Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

332 results found

Kawasaki disease

(Encyclopedia)Kawasaki disease or Kawasaki syndrome, acute illness characterized by inflammation of the blood vessels that primarily affects young children; it is more common in boys and children of Asian descent. ...

Kenya

(Encyclopedia)CE5 Kenya kĕnˈyə, kēnˈ– [key], officially Republic of Kenya, republic (2015 est. pop. 47,236,000), 224,960 sq mi (582,646 sq km), E Africa. Kenya is bordered by Somalia on the east, the Indi...

states' rights

(Encyclopedia)states' rights, in U.S. history, doctrine based on the Tenth Amendment to the Constitution, which states, “The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to ...

Stendhal

(Encyclopedia)Stendhal märē äNrēˈ bĕl [key], 1783–1842, French writer, recognized as one of the great French novelists. He grew up in Grenoble hating his father and the Jesuit, Royalist atmosphere in his ho...

stock exchange

(Encyclopedia)stock exchange, organized market for the trading of stocks and bonds (see bond; stock). Such markets were originally open to all, but at present only members of the owning association may buy and sell...

streptococcus

(Encyclopedia)streptococcus strĕpˌtəkŏkˈəs [key], any of a group of gram-positive bacteria, genus Streptococcus, some of which cause disease. Streptococci are spherical and divide by fission, but they remain ...

sty

(Encyclopedia)sty, in medicine, acute localized infection of one or more of the glands of the eyelid, with pain, swelling, and redness of the lid margin, usually caused by a staphylococcus infection. An external st...

supercomputer

(Encyclopedia)supercomputer, a state-of-the-art, extremely powerful computer capable of manipulating massive amounts of data in a relatively short time. Supercomputers are very expensive and are employed for specia...

Supreme Court, United States

(Encyclopedia)CE5 Supreme Court, United States, highest court of the United States, established by Article 3 of the Constitution of the United States. With the emergence of a working conservative majority,...

Switzerland

(Encyclopedia)CE5 Switzerland swĭtˈsərlənd [key], Fr. Suisse, Ger. Schweiz, Ital. Svizzera, officially Swiss Confederation, federal republic (2015 est. pop. 8,320,000), 15,941 sq mi (41,287 sq km), central E...