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staff tree

(Encyclopedia)staff tree, common name for some temperate members of the Celastraceae, a family of trees and shrubs (many of them climbing forms), widely distributed except in polar regions. These plants typically b...

Zuckerberg, Mark Elliot

(Encyclopedia)Zuckerberg, Mark Elliot, 1984–, American computer programmer and business executive, b. Dobbs Ferry, N.Y. A computer prodigy as a child, he entered Harvard in 2002 and two years later co-founded The...

Leghorn chicken

(Encyclopedia)Leghorn chicken, relatively small, white-colored breed of poultry that currently dominates the American egg-producing class. The bird, as bred today, produces a good number of chalk white eggs, a feat...

Laurencin, Marie

(Encyclopedia)Laurencin, Marie märēˈ lōräNsăNˈ [key], 1885–1956, French painter and print maker. She studied under Carrière and was influenced by the fauvist and cubist movements. By 1918 Laurencin had de...

Krylov, Ivan Andreyevich

(Encyclopedia)Krylov, Ivan Andreyevich ēvänˈ əndrāˈəvĭch krĭlôfˈ [key], 1769–1844, Russian fabulist. Some of his more than 200 fables were adapted from Aesop and La Fontaine, but most were original. A ...

levitation

(Encyclopedia)levitation lĕvĭtāˈshən [key], the raising of a human or other body in the air without mechanical aid. The idea is ancient; holy men, both pagan and Christian, were reputed to have had the power o...

Artevelde, Philip van

(Encyclopedia)Artevelde, Philip van, 1340–82, Flemish popular leader, captain general of Ghent; son of Jacob van Artevelde. In the struggle between the so-called Goods (the propertied classes supported by the cou...

Louise, Lake

(Encyclopedia)Louise, Lake, 11⁄2 mi (2.4 km) long, alt. 5,680 ft (1,731 m), SW Alta., Canada, in the Rocky Mts., in Banff National Park. Noted for its scenic beauty, it is surrounded by high peaks, glaciers, and ...

Lillo, George

(Encyclopedia)Lillo, George, 1693–1739, English dramatist. The son of a prosperous jeweller, he was for many years his father's partner in the trade. He is chiefly remembered as the author of The London Merchant;...

khaki

(Encyclopedia)khaki kăkˈē, käˈkē [key] [Hindi,=dust-colored], closely twilled cloth of linen or cotton, dyed a dust color. It was first used (1848) for uniforms for the English regiment of Sir Harry Burnett L...