von Neumann \van-'noi-man\, John orig. Janos Neumann (b.
Dec. 28, 1903, Budapest, Hung.—d. Feb. 8, 1957, Washington, D.C., U.S.) Hungarian-born U.S. mathematician. After receiving his Ph.D. from the University of Budapest, he emigrated to the U.S. to teach at Prince¬ ton University (1930) and was among the original faculty of the Institute for Advanced Study (from 1933). He solved one of David Hilbert’s 23 theoretical problems and collaborated on developing an algebraic ring with profound applications in quantum physics. During World War II he participated in the development of the atomic bomb. After the war he made major contributions to the development of high-speed computers; one of his computers was essential to the creation of the hydrogen bomb. As coau¬ thor of Theory of Games and Economic Behavior (1944), he was one of the founders of game theory.
Vondel Vvon-dolV Joost van den (b. Nov. 17, 1587, Cologne—d. Feb. 5, 1679, Amsterdam) Dutch poet and dramatist. Of Mennonite par¬ ents, Vondel early showed a preference for using Christian mythology as the subject matter of his plays. He also wrote lampoons and satirical poems against the Dutch church and government. His dramatic tragedies, with their lyrical language and grandeur of conception, are his most important achievement. The Passover (1612) is his most notable early work. He first modeled his plays on ancient Latin drama but later turned to the Greek model; plays of the latter type include his masterpiece, the trilogy comprising Lucifer (1654), Adam in Exile (1664), and Noah (1667), which influenced John Milton’s Paradise Lost.
Vonnegut Wa-ns-.gatV, Kurt, Jr. (b. Nov. 11, 1922, Indianapolis, Ind., U.S.) U.S. novelist. He attended Cornell University and the University of Chicago. Captured by the Germans during World War II, he also survived the Allied firebombing of Dresden, an experience he made part of his novel Slaughterhouse-Five (1969; film, 1972). His pessimistic and satiri¬ cal novels use fantasy and science fiction to highlight the horrors and iro¬ nies of 20th-century civilization. They include Player Piano (1952), Cat’s Cradle (1963), Breakfast of Champions (1973), Galapagos (1985), and Timequake (1997). He also wrote plays and collections of short stories.
voodoo See vodou
Voronezh Wo-'ro-nishX City (pop., 2001 est.; 901,800), western Russia. It lies along the Voronezh River above its confluence with the Don. It was founded in 1586 as a fortress. Peter I (the Great) built a naval flotilla in Voronezh for use in his campaigns against the Turks. With the agricul¬ tural development of the region, it became a centre for the grain trade. Occupied by the Germans and largely destroyed in World War II, it was rebuilt in the postwar era. It has a range of engineering, chemical, and food-processing industries. Its university was established in 1918.
Vorontsov Wo-ront-'sofX, Mikhail (Illarionovich) (b. July 23, 1714—d. Feb. 26, 1767, St. Petersburg, Russia) Russian statesman. A member of a family that became prominent in Russian court circles in the 18th century, he was appointed a page in the court of Yelizaveta Petrov¬ na (later Elizabeth) at the age of 14. In 1742 he helped her overthrow Tsar Ivan VI and become empress. As Elizabeth’s vice chancellor (1744-58) and chancellor (1758-62), he played a major role during her reign, espe¬ cially in his pro-French foreign policy. When Peter III succeeded Elizabeth and abandoned her alliances with France and Austria, Vorontsov made no effort to dissuade the new emperor and even continued to support him when he was deposed by his wife, Catherine II (1762). Vorontsov was con¬ sequently placed under house arrest; only after Peter died did he swear allegiance to Catherine and resume his office as chancellor, which he held until he retired in 1763.
Voroshilov X.vor-o-'she-.loA, Kliment (Yefremovich) (b. Feb. 4, 1881, Verkhneye, Russia—-d. Dec. 2, 1969, Moscow, Russia, U.S.S.R.) Soviet military and political leader. A notable military commander in World War I and later in the Russian Civil War, he led the defense of Tsaritsyn (now Volgograd). A close associate of Joseph Stalin, he was appointed peo¬ ple’s commissar for defense (1925) and a member of the Politburo (1926). Named a marshal of the Soviet Union (1935), he reorganized the Soviet general staff, mechanized the army, and developed the air force. After the initial Soviet defeats in World War II, he was removed as defense commis¬ sar but appointed to the committee for state defense (1941-44). He later chaired the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet (1953-57).
Vorster Vfor-storV John orig. Balthazar Johannes Vorster (b.
Dec. 13, 1915, Jamestown, Cape Province, S.Af.—d. Sept. 10, 1983, Cape Town) South African prime minister (1966-78). Vorster was arrested in 1942 for supporting Germany in World War II. In the 1948 elections he was rejected by the National Party as too extreme, but his support grew in the 1950s. As minister of justice (1961-66) under Hendrik Verwoerd, he rigidly enforced apartheid. When Verwoerd was assassinated, Vorster was chosen to replace him. In the 1970s he sent troops into Angola against its Soviet- and Cuban-supported government. He resigned in 1978 and took the ceremonial post of president, but a scandal forced his resignation.
Vorticism Vvor-ti-.si-zomV Literary and artistic movement that flour¬ ished in England 1912-15. Founded by Wyndham Lewis, it attempted to relate art to industrialization. It opposed 19th-century sentimentality and extolled the energy of the machine and machine-made products, and it promoted something of a cult of sheer violence. In the visual arts, Vor- ticist compositions were abstract and sharp-planed, showing the influence of Cubism and Futurism. Artists involved in the movement included the poet Ezra Pound and the sculptor Jacob Epstein.
Vortsjarv Vvorts-.yarvV or Vorts Jarv Lake, south-central Estonia. With an area of 110 sq mi (280 sq km), it is the largest lake in Estonia. It forms part of the 124-mi (200-km) course of the Ema River, which enters the lake from the south and drains it north and east into Lake Peipsi.
Vostok \vu-'stok,\ English Vvas-,tak\ Any of a series of six manned Soviet spacecraft launched from 1961 to 1963. Vostok 1 (1961) carried the first human (Yury A. Gagarin) into space. Vostok 3 set a new time record in space of 94 hours. Vostoks 5 and 6 were launched two days apart and traveled very close together, at times only 3 mi (5 km) apart, setting the stage for future dockings between orbiting vehicles. The first woman in space, Valentina Tereshkova, flew aboard Vostok 6.
Voting Rights Act Act passed by the U.S. Congress in 1965 to ensure the voting rights of African Americans. Though the Constitution’s 15th Amendment (passed 1870) had guaranteed the right to vote regardless of “race, color, or previous condition of servitude,” African Americans in the South faced efforts to disenfranchise them, including poll TAXes and literacy tests, as late as the 1960s, when the civil rights movement focused national attention on infringements of their voting rights; Congress responded with the Voting Rights Act, which prohibited Southern states
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Voto ► Vygotsky I 2017
from using literacy tests to determine eligibility to vote. Later laws pro¬ hibited literacy tests in all states and made poll taxes illegal in state and local elections.
Voto, Bernard De See Bernard De Voto
Vouet \'vwe,\ English \vii-'a\, Simon (b. Jan. 9, 1590, Paris, France—d. June 30, 1649, Paris) French painter. He formed his style in Italy, where he lived from 1614 to 1627. His early work was influenced by Caravaggio, but works done after 1620 display more idealized figures and use more evenly diffused white light. He returned to Paris in 1627 to become first painter to Louis XIII. Thereafter he won almost all the impor¬ tant commissions and dominated the city artistically for the next 15 years. He introduced the Italian Baroque style in France with such paintings as St. Charles Borromeo (c. 1640). His late works display the soft, idealized modeling, sensuous forms, and bright colours for which he is best known.