Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

500 results found

teleology

(Encyclopedia)teleology tĕlˌēŏlˈəjē, tēˌlē– [key], in philosophy, term applied to any system attempting to explain a series of events in terms of ends, goals, or purposes. It is opposed to mechanism, th...

spark chamber

(Encyclopedia)spark chamber, in physics, device for recording the passage of elementary particles produced by reactions in a particle accelerator. Particles pass through a stack of metal plates or wire grids that a...

Caslon, William

(Encyclopedia)Caslon, William kăzˈlən [key], 1692–1766, English type designer, b. Worcestershire. He worked first in London as an engraver of gunlocks, then set up his own foundry in 1716. The merits of Caslon...

bean

(Encyclopedia)bean, name applied to the seeds of leguminous trees and shrubs and to various leguminous plants of the family Leguminosae (pulse family) with edible seeds or seed pods (legumes). The genera and specie...

biathlon

(Encyclopedia)biathlon bīăthˈlŏn [key], sport in which cross-country skiers race across hilly terrain, occasionally stopping to shoot, prone or standing as required, with rifles at sets of fixed targets. The bi...

adze

(Encyclopedia)adze, tool similar in purpose and use to an axe but with the cutting edge at right angles to the handle rather than aligned with it. The details of construction of a particular adze will depend on its...

Jung, Carl Gustav

(Encyclopedia)Jung, Carl Gustav kärl go͝osˈtäf yo͝ong [key], 1875–1961, Swiss psychiatrist, founder of analytical psychology. The son of a country pastor, he studied at Basel (1895–1900) and Zürich (M.D.,...

Simoïs

(Encyclopedia)Simoïs sĭmˈōĭs [key], small river, NW Turkey, a tributary of the Scamander. It was the scene of many legendary events of Asia Minor, particularly during the siege of Troy. ...

Hart, Doris

(Encyclopedia)Hart, Doris, 1925–2015, American tennis player, b. St. Louis, Mo. One of the outstanding tennis stars of the 1950s, Hart won her first Grand Slam title in women's doubles at Wimbledon in 1947 and fr...

Jashar, Book of

(Encyclopedia)Jashar or Jasher, Book of both: jăshˈər [key], lost Hebrew work, apparently a collection of songs celebrating national events. Fragments appear in the books of Joshua and Second Samuel. ...