87 résultats pour "directly"
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Extrasolar Planets - astronomy.
When a planet passes in a front of the star it orbits—an event called a transit—it causes a small dip in the brightness of the star. Measuring the slight change in thebrightness can be used not only to directly detect a planet, but to determine its size and orbit. However, the planet needs to orbit in a plane that lies in a telescope’sline of sight on the star. Despite long odds, Earth-based telescopes have detected and studied a few exoplanets using this method. The first space telescope design...
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Health Care System in Canada.
With a few exceptions, provincial health plans cover all medically necessary services, so that patients need not pay directly for anything except so-called incidental costs.These incidental costs include items such as a patient’s private hospital room, unless it is specified by a physician, and transportation to the hospital. Provincial healthplans also do not cover some nonessential procedures, such as laser surgery for the eye, cosmetic surgery, procedures to reverse sterilization, and, in mos...
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Excerpt from The Old Curiosity Shop - anthology.
'Well!' muttered Quilp, as he marked her earnest look. 'I believe you. Humph! Gone already? Gone in four-and-twenty hours I What the devil has he done with it,that's the mystery!' This reflection set him scratching his head and biting his nails once more. While he was thus employed his features gradually relaxed into what was with him acheerful smile, but which in any other man would have been a ghastly grin of pain, and when the child looked up again she found that he was regarding her with...
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Banking.
loans, and some commercial loans in addition to checking accounts and time deposits. Credit unions, SLAs, and savings banks help encourage thriftiness by paying interest to consumers who put their money in savings deposits. Consequently, creditunions, SLAs, and savings banks are often referred to as thrift institutions. Of the various types of banks in the United States, commercial banks account for the greatest single source of the financial industry’s assets. In 2000 the 8,528commercial banks...
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Brain.
The hypothalamus lies beneath the thalamus on the midline at the base of the brain. It regulates or is involved directly in the control of many of the body's vital drivesand activities, such as eating, drinking, temperature regulation, sleep, emotional behavior, and sexual activity. It also controls the function of internal body organs bymeans of the autonomic nervous system, interacts closely with the pituitary gland, and helps coordinate activities of the brain stem. D Brain Stem The brain st...
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Gabon - country.
government is engaged in preservation and reforestation programs. The fish catch in 2005 was 43,941 metric tons. C Mining Mining has developed rapidly since Gabon’s independence in 1960. Annual production of extremely high-grade manganese ore, from Moanda in the southeast, was1,090,000 metric tons in 2004. The rich deposits of iron ore located at Mekambo and Bélinga in the northeast have reserves estimated at more than 500 million metrictons. Exploitation of the iron ore has been hampered by th...
- Liechtenstein is a tiny State 15 mi long by 7,5 mi wide directly connected to Swiss motorways.
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Leaf - biology.
The mesophyll, sandwiched between the upper and lower epidermis, consists of many thin-walled cells that are usually arranged in two layers. The palisade layer is next to the upper epidermis. It consists of cylindrical cells that are packed closely together. Next to the palisade layer and making up most of the thickness of the leaf bladeis the spongy layer. The spongy layer consists of roundish cells that are packed loosely together and have numerous air spaces between them. In most plants t...
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Soil.
I
INTRODUCTION
Soil, the loose material that covers the land surfaces of
an exchange between plants and the atmosphere, as oxygen diffuses into the soil and is used by roots for respiration. In turn, the resulting carbon dioxide diffusesthrough pore spaces and returns to the atmosphere. This exchange is most efficient in soils with a high degree of porosity. For farmers, gardeners, landscapers, andothers with a professional interest in soil health, the process of aeration—making holes in the soil surface to permit the exchange of air—is a crucial activity. Theburrowi...
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John Quincy Adams.
man of my whole country.” When President Thomas Jefferson requested Senate approval of his treaty for the purchase of the French colony of Louisiana, Adams was the only New EnglandFederalist to vote in favor of it. He realized that the power and influence of his own New England would be reduced if the vast territory were added to the nation, but hewas convinced that the national interest would best be served by the purchase of Louisiana ( see Louisiana Purchase). Adams again broke with his New...
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John Quincy Adams
man of my whole country.” When President Thomas Jefferson requested Senate approval of his treaty for the purchase of the French colony of Louisiana, Adams was the only New EnglandFederalist to vote in favor of it. He realized that the power and influence of his own New England would be reduced if the vast territory were added to the nation, but hewas convinced that the national interest would best be served by the purchase of Louisiana ( see Louisiana Purchase). Adams again broke with his New...
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From Pride and Prejudice - anthology.
But why Mr Darcy same so often to the Parsonage, it was more difficult to understand. It could not be for society, as he frequently sat there ten minutes togetherwithout opening his lips; and when he did speak, it seemed the effect of necessity rather than of choice—a sacrifice to propriety, not a pleasure to himself. He seldomappeared really animated. Mrs Collins knew not what to make of him. Colonel Fitzwilliam's occasionally laughing at his stupidity, proved that he was generallydifferent, wh...
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Drug.
I
INTRODUCTION
Drug, substance that affects the function of living cells, used
normalizing chemical activity in the emotional centers of the brain. Antianxiety drugs, also referred to as tranquilizers, treat anxiety by decreasing the activity in theanxiety centers of the brain. Sedative-hypnotic drugs are used both as sedatives to reduce anxiety and as hypnotics to induce sleep. Sedative-hypnotic drugs act by reducing brain-cell activity.Stimulant drugs, on the other hand, increase neuronal (nerve cell) activity and reduce fatigue and appetite. Analgesic drugs reduce pain...
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Fire - chemistry.
were usually natural caves. Eventually people learned to dip branches in pitch to form torches. They created crude lamps by filling a hollowed out piece of stone withmoss soaked in oil or tallow (a substance derived from animal fat). By cooking with fire, prehistoric people made the meat of the animals they killed more palatable and digestible. They learned to preserve meat by smoking it over a fire,vastly decreasing the danger of periodic starvation. Cooking also enabled them to add some for...
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Fishing.
directly to the spool and turns the spool one rotation at a time. C Fishing Lines Fishing lines serve as the link between the angler’s reel and the lure or bait. The most popular line used for sportfishing is monofilament nylon line, which is strong anddurable and has a certain amount of stretch, which helps when an angler sets the hook. The line comes in a variety of strengths, from 2-pound test to more than 100-pound test. (Pound test is the amount of pressure that can be put on a line before...
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Ulysses S.
In the autumn of 1862, Grant began planning the drive on Vicksburg, Mississippi, the Confederate stronghold on the Mississippi River, which was to yield one of hisgreatest military successes. After several unsuccessful attempts on Vicksburg during the winter, Grant devised a new strategy of attack. In April 1863 he marched hisarmy south along the west side of the river to a point well below the heavily defended city. There, with the aid of the Union river fleet, he crossed the river and began as...
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Ulysses S.
In the autumn of 1862, Grant began planning the drive on Vicksburg, Mississippi, the Confederate stronghold on the Mississippi River, which was to yield one of hisgreatest military successes. After several unsuccessful attempts on Vicksburg during the winter, Grant devised a new strategy of attack. In April 1863 he marched hisarmy south along the west side of the river to a point well below the heavily defended city. There, with the aid of the Union river fleet, he crossed the river and began as...
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Planetary Science - astronomy.
III ORIGINS AND COMPOSITIONS OF PLANETS Astronomers believe that planetary systems are formed of elemental materials that were created in the interiors of giant stars. Some of this material comes from giantstars that shed material into space as they age. Most of the matter to form planets, however, comes from stars that explode as supernovas and spread debris enrichedwith the heavier chemical elements into space. According to the currently accepted views, the most likely first stage in the evo...
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Native American Architecture.
B Relationship to the Universe and Nature A more profound difference between European American and Native American perceptions lay in how human beings saw themselves in relationship to the universe andin what they believed their responsibilities were to the natural world and to each other. Most European Americans saw themselves as separate from creation andadversaries of nature, ever struggling to conquer and subdue nature and force it to yield to their will. Native Americans saw themselves as...
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Quantum Theory
I
INTRODUCTION
Quantum Theory, in physics, description of the particles that make up matter and how they interact with each other and with energy.
electron in the same way a particle with momentum would: It bumps the electron and changes the electron’s path. The light is also affected by the collision as though itwere a particle, in that its energy and momentum changes. Momentum is a quantity that can be defined for all particles. For light particles, or photons, momentum depends on the frequency, or color, of the photon, which in turndepends on the photon’s energy. The energy of a photon is equal to a constant number, called Planck’s cons...
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United States History - U.
and improved upon the designs of Arab sailing ships and learned to mount cannons on those ships. In the 15th century they began exploring the west coast ofAfrica—bypassing Arab merchants to trade directly for African gold and slaves. They also colonized the Madeira Islands, the Azores, and the Cape Verde Islands andturned them into the first European slave plantations. The European explorers were all looking for an ocean route to Asia. Christopher Columbus sailed for the monarchs of Spain in 149...
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United States History - U.
and improved upon the designs of Arab sailing ships and learned to mount cannons on those ships. In the 15th century they began exploring the west coast ofAfrica—bypassing Arab merchants to trade directly for African gold and slaves. They also colonized the Madeira Islands, the Azores, and the Cape Verde Islands andturned them into the first European slave plantations. The European explorers were all looking for an ocean route to Asia. Christopher Columbus sailed for the monarchs of Spain in 149...
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Physics
I
INTRODUCTION
Physics, major science, dealing with the fundamental constituents of the universe, the forces they exert on one another, and the results produced by these forces.
Starting about 1665, at the age of 23, Newton enunciated the principles of mechanics, formulated the law of universal gravitation, separated white light into colors,proposed a theory for the propagation of light, and invented differential and integral calculus. Newton's contributions covered an enormous range of naturalphenomena: He was thus able to show that not only Kepler's laws of planetary motion but also Galileo's discoveries of falling bodies follow a combination of his ownsecond law of m...
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United States Government.
Article II establishes an executive department headed by a president and vice president. The article further describes the powers of the offices, the manner of election,and the qualifications for office. Of special significance is the president’s constitutional role as commander of the nation’s armed forces, which assures civilian controlover the military. Because the president is the head of the armed forces and only Congress can declare war, the authority of the military is diffused and its po...
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Endocrine System.
thermostat. When the heat in a house falls, the thermostat responds by switching the furnace on, and when the temperature is too warm, the thermostat switches thefurnace off. Usually, the change that a hormone produces also serves to regulate that hormone's secretion. For example, parathyroid hormone causes the body toincrease the level of calcium in the blood. As calcium levels rise, the secretion of parathyroid hormone then decreases. This feedback mechanism allows for tight controlover hormon...
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Hormone.
women is called a follicle-stimulating hormone. When a follicle-stimulating hormone binds to an ovary cell, it stimulates the enzymes needed for the synthesis ofestradiol, a female sex hormone. Another gonadotropin called luteinizing hormone regulates the production of eggs in women and the production of the male sexhormone testosterone. Produced in the male gonads, or testes, testosterone regulates changes to the male body during puberty, influences sexual behavior, and playsa role in growth. T...
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Arithmetic
I
INTRODUCTION
Arithmetic, branch of mathematics that arises from counting, the most basic mathematical operation.
Subtract the units: 6 - 3 = 3. Then subtract the tens column: 6 – 2 = 4. The results of these two single-digit subtractions, written side by side, provide the answer: Subtraction is a bit more complicated if we need to subtract a larger digit from a smaller one. For example, when subtracting 47 from 92, the units value (7) of 47 isgreater than the units value (2) of 92. We can handle this situation using a procedure called borrowing, which is like carrying in reverse. Ten units can be borrowe...
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Internet.
usually pays a fixed monthly fee for a dedicated connection. In exchange, the company providing the connection agrees to relay data between the user’s computer andthe Internet. Dial-up is the least expensive access technology, but it is also the least convenient. To use dial-up access, a subscriber must have a telephone modem, a device thatconnects a computer to the telephone system and is capable of converting data into sounds and sounds back into data. The user’s ISP provides software that con...
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Electoral College.
III HISTORY OF THE ELECTORAL COLLEGE A Origins One thing is clear about the political theory underpinning the electoral college: The framers of the Constitution could not agree on one. From the outset, the framerswere uncertain about how the president should be chosen. Meeting in the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in 1787, the framers originally decidedto have Congress choose the president, and that there should be no popular vote to elect the president. Then the Con...
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Prints and Printmaking
I
INTRODUCTION
Prints and Printmaking, pictorial images that can be inked onto paper, and the art of creating and reproducing them.
Bewick’s The SkylarkBritish engraver Thomas Bewick’s The Skylark is part of his History of British Birds (2 vols., 1797 and 1804). Bewick wasthe first artist to demonstrate the full potential of wood engraving and is renowned for his fine natural history illustrations.Each illustration shows some of the bird’s natural habitat.Folio Society, London/Bridgeman Art Library, London/New York Historically, the wood engraving was chiefly used for illustrations in magazines and books. It is similar to th...
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Health Insurance.
needs services. Essentially, individuals make regular payments to the plan rather than having to pay especially large sums at any one time in the event of sudden illnessor injury. In this way, the group as a whole funds expensive treatments for those few who need them. Many people believe that in addition to providing financial stability, health insurance can promote good health. Supporters of this idea claim that by lowering thepersonal cost of services, insurance induces individuals to seek he...
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Vietnam - country.
E Natural Resources Vietnam’s most valuable natural resource is its land, particularly the fertile, alluvial soils in the Red and Mekong deltas. Some 29 percent of the land is currently beingcultivated. Vietnam has some valuable mineral resources, including gold, iron, tin, zinc, phosphate, chromite, apatite, and anthracite coal. Most deposits are located in the northernpart of the country. Few attempts were made to extract these minerals until the French takeover of Vietnam at the end of the 1...
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World War I .
and troops to Europe from the United States and other overseas sources. In 1914 Britain implemented a sea blockade of Germany to prevent the delivery of importssuch as food and war materials. The same year, Germany began using submarines to disrupt Allied seaborne traffic and prevent supplies from reaching Britain. In 1915Germany instituted a submarine blockade around Britain. From February 1915 to September 1915 and again in 1917, Germany used unrestricted submarine warfare,sinking ships withou...
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Impressionism (art)
I
INTRODUCTION
Vegetable Garden at the Hermitage, Pontoise
Vegetable Garden at the Hermitage, Pontoise (1879) was painted by the French artist Camille Pissarro.
the Grass; 1863, Musée d’Orsay, Paris), which depicts a nude woman at a woodland picnic. To emphasize the woman’snakedness, Manet not only shows that she has recently disrobed (by painting her clothes in a heap nearby) but alsodepicts her male companions fully clothed. In addition, the woman stares directly and unabashedly at the viewer, makingus feel almost like voyeurs as we gaze back. Manet’s painting style–the flat figures, which look almost like cutouts, andloose brushwork–also bewildered a...
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East Timor - country.
members are designated by the Superior Council for the Judiciary. This council is the organ of management and discipline of judges and is responsible for judiciaryappointments, transfers, and promotions. VI HISTORY Timor was a destination on ancient Chinese trade routes and was particularly known for its sandalwood. The Portuguese began colonizing Timor in the early 16thcentury as European trade and influence expanded in the region. They exploited Timor for its forest products and spices, and...
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History of Astronomy - astronomy.
Egypt, the Sun was directly overhead at noon. On the same date and time in Alexandria, Egypt, the Sun was about 7 degrees south of zenith. With simple geometryand knowledge of the distance between the two cities, he estimated the circumference of the Earth to be 250,000 stadia. (The stadium was a unit of length, derivedfrom the length of the racetrack in an ancient Greek stadium. We have an approximate idea of how big an ancient Greek stadium was, and based on that approximationEratosthenes was...
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Christopher Columbus
I
INTRODUCTION
Christopher Columbus (1451-1506), Italian-born Spanish navigator who sailed west across the Atlantic Ocean in search of a route to Asia but achieved fame by making
landfall in the Americas instead.
explorers, adventurers, entrepreneurs, merchants, and any others who saw their fortunes tied to the trade winds and ocean currents. Columbus’s brother Bartholomewworked in Lisbon as a mapmaker, and for a time the brothers worked together as draftsmen and book collectors. Later that year, Columbus set sail on a convoy loadedwith goods to be sold in northern Atlantic ports. In 1478 or 1479 Columbus met and married Felipa Perestrello e Moniz, the daughter of a respected, though relatively poor, nob...
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Christopher Columbus.
explorers, adventurers, entrepreneurs, merchants, and any others who saw their fortunes tied to the trade winds and ocean currents. Columbus’s brother Bartholomewworked in Lisbon as a mapmaker, and for a time the brothers worked together as draftsmen and book collectors. Later that year, Columbus set sail on a convoy loadedwith goods to be sold in northern Atlantic ports. In 1478 or 1479 Columbus met and married Felipa Perestrello e Moniz, the daughter of a respected, though relatively poor, nob...
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Christopher Columbus.
explorers, adventurers, entrepreneurs, merchants, and any others who saw their fortunes tied to the trade winds and ocean currents. Columbus’s brother Bartholomewworked in Lisbon as a mapmaker, and for a time the brothers worked together as draftsmen and book collectors. Later that year, Columbus set sail on a convoy loadedwith goods to be sold in northern Atlantic ports. In 1478 or 1479 Columbus met and married Felipa Perestrello e Moniz, the daughter of a respected, though relatively poor, nob...
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Christopher Columbus - explorer.
explorers, adventurers, entrepreneurs, merchants, and any others who saw their fortunes tied to the trade winds and ocean currents. Columbus’s brother Bartholomewworked in Lisbon as a mapmaker, and for a time the brothers worked together as draftsmen and book collectors. Later that year, Columbus set sail on a convoy loadedwith goods to be sold in northern Atlantic ports. In 1478 or 1479 Columbus met and married Felipa Perestrello e Moniz, the daughter of a respected, though relatively poor, nob...
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Elementary Particles
I
INTRODUCTION
Structure of Matter
Modern physics has revealed successively deeper layers of structure in ordinary matter.
The most fundamental particles that make up matter fall into the fermion category. These fermions cannot be split into anything smaller. The particles that carry theforces acting on matter and antimatter are bosons called force carriers. Force carriers are also fundamental particles, so they cannot be split into anything smaller.These bosons carry the four basic forces in the universe: the electromagnetic, the gravitational, the strong (force that holds the nuclei of atoms together), and the wea...
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Swaziland - country.
convention of 1894 placed Swaziland under the administration of the Union of South Africa (now the Republic of South Africa). Administration passed to the Britishgovernor of Transvaal in 1903 and to the British high commissioner for South Africa in 1907. In 1967 Swaziland became internally self-governing. The nation attainedfull independence on September 6, 1968, with King Sobhuza II as head of state. The king suspended the constitution in 1973 and banned all political activity; under anew const...
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Election.
majority systems usually reduce the number of competitive political parties—for example, the mostly two-party system in the United States. Proportional representation systems boost participation by increasing the value of a vote to smaller or more marginal portions of a national population. In the UnitedStates, plurality or majority systems have reduced the incentive to vote of citizens who do not identify closely with the Democratic or Republican Party. Disillusionmentwith the major parties and...
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Martial Arts.
These movements are based on stylized renditions of ancient kung fu arm and foot blows. C Tae Kwon Do Tae kwon do (Korean for 'way of hands and feet') was founded in 1955 by a group of masters led by Korean general Choi Hong Hi. It is the national sport and pastimeof Korea and is also popular throughout the world. Often referred to as Korean karate, tae kwon do is reputedly based on ancient Korean and modern Japanesemethods of combat. Basic to tae kwon do are many spectacular kicks, particularl...
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Conceptual analysis
Kant's important idea that conceptual truths can be either analytic a priori or synthetic a priori is effectively erased by Gottlob Frege in his Foundations of Arithmetic (1884). Frege's overriding philosophical aim is to put mathematical proof on a firm footing by reducing the truths of arithmetic to analytic truths of logic. In view of this, the proper goal of an analysis is the production of non-circular, explanatory, yet meaning-preserving general definitions of fundamental concepts -...
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Wireless Communications.
were large, heavy units. After the invention of the transistor in 1948, radios shrank in size to small handheld radio transceivers. Public two-way radios with severalfrequency options are widely available as well. Usually limited in range to a few miles, these units are great aids for such mobile professionals as construction workers,film crews, event planners, and security personnel. Simpler two-way radios, called walkie-talkies, have been popular children’s toys for years. Most walkie-talkiesb...
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Tobacco - biology.
quality cigars are made entirely by hand, most cigars are manufactured by machine. Chewing tobaccos are generally made from thick grades of leaves to which binders and flavorings are added. Chewing tobacco is formed by pressing the tobacco intoblocks known as plugs. Snuff is made by grinding tobacco into fine powder, which is then allowed to ferment for a long period of time. Frequently, snuff is scented withspices, such as jasmine or cloves. V TOBACCO INDUSTRY Over 6 million tons of commercial...
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Circulatory System.
C Additional Functions In addition to oxygen, the circulatory system also transports nutrients derived from digested food to the body. These nutrients enter the bloodstream by passingthrough the walls of the intestine. The nutrients are absorbed through a network of capillaries and veins that drain the intestines, called the hepatic portal circulation.The hepatic portal circulation carries the nutrients to the liver for further metabolic processing. The liver stores a variety of substances, suc...
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Honey Bee - biology.
B Reproduction and Development The queen controls the sex of her offspring. When an egg passes from her ovary to her oviduct, the queen determines whether the egg is fertilized with sperm from thespermatheca. A fertilized egg develops into a female honey bee, either worker or queen, and an unfertilized egg becomes a male honey bee, or drone. The queen lays the eggs that will develop into more queens in specially constructed downward-pointing, peanut-shaped cells, in which the egg adheres to the...
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Wilfrid Laurier.
The Manitoba schools were the main issue in the 1896 election. Although the Catholic clergy campaigned against him, Laurier argued in Québec that he would obtainbetter terms for the Catholics by negotiating directly with the provincial government of Manitoba. “Hands off Manitoba” was an effective slogan in the other provinces aswell. A second issue was corruption in the Conservative Party, as a series of scandals had rocked the Bowell administration. Israel Tarte, a former Québec conservativewho...