square of opposition See square of opposition
squash Any of various fruits of the genus Cucurbita in the gourd fam¬ ily, widely cultivated as vegetables and for livestock feed. The principal species are C. maxima and certain varieties of C. pepo. Summer squash is a quick-growing, small-fruited, nontrailing or bush type of C. pepo. Diverse in form, colour, and surface texture, the fruits do not store well and must be used soon after harvest (see zucchini). Winter varieties of squash, C. maxima, are long-vining, generally large-fruited, long-season types. Harvested fruits, in a wide range of sizes, shapes, and colours, can be stored many months if kept dry and well above freezing. The rinds are harder than those of summer squash and usually inedible. Examples include acorn squash and pumpkin. Native to the Americas, squash was widely cultivated by American Indians before Europeans arrived.
squash (rackets) Singles or doubles game played in a four-walled court with a long-handled racket and a rubber ball. A descendant of rack¬ ets, it probably originated in the mid-19th century at England’s Harrow School. The standard international game uses a relatively soft, slow ball; hardball squash, popular in the U.S., is played on a narrower court with a harder, faster ball. The object of squash is to bounce, or rebound, the ball off the front wall in such a way as to defeat an opponent’s attempt to reach and return it.
Black spruce (Picea mariana)
GRANT HEILMAN-EB INC.
© 2006 Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.
squash bug ► Sri Lanka I 1807
squash bug or leaf-footed bug Any of more than 2,000 widely distributed insect species (family Coreidae), including many important plant pests. Most species are dull-coloured and more than 0.4 in. (10 mm) long. Many have enlarged, flattened extensions on the legs. The North American squash bug (Anasa tristis ) is an important pest of squash, melon, and pumpkin (plants in the gourd family). It is basically yellow but is covered with black pits that make it look black. The larvae feed underground, and the piercing and sucking mouthparts of the adults enable them to attack the parts of plants that insecticides rarely penetrate.
squash tennis Singles racket game resembling squash rackets, played with an inflated ball the size of a tennis ball. Played in virtually the same court as squash rackets, squash tennis makes fewer demands on the legs in pursuing the ball but puts a greater premium on agility and quickness of foot and reflexes in turning and spinning.
squatter sovereignty See popular sovereignty
Squaw Valley Valley, eastern California, U.S. Squaw Valley is located in the Sierra Nevada range on the eastern slope of Squaw Peak, northwest of Lake Tahoe. A world-famous winter sports area, it has ice-skating facili¬ ties, ski lifts, and trails, and it was the site of the 1960 Winter Olympic Games.
Squibb, E(dward) R(obinson) (b. July 4, 1819, Wilmington, Del., U.S.—d. Oct. 25, 1900, Brooklyn, N.Y.) U.S. pharmaceutical manufac¬ turer. He earned a medical degree and later worked on U.S. Navy ships; his work alerted him to the poor quality of the medicines supplied to the Navy, which he persuaded to manufacture its own drugs. At the Brook¬ lyn Naval Hospital (from 1851) he devised a safe method for making anesthetic ether and also discovered processes for making chloroform, fluid extracts, and bismuth salts. In 1858 he set up his own Brooklyn laboratory; the Union Army during the Civil War relied heavily on his drugs, and by 1883 he was manufacturing 324 products and selling them around the world. A Quaker idealist, he refused to patent his medicines, and he crusaded for purity in drug manufacture. He did not live to see the culmination of his work: the Pure Food and Drug Act of 1904.
squid Any of nearly 400 species of 10-armed cephalopods, found in both coastal and oceanic waters, that prey on fishes and crustaceans. They range from less than 0.75 in. (1.5 cm) to more than 65 ft (20 m) long (in the case of the giant squid). Two of the 10 arms are long, slender ten¬ tacles; each has an expanded end and four rows of suckers with toothed, hard-edged rings. An internal shell supports the slender tubular body of most species. Squid eyes, almost as complex as human eyes, are usually set into the sides of the head. Squids may be swift swimmers (propelling themselves by contracting and relaxing their mantle or by undulating their two fins) or mere drifters; water expelled from a funnel below the head can propel the squid backward. Like the octopus, the squid may emit an inky cloud from its ink sac when in danger from sperm whales, fishes, or humans, among other predators.
Squid (///ex coindeti) swimming forward
DOUGLAS P. WILSON
squirrel Any of about 260 species in 50 genera (family Sciuridae) of mostly diurnal rodents found almost worldwide. Many species are arbo¬ real; some are terrestrial. All species have strong hind legs and a hairy tail. They vary widely in colour and form and range in total length from the 4-in. (10-cm) African pygmy squirrel to the giant squirrels of Asia,
about 35 in. (90 cm) long. Tree dwellers live in a tree hollow or nest, and most are active year-round. Ground dwellers live in burrows, and many become dormant in winter (hibernate) or summer (estivate). Most species are primarily vegetarian and are fond of seeds and nuts; some eat insects or supplement their diet with animal protein. See also chipmunk; flying squirrel; ground squirrel; marmot; prairie dog.
squirrel monkey Any of several species (genus Saimiri, family Cebidae) of arboreal New World monkeys, found in groups of up to several hundred during the day in riverside forests of Central and South America. They eat fruit, insects, and small animals. They are 10-16 in. (25—40 cm) long and have a heavy, nonprehensile, black-tipped tail, 15-19 in. (37-47 cm) long. They have a small white face, large eyes, and large, usually tufted, ears. The short, soft coat is grayish to green¬ ish, with yellow or orange arms, hands, and feet. The crown of the common squirrel monkey ( S. sci- ureus) is olive or grayish; the red- backed squirrel monkey (S. oerstedii ) has a black crown and red¬ dish back.
Sraosha \srau-'sha\ In Zoroastrianism and Parsiism, the divine being who is the messenger of Ahura Mazda and the embodiment of the divine word. He serves as the mediator between the human and the divine. Zoroastri- ans believe that no ritual is valid without his presence. He is depicted as a strong and holy youth who lives in a celestial thousand-pillared house. He chastises the demons that harass people every night, and he leads the righteous soul through the ordeal of judgment three days after death. At the end of time, he will be the agent of the extermination of evil.
Sravasti \shra-'v3s-te\ Ancient city, northeastern Uttar Pradesh, north¬ ern India. In Buddhist times (6th century BC-6th century ad), it was the capital of Kosala and a prosperous trading centre. It was also closely associated with the life of the Buddha and with figures significant in later Buddhist history. Its ruins include those of a monastery.
Sri Lanka V.sre-'laq-koN officially Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka formerly Ceylon Island country in the Indian Ocean, off the southeastern coast of India. Area: 25,332 sq mi (65,610 sq km). Popu¬ lation (2005 est.): 20,743,000. Capitals: Colombo (executive), Sri Jayewardenepura Kotte (legislative and judicial). About three-fourths of the population is Sinhalese; other ethnic groups include Tamils and Mus¬ lims. Languages: Sinhala, Tamil (both official); also English. Religions: Buddhism; also Hinduism, Islam, Christianity. Currency: Sri Lanka rupee. Highlands make up Sri Lanka’s south-central region and core, with nar¬ row gorges and deep river valleys. The surrounding lowlands include hills and fertile plains. The developing mixed economy is largely based on agriculture, services, and light industries. Clothing, tea, gemstones, and rubber are exported. The island is world-famous for its gemstones, which include sapphires, rubies, and topaz. It is also a major producer of high- grade graphite. Sri Lanka is a republic with one legislative house; its head of state and government is the president, assisted by the prime minister. The Sinhalese people are probably the result of aboriginal inhabitants mixing with Indo-Aryans who began migrating from India c. the 5th cen¬ tury bc. The Tamils were later immigrants from Dravidian India, migrat¬ ing over a period from the early centuries ad to c. 1200. Buddhism was introduced during the 3rd century bc. As Buddhism spread, the Sinhalese kingdom extended its political control over the island but lost it to invad¬ ers from southern India in the 10th century. Between 1200 and 1505, Sin¬ halese power gravitated to southwestern Sri Lanka, while a southern Indian dynasty seized power in the north and established the Tamil king¬ dom in the 14th century. Foreign invasions from India, China, and Malaya occurred in the 13th—15th centuries. In 1505 the Portuguese arrived, and by 1619 they controlled most of the island. The Sinhalese enlisted the Dutch to help oust the Portuguese, and the island eventually came under the control of the Dutch East India Company, which relinquished it in 1796 to the British. In 1802 it became the British crown colony of Ceylon, which gained independence in 1948. It became the Republic of Sri Lanka in 1972 and took its present name in 1978. Civil strife between Tamil and