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mountain laurel

(Encyclopedia)mountain laurel, evergreen shrub (Kalmia latifolia) of the family Ericaceae (heath family), closely related to the rhododendron and native to E North America. The state flower of Connecticut and Penns...

Halayeb Triangle

(Encyclopedia)Halayeb Triangle or Hala'ib Triangle, roughly triangular disputed territory, c.7,950 sq mi (20,590 sq km), along the Egypt-Sudan border, on the Red Sea coast. Claimed by Egypt and Sudan, and under the...

Great Wall of China

(Encyclopedia)Great Wall of China, series of fortifications, c.3,890 mi (6,260 km) long (not including trenches and natural defensive barriers), winding across N China from Gansu prov. to Liaoning prov. The wall, r...

Bowen, Elizabeth

(Encyclopedia)Bowen, Elizabeth bōˈĭn [key], 1899–1973, Anglo-Irish novelist, b. Dublin. In impeccable prose she treated love and frustration through studies of complex psychological relationships. Her novels i...

Indian art and architecture

(Encyclopedia)Indian art and architecture, works of art and architecture produced on the Indian subcontinent, which is now divided among India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh. In the Western world, notable collections of...

Etam

(Encyclopedia)Etam ēˈtəm [key], in the Bible. 1 Village, S ancient Palestine. 2 Town of Judah, SW of Bethlehem. 3 Cleft rock, where Samson hid. These may be the same. ...

water table

(Encyclopedia)water table, the top zone of soil and rock in which all voids are saturated with water. The level of the water table varies with topography and climate, and depends on the degree to which the groundwa...

Devils Tower National Monument

(Encyclopedia)Devils Tower National Monument, 1,347 acres (546 hectares), overlooking the Belle Fourche River, NE Wyo.; it was the first designated U.S. national monument (1906). Devils Tower, 865 ft (264 m) high a...

Behistun Inscription

(Encyclopedia)Behistun Inscription bēso͞oto͞onˈ, bēsə– [key], cuneiform text, the decipherment of which was the key to all cuneiform script and opened to scholars the study of the written works of ancient M...

pumice

(Encyclopedia)pumice pŭmˈĭs [key], volcanic glass formed by the solidification of lava that is permeated with gas bubbles. Usually found at the surface of a lava flow, it is colorless or light gray and has the g...