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Siemens, Ernst Werner von

(Encyclopedia)Siemens, Ernst Werner von ĕrnst vĕrˈnər fən zēˈməns [key], 1816–92, German electrical engineer and inventor. He was a founder and director of Siemens and Halske, a firm that made electrical ...

Richthofen, Ferdinand, Baron von

(Encyclopedia)Richthofen, Ferdinand, Baron von fĕrˈdēnänt bärōnˈ fən rĭkhtˈhōfən [key], 1833–1905, German geographer, geologist, and traveler. He took part in a Prussian expedition in E Asia (1860–6...

Richthofen, Manfred, Baron von

(Encyclopedia)Richthofen, Manfred, Baron von mänˈfrāt [key], 1892–1918, German aviator in World War I. He was credited with the spectacular achievement of shooting down 80 aircraft; he was killed in action on ...

Munich, Technical University of

(Encyclopedia)Munich, Technical University of, at Munich, Germany; founded 1868 by King Ludwig II, acquired its present name 1970. It has three main campuses, with faculties of architecture, business administration...

complexity

(Encyclopedia)complexity, in science, field of study devoted to the process of self-organization. The basic concept of complexity is that all things tend to organize themselves into patterns, e.g., ant colonies, im...

Van de Graaff, Robert Jemison

(Encyclopedia)Van de Graaff, Robert Jemison văn də gräf [key], 1901–67, American physicist, b. Tuscaloosa, Ala., grad. Univ. of Alabama (B.S., 1922), Ph.D. Oxford, 1928. He was research associate at Massachuse...

minnesinger

(Encyclopedia)minnesinger mĭnˈĭsĭngˌər [key], a medieval German knight, poet, and singer of Minne, or courtly love. Originally imitators of Provençal troubadours, minnesingers developed their own style in th...

Scharwenka, Franz Xaver

(Encyclopedia)Scharwenka, Franz Xaver fränts ksävârˈ shärvĕngˈkä [key], 1850–1924, Polish-German pianist and composer. He founded his own conservatories in Berlin (1881) and New York City (1891). Beginnin...

Graaff-Reinet

(Encyclopedia)Graaff-Reinet gräf-rīˈnət [key], town, now part and seat of Camdeboo local municipality, Eastern Cape prov., S South Africa, on the Great Karroo. It is the center of an important farming and stock...

Ford, Ford Madox

(Encyclopedia)Ford, Ford Madox, 1873–1939, English author; grandson of Ford Madox Brown. He changed his name legally from Ford Madox Hueffer in 1919. The author of over 60 works including novels, poems, criticism...