Columbia Encyclopedia

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raft

(Encyclopedia)raft, floating platform of wood, cork, or air-inflated rubber for conveying goods or people. Originally, several logs, bound together by vines, strips of animal skin, and later rope, formed a flat sur...

abalone

(Encyclopedia)abalone ăbəlōˈnē [key], popular name in the United States for a univalve gastropod mollusk of the genus Haliotis, members of which are also called ear shells, or sea ears, as their shape resemble...

armadillo

(Encyclopedia)armadillo ärˌmədĭlˈō [key], New World armored mammal of the order Edentata, a group that also includes the sloth and the anteater, characterized by peglike teeth without roots or enamel. Armadil...

zodiac

(Encyclopedia)CE5 Signs of the zodiac CEE zodiac zōˈdēăk [key] [Gr. zoion=animal], in astronomy, zone of the sky that includes about 8° on either side of the ecliptic. The apparent paths of the sun, the...

Tantra

(Encyclopedia)Tantra tŭnˈtrə [key], in both Hinduism and Buddhism, esoteric tradition of ritual and yoga known for elaborate use of mantra, or symbolic speech, and mandala, or symbolic diagrams; the importance o...

Orwell, George

(Encyclopedia)Orwell, George, pseud. of Eric Arthur Blair, 1903–50, British novelist and essayist, b. Bengal, India. He is best remembered for his scathingly satirical and frighteningly political novels, Animal F...

otter

(Encyclopedia)otter, name for a number of aquatic, carnivorous mammals of the weasel family, found on all continents except Australia. The common river otters of Eurasia and the Americas are species of the genus Lu...

Dalmatian

(Encyclopedia)Dalmatian dălmāˈshən [key], breed of hardy, strong-bodied nonsporting dog probably developed in the Austrian province of Dalmatia (now Croatia) several hundred years ago. It stands from 19 to 23 i...

croton, in botany

(Encyclopedia)croton krōˈtən [key], any of several species of Codiaeum that are widely cultivated as ornamentals and houseplants. The most popular species is C. variegatum, which has many cultivated forms of hig...

cordage

(Encyclopedia)cordage kôrˈdĭj [key], collective name for rope and other flexible lines. It is used for such purposes as wrapping, hauling, lifting, and power transmission. Early man used strips of hide, animal h...