Word: crusts
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: during 1990-1999
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
...Although many think of it as a lifeless place, the desert is actually a teeming, though fragile, ecosystem. Home to a variety of spiders, snakes and scorpions as well as larger creatures like camels, sheep and gazelles, it is literally held together by microorganisms, which form a thin surface crust. This crust catches the seeds of sparse shrubs and prevents surface soil from blowing away. Once it is disturbed -- by the maneuvers of a million soldiers, say -- recovery can take decades. The Libyan desert still shows tank tracks laid down in World...
...private Paley appears even less admirable. An inveterate social climber, he downplayed his Jewish heritage in a quest for acceptance by the Wasp upper crust. Despite two beautiful and socially accomplished wives, he chased women relentlessly. He was aloof with employees, cold to his children and lavish in his personal life-style. "Paley," says Smith, "was as spoiled as a man could...
Earthquakes frequently occur along the boundaries of continental plates, huge sections of the earth's crust that "float" on a mass of superheated rock. California's San Andreas Fault, for instance, marks the dividing line between the North American and Pacific plates, which are slowly slipping past each other. But the New Madrid fault lies in the middle of the North American plate, seemingly far from harm's way. Why do earthquakes occur in such an out- of-the-way spot? By analyzing seismic data, scientists have concluded that the New Madrid fault is a failed rift, or break...
...pastor and educator, he has been closely associated with the charismatic renewal movement, which practices speaking in tongues and other gifts of the Holy Spirit; he has been a bishop for just 2 1/2 years; and he is a product of the working class, whereas Archbishops are traditionally upper- crust men bred in elite boarding schools and polished at Cambridge or Oxford. Raised in publicly subsidized housing in London's hardscrabble East End, Carey will now take a seat in the House of Lords and the Privy Council, which advises the Queen...
Lack of the usual upper-crust credentials could be a plus for George Carey, a junior English prelate from the evangelical wing who is the new Archbishop of Canterbury...