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Choate, Rufus

(Encyclopedia)Choate, Rufus chōt [key], 1799–1859, American lawyer and Congressman, b. Essex co., Mass.; uncle of Joseph Hodges Choate. Admitted to the bar in 1823, Rufus Choate gained national reputation as a l...

Uist, North, and South Uist

(Encyclopedia)Uist, North yo͞oˈĭst, o͞oˈ– [key], and South Uist, islands, two of the Outer Hebrides, Western Isles council area, NW Scotland. North Uist (1985 est. pop. 3,300), is 18 mi (29 km) long and 13 m...

Morris, Robert, 1734–1806, American merchant

(Encyclopedia)Morris, Robert, 1734–1806, American merchant, known as the “financier of the American Revolution,” and signer of the Declaration of Independence, b. Liverpool, England. Morris emigrated to Ameri...

Apollonius of Tyana

(Encyclopedia)Apollonius of Tyana, fl. 1st cent. a.d., Greek philosopher, b. Tyana, Cappadocia. A philosopher of the Neo-Pythagorean school, he traveled widely and became famous for his wisdom and reputed magical p...

Canadian art and architecture

(Encyclopedia)Canadian art and architecture, the various types and styles arts and structures produced in the geographic area that now constitutes Canada. For a discussion of the art of indigenous peoples of Canada...

guardian and ward

(Encyclopedia)guardian and ward, in law. A guardian is someone who by appointment or by relationship has the care of a person or that person's property, or both. The protected individual, known as the ward, is cons...

Gang of Four

(Encyclopedia)Gang of Four, term of opprobrium given by the Chinese Communist authorities to four persons held responsible for the excesses of the Cultural Revolution (1966–69). They were also accused of trying t...

societies, learned and literary

(Encyclopedia)societies, learned and literary, associations of individuals with a common professional interest, intended to promote learning. Many societies publish the proceedings of their meetings as well as jour...

crossword puzzle

(Encyclopedia)crossword puzzle, word game in which words corresponding to numbered clues are put into a grid of horizontal and vertical squares to form intersecting words. The puzzle is solved when a player supplie...

Winthrop, John, 1714–79, American scientist

(Encyclopedia)Winthrop, John, 1714–79, American scientist, b. Boston, Mass., grad. Harvard, 1732. Because of his study of earthquakes, he is sometimes called the founder of seismology. He made scientific observat...