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shipping

(Encyclopedia)shipping, transportation of passengers and goods on waterways. From prehistoric times shipping has had a major influence on human social development. Water routes, unlike roads, did not need building,...

St. John, Henry, Viscount Bolingbroke

(Encyclopedia)St. John, Henry, Viscount Bolingbroke sĭn jŭn, bŏlˈĭngbro͝ok [key], 1678–1751, English statesman. He retired from politics in 1735 and spent most his remaining years on his estates in France...

saint, in Christianity

(Encyclopedia)saint [O.Fr., from Latin sanctus=holy], in Christianity, a person who is recognized as worthy of veneration. Accounts of saints' lives have been favorite reading material for many, and at times thei...

terrorism

(Encyclopedia)terrorism, the threat or use of violence, often against the civilian population, to achieve political or social ends, to intimidate opponents, or to publicize grievances. The term dates from the Reign...

comet

(Encyclopedia)CE5 Comet: Whatever the direction of a comet's flight, its “tail” always points away from the sun. The tail disappears when the comet is far from the sun. comet [Gr.,=longhaired], a small cele...

Abu Ghraib

(Encyclopedia)Abu Ghraib or Abu Ghurayb äˈbo͞o grĕb [key], infamous prison located in the town of Abu Ghraib, c.20 mi (32 km) W of Baghdad, Iraq. Built by British contractors in the 1960s, it occupies c.280 acr...

glacier

(Encyclopedia)glacier, moving mass of ice that survives year to year, formed by the compacting of snow into névé and then into granular ice and set in motion outward and downward by the force of gravity and the s...

common law

(Encyclopedia)common law, system of law that prevails in England and in countries colonized by England. The name is derived from the medieval theory that the law administered by the king's courts represented the co...

wildlife refuge

(Encyclopedia)wildlife refuge, haven or sanctuary for animals; an area of land or of land and water set aside and maintained, usually by government or private organization, for the preservation and protection of on...

catalyst

(Encyclopedia)catalyst, substance that can cause a change in the rate of a chemical reaction without itself being consumed in the reaction; the changing of the reaction rate by use of a catalyst is called catalysis...