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Steuben, Friedrich Wilhelm, Baron von

(Encyclopedia)Steuben, Friedrich Wilhelm, Baron von styo͞oˈbən, Ger. frēˈdrĭkh vĭlˈhĕlm bärōnˈ fən shtoiˈbən [key], 1730–94, Prussian army officer, general in the American Revolution, b. Magdeburg....

Beach, Moses Yale

(Encyclopedia)Beach, Moses Yale, 1800–1868, American journalist, b. Wallingford, Conn. As a young man he invented a rag-cutting machine and a gunpowder engine. In 1838 he bought the New York Sun from his brother-...

Pennsylvania, University of

(Encyclopedia)Pennsylvania, University of, in Philadelphia; private with some state support; coeducational. It dates to 1740 and plans for a charity school, and the first predecessor opened in 1751 as an academy, l...

Bene Israel

(Encyclopedia)Bene Israel or Beni Israel both: bāˈnē [key] [Heb.,=sons of Israel], Jewish community of India, living mostly in and near Mumbai (formerly Bombay). Many thousands of others have settled in Israel s...

Bennett, Naftali

(Encyclopedia) Bennett, Naftali, 1972-, Israeli politician and prime minister (2021-), b. Haifa. The son of American immigrant parents, Naftali served in the Israeli ...

friction

(Encyclopedia)friction, resistance offered to the movement of one body past another body with which it is in contact. In certain situations friction is desired. Without friction the wheels of a locomotive could not...

Lively, Dame Penelope

(Encyclopedia)Lively, Dame Penelope, 1933–, English novelist, b. Cairo, Egypt, moved to London at 12 when her parents divorced, grad. Oxford (1954). Her earliest books were children's novels—the first Astercote...

Menominee, indigenous people of North America

(Encyclopedia)Menominee mənŏmˈənē [key], indigenous people of North America whose language belongs to the Algonquian branch of the Algonquian-Wakashan linguistic stock (see Native American languages). Also cal...

Mammoth Cave National Park

(Encyclopedia)Mammoth Cave National Park, 52,830 acres (21,396 hectares), central Kentucky, authorized 1926, est. 1941. Located in a hilly, forested region, it offers numerous outdoor activities. It is the site of ...

Helvetic Republic

(Encyclopedia)Helvetic Republic hĕlvēˈtĭk [key], 1798–1803, Swiss state established under French auspices. In Sept., 1797, several exiled Swiss leaders in France (notably Frédéric César de La Harpe) formal...