Signals sent through satellite or cables go first to a cable or satellite TV company. Those
companies then send the signals to homes through other cables or satellites.
BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA Television 41
History
Inventors in Great Britain and the
United States made the first demonstrations
of TV in the 1920s. The first
working TV sets appeared in the 1930s.
In 1936 the British Broadcasting Corporation
(BBC) started the world’s first TV
programming. The first commercial
television stations in the United States
started broadcasting in 1941.
Many families bought their first TV set
afterWorldWar II, in the late 1940s
and the 1950s. The first sets could show
only black-and-white pictures. Color TV
and cable TV started in the 1950s. Digital
TV arrived in the 1990s.
#More to explore
Camera • Electronics • Radio
• Telecommunication
Temple
A temple is a building that people use
for worshipping gods or for other religious
purposes. The houses of worship
in many ancient religions were called
temples. Hinduism, Buddhism, and
several other religions today also have
temples. The architecture of temples
varies from place to place.
The temples of ancientMesopotamia (in
what is now Iraq) were highly decorated
towers called ziggurats. They were shaped
like pyramids with large steps. In ancient
Egypt temples often had large, decorated
columns. In the Americas the Inca and
theMaya built pyramid-shaped temples.
The ancient Greeks and Romans built
temples that have influenced architecture
until the present day. A Greek temple was
made of marble or stone. It had columns
that enclosed a space holding an image of
a god. An altar to that god stood outside
the temple. Roman temples were similar,
but the altar was inside the temple.
Hinduism and Buddhism began in
ancient India. People there carved
temples out of cliffs. Later Indian
temples were freestanding. They often
included tall, elaborately carved towers.
Today Hindu and Buddhist temples
throughout eastern Asia range from
small and simple to huge and complex.
Other religions that have temples
include Shinto and Jainism. Jewish synagogues
are often called temples, too.
Islamic temples are called mosques.
Christian houses of worship generally
are known as churches. However, Mormons
(followers of the Church of Jesus
Christ of Latter-day Saints) have temples
for special religious ceremonies.
#More to explore
Church • Mosque • Synagogue
Buddhist monks walk past a Buddhist temple
in Bangkok, Thailand.
42 Temple BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA
Tennessee
The name Tennessee comes from a
Cherokee Indian word, Tanasi. Tanasi
was the name of a major Cherokee village
in the area. Tennessee is known as
the Volunteer State. The nickname came
from the large number of men who volunteered
for military service in theWar
of 1812. The capital is Nashville.
Geography
Tennessee is located in the south-central
part of the United States. It borders
eight states. In the west the Mississippi
River separates Tennessee from Missouri
and Arkansas. Virginia and Kentucky lie
to the north of Tennessee. Mississippi,
Alabama, and Georgia are to the south.
In the east Tennessee shares a border
with North Carolina.
Eastern Tennessee lies within the Appalachian
Mountain chain. The Blue
Ridge Mountains along the
Tennessee–North Carolina border
include the range known as the
Great Smoky Mountains.West of the
mountains is an area of low ridges. The
central part of the state is a region with
generally flat but sometimes rolling
land.Western Tennessee consists of
plains, including a narrow strip of
swamp and floodplain along the Mississippi
River.
Tennessee has a moderate climate.Winters
are cool and summers are warm.
People
Most of Tennessee’s early white settlers
came from the Eastern states. These
people were mainly English, Scots-Irish,
and German. Today about four fifths of
the Tennessee population is white and of
European heritage. African Americans
are by far the largest minority group;
they represent 16 percent of the state’s
population.
Economy
Manufacturing and service industries
dominate Tennessee’s economy. The
state’s factories produce motor vehicles
The Great Smoky Mountains lie in the eastern
part of Tennessee.
BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA Tennessee 43
and parts, processed foods, chemicals,
and many other products.
Leading service industries include health
care, real estate, and tourism. Tourists
visit Tennessee’s natural wonders, such
as the Great Smoky Mountains. Civil
war battlefields and the musical attractions
located in Memphis and Nashville
are also popular. Tennessee’s major agricultural
products include cattle, chickens,
greenhouse plants and produce, and
dairy goods.
History
Native Americans including the Cherokee
and the Chickasaw lived in the area
that is now Tennessee before European
settlers arrived. In the second half of the
1600s both the French and the English
claimed the area. Settlers from both
countries built forts and trading posts.
In 1763 Britain took control of the
whole area.
The first permanent white settlement in
the region was started in 1769. Many
other people from the American colonies
