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Taishō

(Encyclopedia)Taishō tīˈshō [key], 1879–1926, reign name of emperor of Japan (1912–26). His given name was Yoshihito. The son of Mutsuhito, the Meiji emperor, he succeeded to the throne in 1912, but because...

Tsankov, Alexander

(Encyclopedia)Tsankov, Alexander tsänˈkôf [key], 1879–1959, Bulgarian politician. A professor of political economy at the Univ. of Sofia, he was instrumental in the overthrow (1923) of the dictatorship of Alex...

Conrad, Joseph

(Encyclopedia)Conrad, Joseph, 1857–1924, English novelist, b. Berdichev, Russia (now Berdychiv, Ukraine), originally named Jósef Teodor Konrad Walecz Korzeniowski. Born of Polish parents, he is considered one of...

Clark, Alvan

(Encyclopedia)Clark, Alvan, 1804–87, American astronomer and maker of astronomical lenses, b. Ashfield, Mass. In 1846 the firm of Alvan Clark & Sons was established at Cambridgeport, Mass.; it became famous a...

Hamaguchi, Osachi

(Encyclopedia)Hamaguchi, Osachi or Yuko ōˈsächē hämägo͞oˈchē, yo͞oˈkō [key], 1870–1931, Japanese statesman. He was finance minister (1924–26) and home minister (1926–27) before becoming (1927) pre...

Gatún Lake

(Encyclopedia)Gatún Lake gäto͞onˈ [key], artificial lake, 163 sq mi (422 sq km), Colón Prov., Panama, formed by the impounding of the Chagres River. Gatún Dam (completed 1912), 11⁄2 mi (2.4 km) long and 115...

Folkestone

(Encyclopedia)Folkestone fōkˈstən [key], town, Kent, SE England. The town is a summer resort with an active ...

nutation

(Encyclopedia)nutation, in astronomy, a slight wobbling motion of the earth's axis. The causes of nutation are similar to those of the precession of the equinoxes, involving the varying attraction of the moon on th...

MacCracken, Henry Mitchell

(Encyclopedia)MacCracken, Henry Mitchell, 1840–1918, American educator, b. Oxford, Ohio, grad. Miami Univ. (Ohio), 1857. After a brief teaching career MacCracken entered the Presbyterian ministry in 1863. From 18...

Kingman Reef

(Encyclopedia)Kingman Reef, uninhabited reef, less than 1 sq mi (2.6 sq km), central Pacific, one of the Line Islands, 1,075 mi (1,730 km) SW of Honolulu. It was discovered by Americans in 1798 and annexed by the U...