Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

500 results found

Manizales

(Encyclopedia)Manizales mänēsäˈlās [key], city (1993 pop. 303,136), alt. 7,063 ft (2,153 m), capital of Caldas dept., W central Colombia, on the slopes of the Cordillera Central. It is a commercial and agricul...

Midas

(Encyclopedia)Midas mīˈdəs [key], in Greek mythology, king of Phrygia. Because he befriended Silenus, the oldest of the satyrs, Dionysus granted him the power to turn everything into gold by touch. But when even...

amalgam

(Encyclopedia)amalgam əmălˈgəm [key], alloy containing mercury. The alloy may be liquid or solid, depending on the proportion of mercury, although all naturally occurring amalgams, i.e., those of gold and silve...

Kahanamoku, Duke

(Encyclopedia)Kahanamoku, Duke, 1890–1968, American swimmer and surfer, b. Honolulu. A native Hawaiian, he was an excellent swimmer, surfer, and canoeist, and by 1911 he was setting Amateur Athletic Union swimmin...

Spitz, Mark Andrew

(Encyclopedia)Spitz, Mark Andrew, 1950–, American swimmer, b. Modesto, Calif. He held records for winning the most gold medals at one Olympic game (seven, in 1972 at Munich) and shared the record for most Olympic...

Morgenthau, Henry, Jr.

(Encyclopedia)Morgenthau, Henry, Jr., 1891–1967, American cabinet officer, b. New York City; son of Henry Morgenthau. He became interested in agriculture and bought a farm in Dutchess co., N.Y., where he became a...

track and field athletics

(Encyclopedia)track and field athletics or athletics, sports of foot racing, hurdling, jumping, vaulting, and throwing varied weights and objects. They are usually separated into two categories: track, the running ...

barcode

(Encyclopedia)CE5 Barcode barcode, computer coding system that uses a printed pattern of lines and bars to identify such things as products, mail and packages, and customer accounts; the term also is used for s...

Nurmi, Paavo

(Encyclopedia)Nurmi, Paavo päˈvō no͝orˈmē [key], 1897–1973, Finnish track star. Between 1920 and 1932 he set 20 world running records and won nine Olympic gold medals. His Olympic victories included the 10,...

Helper, Hinton Rowan

(Encyclopedia)Helper, Hinton Rowan, 1829–1909, American writer, b. Davie co., N.C. He was in California during the gold rush and later returned east to write The Land of Gold (1855). His next book, The Impending ...