loofah or luff a \Tii-fa\ Any of six species of annual climbing vines, also called vegetable sponge or sponge gourd, that make up the genus Luff a in the gourd family, native to the Old World tropics. Two species cultivated in temperate areas (L. acutangula and L. aegyptiaca ) produce 1 -ft (30-cm) cucumber-shaped fruits. Edible and greenish when young, these fruits become straw-coloured with age. On removal of the skin, pulp, and seeds, there remains a complex of closely netted vascular bundles (food- and water-carrying tubes) that resembles a sponge in texture. This spongelike product is used for bathing, for washing dishes, and as an industrial fibre.
loom Machine for weaving cloth. The earliest looms, from the 5th mil¬ lennium bc, consisted of bars or beams forming a frame to hold a num¬ ber of parallel threads in two alternating sets. By raising one set of these threads (which together formed the warp), it was possible to run a cross thread (a weft, or filling) between them. A shuttle carried the filling strand
through the warp. The fundamental operation of the loom remained unchanged, but over centuries many improvements were introduced in both Asia and Europe. The drawloom, probably invented in Asia for silk weaving, provided a means for raising warp threads in groups as required by a pattern. In the 18th century Jacques de Vaucanson and J.-M. Jacquard mechanized this function by the ingenious use of punched cards; the cards programmed the mechanical drawboy, saving labour and eliminating errors (see Jacquard loom). In England the inventions of John Kay (flying shuttle), Edmund Cartwright (power drive), and others contributed to the Industrial Revolution, in which the loom and other textile machinery played a central role.
weft
cross
beam
breast beam
motion handle crosspiece
head roller
upright
beater
back
beam
beater
handtree
shuttle
cloth
roller
warp
roller
handle
ratchet
ratchet
wheel
Principal parts of a traditional hand loom.
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loon or diver Any of four species (genus Gavia ) of diving birds of North America and Eurasia. Loons range in length from 2 to 3 ft (60-90 cm). They have small pointed wings, webs between the front three toes, legs placed far back on the body, making walking awkward, and thick plumage that is mainly black or gray above and white below. They feed mainly on fishes, crustaceans, and insects. Almost wholly aquatic, they can swim long distances underwater and can dive to a depth of 200 ft (60 m). They are generally found singly or in pairs, but some species winter or migrate in flocks. They are known for their eerie, “laughing” cries.
looper or cankerworm or inch worm Larva of any member of a large, widespread group (mostly in the family Geometridae, with some in the family Noctuidae) of moths. Loopers move in a characteristic “inch¬ ing” or “looping” gait by extending the front part of the body and bring¬ ing the rear up to meet it. Resembling twigs or leaf stems, they feed on foliage, and can seriously damage or destroy trees.
Loos Vlos\, Adolf (b. Dec. 10, 1870, Brno, Moravia, Austria- Hungary—d. Aug. 23, 1933, Kalksburg, near Vienna, Austria) Austrian architect. Educated in Dresden, Ger., he practiced in Vienna, though he spent extended periods in the U.S. and Paris. Opposed to both Art Nou¬ veau and Beaux-Arts historicism, he announced as early as 1898 his inten¬ tion to avoid the use of unnecessary ornament. His Steiner House in Vienna (1910) has been referred to by some architectural historians as the first completely modem dwelling; the main (rear) facade is a symmetri¬ cal, skillfully balanced composition of rectangles. His essays from this period, denouncing ornament and decoration, were equally influential. His best-known large structure is the Goldman and Salatsch Building in
Common loon, or great northern diver (Gavia immer)
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Vienna (1910), in which small amounts of Classical detail are offset by large areas of blank, polished marble. His work strongly influenced Euro¬ pean Modernist architects after World War I.
Loos, Anita (b. April 26, 1893?, Sissons, Calif., U.S.—d. Aug. 18, 1981, New York, N.Y.) U.S. novelist and screenwriter. She was a child actress; at an early age she also began contributing sketches and articles to various periodicals. By age 20 she was a professional screenwriter for silent films. Her first novel, Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1925), brought fame to Loos and her central character, the naive gold digger Lorelei Lee; a musical version (1949) starred Carol Channing (b. 1921), and a film (1953) starred Marilyn Monroe. Loos’s later film scripts included Blos¬ soms in the Dust (1941) and I Married an Angel (1942). She also wrote two memoirs, A Girl Like I (1966) and Kiss Hollywood Good-Bye (1974).
loosestrife Any ornamental plant of the family Lythraceae, especially in the genera Lythrum and Decodon , and two genera of the primrose fam¬ ily (. Lysimachia and Steironema ). Purple loosestrife ( Lythrum salicaria ), native to Eurasia, grows 2-6 ft (0.6-1.8 m) high on riverbanks and in ditches. Its branched stem bears whorls of narrow, pointed, stalkless leaves and ends in tall, tapering spikes of red-purple flowers. Introduced into North America early in the 19th century, it has become a noxious weed in many parts of the U.S. and Canada because its dense growth out- competes native wetland vegetation that provides food and habitat for wildlife.
Lopez (Michelsen), Alfonso (b. June 30, 1913, Bogota, Colom.) President of Colombia (1974-78). Son of a former president, he served as senator, governor, and foreign minister before his 1974 landslide vic¬ tory in Colombia’s first competitive presidential election in 16 years. A liberal, he raised taxes on high incomes and took steps to curb inflation, but the elimination of price subsidies and a rise in unemployment led to labour unrest, land seizures by peasants, and guerrilla activity. In 1982 he was defeated in another run for the presidency.
Lopez (Knight), Nancy (b. Jan. 6, 1957, Torrance, Calif., U.S.) U.S. golfer. She left the University of Tulsa (Okla.) after her sophomore year to become a professional golfer. In her first full season in 1978, she won a record total of nine tournaments, including five in a row. She became a three-time winner of the Ladies’ Professional Golf Association (LPGA) championship (1978, 1985, 1989) and a four-time LPGA Player of the Year. Her success and personality helped rejuvenate women’s golf.
Lopez Portillo \'l6- 1 pez-por- , te-yo\ (y Pacheco), Jose (b. June 16, 1920, Mexico City, Mex.—d. Feb. 17, 2004, Mexico City) President of Mexico (1976-82). He was a professor before joining the governments of Gustavo Diaz Ordaz and Luis Echeverrfa. As president, he emphasized attraction of foreign investment, tax concessions to stimulate industrial development, creation of nonagricultural jobs, and exploitation of oil and natural gas. His most significant political reform was to increase partici¬ pation of minority parties, facilitating later challenges to the Institutional Revolutionary Party. Most of the wealth that flowed from expanded oil exports was squandered or pocketed by government and union officials. His administration was discredited by the huge foreign debt it amassed and charges of corruption. See also Pemex.