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graffito

(Encyclopedia)graffito gräf-fēˈtō [key]. 1 Method of ornamenting architectural plaster surfaces. The designs are produced by scratching a topcoat of plaster to reveal an undercoat of contrasting and deeper colo...

Grooms, Red

(Encyclopedia)Grooms, Red (Charles Grooms), 1937–, American artist, b. Nashville, Tenn; studied Art Inst. of Chicago, Peabody College, New School for Social Research, Hans Hofmann School of Fine Arts. He moved to...

sulfa drug

(Encyclopedia)sulfa drug, any of a class of synthetic chemical substances derived from sulfanilamide, or para-aminobenzenesulfonamide. Sulfa drugs are used to treat bacterial infections, although they have largely ...

Sun Ra

(Encyclopedia) Sun Ra, 1914-1993, African-American jazz composer, bandleader, and keyboard player, b. Birmingham, Al., as Herman Poole Blount. Sun Ra was a leading c...

swift

(Encyclopedia)swift, common name for small, swallowlike birds related to the hummingbird and found all over the world, chiefly in the tropics. They range in size from 6 to 12 in. (15–30 cm) in length. Swifts have...

Placentia Bay

(Encyclopedia)Placentia Bay, c.100 mi (160 km) long and up to 80 mi (129 km) wide, SE Newfoundland, N.L., Canada. There are many fishing settlements and canneries along the shore. Placentia, established by the Fren...

Coward, Noël

(Encyclopedia)Coward, Noël (Sir Noël Pierce Coward) nōˈəl [key], 1899–1973, English playwright, actor, composer, and director, b. Teddington, England. Coward first gained wide prominence in 1924 acting in hi...

poster

(Encyclopedia)poster, placard designed to be posted in some public place for purposes of commercial announcement or propaganda. Advertising makes wide use of posters, as do charitable and political organizations. I...

poppy

(Encyclopedia)CE5 Greater celandine poppy, Chelidonium majus poppy, common name for some members of the Papaveraceae, a family composed chiefly of herbs of the Northern Hemisphere having a characteristic milky ...

Raung

(Encyclopedia)Raung, active volcano, East Java prov., Indonesia, rising to 10,932 ft (3,332 m), with a steep-sided, 1.2-mi (2-km) wide caldera that is 1,600 ft (500 m) deep. It is located SW of Ijen caldera. A mass...