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mineral

(Encyclopedia)mineral, inorganic substance occurring in nature, having a characteristic and homogeneous chemical composition, definite physical properties, and, usually, a definite crystalline form. A few of the mi...

NASCAR

(Encyclopedia)NASCAR (National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing), organization that sanctions American stock-car races, est. 1948. It held its first race in Daytona Beach, Fla., in 1948 and began its first and...

Ward, Douglas Turner

(Encyclopedia) Ward, Douglas Turner, 1930-2021, African-American actor, director, and playwright, b. Burnside, La., as Roosevelt Ward Jr. Ward’s family ...

Zhukov, Georgi Konstantinovich

(Encyclopedia)Zhukov, Georgi Konstantinovich gēôrˈgē kənstəntyēˈnəvĭch zho͞oˈkôf [key], 1896–1974, Soviet marshal. He fought in the October Revolution (1917) and in the civil war (1918–20), which b...

Sinclair, Upton

(Encyclopedia)Sinclair, Upton (Upton Beall Sinclair), 1878–1968, American novelist and socialist activist, b. Baltimore, grad. College of the City of New York, 1897. He was one of the muckrakers, and a dedication...

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...

Baze, Russell Avery

(Encyclopedia)Baze, Russell Avery, 1958–, Canadian-American jockey, b. Vancouver, Canada. He rode primarily at tracks in N California. In 2006 he surpassed Laffit Pincay, Jr.'s record for career wins, and in 2008...

Wheatley, Phillis

(Encyclopedia)Wheatley, Phillis, 1753?–1784, American poet, considered the first important black writer in the United States. Brought from Africa in 1761, she became a house slave for the Boston merchant John Whe...

Phillips, Wendell

(Encyclopedia)Phillips, Wendell, 1811–84, American reformer and orator, b. Boston, grad. Harvard (B.A., 1831; LL.B., 1834). He was admitted to the bar in 1834 but, having sufficient income of his own, he abandone...

Hale, Edward Everett

(Encyclopedia)Hale, Edward Everett, 1822–1909, American author and Unitarian clergyman, b. Boston, grad. Harvard, 1839. He was the nephew of Edward Everett. The pastor of a church in Worcester, Mass. (1842–56),...