Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

500 results found

Braid, James

(Encyclopedia)Braid, James, 1795?–1860, English surgeon and writer on hypnotism and magic. The first to use the term hypnotism instead of mesmerism or animal magnetism, he also demonstrated that it was achieved b...

Hassel, Odd

(Encyclopedia)Hassel, Odd ôd häsˈəl [key], 1897–1981, Norwegian chemist, b. Christiania (now Oslo), grad. Oslo Univ. (1920), Ph.D. Univ. of Berlin (1924). After pursuing X-ray crystallographic studies in Germ...

galaxy

(Encyclopedia)CE5 Hubble classification of galaxies: Elliptical galaxies (E) are classified according to the degree of flattening of the ellipse. Spiral galaxies (S) and barred spiral galaxies (SB) are classifie...

Cleopas

(Encyclopedia)Cleopas klēˈōpəs [key], in the New Testament, one of the two who met the risen Jesus on the way to Emmaus. Perhaps the same as Cleophas. ...

Morgarten

(Encyclopedia)Morgarten môrˈgärtən [key], mountain, 4,084 ft (1,245 m) high, N central Switzerland, on the border of Schwyz and Zug cantons. There, on Nov. 15, 1315, a small Swiss force decisively defeated the ...

pastiche

(Encyclopedia)pastiche păstēshˈ, pä– [key], work of art that combines themes and styles from various sources in such a way as to appear obviously derivative. Pastiches are frequently passed off as works by th...

crank

(Encyclopedia)crank, mechanical linkage consisting of a bar attached to a pivot at one of its ends in such a way that it is capable of rotating through a complete circle about the pivot. One of the principal uses o...

Coué, Émile

(Encyclopedia)Coué, Émile āmēlˈ kwā [key], 1857–1926, French psychotherapist. He is remembered for his formula for curing by optimistic autosuggestion, “Day by day, in every way, I am getting better and b...

Indian Removal Act

(Encyclopedia)Indian Removal Act, in U.S. history, law signed by President Andrew Jackson in 1830 providing for the general resettlement of Native Americans to lands W of the Mississippi River. From 1830 to 1840 ap...

Antipatris

(Encyclopedia)Antipatris ăntĭpˈətrĭs [key], city of Roman Palestine, founded by Herod the Great and named after his father. It was c.10 mi (16.1 km) NE of Joppa, on the north-south road. According to the Acts ...

Browse by Subject