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3 definitions found From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]: World \World\, n. [OE. world, werld, weorld, weoreld AS weorold worold; akin to OS werold, D. wereld OHG. weralt worolt werolt werlt, G. welt, Icel. ver["o]ld, Sw verld, Dan. verden; properly, the age of man, lifetime, humanity; AS wer a man + a word akin to E. old cf AS yld lifetime, age, ylde men, humanity. Cf {Werewolf}, {Old}.] 1. The earth and the surrounding heavens; the creation; the system of created things existent creation; the universe. The invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen. --Rom. 1. 20. With desire to know What nearer might concern him how this world Of heaven and earth conspicuous first began. --Milton. 2. Any planet or heavenly body, especially when considered as inhabited, and as the scene of interests analogous with human interests; as a plurality of worlds. ``Lord of the worlds above.'' --I. Watts. Amongst innumerable stars, that shone Star distant, but high-hand seemed other worlds. --Milton. There may be other worlds, where the inhabitants have never violated their allegiance to their almighty Sovereign. --W. B. Sprague. 3. The earth and its inhabitants, with their concerns; the sum of human affairs and interests. That forbidden tree, whose mortal taste Brought death into the world, and all our woe. --Milton. 4. In a more restricted sense that part of the earth and its concerns which is known to any one or contemplated by any one a division of the globe, or of its inhabitants; human affairs as seen from a certain position, or from a given point of view; also state of existence; scene of life and action as the Old World; the New World; the religious world; the Catholic world; the upper world; the future world; the heathen world. One of the greatest in the Christian world Shall be my surety. --Shak. Murmuring that now they must be put to make war beyond the world's end -- for so they counted Britain. --Milton. 5. The customs, practices, and interests of men; general affairs of life; human society; public affairs and occupations; as a knowledge of the world. Happy is she that from the world retires. --Waller. If knowledge of the world makes man perfidious, May Juba ever live in ignorance. --Addison. 6. Individual experience of or concern with life; course of life; sum of the affairs which affect the individual; as to begin the world with no property; to lose all and begin the world anew. 7. The inhabitants of the earth; the human race; people in general; the public; mankind. Since I do purpose to marry, I will think nothing to any purpose that the world can say against it --Shak. Tell me wench, how will the world repute me For undertaking so unstaid a journey? --Shak. 8. The earth and its affairs as distinguished from heaven; concerns of this life as distinguished from those of the life to come the present existence and its interests; hence secular affairs; engrossment or absorption in the affairs of this life; worldly corruption; the ungodly or wicked part of mankind. I pray not for the world, but for them which thou hast given me for they are thine. --John xvii. 9. Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. --1 John ii 15, 16. 9. As an emblem of immensity, a great multitude or quantity; a large number. ``A world of men.'' --Chapman. ``A world of blossoms for the bee.'' --Bryant. Nor doth this wood lack worlds of company. --Shak. A world of woes dispatched in little space. --Dryden. {All . . . in the world}, all that exists; all that is possible; as all the precaution in the world would not save him {A world to see}, a wonder to see something admirable or surprising to see [Obs.] O, you are novices; 't is a world to see How tame, when men and women are alone, A meacock wretch can make the curstest shrew. --Shak. {For all the world}. a Precisely; exactly. b For any consideration. {Seven wonders of the world}. See in the Dictionary of Noted Names in Fiction. {To go to the world}, to be married. [Obs.] ``Thus goes every one to the world but I . . .; I may sit in a corner and cry heighho for a husband!'' --Shak. {World's end}, the end or most distant part of the world; the remotest regions. {World without end}, eternally; forever; everlastingly; as if in a state of existence having no end Throughout all ages, world without end --Eph. iii. 21. From WordNet r 1.6 [wn]: world adj : involving the entire earth; not limited or provincial in scope; "global war"; "global monetary policy"; "neither national nor continental but planetary"; "a world crisis"; "of worldwide significance" [syn: {global}, {planetary}, {world(a)}, {worldwide}] n 1: all of the inhabitants of the earth; "all the world loves a lover" [syn: {human race}, {humanity}, {humankind}, {human beings}, {humans}, {mankind}, {man}] 2: everything that exists anywhere; "they study the evolution of the universe"; "the biggest tree in existence" [syn: {universe}, {existence}, {nature}, {creation}, {cosmos}, {macrocosm}] 3: all of your experiences that determine how things appear to you "his world was shattered"; "we live in different worlds"; "for them demons were as much a part of reality as trees were" [syn: {reality}] 4: people in general; especially a distinctive group of people with some shared interest; "the Western world" [syn: {domain}] 5: the 3rd planet from the sun; the planet on which we live; "the Earth moves around the sun"; "he sailed around the world" [syn: {Earth}, {globe}] 6: the concerns of the world as distinguished from heaven and the afterlife; "they consider the church to be independent of the world" [syn: {worldly concern}, {earthly concern}, {earth}] 7: a part of the earth that can be considered separately; "the outdoor world"; "the world of insects" 8: people in general considered as a whole; "he is a hero in the eyes of the public" [syn: {populace}, {public}] From The CIA World Factbook (1995) [world95]: World World:Geography Map references: World, Time Zones Area: total area: 510.072 million sq km land area: 148.94 million sq km water area: 361.132 million sq km comparative area: land area about 16 times the size of the US note: 70.8% of the world is water, 29.2% is land Land boundaries: the land boundaries in the world total 250,883.64 km (not counting shared boundaries twice) Coastline: 356,000 km Maritime claims: contiguous zone: 24 nm claimed by most but can vary continental shelf: 200-m depth claimed by most or to depth of exploitation, others claim 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm claimed by most but can vary exclusive economic zone: 200 nm claimed by most but can vary territorial sea: 12 nm claimed by most but can vary note: boundary situations with neighboring states prevent many countries from extending their fishing or economic zones to a full 200 nm 43 nations and other areas that are landlocked include Afghanistan, Andorra, Armenia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bhutan, Bolivia, Botswana, Burkina, Burundi, Central African Republic, Chad, Czech Republic, Ethiopia, Holy See (Vatican City), Hungary, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Lesotho, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Malawi, Mali, Moldova, Mongolia, Nepal, Niger, Paraguay, Rwanda, San Marino, Slovakia, Swaziland, Switzerland, Tajikistan, The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Turkmenistan, Uganda, Uzbekistan, West Bank, Zambia, Zimbabwe Climate: two large areas of polar climates separated by two rather narrow temperate zones from a wide equatorial band of tropical to subtropical climates Terrain: highest elevation is Mt Everest at 8,848 meters and lowest depression is the Dead Sea at 392 meters below sea level; greatest ocean depth is the Marianas Trench at 10,924 meters Natural resources: the rapid using up of nonrenewable mineral resources, the depletion of forest areas and wetlands, the extinction of animal and plant species, and the deterioration in air and water quality (especially in Eastern Europe and the former USSR) pose serious long-term problems that governments and peoples are only beginning to address Land use: arable land: 10% permanent crops: 1% meadows and pastures: 24% forest and woodland: 31% other: 34% Irrigated land: NA sq km Environment: current issues: large areas subject to overpopulation, industrial disasters, pollution (air, water, acid rain, toxic substances), loss of vegetation (overgrazing, deforestation, desertification), loss of wildlife, soil degradation, soil depletion, erosion natural hazards: large areas subject to severe weather (tropical cyclones), natural disasters (earthquakes, landslides, tsunamis, volcanic eruptions) international agreements: 23 selected international environmental agreements included under the Environment entry for each country and in Appendix E: Selected International Environmental Agreements World:People Population: 5,733,687,096 (July 1995 est.) Age structure: 0-14 years: 31.6% (female 882,809,689; male 928,121,801) 15-64 years: 62% (female 1,752,393,539; male 1,802,004,124) 65 years and over: 6.4% (female 209,437,234; male 158,246,581) (July 1995 est.) Population growth rate: 1.5% (1995 est.) Birth rate: 24 births/1,000 population (1995 est.) Death rate: 9 deaths/1,000 population (1995 est.) Infant mortality rate: 64 deaths/1,000 live births (1995 est.) Life expectancy at birth: total population: 62 years male: 61 years female: 64 years (1995 est.) Total fertility rate: 3.1 children born/woman (1995 est.) Labor force: 2.24 billion (1992) by occupation: NA World:Government Digraph: XX Administrative divisions: 265 nations, dependent areas, other and miscellaneous entries Legal system: varies by individual country; 186 (note including Yugoslavia) are parties to the United Nations International Court of Justice (ICJ or World Court) Economy Overview: Led by recovery in Western Europe and strong performances by the US Canada, and key Third World countries, real global output - gross world product (GWP) - rose 3% in 1994 compared with 2% in 1993. Results varied widely among regions and countries. Average growth of 3% in the GDP of industrialized countries (60% of GWP in 1994) and average growth of 6% in the GDP of less developed countries (34% of GWP) were partly offset by a further 11% drop in the GDP of the former USSR/Eastern Europe area (now only 6% of GWP). With the notable exception of Japan at 2.9%, unemployment was typically 5%-12% in the industrial world. The US accounted for 22% of GWP in 1994; Western Europe accounted for another 22%; and Japan accounted for 8%. These are the three "economic superpowers" which are presumably destined to compete for mastery in international markets on into the 21st century. As for the less developed countries, China, India, and the Four Dragons - South Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Singapore - once again posted records of 5% growth or better; however, many other countries, especially in Africa, continued to suffer from drought, rapid population growth, inflation, and civil strife. Central Europe made considerable progress in moving toward "market-friendly" economies, whereas the 15 ex-Soviet countries (with the notable exceptions of the three Baltic states) typically experienced further declines in output, sometimes as high as 30%. Externally, the nation-state, as a bedrock economic-political institution, is steadily losing control over international flows of people, goods, funds, and technology. Internally, the central government in a number of cases is losing control over resources as separatist regional movements - typically based on ethnicity - gain momentum, e.g., in the successor states of the former Soviet Union, in the former Yugoslavia, and in India. In Western Europe, governments face the difficult political problem of channeling resources away from welfare programs in order to increase investment and strengthen incentives to seek employment. The addition of nearly 100 million people each year to an already overcrowded globe is exacerbating the problems of pollution, desertification underemployment epidemics, and famine. Because of their own internal problems, the industrialized countries have inadequate resources to deal effectively with the poorer areas of the world, which at least from the economic point of view, are becoming further marginalized. (For the specific economic problems of each country, see the individual country entries in this volume.) National product: GWP (gross world product) - purchasing power parity - $30.7 trillion (1994 est.) National product real growth rate: 3.2% (1994 est.) National product per capita: $5,400 (1994 est.) Inflation rate (consumer prices): all countries: 25% developed countries: 5% developing countries: 50% (1994 est.) note: national inflation rates vary widely in individual cases, from stable prices to hyperinflation Unemployment rate: 30% combined unemployment and underemployment in many non-industrialized countries; developed countries typically 5%-12% unemployment Exports: $4 trillion (f.o.b., 1994 est.) commodities: the whole range of industrial and agricultural goods and services partners: in value, about 75% of exports from the developed countries Imports: $4.1 trillion (c.i.f., 1994 est.) commodities: the whole range of industrial and agricultural goods and services partners: in value, about 75% of imports by the developed countries External debt: $1 trillion for less developed countries (1993 est.) Industrial production: growth rate 5% (1994 est.) Electricity: capacity: 2,773,000,000 kW production: 11.601 trillion kWh consumption per capita: 1,937 kWh (1993) Industries: industry worldwide is dominated by the onrush of technology, especially in computers, robotics, telecommunications, and medicines and medical equipment; most of these advances take place in OECD nations; only a small portion of non-OECD countries have succeeded in rapidly adjusting to these technological forces, and the technological gap between the industrial nations and the less-developed countries continues to widen; the rapid development of new industrial (and agricultural) technology is complicating already grim environmental problems Agriculture: the production of major food crops has increased substantially in the last 20 years; the annual production of cereals, for instance, has risen by 50%, from about 1.2 billion metric tons to about 1.8 billion metric tons; production increases have resulted mainly from increased yields rather than increases in planted areas; while global production is sufficient for aggregate demand, about one-fifth of the world's population remains malnourished, primarily because local production cannot adequately provide for large and rapidly growing populations, which are too poor to pay for food imports; conditions are especially bad in Africa where drought in recent years has intensified the consequences of overpopulation Economic aid: $NA World:Transportation Railroads: total: 1,201,337 km includes about 190,000 to 195,000 km of electrified routes of which 147,760 km are in Europe, 24,509 km in the Far East, 11,050 km in Africa, 4,223 km in South America, and 4,160 km in North America; note - fastest speed in daily service is 300 km/hr attained by France's SNCF TGV-Atlantique line broad gauge: 251,153 km standard gauge: 710,754 km narrow gauge: 239,430 km Highways: total: NA paved: NA unpaved: NA Ports: Chiba, Houston, Kawasaki Kobe, Marseille, Mina' al Ahmadi (Kuwait), New Orleans, New York, Rotterdam, Yokohama Merchant marine: total: 25,364 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 435,458,296 GRT/697,171,651 DWT ships by type: barge carrier 39, bulk 5,202, cargo 8,121, chemical tanker 911, combination bulk 293, combination ore/oil 290, container 1,903, liquefied gas 675, livestock carrier 48, multifunction large-load carrier 53, oil tanker 4,332, passenger 287, passenger-cargo 114, railcar carrier 24, refrigerated cargo 1,023, roll-on/roll-off cargo 1,047, short-sea passenger 465, specialized tanker 77, vehicle carrier 460 (April 1995) World:Communications Telephone system: local: NA intercity: NA international: NA Radio: broadcast stations: AM NA FM NA shortwave NA radios: NA Television: broadcast stations: NA televisions: NA World:Defense Forces Branches: ground, maritime, and air forces at all levels of technology Defense expenditures: a further decline in 1994, by perhaps 5%-10%, to roughly three-quarters of a trillion dollars, or 2.5% of gross world product (1994 est.)
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