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Lowell, Percival

(Encyclopedia)Lowell, Percival, 1855–1916, American astronomer, b. Boston, grad. Harvard, 1876; brother of Abbott Lawrence Lowell and Amy Lowell. He visited Korea and Japan, where he acted as counselor and foreig...

papillon

(Encyclopedia)papillon păpˈəlŏnˌ [key], breed of toy dog whose origins are obscure but whose widespread existence in Europe is attested to as early as the 17th cent. It stands from 8 to 11 in. (20.3–27.9 cm)...

Hughes, Thomas

(Encyclopedia)Hughes, Thomas, 1822–96, English author. A lawyer, Hughes eventually became a judge; he was also a Liberal member of Parliament and worked assiduously for social reforms. His novel of school life, T...

limonite

(Encyclopedia)limonite hĕmˈətīt, hēˈ– [key], yellowish to dark brown mineral, a hydrated oxide of iron, FeO(OH)·nH2O, occurring commonly in deposits of secondary origin, i.e., those formed by the alteratio...

luminosity

(Encyclopedia)luminosity, in astronomy, the rate at which energy of all types is radiated by an object in all directions. A star's luminosity depends on its size and its temperature, varying as the square of the ra...

Tom Thumb

(Encyclopedia)Tom Thumb, 1838–83, American entertainer, whose original name was Charles Sherwood Stratton, b. Bridgeport, Conn. His career as General Tom Thumb began in 1842, when the showman P. T. Barnum gave hi...

Barnard's star

(Encyclopedia)Barnard's star, star with the largest observed proper motion (rate of motion across the sky with respect to other stars); located in the constellation Ophiuchus. The star's large proper motion, 10.28�...

Brussels griffon

(Encyclopedia)Brussels griffon, breed of sturdy toy dog developed in Belgium in the 18th and 19th cent. It stands about 8 in. (20.3 cm) high at the shoulder and weighs from 6 to 12 lb (2.7–5.5 kg). There are two ...

planet

(Encyclopedia)planet [Gr.,=wanderer], a large nonluminous body of rock, gas, or ice that orbits the sun or another star, has a rounded shape due to gravity, and has cleared its orbit of smaller objects. The term, o...

arborvitae

(Encyclopedia)arborvitae ärˌbərvīˈtē [key] [Lat.,=tree of life], aromatic evergreen tree of the genus Thuja of the family Cupressaceae (cypress family), with scalelike leaves borne on flattened branchlets of ...