Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

500 results found

windmill

(Encyclopedia)windmill, apparatus that harnesses wind power for a variety of uses, e.g., pumping water, grinding corn, driving small sawmills, and driving electrical generators. Windmills were probably not known in...

Pufendorf, Samuel, Baron von

(Encyclopedia)Pufendorf, Samuel, Baron von zäˈmo͞oĕl bärônˈ fən po͞oˈfəndôrf [key], 1632–94, German jurist and historian. He is especially noted as an early theorist of international law. Educated in ...

hydraulic machine

(Encyclopedia)CE5 Hydraulic pressure: In any hydraulic device the pressure exerted by one piston is transmitted throughout the fluid. Since pressure equals force divided by area, a small force (F1) exerted on a ...

Ebetsu

(Encyclopedia)Ebetsu ābāˈtso͞o [key], city, Hokkaido prefecture, central Hokkaido, Japan. It is an indu...

Gatineau, river, Canada

(Encyclopedia)Gatineau gătˈĭnō [key], river, c.240 mi (390 km) long, rising in the Laurentians, SW Que., Canada, and flowing S to the Ottawa River at Gatineau. There are several rapids with hydroelectric power ...

jeep

(Encyclopedia)jeep, small, durable automotive vehicle intended for heavy-duty applications and sometimes provided with the capability of delivering driving power to all four wheels. The last feature allows superior...

Awe, Loch

(Encyclopedia)Awe, Loch lŏkh ô [key], lake, 25 mi (40 km) long, Argyll and Bute, W Scotland; 118 ft (36 m) above sea level. The hydroelectric power facility at Cruachan (completed 1967) has a 400,000-kW capacity....

Parker Dam

(Encyclopedia)Parker Dam, at the Ariz.–Calif. line, on the Colorado River; completed 1938. It is 320 ft (98 m) high and 856 ft (261 m) long. The dam impounds water for Los Angeles and other coastal cities, has a ...

Peribonca

(Encyclopedia)Peribonca pĕrĭbŏngˈkə [key], river, c.280 mi (450 km) long, rising in the Otish Mts., central Que., Canada, and flowing S through Peribonca Lake to Lake St. John. It is an important source of hyd...

Saco, river, United States

(Encyclopedia)Saco, river, c.105 mi (170 km) long, rising in the White Mts., N central N.H. and flowing SE through Maine to the Atlantic Ocean below Biddeford. The falls at Biddeford, site of a hydroelectric dam (o...