Cannae Vka-ne\, Battle of (216 bc) Major battle near the ancient vil¬ lage of Cannae, in Apulia, southeastern Italy, during the Second Punic War. The Romans, with 80,000 men, met the 50,000 Carthaginian and allied African, Gallic, and Spanish troops under Hannibal’s command and were crushed by them. Hannibal’s troops gradually surrounded their foes and annihilated them in a classic example of the “double envelopment” maneuver. Roman losses exceeded 65,000 men, while the Carthaginians lost only about 6,000.
Cannes \'kan\ City (pop., 1999: 67,304), southeastern France. Located on the Mediterranean Sea southwest of Nice, it is an international resort. Probably settled by Ligurians, it was occupied successively by Phocae- ans, Celts, and Romans. In the 10th century the monks of Lerins built fortifications to guard against Muslim sea raiders. Napoleon, on his return from Elba in 1815, camped nearby. A resort since the 19th century, the city is home to the Cannes Film Festival.
Cannes Film Festival \'kan\ Film festival held annually in Cannes, France. First held in 1946 for the recognition of artistic achievement, the festival came to provide a rendezvous for those interested in the art and influence of the movies. Like other film festivals, it became an interna¬ tional marketplace where producers and distributors could exchange ideas, view films, and sign contracts. The phenomenon of international coproduction arose at Cannes in the late 1940s. The festival was at times the site of artistic contention as well, as in 1958-59, when advocates and opponents of the French New Wave exchanged diatribes and manifestos.
cannibalism The usually ritualistic eating of human flesh by humans. The term derives from the Spanish name (Canbales or Canfbales) for the Carib people, first encountered by Christopher Columbus. Reliable first¬ hand accounts of the practice are comparatively rare, causing some to question whether full-blown cannibalism has ever existed. Most agree that the consumption of particular portions or organs was a ritual means by which certain qualities of the person eaten might be obtained or by which powers of witchcraft and sorcery might be exercised. In some cases, a small portion of the dead person was ritually eaten by relatives. Head¬ hunters (see headhunting) sometimes consumed bits of the bodies or heads of deceased enemies. The Aztecs apparently practiced cannibalism on a large scale as part of the ritual of human sacrifice.
cannibalism In zoology, the eating of any animal by another member of the same species. Certain ants regularly consume injured immatures and, when food is scarce, eat healthy immatures; this practice allows the adults to survive the food shortage and live to breed again. Male lions taking over a pride may kill and eat the existing young. After losing her cubs the mother will become impregnated by the new dominant male, thereby ensuring his genetic contribution. Aquarium guppies sometimes regulate their population size by eating most of their young.
canning Method of preserving food from spoilage by storing it in con¬ tainers that are hermetically sealed and then sterilized by heat. The pro¬ cess was invented in 1809 by Nicolas Appert (b. c. 1750—d. 1841) of France, who used glass bottles. In the 19th century tin-coated iron cans with soldered tops, bottoms, and seams were used, but in the early 20th century these were replaced by tin-plated steel containers with interlock¬ ing seams and polymer seals. In the later 20th century seamless alumi¬ num cans (punched out from a single sheet) capped with a steel or aluminum lid became common, particularly in the beverage industry. In modern canning, food is passed under hot water or steam, transferred to a sterile container, sealed inside, and subjected to heat sufficient to kill any remaining microorganisms, cooking the food. The process preserves most nutrients but often affects consistency and taste.
Canning, George (b. April 11, 1770, London, Eng.—d. Aug. 8, 1827, Chiswick, near London) British politician. As a young man, he came under the influence of William Pitt, who helped him win a seat in Parlia¬ ment (1793) and a post as undersecretary for foreign affairs (1796-99). Canning served twice as foreign secretary (1807-09, 1822-27); his poli¬ cies included cutting England adrift from the Holy Alliance and recogniz¬ ing the independence of the Spanish American colonies. He became prime
minister in 1827 but died a few months later. He helped the Tory Party take a more liberal view on many questions of domestic, colo¬ nial, and foreign policy.
Canning, Stratford, Viscount Stratford (of Redcliffe) (b. Nov.
4, 1786, London, Eng.—d. Aug. 14,
1880, Frant, Sussex) British diplo¬ mat. A cousin of George Canning, he served as minister to Switzerland (1814-18) and later to the U.S.
(1820-23). As ambassador to Con¬ stantinople intermittently for almost 20 years, he exerted a strong influ¬ ence on Turkish policy. He was involved with the movement for Greek independence from Turkey.
He later became friends with the Ottoman sultan and encouraged the Tanzimat program of reforms. He supported Turkish resistance to Rus¬ sian attempts to influence Ottoman affairs and tried in vain to prevent the Crimean War. He retired after leav¬ ing Turkey in 1858.
cannon Long-range artillery piece, as distinguished from other big guns such as the howitzer or mortar. Early cannons, appearing in Europe in the 15th century, were smooth-bored and forged of iron, weighed 6,000-8,000 lbs (2,800-3,600 kg) and were loaded through the muzzle. They were mounted on wheeled carriages, which were thrown backward when the cannon was fired. Rifled bores and breechloading were adopted in the later 19th century, and new mechanisms such as the hydraulic buffer absorbed the recoil. Before 1850 ammunition was either cannister, grapeshot, or round, solid cannonballs and black powder, but rifled bores made pos¬ sible the use of elongated projectiles, which had a longer range. The shrapnel shell was widely used in the 19th-20th century. Modern cannons, of high-grade steel, are towed on split-trail carriages or are mounted on tracked vehicles; a common calibre is 155 mm (6 in.). Many helicopters, airplanes, and naval vessels are equipped with multibarreled, Gatling-type rotary cannons firing 20-mm exploding shells.
Cannon, Joseph (Gurney) (b. May 7, 1836, Guilford county, N.C., U.S.—d. Nov. 12, 1926, Danville, Ill.) U.S. politician. He began practic¬ ing law in Illinois in 1859. Elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1872, he served 46 years (1873-91, 1893-1913, 1915-23). A staunchly conservative Republican, he used his power as speaker (1903-11) in a partisan manner. In 1910 a coalition of Democrats and insurgent Repub¬ licans passed a resolution that made the speaker ineligible for member¬ ship on the rules committee, the main source of his power. Personally well liked, he was popularly known as “Uncle Joe.”
Cannon, Walter B(radford) (b. Oct. 19, 1871, Prairie du Chien, Wis., U.S.—d. Oct. 1, 1945, Franklin, N.H.) U.S. neurologist and physi¬ ologist. He was the first to use X rays in physiological studies. He also investigated hemorrhagic and traumatic shock during World War I and worked on methods of blood storage. He researched the emergency func¬ tions of the sympathetic nervous system and homeostasis and sympathin, an epinephrine-like substance released by certain neurons. With Philip Bal'd he developed the Cannon-Bard theory, which proposed that emo¬ tional and physiological responses to external situations arise simulta¬ neously and that both prepare the body to deal with the situation.
Cano Vka-no\, Alonso (b. March 19, 1601, Granada, Spain—d. Sept. 3, 1667, Granada) Spanish painter, sculptor, and architect. He studied in Sevilla with Francisco Pacheco and was active as court painter in Madrid (1638-44). Despite a violent temperament, Cano produced serene and elegant religious paintings and sculpture. He worked for much of his career in Granada, where he designed the facade of the Granada Cathe¬ dral (1667), one of the masterpieces of Spanish Baroque architecture. He is often called the Spanish Michelangelo for the diversity of his talents.