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Roche limit
Roche limit the closest distance that a celestial body held together only by its own gravity can come to a planet without being pulled apart by the planet's tidal (gravitational) force. This distance depends on the densities of the two bodies and the orbit of the celestial body. Inside the Roche li...
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debit card
debit card card that allows the cost of goods or services that are purchased to be deducted directly from the purchaser's checking account. They can also be used at automated teller machines for withdrawing cash from the user's checking account. Increasingly common in the 1990s as an alternative ...
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ligament
ligament , strong band of white fibrous connective tissue that joins bones to other bones or to cartilage in the joint areas. The bundles of collagenous fibers that form ligaments tend to be pliable but not elastic. They therefore permit freedom of movement within a certain limited range while hol...
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Samuel Plimsoll
Samuel Plimsoll , 1824-98, English reformer. Plimsoll was particularly interested in the welfare of sailors. As a member of Parliament (1868-80) he secured legislation limiting the loading of ships. It required that a line be painted on the sides of all British merchant vessels to show the limit of ...
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secant
secant in mathematics. 1 In geometry, a secant is a straight line cutting a curve or surface. If it intersects the curve in two different points, as in the secant of a circle , the segment of the secant between the points is called a chord. The limiting position of a secant, if such a limit exis...
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amortization
amortization , reduction, liquidation, or satisfaction of a debt. The term amortization may also refer to the sum used for that purpose. The term is commonly used in ascertaining the investment value of securities. Thus, if a security is bought at more than its face value (i.e., at a premium), a p...
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Edward Gordon Craig
Edward Gordon Craig 1872-1966, English scene designer, producer, and actor. The son of Ellen Terry , Gordon Craig began acting with Henry Irving's Lyceum company (1885-97). Feeling that the realism in vogue was too limiting, he turned to scene design and developed new theories. He strove for the p...
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flextime
flextime system of assigning hours for work that permits employees to choose, within specified limits, the hours that they will be at their place of employment. In many companies, there is a "core time" when all employees must be present each workday. By allowing employees to stagger hours or b...
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Intolerable Acts
Intolerable Acts name given by American patriots to five laws (including the Quebec Act ) adopted by Parliament in 1774, which limited the political and geographical freedom of the colonists. Four of these laws were passed to punish the people of Massachusetts for the Boston Tea Party . The Bosto...
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no-fault insurance
no-fault insurance type of indemnity plan, usually applied to automobile coverage, in which those injured in an accident receive direct payment from the company with which they themselves are insured. Originated (1947) in Saskatchewan, Canada, no-fault insurance eliminates the need for accident vic...
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