cliff brake, (genus Pellaea), any of about 40 species of ferns of the genus Pellaea (family Pteridaceae). Cliff brake ferns grow on or among rocks, mostly limestone, throughout the world. Several species, including button fern (Pellaea rotundifolia) and sickle fern (P. falcata), are grown as indoor

Los Angeles County Museum of Art: Collection highlights: …to George Bellows’s urban scene Cliff Dwellers (1913) and Georgia O’Keeffe’s Horse’s Skull with Pink Rose (1931). LACMA’s holdings also include major examples of Islamic, South Asian, and East Asian art, such as a 10th-century luster-painted bowl from Iraq, 16th-century Ottoman

cliff dwelling, housing of the prehistoric Ancestral Puebloans (Anasazi) people of the southwestern United States, built along the sides of or under the overhangs of cliffs, primarily in the Four Corners area, where the present states of Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, and Utah meet. These masonry

Woodsiaceae, the cliff fern family, containing 15 genera and about 700 species, in the division Pteridophyta. Members of Woodsiaceae are distributed nearly worldwide, but species are most diverse in temperate regions and in mountainous tropical areas. Most species are terrestrial in forested

Madagascar: Relief: …cliff, which is called the Great Cliff or the Cliff of Angavo, is often impassable and is itself bordered by the Betsimisaraka Escarpment, a second and lower cliff to the east, which overhangs the coastal plain. Behind the scarp face are the remains of ancient lakes, including one called Alaotra.…

swallow: …flask-shaped mud nests, include the cliff swallow (P. pyrrhonota), the bird of San Juan Capistrano Mission, in California; as with other swallows, it has strong homing instincts.

Zhang Yimou: …zhong (2020; One Second) and Cliff Walkers (2021).

Jimmy Cliff was a Jamaican singer and songwriter who was instrumental in introducing reggae to an international audience, largely through his performance in the landmark film The Harder They Come (1972). Born James Chambers in 1944, just into his teens he took the stage name Jimmy Cliff and began

Henry Blake Fuller: …a decidedly different direction with The Cliff-Dwellers (1893), a realistic novel, called the first important American city novel, about people in a Chicago skyscraper. With the Procession (1895) was another realistic novel, about a wealthy Chicago merchant family and the efforts of some of its members to keep up with…

serial, a novel or other work appearing (as in a magazine) in parts at intervals. Novels written in the 19th century were commonly published as serials. Many works by Charles Dickens, George Eliot, William Makepeace Thackeray, Anthony Trollope, and others first appeared serially in such magazines

cliff brake, (genus Pellaea), any of about 40 species of ferns of the genus Pellaea (family Pteridaceae). Cliff brake ferns grow on or among rocks, mostly limestone, throughout the world. Several species, including button fern (Pellaea rotundifolia) and sickle fern (P. falcata), are grown as indoor

Sylvester Stallone: Later film and television roles: Cliffhanger, The Expendables, and Tulsa King: …thrillers as Demolition Man (1993), Cliffhanger (1993), which he also cowrote, The Specialist (1994), Assassins (1995), Judge Dredd (1995), and Get Carter (2000). Although most of those films had only limited success at the box office in the United States, Stallone’s ability to attract audiences overseas proved enormous. In 2010…

Martin Short: Career: …has appeared include Innerspace (1987), Clifford (1994), and Mars Attacks! (1996), and he has voiced roles in animated films such as The Cat in the Hat Knows a Lot About Space! (2017) and The Addams Family (2019). From 2001 to 2003 Short plumped up with prosthetics to take on the…

Thomas Clifford, 1st Baron Clifford was an English statesman, lord treasurer in Charles II’s Cabal ministry. Clifford matriculated at Exeter College, Oxford, in 1647 and entered the Middle Temple in 1648. In Parliament in 1660–61 he became a steady supporter of Henry Bennett (who became Lord

history of photography: Landscape and architectural documentation: …worked in England and Wales; Charles Clifford, who worked in Spain; Robert Macpherson, who photographed Rome; and George Washington Wilson, who photographed Scotland. French photographer Adolphe Braun recorded the landscape around his native Alsace, as well as the mountainous terrain of the French Savoy, as did the brothers Louis-Auguste and…

Vietnam War: Tet brings the war home: …his new secretary of defense, Clark Clifford, who had replaced a disillusioned McNamara a few weeks before. Clifford soon decided not only that massive reinforcements were ill-advised but that the entire war effort had to be reassessed.

Creedence Clearwater Revival: ), and Doug Clifford (b. April 24, 1945, Palo Alto, Calif.).

Puerto Rico: Early settlement: …years later the British soldier George Clifford, 3rd earl of Cumberland, captured the city but was soon forced to abandon it after his troops fell victim to disease (probably dysentery). In 1625 the Dutchman Bowdoin Hendrik captured and burned the town but failed to subdue El Morro, where the governor…

John Clifford was an evangelical Baptist minister and social reformer active in the British labour movement. He was the first president of the Baptist World Alliance. Clifford began work in a lace factory at the age of 10. In 1855 he was sent to the General Baptist Academy in Leicester, and in 1858

Nathan Clifford was an associate justice of the United States Supreme Court (1858–81). Admitted to the bar in 1827, Clifford was elected to the Maine legislature in 1830 and became an eloquent exponent of Jacksonian principles. He served four terms, the last two as speaker. In 1834 he was appointed

Sir Hugh Charles Clifford was a British colonial official and governor, especially associated with Malaya, and a novelist and essayist. A descendant of Clifford of the Cabal under Charles II, and a grandson of the 7th Baron Clifford of Chudleigh, Hugh Clifford was expected to follow his father, a

Thomas Clifford, 1st Baron Clifford was an English statesman, lord treasurer in Charles II’s Cabal ministry. Clifford matriculated at Exeter College, Oxford, in 1647 and entered the Middle Temple in 1648. In Parliament in 1660–61 he became a steady supporter of Henry Bennett (who became Lord

Donald Trump: Russia investigation: …hush-money payments in 2016 to Stormy Daniels and the model Karen McDougal in fulfillment of nondisclosure agreements concerning their alleged affairs with Trump in 2006–07. In March both women filed lawsuits seeking to have their agreements declared invalid. Cohen eventually pleaded guilty to eight criminal counts in August 2018 in…

Orlando Magic: In 2018–19 new head coach Steve Clifford guided the Magic to a surprising division title and a first-round postseason loss. The team repeated that playoff result in 2019–20, but an injury-riddled 2020–21 season saw the team trade away many of its major contributors and finish with the third worst record…

Thomas Clifford, 1st Baron Clifford was an English statesman, lord treasurer in Charles II’s Cabal ministry. Clifford matriculated at Exeter College, Oxford, in 1647 and entered the Middle Temple in 1648. In Parliament in 1660–61 he became a steady supporter of Henry Bennett (who became Lord

William Kingdon Clifford was a British philosopher and mathematician who, influenced by the non-Euclidean geometries of Bernhard Riemann and Nikolay Lobachevsky, wrote “On the Space-Theory of Matter” (1876). He presented the idea that matter and energy are simply different types of curvature of

William Kingdon Clifford: ” He showed that spaces of constant curvature could have several different topological structures.

Montgomery Clift was an American motion-picture actor noted for the emotional depth and sense of vulnerability he brought to his roles. Along with Marlon Brando and James Dean, he helped delineate a new paradigm for American cinematic heroes. Clift’s childhood was unconventional. His family moved

Montgomery Clift was an American motion-picture actor noted for the emotional depth and sense of vulnerability he brought to his roles. Along with Marlon Brando and James Dean, he helped delineate a new paradigm for American cinematic heroes. Clift’s childhood was unconventional. His family moved

Bristol: The contemporary city: …in the residential suburb of Clifton in 1862. The University of Bristol, founded as University College in 1876, was established in 1909.

Clifton, town, seat (1909) of Greenlee county, southeastern Arizona, U.S. It lies near the New Mexico border. Copper was discovered in 1865 at nearby Morenci (unincorporated) and was first mined there in 1872. In 1937 the Phelps Dodge Corporation began excavating an open-pit mine, now one of the

Clifton, city, Passaic county, northeastern New Jersey, U.S. It lies along the Passaic River, between Paterson and Passaic cities. Settled in 1685, it was part of the Acquackanock Tract bought in 1679 by the Dutch from the Delaware Indians. It was a part of Passaic until 1917, when it was

George Carey is a theologian noted for his evangelical beliefs. He was the archbishop of Canterbury from 1991 to 2002, and resigned as a priest in 2024. Carey left school at age 15 and served as a radio operator in the Royal Air Force from 1954 to 1956. By 20 he had undergone a religious

George Carey is a theologian noted for his evangelical beliefs. He was the archbishop of Canterbury from 1991 to 2002, and resigned as a priest in 2024. Carey left school at age 15 and served as a radio operator in the Royal Air Force from 1954 to 1956. By 20 he had undergone a religious

Lucille Clifton was an American poet whose works examine family life, racism, and gender. Born of a family that was descended from slaves, she attended Howard University from 1953 to 1955 and graduated from Fredonia State Teachers College (now State University of New York College at Fredonia) in

buckwheat tree, (Cliftonia monophylla), evergreen shrub or small tree of the family Cyrillaceae, native to southern North America. It grows to about 15 m (50 feet) tall and has oblong or lance-shaped leaves about 4–5 cm (1.5–2 inches) long. Its fragrant white or pinkish flowers, about 1 cm across,

graphite: …in meteoritic iron are called cliftonite.

Chrétien de Troyes: …husband by disobeying his commands; Cligès, that of the victim of a marriage made under constraint who feigns death and wakens to a new and happy life with her lover; Lancelot, an exaggerated but perhaps parodic treatment of the lover who is servile to the god of love and to…

Jennifer Capriati: Comeback: …defeat, she rallied to overcome Kim Clijsters in a three-set thriller (1–6, 6–4, 12–10) to take the title. Her bid for a Grand Slam (winning all four major events in one year), however, ended with a semifinal loss at Wimbledon.

tree moss, any of the plants of the genus Climacium (order Bryales), which resemble small evergreen trees and are found in damp, shady places throughout the Northern Hemisphere. The most common species are the European tree moss (C. dendroides), which is also found in North America, and the

tree moss: …in North America, and the American tree moss (C. americanum). Both are about 5 to 10 centimetres (2 to 4 inches) high, with the branches clustered at the top of the shoot. The reddish-brown capsules (spore cases), borne on the female plant, have lids with long beaks and mature in…

tree moss: …most common species are the European tree moss (C. dendroides), which is also found in North America, and the American tree moss (C. americanum). Both are about 5 to 10 centimetres (2 to 4 inches) high, with the branches clustered at the top of the shoot. The reddish-brown capsules (spore…

tree moss: …less common North American species, C. kindbergii, can be found growing in very wet, swampy places. It is very dark green, almost black, in colour, and its tendency to form dense tufts or cushions obscures the treelike appearance of the small individual plants.

Climacograptus, genus of graptolites, extinct colonial animals related to the primitive chordates, found as fossils in marine rocks of the Middle and Late Ordovician Period (about 472 million to 444 million years ago). Climacograptus is characterized by a single, serrated branch suspended from a

passeriform: Annotated classification: Family Climacteridae (Australian treecreepers) Small, creeperlike climbing birds, 12.5 to 17.5 cm (5 to 7 inches); of uncertain ancestry and affinities. Legs short; toes long, claws long, curved, strong, especially that of hallux; tail rounded, soft; bill long, somewhat downcurved. Grayish brown to black above, streaked below,…

climate, conditions of the atmosphere at a particular location over a long period of time; it is the long-term summation of the atmospheric elements (and their variations) that, over short time periods, constitute weather. These elements are solar radiation, temperature, humidity, precipitation

astrolabe: …one or more plates (called climates) that were engraved with coordinate lines for different latitudes and were placed between the mater and the rete.

William Diller Matthew: Most important among them was “Climate and Evolution” (Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, vol. 24, 1915). In this work, Matthew argued for a relative permanency of the great ocean basins and continental masses and against the existence of former land bridges across what are now abyssal depths.…

Greta Thunberg: Additional activities: …collection of her speeches, and The Climate Book: The Facts and the Solutions (2023). The documentary I Am Greta appeared in 2020.

ARCHIVED TOPIC: This topic was archived on June 23, 2023, and will no longer be updated. Average surface temperatures on earth have risen more than 2°F over the past 100 years. During this time period, atmospheric levels of greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide (CO2) and methane (CH4) have

climate change, periodic modification of Earth’s climate brought about as a result of changes in the atmosphere as well as interactions between the atmosphere and various other geologic, chemical, biological, and geographic factors within the Earth system. The atmosphere is a dynamic fluid that is

global warming policy: The UN Framework Convention and the Kyoto Protocol: …by two major treaties: the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) of 1992 and the associated 1997 Kyoto Protocol to the UNFCCC (named for the city in Japan where it was concluded).

climate classification, the formalization of systems that recognize, clarify, and simplify climatic similarities and differences between geographic areas in order to enhance the scientific understanding of climates. Such classification schemes rely on efforts that sort and group vast amounts of

conservation: Global warming: …suitable conditions, or the species’ climate envelope, may shrink to nothing as conditions change—i.e., there may be no suitable conditions for a species in the future.

global warming: Theoretical climate models: Theoretical models of Earth’s climate system can be used to investigate the response of climate to external radiative forcing as well as its own internal variability. Two or more models that focus on different physical processes may be coupled or linked together through…

Rudolf Oskar Robert Williams Geiger: …Klima der bodennahen Luftschicht (1927; The Climate near the Ground), a comprehensive survey of microclimatological observations and of the effects of microclimate on plants, animals, and humans. This book remains a valuable basic reference source in the study of climate.

climate of India, Although the monsoons influence India’s climate and economy to a great extent, there are also many regional variations despite its unifying effect. Temperatures, wind patterns, and rainfall levels can vary widely in different regions of the country. For example, regions in

global warming: Feedback mechanisms and climate sensitivity: There are a number of feedback processes important to Earth’s climate system and, in particular, its response to external radiative forcing. The most fundamental of these feedback mechanisms involves the loss of longwave radiation to space from the surface. Since this radiative loss…

climate stripes, any graphical representation of historical temperature data that appears as a series of colored vertical stripes. Ordered chronologically, the series can be used to represent changes in an area’s average temperature over time. Each stripe in a graphic depicts the average

climate change, periodic modification of Earth’s climate brought about as a result of changes in the atmosphere as well as interactions between the atmosphere and various other geologic, chemical, biological, and geographic factors within the Earth system. The atmosphere is a dynamic fluid that is

climate: Circulation, currents, and ocean-atmosphere interaction: The circulation of the ocean is a key factor in air temperature distribution. Ocean currents that have a northward or southward component, such as the warm Gulf Stream in the North Atlantic or the cold Peru (Humboldt) Current off South America, effectively exchange…

climatic adaptation, in physical anthropology, the genetic adaptation of human beings to different environmental conditions. Physical adaptations in human beings are seen in response to extreme cold, humid heat, desert conditions, and high altitudes. Cold adaptation is of three types: adaptation to

lymphogranuloma venereum, infection of lymph vessels and lymph nodes by the microorganism Chlamydia trachomatis. Like chlamydia, which is also a disease caused by C. trachomatis, lymphogranuloma venereum is usually sexually transmitted. The disease produces swollen lymph nodes, ulcerations,

climate change, periodic modification of Earth’s climate brought about as a result of changes in the atmosphere as well as interactions between the atmosphere and various other geologic, chemical, biological, and geographic factors within the Earth system. The atmosphere is a dynamic fluid that is

climate: Climate, humans, and human affairs: …and environmentalist Crispin Tickell titled Climatic Change and World Affairs. Tickell sounded a warning:

climate change, periodic modification of Earth’s climate brought about as a result of changes in the atmosphere as well as interactions between the atmosphere and various other geologic, chemical, biological, and geographic factors within the Earth system. The atmosphere is a dynamic fluid that is

continental landform: Morphogenetic area: …ago understood how distinctive the geomorphic mechanisms of humid and arid lands were. It was, however, the new evidence of wide geographic mobility for such environments that forced the recognition of the morphogenetic, or geomorphic, system. Such a system is defined as a group of agencies and processes interacting under…

climatic map, chart that shows the geographic distribution of the monthly or annual average values of climatic variables—i.e., temperature, precipitation, relative humidity, percentage of possible sunshine, insolation, cloud cover, wind speed and direction, and atmospheric pressure over regions

continental landform: Climatic morphogenesis: Notions that climate plays a major dynamic role in landform evolution were in evidence during the first decade of the 20th century but did not emerge in formalized theory until the mid-1900s. At that time German geographer Julius Büdel and several…

global warming: Climatic variation since the last glaciation: …sometimes referred to as the Mid-Holocene Climatic Optimum. The relative warmth of average near-surface air temperatures at this time, however, is somewhat unclear. Changes in the pattern of insolation favoured warmer summers at higher latitudes in the Northern Hemisphere, but these changes also produced cooler winters in the Northern Hemisphere…

climate change, periodic modification of Earth’s climate brought about as a result of changes in the atmosphere as well as interactions between the atmosphere and various other geologic, chemical, biological, and geographic factors within the Earth system. The atmosphere is a dynamic fluid that is

Climatius, genus of extinct, primitive jawed vertebrates common as fossils in Devonian rocks in Europe and North America (the Devonian period began 408 million years ago and ended about 360 million years ago). Climatius is representative of the acanthodians, spiny fishlike vertebrates related to

valley: Role of climatic change: …landscape changes is sometimes called climato-genetic geomorphology. Some researchers in the field, notably Büdel, have maintained that little of the extant relief in humid temperate regions of the Earth results from modern relief-forming processes. Rather, they believe, much of the familiar humid temperate landscape is inherited from past climatic conditions,…

climatology, branch of the atmospheric sciences concerned with both the description of climate and the analysis of the causes of climatic differences and changes and their practical consequences. Climatology treats the same atmospheric processes as meteorology, but it seeks as well to identify the

Missouri Botanical Garden: …is most notable for its Climatron, a geodesic-dome greenhouse in which 1,400 species of tropical plants are grown under computer-controlled conditions simulating a rainforest. The garden was designated a national historic landmark in 1976.

André Maurois: …Quesnay (1926) and Climats (1928; Whatever Gods May Be), focus on middle-class provincial life, marriage, and the family. As a historian he demonstrated his interest in the English-speaking world with his popular histories: Histoire de l’Angleterre (1937; “History of England”) and Histoire des États-Unis (1943; “History of the United States”).…

climax, (Greek: “ladder”), in dramatic and nondramatic fiction, the point at which the highest level of interest and emotional response is achieved. In rhetoric, climax is achieved by the arrangement of units of meaning (words, phrases, clauses, or sentences) in an ascending order of importance.

orgasm, climactic physiological state of heightened sexual excitement and gratification that is followed by relaxation of sexual tensions and the body’s muscles. Orgasm is marked by a feeling of sudden and intense pleasure, an abrupt increase in pulse rate and blood pressure, and spasms of the

Climax, former company mining town, Lake county, central Colorado, U.S. It lies in the Park Range of the Rocky Mountains at Fremont Pass (elevation 11,318 feet [3,450 metres]), 12 miles (19 km) northeast of Leadville. Much of the world’s supply of molybdenum (a steel-toughening alloy) was produced

climax, in ecology, the final stage of biotic succession attainable by a plant community in an area under the environmental conditions present at a particular time. For example, cleared forests in the eastern United States progress from fields to old fields with colonizing trees and shrubs to

climax, in ecology, the final stage of biotic succession attainable by a plant community in an area under the environmental conditions present at a particular time. For example, cleared forests in the eastern United States progress from fields to old fields with colonizing trees and shrubs to

Saint John Climacus: …of Climax tou paradeisou (The Ladder of Divine Ascent, the source of his name “John of the Ladder”), a handbook on the ascetical and mystical life that has become a Christian spiritual classic. He is considered one of the greatest writers of the Hesychast tradition, an ascetical method of…

vine, Plant whose stem requires support and that climbs by tendrils or twining or creeps along the ground, or the stem of such a plant. Examples include bittersweet, most grapes, some honeysuckles, ivy, lianas, and

Bernard Binlin Dadié: The autobiographical novel Climbié (1956) re-creates the social milieu of colonial Côte d’Ivoire. Un Nègre à Paris (1959), his examination of Parisian society, is presented in epistolary form. Dadié’s love of Africa’s oral traditions caused him to collect and publish several more volumes of legends, fables, folktales, and…

amphibian: Anurans: …allow them to burrow or climb trees. These structures primarily involve modifications in limb proportions and iliosacral articulation. Arboreal (tree-dwelling) anurans have long limbs and digits with large, terminal, adhesive pads; anurans that burrow have short sturdy limbs and large spatulate tubercles made of keratin on their feet. The pipids,…

mountaineering, the sport of attaining, or attempting to attain, high points in mountainous regions, mainly for the pleasure of the climb. Although the term is often loosely applied to walking up low mountains that offer only moderate difficulties, it is more properly restricted to climbing in

mountaineering: Techniques: Rock climbing, like hiking, is a widely practiced sport in its own right. The essentials of rock climbing are often learned on local cliffs, where the teamwork of mountaineering, the use of the rope, and the coordinated prerequisites of control and rhythm are mastered. The…

William Martin Conway, Baron Conway: He chronicled his feat in Climbing and Exploration in the Karakoram-Himalayas (1894). His traverse of the Alpine range from Monte Viso to Gross Glockner in 1894 was described in The Alps from End to End (1895), and The First Crossing of Spitsbergen (1897) records his exploration of the island in…

Caryophyllales: Cactaceae: Climbing cacti, such as some leaf cacti (Epiphyllum) and some Rhipsalis species, are found in forests and develop few internal structural supports but support themselves with spines and aerial roots. In addition, cacti show an overall gradient in design from flattened, nonbranching discs to globes…

ostariophysan: Annotated classification: Family Astroblepidae (climbing catfishes) Mouth and fins modified for adhesion to rocks in mountain streams. Skin naked. Panama and South America. 1 genus, up to 54 species. Family Claroteidae (claroteids) Africa. 7 genera, up to 59 species.

corydalis: Major species: The climbing corydalis (Ceratocapnos claviculata) of Great Britain is an annual with short sprays of cream-coloured tubular flowers. The plant was formerly placed in the genus Corydalis.

fern: Annotated classification: …thickened cells; 1 genus (Lygodium) with about 25 species, mostly distributed in the tropics. Family Anemiaceae Rhizomes creeping to erect, hairy; leaves with the basal pair (or, rarely, more) of primary divisions modified, mostly lacking laminar tissue, and densely covered with sporangia; sporangia with the annulus a subapical ring…

Schizaeaceae, fern family (order Filicales), which contains two genera (Schizaea and Actinostachys) and about 46 species. The family has a long fossil record, with records dating back to the Late Cretaceous Epoch (about 100.5 to 66.0 million years ago). The genera are usually found in tropical and

Ficus: Major species: …climbing species such as the climbing fig (F. pumila) are also popular ornamentals.

fumitory: The related climbing fumitory (Adlumia fungosa), also known as Allegheny vine or mountain fringe, is a sprawling herbaceous biennial that coils its long leafstalks around supports. It reaches 3.5 metres (11.5 feet) in height and has clusters of white or pinkish tubular flowers borne among delicately cut…

hydrangea: The climbing hydrangea (H. anomala petiolaris, or H. petiolaris), can reach up to 15 metres, clinging to any solid support by means of aerial rootlets.

Regina M. Anderson: …1931 produced Anderson’s one-act play Climbing Jacob’s Ladder, about a lynching that happened while people prayed in church. The next year the theatre produced her one-act play Underground, about the Underground Railroad. Both plays were written under her pseudonym. The Negro Experimental Theatre served as an inspiration to little-theatre groups…

Gloriosa, genus of tuberous-rooted plants of the family Colchicaceae, native to tropical Africa and Asia. There are about six species, from about 1 to 2.4 m (3 to 8 feet) tall. These plants, variously known as climbing lilies or glory-lilies, are grown in greenhouses or outdoors in the summer. They

Richard Dawkins: …Darwinian natural selection entailed in Climbing Mount Improbable (1996). Stressing the gradual nature of response to selective pressures, Dawkins took care to point out that intricate structures such as the eye do not manifest randomly but instead successively increase in sophistication. He also released The Evolution of Life (1996), an…

climbing perch, (Anabas testudineus), small Asian freshwater fish of the family Anabantidae (order Perciformes) noted for its ability to live and walk about out of water. The climbing perch is an air-breathing labyrinth fish. Rather oblong, brownish or green, it grows to about 25 cm (10 inches). It