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health-care proxy
health-care proxy legal document in which a person assigns to another person, usually called an agent or proxy, the authority to make medical decisions in case of incapacitation. It is, in essence, a power of attorney for health care. In many cases, the health-care proxy is used in conjunction with...
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William Hull
William Hull 1753-1825, American general, b. Derby, Conn. He served brilliantly in the American Revolution and became in 1805 governor of the newly created Michigan Territory. As the War of 1812 began he asked Congress for a larger U.S. fleet on Lake Erie and reinforcements for Detroit. Hull, in co...
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living will
living will legal document in which a person expresses in advance his or her wishes concerning the use of artificial life support , to be referred to should the person be unable to communicate such wishes at the end of life. A living will usually goes into effect only when two physicians certify t...
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Alba Longa
Alba Longa , city of ancient Latium, in the Alban Hills near Lake Albano, c.12 mi (19 km) SE of Rome. It was a city before 1100 BC and apparently the most powerful in Latium. Legend says that it was founded by Ascanius, son of Aeneas, and that Romulus and Remus were born there, thus making it the mo...
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duress
duress , in law, actual or threatened violence or imprisonment, by reason of which a person is forced to enter into an agreement or to perform some other act against his will. The constraint or threat of constraint must have been directed toward the person thus compelled or toward the wife, husband,...
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castor oil
castor oil yellowish oil obtained from the seed of the castor bean . The oil content of the seeds varies from about 20% to 50%. After the hulls are removed the seeds are cold-pressed. Medicinal castor oil is prepared from the yield of the first pressing; this is used as a purgative and laxative. O...
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Horeb
Horeb , in the Bible, mountain, another name for Mt. Sinai. It is mentioned in Psalm 106 as the place of the making of the golden calf. Elijah fled to Horeb.
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hyperon
hyperon , class of elementary particles heavier than nucleons ( proton and neutron ). The nucleons and the hyperons together make up the baryon family of particles.
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dark energy
dark energy repulsive force that opposes the self-attraction of matter (see gravitation ) and causes the expansion of the universe to accelerate. The search for dark energy was triggered by the discovery (1998) in images from the Hubble Space Telescope of a distant supernova that implied an acce...
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gift
gift in law, voluntary transfer of property from one person to another without any compensation for it and without any obligation of an agreement or contract. The one who gives is the donor; the one who receives the gift, the donee. There are two main classes of gifts, gifts inter vivos and gifts...
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