclopedia)Puritanism, in the 16th and 17th cent., a movement for reform in the Church of England that had a profound influence on the social, political, ethical, and theological ideas of England and America. ...

whaling

(Encyclopedia)whaling, the hunting of whales for the oil that can be rendered from their flesh, for meat, and for baleen (whalebone). Historically, whale oil was economically the most important. In 1932–33, par...

Internet, the

(Encyclopedia)Internet, the, international computer network linking together thousands of individual networks at military and government agencies, educational institutions, nonprofit organizations, industrial and f...

Peter I, czar of Russia

(Encyclopedia)Peter I or Peter the Great, 1672–1725, czar of Russia (1682–1725), major figure in the development of imperial Russia. Peter's personal traits ranged from bestial cruelty and vice to the most ...

modern dance

(Encyclopedia)modern dance, serious theatrical dance forms that are distinct from both ballet and the show dancing of the musical comedy or variety stage. By the late 20th cent., distinctions among modern da...

children's literature

(Encyclopedia)children's literature, writing whose primary audience is children. See also children's book illustration. The contributions and innovations of the 19th cent. continued into the 20th cent., achieving...

computer

(Encyclopedia)CE5 Schematic diagram of a computer system: Data flow is indicated by solid lines; control signals are indicated by dashed lines. computer, device capable of performing a series of arithmetic or l...