Leap Of Faith

Metaphor used by the 19th-century Danish philosopher Søren Kierkegaard in his Afsluttende uvidenskabelig Efterskrift (1846; Concluding Unscientific Postscript) to describe commitment to an objective uncertainty, specifically to the Christian God. For Kierkegaard, God is totally other than man; between God and man there exists a gulf that faith alone can bridge. Kierkegaard

Christensen, Benjamin

Christensen began his career as an opera singer in 1902 but later became an actor and then a director. By 1913 he was known as the writer, star, and director of a film exploring the unknown, Det Hemmeligheds fulde X (The Mysterious X), his first investigation of the horror of

Akh

In Egyptian religion, the spirit of a deceased person and, with the ka and ba (qq.v.), a principal aspect of the soul. By enabling the soul to assume temporarily any form it desired, for the purpose of revisiting the earth or for its own enjoyment, the akh characterized the soul of a deceased person as an effective entity in the next world. The akh-soul was generally represented

X Ray

According to classical electromagnetic theory, the deceleration of electrons will produce electromagnetic radiation, in the same way that accelerated electrons in a radio antenna produce radio waves. The failure of magnetic fields to deflect an X-ray beam seems to confirm this classical idea of the origin of X rays. Crucial evidence for the existence of waves

Bacillus

(genus Bacillus), any of a group of rod-shaped, gram-positive, aerobic or (under some conditions) anaerobic bacteria widely found in soil and water. The term bacillus in a general sense has been applied to all cylindrical or rodlike bacteria. The largest species are about 2 mm (micrometres; 1 mm = 10-6 m) across by 7 mm long and frequently occur in chains. Bacillus species form dormant spores

Locmariaquer

Village and seaside resort, on the coast of the Gulf of Morbihan, Morbihan département, Bretagne région, western France, south of Auray. It is famous for its megalithic monuments, notably the Fairies' Stone, a huge, broken standing stone, originally 66 feet (20 m) high—the greatest known menhir (upright monumental stone) in existence. Behind it is the Merchants' Table, composed

Gabon, Flag Of

The French did not allow the development of national flags in their colonies, fearing the flags might become symbols around which separatists could rally. Therefore there were few such traditions in French Africa when autonomous governments were established in 1958 (the year of the new constitution of France). Whereas some countries did not adopt flags for more than

Interior Design, Lighting

Light is one of the key elements of interior design. Most interior spaces constructed in the 20th century are used as much with artificial light as with daylight; because of this lighting has become a very significant tool for the interior designer. There are three major aspects to lighting: function, aesthetics, and health. The latter factor is often ignored, but insufficient

Morecambe Bay

Bay of the Irish Sea deeply indenting the northwest coast of England between the port of Barrow-in-Furness to the north and the seaside resorts of Morecambe and Heysham to the south. The bay separates the Furness region of the historic county of Lancashire (now in the administrative county of Cumbria) from the remainder of Lancashire. Much of the Lake District massif,