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peritoneum

(Encyclopedia)peritoneum pĕrətənēˈəm [key], multilayered membrane which lines the abdominal cavity, and supports and covers the organs within it. The part of the membrane that lines the abdominal cavity is ca...

peritonitis

(Encyclopedia)peritonitis pĕrˌĭtənīˈtĭs [key], acute or chronic inflammation of the peritoneum, the membrane that lines the abdominal cavity and surrounds the internal organs. It is caused by invasion of bac...

Danelaw

(Encyclopedia)Danelaw dānˈlôˌ [key], originally the body of law that prevailed in the part of England occupied by the Danes after the treaty of King Alfred with Guthrum in 886. It soon came to mean also the are...

Kosinski, Jerzy

(Encyclopedia)Kosinski, Jerzy jrˈzē kəzĭnˈskē [key], 1933–91, American writer, b. Łódź, Poland. He taught at the Univ. of Łódź before emigrating to the United States in 1957. In his best-known novel, ...

Versace, Gianni

(Encyclopedia)Versace, Gianni (Giovanni Maria Versace), 1946–97, Italian fashion designer, b. Reggio Calabria. A dressmaker's son, Versace worked for several Italian designers before opening (1978) his own Milan ...

Berkeley, Busby

(Encyclopedia)Berkeley, Busby bŭzˈbē bûrˈklē [key], 1895–1975, American film director and choreographer, b. Los Angeles as William Berkeley Enos. Self-taught, he choreographed several Broadway revues before...

Santa Barbara

(Encyclopedia)Santa Barbara sănˌtə bärˈbrə, –bərə [key], city (1990 pop. 85,571), seat of Santa Barbara co., S Calif., on the Pacific Ocean; inc. 1850. A beautiful residential and resort city with many re...

Rice, Elmer

(Encyclopedia)Rice, Elmer, 1892–1967, American dramatist, b. New York City, LL.B. New York Law School, 1912. After the success of his first play, On Trial (1914), he turned his interests to the theater. Rice's fi...

uterus

(Encyclopedia)uterus, in most female mammals, hollow muscular organ in which the fetus develops and from which it is delivered at the end of pregnancy. The human uterus is pear-shaped and about 3 in. (7.6 cm) long ...

radiator

(Encyclopedia)radiator, device used to heat an area surrounding it or to cool a fluid circulating within it. The familiar radiators of steam and hot water heating systems in buildings are misnamed, as they operate ...