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radar astronomy

(Encyclopedia)radar astronomy, application of radar to the determination of distances and planetary features within the solar system, such as rotation rates. A short burst of radio waves is transmitted in the direc...

mirage

(Encyclopedia)mirage mĭräzhˈ [key], atmospheric optical illusion in which an observer sees in the distance a nonexistent body of water or an image, sometimes distorted, of some object or of a complete scene. Exa...

color

(Encyclopedia)color, effect produced on the eye and its associated nerves by light waves of different wavelength or frequency. Light transmitted from an object to the eye stimulates the different color cones of the...

gargoyle

(Encyclopedia)CE5 Gargoyle gargoyle gärˈgoil [key], waterspout used in medieval Europe to draw rainwater from church and cathedral roofs. Gargoyles were fashioned imaginatively in the form of human grotesques...

contrabassoon

(Encyclopedia)CE5 Contrabassoon contrabassoon, large, deep-toned instrument of the oboe family, also called double bassoon. Its tube, over 16 ft (5 m) long, is doubled upon itself four times. It was first made ...

magic square

(Encyclopedia)magic square, a square divided into parts with letters or numbers inscribed therein that, whether combined vertically, horizontally, or diagonally, form the same sum or the same word. In ancient times...

functional group

(Encyclopedia)CE5 functional group, in organic chemistry, group of atoms within a molecule that is responsible for certain properties of the molecule and reactions in which it takes part. Organic compounds are f...

feedback

(Encyclopedia)CE5 Basic feedback control system feedback, arrangement for the automatic self-regulation of an electrical, mechanical, or biological system by returning part of its output as input. A simple exam...

Millett, Kate

(Encyclopedia)Millett, Kate (Katharine Murray Millett), 1934–2017, American feminist author and activist, b. St. Paul, Minn., B.A. Univ. of Minn., 1956, M.A. Oxford, 1958, Ph.D. Columbia, 1968. Her pioneering fem...

Hermes, in Greek religion and mythology

(Encyclopedia)Hermes, in Greek religion and mythology, son of Zeus and Maia. His functions were many, but he was primarily the messenger of the gods, particularly of Zeus, and conductor of souls to Hades. He was go...