foot End part of the leg, consisting of the heel, arch, and toes, on which a person stands. Its major function is locomotion. The human foot can¬ not grasp and is adapted for running and striding (a step unique to humans that can cover great distances with minimal energy expenditure). Its arched structure helps it support the body’s weight. See also podiatry.
foot, metrical Basic unit of verse metre. Any of various fixed combi¬ nations or groups of stressed and unstressed (or long and short) syllables comprise a foot. The prevailing kind and number of feet determines the metre of a poem. The most common feet in English verse are the iamb, an unstressed followed by a stressed syllable; the trochee, a stressed fol¬ lowed by an unstressed syllable; the anapest, two unstressed syllables fol¬ lowed by a stressed syllable; and the dactyl, a stressed syllable followed by two unstressed syllables. See also PROSODY.
Foot, Michael (b. July 23, 1913,
Plymouth, Devon, Eng.) Leader of Great Britain’s Labour Party (1980—
83). He worked as a newspaper edi¬ tor and columnist (1937-74) and served in Parliament (1945-55,
1960-92). He served in Harold Wil¬ son’s cabinet as secretary of state for employment (1974-76) and leader of the House of Commons (1976-79).
A left-wing socialist, Foot became the party’s chief in 1980 by defeat¬ ing its right-wing candidate. This and other left-wing trends caused some Labourites to resign to found the Social Democratic Party. His books include Aneurin Bevan (2 vol.;
1962, 1973).
foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) or hoof-and-mouth disease Highly contagious viral disease of cloven-footed mammals (including cattle), spread by inges¬ tion and inhalation. The afflicted ani¬ mal develops fever and painful blisters on the tongue, lips, other tis¬ sues of the mouth, muzzle or snout, teats, and feet. FMD is endemic in many places. Because of its rapid spread and impact on animal produc¬ tivity, it is considered the most eco¬ nomically devastating livestock disease in the world. It is not a human health hazard. No effective treatment exists; vaccines control epidemics but have not eliminated them. Since the virus can persist, quarantine, slaughter, cremation or burial of car¬ casses, and decontamination must be rigorous. Strict surveillance has kept North America largely FMD-free
since 1929. In early 2001 a major outbreak occurred in the United King¬ dom, followed shortly by outbreaks in The Netherlands and France.
football or association football or soccer Game in which two 11-member teams try to propel a ball into the opposing team’s goal, using any part of the body except the hands and arms. Only the goalkeeper, when positioned within the penalty area in front of the goal, may use hands and arms. The game’s first uniform set of rules was put in place in 1863, when England’s Football Association was created. Professional leagues began appearing in the late 1880s, first in England and then in other countries. The Federation Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) was founded in 1904, and has hosted the World Cup every four years since 1930. Football has been included in the Olympic Games since 1908. Now played on all continents in over 150 nations, with over 40 million registered players, it is the world’s most popular ball game. See also Australian Rules football; Gaelic football; football, gridiron; and rugby.
football, gridiron Game played, predominantly in the U.S. and Canada, on a rectangular field having two goalposts at each end. In the U.S. it is played between two teams of 11 players each. The object is to get an oblong ball, in possession of one side at a time, over a goal line or between goalposts by running, passing, or kicking. A team must advance the ball 10 yards in four attempts (called downs) in order to continue to have the ball for another four downs. A kick through the goalposts (field goal) counts as three points. A run or completed pass over the goal line (touchdown) counts as six points. Following a touchdown, a team may attempt to kick the ball through the goalposts for one additional point or
12 yd (11 m) 10 yd (9.1 m) radius 20 yd (18.3 m)
A professional football (soccer) field. International rules allow for variations in the overall field dimensions, but the touch lines must be longer than the goal lines. Play begins with a kickoff at the center line. When the ball is driven across the touch line, it is put back in play by a throw-in by the opposing side. A ball driven over the goal line but not into the goal by the attacking team is returned to play with a goal kick by the opposing goalkeeper. A player fouled in the penalty area is awarded a penalty kick at the goal, which is defended only by the goalkeeper. Within the goal area the goalkeeper may use his hands to stop and hold the ball.
© MERRIAM-WEBSTER INC.
An American professional football field. The standard college field is nearly identical but has a wider inbounds zone. When¬ ever the ball is downed in a side zone, it is put in play on the next down at the nearest inbounds line. The line marking the end zone (within which the ball may be caught) is the goal line.
© MERRIAM-WEBSTER INC.
© 2006 Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.
Foote ► Ford I 691
to run or pass the ball over the goal line for two additional points. Grid¬ iron football (so-called because of the markings on the field), derived from rugby and soccer (see football), emerged in the late 19th century as a col¬ legiate sport; the early rules were mostly written by representatives from Yale, Harvard, and Princeton universities. Each year the college football season concludes with a host of bowl games held on and around New Year’s Day. Professional football began in the 1890s but did not become a major sport until after World War II. The National Football League was formed in 1922. The NFL is now divided into an American and a National conference; the conference winners compete for the Super Bowl champi¬ onship. A Football Hall of Fame is located in Canton, Ohio, U.S. Cana¬ dian football differs from U.S. football principally by having 12 players on a team rather than 11, employing a larger field, and allowing only three downs to move the ball 10 yards. These variations allow for a more wide- open style of game, with an emphasis on passing. See also Canadian Football League.
Foote, (Albert) Horton (b. March 14, 1916, Wharton, Texas, U.S.) U.S. dramatist. He studied acting at the Pasadena Playhouse in Califor¬ nia and in New York City. He is probably best known for his screenplays for To Kill a Mockingbird (1962, Academy Award) and Tender Mercies (1983, Academy Award). He also wrote an acclaimed series of nine plays about rural Texas, the “Orphans’ Home” Cycle; these include Valentine’s Day (1980), 1918 (1982), and The Widow Claire (1986). His low-key but insightful play The Young Man from Atlanta (1994) won the Pulitzer Prize.
footlights Row of lights set across the front of a stage floor to light the scene. The oil lamps and candles in use in the 17th century eventually gave way to gas and electricity. As more advanced overhead lighting techniques were developed, footlights became less necessary, except to create special shadows on actors’ faces.
forage \'for-ij\ Vegetable food, including corn and hay, of wild or domestic animals. Harvested, processed, and stored forage is called silage. Forage should be harvested in early maturity to avoid a decrease in pro¬ tein and fibre content as crops mature.
Forbes, Edward (b. Feb. 12, 1815, Douglas, Isle of Man—d. Nov. 18, 1854, near Edinburgh, Scot.) British naturalist. After studying medicine, he left the field to devote himself to natural history. He conducted exten¬ sive research on mollusks and sea stars, participating in dredgings and expeditions. While studying ocean life, he developed an interest in the geographic distribution of animals. Later he divided the plants of Britain into five well-defined groups, maintaining that most of them, like land animals, had migrated to the islands over continuous land during three separate periods: before, during, and after the glacial passage. He held numerous institutional and academic posts, and he was a major figure in establishing the fields of oceanography, biogeography, and paleoecology.