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Masai

(Encyclopedia)Masai or Maasai mäsīˈ [key], a largely nomadic pastoral people of E Africa, chiefly in Kenya and Tanzania. Cattle and sheep form the basis of the economy that they have maintained in resistance to ...

pit bull

(Encyclopedia)pit bull, dog having a smooth coat, a stocky build, and a blocky head, originally bred for fighting from bulldog and terrier breeds. Pit bulls were used in bull- and bearbaiting for centuries and as g...

Pretorius, Andries Wilhelmus Jacobus

(Encyclopedia)Pretorius, Andries Wilhelmus Jacobus prĭtôrˈēəs, Du. änˈdrēs vĭlhĕlˈməs yäkōˈbəs prātôrˈēəs [key], 1799–1853, Boer (Afrikaner) leader. He was elected (1838) commandant general o...

phenylketonuria

(Encyclopedia)phenylketonuria fĕnˌəlkētˌəno͝orˈēə [key] (PKU), inherited metabolic disorder caused by a deficiency in a specific enzyme (phenylalanine hydroxylase). The absence of this enzyme, a recessive...

Philby, Kim

(Encyclopedia)Philby, Kim (Harold Adrian Russell Philby), 1912–88, British double agent, son of Harry St. John Bridger Philby, studied Trinity College, Cambridge. A longtime high-ranking member of Britain's MI6 i...

Carrel, Alexis

(Encyclopedia)Carrel, Alexis kärĕlˈ, kə– [key], 1873–1944, American surgeon and experimental biologist, b. near Lyons, France, M.D. Univ. of Lyons, 1900. Coming to the United States in 1905, he joined the s...

Swammerdam, Jan

(Encyclopedia)Swammerdam, Jan yän väˈmərdäm [key], 1637–80, Dutch naturalist. He was a pioneer in the use of the microscope. Before he turned to religious contemplation his chief interest was the study of in...

swim bladder

(Encyclopedia)swim bladder, large, thin-walled sac in some fishes that may function in several ways, e.g., as a buoyant float, a sound producer and receptor, and a respiratory organ. The swim bladder, or air bladde...

Williams, C. K.

(Encyclopedia)Williams, C. K. (Charles Kenneth Williams), 1936–2015, American poet, b. Newark, N.J., grad. Univ. of Pennsylvania, 1959. He wrote more than 20 books of poetry, rich in detail, with complex syntax a...

valve

(Encyclopedia)valve, device for controlling the flow of fluids (liquids and gases). Valves vary in construction and size depending upon their function. Some are classified according to their method of operation or ...