Spectroscopic Investigation
Spectroscopic Investigation General Considerations.—the Spectroscope Is An Instrument By Means Of Which A Beam Of Light Is Analysed Into Its Constituent Colours, Or Wave-lengths. The Analysed Radiation Of A Substance Is Called Its Spectrum, And The Instrument Is Constructed To Show Each Colour Radiated As A Thin Vertical Line ; ...
Spectroscopic Measurements
Spectroscopic Measurements The Need For Some Means Of Expressing The Positions Of Lines In The Spectrum Is Sufficiently Evident. In The More Common Forms Of Spectroscope The Observing Telescope Is Provided With Cross-threads Which Can Be Brought Into Coincidence With Any Given Spectrum Line, And The Position Of The Telescope ...
Spectroscopy
Spectroscopy (from Lat. Spectrum, An Appearance, And Gr. To See), Has For Its Province The Investigation Of Spectra, Which Are The Appearances Observed When The Radiations From A Luminous Source Are Separated Into Their Constituent Parts. Such Separation Can Be Effected By The Use Of A Prism, Or By A ...
Speedometers
Speedometers, Instruments For Measuring Linear Speeds —more Particularly The Speeds Of Road Vehicles—and Graduated In Miles (or Kilometres) Per Hour. They Are Driven Either From One Of The Road Wheels, Or From The Transmission, Through A Flexible Shaft And A Gear Mechanism. Account Is Taken Of The Diameter Of The ...
Speenhamland System
Speenhamland System, A System Of Poor Relief Adopted By The Berkshire Magistrates In 1795, By Which The Wages Of Labourers Were Supplemented From The Poor-rates Up To A Certain Level, An Additional Dole Being Permitted For Each Child. At A Critical Moment The Berkshire Justices Were Forced To Adopt A ...
Spell
Spell, A Word Of Teutonic Origin Meaning Something "spo Ken." In General Terms, The Belief Underlying The Use Of Spells Is That The Wish That They Embody Will Be Fulfilled, Regardless Of Its Goodness Or Badness, So Long As The Formula Has Been Cor Rectly Pronounced. Broadly Speaking, Then, Spell ...
Speusippus
Speusippus (4th Century B.c.), Greek Philosopher, Son Of Eurymedon And Potone, Sister Of Plato, Is Supposed To Have Been Born C. 407 B.c. He Was Bred In The School Of Isocrates, But When Plato Returned To Athens C. 387, Speusippus Became A Member Of The Academy. In 361, When Plato ...
Speyer
Speyer (spires), A Town And Episcopal See Of Germany, Capital Of The Bavarian Palatinate, Situated On The Left Bank Of The Rhine, At The Mouth Of The Speyerbach, 16 M. S. Of Mann Heim By Rail. Pop. (1933) 27,336. Speyer, Known To The Romans As Augusta Nemetum Or Nemetae, And ...
Spheres Of Influence
Spheres Of Influence. "spheres Of Influence," "spheres Of Action, "spheres Of Interest," "zones Of Influence," "field Of Operations," "machtsphare," "interessensphare," Are Regions As To Which Nations Have Agreed That One Or More Of Them Shall Have Exclusive Liberty Of Action. These Phrases Became Com Mon After 1882, When The "scramble ...
Spherulites
Spherulites, In Petrology, Small Rounded Bodies Which Commonly Occur In Vitreous Igneous Rocks. They Are Often Visi Ble In Specimens Of Obsidian, Pitchstone And Rhyolite As Globules About The Size Of Millet Seed, With A Duller Lustre Than The Sur Rounding Glassy Base Of The Rock, And When They Are ...
Spiders
Spiders Are A Group Of Animals Closely Related To Scorpions, Mites And Harvestmen Belonging Like Them To The Natural Class Arachnida (q.v.) But Being Characterized Within It By Possessing Silk-producing Organs Called Spinnerets, Which Are Attached To The Underside Of The Abdomen. A Good Many Other Articulata Can Produce Silk, ...
Spilite
Spilite, In Petrology, A Rock Of Basaltic Character, But Posses Sing In Place Of The Normal Labradorite, A Felspar Of The Composition Of Albite. The Ferromagnesian Mineral Is An Augite Of Pale Brown Colour; Spilites Are, However, Usually Very Completely Decomposed, Augite Being Represented By Chlorite And Calcite. They Are ...
Spinal Meningitis
Spinal Meningitis. Inflammation Of The Membranes (meninges) Surrounding The Brain And Spinal Cord. An Equivalent Term Is Cerebro-spinal Meningitis. The Meninges, Like The Pleura, Pericardium And Peritoneum, Are Subject To Infection With A Wide Variety Of Cocci And Bacilli. According To The Microbic Incitant, The Infection Is Termed Tuber Cular, ...
Spinel
Spinel, In Mineralogy, The Name Given To A Group Of Minerals, Of The General Composition Where R"=mg, Fe, Mn, Zn, And R"'=a1, Fen Cr"'. The Typical Member Is A Magnesium Aluminate To Which The Name (fr. Spinelle, From The Latin "spina," Perhaps In Allusion To The Sharp Angles Of The ...
Spinning
Spinning, The Forming Of Threads By Drawing Out And Twisting Various Fibres. There Is Ample Evidence Of The Great An Tiquity And Wide Diffusion Of The Art Of Spinning, For Spinning Nec Essarily Precedes Weaving (q.v.) Whenever Short Fibrous Materials Have To Be Made Into Threads, And Weaving Is One ...
Spire
Spire, In Architecture, A Steep, Pyramidal Form, Crowning A Tower. The Origin Of The Form Was The Simple, Four-sided, Pyramidal Roof Frequently Erected Over Romanesque Towers, As In Many Crude Iith Century Examples In Normandy, Some Of The Italian Campaniles Of The Nth And 12th Centuries, And Many German Romanesque ...
Spirits
Spirits. In The Chemical Sense The Word Is Sometimes Applied To Acids Having A Volatile Character, As "spirits Of Salts" Or Hydro Chloric Acid. The Name Is Generally Restricted To Distilled Liquors. The Spiritus Rectificatus Of The British Pharmacopoeia Is A Mix Ture Of Ethyl Alcohol And Water In The ...
Spiritualism
Spiritualism, A Name Used By Some Philosophers, In Stead Of "idealism," To Signify A Philosophic Attitude Or Point Of View About The Universe Opposed To Materialistic Philosophy, And To Imply That The Ultimate Reality Is More Fundamentally On The Mental Or Ideal Side Of Things Rather Than On That Which ...
Spitsbergen
Spitsbergen (norwegian Svalbard), An Arctic Archi Pelago Between Greenland And Novaya Zemlya In 76° 25' To 8o° 50' N. And 1 O° 20' To 35° E., Has A Total Area Of 25,00o Sq.m. And Comprises West Spitsbergen (15,20o Sq.m.) North-east Land (about 6,000 Sq.m.), Edge Island (2,500 Sq.m.), Barents Island ...
Split Or Spljet
Split Or Spljet The Capital Of Dalmatia, Yugoslavia (ital. Spalato), Has The Finest Harbour On The Adriatic Coast, With A Broad Bay Affording Deep, Safe Anchorage. This, Combined With Its Cen Tral Position, And Good Communication With Other Parts By Road, Rail And Steamer, Has Made It Of Great Commercial ...
Spodumene
Spodumene, A *lithium-aluminium Silicate Belonging To The Pyroxene Group (see Pyroxene), Named In 1800 From Gr. Airobtos (ash-coloured), In Allusion To Its Colour, And Soon Afterwards Termed By J. R. Haily Triphane (r Ptct.avis, Ap Pearing Three-fold), Because It Exhibited Certain Characteristics Equally In Three Directions. Spodumene Crystallizes In The ...
Spokane
Spokane (spo-kan'), A City Of Eastern Washington, U.s.a., At The Falls Of The Spokane River, 5o M. From Its Mouth In The Columbia River; A Port Of Entry And The County Seat Of Spokane County. It Has A Municipal Airport ; Is On Federal Highways Io, 95, 195 And 395; ...
Spoleto
Spoleto (anc. Spoletium), A Town And Archiepiscopal See Of The Province Of Perugia, Italy, 18 M. N.n.e. Of Terni, And 88 M. N. By E. Of Rome By Rail. Pop. (1931) (town); (commune). It Is Situated On A Hill, So That The Lowest Part Is About 1,000, The Highest 1,485 ...
Sponges
Sponges. Mediterranean Civilisation Has Used Sponges From The Earliest Times. Homer Describes Hephaestus As Washing Off The Grime Of The Smithy With A Sponge (iliad, Xviii., 414), While The Household Servants Of Penelope And Odysseus Used Sponges To Swab Down The Tables In The Dining-hall (odyssey I., Iii; Xxii., 22, ...
Sponsor
Sponsor, One Who Stands Surety For Another (from Lat. Spondere, To Promise), Especially In The Rite Of Christian Baptism, A Godfather Or Godmother. The Practice Originated Not In Infant Baptism, But In The Custom Of Requiring An Adult Pagan Who Offered Himself For The Rite To Be Accompanied By A ...
Spoon
Spoon, A Table Implement, Bowl-shaped At The End, With A Handle Varying In Length And Size. From The Derivation Of The Word The Earliest Northern European Spoon Would Seem To Have Been A Chip Or Splinter Of Wood ; The Greek Koxxcetptov (lat. Coclileare) Points To The Early And Natural ...
Spotted Jew Fish
Spotted Jew-fish (promicrops Gitaiara), An Im Mense Marine Bass (f Am. Serra Nidae) Found On The Coasts Of Tropical America, Which Some Times Attains A Length Of 8 Ft. And A Weight Of About 700 Pounds. The Adult Is Dull Olive-brown In Colour, With Faint Spots And Bands; The Young ...
Spraying Machinery
Spraying Machinery. The Discovery That Certain Substances In Weak Solutions Or Emulsions Or In The Form Of Powder Could Be Used To Combat Many Insect And Fungus Pests Of Farm, Garden And Orchard Crops And Also Some Weeds Led To The Development Of Mechanical Devices For Spraying The Liquids Or ...
Springfield
Springfield, The Capital City Of Illinois, U.s.a., And The County Seat Of Sangamon County, On The Sangamon River, Mo M. N.n.e. Of Saint Louis. It Has A Municipal Airport ; Is On Federal Highways•36 And 66; And Is Served By The Baltimore And Ohio, The Chicago And Alton, The Chicago ...
Springfield_2
Springfield, A City Of Massachusetts, U.s.a., At The Intersection Of Federal Highways 5 And 20, On The East Bank Of The Connecticut River, 6 M. From The Southern Boundary Of The State; A Port Of Entry And The County Seat Of Hampden County. It Is Served By The Boston And ...
Springfield_3
Springfield, A City Of South-western Missouri, U.s.a., 200 M. S.e. Of Kansas City; The County Seat Of Greene County. It Is On Federal Highways 6o, 65 And 66; Has A Municipal Airport; And Is Served By The Frisco And The Missouri Pacific Railways. Pop. 39,631 In 1920, 93% Native White ...
Springfield_4
Springfield, A City Of Ohio, U S.a., The County Seat Of Clark County; 45 M. W.s.w. Of Columbus, On Lagonda Creek, Near The Mad River. It Is On Federal Highway 4o ; Has A Municipal Airport ; And Is Served By The Big Four, The Detroit, Toledo And Ironton, The ...
Springs
Springs Are, In Almost All Cases, The Natural Overflow Or Point Of Escape From Some Underground Reservoir Of Water. Their Classification May Be Either According To The Geological Conditions Governing The Point Of Location, Or According To The Chemical Com Position Of Its Waters. When Considerable Chemical Impurity Is Present ...
Spruce
Spruce (picea), An Important Genus Of Evergreen Coniferous Trees Of The Pine Family (pinaceae), Called Also Spruce-fir, Includ Ing About 4o Species, Natives Of The Cold And Temperate Regions Of The Northern Hemisphere. They Are Pyramidal Trees, With Whorled Branches; Thin, Scaly Bark; Linear, Spirally-arranged Leaves, Each Jointed Near The ...
Sprue
Sprue. Sprue Is A Disease Of Tropical And Subtropical Regions, And Possibly Cases Arise In Temperate Climates Also. The Sprue Symptoms Improve Within A Fortnight, The Ionic Calcium Increases To About 8 Mg. %, The Stools Are Reduced To One A Day And The Soreness Of The Mouth Disappears. At ...
Spurn Head
Spurn Head, Foreland Of The North Sea Coast Of York Shire, England, Projecting Across The Mouth Of The Humber. From Kilnsea It Is 4 M. Long But Seldom Exceeds 30o Yd. Wide. Formed Of Sand And Shingle From The Rapidly Denuding Holderness Coast To The North, It Is Only A ...
Squall
Squall, The Name Given To Any Sudden Large Increase Of Wind Velocity Of Less Transient Character Than A "gust." A Squall, Usually Lasting For Some Minutes At Least, Is Attributable To Meteorological Causes, While Gusts, Which May Succeed One Another Every Few Seconds, Are The Result Of Some Mechanical Interference ...
Squash Rackets
Squash Rackets. A Game Played On Exactly The Same Principle As Rackets But In A Smaller Court And With A Ball Made Of India-rubber. The Rules Are In Most Particulars Similar To Rackets But The Scoring Is Different. In Matches In England, Hand In Only Can Win An Ace. The ...
Squid
Squid, The Popular Name Given To A Large Number Of Cephalo Pod Molluscs Which Include (e.g.) The Common Squids Of The Atlan Tic (loligo, Ommastrephes), The Giant Squids (architeuthis) And The Fire Squids (lycoteuthis, Abralia). They Are Exclusively Marine Animals Of World-wide Distribution And Form An Important Part Of The ...
Squinch
Squinch, In Architecture, A General Term For Several Means By Which A Square Or Polygonal Room Has Its Upper Corners Filled In To Form A Support For A Dome : By Corbelling Out The Courses Of Masonry, Each Course Projecting Slightly Beyond The One Below; By Building One Or More ...
Stadium
Stadium, The Latin Form Of A Greek Word For A Standard Of Length. A Stade = Roo Opyvtat (about 6 Ft. Or One Fathom) = 6 7rx0pa (ioo Greek Or About 'or English Feet) = About 6o6 English Feet, Or About One-eighth Of A Roman Mile. The Course For The ...
Stafford
Stafford, Market Town, County Town, Municipal Borough, Stafford Parliamentary Division, Staffordshire, England, On The River Sow, A Tributary Of The Trent. Pop. (1931) 29,485. An Important Junction On The L.m.s. Railway And 1334 M. N.w. From London, It Is Also Served By The L.n.e. And G.w. Railways. The Town, While ...
Staffordshire
Staffordshire, A Midland County Of England, Bounded By Derbyshire, Leicestershire, Warwickshire, Worcestershire, Shropshire And Cheshire. The Area Is 1,158.3 Square Miles. The County May Be Divided Into Three Geographical Divisions, North, Middle And South Staffordshire, Depending On The Geological Struc Ture. The Highest Land Is In The North. Here The ...
Stage Design
Stage Design. Until About 1900 The Pictures Created On Any Stage, Generally Known As Scenery, Had No Relation To The Feeling For Form, Colour, Composition Or Light Which Art From 185o To 190o Had Made A Common Possession. The Picture Of The World Within The Theatre Was Invariably Dull, Without ...
Stage Equipment
Stage Equipment The Mechanical Equipment Of Present Day Stages Exists For Two Purposes : (i) To Change Settings; (2) To Light The Stage. They Are Best Considered Separately. Although The Mediaeval Market-place Theatre Did Not Shift Its Scenery As A Whole, It Built The Various Scenes Of Its Morality And ...
Stage Lighting
Stage Lighting The Function Of Coloured Light In The Theatre Is To Stimulate The Imagination And Excite The Emotions Of The Audience. In This Use It Is Parallel To The Function Of Music. If The Audience Is In A Receptive Mood—fertile Soil To Receive And React To The Impressions And ...
Stagger Plan
Stagger Plan. The Great Congestion Of Transit Facilities In Some Of The Larger Cities Of The United States, Due To A Uniform Ity Of Opening And Closing Hours, Led To The Formulation Of A So-called Stagger Plan. The Acuteness Of The Problem In The City Of New York Is Mainly ...
Stained Glass
Stained Glass, A Term That Is Generally Understood To Refer Only To Glass Windows That Have Been Coloured By Such Methods As The Fusion Of Metallic Oxides Into The Glass, The Burning Of Pigment Into The Surface Of White Glass, Or The Joining Of White With Coloured Pieces Of Glass. ...
Stainless Steel
Stainless Steel Is A Term Used In A Broad Sense, Par Ticularly In America, To Cover All "rustless Steels" (q.v.) Or Iron Alloys Designed To Resist Atmospheric Corrosion, Attack By Organic Solutions, Hot Or Cold Acids Or Chemicals, Or Scaling At Elevated Temperatures. In The Restricted Sense The Term Applies ...
Stair
Stair, A Series Of Steps Arranged One Above The Other, Occa Sionally Varied By Platforms Known As "landings." The Total Height Of A Stair Is The "rise," The Total Horizontal Distance Between The Top And Bottom Steps Is The "run." A Series Of Steps Without A Landing Is Called A ...
Staircase
Staircase, A Term For Stairs Accompanied By Walls. The Earliest Staircases Seem To Have Been Built With Walls On Both Sides, As In Egyptian Pylons. Contemporary Models Of Houses, Dating Back To The Middle Kingdom, Show A Staircase Leading Up The Side Of A Court To A Roof Terrace, With ...