vacuum Space in which there is no matter or in which the pressure is so low that any particles in the space do not affect any processes being car¬ ried on there. It is a condition well below normal atmospheric pressure and is measured in units of pressure (the pascal). A vacuum can be created by removing air from a space using a vacuum pump or by reducing the pres¬ sure using a fast flow of fluid, as in Bernoulli's principle.
vacuum tube Electron tube consisting of a sealed glass or metal enclo¬ sure from which the air has been withdrawn. It was used in early elec¬ tronic circuitry to control a flow of electrons. In the first half of the 20th century, vacuum tubes allowed the development of radio broadcasting, long-distance telephone service, television, and the first electronic digital computers, which were the largest vacuum-tube systems ever built. Tran¬ sistors have replaced them in virtually all applications, but they are still occasionally used in display devices for television sets and computers (cathode-ray tubes), in microwave ovens, and as high-frequency transmit¬ ters on space satellites.
Vadim \va-'dem\ (Plemiannikov), Roger (b. Jan. 26, 1928, Paris, France—d. Feb. 11, 2000, Paris) French film director. After working briefly as a stage actor in the mid-1940s, he began his film career as an assistant on Juliette (1953). He directed and cowrote the highly success¬ ful erotic film And God Created Woman (1956), which established his wife, Brigitte Bardot, as a sex symbol. He duplicated this winning formula with two later wives, Annette Stroyberg in Dangerous Liaisons (1959) and Jane Fonda in Barbarella (1968), and his lover, Catherine Deneuve, in Vice and Virtue (1962).
Vadodara Wo-'do-do-.raV or Baroda Xbo-'ro-doV City (pop., 2001 pre¬ lim.: 1,306,035), southeastern Gujarat state, west-central India. It was known by many different names before receiving its present one in 1971. The earliest record of the city dates from a charter of ad 812, and during the succeeding centuries it came under various rulers, including those of the Muslim Delhi sultanate and the Mughal dynasty. Its varied products include cotton textiles, chemicals, machinery, and furniture.
Vaduz \fa-'diits\ City (pop., 1997 est.: 5,000), capital of Liechtenstein. Located on the Rhine River, it was greatly damaged in 1499 in a war between the Swiss and Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian I, but it was sub¬ sequently rebuilt. The Liechtenstein family gained possession in the early 18th century. It is a flourishing tourist centre and the residence of the rul¬ ing prince, whose castle overlooks the town. The town’s Furst Liechten- steinische Gemaldegalerie displays parts of the world-famous art collection of the princes of Liechtenstein.
Vaganova \v9-'ga-n9-v9\, Agrippina (Yakovlevna) (b. July 6, 1879, St. Petersburg, Russia—d. Nov. 5, 1951, Leningrad) Russian ballet dancer and teacher. In 1897 she joined the Mariinsky Theatre company, where she worked until 1917. She began teaching at the Leningrad Choreographic (formerly Imperial Ballet) school in 1921 and became its director in 1934. Her system of ballet instruction combined clas¬ sic technique with the athletic, acrobatic post- Revolution style. She wrote the widely used textbook Fundamentals of the Classic Dance (1934).
vagina \v9-'jl-n9\ Genital canal in females. Together with the cavity of the uterus, it forms the birth canal. In most vir¬ gins, its external opening is partially closed by a thin fold of tissue (hymen), which has various forms, not all of which sig¬ nificantly obstruct the opening. The vagina’s lining thickens and thins during the menstrual cycle (see menstruation) in response to estrogen from the ovaries, being thickest and most elastic during ovulation and pregnancy. Its normally slightly acid environment discourages disease-causing microorganisms. Thick, elastic muscle walls accommodate movement of the penis during intercourse and passage of a child during delivery. A mucuslike fluid seeps through them for lubrication during sexual arousal. Vaginal disorders include bacterial and fungal infections (e.g., sexually transmitted diseases, Candida), vaginitis, sores (see ulcer), and prolapse.
vaginitis V.va-js-'nI-tssV Inflammation of the vagina. The chief symptom is a whitish or yellowish vaginal discharge. Treatment depends on the cause: appropriate drugs for sexually transmitted diseases (often from Gard- nerella bacteria or trichomonads) or yeast infections; estrogen cream for atrophy of the vaginal lining, which may dry out after menopause; and avoidance of any chemicals found to trigger irritation or allergy.
vagrancy Act of wandering about without employment or identifiable means of support. Traditionally a vagrant was thought to be one who was able to work for his maintenance but preferred instead to live idly, often as a beggar. Punishment ranged from branding and whipping to conscrip¬ tion into the military services and transportation to penal colonies. In the U.S., laws against vagrancy were used by police and prosecutors to pro¬ scribe a wide range of behaviours. Many such laws were struck down as unconstitutionally vague, thus largely decriminalizing vagrancy, though in the 1990s many local laws were implemented to curtail aggressive panhandling, begging, and other activities by vagrants on city streets.
Vah Vvak\ River River, western Slovakia. Rising in the Tatra Moun¬ tains, it flows west and south for 242 mi (390 km) before entering the Danube River at Komarno. There are numerous hydroelectric-power sta¬ tions along it.
Vail Town (pop., 2000: 4,531), west-central Colorado, U.S. Located in the Rocky Mountains west of Den¬ ver, it was founded as a resort town in 1962 and built in the style of an Alpine village. The skiable terrain around Vail Mountain extends for 15 sq mi (39 sq km), making Vail the largest ski resort in North America.
Vairocana \vi-'ro-ch9-n9\ In Mahayana and tantric Buddhism, the supreme buddha who is the cosmic Dainichi Nyorai ("Great Sun Buddha") counterpart of Sakyamuni in his by Unkei, lacquered wood sculpture, teaching mode. He is the most ^ ^ ^5; in the Enjo-ji, Nara, Japan prominent of the five self-born bud- ASUKA ' EN _
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Vaisheshika ► valence I 1981
dhas, those who were born as humans to propagate the dharma. Though without canonical basis, Vairocana holds a special place in Tibetan Bud¬ dhism and has a special role in the Avatamsaka-sutra, in which he is the solar buddha who is both the ultimate reality of the cosmos and the one who pervades its component parts.
Vaisheshika Wl-'sha-shi-koV One of the six orthodox systems, or dar- shans, of Indian philosophy. Founded c. 2nd-3rd century ad, it fused with Nyaya in the 11th century, forming the Nyaya-Vaisheshika school. Vaisheshika attempts to identify, inventory, and classify the entities that present themselves to human perception. It lists seven categories of being. It holds that the universe’s smallest, indivisible, indestructible unit is the atom, which is made active through God’s will, and that all physical things are a combination of the atoms of earth, water, fire, and air.
Vaishnavism VvIsh-no-.vi-zomV Worship of Vishnu as the supreme deity, as well as of his incarnations, mainly Rama and Krishna. Vaish¬ navism is one of the major forms of modern Hinduism, along with Shaivism and Shaktism, and is probably the most popular and most widely practiced. Characterized by an emphasis on bhakti, its goal is to escape from the cycle of birth and death in order to enjoy the presence of Vishnu. The philo¬ sophical schools into which Vaishnavism is divided are distinguished by their varying interpretations of the relationship between individual souls and God, and include aspects of monism and dualism.
Vaishya \'vlsh-ya\ Third highest of the four varnas of India. Tradition¬ ally described as commoners, Vaishyas are connected with productive labour, such as trade, agriculture, and pastoralism. According to legend, they sprang from the thighs of Prajapati, after the Brahmans and the Ksha- triyas but before the Shudras. Like the two higher classes, they are “twice- born” (see upanayana). They are credited historically with favouring the rise of the reformist religious beliefs of Buddhism and Jainism. In modern times they have become a symbol of middle-class prestige, and many rise to higher classes.