cuttlefish Any of about 100 species of marine cephalopods in the order Sepioidea, characterized by a thick, internal calcium-containing shell called the cuttlebone. Species range between 1 and 35 in. (2.5-90 cm) in length and have a somewhat flat¬ tened body bordered by a pair of nar¬ row fins. All have eight arms and two longer tentacles used to capture prey.
Suction disks are located on the arms and at the tips of the tentacles.
Cuttlefish inhabit tropical or temper¬ ate coastal waters. They feed mainly on crustaceans, small fishes, and each other. They are used by humans as food, as a source of ink, and for the cuttlebone, a dietary supplement for cage birds.
cutworm Larva of certain species of owlet moths (family Noctuidae). The cutworm (not a true worm) is a serious insect pest of tobacco and other crops. Some species attack such plants as corn, grasses, tomatoes, and beans at night, severing roots and stems near ground level. Other spe¬ cies live underground and feed on plant roots.
Cuvier \kLe-'vya\, Georges (-Leopold-Chretien-Frederic- Dagobert), Baron (b. Aug. 23, 1769, Montbeliard, France—d. May 13, 1832, Paris) French zoologist and statesman who established the sci¬ ences of comparative anatomy and paleontology. As a staff member at the Museum of Natural History in Paris, he published Le Regne animal dis¬ tribute d’apres son organisation (1817), which described his “correlation of parts” theory, in which every animal organ is functionally related to all the other organs and that an animal’s functions and habits determine its anatomic form. Cuvier’s classification of all animals into four completely discrete groups was a significant advance over the system of Carolus Lin¬ naeus. He applied his functional concept to the study of fossils, postulat¬ ing that huge land upheavals and floods were the principal factor in the creation and destruction of species. Though the theory did not last, Cuvi¬ er’s work put paleontology on a firm empirical foundation. As Napoleon’s inspector of public instruction, he helped establish France’s provincial universities, and he also served as chancellor of the University of Paris.
Cuyaba River See Cuiaba River
Cuyahoga V.kl-o-'ho-go, .kl-o-'ho-goV River River, northeastern Ohio, U.S. It flows past Akron, where it drops into a deep valley and turns north, emptying into Lake Erie at Cleveland. It is navigable for lake freighters for only about 5 mi (8 km) of its total length of about 80 mi (130 km). It was at one time so severely polluted that it caught fire; by the late 1970s, anti¬ pollution measures had substantially improved its condition. The Cuya¬ hoga Valley National Recreation Area covers about 32,000 acres (12,950 hectares) of river valley between Akron and Cleveland.
Cuyp VkceipV Aelbert Jacobsz(oon) (baptized Oct. 20, 1620, Dor¬ drecht, Neth.—d. November 1691, Dordrecht) Most famous member of a family of Dutch landscape painters. He was trained by his father, Jacob Gerritsz Cuyp (1594-after 1651), and influenced by Jan Josephs(zoon) van Goyen. He lived most of his life in his native Dordrecht, painting animals and birds, portraits, historical pictures, and most notably river scenes and landscapes with cattle and figures bathed in a subtle glow of light and
Cuttlefish (Sepia officinalis)
DOUGLAS P. WILSON
© 2006 Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.
Cuyuni ► Cyclops I 499
atmosphere. The Italianate style favoured in Utrecht, one of Holland’s artistic centres, is evident in his work. Many of his surviving paintings are signed but few are dated.
Cuyuni \ku-'yu-ne\ River River, northern South America. Rising in Venezuela and flowing through Guyana, it is about 350 mi (560 km) long and forms the border between Venezuela and Guyana for some 60 mi (100 km). It then flows southeast to join the Mazaruni River before entering the Essequibo River, near Bartica. Rapids impede navigation, but the river is important for its alluvial gold and diamonds.
Cuzco \'kii-sko\ City (pop., 1998 est.: 278,590), south-central Peru. It is located high in the Andes Mountains at an elevation of about 11,000 ft (3,300 m). Founded in the 11th or 12th century, it was once the capital of the vast Inca empire. Spanish conquistador Francisco Pizarro captured the city in 1533. It suffered major earthquake damage in 1650 and again in 1950, though many sites have since been restored. Nearby ruins include an ancient Inca fortress, the city of Machu Picchu, and the Temple of the Sun. Cuzco’s cathedral (1654) and university (1692) date from the colo¬ nial era. The city was designated a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1983.
Cwmbran \kum-'bran\ Town (pop., 1991: 46,020), southeastern Wales. One of 32 new towns established in Britain after World War II to relieve congestion and encourage development, Cwmbran was inaugurated in 1949 in an area of small and decaying industrial villages. Its industries include automobile-parts production.
cyanide VsI-9- l nId\ Any chemical compound containing the combining group CN. Ionic (see ion; ionic bond) and organic cyanide compounds dif¬ fer in chemical properties, but both are toxic, especially the ionic ones. Cyanide poisoning inhibits cells’ oxidative (see oxidation-reduction) pro¬ cesses; its action is extremely rapid, and an antidote must be given promptly. Cyanides occur naturally in certain seeds (e.g., apple seeds, wild cherry pits). Cyanides, including hydrogen cyanide (HCN, or hydrocya¬ nic acid), are used industrially in the production of acrylic fibres, syn¬ thetic rubbers, and plastics as well as in electroplating, case-hardening of iron and steel, fumigation, and concentration of ores.
cyanide process or MacArthur-Forrest process Method of extracting silver and gold from their ores by dissolving them in a dilute solution of sodium cyanide or potassium cyanide. The process—invented in 1887 by the Scottish chemists John S. MacArthur, Robert W. Forrest, and William Forrest—includes contacting the finely ground ore with the cyanide solution, separating unwanted solids from the clear solution, and recovering the precious metals from the solution by precipitation with zinc dust.
cyanite See kyanite
cyanobacteria X.sI-o-.no-bak-'tir-e-oV or blue-green algae Any of
a large group of prokaryotic, mostly photosynthetic organisms. Though classified as bacteria, they resemble the eukaryotic algae in many ways, including some physical characteristics and ecological niches, and were at one time treated as algae. They contain certain pigments, which, with their chlorophyll, often give them a blue-green colour, though many spe¬ cies are actually green, brown, yellow, black, or red. They are common in soil and in both salt and fresh water, and they can grow over a wide range of temperatures, from Antarctic lakes under several metres of ice to Yellowstone National Park’s hot springs in the U.S. Cyanobacteria are often among the first species to colonize bare rock and soil. Some are capable of nitrogen fixation; others contain pigments that enable them to produce free oxygen as a by-product of photosynthesis. Under proper con¬ ditions (including pollution by nitrogen wastes) they can reproduce explo¬ sively, forming dense concentrations called blooms, usually coloured an opaque green. Cyanobacteria played a large role in raising the level of free oxygen in the atmosphere of early Earth.
Cybele See Great Mother of the Gods
cybercrime also known as computer crime Any use of a computer as an instrument to further illegal ends, such as committing fraud, traf¬ ficking in child pornography and intellectual property, stealing identities, or violating privacy. Cybercrime, especially through the Internet, has grown in importance as the computer has become central to commerce, entertainment, and government. The international nature of cybercrimes has led to international cyberlaws.
cyberlaw Body of law bearing on the world of computer networks, especially the Internet. As traffic on the Internet has increased, so have the