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Carnot, Nicolas Léonard Sadi

(Encyclopedia)Carnot, Nicolas Léonard Sadi kärnōˈ [key], 1796–1832, French physicist, a founder of modern thermodynamics; son of Lazare N. M. Carnot. His famous work on the motive power of heat (Réflexions ...

Proust, Marcel

(Encyclopedia)Proust, Marcel pro͞ost [key], 1871–1922, French novelist, b. Paris. He is one of the great literary figures of the modern age. Born to wealthy bourgeois parents, he suffered delicate health as a c...

aardvark

(Encyclopedia)aardvark ärdˈvärk [key] [Du.,=ground pig], nocturnal mammal of the genus Orycteropus, sole representative of the order Tubulidentata. There are two species, one in central Africa and the other in S...

Clermont-Ferrand

(Encyclopedia)Clermont-Ferrand klĕrmôNˈ-fĕräNˈ [key], city, capital of Puy-de-Dôme dept., central France, in ...

Gullah

(Encyclopedia)Gullah gŭlˈə [key], a creole language formerly spoken by the Gullah, an African-American community of the Sea Islands and the Middle Atlantic coast of the United States. The word is probably a corr...

Ghelderode, Michel de

(Encyclopedia)Ghelderode, Michel de mēshĕlˈ də gĕldərōdˈ [key], 1898–1962, Belgian dramatist. He wrote in French and is noted for his colorful and avant-garde plays. He lived in obscurity until 1949, when...

Bachelard, Gaston

(Encyclopedia)Bachelard, Gaston gästôNˈ bäshlärˈ [key], 1884–1962, French philosopher. He held degrees in physics, mathematics, and philosophy and taught at Dijon (1930–40) and the Univ. of Paris (1940–...

Weil, Simone

(Encyclopedia)Weil, Simone sēmônˈ vīl [key], 1909–43, French philosopher and mystic. After receiving her baccalauréat with honors at 15, she studied philosophy for four years, then entered (1928) the prestig...

Soane, Sir John

(Encyclopedia)Soane, Sir John sōn [key], 1753–1837, English architect. After studying with George Dance, the younger, Soane won a fellowship to Rome. He toured Italy and returned in 1780 to begin his practice in...

Sainte-Beuve, Charles Augustin

(Encyclopedia)Sainte-Beuve, Charles Augustin shärl ōgüstăNˈ săNt-böv [key], 1804–69, French literary historian and critic. The first major professional literary critic, he developed the art of appreciating...