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Son My

(Encyclopedia)Son My: see My Lai incident.

Calley, William L.

(Encyclopedia)Calley, William L.: see My Lai incident. ...

Virginius affair

(Encyclopedia)Virginius affair, 1873, incident that came near to causing war between the United States and Spain. The Virginius, a filibustering ship, was fraudulently flying the American flag and carrying arms to ...

Songhua

(Encyclopedia)Songhua so͝onˈgäˈrēˈ [key], river of NE China, c.1,150 mi (1,850 km) long, rising in the Changbai Mts., Jilin prov., and flowing generally north, through Heilongjiang prov., to the Amur River on...

Royal George

(Encyclopedia)Royal George, British naval vessel that sank on Aug. 29, 1782, while undergoing repairs at Spithead. Its commander, Admiral Richard Kempenfelt, and about 800 sailors and visitors were drowned. The inc...

pyranometer

(Encyclopedia)pyranometer pĭrˌənŏmˈətər [key], actinometer used to measure the total radiation incident on a surface. ...

refraction

(Encyclopedia)refraction, in physics, deflection of a wave on passing obliquely from one transparent medium into a second medium in which its speed is different, as the passage of a light ray from air into glass. O...

Heilongjiang

(Encyclopedia)Heilongjiang or Heilungkiang both: hāˈlo͝ongˈjyängˈ [key] [Chin.,=black dragon rive...

Newtown

(Encyclopedia)Newtown, town (1990 pop. 20,779), Fairfield co., SW Conn., on the Housatonic; inc. 1711. Pressure gauges, plastics, and paper and metal products are made, and dairy and fruit farms are in the area. In...

Compton effect

(Encyclopedia)Compton effect [for A. H. Compton], increase in the wavelengths of X rays and gamma rays when they collide with and are scattered from loosely bound electrons in matter. This effect provides strong ve...