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Elche

(Encyclopedia)Elche ĕlˈchā [key], Valencian Elx, city, Alicante prov., SE Spain, in Valencia. It is surr...

cryolite

(Encyclopedia)cryolite or kryolite both: krīˈəlītˌ [key] [Gr.,=frost stone], mineral usually pure white or colorless but sometimes tinted in shades of pink, brown, or even black and having a luster like that o...

Fairchild, David Grandison

(Encyclopedia)Fairchild, David Grandison, 1869–1954, American botanist and agricultural explorer, b. East Lansing, Mich. He entered the service of the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture, where he organized (1895) and late...

Elizabethton

(Encyclopedia)Elizabethton, city (2020 pop. 14,546), seat of Carter co., NE Tenn., on the Watauga River; inc. 1799. It is an industrial center where rayon, clothing, ...

ruby

(Encyclopedia)ruby, precious stone, the transparent red variety of corundum, found chiefly in Myanmar, Thailand, and Sri Lanka and classified among the most valuable of gems. The Myanmarese stones are blood red, th...

cat's-eye

(Encyclopedia)cat's-eye, gemstone that displays a thin band of reflected light on its surface when cut as a cabochon. Its name is derived from its supposed resemblance to the eye of a cat. The optical effect, known...

London Bridge

(Encyclopedia)London Bridge, granite, five-arched bridge formerly over the Thames, in London, England. It is 928 ft (283 m) long and was designed by John Rennie and built between 1824 and 1831. The early wooden bri...

lots

(Encyclopedia)lots. The casting of lots was an ancient method of making a choice, settling a dispute, or determining a course of action. In biblical times lots were cast to determine the will of God (it is believed...

Lidman, Sara

(Encyclopedia)Lidman, Sara säˈrä lēdˈmän [key], 1923–2004, Swedish writer. Her novels The Tar Still (1953), Cloudberry Land (1955), and The Rain Bird (1958, tr. 1962), treating rural life in N Sweden, estab...

Mankato

(Encyclopedia)Mankato mănkāˈtō [key], city (1990 pop. 31,477), seat of Blue Earth co., S Minn., at the confluence of the Blue Earth and Minnesota rivers; inc. 1865. It is a trade and processing center for a far...