Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

500 results found

pneumothorax

(Encyclopedia)pneumothorax no͞omōthôrˈăks [key], collapse of a lung with escape of air into the pleural cavity between the lung and the chest wall. The cause may be traumatic (e.g., gunshot or stab wound), spo...

preventive medicine

(Encyclopedia)preventive medicine, branch of medicine dealing with the prevention of disease and the maintenance of good health practices. Until recently preventive medicine was largely the domain of the U.S. Publi...

Prince William Sound

(Encyclopedia)Prince William Sound, large, irregular, islanded inlet of the Gulf of Alaska, S Alaska, E of the Kenai peninsula. It has many bays and good harbors; the large Columbia Glacier flows into Columbia Bay,...

Newman, Arnold Abner

(Encyclopedia)Newman, Arnold Abner, 1918–2006, American portrait photographer, b. New York City. He is known for his “environmental portraiture,” photographs that capture their sitters in characteristic setti...

United Nations Children's Fund

(Encyclopedia)United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), a specialized fund of the United Nations. It was established in 1946 as the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund, and became a permanent part...

Carey, George Leonard

(Encyclopedia)Carey, George Leonard, 1935–, archbishop of Canterbury (1991–2002). From a working-class background, he graduated from the London School of Divinity in 1962 and was ordained the same year. Carey w...

Monaco

(Encyclopedia)CE5 Monaco mŏnˈəkō, mōnäˈkō, Fr. mônäkōˈ [key], officially Principality of Monaco, independent principality (2015 est. pop. 38,000), c.370 acres (150 hectares), on the Mediterranean Sea...

amethyst

(Encyclopedia)amethyst ămˈəthĭst [key] [Gr.,=non-drunkenness], variety of quartz, violet to purple in color, used as a gem. It is the most highly valued of the semiprecious quartzes. It is associated with a num...

portcullis

(Encyclopedia)portcullis pôrtkŭlˈĭs [key], grating or framework of strong bars of wood or iron, sharp-pointed at their lower ends, sliding vertically in the grooved jambs of a fortified portal as a protection i...

Uman

(Encyclopedia)Uman o͞omänˈ [key], city (1989 pop. 91,000), central Ukraine, at the confluence of the Kamenka and Umanka rivers. It is a rail junction and has plants producing scientific instruments. Mentioned in...