(Encyclopedia) McCloy, John Jay, 1895–1989, U.S. government official, b. Philadelphia. A lawyer, he gained an international reputation when after a long investigation he fixed responsibility on the…
(Encyclopedia) Abramoff scandal, in U.S. history, political corruption scandal resulting from criminal conduct on the part of lobbyist Jack Abramoff (1959–) and his associates. Abramoff was a…
(Encyclopedia) percussion instrument, any instrument that produces musical sound when its surface is struck with an implement (such as a mallet, stick, or disk) or with the hand. Perhaps the most…
(Encyclopedia) apatiteapatiteăpˈətīt [key], mineral, a phosphate of calcium containing chlorine or fluorine, or both, that is transparent to opaque in shades of green, brown, yellow, white, red, and…
The 51st Annual Grammy Awards were presented at Staples Center in Los Angeles on Feb. 9, 2009; the winners are listed below. Eligible recordings were released between…
Below is the composition of the 112th Congress' House of Representatives, following the 2010 midterm elections. In the following lists, the numeral indicates the congressional district represented…
(Encyclopedia) Blunt, Roy Dean, 1950–, U.S. politician, b. Niangua, Mo., grad. Southwest Baptist Univ. (B.A. 1970), Southwest Missouri State Univ. (M.A. 1972). A Missouri county clerk and elections…
(Encyclopedia) flame test, test used in the identification of certain metals. It is based on the observation that light emitted by any element gives a unique spectrum when passed through a…
(Encyclopedia) Lambeau, Earl Louis, 1898–1965, American football coach and player, b. Green Bay, Wis. “Curly” Lambeau briefly attended Notre Dame, where he played for Knute Rockne, but illness forced…
(Encyclopedia) spinel, magnesium aluminum oxide, MgAl2O4, a mineral crystallizing in the isometric system, usually as octahedrons. It occurs as an accessory mineral in basic igneous rocks, in…
