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geomorphology

(Encyclopedia)geomorphology, study of the origin and evolution of the earth's landforms, both on the continents and within the ocean basins. It is concerned with the internal geologic processes of the earth's crust...

Kölliker, Albert von

(Encyclopedia)Kölliker, Albert von älˈbĕrt fən köˈlĭkər [key], 1817–1905, Swiss physiologist and histologist. He was professor of physiology and of microscopic and comparative anatomy at Würzburg from 1...

Wellhausen, Julius

(Encyclopedia)Wellhausen, Julius yo͞olˈyo͝os vĕlˈhouˌzən [key], 1844–1918, leading German biblical scholar of the 19th cent. He is recognized for his documentary hypothesis that sought to account for both ...

Burckhardt, Jacob Christoph

(Encyclopedia)Burckhardt, Jacob or Jakob Christoph yäˈkôp krĭsˈtôf bo͝orkˈhärt [key], 1818–97, Swiss historian, one of the founders of the cultural interpretation of history. He studied under Ranke at th...

Butler, Samuel, 1835–1902, English author

(Encyclopedia)Butler, Samuel, 1835–1902, English author. He was the son and grandson of eminent clergymen. In 1859, refusing to be ordained, he went to New Zealand, where he established a sheep farm and in a few ...

Oreopithecus

(Encyclopedia)Oreopithecus ôrˌēōpĭthˈəkəs, –pĭthēˈkəs [key], extinct genus of apes whose fossils have been found in E Africa and Italy. It is best known through specimens preserved in coal deposits. I...

Blashfield, Edwin Howland

(Encyclopedia)Blashfield, Edwin Howland, 1848–1936, American mural painter and mosaic designer, b. New York City, studied with Bonnat in Paris. From the 1890s on he worked chiefly as a muralist, creating large wo...

Yellow Emperor

(Encyclopedia)Yellow Emperor, Mandarin Huangdi, legendary Chinese ruler and culture hero; tradition holds that he reigned from 2697 b.c. to 2597 b.c. He is one of the mythical prehistoric emperors who supposedly cr...

Darwin, Charles Robert

(Encyclopedia)Darwin, Charles Robert, 1809–82, English naturalist, b. Shrewsbury; grandson of Erasmus Darwin and of Josiah Wedgwood. He firmly established the theory of organic evolution known as Darwinism. He st...