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nuisance

(Encyclopedia)nuisance, in law, an act that, without legal justification, interferes with safety, comfort, or the use of property. A private nuisance (e.g., erecting a wall that shuts off a neighbor's light) is one...

Lynch, Thomas

(Encyclopedia)Lynch, Thomas, 1749–79, political figure in the American Revolution, signer of the Declaration of Independence, known as Thomas Lynch, Jr., b. Prince George Parish, S.C., studied Cambridge and law a...

National Institute of Standards and Technology

(Encyclopedia)National Institute of Standards and Technology, governmental agency within the U.S. Dept. of Commerce with the mission of “working with industry to develop and apply technology, measurements, and st...

Sears, Isaac

(Encyclopedia)Sears, Isaac, c.1730–86, American Revolutionary leader, b. West Brewster, Mass. A merchant sea captain, Sears won a reputation as a daring privateer during the French and Indian War. He was a leader...

Denonville, Jacques René de Brisay, marquis de

(Encyclopedia)Denonville, Jacques René de Brisay, marquis de zhäk rənāˈ də brēzāˈ märkēˈ də dənôNvēlˈ [key], d. 1710, governor of New France (1685–89). To subdue the Iroquois he led a force of 3,...

amnesty

(Encyclopedia)amnesty ămˈnəstē [key], in law, exemption from prosecution for criminal action. It signifies forgiveness and the forgetting of past actions. Amnesties are usually extended to a group of persons du...

emetic

(Encyclopedia)emetic əmĕtˈĭk [key], substance that produces vomiting. Direct, or gastric, emetics, which act directly on the stomach, include syrup of ipecac, sulfate of zinc or copper, alum, ammonium carbonate...

Judas Iscariot

(Encyclopedia)Judas Iscariot ĭskârˈēət [key], Jesus' betrayer, possibly from the village of Kerioth, the only Judaean disciple among the Twelve, and, according to the Gospel of St. John, their treasurer. Judas...

South Yorkshire

(Encyclopedia)South Yorkshire, former metropolitan county, N central England. Created in the 1974 local government reorganization, the county embraced the Sheffield conurbation and comprised four metropolitan distr...

Spaulding, Elbridge Gerry

(Encyclopedia)Spaulding, Elbridge Gerry, 1809–97, U.S. banker and politician, b. Locke (now Summer Hill), N.Y. A lawyer practicing in Buffalo, N.Y., after 1834, he gradually became a banker there and was active i...