Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

339 results found

concrete

(Encyclopedia)concrete, structural masonry material made by mixing broken stone or gravel with sand, cement, and water and allowing the mixture to harden into a solid mass. The cement is the chemically active eleme...

chemical industry

(Encyclopedia)chemical industry, the business of using chemical reactions to turn raw materials, such as coal, oil, and salt, into a variety of products. During the 19th and 20th cent. technological advances in the...

tomb

(Encyclopedia)tomb, vault or chamber constructed either partly or entirely above ground as a place of interment. Although it is often used as a synonym for grave, the word is derived from the Greek tymbos [burial g...

bridge, card game

(Encyclopedia)bridge, card game derived from whist, played with 52 cards by four players in two partnerships. Bridge probably originated in the Middle East in the 19th cent. Auction bridge, one form of the game, ...

menopause

(Encyclopedia)menopause klīmăkˈtərĭk, klīˌmăktĕrˈĭk [key], transitional phase in a woman's life when the ovaries stop releasing eggs, ovarian production of estrogen and other hormones tapers off, and men...

Manchester, city, England

(Encyclopedia)Manchester mănˈchəstər, –chĕsˌtər [key], city and metropolitan borough (1991 pop. 397,400), NW England, a port on the Irwell, Medlock, Irk, and Tib rivers. Manchester remains the center of th...

anarchism

(Encyclopedia)anarchism ănˈərkĭzəm [key] [Gr.,=having no government], theory that equality and justice are to be sought through the abolition of the state and the substitution of free agreements between indivi...

communication

(Encyclopedia)communication, transfer of information, such as thoughts and messages, as contrasted with transportation, the transfer of goods and persons (see information theory). The basic forms of communication a...

radar

(Encyclopedia)radar, system or technique for detecting the position, movement, and nature of a remote object by means of radio waves reflected from its surface. Although most radar units use microwave frequencies, ...

wood

(Encyclopedia)CE5 Wood A. Cross section of a woody stem B. Enlarged view, showing xylem, phloem, and cambium wood, botanically, the xylem tissue that forms the bulk of the stem of a woody plant. Xylem conducts ...