Qabis

Also spelled  Gabès,  Latin  Tacapa,   town, southeastern Tunisia. The town is located at the mouth of the Qabis River, which has its source 6 miles (10 km) upstream at the Ras al-Oued (springs), the town's main water source. Situated on a Mediterranean oasis along the Gulf of Gabes, Qabis was founded as the Roman trading centre of Tacapa. Declining somewhat under Turkish rule, it experienced a modest revival during the

Dyspareunia

Painful or difficult sexual intercourse in the female. Disorders are generally physical rather than psychological. Dyspareunia may be caused by inflammation or infection of the vagina, vaginismus (q.v.; voluntary or involuntary contraction of the lower vaginal muscles), remnants of the hymen, insufficient lubrication of the vagina, infection, endometriosis, tumours,

Paraguay, The Guaraní

Indian tribes speaking the Guaraní language occupied the region between the Paraguay and Paraná rivers long before the arrival of Europeans. They were members of the Tupian language stock, which was widespread in South America, and in most respects resembled the other Indian tribes of the tropical forests. The women cultivated corn, manioc, and sweet potatoes,

Bignoniaceae

The trumpet creeper or catalpa family of the figwort order of flowering plants (Scrophulariales). It contains about 112 genera and more than 725 species of trees, shrubs, and, most commonly, vines, chiefly of tropical America, tropical Africa, and the Indo-Malayan region. They form an important part of the tropical forest vegetation because of the numerous

Epistemology, From scientific theology to secular science

For most of the Middle Ages there was no split between theology and science (scientia). Science was knowledge that was deduced from self-evident principles, and theology received its principles from the source of all principles, God. In every way, theology was superior to the other sciences, according to Thomas Aquinas. By the 14th century the ideas of science and theology

Taine, Hippolyte

More important for his own development, he contributed frequent literary and historical articles to such leading journals as the Revue des Deux Mondes, the Revue de l'Instruction Publique, and the Journal des Débats, articles that provided the basis for three books further enhancing the reputation he had gained by his works on La Fontaine and Livy. These were Les

Vienna, Congress Of

Austria, Prussia

Ch'ungch'ong, South

With one-third of its land area under cultivation, South Ch'ungch'ong is one of the best granaries in the country, producing rice, ginseng, tobacco, and peppermint.

Avranches

In 1172 the excommunicated Henry II of England received absolution in Avranches for the

Zeeman Effect

In physics and astronomy, the splitting of a spectral line into two or more components of slightly different frequency when the light source is placed in a magnetic field. It was first observed in 1896 by the Dutch physicist Pieter Zeeman as a broadening of the yellow D-lines of sodium in a flame held between strong magnetic poles. Later the broadening was found to be a distinct