Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

500 results found

Chrysophyta

(Encyclopedia)Chrysophyta krəsŏfˈətə [key], phylum (division) of unicellular marine or freshwater organisms of the kingdom Protista consisting of the diatoms (class Bacillariophyceae), the golden, or golden-br...

Chern, Shiing-Shen

(Encyclopedia)Chern, Shiing-Shen, 1911–2004, Chinese-American mathematician, b. Kashing (now Jiaxing), China, D.Sc. Hamburg, 1936. While undertaking graduate studies in China (1932–34), Chern developed what bec...

Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change

(Encyclopedia)Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), scientific panel created (1988) by two United Nations organizations, the UN Environment Program and the World Meteorological Organization. Open to all...

Holyfield, Evander

(Encyclopedia)Holyfield, Evander, 1962–, American boxer, b. Atmore, Ala. Favored to win the 1984 Olympic heavyweight title, but victim of a controversial disqualification, he turned professional and became cruise...

Kaelin, William George, Jr.

(Encyclopedia)Kaelin, William George, Jr., 1957–, American oncologist, b. New York City, M.D. Duke Univ., 1982. He has spent his entire career at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, Mass., and also is a pro...

Montagnier, Luc Antoine

(Encyclopedia)Montagnier, Luc Antoine, 1932–, French virologist, M.D. Sorbonne, 1960. Montagnier was a researcher at the Medical Research Council at Carshalton, London (1960–63), the Institute of Virology in Gl...

Monticello

(Encyclopedia)Monticello mŏnˌtĭsĕlˈō, –chĕlˈō [key] [Ital.,=little mountain], estate, 640 acres (259 hectares), central Va., near Charlottesville; home of Thomas Jefferson for 56 years. The mansion, whic...

National Museum of the American Indian

(Encyclopedia)National Museum of the American Indian, institution devoted to the collection, preservation, and presentation of the culture of the indigenous populations of the Western Hemisphere, a division of the ...

Manco Capac, legendary founder of the Inca dynasty of Peru

(Encyclopedia)Manco Capac mängˈkō käpäkˈ [key], legendary founder of the Inca dynasty of Peru. According to the most frequently told story, four brothers, Manco Capac, Ayar Anca, Ayar Cachi, and Ayar Uchu, an...

Millennium Technology Prize

(Encyclopedia)Millennium Technology Prize, biennial award for innovations in technology, est. 2002 in Finland and bestowed by the Millennium Prize Foundation, an independent fund founded by members of Finnish indus...