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Burton, Sir Richard Francis

(Encyclopedia)Burton, Sir Richard Francis, 1821–90, English explorer, writer, and linguist. He joined (1842) the service of the East India Company and, while stationed in India, acquired a thorough knowledge of t...

Canby, Edward Richard Sprigg

(Encyclopedia)Canby, Edward Richard Sprigg, 1817–73, Union general in the Civil War, b. Kentucky, grad. West Point, 1839. He fought in the Seminole War and in the Mexican War. In the Civil War, Canby commanded th...

Orion Nebula

(Encyclopedia)Orion Nebula, bright diffuse nebula in the constellation Orion; also known as the Great Nebula of Orion and cataloged as M42 or NGC 1976. It is located near the middle of the “sword” hanging from ...

mandrill

(Encyclopedia)mandrill, large monkey, Mandrillus sphinx, of central W Africa, related to the baboons. Mandrills are found in forests, while baboons live in open country. The fur of the mandrill is mostly dark brown...

Lagoon Nebula

(Encyclopedia)Lagoon Nebula, bright, diffuse nebula in the southern constellation Sagittarius; cataloged as M8 or NGC 6526. It is visible to the naked eye and has an angular area larger than that of the full moon. ...

chintz

(Encyclopedia)chintz chĭnts [key] [probably Hindustani,=variegated], originally a painted or stained calico from India. Esteemed for its bright colors and designs, it was used in Europe for bedcovers and draperies...

magnitude

(Encyclopedia)magnitude, in astronomy, measure of the brightness of a star or other celestial object. The stars cataloged by Ptolemy (2d cent. a.d.), all visible with the unaided eye, were ranked on a brightness sc...

Rochdale

(Encyclopedia)Rochdale rŏchˈdāl [key], metropolitan borough (1991 pop. 97,282), NW England, located in the Manchester metropolitan area on the Roch River. The city's chief industry is the spinning and weaving of...

Cepheid variables

(Encyclopedia)Cepheid variables sēˈfēĭd [key], class of variable stars that brighten and dim in an extremely regular fashion. The periods of the fluctuations (the time to complete one cycle from bright to dim a...

thrush , in zoology

(Encyclopedia)thrush, bird, common name for members of the Turdidae, a large family of birds found in most parts of the world and noted for their beautiful song. The majority are modestly colored, with spotted unde...