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guillemot

(Encyclopedia) guillemotguillemotgĭlˈəmŏtˌ [key], northern sea bird, genus Cephas, of the auk family. The black guillemot, or trystie, Cephus grylle, is about 13 in. (33 cm) long and is very striking…

midge

(Encyclopedia) midge, name for any of numerous minute, fragile flies in several families. The family Chironomidae consists of about 2,000 species, most of which are widely distributed. The…

Karroo

(Encyclopedia) Karroo or KarooKarooboth: kər&oomacr;ˈ, kä– [key], the semiarid plateaus of South Africa. The Little Karroo, in Western Cape, is located N of the Langeberg and Outeniqua Ranges and…

Alvarez, Luis Walter

(Encyclopedia) Alvarez, Luis Walter, 1911–88, American physicist, b. San Francisco, grad. Univ. of Chicago, 1932, Ph.D. 1936. He was awarded the 1968 Nobel Prize in Physics for his discovery of a…

Adirondack Mountains

(Encyclopedia) Adirondack MountainsAdirondack Mountainsădˌərŏnˈdăk [key], mountain mass, NE N.Y., between the St. Lawrence valley in the north and the Mohawk valley in the south; rising to 5,344 ft (…

tektite

(Encyclopedia) tektitetektitetĕktīt [key], naturally occurring, silica-rich (65%–80% SiO2) glass resembling obsidian and sometimes shale, and is normally jet black to olive green. They appear as…

Tierra del Fuego

(Encyclopedia) Tierra del FuegoTierra del Fuegotyĕˈrä dĕl fwāˈgō [key], [Span.,=land of fire], archipelago, 28,476 sq mi (73,753 sq km), off S South America, separated from the mainland by the Strait…

shale

(Encyclopedia) shale, sedimentary rock formed by the consolidation of mud or clay, having the property of splitting into thin layers parallel to its bedding planes. Shale tends to be fissile, i.e.,…

silica

(Encyclopedia) silica or silicon dioxide, chemical compound, SiO2. It is insoluble in water, slightly soluble in alkalies, and soluble in dilute hydrofluoric acid. Pure silica is colorless to white.…

Adams, Ansel

(Encyclopedia) Adams, Ansel, 1902–84, American photographer, b. San Francisco. He began taking photographs in the High Sierra and Yosemite Valley, with which his name is permanently associated,…