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Demetrius II, king of ancient Syria

(Encyclopedia)Demetrius II (Demetrius Nicator) nīkāˈtər [key], d. c.125 b.c., king of ancient Syria, son of Demetrius I. He was aided against the usurper, Alexander Balas, by Ptolemy VI (Ptolemy Philometer). He...

Sedgwick, Theodore

(Encyclopedia)Sedgwick, Theodore, 1746–1813, American lawyer and statesman, b. West Hartford, Conn. He practiced law in Massachusetts after being admitted (1766) to the bar. In the American Revolution he acted (1...

Ruth

(Encyclopedia)Ruth, book of the Bible. It tells a story, set in the days of the judges, of the fidelity of a Moabite widow (Ruth) to her widowed mother-in-law (Naomi). After the death of her husband in Moab, Ruth r...

Arrian

(Encyclopedia)Arrian (Flavius Arrianus) ârˈēən [key], fl. 2d cent. a.d., Greek historian, philosopher, and general, b. Nicomedia in Bithynia. He was governor of Cappadocia under Emperor Hadrian and in a.d. 134 ...

astronaut

(Encyclopedia)astronaut, crew member on a U.S. manned spaceflight mission; the Soviet term is cosmonaut. Candidates for manned spaceflight are carefully screened to meet the highest physical and mental standards, a...

Butler, Benjamin Franklin, 1818–93, American politician and Union general in the Civil War

(Encyclopedia)Butler, Benjamin Franklin, 1818–93, American politician and Union general in the Civil War, b. Deerfield, N.H. He moved to Lowell, Mass., as a youth and later practiced law there and in Boston. He w...

Arakcheyev, Aleksey Andreyevich

(Encyclopedia)Arakcheyev, Aleksey Andreyevich əlĭksyāˈ əndrāˈyəvĭch äräkchāˈyĕf [key], 1769–1834, Russian general, adviser to Czar Alexander I. An exacting officer, he helped organize the bodyguard ...

Nearchus

(Encyclopedia)Nearchus nēärˈkəs [key], fl. 324 b.c., Macedonian general, b. Crete; friend of Alexander the Great. In 325 b.c., Alexander, about to leave India, had a fleet built in the Indus to transport part o...

Loris-Melikov, Mikhail Tarielovich

(Encyclopedia)Loris-Melikov, Mikhail Tarielovich mēkhəyēlˈ təryĕlˈəvĭch lôˈrĭs-mĕˈlyĭkəf [key], 1826–88, Russian general and statesman, of Armenian descent. He was created count for his services i...

Wright, Jim

(Encyclopedia)Wright, Jim (James Claud Wright, Jr.), 1922–2015, U.S. congressman, speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives (1987–89), b. Fort Worth, Tex. Following service in the U.S. army during World War ...