craniosynostosis \ 1 kra-ne-o-,sin- I as-'to-s3s\ or craniostosis
\,kra-ne-6-'sto-s3s\ Cranial deformity produced when the bones of the skull fuse too early. Pressure from the growing brain normally causes the skull bones to grow along the seams (cranial sutures) between them. If all the sutures fuse early, the head remains abnormally small, which can cause mental retardation or blindness. If only one or some fuse early, the skull grows in other directions and becomes deformed. Surgery in the first two years to keep the sutures open longer minimizes these complications.
crank In mechanics, an arm secured at right angles to a shaft with which it can rotate or oscillate. Next to the wheel, the crank is the most impor¬ tant motion-transmitting device, because, with the connecting rod, it pro¬ vides means for converting linear to rotary motion, and vice versa. The first recognizable crank is said to have appeared in China in the 1 st cen¬
tury ad. The carpenter’s brace was invented c. 1400 by a Flemish car¬ penter. The first mechanical connect¬ ing rods were reportedly used on a treadle-operated machine in 1430. About this time, flywheels were added to the rotating members to carry the members over the “dead” positions when the rod and the crank arm are lined up with each other.
Cranmer, Thomas (b. July 2, 1489, Aslacton, Nottinghamshire, Eng.—d. March 21, 1556, Oxford) First Protestant archbishop of Can¬ terbury. Educated at the University of Cambridge, he was ordained in 1523. He became involved in Henry VIII’s negotiations with the pope over divorcing Catherine of Aragon. In 1533 Henry appointed him arch-
Thomas Cranmer, detail of an oil paint¬ ing by Gerlach Flicke, 1545; in the National Portrait Gallery, London.
COURTESY OF THE NATIONAL PORTRAIT GALLERY,
LONDON
© 2006 Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.
480 I crannog ► Craxi
bishop of Canterbury, putting him in a position to help overthrow papal supremacy in England. He annulled Henry’s marriage to Catherine, sup¬ ported his marriage to Anne Boleyn, and later helped him divorce her. After Henry’s death in 1547, Cranmer became an influential adviser to the young Edward VI, moving England firmly in a Protestant direction. He wrote the Forty-two Articles, from which the Thirty-nine Articles of Anglican belief were derived. When the strongly anti-Protestant Mary I became queen, Cranmer was tried, convicted of heresy, and burned at the stake.
crannog Vkra-.nog, kra-'nog\ In Scotland and Ireland, an artificially constructed site for a house or settlement, usually on an islet or in the shallows of a lake. Made of timber or sometimes stone, crannogs date from the Late Bronze Age into the Middle Ages. Usually fortified by stockades, they were among the latest prehistoric strongholds. See also Lake Dwellings.
crape myrtle Shrub (Lagerstroemia indica ) of the loosestrife family, native to China and other tropical and subtropical countries and widely grown in warm regions for its flowers. About 25 varieties are cultivated, known primarily by the color of their clustered flowers, which range from white to pink, red, lavender, and bluish.
crappie Either of two deep-bodied freshwater North American fish spe¬ cies (family Centrarchidae) that are popular as food and prized by sport fishermen. Native to the eastern U.S. but introduced elsewhere, crappies may reach a length of about 12 in. (30 cm) and a weight of about 4 lb (2 kg). The white crappie (Pomoxis annularis ) generally inhabits warm, silty lakes and rivers. Silvery with irregular dark markings, it is usually lighter in colour than the similar black crappie, or calico bass ( P. nigromacula- tus), which typically lives in clear lakes and streams.
craps Gambling game in which each player in turn throws two dice, attempting to roll a winning combination. The term derives from a Loui¬ siana French word, crabs , which means “losing throw.” The player with the dice (the shooter) must first put up a stake; the other players bet against the shooter up to the amount of the stake. In some games, bettors may also bet against each other or against the house. A shooter who wins may continue to roll. A 7 or 11 on the first roll wins; a 2, 3, or 12 (craps) loses. Any other number requires the shooter to continue rolling until he or she rolls the same number again for a win or rolls a 7 (craps) and loses.
Crash of T 929, Stock Market See Stock Market Crash of 1929
Crassus, Lucius Licinius (b. 140—d. 91 bc) Roman lawyer and poli¬ tician. He is regarded, with Marcus Antonius (b. 143—d. 87), as one of the greatest Latin orators before Marcus Tullius Cicero and is portrayed in Cicero’s De oratore (55 bc). Made consul in 95, he cosponsored a law (Lex Licinia Mucia) that provided for the prosecution of anyone falsely claiming Roman citizenship, which led to the revolt of Rome’s Italian allies in 90-88.
Crassus, Marcus Licinius (b. c. 115—d. 53 bc) Roman financier and politician. He sided with Lucius Cornelius Sulla against Gaius Marius in the civil war of 83-82 bc and came into conflict with Pompey the Great. In 72-71 he put down the slave rebellion led by Spartacus. He made loans to indebted senators, including Julius Caesar. In 70 Crassus and Pompey were elected co-consuls. Ten years later Crassus, Caesar, and Pompey formed the First Triumvirate (see triumvirate). As governor of Syria (54) Crassus invaded Parthia; his death at the Battle of Carrhae led to civil war between Caesar and Pompey.
crater Circular depression in the surface of a planetary body. Most cra¬ ters are the result of impacts of meteorites or of volcanic explosions. Mete¬ orite craters are more common on the Moon and Mars and on other planets and natural satellites than on Earth, because most meteorites either burn up in the Earth’s atmosphere before reaching its surface or erosion soon obscures the impact site. Craters made by exploding volcanoes (e.g.. Cra¬ ter Lake, Ore.) are more common on the Earth than on the Moon, Mars, or Jupiter’s moon Io, where they have also been identified.
Crater Lake Lake, Cascade Range, southwestern Oregon, U.S. The lake is in a huge volcanic caldera 6 mi (10 km) in diameter and 1,932 ft (589 m) deep. It is the remnant of a mountain destroyed in an eruption more than 6,000 years ago. The intensely blue lake and its surrounding region became a national park in 1902; the park covers 250 sq mi (647 sq km).
Craters of the Moon National Monument and Preserve
Region of volcanic cones and craters, south-central Idaho, U.S. Established in 1924 as a national monument, it has more than 35 craters, probably
extinct only a few millennia. Some are nearly a half-mile across and several hundred feet deep and reach a height of more than 6,000 ft (1,800 m). Tun¬ nels formed by fissure eruptions feature stalactites and stalagmites in red and blue. In 2000 the monument was expanded from 83 to 1,117 sq mi (215 to 2,893 sq km); in 2002 part of it was designated a national preserve.
Crawford, Cheryl (b. Sept. 24, 1902, Akron, Ohio, U.S.—d. Oct. 7, 1986, New York, N.Y.) U.S. actress and theatre producer. She acted with the Theatre Guild from 1923 and became its casting manager (1928-30). She helped found the Group Theatre in 1931. A cofounder of the Actors Studio in 1947, she went on to serve as its executive producer. Her notable Broadway productions included Brigadoon (1947) and Tennessee Will¬ iams’s The Rose Tattoo (1951) and Sweet Bird of Youth (1959).
Crawford, Isabella Valancy (b. Dec. 25, 1850, Dublin, Ire.—d. Feb. 12, 1887, Toronto, Ont., Can.) Irish-born Canadian poet. She immi¬ grated to Canada with her family in 1858. From 1875 until her death, she lived with her mother in Toronto, meagrely sustained by sales of stories and poems to periodicals. The only book published during her lifetime (at her own expense) was Old Spookses’ Pass, Malcom’s Katie, and Other Poems (1884). Her work, notable for its vivid descriptions of the Cana¬ dian landscape, was rediscovered in the 1970s, and many collections have since been published.