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calcium oxide

(Encyclopedia)calcium oxide, chemical compound, CaO, a colorless, cubic crystalline or white amorphous substance. It is also called lime, quicklime, or caustic lime, but commercial lime often contains impurities, e...

Volta

(Encyclopedia)Volta vólˈtə [key], river, c.290 mi (470 km) long, formed in central Ghana, W Africa, by the confluence of the Black Volta (or Mouhon, c.840 mi/1,350 km long) and the White Volta (or Nakambe, c.450...

bobwhite

(Encyclopedia)bobwhite, common name for an American henlike bird of the family Phasianidae, which also includes the pheasant and the partridge. The eastern bobwhite quail (Colinus virginianus) is about 10 in. (25 c...

cream of tartar

(Encyclopedia)cream of tartar, white crystalline powder. Chemically it is potassium hydrogen tartrate, KC4H5O6, the acidic potassium salt of tartaric acid. It is used as the leavening agent in baking powders. An im...

Charter Oak

(Encyclopedia)Charter Oak, white oak tree that until 1856 stood in Hartford, Conn., and was thought to be 1,000 years old. There is a tradition that when Sir Edmund Andros, as governor-general of New England, deman...

Francis, Sam

(Encyclopedia)Francis, Sam, 1923–94, American painter, b. San Mateo, Calif. Educated in medicine, Francis began painting while recovering from an injury received in World War II. His mural-sized paintings are sta...

Aversa

(Encyclopedia)Aversa ävĕrˈsä [key], city, Campania, S Italy. It is an agricultural and transportation center, noted for its sparkling white wine. It also produces shoes, mozzarella ...

whitewash

(Encyclopedia)whitewash, white fluid commonly used as an inexpensive, impermanent coating for walls, fences, stables, and other exterior structures. It varies in composition, being generally a mixture of lime (quic...

vermouth

(Encyclopedia)vermouth vərmo͞othˈ [key], blend of white wines fortified with additional alcohol and flavored with aromatic herbs, spices, and roots. It contains up to 19% alcohol. The sweeter, darker type of ver...

sodium benzoate

(Encyclopedia)sodium benzoate or benzoate of soda, chemical compound, C6H5CO2Na, colorless or white crystalline, aromatic compound; the sodium salt of benzoic acid. It is soluble in water and is used as a preservat...