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Garland, Merrick Brian

(Encyclopedia)Garland, Merrick Brian, 1952–, American government official and judge, b. Chicago, grad. Harvard (A.B. 1974, J.D. 1977). He was special assistant to the U.S. attorney general (1979–81), a lawyer i...

amputation

(Encyclopedia)amputation ămˌpyətāˈshən [key], removal of all or part of a limb or other body part. Although amputation has been practiced for centuries, the development of sophisticated techniques for treatme...

McReynolds, James Clark

(Encyclopedia)McReynolds, James Clark məkrĕnˈəldz [key], 1862–1946, U.S. Attorney General (1913–14) and associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court (1914–41), b. Elkton, Ky. He received his law degree fro...

Milligan, ex parte

(Encyclopedia)Milligan, ex parte, case decided by the U.S. Supreme Court in 1866. By authorization of Congress, President Lincoln in 1863 suspended the writ of habeas corpus in cases where military officers held pe...

whelk

(Encyclopedia)whelk, large marine gastropod snail found in temperate waters. The whelk is sometimes eaten, but when food is plentiful, fishermen frequently use it for bait. Whelks are scavengers and carnivores, equ...

Blackmun, Harry Andrew

(Encyclopedia)Blackmun, Harry Andrew blăkˈmən [key], 1908–99, associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court (1970–94), b. Nashville, Ill. Educated at Harvard, he practiced law privately, was general counsel to...

Steppe Geoglyphs

(Encyclopedia)Steppe Geoglyphs or Turgay Geoglyphs, ancient earthworks in Kostanay prov., N Kazakhstan. Located across the Turgay steppe, the more than 250 earthworks consist of squares, crosses, circles, lines, an...

behavior therapy

(Encyclopedia)behavior therapy or behavior modification, in psychology, treatment of human behavioral disorders through the reinforcement of acceptable behavior and suppression of undesirable behavior. The techniqu...

toxic shock syndrome

(Encyclopedia)toxic shock syndrome (TSS). acute, sometimes fatal, disease characterized by high fever, nausea, diarrhea, lethargy, blotchy rash, and sudden drop in blood pressure. It is caused by Staphylococcus aur...

baobab

(Encyclopedia)baobab bäˈōbăbˌ, bāˈō– [key], gigantic tree, Adansonia digitata, of India and Africa, exceeded in trunk diameter only by the sequoia. The hollow trunks of living baobabs have been used for d...