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Black Hills

(Encyclopedia)Black Hills, rugged mountains, c.6,000 sq mi (15,540 sq km), enclosed by the Belle Fourche and Cheyenne rivers, SW S.Dak. and NE Wyo., and rising c.2,500 ft (760 m) above the surrounding Great Plains;...

black hole

(Encyclopedia)black hole, in astronomy, celestial object of such extremely intense gravity that it attracts everything near it and in some instances prevents everything, including light, from escaping. The term was...

black humor

(Encyclopedia)black humor, in literature, drama, and film, grotesque or morbid humor used to express the absurdity, insensitivity, paradox, and cruelty of the modern world. Ordinary characters or situations are usu...

Black Isle

(Encyclopedia)Black Isle, peninsula, 18 mi (29 km) long and up to 9 mi (14.5 km) wide, Highland, N Scotland, extending into Moray Firth. It has some of the best farmland in N Scotland, producing grain and potatoes....

black lead

(Encyclopedia)black lead: see graphite.

black letter

(Encyclopedia)black letter: see type.

black light

(Encyclopedia)black light: see ultraviolet radiation. ...

black locust

(Encyclopedia)black locust: see locust.

black lung

(Encyclopedia)black lung: see pneumoconiosis.

black market

(Encyclopedia)black market, the selling or buying of commodities at prices above the legal ceiling or beyond the amount allotted to a customer in countries that have placed restrictions on sales and prices. Such tr...