Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

500 results found

Utrillo, Maurice

(Encyclopedia)Utrillo, Maurice o͞otrēˈlō, Fr. mōrēsˈ ütrēlōˈ [key], 1883–1955, French painter. He was the son of the painter Suzanne Valadon and was adopted by the writer Miguel Utrillo. His mother tau...

Leyden jar

(Encyclopedia)Leyden jar līˈdən [key], form of capacitor invented at the Univ. of Leiden in the 18th cent. It consists of a narrow-necked glass jar coated over part of its inner and outer surfaces with conductiv...

ampicillin

(Encyclopedia)ampicillin ămˌpĭsĭlˈĭn [key], a penicillin-type antibiotic that is effective against both gram-negative microorganisms and gram-positive microorganisms such as Escherichia coli. It is often used...

Jehoiada

(Encyclopedia)Jehoiada jēhoiˈədə [key], in the Bible. 1 High priest. He married Jehosheba, a princess of Judah, and together they saved the infant Jehoash. They led the conspiracy against Athaliah that put Jeho...

diverticulosis

(Encyclopedia)diverticulosis, a disorder characterized by the presence of diverticula, which are small, usually multiple saclike protrusions through the wall of the colon (large intestine). Diverticula usually do n...

chyme

(Encyclopedia)chyme kīm [key], semiliquid substance found in the stomach and resulting from the partial digestion of food by the salivary enzyme amylase, the gastric enzyme pepsin, and hydrochloric acid. Secretion...

Berlage, Hendrik Petrus

(Encyclopedia)Berlage, Hendrik Petrus hĕnˈdrək pāˈtrüs berläˈgə [key], 1856–1934, Dutch architect. In both his writings and architectural practice, Berlage advocated a return to simplicity of form and cl...

Moscow, city, Russia

(Encyclopedia)Moscow mŏsˈkou, –kō [key], Rus. Moskva, city (1991 est. pop. 8,802,000), capital of Russia and of Moscow region and the administrative center of the Central federal district, W central European R...

stove

(Encyclopedia)stove, device used for heating or for cooking food. The stove was long regarded as a cooking device supplementary to the fireplace, near which it stood; its stovepipe led into the fireplace chimney. I...

Lane, Franklin Knight

(Encyclopedia)Lane, Franklin Knight, 1864–1921, U.S. Secretary of the Interior (1913–20), b. near Charlottetown, P.E.I., Canada. Raised in California, he later studied law and practiced in San Francisco, where ...

Browse by Subject