Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

500 results found

syllogism

(Encyclopedia)CE5 Categorical syllogism: Venn diagram syllogism, a mode of argument that forms the core of the body of Western logical thought. Aristotle defined syllogistic logic, and his formulations were tho...

del Toro, Guillermo

(Encyclopedia)del Toro, Guillermo (Guillermo del Toro Gómez), 1964–, Mexican film director, screenwriter, and producer. He worked in special effects and makeup before becoming a writer and director. Del Toro has...

Saint-Exupéry, Antoine de

(Encyclopedia)Saint-Exupéry, Antoine de (Antoine-Marie-Roger de Saint-Exupéry) äNtwänˈ-märēˈ-rôzhāˈ də săNtĕgzüpārēˈ [key], 1900–1944, French aviator and writer. He became a commercial pilot and...

barbiturate

(Encyclopedia)barbiturate bärbĭchˈərātˌ [key], any one of a group of drugs that act as depressants on the central nervous system. High doses depress both nerve and muscle activity and inhibit oxygen consumpti...

Cort, Henry

(Encyclopedia)Cort, Henry, 1740–1800, English inventor. He revolutionized the British iron industry with his use of grooved rollers to finish iron, replacing the process of hammering, and through his invention of...

belief

(Encyclopedia)belief, in philosophy, commitment to something, involving intellectual assent. Philosophers have disagreed as to whether belief is active or passive; René Descartes held that it is a matter of will, ...

Rosenberg, Isaac

(Encyclopedia)Rosenberg, Isaac, 1890–1918, English poet, b. Bristol. He studied painting at the Slade School (1911–14) and had an exhibition of his work at the Whitechapel Gallery. Although he wrote on other to...

Hutcheson, Francis

(Encyclopedia)Hutcheson, Francis hŭchˈəsən [key], 1694–1746, British philosopher, b. Co. Down, Ireland. He was a professor at the Univ. of Glasgow from 1729 until his death. His reputation rests on four essay...

covenant

(Encyclopedia)covenant kŭvˈənənt [key], agreement entered into voluntarily by two or more parties to do or refrain from doing certain acts. In the Bible and in theology the covenant is the agreement or engageme...

Spallanzani, Lazzaro

(Encyclopedia)Spallanzani, Lazzaro lädˈdzärō späl-läntsäˈnē [key], 1729–99, Italian naturalist. He was professor at the universities of Modena (1763–69) and Pavia (from 1769). Spallanzani studied regen...