(Encyclopedia) toucantoucant&oomacr;kănˈ, t&oomacr;ˈkän [key], perching bird of the New World tropics, related to the woodpeckers. Toucans vary in size from the jay-sized toucanets to the 24-…
(Encyclopedia) Scruggs, Earl Eugene, 1924–2012, American banjo player, b. Flint Hill, N.C. He developed a distinctive syncopated, three-finger style on the five-string banjo that changed the way it…
(Encyclopedia) Sherbrooke, Robert Lowe, ViscountSherbrooke, Robert Lowe, Viscountshûrˈbr&oobreve;k [key], 1811–92, British statesman. He emigrated (1842) to Australia and achieved recognition as…
(Encyclopedia) skimmer, common name for certain sea birds resembling the related tern. Skimmers (genus Rhynchops) have long, laterally compressed bills of which the lower mandible is one fourth…
(Encyclopedia) Stockton, Robert Field, 1795–1866, American naval officer, b. Princeton, N.J. He left the College of New Jersey (now Princeton) to enter the U.S. Navy at 16 and served in the War of…
Amaze your climbing friends! Stump the Sherpas! Little known facts about Everest
by Borgna Brunner A view of Everest from Dudh Kosi, the highest river in the world. (Source: Nelson…
The Search for Life in the Solar System by Tim Porter While generations of cloned mice and asteroids the size of Texas dominate science in popular culture today, a NASA probe is quietly…
On Feb. 7, 2016, the Denver Broncos beat the Carolina Panthers, 24-10, in Super Bowl 50. It was Denver's third Super Bowl win in franchise history, having previously won in 1997 and…
(Encyclopedia) greenback, in U.S. history, legal tender notes unsecured by specie (coin). In 1862, under the exigencies of the Civil War, the U.S. government first issued legal tender notes (…
