Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

500 results found

New Castle

(Encyclopedia)New Castle. 1 City (1990 pop. 4,837), New Castle co., N Del., on the Delaware River. Mineral, metal, food, paper, and gypsum products are among its varied manufactures. It is also a major book distrib...

reed instrument

(Encyclopedia)reed instrument, in music, an instrument whose sound-producing agent is a thin strip of cane, wood, plastic, or metal that vibrates as air is passed over it. The predecessor of these instruments is th...

niobium

(Encyclopedia)niobium nīōˈbēəm [key], metallic chemical element; symbol Nb; at. no. 41; at. wt. 92.90638; m.p. about 2,468℃; b.p. 4,742℃; sp. gr. 8.57 at 20℃; valence +2, +3, +4, or +5. Niobium is a rare...

nonmetal

(Encyclopedia)nonmetal, chemical element possessing certain properties by which it is distinguished from a metal. In general, this distinction is drawn on the basis that a nonmetal tends to accept electrons and for...

Vancouver, city, United States

(Encyclopedia)Vancouver, city (1990 pop. 46,380), seat of Clark co., SW Wash., on the Columbia River opposite Portland, Oreg., with which it is connected by bridges; inc. 1857. A rapidly growing suburb of Portland ...

thorium

(Encyclopedia)thorium thôrˈēəm [key] [from Thor], radioactive chemical element; symbol Th; at. no. 90; mass number of most stable isotope 232; m.p. about 1,750℃; b.p. about 4,790℃; sp. gr. 11.7 at 20℃; va...

lathe

(Encyclopedia)lathe lāᵺ [key], machine tool for holding and turning metal, wood, plastic, or other material against a cutting tool to form a cylindrical product or part. It also drills, bores, polishes, grinds, ...

Kearny

(Encyclopedia)Kearny kärˈnē [key], town (1990 pop. 34,874), Hudson co., NE N.J.; inc. 1899. The town was formerly the site of textile mills that dated to the late 1800s and shipyards and dry docks that were of g...

Landskrona

(Encyclopedia)Landskrona länskro͞oˈnä [key], city (1990 pop. 26,600), Malmöhus co., SW Sweden, a seaport on the Øresund. It is a commercial and industrial center. Manufactures include metal products, ships, l...

Malden

(Encyclopedia)Malden môlˈdən [key], city (1990 pop. 53,884), Middlesex co., E Mass., a suburb of Boston, in the Mystic valley; settled 1640, inc. 1882. Among its varied manufactures are electronic parts, metal c...