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sty

(Encyclopedia)sty, in medicine, acute localized infection of one or more of the glands of the eyelid, with pain, swelling, and redness of the lid margin, usually caused by a staphylococcus infection. An external st...

value-added tax

(Encyclopedia)value-added tax (VAT), levy imposed on business at all levels of the manufacture and production of a good or service and based on the increase in price, or value, provided by each level. Because the c...

Spa

(Encyclopedia)Spa, commune (1991 pop. 10,140), Liège prov., E Belgium, in the Ardennes. Its therapeutic mineral springs and baths, frequented since the 16th cent., made it an internationally fashionable watering p...

Sabatier, Paul, French Protestant clergyman and historian

(Encyclopedia)Sabatier, Paul, 1858–1928, French Protestant clergyman and historian; brother of Auguste Sabatier. Ill health required his withdrawal from the active ministry, and he went to Assisi, Italy; there he...

fund-raising

(Encyclopedia)fund-raising, large-scale soliciting of voluntary contributions, especially in the United States. Fund-raising is widely undertaken by charitable organizations, educational institutions, and political...

nudism

(Encyclopedia)nudism or naturism, practice of going without clothing in social settings, generally in mixed gender groups and for purposes of good health or personal comfort. Governed by a strict set of rules, the ...

artificial life support

(Encyclopedia)artificial life support, systems that use medical technology to aid, support, or replace a vital function of the body that has been seriously damaged. Such techniques include artificial pacemakers, in...

zemstvo

(Encyclopedia)zemstvo zĕmstˈvō [key] [Rus., from zemlya=land], local assembly that functioned as a body of provincial self-government in Russia from 1864 to 1917. The introduction of the zemstvo system was one o...

Service Employees International Union

(Encyclopedia)Service Employees International Union (SEIU), labor union representing U.S. and Canadian workers in health care (doctors, nurses, health technicians), public services (government workers, school emplo...

Eddy, Mary Baker

(Encyclopedia)Eddy, Mary Baker, 1821–1910, founder of the Christian Science movement, b. Bow, N.H. As physical frailty prevented her regular school attendance, she spent the early part of her education learning a...