Donnai River See Dong-nai River
Donne \'don\, John (b. c. Jan. 24-June 19, 1572, London, Eng.—d. March 31, 1631, London) English poet. Donne was born into a Roman Catholic family. He entered the Uni¬ versity of Oxford at age 12; he later transferred to the University of Cam¬ bridge and subsequently studied law.
An adventurer in youth, he hoped for a high public appointment, but his clandestine marriage to his employ¬ er’s daughter ruined his prospects.
He converted to Anglicanism; ordained in 1615, he became a preacher of great power and elo¬ quence and was installed as dean of St. Paul's Cathedral in 1621. The greatest of the English Metaphysical poets (see Metaphysical poetry), he is noted for his love lyrics, religious verse and treatises, and sermons. His secular poetry, most written early in his career, is direct, intense, bril¬ liantly witty, and daringly imagina¬ tive. Later his tone darkened with works such as the Anniversaries (1611-12), two long poems meditating on the decay of the world. His 19 famous Holy Sonnets (written 1607-13) were published posthumously. Among his prose works, many as dramatic and intimate as his poetry, the most enduring is Devotions upon Emergent Occasions (1624).
Donner party Group of U.S. pioneers stranded en route to California. In late 1846, 87 immigrants led by George and Jacob Donner were trapped by heavy snow in the Sierra Nevada. Fifteen of the group set out to find help. When the others’ food ran out, they resorted to cannibalism of those already dead. The 47 surviving members were rescued in February 1847. Donner Lake and Donner Pass, Cal., are named for them.
Donostia-San Sebastian X.tho-no-'ste-a, san-sa-,bas-'tyan\ Seaport and city (pop., 2001: 178,377), northern Spain. The city is situated at the mouth of the Urumea River on the Bay of Biscay, near the French border. First mentioned in 1014, it was chartered by Sancho the Wise of Navarra c. 1175. The town was burned in 1813 after Anglo-Portuguese troops took it from the French during the Peninsular War. Formerly the summer resi¬ dence of the Spanish royal court, it is now a fashionable seaside resort. Nearby is Mount Urgull, with the 16th-century Mota Castle at its sum¬ mit. Donostia-San Sebastian is the official place-name, incorporating first the Basque name and then the Spanish.
Doolittle, Hilda known as H.D. (b. Sept. 10, 1886, Bethlehem, Pa., U.S.—d. Sept. 27, 1961, Zurich, Switz.) U.S. poet. Doolittle went to Europe in 1911 and remained there the rest of her life. One of the first Imagists (see Imagism) and deeply influenced by Ezra Pound, she wrote clear, impersonal, sensuous verse that combined classical themes with modernist techniques. Her later work was looser and more passionate, though it remained erudite and symbolic. Her collections include Sea
Donne, detail of an oil painting by an unknown artist after I. Oliver, c. 1616; in the National Portrait Gallery, London
COURTESY OF THE NATIONAL PORTRAIT GALLERY,
LONDON
© 2006 Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.
Doolittle ► Dorian I 565
Garden (1916), Hymen (1921), and Red Roses for Bronze (1929). She was also acclaimed for her translations, verse drama, and prose works.
Doolittle, Jimmy orig. James Harold Doolittle (b. Dec. 14,1896, Alameda, Calif., U.S.—d. Sept. 27, 1993, Pebble Beach, Calif.) U.S. gen¬ eral. He enlisted in the army in World War I and became an aviator. After the war he earned a Ph.D. in engineering and remained in the Army Air Corps as a test pilot until 1930, when he became head of aviation for Shell Oil Co. In 1932 he set a world air speed record. Returning to active duty during World War II, he led a daring raid on Tokyo (1942), for which he received the Congressional Medal of Honor. He commanded air opera¬ tions on many fronts, including attacks on Germany in 1944-45. After the war he remained active in the aerospace industry. He received the Presi¬ dential Medal of Freedom in 1989.
door Movable bander installed in the entry of a room or building to restrict access or provide visual privacy. Early doors were hides or tex¬ tiles. With monumental architecture came pivoting doors of rigid, perma¬ nent materials; important chambers often had stone or bronze doors. Pompeiian doors looked much like modem wooden doors; they were constructed of stiles (vertical planks) and rails (horizontal planks) fastened together to support panels and occasionally equipped with locks and hinges. The typical Western medieval door was of vertical planks backed with horizontal or diagonal bracing. In the 20th century, a single, hollow- core panel door became most common. Other types include the revolv¬ ing door, folding door, sliding door (inspired by the Japanese SHOJl), rolling door, and Dutch door (divided horizontally so that the lower or upper part can be opened separately).
Door Peninsula Peninsula, northeastern Wisconsin, U.S. Located between Green Bay and Lake Michigan, it was named for a strait at its tip known as La Porte des Mortes (“Death’s Door”). About 80 mi (130 km) long and 25 mi (40 km) wide at its base, the peninsula was visited in the 17th century by French traders and missionaries. It is now a year-round vacation area, and tourism is a major business. The whole peninsula is popularly known as Door County, though Door is but one of four coun¬ ties on the peninsula.
dopamine Vdo-po-.menX One of the catecholamines, widely distributed in the central nervous system. Through a series of enzymatic reactions (see enzyme) it is formed from levodopa and converted to norepinephrine and then epinephrine. It is a central nervous system neurotransmitter essential to con¬ trol of motion; it also acts as a hormone. Degeneration of certain dopamine-producing brain cells results in parkinsonism.
dopant \'do-p9nt\ Any impurity added to a semiconductor to modify its electrical conductivity. The most common semiconductors, silicon and germanium, form crystalline lattices in which each atom shares electrons with four neighbours (see bonding). Replacing some atoms with donor atoms (e.g., phosphorus, arsenic) that have five bonding electrons makes extra electrons available. The semiconductor thus doped is called n-type (for negative, because of the additional negative charges). Doping with acceptor atoms (e.g., gallium), which have only three electrons available, creates “holes,” which are positively charged. Conduction can occur by migration of holes through the crystal structure of such a semiconductor, known as p-type (for positive).
Doppler effect Apparent difference between the frequency at which waves —including light, sound, and radio waves—leave a source and that at which they reach an observer. The effect, first described by the Aus¬ trian physicist Christian Doppler (1803-1853), is caused by the relative motion of the observer and the wave source. It can be observed by lis¬ tening to the blowing horn or siren of an approaching vehicle, whose pitch rises as the vehicle approaches the observer and falls as it recedes. It is used in radar and to calculate the speed of stars by observing the change in frequency of their light.
Dorchester Former town, now a ward of Boston, Mass., U.S. It extended nearly to the Rhode Island border and included Dorchester Heights, whose fortification by George Washington’s artillery led the British to evacuate Boston on March 17, 1776, at the start of the Ameri¬ can Revolution.
Dorchester ancient Durnovaria Town (pop., 1995 est.: 16,000) and county seat of Dorset, England. On the River Frome, the ancient town was a sizable Roman British centre, and many remains of the period have been found. By 1086 it was a royal borough, and a castle had been built by the 12th century; the Franciscan priory, founded before 1331, is