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Gide, Charles

(Encyclopedia)Gide, Charles zhēd [key], 1847–1932, French economist. A professor at the universities of Bordeaux, Montpellier, and Paris, Gide was an expert on international monetary problems. He also played an...

corner

(Encyclopedia)corner, securing of all or nearly all the supply of any commodity or stock so that its buyers are forced to pay exorbitant prices. Corners may be planned deliberately or may be brought about unintenti...

electric and magnetic units

(Encyclopedia)electric and magnetic units, units used to express the magnitudes of various quantities in electricity and magnetism. Three systems of such units, all based on the metric system, are commonly used. On...

Pontianak

(Encyclopedia)Pontianak pôntēäˈnäk [key], city (1990 pop. 398,357), capital of West Kalimantan prov., W Borneo, Indonesia, at the mouth of a small stream in the Kapuas delta near the west coast. The chief city...

balance of power

(Encyclopedia)balance of power, system of international relations in which nations seek to maintain an approximate equilibrium of power among many rivals, thus preventing the preponderance of any one state. Crucial...

Punt

(Encyclopedia)Punt po͝ont [key], ancient land S of Egypt accessible by way of the Red Sea. Its exact location has not been identified, but it probably included the Somali coast. Temple reliefs at Deir el Bahari in...

counterfeiting

(Encyclopedia)counterfeiting, manufacturing spurious coins, paper money, or evidences of governmental obligation (e.g., bonds) in the semblance of the true. There must be sufficient resemblance to the genuine artic...

Atlin Lake

(Encyclopedia)Atlin Lake ătˈlĭn [key], long, irregular mountain lake, c.300 sq mi (780 sq km), NW British Columbia, Canada, touching the Yukon boundary. It is the source of the Yukon River. The town of Atlin is ...

León, city, Mexico

(Encyclopedia)León, city (1990 pop. 758,270), Guanajuato state, central Mexico. It is located in a fertile river valley c.5,600 ft (1,700 m) high, but with a mild, temperate climate. Frequent floods, which in 1888...

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