Study Help
Full Glossary for Three Weeks with My Brother
Amber Fort of Jaipur the ancient citadel of the ruling Kachhawa clan of Amber
Angkor Wat a temple complex at Angkor, Cambodia, built for the king Suryavarman II in the early 12th century as his state temple and capital city
Arctic Circle line of latitude near but to the south of the North Pole; it marks the northernmost point at which the sun is visible on the northern winter solstice and the southernmost point at which the midnight sun can be seen on the northern summer solstice
astrocytoma cancer of the brain that originates in star-shaped brain cells called astrocytes. This type of tumor does not usually spread outside the brain and spinal cord and it does not usually affect other organs
Ayers Rock a large sandstone rock formation in the southern part of the Northern Territory, central Australia
Balto Siberian Husky sled dog who led his team on the final leg of the 1925 serum run to Nome, in which diphtheria antitoxin was transported from Anchorage, Alaska to Nenana, Alaska by train and then to Nome by dog sled to combat an outbreak of the disease
bunco a parlor game played in teams with three dice
cacophony disagreeable sound
Captain Bligh a British admiral who captained the H.M.S. Bounty in 1789 when part of the crew mutinied and set him afloat in an open boat
cenotaph a monument built to honor people whose remains are interred elsewhere or whose remains cannot be recovered
conquistadores Spanish adventurers, especially those who led the conquest of Mexico and Peru
draconian very severe, oppressive or strict
elusive hard to express or define
epiphany a sudden realization or comprehension of the (larger) essence or meaning of something
FEMA the Federal Emergency Management Agency: an independent agency of the United States government that provides a single point of accountability for all federal emergency preparedness
glioblastoma multiforme the most common and most aggressive type of primary brain tumor in humans
gulag a Soviet prison camp for political prisoners
Half Dome a granite dome in Yosemite National Park
Hiram Bingham an academic, explorer, treasure hunter and politician from the United States who made public the existence of the Quechua citadel of Machu Picchu in 1911
hypogeum an underground, pre-Christian temple or a tomb
Incan related to the culture of a tribe of South American Indians found in Peru during the Spanish conquest
Japanese Zeros a long-range fighter aircraft operated by the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service from 1940-45
Khmer Rouge a Communist organization formed in Cambodia in 1970 that became a terrorist organization in 1975 when it captured Phnom Penh and created a government that killed an estimated three million people
Killing Fields a number of sites in Cambodia where large numbers of people were killed and buried by the Khmer Rouge regime
La Niña a sustained sea-surface temperature anomaly of magnitude greater than 0.5°C across the central tropical Pacific Ocean, producing predictable variations in local and regional weather patterns
Lalibela, Ethiopia a town in northern Ethiopia; one of Ethiopia's holiest cities and a center of pilgrimage for much of the country
Maharaja a great raja; a Hindu prince or king in India ranking above a raja
manic-depressive suffering from a disorder characterized by alternating mania and depression
marauder someone who attacks in search of booty
Mayan related to the culture of a tribe of Central American Indians having an advanced civilization in parts now known as Guatemala and British Honduras
mayhem a situation characterized by confusion and noise
Moai monolithic human figures carved from rock on the Polynesian island of Easter Island, Chile between the years 1250 and 1500
Northern lights the common name for a natural light display in the sky, particularly in the Polar Regions, caused by the collision of charged particles directed by the Earth's magnetic field
oligodendroglioma a rare slow-growing type of brain tumor that begins in cells called oligodendrocytes, which provide support and nourishment for cells that transmit nerve impulses
palatable agreeable
peruse to look at closely
Petén a department (region) of the nation of Guatemala. It is geographically the northernmost department of Guatemala, as well as the largest in size
Phnom Penh, Cambodia capital city of Cambodia
Pol Pot the leader of the infamous Khmer Rouge in Cambodia. He was responsible for the deaths of almost 3 million people — almost half the population of Cambodia
Polynesian Cook Islands an archipelago (group of islands) southwest of Samoa near New Zealand
Richter Scale a logarithmic scale of 1 to 10 used to express the magnitude of an earthquake on the basis of the size of seismograph oscillations
Spitfires a British single-seat fighter aircraft used by the Royal Air Force and many other Allied countries through the Second World War
strewn scattered
surreptitiously acquired through improper means
Taj Mahal a beautiful mausoleum at Agra built by the Mogul emperor Shah Jahan (completed in 1649) in memory of his favorite wife
topography the configuration of a surface and the relations among its man-made and natural features
UNESCO the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization: an agency of the United Nations that promotes education and communication and the arts
Urubamba Valley the Sacred Valley of the Incas in the Andes of Peru
Yosemite a national park spanning eastern portions of Tuolumne, Mariposa and Madera counties in east central California, United States