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Comte, Auguste

(Encyclopedia)Comte, Auguste ōgüstˈ kôNt [key], 1798–1857, French philosopher, founder of the school of philosophy known as positivism, educated in Paris. From 1818 to 1824 he contributed to the publications ...

Wells, H. G.

(Encyclopedia)Wells, H. G. (Herbert George Wells), 1866–1946, English author. Although he is probably best remembered for his works of science fiction, he was also an imaginative social thinker, working assiduous...

Spencer, Herbert

(Encyclopedia)Spencer, Herbert, 1820–1903, English philosopher, b. Derby. In 1848 he moved to London, where he was an editor at The Economist and wrote his first major book, Social Statics (1851), which tried to ...

philosophy of science

(Encyclopedia)philosophy of science, branch of philosophy that emerged as an autonomous discipline in the 19th cent., especially through the work of Auguste Comte, J. S. Mill, and William Whewell. Several of the is...

ground squirrel

(Encyclopedia)ground squirrel, name applied to certain terrestrial rodents of the squirrel family. In North America the name refers to members of the genus Citellus and sometimes to the closely related genera Tamia...

Lamarck, Jean Baptiste Pierre Antoine de Monet, chevalier de

(Encyclopedia)Lamarck, Jean Baptiste Pierre Antoine de Monet, chevalier de zhäN bätēstˈ pyĕr äNtwänˈdə mônāˈ, shəvälyāˈ də lämärkˈ [key], 1744–1829, French naturalist. He is noted for his stud...

Pauling, Linus Carl

(Encyclopedia)Pauling, Linus Carl pôˈlĭng [key], 1901–94, American chemist, b. Portland, Oreg. He was one of the few recipients of two Nobel Prizes, winning the chemistry award in 1954 and the peace prize in 1...

aging

(Encyclopedia)aging, in biology, cumulative changes in an organism, organ, tissue, or cell leading to a decrease in functional capacity. In humans, aging is associated with degenerative changes in the skin, bones, ...

symmetry

(Encyclopedia)symmetry, generally speaking, a balance or correspondence between various parts of an object; the term symmetry is used both in the arts and in the sciences. In art and design, it is often used in a s...

multiple birth

(Encyclopedia)multiple birth, bringing forth of more than one offspring at birth. Although many smaller mammals bear several young at a time, multiple births are relatively uncommon in humans and other primates. Tw...