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New Britain, island, Papua New Guinea

(Encyclopedia)New Britain, volcanic island (1990 pop. 315,649), c.14,600 sq mi (37,810 sq km), SW Pacific, largest island of the Bismarck Archipelago and part of Papua New Guinea, in which it forms two provinces (E...

Cheyenne, indigenous people of North America

(Encyclopedia)Cheyenne shīănˈ, –ĕnˈ [key], indigenous people of North America whose language belongs to the Algonquian branch of the Algonquian-Wakashan linguistic stock (see Native American languages). The ...

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...

mesa, in geology

(Encyclopedia)mesa māˈsə [key] [Span.,=table], name given in the SW United States to a small, isolated tableland or a flat-topped hill. Two or more of the sides are steep and usually perpendicular and some have ...

Smith, Jedediah Strong

(Encyclopedia)Smith, Jedediah Strong, 1799–1831, American explorer, one of the greatest of the mountain men, b. near Binghamton, N.Y. Early in 1824, Smith took a party through South Pass, beginning the regular us...

Stegosaurus

(Encyclopedia)Stegosaurus stĕgəsôrˈəs [key] [Gr.,=roof lizard], quadriped ornithischian dinosaur of the late Jurassic period. About 29 ft 6 in (9 m) long, it had short forelegs, four long bony spikes on a flex...

Thermopylae

(Encyclopedia)Thermopylae thərmŏpˈĭlē [key] [Gr.,=hot gates, from hot mineral springs nearby], pass, E central Greece, SE of Lamía, between the cliffs of Mt. Oeta and the Malic Gulf. Silt accumulation has gra...

Autry, Gene

(Encyclopedia)Autry, Gene (Orvon Grover Autry), 1907–98, American entertainer and businessman, b. Tioga Springs, Tex. Probably the most successful of the movies' singing cowboys, Autry began singing o...

Sinaloa

(Encyclopedia)Sinaloa sēnälōˈä [key], state (1990 pop. 2,204,054), 22,582 sq mi (58,487 sq km), W Mexico, on the Gulf of California and the Pacific Ocean. Culiacán is the capital. A long, narrow territory lyi...