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wheel and axle

(Encyclopedia)CE5 Wheel and axle wheel and axle, simple machine consisting of a wheel mounted rigidly upon an axle or drum of smaller diameter, the wheel and the axle having the same axis. It is fundamentally a...

block and tackle

(Encyclopedia)block and tackle: see pulley.

Blues and Greens

(Encyclopedia)Blues and Greens, political factions in the Byzantine Empire in the 6th cent. They took their names from two of the four colors worn by the circus charioteers. Their clashes were intensified by religi...

Urim and Thummim

(Encyclopedia)Urim and Thummim yo͞oˈrĭm, thŭmˈĭm [key], in the Bible, name of sacred instruments used for casting lots. The meaning of the two names is uncertain, as is the nature of the lots. They were in so...

Weber and Fields

(Encyclopedia)Weber and Fields wĕbˈər [key], American comedy team. The partners were Joe Weber (Joseph Maurice Weber), 1867–1942, and Lew Fields (Lewis Maurice Schanfield), 1867–1941, both born in New York C...

weights and measures

(Encyclopedia)CE5 weights and measures, units and standards for expressing the amount of some quantity, such as length, capacity, or weight; the science of measurement standards and methods is known as metrology...

island

(Encyclopedia)island, relatively small body of land surrounded entirely by water. (As the oceans form a continuous mass of water on the earth's surface, all continents are islands in the strict sense of the word.) ...

Pacific Islands, Trust Territory of the

(Encyclopedia)Pacific Islands, Trust Territory of the, former UN trust territory administered by the United States, consisting of the Caroline Islands, Marshall Islands, and Mariana Islands (excluding Guam). The te...

Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument

(Encyclopedia)Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument, c.490,000 sq mi (1,260,000 sq km), central Pacific Ocean; est. 2009. The monument comprises the waters and reefs surrounding seven islands and atolls, ...

Virgin Islands Coral Reef National Monument

(Encyclopedia)Virgin Islands Coral Reef National Monument: see National Parks and Monuments, tablenational parks and monuments, table. ...