Bodin \b6-'da n \/ Jean (b. 1530, Angers, Fr.—d. June 1596, Laon) French political philosopher. He studied at the University of Toulouse and later taught law there (1551-61). In 1571 he entered the household of the king’s brother, Francois, duke d’Alengon. He favoured negotiation with the Huguenots, with whom the government was engaged in a civil war, and opposed the sale of royal domains. His The Six Bookes of a Com- monweale (1576) won him immediate fame. In it he suggested that the key to securing order and authority lay in recognition of the state’s sov¬ ereignty, which he believed derived from divine right and not from the consent of the subject. He distinguished three types of government: mon¬ archy (which he favoured), aristocracy, and democracy.
Bodleian \bod-Te-on\ Library Library of the University of Oxford and one of the oldest and most important nonlending reference libraries in Britain. The Bodleian is particularly rich in Asian manuscripts and col¬ lections of English literature, local history, and early printing. Though it was established earlier, it was not secured by the university until 1410. After a period of decline, it was restored by Sir Thomas Bodley (1545— 1613), a collector of medieval manuscripts, and reopened in 1602. Under provisions established in 1610 and 1662, it is a legal deposit library entitled to free copies of all books printed in Britain.
Bodmer Vbod-morV Johann Georg (b. Dec. 6, 1786, Zurich, Switz.—d. May 30, 1864, Zurich) Swiss inventor of machine tools and textile-making machinery. In 1824 he established a small factory in England to make textile machinery, and by 1833 he had a shop equipped with his own machine tools. Between 1839 and 1841 he patented more than 40 specialized machine tools that he then set up in an ingenious factory-type arrangement. A gear-making machine that cut teeth of pre¬ determined pitch, form, and depth in a metal blank was especially note¬ worthy. Bodmer also patented various steam-engine devices and is credited with inventing the cylinder with opposed pistons.
Bodoni Xbo-'do-neV Giambattista (b. Feb. 16, 1740, Saluzzo, Piedmont—d. Nov. 29, 1813, Parma, French Empire) Italian typographer. Son of a printer, he served an apprenticeship at the press of the Roman Catholic Church in Rome. In 1768 he assumed management of the Royal Press of the duke of Parma. By the 1780s he was designing his own type¬ faces; the Bodoni typeface appeared in 1790 and is still in use today. He became internationally known and collectors sought his books. His many important works include fine editions of Horace (1791), Virgil (1793), and Homer’s Iliad (1808).
Bodrum See Halicarnassus body louse See human louse
body modification and mutilation Intentional modification of the human body for religious, aesthetic, or social reasons. It is frequently per¬
formed for magical or pseudo-medical purposes, but cosmetic motives are equally common. The variability of the results in different cultures reflects varying ideals of beauty or morality. Modifications include head flatten¬ ing, insertion of a lip plug, tattoos, scarification, and piercing of the ear and other parts of the body. Mutilations include male and female circum¬ cision, foot binding, and amputation.
bodybuilding Developing of the physique through exercise and diet, often for competitive exhibition. Bodybuilding aims at displaying pro¬ nounced muscle tone and exaggerated muscle mass and definition for overall aesthetic effect. Weight training is the principal form of exercise used; high-protein foods and vitamin and mineral supplements contribute to the diet. Bodybuilding competition grew largely out of 19th-century European strongman theatrical and circus acts. The first important inter¬ national competition was the Mr. Universe contest, founded in 1947. It was followed in 1965 by the even more prestigious Mr. Olympia contest. Competition for women began in the 1970s. In 1998 bodybuilding was granted provisional status by the International Olympic Committee. The use of steroids to enhance performance, though generally forbidden, has long been common among bodybuilders.
Boehm Vb6em\, Theobald (b. April 9, 1794, Munich, Bavaria—d. Nov. 25, 1881, Munich, German Empire) German flutist and flute designer. Son of a goldsmith, he was a self-taught virtuoso flutist. Real¬ izing that the craft he learned from his father could be put to use to improve the instrument, he created a new kind of key mechanism in 1832. He later studied acoustics, and by 1847 he had completely redesigned the flute, giving it a different internal shape, moving the holes, and extending the use of the keys. His work achieved a stronger and more uniform tone than that of earlier instruments and formed the basis for the modern flute.
Boeing Co. Major U.S. firm that is the world’s largest aerospace com¬ pany and foremost maker of commercial jet transports. It was founded by William E. Boeing (1881-1956) in 1916 (as Aero Products Company). In the late 1920s it became part of United Aircraft and Transport Corp., but it reemerged as an independent entity in 1934 when that company was broken up to comply with antitrust legislation. Boeing pioneered the development of single-wing planes in the 1930s; its B-l 7 Flying Fortress (first flown 1935) and B-29 Superfortress (1942) played prominent roles in World War II. After the war the company developed the B-52 jet bomber, long a mainstay of U.S. strategic forces. It produced the first U.S. jetliner, the Boeing 707 (in service 1958), and went on to develop a highly successful series of commercial jet transports. By the start of the 21st century these formed seven families—the narrow-body 737 and 757; wide-body 747, 767, and 777; 717 (formerly McDonnell Douglas MD-95); and MD-11. In the 1960s Boeing built the Lunar Orbiters, Lunar Roving Vehicles, and the first stage of the Saturn V rockets (see Saturn) for the U.S. Apollo program. Beginning in 1993, it served as NASA’s prime contractor for the International Space Station. In 1996 it purchased the aerospace and defense units of Rockwell International Corp., and a year later it bought McDonnell Douglas Corp. It acquired the satellite business of Hughes Electronics in 2000. See also Lockheed Martin Corp.
Boeotia \be-'o-sh3\ District and ancient republic, eastern central Greece. Bounded by Attica and the Gulf of Corinth, its chief cities were Orchomenus and Thebes. Inhabited by Boeotians, an Aetolian people from Thessaly, it became politically significant after the Boeotian League was formed under Theban leadership c. 600-550 bc. Hostile to Athens, the League revolted against it c. 447 bc. In the Peloponnesian War, Boeotia defeated Athens at Delium in 424 bc. Led by Thebes, it dominated Greece until Thebes was destroyed by Alexander the Great c. 335 bc.
Boer See Afrikaner
Boerhaave Vbiir-.ha-voV Hermann (b. Dec. 31, 1668, Voorhout, Neth.—d. Sept. 23, 1738, Leiden) Dutch physician. As a professor at the University of Leiden, he was renowned as a teacher, and he is often cred¬ ited with founding the modern system of teaching medical students at the patient’s bedside. His reputation as one of the greatest physicians of the 18th century lay partly in his attempts to organize the mass of medical information known at the time, in a series of major texts and encyclope¬ dic works.
Boethius \bo-'e-the-3s\ in full Anicius Manlius Severinus Boe¬ thius (b. ad 470^-75?, Rome—d. 524, Pavia?) Roman scholar, Christian philosopher, and statesman. Born to a patrician family, he became consul in 510 and subsequently chief minister to the Ostrogothic king Theodoric.
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bog body ► Bohemian language I 241
Accused of treason and condemned to death, he wrote his Neoplatonic The Consolation of Philosophy while in prison awaiting execution. The work was extremely popular and influential through the Middle Ages and later. He is also known for his translations of works of Greek logic and mathematics, including those of Porphyry and Aristotle. His translations and commentaries were among the basic texts of medieval Scholasticism.