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Roberts, Owen Josephus

(Encyclopedia)Roberts, Owen Josephus, 1875–1955, associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court (1930–45), b. Philadelphia. After receiving (1898) his law degree from the Univ. of Pennsylvania, he practiced law in...

Van Rensselaer, Kiliaen

(Encyclopedia)Van Rensselaer, Kiliaen kēˈlēän văn rĕnˈsələr, rĕnˈsəlērˌ [key], c.1580–1644, Dutch merchant and patroon, b. Amsterdam. He was a wealthy diamond and pearl merchant and helped found (16...

Xi

(Encyclopedia)Xi shē jyäng [key], great river of S China, c.1,250 mi (2,010 km) long, rising in E Yunnan prov. and flowing generally E through Guangxi and Guangdong provs. to the South China Sea near Guangzhou; t...

Brinkley, David McClure

(Encyclopedia)Brinkley, David McClure, 1920–2003, American news broadcaster, b. Wilmington, N.C. He began (1942) his lengthy journalistic career as a reporter for United Press, soon (1943) joining the National Br...

Poitier, Sir Sidney

(Encyclopedia)Poitier, Sir Sidney, 1927–2022, Bahamian-American actor, b. Miami, raised in the Bahamas, returned to the United States at 14. Poitier served in the 1...

Margarita

(Encyclopedia)Margarita märgärēˈtä [key], island, 444 sq mi (1,150 sq km), in the Caribbean Sea off the coast of Venezuela. With many smaller islands it constitutes the Venezuelan state of Nueva Esparta (1990 ...

Higashikuni, Naruhiko

(Encyclopedia)Higashikuni, Naruhiko, 1887–1990, Japanese military officer and political leader, b. Kyoto. A prince of the imperial family and an uncle of Hirohito, he received military training in Japan and Franc...

shell money

(Encyclopedia)shell money, medium of exchange consisting of shells, the most widely distributed type of ancient currency. Shells are particularly useful as money because they may be strung in long strips of proport...

Tojo, Hideki

(Encyclopedia)Tojo, Hideki hēdāˈkē tōˈjō [key], 1884–1948, Japanese general and statesman. He became prime minister after he forced Konoye's resignation in Oct., 1941. His accession marked the final triump...

Tarawa

(Encyclopedia)Tarawa təräˈwə, tărˈəwä [key], atoll (1990 pop. 28,802), capital of Kiribati, central Pacific, previously capital of the former British colony of the Gilbert and Ellice Islands. The administra...