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metal

(Encyclopedia)metal, chemical element displaying certain properties by which it is normally distinguished from a nonmetal, notably its metallic luster, the capacity to lose electrons and form a positive ion, and th...

Goethe, Johann Wolfgang von

(Encyclopedia)Goethe, Johann Wolfgang von yōˈhän vôlfˈgäng fən göˈtə [key], 1749–1832, German poet, dramatist, novelist, and scientist, b. Frankfurt. One of the great masters of world literature, his ge...

Cnidaria

(Encyclopedia)CE5 Internal anatomy of Hydra, representative of the phylum Cnidaria Cnidaria səlĕntəräˈtə [key], phylum of invertebrate animals comprising the sea anemones, corals, jellyfish, and hydroids....

coenzyme

(Encyclopedia)coenzyme kō-ĕnˈzīm [key], any one of a group of relatively small organic molecules required for the catalytic function of certain enzymes. A coenzyme may either be attached by covalent bonds to a ...

Native American languages

(Encyclopedia)Native American languages, languages of the native peoples of the Western Hemisphere and their descendants. A number of the Native American languages that were spoken at the time of the European arriv...

archaeology

(Encyclopedia)archaeology ärkēŏlˈəjē [key] [Gr.,=study of beginnings], a branch of anthropology that seeks to document and explain continuity and change and similarities and differences among human cultures. ...

genetics

(Encyclopedia)genetics, scientific study of the mechanism of heredity. While Gregor Mendel first presented his findings on the statistical laws governing the transmission of certain traits from generation to genera...

Americas, antiquity and prehistory of the

(Encyclopedia)Americas, antiquity and prehistory of the, study of the origins of the aboriginal peoples of the Americas. Archaeologists believe humans had entered and occupied much of the Americas by the end of the...

colleges and universities

(Encyclopedia)colleges and universities, institutions of higher education. Universities differ from colleges in that they are larger, have wider curricula, are involved in research activities, and grant graduate an...

African languages

(Encyclopedia)African languages, geographic rather than linguistic classification of languages spoken on the African continent. Historically the term refers to the languages of sub-Saharan Africa, which do not belo...