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actinium

(Encyclopedia)actinium ăktĭnˈēəm [key] [Gr.,=like a ray], radioactive chemical element; symbol Ac; at. no. 89; mass number of most stable isotope 227; m.p. about 1,050℃; b.p. 3,200℃±300℃; sp. gr. 10.07;...

Alexander, king of Yugoslavia

(Encyclopedia)Alexander, 1888–1934, king of Yugoslavia (1921–34), son and successor of Peter I. Of the Karadjordjević family, he was educated in Russia and became crown prince of Serbia upon the renunciation (...

Daudet, Alphonse

(Encyclopedia)Daudet, Alphonse älfôNsˈ dōdāˈ [key], 1840–97, French writer, b. Nîmes (Provence). Daudet made his mark with gentle naturalistic stories and novels portraying French life both in the province...

Diamond Necklace, Affair of the

(Encyclopedia)Diamond Necklace, Affair of the, scandal that took place at the court of King Louis XVI of France just before the French Revolution. An adventuress who called herself the comtesse de La Motte duped Ca...

polonium

(Encyclopedia)polonium pəlōˈnēəm [key], radioactive chemical element; symbol Po; at. no. 84; mass no. of most stable isotope 209; m.p. 254℃; b.p. 962℃; sp. gr. about 9.4; valence +2 or +4. Polonium is an e...

Bullins, Ed

(Encyclopedia)Bullins, Ed, 1935-2021, American playwright, b. Philadelphia, Pa., as Edward Artie Bullins, Antioch Univ. of San Fransico (B.A., 1989), San Francisco S...

Venezuela Boundary Dispute

(Encyclopedia)Venezuela Boundary Dispute, diplomatic controversy, notable for the tension caused between Great Britain and the United States during much of the 19th cent. Of long standing, the dispute concerned the...

Giap, Vo Nguyen

(Encyclopedia)Giap, Vo Nguyen vô nəwēˈĕn zhäp [key], 1911–2013, Vietnamese military leader and government official whose strategies helped drive the forces of Japan, France, and the United States from Vietn...

Presley, Elvis

(Encyclopedia)Presley, Elvis (Elvis Aaron Presley), 1935–77, American popular singer, b. Tupelo, Miss. Exposed to gospel music from childhoo...

Charlemagne

(Encyclopedia)CE5 Carolingian Empire (814) Charlemagne (Charles the Great or Charles I) shärˈləmān [key] [O.Fr.,=Charles the great], 742?–814, emperor of the West (800–814), Carolingian king of the Fran...