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silver

(Encyclopedia)silver, metallic chemical element; symbol Ag [Lat. argentum]; at. no. 47; at. wt. 107.8682; m.p. 961.93℃; b.p. 2,212℃; sp. gr. 10.5 at 20℃; valence +1 or +2. Pure silver is nearly white, lustrou...

Whig

(Encyclopedia)Whig, English political party. The name, originally a term of abuse first used for Scottish Presbyterians in the 17th cent., seems to have been a shortened form of whiggamor [cattle driver]. It was ap...

bookkeeping

(Encyclopedia)bookkeeping, maintenance of systematic and convenient records of money transactions in order to show the condition of a business enterprise. The essential purpose of bookkeeping is to reveal the amoun...

nickel

(Encyclopedia)nickel, metallic chemical element; symbol Ni; at. no. 28; at. wt. 58.6934; m.p. about 1,453℃; b.p. about 2,732℃; sp. gr. 8.902 at 25℃; valence 0, +1, +2, +3, or +4. Nickel is a hard, malleable, ...

aluminum

(Encyclopedia)aluminum ălˌyo͞omĭnˈēəm [key], metallic chemical element; symbol Al; at. no. 13; at. wt. 26.98154; m.p. 660.37℃; b.p. 2,467℃; sp. gr. 2.6989 at 20℃; valence +3. Aluminum is a silver-white...

valence, in chemistry

(Encyclopedia)valence, combining capacity of an atom expressed as the number of single bonds the atom can form or the number of electrons an element gives up or accepts when reacting to form a compound. Atoms are c...

income tax

(Encyclopedia)income tax, assessment levied upon individual or corporate incomes. Although personal incomes were occasionally taxed in medieval Italian cities, the income tax is essentially a modern form of taxatio...

electric circuit

(Encyclopedia)CE5 A. Series circuit: Current is the same through each resistance; voltage divides in direct proportion to each resistance. B. Parallel circuit: Voltage drop is the same over each resistance; curr...

Swabia

(Encyclopedia)Swabia swāˈbēə [key], Ger. Schwaben, historic region, mainly in S Baden-Württemberg and SW Bavaria, SW Germany. It is bounded in the east by Upper Bavaria, in the west by France, and in the south...

sodium chloride

(Encyclopedia)sodium chloride, NaCl, common salt. Salt is important in many ways. It is an essential part of the diet of both humans and animals and is a part of most animal fluids, such as blood, sweat, and te...