(Encyclopedia) Rockville, city (1990 pop. 44,835), seat of Montgomery co., W central Md., a NW suburb of Washington, D.C.; settled c.1760s, inc. as a city 1860. It has several scientific research and…
(Encyclopedia) Shapley, HarlowShapley, Harlowshăpˈlē [key], 1885–1972, American astronomer, b. Nashville, Mo., grad. Univ. of Missouri, 1910, Ph.D. Princeton, 1913. He was astronomer at Mt. Wilson…
(Encyclopedia) Barth, HeinrichBarth, Heinrichhīnˈrĭkh bärt [key], 1821–65, German explorer in British service. After traveling (1845–47) through the Levant and N Africa, he entered the service of the…
(Encyclopedia) PenninesPenninespĕnˈīnz [key] or Pennine Chain, mountain range, sometimes called the “backbone of England,” extending c.160 mi (260 km) from the Cheviot Hills on the Scottish border to…
(Encyclopedia) Baker v. Carr, case decided in 1962 by the U.S. Supreme Court. Tennessee had failed to reapportion the state legislature for 60 years despite population growth and redistribution.…
(Encyclopedia) Barentz or Barents, WillemBarentz or Barents, Willemboth: vĭˈləm bäˈrənts [key], d. 1597, Dutch navigator. He made three voyages (1594, 1595, 1596–97) in search of the Northeast…
(Encyclopedia) triceps, any muscle having three heads, or points of attachment, but especially the triceps brachii at the back of the upper arm. One head originates on the shoulder blade and two on…
(Encyclopedia) torsion balance, instrument used to measure small forces. It is based on the principle that a wire or thread resists twisting with a force that is proportional to the stress. The…
(Encyclopedia) Wilson, Robert Woodrow, 1936–, American radio astronomer, b. Houston, Tex., Ph.D. California Institute of Technology, 1962. In 1964 he and co-researcher Arno Penzias began monitoring…
(Encyclopedia) Tanganyika, Lake, second largest lake of Africa, c.12,700 sq mi (32,890 sq km), E central Africa on the borders of Tanzania, Congo (Kinshasa), Zambia, and Burundi. It is c.420 mi (680…
