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Norfolk Island

(Encyclopedia) Norfolk IslandNorfolk Islandnôrˈfək [key], island (2016 pop. 1,748), 13 sq mi (34 sq km), South Pacific, a territory of Australia, c.1,035 mi (1,670 km) NE of Sydney. Its capital is…

Tahiti

(Encyclopedia) TahitiTahititähēˈtē [key], island (2002 pop. 169.674), South Pacific, in the Windward group of the Society Islands, French Polynesia. The capital is Papeete. Tahiti is the largest (402…

Hepburn, Audrey

(Encyclopedia) Hepburn, Audrey, 1929–93, British film actress, b. Brussels as Audrey Kathleen Ruston. The daughter of an English banker and a Dutch baroness, she and her mother lived in the…

Brooks, Mel

(Encyclopedia) Brooks, Mel, 1927–, American film director, writer, actor, and producer, b. Brooklyn, NY as Melvin Kaminsky. His earliest work was in television, notably as a gag writer for Sid Caesar…

Thomas, Clarence

(Encyclopedia) Thomas, Clarence, 1948–, associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court (1991–), b. Pin Point (Savannah), Ga. Raised in a poor family, he graduated (1974) from the Yale Law School and…

tody

(Encyclopedia) todytodytōˈdē [key], common name for small (3–4 in./9–10 cm) West Indian birds of the family Todidae, comprising the single genus Todus. Bright green above with red throats, they are…

brigandage

(Encyclopedia) brigandagebrigandagebrĭgˈəndĭj [key] [Ital. brigare=to fight], robbery and plundering committed by armed bands, often associated with forests or mountain regions. Social and political…

microwave oven

(Encyclopedia) microwave oven, device that uses microwaves to rapidly cook food. The microwaves cause water molecules in the food to vibrate, producing heat, which is distributed through the food by…

verdigris

(Encyclopedia) verdigrisverdigrisvûrˈdəgrēsˌ [key], one of three copper acetates: blue verdigris, Cu(CH3COO)2·CuO·6H2O; green verdigris, 2Cu(CH3COO)2·CuO·6H2O; or neutral verdigris, Cu(CH3COO)2·H2O;…

Wise, John

(Encyclopedia) Wise, John, 1652–1725, American clergyman, exponent of the democratic principles of modern Congregationalism, b. Roxbury, Mass., grad. Harvard, 1673. He was pastor at Ipswich, Mass.,…