Hope Simmons age 15, of Twin Falls, Ids., for her question:

WHO WAS NOSTRADAMUS?

Nostradamus was the Latin name of Michel de Notredame, a French astrologer and physician. His fame rests on his book "Centuries," a series of prophecies in verse that he wrote in 1555.

Nostradamus won lasting fame in 1559 when King Henry II of France died in a manner predicted in the "Centuries."

Actually, Nostradamus, prophecies were vague and open to many interpretations. Some persons, however, credit him with predicting various events in French and world history, including the rise of Adolf Hitler in the 1930s.

Nostradamus was born in southern France in 1503. While a medical student in 1525, he showed great courage and skill in caring for the victims of a plague.

He earned a doctor's degree in 1532 and became a professor at the University of Montpellier. The success of "Centuries" gained him an appointment as court physician to King Charles IX.