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gerbil

(Encyclopedia)gerbil jûrˈbĭl [key], small desert rodent found throughout the hot arid regions of Africa and Asia. Also known as sand rats, gerbils have large eyes and powerful, elongated hind limbs upon which th...

game laws

(Encyclopedia)game laws, restrictions on the hunting or capture of wild game, whether bird, beast, or fish. After the Norman Conquest (1066), England enacted stringent game laws, known as the Forest Laws, which mad...

nail, in anatomy

(Encyclopedia)nail, in anatomy, the horny outgrowth shielding the tip of the finger and the toe in humans and most other primates. The nail consists of dead cells pushed outward by dividing cells in the root, a fol...

Augustine of Canterbury, Saint

(Encyclopedia)Augustine of Canterbury, Saint ôˈgəstēn, –tĭn; ôgŭsˈtĭn [key], d. c.605, Italian missionary, called the Apostle of the English, first archbishop of Canterbury (from 601). A Roman monk, he w...

ohmmeter

(Encyclopedia)ohmmeter ōmˈmēˌtər [key], instrument used to measure the electrical resistance of a conductor. It is usually included in a single package with a voltmeter, and often an ammeter. In normal usage, ...

astigmatism

(Encyclopedia)astigmatism əstĭgˈmətĭzˌəm [key], type of faulty vision caused by a nonuniform curvature in the refractive surfaces—usually the cornea, less frequently the lens—of the eye. As a result, lig...

pasture

(Encyclopedia)pasture, land used for grazing livestock. Land unsuited for cultivation, e.g., hilly or stony land, may be used as pasture. Tilled land and meadow may be pastured after the crops are removed. Pastures...

beriberi

(Encyclopedia)beriberi bĕrˈēbĕrˈē [key], deficiency disease occurring when the human body has insufficient amounts of thiamine (vitamin B1). The deficiency may result from improper diet (e.g., ingestion of hi...

bean weevil

(Encyclopedia)bean weevil, common name for a well-known cosmopolitan species of beetle (Acanthoscelides obtectus) that attacks beans and is thought to be native to the United States. It belongs to the family Bruchi...

stun gun

(Encyclopedia)stun gun, hand-held electronic device that produces a high-voltage pulse that can immobilize a person for several minutes with no permanent damage in most cases. It is powered by ordinary batteries, w...