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insect repellent

(Encyclopedia)insect repellent, substance applied to the skin in order to provide protection against biting insects, primarily mosquitoes, ticks, chiggers, fleas, and certain flies. The most effective such substanc...

Kleinrock, Leonard

(Encyclopedia)Kleinrock, Leonard, 1934–, American computer scientist, b. New York City, B.E.E. City College of New York (1957), Ph.D. Massachusetts Institute of Technology (1963). Moving to the Univ. of Californi...

Kahn, Robert Elliot

(Encyclopedia)Kahn, Robert Elliot, 1938–, American computer scientist, b. Brooklyn, N.Y., B.E.E. City College of New York, 1960, Ph.D. Princeton, 1964. With Vinton Cerf, he is responsible for the design and imple...

Jünger, Ernst

(Encyclopedia)Jünger, Ernst ĕrnst yüngˈər [key], 1895–1998, German writer. Jünger's early war novels were based on arduous army experience. Strongly influenced by Nietzsche, they glorified war and its sacri...

pollination

(Encyclopedia)pollination, transfer of pollen from the male reproductive organ (stamen or staminate cone) to the female reproductive organ (pistil or pistillate cone) of the same or of another flower or cone. Polli...

honey locust

(Encyclopedia)honey locust, leguminous deciduous tree (Gleditsia triacanthos) of the family Leguminosae (pulse family), native to the eastern half of the United States but planted as a shade tree in many regions of...

Marnix, Philip van

(Encyclopedia)Marnix, Philip van fēˈlĭp vän märˈnĭks [key], 1540–98, Flemish patriot, lord of Sainte-Aldegonde. He became a Calvinist in his youth and was the chief author of the Compromise of Breda (1566;...

disco

(Encyclopedia)disco, style of popular music that flourished during the 1970s. Originating in the United States, it evolved mainly from funk, soul, and salsa and became popular worldwide. Characterized by a heavy, t...

Travers, P. L.

(Encyclopedia)Travers, P. L. (Pamela Lyndon Travers), 1899–1996, British author best known for her Mary Poppins children's books, b. Australia as Helen Lyndon Goff. She worked as an actress and journalist and mov...

riddle

(Encyclopedia)riddle, puzzling question, specifically one that consists of a fanciful description or definition of something to be guessed. A famous riddle was asked by the Sphinx: “What goes on four legs in the ...