enamelwork Metal objects decorated with an opaque glaze fused to the surface by intense heat. The resulting surface is hard and durable and can be brilliantly colourful. Objects most suitable for enamelwork are delicate, small (e.g., jewelry, snuffboxes, scent bottles, watches), and made of copper, brass, bronze, or gold. The best-known processes are cloisonne and champleve. Enamelwork was produced as early as the 13th century bc, reached its peak in the Byzantine Empire, and flourished throughout medieval and Renaissance Europe. In the early 20th century Carl Faberge produced highly prized objects made of gold, enamel, and jewels. See also Limoges painted enamel.
encephalitis Vin-.se-fs-'lI-tosX Inflammation of the brain, most often due to infection, usually with a virus. One class of encephalitis (including multiple sclerosis) attacks the myelin sheath that insulates nerve fibres rather than the neurons themselves. In most cases, symptoms include fever, headache, lethargy, and coma. Convulsions are most common in infants. Characteristic neurological signs include uncoordinated, involuntary movements and localized weakness. The symptoms and a lumbar punc¬ ture (to obtain cerebrospinal fluid for analysis) may establish the presence but not the cause. Treatment usually aims to relieve the symptoms and ensure quiet rest. Various symptoms may remain after recovery.
Encke's Comet Veq-kozV Faint comet having the shortest orbital period (about 3.3 years) of any known, first observed in 1786. It was the second comet (after Halley's Comet) to have its period determined (1819), by Johann Franz Encke (1791-1865). Encke also found that the comet’s period decreases by about 2Vi hours in each revolution and showed that this effect could not be explained by the planets’ gravitational influence. Its period continues to decrease, though more slowly, and appears to be related to the effects of outgassing.
enclosure movement Division or consolidation of communal lands in Western Europe into the carefully delineated and individually owned farm plots of modern times. Before enclosure, farmland was under the control of individual cultivators only during the growing season; after
Emu (Dromaius novaehollandiae)
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harvest and before the next growing season, the land was used by the community for the grazing of livestock and other purposes. In England the movement for enclosure began in the 12th century and proceeded rap¬ idly from 1450 to 1640; the process was virtually complete by the end of the 19th century. In the rest of Europe, enclosure made little progress until the 19th century. Common rights over arable land have now been largely eliminated.
encomienda Ven-.ko-me-'en-doX In colonial Spanish America, a sys¬ tem by which the Spanish crown defined the status of the Indian popu¬ lation in its colonies. An encomienda consisted of a grant by the crown of a specified number of Indians living in a particular area. The receiver {encomenderos) could exact tribute from the Indians and was required to protect them and instruct them in the Christian faith. The encomienda did not include a grant of land, but in practice the encomenderos gained con¬ trol of Indian lands. Though the original intent was to reduce the abuses of forced labour, in practice it became a form of enslavement.
encryption, data See data encryption
encyclopaedia Reference work that contains information on all branches of knowledge or that treats a particular branch of knowledge comprehensively. It is self-contained and explains subjects in greater detail than a dictionary. It differs from an almanac in that its information is not dated and not from pedagogical texts in its attempt to be easy to con¬ sult and to be readily understood by the layperson. Though generally writ¬ ten in the form of many separate articles, encyclopaedias vary greatly in format and content. The prototype of modern encyclopaedias is usually acknowledged to be Ephraim Chambers’s Cyclopaedia (1728), and the first modem encyclopaedia was the French Encyclopedie (1751-65). The largest general encyclopaedia in English is the Encyclopedia Britannica.
Encyclopaedia Britannica Oldest and largest English-language gen¬ eral encyclopaedia. Its three-volume first edition was published in 1768-71 in Edinburgh, Scot. In subsequent editions it grew in size and reputation. The most famous editions include the ninth (1875-89), known as “the scholar’s encyclopaedia,” and the 11th (1910-11), which, with contributions from more than 1,500 experts of world reputation, was also the first to divide the traditionally lengthy treatises into more particular¬ ized articles. The current edition, the 15th (1974, with a major revision in 1985), embodied a new structure, dividing the major articles from the shorter ones. Encyclopaedia Britannica now also appeal's in CD-ROM and on-line versions. A series of ownership changes led to its purchase by American publishers in 1901; since the 1940s it has been published in Chicago.
Encyclopedie \a n -,se-kl6-pa-'de\ French encyclopedia created in the 18th century by the philosophies; one of the principal works of the Enlight¬ enment. Under the full title Encyclopedie, ou dictionnaire raisonne des sciences, des arts et des metiers (“Encyclopedia, or Classified Dictionary of Sciences, Arts, and Trades”), it was inspired by the success of E. Chambers’s British Cyclopaedia; or An Universal Dictionary of Arts and Sciences (1728). Under the direction of Denis Diderot and initially aided by Jean Le Rond d'Alembert, 17 volumes were published between 1751 and 1765; other volumes were added later for a total of 35. Though opposed by conservative ecclesiastics and government officials and subjected to censorship, the Encyclopedie attracted articles from many important thinkers of the time, including Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Voltaire, and Denis Diderot, who were called “Encyclopedists.” In its skepticism, its empha¬ sis on scientific determinism, and its criticism of the abuses perpetrated by contemporary legal, judicial, and clerical institutions, the work had widespread influence as an expression of progressive thought prior to the French Revolution.
endangered species Any species of plant or animal threatened with extinction. International and national agencies work to maintain lists of endangered species, to protect and preserve natural habitats, and to pro¬ mote programs for recovery and reestablishment of these species. The Species Survival Commission of the International Union for Conserva¬ tion of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) publishes information online about endangered species worldwide as the Red List of Threatened Species. Separate books for animal and plant species are also published. In the United States, the Fish and Wildlife Service is responsible for the conservation and management of fish and wildlife, including endangered species, and their habitats. Its list now consists of about 1,200 domestic species of endangered or threatened animals and plants, and some 200 recovery programs are in effect.
endive Yen-.dlv, ,an-'dev\ Edible annual leafy plant ( Cichorium endi- via) of the composite family. It is variously believed to have originated in Egypt and Indonesia, and it has been cultivated in Europe since the 16th century. The many kinds of endive form two groups: the curly or narrow¬ leaved endive (C. endivia, variety crispa ) and the Batavian, or broad¬ leaved, endive (C. endivia , variety latifolia ), which is also called escarole. The former is used mostly for salads, the latter for cooking.
endocarditis N.en-do-kar-'dI-tosN Inflammation of the heart lining (endocardium), in association with a noninfectious disease (e.g., systemic lupus erythematosus) or caused by infection, usually at the heart valves. Severe bacterial infection causes an acute form with fever, sweating, chills, joint pain and swelling, and embolisms. Subacute endocarditis usu¬ ally comes from bacteria that do not ordinarily cause disease. Bacterial endocarditis is usually treated with long-term antibiotics. In nonbacterial thrombotic endocarditis, blood clots form along heart valve edges.