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Davis, Gray

(Encyclopedia)Davis, Gray (Joseph Graham Davis, Jr.), 1942–, U.S. politician, b. the Bronx, N.Y. A graduate of Stanford Univ. (1964) and Columbia Univ. Law School (1967), he entered the army and served in Vietnam...

Fifth Monarchy Men

(Encyclopedia)Fifth Monarchy Men, religious group active during the time of the Commonwealth and Protectorate in England. They were millenarians expecting the imminent coming of Jesus to rule the earth. His monarch...

Shannon, Wilson

(Encyclopedia)Shannon, Wilson, 1802–77. American political leader, Mount Olivet, Ohio. A lawyer, he entered politics and was governor of Ohio (1838–40, 1842–44), minister to Mexico (1844–45), and a member o...

pyroxene

(Encyclopedia)pyroxene pīˈrŏksēn [key], name given to members of a group of widely distributed rock minerals called metasilicates in which magnesium, iron, and calcium, often with aluminum, sodium, lithium, man...

quartzite

(Encyclopedia)quartzite, usually metamorphic rock composed of firmly cemented quartz grains. Most often it is white, light gray, yellowish, or light brown, but is sometimes colored blue, green, purple, or black by ...

Simmons, Ruth

(Encyclopedia)Simmons, Ruth, 1945–, American educator and college president, b. Grapeland, Tex., grad. Dillard Univ. (B.A., 1967) and Harvard (A.M., 1970; Ph.D., 1973). As a scholar she was primarily concerned wi...

Swann v. Charlotte-Mecklenburg County Board of Education

(Encyclopedia)Swann v. Charlotte-Mecklenburg County Board of Education, case decided in 1971 by the U.S. Supreme Court. The Court held that the constitutional mandate (see Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kan...

Cantabrian Mountains

(Encyclopedia)Cantabrian Mountains kăntāˈbrēən [key], N Spain, extending c.300 mi (480 km) along the Bay of Biscay from the Pyrenees to Cape Finisterre. Torre de Cerredo (8,687 ft/2,648 m) in the Picos de Euro...

miniature pinscher

(Encyclopedia)miniature pinscher, breed of lively toy dog originating in Germany in the late 19th cent. It stands from 10 to 12 in. (25.4–30.5 cm) high at the shoulder and weighs from 8 to 10 lb (3.6–4.5 kg). I...

hornbeam

(Encyclopedia)hornbeam or ironwood, name in North America for two groups of trees of the family Betulaceae (birch family), native to the eastern half of the continent. Carpinus caroliniana, also called blue beech a...