|
annual rings
annual rings the growth layers of wood that are produced each year in the stems and roots of trees and shrubs. In climates with well-marked alternations of seasons (either cold and warm or wet and dry), the wood cells produced when water is easily available and growth is rapid (generally correspo...
Read more
|
|
|
minutemen
minutemen in the American Revolution, colonial militiamen or armed citizens who agreed to turn out for service at a minute's notice. The term minutemen is used especially for the men who were enrolled (1774) for such service by the Massachusetts provincial congress. These were "the embattled fa...
Read more
|
|
|
palpitation
palpitation , abnormal heartbeat that is often associated with a sensation of fluttering or thumping. The normal heartbeat is not noticeable to the individual. Palpitation may be a symptom of organic heart disease or of other body disorders such as an overactive thyroid gland or anemia. In healthy p...
Read more
|
|
Boris Becker
Boris Becker 1967-, German tennis player, b. Leimen, West Germany (now Germany). Noted for his powerful, often acrobatic serve-and-volley game, he gained notice in 1985 when, at 17, he became the youngest man to win Wimbledon. He repeated there in 1986 and 1989 and led West Germany to Davis Cup vic...
Read more
|
|
|
hunchback
hunchback abnormal outward curvature of the spine in the thoracic region. It is also known as kyphosis and humpback, and in its severe form a noticeable hump is evident on the back. Hunchback may be congenital, but it can also result from poor posture, uneven growth of the spine, fracture of verteb...
Read more
|
|
|
Henry Hunt
Henry Hunt 1773-1835, English radical politician. A powerful orator, popular with the laboring classes, Hunt was quarrelsome and stubborn but a sincere proponent of electoral and other reforms. He took part with Arthur Thistlewood in the Spa Fields meeting (1816) and gained his chief notice by pr...
Read more
|
|
|
mammography
mammography diagnostic procedure that uses low-dose X rays to detect abnormalities in the breasts. The early diagnosis of breast cancer made possible by the routine use of mammography for screening women increases a woman's treatment alternatives and improves her chances of surviving the cancer. ...
Read more
|
|
trichomoniasis
trichomoniasis , sexually transmitted disease caused by the parasitic protozoan Trichomonas vaginalis. In women, it can cause urinary tract infection and a painful, malodorous vaginitis marked by a thin, foamy, irritating discharge. In men, it can infect the urethra and bladder. Most men have no...
Read more
|
|
Johannes Brahms
Johannes Brahms , 1833-97, German composer, b. Hamburg. Brahms ranks among the greatest masters of the romantic period. The son of a musician, he early showed astonishing talent in many directions; he chose as a boy to become a pianist. As accompanist to the violinist Eduard Reményi he attrac...
Read more
|
|
|
South Africa, Union of
South Africa, Union of. In 1939 South Africa was a British dominion, comprising the provinces of the Cape of Good Hope, Natal, the Orange Free State, and the Transvaal, with the additional mandated territory of South West Africa. Rich in gold and diamonds, as well as coal and iron ore, and other st...
Read more
|
