Asante or Ashanti People of southern Ghana and adjacent areas of Togo and Cote d’Ivoire. The largest segment of the Akan peoples, they speak Twi, a language of the Kwa group of Niger-Congo languages; all together the Akan peoples make up about half the population of Ghana. Though some Asante now live and work in urban centres, most live in villages and engage in agriculture. The symbol of Asante unity is the Golden Stool, held to be so sacred that not even kings were allowed to sit on it. The Asante supplied slaves to British and Dutch traders in exchange for firearms, which they used to build up a large empire in the 18th and 19th centuries. They fought several wars against the British (1824, 1863, 1869, 1874), finally losing their capital, Kumasi, in 1896. Thereafter what remained of the empire went into decline. Asante gold- work and kente cloth remain prominent items of trade. See also Fante.
asbestos Any of several minerals that separate readily into long, flex¬ ible fibres. Chrysotile accounts for about 95% of all asbestos still in com¬ mercial use. The other types all belong to the amphibole group and include the highly fibrous forms of anthophyllite, amosite, crocidolite, tremolite, and actinoute. Asbestos fibre was used in brake linings, insulation, roofing shingles, floor and ceiling tiles, cement pipes, and other building mate¬ rials. Asbestos fabrics were used for safety apparel and theatre curtains. In the 1970s it was found that prolonged inhalation of the tiny asbestos fibres can cause asbestosis, lung cancer, and/or mesothelioma, all serious lung diseases. The incidence of mesothelioma is most commonly associ¬ ated with extensive inhalation of amphibole asbestos. In 1989 the U.S. gov¬ ernment instituted a gradual ban on the manufacture, use, and export of most products made with asbestos.
asbestos, amphibole See amphibole asbestos
asbestosis X.as-.bes-'to-sosV Lung disease caused by long-term inhala¬ tion of asbestos fibres. A pneumoconiosis found primarily in asbestos work¬ ers, asbestosis is also seen in people living near asbestos industries. Fibres remain in the lungs and many years later cause extensive scarring and fibrosis. Shortness of breath and inadequate oxygenation result; advanced cases include a dry cough. There is no effective treatment. The associated increased cardiac effort may induce heart disease. Cigarette smoking
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114 I Ascalon ► Ash'ariyyah
greatly exacerbates its symptoms. Lung cancer and malignant mesothe¬ lioma are more common with asbestos inhalation and asbestosis.
Ascalon See Ashqelon
Ascanius \as-'ka-ne-os\ In Roman legend, the son of Aeneas and founder of Alba Longa (probably the site of modern Castel Gandolfo) near Rome. In Livy’s account, his mother was Lavinia, and he was born after Aeneas founded Lavinium. Ascanius was also called lulus, and he was considered the founder of the line that included Julius Caesar.
Ascension In Christian belief, the ascent of Jesus into heaven 40 days after the Resurrection. The Book of Acts relates that, after several appear¬ ances to the Apostles over a period of 40 days, Jesus was taken up in their presence and hidden behind a cloud, a symbol of God’s presence. The event is thought to indicate a new relationship between Jesus and God and between Jesus and his followers. The feast of the Ascension is uni¬ versally observed by Christians, and its celebration emphasizes the king- ship of Christ. Since the 4th century, it has been celebrated 40 days after Easter and 10 days before Pentecost.
asceticism Vo-'set-o-.siz-omX Practice of the denial of physical or psy¬ chological desires in order to attain a spiritual ideal or goal. Most reli¬ gions have some features of asceticism. The desire for ritual purity in order to come in contact with the divine, the need for atonement, and the wish to earn merit or gain access to supernatural powers all are reasons for ascetic practice. Christian hermits and monks, wandering Hindu ascet¬ ics, and Buddhist monks all reject worldly goods and practice various forms of self-denial, including celibacy, abstinence, and fasting. Mem¬ bers of the Digambara sect of Jainism practice an extreme form of asceti¬ cism that includes the rejection of wearing clothes. Though monasticism is rejected in the Qur’an, ascetic movements such as zuhd have arisen in Islam. Zoroastrianism forbids fasting and mortification.
Asch \'ash\, Sholem (b. Nov. 1, 1880, Kutno, Pol., Russian Empire—d. July 10, 1957, London, Eng.) Polish-born U.S. novelist and playwright. Much of his writing concerns the experience of Jews in eastern European villages or as immigrants in the U.S. (to which he himself immigrated in 1914). It includes the play The God of Vengeance (1907) and the novels Mottke the Thief (1916), Uncle Moses (1918), Judge Not (1926), and Chaim Lederer’s Return (1927). In later, more controversial works, he explored the common heritage of Judaism and Christianity. His career was outstanding for both output and impact, and he is one of the best-known writers in modern Yiddish literature.
Ascham Vas-komV Roger (b. 1515, Kirby Wiske, near York, Eng.—d. Dec. 30, 1568, London) English humanist, scholar, and writer. He entered Cambridge University at age 14 and studied Greek. He became the future Queen Elizabeth I’s tutor in Greek and Latin (1548-50) and continued to serve her after she took the throne. His best-known book is the posthu¬ mous The Scholemaster (1570), which deals with the psychology of learn¬ ing, the education of the whole person, and the ideal moral and intellectual personality that education should mold. He is notable also for his lucid prose style and his promotion of the vernacular.
ASCII Vas-,ke\ in full American Standard Code for Informa¬ tion Interchange. Data-transmission code used to represent both text (letters, numbers, punctuation marks) and noninput device commands (control characters) for electronic exchange and storage. Standard ASCII uses a string of 7 bits (binary digits) for each symbol and can thus rep¬ resent 2 7 = 128 characters. Extended ASCII uses an 8-bit encoding sys¬ tem and can thus represent 2 8 = 256 characters. While ASCII is still found in legacy data, Unicode, with 8-, 16-, and 32-bit versions, has become standard for modem operating systems and browsers. In particular, the 32-bit version now supports all of the characters in every major language.
Asclepius \as-'kle-pe-9s\ Latin Aesculapius \,es-ky9-'la-pe-9s\ Greco-Roman god of medicine. He was the son of Apollo and the nymph Coronis. He learned the ait of healing from the Centaur Chiron. Fearful that Asclepius would make humans immortal, Zeus slew him with a thun¬ derbolt. His cult originated in Thessaly and spread throughout Greece. Because he was said to cure the sick in dreams, the practice of sleeping in his temples became common. Asclepius was often represented holding a staff with a serpent coiled around it. See photograph opposite.
ascorbic acid See vitamin C
ASEAN in full Association of Southeast Asian Nations Inter¬ national organization established by the governments of Indonesia,
Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand in 1967 to accelerate regional economic growth, social progress, and cultural development and to promote peace and security in the region. Brunei became a member in 1984, Vietnam in 1995, Laos and Myanmar (Burma) in 1997, and Cam¬ bodia in 1999. ASEAN became a leading voice on regional trade and security issues in the 1990s; in 1992 member nations created the ASEAN Free Trade Area.