(Encyclopedia) Montreux Convention, 1936, international agreement regarding the Dardanelles. The Turkish request for permission to refortify the Straits zone was favorably received by nations anxious…
(Encyclopedia) Kidman, Nicole (Nicole Mary Kidman), 1967–, Australian actress, b. Honolulu, Hawaii. She began acting on television as a teenager in Australia, then starred in the film Dead Calm (1989…
(Encyclopedia) Murnane, Gerald, 1939–, Australian writer, B.A. Univ. of Melbourne, 1969. His first two novels, Tamarisk Row (1974) and A Lifetime on Clouds (1976), are semiautobiographical…
(Encyclopedia) Hare KrishnasHare Krishnashärˈē krĭshˈnəz [key], communalistic religious movement, officially known as the International Society for Krishna Consciousness. Founded in New York City (…
(Encyclopedia) fruit bat, fruit-eating bat found in tropical regions of the Old World. It is relatively large and differs from other bats in the possession of an independent, clawed second digit; it…
(Encyclopedia) Dumont d'Urville, Jules Sébastien CésarDumont d'Urville, Jules Sébastien Césarzhül sābästyăNˈ sāzärˈ dümôNˈ dürvēlˈ [key], 1790–1842, French navigator. While on duty (1819–20) in the E…
(Encyclopedia) pitchblendepitchblendepĭchˈblĕndˌ [key], dark, lustrous, heavy mineral, a source of radium and uranium. Largely natural uranium oxides, triuranium octaoxide (U3O8) and uranium dioxide…
(Encyclopedia) New Britain, volcanic island (1990 pop. 315,649), c.14,600 sq mi (37,810 sq km), SW Pacific, largest island of the Bismarck Archipelago and part of Papua New Guinea, in which it forms…
(Encyclopedia) sapphire, precious stone. A transparent blue corundum, it is classified among the most valuable of gems. Sapphires are found chiefly in Madagascar, Sri Lanka, and Myanmar and also in…
(Encyclopedia) topaztopaztōˈpăz [key], aluminum silicate mineral with either hydroxyl radicals or fluorine, Al2SiO4(F,OH)2, used as a gem. It is commonly colorless or some shade of pale yellow to…
