common throughout Europe and the
United States during the 1800s.
During the 1900s funny gag panels and
comic strips became more popular than
political cartoons. Popular cartoons of
the late 20th and early 21st centuries
included “The Far Side,” “Calvin and
Hobbes,” “Bloom County,” and “Get
Fuzzy.”
#More to explore
Animation • Drawing
Carver, George
Washington
GeorgeWashington Carver was born in
slavery but went on to win worldwide
respect for his work as a scientist. By
finding new ways to process peanuts,
soybeans, and sweet potatoes, he helped
to make them important crops in the
southern United States.
Carver was born in about 1861 near
Diamond Grove, Missouri. At about age
12 he left home. He eventually attended
Iowa State Agricultural College in Ames,
Iowa. He received a bachelor’s degree in
agriculture in 1894 and a master’s
degree in 1896. Carver then became
Comic strips
became a
regular feature
of U.S. newspapers
in the
early 1900s.
George Washington Carver
50 Carver, George Washington BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA
head of the agriculture department at
the Tuskegee Institute in Alabama.
There he stayed for the rest of his career.
Before Carver’s time, Southern farmers
grew very few crops other than cotton, a
plant that wore out the soil. Carver tried
to get them to switch to peanuts and
soybeans. These plants were legumes.
They added nitrogen, a fertilizer, to the
soil and also could be made into nutritious
foods.
With his laboratory work, Carver tried
to make sure that farmers who grew
these crops would be able to sell them.
He developed 300 products from peanuts.
He also took an interest in sweet
potatoes and developed more than 100
products based on the plant.
Carver’s efforts won him numerous
honors and improved life throughout
the South. Some scientists criticized his
informal methods, however. In addition,
some African Americans were disappointed
because he did not take a strong
public stand on racial issues.
Carver died in Tuskegee on January 5,
1943. He was buried on the Tuskegee
campus.
#More to explore
Cotton • Legume • Peanut
Caspian Sea
The world’s largest inland body of water
is the Caspian Sea. Lying between
Europe and Asia, it is bordered by Russia
and Azerbaijan on the west, Kazakhstan
and Turkmenistan on the north and
east, and Iran on the south. The sea was
named for the Kaspi, ancient peoples
who once lived on its western shores.
The Caspian Sea is nearly the size of
Japan, covering an area of about
143,000 square miles (370,000 square
kilometers). The sea is shallowest in the
north, where the depth averages just 13
to 20 feet (4 to 6 meters). The deepest
parts are in the south. In one place the
seafloor lies 3,360 feet (1,024 meters)
below the water’s surface. Three major
rivers—the Volga, the Ural, and the
Terek—empty into the Caspian from
the north. The sea contains as many as
50 islands, most of them quite small.
The Caspian has long been famous for
its sturgeon. These fish produce eggs
that are made into the salty delicacy
called caviar. The number of sturgeon
greatly declined, however, as the water
level of the Caspian dropped during the
1900s. Today the chief industry of the
Caspian region is the production of oil
and natural gas. Surrounding countries
BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA Caspian Sea 51
collect these products from the seabed
and sell them to other countries.
Caste
In some countries a person’s place in
society is decided by a caste system. The
caste that they belong to is based on
their wealth, occupation, and family
background. Although the term is used
to describe groups in other countries,
the system is most well developed in
India.
In India, castes are called jatis and are
grouped into four varnas, or categories.
At the top are Hindu priests and scholars;
next are the rulers and military leaders;
then merchants, traders, and
farmers; and, last, craftspeople, workers,
and servants. A group of people who
used to be called the untouchables ranks
even below this last group. In the early
1900s the Indian leader Mahatma Gandhi
renamed these people Harijans (children
of God). Gandhi did not believe in
the caste system and fought to end it.
In later years India’s caste system
became somewhat more flexible. Even
though there was pressure to end it completely,
the caste system continued into
the 21st century.
#More to explore
Gandhi, Mahatma • Hinduism • India
Castle
For many centuries castles provided
both protection and living quarters for
kings, nobility, and sometimes common
people. The fortifications, or military
defenses, built into a castle set it apart
from a palace. A palace is usually a grand
house for a king or noble. Most castles
were built in Europe between the 800s
and the 1400s, during the period known
as the Middle Ages. But castles were
built in North Africa, western Asia,
India, and Japan as well.
Motte and Bailey Castles
One early type of castle was the motte
and bailey castle. The motte was a high
mound of earth. A fenced-in tower, usually
made of wood, stood on the motte.
Next to the motte was a lower, larger
walled area called the bailey. The castle’s
other buildings, such as workshops and
