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harvest moon

(Encyclopedia)harvest moon, full moon occurring nearest to the autumnal equinox, about Sept. 23. During harvest moon the retardation (later rising each night) of the moon is at a minimum because of the relation of ...

Welland Ship Canal

(Encyclopedia)Welland Ship Canal, 27.6 mi (44.4 km) long, SE Ont., Canada, connecting Lake Ontario with Lake Erie and bypassing Niagara Falls. Built between 1914 and 1932 by Canada to replace a canal opened in 1829...

Dollard des Ormeaux, Adam

(Encyclopedia)Dollard des Ormeaux, Adam ädäNˈ dôlärˈ dāzôrmōˈ [key], 1635–1660, garrison commander of the fort at Ville-Marie (Montreal), b. France. He probably went to Canada in 1658. In the spring of ...

Passaic, city, United States

(Encyclopedia)Passaic pəsāˈĭk [key], city (1990 pop. 58,041), Passaic co., NE N.J., a port on the Passaic River; settled 1678 by Dutch traders as Acquackanonk, named Passaic 1854, inc. as a city 1873. Formerly ...

calculus of variations

(Encyclopedia)calculus of variations, branch of mathematics concerned with finding maximum or minimum conditions for a relationship between two or more variables that depends not only on the variables themselves, a...

peonage

(Encyclopedia)peonage pēˈənĭj [key], system of involuntary servitude based on the indebtedness of the laborer (the peon) to his creditor. It was prevalent in Spanish America, especially in Mexico, Guatemala, Ec...

strike

(Encyclopedia)strike, concentrated work stoppage by a group of employees, the chief weapon of organized labor. A suspension of work on the employer's part is called a lockout. Strikes usually result from conflicts ...

margin requirement

(Encyclopedia)margin requirement, that part of a security's price that a buyer must pay for in cash. The balance of the price is met by the broker, who, in effect, is supplying a client with a loan. The smaller the...

Dmitri Donskoi

(Encyclopedia)Dmitri Donskoi dəmēˈtrē dənskoiˈ [key], 1350–89, Russian hero, grand duke of Moscow (1359–89). He successfully resisted Lithuanian attempts to invade Moscow, and was the first Russian prince...

Wilson, Charles Erwin

(Encyclopedia)Wilson, Charles Erwin, 1890–1961, American industrialist and cabinet officer, b. Minerva, Ohio. He was an electrical engineer with Westinghouse Electric and Manufacturing Company from 1909 to 1919 a...