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tire

(Encyclopedia)tire, device made of rubber and fabric and attached to the outer rim of a vehicle wheel. Solid rubber tires were in limited use before 1850; they are still used in some special applications, e.g., for...

Blackpool

(Encyclopedia)Blackpool, borough and unitary authority (2021 est. pop. 138,380), Lancashire, NW England, on the Irish Sea. Famed as a traditionally working-class reso...

clapboard

(Encyclopedia)clapboard klăbˈərd [key], board used for the exterior finish of a wood-framed building and attached horizontally to the wood studs. The word, in its original and strict use, refers to a product of ...

Darmstadt

(Encyclopedia)Darmstadt därmˈshtät [key], city, Hesse, central Germany. It is a commercial, industrial, and ...

Candlemas

(Encyclopedia)Candlemas kănˈdəlməs [key], Feb. 2, Christian festival commemorating the Purification of the Blessed Virgin and the Presentation of Jesus in the Temple. The name Candlemas is derived from the proc...

Abbot, Charles Greeley

(Encyclopedia)Abbot, Charles Greeley, 1872–1973, American astrophysicist, b. Wilton, N.H. He was acting director in 1896 and director in 1907 of the astrophysical observatory of the Smithsonian Institution; he wa...

Verne, Jules

(Encyclopedia)Verne, Jules vûrn; zhül vĕrn [key], 1828–1905, French novelist, originator of modern science fiction. After completing his studies at the Nantes lycée, he went to Paris to study law. He early be...

CS, chemical compound

(Encyclopedia)CS, chemical compound (orthochlorobenzalmalonitrile) used in riot control and, by the military, as a harassing agent. The compound is dispersed as an aerosol or as a finely divided powder. Exposure to...

doldrums

(Encyclopedia)doldrums dŏlˈdrəmz [key] or equatorial belt of calms, area around the earth centered slightly north of the equator between the two belts of trade winds. The large amount of solar radiation that arr...

Udagamandalam

(Encyclopedia)Udagamandalam o͞oˈtəkəmŭndˌ [key], town (1991 pop. 81,763), Tamil Nadu state, SW India, in the Nilgiri Hills. At an altitude of c.7,000 ft (2,130 m), the town is the most famous hot-weather reso...