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Great Plains

(Encyclopedia)Great Plains, extensive grassland region on the continental slope of central North America. They extend from the Canadian provinces of Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba south through W central Unite...

prohibition

(Encyclopedia)prohibition, legal prevention of the manufacture, transportation, and sale of alcoholic beverages, the extreme of the regulatory liquor laws. The modern movement for prohibition had its main growth in...

atomic bomb

(Encyclopedia)atomic bomb or A-bomb, weapon deriving its explosive force from the release of nuclear energy through the fission (splitting) of heavy atomic nuclei. The first atomic bomb was produced at the Los Alam...

microscope

(Encyclopedia)CE5 Compound microscope microscope, optical instrument used to increase the apparent size of an object. The electron microscope, which is not limited by the powers of optical lenses and light,...

air navigation

(Encyclopedia)air navigation, science and technology of determining the position of an aircraft with respect to the surface of the earth and accurately maintaining a desired course (see navigation). Basic to air ...

Congo, river, Africa

(Encyclopedia)Congo zīˈēr, zäērˈ [key], great river of equatorial Africa, c.2,720 mi (4,380 km) long, formed by the waters of the Lualaba River and its tributary, the Luvua River, and flowing generally N and ...

Brittany

(Encyclopedia)Brittany brĭtˈənē [key], Breton Breiz, Fr. Bretagne, region and former province, NW France. It is a peninsula between the English Channel (N) and the Bay of Biscay (S) and comprises four departmen...

Black Sea

(Encyclopedia)Black Sea, inland sea, c.159,600 sq mi (413,360 sq km), between SE Europe and Asia, connected with the Mediterranean Sea by the Bosporus, the Sea of Marmara, and the Dardanelles. It is c.750 mi (1,210...

Washington, D.C.

(Encyclopedia)Washington, D.C., capital of the United States, coextensive (since 1878, when Georgetown became a part of Washington) with the District of ...

Newton, Sir Isaac

(Encyclopedia)Newton, Sir Isaac, 1642–1727, English mathematician and natural philosopher (physicist), who is considered by many the greatest scientist that ever lived. Newton was his university's representa...