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abominable snowman
abominable snowman or yeti , humanlike creature so named because it is associated with the perpetual snow region of the Himalayas. A figure unknown except through tracks ascribed to it and through alleged encounters, it is described as being 6 to 8 ft (1.8 to 2.4 m) tall and covered with long, d...
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horse racing
horse racing trials of speed involving two or more horses. It includes races among harnessed horses with one of two particular gaits, among saddled Thoroughbreds (or, less frequently, quarterhorses) on a flat track, or among saddled horses over a turf course with obstacles to be jumped (steeplechas...
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Auteuil
Auteuil , old town between the Seine and the Bois de Boulogne, absorbed (1860) into Paris, France. A favorite resort for writers (Molière, La Fontaine, Boileau) in the 17th cent., it is now the site of a popular steeplechase track.
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dog racing
dog racing trials of speed between dogs. Now contested on oval tracks, the sport developed from the ancient practice of coursing, in which specially trained dogs chase game animals in the open field. Whippets chased live rabbits until the protests of humane groups had the practice outlawed. Artific...
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track and field athletics
track and field athletics sports of foot racing, hurdling, jumping, vaulting, and throwing varied weights and objects. They are usually separated into two categories: track, the running and hurdling events; and field, the throwing, jumping, and vaulting events. "Meets" are traditionally conduct...
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monorail
monorail railway system that uses cars that run on a single rail. Typically the rail is run overhead and the cars are either suspended from it or run above it. Driving power is transmitted from the cars to the track by means of wheels that rotate horizontally, making contact with the rail between i...
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parimutuel betting
parimutuel betting , system of cooperative wagering invented (c.1870) in France by Pierre Oller. According to the system, the holders of winning tickets divide the total amount of money bet on a race (the pool), after deductions for tax and racetrack expenses. The uniqueness of parimutuel betting li...
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pterosaur
pterosaur [Gr., = winged lizard], extinct flying reptile (commonly called pterodactyl [Gr., = wing finger]) of the order Pterosauria, common in the late Triassic and Cretaceous periods, from approximately 228 to 65 million years ago. At least 60 genera of pterosaurs have...
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apatite
apatite , mineral, a phosphate of calcium containing chlorine or fluorine, or both, that is transparent to opaque in shades of green, brown, yellow, white, red, and purple. Apatite is a minor constituent in igneous and metamorphic rocks. Yellow-green asparagus stone and blue-green manganapatite are ...
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Barstow
Barstow , city (1990 pop. 21,472), San Bernardino co., SE Calif., on the dry Mojave River; founded in the 1880s as a silver-mining town, inc. 1947. Railroad shops and the Goldstone space tracking station are major employers. Several U.S. military facilities are nearby. Barstow is an outfitting point...
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