Celebes \'se-lo- l bez\ or Sulawesi \,su-l3-'wa-se\ Island (pop., includ¬ ing nearby islands, 2000: 14,946,488), Indonesia. One of the Greater Sunda Islands, it lies in the Malay Archipelago east of Borneo and has an area (including adjacent islands) of 74,005 sq mi (191,671 sq km). The island is mountainous; its tallest peak, Mount Rantekombola, reaches 11,335 ft (3,455 m). Muslims arrived in the 15th century. The Portuguese first visited in 1512 while developing the spice trade of the Moluccas. The first foreign settlement, in 1607 by the Dutch at Makasar (now Ujung Pandang), initiated a power rivalry with the native sultans that lasted into the 20th century. Celebes joined Indonesia in 1950, though various rebel¬ lions against the central government have been ongoing.
Celebes black macaque or Celebes crested macaque
\mo-'kak\ Stump-tailed arboreal monkey ( Macaca nigra ) found in the rain¬ forests of Sulawesi (Celebes), Bacan, and nearby islands. Because it lacks a long tail, this macaque has often been incorrectly referred to as an ape. It has overhanging brows, a hairless black face, and a long, flat muzzle. It is 22-26 in. (55-65 cm) long without the 0.4-0.8-in. (1-2-cm) tail and has dark brown or black fur. The male, especially, bears a longitudinal crest of crown hair. It spends much of its time in trees, where it feeds on fruit. Certain peoples look on it as their ancestor.
Celebes Vse-l3-,bez\ Sea Part of the western Pacific Ocean. It is bor¬ dered by the Sulu Archipelago, Mindanao, the Sangihe Islands, Celebes, and Borneo. It extends 420 mi (675 km) north-south and 520 mi (837 km) east-west, occupying about 110,000 sq mi (280,000 sq km). It is connected with the Java Sea by the Makassar Strait. More than half of it is below 13,000 ft (4,000 m) deep, and its maximum depth is 20,406 ft (6,220 m). Traders and pirates from Borneo and nearby islands controlled the sea until it came under colonial rule in the late 19th century.
celeriac \s3-'ler-e-,ak\ or celery root Type of celery ( Apium graveo- lens, variety rapaceum) grown for its knobby edible root, which is used as a raw or cooked vegetable. Originally cultivated in the Mediterranean and in northern Europe, it was introduced into Britain in the 18th century.
celery Herb ( Apium graveolens) of the parsley family, native to the Medi¬ terranean and the Middle East. The varieties with large, fleshy, succulent, upright leafstalks were developed in the late 18th century. Celery is usu¬ ally eaten cooked in Europe but raw in the U.S. The tiny fruit, or seed, of the celery resembles the plant itself in taste and aroma and is used as a seasoning.
celestial coordinates Set of numbers used to pinpoint the position in the sky (see celestial sphere) of a celestial object. Coordinate systems used include the horizon system (altitude and azimuth), galactic coordinates, the ecliptic system (measured relative to the orbital plane of Earth), and the equatorial system (right ascension and declination, directly analogous to terrestrial latitude and longitude).
celestial mechanics Branch of astronomy that deals with the math¬ ematical theory of the motions of celestial bodies. Johannes Kepler’s laws of planetary motion (1609-19) and Newton's laws of motion (1687) are fundamental to it. In the 18th century, powerful methods of mathemati¬ cal analysis were generally successful in accounting for the observed motions of bodies in the solar system. One branch of celestial mechanics deals with the effect of gravitation on rotating bodies, with applications to Earth (see tide) and other objects in space. A modem derivation, called orbital mechanics or flight mechanics, deals with the motions of space¬ craft under the influence of gravity, thrust, atmospheric drag, and other forces; it is used to calculate trajectories for ascent into space, achieving orbit, rendezvous, descent, and lunar and interplanetary flights.
Cedar of Lebanon (Cedrus libani )
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celestial sphere ► Cellini I 359
celestial sphere Apparent surface of the heavens, on which the stars seem to be fixed. For the purpose of establishing celestial coordinate sys¬ tems to mark the positions of heavenly bodies, it can be thought of as a real sphere at an infinite distance from Earth. Earth’s rotational axis, extended to infinity, touches this sphere at the northern and southern celestial poles, around which the heavens seem to turn. The intersection of the plane of Earth’s Equator with the sphere marks the celestial equator.
celiac \'se-le-,ak\ disease or nontropical sprue Digestive disor¬ der in which people cannot tolerate gluten, a protein constituent of wheat, barley, malt, and rye flours. In celiac disease, gluten generates an immune response that damages the mucous lining of the small intestine; it is believed that a deficiency of gluten-digesting enzymes may underlie the disease. Poor nutrient absorption causes foul, bulky, fatty stools; malnu¬ trition; stunting of growth; and anemia similar to pernicious anemia. It can run in families. Children begin having intermittent intestinal upset, diarrhea, and wasting at 6-21 months. In adults it usually begins after 30, with appetite loss, depression, irritability, and diarrhea. Symptoms in advanced cases stem from nutritional deficiencies and may require sup¬ portive measures. A high-protein diet low in glutens and saturated fats usually relieves symptoms.
celibacy Vse-b-b3-se\ The deliberate abstinence from sexual activity, usually in connection with a religious role or practice. It has existed in some form in most world religions. It may indicate a person’s ritual purity (sexual relations being viewed as polluting) or may be adopted to facili¬ tate spiritual advancement (as sexual activity would take place only within the bonds of matrimony, marriage and family were seen as an entangling distraction). In shamanistic religions, shamans are often celibate. In Hin¬ duism, “holy men” (or women) who have left ordinary secular life to seek final liberation are celibate. Buddhism began as a celibate order, though many sects have since given up celibacy. Chinese taoism has monastics and independent celibate adepts. Islam has no institutional celibacy, but individuals may embrace it for personal spiritual advancement. Judaism has prescribed periods of abstinence, but long-term celibacy has not played a large role. The early Christian church tended to regard celibacy as superior to marriage. Since the 12th century it has been the rule for Roman Catholic clergy, though clerical celibacy was never adopted by Protestantism.
Celine \sa-'len\, Louis-Ferdinand orig. Louis-Ferdinand Destouches (b. May 27, 1894, Courbevoie, near Paris, France—d. July 1, 1961, Meudon) French writer. Celine was born into poverty. In World War I he suffered wounds and shell shock, the mental and physical effects of which lingered throughout his life. From 1924 he practiced medicine. His Journey to the End of Night (1932), about a man’s tortured search for meaning, is written in a vehement and disjointed style that marked him as a major innovator. Death on the Installment Plan (1936) is a bleak portrayal of a world bereft of value, beauty, and decency. He thereafter became increasingly conservative, anti-Semitic, and misanthropic. After World War II he fled to Denmark as a suspected Nazi collaborator, but he was later exonerated. His works include the trilogy Castle to Castle (1957), North (1960), and Rigadoon (1969).
cell In biology, the basic unit of which all living things are composed; the smallest structural unit of living matter that is able to function inde¬ pendently. A single cell can be a complete organism in itself, as in bac¬ teria and protozoans. Groups of specialized cells are organized into tissues and organs in multicellular organisms such as higher plants and animals. There are two distinct types of cells: prokaryotic cells, found only in bac¬ teria (including blue-green algae, or cyanobacteria) , and eukaryotic cells, composing all other life-forms. Though the structures of prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells differ (see prokaryote, eukaryote), their molecular com¬ positions and activities are very similar. The chief molecules in cells are nucleic acids, proteins, and polysaccharides. A cell is bounded by a membrane that enables it to exchange certain materials with its surroundings. In plant cells, a rigid cell wall encloses this membrane. See illustration above.