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Interior, United States Department of the

(Encyclopedia)Interior, United States Department of the, federal executive department established in 1849, delegated custodian of U.S. natural resources, and whose head, the Secretary of the Interior, has cabinet r...

Thule , ancient name for extreme N Europe

(Encyclopedia)Thule tho͞oˈlē [key], name given by the ancients to the most northerly land of Europe. It was an island discovered and described (c.310 b.c.) by the Greek navigator Pytheas and variously identified...

dower

(Encyclopedia)dower, that portion of a deceased husband's real property that a widow is legally entitled to use during her lifetime to support herself and their children. A wife may claim the dower if her husband d...

title

(Encyclopedia)title, in law, the means by which the owner has just and legal possession of his or her property. It is distinct from the document (e.g., a deed) that is evidence of the title. Title can be lost or ac...

irrigation

(Encyclopedia)irrigation, in agriculture, artificial watering of the land. Although used chiefly in regions with annual rainfall of less than 20 in. (51 cm), it is also used in wetter areas to grow certain crops, e...

dry farming

(Encyclopedia)dry farming, farming system adopted in areas having an annual rainfall of approximately 15 to 20 in. (38.1–50.8 cm)—with much of the rainfall in the spring and early summer—where irrigation is i...

Moses, Robert

(Encyclopedia)Moses, Robert, 1888–1981, U.S. public official, b. New Haven, Conn. He was appointed (1919) by Alfred E. Smith to the committee to study and revamp New York state government machinery, became (1924)...

Fiske, John

(Encyclopedia)Fiske, John, 1842–1901, American philosopher and historian, b. Hartford, Conn. Born Edmund Fisk Green, he changed his name in 1855 to John Fisk, adding the final e in 1860. He opened a law practice ...

Reconstruction Finance Corporation

(Encyclopedia)Reconstruction Finance Corporation (RFC), former U.S. government agency, created in 1932 by the administration of Herbert Hoover. Its purpose was to facilitate economic activity by lending money in th...

Pacino, Al

(Encyclopedia)Pacino, Al (Alberto Pacino) pəchēˈnō [key], 1940–, American actor, b. New York City, studied at the Herbert Berghof Studio and the Actors Studio, New York City. Known for his intense, finely tun...