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Baumgartner, Felix
(Encyclopedia)Baumgartner, Felix, 1969–, Austrian skydiver and daredevil. He made his first skydive at age 16, and turned to BASE jumping [Buildings, Antennas, Spans (bridges), and Earth (mountains)] in the 1990s...Verne, Jules
(Encyclopedia)Verne, Jules vûrn; zhül vĕrn [key], 1828–1905, French novelist, originator of modern science fiction. After completing his studies at the Nantes lycée, he went to Paris to study law. He early be...Gay-Lussac, Joseph Louis
(Encyclopedia)Gay-Lussac, Joseph Louis zhôzĕfˈ lwē gā-lüsäkˈ [key], 1778–1850, French chemist and physicist. He was professor in Paris at the Sorbonne, at the Polytechnic School, and at the Jardin des Pla...English Channel
(Encyclopedia)English Channel, Fr. La Manche [the sleeve], arm of the Atlantic Ocean, c.350 (560 km) long, between France and Great Britain. It is 112 mi (180 km) wide at its west entrance, between Land's End, Engl...Piccard, Auguste
(Encyclopedia)Piccard, Auguste ōgüstˈ pēkärˈ [key], 1884–1962, Swiss physicist, b. Basel. He became a professor at the Univ. of Brussels in 1922. He and his twin brother Jean Felix (d. 1963) are known for t...Bennett, James Gordon
(Encyclopedia)Bennett, James Gordon, 1841–1918, American newspaper proprietor, b. New York City; son of James Gordon Bennett. Educated mostly in France, he took over (1867) from his father the management of the N...Albuquerque
(Encyclopedia)Albuquerque ălˈbəkûrˌkē [key], city (2020 pop. 564,559), seat of Bernalillo co., W central N.Mex., on the upper Rio Grande; inc. 1890. The largest city in the state,...Gambetta, Léon
(Encyclopedia)Gambetta, Léon lāôNˈ gäNbĕtäˈ [key], 1838–82, French republican leader. A lawyer who achieved some note as an opponent of the Second Empire of Napoleon III, he was elected deputy in 1869 and...Kiarostami, Abbas
(Encyclopedia)Kiarostami, Abbas ăbôˈsā kēyôˈrōmămēˌ [key], 1940–2016, Iranian filmmaker. Widely acclaimed as Iran's greatest film director, he typically explores the lives of ordinary Iranians in his f...parachute
(Encyclopedia)parachute, umbrellalike device designed to retard the descent of a falling body by creating drag as it passes through the air. The development of modern aircraft has led to many experiments in the aer...Browse by Subject
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