Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

500 results found

audiovisual education

(Encyclopedia)audiovisual education, educational instruction by means of materials that use the senses of sight and hearing to stimulate and enrich learning experiences. The successful use of motion pictures and ot...

radio frequency

(Encyclopedia)radio frequency, range of electromagnetic waves with a frequency or wavelength suitable for communication uses. Some of these waves serve as carriers of the lower-frequency audio waves; others are mod...

utility, public

(Encyclopedia)utility, public, industry required by law to render adequate service in its field at reasonable prices to all who apply for it. Public utilities frequently operate as monopolies in their market. In th...

Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation

(Encyclopedia)Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation, commonly known as Freddie Mac, government-sponsored enterprise that uses private capital to buy home mortgages as a means to help lower housing costs. A sister ...

Swiss Federal Institute of Technology

(Encyclopedia)Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, at Zürich, founded 1855 as the Federal Polytechnic Institute, given its current name 1911. It is a science and technology research university with a solid reput...

safety movement

(Encyclopedia)safety movement, widespread effort to prevent accidents that followed the increasing number of casualties in industry, traffic and transportation, and homes arising out of the Industrial Revolution an...

International Trade Commission, United States

(Encyclopedia)International Trade Commission, United States, independent agency of the U.S. government established in 1916 as the Tariff Commission; renamed International Trade Commission in 1975. It is charged wit...

United Nations Atomic Energy Commission

(Encyclopedia)United Nations Atomic Energy Commission: see disarmament, nuclear. ...

Wickersham, George Woodward

(Encyclopedia)Wickersham, George Woodward, 1858–1936, American lawyer and government official, b. Pittsburgh. He began law practice in Philadelphia, and after moving (1882) to New York City, he became a prominent...

telephone

(Encyclopedia)CE5 Hand telephone telephone, device for communicating sound, especially speech, usually by means of wires in an electric circuit. The telephones now in general use evolved from the device invente...