sugar beet Variety of beet (Beta vulgaris ) that accounts for about two-fifths of global sugar produc¬ tion, making it second only to sug¬ arcane as a source of the world’s sugar. Unlike sugarcane, sugar beets can be grown in temperate or cold climates in Europe, North America, and Asia; that is, within the densely populated, well-developed areas where much of the product is con¬ sumed. The sugar beet was grown as a garden vegetable and for fodder long before it was valued for its sugar content.
sugarcane Giant, thick, perennial GRASS ( Saccharum officinarum\ fam¬ ily Poaceae, or Gramineae), culti¬ vated in tropical and subtropical regions worldwide for its sweet sap, a major source of sugar and molasses.
The plant grows in clumps of solid stalks with regularly spaced nodes or joints, each with a bud that can be planted for commercial asexual propagation. Graceful, sword-shaped leaves, similar to those of the corn plant, fold in a sheath around the stem. Mature canes may be 10-20 ft (3-6 m) tall and 1-3 in. (2.5-7.5 cm) in diameter. Molasses, the syrup remaining after sugar is crystallized out of the juice, is used in cooking, in
Sugar beet (Beta vulgaris ).
GRANT HEILMAN
Sugarcane (Saccharum officinarum)
RAY MANLEY-SHOSTAL ASSOC.
© 2006 Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.
1840 I Sugawara Michizane ► Sukhoy
making rum, and as feed for farm animals. Residual cane fibre (bagasse) is burned as fuel or used as filler for paper and particleboard.
Sugawara Michizane Vsu-'ga-wa-ra-.me-cho-'za-naX (b. 845, Japan—d. March 26, 903, Dazaifu) Japanese scholar of Chinese literature during the Heian period, later deified as Tenjin, patron of scholarship and literature. He was given important government posts by the emperor Uda, who saw him as a counterbalance to the powerful Fujiwara family. When Uda’s son took the throne, Michizane’s fortunes were reversed, and he was sent into exile when the new emperor was persuaded that Michizane was plotting against him. Following his death in exile, calamities in the capital were attributed to his vengeful spirit, and he was posthumously reinstated. At shrines dedicated to Tenjin, schoolchildren often buy amu¬ lets for good luck on school entrance exams.
Suger \suj-'zher\ (b. 1081, near Paris—d. Jan. 13, 1151) Abbot of Saint- Denis and adviser to Louis VI and Louis VII. A peasant boy educated at the abbey of Saint-Denis, he was a schoolmate and close friend of the future Louis VI. In 1122 he was elected abbot, and he used popular veneration for the saint and for the church’s banner to rally military support for the king. Suger’s work on the church of Saint-Denis was instrumental in the development of Gothic architecture. He arranged a treaty ending the civil war between Louis VII and his vassal Thibaut, and he served as regent (1147-49) while the king was away on the Second Crusade.
Suharto (b. June 8, 1921, Kemusu Argamulja, Java, Dutch East Indies) Second president of Indonesia (1967-98). Suharto initially served in the Dutch colonial army, but after the Japanese conquest (1942) he joined a Japanese-sponsored defense corps. After Japan’s surrender he joined the guerrilla forces seeking independence from the Dutch. When Indonesia became independent (1950), he was a lieutenant colonel.
A strong anticommunist, he crushed what was purported to be an attempted communist coup d’etat in 1965 with a ruthless purge of com¬ munists and leftists throughout the country that left as many as 1,000,000 dead. He deposed the sitting presi¬ dent, Sukarno, and was himself appointed president in 1967. He estab¬ lished authoritarian rule and was repeatedly elected without opposition. In 1975 he brutally annexed the former Portuguese colony of East Timor. A severe economic downturn focused public attention on his govern¬ ment’s corruption, and this led to massive demonstrations that prompted his resignation in 1998, after 31 years in power.
Suhrawardi V.suh-ra-'war-deX, al- in full Shihab al-DIn Yahya ibn Habash ibn Amlrak al-Suhraward? or al-MaqtuI (b. c.
1155, Suhraward, Iran—d. 1191, Aleppo, Syria) Muslim theologian and philosopher. He studied in Esfahan, a leading centre of Islamic scholar¬ ship. His works fell into two categories: doctrinal and philosophical tracts, many of which took account of the ancient Greek philosophers, and shorter treatises intended to guide the mystic toward esoteric knowledge. His best-known work. The Wisdom of Illumination, held that existence is a single continuum that culminates in pure light, representing God. Charged with heresy by rivals in the Muslim clergy, he was executed by the Ayyubid prince Malik al-Zahir—thus earning himself the appellation al-Maqtul (“the Killed”).
Sui \'swe\ dynasty (581-618) Short-lived Chinese dynasty that unified northern and southern China after centuries of division. Under the Sui, the cultural and artistic renaissance that was to reach its height under the succeeding Tang dynasty was set in motion. The first Sui emperor, Wendi, established uniform institutions of government throughout the country, promulgated a new legal system, conducted a census, recruited officials through examinations, and reestablished Confucian rituals. The Sui con¬ ducted three costly and unsuccessful campaigns against the Korean king¬ dom of Koguryo. The Sui capital at Chang 7 an was, in design, six times the size of the modern city of Xi’an at the same site.
suicide Act of intentionally taking one’s own life. Suicide may have psy¬ chological origins such as the difficulty of coping with depression or other mental disorders; it may be motivated by the desire to test the affection of loved ones or to punish their lack of support with the burden of guilt. It may
also stem from social and cultural pressures, especially those that tend to increase isolation, such as bereavement or estrangement. Attitudes toward suicide have varied in different ages and cultures; convicted criminals in ancient Greece were permitted to take their own lives, and the Japanese custom of seppuku (also called hara-kiri), or self-disembowelment, allowed samurai to commit ritual suicide as a way of protecting honour and dem¬ onstrating loyalty. Jews committed suicide rather than submit to ancient Roman conquerors or crusading knights who intended to force their con¬ version. In the 20th century, members of new religious movements, notably the Peoples Temple and Heaven’s Gate, committed mass suicide. Buddhist monks and nuns have also committed sacrificial suicide by self-immolation as a form of social protest. Japan’s use of kamikaze suicide bombers during World War II was a precursor to the suicide bombing that emerged in the late 20th century as a form of terrorism, particularly among Islamic extrem¬ ists. Suicide, however, is generally condemned by Islam, Judaism, and Christianity, and attempts to commit suicide are still punishable by law in many countries. Some communities around the world have sought to legal¬ ize physician-assisted suicide for the terminally ill. Euthanasia was legal¬ ized in The Netherlands in 2001 and Belgium in 2002, and it is openly practiced in Colombia. Since the 1950s suicide-prevention organizations have been established in many countries, with telephone hot lines serving as a source of readily available counseling.
Suir \'shur. River River, southeastern Ireland. It rises in northern County Tipperary and flows south and east. It is joined by the Barrow and the Nore before entering Waterford Harbour 114 mi (183 km) later. In the 1760s the river was made navigable to Clonmel.
suite Set of instrumental dances or dancelike movements. The suite originated in the paired dances of the 14th-16th centuries (pavane- galliard, basse danse-saltarello, etc.). In the 16th— 17th centuries German composers began to write sets of three or four dances, as in Johann Her¬ mann Schein’s Banchetto musicale (1617). In the late 17th century a basic ordering of four dances— allemande, courante, sarabande, and gigue— became established as standard; other dances came to be interpolated between the sarabande and gigue. In the 19th century suite came to refer to sets of instrumental excerpts from operas and ballets.