Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

458 results found

plate tectonics

(Encyclopedia)CE5 Plate tectonics: Map of the world showing major plates and plate boundaries CE5 Plate tectonics: Schematic model of the oceanic crust, showing the three types of plate boundaries plate tect...

astronomy

(Encyclopedia)astronomy, branch of science that studies the motions and natures of celestial bodies, such as planets, stars, and galaxies; more generally, the study of matter and energy in the universe at large. ...

dark matter

(Encyclopedia)dark matter, material that is believed to make up nearly 27% of the mass of the universe but is not readily visible because it neither emits nor reflects electromagnetic radiation, such as light or ra...

chemical industry

(Encyclopedia)chemical industry, the business of using chemical reactions to turn raw materials, such as coal, oil, and salt, into a variety of products. During the 19th and 20th cent. technological advances in the...

Fitzgerald, F. Scott

(Encyclopedia)Fitzgerald, F. Scott (Francis Scott Key Fitzgerald), 1896–1940, American novelist and short-story writer, b. St. Paul, Minn. He is ranked among the great American writers of the 20th cent. Fitzgeral...

pantheism

(Encyclopedia)pantheism pănˈthēĭzəm [key] [Gr. pan=all, theos=God], name used to denote any system of belief or speculation that includes the teaching “God is all, and all is God.” Pantheism, in other word...

Buddha

(Encyclopedia)Buddha bo͞oˈdə, bo͝o– [key] [Skt.,=the enlightened One], usual title given to the founder of Buddhism. He is also called the Tathagata [he who has come thus], Bhagavat [the Lord], and Sugata [we...

states of matter

(Encyclopedia)states of matter, forms of matter differing in several properties because of differences in the motions and forces of the molecules (or atoms, ions, or elementary particles) of which they are composed...

television

(Encyclopedia)CE5 Video transmission and reception of color and black-and-white television: The camera lens focuses collected light rays into mirrors, which separate the image into its three primary color compon...

internal-combustion engine

(Encyclopedia)CE5 Internal-combustion engines: In the four-stroke reciprocating engine (above), a mixture of fuel and air is taken into the chamber on the down-stroke of the piston, is compressed on the up-strok...

Browse by Subject