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second

(Encyclopedia)second, abbr. sec or s, fundamental unit of time in all systems of measurement. In practical terms, the second is 1/60 of a minute, 1/3,600 of an hour, or 1/86,400 of a day. Since the length of the da...

star

(Encyclopedia)star, hot incandescent sphere of gas, held together by its own gravitation, and emitting light and other forms of electromagnetic radiation whose ultimate source is nuclear energy. The universe co...

hardness

(Encyclopedia)hardness, property of matter commonly described as the resistance of a substance to being scratched by another substance. The degree of hardness is relative, different substances being compared with o...

Formulas for the Volumes of Some Common Solids (table)

(Encyclopedia)Formulas for the Volumes of Some Common Solids 1 Abbreviations: B = area of base; h = height; r = radius; l = length; w = width. ...

Idrisi

(Encyclopedia)Idrisi ĕ– [key], in full Abu Abdallah Muhammad Ibn Muhammad Ibn Abdallah Ibn Idris Al-Hammudi Al-Hasani Al-Idrisi, b. 1099?, d. after 1154, Arab geographer, b. Ceuta. He traveled in Europe, Asia Mi...

Ghazni

(Encyclopedia)Ghazni gŭzˈnē [key], city, capital of Ghazni prov., E central Afghanistan, on the Ghazni R...

Om

(Encyclopedia)Om ôm [key], [Skt.,=yes, so be it] for Hindus and Buddhists, a mystic word or mantra. Om is regarded as the syllable of the supreme Reality and is sometimes called “the mother of mantras.” It is ...

Braille

(Encyclopedia)Braille brāl [key], in astronomy, a small asteroid notable because it has the same atypical geologic composition as the larger asteroid Vesta. In 1999 the space probe Deep Space 1 passed within 16 mi...

Carina

(Encyclopedia)Carina kərēˈnə [key] [Lat.,=the keel], southern constellation, representing the keel of the ancient constellation Argo Navis, or Ship of the Argonauts. Carina contains Canopus, the second brightes...

Trojan asteroids

(Encyclopedia)Trojan asteroids, asteroids that revolve about the sun in the same orbit as a planet, occupying stable positions (known as Lagrangian points) either about 60° ahead of the planet in the orbit or abou...