computer. The computer, named Deep Junior,
was programmed to play chess.
BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA Artificial Intelligence 195
Arts
Before the 1700s the word art was often
used to describe any skill that produced
something. At the time both painting
and farming were thought of as arts.
Today people think of the arts more as
forms of expression. An artist uses skill
and imagination to create a product.
This product often draws a response
from others. These responses can
include admiration of a beautiful sculpture,
feelings of sadness from a moving
poem, or pleasure from a funny play.
Individual arts are often grouped into
categories based on similarities. Theater,
dance, and music are examples of performing
arts. Poetry, short stories, and
novels are literaturewords crafted to
express ideas. Painting, drawing, sculpture,
and photography are examples of
visual art, or art that is enjoyed through
sight. Some arts, such as architecture
(the design of buildings) and motion
pictures (movies), are harder to classify.
An art form may include combinations
of several other forms. For instance, an
opera brings together a dramatic plot,
music that is both played and sung,
scenery and costumes, acting, and perhaps
dance.
Art forms that result in useful products
are sometimes called decorative arts
or crafts. Furniture design, metalworking,
basketry, and pottery are a few
examples of decorative arts.
#More to explore
Architecture Dance Decorative Arts
Drawing Literature Movie Music
Opera Painting Photography
Poetry Pottery Sculpture Theater
Arts, Decorative
#see Decorative Arts.
Asante
#see Ashanti.
Ash
Several types of ash tree are valued for
their hardwood or their beauty. There
are about 70 different species, or types,
of ash tree. They are members of the
same scientific family as olive trees, jasmines,
and lilacs.
Most ash trees grow in the northern half
of the world. They grow best where it is
neither extremely hot nor cold. They
usually need plenty of sunshine.
Several different types of art are on display
in the Hermitage museum in Saint Petersburg,
Russia.
196 Arts BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA
Some ashes are considered shrubs, but
most are trees. Ash trees are typically
small to medium in height. However,
some types may grow taller than 100
feet (30 meters). Most ashes have a
strong, straight trunk with gray bark.
The spreading branches usually form a
rounded shape. The green leaves are
made up of several parts called leaflets.
In autumn the leaves of most ashes turn
yellow or purple before they are shed for
the winter. The flowers are usually small
and grow in clusters. Each seed has a
papery wing shaped like a dragonfly
wing.
Several kinds of ash tree have strong,
tough wood. These hardwood ashes
include the white, green, black, blue,
and Oregon types in North America
and the European type in Europe.
Their wood is used to make such
products as baseball bats, hockey sticks,
tennis rackets, oars, furniture, tool
handles, and barrels. Ash trees are also
often planted in cities to provide shade
and color.
#More to explore
Olive Tree
Ashanti
The Ashanti, or Asante, people formed a
powerfulWest African kingdom in the
1700s and 1800s. The kingdom grew
wealthy from the slave trade and conquered
many peoples. In 1874, however,
the kingdom became a colony of Great
Britain. The Ashanti territory is now
part of the country of Ghana.
The rise of the Ashanti began in the
1670s, when Ashanti ruler Osei Tutu
crushed all opponents in the region. He
then declared himself Asantehene, or
king. The next ruler, OpokuWare, continued
the Ashantis conquests. During
his reign, from 1720 to 1750, the
empire reached its peak.
An Ashanti chief wears fine
clothing and gold jewelry.
The spreading branches of an ash tree give
the tree a rounded shape.
BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA Ashanti 197
Throughout the 1700s, the Ashanti supplied
captives to British and Dutch slave
traders on the coast. In return, the Europeans
provided the Ashanti with firearms
that they used to make more
conquests. Great Britain outlawed the
slave trade in 1807. After that, the
Ashanti had to rely more heavily on
other trade items, such as gold, ivory,
and cocoa.
Serious trouble came when Britain
expanded its own empire inland. In
1874 British forces captured Kumasi,
the capital of the Ashanti. The Ashanti
soon lost their hold over the groups they
had ruled over. In 1902 Ashanti lands
were made part of a British colony called
the Gold Coast. In 1957 the Gold Coast
became the independent country of
Ghana.
The Ashanti people still live in a region
centered on Kumasi. Kumasi is a busy
and prosperous city. But most Ashanti
live in villages. They are mainly farmers
who produce plantains, bananas, cassava,
yams, and cacao.
#More to explore
Ghana Slavery
Ashe, Arthur
Tennis champion Arthur Ashe was an
African American who triumphed in a
traditionally white sport. He was ranked
among the top 10 players in the world
for 12 years.
Arthur Robert Ashe, Jr., was born in
Richmond, Virginia, on July 10, 1943.
He started playing tennis as a child.
Between 1955 and 1963, Arthur won
11 national youth championships. At
the same time, he worked hard in
school. He won a scholarship to attend
the University of California at Los Angeles
(UCLA).
Arthur Ashe returns a ball during
the U.S. National Championships
in 1965.
198 Ashe, Arthur BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA
In 1968 Ashe won the U.S. Open tournament.
The tournament is one of the
four major events in tennis each year.
The others areWimbledon (in
England), the French Open, and the
Australian Open. Ashes win was the
first ever for an African American man
in one of these tournaments. Afterward,
he regularly reached the semifinals and
finals of the tournaments. Ashe won the
Australian Open in 1970. In 1975 he
won the top prize at Wimbledon.
Ashe retired after suffering a heart attack
in 1979. In 1983 he had another heart
attack and required surgery. It is thought
that blood that he received at this time
was infected with HIV. HIV is the virus
that causes the disease AIDS. As a result
he contracted the disease. However, he
continued to display the same determination
he showed on the tennis court.
He took the side of refugees, underprivileged
children, and people with AIDS.
He died of AIDS on February 6, 1993.
..More to explore
AIDS Tennis
Ashgabat
Population
(2007 estimate)
744,000
Ashgabat is the capital of the central
Asian country of Turkmenistan. The city
lies at the foot of a mountain range. It is
also at the edge of a desert, in an area
called an oasis. An oasis is a part of a
desert that has enough water for people
to live.
Ashgabat is one of Turkmenistans centers
of industry and transportation. The
city is famous for its carpet-weaving
industry. It also has glassworks, cotton
mills, and metalworking shops.
The city was founded in 1881 as a Russian
military fort. It was called Ashkhabad.