Polyglott Or Polyglot
Polyglott Or Polyglot, A Book Which Contains Side By Side Versions Of The Same Text In Several Languages (gr. Roxin, Many, And 7xc7.yrra, Tongue). The Most Important Polyglotts Are Editions Of The Bible, Or Its Parts, In Which The Hebrew And Greek Originals Are Exhibited Along With The Great Historical ...
Polygnotus
Polygnotus, Famous Greek Painter, C. 470-44o B.c., Son Of Aglaophon, Was A Native Of Thasos, But Was Adopted By The Athenians, And Admitted To Their Citizenship. He Painted For Them, In The Time Of Cimon, A Picture Of The Taking Of Ilium On The Walls Of The Stoa Poecile, And ...
Polygonaceae
Polygonaceae, In Botany, A Family Of Dicotyledons, Containing 4o Genera With About 750-800 Species, Chiefly In The North Temperate Zone, And Represented In Great Britain By Three Genera, Polygonum, Rumex (dock, Q.v.) And Oxyria. They Are Mostly Herbs Characterized By The Union Of The Stipules Into A Sheath Or Ocrea, ...
Polygons
Polygons. A Polygonal Line, Also Called A Broken Line, Join Ing The Point To The Point A. Is Any Finite Set Of Points . . , And The Segments A2a3, . . . , In This And The Following Definition Of A Polygon The Phrase "a Point A I" Means ...
Polygyny
Polygyny, The System Under Which A Man Is Married To Several Women At The Same Time (gr. Roxin, Many, And -yvvi, Woman), Popularly Called Polygamy (76luos, Marriage), Which Derivatively Also Includes The Practice Of Polyandry. Polygyny Is Nowhere The Exclusive Form Of Marriage, And Among Most Peoples Who Practise It ...
Polymerization
Polymerization, In Chemistry, Is The Process Whereby Two Or More Atoms Or Molecules Of The Same Substance Unite To Give A More Complex Molecule; The Resulting "polymeride" There F Ore Has The Same Percentage Composition As The Original Sub Stance, But A Molecular Weight Which Is 2, 3 Or 4, ...
Polymorphism Variability
Variability, Polymorphism, Heredity Like All Other Organisms The Protozoa Can Be Profoundly Modi Fied By Various External Conditions Such As Temperature, Nutrition And State Of The Environment. Scarcity Of Food Supply Often Leads To Dwarfing, A Rich Supply To Relatively Giant Growth. Some Proto Zoans Are So Dependent On Eternal ...
Polynesia
Polynesia, A Term Sometimes Used To Cover The Whole Of The Oceanic Islands In The Central And Western Pacific, But Prop Erly For The Eastern Of The Three Great Divisions Of These Islands. For A Full Account Of The Structure, Geology, Climate, Flora, Fauna And Economic Conditions Of Polynesia, See ...
Polynesian Languages
Polynesian Languages.) Religion.—religious Observances Were An Established Part Of The Life Of These Islanders, And Through The Gods, The Chiefs And Priestcraft Wielded Much Power. The Same Gods In Slightly Vary Ing Forms Were Common To All The Groups. The Attributes Of These Gods Differed Widely, Also The Forms Of ...
Polynesian Languages
Polynesian Languages, A General Term For One Branch Of The Great Oceanic Family Of Speech, The Other Branches Being Melanesian, Micronesian And Indonesian. These Four Divisions Are So Clearly Marked Off From Each Other And So Definitely Spring From One Common Parent That It Is Customary To Refer To The ...
Polynesian Literature
Polynesian Literature. A Few Decades Ago This Title Would Have Been Deemed An Anachronism, Or Worse, But Since The Publication Of The Sacred Songs Of The Hula By Dr. N. B Emerson Under The Title Unwritten Literature Of Hawaii (1909), It Has Been Generally Conceded That The Polynesians, Like Other ...
Polynomial
Polynomial, In Elementary Algebra, An Expression Com Posed Of Two Or More Terms Combined By Operations Of Addition Or Subtraction. Thus I-a+ 7b±c And 2 +a— -\/ Are Poly Nomials. A Polynomial Of Two Terms Is Called A Binomial, And One Of Three Terms Is Called A Trinomial. An Expression ...
Polytechnics
Polytechnics. Polytechnic Is A Term Used In Modern Phraseology To Describe An Educational Institution Equipped To Teach Many Scientific And Technological Processes (gr. Roxvs, Many, And An Art). The Word, However, Has No Common Meaning Either In Great Britain Or In Other Countries. In France, The Name Ecole Polytechnique Was ...
Polyxena
Polyxena, Daughter Of Priam And Hecuba. The Shade Of Achilles Appeared To The Returning Greeks In The Thracian Chersonese And Demanded Polyxena, Who Was Put To Death On His Tomb. As A Prominent Leader He Claimed A Prominent Female Prisoner For His Share Of The Booty, As Agamemnon Did Cassandra ...
Polyz Oa
Polyz Oa. A Group Of Animals So Called From The Fact That Numerous Individuals, Formed By Budding, Remain United In A Colony. They Were Mostly Included In The Zoophyta Of The Older Naturalists, In Consequence Of Their Plant-like Appearance, A Feature Which Is Emphasized In Their Alternative Name, Bry Ozoa, ...
Pomegranate
Pomegranate. The Pomegranate (punta Granatum) Is Of Exceptional Interest By Reason Of Its Structure, Its History, And Its Utility. The Genus Is The Only Representative Of The Family Punicaceae. The Plant Forms A Tree Of Small Stature, Or A Bush, With Opposite Or Alternate, Shining, Lance-shaped Leaves, From The Axils ...
Pomerania
Pomerania (german, Pommern), A Territory Of Ger Many And A Maritime Province Of Prussia, Bounded On The North By The Baltic, On The West By Mecklenburg, On The South By Brandenburg, And On The East By The Border Province (grenz Mark Posen-west Preussen) And By Poland. Its Area Is 11.687 ...
Pomona Or Mainland
Pomona Or Mainland, Central And Largest Island Of The Orkneys, Scotland. Pop. (1921), 14,083. It Is 25 M. Long From N.w. To S.e. And 15 M. Broad From E. To W. ; Area, 190 Sq.m. ; But Where The Coast Is Cut Into, On The N. By Kirkwall Bay And ...
Pomorze Or Pomerania
Pomorze Or Pomerania (i.e., "along The Sea"), A Province Of Poland, Bounded On The North By The Baltic, On The East By East Prussia, On The South By The Provinces Of Warsaw And Poznan, On The West By Germany. Area, 6,327 Sq.m. ; Pop. (1931), 1,086,144. The Greater Part Is ...
Pompeii
Pompeii, An Ancient Town Of Campania, Italy, Near The River Sarnus, Almost At The Foot Of Mt. Vesuvius. Its Foundation Was Ascribed By Greek Tradition To Heracles, In Common With The Neighbouring City Of Herculaneum, But It Was Not A Greek Colony. Strabo, In Whose Time It Was A Populous ...
Ponca City
Ponca City, A City Of Kay County, Oklahoma, U.s.a., On The Arkansas River, At An Altitude Of I,000 Ft., 90 M. N. By E. Of Oklahoma City. It Is On Federal Highway 77 ; Has A Municipal Airport And Is An Airmail Station On The Chicago-dallas Route; And Is Served ...
Ponce
Ponce, The Largest And Most Important City On The Southern Coast Of Porto Rico And The Second City In Size And Importance On The Island. The Population In 1930 Was 53,43o. The Population Of The Municipal District In 1930 Was Although The Name Of The City Appears In Public Documents ...
Ponsonby
Ponsonby, English Family. Ponsonby, John (1713 1789), Irish Politician, Was Born On March 29, 1713. In 1739 He Entered The Irish Parliament, Where He Became First Commis Sioner Of The Revenue (1744), A Privy Councillor (1746), And In 1756 Speaker. Belonging To One Of The Great Families Which At This ...
Pontefract
Pontefract (pronounced And Sometimes Written "pom Fret"), Market Town, Municipal Borough, In The West Riding Of Yorkshire, England, 21 M. South-west From York, Served By The L.m.s. And L.n.e. Railways. Pop. (1931) 19,053. It Is Well Situ Ated, On An Eminence, Near The Junction Of The Aire And The Calder. ...
Pontiac
Pontiac (c. 1720-1769), Famous Chief Of The Ottawa In Dians And Leader In The "conspiracy Of Pontiac" In 1763-64, Was Born About 1720, Probably On The Maumee River, In What Is Now Northwestern Ohio. His Father Was An Ottawa, And His Mother An Ojibwa. By 1775 He Had Become A ...
Pontifex
Pontifex. The Collegium Of The Pontifices Was The Most Important Priesthood Of Ancient Rome, Being Specially Charged With The Administration Of The Jus Divinurn; I.e., That Part Of The Civil Law Which Regulated The Relations Of The Community With The Deities Recognized By The State Officially, Together With A General ...
Pontus
Pontus, A District In The North-east Of Asia Minor Border Ing On The Euxine (black Sea). About 301 B.c. Mithradates I., Ktistes, Founded A Kingdom Beyond The Halys Ruled By A Succes Sion Of Kings, Mostly Bearing The Same Name, Till 64 B.c. As The Greater Part Of This Kingdom ...
Poona
Poona, A City And District Of British India, In The Central Division Of Bombay. The City Is At The Confluence Of The Mutha And Mula Rivers, 1,850 Ft. Above Sea-level And 119 M. S.e. From Bombay On The Great Indian Peninsula Railway. Pop. (1931), 214,380 (including Kirkee). It Is Pleasantly ...
Poor Law
Poor Law. The Term "poor Law" In British Usage Denotes A Peculiar System Of Giving Public Relief To The Destitute. (see Pauper.) The Principles Are Laid Down In Statutes And Worked Out In Detail In "orders" And "circulars" Of A Central Department Of State, The Ministry Of Health Or The ...
Pope
Pope, An Ecclesiastical Title Now Used In The West Exclusively To Designate The Head Of The Roman Catholic Church. In The 4th And Sth Centuries It Was Frequently Used By Any Bishop (du Cange, S.v.) ; But It Gradually Came To Be Reserved To The Bishop Of Rome, Becoming Official. ...
Poplar
Poplar, An Eastern Metropolitan Borough Of London, Eng Land, Bounded North By Hackney, South By The River Thames And West By Stepney And Bethnal Green, And Extending East To The Boundary Of The County Of London. Pop. (1921) 162,578. The River Lea Is Believed To Have Been Crossed Towards The ...
Poplar
Poplar (populus), The Name Of A Small Group Of Catkin Bearing Trees Belonging To The Family Salicaceae, Which Includes The Willows. The Catkins Of The Poplars Differ From Those Of Willows In The Presence Of A Rudimentary Perianth; The Male Flowers Contain From 4 To 8o Stamens; The Fertile Bear ...
Popocatepetl
Popocatepetl (aztec Popoca "to Smoke," Tepeti "moun Tain"), A Dormant Volcano In Mexico 18° 59' 47" N., 33' I" W., Which With The Neighbouring Ixtaccihuatl (aztec "white Woman") Forms The South-eastern Limit Of The Great Basin Known As The "valley Of Mexico." As It Lies In The State Of Puebla ...
Poppy
Poppy, A Genus Of Plants Known Botanically As Papaver, The Type Of The Family Papaveraceae. They Are Annual And Perennial Erect Herbs Containing A Milky Juice, With Lobed Or Cut Leaves And Generally Long-stalked Regular Showy Flowers, Which Are Nodding In The Bud Stage. The Sepals, Which Are Usually Two ...
Poppy Oil
Poppy Oil (oleum Papaveris), A Vegetable Oil Obtained By Pressure From The Minute Seeds Of The Garden Or Opium Poppy, Papaver Somniferum. The White-seeded And Black-seeded Varie Ties Are Both Used For Oil-pressing; But, When The Production Of Oil Is The Principal Object Of The Culture, The Black Seed Is ...
Population
Population. About Two-thirds Of The Inhabitants Of The World Are Now Periodically Enumerated By Means Of A Census. Whenever A Census Is Taken A Number Of Questions Is Asked Con Cerning Each Person. Thus With Respect To Two-thirds Of The Inhabitants Of The World There Is A Considerable Volume Of ...
Populonia
Populonia, An Ancient Seaport Town Of Etruria, Italy (etruscan Pupluna), At The North End Of The Peninsula Of Monte Massoncello, At The South End Of Which Is Situated The Town Of Piombino (q.v.). The Place, Almost The Only Etruscan Town Built' Directly On The Sea, Was Situated On A Lofty ...
Porcelain Enamelling
Porcelain Enamelling. Enamelling On Metal Is A Very Ancient Art And Has Already Been Dealt With Under The Head Ing "enamel" (q.v.). The Object Of The Present Article Is To Describe The Application Of Enamel In Modern Times To Articles Of Domestic Use, Such As Culinary Utensils, Baths, Wash Basins, ...
Porch
Porch, Originally A Roofed Structure, Usually Open At The Sides, To Protect The Entrance Of A Building; Loosely Used Of Any Projecting Portico, Or Even Of Any Colonnade, And, In America, Of Any Roofed Structure Open At The Sides And Front, Attached To A House Or Other Building; Synonymous With ...
Porcupine
Porcupine, The Name Of The Largest European Terrestrial Rodent, Distinguished By The Spiny Covering From Which It Takes Its Name. The European Porcupine (hystrix Cristata) Is The Typi Cal Representative Of A Family Of Old World Rodents, The Hystri Cidae, All The Members Of Which Have The Same Protective Cover ...
Porism
Porism. Porisms Is The Title Of A Lost Treatise By Euclid, The Author Of The Elements, For Our Knowledge Of Which We Are In Debted To The Collection Of Pappus Of Alexandria, Who Mentions It And Gives A Number Of Lemmas Necessary For Understanding It. Pappus States That The Porisms ...
Porphyry
Porphyry (ilopcopcos) (a.d. 233—c. 304), Greek Scholar, Historian, And Neoplatonist, Was Born At Tyre, Or Batanaea In Syria. He Studied Grammar And Rhetoric Under Cassius Longinus (q.v.). His Original Name Was Malchus (king), Which Was Changed By His Tutor Into Porphyrius (clad In Purple), A Jesting Allusion To The Colour ...
Porphyry
Porphyry, In Petrology, A Beautiful Red Volcanic Rock (gr. Wopopeos, Lat. Purpureus, Purple), Which Was Much Used By The Romans For Ornamental Purposes When Cut And Polished. The Famous Red Porphyry (porfido Rosso Antico) Came From Egypt, But Its Beauty And Decorative Value Were First Recognized By The Romans In ...
Porsena
Porsena (or Porsenna), Lars, King Of Clusium In Etruria. He Is Said To Have Undertaken An Expedition Against Rome In Order To Restore The Banished Tarquinius Superbus To The Throne. He Gained Possession Of The Janiculum, And Was Pre Vented From Entering Rome Only By The Bravery Of Horatius Cocles ...
Port Arthur
Port Arthur, A Harbour In South Manchuria At The Southern Extremity Of The Liao-tung Peninsula (38° 48' N. And 121° 20' E.)—the Only Part Of The Relatively Short Coast-line Of Manchuria Which Is Ice-free Throughout The Year. The Town Was Given This Name By Admiral Seymour When British Forces Were ...
Port Authority
Port Authority. For Great Britain The Discussion Of The Constitution And Powers Of The Different Port Authorities Will Be Found In The Articles On The Various Ports, E.g., London, Liver. Pool, Etc. The American Port Authority, In Many Respects Pe Culiar, Calls For Special Discussion. The American Association Of Port ...
Port Elizabeth
Port Elizabeth, A Seaport 436 M. By Sea E. Of Cape Town, South Africa, In 33° 58' S., 25° 37' E. The White Popula Tion Increased From 26,303 In 1921 To 33,371 In 1926; In 1921 There Were Also 11,472 Natives, 1,320 Asiatics And 13,203 Coloured People. It Is The ...
Port Huron
Port Huron, A City Of South-eastern Michigan, U.s.a., 6o M. N.n.e. Of Detroit, At The Lower End Of Lake Huron, On The St. Clair River At The Mouth Of The Black, And Opposite Sarnia (ontario), With Which It Is Connected By A Railway Tunnel 6,025 Ft. Long; A Port Of ...
Port Operation
Port Operation. The Term "port Operation" Includes The Receiving Of Ships In Harbour, Putting Them In Position To Discharge Or Load Their Cargoes, The Handling Of The Cargo And Its Despatch To Or Reception From Inland Destinations. The Primary Aim Of All Modern Dock Operation Is To Give Ships Quick ...
Port Royal
Port Royal, A Celebrated Cistercian Abbey, Occupied A Low And Marshy Site In The Thickly Wooded Valley Of The Yvette, At What Is Now Known As Les Hameaux Near Marly, A Few Miles South-west Of Paris. It Was Founded In 1204 By Mahaut De Garlande, Wife Of Mathieu De Montmorenci-marli ...
Port Royal_2
Port Royal, An Island In Beaufort County, South Caro Lina, U.s.a., At The Head Of Port Royal Sound, About 16 M. From The Atlantic Coast, And About So M. South-west Of Charleston. It Is About 13 M. Long And 7 M. Wide, Generally Flat, And With Much Marshland In Its ...
Port Said
Port Said (sah'ed), A Seaport Of Egypt, At The Entrance Of The Suez Canal, In 31° 15' 35" N., 32° 19' 20" E., And 145 M. By Rail N.e. Of Cairo, Pop. 104,603 (1927), Lies On The Western Side Of The Canal On The Low, Narrow And Treeless Strip Of ...
Port Sudan
Port Sudan, A Town And Harbour On The West Coast Of The Red Sea, In 19° 37' N. 14' E., 700 M. By Boat S. Of Suez And 495 M. By Rail N.e. Of Khartum. Pop. (1926), 21,535. It Is The Principal Port Of The Anglo-egyptian Sudan And The Headquarters ...
Port Talbot
Port Talbot, Glamorganshire, Wales, A Town And Borough On The Avon, Near Its Mouth In Swansea Bay, 11 M. E.s.e. Of Swansea And 17o M. From London By G.w.r. Pop. (1930 40,672. A Castle Once Stood At Port Talbot, But, Despite Its Apparent Strategic Importance, The Normans Allowed It To ...
Port Wine
Port Wine, A Wine Made From Grapes Grown In The Valley Of The Douro, Fortified At The Time Of The Vintage, And Shipped From Oporto. By Virtue Of The Anglo-portuguese Treaties Of And 1916, No Other Wine Can Legally Be Called Port. The Quality Of Port Depends In The First ...
Portland
Portland, The Largest City Of Maine, U:s.a., A Port Of Entry And The County Seat Of Cumberland County; On Casco Bay, M. N.e. Of Boston. It Is On The Atlantic Highway, And Is Served By The Boston And Maine, The Grand Trunk, And The Maine Central Railways, And By Steamship ...
Portland
Portland, The Largest City Of Oregon, U.s.a., On The Wil Lamette River, At Its Confluence With The Columbia, Ii° M. By Water From The Pacific Ocean, 118 M. S.s.w. Of Seattle, 700 M. N. Of San Francisco And 2,391 M. From Chicago; A Port Of Entry, The County Seat Of ...
Porto Alegre
Porto Alegre, A City And Port Of Brazil, Capital Of The State Of Rio Grande Do Sul, At The Northern Extremity Of Lagoa Dos Patos On The Eastern Shore Of An Estuary Called Rio Guahyba, About Loom. From The Port Of Rio Grande Do Sul At The Entrance To The ...
Porto Rico Or Puerto
Porto Rico Or Puerto Rico, As Originally Written, Is An Island Of The United States Of America. It Is The Most Easterly Of The Greater Antilles, Situated Between 17° 50' And 18° 3o' N., And Between 65° 3o' And 67° 15' W. It Has For Its Northern Boundary The Atlantic ...