Folk music has influenced all other musical forms, especially classical. Haydn, Tchaikovsky and Bartok were all interested and influenced by folk music.
A spa, often situated at a natural spring, utilizes mineral waters for healing alongside medical treatments, serving as a health sanctuary.
Squash is the name of two indoor racquet sports, squash racquets and squash tennis. Usually the term "squash" refers to squash racquets. Squash racquets is played in a rectangular court by two or four players using a racquet similar in appearance...
One of the delights of playing badminton is the immense variety of shots possible from a particular position. A player may have a choice of playing a smash, a drop shot to either side of the court, or a 'clear' anywhere to the back of the court-and...
Two or four opposing players engage in a dynamic game of handball, utilizing quick reflexes and strategic maneuvers to score points against each other.
Woodcarving is the process and product of shaping wood into decorative and sculptural forms. The latter is also called wood sculpture. Many qualities of the dried trunks of trees have recommended them for various uses since the early beginnings of...
A greenhouse is a building with a glass or plastic roof and sides enclosing a space in which temperature and humidity can be controlled for cultivating tender or out-of-season plants. Greenhouses vary in size, from the small family lean-to to the large commercial house. Their ability to control the...
Antibody, or immunoglobulin, is a globular protein of the blood that reacts specifically with foreign substances or organisms that enter an animal, rendering it immune to them. Preformed antibodies can be injected for immediate protection, for example, injection of tetanus antitoxin.
Lace is a patterned openwork fabric made of fine thread. It can be made by hand or by machine. Handmade lace is sometimes regarded as a minor art form because its creation often involves imagination and originality as well as technical skill.
Ice Cream is a frozen dairy food made of milk products, sugars, corn syrup, water, flavorings, and sometimes egg or egg products, stabilizers, and emulsifiers. Air, which is incorporated into the ice cream during the freezing process, is also an...
Carpentry is the art of cutting, framing, and joining timber, chiefly in the construction of buildings and their interior woodwork.
Drawing is the use of pencil, pen, charcoal, crayon, or a similar material to produce a picture or visual pattern. It is closely related to such graphic arts as calligraphy and engraving, which emphasize line and shape, rather than color. A drawing...
An elevator is a device consisting of a car or platform used for raising and lowering passengers or freight. It is also called a lift.
Here's what experts will tell you about laying bricks. This article covers brick types, laying patterns (bonds), sizes, and more.
Drapery and curtains are pieces of material arranged to hang in soft or tailored folds, used as interior furnishings. Although curtains are commonly called draperies, the two words are not synonomous. Drapery is a relatively stationary arrangement...
A Sextant is a navigational instrument to establish latitude by determining the angle between the horizon and the Sun or a star.
Flatware consists of the implements used in Western (and Western-influenced) countries for the eating and serving of food. They include knives, forks, spoons, and specialized utensils such as ladles and fish servers. In many non-Western countries...
A glove is a covering for the hand, tailored to fit each finger separately. A hand covering that leaves the fingers bare or encloses them in a single compartment is called a mitten or mitt. The finest leather gloves are of kid. Other leathers are...
Bleaching is any of several processes that whiten objects by removing their natural color. The most important industrial uses of bleaching are in the treatment of textiles and in the processing of wood pulp for papermaking. Other uses range from the bleaching of furs and flour to home laundry and...
An outboard motor is a removable, externally mounted propulsion system for small boats. Larger boats are usually equipped with an inboard motor, which is a permanent and integral part of the boat.
The Gregorian Chant is the liturgical music of the Roman rite of the Catholic Church, composed in the early Middle Ages. Although some manuscripts from the 9th century open with a poem attributing the music to Pope Gregory (presumably Pope Gregory...
A detergent is any substance used for cleansing. Detergents have molecules that possess a long hydrocarbon chain attached to an ionized group. The hydrocarbon chain attaches to grease and other nonpolar substances; the ionized group has an affinity for water. Substances of this type lower surface...
Archery was the prime military weapon used before the advent of gunpowder and was revived as a sport in England in 1676 by Charles II.
Secret Societies are associations whose existence, membership, purpose, or ritual is not revealed to nonmembers. The degree of secrecy varies widely, from organizations in which all except ritual is public, to clandestine groups whose very existence...
Croquet, lawn game, popular in Great Britain and the United States, in which wooden balls are hit with wooden mallets through a series of 9 or 10 wire arches. The first player to complete the series and hit the posts placed at each end of the field wins.
Playing cards are small layered-paper devices, generally rectangular, bearing suit marks and numerals on the face side and colorful designs on the back. Used in the playing of numerous games, a standard deck comes in a 52-card pack.
A clown is a comic entertainer who generally depends on elements of visual humor to evoke laughter. An important part of the clown's act is his colorful, often exaggerated, costume and his frequently grotesque makeup. Clowns are usually featured in circuses, where they are great favorites,...
A Chandelier is any lighting fixture suspended from a ceiling or other high place. The principal use of the chandelier is to provide light, which may be done by candles, oil lamps of either a simple or a complex type, gas, or electricity. But many chandeliers are designed and decorated so that they...
A chair is a movable seat with a back, and with or without arms, intended to hold one person. Although it is one of the oldest furniture forms, the chair has only come into common use within the last 300 years.
A roof is the covering and supporting framework on the top of a building. The basic function of a roof is to provide shelter from the rain, snow, hot sun, or wind. A roof is one of the first needs of man in all parts of the world. The first...
A houseboat is a craft designed primarily as a dwelling. On calm waters in warm parts of the world, large communities of people have inhabited houseboats for centuries.
Here's a brief history of the White House and a description of its most famous rooms.
Nails, used since ancient times, are still the fasteners most commonly used for joining wood, especially in building wood-frame houses. More than 60,000 nails may be used in a five-room house.
Tartan is the name for a woolen cloth woven in a pattern of crossbars. It is a sturdy woolen or worsted cloth in which three or more colors are woven into a plaid design. The design is made by alternating stripes, some narrow and others wider, of...
The bicycle is a vehicle which travels on two wheels, set one before the other in the same line. Although the term bicycle was not used before 1868, the idea of a two-wheeled, self-propelled vehicle is much older. A stained glass window in Stoke Poges Church in England dated 1642, depicts a rider...
Though it's unknown exactly where it was invented - perhaps in Mycenaean Greece, or in Italy or Sicily, or even in Denmark - the safety-pin developed from the ordinary straight pin, beyond which in turn there is an obvious natural prototype in...
The flea can found on nearly everywhere that dogs are found. Fleas usually feed every day but can exist without food for several months if necessary. The flea's fantastic agility is well-known; if Man had equal ability one leap would cover five city blocks.
The Kilt is a pleated skirt which is part of the traditional costume of men from the Highlands of Scotland. It is also a traditional garment in Ireland. It is a knee-length, skirt-like garment pleated from the waist at the back, but with a plain...
The lawnmower was invented by Edwin Budding of Gloucestershire in 1830. The first commercially successful petrol-driven mower was marketed by Ransomes, Sims and Jeffries in 1902. Motor mowers have largely superseded hand mowers because of the time and physical energy they save.