Norman Taurog: Musical comedies and Boys Town: Mrs. Wiggs of the Cabbage Patch (1934) was yet another screen version of the Alice Hegan Rice story about a poor family led by an optimistic matriarch. Taurog’s film was notable for the appearance of W.C. Fields in an atypical role as the suitor of…

Norman Taurog: Musical comedies and Boys Town: …of the Alice Hegan Rice story about a poor family led by an optimistic matriarch. Taurog’s film was notable for the appearance of W.C. Fields in an atypical role as the suitor of a spinster (Pitts). College Rhythm (1934), another comedy-musical, centres on the rivalry between former best friends (Jack…

Shirley MacLaine: …her daughter-in-law’s mistaken identity in Mrs. Winterbourne (1996). In 2000 MacLaine directed her only feature film, Bruno (also released as The Dress Code), about a young boy struggling to express himself.

MRSA, bacterium in the genus Staphylococcus that is characterized by its resistance to the antibiotic methicillin and to related semisynthetic penicillins. MRSA is a strain of Staphylococcus aureus and was first isolated in the early 1960s, shortly after methicillin came into use as an antibiotic.

Túpac Amaru, Peruvian revolutionary group. Founded in 1983, the group is best known for holding 490 people hostage in the Japanese embassy in Lima (1996) in an effort to gain the release of jailed comrades. After a standoff of several weeks, Peruvian troops stormed the embassy and killed all the

Sino-Tibetan languages: Burmic languages: … in Assam, as well as Mru and Meitei (Meetei) in India, Bangladesh, and Myanmar, seem close to Kukish.

rocket and missile system: Multiple warheads: …came with multiple warheads, or multiple reentry vehicles (MRVs), and the Fractional Orbital Bombardment System (FOBS). The Soviets introduced both of these capabilities with the SS-9 Scarp, the first “heavy” missile, beginning in 1967. FOBS was based on a low-trajectory launch that would be fired in the opposite direction from…

Ms., periodical, launched in 1972 by American feminists Gloria Steinem, Patricia Carbine, and others, that was the first nationally circulated women’s magazine to bring feminism and the issues of the women’s rights movement into the mainstream. From the beginning, the editors of the magazine

multiple sclerosis (MS), progressive autoimmune disease of the central nervous system characterized by destruction of the myelin sheath surrounding the nerve fibres of the brain, spinal cord, and optic nerves, as a result of which, the transmission of nerve impulses becomes impaired, particularly

MS St. Louis, German ocean liner that gained international attention in May–June 1939 when Cuba, the United States, and Canada denied entry to its more than 900 Jewish passengers, most of whom had fled Nazi Germany. Ultimately, several European countries took the refugees, though 255 of the

MS St. Louis, German ocean liner that gained international attention in May–June 1939 when Cuba, the United States, and Canada denied entry to its more than 900 Jewish passengers, most of whom had fled Nazi Germany. Ultimately, several European countries took the refugees, though 255 of the

Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13), international gang involved in drug and human smuggling, prostitution, murder, and extortion, among other illegal activities. It was founded in Los Angeles in the 1980s by immigrants from El Salvador and later spread throughout the United States, Central America, and

MS-DOS, the dominant operating system for the personal computer (PC) throughout the 1980s. The acquisition and marketing of MS-DOS were pivotal in the Microsoft Corporation’s transition to software industry giant. American computer programmer Timothy Paterson, a developer for Seattle Computer

MS. Found in a Bottle, short story by Edgar Allan Poe, published in the Baltimore weekly Saturday Visiter (October 1833) as the winner of a contest held by the magazine. The story, one of Poe’s first notable works, was later published in the two-volume Tales of the Grotesque and Arabesque (1840).

Captain Marvel: From Ms. Marvel to Captain Marvel and back: …these early appearances, Danvers and Ms. Marvel were essentially separate individuals, and Danvers experienced blackouts whenever she transformed into her superheroic persona. With Ms. Marvel no. 3 (March 1977), X-Men writer Chris Claremont took over the title, and he began integrating the two personalities.

Captain Marvel: From Ms. Marvel to Captain Marvel and back: …the critically acclaimed Disney+ miniseries Ms. Marvel (2022). Iman Vellani, who played the title character in Ms. Marvel, was the breakout star of The Marvels (2023), a lively cosmic romp that saw the return of Larson as Captain Marvel and Teyonah Parris as Monica Rambeau.

Republic of the Congo: Congo since independence: …parties existed at independence: the African Socialist Movement (Mouvement Socialiste Africain; MSA) and the Democratic Union for the Defense of African Interests (Union Démocratique pour la Défense des Intérêts Africains; UDDIA). The two parties pitted the north against the south, an opposition that stemmed from the privileged place occupied by…

hinterland: …a metropolitan hinterland is the Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) as designated by the U.S. Census Bureau. MSA’s are comprised of a central city, defined by the corporate limits; an urbanized, built-up area contiguous to the central city; and a non-urbanized area, delimited on a county basis, economically tied to the…

African literature: Portuguese: In 1952 another journal, Msaho, began publication; it included works by such poets as Alberto Lacerda and Noémia de Sousa. Marcelino dos Santos (Kalungano) wrote poetry steeped in African tradition, while Rui Nogar’s poetry captured the atmosphere of Maputo, the capital of Mozambique. José Craveirinha consciously evolved new poetic…

Masākin, town located in eastern Tunisia, on Al-Sāḥil (Sahel), the coastal strip, 7 miles (11 km) from the Mediterranean Sea. A road and rail junction, the town is also a centre for olive growing and processing, flour milling, and weaving. Its buildings, typical of the area, are constructed mostly

minesweeper: minesweeping force was the minesweeping boat; this vessel was completely nonmagnetic, equipped to sweep contact, magnetic, or acoustic mines, and was operated by a crew of six enlisted men. Helicopter minesweepers were also developed; these aircraft hover safely over the sea while towing minesweeping gear that explodes magnetic or…

Military Sealift Command (MSC), division within the U.S. Navy charged with delivering supplies to bases and ships worldwide through the operation of a wide variety of resupply, transport, and auxiliary ships. MSC was founded in 1949 and grew out of the Military Sea Transportation Service, which was

statistics: Significance testing: …in a similar manner, the mean square due to error, MSE, is computed by dividing SSE by its degrees of freedom. An F-test based on the ratio MSR/MSE can be used to test the statistical significance of the overall relationship between the dependent variable and the set of independent variables.…

mean squared error (MSE), the average squared difference between the value observed in a statistical study and the values predicted from a model. When comparing observations with predicted values, it is necessary to square the differences as some data values will be greater than the prediction (and

monosodium glutamate (MSG), white crystalline substance, a sodium salt of the amino acid glutamic acid, that is used to intensify the natural flavour of certain foods. Monosodium glutamate (MSG) is an important ingredient in the cuisines of China and Japan and is used commercially in broths, soups,

carboxylic acid: Amino acids: …is commonly known as “Chinese restaurant syndrome,” because MSG has been a widely used ingredient in the cuisine of many Chinese restaurants.

melanocyte-stimulating hormone (MSH), any of several peptides derived from a protein known as proopiomelanocortin (POMC) and secreted primarily by the pituitary gland. In most vertebrates, melanocyte-stimulating hormone (MSH) peptides are secreted specifically by the intermediate lobe of the

African literature: Swahili: …first prominent Swahili female poet, Mwana Kupona binti Msham. Love poetry, like other poetry, was sung with or without musical accompaniment. The epic of the legendary figure Fumo Liyongo wa Bauri, who likely lived during the 12th century, was created by Muhammad Kijumwa (Utenzi wa Fumo Liyongo [1913; “The Epic…

Islamic arts: Palaces: …Says, Khirbat Minyah, Khirbat al-Mafjar, Mshattā, Qaṣr ʿAmrah, Qaṣr al-Kharānah, and Qaṣr al-Ṭūbah. Apparently, those examples of princely architecture belong to a group of more than 60 ruined or only textually identifiable rural complexes erected by Umayyad princes. In the past a romantic theory had developed about their locations, suggesting…

Moshoeshoe was the founder and first paramount chief of the Sotho (Basuto, Basotho) nation. One of the most successful Southern African leaders of the 19th century, Moshoeshoe combined aggressive military counteraction and adroit diplomacy against colonial invasions. He created a large African

National Alliance, former nationalist anticommunist political party of Italy. Historically, some of its members held neofascist views. The MSI was formed in 1946 by supporters of former Italian leader Benito Mussolini from elements of the defunct Uomo Qualunque (Average Man) Party that had appeared

Ndebele: …Ndebele traces its ancestry to Musi, or Msi, who, with his followers, diverged from a small group of Nguni people migrating down the southeastern coast of Africa and eventually settled in the Transvaal at the site of modern Pretoria. The descendants of Musi’s people were joined in the 18th and…

Mo Ibrahim: …Investments, which was later renamed Celtel International. He created a business plan that was built around the idea that no bribes would be given or accepted by him and his cofounders, in stark contrast to standard dealings among many African companies. Celtel expanded quickly to become one of the largest…

Msiri was an African ruler, one of the most successful of the 19th-century immigrant adventurers and state builders in Central Africa. About 1856 Msiri settled in southern Katanga with a few Nyamwezi followers, and by about 1870 he had succeeded in taking over most of this valuable copper region

Curiosity, U.S. robotic vehicle, designed to explore the surface of Mars, which determined that Mars was once capable of supporting life. The rover was launched by an Atlas V rocket from Cape Canaveral, Florida, on November 26, 2011, and landed in Gale crater on Mars on August 6, 2012. Curiosity is

Mauritius: Political process and security: …Militant Mauricien; MMM), and the Militant Socialist Movement (Mouvement Socialiste Militant; MSM). The MLP and the MSM generally compete for the dominant Hindu vote, although they both have supporters in all communities. The MMM has its base in the minorities—the Creoles, Muslims, and non-Hindi-speaking Indian communities (especially the Tamils and…

MSNBC, American cable television news and political commentary channel launched in 1996. It is owned by NBCUniversal, which is a subsidiary of Comcast. MSNBC is generally considered to be liberal or left-leaning. MSNBC was formed as a joint venture between Microsoft and NBC, and it began

statistics: Significance testing: The mean square due to regression, denoted MSR, is computed by dividing SSR by a number referred to as its degrees of freedom; in a similar manner, the mean square due to error, MSE, is computed by dividing SSE by its degrees of freedom. An F-test…

intelligence: China: …is the province of the MSS. The organization of the MSS is similar to that of the former KGB, with bureaus responsible for foreign intelligence, counterintelligence, and the collection of scientific and technical intelligence. Chinese intelligence operations are conducted by officers under diplomatic cover as well as under nonofficial cover…

Landless Workers Movement (MST), Brazilian social movement seeking agrarian reform through land expropriation. The Landless Workers Movement (Movimento dos Trabalhadores Rurais Sem Terra; MST) is one of the largest and most-influential social movements in Latin America. Thousands of Brazilian

Mystery Science Theater 3000 (MST3K), American television comedy show and cult classic that aired on several cable channels (1988–99) and Netflix (2017–18) before finding a home on its own streaming platform in 2022. The show focuses on the zany exploits of a human and several sentient robots who

maple syrup urine disease, inherited metabolic disorder involving leucine, isoleucine, and valine (a group of branch chain amino acids). Normally, these amino acids are metabolized, step by step, by a number of enzymes, each of which is specific for each step in the metabolism of each amino acid.

sievert: …various applications, and so the millisievert (mSv), which equals 1/1,000 sievert, is frequently used instead. One millisievert corresponds to 10 ergs of energy of gamma radiation transferred to one gram of living tissue. The sievert was recommended in 1977 by the International Commission on Radiation Units and Measurements (ICRU) as…

refuse, nonhazardous solid waste that requires collection and transport to a processing or disposal site. Refuse includes garbage and rubbish. Garbage is mostly decomposable food waste or yard waste that is highly putrescible, while rubbish is mostly dry material such as glass, paper, cloth, or

Mswati II was a Southern African king and son of Sobhuza I. Mswati II was the greatest of the Dlamini-Ngwane kings, and the Swazi (as the Dlamini-Ngwane came to be called) take their name from him. He extended his kingdom northward into Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe), including territory since lost by the

Mswati III is a member of the Swazi royal family who became king of Swaziland in 1986. Born to King Sobhuza II and one of his wives, Ntombi Twala, he was given the title of Prince Makhosetive (King of All Nations). The young prince was one of more than 60 sons that Sobhuza had with his many wives.

Mswati II was a Southern African king and son of Sobhuza I. Mswati II was the greatest of the Dlamini-Ngwane kings, and the Swazi (as the Dlamini-Ngwane came to be called) take their name from him. He extended his kingdom northward into Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe), including territory since lost by the

Hungary: Overview: …it was reorganized as the Hungarian Socialist Workers’ Party, which survived until the fall of communism in 1989.

Hungarian Socialist Party (MSzP), left-wing Hungarian political party. Although the Hungarian Socialist Party (MSzP) was founded in 1989, its origins date to 1948, when the Hungarian Social Democratic Party merged into what was first called the Hungarian Workers’ Party and then, following the

meitnerium (Mt), an artificially produced element belonging to the transuranium group, atomic number 109. It is predicted to have chemical properties resembling those of iridium. The element is named in honour of Austrian-born physicist Lise Meitner. In 1982 West German physicists at the Institute

air mass: The maritime Tropical (mT) is the most important moisture-bearing and rain-producing air mass throughout the year. In winter it moves poleward and is cooled by the ground surface. Consequently, it is characterized by fog or low stratus or stratocumulus clouds, with drizzle and poor visibility. A steep lapse…

air mass: The maritime Tropical (mT) is the most important moisture-bearing and rain-producing air mass throughout the year. In winter it moves poleward and is cooled by the ground surface. Consequently, it is characterized by fog or low stratus or stratocumulus clouds, with drizzle and poor visibility. A steep lapse…

Bitcoin: …revealed in February 2014 when Mt. Gox, which had been the world’s third largest Bitcoin exchange, declared bankruptcy because of the theft of about 650,000 Bitcoins, then valued at about $380 million.

Mt. Healthy City Board v. Doyle, case in which the U.S. Supreme Court on January 11, 1977, ruled (9–0) that an Ohio public school teacher’s dismissal by a school board—which cited conduct that was protected by the First and Fourteenth amendments—would not be unconstitutional if the board could

Los Angeles: Transportation of Los Angeles: …creating the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) to build and operate such a system.

sorghum, (Sorghum bicolor), cereal grain plant of the grass family (Poaceae) and its edible starchy seeds. The plant likely originated in Africa, where it is a major food crop, and has numerous varieties, including grain sorghums, used for food; grass sorghums, grown for hay and fodder; and

natural gas: Applications: …methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE), an oxygenated fuel additive added to gasoline in order to raise its octane number, is produced via chemical reaction of methanol and isobutylene over an acidic ion-exchange resin.

concussion, a temporary loss of brain function typically resulting from a relatively mild injury to the brain, not necessarily associated with unconsciousness. Concussion is among the most commonly occurring forms of traumatic brain injury and is sometimes referred to as mild traumatic brain injury

Preparedness Movement: In February 1916 the Military Training Camps Association (MTCA) was created to lobby for and facilitate preparedness.

Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR), an informal association of countries dedicated to nonproliferation of unmanned weapons systems capable of delivering weapons of mass destruction (WMD). The members (called “partners”) of the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR) also seek to coordinate

horse: Origin of horse domestication: Results of studies of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA), which is inherited only from the mother, showed a great deal of diversity among individuals and strongly supported the idea that wild horses from many different geographic areas contributed to the domestic horse. The mtDNA data clearly indicated that there were multiple…

Mthethwa, important chieftaincy and small historical state of the late 18th and early 19th centuries, located south of the lower Mfolozi River in the northeastern part of the present-day province of KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa. Under chiefs from the Nyambose lineage, particularly Jobe and his son

drug use: Extent of contemporary drug abuse: …and Health (NSDUH) and the Monitoring the Future (MTF) survey (also called National High School Senior Survey). The MTF tracks drug use and attitudes toward drugs among students in the 8th, 10th, and 12th grades. The NSDUH tracks the prevalence of drug use among persons age 12 and older across…

Mthatha, town, Eastern Cape province, South Africa. It was the capital of Transkei, a nominally independent but not internationally recognized southern African republic that was reincorporated into South Africa in 1994. Located on the Mthatha (“The Taker”) River (so named because of its destructive

Mthethwa, important chieftaincy and small historical state of the late 18th and early 19th centuries, located south of the lower Mfolozi River in the northeastern part of the present-day province of KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa. Under chiefs from the Nyambose lineage, particularly Jobe and his son

Henri-Gaston Busignies: …participated in the development of moving-target indication (MTI) radar, which allows detection of a moving object, such as an aircraft, when its echo is masked by large, unwanted echoes from land or sea clutter. Busignies retired from ITT in 1975 as a senior vice president.

Joyce Banda is a Malawian politician who served as vice president (2009–12) and president (2012–14) of Malawi. She was the first woman to serve as head of state anywhere in Southern Africa. Banda’s official government profile states that she obtained a bachelor’s degree from Atlantic International

Thenjiwe Mtintso is a South African antiapartheid activist and journalist who occupied various leadership positions within the African National Congress (ANC) and the South African Communist Party (SACP) and later served in multiracial governments in South Africa from 1994. Mtintso was the daughter

Kura River, river in Turkey, Georgia, and Azerbaijan. The Kura is the largest river in Transcaucasia. It rises on the slopes of Mount Kısırındağı in extreme eastern Turkey and cuts northward through the Lesser Caucasus range in a series of gorges with many rapids. Some distance after entering

Ahmed Messali Hadj: …reemerge in 1946 as the Mouvement pour le Triomphe des Libertés Démocratiques (MTLD; Movement for the Triumph of Democratic Liberties). His influence, however, declined dramatically in the postwar period. In 1954 he formed the Mouvement National Algérian (Algerian National Movement), but this organization was unable to compete with the Front…

Steven Bochco: …and for Mary Tyler Moore’s MTM Enterprises (1978–85) before forming his own production company in 1987. Bochco cocreated, wrote for, and produced such successful television dramas as Hill Street Blues (1981–87), L.A. Law (1986–94), and NYPD Blue (1993–2005), and he won several Emmy Awards for his scripts. His later projects

aging: Genetics and life span: …mammalian target of rapamycin, or mTOR, which is involved in regulating growth and life span. The ability of rapamycin to inhibit the mTOR cell-signaling pathway is suspected to underlie the drug’s ability to extend the life span of mice.

joint disease: Degenerative joint disease: The first metatarsophalangeal (MTP) joint, located between the big toe and the rest of the foot, naturally bears heavy loads and is a common site of osteoarthritis. Regular wearing of high-heeled shoes and repetitive microtrauma are associated with the development of osteoarthritis of the first MTP joint.…

machine-tractor station, in the Soviet Union, state-owned institution that rented heavy agricultural machinery (e.g., tractors and combines) to a group of neighbouring kolkhozy (collective farms) and supplied skilled personnel to operate and repair the equipment. The stations, which became

mobile telephone: Development of cellular systems: …1946, with the introduction of mobile telephone service (MTS) by the American Telephone & Telegraph Company (AT&T). In the U.S. MTS system, a user who wished to place a call from a mobile phone had to search manually for an unused channel before placing the call. The user then spoke…

cancer: Other tumour suppressor genes: …the tumour suppressor gene called MTS1 (from multiple tumour suppressor), which also goes awry in a variety of sporadic tumours. MTS1 codes for a protein called p16. When functioning properly, the p16 protein prevents the cell cycle from progressing from the G1 stage to the S stage through an interaction…

Oswald Mbuyiseni Mtshali is a South African poet who writes in English and Zulu and whose work draws deeply upon the immediate experience of life in the Johannesburg township of Soweto. Mtshali worked as a messenger before his first collection of poems, Sounds of a Cowhide Drum (1971), won the

Mtskheta, town, Georgia, at the confluence of the Kura and Aragvi rivers, just northwest of Tbilisi. One of the oldest settlements of Transcaucasia, Mtskheta was the capital of Georgia from the 2nd to the 5th century ad. Of historical and architectural interest are the Cathedral of Sveti-Tskhoveli,

chimurenga: Other artists, most notably Oliver Mtukudzi and Comrade Chinx (Dickson Chingaira), began performing their own versions of chimurenga. Mtukudzi enriched his sound with elements of reggae, jazz, mbira, and various African popular musics, including Rhodesian jit and South African mbaqanga, both of which featured quick-paced rippling melodies of electric

crowdsourcing: How crowdsourcing solves problems: One example is Amazon’s Mechanical Turk (MTurk), which allows organizations to outsource parts of tasks and projects. Crowdsourcing participants, referred to as crowdworkers, can earn money for tasks as varied as data validation and research to sorting images for machine learning and writing product descriptions.

The Buggles’ “Video Killed the Radio Star,” the first music video broadcast on MTV (Music TeleVision) when it debuted in the summer of 1981, only slightly overstated the impact that the cable television network would have on music and popular culture. Presenting round-the-clock music videos

MTV, cable television network that began as a 24-hour platform for music videos. MTV debuted just after midnight on August 1, 1981, with the broadcast of “Video Killed the Radio Star” by the Buggles. Following the format of Top 40 radio, video disc jockeys (or “veejays”) introduced videos and

Nirvana: Subsequent concert releases, notably Unplugged in New York (1994) and From the Muddy Banks of the Wishkah (1996), only added to Nirvana’s legend.

Lauryn Hill: Although MTV Unplugged No. 2.0 sold poorly, Hill proved that she could still be a significant draw when she co-headlined the Smokin’ Grooves tour with OutKast later in 2002. For the rest of the decade, however, her recorded output was limited to guest appearances on others’…

MTV: …the format with its annual Video Music Awards. Total Request Live (TRL), an hour-long interview and music video show, debuted in 1998 and anchored the weekday lineup. By the early 21st century, however, MTV increasingly sought to position itself as a destination for music on the Internet. Its Web site…

Stone Age: Oceania: , Lemuria, Mu) or direct relations with the Middle East (e.g., the Ten Lost Tribes, migrations of Children of the Sun from Egypt), early India (e.g., Indus Valley–Easter Island connections), or Japan (e.g., supposed language relations). They also insist that, while eastern-voyaging Polynesians could well have reached…

Mu Dan was a renowned modern Chinese poet and translator. Zha Liangzheng enrolled at Qinghua University at age 17. During the Sino-Japanese War (1937–45), he moved with the university to the southwest and continued his study of foreign languages and literature; he graduated from Southwest United

Mu Gia Pass, mountain pass in the Annamese Cordillera (Chaîne Annamitique) between northern Vietnam and Laos, 55 miles (90 km) northwest of Dong Hoi, Vietnam. The pass lies 1,371 feet (418 m) above sea level and carries the road from Tan Ap in Vietnam to Muang Khammouan (formerly called Thakhek) in

Rennell Island, southernmost of the Solomon Islands, in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, 130 miles (209 km) south of Guadalcanal. The island and the smaller Bellona Island, just to the northwest, constitute Rennell and Bellona province. An atoll 50 miles (80 km) long and 8 miles (13 km) wide, it

Mu River, river in north-central Myanmar (Burma), flowing south to the Irrawaddy River west of Sagaing. The Mu is about 170 miles (275 km) long and has been used for irrigation in the Dry Zone since the 9th century. The modern Mu Valley Irrigation Project is one of the largest in

star: Eclipsing binaries: …for the bright B-type star Mu Scorpii.

Mu Dan was a renowned modern Chinese poet and translator. Zha Liangzheng enrolled at Qinghua University at age 17. During the Sino-Japanese War (1937–45), he moved with the university to the southwest and continued his study of foreign languages and literature; he graduated from Southwest United

tung tree: …the candlenut tree (Aleurites moluccana), mu tree (A. montana), Japan wood oil tree (A. cordata), and lumbang tree (A. trisperma), are decorative and are planted as shade trees or as sources of tung oil in the subtropical and tropical areas of many countries, including the American Deep South, where they…

percussion instrument: Idiophones: The Chinese mu yu (traditionally fish-shaped) is a Buddhist and Daoist ritual slit drum. Its Korean and Japanese counterparts are likewise ritual time markers, while in Vietnam the slit drum is both a temple and a watchman’s instrument. On Java slit drums can be traced to the…

Muqi Fachang was one of the best-known Chinese Chan (Japanese: Zen) Buddhist painters (see also Chan painting). His works were influential in Japan. Toward the end of the Southern Song dynasty (c. 13th century), Muqi found himself in political trouble and fled to a monastery near the capital city

Mufu Mountains, range at the border of Hunan, Hubei, and Jiangxi provinces, east-central China. The Mufu extend northeastward for more than 125 miles (200 km), from near Pingjiang in Hunan to the Yangtze River (Chang Jiang) valley west of Jiujiang. The elevation of the range averages about 3,300

Chinese literature: Poetry: …spirit most fully is the Mulanshi (“Ballad of Mulan”), which sings of a girl who disguised herself as a warrior and won glory on the battlefield.

muon, elementary subatomic particle similar to the electron but 207 times heavier. It has two forms, the negatively charged muon and its positively charged antiparticle. The muon was discovered as a constituent of cosmic-ray particle “showers” in 1936 by the American physicists Carl D. Anderson and

neutrino: …second type of neutrino, the muon-neutrino. Identification of the muon-neutrino as distinct from the electron-neutrino was accomplished in 1962 on the basis of the results of a particle-accelerator experiment. High-energy muon-neutrinos were produced by decay of pi-mesons and were directed to a detector so that their reactions with matter could…

Muztagata Range, mountain range in the westernmost part of the Uygur Autonomous Region of Xinjiang, northwestern China. As a far western part of the Kunlun Mountains, it extends some 200 miles (320 km) along a north-northwest and south-southeast axis parallel to the eastern edge of the Pamirs range