Staten Island Island in New York Harbor, a borough (pop., 2000: 443,728) of New York, New York, U.S. It has an area of almost 60 sq mi (155 sq km) and is connected to Brooklyn by the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge and to New Jersey by several bridges; it is accessible to Manhat¬ tan by the Staten Island Ferry. The Dutch attempted to colonize the island in 1630 but were thwarted by the Delaware Indian inhabitants until 1661, when the Dutch West India Co. granted the island to the French and settlements were established. Following the acquisition of New Nether- land in 1664 by Great Britain, English and Welsh farmers established homes and farms on the island. As Richmond, it became a borough of New York City in 1898; Staten Island was made the official name in 1975. Mostly residential, the island has some industry, including shipbuilding yards, printing plants, and oil-storage tanks and refineries. It is the seat of Wagner College (1883, moved from Rochester in 1918).
States General See Estates General
states' rights Rights or powers retained by the regional governments of a federal union under the provisions of a federal constitution. In the U.S., Switzerland, and Australia, the powers of the regional governments are those that remain after the powers of the central government have been enumerated in the constitution. The powers of both the state or regional and national levels of government are defined clearly by specific provi¬ sions of the constitutions of Canada and Germany. The concept of states’ rights is closely related to that of the 18th-century European concept of state rights, which was invoked to legitimate the powers vested in sov¬ ereign national governments. In the U.S. before the mid-19th century, some Southern states claimed the right to annul an act of the federal gov¬ ernment within their boundaries (see nullification), as well as the right to secede from the Union. The constitutional question was resolved against the South by the North’s victory in the American Civil War. In the civil rights era, states’ rights were invoked by opponents of federal efforts to enforce racial integration in public schools. The federal government can influence state policy even in areas that are constitutionally the purview
of the states (e.g., education, local road construction) through withhold¬ ing funds from states that fail to comply with its wishes. In the late 20th century the term came to be applied more broadly to a variety of efforts aimed at reducing the powers of national governments.
statistical mechanics Branch of physics that combines the principles and procedures of statistics with the laws of both classical mechanics and quantum mechanics. It considers the average behaviour of a large number of particles rather than the behaviour of any individual particle, drawing heavily on the laws of probability, and aims to predict and explain the measurable properties of macroscopic (bulk) systems on the basis of the properties and behaviour of their microscopic constituents.
statistics Branch of mathematics dealing with gathering, analyzing, and making inferences from data. Originally associated with government data (e.g., census data), the subject now has applications in all the sciences. Statistical tools not only summarize past data through such indicators as the mean (see mean, median, and mode) and the standard deviation but can predict future events using frequency distribution functions. Statistics pro¬ vides ways to design efficient experiments that eliminate time-consuming trial and error. Double-blind tests for polls, intelligence and aptitude tests, and medical, biological, and industrial experiments all benefit from sta¬ tistical methods and theories. The results of all of them serve as predic¬ tors of future performance, though reliability varies. See also estimation, hypothesis testing, least squares method, probability theory, regression.
Statue of Liberty National Monument Historic site in New York Harbor, New York and New Jersey, U.S. Covering 58 ac (23 ha), it includes the Statue of Liberty (on Liberty Island [formerly Bedloe’s Island]) and nearby Ellis Island. The colossal statue, Liberty Enlightening the World , was sculpted by Frederic-Auguste Bartholdi and dedicated in 1886. This 305-ft (93-m) statue of a woman holding a tablet and upraised torch was given to the U.S. by France and commemorates the friendship of the two countries; a plaque at the pedestal’s entrance is inscribed with the sonnet “The New Colossus” by Emma Lazarus. The Statue of Liberty was declared a national monument in 1924 and a UNESCO World Heri¬ tage site in 1984; Ellis Island, containing the Ellis Island Immigration Museum, was added to the monument in 1965.
Statute of Provisors See Statute of Provisors
Staubach Vst6-,bak\, Roger (Thomas) (b. Feb. 5, 1942, Cincinnati, Ohio, U.S.) U.S. football player. He compiled a notable record at the U.S. Naval Academy (1962-65), where he made All-American and won the Heisman Trophy (1963). His professional career was spent as quarterback with the Dallas Cowboys (1969-79), which he helped make into a domi¬ nant team, leading them to the play-offs in every year but one (1974) and to four Super Bowls (won 1972, 1978; lost 1976, 1979).
Staupers, Mabel (Keaton) orig. Mabel Doyle (b. Feb. 27, 1890, Barbados, West Indies—d. Nov. 29, 1989, Washington, D.C., U.S) Caribbean-born U.S. nurse and executive. She joined two physicians to establish the first hospital in Harlem to treat U.S. blacks with tuberculo¬ sis (1920). As executive secretary of the National Association of Colored Graduate Nurses (NACGN), she campaigned to integrate the Armed Forces Nurse Corps; overwhelming public support led to full integration in 1945, and in 1948 NACGN succeeded in integrating the American Nurses Association.
staurolite Vstor-o-.lfiA Silicate mineral produced by regional metamorphism in rocks such as mica schists, slates, and gneisses, where it is generally associated with other minerals. Staurolite is a brittle, hard mineral that has a dull lustre. Its crystals are usually dark brown and are often twinned in cruciform patterns (known as fairy crosses) that can be made into orna¬ ments. Staurolite occurs especially in Canada, Brazil, France, Switzer¬ land, and the U.S. (North Carolina, Virginia, and Georgia).
stave church Type of medieval Norwegian wooden church. The stone foundation supports four horizontal wooden members, from which rise four corner posts, or staves, which are joined together by four upper crossbeams. From this boxlike frame, timbers extend outward, support¬ ing a series of uprights, or masts. There may be four or more ranks of masts, with an equal number of triangular frames of diminishing size ris¬ ing above them. The church at Borgund (c. 1150) is one of about 24 sur¬ viving examples. Its six tiers of double-sloped roofs, shell-like exterior shingles, and elaborate carvings of dragons and other motifs give it its remarkably picturesque and vigorous appearance.
© 2006 Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.
Stavisky affair ► steel I 1815
Stavisky affair (1934) French financial and political scandal. When bonds sold to working-class citizens by a credit organization run by the Russian-born swindler Serge A. Stavisky (1886-1934) were found to be worthless, Stavisky fled to Chamonix and allegedly committed suicide. Members of the right believed he had been murdered to cover up com¬ plicity with corrupt government officials. Demonstrations against the gov¬ ernment by antirepublican groups, including the Action Francaise and the Croix de Feu, culminated in a riot on Feb. 6, 1934, which killed 15 people. Two successive prime ministers were forced to resign; a centrist coalition was eventually formed to restore confidence.
STD See sexually transmitted disease