mistletoe: …American counterpart, the Eastern, or oak, mistletoe (Phoradendron serotinum), also parasitizes many deciduous trees, including oaks.

oak moss, (Evernia prunastri), species of fruticose (branched, bushy) lichen valued in perfumery for its heavy, oriental fragrance and as a fixative base. It grows in mountainous areas throughout much of the Northern Hemisphere. The pale greenish gray thallus, 3 to 8 cm (1.2 to 3 inches) long, is

Painesville, city, seat (1840) of Lake county, northeastern Ohio, U.S., near the mouth of the Grand River and Lake Erie, 25 miles (40 km) northeast of Cleveland. The site, first settled permanently by Gen. Edward Paine with a party of 66, was laid out around 1805; it was known variously as The

Oak Park, village, Cook county, northeastern Illinois, U.S. It is a suburb of Chicago, located about 10 miles (16 km) west of downtown. The area was originally inhabited by Potawatomi, Sauk, and Fox Indians. First settled in the 1830s by English settlers Joseph and Betsy Kettlestrings, it was

Oak Park, village, Cook county, northeastern Illinois, U.S. It is a suburb of Chicago, located about 10 miles (16 km) west of downtown. The area was originally inhabited by Potawatomi, Sauk, and Fox Indians. First settled in the 1830s by English settlers Joseph and Betsy Kettlestrings, it was

Oak Ridge, city, Anderson and Roane counties, eastern Tennessee, U.S. It lies in a valley between the Cumberland and Great Smoky mountains, about 20 miles (30 km) west of Knoxville, and is a part of that city’s metropolitan area. A tract of land covering about 94 square miles (243 square km) was

Mary Todd Lincoln: …buried beside her husband at Oak Ridge Cemetery in Springfield.

Harrison Brown: …the Clinton Engineer Works (now Oak Ridge National Laboratory), Oak Ridge, Tennessee, where he supervised the production of plutonium for the Manhattan Project. Like Albert Einstein and other scientists who had been instrumental in the development of the atomic bomb, Brown later spoke out against the further development of nuclear…

treehopper: The oak treehoppers, Platycotis vittata and P. quadrivittata, feed on deciduous and evergreen oaks. Treehoppers can be controlled by applying insecticides before eggs are laid and by cutting down surrounding weeds.

wilt: Oak wilt: Oak wilt, caused by the fungus Ceratocystis fagacearum, is a serious disease in the eastern half of the United States. All oaks (Quercus) are susceptible, as are Chinese, European, and American chestnuts (Castanea) and tan oak (Lithocarpus densiflorus). Trees in the red oak

Gabriel Oak, fictional character, a skillful, hardworking, and honest young farmer in Thomas Hardy’s novel Far from the Madding Crowd (1874). Oak is the first of several suitors for the beautiful but seemingly capricious Bathsheba Everdene. Though she rejects his love, he remains loyal to her and

Severian Of Gabala: …of the patriarch at the Synod of the Oak, July 403. This provincial council, prompted by Eudoxia and largely composed of Syrian and Egyptian bishops inimical to Chrysostom, convicted Chrysostom on apparently fabricated charges ranging from his having favoured the doctrines of Origen to eating lozenges in church; he was…

Michael Oakeshott was a British political theorist, philosopher, and educator whose work belongs to the philosophical tradition of objective idealism. He is regarded as an important and singular conservative thinker. In political theory, Oakeshott is best known for his critique of modern

Michael Oakeshott was a British political theorist, philosopher, and educator whose work belongs to the philosophical tradition of objective idealism. He is regarded as an important and singular conservative thinker. In political theory, Oakeshott is best known for his critique of modern

Rutland: …the historic market towns of Oakham and Uppingham, each with a famous school. Oakham also has a large 14th-century church and a 12th-century castle that is one of the finest examples of late Norman domestic architecture. Rutland has many other fine old churches and houses, whose high quality can be…

Oakland, town, seat (1872) of Garrett county, extreme western Maryland, U.S., in the Allegheny Mountains near the West Virginia border. Laid out in 1849, after the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad decided to build a rail line through the area, it became a popular tourist destination. Oakland remains at

Oakland, city, seat (1873) of Alameda county, west-central California, U.S. It lies on the eastern shore of San Francisco Bay opposite San Francisco. The city site is located on a flat coastal plain that rises toward hills to the east that parallel the shoreline. Oakland has a mild

Oakland Athletics, American professional baseball team based in Oakland, California, that plays in the American League (AL). The Athletics—who are often simply referred to as the “A’s”—have won nine World Series championships and 15 AL pennants. Founded in 1901 and based in Philadelphia, the A’s

Oakland Athletics, American professional baseball team based in Oakland, California, that plays in the American League (AL). The Athletics—who are often simply referred to as the “A’s”—have won nine World Series championships and 15 AL pennants. Founded in 1901 and based in Philadelphia, the A’s

Oakland: The contemporary city: Notable museums include the Oakland Museum (with exhibits of art, history, and natural science), Chabot Space and Science Center in the eastern hills, and the Western Aerospace Museum near the airport.

Rick Barry: …Warriors’ coaching, Barry joined the Oakland Oaks of the upstart ABA. Not only did Barry become a minority owner of the team, but his father-in-law and former college coach, Bruce Hale, was hired as the Oaks’ head coach. Barry was forced to sit out the 1967–68 season, however, because of…

Las Vegas Raiders, American professional gridiron football team based in Las Vegas, Nevada, that plays in the National Football League (NFL). The Raiders have won three Super Bowl championships (1977, 1981, and 1984), one American Football League (AFL) championship (1967), and four American

Pontiac: Oakland University (1957) in nearby Rochester is the site of the summer Meadow Brook Music Festival. Pontiac was the site of the Silverdome (1975), a large indoor sports arena that was home to several sports teams, including the Detroit Lions (1975–2001) of the National Football…

Bullitt: Cast: Assorted References

construction: Postwar developments in long-span construction: The Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum (1967), by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, extended this system to 126 metres (420 feet) in diameter, but only a single layer of cables, stiffened by encasing ribs of concrete, connects the inner and outer rings.

hydrangea: Oakleaf hydrangea (H. quercifolia), up to 2 metres high, has white flower clusters and deep wine-red fall foliage. 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.

Annie Oakley was an American markswoman who starred in Buffalo Bill’s Wild West show, where she was often called “Little Sure Shot.” Phoebe Ann Mosey (or Moses, per some sources) early developed an amazing proficiency with firearms. As a child, she hunted game with such success that, according to

the Allman Brothers Band: May 27, 2017, Savannah, Georgia), Berry Oakley (in full Raymond Berry Oakley III; b. April 4, 1948, Chicago, Illinois, U.S.—d. November 11, 1972, Macon, Georgia), Dickey Betts (in full Forrest Richard Betts; b. December 12, 1943, West Palm Beach, Florida, U.S.—d. April 18, 2024, Osprey, Florida), Jaimoe (byname of Jai…

Kenneth Oakley was an English physical anthropologist, geologist, and paleontologist best known for his work in the relative dating of fossils by fluorine content. Oakley received a B.S. in geology with first-class honours from University College, London, in 1933, and a Ph.D. from the same

the Allman Brothers Band: May 27, 2017, Savannah, Georgia), Berry Oakley (in full Raymond Berry Oakley III; b. April 4, 1948, Chicago, Illinois, U.S.—d. November 11, 1972, Macon, Georgia), Dickey Betts (in full Forrest Richard Betts; b. December 12, 1943, West Palm Beach, Florida, U.S.—d. April 18, 2024, Osprey, Florida), Jaimoe (byname of Jai…

De Grey River: It rises as the Oakover River in the Robertson Range, 150 miles (240 km) southeast of Marble Bar, and flows north. Midway in its course, it turns northwest to join the Nullagine River and becomes the De Grey. The seasonally intermittent stream, the principal tributaries of which are the…

Oaks, one of the English Classic horse races (along with the Derby, Saint Leger, Two Thousand Guineas, and One Thousand Guineas), an event for three-year-old fillies, established in 1779, and run over a 1.5-mile (about 2,400-metre) course at Epsom Downs, Surrey, also the site of the Derby. The Oaks

Oaks, one of the English Classic horse races (along with the Derby, Saint Leger, Two Thousand Guineas, and One Thousand Guineas), an event for three-year-old fillies, established in 1779, and run over a 1.5-mile (about 2,400-metre) course at Epsom Downs, Surrey, also the site of the Derby. The Oaks

Oakville, town, regional municipality of Halton, southeastern Ontario, Canada, 20 miles (32 km) southwest of Toronto. Oakville is situated on Lake Ontario at the mouth of Oakville Creek. It was founded in 1830 by Colonel William K. Chisholm, who established shipbuilding yards there. It was

epic: The epic in Japan: …the command of the emperor Temmu (672–686) and were used as basic materials for the compilation of the first national chronicles of Japan, the Kojiki (712; “Records of Ancient Matters”) and the Nihon shoki (720; “Chronicles of Japan”). The myths and legends that are contained in the earlier parts of…

Oamaru, town and port, southeastern South Island, New Zealand. Its name comes from a Maori term meaning “place of sheltered fire.” It was established as a grazing run in 1853. Situated on a small bay, the town began to improve its harbour in 1872. It is a commercial fishing centre and the chief

Oannes, in Mesopotamian mythology, an amphibious being who taught mankind wisdom. Oannes, as described by the Babylonian priest Berosus, had the form of a fish but with the head of a man under his fish’s head and under his fish’s tail the feet of a man. In the daytime he came up to the seashore of

Orbiting Astronomical Observatory (OAO), any of a series of four unmanned U.S. scientific satellites developed to observe cosmic objects from above the Earth’s atmosphere. OAO-1 was launched on April 8, 1966, but its power supply failed shortly after liftoff. OAO-2, launched Dec. 7, 1968, carried

Orbiting Astronomical Observatory: OAO-2, launched Dec. 7, 1968, carried two large telescopes and a complement of spectrometers and other auxiliary devices. It weighed more than 4,200 pounds (1,900 kg), the heaviest satellite orbited up to that time. OAO-2 was able to photograph young stars that emit mostly ultraviolet…

Orbiting Astronomical Observatory: Copernicus (OAO-3) was equipped with more powerful instruments, including a reflecting telescope with a 32-inch (81-cm) mirror. Launched Aug. 21, 1972, this satellite was primarily used to study ultraviolet emissions from interstellar gas and stars in the far reaches of the Milky Way. Copernicus also…

Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries, Arab organization formed in January 1968 to promote international economic cooperation within the petroleum industry. Chairmanship rotates annually; meetings occur twice yearly. Member countries include Algeria, Bahrain, Egypt, Iraq, Kuwait,

ship: Oars and sails: The earliest historical evidence of boats is found in Egypt during the 4th millennium bce. A culture nearly completely riparian, Egypt was narrowly aligned along the Nile, totally supported by it,

oarfish, (Regalecus glesne), large, long, sinuous fish of the family Regalecidae (order Lampridiformes), found throughout the tropics and subtropics in rather deep water. A ribbon-shaped fish, very thin from side to side, the oarfish may grow to a length of about 9 metres (30.5 feet) and a weight

Eugénio de Castro: Castro’s best-known collection of poetry, Oaristos (1890; “Intimate Chats”), launched Symbolism in Portugal. His Symbolism maintains the essential doctrines of the French theorists of the movement, in contrast with the nostalgic nationalism that characterized the poetry of his contemporaries in Portugal. Among his numerous published collections, the best known include…

Raoul Salan: …Organisation de l’Armée Secrète (OAS; Secret Army Organization), in a campaign of terror against the government of Charles de Gaulle in both France and Algeria before being captured, tried, and imprisoned.

Romania: Relief: …western fringe, the volcanic ranges Oaș and Harghita, with a concentration of volcanic necks and cones, some with craters still preserved, lend character to the landscape. St. Ana Lake—the only crater lake in Romania—is also found there. The volcanic crescent provides rich mineral resources (notably copper, lead, and zinc) as…

Organization of American States (OAS), organization formed to promote economic, military, and cultural cooperation among its members, which include almost all of the independent states of the Western Hemisphere. The OAS’s main goals are to prevent any outside state’s intervention in the Western

Damon Albarn: …along with fellow melodic-rock revivalists Oasis, of what was called Britpop, and a frenzied media-fueled rivalry emerged between the two bands. Partially in response, Albarn and company shifted course after The Great Escape (1995) and returned with Blur (1997), a garage-rock-indebted record that expanded their American audience, and the stylistically…

oasis, fertile tract of land that occurs in a desert wherever a perennial supply of fresh water is available. Oases vary in size, ranging from about 1 hectare (2.5 acres) around small springs to vast areas of naturally watered or irrigated land. Underground water sources account for most oases;

Edward Riley Bradley: , the Oasis Club, which became a favourite haunt of celebrities. His Embassy Club, also in Palm Beach, was patronized and respected by social and industrial leaders who wintered in Florida. Advised by his physician that he needed to spend more time outdoors, Bradley bought the Idle…

iminoglycinuria: …“blue diaper syndrome”), and the methionine malabsorption syndrome (or “oasthouse urine disease”). They are characterized by poor absorption of the amino acids tryptophan and methionine, respectively, from the small intestine. For other hereditary disorders of amino acid transport, see also cystinuria; Hartnup disease; de Toni-Fanconi syndrome.

Richard Oastler was an industrial reformer known in the north of England as the “Factory King,” who from 1831 conducted a campaign for shorter working hours that was in part responsible for the Ten Hours Act of 1847. In 1830 Oastler, who was managing a large Yorkshire agricultural estate, learned

Romania: Relief: …western fringe, the volcanic ranges Oaș and Harghita, with a concentration of volcanic necks and cones, some with craters still preserved, lend character to the landscape. St. Ana Lake—the only crater lake in Romania—is also found there. The volcanic crescent provides rich mineral resources (notably copper, lead, and zinc) as…

oats: Oat flour is not generally considered suitable for bread but is used to make cookies and puddings. The grains are high in carbohydrates and contain about 13 percent protein and 7.5 percent fat. They are a source of calcium, iron, vitamin B1, and niacin.

oat grass, any of the perennial plants of two genera of grasses, Arrhenatherum and Danthonia (family Poaceae). Named for their similarity to true oats (Avena sativa), the plants generally feature long dense spikelets of seeds. Several species are grown as forage and pasture grasses. Approximately

lung cancer: Small-cell lung cancer: Small-cell lung cancer (SCLC), also called oat-cell carcinoma, is rarely found in people who have never smoked. It is characterized by cells that are small and round, oval, or shaped like oat grains. SCLC is the most aggressive type of lung cancer;…

Oracle Corporation: …company Ampex Corporation, and by Ed Oates, Ellison’s supervisor at Ampex. Inspired by a research paper written by British-born computer scientist Edgar F. Codd that outlined a relational database model, Ellison and his colleagues saw commercial potential in the approach, which organized large amounts of data in a way that…

Joyce Carol Oates is an American novelist, short-story writer, and essayist noted for her vast literary output in a variety of styles and genres. Particularly effective are her depictions of violence and evil in modern society. Oates was born in New York state, the daughter of a tool-and-die

Antarctica: Discovery of the Antarctic poles: Bowers, Lawrence E.G. Oates, and Edgar Evans—traveled on foot using the Beardmore Glacier route and perished on the Ross Ice Shelf.

Titus Oates was a renegade Anglican priest who fabricated the Popish Plot of 1678. Oates’s allegations that Roman Catholics were plotting to seize power caused a reign of terror in London and strengthened the anti-Catholic Whig Party. The son of a Baptist preacher, Oates was expelled from the

Philip Kaufman: Early work: …a tale about whalers (Warren Oates, Louis Gossett, Jr., and Timothy Bottoms) who are stranded in the Arctic at the turn of the 20th century. They are saved and sheltered by Inuit, but cultural differences lead to mounting tension. Kaufman then cowrote and started to helm the western The…

oath, sacred or solemn voluntary promise usually involving the penalty of divine retribution for intentional falsity and often used in legal procedures. It is not certain that the oath was always considered a religious act. Such ancient peoples as the Germanic tribes, Greeks, Romans, and Scythians

Oath Keepers, far-right American militia group that adheres to a conspiracy-focused, antigovernment worldview. Like many other militia organizations, its members style themselves as defenders of the U.S. Constitution as they, and not legislatures or the courts, interpret it. The group claims that a

Oath of the Horatii, oil painting by French artist Jacques-Louis David that was completed in 1785. The work, depicting a scene from Roman legend, created a sensation when it debuted and remains one of the best-known Neoclassical paintings. David is arguably history’s most extraordinary political

Jacques-Louis David: Rise to fame: 1780–94: …and another is the sketched Tennis Court Oath, June 20, 1789, which was to commemorate the moment when the Third Estate (the commoners) swore not to disband until a new constitution had been adopted. The Death of Lepeletier de Saint-Fargeau, painted to honour a murdered deputy and regarded by David…

Tiffany Haddish: …liberal in the holiday farce The Oath, and a recently paroled ex-convict who helps her straightlaced sister with her love life in Tyler Perry’s Nobody’s Fool.

electron microscope: History: …Ardenne, and British electronic engineer Charles Oatley laid the foundations of transmission electron microscopy (in which the electron beam travels through the specimen) and scanning electron microscopy (in which the electron beam ejects from the sample other electrons that are then analyzed), which are most notably recorded in Ardenne’s book…

oatmeal, edible preparation of oats (Avena sativa), usually served as a warm breakfast. Oatmeal is made from the seeds of oat grass, a cereal grain that has long been widely cultivated as animal feed and more recently for human consumption. Oatmeal is made by stewing oats in a heated liquid such as

oats, (Avena sativa), domesticated cereal grass (family Poaceae) grown primarily for its edible starchy grains. Oats are widely cultivated in the temperate regions of the world and are second only to rye in their ability to survive in poor soils. Although oats are used chiefly as livestock feed,

Organization of African Trade Union Unity, labour organization founded in 1973 at Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on the initiative of the Organization of African Unity and replacing the former All-African Trade Union Federation (AATUF; founded in 1961) and the African Trade Union Confederation (ATUC;

African Union (AU), intergovernmental organization, established in 2002, to promote unity and solidarity of African states, to spur economic development, and to promote international cooperation. The African Union (AU) replaced the Organization of African Unity (OAU), which had been founded in

Oaxaca, estado (state), southern Mexico. It is bounded by the states of Puebla and Veracruz to the north and Chiapas to the east, by the Pacific Ocean to the south, and by the state of Guerrero to the west. The city of Oaxaca (Oaxaca de Juárez) is the state capital. Two-thirds of the state’s relief

Oaxaca, city, capital of Oaxaca estado (state), southern Mexico, lying in the fertile Oaxaca Valley, 5,085 feet (1,550 metres) above sea level. The city site, which has been inhabited for thousands of years, was important to numerous pre-Columbian civilizations, as evidenced by the Zapotec ruins at

Mexico: Physiographic regions: The picturesque Oaxaca Valley is the largest and most densely settled of these, with a predominantly indigenous population. It is one of the poorest areas of Mexico.

Tequistlatecan languages, a small family of three closely related languages spoken in Mexico. Huamelultec (also called Lowland Chontal) is spoken today by fewer than 100 elderly persons in San Pedro Huamelula and Santiago Astata near the coast in the Mexican state of Oaxaca. Tequistlatec

Oaxaca, city, capital of Oaxaca estado (state), southern Mexico, lying in the fertile Oaxaca Valley, 5,085 feet (1,550 metres) above sea level. The city site, which has been inhabited for thousands of years, was important to numerous pre-Columbian civilizations, as evidenced by the Zapotec ruins at

Oaxaca: The Benito Juárez Autonomous University of Oaxaca was founded there in 1827 (university status 1955), and the Regional Museum of Oaxaca (1933) exhibits the world-renowned treasures from Tomb No. 7 at Monte Albán. The colonial centre of Oaxaca and the Monte Albán archaeological zone were collectively…

nutritional disease: Obesity and weight control: …to the discovery of the ob gene in mice and humans. Under the direction of this gene, adipose (fat) tissue cells secrete leptin, a protein hormone. When fat stores increase, leptin sends a signal to the hypothalamus (a regulatory centre in the brain) that stimulates one to eat less and…

star cluster: OB and T associations: An OB association consists of many hot blue-giant stars, spectral classes O and B, and a relatively small number of other objects. A T association consists of cooler dwarf stars, many of which exhibit irregular variations in brightness. The stars clearly must be relatively close to…

Andreas Karlstadt: Karlstadt’s work Ob man gemach faren soll (1524; “Shall We Go Slowly?”) was eagerly read by all those for whom reform came too slowly. Luther, nevertheless, provided refuge for Karlstadt in Wittenberg (1525–29) after Karlstadt made certain retractions. After short stays in Holstein, Friesland, and Zürich, he…

Ob River, river of central Russia. One of the greatest rivers of Asia, the Ob flows north and west across western Siberia in a twisting diagonal from its sources in the Altai Mountains to its outlet through the Gulf of Ob into the Kara Sea of the Arctic Ocean. It is a major transportation artery,

Khanty and Mansi: …peoples, living mainly in the Ob River basin of central Russia. They each speak an Ob-Ugric language of the Finno-Ugric branch of the Uralic languages. Together they numbered some 30,000 in the late 20th century. They are descended from people from the south Ural steppe who moved into this region…

Stone Age: Asian cultures: …Shigir) and that of the Ob River basin. During the 3rd and 2nd millennia bce the culture of the middle Ural region is famous for its elk and water-bird sculptures portrayed in wood, found in the peat bogs of Gorbunovo and Shigir, and that of the upper Ob region for…

Gulf of Ob, large inlet of the Kara Sea indenting northwestern Siberia, between the peninsulas of Yamal and Gyda, in north-central Russia. The gulf forms the outlet for the Ob River, the delta of which is choked by a huge sandbar. The gulf is about 500 miles (800 km) in length and has a breadth

Finno-Ugric religion: Ecological and intercultural factors: …Volga Finns, the Permians, the Ob Ugrians, and the Nenets finally came under the domination of Moscow; before this, Orthodox missionaries had worked, for example, among the Komi (St. Stephen, 14th century) and the Baltic Finns.

Ob-Ugric languages, division of the Finno-Ugric branch of the Uralic language family, comprising the Mansi (Vogul) and Khanty (Ostyak) languages; they are most closely related to Hungarian, with which they make up the Ugric branch of Finno-Ugric. The Ob-Ugric languages are spoken in the region of

African dance: The social context: At the crowning of an oba (king) in Yorubaland, for example, the ruler leads a procession through the town as he dances with upright carriage and dignified step, his gestures dictated by the nature of his kingly role and the insignia he carries. His wives follow, interpreting the rhythms in…

Bermuda: History of Bermuda: In the 2012 elections the One Bermuda Alliance (OBA)—formed the previous year through the merger of the UBP and another opposition party, the Bermuda Democratic Alliance—won a decisive majority. Its leader, Craig Cannonier, took office as premier. Cannonier resigned abruptly in May 2014 in the wake of a scandal involving…

Aoba, volcanic island of Vanuatu, in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, 30 miles (50 km) east of Espiritu Santo. With an area of 154 square miles (399 square km), the island is dominated by Manaro, a 4,907-foot (1,496-metre) volcanic peak with three lakes in its caldera. Aoba’s landscape inspired

Duro Ladipo: He premiered Oba Koso (“The King Did Not Hang”) at the club’s first anniversary in 1963 and a year later introduced Oba Waja (“The King is Dead”). All three operas are based on the history of the Oyo kingdom and are available in English in Three Yoruba…

biblical literature: Obadiah: The Book of Obadiah, the fourth book of the Twelve (Minor) Prophets, contains only 21 verses. Nothing is known about the prophet as a person or about his times. It may have been written before the Exile, though many scholars believe that it was…

Obadiah of Bertinoro was an Italian rabbinic author whose commentary on the Mishnah (the codification of Jewish Oral Law), incorporating literal explanations from the medieval commentator Rashi and citing rulings from the philosopher Moses Maimonides, is a standard work of Jewish literature and

Book of Obadiah, the fourth of 12 Old Testament books that bear the names of the Minor Prophets, in the Jewish canon treated as one book, The Twelve. Obadiah, with only one chapter consisting of 21 verses, is the shortest of all Old Testament books and purports to be a record of “the vision of

Ile-Ife: Obafemi Awolowo University (formerly the University of Ife) was founded in 1961, with classes beginning the following year. One of Nigeria’s major universities, it is located north of the town; it operates a teaching hospital and has a major library. The affiliated Institute of Agricultural…

Thoraya Obaid is a Saudi politician who was executive director of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA; 2001–10). She was the first Saudi national to head a UN agency. Obaid was raised in a devout Muslim family. Her parents enrolled her in an Islamic school in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, when she was

Thoraya Obaid is a Saudi politician who was executive director of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA; 2001–10). She was the first Saudi national to head a UN agency. Obaid was raised in a devout Muslim family. Her parents enrolled her in an Islamic school in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, when she was

Ōbaku, one of the three Zen sects in Japan, founded in 1654 by the Chinese priest Yin-yüan (Japanese Ingen); it continues to preserve elements of the Chinese tradition in its architecture, religious ceremonies, and teachings. Although the methods of achieving sudden insight as developed by the

Barack Obama: Life after the presidency of Barack Obama: …Side, was chosen by the Obama Foundation (founded in January 2014) as the location for the Obama Presidential Center. Intended as an economic engine for the South Side, nestled in parkland, and dedicated to informing and inspiring future leaders, the center was designed to include a library, museum, athletic facility,…

On November 4, 2008, after a campaign that lasted nearly two years, Americans elected Illinois senator Barack Obama their 44th president. The result was historic, as Obama, a first-term U.S. senator, became, when he was inaugurated on January 20, 2009, the country’s first African American

American voters went to the polls on November 6, 2012, to determine—for the 57th time—their country’s president for the next four years. Incumbent Democratic President Barack Obama’s reelection bid was, from the outset, expected to be closely contested as the United States faced a number of