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Epictetus

(Encyclopedia)Epictetus ĕpĭktēˈtəs [key], c.a.d. 50–c.a.d. 138, Phrygian Stoic philosopher. He wrote nothing, but his teachings were set down by his disciple Arrian in the Discourses and the Encheiridion. Ep...

Chalkley, Thomas

(Encyclopedia)Chalkley, Thomas chôˈklē [key], 1675–1741, Quaker mariner and missionary preacher, b. England. He made his home after 1701 in Philadelphia. He traded chiefly with the West Indies, navigating his ...

Bar-Hebraeus, Gregorius

(Encyclopedia)Bar-Hebraeus, Gregorius bär-hēbrēˈəs [key], 1226–86, Syrian scholar, bishop of the Jacobite Church. Partly Jewish in ancestry, his original name was Abu-al-Faraj. His most celebrated work is a ...

Nelson, Robert

(Encyclopedia)Nelson, Robert, 1794–1873, Canadian rebel, b. Montreal; brother of Wolfred Nelson. Like his brother, he was a surgeon in the War of 1812, and with him he entered the Legislative Assembly of Lower Ca...

Sisyphus

(Encyclopedia)Sisyphus sĭsˈĭfəs [key], in Greek mythology, son of Aeolus and founder and king of Corinth. Renowned for his cunning, he was said to have outwitted even Death. For his disrespect to Zeus, he was c...

Strangford Lough

(Encyclopedia)Strangford Lough străngˈfərd lŏkh [key], inlet of the Irish Sea, 17 mi (27 km) long and 4 mi (6.4 km) wide, between Ards and Down dists., E Northern Ireland, entered through a 5-mi (8-km) strait, ...

Caesarea Mazaca

(Encyclopedia)Caesarea Mazaca sĕsərēˈə măˈzəkə [key], ancient city of Asia Minor, also called Caesarea of Cappadocia. As Mazaca it was the residence of the Cappadocian kings. The city was renamed (c.10 b.c...

blackjack

(Encyclopedia)blackjack, one of the world's most widely played gambling card games; also known as twenty-one or vingt-et-un. Despite contesting claims between the French and Italians, its origins are unknown. Each ...

Blind Harry

(Encyclopedia)Blind Harry or Henry the Minstrel, fl. late 15th cent., supposed Scottish poet. He is considered the author of the patriotic epic, The Wallace, which celebrates the life of Sir William Wallace. Violen...

atomic force microscope

(Encyclopedia)atomic force microscope (AFM), device that uses a spring-mounted probe to image individual atoms on the surface of a material, first developed by Gerd Binnig in 1986. Unlike the scanning tunneling mic...