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crank

(Encyclopedia)crank, mechanical linkage consisting of a bar attached to a pivot at one of its ends in such a way that it is capable of rotating through a complete circle about the pivot. One of the principal uses o...

mute

(Encyclopedia)mute myo͞ot [key], in music, device designed to diminish uniformly the loudness of a musical instrument. For example, a trumpet mute is cone-shaped and fits into the instrument's bell, and a violin m...

Temple, city, United States

(Encyclopedia)Temple, city (1990 pop. 46,109), Bell co., central Tex.; inc. 1882. In a rich blackland region, Temple has grain and textile mills, railroad shops, and plants that make computer printers and terminals...

McDowell, Ephraim

(Encyclopedia)McDowell, Ephraim məkdoulˈ, –douˈəl [key], 1771–1830, American pioneer surgeon, b. Virginia. He studied with the Scottish surgeon John Bell in Edinburgh and practiced in Danville, Ky. He was n...

Agatha, Saint

(Encyclopedia)Agatha, Saint ăgˈəthə [key], 3d cent., Sicilian virgin, martyred under Roman Emperor Decius. She is mentioned in the Martyrology of Jerome and the Calendar of Carthage in the 6th cent. Agatha is i...

sackbut

(Encyclopedia)sackbut săkˈbət [key], Renaissance name for the slide trombone, probably derived from the old French word sacqueboute, which means “pull-push.” The instrument achieved its present form in the 1...

Porcupine, river, Canada

(Encyclopedia)Porcupine pôrˈkyəpīnˌ [key], river, 448 mi (721 km) long, rising in the Ogilvie Mts., NW Yukon, Canada. It flows in a great arc NE through the Eagle Plain, then W into Alaska and to the Yukon Riv...

Angelus, prayer

(Encyclopedia)Angelus [Lat.,=angel], daily prayer of the Roman Catholic Church, said usually three times daily, as announced by a bell, traditionally at six in the morning, at noon, and at six in the evening. It is...

Judenburg

(Encyclopedia)Judenburg yo͞oˈdənbo͝orkh [key], city (1991 pop. 9,684), Styria prov., S central Austria, on the Mur River. It is an industrial city and winter sports center. Originally a settlement along a Roman...

Belluno

(Encyclopedia)Belluno bĕl-lo͞oˈnō [key], city, capital of Belluno prov., Venetia, NE Italy, on the Piave ...