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Blau, Joseph Leon

(Encyclopedia)Blau, Joseph Leon blou [key] 1909–86, American Jewish scholar and educator, b. Brooklyn, N.Y., grad. Columbia (A.B., 1931; M.A., 1933; Ph.D., 1945). He taught at Columbia from 1944, becoming profess...

meteor shower

(Encyclopedia)meteor shower, increase in the number of meteors observed in a particular part of the sky. The trails of the meteors of a meteor shower all appear to be traceable back to a single point in the sky, kn...

group

(Encyclopedia)group, in mathematics, system consisting of a set of elements and a binary operation a∘b defined for combining two elements such that the following requirements are satisfied: (1) The set is closed ...

chain

(Encyclopedia)chain, flexible series of connected links used in various ways, especially for the transmission of motive power, for hoisting (see pulley), and for securing or fastening. Commonly, mechanical energy f...

radical, in mathematics

(Encyclopedia)radical, in mathematics, symbol () placed over a number or expression, called the radicand, to indicate a root of the radicand. When used without a sign or index number, as in 4, it designates the pos...

Bode's law

(Encyclopedia)Bode's law [for J. E. Bode], also known as Titius's law or the Titius-Bode law, empirical relationship between the mean distances of the planets from the sun. If each number in the series 0, 3, 6, 12,...

Evans, George Henry

(Encyclopedia)Evans, George Henry, 1805–56, American labor and agrarian reformer, b. England. After emigrating (1820) to New York City, he edited several newspapers, among them the Workingman's Advocate. He also ...

flerovium

(Encyclopedia)flerovium, artificially produced radioactive chemical element; symbol Fl; at. no. 114; mass number of most stable isotope 289; m.p., b.p., sp. gr., and valence unknown. Situated in Group 14 of the per...

statistical mechanics

(Encyclopedia)statistical mechanics, quantitative study of systems consisting of a large number of interacting elements, such as the atoms or molecules of a solid, liquid, or gas, or the individual quanta of light ...

Graces

(Encyclopedia)Graces, in Greek mythology, personifications of beauty, charm, and grace; daughters of Zeus and the oceanid Eurynome. Also known as the Charites, they were usually three in number and were called Agla...