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gravitation

(Encyclopedia)gravitation, the attractive force existing between any two particles of matter. The term gravitygravity is commonly used synonymously with gravitation, but in correct usage a definite distinction is...

Esperanto

(Encyclopedia)Esperanto ĕspəränˈtō [key], an artificial language introduced in 1887 and intended by its inventor, Dr. Ludwik Lejzer Zamenhof (1859–1917), a Polish oculist and linguist, to ease communication ...

grease

(Encyclopedia)grease, mixture of lubricant and thickener. It is used to reduce friction between surfaces from which oils would leak away or cause damage by dripping, or where lubrication must be assured for extende...

Torres-García, Joaquín

(Encyclopedia)Torres-García, Joaquín, 1874–1949, Uruguayan painter, b. Montevideo, considered the father of Latin American constructivism. In 1894 his family moved to Barcelona, Spain, where he studied at the A...

folktale

(Encyclopedia)folktale, general term for any of numerous varieties of traditional narrative. The telling of stories appears to be a cultural universal, common to pre-industrial, ancient, and more modern and develop...

Alessandri, Arturo

(Encyclopedia)Alessandri, Arturo ärto͞oˈrō älĕssänˈdrē [key], 1868–1950, president of Chile (1920–25, 1932–38). The 1920 presidential candidate of the Liberal Alliance, a coalition of all the enemies...

Ferguson, Adam

(Encyclopedia)Ferguson, Adam fûrˈgəsən [key], 1723–1816, Scottish philosopher and historian. He was professor of philosophy at the Univ. of Edinburgh (1759–85). His Essay on the History of Civil Society (17...

Heraclitus

(Encyclopedia)Heraclitus hĕrəklīˈtəs [key], c.535–c.475 b.c., Greek philosopher of Ephesus, of noble birth. According to Heraclitus, there was no permanent reality except the reality of change; permanence wa...

Mo-Tzu

(Encyclopedia)Mo-Tzu dē [key], c.470 b.c.–391 b.c., Chinese philosopher. His teachings, found in The Mo Tzu, emphasize universal love—that people should love all others as they love their own families and stat...

Ave Maria

(Encyclopedia)Ave Maria äˈvā märēˈä [key] [Lat.,=hail, Mary], prayer to the Virgin Mary universal among Roman Catholics, also called the Ave, the Hail Mary, and the Angelic Salutation. The words in English a...