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geode

(Encyclopedia)geode jēˈōd [key], hollow, globular rock nodule ranging in diameter from 1 to 12 in. (2.54–30.5 cm) or more. Most geodes are partly filled with mineral matter; they have a thin layer of chalcedon...

Eyzies-de-Tayac, Les

(Encyclopedia)Eyzies-de-Tayac, Les lā zāzēˈ-də-tīäkˈ [key], or Les Eyzies, village, Dordogn...

Everest, Mount

(Encyclopedia)Everest, Mount ĕvˈərĭst, ĕvˈrəst [key], peak, 29,032 ft (8,849 m) high (as officially recognized by China and Nepal; rock height only, 29,016 ft/8,844 m), on the border of Tibet and Nepal, in t...

Olympic Mountains

(Encyclopedia)Olympic Mountains, highest part of the Coast Ranges, on the Olympic Peninsula, NW Wash. Mt. Olympus (7,965 ft/2,427 m) is the highest point in the mountains, which are composed mainly of sedimentary r...

Franklin, Aretha

(Encyclopedia)Franklin, Aretha, 1942–2018, American singer and pianist, b. Memphis. The daughter of the well-known minister C. L. Franklin, she began singing in the choir of his Detroit Baptist church, where she ...

angelfish

(Encyclopedia)angelfish, common name for certain members of the Pomacanthidae, a family of brightly colored reef-dwelling tropical fishes with compressed bodies and small mouths and teeth. They were formerly classi...

Jodhpur

(Encyclopedia)Jodhpur märˈwär [key], former principality, Rajasthan state, NW India. Except for the eastern section, it is largely an arid wasteland. The principality was founded in the 13th cent. by the Rathor ...

Stritch, Elaine

(Encyclopedia)Stritch, Elaine, 1925–2014, American actress and singer, b. Detroit. Forthright and witty, with a commanding stage presence and a raspy singing voice, she had a long career in show business, and num...

stucco

(Encyclopedia)stucco stŭkˈō [key], in architecture, a term loosely applied to various kinds of plasterwork, both exterior and interior. It now commonly refers to a plaster or cement used for the external coating...

cacomistle

(Encyclopedia)cacomistle kăkˈəmĭsˌəl [key], small New World mammal, genus Bassaricus, related to the raccoon. There are two species, one found in Mexico and the SW United States, the other in Central America....