Sofia: …of Agricultural Sciences, and the University of Sofia (1888), the oldest establishment of higher learning in Bulgaria. The city also contains the Cyril and Methodius National Library, the Ivan Vazov National Theatre and Opera House, an astronomical observatory, and a number of museums. In addition to the restored St. George,…

Liv Ullmann: …addition, Ullmann directed the films Sofie (1992); Kristin Lavransdatter (1995); Trolösa (1999; Faithless), for which Bergman wrote the screenplay; and Miss Julie (2014), which she adapted from August Strindberg’s play of the same name. In 2022 Ullmann received an honorary Academy Award, noted for a “bravery and emotional

Jostein Gaarder: His novel Sofies verden (1991; Sophie’s World) was an international best seller.

North Maluku: The capital is officially Sofifi, in central Halmahera; however, since the formation of the province at the end of the 20th century, North Maluku has been administered from Ternate, on the island of the same name in west-central North Maluku, while Sofifi develops facilities and infrastructure sufficient to support…

Sofia, capital of Bulgaria. It is situated near the geographical centre of the Balkans region, in the Sofia Basin, a troughlike valley in the western part of the country. The Serdi (Sardi), a Thracian tribe, established a settlement in the region in the 8th century bce. This community was conquered

Gian Giorgio Trissino: …his masterpiece, the blank-verse tragedy Sofonisba (written 1514–15, published 1524, first performed 1562), based on a story about the Carthaginian wars by the Roman historian Livy and employing the dramatic techniques of Sophocles and Euripides. Sofonisba, though not an interesting drama in itself, incorporated profound innovations in intent, structure, and…

sofrito, puree of Catalonian origin that is also common in Mediterranean, Caribbean, and Latin American cuisine. Made of lightly sautéed vegetables (such as onion, green pepper, and carrots), it is used as the foundation and flavour base of tomato sauces, paella, and other dishes. Sofrito derives

Bulgaria: The national revival: Sofroniy, bishop of Vratsa, helped to spread Paisiy’s influence. In his own writings he stressed the importance of education, without which his people would remain, in his words, “dumb animals.”

acid–base reaction: Lewis acids: …with hard bases and, similarly, soft acids react with soft bases. The terms hard and soft are chosen to suggest that the atomic structures associated with hard acids and bases are rigid and impenetrable, whereas those associated with soft acids and bases are more readily deformable. Hard acids include the…

accounting: Problems of measurement and the limitations of financial reporting: …assigning value to so-called “soft” assets such as brand image, corporate reputation, goodwill, and human capital. These can be among the most valuable assets controlled by the entity, yet they might be undervalued or ignored altogether under current practices.

fudge: …termed in kitchen parlance the soft ball stage, that point between 234 and 240 °F (112 and 115 °C) at which a small ball of the candy dropped in ice water neither disintegrates nor flattens when picked up with the fingers. Butter and vanilla are added as the candy cools,…

acid–base reaction: Lewis acids: …similarly, soft acids react with soft bases. The terms hard and soft are chosen to suggest that the atomic structures associated with hard acids and bases are rigid and impenetrable, whereas those associated with soft acids and bases are more readily deformable. Hard acids include the proton; sodium, calcium, and…

Kraftwerk: …the synth-pop of Depeche Mode, Soft Cell, and countless others.

chancroid, acute, localized, chiefly sexually transmitted disease, usually of the genital area, caused by the bacillus Haemophilus ducreyi. It is characterized by the appearance, 3–5 days after exposure, of a painful, shallow ulcer at the site of infection. Such an ulcer is termed a soft chancre,

soft coal, in the United States, bituminous coal (q.v.), as opposed to hard coal, or anthracite. In Europe the designation soft coal is reserved for lignite and brown coal (qq.v.), whereas hard coal means bituminous

communitarianism: The third sector: …Rauch introduced the term “soft communitarianism” to refer to communitarianism that focuses on the role of civil society, in contrast to “hard,” East Asian communitarianism, which views the state as the primary social agent.

contact lens: Soft contact lenses are usually comfortable because they allow oxygen to penetrate to the eye’s surface. Their large size makes them more difficult to lose than hard lenses. Their delicacy, however, makes them more subject to damage, and, as with all contact lenses, they require…

cnidarian: Size range and diversity of structure: …of most hydroids, hydrocorals, and soft and hard corals, however, proliferate asexually into colonies, which can attain much greater size and longevity than their component polyps. Certain tropical sea anemones (class Anthozoa) may be a metre in diameter, and some temperate ones are nearly that tall. Anthozoans are long-lived, both…

soft drink, any of a class of nonalcoholic beverages, usually but not necessarily carbonated, normally containing a natural or artificial sweetening agent, edible acids, natural or artificial flavours, and sometimes juice. Natural flavours are derived from fruits, nuts, berries, roots, herbs, and

textile: Household textiles: …textiles, frequently referred to as soft furnishings, are fabrics used in the home. They include items frequently classified as linens, such as bath and dish towels, table linens, shower curtains, and bathroom ensembles. Related items include sheets, pillowcases, mattresses, blankets, comforters, and bedspreads. In addition, textile products contributing to the…

climate: Hail: The first is soft hail, or snow pellets, which are white opaque rounded or conical pellets as large as 6 mm (0.2 inch) in diameter. They are composed of small cloud droplets frozen together, have a low density, and are readily crushed.

Tanaka Koichi: …Tanaka reported a method, called soft laser desorption, in which the sample, in solid or viscous form, is bombarded with a laser pulse. As molecules in the sample absorb the laser energy, they let go of each other (desorb) and form a cloud of ions suitable for MS. Tanaka’s soft…

international law: Other sources: …produce what is termed “soft law”—that is, an instrument that has no strict legal value but constitutes an important statement.

art rock: …Pretty Things, Procol Harum, and Soft Machine released art-rock-type albums. Much of this music combined roots in British Invasion manifestations of rhythm and blues or eclectic pop with psychedelic, avant-garde, or classical tendencies. From 1972 to 1974 Genesis, King Crimson, ELP, and Yes (all of whom debuted in 1969–70) turned…

William S. Burroughs: …the novels that followed—among them The Soft Machine (1961), The Wild Boys (1971), Exterminator! (1973), Cities of the Red Night (1981), Place of Dead Roads (1983), Queer (1985), The Western Lands (1987), and My Education: A Book of Dreams

magnetism: Remanence: …demagnetized and are known as soft magnetic materials.

silver maple, (Acer saccharinum), large, spreading tree, of the soapberry family (Sapindaceae), popular as a rapid-growing shade tree. Native to eastern North America, it is widely cultivated elsewhere. It grows to 18 metres (60 feet)—higher under favourable conditions—with a short, stout trunk and

soft money, in the United States, paper money as contrasted with coins, or hard money; also, unregulated monetary donations to political parties or candidates. In the 19th and early 20th centuries, advocates of soft money favoured governmental deficit spending to stimulate consumption and

Specie Circular: …quash the enormous growth of paper money in circulation, Jackson directed the Treasury Department, “pet” banks, and other receivers of public money to accept only specie as payment for government-owned land after Aug. 15, 1836. But actual settlers and bona fide residents of the state in which they purchased land…

soft news, journalistic style and genre that blurs the line between information and entertainment. Although the term soft news was originally synonymous with feature stories placed in newspapers or television newscasts for human interest, the concept expanded to include a wide range of media

soft palate, in mammals, structure consisting of muscle and connective tissue that forms the roof of the posterior (rear) portion of the oral cavity. The soft palate, along with the hard palate, forms the palate, or the roof of the mouth, which separates the oral and nasal cavities. The soft palate

keyboard instrument: Modifications in the action: …right and the action-shifting (una corda, or “soft”) pedal at the left.

pine: …they may be designated as soft pines or hard pines. Soft pines, such as white, sugar, and piñon pines, have relatively soft timber, needles in bundles of five (less commonly, one to four), stalked cones with scales lacking prickles, and little resin. Their wood is close-grained, with thin, nearly white…

Sèvres porcelain: …true, porcelain as well as soft-paste porcelain (a porcellaneous material rather than true porcelain) made at the royal factory (now the national porcelain factory) of Sèvres, near Versailles, from 1756 until the present; the industry was located earlier at Vincennes. On the decline of Meissen after 1756 from its supreme…

transuranium element: Synthesis of transuranium elements: …discovered) by the use of “cold,” or “soft,” fusion reactions. In this type of reaction, medium-weight projectiles are fused to target nuclei with protons numbering close to 82 and neutrons numbering about 126—i.e., near the doubly “magic” lead-208—resulting in a relatively “cold” compound system. The elements from 113 to 118…

computer: Reactive systems: …the other hand, is a soft real-time system, since a missed booking is rarely catastrophic.

plant disease: Symptoms and signs: Soft rot diseases are caused by pathogens that secrete enzymes capable of decomposing cell wall structures, thereby destroying the texture of plant tissue—i.e., the plant tissue becomes macerated (soft and watery). Soft rots commonly occur on fleshy vegetables such as potato, carrot, eggplant, squash, and…

rush: effusus, called soft rush, is used to make the tatami mats of Japan. The bulrush, also called reed mace and cattail, is Typha angustifolia, belonging to the family Typhaceae; its stems and leaves are used in North India for ropes, mats, and baskets. The horsetail genus (Equisetum)…

Claes Oldenburg: …which Oldenburg is best known: soft sculptures. Like other artists of the Pop-art movement, he chose as his subjects the banal products of consumer life. He was careful, however, to choose objects with close human associations, such as bathtubs, typewriters, light switches, and electric fans. In addition, his use of…

soft skills, nontechnical and non-industry-specific skills applicable to a wide range of tasks across many roles and professions, including interpersonal skills or “people skills” that enable individuals to work effectively in groups and organizations. Examples of soft skills include critical

Willem Elsschot: …“The Deliverance”) and Lijmen (1924; Soft Soap), went virtually unnoticed; discouraged, he devoted himself to his business career and ceased writing until the 1930s. He published Kaas (“Cheese”) in 1933 and followed it with the novel Tsjip (“Cheep”) in 1934. Laarmans, who is the protagonist in Kaas, had been introduced…

chancroid, acute, localized, chiefly sexually transmitted disease, usually of the genital area, caused by the bacillus Haemophilus ducreyi. It is characterized by the appearance, 3–5 days after exposure, of a painful, shallow ulcer at the site of infection. Such an ulcer is termed a soft chancre,

assistive technology: Assistive-technology classification and characterization: …technology are hard technologies and soft technologies. Hard technologies are tangible components that can be purchased and assembled into assistive-technology systems. They include everything from simple mouth sticks to computers and software. Soft technologies include the human areas of decision making, strategy development, training, and concept formation. They may be…

tick: Soft ticks differ from hard ticks by feeding intermittently, laying several batches of eggs, passing through several nymphal stages, and carrying on their developmental cycles in the home or nest of the host rather than in fields.

The Persistence of Memory, painting by Salvador Dali completed in 1931. Dalí was a Catalan Spanish artist who became one of the most important painters of the 20th century. He was also an accomplished sculptor, draftsman, and designer whose imagery came to influence not only the art world but also

soft water, water that is free from dissolved salts of such metals as calcium, iron, or magnesium, which form insoluble deposits such as appear as scale in boilers or soap curds in bathtubs and laundry equipment. See also hard

cereal processing: Wheat: varieties and characteristics: Soft wheats, the major wheats grown in the United Kingdom, most of Europe, and Australia, result in flour producing less attractive bread than that achieved from strong wheats. The loaves are generally smaller, and the crumb has a less pleasing structure. Soft wheats, however, possess…

spectroscopy: X-ray spectroscopy: …to 200 angstroms known as soft X-rays.

soft-coated wheaten terrier, breed of dog developed from the terriers kept as farm dogs in Ireland. It was recognized by the Irish Kennel Club in 1937 and brought to the United States in the 1940s. The American Kennel Club accepted the breed into the regular classes in 1973. The soft-coated wheaten

clothing and footwear industry, factories and mills producing outerwear, underwear, headwear, footwear, belts, purses, luggage, gloves, scarfs, ties, and household soft goods such as drapes, linens, and slipcovers. The same raw materials and equipment are used to fashion these different end

printmaking: Soft-ground etching: Soft-ground etching is basically the same as hard-ground etching except that the ground contains about one-third grease, which keeps it in a semihard, or tacky, condition.

tunnels and underground excavations: Modern soft-ground tunneling: Soft-ground tunnels most commonly are used for urban services (subways, sewers, and other utilities) for which the need for quick access by passengers or maintenance staff favours a shallow depth. In many cities this means that the tunnels…

hand tool: Techniques for making stone tools: The second method was the soft-hammer, or baton, technique, based on a discovery of perhaps 500,000 years ago that hard rock (flint in particular) could be chipped by striking it with a softer material. The baton was a light “hammer,” an almost foot-long piece of bone, antler, or even wood,…

brick and tile: Mixing and forming: …method of forming bricks, the soft-mud process, much more water is used, and the mix is placed in wooden molds to form the size unit desired. To keep the clay from sticking, the molds are lubricated with sand or water; after they are filled, excess clay is struck from the…

Sèvres porcelain: …true, porcelain as well as soft-paste porcelain (a porcellaneous material rather than true porcelain) made at the royal factory (now the national porcelain factory) of Sèvres, near Versailles, from 1756 until the present; the industry was located earlier at Vincennes. On the decline of Meissen after 1756 from its supreme…

ice cream: ” So-called soft-service ice cream was invented in 1939; it is served directly from the freezing machine without being allowed to harden.

clam: The soft-shell clam (Mya arenaria), also known as the longneck clam, or steamer, is a common ingredient of soups and chowders. Found in all seas, it buries itself in the mud to depths from 10 to 30 cm. The shell is dirty white, oval, and 7.5…

softshell turtle, (family Trionychidae), any of about 30 turtle species characterized by a flattened shell. The shell lacks the epidermal scutes (large scales) characteristic of most turtles, as in the leatherback sea turtle (Dermochelys coriacea), and the bony architecture of the shell is reduced.

tap dance: Early history: …older than the clog dance), soft-shoe dancing (a relaxed, graceful dance done in soft-soled shoes and made popular in vaudeville), and buck-and-wing dancing (a fast and flashy dance usually done in wooden-soled shoes and combining Irish clogging styles, high kicks, and complex African rhythms and steps such as the shuffle…

automobile: Suspension: A soft-spring suspension provides a comfortable ride on a relatively smooth road, but the occupants move up and down excessively on a rough road. The springs must be stiff enough to prevent a large deflection at any time because of the difficulty in providing enough clearance…

swift: …into the subfamilies Apodinae, or soft-tailed swifts, and Chaeturinae, or spine-tailed swifts. Almost worldwide in distribution, swifts are absent only from polar regions, southern Chile and Argentina, New Zealand, and most of Australia.

pen: Soft-tip pens that use points made of porous materials became commercially available during the 1960s. In such pens a synthetic polymer of controlled porosity transfers ink from the reservoir to the writing surface. These fibre-tipped pens can be used for lettering and drawing as well…

coleopteran: Annotated classification: Family Melyridae (soft-winged flower beetles) About 4,000 species widely distributed; diverse; example Malachius. Family Phloiophilidae Rare; 1 species in Britain. Family Phycosecidae Few species; examples Phycosecis, Alfieriella; in

softball, a variant of baseball and a popular participant sport, particularly in the United States. It is generally agreed that softball developed from a game called indoor baseball, first played in Chicago in 1887. It became known in the United States by various names, such as kitten ball, mush

squash rackets: …varieties of game are played: softball (the so-called “British,” or “international,” version) and hardball (the “American” version). In softball, which is the standard game internationally, the game is played with a softer, slower ball on the kind of wide, tall court shown in the accompanying diagram. The ball stays in…

Son Masayoshi: …as chairman and CEO of Softbank Corp, a media and telecommunications company he founded in 1981.

software agent, a computer program that performs various actions continuously and autonomously on behalf of an individual or an organization. For example, a software agent may archive various computer files or retrieve electronic messages on a regular schedule. Such simple tasks barely begin to tap

Caryl Churchill: Softcops (produced 1984), a surreal play set in 19th-century France, about government attempts to depoliticize illegal acts, was produced by the Royal Shakespeare Company. Serious Money (1987) is a comedy about excesses in the financial world, and Icecream (1989) investigates Anglo-American stereotypes. The former received…

metallurgy: Softening treatments: In many situations the purpose of heat treating is to soften the alloy and thereby increase its ductility. This may be necessary if a number of cold-forming operations are required to form a part but the metal is so hardened after the first…

industrial glass: Viscosity: The softening point, at which the glass may slump under its own weight, is defined by a viscosity of 107.65 poise, the annealing point by 1013 poise, and finally the strain point by 1014.5 poise. Upon further cooling, viscosity increases rapidly to well beyond 1018 poise,…

potto, (Perodicticus potto), slow-moving tropical African primate. The potto is a nocturnal tree dweller found in rainforests from Sierra Leone eastward to Uganda. It has a strong grip and clings tightly to branches, but when necessary it can also move quickly through the branches with a smooth

softshell turtle, (family Trionychidae), any of about 30 turtle species characterized by a flattened shell. The shell lacks the epidermal scutes (large scales) characteristic of most turtles, as in the leatherback sea turtle (Dermochelys coriacea), and the bony architecture of the shell is reduced.

software, instructions that tell a computer what to do. Software comprises the entire set of programs, procedures, and routines associated with the operation of a computer system. The term was coined to differentiate these instructions from hardware—i.e., the physical components of a computer

software agent, a computer program that performs various actions continuously and autonomously on behalf of an individual or an organization. For example, a software agent may archive various computer files or retrieve electronic messages on a regular schedule. Such simple tasks barely begin to tap

Oracle Corporation, global corporation and brand that develops and markets computer software applications for business. The company is best known for its Oracle database software, a relational database management system, and for computer systems and software, such as Solaris and Java, acquired in

computer science: Software engineering: Software engineering is the discipline concerned with the application of theory, knowledge, and practice to building reliable software systems that satisfy the computing requirements of customers and users. It is applicable to small-, medium-, and large-scale computing systems and organizations. Software engineering uses…

software agent, a computer program that performs various actions continuously and autonomously on behalf of an individual or an organization. For example, a software agent may archive various computer files or retrieve electronic messages on a regular schedule. Such simple tasks barely begin to tap

cloud computing: Cloud services and major providers: …set of services, sometimes called software as a service (SaaS), involves the supply of a discrete application to outside users. The application can be geared either to business users (such as an accounting application) or to consumers (such as an application for storing and sharing personal photographs). Another set of…

tree: Popular classifications: …less parallel their scientific classification: softwoods are conifers, and hardwoods are dicotyledons. Hardwoods are also known as broadleaf trees. The designations softwood, hardwood, and broadleaf, however, are often imprecise. The wood of some hardwoods—for example, certain willows and poplars and the softest of all woods, balsa—is softer than that of…

papermaking: Wood: …groups: coniferous trees, usually called softwoods, and deciduous trees, or hardwoods. Softwood cellulose fibres measure from about 2 to 4 millimetres (0.08 to 0.16 inch) in length, and hardwood fibres range from about 0.5 to 1.5 millimetres (0.02 to 0.06 inch). The greater length of softwood fibres contributes strength to…

Nagasaki: The Sofuku-ji (Chinese Temple; 1629) is a fine example of Chinese Ming dynasty architecture, inhabited by Chinese Buddhist monks. A fine view of Nagasaki-kō is offered by the Glover Mansion, the home of a 19th-century British merchant and reputed to be the site of Giacomo Puccini’s…

Sophia was the regent of Russia from 1682 to 1689. The eldest daughter of Tsar Alexis (ruled 1645–76) and his first wife, Mariya Miloslavskaya, Sophia was tutored by the Belorussian monk Simeon Polotsky, from whom she received an exceptionally good education. When her brother Fyodor III died (April

Soga, an Interlacustrine Bantu-speaking people inhabiting the area east of the Nile River between Lakes Victoria and Kyoga. They are the fourth largest ethnic group in Uganda. Culturally, they are very similar to the Ganda, who inhabit the region immediately to the west. Prosperous by national

Soga Chokuan was a Japanese painter who specialized in bird-and-flower pictures and founded the Soga family of artists. He is especially noted as a painter of fowl (as his son Chokuan II was noted as a painter of falcons). His brightly coloured, realistic bird-and-flower screen paintings are in the

Soga Emishi was a leader of the great Soga family of Japan, whose assumption of imperial prerogatives provoked a coup d’état that destroyed the power of the Soga house and marked the end of the Asuka period (552–645) of Japanese history. Under Emishi’s father, Soga Umako, the Soga family had begun

Soga family, Japanese aristocratic family preeminent in the 7th century and instrumental in introducing Buddhism to Japan. Soga Umako (d. 626) overcame the powerful Mononobe and Nakatomi clans, who supported the native Shintō religion over Buddhism, and contrived to have his niece proclaimed

Soga Iruka was a leader of the powerful Soga family of Japan, whose murder resulted in the return of governmental power to the emperor and the promulgation of a series of far-reaching reforms. In 587, after defeating the rival Mononobe clan, the Soga family completely dominated the imperial court.

Japanese literature: Kamakura period (1192–1333): …mid- to late 14th century: Soga monogatari, an account of the vendetta carried out by the Soga brothers, and Gikeiki (“Chronicle of Gikei”; Eng. trans. Yoshitsune), describing the life of the warrior Minamoto Yoshitsune. Though inartistically composed, these portraits of resourceful and daring heroes caught the imaginations of the Japanese,…

Soga Shōhaku was a Japanese painter of the mid-Tokugawa period (1603–1867) who tried to revive the brush-style drawing of the great masters of the Muromachi period (1338–1573). As a young man he studied painting under the guidance of Takada Keiho of the Kanō school (school of painting based on

Soga Umako was a leader of the Soga family of Japan, who was responsible for the destruction of the powerful Mononobe and Nakatomi clans and the ascendancy of the Soga to a position of supreme power. Umako was instrumental in introducing Buddhism into Japan. His influence helped spur the

Tiyo Soga was a Xhosa journalist, minister, translator, composer of hymns, and collector of black South African fables, legends, proverbs, history, praises, and customs. His translation of John Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s Progress (U-Hambo lom-Hambi, 1866) had almost as great an influence upon the Xhosa

Korean literature: Later Koryŏ: 12th century to 1392: The sogak kasa, or popular song texts, introduced in the chapters on music in the Koryŏ sa (“History of Koryŏ”) and handed down in the Akchang kasa (“Collection of Courtly Songs”), are another late Koryŏ genre. These songs were sung at court. Among them are songs…

Sogamoso, city, Boyacá departamento, east-central Colombia. It lies along the Chicamocha River in the Andean Cordillera (mountains) Oriental, at an elevation of 8,428 feet (2,569 m) above sea level. Once a sacred city of the pre-Columbian Chibcha Indians, Sogamoso is a commercial and manufacturing

Solomon Islands: Efforts toward recovery and reform and the 2006 and 2010 general elections: …office and was replaced by Sogavare, who opposed the presence of RAMSI. Conflict arose between RAMSI and the government over one of the prime minister’s political appointments, and Sogavare threatened to expel the multinational force. A compromise was brokered late in the year, and RAMSI remained.

history of Central Asia: The Uyghur empire: …to the Uyghur land many Sogdians, whose growing influence on state affairs was resented by the Turkic Uyghurs and led to Mouyu’s assassination.

alphabet: The Aramaic alphabet: …sacred (pre-Islamic) Persian literature; (2) Sogdian, a script and language that constituted the lingua franca of Central Asia in the second half of the 1st millennium ce; (3) Kök Turki, a script used from the 6th to the 8th century ce by Turkish tribes living in the southern part of…

Sogdian art, rich body of pre-Muslim Central Asian visual arts that was created between roughly the 5th and 9th centuries and is represented most notably by finds at Pendzhikent and Varakhsha, town principalities in Sogdiana. Many cultural streams united there: the remains of Sāsānian culture, of

Iranian languages: The Middle Iranian stage: The oldest surviving Sogdian documents are the so-called Ancient Letters found in a watchtower on the Great Wall of China, west of Dunhuang, and dated at the beginning of the 4th century ce. Most of the religious literature written in Sogdian dates from the 9th and 10th centuries.…

Sogdiana, ancient country of Central Asia centring on the fertile valley of the Zeravshan River, in modern Uzbekistan. Excavations have shown that Sogdiana was probably settled between 1000 and 500 bc and that it then passed under Achaemenian rule. It was later attacked by Alexander the Great and

Darius II Ochus: …throne from his half brother Secydianus (or Sogdianus), whom he then executed. Ochus, who had previously been satrap of Hyrcania, adopted the name of Darius on his accession; he was also known as Nothus (from the Greek nothos, meaning “bastard”). Darius was dominated by eunuchs and by his half sister…