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hepatitis

(Encyclopedia)hepatitis hĕpˌətīˈtĭs [key], inflammation of the liver. There are many types of hepatitis. Causes include viruses, toxic chemicals, alcohol consumption, parasites and bacteria, and certain drugs...

antimony

(Encyclopedia)antimony ănˈtĭmōˌnē [key] [Lat. antimoneum], semimetallic chemical element; symbol Sb [Lat. stibium,=a mark]; at. no. 51; at. wt. 121.760; m.p. 630.74℃; b.p. 1,750℃; sp. gr. (metallic form) ...

steel industry

(Encyclopedia)steel industry, the business of processing iron ore into steel, which in its simplest form is an iron-carbon alloy, and in some cases, turning that metal into partially finished products or recycling ...

plutonium

(Encyclopedia)plutonium plo͞otōˈnēəm [key], radioactive chemical element; symbol Pu; at. no. 94; mass no. of most stable isotope 244; m.p. 641℃; b.p. 3,232℃; sp. gr. 19.84 at 20℃; valence +3, +4, +5, or ...

Leipzig

(Encyclopedia)Leipzig līpˈtsĭkh [key], city (1994 pop. 490,850), Saxony, E central Germany, at the confluence of the Pleisse, White Elster, and Parthe rivers. Originally a Slavic settlement called Lipsk, Leipz...

sailing

(Encyclopedia)sailing, as a sport, the art of navigating a sailboat for recreational or competitive purposes. Although sailing as a means of transportation predates history, sport sailing—or yachting—seems to...

exobiology

(Encyclopedia)exobiology or astrobiology, search for extraterrestrial life within the solar system and throughout the universe. Philosophical speculation that there might be other worlds similar to ours dates back ...

herbicide

(Encyclopedia)herbicide hrˈbəsīdˌ [key], chemical compound that kills plants or inhibits their normal growth. A herbicide in a particular formulation and application can be described as selective or nonselectiv...

interstellar matter

(Encyclopedia)interstellar matter, matter in a galaxy between the stars, known also as the interstellar medium. The interstellar gas, which constitutes about 99% of the interstellar matter, consists mostly of hyd...

zirconium

(Encyclopedia)zirconium zərkōˈnēəm [key], metallic chemical element; symbol Zr; at. no. 40; at. wt. 91.224; m.p. about 1,852℃; b.p. 4,377℃; sp. gr. 6.5 at 20℃; valence +2, +3, or +4. Zirconium is a very ...