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Sulawesi

(Encyclopedia)Sulawesi sĕlˈəbēz [key], island (1990 pop. 12,511,163), c.73,000 sq mi (189,070 sq km), largest island in E Indonesia, E of Borneo, from which it is separated by the Makasar Strait. Extremely irre...

Habibie, B. J.

(Encyclopedia)Habibie, B. J. (Bacharuddin Jusuf Habibie), 1936–2019, Indonesian aeronautical engineer and political leader. Educated in Germany, he worked as an aerospace engineer for Messerschmitt-Bölkow-Blohm ...

python, in zoology

(Encyclopedia)python pīˈthŏn [key], name for nonvenomous constrictor snakes of the boa family, found in the tropical regions of Africa, Asia, Australia, and the S Pacific islands. Pythons climb and swim expertly...

Jidda

(Encyclopedia)Jidda jĕ– [key], city (1993 est. pop. 2,058,000), Hejaz, W Saudi Arabia, on the Red Sea. Jidda is the port of Mecca (c.45 mi/72 km to the east) and annually receives a huge influx of pilgrims, main...

boat people

(Encyclopedia)boat people, term used to describe the Indochinese refugees who fled Communist rule after the Vietnam War (1975) in small boats and the many ethnic Chinese who left Vietnam similarly after China's inv...

Pacific Rim

(Encyclopedia)Pacific Rim, term used to describe the nations bordering the Pacific Ocean and the island countries situated in it. In the post–World War II era, the Pacific Rim has become an increasingly important...

Civil War, in U.S. history

(Encyclopedia)Civil War, in U.S. history, conflict (1861–65) between the Northern states (the Union) and the Southern states that seceded from the Union and formed the Confederacy. It is generally known in the So...

Knights Templars, in medieval history

(Encyclopedia)Knights Templars tĕmˈplərz [key], in medieval history, members of the military and religious order of the Poor Knights of Christ, called the Knights of the Temple of Solomon from their house in Jer...

American Museum of Natural History

(Encyclopedia)American Museum of Natural History, incorporated in New York City in 1869 to promote the study of natural science and related subjects. Buildings on its present site facing Central Park were opened in...
 

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