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Thomas, Edward Donnall

(Encyclopedia)Thomas, Edward Donnall, 1920–2012, American surgeon, b. Mart, Tex., M.D. Harvard, 1946. At the Univ. of Washington from 1963 (emeritus from 1990), Thomas performed (1969) the first successful bone m...

Sawallisch, Wolfgang

(Encyclopedia)Sawallisch, Wolfgang, 1923–2013, German conductor, b. Munich. A specialist in the classical German repertoire, Sawallisch began conducting as a teenager. After World War II, he became a coach at the...

bark, sailing vessel

(Encyclopedia)bark or barque both: bärk [key], sailing vessel with three masts, of which the mainmast and the foremast are square-rigged while the mizzenmast is fore-and-aft-rigged. Although the word was once used...

Siemens, Sir William

(Encyclopedia)Siemens, Sir William, 1823–83, English electrical engineer, b. Germany; brother of Ernst Werner von Siemens. Originally his name was Carl Wilhelm Siemens. After visiting England to introduce an elec...

Cornish hen

(Encyclopedia)Cornish hen or Cornish chicken, breed of poultry that originated in Cornwall, England, but gained prominence only after it was established in the United States. Its body shape is quite different from ...

Cockran, William Bourke

(Encyclopedia)Cockran, William Bourke kŏkˈrən [key], 1854–1923, American political leader, b. Co. Sligo, Ireland. He emigrated to New York City at the age of 17 and in 1876 was admitted to the bar. At first op...

excess profits tax

(Encyclopedia)excess profits tax, levy on any profit above a standard level. Chiefly a wartime phenomenon, it is intended to increase revenue during periods of distress and to prevent businessmen from taking unfair...

racquetball

(Encyclopedia)racquetball, sport played indoors by two or four players, combining elements of court handball and such racket games as squash racquets. It is played on a standard handball court 40 ft (12.2 m) long, ...

index number

(Encyclopedia)index number, in econometrics, a figure reflecting a change in value or quantity as compared with a standard or base. The base usually equals 100 and the index number is usually expressed as a percent...

Innocent V

(Encyclopedia)Innocent V, d. 1276, pope (1276), a Savoyard named Peter of Tarentaise; successor of Gregory X. He was a Dominican and studied at Paris under St. Thomas Aquinas and St. Albertus Magnus. He became an e...