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Nicholson, Jack

(Encyclopedia)Nicholson, Jack, 1937–, American film actor, b. Neptune, N.J. After appearing in a series of low-budget movies for some 10 years, he scored his first success with Easy Rider (1969). One of Hollywood...

Nicholson, James

(Encyclopedia)Nicholson, James, c.1736–1804, American naval officer, b. Chestertown, Md.; brother of Samuel Nicholson. During the American Revolution, Nicholson, appointed (1776) a captain in the Continental navy...

Nicholson, Sir William

(Encyclopedia)Nicholson, Sir William, 1872–1949, English woodcut artist, illustrator, and painter. The striking contrasts of black and white of his woodcutting technique were used to great effect on posters, on w...

Nicias

(Encyclopedia)Nicias nīˈsēəs, nĭshˈēəs [key], d. 413 b.c., Athenian political leader and general. After Pericles' death he emerged as the primary rival of Cleon and his war party. He was a moderate democrat...

nickel

(Encyclopedia)nickel, metallic chemical element; symbol Ni; at. no. 28; at. wt. 58.6934; m.p. about 1,453℃; b.p. about 2,732℃; sp. gr. 8.902 at 25℃; valence 0, +1, +2, +3, or +4. Nickel is a hard, malleable, ...

Nicolai, Otto

(Encyclopedia)Nicolai, Otto ôˈtō nēkōläˈē, nēˈkōlī [key], 1810–49, German composer. His opera Il Templario (1840), after Scott's Ivanhoe, was successful, but his masterpiece was the comic opera The Me...

Nicolay, John George

(Encyclopedia)Nicolay, John George nĭkˈəlā [key], 1832–1901, biographer of Lincoln, b. Bavaria. In 1837 he was brought to the United States, and his family settled in Pike co., Ill. He worked on the Pittsfiel...

autoimmune disease

(Encyclopedia)autoimmune disease, any of a number of abnormal conditions caused when the body produces antibodies to its own substances. In rheumatoid arthritis, a group of antibody molecules called collectively RF...

Nicole, Pierre

(Encyclopedia)Nicole, Pierre pyĕr nēkôlˈ [key], 1625–95, French Jansenist writer. He studied and taught at Port-Royal abbey, the center of Jansenism (see under Jansen, Cornelis). One of his pupils there was R...

Nicolls, Richard

(Encyclopedia)Nicolls, Richard, 1624–72, first English governor of New York, b. Bedfordshire, England. He served in the English civil war as a royalist and followed the Stuarts into exile, where he entered the se...