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palladium, chemical element
(Encyclopedia)palladium [Gr. Pallas, goddess of wisdom], metallic chemical element; symbol Pd; at. no. 46; at. wt. 106.42; m.p. 1,554℃; b.p. 2,970℃; sp. gr. 12.02 at 20℃; valence +2, +3, or +4. Palladium is a...percussion instrument
(Encyclopedia)percussion instrument, any instrument that produces musical sound when its surface is struck with an implement (such as a mallet, stick, or disk) or with the hand. Perhaps the most universally familia...octane number
(Encyclopedia)octane number, figure of merit representing the resistance of gasoline to premature detonation when exposed to heat and pressure in the combustion chamber of an internal-combustion engine. Such detona...Frame, Janet
(Encyclopedia)Frame, Janet (Janet Paterson Frame Clutha) klo͞oˈthə [key], 1924–2004, New Zealand novelist, b. Dunedin. Frame's complex, disturbing novels are marked by startling images and masterful language. ...Valéry, Paul
(Encyclopedia)Valéry, Paul pōl välārēˈ [key], 1871–1945, French poet and critic. A follower of the symbolists, Valéry was one of the greatest French poets of the 20th cent. He was encouraged by Pierry Loü...Browning, Elizabeth Barrett
(Encyclopedia)Browning, Elizabeth Barrett, 1806–61, English poet, b. Durham. A delicate and precocious child, she spent a great part of her early life in a state of semi-invalidism. She read voraciously—philoso...Brodsky, Joseph
(Encyclopedia)Brodsky, Joseph (Iosif Aleksandrovich Brodsky) brätˈskē, brädˈ–, Rus. yôsˈyĭf əlyĭksänˈdrəvyĭch brôtˈskē [key], 1940–96, Russian-American poet, b. Leningrad (St. Petersburg). A di...Sterne, Laurence
(Encyclopedia)Sterne, Laurence stûrn [key], 1713–68, English author, b. Ireland. Educated at Cambridge, he entered the Anglican church and was given the living of Sutton-in-the-Forest, Yorkshire, in 1738, where ...Coleridge, Samuel Taylor
(Encyclopedia)Coleridge, Samuel Taylor, 1772–1834, English poet and man of letters, b. Ottery St. Mary, Devonshire; one of the most brilliant, versatile, and influential figures in the English romantic movement. ...Millay, Edna St. Vincent
(Encyclopedia)Millay, Edna St. Vincent mĭlāˈ [key], 1892–1950, American poet, b. Rockland, Maine, grad. Vassar College, 1917. One of the most popular poets of her era, Millay was admired as much for the bohemi...Browse by Subject
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