An abac is a two dimensional matrix or table that shows the distances between major towns etc. Abacs are often found at the back of a road atlas. Research Abac
The Atlas Moth (Attacus atlas) is one of the largest of the Lepidoptera with a wing span of about 235 mm. The Atlas Moth is found in south India and on the islands of south-east Asia including Indonesia. The caterpillars feed mainly on plants of the family Simaroubaceae and Salicaceae. Research Atlas Moth
Cedar is a tree which forms fine woods on the mountains of Syria and Asia Minor, the Pinus Cedrus of Linnaeus, the Cedrus Libdni of some other botanists, while by others it is referred to the genus Larix, and by others again, along with the larch, to the genus Abies. It is an evergreen, grows to a great size, and is remarkable for its durability. Of the famous cedars of Lebanon comparatively few now remain, and the tree does not grow in any other part of Palestine. Cedar timber was formerly much prized, but in modern times is not regarded as of much value, perhaps from the trees not being of sufficient age.
Some fine cedars are met with in England. The name is given also to the deodar (Cedar Deoddra), which is indeed regarded by many botanists as a mere variety of the cedar of Lebanon, and which produces excellent timber. It is a native of India, and is a large and handsome tree, growing in the Himalayas to the height of 45 meters, with a circumference of nine metres. It has wide-spreading branches, which droop a little at the extremities. The leaves are tufted or solitary, larger than those of the cedar of Lebanon and very numerous, of a dark-bluish green, and covered with a glaucous bloom. The cones are rather larger than those of the Lebanon cedar, and very resinous. The wood is well adapted for building purposes, being compact and very enduring.
The cedar was introduced into Great Britain in 1822, and is now common in lawns and parks. The MountAtlas cedar (Cedar Atlantica}, as its name implies, is a native of the mountains of North Africa. This cedar, though differing in habit and minor features, is regarded by some botanists as specifically identical with the other two. The name is also applied to many trees which have no relation to the true cedar, as the Bermuda cedar (Juniperus bermudiana), used for making pencils, the red cedar (Juniperus virginiana), the Honduras, or bastard Barbadoes cedar (Cedrela odordta) and the red cedar of Australia (Cedrela australis). Research Cedar
The gazelle (Gazella dorcas) is the type of a sub-family of antelopes (the Gazellinae), which includes some 23 species of small, mostly desert-living forms. The gazelle is a light fawn colour upon the back, deepening into dark-brown in a wide band which edges the flanks and forms a line of demarcation between the colour of the upper portions of the body and the pure white of the abdomen. The eye of the gazelle is large, soft, and lustrous. Both sexes are provided with horns, round, black, and lyrated, about 33 cm long. The gazelle is found to the north side of the Atlas Mountains, in Egypt, Ethiopia, Syria, Arabia, and South Iraq. Research Gazelle
Aaron Arrowsmith was an English geographer and map maker. He was born in 1750 and died in 1823. He published major world maps in 1790 and 1794; maps of North America in 1796, the PacificOcean in 1798 and published an Atlas of South India in 1822. Research Aaron Arrowsmith
Jean Denis Barbie du Bocage was a French geographer. He was born in 1760 at Paris 1760 and died in 1825. He produced the Atlas to Barthelemy's Voyage'du Jeune Anacharsis. His maps and plans to the works of Thucydides, Xenophon, etc, exhibit much erudition, and materially advanced the science of ancient geography. He also prepared many modern maps, and published various excellent dissertations. He held many honourable posts. Research Jean Barbie du Bocage
John Elert Bode was a German astronomer. He was born in 1747 and died in 1826. His name is given to Bode's Law, an arithmeticformula which expresses approximately the distances of the planets from the sun. His best works are his Astronomical Almanac and his large Celestial Atlas (Himmelsatlas), giving a catalogue of 17,240 stars (12,000 more than in any former chart). Research John Bode
Philippe Bauche was a French geographer. He was born in 1700 at Paris and died in 1773. He produced the 'Atlas Physique' in 1754. Research Philippe Bauche
Richard Hildreth was an American historian and anti-slavery campaigner. He was born in 1807 and died in 1865. In 1832 he became associate editor of the Boston Atlas which attained considerable eminence as a daily Whig journal. In 1837 he published articles opposing the annexation of Texas, and while residing in the South published the anti-slavery novel, Archy Moore, republished as 'The White Slave'. In 1840 he published 'Despotism in America', in 1843 a 'Theory of Politics', and in 1854 'The Legal Basis of Slavery'. He is most prominent as author of a history of the United States in six volumes, which is brought down to the close of Monroe's first term, and is of excellent quality, though of warm Federalist sympathies. Research Richard Hildreth
The Probert Encyclopaedia was designed, edited and programed by
Matt and Leela Probert
Abbreviations
Research Abac
