interest in more than 40 railroads, serving as director or president of 20. He helped organize the Atlantic & Pacific Telegraph Co. In 1872 he origi¬ nated stock-market puts and calls (options to buy or sell a set amount of stock at a set price and within a given time limit), but he stopped dealing in them after losing $7 million in the panic of 1884. His wife, Margaret Olivia Sage, established the Russell Sage Foundation and Russell Sage College (Troy, N.Y.) after his death.
sagebrush Any of various shrubby species of Artemisia of the compos¬ ite family. Native to semiarid plains and mountain slopes in western North America, these shrubs are adapted both to dry, hot summers and to moist, mild winters with intermittent polar Pacific winds. Common sagebrush {Artemisia tridentata) is a many-branched shrub, usually about 3-6.5 ft (1-2 m) high, with silvery gray, bitter-aromatic foliage.
Sager Vsa-joiA, Ruth (b. Feb. 7, 1918, Chicago, Ill., U.S.—d. March 29, 1997, Brookline, Mass.) U.S. geneticist. She received her Ph.D. from Columbia and later taught at Hunter College and Harvard University. Questioning the traditional belief that chromosomal genes are the only apparatus for transmitting genetic information to a cell, she discovered (1953) in the alga Chlamydomonas the existence of a second genetic transmitting system, a gene not located on the alga’s chromosomes that controls the cell’s sensitivity to the antibiotic streptomycin, and she observed that both male and female Chlamydomonas can transmit the nonchromosomal gene.
Sagittarius \,sa-j9-'ter-e-3s\ Latin "Archer" In astronomy, the con¬ stellation lying between Capricorn and Scorpio; in astrology, the ninth sign of the ZODIAC, governing approximately the period November 22-December 21. Its symbol is either a centaur shooting a bow and arrow or an arrow drawn across a bow. The association of this constellation with a mounted archer originated in Babylonia as early as the 11th century bc.
Sagittarius A Strongest source of cosmic radio waves, lying in the direction of the constellation Sagittarius. Discovered by Karl Jansky in 1932, it has been identified as the nucleus of the Milky Way Galaxy. The region is relatively small and constitutes an intense source of infrared radiation thought to be emitted partly by stars and partly by dust around them. Within the region is a much smaller radio source, Sagittarius (Sgr) A, which appears to mark the centre of the Galaxy. Observations indi¬ cate that the galactic nucleus contains a black hole with a mass of one million to several million times that of the Sun; they also provide a strong case that Sgr A is the black hole. The activity at the Galaxy’s centre resembles that of an active galactic nucleus but on a much smaller scale.
sago Vsa-go\ Food starch prepared from carbohydrate material stored in the trunks of several palms, chiefly Metroxylon rumphii and M. sagu, sago palms native to Indonesia. Composed of 88% carbohydrate, sago is a basic food of the South Pacific, where it is used in meal form to prepare soups, cakes, and puddings. Elsewhere its use in cookery is mainly as a pudding and sauce thickener. In industry it is used as a textile stiffener. The thick trunk grows to 30 ft (9 m) tall in low marshy areas. At 15 years the core of the mature trunk is engorged with starchy material. If allowed to form and ripen, the fruit absorbs the starch, leaving the stem hollow and dying. Cultivated plants thus are cut down when the flower spike appears, and the starchy pith is extracted from the stems.
saguaro \s3-'war-3, s3-'gwar-o\ Large, candelabra-shaped, branched CACTUS {Cereus giganteus, or Carnegiea gigantea ) native to Mexico, Ari¬ zona, and California. Slow-growing at first, mature saguaros may even¬ tually reach 50 ft (15 m) in height. They bloom for the first time when 50-75 years old. They may die at 150-200 years (at a weight of up to 10 tons, or 9,000 kg), most commonly by being uprooted by wind or wash¬ outs. Shallow, wide-ranging roots gather moisture from a large area of desert to support the weighty top growth. The white, night-blooming flow¬ ers, which remain open into the next day, are the Arizona state flower. The red fruits have been an important food of American Indians.
Saguaro National Park Mountain and desert region, southern Ari¬ zona, U.S. Established as a national monument in 1933, it became a national park in 1994. It has a total area of 143 sq mi (370 sq km). Its two districts, separated by the city of Tucson, contain forests of saguaro cactus. Plant life also includes paloverde, mesquite, and ocotillo.
Saguenay \,sa-g9-'na\ River River, southern central Quebec, Canada. It drains Lac-SAINT-JEAN into the Saint Lawrence River at Tadoussac, north¬ east of Quebec city. Flowing east, it descends about 300 ft (90 m) in a tur¬ bulent stream in the first third of its 105-mi (169-km) course. Its fall is a
Sage (Salvia officinalis)
INGMAR HOLMASEN
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1664 I Sahara ► Saint Albans Raid
source of hydroelectric power; its shores are in many places cliffs 1,000- 1,800 ft (300-550 m) high. Noted for its scenery, it is a recreational area.
Sahara Largest desert in the world, encompassing almost all of north¬ ern Africa. Covering an area of about 3,500,000 sq mi (9,065,000 sq km), it is bounded by the Atlantic Ocean, the Atlas Mountains, the Mediterra¬ nean Sea, the Red Sea, and the Sahel region. It includes portions of sev¬ eral countries, including Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, Egypt, Mauritania, Mali, Niger, Chad, and The Sudan. Principal topographic fea¬ tures include large oasis depressions, extensive stony plains, rock-strewn plateaus, abrupt mountains, sand sheets and dunes, and sand seas. Huge areas of it are empty, but scattered clusters of inhabitants survive in frag¬ ile ecological balance wherever water sources occur. Sedentary living is restricted to oasis areas. See also Libyan Desert.
Saharan Arab Democratic Republic Disputed territory of West¬ ern Sahara occupied by Morocco. It was a Spanish colony from c. 1884 to 1976. After Spain left, native Saharawi guerrillas (see Polisario) based in Algeria declared a govemment-in-exile and fought Morocco and Mau¬ ritania for control. Mauritania made peace in 1979, whereupon Morocco claimed the whole territory. A referendum on whether the territory will remain part of Morocco or become independent has been repeatedly post¬ poned. See also Hassan II.
Sahel \sa-'hel\ Arabic Sahil Semiarid zone, western and north-central Africa. Extending from Senegal eastward to The Sudan, it forms a nar¬ row transitional band between the arid Sahara to the north and the humid savannas to the south. Beginning in the late 20th century, it was subjected to increased desertification and soil erosion caused by natural climate changes as well as overgrazing and overfarming. The countries of the zone suffered a devastating drought and famine in the early 1970s, and by 1973 sections of the Sahara had advanced southward as much as 60 mi (100 km). Severe drought and famine again struck the region in 1983-85. Efforts by local governments to combat desertification in the Sahel have met with limited success.
Sahibdin (11. 17th century, India) Indian miniature painter. His work dominated the Mewar school of Rajasthani painting. Though he was a Muslim, Sahibdin was fully at ease with Hindu themes. He produced abstract compositions that are full of brilliant colour and endowed with religious fervour. Among the important surviving examples of his paint¬ ings are a ragamala (musical modes) series (1628); a series on the Bhagavata-Purana, a scriptural text (1648); and the sixth book ( Yuddha- kanda ) of the Hindu epic the Ramayana (1652).
Saicho \ , s!-,cho\ or Dengyo Daishi (b. 767, Omi province, Japan—d. 822, Hiei-zan) Monk who established the Tendai (Chinese Tiantai) sect of Buddhism in Japan. Ordained at age 13, he studied in China and returned with the teachings of Tendai Buddhism, which embraced the Lotus Sutra. Unlike other Buddhist sects in Japan, it asserted that the material world could hold meaning and value and that the teachings of the Buddha are accessible to all, not just a select few. Saicho enjoyed favour with the government but often incurred the enmity of the leaders of other Japanese Buddhist sects. The monastery he built on Mount Hiei became one of the great centres of Buddhist learning.