Apartheid
Apartheid was a system for keeping
white people and nonwhites separated in
South Africa. It lasted from about 1950
to the early 1990s. The word apartheid
means apartness in Afrikaans, a language
spoken in South Africa.
The population of the country is mostly
nonwhite. But for many years the white
people of South Africa controlled the
countrys government. They established
laws that kept the races separate and
discriminated against the nonwhite
majority.
Apartheid divided South Africans into
four groups: white, Bantu (black), Col-
An Apache woman holds a child in a
cradleboard. Many Native American
women used cradleboards to carry small
children on their back.
144 Apache BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA
ored (of mixed descent), and Asian. The
policy created separate areas in cities for
each group. Members of a group were
not allowed to live, operate businesses,
or own land outside of their area. Under
pass laws, nonwhites had to carry
passes while in white areas. Other laws
set up separate schools and restricted
each race to different types of jobs. The
government also created 10 territories
called homelands and forced all blacks
to move to them.
With the support of some whites, many
blacks in South Africa protested against
apartheid. The African National Congress
(ANC) led the fight. The protests
sometimes turned violent. A district
called Soweto rioted in 1976 against a
requirement that blacks learn Afrikaans.
Other countries also condemned apartheid.
In 1985 Great Britain and the
United States restricted trade with South
Africa.
In response to the protests, the South
African government granted nonwhites
some rights in the late 1980s. In
199091 the government led by President
F.W. de Klerk ended most of the
apartheid laws. In 1994 all races were
allowed to vote in a national election.
Nelson Mandela, leader of the ANC,
was elected president. Apartheid was
over, but its effects remained. Racial
discrimination continued in South
Africa.
#More to explore
African National Congress
Discrimination Mandela, Nelson
South Africa
Apatosaurus
A massive dinosaur, the Apatosaurus
weighed as much as five elephants. The
name Apatosaurus means deceptive lizard.
It used to be called Brontosaurus,
which means thunder lizard. Apatosaurus
belongs to the group of dinosaurs
known as sauropods, which also includes
Brachiosaurus. The sauropods were large,
plant-eating dinosaurs with a long neck,
a massive body, and four pillarlike legs.
When and Where Apatosaurus
Lived
Apatosaurus lived about 147 to 137 million
years ago. Most Apatosaurus remains
have been found in North America,
Scientists once
thought that
Apatosaurus
needed to live
in water to
support the
weight of its
heavy body.
Modern scientists
now
agree that the
dinosaur was
mainly a land
animal.
During the period of apartheid
blacks and whites were kept
apart in many ways. A sign from
that time says that a beach is for
whites only.
BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA Apatosaurus 145
particularly inWyoming, Utah, Oklahoma,
and Colorado.
Physical Features
Apatosaurus was one of the largest land
animals of all time. It reached a length
of 70 feet (21 meters), weighed 30 to 36
tons, and stood 15 feet (4.6 meters) tall
at the hips. This dinosaur also had a very
long neck and tail. Apatosaurus stood
and walked on all four legs. It had claws
on its large feet. Its head was small and
horselike, with long, peg-shaped teeth.
Behavior
Apatosaurus fed on the leaves and
needles of trees and plants. Its long neck
may have let it reach trees as high as 35
feet (10.6 meters). It swallowed small
stones to help grind up the plants in its
stomach. Apatosaurus probably lived and
traveled in herds. Like other dinosaurs,
it reproduced by laying eggs.
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Brachiosaurus Dinosaur
Ape
Apes are the animals that are most
closely related to humans. Both apes and
humans are members of the scientific
group of animals called primates. Monkeys
are primates, too. However, apes
differ from monkeys in several ways. For
instance, apes have more complex brains
than monkeys do. Also, monkeys have
tails but apes do not.
The apes are divided into two categories:
great apes and lesser apes. Gorillas, orangutans,
chimpanzees, and bonobos are
great apes. They are larger and more
intelligent than the lesser apes. The gibbons
are lesser apes.
Where Apes Live
Apes live in warm or hot rain forests.
Gibbons and orangutans are found in
southeastern Asia. Gorillas and chimpanzees
are found in western and central
Africa. Bonobos have the smallest range.
They are found only in part of the
Apatosaurus
146 Ape BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA
Democratic Republic of the Congo, a
country in central Africa.
Gibbons and orangutans live mainly in
trees. On the other hand, gorillas spend
most of their time on the ground.
Chimpanzees and bonobos tend to eat
and sleep in trees, but they travel mostly
on the ground.
Physical Features
The smallest apes are the gibbons. Most
gibbons are about 16 to 26 inches (40 to
65 centimeters) long. Gorillas are the
largest apes. They may grow to about 66
inches (170 centimeters) in length and
weigh 300 to 600 pounds (135 to 275
kilograms).
All apes have a coat of hair, which is
usually tan, brown, black, gray, or reddish.
They have long arms and shorter
legs. Gorillas, orangutans, and chimpanzees
generally have powerful arms and
broad chests. Bonobos and gibbons are
more slender. Like humans, all apes have
thumbs that can bend to meet the other
fingers.
Behavior
Most apes are active during the day.
They usually sleep in trees at night. All
Apes include orangutans, gorillas, bonobos, and gibbons. They vary in size, but some of
them can be as big as an adult human.
BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA Ape 147
apes except gibbons build nests for
sleeping.
Most apes live in groups. Chimpanzees
and bonobos are the most social, sometimes
living in groups of more than 100
animals. However, male adult orangutans
live mostly alone.
Apes eat mainly plants, including fruits,
leaves, stalks, and seeds. Sometimes they
eat insects or other small animals.
Chimpanzees also hunt and kill monkeys
and other mammals for food.
Great apes are very intelligent. Some
chimpanzees and orangutans in the wild
use sticks or other objects as tools. For
instance, some chimpanzees poke sticks
into ant or termite nests. The chimps
pull the sticks out and eat the insects
clinging to them. Scientists study the
learning abilities of apes in laboratories
and zoos. They have taught some great
apes to communicate using sign language
or pictures of symbols. However,
not all scientists agree that these apes
have truly learned to use language.
Reproduction
Reproduction in apes is similar to reproduction
in humans. A female ape usually
gives birth after a pregnancy of seven to
nine months. Normally a single baby is
born. Twins are rare. Baby apes are
nearly helpless for the first few months