Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

500 results found

Florida International University

(Encyclopedia)Florida International University, primarily at University Park, Miami; coeducational; chartered 1965, opened 1972. A research university, it has 18 colleges and schools and many specialized centers an...

American International Group

(Encyclopedia)American International Group (AIG), American multinational insurance corporation whose potential bankruptcy in 2008 led to the largest federal bailout of a private company. AIG was founded as American...

Centennial Exhibition, International

(Encyclopedia)Centennial Exhibition, International, held in Philadelphia from May to Nov., 1876, to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. The buildings, in Fairmount Park, included the...

expert system

(Encyclopedia)expert system, a computer system or program that uses artificial intelligence techniques to solve problems that ordinarily require a knowledgeable human. The method used to construct such systems, kno...

shellac

(Encyclopedia)shellac, solution of lac in alcohol or acetone. In commerce the name is applied to the resinous substance (lac) itself rather than to the solution. It ranges in color from orange to light yellow depen...

Michel, Hartmut

(Encyclopedia)Michel, Hartmut mĭkhˈəl [key], 1948–, German biochemist, Ph.D. Univ. of Würzburg, 1977. Michel was the first person to reduce a photosynthetic action center, which is a four-protein complex, to ...

calorie

(Encyclopedia)calorie, abbr. cal, unit of heat energy in the metric system. The measurement of heat is called calorimetry. The calorie, or gram calorie, is the quantity of heat required to raise the temperature of ...

Stanley, William Meredith

(Encyclopedia)Stanley, William Meredith, 1904–71, American biochemist, b. Ridgeville, Ind., Ph.D. Univ. of Illinois, 1929. He was a professor at the Rockefeller Institute for Medical Research (now Rockefeller Uni...

Takamine, Jokichi

(Encyclopedia)Takamine, Jokichi jōˈkēchē täkäˈmĭnāˌ [key], 1854–1922, Japanese chemist. He served (1881–84) as chemist in the employ of the Japanese government and (1887) organized a fertilizer manufa...

fulminate

(Encyclopedia)fulminate fŭlˈmĭnāt [key], any salt of fulminic acid, HONC, a highly unstable compound known only in solution. The term is most commonly applied to the explosive mercury (II) fulminate, also calle...