Sumer Vsii-morX Region of southern Mesopotamia and site of the earli¬ est known civilization. It was first settled c. 4500-4000 bc by a non- Semitic people called the Ubaidians. They were the first civilizing force in Sumer, draining the marshes for agriculture and developing trade. The Sumerians, who spoke a Semitic language that came to dominate the region, arrived c. 3300 bc and established the world’s first known cities. These polities evolved into city-states, which eventually developed monarchical systems that later came to be loosely united under a single city, beginning with Kish c. 2800 bc. Thereafter, Kish, Erech, Ur, Nippur, and Lagash vied for ascendancy for centuries. The area came under the control of dynasties from outside the region, beginning with Elam (c. 2530-2450 bc) and later Akkad, led by the Akkadian king Sargon (r. 2334-2279 bc). After the Akkadian dynasty collapsed, the city-states were largely independent until they were reunified under the 3rd dynasty of Ur (21st-20th centuries bc). That final Sumerian dynasty declined after being weakened by foreign invasions, and the Sumerians as a distinct political entity disappeared, becoming part of the Babylonia in the 18th century bc. The Sumerian legacy includes a number of technological and cultural innovations, including the first known wheeled vehicles, the potter’s wheel, a system of writing (see cuneiform), and written codes of law.
Summerhill School Experimental primary and secondary boarding school in Leiston, Suffolk, England. Founded in 1921 by Alexander Suth¬ erland Neill (1883-1973), the school is self-governing (students and staff have a voice in policy matters) and emphasizes the student’s own moti¬ vation to learn (class attendance is optional). Neill’s highly influential and controversial book Summerhill (1960) stimulated much debate about alter¬ natives to conventional schooling, particularly in the U.S.
summons In law, written notification that one is required to appear in court. In civil (noncriminal) cases, it notifies a defendant that he or she must appear and defend (e.g., by filing an answer) within a specified time or a default judgment will be rendered for the plaintiff. The summons is also used in cases involving minor criminal offenses (e.g., traffic viola¬ tions) to call defendants to appear and answer to charges against them. See also subpoena.
Sumner, Charles (b. Jan. 6, 1811, Boston, Mass., U.S.—d. March 11, 1874, Washington, D.C.) U.S. poli¬ tician. He practiced law while cru¬ sading for the abolition of slavery, prison reform, world peace, and edu¬ cational reform. He was elected to the U.S. Senate (1852-74) and spoke out against slavery. He denounced the Kansas-Nebraska Act as the “crime against Kansas” and scorned its authors, Sen. Stephen A. Douglas and Sen. Andrew R Butler. In 1856 an incensed relative of Butler, Con¬ gressman Preston S. Brooks of South Carolina, invaded the Senate and severely beat Sumner with a cane.
He returned to the Senate in 1859, and as chairman of the foreign rela¬ tions committee (1861-71) he helped resolve the Trent Affair.
Sumner, James (Batcheller)
(b. Nov. 19, 1887, Canton, Mass.,
U.S.—d. Aug. 12, 1955, Buffalo,
N.Y.) U.S. biochemist. He taught at Cornell University (1929-55). In 1926 he became the first researcher to crystallize an enzyme (urease); he later crystallized catalase and worked on purification of various other enzymes, which led to recognition that most enzymes are proteins. This work earned him (with John Howard Northrop and Wendell Meredith Stanley) a 1946 Nobel Prize. In 1947 he became director of Cornell’s laboratory of enzyme chemistry, established in rec¬ ognition of his work.
sumo \'su-mo\ Japanese form of wrestling.A contestant loses if he is forced out of the ring (a 15-ft circle) or if any part of his body except the soles of his feet touches the ground. In sumo, a wrestler’s weight, size, and strength are of the greatest importance, though speed and suddenness of attack are also useful. The wrestlers, who are fed a special protein diet and may weigh over 300 lbs (136 kg), wear only loincloths and grip each
Charles Sumner
LIBRARY OF CONGRESS, WASHINGTON, D.C.
© 2006 Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.
1844 I Sumter ► Sunday
other by the belt. Sumo wrestling is an ancient sport with a complex sys¬ tem of ranking; at the top of the hierarchy is the yokozuna (“grand cham¬ pion”). Lengthy rituals and elaborate posturings accompany the bouts, which are extremely brief, often lasting only a few seconds.
Sumter, Thomas (b. Aug. 14, 1734, Hanover county, Va.—d. June 1, 1832, South Mount, S.C., U.S.) American Revolutionary officer. He served in the French and Indian War and later moved to South Carolina. In the American Revolution he was commissioned a brigadier general and escaped to North Carolina after the fall of Charleston (1780). He led the state militia to victories over the British in several engagements. He served in the U.S. House of Representatives (1789-93, 1797-1801) and the Senate (1801-10). Fort Sumter was named for him (see Fort Sumter National Monument).
Sun Star around which the components of the solar system revolve. It is about five billion years old and is the dominant body of the system, with more than 99% of its mass. It converts five million tons of matter into energy every second by nuclear fusion reactions in its core, producing neu¬ trinos (see solar neutrino problem) and solar radiation. The small amount of this energy that penetrates Earth’s atmosphere provides the light and heat that support life. A sphere of luminous gas 864,950 mi (1,392,000 km) in diameter, the Sun has about 330,000 times the mass of Earth. Its core tem¬ perature is close to 27 million °F (15 million °C) and its surface tempera¬ ture about 10,000 °F (6,000 °C). The Sun, a spectral type G (yellow) star, has fairly average properties for a main-sequence star (see Hertzsprung- Russell diagram). It rotates at different rates at different latitudes; one rota¬ tion takes 36 days at the poles but only 25 days at the equator. The visible surface, or photosphere, is in constant motion, with the number and position of sunspots changing in a regular solar cycle. External phenomena include magnetic activity extending into the chromosphere and corona, solar flares, solar prominences, and the solar wind. Effects on Earth include auroras and disruption of radio communications and power-transmission lines. Despite its activity, the Sun appears to have remained relatively unchanged for bil¬ lions of years. See also eclipse; heliopause.
sun bear or honey bear Smallest member (Helarctos malayanus ) of the bear family (Ursidae), found in South Asian forests. Nocturnal and tree-climbing, the sun bear weighs 60-140 lbs (27-64 kg) and is 3-4 ft (1-1.2 m) long, with a 2-in. (5-cm) tail, large forepaws, and short black fur with an orange-yellow crescent on the chest. It uses its long, curved claws to tear or dig for insect nests, particularly those of bees and ter¬ mites. It also eats fruit, honey, and small vertebrates. The sun bear is shy and intelligent; legends say that its chest crescent represents the sun.
sun dance Most spectacular and important religious ceremony of the 19th-century Plains Indians. Ordinarily held by each tribe once a year in early summer, it was an occasion for purification and strengthening and an opportunity to reaffirm basic beliefs about the universe and the super¬ natural through rituals. The ceremony, which originated with the Lakota, was most highly developed among the Arapaho, the Cheyenne, and the Oglala division of the Lakota Sioux. The central rite involved male danc¬ ers who, to fulfill a vow or seek “power” (spiritual energy and insight), danced for several days without stopping for food, drink, or sleep, their ordeal ending in frenzy and exhaustion. Among some tribes, piercing and sun gazing were practiced.