Columbia Encyclopedia
Search results
500 results found
zoology
(Encyclopedia)zoology, branch of biology concerned with the study of animal life. From earliest times animals have been vitally important to man; cave art demonstrates the practical and mystical significance animal...nuclear reactor
(Encyclopedia) CE5 Power reactor system nuclear reactor, device for producing controlled release of nuclear energy. Reactors can be used for research or for power production. A research reactor is designed to pr...marriage
(Encyclopedia)marriage, socially sanctioned union that reproduces the family. In all societies the choice of partners is generally guided by rules of exogamy (the obligation to marry outside a group); some societie...Jaspers, Karl
(Encyclopedia)Jaspers, Karl kärl yäsˈpərs [key], 1883–1969, German philosopher and psychopathologist, b. Oldenburg. After receiving his medical degree (1909) he became (1914) lecturer in psychology and in 192...gum, colloidal plant substance
(Encyclopedia)gum, term commonly applied to any of a wide variety of colloidal substances somewhat similar in appearance and general characteristics, exuded by or extracted from plants. In this classification, howe...Dinoflagellata
(Encyclopedia)dinoflagellata dīˌnōflăjˌəlätˈə, –lāˈtə [key], phylum (division) of unicellular, mostly marine algae, called dinoflagellates. In some classification systems this division is called Pyrrh...mushroom
(Encyclopedia) CE5 The poisonous mushroom Amanita mushroom, type of basidium fungus characterized by spore-bearing gills on the underside of the umbrella- or cone-shaped cap. The name toadstool is popularly rese...Pygmy
(Encyclopedia)Pygmy or Pigmy both: pĭgˈmē [key], term used for dark-skinned people who live in equatorial rain forests and average less than 59 in. (150 cm) in height. Some studies make a distinction between Neg...epidemic
(Encyclopedia)epidemic, outbreak of disease that affects a much greater number of people than is usual for the locality or that spreads to regions where it is ordinarily not present. A disease that tends to be rest...panda
(Encyclopedia)panda, name for two unrelated nocturnal Asian mammals of the order Carnivora, red pandas, genus Ailurus, and the giant panda, Ailuropoda melanoleuca. Red pandas, also known as lesser pandas and cat be...Browse by Subject
- Earth and the Environment +-
- History +-
- Literature and the Arts +-
- Medicine +-
- People +-
- Philosophy and Religion +-
-
Places
+-
- Africa
- Asia
- Australia and Oceania
- Britain, Ireland, France, and the Low Countries
- Commonwealth of Independent States and the Baltic Nations
- Germany, Scandinavia, and Central Europe
- Latin America and the Caribbean
- Oceans, Continents, and Polar Regions
- Spain, Portugal, Italy, Greece, and the Balkans
- United States, Canada, and Greenland
- Plants and Animals +-
- Science and Technology +-
- Social Sciences and the Law +-
- Sports and Everyday Life +-