(Encyclopedia) siphonsiphonsīˈfən, –fŏn [key], tube or other enclosed conduit through which a liquid is lifted over an elevation and then emptied at a lower level. The movement of the liquid is…
(Encyclopedia) budding, type of grafting in which a plant bud is inserted under the bark of the stock (usually not more than a year old). It is best done when the bark will peel easily and the buds…
(Encyclopedia) Vian, BorisVian, Borisbôrēsˈ vyäN [key], 1920–59, French novelist. He patterned his literary style on that of terse American crime fiction. His best-known work is J'irai cracher sur…
(Encyclopedia) blink microscope, in astronomy, device for determining a change in position or magnitude (brightness) of a star relative to other stars in the background. Two photographs of the same…
(Encyclopedia) fireproofing, method of making normally combustible materials as nearly noncombustible as possible. Fireproofing generally applies to textiles and construction materials that are…
(Encyclopedia) state of emergency, situation in which a government or a government body is empowered to act with enhanced powers in order to respond to a crisis. The enhanced or emergency powers, and…
(Encyclopedia) Jennings, Herbert Spencer, 1868–1947, American zoologist, b. Tonica, Ill., B.S. Univ. of Michigan, 1893, Ph.D. Harvard, 1896. He was professor of zoology at Johns Hopkins (1906–10) and…
(Encyclopedia) millennium [Lat.,=1,000 years], the period of 1,000 years in which, according to some schools of Christian eschatology, Christ will reign again gloriously on earth. Belief in the…
(Encyclopedia) Mount Stromlo Observatory, astronomical observatory located on Mt. Stromlo, near Canberra, Australia. Established in 1924 (14 years after the first telescope was erected there), it has…
(Encyclopedia) genitivegenitivejĕnˈĭtĭv [key] [Lat.,=genetic], in Latin grammar, the case typically used to refer to a possessor. The term is used in the grammar of other languages, but the…
