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Perry, William James

(Encyclopedia)Perry, William James, 1927–, U.S. government official, b. Vandergrift, Pa. A Ph.D. in mathematics, former Stanford engineering professor, and founder of a military electronics firm, he served (1977�...

negotiable instrument

(Encyclopedia)negotiable instrument, bill of exchange, check, promissory note, or other written contract for payment that may serve as a substitute for money. It is simple in form and easy to transfer. Transfer of ...

starling

(Encyclopedia)starling, any of a group of originally Old World birds that have become distributed worldwide. Starlings were released in New York City in 1890; since then the common, or European, starling (Sturnus v...

Sun Valley

(Encyclopedia)Sun Valley, mountain resort city (1990 pop. 938), alt. c.6,000 ft (1,830 m), Blaine co., S central Idaho; inc. 1967. It is a popular year-round resort with both winter and summer sports. It was founde...

mange

(Encyclopedia)mange mānj [key], contagious skin disease of domestic and wild animals. The several types of mange, including follicular and sarcoptic mange, are caused by various minute parasitic mites that burrow ...

Fernald, Merritt Lyndon

(Encyclopedia)Fernald, Merritt Lyndon fûrˈnəld [key], 1873–1950, American botanist, b. Orono, Maine, grad. Harvard, 1897. He taught at Harvard (1902–49) and was director of the Gray Herbarium there from 1937...

Neusiedler Lake

(Encyclopedia)Neusiedler Lake noiˈzēdlər [key], Ger. Neusiedlersee, Hung. Fertő tó, c.130 sq mi (340 sq km), on the Austria-Hungary border SE of Vienna. The lake's area and depth (average 5 ft/1.5 m) vary cons...

Xingu

(Encyclopedia)Xingu zĭng-go͞oˈ, Port. shēng-go͞oˈ [key], river, 1,230 mi (1,979 km) long, rising in central Mato Grosso state, Brazil, and winding north across Pará state into the Amazon River at the head of...

Peel, Sir Robert

(Encyclopedia)Peel, Sir Robert, 1788–1850, British statesman. The son of a rich cotton manufacturer, whose baronetcy he inherited in 1830, Peel entered Parliament as a Tory in 1809. He served (1812–18) as chief...

HICKEL, WALTER JOSEPH

(Encyclopedia)Hickel, Walter Joseph, 1919–2010, U.S. secretary of the interior (1969–70), b. Claflin, Kan. After moving to Alaska in 1940, he founded (1947) a construction company and built it into a multimilli...