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piccolo

(Encyclopedia)piccolo, small transverse flute pitched an octave higher than the standard flute. Its tone is bright and shrill, and it can produce the highest notes in the orchestral range. The piccolo is used in or...

Rocky Mountains

(Encyclopedia)Rocky Mountains, major mountain system of W North America and easternmost belt of the North American cordillera, extending more than 3,000 mi (4,800 km) from central N.Mex. to NW Alaska; Mt. Elbert (1...

Doab

(Encyclopedia)Doab dōˈăb [key], term applied in India to a tract of land between two converging rivers. The Doab, unqualified by the names of any rivers, designates the tract in Uttar Pradesh state between the G...

Consumers' Union

(Encyclopedia)Consumers' Union, product testing and rating organization founded (1936) to provide consumers with information and counsel regarding major retail goods and services. Through its monthly Consumer Repor...

Gogebic

(Encyclopedia)Gogebic gōgēˈbĭk [key], east-west mountain range, 80 mi (129 km) long and .5 to 1 mi (.8–1.6 km) wide, extending from the W Upper Peninsula, N Mich., into N Wis. It is known for its iron deposit...

Paropamisus

(Encyclopedia)Paropamisus pârˌəpămˈĭsəs, –pəmīˈsəs [key], mountain range, NW Afghanistan, stretching c.300 mi (480 km) W from the Hindu Kush toward the Elburz Mts. in Iran; rises to c.11,000 ft (3,350 ...

Arbuckle Mountains

(Encyclopedia)Arbuckle Mountains ärˈbŭkəl [key], range of low, rolling hills, rising c.700 ft (210 m) above the prairie, S Okla.; remnant of mountains formed in the Precambrian. Interesting geological formation...

Aranjuez

(Encyclopedia)Aranjuez äränghwāthˈ [key], town, Madrid prov., central Spain, on the Tagus River. As a market for the irrigated horticulture nearby, it is known for its asparagus and...

Wienerwald

(Encyclopedia)Wienerwald vēˈnərvält [key] [Ger.,=Vienna forest], forested range, NE Austria, just W of Vienna. An outlier of the Eastern Alps, it rises to 2,930 ft (893 m) in the Schöpfl. The best-known summit...

Vail

(Encyclopedia)Vail vāl [key], town (1990 pop. 3,569), Eagle co., W central Colo., on Gore Creek, in the Gore Range of the Rocky Mts.; founded as a ski resort 1962, inc. as a town 1966. Surrounded by the White Rive...