Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

165 results found

Ontario, province, Canada

(Encyclopedia)CE5 Ontario ŏntârˈēō [key], province (2001 pop. 11,410,046), 412,582 sq mi (1,068,587 sq km), E central Canada. Before the arrival of Europeans the Ontario region was inhabited by several Al...

poll

(Encyclopedia)poll, technique for ascertaining the attitudes or opinions of the total, or some segment of the total, population on given questions, usually on political, economic, and social conditions. Sampling ...

Shaw, George Bernard

(Encyclopedia)Shaw, George Bernard, 1856–1950, Irish playwright and critic. He revolutionized the Victorian stage, then dominated by artificial melodramas, by presenting vigorous dramas of ideas. The lengthy pref...

encyclopedia

(Encyclopedia)encyclopedia, compendium of knowledge, either general (attempting to cover all fields) or specialized (aiming to be comprehensive in a particular field). The modern type of encyclopedia—with alpha...

Dreyfus Affair

(Encyclopedia)Dreyfus Affair drāˈfəs, drī– [key], the controversy that occurred with the treason conviction (1894) of Capt. Alfred Dreyfus (1859–1935), a French artillery officer and graduate of the French ...

directing

(Encyclopedia)directing, the art of leading dramatic performances on the stage or in films. The modern theatrical director is in complete charge of all the artistic aspects of a dramatic presentation. It is the dir...

chemical warfare

(Encyclopedia)chemical warfare, employment in war of incendiaries, poison gases, and other chemical substances. Ancient armies attacking or defending fortified cities threw burning oil and fireballs. A primitive ty...

garden

(Encyclopedia)garden, land set aside for the cultivation of flowers, herbs, vegetables, or small fruits, for either utility or ornament. Gardens range in size from window boxes and small dooryard plots to the publi...

Episcopal Church

(Encyclopedia)Episcopal Church, Anglican church of the United States. Its separate existence as an American ecclesiastical body with its own episcopate began in 1789. During the American Revolution the personal l...

drugs

(Encyclopedia)drugs, substances used in medicine either externally or internally for curing, alleviating, or preventing a disease or deficiency. At the turn of the century only a few medically effective substances ...

Browse by Subject