Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

217 results found

Polke, Sigmar

(Encyclopedia)Polke, Sigmar, 1941–2011, innovative German artist best known for his paintings and photography. His family immigrated from East to West Germany in 1953, and he lived in Düsseldorf, studying (1961�...

Tàpies, Antoni

(Encyclopedia)Tàpies, Antoni (Antoni Tàpies Puig) äntōˈnē täˈpēĕs pwēg [key], 1923–2012, Catalan artist. Largely self-taught, he became a painter after first studying law. His earliest works were inven...

twilight

(Encyclopedia)twilight, period between sunset and total darkness or between total darkness and sunrise. Total darkness does not occur immediately when the sun sinks below the horizon because light from the sun that...

trachea

(Encyclopedia)trachea trāˈkēə [key] or windpipe, principal tube that carries air to and from the lungs. It is about 41⁄2 in. (11.4 cm) long and about 3⁄4 in. (1.9 cm) in diameter in the adult. It extends fr...

zodiacal light

(Encyclopedia)zodiacal light or zodiacal band, a faint band of light sometimes seen in the western sky just after sunset in the spring, extending up from the horizon at the point where the sun has just set, or in t...

Polaris

(Encyclopedia)Polaris pōlârˈĭs [key] or North Star, star nearest the north celestial pole (see equatorial coordinate system). It is in the constellation Ursa Minor (see Ursa Major and Ursa Minor; Bayer designat...

Beyoncé

(Encyclopedia)Beyoncé, 1981- , American popular singer, songwriter, and actress, b. Beyoncé Giselle Knowles, Houston, Tx. Beyoncé first gained fame as the lead si...

ultraviolet astronomy

(Encyclopedia)ultraviolet astronomy, study of celestial objects by means of the ultraviolet radiation they emit, in the wavelength range from about 90 to about 350 nanometers. Ultraviolet (UV) line spectrum measure...

combine

(Encyclopedia)combine kŏmˈbīn [key], agricultural machine that performs both harvesting and threshing operations. Although it was not widely used until the 1930s, the combine was in existence as early as 1830. E...

coccidioidomycosis

(Encyclopedia)coccidioidomycosis kŏksĭdˌēoiˌdōmīkōˈsĭs [key], systemic fungus disease (see fungal infection) endemic to arid regions of the Americas, contracted by inhaling dust containing spores of the f...