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tom-tom

(Encyclopedia)tom-tom, name popularly applied to high-pitched hand drums, usually barrel-shaped and having either one or two drumheads of skin. They are tunable to specific pitches. Supposedly of Native American or...

Příbram

(Encyclopedia)Příbram pərzhĭbˈräm [key], town (1991 pop. 36,898), SW Czech Republic, in Bohemia. It is one of the oldest gold- and silver-mining centers of Bohemia, with mine shafts more than 3,000 ft (914 m)...

San Lorenzo

(Encyclopedia)San Lorenzo, town, S Honduras, on the Gulf of Fonseca. Its satellite, Henecán is the chief Pacific port of Honduras. Henecán's modern port facilities and deepwater harbor and channel approach were c...

Meiji

(Encyclopedia)Meiji māˈjē [key], 1852–1912, reign name of the emperor of Japan from 1867 to 1912; his given name was Mutsuhito. He ascended the throne when he was 15. A year later the shogun fell, and the powe...

parachute

(Encyclopedia)parachute, umbrellalike device designed to retard the descent of a falling body by creating drag as it passes through the air. The development of modern aircraft has led to many experiments in the aer...

Prakrit

(Encyclopedia)Prakrit präˈkrĭt [key], any of a number of languages belonging to the Indic group of the Indo-Iranian subfamily of the Indo-European family of languages (see Indo-Iranian). The Prakrits are usually...

propaganda

(Encyclopedia)propaganda, systematic manipulation of public opinion, generally by the use of symbols such as flags, monuments, oratory, and publications. Modern propaganda is distinguished from other forms of commu...

Desargues, Gérard

(Encyclopedia)Desargues, Gérard zhārärˈ dəzärgˈ [key], 1591–1661, French mathematician and engineer, a founder of modern geometry. He discovered the theorems on involutions and transversals known by his na...

Akureyri

(Encyclopedia)Akureyri äˈkürāˌrē [key], city, N Iceland, at the head of the Eyjafjörður. The second largest city of Iceland, it is a fishing, commercial, and industrial center, ...

Chéret, Jules

(Encyclopedia)Chéret, Jules zhül shārāˈ [key], 1836–1932, French painter and draftsman, originator of the modern poster. His colorful, sophisticated designs for the theater and opera influenced Toulouse-Laut...