Herod Antipas \'an-ti-pos\ (b. 21 bc — d. ad 39) Son of Herod the Great and tetrarch of Galilee (4 bc-ad 39) throughout Jesus’ ministry. He was responsible for the death of John the Baptist (demanded by his wife, Herodias, and stepdaughter, Salome) but later refused to cooperate when Pontius Pilate pressed him to conduct the trial of Jesus. He was caught up in the intrigue between the Syrians and Nabataeans. After denouncing Herod Agrippa I, he was banished by Caligula to Gaul. He built the city of Tiberias.
Herodotus Mio-'ra-do-tosX (b. 484?, Helicamassus, Asia Minor—d. 430/ 420 bc) Greek historian. He resided in Athens and then in Thurii in south¬ ern Italy. His travels covered a large part of the Persian empire. He is the author of the first great narrative history produced in the ancient world, the History of the Persian Wars. It is a unified artistic masterpiece, with many illuminating digressions and anecdotes skillfully worked into the narrative. Despite many inaccuracies, it remains the leading source of original information about Greece between 550 and 479 bc, as well as that of much of western Asia and Egypt.
heroin Heterocyclic compound, a highly addictive alkaloid derivative of morphine (chemically, it is diacetylmorphine) that makes up a large por¬ tion of illicit narcotics traffic. Easily made from morphine, it was devel¬ oped and first used as an analgesic, but its undesirable effects outweighed its value, and it is illegal in most countries. Injection brings an ecstatic, warm, glowing sensation, followed by relaxation and contentment. Within half a day withdrawal symptoms set in, with a craving for more. Devel¬ opment of tolerance, requiring ever greater amounts for the same effects, leads to drug addiction. Illegal street heroin is usually only 2-5% pure; unwitting injection of relatively pure heroin is a major cause of overdose, resulting in depressed respiration, coma, and death.
heron Any of about 60 species of long-legged wading birds in the same family (Ardeidae) as egrets and bitterns. They are found worldwide but are most common in the tropics. They wade in the shallow waters of pools, marshes, and swamps, catching frogs, fishes, and other aquatic animals. They nest on rough stick platforms in bushes or trees near water. Herons commonly stand with their neck bent in an southern shape and fly with their legs trailing and their head held back. They have broad wings and a long, straight, shaip-pointed bill. They are subdivided into typical herons (including the 50-in., or 130-cm, great blue heron of North America), night herons, and tiger herons.
Heron of Alexandria or Hero of Alexandria (fl. c. ad 62, Alex¬ andria, Egypt) Greek mathematician and inventor. He is remembered for his formula for the area of a triangle and for inventing the aeolipile, the first steam engine, which, in his design, was a forerunner of the jet engine. Of his many treatises, one contains a method for approximating the square root of a number. His writings on mechanics include discussions of the five simple machines, mechanical problems of daily life, and the construc¬ tion of many kinds of engines.
Heron's Vhir-,anz\ formula Formula for finding the area of a triangle in terms of the lengths of its sides. In symbols, if a, b, and c are the lengths of the sides: Area = Vs(j - a)(s - b)(s - c ) where s is half the perimeter, or (a + b + c)/2.
Herophilus Mio-'raf-o-losV (b. c. 335 bc, Chalcedon, Bithynia—d. c. 280) Alexandrian physician, often called the father of anatomy. He per¬ formed public dissections on human corpses; studied the cavities of the brain, which he regarded as the centre of the nervous system; traced the sinuses of the dura mater to their junction (the torcular Herophili); and classified nerve trunks as motor and sensory, distinguishing them from tendons and blood vessels. He described the eye, liver, salivary glands, pancreas, genitals, duodenum, and prostate gland (naming the last two) and was the first to measure the pulse. A student of Hippocrates’ doctrine, he emphasized the curative powers of drugs, diet, and gymnastics. He wrote at least nine works, including a commentary on Hippocrates and a book for midwives, all lost in the destruction of the library of Alexandria.
herpes Vhor-.pezV simplex Infection caused by herpes simplex virus. Type I typically produces a cluster of small blisters (cold sores, or fever blisters), usually on the lips or face; it can also infect the eyes. Type II, transmitted mostly through sexual contact, causes genital blisters, which rupture, becoming very painful. Oral sex can give either type the chance to infect the usual site of the other. In both types, the virus remains after symptoms end and can reactivate, causing blisters to reappear. Babies born to mothers with active herpes can become infected during birth; this can be prevented by cesarean section. There is no cure, but drugs can reduce severity and risk of transmission.
herpes zoster See shingles
Herrera (h)o-'rer-3\, Francisco, the Elder (b. c. 1576, Sevilla, Spain—d. 1656, Madrid) Spanish painter. His early works are in the Man¬ nerist style. Under the influence of Francisco Zurbaran, he developed the naturalistic style seen in his four scenes from the life of St. Bonaventure (1627). Around 1650 he moved to Madrid. His last documented work, a painting of St. Joseph (1648) influenced by Anthony Van Dyck, features elongated forms and elaborate draperies. He achieved considerable fame in Sevilla, where Diego VelAzquez was briefly his pupil. His work marked the transition from Mannerism to the Baroque. His son, Francisco Herrera the Younger, worked as a painter and architect.
Herrera, Francisco, the Younger (b. 1622, Sevilla, Spain—d. Aug. 25, 1685, Madrid) Spanish painter and architect. The son of Francisco Herrerra the Elder, a successful painter, his religious works are in the the¬ atrical style of Roman Baroque art, which he introduced into Sevilla. In 1660 he was appointed copresident (with Bartolome Esteban Murillo) of Sevilla’s new Academy of Painting, but he soon left for Madrid and was active there as a painter of frescoes and altarpieces. In 1672 he was appointed painter to Charles II and in 1677 master of the Royal Works. His greatest architectural achievement was the church of El Pilar at Sara¬ gossa (begun 1681).
Herrick, James Bryan (b. Aug.
11, 1861, Oak Park, Ill., U.S.—d.
March 7, 1954, Chicago) U.S. phy¬ sician and clinical cardiologist. He received his M.D. from Rush Medi¬ cal College. His case report on a black patient with anemia included the first description of the crescent¬ shaped erythrocytes characteristic of sickle-cell anemia, later shown to be the precipitating factor of the dis¬ ease. Herrick was also the first to identify and describe coronary thrombosis.
Herrick, Robert (baptized Aug.
24, 1591, London, Eng.—-d. October 1674, Dean Prior, Devonshire)
English poet. Educated at Cam¬ bridge and later ordained, he became known as a poet in the 1620s and by the end of that decade had become a country vicar in Devonshire. A dis¬ ciple of Ben Jonson, he wrote classi-
Robert Herrick, detail of an engraving by W. Marshall, from the frontispiece to Hesperides, 1648
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Herriman ► Hertz I 869
cally influenced lyrics whose appeal is in their freshness and their perfection of form and style. The only book he published was Hesperides (1648), containing 1,400 poems, mostly short, many of them epigrams. He is best remembered for the line “Gather ye rosebuds while ye may.”