Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

500 results found

D

(Encyclopedia)D, fourth letter of the alphabet. It corresponds to the Greek delta. It is a usual symbol for a voiced dental or, as in English, alveolar stop. The capital represents in musical notation a note in the...

Burhanpur

(Encyclopedia)Burhanpur bûrˈhänpo͞orˌ [key], city, Madhya Pradesh state, W central India, on the Tapi River. The ...

Hauer, Josef Matthias

(Encyclopedia)Hauer, Josef Matthias yōˈzĕf mätēäs houˈər [key], 1883–1959, Austrian music theorist and composer. Primarily self-taught, Hauer devised a method of atonal composition that used the 12 tones ...

die-casting

(Encyclopedia)die-casting, process by which molten metal is forced by a plunger or compressed air into a metallic die and the pressure maintained until the metal has solidified. Die castings are accurate, are sharp...

Brennus, fl. c.389 b.c., legendary Gallic leader

(Encyclopedia)Brennus, fl. c.389 b.c., legendary Gallic leader. He occupied Rome but failed to take the Capitol from Manlius (Marcus Manlius Capitolinus). According to legend, when the tribute that the Romans had a...

hardness

(Encyclopedia)hardness, property of matter commonly described as the resistance of a substance to being scratched by another substance. The degree of hardness is relative, different substances being compared with o...

Li T'ang

(Encyclopedia)Li T'ang lē täng [key], c.1050–1130, Chinese painter of the Sung dynasty. A leader of the academy founded by the Emperor Hui-tsung, he established a mode of painting that was widely followed in su...

aquaponics

(Encyclopedia)aquaponics, the growing of plants and the raising of fish by combining aquaculture with the techniques of hydroponics, usually on a small scale. Water containing fish waste matter is used as the nutri...

di Suvero, Mark

(Encyclopedia)di Suvero, Mark dē so͞oˈvərō [key], 1933–, American sculptor, b. Shanghai. Di Suvero's major works are constructions of massize pieces of steel, huge weathered timbers, tires, chains, and rope....

tree surgery

(Encyclopedia)tree surgery, practice of repairing damaged trees to restore their appearance and to arrest disease. Injured or diseased parts are first removed (even small cavities in the bark may harbor injurious f...