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Griffith, D. W.

(Encyclopedia) Griffith, D. W. (David Llewelyn Wark Griffith), 1875–1948, American movie director and producer, b. La Grange, Ky. Griffith was the first major American film director. He began his…

hoatzin

(Encyclopedia) hoatzinhoatzinwätsēnˈ [key] [Aztec], common name for a peculiar marsh bird, Opisthocomus hoatzin. The hoatzin is a slender bird with a brownish plumage spotted with white above and…

lipids

(Encyclopedia) lipids, a broad class of organic products found in living systems. Most are insoluble in water but soluble in nonpolar solvents. The definition excludes the mineral oils and other…

McGwire, Mark David

(Encyclopedia) McGwire, Mark DavidMcGwire, Mark Davidməgwīrˈ [key], 1963–, American baseball player, b. Pomona, Calif. A muscular first baseman who was a college and Olympic (1984) star, McGwire…

Nubia

(Encyclopedia) NubiaNubian&oomacr;ˈbēə [key], ancient state of NE Africa. At the height of its political power Nubia extended, from north to south, from the First Cataract of the Nile (near Aswan…

Philip of Hesse

(Encyclopedia) Philip of HessePhilip of Hessehĕs [key], 1504–67, German nobleman, landgrave of Hesse (1509–67), champion of the Reformation. He is also called Philip the Magnanimous. Declared of age…

Diamond Necklace, Affair of the

(Encyclopedia) Diamond Necklace, Affair of the, scandal that took place at the court of King Louis XVI of France just before the French Revolution. An adventuress who called herself the comtesse de…

Coahuila

(Encyclopedia) Coahuila Coahuila kōäwēˈlä [key], state, 58,067 sq mi (150,394 sq km), N Mexico, on the northward…

Tóibín, Colm

(Encyclopedia) Tóibín, Colm, 1955–, Irish writer, b. Enniscorthy, Co. Wexford, grad. University College, Dublin (1975). A prolific and varied author who prose is lucid and often brilliant, Tóibín has…

shaft sinking

(Encyclopedia) shaft sinking, excavation from the surface of an opening in the earth. Shafts, which are generally vertical, are usually distinguished from tunnels, which are horizontal. Little…